Chương 217: Chapter One-Hundred-and-Fifty-Three

< < Now Entering > > < Stage 8 > < Moonport > < 5-day Timer > A tear appeared in the air above the overgrown courtyard of a dilapidated villa. It was like the aftermath of a jagged and dull knife that'd torn its way through fabric. Golden light spilled out from within and Adam stepped through, his Slothling Spring Boots touching down on the soft earth. That's trippy… This is the first cutscene where I've seen myself from a third-person perspective.

Four more figures followed him before the perspective was shifted to his own eyes, for which Adam was grateful. They shared a few quick glances and then followed Adam as he was puppeteered across the courtyard. Their walk was brief, and they passed through the arched opening of a hedge wall before reaching a small wooden dock with a rowboat moored to it. Blue-green water lapped against the shore of the small island they were on, making green and black sea plants and algae wave back and forth.

As Adam lifted his eyes past the boat, he saw a large city floating on the water in the distance. It looks like Venice, he thought as he noticed the white marbled stone, red-brown brickwork and rooftops, the large dome of a church or cathedral, several square towers, and countless boats on the water. Adam was the first to enter the rowboat, but the other four quickly followed. Within moments, two of the Players operated the oars in perfect synchronicity to bring them towards the distant city.

Adam sat in the back with the other two and had a perfect view of their destination and the other Players. Although they were all still in the grips of the lengthy cutscene, they were able to look around, but they couldn't move their heads freely, which was awkward. Adam met each of their eyes in turn. I wish I could hear their melodies, he thought, but the Mandate of Blood wasn't active until their strings were cut. The two working the oars were a man and a woman, and both seemed like trouble.

The man had voluminous side-parted black hair, slightly tan skin, dark star-shaped irises, thick eyebrows, and a chiselled face like that of a European model. Adam couldn't tell where he was from, but he guessed he had a mixed heritage, with a mix of Asian and German genes. He wore the Cloud Skimmer Jacket, normal black dress pants, two First Strike Earrings, Portsmith's Goggles, Skittish Skaters, a Duellist's Glove, and around his right arm he had the Potion Belt with three Stamina potions slotted into it.

He also had some kind of weird mechanism on his left arm, which Adam thought was the grappling hook that Beck had said came from the Cloud Skimmer captain. The man carried a beautifully-crafted rapier with inlaid silver and gold on his hip, and the Outrider sword and shield on his back. The woman had shoulder-length dark-grey hair, which seemed to be dyed that way since her eyebrows were brown, and he guessed she was Eastern European.

The first thing that immediately stood out to Adam was the yellow-green wing hanging down her back to just above her hip, indicating that she worshipped the All-Mother. Her facial features were chiselled too, giving her a well-defined jaw and sharp angles to her cheeks, brow-ridge, and neck. Her eyes were greyish-blue, her skin was pale, and her mouth was wide with full pink lips.

She carried two daggers that Adam recognised as belonging to the Exploiter evolution, which increased the damage a target received after being parried, and she also had the chain sword and shield from Stage Seven. Along with her weapons she too wore the Cloud Skimmer Jacket, Bone Breeches which gave 50 Stamina at the cost of 10% Speed and Dodge, Treasure Hunter's Well-Worn Boots, the Chimaera Helmet, a Golden Fortress Crossbow Bracer, a Vigilant Fighter's Vambrace, and a Duellist's Glove. Those two are kitted out.

Their setups seem geared towards mobility and versatility, and they're strangely similar. The fact that both have Second Sheath seems rare to me, although I suppose that eventually Alivida's tent will be common knowledge amongst those who survive. It does give me an idea though, so long as they are cooperative. The last two were also a man and a woman, but they were more what Adam was used to encountering in the previous Stages of this loop.

The man had yellow-tan skin and looked possibly Chinese, with his eyes dilated and anxious. He had short-cut black hair and a notch in his left eyebrow from a small scar. He carried a large crossbow made of bone and black wood that seemed to be an evolution of the Bounty Hunter, and he had the Rapid-Fire Bracer, Ranger's Lucky Charm, Blink Ring, Forlorn Cuirass, Scale Trousers, and normal black sneakers.

He had a round face and a slightly pudgy appearance, but his setup was undoubtedly strong, if he could utilise it well. The last woman looked South American, with an almost reddish-brown complexion, short black hair, thin eyebrows, full lips, and kind eyes, though they had a haunted expression to them. Like the Asian guy, it seemed she was quite anxious too, possibly because of the last Stage or because of what awaited them in Moonport.

Her weapon was a lowlands longsword that was likely the final evolution of the One Man Army evolution of Warrior, and it had a long handle, a wide crossguard, and a large double-sided blade. Given that One Man Army boosted attack speed and damage when fighting out-numbered, Adam guessed her evolution was a continuation of that idea. Her Relics were the White Flags Chain-Sleeve, Flesh Smith's Skin-Robe, Captain's Cape, a Yellow Trophy, a Purple Slime Glove, and Avalanche Boots.

I'm not sure what to think about this group yet. Those last two seem scared out of their minds, but the other two look incredibly capable, like they truly put a lot of thought into their builds. It's imperative that we work together though, so I need to get everyone to listen to me from the start, which will require a blend of honesty and lies, but I'll figure out the quantities for each after I know what patrons they have.

As their rowboat neared a crowded dock connected to a part of the floating city near a large square, the cutscene finally let go of them. The two rowing at the front stopped, letting the boat coast slowly forward. Everyone's heads swivelled around, taking in the area and each other. Since Adam was seated in the back, he'd had a full view of everything, but the others hadn't been so lucky. Adam briefly froze, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of melodies that flooded his mind.

While there had been a lot in the Floating Sea, it'd been far less concentrated than here, and he was struggling to even focus on his own melody until he found a way to limit his range to encompass just his immediate surroundings. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. I'll have to find a way to sift through it all without my head exploding, but first I've gotta make sure we start things off in the right way.

"My name's Adam and I worship the Flayed Lady," he said before anyone else could speak up.

"I think we should introduce ourselves and our weapons, so we know what to expect from one another. I have an evolution of Blood Mage called Red Prince that lets me manipulate flesh and blood, and I have a secondary weapon called Spidersilk Needle which is a mix of magical and physical damage. I mainly fight by casting spells." All four of them stared at him, a mix of disbelief, disgust, fear, and curiosity flowing through their melodies.

Something Adam immediately picked up on was that the man and woman by the oars clearly knew each other, since there were tones to their individual melodies that registered to Adam as mutual recognition.

"I'm Aeran," said the guy with the black hair and grappling hook. His voice was unnaturally deep and oozed confidence.

"Like Adam, I also have two different weapons. One is the Insightful Gentleman evolution of Duellist, and the other is the Outrider evolution of Defender. Both are quick and versatile weapons. I have chosen to worship Messimer, who in turn has gifted me with the ability to appraise anything I see, as well as the ability to tell if another person is lying to me."

Lasse said the appraisal wasn't all-powerful and that it depends on patrons, with those worshipping the Flayed Lady granting more insight, which means Aeran should be able to tell a lot about me, so I'd better keep that in mind. I don't know if the ability to detect lies is true or not though, since Lasse didn't say so outright. Aeran's melody was unshakeably calm, which made Adam worried, since he associated that with seasoned killers like Jun and those dealing with a psychotic break like Julie.

I wonder if worshipping Messimer is why his eyes look kind of strange. Lasse's eyes were normal since he hadn't cleared any quests when I met him in Seven, but I didn't notice a change when we met up after the Stage. It could be that it's an effect that doesn't show up until after two quests have been completed, hence why Lasse didn't have it. Beck's eyes didn't seem any different though, but that may be because the Self-devouring Eye effect supersedes any changes from Messimer.

"I am Závi," said the woman next to him. Her tone was cold and her words were clipped.

"I worship the All-Mother. My weapons are the Exploiter evolution of Backstabber and the Swashbuckler." I'm surprised she managed to save Belamouranthe. I wonder if she's actually a nice person despite her outward presentation. But if she's not, I at least know where to target my attacks, since I think destroying her soul wing will be fatal.

I need to spend more time just looking through the other Players at the Tavern when I get back, because there are a lot of Players that must've gotten some surprising patrons and powerful builds, especially considering that John Smith had Septen, while Závi here has the All-Mother. The last woman spoke up before the Asian guy and said, in a warm voice, "I'm Sofia. I chose Nharlla, and my weapon is called Blood Saint, the last evolution from Warrior. I only have one weapon.

I didn't know you could get more than one."

"My name is Luo," said the Asian guy. His voice had a strange staccato rhythm to it.

"I also didn't know you could get more than one weapon. I worship Nharlla as well, and I evolved my Archer weapon into Monster Hunter." The rowboat bumped into the dock, surprising Luo and Sofia. Aeran and Závi both stood up and climbed onto the dock, securing the boat as the others got off.

"I have a special upgrade called the Orb of Insight, which told me all about this Stage," Adam announced.

"I know everyone here has their own patron quests to worry about, but the challenge of Moonport is quite severe, so I need you all to listen to my plan." Before anyone could say something in response, the five cubes all spoke up at the same time. At the same time, the golden glow of Adam's lighthouse effect spread across each of them. [The timer has begun.] < < Stage Objective > > < Find the Godstone's second half in Moonport >"Is that it?" Závi asked her cube. [Correct. You must investigate Moonport and find clues to the whereabouts of the Godstone's other half. The Stage will end when you obtain the objective or 5 days have passed.]"It's just like the last Stage," Luo said. Now that Adam could hear everybody's melodies clearly, it was dawning on him that the crossbow-wielder wasn't anxious only because of fear, but also because of adrenaline and a bit of excitement.

Sofia on the other hand seemed to have her anxiety based in a deep suspicion of everyone else, which probably meant she'd experienced a fair share of betrayal in the past. The fact that neither Aeran and Závi were nervous didn't seem like a good sign to Adam.

"The objective is very vague for this Stage," Adam said before any of them could leave the dock. It was clear Aeran wanted to just go out and explore, while Závi seemed intent on following him wherever he went.

"I already know who has the Godstone half, but finding them will not be easy."

"This Orb of Insight you mentioned, it is the one sold by Alivida, correct?" Aeran responded, his interest piqued by Adam's claim.

"It is," he confirmed.

"It lets you see almost everything about a Stage, including the Players you are matched with, the secrets, the bosses, and the objectives. But it has a 3-Stage cooldown, so this is only my second time using it after first trying it on the Forbidden Altar."

"Who is Alivida?" Sofia asked.

"She's the vendor who sells the Second Sheath upgrade that lets you have two weapons," Adam said.

"She shows up in the garden tent at night on Interim Island." Aeran's melody skipped slightly, taking on a tone of annoyance. It was clear he didn't like Adam sharing such secrets for free.

"Who has the Godstone half?" he asked.

"The Bloodfiend Patriarch," Adam said honestly.

"He's a vampire, and he has a lot of underlings disguised throughout the city of Moonport. Every night, they will hunt for us and kill a lot of civilians, so we'll need to find a good place to hide."

"Vampires?" Závi repeated in surprise.

"A stake to the heart and a blade through the neck should be sufficient to kill them," Aeran said.

"So long as we are only fighting humanoid enemies, we cannot lose." Luo nodded eagerly.

"Anything but more of those slug monsters!"

"Where do we start the investigation?" Sofia asked Adam.

"First we should find a tavern," he said. They left the dock which was connected to the Pious district and walked a bit inland, quickly reaching a large square with shops and restaurants surrounding it, as well as a tall tower. Beck and Emelia had told Adam about Moonport's various districts, and though the placement of taverns always changed, the church building would always be located in the Pious district. It had a domed roof and a large garden, so it would be easy to spot from the rooftops or the air.

The taverns were the Safe Havens in Moonport, and there were a total of eight to find, each distinguishable by the plume of smoke in the air above them. However, since Adam had Fallow's Compass, it was a simple matter to find their way to the nearest one. Although he was trying to be forthcoming, he didn't let anyone else use the compass, nor did he show off his ability to fly with his magic.

Závi and Aeran both demonstrated their mobility from the get-go, with Aeran pulling himself halfway up the tower near the square to look around, while Závi did some weird parkour manoeuvre using her Well-Worn Boots to defy physics with a backflip that had a lot more upwards momentum than should be possible, not to mention allowing her to walk up walls for a few steps. She also moved with an effortless grace and power thanks to the Chimaera Helmet's bestial agility.

Unlike other Stages, the NPCs in Moonport took note of their strange movements and started pointing and muttering amongst themselves. It would undoubtedly be difficult to keep a completely low profile, but the bloodfiends would definitely be more aggressive in pursuing them if they stood out too much.

They stopped in front of the tavern that Adam's compass had led them to, and it was nestled into the façade of a three-storey residential building, taking up most of the front, though there were doorways leading up to the apartments on either side. Deep-brown wooden panelling surrounded the entrance and exterior windows, and there was an old red awning made of cloth spread out above to shield the few chairs and tables out front from the sun which was baking the city.

Strangely, the sunlight and its heat weren't oppressive, but Adam assumed that it was due to the physique of Players being different, because the people walking around them were all fanning themselves and wiping sweat from their brows and necks. As they walked up to the entrance, Adam noticed the sign above the door at the same time as the announcement rolled in. It was carved out of wood and showed a glass of frothing beer atop an open tome. < < Tavern Discovered > > < The Good Drink >