Chapter 149

Chapter 149

In their preparations for taking on the endless rift, Quill and Torch spent a large portion of their time on the Jungle side of the planet, further honing their skills and earning points. Currently, they were tracking a Tier 14 death knight that had been wandering around the adjacent zones. They wanted to take it out for the massive bounty of forty points.

Matt and Liz, or at least those identities, were currently in a rift to help make it all the more unlikely that the two identities were the same. Quill and Torch, on the other hand, were just returning from the safe side of the planet. There, they had spent nearly thirty points at the Pather lounge to burn the points that Kurt and Luna had earned for them.

That was actually where they heard the news about the roaming death knight and its bounty. The expensive and private lounges had exclusive contracts that rewarded the team that completed them a ton of points.

Most were reasonably challenging bounties that the top ten percent of teams could complete, but some were too hard for the average team on the second floor. Quill and Torch had only learned of the death knight because a Tier 13 Shadow Sparrow had been released, with a point reward of thirty points to the team that successfully captured or killed it.

None of them had any desire to track down the bird itself, but it clued them into the existence of the open contracts as the news spread to the Pathers around them. Checking into the lounges job board themselves, they were able to sift through the various postings, like the one on the death knight. When they came upon the forty point reward, they immediately wanted to go after it.

Quill kept his eyes forward as he watched the death knight walk around a tree and kept his attention conspicuously on the target.

Through his AI, he asked Torch, Are they still following us?

His partner, positioned on the other side of the hill, replied instantly. Three on you and two on me. I get the feeling that there are more coming. Should we take them out now, or wait until their help arrives?

Quill chewed his lip. They had felt the hostile gazes the instant they entered the second floor lounge, and taking the contract was their way of luring out the team who had reasons to hate them so much.

Apparently, they werent alone in wanting to ambush the two of them. One other team had joined them, and both him and Torch sensed a third team that would be arriving shortly.

The real question they wanted answered was how the teams had followed them through the teleporters. They were supposedly random. The fact that the other teams arrived at the same place suggested something was amiss. At first, they thought the other teams took the same contract, which would include a direct teleport to an area near the wandering boss. But there were no extra team names on the contract, so that couldnt have been their method.

Now, the teams were just waiting to strike at the opportune moment.

If they wanted answers as to why the teams were targeting them, they needed to take them alive and uninjured enough that they werent taken away by the Gardeners. Both he and Torch knew were watching, ready to intervene in an instant.

The rules of the Tier 10 tournament were similar to the rules of the vassal war, but there was far more leniency given to these contestants. Being both stronger and older than the Tier 5 and 6s who fought those battles came with some additional freedom.

Quill and Torch loitered for another thirty minutes, ostensibly stalking the death knight, before he noticed the arrival of at least three more people. His [Air Manipulation] felt at least that many enter the barrier of slightly still air around them, but he couldn't be sure that was all.

Still, that meant their plan was good to go.

Stepping forward, he threw out three talismans meant to trap the death knight and slow its moments. It was far, far too little to stop such a strong undead, but they werent trying to fight the monster.

Not yet.

As he activated the talismans, he threw out two more [Fireball] talismans and rushed forward.

Death knights, a Tier 14 zombie variant, usually boasted heavily enchanted plate armor and an oversized longsword or sword and shield combo. They also had a variety of spells; far more than the average Tier 14, with their most prominent being an area of effect aura that hindered magical casting. It made any spells cast in the area cost more mana and produce a lesser effect. If that was all, they would have been dangerous, but the death knights usually had at least three other spells. A possible fourth depended on whether they had the longsword or sword and shield.

The sword and shield knights had a defensive spell that empowered all other undead around them, increasing their magical resistance to insane levels, while the longsword knights had an offensive version of the same spell.

They were a pain to kill when in a rift that produced them; the buffs stacked with each knights cast. But alone, it wasn't anything they couldnt handle.

The death aura flared up in a fifty-foot radius, and Quill threw two more talismans out before jumping to the side and rolling.

He had timed it perfectly, as a lance of energy shot directly through where he had been standing.

Springing to his feet, he turned and pointed his staff at where the attack came from, and seven people stood infront of him in two distinct formations.

He didnt bother talking, and cast [Jolt] through the staff as he removed an overcharged [Hail] tasliman and threw it into the air.

The rain of ice interrupted the two incoming [Fireball]s and [Mana Bolt], but did little to stop the arrow that slammed into his upper chest.

It thankfully only pierced a lung and didnt hinder his arms, but the pain was nearly blinding as the arrow started to burn inside of him.

Unable to appreciate the new enchantment or spell that he hadnt seen before while roasting alive, he twisted his staff and sent a small talisman array of three into the holders that ensured his talismans were arranged in formation.

He was forced to dodge a second arrow inside the hail storm, but he still got the makeshift [Tornado] spell off.

From the side, a stream of fire entered the newly formed spell, and the two elements fed on each other and merged, exactly as they had practiced.

Quill smiled under the mask at the look of shock on the faces of two of the attackers, who had clearly expected Torch to be locked down and unable to come to his rescue. If only they knew how much theyd practiced for scenarios just like this. They would have never tried an ambush.

All it managed to do was to piss them off, ensuring that the pair didnt play nice.

There was a screeching sound from the now unengaged death knight, and a second aura that looked like inky darkness slithered out. Tendrils of darkness that resembled hands clawed at the ground, as if searching for victims.

Under the mask, Quills grin grew. The second skill of most death knights, [Hungering Darkness], was a dangerous skill; it formed an aura that drained the vitality of anyone in the zone. The effect was doubled for anyone hit by the grasping hands on the outer edge of the area of effect. Getting grabbed meant months of healing to return the energy that the monsters stole, and any injuries inflicted when affected by the skill took far more energy to heal.

It would have been the perfect skill for the monster, except one didnt even need a Concept to fend off the aura. A cultivator's natural spirit was more than capable of warding off the effect.

At least, as long as the cultivator was healthy and uninjured.

That was why they had decided to take this mission, allowing their enemies to gather together, rather than crushing them piecemeal.

The two of them were tired of being ambushed by their fellow competitors, and figured that the best way to make a statement was to cripple their assailants chances of doing well in the points ranking. They knew that the Gardeners would step in before the death knights' aura hurt the other teams to the point that they couldn't fight in the big three. But those didn't start for another five months.

They had checked with Luna, and got the green light for their little operation after confirming that it was within the rules of the competition. Maybe it wasnt in the spirit of the rules, but interpretation worked enough in their favor that even the ancient cat had smiled after learning about their plot.

The attackers weren't amateurs, and only blinked at the monster behind him, keeping their attacks solely focused on him.

Quill slapped on a physical enchantment talisman and started running while using a touch of [Air Manipulation], creating pushing force in the middle level winds. He was able to override the natural air currents, thus directing the flaming tornado towards the group attacking him.

The two groups split, and Quill ran through the flames at the team with the archer.

He had proven to be the largest threat with those specialty arrows.

The team he rushed was prepared, and sent a barrage of attacks at the spot where he exited the flames, but Quill was one step ahead of them and threw himself over the attacks.

A second arrow slammed into his prepared [Barrier] talisman, and the attack imparted enough force to change the trajectory of his jump. He was forced directly on top of a melee fighter who managed to raise their sword in time to skewer him. Unable to dodge the blow, he took a deep cut to his hip. But in return, he pressed his staff to the man's head and cast [Jolt].

The spell hardly went off before the man under him vanished; the Gardeners were not willing to risk brain damage.

On his mask, opposite his feather pen, Quill put up a tally of 1 to 0 and let a smile grow across the mask.

Except this time, the smile had teeth. Sharp teeth.

To the team's credit, seeing their teammate taken out so quickly didn't phase them, and they kept attacking while a melee fighter rushed forward from the second team. To this point, that group had been cut off by the flaming tornado.

With a second team on him, Quill started going for debilitating attacks.

Five talismans flew out of his spatial bracelet and into his staff before he slammed it into the ground, channeling the attack.

The grassy earth quivered for a second while the five thousand plus mana pulsed through all at once.

Dozens of stone spikes shot out at knee level; they emanated out in a swirling circle with Quill at the epicenter.

For all their preparation, none of them had expected the new move, and four of the remaining six were hit in their legs and taken for a trip as the spell started to rotate.

A second arrow took him in the arm as he found the archer dancing above the moving spikes, until a flaming meteor flew out of the tornado and crushed the sharpshooter in the chest.

Torch had arrived.

Quill, knowing that Torch had already dealt with the three on the other side, changed his counter to 4 to 0 and started casting again.

With the spikes moving around him, the immobilized attackers had a hard choice to make. They could either sit around and wait to be saved by the Gardeners, or they could wrench their legs free from the impaling stone spikes and try to fight him.

They made the wrong choice, and decided to take the leg injury. Exactly what Quill was hoping for.

The spells stone spikes were designed to shear off with any lateral pressure, creating long shards of stone that cut through flesh as easily as any blade.

Most of the attackers were screaming and clutching their now shredded legs. Sadly, the melee fighter was not one of them, and charged at him with a glowing shield and growing sword. Quill recognized the skills as [Mana Shield] and a standard size rune.

He was forced to pay full attention to the onslaught in order to dodge the series of combination attacks. While he was caught up with the melee fighter, he took a [Wind Slash] in his side from his blind spot.

The news reports they could see had the entire fight being critiqued, with most calling Quills interrogation overboard and excessive. Specifically his allowing the death knight to drain the opponents, and breaking their Concepts when they tried to resist.

What I dont understand is how someone who has such altruistic claims can sit here and laud himself as better than the Burning Hearts. How is he holier than a guild of people who founda life saving skill and created an item for anyone to use when he pulls stunts like this? One reporter chuckled darkly, shaking his fist before looking rhetorically to his co-host for an answer. I mean, dragging injured, fellow Pathers into something that would take them out of the competition for so long just simply isnt what a truly for-the-people Pather should do. Rules or not.

The co-host nodded empathetically and added, Youre right, Shane. And to me, it seems like it could just be a cowardly ploy to knock off some of the competition, and make himself look better. I mean, at this point, Torch has what it takes to go all the way, and a budding following that could build to epic levels. How long will it be before Quills antics start to drag her down? I guess time will tell.

Matt tuned the broadcast out, and focused on the people around him. From the chatter around him, Matt knew that his actions had only half worked. Some of the patrons were already talking about how they could shoot an arrow and send Quill on a week long healing cooldown as easily as anyone else. Meanwhile, the more sensible half of the crowd realized that Quill and Torch had managed to fight off an ambush while they were outnumbered by three teams in the top five percent.

His actions might have been excessive, but judging from the small sample of people who were getting mana from his Concept, he had dissuaded a portion of the people who thought coming after them was a good idea.

Matt still considered it a win.

However, some people continued to puff themselves up, saying how they could do much better than the previous assailants.

Matt just laughed internally. If they did try it, they would be in for a surprise. If they had to use more drastic measures, they would. But eventually, the attacks would stop.

Through their AI, Matt watched the video of Torch choking out the archer with his own bow. To his chagrin, Torchs odd kill was being hailed as a funny moment, unlike his own attacks, which were being called cruel. Someone had already called his earth spike circle, with the stone that created grizzly shearing wounds, excessive and unnecessary.

How was that more excessive than choking a man with his own bow?

Matt had no idea, but asked through their AI to ensure that no one could hear the question. Why did you choke him with his own bow? I can see the edits to the video, but didn't really see the fight in person.

He could always check her AI recordings, but that was unneeded with Liz next to him.

Liz smirked around the croissant she was nibbling on. The shithead had some phasing ability that let him dodge most of my attacks, but I noticed that his bow was phasing with him, and I could touch that. So I just used that to beat him down, and when he tried to phase through the ground, I wrapped it around his neck.

Matt rolled his eyes but let the matter drop. They hung out for a while longer, refilling people's mana and graciously declining those that tried tipping him a small number of mana crystals or materials.

People were more than happy to pay for a fast refill of mana, but he always declined, just saying that he had no need of it but appreciated the thought.

That, more than anything, seemed to help his image. Plus, as word of his abilities spread, his reputation increased.

People had even started to recognize him on the streets, which was a novel experience, considering that the same could be said of Quill for opposite reasons.

Throughout the entire venture of his mana distribution, Matt worked on chatting with people and trying to exclude them from his Concepts ability to give mana.

He thought he had the start of an idea, but so far, he couldn't fully blacklist people from the effect. Still, he could tell that he was close. It was just a matter of wrapping his head around the idea properly. Once he figured out what he was doing, Matt was fairly certain that hed master the trick behind excluding people. It was just the first step that he found so difficult.

When they had to leave for their delve, Matt was thanked by everyone, and not a single person complained about the free mana disappearing. It still surprised him every time.

They arrived early to the endless rift, preparing themselves to fight for their lives while holding back.

When they entered the rift, they found themselves on the same platform as everyone else in the recordings, with an endless expanse of darkness that seemed to extend forever in every direction.

It felt just wrong, but Matt couldn't exactly describe why. It just was.

He was unable to ponder the rift's oddities any further, as the first wave of monsters appeared at the edge of the platform and rushed at them. A quick count put the number of flaming horse monsters at thirty seven.

At the bottom of Tier 11, the monsters were comically easy to kill, but that wouldnt be the case forever. The second they killed the final horse, a rift reward distortion appeared next to the single entrance and exit.

As they didnt touch the distortion for ten seconds, the next wave appeared. This time they had to fight a dozen ape-like monsters with crab arms.

When they had killed the final monster in the fifth wave of bottom Tier 11 monsters, the reward distortion appeared for a full thirty seconds before a new monster variant appeared. With his spiritual sense, Matt quickly put the new arrivals at the middle of Tier 11.

This time, they fought waves of seventy two zombie rabbits that constantly turned into blurs of light as they increased in speed.

It was one facet of this endless rift that was different than other rifts. The essence used in creating the monsters was always the same amount per wave, so a wave with higher numbers meant weaker monsters.

At least, that was the general rule for every round inside the same five level bracket. During those intervals of five, the monsters power was kept the same.

Liz proved that true as she created a whirlwind of blood tendrils that shredded all of the bunnies that tried to attack them.

When they finished the five waves of mid Tier 11 monsters, they moved on to the high Tier 11s, then finally, the peak Tier 11 monsters.

Still, it didnt matter in the least bit to them. Every Tier 11 monster died in seconds, and they blitzed through the waves as fast as they could without giving away too much information.

They repeated the same pattern of twenty waves for the Tier 12 monsters easily enough, before they started to show a struggle against the weak Tier 13 monsters.

The Tier 13 waves made for a great spectacle for them, though. With their restrictions, they had to fight strategically and slowly, but they still managed to whittle down the monsters and kill them.

When they reached the peak Tier 13 monsters' last wave, the sixty ninth wave, they only needed to exchange a look to know the next one would be their last.

If they were in their Quill and Torch persona, they could have pushed further, but they didnt want to make a splash in their real identities. They had already shown their ability to fight in a rift that Matts Concept countered. It would earn them a decent number of points and recognition, but pushing past the first wave of Tier 14 would make people start to wonder what they were hiding.

So, as the seventieth wave came out, they readied themselves for a long and brutal fight.

The low Tier 14 monsters were, luckily enough, a type of slime monster which was weak to magical attacks and water. Attacks that they both had in spades.

Still, they put on a show and took over an hour to kill the fifty four Tier 14 monsters, before Liz dispelled the reward rift to end the challenge.

The rush of essence hit them like a truck, as all the essence they should have earned from killing seventy waves of monsters Tier 11 through Tier 14 came to them all at once.

To Matt's joy, it was all Tier 14 essence, as they had reached and completed at least a single wave at that Tier. The rift could be temperamental, and had a chance to give Tier 13 essence if only one Tier 14 wave was cleared. That would have been a miserable ending to the delve, considering how long they fought in that last wave.

As he was inundated with essence, Matt took the time to allocate it as fast as it came so he didnt waste any.

While he focused on allocating, he received a message from Liz. I want to ask Tur'stal to get us a delve in this rift without being watched. I think we can push past the peak Tier 14 monsters after wave ninety, even with this same power set. It wouldn't be easy, but we could do it.

Matt agreed. He might need to pull out some talismans, but he believed that they could push to at least wave eighty five before resorting to that. If they merged their full fighting styles, he believed they could fight as long as they wanted, or until they found a monster that countered them.

It was frustrating to have to hold back, but if they wanted to be able to safely exist, they needed to keep up the facade.

Their reward from the rift was a Tier 14 mushroom that neither one of them could readily identify, so they stood to leave without waiting. When they left the rift, they exited to a crowd of people watching them, and his currently most hated duo of news reporters.

The fact that they were the only two news reporters he knew didn't really factor into his consideration.

Just like the first time he had met them, Page introduced the two of them. This is Page Woodrow with Diego Heart, coming at you live from the Tier 10 Pather Breakout Tournament. Were here with the first interview from the biggest surprise from the endless rift, Matthew Alexander and Elizabeth Moore.

She put the mic between them as she started the interview proper.

You both have set one of the top runs for the endless rift this month; one that would even rank in third place for last month. And as some of the youngest competitors at this tournament, no less. In fact, youve only just turned 39, Elizabeth. Is that right? Whats the secret of your success? Why not wait until the next Tier 10 tournament, where you could have ensured your domination.

Liz laughed and smiled into the camera while whipping a strand of hair that was stuck to her face away from her eyes. Where do we start? Liz looked up to Matt and said, We chose to advance and participate in this tournament because we have a beast bond on our team, and so well be taking a break at Tier 15, when she receives the necessary training and schooling in the Beast Kingdom. We recently took a large break after we got a lot of skills in a vassal war, so we didnt want to stall a third time, in between those two breaks. I guess our secret is that we counter this rift perfectly. Matts Concept ensured that we never ran out of mana, and it was just a matter of whittling down the monsters. That rift was just a perfect matchup for us.

Page nodded along, but didn't ask another question, letting Diego lean into Matt and ask, We have reports that youve been using your Concept, a Concept that gives out mana to anyone around you for free. Why give it for free when so many would pay for mana at any given time?

Matt smiled at the duo, who were much less confrontational than with his Quill persona. He said, It's hardly free. It's practice for me. I can't really use the Concept if other people aren't around, and Im working on limiting and changing the rate at which I give mana to everyone. All of that is stuff I can't really do if someone isnt low on mana. Helping them is really just helping myself.

Diego laughed and looked at the camera, twisting to open up his shirt as he said, A generous competitor, how rare! Matt, our viewers want to know how you think youll fare against the other top contenders?

Matt laughed before scratching his head, putting on a bashful appearance. I doubt well win. We knew that coming into it this early, and at a low Tier 10 level. But I think the items, experience, and the essence we earn will help speed up our progress through the next Tier. Anything we can get to help with that gap created when my bond goes to the Beast Kingdom at Tier 15 will be so useful. Then, we can settle down and work on further honing our skill for a bit while burning our age lead and delving a bit slower.

Page took Matt's breath to interject. Our fans and analysts don't think you guys show too many weaknesses with a missing team member. How do you rate your own performance? Is your bond very strong? Our reports say you have an Arctic Fox bond, which isnt a breed known for their combat prowess. With having a friend like Fen, who just hatched a dragon bond, how do you feel your own compares?

Matt and Liz both shot the woman a nasty look, but Matt spoke first. Azure is a fresh hatchling, and a baby for one. That seems incredibly unfair to put that kind of expectation on her. And second, my bond isn't only valuable because of her combat abilities. Aster, my bond, is an ice fox, and shes incredibly helpful on the battlefield, despite the breed being rated less than ideal for combat. Even more than that, shes as much a living being as you or I, and shes as helpful as any other teammate I've had. Shes hardly the tool that you just portrayed her as. How rude can you be? Even if she just sat there and ate ice cream all day, that would still be out of line.

Diego covered for his partner and hurriedly asked Liz, You have a unique fighting style with blood. Our viewers want to know how that changes your style from a standard water mage?

Liz let the duo off with a glare to Page, who kept silent for the rest of the interview. Liz, on the other hand, answered Diego's questions with a blank expression that turned into a smile over the course of the interview. They pretended to loosen up as the overly attractive man's questions continued.

When both he and Liz had been pumped dry for any soundbites that they couldve produced, they were finally let go. Matt hoped that the interview had actually been live, and they hadn't been dumped off the air when he tore into Page a touch.

Still, it was a good interview, and they were proud of their showing. He had even earned a message from Mara saying how happy she was when he had smacked down the rude question from Page about a bonds worth.

When Quill officially came off the healing cooldown, they intended to do the endless rift again. But this time, theyd go farther into the waves, and would complete the rift until it started repeating the same peak Tier 14 monsters.