18: Catacombs
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Fucking Adele.

I have enough courtesy not to say this to hee face but she is so fucking pissing me off right now I wanna say some inappropriate words to her.

Luckily, this mind is free to think whatever it wants.

“So now that everyone is here, let us begin the meeting,” Adele speaks with a victorious smirk all over her face. She feels so smug right now I wanna pinch her...

Sorry, mental error.

I meant I wanna punch her lovely face until it's freaking bloody.

“Anyone has got any questions? Feel free to ask.”

“I have one.” I raise my hand. “Would it be considered evil if I cut the salary of a lazy worker in half?”

Ethan, Sofia and Theo look at me confused, but Adele smiles in understanding as Damian pales and Pinky giggles.

Don't smile understandably! And you, brat, don't giggle!

Damn, I've got nothing over that artist brat.

Damian must be wondering why I attack him instead of my brother who jumped right into the first suspicious expedition he could get into, or Adele who totally did the whole “I'm mysterious/beautiful/appreciating your unrecognized talents” thing.

Well, get over it. Life isn't fair.

“That's a bit too evil. I recommend not.” In that short sentence, Adele gets Damian back up smiling.

“Eighty-five percent. What does he feel?”

“I would say pissed.”

Shut up.

“Anyway, Percival, I'd like to bring you up to speed so listen up.” With a grunt, I let her silence me as the princess starts her explanation, one likely exempted of plenty of critical details. “This is an expedition to the catacombs. There's been abnormal activities underground, and I suspect someone is using the entire structure as a massive, multidimensional array that has affected the underground. We will explore the catacombs and find the core, and depending on what we find, either destroy or retrieve it.”

I see.

Fuck.

I take out the radar. “So you were after this little thing.”

“The device that turns overpriced Detectors obsolete, yes.”

Theodore takes takes damage from the word obsolete, most certainly feeling betrayed. In my defense, machines cannot replace the real thing in combat. Yet.

It's for your secret! Trust me, Theo!

“Compensation?” I ask. “I'd have you know my value recently skyrocketed.”

“It varies for each member, but for you, I promise there are plenty of excellent rewards awaiting you.” Her piercing eyes radiate confidence and sincerity, giving weight to her words.

“Fine,” I say. “Now let's hear about that formation you thought.”


Quest: Explore the first layer of the catacombs.

Rewards:

- 100 gold

- 5 random rune fragments

We descend to the catacombs through the entrance at the bar. There are dozens of entrances all across Kaelith, most small and hidden. It's usually found in older buildings, and there should be one at the palace.

Ethan and Sofia are at the front, just a step ahead of Adele. They are the vanguard that will deal with that threat the princess vaguely mentioned.

In the middle, we have the brat and the sleeping beauty, cozing up a bit too much.

Pinky cannot show her full potential in the cramp dark tunnels, without a jungle of buildings and space to stretch her limbs. Damian isn't even a warrior, but he allows himself to manifest his arms, this time softer and fluffier, using them like a cradle to doze off.

At least he is also carrying the supplies.

I can't see the hands themselves as it's made of mana—only Detectors or Sensors can see mana even without an absurd concentration—but I note the difference in air pressure and how the presence of mana impacts the surroundings, as well as the distortion of light.

Detection is so much easier.

Theodore can see it. He gets the full view from here at the rear with me, and I can see he is impressed.

I can't help feeling jealous. Just how much progress could I have made observing the actual mana instead of all these aftereffects?

The first layer of the catacomb is a labyrinthine network of passages and rooms. Old timber and hardened stone holding it together in a relatively orderly manner. We see skeletons, simply sit there in crumbling pieces of cloth, some holding metallic keepsakes that outlived it despite the rust.

It's a disturbing sight, Ethan, Sofia and Theo taking it harder than the rest of us. The stench is quite foul, having festered around for long without ventilation, that is actually the natural reaction.

Seriously, Pinky, you too?

Well, after a few dozen skeletons, they all toughen a little.

Wait until we get to the fresh ones.

“So, Percival,” Ethan, with an awkward voice and without looking back as he lights the path, starts a conversation, “I heard you trained under Sage.”

“He sucks,” I say, my tone finite.

“Did you gain nothing from a hero?”

Not you too, Sofia. We may be classmates but they hardly showed interest in me, and I in turn did everything to avoid them.

Basically, their interest rekindled after I butchered a couple of terrorists. Not creepy at all.

“In my rough estimate,” Damian starts speaking, opening his eyes open, “he is ten to thirty times stronger than before.”

“That's such an obvious lie,” Ethan says, unconvinced.

“You also failed to accept Lord Percival not being the failure the rumors made of him,” Sofia notes.

“So what? Next week, when I turn 18, I will inherit Father's superhuman technique. And in two years, my mana will hit the ten thousand and I will be able to practice the unique swordsmanship of my family. Meanwhile, Percival won't ever overcome his mana limit.”

Everything he says is right, no one could refute.

I don't mention the existence of stat points, which should allow me to increase the mana stat. For now, I keep amassing it until I need it.

The system is really incredible. I will discover more of the system with time, likely through quests, but even passive skills and mana skills have extraordinary impact on me.

My guess is that those below 10k mana are easy opponents now. Breathing Efficiency, Motion Matrix, and Surge work to strengthen me considerably, allowing me to overpower those with vastly higher mana levels. It's a matter of quality.

Sofia seems annoyed at this boasting, however, as it was directed at Adele as well. “Her Highness is already a Pioneer. Do not misunderstand yourself superior.”

Good job dropping the bomb.

I've known she was preparing for months; I even helped her, imparting my knoweldge. Her experience was probably more pleasant. And, seeing as everything is normal, she must be able to turn it on and off at will.

The surprise causes Ethan and Theodore to halt and turn to the princess. I spot Pinky using this chance to poke a skeleton.

“Ethan, you are still a few steps behind,” Adele speaks for the first time. To this moments, her face tilts to observe the radar I lent her. “I've already created my own technique. And 10 thousand is just around the corner.”

Confident of her own talent, the princess doesn't even bother lifting her head, marching ahead with elegance and authority.

She does so to cease the sudden halt. The perfect mix of condescension and challenge, all to instill urgency in the two boys. I myself learned how to be so calculative from her example and there's still much to learn.

We continue, yet to encounter any living being. There is the occasional trap; steel arrows, poisoned arrows, rolling boulder. It's elementary, but also interesting and, surprisingly, recycled for further use.

If the arrows don't hit anything, they disappear into the holes at the other wall. The boulder apparently falls down a trap to a hidden room right above the second layer, moving the spikes decorating the walls with its weight, rolling in a hidden tunnel and once again placed to crush those activating the trap.

Weak as it may be, the design demonstrates the brilliance of minds of the past.

After 7 hours of progress, with a few breaks in between, we make our way back. Adele surely wants to analyze some information none of us perceived.

Well, except for Damian. I will bully him for answers later.

On the way back, Theodore finally surrenders to his curiosity. I could see him itching to ask, but he held himself back until now. “What are you trying to do?”

I blink once, then I succinctly explain the details of Infinity to him. The sheer straightforwardness of the techniques puts everyone off. Maybe they understand how useful it is to me, but think they don't need it with their vast reserves.

Except Adele.

I can't sense mana, but I know she has already started practicing.

She will soon understand how much more difficult it is than she imagined. It should be easier for her than me, though; her disposition isn't as extreme as mine.

Luckily for me, I've got this cheat called the System.

[Mana Skill: Manipulation (Basic) > (Elementary)]

The boost in rank is felt immediately, refining my control over mana. I assume there aren't that many ranks.

I find it ridiculous.

I am surrounded by elites with mana over 5000, their mana passively ignited and body is adapting to the constant presence of mana. Their mana is higher, their bodies are stronger, yet I don't feel the gap is that wide.

On the contrary, my potential is superior.

No, not superior.

As it currently stands, my potential is boundless.

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