Volume 5 – Chapter 29 (in-editing v3)

Volume 5 – Chapter 29

(Finally got this one done, and can put my food poisoning arc behind me! I hope to have Chapter 30 done by the 6th!)

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“You look marvelous!”

Vesper von Atlas smiled as she accepted the compliment.

“Aww, thank you, Shin! You look quite handsome, yourself!”

The trio were currently standing in a large foyer, one of several just outside the Grand Hall of Castle Atlas.

The Grand Hall was the single largest room in Castle Atlas, an enormous chamber with towering stone walls and a massive, stained glass roof. The sheer scale of this room served to show off the opulence and wealth of the Atlas Duchy, with magically reinforced pillars and Spellbound stones lining the walls.

The ballroom had several entrances from which guests could enter, like the foyer they were currently in.

Even the foyer, itself, was finely decorated, like all the rooms Micheal had seen. Beautiful paintings, lush curtains, fine cabinets and chairs.

“And Micheal, I must say…” Vesper’s pink eyes danced as she tapped a fan against her cheek,

“You look simply ravishing.” She said as she eyed his blue suit.

Micheal stared the Void Noble dead in the eye, before bowing his head slightly.

“Thank you, milady.” Micheal’s bow followed courtly procedure to a T.

Vesper giggled in response, snapping her fan shut. She was dressed in a slim, dark red dress that fit her form, showing off her figure. A slightly lighter red shawl was looped around her shoulders, covering her exposed back.

“You’ll do quite well.” She nodded her head, before turning her gaze towards Shin.

“You, however.” She ‘tsked,’ titling her head slightly to the side.

“He’ll follow my lead.” Micheal nodded his head towards Shin. Shin nodded back.

‘I gave him a crash course on Void Noble etiquette, but…’ Micheal’s eyes narrowed as he watched Shin awkwardly bow as one of Vesper’s maids approached him, offering him a drink.

‘Whatever. We’re Foreigners in their eyes, anyway.’ It shouldn’t matter too much.  

And, even if it did, Micheal would handle it. He’d sooner die then leave his closest friend out to these wolves.

For, the battleground of many Void Nobles was fought in the feasts, the ballrooms and the dance halls, where status could tumble and fall for even the slightest of reasons.

Of course, for Void Nobles with significant power, like Duke Atlas it was a different matter – but Void Nobles of that status were the standouts, not the majority.

A few moments passed as they waited idly. Micheal took that time to glance around, keeping a sharp eye out for anything odd. He activated his Eyes of the Deep, constantly scanning randomly.

‘Even if I can’t consciously perceive Jay sol Arget, my Divine Scan should still pick him up.’ He just had to be careful not to let his scan land on people that would notice.

The door to the Grand Hall opened, letting in a wash of music, voices, and light, and out exited a male attendant, dressed in a dark black suit. While it was currently in fashion for Void Nobles to wear lively or colorful outfits, darker clothes were reserved for the maids and attendants serving them.

“They’re ready for you, milady.” The attendant bowed towards Vesper, before motioning inside.

“Excellent.” Vesper’s eyes narrowed as she began to walk forward, followed by one of her maids.

“Come on, boys.” She waved at Micheal and Shin as she strode forward imperiously.

The duo exchanged glances before falling in line, walking slightly behind her.

As Micheal stepped through the doorway, he found himself in a world that had transformed.

Loud, up-beat music colored the air, while warm lights flashed in the stained glass ceiling above. A subtle hum undercut the music, as more than a hundred and fifty Void Nobles, dressed in fanciful outfits, conversed, spread across the large room. Stepping in-between the Void Nobles were dozens of servants, maids, and attendants, carrying platters of food and drinks.

‘Is that…?’ Micheal’s eyes were drawn to the center of the room.

There, the skeleton of a huge Void Predator stood, a massive, hulking frame that had been preserved. The famous ‘Bloven Predator,’ the first Void Predator the Duke ever killed, several decades ago, before he had succeeded his father, Duke Teron von Atlas.

Around the skeleton was a large, relatively open dance arena, where several Void Noble couples currently danced, gliding gracefully around the floor. On one side, just beyond the arena, was the orchestra, a group of 14 Void Natives, performing with a variety of string instruments and drums.

On the outer edges beyond the dance arena sat dozens of large tables, complete with plates and silverware.

And, at the end of the Grand Ballroom sat one, large rectangular table where, at the very end, rested a large, imposing throne: the seat of Duke Atlas.

“Announcing, the ninth daughter of Duke Atlas, Lady Vesper von Atlas, and guests!” As they walked inside, the attendant that had let them in raised his voice and announced their arrival.

Because Vesper was only a minor daughter of the Duke, they weren’t given a larger announcement, which came with entering through the main entrance hall, a privilege reserved for more important Void Nobles.

Still, the words caused several heads to turn in the crowd. In particular, Micheal’s eyes narrowed as a pair of male Void Nobles began to immediately walk towards them, as well as an attendant that walked up and offered them a set of drinks.

“We still have around 20 minutes until father announces the start of the Feast.” Vesper guided them forward as they moved towards the side of the room, taking a glass of wine that was proffered.

“You should expect to be called to the Main Table, as guests of honor.” Micheal and Shin took a glass as well, eyeing the red liquid.

Before he could reply, the two male Void Natives, one a Noble and the other an attendant, reached them.

“Ah, dear sister, what a pleasant sight you make!” The speaker was a heavy-set Void Noble, with dark blue hair and placid, gray eyes. Micheal could see a vague resemblance in the man’s face with Vesper, likely one of her brothers.

“Gaivel.” Vesper turned towards the Noble, her gaze tightening so slightly that Micheal only caught it because he possessed supernaturally enhanced senses.

“This is Gaivel von Atlas, my father’s youngest son.” Vesper introduced the man, before waving towards Micheal and Shin.

“And this is Micheal and Shin, the two heroes who helped fight off the Apex.” She gave them both a winning smile.

“Oho? Well met.” Gaivel nodded vaguely at the duo before turning away, his gaze returning back to Vesper.

“Gahaha, it’s good to see you, Ves! You spend too much time, cooped up reading old Spellbooks.” As he spoke, his gaze drifted up and down, eyeing the cleavage her dress showed off.

“Us youngest ought to stick together.” He reached out, attempting to pat her on the shoulder.

With a loud ‘thwuck’ Vesper snapped her fan forward, knocking his arm away, as she giggled playfully.

“Aww Gaivel, I couldn’t think of something ever less delightful.” She said sweetly, her tone mixing with her confusing choice of words, causing Gaviel to smile back, none-the-wiser.

‘How unsightly.’

Micheal had heard rumors of the boorish nature of many Void Nobles, but never seen it first-hand.

‘Divine Scan.’

While the Noble was distracted, he took this opportunity to scan him.

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— - Divine Scan— -

Race: Ivari Voidling

Title: -

Traits: -

STR:   D+  (Growth Rate: Rare or higher)

END:  D   (Growth Rate: Rare or lower)

REG:   D+    (Growth Rate: Uncommon or higher)

SOUL:  D    (Growth Rate: Rare or lower)

MANA:  D+    (Growth Rate: Heroic or higher)

Path Notes: An Ivari Voidling that walks a solitary Path. Traces of the Path of the Sword are present.

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‘Pathetic.’ Despite possessing Growth Ratings far surpassing the average human, including even a Heroic Growth Rating in Mana, the Void Nobles stats ranged solely in the D Rank.

The term ‘Ivari Voidling’ was how the Divine Scan classified Void Nobles. The exact origin of the term itself wasn’t something Micheal was familiar with.

“Until next time.” Vesper smiled and turned, leaving her brother sputtering behind as she guided them across the Grand Hall.

As they walked through the Hall, Vesper smiled politely, occasionally exchanging words with several other Void Nobles. Micheal and Shin were, more or less, completely ignored, a fate the duo were absolutely fine with.

“The Rose of Axellion, huh?” Shin commented as they left one exchange, bringing up a compliment one of the Nobles had paid Vesper.

Shin moved to nudge her in the side with his elbow, before Micheal’s hand lashed out and stopped him, rolling his eyes at the obvious breach in decorum. Shin smiled sheepishly in response.

Vesper giggled at the interplay.

“If only more of my brethren acted like you, Shin.” The comment made Micheal’s mouth twitch.

He swore, Shin could befriend a stone wall if he truly felt like it. It was one of his best friend’s greatest qualities, his disarming nature and ease at which he treated life, making him a veritable social magnet.

“Oh, how I yearn for the day I’ll get to murder them all.” Vesper’s words were a quiet whisper, yet again only caught by Micheal’s superhuman senses.

‘Ah. Right. There it is.’ He was vividly reminded of the fact that Vesper von Atlas was a violent psychopath, though he was beginning to understand why.

She had acted so friendly around them, to the point where it was almost easy to forget.

“My brothers are all rather brutish, as are my uncles, and my cousins. Even my aunts.” Vesper continued without missing a beat.

“I have a poor opinion of my family.”

Notably, she didn’t mention her father – whether that was because her feelings for him were different, or rather out of an abundance of caution, Micheal felt it was probably the latter, given what he knew.

It was unwise to chatter loosely about an Archmage in the heart of his territory.

Out of the corner of his eye, Micheal spotted a familiar figure. The male Void Noble was leaning against the wooden railings that separated the dance arena from the rest of the Grand Hall, chatting up a young, beautiful female Void Noble wearing a pale blue slip of a dress.

‘Dunkore Salm!’ Micheal would’ve recognized this particular Wizard from anywhere – after all, he was one of the Wizards who helped craft his Iron Strings Gauntlet, an upgraded version of his Silk Strider Gloves.

‘Divine Scan.’ Micheal took advantage of the Wizard’s distractedness to launch a Divine Scan.

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— - Divine Scan— -

Race: Kantor-Ivari Voidling

Title: -

Traits: -

STR:   D+  (Growth Rate: Common or higher)

END:  D+  (Growth Rate: Uncommon or lower)

REG:   C-    (Growth Rate: Rare or higher)

SOUL:  B+    (Growth Rate: Heroic or higher)

MANA:  B+    (Growth Rate: Rare or higher)

Path Notes: An Kantor-Ivari Voidling that walks a cluttered path. Traces of the Path of Space and the Path of the Traveler are present.

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The first thing he noted was the race listed – ‘Kantor-Ivari Voidling.’

It was a race that didn’t exist.

‘His disguise is strong enough to fool my Divine Eyes, at least partially.’ It was an impressive feat of Magic.

For: Dunkore was a dimensional wanderer, a traveling Wizard obsessed with the concept of ‘Parallel Worlds.’

His actual race, according to the records Dark Void had of the oddball Wizard, was known as a ‘Hantolile.’ A humanoid, shapeshifting species.

‘The Path of the Traveler.’ It was a Conceptual Power Micheal had never heard of, and likely the reason why Dunkore, a 4th Circle Wizard, was capable of something as complex as Dimensional Travel.

‘His Soul is roughly as strong as mine.’ The disguised Wizard possessed an unusually powerful Soul, something Micheal attributed to the man’s powerful Heroic Growth Rating.

‘Being exposed to the In-Between probably helps toughen up the Soul.’  It was a good theory, anyway.

“Yes, you humans have made a great addition to the dancing scene.”

Micheal’s focus returned as he listened to a rather unexpected tidbit, brought by one of the many female Void Nobles that had come to greet Vesper. Vesper was unexpectedly popular.

“I believe they’re called ‘violins?’” The female Void Noble, a woman named ‘Arella’ wearing a golden dress, gushed out loud, giving Micheal and Shin a friendly nod.

Micheal almost did a doubletake, only his strength of will preventing the break in decorum, as his eyes flicked to the side.

Sure enough, the orchestra was playing an ensemble of string instruments, some unique to the Third Layer, but others very clearly human in origin: a violin and a cello.

‘Only in Axellion, huh?’ It was very clear how strong humanity’s influence had grown here, all thanks to the Round Table’s efforts.

‘In fact, there’s no other race present here, except us humans.’ As Micheal scanned the room, he noticed that not even the Round Table had a representative here tonight.

‘Aaron’s power probably still makes him nervous.’

He did notice two other humans, however – the first was a middle-aged man dressed in the getup of the Purgatory Church. It was the first sign of the Church Micheal had seen on the Third Layer thus far. The second was another human talking to the representative, dressed in a grey suit, with his back towards them.

‘The schism with Dark Void should be happening around now – or maybe it’s already happened.’ Micheal’s eyes narrowed.

He needed to make contact with Dark Void.

And it was just as Micheal had this thought, that a series of horns echoed out loud, interrupting the conversation and silencing the room.

With a loud boom, the main entrance doors to the Grand Hall swung open, and in marched a series of Void Nobles, led by an intimidating figure Micheal couldn’t help but to recognize.

“Announcing, Duke Armon von Atlas, Guardian of Axellion, Protector of the Realm, Archmage of the Gyven Tower, and Hero of Stone!”

The Duke was dressed in a full, dark black suit – at odds with Void Noble fashion, and what would be considered ‘old fashioned’ – yet he cut an intimidating figure nevertheless. The heavyset Wizard moved with a sense of deadly grace, the sheer Aura about him crushing all in his presence.

‘An Archmage.’ Micheal gazed at the powerful Void Noble, feeling his pulse quicken, ever so slightly.

Even in the higher Layers, an Archmage would be considered a being of real power.

“Announcing, Beareth von Atlas, Firstborn of Duke Atlas! Announcing, Contrasz von Atlas, Secondborn of Duke Atlas!” Following the Duke were his two oldest sons.

Beareth von Atlas was a large, muscular man with a friendly smile on his face, waving to several Void Nobles as he walked in. He carried himself with an air that almost seemed to be imitating his father’s deadly grace, though not quite matching it.

Contrasz von Atlas, on the other hand, was a slightly shorter, but just as muscular warrior, a stern frown on his face as he walked forward, following his father.

“Good evening, my loyal subjects, guests, and family! Today, let us announce the 32nd Hyval Feast of this year, the Year of the Dolkai!” The Duke’s voice boomed out as he walked forward, a confident smile on his face. His words were met with a series of cheers, Nobles all around raising drinks in the air.

The Dolkai was a type of bird, native to the Third Layer, similar to large crow. Well, a magical crow that could spit blobs of shadow.

As Micheal watched the Duke walk forward and begin to greet several of the visiting Void Nobles, some family, some visiting from other City-States, he realizing he had an opportunity here.

‘I could manage a Divine Scan of the Duke.’ It would be valuable intelligence to possess, as long as he could minimize any risk.

He slowly broke off from Vesper and Shin, making up an excuse about grabbing a drink as he took a few steps deeper into the crowd. He carefully positioned himself next to several Void Nobles on the far side of the Grand Hall, putting more than a dozen figures between himself and the Duke.

Then, while the Duke was distracted with his greetings, and only when Micheal felt his position was just right…

‘Divine Scan.’

He activated his Eyes of the Deep Ability.

Micheal didn’t immediately duck away after completing the scan.

Rather, he carefully whiled around, picking up a drink and casually turning to walk back towards Vesper and Shin. He didn’t make any suspicious movements and moved as if completely unrelated to the scan at hand.

He smiled and waved at Shin as he saw his best friend talking animatedly with Arella.

Out of the corner of his eyes, only after he was nearly reunited with his group, only then did he dare to look at the Duke.

‘It worked.’

The Duke was glancing at the various Void Nobles Micheal had positioned in-between himself and the Duke with a frown. He never once glanced Micheal’s way.

Eventually, the Duke turned back around and continued his conversations, an easy smile returning to his face.

Micheal took that time to read the Divine Scan’s results.

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— - Divine Scan— -

Race: Ivari Voidling

Title: -

Traits: -

STR:   B-  (Growth Rate: Rare or higher)

END:  B   (Growth Rate: Rare or lower)

REG:   C-    (Growth Rate: Uncommon or lower)

SOUL:  A+    (Growth Rate: Heroic or lower)

MANA:  S++    (Growth Rate: Heroic or higher)

Path Notes: An Ivari Voidling that walks a cluttered path. Strong traces of the Path of Space, and traces of the Path of the Sword and the Path of Time are present.

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‘Wow.’ Micheal stared at the stats, seeing the single highest grades he had witnessed since returning to life.

‘S++ Ranked Mana.’

Once you reached S Rank, Stats were divided into S-, S, S+, S++.

This highlighted the sheer difference in power between S Rank and SS Rank.

The difference between SS Rank and SSS Rank was even more vast.

‘He has two Heroic Growth Ratings.’ It really went to show how rare Mythical and Legendary Growth Ratings were, that even a powerful Archmage and ruling Void Noble lacked a Mythical Growth Rating. Not that Heroic Growth Ratings were poor, by any means.

‘An A+ Rated Soul.’ Despite not being S Rank, an A+ Ranked Soul was still an incredibly impressive Stat, given how difficult it was to raise one’s Soul Stat.

“Oh dear.” Vesper nudged Micheal with her fan.

“Yes, milady?” Micheal bowed his head slightly, to which Vesper crinkled her eyes.

“My Grandmaster, it seems father has taken a liking to you.” Vesper’s whispered quietly in Micheal’s ear, her hot breath flowing down his neck.

Micheal eyed her slightly askance.

“Get ready to move.”

And it was here where something unexpected happened.

The other human talking to the representative of the Purgatory Church turned around.

Like Micheal had guessed, he wasn’t someone from the Round Table…

Micheal knew this, because he recognized this human.

‘No way.’ He forced himself not to stare at the man, as his mind reeled in shock.

Because, standing right there before him…

Was none other than ‘The Invincible’ Kim Jiwoon, a legendary human from Micheal’s first life, and also the most famous user of the Life Orb Master Ability.

Before he could give the man’s presence here any more thought, his attention was drawn towards the end of the room, as Duke Atlas’ booming voice cut through the air once again.

“Now, let me call to the table, our two guests of honor, two Humans that stood for Axellion in her time of need!” The Duke’s words caused everyone in the Hall to freeze and turn, dozens of eyes piercing through Micheal and Shin as they realized that they were just two Foreigner nobodies.

“Their direct actions helped to stall out the Apex until my, and Commander Aaron of the Round Table’s, timely arrival!”

The Duke notably left out any mention of Vesper and Yama.

“Please, come forth and be welcome!” The Duke’s eyes sharpened as he stared at Micheal, a mix of genuine curiosity and measured awareness.

“Micheal Care and Shin Hopefell!”

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