Gleam of Darkness

by Elian Tars

  The adjacent room where she brought me was four times smaller than the mayor’s office. All of the available surfaces were filled up with papers, next to which sat a curly haired girl in ridiculously round glasses — “The Junior Secretary”. She was level 74.

  “Leave us,” Anda ordered, and her assistant hastily went out. “Have a seat,” the girl pointed at a battered chair. She set at the head of the table and flipped through a hefty, leather book. Her behavior demonstrated that I could mind my own business. She wouldn’t even think to disturb me.

  Making myself comfortable, and trying not to pay attention to her, I took out the stone from my inventory and stared at it. I asked the system for information.

  The Splinter of Unity

  Global

  One of the parts of Unity, endowed with a portion of its power.

  That was all. What a meager description. It raised more questions than it gave answers. What was this “Unity”? How many parts did it have? What did “global” mean? Games usually used much more understandable words like “legendary” or at least “divine”…

  Stop! There’s no time to think about such nonsense. I have less than thirty minutes left.

  Unity “unites”, right? That was what I needed to do — to combine my mind and the powers available to me. Everything seemed to have gone downhill since I had received the Full Light achievement. However, everything seemed to be working normally now only due to the Old Man’s intervention. It was as if he had put a wall in my brain, pushing the alien element into the far corner, solving my “pissing myself off” problem. However, that was all that he had done. I had to find a way to subdue this new power myself.

  It was a good thing that the mayor used the amber pearl. Watching him use it made me figure out how to use similar artifacts. The Oath Keeper got activated by touching both its sides. Why not to activate the Splinter in a similar way?

  Pretending to be looking at the book, Anda was looking askance at me. Feeling like a fish in the aquarium was not all that pleasant, but what could I do? With bated breath, I pressed the Splinter of Unity against my chest.

  “I wish to absorb the Light that is present in me,” I said in my head, immediately feeling heat emanate from the artifact. I wanted to scream and unclench my fingers, but I was able to control myself.

  The “Splinter of Unity” has been activated.

  Attention! Full unification is impossible due the unequal ratio of Light and Darkness.

  Result generation…

  The result has been obtained.

  Available types of Elements:

  Darkness: basic

  Twilight: additional

  Light: alternative (on demand)

  The stone in my hands faded, changing color from iridescent to dirty white.

  Anda snorted quietly. She looked thoughtful as she observed the artifact. I decided to take another look at the Splinter. To the three meager lines of its description a fourth was added:

  The “Splinter of Unity” has been overloaded.

  Required cooldown: 48 hours

  I asked the system how much time there was left. I had 15 more minutes, so I could yield to curiosity and take a look at the skills menu.

  Hmm... Nothing new here. Good…

  “Show my types of ‘Elements’,” I mentally said.

  The opened menu with three equal columns reminded me of the skills menu. Under each title — “Darkness”, “Twilight” and “Light” — appeared the same notes as those in the last system message. Below them was the inscription, which was the same in each column.

  An ‘Altar’ is needed for further development.

  Then again there were differences.

  In the first column:

  Faith points: 18

  In the second:

  Faith points: 18

  Lives saved by the pure being: 121

  In the third:

  Lives saved by the pure being: 121

  Oh, my... Was I this “pure being”? It turned out that my decision not to personally finish off anyone until I finally dealt with the power of Light was a correct one. What would happen if I broke my streak...? Damn it! Only inconveniences, never any bonuses.

  The Old Man said that I was doing everything correctly, which meant that “clean hands” gave me more than finishing off enemies would. I still didn’t know what the reward was for using the slaying skill in this game. All I knew was that it would kill a mortal and send a “Gleam” to resurrect. I wasn’t one hundred percent sure, of course, but when I got killed by the Iron Faced on my first day in this dark world, the logs only had his name. But when he had finished me off a couple of seconds later the word “Gleam” had been added to his name. The system probably worked the same way in the opposite direction. But I had no one to ask if any good came out of finishing off someone. I didn’t really want to ask about such an unusual question. The first thing I would hear would be something like: “You don’t know? Really?!” And then they would begin to wonder how I managed to reach level 27 without finish anyone off.

  Okay, enough lollygagging. I could become an oath breaker due to being lost in thought.

  “I’m ready to ask my questions,” I broke the silence.

  “I’m listening,” Anda replied calmly. For some reason her voice sounded faintly familiar, but it was probably just my paranoia. I could certainly ask the secretary to tell me about herself, but I did not want to waste questions.

  “First question,” I said in a harsh tone. “Why did the Iron Faced destroy Listeri?”

  “They were following the orders of their employer, the baron of Leronta, Carl Tsunter,” said the girl.

  I couldn’t resist but smile triumphantly. I took a big risk asking such a question. After all, the secretary was not obliged to give me a complete answer. First five words could have easily been enough to fulfill the conditions. But Anda answered which meant that the information which I had just received would certainly not harm Ekheim. Perhaps it was the other way round. Marking your own enemy might well be the first step toward finding a new ally.

  However, despite the fact that she even mentioned the name, the girl kept silent about the reasons. Her silence could have been a coincidence but it could also confirm my theory.

  I was certain that I wouldn’t get an answer that if I asked her why Carl Tsunter ordered Listeri be destroyed. Maybe I should check?

  “I cannot answer that question” the girl said calmly when I decided to pose my second question. Sometimes no answer was also an answer. It was good that the Oath prevented them from lying. Now I knew that I could probably count on allies in Ekheim if I suddenly had to quarrel with the Baron of Leronta.

  Leronta... It was one of the five baronial cities in the area, along with Trikuni, Kelkoni, Nelburg and Shelt. Trikuni attacked Kelkoni, which Nelburg wanted to help, but its heir was captured by the Baron of Trikuni. Tael and I had resolved this problem. Therefore, if Sir Crane had reached home, nothing was stopping Nelburg from going to war. I still didn’t know which baron Tael had been serving, but that was not important right now.

  “Great. Then here’s my third question,” I said, exhaling. For a second I hesitated and doubted. I wanted to know so much, but most of the questions I had would raise a lot of suspicion and would be able to spoil my life later on. For example, what would be Anda’s reaction if I asked her “how to get out of this game?” Or out of this “world”, to be more precise. I could ask her about the God of Darkness... But the Old Man told me to keep my powers hidden from others for some reason... Damn! It was a shame that my goal was right before my eyes! It was within arm’s reach! But I knew that an invisible axe would cut it off if stretch it out to reach it. But I had to know something at least! “What are you doing tonight?” I blurted out, catching myself off guard.

  “Huh?” Anda raised her eyebrows in amazement, but immediately returned to her indifferent expression. “I’m helping Mr. Elliott administer the affairs of Ekheim,” she said quietly.

&n
bsp; Did I foolishly spend the third question? I might have. Or maybe I didn’t. I think that I had already piqued the mayor’s interest. Today’s meeting was probably not going to be our last. Everything that happened in this little office would be known to Godwin in a few minutes and his interest would only grow. So, let him bang his head against a brick wall about who was the man that had brought him the letter and what exactly did he do with the Splinter of Unity. “Maybe we could go have dinner after your shift?” I continued, trying to make the conversation less awkward.

  “Thanks for the offer but I have to decline,” the girl answered in an even tone, but the twitch in the corner of her lips didn’t escape me. Why did her voice seem vaguely familiar?

  Chapter 22

  The Altars

  Under the terms of the Oath I was supposed to hand the Splinter personally to the mayor. In a matter of seconds I was back in the mayor’s office. Godwin Elliot looked very excited and was emotionally discussing something with a bearded man in shining armor.

  Captain Arthur

  Level 72

  HP: 3112/3112.

  Having received the artifact, the mayor thanked me and informed me that he didn’t want to keep me any longer. After saying goodbye to him and his secretary, I left the town hall.

  On my mind was one, but very important, question — how does one create an Altar? I didn’t ask Anda about this when I had a chance, thinking that I could figure it out on my own, without giving the people in power any advantages against me.

  I was hoping that I was a puzzle for them. But for the guards and merchants I was just a gloomy bum.

  I politely asked the first guardsman where the shopping district was and immediately headed there. It was almost evening and I was in a hurry. In fact, I wanted to run through all of the shops and check all of the weapons, armor and all sorts of interesting artifacts. But this could be done in the morning.

  Having absolutely no idea on how to create an Altar, I decided to rely entirely on logic. So I was looking for a store that sold charms or an alchemist’s shop. I very much doubted the existence of the first one. Many Gods were competing with each other in this city and some were even in a feud. It would be strange if someone were selling their artifacts in one place. There should rather be a section with the artifacts at the temple of each God.

  I was either right, and no one sold religious items in the shopping district, or I simply didn’t see such a store. So, having spotted the Potions and Craft Materials, I quickly walked over to the shop and, pulling the door open, stepped inside.

  The shopkeeper, who was level 50 and draped in a robe that rustled with each move, frowned at me from behind the counter; however, not as angrily and warily as the majority of the citizens did. Stroking his long black beard, he asked with a light grin:

  “What is the gloomy lord looking for?”

  I stopped examining the shelves with bellied, multi-colored bulbs and approached the merchant.

  “I was thinking of making Altar on my own. But I don’t know what materials I need for that.”

  “On your own?” he asked. “I’m quite surprised... Why aren’t you pleased with the ready-made ones?”

  “They all look alike and I would like something different, something special,” I shrugged.

  “Hmm… I can’t say that I fully understand you,” the alchemist chuckled. Of course he didn’t understand, my explanation would be more suitable for the real world, where being a hipster became mainstream, and not for a dark game like this one. “However I can help you… Just a minute.”

  He walked to the far wall and opened the top drawer of a chest full of them. Having rummaged in it a little, he took out a small brown plank and returned.

  “Here,” he handed me a piece of wood, “the Core of the Wisdom Tree. It’s usually used to craft Altars.”

  “Do I need anything else?” I asked in a business-like manner.

  “Carpenter’s tools, maybe,” the alchemist replied. “But since you decided do it yourself, you must have them already.”

  “Huh? Oh, yes... Of course,” I nodded and smiled.

  The little information I had given was enough for the alchemist to figure out the missing facts. Thanks to that, I could draw my own conclusions about the Altars. An ordinary one was nothing more than a beautiful wooden article, connected to your God. I was getting more and more convinced that the ready-made ones were sold in temples. My case was a peculiar one, and I very much doubted that I would find the Old Man’s temple in Ekheim.

  “Thank you,” I nodded. “I’ll take three.”

  “Three?” the man was even more surprised than before.

  “In case if I don’t manage to make a beautiful one on my first try,” I smiled guiltily.

  We traded for about ten minutes, after which the alchemist charged me fifty gold pieces. Everything that was a little more interesting than a bag of potatoes, a wooden chair or, for example, a shovel, in this game cost a lot of money and wasn’t available to most of the locals. It reminded me of the good old Middle Ages in my world. During history lessons I once heard that a knight’s armor and horse cost as much several villages did combined.

  I decided not to buy any potions — I had everything that I needed. To buy more as a reserve before visiting the armorer was not very reasonable. I would leave that task for tomorrow.

  It was already getting dark once I got out. Yeah, I was definitely done shopping for today. It was time to think about finding a place to sleep, but first... First I could walk around the now empty city.

  I wandered through the quiet streets for about fifteen minutes before I found what I was looking for. It took me quite some time. During day time it seemed to me that there were much more beggars in Ekheim. Apparently, they, too, had already returned home from their “work”.

  “Hello,” I said, walking up to a dirty, one-legged old man. Sitting on the pavement, he was looking at the copper coins in his palm. Out of habit I asked the “world” for information about my new companion. And I couldn’t believe my eyes.

  Beggar Gerp

  Level 49

  HP: 129/242

  “Hi!” he replied with a toothless grin. “What do you need?”

  “Information,” having recovered a little from shock, I said.

  “If you have the coins, you’ll have the knowledge!” the beggar chuckled.

  “Ten silvers.”

  “Ask,” Gerp snorted, taking the money.

  Still under the impression from what I saw, the question I asked wasn’t connected with my visit.

  “How come you have such a high level and so little HP? Didn’t you upgrade your vitality at all?”

  The old man grimaced and took out an old flask from the pocket of his tattered jacket. He took a sip and said:

  “Hah, must be your first time in a big city, huh, boy?” I didn’t argue back, just nodded. “I can see that,” he spoke. “Well, listen... I don’t like your question so consider spending another ten coins on it, yeah?”

  “I don’t care,” I waved my hand. “I’ll give you more. Speak.”

  “What’s there to say? In my youth I got involved in this...donor work. I fought in the arena, grinding all day, getting the XP. All of the stat points I gained I gave to the owner. That’s about it. I worked there for several years, saved up some money, but I spent it all… I wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, you know?”

  “Wait,” I shook my head. “Your job was to fight and give away your points?”

  “Yep.”

  “And the employer provides all conditions for getting XP?”

  “Ha ha!” the old man laughed. “What conditions, boy? He provides the same fools as me. They all live like pigs in a piggery. They fight each other for a few minutes and then spend the entire day restoring their HP.”

  “So, such business is taken to the assembly line...” I muttered thoughtfully, remembering that Tayon offered to sell or to buy stat and skill points. Obviously such a business hadn’t appeared
out of the blue, and one wouldn’t really make profit on random travelers like me. That’s why these types of “farms” were created. It wasn’t a bad plan but it was absolutely inhumane... But, humanity was clearly not in fashion in this gloomy game. And if they ever did think of it, then they thought of it as a sign of weakness.

  “Huh?” Gerp didn’t understand my question.

  “Nothing,” I shook my head. Satisfying my curiosity, I moved on to more important issues. “Here’s another silver,” I handed a coin to the old man. “Tell me everything you know about Ekheim.”

  The former “donor” was surprised that someone was “ready to pay for such nonsense”, but quickly began his story. I made the question as vague and broad as possible, so as not to cause any unnecessary suspicion. I wasn’t afraid of the old beggar. I didn’t care what he thought. But I had no guarantee that Gerp wouldn’t blab about me to someone else. What if he had a boss? Someone like the head of some vagabond guild? If such person really existed — which was possible, according to some famous books and video games — then he might be on thin ice with the mayor’s people.

  In any case, God helped those who helped themselves. However, in my case, the question was — which “God”? In addition to everything that Gerp had told me, there was something that I was interested in. It appeared that Ekheim had fourteen temples, almost an entire pantheon. And there was no such thing as a temple of the God of Darkness. As for the rest, all temples were equal, but one was “more equal” that the others.

  “I could use another coin,” the old man held out his hand. “My throat is dry from all the talking. And silver, they say, is a curative metal. My mouth might start salivating again, it will wet my throat and I will be able to talk again.”

  After receiving another coin, he continued by saying that among others, the Temple of Rugus stood out. It was mainly because it was visited by Mayor Elliot and his men.

  Finally, I did a very controversial thing.

  “Take it,” I materialized a gold coin in my hand. Gerp looked at it in amazement and squinted at me suspiciously.

  “I don’t deal with theft and murder,” he said quickly. “You can see for yourself, with my defects it’s not possible,” the old man pointed at his stump and grinned.