RSK 4

Hey Guys! I hope the weekend started good for everyone! 

Oberon POV~~~~~

When the scorpion finally stopped twitching, a magic screen appeared in front of me.

[Exp +15,979] [Level Up +2] [Status Screen Unlocked]

Well that was interesting. I focused and sure enough something happened as another magical screen appeared in front of me. 

Name: Oberon DarkPhoenix

Age: N/A

Race: World Lich

Level: 3

[Basic Magic Mastery: Partial Lock] [Sword Mastery: Partial Lock] [Rune Mastery: Partial Lock] [Advanced Magic Mastery: Partial Lock] [Contract Magic Mastery: Partial Lock] [Space Magic Mastery: Partial Lock]...

Sin: Error! World’s Curse detected! EXP gain reduced by 66.6%!

Curses: World’s Curse, Ancestral Curse, Undeath

Boons: Forgotten Knowledge

I had to study it for several minutes. It was all very straight forward but if I missed something because I was in a hurry I might regret it later. The list of my… masteries was quite long. As a human trying to unite the Races I had dabbled in a bit of everything so that I might appeal to races that might have a certain weapon of choice and things like that. I guess as the creator of the curse I wasn’t inflicted with it but the gathered resentment of the people of the world has come around to bite me. Undeath seemed quite obvious, I wasn’t sure about the Ancestral curse though. 

“Alessa, you mentioned a curse on our family?” I asked the whimpering girl who was still clinging to the Vaunn’s leg. 

She looked up at me then said, “Yeah, it is passed down automatically as soon as we’re born so that the people will always remember us as the Family of the World’s Curse.”

“Does it have any negative effects?”

“No, we actually gain skills faster thanks to it, but people will never allow us to join their guild or work place,” she said as she tilted her head in thought. 

“Then have you ever heard of a boon called Forgotten Knowledge?” I asked but got a head shake in reply. “Very well. Let's continue the hunt then,” I said with a bony grin which got a groan. 

I looked at the corpse of the scorpion. It would be a shame to leave it here as the fortress core is going to need a lot of materials to level up, but I had very few ways to take it with us. I tried to summon my dimensional bag earlier but it was locked. I went ahead and tried again now, since I had leveled up, but again nothing happened. I sighed, then glanced to Vaunn, “Call one of your brothers to come out here and get this,” I ordered. She nodded, and I just had to assume that the communication took place as I didn’t want to wait for him to get here. 

We went through the gate into a large courtyard that would have been the gathering plaza for the commoners. It was in rough shape now as it was mostly sand. The buildings that lined the plaza were husks if not completely gone. I strode forward, it may be a ruin but this was my home at one point, I would not act like an outsider. We were half way through the courtyard when I heard some chitters that sounded like children talking to each other. 

Just as I was about to be able to see into the ruined building a goblin burst out, as it rolled on the ground backwards, obviously pushed from inside the building. I tilted my head though as I had never seen a goblin like this before. Its skin was completely yellow and quite molted. Normally, goblins were green and had quite the knack for making money. My goal of unifying the races might not have even started if I hadn’t made a few good friends of some goblins. They had sided with me, as a unified world meant more hands to sell to. 

The goblin that had been pushed rolled to a stop a few meters in front of me. It yelled back into the building in rage, completely ignoring us. Another three peered out of the building as they jeered at him. They however were able to notice us right away and growled a roar towards us. They each pulled out some of the rustiest weapons I had ever seen. One had a spear while the other two had swords. The one on the ground in front of us had a club. 

“Are you sure you want to test your luck?” I asked the group of yellow goblins. 

“Are you crazy!? Those are Sand Goblins! They are even more dangerous than the scorpion!” Alessa cried urgently. 

“Really?” I asked incredulously. They didn’t look like much. I was quickly proven wrong when a whirlwind of sand shot up from the ground. Vision dropped to  zero, and even my magical undead sight was impaired slightly, “Oh, this won’t do at all,” I said with a bit of annoyance. I could feel what spells I was ‘allowed’ to cast now that my status was unlocked. 

I drew my sword then pointed at random around me. At each place I pointed I launched a fireball that was about palm sized. When I cast the first one I was ecstatic to find that it was the fireball I had nearly perfected in my last life. The fireball impacted the ground through the whirlwind, then exploded with enough force to shake the ground for several hundred meters. Vaunn had to step in front of Alessa before she was hit by flying debris. 

Pebbles and chunks of rock clinked against my bones as I stood there. A yellow goblin that had been near the explosion had half his body charred to black. It was very much dead. I looked around but couldn’t detect any fleeing footsteps so they must still be in the whirlwind. 

“Like I said. Are you sure you want to test your luck?” I called once again into the whirling sands. 

~~~~~

Alessa POV~~~~ 

I watched as Oberon easily countered the Yellow Goblins magic. I knew my ancestor was one of the most powerful mages in history, but his fireball had just left a several meter size cator in the ground. His FIREBALL! One of the first spells a mage learns when they start their training. It just seemed to defy logic. I couldn’t help but cling a little tighter to Vaunn’s leg.

Oberon launched another fireball into the whirlwind, and another explosion quickly followed. It sent the goblin inside sailing through the air to land a meter or so in front of me. It was very dead, but I didn’t want to take any chances, so I drew my dagger just in case. Of course it didn’t even twitch so I couldn’t help but breath a sigh of relief. Oberon pointed his sword towards another of the whirlwinds, but before he could launch it the winds died down and the two remaining goblins collapsed on the ground in front of him. 

They immediately started to beg for their lives in broken human tongue, “Please! Oh great one, have mercy,” was the rough translation.

“Why should I spare vermin?” Oberon asked much colder than I had heard so far. He was known to have been one of the nicest people when he was alive as was his reason for wanting to unite the races. 

“Vermin, yes! Useful vermin though!” the goblin said as he rubbed his hands together. 

“Oh,” Oberon said as he tapped his sword on his shoulder, “how so?” 

“Shinies! With master’s power! Could get easy!” he said as he kowtowed to him. 

“Ho… Alright, sign my pact and you shall live,” Oberon said to the goblin as he created a magic contract that floated in the air. He looked a bit annoyed by something, but he didn’t voice anything. 

The goblins to their credit nodded quickly as they thrust their hands through the floating. A bracelet made out of runes formed around their wrists. They looked at it curiously, one even licked it. I frowned in disgust.

“Did you really need to let them live?” I asked.

“Immediate gratification isn’t always better,” Oberon answered. 

“Scaredy girly want to kill us?” the goblin sent towards Oberon. 

“You have to admit that you guys look pretty ugly,” Oberon said with a grin. 

“Of course, Master! You are very right,” one of the goblins said as he rub his hands together. 

“Butt kisser,” I said with a little annoyance. 

“Ugly girl!” the goblin shot back. 

“You mother…” I started to say.

“Enough!” Oberon said loudly. 

I snapped my mouth shut quickly. The goblin stuck its tongue out at me, before it suddenly went flying. Oberon’s foot hung in the air where he had been. He landed half a dozen meters away against the wall. 

“I said… Enough,” Oberon growled with a menacing aura around him.

“Yes… Master…” the goblin breathed out in very apparent pain. 

“We’ll worry about the shiny things later for now we’re going to continue to hunt for a bit,” Oberon said a little more relaxed. 

Everyone, myself included, just nodded. We made our way a bit further into what would have been the main street of the town. Completely worn away by time and the elements, only the skeleton remained, much like Oberon, I thought to myself. We finally came to the end of what was left of the town and only open desert remained. 

Oberon grabbed one of the goblins, “what monsters in which direction?” 

The goblin pointed to the left, “troll. Mean brute,” then he pointed straight ahead, “lots of crawlies. Eat a goblin in seconds,” then to the right, “chicken lizards. Fast, strong,” he finished then added, “beyond changing, always changing.” The other goblin nodded along with the first. 

Oberon dropped the first goblin then strode forward. It looked like we were going towards the insect. I racked my brain to try and remember the types out here that were able to eat a goblin that fast. The only type that really fit was the Yuin Ant, they were always looking for more food for their queen. I prayed to Terina that I would be able to see tomorrow. Oberon was powerful, but this was a hive of hundreds if not thousands of monster insects.