`AN: Alrighty, I was excited about this chapter with this idea, so here is a freebie of sorts! In this chapter, I tried incorporating "author notes" to allow the reader to read the "system's" descriptions of skills instead of the description being directly in the story to make the word count fair and add some interactive-ness to the story. Anytime you see this symbol next to an emoji, paragraph, or sentence like the one below:
Click me ->[1]
Let me know if it works or if I should go back to how it was previously with info directly in the story. I'll leave this chapter here for a couple days oooor until some comments come in and tell if this idea works or not.
Welp back to the chap!`
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"Huh? Earned it? Them? Mere servants." Kevin jumped in with an arrogant tone, crossing his arms over his chest.
Windy and Grayzer clenched their fists tight around the gold coins.
"Wowww, it must be nice having your status, huh? Bravo, Kev, bravo," Atlas said, clapping hands in a slow cadence.
"If you didn't have strong people behind that status of yours, you would've been dead cause of that mouth."
"You!" Kevin yelled out slamming his fist down on the table causing it to crack under his fist.
"Am I wrong?" Atlas said leaning back in his chair. "Let me ask you this then. If one of you were to die what would become of these two next to me?"
"They would be sentenced to death," Sophie answered like it was an obvious answer.
"What about them? What happens to them if they die? This is just my assumption, but you'll just compensate their mother with gold and give some bull shit remarks like 'they sacrificed their lives for your protection, and how heroic they were.' Or am I wrong?"
"No, that's about right," Alex answered
"And that's supposed to be fair?! Everything falls in your favor. You gain more coins, you get all the rewards, and the one who is meant to sacrifice their life earns a measly 5 percent. Are you serious? And God forbids they're able to save themselves if something goes bad and one of you die cause they'll die either way, huh." Atlas said, getting emotionally angry the more he talked.
"Sorry, but I'd rather work on my own if that's the case. I wouldn't want to be part of a group that benefits royalty. Grayzer...Windy, it was nice knowing you, but I hope you two stay safe out there. Just know you can come find me if you need a friend." Atlas got up from his seat and started to head toward the board that held all the different types of bounties.
"Now, now, no need to be so quick to judge. It's just how the rules are." Alex stands up, releasing his peak spirit realm pressure on Atlas, causing him to stop in his tracks. "Plus, no one has ever rejected my invitation before."
Everyone else inside the guild started to sweat and tremble, and they also felt the pressure, even though it was directed at Atlas. Only a small amount seemed unfazed by the pressure.
"You know..." Atlas slowly turned around with a devilish smile on his face causing a chill to go down his spine.
Is this...fear? Alex thought to himself his eyes going wide.
"I wouldn't mind putting you in your place. Fuck your status." Atlas opened his eyes and locked eyes with Alex whose eyes turned dull.
-5 🔷
"Release this pressure immediately, " Atlas ordered, taking slow steps toward Alex. Everyone in the vicinity was shocked as the pressure disappeared as if it weren't even there.
-10 🔷
"Kneel," Atlas ordered as soon as he was a couple of steps away. However, Alex didn't kneel immediately. It looked as if he was resisting the command, similar to how one would try to resist the change of gravity, shocking everyone around him, especially his younger twin brother and sister.
"Atlas, don't use it. That's enough!" Grayzer yelled.
"It's not worth it, Atlas; just leave it." Windy voiced in as well.
"Hmph!" Atlas closed his eyes, and Alex immediately dropped to one knee. He gasped for breath and resisted the command.
'What in the world just happened?! A mind attack'
Alex thought as he watched Atlas walk to the bounty board as if nothing had happened. He couldn't remember much about what happened besides seeing that devilish smile, and then he suddenly started gasping for air like he was running a marathon.
"Wait! Come back here!" Kevin yelled out, getting up from his seat.
"Stop!" Alex yelled out, stopping Kevin from trying to do anything stupid.
"But brother, he..."
"Don't mess with him; he's stronger than he gives off," Alex said, standing up and wiping the sweat that appeared on his forehead. "What do you two know," Alex said squinting his eyes as he looked at Windy and Grayzer.
"Not much young master. Only that he somehow has the ability to negate intent as he locks eyes with someone. The limit seems to be capped at 2 ranks higher." Grayzer responded giving a half-truth and not mentioning that Atlas can control individuals with commands.
"Hehe, he's so mysterious...I like him." Sophie smiled licking her lips as she stared at Atlas's back.
"Let's go pick out a bounty and leave," Alex said as he started to walk to the bounty boards as well. He passed by Atlas to get to the C rank bounties who didn't even pay him no mind causing him to suck his teeth.
The only time Atlas turned to look was when Windy and Grayzer passed by. He nodded his head down once, as if mentally saying, "See you later."
Atlas opened his eyes and looked over the bounties for F-rank adventurers on a digital holographic screen the size of a 72-inch screen. Unlike his system screen, this one seemed tangible, as he was able to scroll through each bounty. Each bounty had a title and an image of what he was looking for. The moment he clicked on a couple, he was able to see their details.
He didn't know whether to expect some of the bounties or be annoyed by the tedious task some of them had.
<><><><><><><><><><><>
F Rank Bounties
Glow Root Gathering ➕[2]
Fire Bloom Harvest ➕[3]
Moonlight Lily Retrieval ➕[4]
<><><><><><><><><><><><>
Retrieval missions didn't seem all that interesting to Atlas, so he decided to have a check at the E-rank bounties. Plus, he felt the reward price was pretty low. It might just be him being greedy, though.
That's when he remembered Zelina saying he could pick an E-rank mission if he believed he could complete it.
'These are more like it!'
Atlas thought as he looked over the E Rank bounties.
<><><><><><><><><><><><>
E Rank Bounties
Starlight Lotus Retrieval ➕[5]
Sunfire Salamander Capture ➕[6]
Blaze Wolf Pack Extermination ➕[7]
Moonlit Moth Collection ➕[8]
Crimson Serpent Scales Retrieval ➕[9]
<><><><><><><><><><><><>
'Alright, the Moonlit Moth Collection and Crimson Serpent Scales Retrieval seem interesting.'
Atlas thought as he reviewed the 2 E-Rank bounties.
'But I think I should start off with the moonlit moth collection first to test the waters.'
Atlas knew nothing about the other creatures. He wasn't planning on nearly dying again because he didn't know the world he was in currently.
However, Atlas just realized another crucial thing he hadn't asked for. How was he supposed to accept a mission? When he decided on one and looked through the details, he didn't see an accept prompt.
Luckily, he didn't have to. Glancing to his right through slightly opened eyes, he saw Alex bringing his guild card close to the bounty before it quickly disappeared from the screen.
After that, they walked to another attendant who seemed to have a whole bunch of supplies behind them, including bags, pouches, basic weapons, basic potions, accessories, etc.
Alex put his guild card, chip side down, into a slot in the attendance desk area. The attendant looked over something on the screen facing him and turned to grab the supplies Alex needed to complete his bounty.
I see. So it's kind of like a customer service area after picking your bounty.
Atlas was surprised that this world with magic seemed to be so advanced in technology. He felt as if he was on Earth, with the addition of fantastical elements like magic and beasts.
Turning back to the screen in front of him, Atlas tapped his card, and a prompt popped up on the bounty board.
{Would you like to accept the bounty "Moonlit Moth Collection" into your guild card}
{YES} {NO}
Atlas clicked 'yes' on the screen and another prompt popped up as soon as the bounty disappeared into Atlas's card.
{Please head over to the supplier for supplies to complete the bounty. Thank you for your service! Safe journey, adventurer!}
Once the screen went back to normal, Atlas looked over to see if Alex and the rest were still at the desk, only to find it empty. Looking to the front, he saw them walking out the door. A small smile appeared on his face when he saw Windy turn to look at him. Atlas raised a hand and waved it. Windy hesitated at first, but she lifted her hand slowly and waved it back before following behind Grayzer.
Atlas turned back and walked to the supplier, waiting for a team of members to finish before he went next. It didn't take long for the group to get their supplies, and they turned to leave.
As Atlas took a couple of steps toward the desk, the big guy in the group bumped shoulders with Him, causing him to stumble back a couple of steps.
"Hmph!" The guy snorted causing a reaction for his lackeys to start laughing like a bunch of hyenas as they walked past Atlas.
'The hell is their problem!'
Atlas thought, ignoring them and placing his card chip side down into the slot.
"Atlas Blaze, huh? Are you really a Blaze? Haven't seen you around before." A burly man with a bald head with some scars and a Viking-style medium-length orange beard asked.
"Coincidence," Atlas replied
"Uh huh," the supplier answered, not really believing Atlas. So you picked the moonlit moth collection bounty. It is a rank above your current rank. Do you believe you're able to complete the task?"
"Yes." Atlas nodded as he responded to the suppliers' question.
"Failure will result in negative points. Since you just started negative points as an F rank will cause a termination of your guild card. Do you still accept?"
'It can't be that hard, right? I mean, it's just a collection of moths.'
"Yes, I still accept," Atlas answered
"Alright," the supplier shrugged and grabbed a ring from a drawer underneath him. It was obsidian in color and engraved with red runic symbols.
"Inside this space ring is 50 space jars so you have the potential to earn 1 silver coin if you are able to fill up all jars. I see you have no space ring, and you are still an F rank, so I'll just generally explain how it's used." The supplier said slipping on the space ring that looked bigger than his finger which then adjusted to the circumference of his finger.
"Just like your guild card, it is an object that needs mana to use. Keep in mind that putting mana in it will cause you to be defenseless for a brief second. Your consciousness will be pulled to another dimension after all. To grab an item within the space, you can just imagine it appearing in your hand or figuratively grabbing it with your mind." The supplier explained inserting mana into the ring.
For a brief moment, his eyes went dull for less than a second, and then a white jar with a wooden cap appeared in his hand.
"It's the reverse in returning an item to the space ring. This time, just have your mana envelop the object while you put the mana in the ring. Your mana has its own mana signature, so the ring will pick up that object enveloped in your mana, which is to be put into the ring."
The object disappeared back into the ring once the supplier finished.
"Did you get that? Your eyes were closed the whole time. I'm not explaining myself again."
"I got that," Atlas responded as the guy tossed him the ring in the air and caught it. The supplier looked at Atlas with a raised eyebrow.
Atlas took that chance to slip on the ring, which adjusted to his finger. He inserted mana into it and felt a connection form with it. After that, his consciousness entered a dark room with a glowing blue box floating in space in front of him, 5 cubic feet. Inside that space were 50 of those white jars with wooden caps.
Atlas imagined one of those jars appearing in his hand, and one of them came out of the glowing blue box. Once the object was in his hand, which seemed ethereal or see-through in that space, he quickly exited the space.
In reality, the white jar was in his hand, and Atlas looked at it with fascination.
"This thing is awesome," Atlas said as he observed the object that appeared in his hand. Then he released his mana to envelop the object, and it disappeared into the ring.
"It's good that you seem to get the gist of it, " the supplier said, nodding his head. But before you head out, sign this." He placed a yellow sheet of paper on the desk.
"What's that?" Atlas asked
"An agreement; these items aren't free, kid. That ring cost 10 gold coins. But we're allowing you to rent it for 10 bronze coins daily. Since your bounty is a night bounty, it's 10 bronze coins a night. If it gets damaged, stolen, or lost, you pay 10 gold coins to replace it. Oh, and don't even think of stealing it. Guild cards and guild-provided supplies have trackers activated after a certain number of days, or if an agreement is broken, we will find you."
"I see, that's quite thought out, I guess." Atlas looked over the yellow piece of paper, and it pretty much seemed like an agreement.
"Word of advice, kid, if you can always aim to purchase your own supplies. Perishable supplies such as potions or talismans are one-time purchases, so those are preferred here."
"I will keep that in mind, thanks," Atlas replied as he went to sign the paper, but it didn't write.
"Mana kid." The supplier said when he saw Atlas didn't use his mana to use the pen.
"Ah, right," Atlas put mana in the pen and signed the parchment. "So what do I call you, sir? I'm sure this probably won't be our last meeting."
"Heh," the supplier smirked, "you can call me Bjorn, kid."
Atlas's eyebrow twitched once he heard the name.
'Even his name sounds like a Viking!
[1] System description or optional drop-down info from like a quest will be displayed as so!
[2] Difficulty: Low
Description: Collect a batch of grow roots from a designated forest area, a rare luminescent herb used in healing potions.
Rewards: 50 bronze coins for every 10 roots gathered
Points: 20
[3] Difficulty: Low
Description: Gather fire blooms, flowers known for their flowery petals that are used in alchemical experiments.
Rewards: 50 Bronze Coins for every 10 fire blooms harvested.
Points: 20
[4] Difficulty: Low
Description: Retrieve moonlight lilies, delicate flowers that bloom under the moonlight and are used in enchantments.
Rewards: 50 Bronze Coins for every 5 moonlight lilies harvested
Points: 20
[5] Difficulty: Low
Description: Find and collect Starlight Lotuses that bloom only under the light of a full moon.
Reward: 200 bronze coins per every 15 collected
Points: 80
[6] Difficulty: Intermediate
Description: Capture Sunfire Salamanders for research purposes without harming them.
Reward: 300 bronze coins
Points: 120
[7] Difficulty: Intermediate
Description: Eliminate a pack of Blaze Wolves threatening travelers in the Forest.
Reward: 300 bronze coins
Points: 120
[8] Difficulty: Low
Description: Capture Moonlit Moths that emit a soft glow during nighttime.
Reward: 200 bronze coins per every 10 captured
Points: 80
[9] Difficulty: Intermediate
Description: Retrieve Crimson Serpent Scales that are shed during their mating season.
Reward: 300 bronze coins
Points: 120