Ryn
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Chapter 227
🕑 Added 2024-12-11 19:00:04 +0000 UTCWhen Julius finally left the chamber, he was welcomed by a servant just outside of the chamber. The servant in question was asleep and had a book opened up in his lap. The guy had probably been waiting outside of the chamber for who knows how long, waiting for Julius to either come out or to ask for something.
He still didn’t know how long it had been. He resolved to get some sort of device that tracked time in the near future.
Julius gave the guy a gentle nudge with his hand.
The guy jolted awake instantly and looked at Julius with wide eyes.
“I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep! I’ve been waiting for you to exit for a while,” the man quickly explained in a hurry.
“How long was I in there?” Julius asked the question he was most curious about.
The man frowned in thought as he tried to estimate the time. “About three-ish weeks,” he said in an uncertain tone.
“Three weeks?” Julius couldn’t believe what he had just heard.
Three weeks was a very long time.
“Do you know what happened to my friend? When did she leave her chamber?”
“I don’t know when she was finished with her advancement but I do know she has been hanging around the estate for the past couple weeks or so. Her advancement took some time but it wasn’t as long as yours.”
That’s good, I bet she has been going around and trying food in the meantime, he assumed.
“Can you take me to her?” He asked the man.
“Of course. She should be getting up pretty soon but I believe Lord Easten wanted to see you when you were done,” the servant said politely.
At least I know it's the morning.
“He wants to see me?”
“Correct, I actually have orders to take you and see him when as soon as possible.”
Julius couldn’t help but wonder what the man wanted to see him so soon for.
“Do you know why?”
The man merely shrugged.
Julius thought for a quick moment before gesturing toward the man that he was going to follow him. He didn’t see a reason why he wouldn’t go and speak to Marquis. It would also give him a good chance to ask more about the Challenge Rift. He was still very excited about the prospect of delving into that rift.
***
Julius entered the room that the man escorted him to. Before he had left, the man promised to let Reinera know that he was out and was talking to the Marquis.
The room itself was closer to a study than anything else. There were numerous large bookshelves that were packed to the brim with books. A nice area by a fireplace that he imagined would make a wonderful place to sit down and enjoy a book. And at the center of the room, in front of a large window, sat a man scribbling away at his desk.
“Ah, good. I see Jeremy has brought you,” the Marquis stated with his eyes still concentrated on the paper.
“Yeah, he said you wanted to talk with me?”
“Yes, I wanted to discuss the terms of the Challenge Rift you and Grace wanted to enter.”
“Did the elders decide to allow it?” Julius asked curiously.
The man shook his head. “No, they were still not willing,” he told Julius gently.
“Oh.”
“But don’t worry. Luckily for me, I can still give you access without their permission. It’s one of the perks of being the Patriarch.”
“Oh!” Julius said, but this time with much more enthusiasm.
“There is one thing though,” Marquis Easten added.
“Oh?” His enthusiasm dampened slightly.
“Although they weren’t happy with my decisions, the elders insisted that there must be some sort of exchange.”
Julius’s forehead creased as he frowned at the man. “You mean more than saving your grandson?”
The Marquis gave Julius a guilty look. “Yes, unlike me, they don’t seem to appreciate what you have done as greatly as I or his parents do.”
Julius sighed. “What do they want?”
“In return for allowing you access to the rift. They want you and your friend to help out with a little issue we have been having lately.”
“Issue?”
“Yes, the organization that kidnapped Cory has also been targeting our merchants and supplies while traveling on their routes,” the man explained.
“This Conclave group? The one that might or might not have the backing of a Ducal House?” Julius asked.
“Yes, the very same one.”
“Why do you want us? I feel like you could simply have one of your more powerful members go and escort some of these routes,” he said, a little bit confused at the request.
The man understood Julius’s confusion and simply nodded at him. “We have done that before. We sent a group of Tier 4s and even a Tier 5 along with a group not too long ago, trying to lure them out. However, they ran into no trouble along the way. On the other hand, the group after them who were very quiet about their movements, but who had only a single Tier 4 protecting them came under attack. We believe that this group specifically knew which caravan to target and when.”
“You’re saying you think they have someone feeding them information from your side and know which escorts have the powerful fighters and which do not?”
“Correct. I think that I have a traitor within my House. Someone who has details of our logistics and operations. With that said, there are a lot of people who have access to such information, so it is very difficult to find who it is?”
“And the elders want me and Grace to what? Fight off this group and protect the caravan?” Julius asked skeptically.
The man laughed. “No, some wanted you to sign contracts and then have you two work for House Easten for various missions. I was the one who recommended this particular job instead.”
“You’re the one who recommended this ‘dangerous’ sounding job?” Julius asked in a completely deadpan tone.
“Yep. I thought that you and your friend in particular might be a great choice. Both of you are now Tier 3, which congratulations by the way. However, both of you two will be extraordinarily more powerful than your typical Tier 3 even at the beginning stages of the tier. This group seems to know the exact composition of our fighters. Therefore, anyone Tier 4 and above they are very careful about. Since you both are only Tier 3, they won’t be expecting people like you. The fact that you two have Emblems will give you a massive advantage against other Tier 3s without one,” the man dropped a huge surprise bomb on him at the end.
“Emblems?” Julius asked, a little shell-shocked.
“The two of you had Concepts prior to advancing, that makes it pretty easy to guess that you both have Emblems of your own,” the man said.
Julius had so many questions that he didn’t know where to start, so he started simple. “What is an Emblem?”
The man looked thoughtfully for a moment. “The best way to describe an Emblem is to compare it to a representation of your soul. Much like how your aura is one. However, unlike your aura an Emblem is a supportive element that gives more weight to your existence. It makes your Concepts more easily imposed onto others while making it harder for those with Concepts to impose them on you.”
That was kind of the direction Julius was already thinking about how they worked, but it was nice to get some clarifying details about it.
“How do you know about then? Did you have a Concept when you advanced to Tier 3?”
The Marquis waved his hand. “No no. I wasn’t that talented. I got mine after I learned my third Concept when I was already in Tier 3. That’s the other way you can earn one without having one before Tier 3. It’s the most common method to gain an Emblem.”
“Is having an Emblem a requirement for reaching Tier 4?”
“Absolutely. Without an Emblem, you can’t manifest your Authority. It is also the reason why having an Emblem so early in Tier 3 is a massive advantage, it gives you a head start on your peers. You two are very blessed,” the Marquis said with an admiring smile.
Julius had always wondered why Dante and Alice had been so sure of him reaching Tier 4 without much trouble. He thought that they had simply believed in him, but it seemed like they understood that he was going to earn an Emblem the moment he advanced. He was curious how Marquis Easten knew that getting a Concept before Tier 3 would earn one an Emblem though. Which is why he asked the man.
“Both my eldest son Aden and Rebecca earned Emblems at their advancement,” the man said with fatherly pride.
Before Julius could keep on going down this rabbit hole of asking about Emblems, first he wanted to ask about this so-called mission.
“Let’s go back to the escort thing. You want the two of us to hide within the caravan and wait until someone attacks it, and then what?”
“You beat up whoever it is and try to get as much information from them as possible. Though, if that’s not possible, then simply allow one to escape while tagging one of them with a tracking device I will give you later on,” Marquis Easten explained.
“What if there’s someone stronger than us there?” Julius asked.
“There is still going to be one Tier 4 going along with you, just so it doesn’t seem out of place. But according to all reports, many of the attacks consist of mainly Tier 3s and at most a couple of Tier 4s,” the man tried to assure him
“And you think we can handle it?”
Marquis Easten didn’t answer with words, instead, he extended out his domain and pressed it against Julius. Unlike the last time, Julius felt something profoundly different. The weight of the man’s domain wasn’t as debilitating and did not require as much effort from him to hold off against. In fact, Julius barely realized it was there.
He didn’t think the Marquis was really trying to hurt him with it, but merely making a point.
“I think I get it,” he told the lord.
“Yes, that is simply one of the advantages of earning an Emblem so early. If you were able to fight against that Tier 4 like you said, then you should be able to fend off another Tier 4 at least until the Tier 4 I will send with you can deal with his side of things.” The Marquis sounded strangely confident in his assumption.
One that Julius wasn’t as comfortable to make.
“Have you discussed this with Grace?” He asked.
“I have. She seemed willing, but she said she wanted to talk to you before she made a decision.”
That was good. Julius wasn’t honestly that unwilling. However, a good part of it was because he was curious about this group. He wanted to know if they really had a relationship with House Greyson. And if so, he would be much more inclined to throw a wrench in their plans with or without House Easten involved.
“Okay, let me talk to her and we will let you know what we ultimately decide,” he told the Marquis.
The man smiled at him. “That is fine. In the meantime, here.” Julius was passed a small golden coin.
“That should allow you to pass through the property enchantments as if you were a retainer or family member. It’s only keyed to your aura so nobody else can use it, but it should allow you pretty much-unfettered access around the estate.”
Julius thanked the man. But before he left he made sure to ask a couple more questions regarding Emblems. He got some information, but nothing that he wouldn't have found out on his own eventually.
It was similar to willpower, he would have to slowly train it and strengthen it through experiences and hard work.
He also made sure to ask some questions about some recommendations of what was good to eat around Blumand before leaving the study and trying to find Reinera.
Comments
Len
chop chop Get WRITING!!!! no breaks for you!!! (kidding) Seriously though, just have fun with the family, we miss out on a chapt or three due to the holidays = no big deal for me... Family comes First.
Len
true true... just adds a layer of complexity but not much...call it levels of concept.... concept level 1-3 - weak - low "color" power,, concept level 4-6- midpower- "color" concept level 7-9 -Strong- high "color"...concept level 10- OP- peak "color" imo Julius's are all Strong or OP.
Hamfist
She can make her own choices, she needs some actual experience, and she has the rescue beacon if things go bad. This mission is probably less risky than the challenge rift they are trying to access.
Kyfe
Excellent point.
Pigmonster
There is one other aspect that likely affects the strength of emblems, and that is the strength of the concepts that you have. As we have seen with the 4 separate concepts that Julius has earned so far (I'm saying 4 due to counting his initial fire and his Phoenix concept as two different ones) that there are different power levels of concepts that one can have. So the emblem of a tier 3 who gained three low power concepts at tier 3 is most likely lower than the emblem of a tier 3 who gained 3 higher power concepts (with both tier 3s in this example being ones who gained their first concept in tier 3).
Xepen
Hey no worries, it’s the holidays. If there was ever a time for people to understand a week without uploads it be the last week of the year.
Pickled Rick
Edit suggestion: "Correct, I actually have orders to take you and see him when as soon as possible.” -> doesn't read right I would remove "when"
Len
oh ya Kyfe, Love your book :)
Mitchell Prevost
So what lvl of Pokemon can Julius command with new emblem? =)
Ryan
I am planning to go on a trip with family for around a week, so it’s hard to say. I might take a few days off but I feel bad leaving you guys with no chapters for that span
Kyfe
Seems reasonable, at least.
Dan Chadwick
Marquis is very observant! He understands Julius has issues with House Greyson and desires a way to redress this, so he offered a way to deliver a sucker punch!
Sipke van der Meulen
spoilers, spoilers. Just wait and see, way more fun that way.
William Johnson
Well, we need something to allow Julius to style on a T4 now that he's got his fancy new emblem!
Len
I am thinking power levels mmo style and ...growth... power progression- all theory atm and rough no concept at tier up- power level "white" -common- get 3rd concept-emblem- power level goes to "green" on tier up to 4 person has a delayed start of...maybe decades.... of growing his "base" emblem. 1 concept at tier up- power level "green" - uncommon- TO START it grows etc get 3rd concept -tier up to 4...power level goes to Blue- rare- due to stronger growth from the emblem initially. person stronger than first person due to growth of emblem AND a shorter time to tier 4 2 concepts at tier up- power level "blue" =rare..get 3rd concept tier up to 4, power level "purple" - herioc due to being able to grow 2 concepts,,,and shorter time to tier 4 by only needing 1 concept at tier 3... 3 concepts at tier up- power level "purple" heroic...get Special enhanced emblem....no NEED for any new concepts to get to tier 4... yadda yadda... shorter time to tier 4 stronger base due to more concepts etc. PLUS the ability to gain MORE than 3 concepts before tier 4 etc.... tier up to 4- "orange" - Mythic power level or maybe "gold" - legendary we know that at tier 2 Jul's could beat pretty much any tier 3 rather easily, with the occasional harder fight and had no chance against a tier 4 (equal number of concepts, stronger "base" due to tier). as soon as Juls "gets used to" his current power, i bet he could beat most younger tier 4's (early to maybe mid tier 4) that either had no concept or 1 concept at tier up.... again this is all supposition on my part...
Kevin McKinney
P.S. Also very ballsy/ungrateful to send your grandson’s rescuers on a mission when a suspected traitor has been feeding enemies info …. it does heighten tension though
Kevin McKinney
Good stuff, just a couple questions/comments 1. Wasn’t Julius supposed to get something for being spied on? 2. Are they doing the rift before the mission? ‘Cause that would kind of suck if they got killed or injured and the people who got their grandson back didn’t have to do give them the rift.
Nonie
Reply : how about fuck no. I won't place the princess in a life threatening situation for her entertainment because if she dies I'm super fucked.
Kyfe
Can one earn multiple emblems? Is Julius' emblem for advancing to Tier 3 with 3 emblems more powerful than the one for advancing with 1 and for gaining 3 while already in Tier 3? It seems like the latter should be the weakest while the one for advancing with 1 would be in the middle. If one gains multiple emblems, will the most powerful one be used, or will they add to each other? How would they add to each other: additively, multiplicatively, exponentially?
Cory
Tftc
Orthneil Kelley Jr.
Tftc
Raymond Mouton
Thanks from the chapter.
Profile Name
@Ryn do you have any Christmas plans and how it will affect publishing schedule. I just wish to know so that we don’t put unnecessary expectations on you during Christmas. Merry Christmas or happy holidays whatever you prefer. 🎄🎄🎄
Quentin Cozzi
Thanks for the chapter!
Profile Name
Tyftc!
RedLeaf
Thanks for the chapter!
PikaAndrew
Tftc
