It wasn’t good enough. It was never good enough. With disappointment in his own incompetence, the sculptor shattered his half-made creation. Only a bit of the material was lost as he could still use the marble-like rock by refusing it, but some material was gone forever. Fortunately, the City Lord understood the importance of his task and provided him the funds necessary to do what had to be done.
Felix had not left his workshop for… a long time. He wasn’t actually sure how much time had passed. All he knew was that nothing was more important than making the perfect sculpture. The only breaks he took were those forced upon him. It was good that he had at least evolved to D-grade so he didn’t have to really sleep anymore but could keep focusing on his work exclusively.
The image was still vivid in his mind. The sculpture displayed by the Chosen of the Malefic Viper depicting his Patron had been near-perfect. It held meanings Felix could not understand and profound concepts he would not even dare to try to comprehend. He did hold questions such as what the purpose of the bottle was and the link between it and the mushroom, but such were not his questions to ask or his task to understand. He was merely the sculptor – a tool to bring about magnificence.
If only he was more talented. Even if his skills upgraded and the system called him a “prodigy,” he did not view it as enough. How could it be? All that he created was trash. Poor imitations. Not a single one was even close to being able to house the presence of a Primordial infused by his Chosen adequately. He didn’t even aim for perfection… just adequacy.
This was a task given to him by the Chosen of the Malefic Viper himself. Felix knew he had the backing of the entire Primordial Church behind him, and his Patron had even upgraded his Blessing to Divine in recognition of the importance of this task. The Malefic One had not had a statue made by one of their own for a long time… much less had the chance to have the Primordial’s Chosen infuse it.
Felix collected himself and prepared to start again. This time… this time, he would surely do it. If not, he would just have to wait a bit and get his level 180 skill in his profession. If that wasn’t enough, he would just have to wait for C-grade. Felix was not in a rush. The Chosen had not given a deadline, and he would rather see himself die of age than present a subpar sculpture.
Because if he failed, he truly did believe he deserved death just to make up for a fraction of the sin that a failure would be.
Yeah, that sculptor guy probably moved on to other things by now or asked Chris about what kind of statue he should make, Jake thought as he stayed zoned out during the boring orientation marked as a lesson. It wasn’t as if Jake had actually ever shown that Felix guy what kind of statue to make.
Anyway, refocusing a bit on the lesson, Viridia kept explaining stuff and taking questions, and from the vibe, Jake got the feeling a huge portion wanted to officially join the Order. Those who weren’t interested fell into two camps – those with existing backings or those who were just on the fence.
Jake understood from a logical standpoint why one would join the Order. In the simplest of terms, it offered safety. It was why many factions could function. Even if it didn’t lead to someone not killing you, it would make them think twice before doing so.It was also important to note that many in the Order were faction leaders or at least highly influential figures on their home planets. While returning was maybe not currently possible for them, if they did return in the future, they may want to make their planet part of the Order.
There were, in general, quite a few draws when it came to joining a major faction. Some had likely already applied to become a member. One of which was the guy sitting beside Jake.
“Hey… have you officially joined the Order?” Jake ended up asking Draskil.
The Malefic Dragonkin looked at him. “Of course. It got me free stuff.”
Jake nodded at the reasoning of his dragonkin buddy. As Viridia had explained, then members would passively just get more things. They got more Academy Credits, had access to certain stores that no one else did, and even got a stipend of sorts to further their own power. All in all, if you had no other obligations, joining just made sense. As a member, you also had a lot of freedom.
Most other factions were largely restrictive of what their members could do. There were high levels of expectations when it came to loyalty, and going to wars for your faction and risking your life was simply a given. The Holy Church was the most extreme example of this, as when you were part of the Holy Church, leaving it again would get incredibly difficult, especially as your entire planet was often part of the Church, and you were born into it.
However, with restrictions also came benefits. The Order of the Malefic Viper would not just shower their talented members with help. They would not assign them teachers or give them all the materials they needed. In the Holy Church, you would never want for anything as long as you stayed loyal and fulfilled all expectations. In the Order, you would get tossed out if it was decided you sucked too much and was a leech.
It all came down to the fundamental difference in ideology. The Order believed in freedom over everything else - to always offer the choice. If the Order wanted something from you, it would be far more transactional. Naturally, the Order would come out on top in these transactions to not fuck itself over in the long-term.
Now, it has to be mentioned that this kind of model could only really work with the Order due to how they operated on a multiversal scale. The Order did not engage in wars or chose sides in larger conflicts. Their members could join as mercenaries on either side, and there were several examples of Order members even killing each other on the battlefield. Something the Order of the Malefic Viper naturally didn’t do anything about. If you joined a war and got killed, that was on you.
Jake knew all of this just by doing a bit of studying and listening to Viridia’s lesson. But there was still the question…
“Did you join?” Draskil also asked.
“Did I?” Jake instead just asked the god observing them.
“At this point, no one would believe you if you said no. You have acted like a member, got way too many AC not to be a member, and I am pretty sure that when one of the Verdant Witches had you registered in the Humanoid Resources Department, she did as a member of the Order,” Villy answered. “Not to mention what happens when you eventually slip up and reveal yourself as my Chosen. Actually, you denying to be a member after that happens would be hilarious, so maybe just act like you aren’t?”
So, yeah. He was. Maybe. Jake looked at Draskil. “Yeah, I did. Kind of. It’s complicated.”
Draskil shrugged at his response. “This lesson is boring. You also think that?”
“Oh, that isn’t a complicated answer. Yeah, very much a waste of time with no real information for me or you. But it seems like it is good info for many,” Jake said.
“Hm,” Draskil just hummed as he fell silent again for a few moments before changing the subject entirely: “What is your real level?”
Jake was still hiding his level and showing it far higher than it actually was, but Draskil had quickly picked up on it being off, especially as Jake openly discussed a few things to make him suspicious. Ultimately, Jake prioritized a good conversation with Draskil over hiding his true level, and Draskil didn’t seem like the type to share it around either.
“169, all three balanced,” Jake honestly answered.
“Profession holding you back,” Draskil shook his head. Jake faintly felt approval from a certain simulacrum within but ignored that guy as he didn’t know better.
Jake just smirked in response. “I don’t know… I killed one before you.”
“I am stronger now,” Draskil shot back.
“Arguably. And even if that is true, I will be stronger than you in the future,” Jake kept arguing.
“Bah, I would beat you,” Draskil scoffed. “Power is supreme.”
“You never know how a real fight will end,” Jake smirked. He actually didn’t have much confidence against Draskil, but he was sure he could at least escape or put up a good fight, especially considering his recent advances. One also had to remember that Draskil had not done the system event due to being in the Order, meaning Jake had probably grown more in power simply due to his new title.
Draskil observed Jake a bit more before smirking himself. “Then prove it. You are a member of the Order, so join a mission.”
Jake raised an eyebrow. “What do you have in mind?”
The Dragonkin pulled out a piece of parchment – yes, old-looking parchment – from his spatial storage and presented it to Jake. Jake stared at it for a moment. “I’m in.”
He only had to read the first few parts of the mission. It was a dungeon run, but not just any dungeon run: an alchemy dungeon run. Kind of. It was a dungeon designed and created by the Order for their late to peak D-grade members, and considering Jake still needed his fair share of Dungeoneer titles, it would be silly not to use it.
Alright, that was another thing to add that factions could provide their members: access. Every faction had its own dungeons and general areas. That the Order would have a bunch of dungeons was just to be expected.
Draskil nodded at Jake agreeing to go. “We leave in three days.”
“Who is we?” Jake asked further.
“The succubus, me, you, and two more alchemists if we bother,” Draskil shrugged.
“What kind of dungeon is it?”
“Combat mixed with alchemy tasks. Unique plants need to be crafted into toxins to pass areas. Maybe potions too or other stuff. Not sure. I just needed alchemists,” the dragonkin explained.
“Is Irin an alchemist?” Jake asked, a bit confused. He was pretty sure she, as a demon, only had a social profession and her race without any class to speak of. Sure, she could learn alchemy, but-
“No, but she is hot,” Draskil just answered blankly.
I guess that is kind of an argument to bring her, Jake laughed a bit internally. “Fair enough. Any other alchemists in mind?”
“Can’t do it alone?” Draskil asked with a frown.
“Maybe, maybe not. How would I know? But even if I could, wouldn’t it be faster to bring more?” Jake pointed out.
Draskil looked like he hadn’t considered it much before nodded. “Okay. You know any?”
“Eh, I can think of at least one,” Jake answered. Wasn’t it about time to see how far Reika had come in her alchemy? It would also give them a chance to catch up and do some alchemy together. Jake had glanced at the parchment a bit more, and it seemed very much like a dungeon all about learning and effectively housed puzzles.
Jake still recalled how he had met Reika doing a puzzle in the Treasure Hunt and how well they had jelled working together back then. So why not invite her? Maybe she even had another friend to bring, or they could find another fifth person.
Meira was not an option for hopefully obvious reasons. She was busy with her own stuff anyway, and Jake didn’t want to drag her into a dungeon. Especially not with Draskil around. He was a bit of an intimidating guy until you got to know him. Reika should be fine, though.
“Then you find more alchemists,” Draskil nodded. “You have my contact information.”
Jake nodded. “Yeah, just send me the information.”
“The succubus will,” Draskil confirmed.
Their conversation just devolved into small-talk after that until, finally, the lesson ended. Throughout Jake and Draskil’s conversation, the two of them had sealed themselves within an isolation barrier made by Jake that made it impossible for others to listen in but also for others to see them. Viridia or even some of the C-grades could easily go through it, but none had, so that was nice.
It could be argued the two of them chatting during a lesson could be considered rude, but they were far from the only ones. Many barriers had appeared as friends, small factions, and groups discussed potentially joining the Order.
Not long after, the lesson came to an end. Jake prepared to leave as one of the first ones as he felt a telepathic connection. “Chosen, may I have a word?” he heard Viridia ask him.
Jake considered for a moment before nodding. “Thank you. Please simply come to my office once it suits you.”
With those words, Viridia also disappeared from the lesson hall, none of their conversation leaking out. Jake got up and went for one of the gates and, just like usual, activated his token and stepped through. The difference this time was his destination.
Viridia had sent to him what was essentially an address through the token. Seeing no reason not to go, Jake headed through the gate and appeared in a large luxurious office. He instantly spotted Viridia already standing in front of her desk, bowing as she saw him.
“Once more, thank you for offering your time,” she spoke while bowing, making Jake a little uncomfortable and reminding him why he wanted to keep his identity as the Viper’s Chosen secret. If he didn’t, everyone would treat him like Viridia, if not even worse.
“No need to be so overly courteous,” Jake said, trying to be both dismissive but also understanding.
“I apologize,” Viridia still said but also had enough awareness to move the conversation forward. “It has been a while since our last meeting, and it is an honor to finally have you within the Order of the Malefic Viper.”
“It’s been a while for sure,” Jake nodded. The Tutorial felt like it had been ages ago. “Now, why did you want this meeting?”
“Firstly, I wanted to formally introduce myself to the Chosen. As the Hall Master of the Order, I find it only fitting that I make my loyalties clear,” Viridia began. “Secondly, to ask if the Chosen requires any assistance with anything? I have heard of your current considerations from the Verdant Matriarchs and wish to help as much as possible.”
Jake was a bit confused and frowned. “What considerations?”
“I fully understand if you wish to keep it under wraps for now. Just know that I will do my utmost to find candidates from within the Order,” Viridia just continued.
What the hell is she on about? Jake thought, now more confused than ever. What candidates? Had she somehow listened in when they talked about the dungeon earlier? No, that should be impossible. He would have sensed it.
“Please be clear what considerations you are talking about,” Jake said.
“Ah, my apologies,” Viridia said apologetically. “I am naturally talking of your plans for propagating your Bloodline. To my knowledge, the Malefic One relayed his wishes to the Verdant Matriarchs, and I have been tasked to assist you wi- excuse me, my Lord?”
Jake had already turned around and began walking towards the gate again.
“Dispel whatever plans you had,” Jake just said as he used his token to make a gate. “You are misinformed, and I have no such plans.”
Viridia seemed taken aback as she asked, confused. “I apologize if I am overreaching or if there are any misunderstandings… but where is the Chosen going?”
Jake tossed her a final look before stepping through the gateway. “Just gonna have a small talk with my Patron.”