[Chapter 179] Increasing The Core

I gaze up at the sky as light flashes fill the night sky. Everyone has left by now and I am currently just sitting on my roof, relaxing. 'Is that The Author? Causing those red lights and flashes? That's awesome...'

I close my eyes, blocking off the light show for a moment. 'He offered to become my mentor...but I need to complete this impossible mission first.'

I open my eyes and access the system as I look at my mission queue, only to see a few of missions in front of me. I stare at the queue slack jawed before anger begins to rise up within me, 'These missions...I wasn't notified of?! I need to scrap you system! Sell you! Update you! Do something useful with you!'

I quickly gaze through everything, looking for anything else that changed, but this seems to be the only thing that has.

I reopen my mission queue as I read over the titles, 'Aurora's Vengeance...Restard War...The Hidden Search...and Kingdom Hana...'

As I read over each mission, their descriptions pop up as I read the dialogue.

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"New Quest."

"Aurora's Vengeance."

"Aurora has served her father for many years and when he was threatened, she stepped in. You provoked her wrath and still overcame her, but barely. Before she attacks you again, you should strike first."

Goal: Defeat her 2 more times

Reward: ???

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"New Quest."

"Restard War."

"Restard has been at war with the Scaled Kingdom for a few years now and the war has yet to weaken. Both sides are now seemingly stuck in a standoff and you can cause quakes within."

Goal: Join a Kingdom and join the fight

Reward: Forced Mana Core Refining, Title: Tide of War

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"New Quest."

"The Hidden Search."

"After saving Dreag, a Divine Beast has been released into the world along with his followers. What will they do?"

Goal: Search

(More details of the goal will be shown as more knowledge is acquired.)

Reward: Title: Detective, Title: Divine Emperor

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"New Quest."

"Kingdom Hana."

"As the founder and new king of a kingdom, you are now responsible for the lives of many. Help increase your kingdom's reputation and growth to become infamous."

Goal: Create a fully functioning civilization within 3 years

Reward: Title: Emperor Of The World

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I stare in shock at these messages before a smile forms over my once angry expression. 'I can use the Restard War mission to help with my mission to become a demi-god!'

'This mission is perfect motivation, I already have a kingdom I can fight against in the war! I can deal with this mission quicker if I fight against a kingdom.'

But my eyes still drift to the 3 other missions as I try to remember what could of triggered them. I think it over for a moment before nodding, having rationalized their origin.

'I unlocked Sister's Vengeance when I fought Aurora, Kingdom Hana is obvious enough, I unlocked the third one when I woke those people up in the dungeon...but this description is too vague.' I read over it a few times but can barely understand it.

I close it as I continue to gaze up at the light show, 'I will figure it out eventually. Currently, my main goal is to arm the guards. Then I can return to the main world less worried and apply for schooling.'

I enter the house and wake up to begin the next day. As I stretch from getting out of bed, I immediately begin thinking about my current issue, guards. I have my shadow soldiers but I need more to protect my kingdom. I don't plan on using the shadow soldiers I keep on me since they are my personal army to fight overwhelming odds or deal with something pesky.

After thinking for a few moments, an idea appears in my head. 'I can create swords! This will take a bit of time but it is a simple solution to my problem.'

I immediately head down to my workshop as I begin designing and mass producing the swords. Most shadow soldiers are created with weapons, but this one is going to be more powerful than them.

After a few hours, I have created over 10,000 swords as I fall to the ground, panting. 'Concentrating that long is a pain in the ass, holy shit. And is extremely boring!'

I look at the crates filled with the weapons as a continue to breath heavily, my heart rate already calming down.

I push myself up as I look at one of the swords I have already set out. It is a grey blade with a purple edge, an entire black hilt gleaming in the light. 'I made sure it is light and durable as to make wielding it easier. This, combined with their infinite stamina, would make them formidable foes.

I set the blade in the final wood box and place the lid on, closing off the final batch of blades. I feel slightly tired from doing the repetitive task, but that feeling quickly fades as I remember what happened during the forging.

I wave my hand as 3 dark droplets enter my hand, 'I had gotten more of this pure shadow mana, my other goal is to advance to the next rank and evolve my mana core. And since I can...why not now?'

I use identify on the droplets of pure shadow mana but the same description as before comes up. I think for a moment before shrugging, 'I have 3 chances so let's see if my random guess will work.'

I sit down on the floor as I slow my breathing, 'Mana Container Reforming Technique.'

I feel the mana from the shadows around me begin to spin towards me when the familiar pop up appears with a *Ping!*

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"Mana core at maximum growth, refine core with pure shadow mana to pass into next stage."

"Current stage: Rank 0"

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I read it over and look down at the three droplets of darkness in my hand. I grab one as I continue to circulate, and throw it into my mouth.

It is tasteless as it falls down my throat and a new window opens.

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"Mana core refining into next stage."

"Current stage: Rank 0"

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I am hit by an intense wave of energy as I feel my body tense up. I feel a sharp pain in my abdomen, as if someone stabbed me with a burning knife. I quickly activate "Pain Ignorance" as I wait silently. After about 20 minutes, another window pops up.

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"Mana core refined into next stage."

"Current stage: Rank 1"

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I smile as I quickly deactivate "Pain Ignorance", bringing back feeling in my abdomen. The pain wasn't unbearable, but if I can avoid pain, I will. I have the skill for a reason after all.

I stand up as I wave my hand, storing the droplets in my storage ring. I look at it's gold exterior. A sad smile appears on my face, 'I miss them, I should probably go to visit some time.'

Memories of my father, mother, and brothers and sisters fill my mind. I remember our christmases, our birthdays, every moment. I shake my head as I walk over to the boxes, 'Focus, I can visit later.'