Chapter 48: Jack Bird

The Denatus continued.

"We've already decided the War Game will be a siege, with Apollo defending and Hestia attacking," a goddess spoke up. "However, with the addition of Soma, should we redraw for a new War Game idea?"

"No, for a big battle, a siege looks like it'll be fun to watch."

"But we should add something to guarantee more combat."

"Guarantee more combat? Isn't a castle siege enough?"

"How about this..."

After much debate, the gods imposed additional conditions to balance the War Game in Apollo's favor, given he was fighting two Familias at once. Normally, a siege would require the attackers to capture the central flag within a set time limit—in this case, one hour and thirty minutes. If they failed, they would lose. However, to make the challenge more complex and fair, the gods added a second layer of difficulty.

Each side would select seven members to act as flag bearers, with each adventurer limited to holding one flag to prevent high-level adventurers from dominating. Both teams would disclose their flag bearers' identities beforehand. Once the siege began and the castle walls are breached by the attackers, all fourteen flag bearers—seven from each side—would be required to remain inside the castle.

To win, the attackers would need to secure all fifteen flags: their own seven (by protecting their bearers), the defenders' seven (by defeating their bearers), and the central flag. Meanwhile, Apollo's defending Familia would only need to retain one flag—any one of the fifteen—by the end of the siege to claim victory.

This gave Apollo a clear advantage, but the gods believed the added complexity would make the War Game more thrilling and unpredictable, with battles unfolding across multiple fronts.

"And what reward shall the victors claim?" Freya asked, her gaze settling on Apollo, a faint smile on her lips. "Will you uphold your original terms, Apollo?"

"Yes," Apollo nodded. "Once I'm victorious, I will claim Bell Cranel, and Hestia will be banished from Orario, never to return." He added the second condition as his eyes moved to the goddess. "Do you agree, Hestia?"

Hestia silently nodded as the deity in charge of recording the meeting responded with an "All right, then," scribbling down their terms.

"As for Soma," Apollo turned to the silent god, "I want Rex Magnus, all of your wine, and all of your financial deals with the Ishtar, Dian Cecht, and Panacea Familias." He finished with a grin.

"Deals with Dian Cecht and Panacea?"

"First I'm hearing of this."

"Is Soma selling his wine to them for medicinal purposes?"

"Panacea, why didn't you tell me this?"

"You didn't ask," the goddess replied with a slight smile. "Besides, it's not that important."

Loki stared at Panacea, then at her chest, before remembering that Ishtar also had a large bust. She glanced down at her own flat chest, then at Soma. 'Does he only like big breasts?' she wondered, cupping what little she had.

As for Dian Cecht, he wasn't present—a rare occasion for him to miss a Denatus. Then all eyes turned to Soma. "Do you agree?" a god asked.

"Whatever," Soma sighed.

"Then it's written," the recorder said. "What will Soma and Hestia collect upon their win?"

"All his members," Soma said simply, his voice low but loud enough for those nearby to hear and relay it to the others.

"Greedy, aren't you?" Apollo smiled. "But I agree." He then glanced at Hestia. "Now, what does your little heart desire, Hestia?"

Hestia smirked. "I want all your property, your wealth, everything you have—except your Familia members—and I want you banished from Orario."

Apollo didn't seem to care about her demands as he roared, "Then it's decided!" 

The War Game was tilted heavily in his favor with the flag conditions. And he was confident in his children's strength—even with the addition of the Soma Familia there was no reason for him to lose.

"We can't be usin' just any old castle, so let's get the Guild in on this," Loki spoke up as she stood. "We can work out the date then, too. So this is the end?"

"Agreed." the other gods chimed in as the Denatus came to an end.

Chairs scraped against the floor as the deities began filing out. Loki tried to make her way to Soma, but she was swept up in the flood of gods and goddesses, her small frame making her struggle futile. Apollo took his time, sneering at Hestia before disappearing through the exit, and Hestia could do nothing but glare back at him. Once he was out of sight, she let out a long sigh.

"Sorry about that, Hestia," Hermes said, walking up to her with an apologetic smile. "I kind of put you in a rough spot."

"No, Hermes, it's not your fault," she shook her head. It was thanks to the gods and goddesses' thirst for a good show—and Soma's unexpected involvement—that her side had been given some leeway during the meeting. 

"Soma..." Hestia quickly looked around and spotted the god slipping out through a side door. Without hesitation, she rushed after him, blocking his path. "How is Lilly doing?" she asked immediately.

Soma glanced down at her, his dark eyes meeting her blue through his bangs. "...Who?"

"Liliruca Arde," Hestia said. "Is she doing well?"

Soma thought for a moment before asking again, "Who...?"

Hestia stared at him, baffled by his genuine confusion, so Hermes stepped in. "The girl who was injured by the Apollo Familia," he said with a smile.

Soma glanced at him, then nodded. "I don't know," he replied.

"You don't... know?" Hestia asked, her confusion deepening. "Isn't she part of your Familia?"

Soma shrugged and walked around her. Hestia was about to go after him but was stopped by Hephaestus. 

"His Familia is larger than yours," the red-haired goddess reminded. "It's impossible for him to know about the well-being of every member at all times."

"You're right, but..." Hestia trailed off, watching Soma leave the room.

"Since both your Familias will be working together for this War Game, you'll likely have a meeting," Takemikazuchi spoke up. "You can ask about her then. His captain would likely know."

"And maybe you could speak to Rex," Miach added, "I am sure he can help you."

"I've been keeping an eye on him, and he's been spending most of his time in the dungeon," Hermes said with a shake of his head. "He probably won't be at the meeting." 

His words drew the attention of the others, who looked at him with varying degrees of disgust. "What?" Hermes shrugged with a smile. "He's interesting."

"Haah," Hestia sighed. "I'll try to have the meeting tonight, then," she mumbled.

———

Once the Denatus was over and Rex heard the conditions of the War Game from Soma, he immediately headed down to the Dungeon to get used to his new stats. Like before, he stayed within the Cave Labyrinth, where testing will be easier. And now that he was Level 3, the Level 2 monsters had stopped giving him stats, so he decided to start his venture deeper into the dungeon when the War Game ended.

'I probably should've started hunting in the Large Tree Labyrinth after the Black Goliath event,' Rex thought as he backhanded a Ligerfang, killing it instantly. 'Now I'll have to speed through that area to start grinding in the Water City.'

It was an oversight on his part, but he decided not to dwell on it. Once he maxed out all his Level 3 stats at S999, he will spend a few days in the Large Tree Labyrinth to hunt for the abilities he missed. With his luck, he shouldn't need pity to get abilities, so it should be quicker, and since he will far out level that area, he could move around without much worry.

'I would be able to kill the Green Dragon then,' Rex thought with a nod. 'It's a Level 4, but with my maxed-out stats from my previous level and my S999 stats at Level 3, it shouldn't be much of a problem.'

And with the addition of Dragon's Bane, the Green Dragon would be a breeze. 

"Speaking of dragons," Rex muttered, standing motionless as a Wyvern flying above him roared before unleashing a torrent of orange and red fire that blasted down on him.

"Isn't there another dragon monster in the Large Tree Labyrinth?" he wondered aloud, completely unbothered by the fire breath that engulfed him.

He had read about it during one of his library visits, but he couldn't remember the name. 'What was it?' He massaged his forehead, his mind racing. Then, it clicked. "Right!" he snapped, his voice cutting through the Dungeon's eerie silence. "Vouivre!"

These are female humanoid dragons known for the crimson jewel embedded in their foreheads, the Vouivre's Tear. At base, they were peak Level 2 creatures, but remove the Tear, and they become enraged, transform, and their strength raise dramatically to peak Level 3 strength. 

Although rare as Unicorns, with his Scavenger skill, locating one wouldn't pose a significant challenge. The skill had also confirmed he could scavenge their 'level boost rage' ability—a skill he couldn't afford to miss. Moreover, the Tear itself would fetch at least fifteen million valis—far surpassing even the value of a Jack Bird egg.

"Speaking of that—"

The Wyvern above him screeched as it stopped its fire breath, its wings beating the air as it prepared another attack. Rex didn't give it the chance. 

Rex bent his knees slightly, channeling power into his legs, and exploded upward. The ground shattered beneath him, cracks spreading outward like lightning across the stone surface, and in a blur of speed, he appeared above the flying Wyvern, leaving behind only a gust of displaced air.

The monster's serpentine eyes flicked upward in startled recognition, barely registering the human hovering briefly above its head. Then, with a fluid motion, Rex twisted his body, spinning in midair as his bare fist came down like a hammer. 

The Wyvern's skull cracked audibly under his fist, blood erupting from its mouth, as the creature's body was driven downward. The force send it plunging down to the Dungeon floor, crashing into the bedrock with a thunderous boom. The earth shattered on collision, sending shockwaves rippling through the ground, dislodging rocks and sending a cloud of dust and debris billowing outward.

Rex landed on one knee beside the Wyvern's body with a thud, watching as the body dissolved into a fine black ash, its magic stone shattered by the sheer force of his strike. The Dungeon fell silent again, save for the faint patter of falling debris.

"—I should probably kill the Jack Bird," he mumbled, brushing a fleck of dust from his shoulder. 

Jack Birds were fast—faster than most Level 2 adventurers, despite being Level 1 monsters. Their golden eggs were worth a fortune, and Scavenger had confirmed that he could get a speed-based skill from its magic stone. Both were too good to pass up.

"Alright," Rex stretched. "Let's head up for that Jack Bird."

———

"I heard that the Hestia Familia came for a meeting last evening," Rex said as he entered Zanis's office.

It was the morning after the War Game Denatus, and Rex had returned from the Dungeon after testing out his Level 3 stats late last night to sleep. This morning, while getting breakfast with the three musketeers, they told him that yesterday evening, the goddess Hestia and three others—who Rex later guessed were Takemikazuchi, Mikoto, and Welf, based on their descriptions—had come here for a with Zanis.

"Yes," Zanis replied, not looking up from the book in his hands. "We agreed to have the Hestia Familia hold one of the seven flags since they're a one-member Familia, while the Soma Familia holds the rest." He glanced up at Rex. "She also asked about the girl, Arde, and wanted to speak with you."

"Me?" Rex tilted his head slightly. "I see no reason for her to talk to me. Did she say why?"

"No, she didn't," Zanis shook his head. "But she did offer 10 million valis for Arde to be 'freed' after the War Game."

"Damn." Rex chuckled while shaking his head. "And we were going to free her for free."

"Indeed," Zanis nodded. 

After all, they had agreed about a week ago to let anyone who wanted to leave the Familia do so without hassle. They didn't need most members for money, and the fewer people in the Familia, the less tax they'd have to pay. Who knew Hestia will come to offer them 10 million for a girl they would have let go for free?

"Oh, and by the way," Zanis raised the book he was holding. "My grimoire arrived."

"For real?" Rex's eyes widened as he looked at the thick, encyclopedia-sized book. It had a plain white hardback cover with swirling, undecipherable patterns and didn't seem to have any title. "Let me see," Rex said, holding out his hand.

"You can see it, right?" Zanis asked, holding the book up for Rex to get a better look. They stared at each other for a moment before Zanis handed it over. "Don't open it."

Rex took the book without a word, feeling its weight, as he immediately used Scavenger.

[Grimoire: An average-quality spellbook that, when read, might allow an individual to instantly acquire a new magic spell. The specific magic gained aligns with the reader's desires, beliefs, personality, and fighting style, effectively manifesting their inner potential. Each Grimoire is single-use; once read, it becomes empty and cannot grant magic again. Market Value: ~100,000,000 valis.]

'Simple and straightforward,' Rex thought as he flipped the book over. 'But it says it might allow... so it's not a guarantee?' Scavenger confirmed it. 'I guess it won't grant you magic if you're too special.' Scavenger confirmed that too. 

'Imagine spending a hundred million on a grimoire and getting nothing.' He thought as he tossed it back to Zanis who caught it.

"Don't go tossing this around." He said as he patted the book with a smile. "Ahh~Finally~" He moaned as he held the book up like his child. "I have wanted you for years."

"Just read it," Rex sighed as Zanis immediately opened the book and the moment he began to read it, his eyes turned solid white. '???'

Rex watched as the white-eyed man silently flipped through the pages of the book as if he were actually reading it. After a few seconds, the pages shone with a bright white light, illuminating his face, and then his eyes returned to normal.

Rex immediately checked his status, but as expected, there was nothing new. 'I guess he needs an update before it shows up in the status for me to see.'

"I'll be back," Zanis said, grabbing a paper from his desk and sprinting to the door. He yanked it open and ran out without closing it, heading straight to Soma's room.

Rex waited in silence, glancing at the paperwork on Zanis's desk. 'I can't understand any of this,' he thought as he picked up a sheet. "Looks like accounting..." He skimmed it before placing it back, deciding not to mess anything up.

'And I have to sell those Jack Bird eggs before returning to the Dungeon today.' Yesterday, he had ended up killing three Jack Birds before he could get its skill.

He also discovered a downside to the Luck Development Ability—if you could even call it a downside. At first, he had tried to build up pity to increase his chances of scavenging the Jack Bird's skill. Normally, he needed 230 failed scavenges to guarantee an ability through the pity system. But with Luck boosting his odds, he kept scavenging random abilities before he could even hit the 200-kill threshold. This meant he could no longer reliably reach the 230-kill pity for a guaranteed scavenge, as his Luck kept resetting the count too early. Now, he had to rely more on raw luck rather than the safety net of pity.

This was particularly problematic for the Jack Bird. Only five of them roamed the 1st floor at a time, and it took a week for one to respawn. If he didn't scavenge the skill within those five kills, he'd have to wait another week—and another, and another—until he got another chance. Without the guarantee of pity, it became a gamble on when to stop without resetting the threshold. Thankfully, Luck was on his side this time, and he managed to scavenge the skill after hitting the 197-threshold. 

[Jack Bird Dash (Skill/Passive): Massively raises user's agility, slightly increases endurance, and allows the user to temporarily obtain the development ability Escape if being chased. The effects are dependent on the user's level.]

Jack Birds are known for running away from adventures, so the skill reflected it quite well. And the fact that it gives him the Escape DA made it all the more better. Escape are DA that are rarer than Hunter since it can only be obtained at Level 4 and above and it's not easy to reach level 4. 

And with this skill, he didn't have to worry about scavenging the Escape DA, since it scales with his level. So while those at level 5 with Escape will only have it at H, he will have it at F when he is at level 5, which was confirmed by Scavenger. It was an ability that would make it hard for even an agility based level 5 to catch up to him. 

It didn't take long for Zanis to return, a glint in his eyes as he read the paper with his updated status. He closed the door behind him, giggling like a little girl while Rex looked at his status:

— — — — — — — — — — 

Zanis Lustra

Level 2

[Strength] F320 | [Endurance] G297 | [Dexterity] D539 | [Agility] D501 | [Magic] I5

[Swordsman] I

[Magic]

"Castling"

— Switch places with anything in the user's line of sight

— Can switch places of two objects within line of sight

— Can choose to cancel or maintain momentum after switching

— Objects must be around the user's size

— Mind scales with distance, strength of the target, and whether momentum is canceled

[Chant: "Castle"]

— — — — — — — — — —

'O-overpowered!' Rex almost shouted, his eyes widening and mouth gaping. 'Is that Amenotejikara!? Sasuke??'

Seeing as all his stats had increased by ten or so points, it seemed Zanis hadn't updated his status in a while. 'But damn,' Rex stared at the magic in jealousy. 'What kind of desire did he have to get that magic? To switch places with the richest man in the world?'

"Fufufu," Zanis chuckled, pushing up his glasses. "Rex," He called as he looked at the silent Chienthrope. Then he took a step forward while muttering something under his breath. 

In an instant, Rex's world shifted, and he found himself standing where Zanis had been, near the door, while Zanis now stood next to the table. It was instantaneous. He barely had time to feel the magic shift within Zanis before he was moved, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

"It seems the gods have smiled down on me," Zanis continued with a smile, staring at the paper in his hand. "A single-chant magic that puts me on the level of the top mages in Orario. What a blessing~."

"It's my Luck development ability that gave you whatever magic that was," Rex said, turning to face Zanis. "So you should be thanking me, not god."

"Oh, Rex," Zanis looked over his shoulder with a smug grin. "Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?" His grin widened, his face darkening. "Are you... jealous?"

He burst out laughing, placing the paper down and facing Rex. "Come on, Rex," he spread his arms wide. "Try to catch me."

Rex immediately dashed forward, but Zanis activated his magic again, switching places with Rex. The man crashed into the table, sending it and himself tumbling to the ground, and papers flew into the air, mockingly raining down on him.

"It seems," Zanis said, now standing where Rex had been. "You can't touch me—" As he looked back at Rex, his entire line of sight was suddenly engulfed by Rex's palm reaching toward his face.

Panicked, Zanis quickly activated his magic again, switching places with Rex. But because of their close proximity and because he didn't cancel the momentum, they ended up crashing into each other and falling to the ground in an... awkward position.

Zanis laid on the ground with Rex kneeling above him, his palms on the floor beside the captain's face. Gray eyes stared into amber eyes in silence, no one knowing what to say about the sexual position.

*Click.* Just then, the door opened, and both of them turned to see the bulky Chandra standing there, staring down at them.

"Dang," Chandra drawled, scratching his head as he looked around the room, trying to act like he hadn't seen a thing. "This room's got plenty of space, ain't it? And them papers all over the floor? Real charmin', I tell ya."

"If you reacted normally, it would be less awkward," Rex said to the unusually tall dwarf.

Chandra stared in silence for a moment before roaring, "Y'all did it RAW!?"

"DON'T JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS!" Zanis and Rex shouted in unison.

Rex quickly stood up, and Zanis sat up on the ground, asking, "Why are you here? And didn't I tell you to knock?"

"Ahem," Chandra cleared his throat, shifting his weight. "Got someone here to see Rex." He stepped aside, revealing a blushing girl who had seen everything.

"Mikoto?" Rex asked, staring at her in confusion. "Why are you here?"

She immediately bowed, trying to keep her composure as she said, "Can you please train me for the upcoming War Game!?" she practically shouted.

"You're fighting in the War Game?" Rex asked, confused. "Didn't the requirement say an adventurer from a Familia outside of Orario?"

"I joined the Hestia Familia to support my friend," she explained, still bowing. 

'Ah, this is how she joined the Hestia Familia.' He had forgotten about her and Welf joining the Familia for the War Game.

"Bell is training with high-rank adventurers to prepare, and I don't want to slack off." She continued, "You're the only high-rank adventurer I know, so I was hoping you could help me."

She looked up with a hopeful smile. "If you're busy, then I won't bother you—"

"Alright," Rex nodded. "I'll help you." Mikoto's eyes widened, a glint of excitement shining through as Rex turned to his captain, who was now standing beside him. 

"And you're coming too, Zanis." He then looked at Chandra, who turned to leave. "You too, Chandra."

The dwarf glanced back, about to protest, but Rex cut him off. "You don't have a choice." He clapped his hands. "Let's go to the dungeon."

This would be their training arc before the War Game. They would get to know each other better, form bonds of master and student, become close friends. Funny moments would happen while they train within the dungeon. Cool fights would break out. It would be an interesting arc—one you'd 100% want to read. I just hope there isn't any time skip—

And like that, five days passed, and the day for the attacking Familia to leave for the location of the War Game arrived.

[Author's Note: The war game will start next chapter. Wanted it to be this chapter, but I felt like it would be too abrupt without a 'transition' chapter and I didn't want to drag it on any longer so I skipped the training arc. That's why this chapter is on the longer side because I wanted to write everything necessary without having it be two chapters. I hope you like my idea for the war game. This way there will be more fights and I will have more chance to show off the MC and other character's abilities. 

Anyway, thanks for reading and have a wonderful day~o(*￣▽￣*)ブ]