“Did we forget something?” He asked. They thought for a moment but came up short as well. Oh well. If it was important he knew he would remember eventually.
“Recter, it almost sounded like you considered yourself to be part of the kingdom. I thought you wanted to travel, has something changed?” Noah asked. Recter hissed out a sigh.
“After being captured by Jeline, I realized that I had been foolish. If it is alright with you, I would like to fight by your side for the foreseeable future. At some point, l will pursue Bronze though, so until then, I will join your kingdom.” He replied.
“Glad to have you aboard, then. I get the feeling that we will need as many capable warriors as we can get in the coming days. The deadline is over a year and a half away but it is starting to feel like we will need every second to make it to Bronze.” Noah commented. The thought didn’t sit right with him, though. The beasts had already reached Bronze, but there had been no System alert saying their quest was complete. There was also the matter of the two separate leaderboards. Why would there be two leaderboards if there was only one quest? Perhaps it was the extra points in wisdom, or perhaps a lucky guess, but the thought stuck. There isn’t one quest; there are two. And I’m guessing only one of those quests can be completed. The thought made sense to him; in a way, it felt right. He had been at odds with the beasts since his very first day in the new world, and if his assumptions were correct, then they were more than just at odds; they were in a literal contest against each other.
[Hidden knowledge detected.]
[Assessing origin.]
[Organic revelation detected.]
[Knowledge retained.]
[Congratulations! You have uncovered hidden knowledge without outside assistance. You have discovered Hidden Knowledge: The Contest.]
[The Contest is a core element in System integration for new planets. Selected races are pitted against unselected races for eventual ownership of the planet. At the end of the allotted 1,095 planetary days, ownership will be transferred to the reigning Bronze.]
Noah stared at the message for several minutes, hardly believing his eyes. Hidden knowledge? Contest? His mind raced as he considered the ramifications of the System’s words. If he could believe the information, then he could only assume that the selected races were the humans, orcs, drakon, and elves while the unselected were the beasts. That also meant that they were losing by a large margin. According to Jeline, several beasts had already ascended to Bronze, and even she was further along than him. Jeline. She was his enemy according to the System, or at the very least a competitor. He had helped her take a step toward reaching Bronze as well, even though it meant taking down another beast. He was suddenly glad for their choice in offering the elves a place in their kingdom. One thing was clear from the System’s message: they didn’t have time to be picky in their climb for Bronze. As he waited for his soon-to-be citizens to assemble, Noah pulled open his status, opting to view everything at once.
Status
Name: Noah Denter
Race: Human
Grade: C
Domain: Proximal
Caste: Copper
Gate: 3
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Path: Adept
Level: 251
Strength: 1324
Dexterity:1324
Constitution: 596
Intelligence:36
Wisdom: 88
Willpower: 39
XP: 28,000/10,000
Essence: 0/10,000,000
Stat points available: 31
[Global Ranking System.]
- Malentar Stoneskin-Drakon: Copper, Lvl 255
- Noah Denter-Human: Copper, Lvl 251
- Recter Jandon-Drakon: Copper, Lvl 240
- Ne’Ja Huskar-Orc: Copper, Lvl 231
- Un’Dal Falbane-Orc: Copper, Lvl 226
- Ta’Ku Gordrak-Orc: Copper, Lvl 225
- Me’Zin Domika-Orc: Copper, Lvl 224
- Kaitlyn Denali-Human: Copper, lvl 201
- Fastion Briner-Elf: Copper, Lvl 199
- Dreston Shadowfang-Drakon: Copper, lvl 198
[Followers: 86/10,000.]
[Days remaining: 584.]
Noah looked over the changes, noting that he had failed to allocate all of his new points prior to the most recent battle. For some reason, he found it hard to remember stats when the real world kept moving around him. He knew better though, he couldn’t afford to keep treating the System like a game. If not for the man who had fallen unconscious on their journey to the elven city, he may have missed the illusions altogether. That wasn’t acceptable. The impact of the ‘software stats’ had become all too apparent to him, and he wouldn’t allow them to stay so low. With that in mind, he leveled twice with his available XP and distributed his free points into the mental stats, finding rather satisfying round numbers. He now had 100 wisdom, 50 intelligence, and 50 willpower. Next, he looked at the rankings. Instead of being disappointed about his placement, he only felt relief seeing the drakon still ahead of him in levels. At this point he would celebrate any other selected race that pushed forward, as he now was all to aware of their deadline. He scanned over the spot Ro’Kar’s name would have been, and a pang tugged at his heart. His grief was quickly forgotten, however, as one of the new names on the list caught his eye. Kaitlyn Denali. There was another human on the list. The next line was new, but he knew immediately what it meant. His tribe plus Recter made exactly 86 people, the total sum of his kingdom. He couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed as he looked at the second number. 10,000 people. His eyes finally drifted to the final System screen. 581 days remaining. Their time limit was halfway gone, and even though he was only a step away from Bronze, he felt that the final step would take the longest. Then I have to become the reigning Bronze… Noah shook his head, he could only take one step at a time.
The hour passed quickly as his mind whirled, and soon a large host of elves were assembled before them. There were far more than he had anticipated from his brief walk through the city, enough that he would have a major problem if things turned violent. Ta’Ku had enough forethought to grab a table from the estate, and Noah climbed atop it in order to be visible to the entire crowd. He raised a fist, a sign that his tribe would have understood immediately but took the elves several moments to respond to. He had already had a speech in mind, but the System messages had given him a new perspective. Soon, a hush came over the crowd, and he began to speak, projecting his voice easily with his enhanced stats.
“Thank you, everyone, for gathering so quickly. I have been made aware of the situation you found yourselves in under the tyranny of the Mad King. For that reason, I would like to assure you that the oath I am asking of you is meant for your benefit just as much as ours. Regardless of your previous actions toward the humans, if you choose to join our kingdom and take the oath, no one will dare to retaliate against you. You will be given a blank slate and will have equal standing with every other member of our kingdom.” Noah paused, allowing time for his words to sink in. There was muted murmuring amongst the elves, and Noah waited until it became quiet again.
“Something you may not be aware of, however, is the challenge set before us. The System has put us in a contest with the beasts to see who will be worthy to claim this planet at the end of the allotted time. At our current pace the beasts will win with ease and we will become subjects to them in less than two years time.” He paused again as whispers and gasps filled the castle grounds.
“Unfortunately, I have been informed that there are already several beasts that have ascended to Bronze while not a single member of the selected races has reached that standing. We are fighting an uphill battle and will have to set every other pursuit aside if we hope to maintain our freedom as the System’s deadline draws near. If you are willing to take up this burden with me, then I invite you pledge this oath and join our kingdom!” He shouted. A newfound resolve could be felt in the air as the newly freed slaves became aware of the options set before them. They had been enslaved to a beast once already, and they would do whatever it took to ensure a different future.
Noah stepped back as Recter took the platform. He explained the oath: the limitations and the safeguards. He shared his own experience being captured and bound to a beast, and Noah’s role in setting him free. He then asked them to join him in swearing a new oath, one with the purpose of protecting the freedom of their very world. As moving as Recter’s speech was, Noah was still caught off guard by the roar of approval that came from assembled elves. With militant precision, the oath was declared by every elf present and Noah watched as a counter went up in the corner of his eye.
[Followers: 1,291/10,000.]