BlueShear
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Chapter 51
🕑 Added 2025-01-24 17:15:46 +0000 UTCCHAPTER FIFTY ONE
The sounds of activity—voices raised in heated debate, or the back and forth of excited chatter—drifted in through the thin walls of the gray canvas. Dappled midmorning rays streaming in past a tiny gap in the tent flap. Tracing a harsh line of golden radiance across the assortment of rare items on display. Bottles and vials, scrolls and tinctures. All winking, some glistening, in that peculiar way of freshly acquired loot.
Richard took in a deep breath, held it, then let it out contentedly.
Ahh… ye gods I missed that new-hoard smell. Brings me back I tell you… you never really do forget your first.
Now if only he had a spacial artifact in which to cram all this stuff, he’d be living the high life in no time. Yep. Just shove them into the far corner of a spacial pocket, where he would not promptly forget all about them, thank you very much! Nope! No way, no how. Really, what on earth did you take him for!? It might as well be sacred gospel among true artificers. A treasure goblin never forgets the measure of his hoard!
Anyway, as it turned out, it didn’t take very long at all to burn through the rest of his Rare blank tickets. And the final tally, as it so happened, was nothing to scoff at.
(-|—Rare Ticket Acquisition—|-)
v Blood Purification Pills (five count) x3
v Body Purification Pills (five count) x3
v Bone Purification Pills (five count) x3
v Strength Enhancement Elixir x2
v Endurance Enhancement Elixir x2
v Control Enhancement Elixir x1
v Greater Explosive Talisman x1
v 100-Year Old Ginseng x1
v Mana Restoration Potion x1
v Health Restoration Potion x1
v Blood Burning Pills (three count) x1
v Ability Scroll: Fireball x1
v Mana-Treated Paper (fifty count) x1
And while he hadn’t gotten the ink he’d wanted, nor any additional paper to work with, he thought what he had received wound up being a fairly decent haul. Enough purification pills to ensure at least a handful of individual prestige bumps, though a double whammy for any one person likely wasn’t in the cards. The manner in which you broke through largely inured the body to advancing in that same way twice. Different techniques or higher tiered resources required to push one’s natural barriers just that little bit further.
Still—minus the hundred year old ginseng, because really, what was he ever supposed to do with that?—he was left fairly satisfied on the whole. Now all that was left was…?
His eyes drifted towards the stack of laminated purple tickets. He picked the top one up reverently. Wondering at the way it glistened and shone. He then scrutinized the grid.
Five by five, huh?
Seeing as he hadn’t gotten a three of a kind match even once thus far, he didn’t have very high hopes for this particular round of loot acquisition. Richard lowered his trembling thumbnail, and, with hesitant strokes, wore away the very first bubble. A shiny emerald-green leaf winked up at him.
Some sort of herb? Not particularly useful, but then, the odds of me actually receiving it are-
He then picked another spot at random. Casually wearing it away to reveal… another… shiny emerald-green leaf.
“Huh?! N-no- there’s no way right? I mean-”
Visibly hesitating now, he wavered between one bubble and the next, unsure of what to do, or what was even happening. Finally, realizing he was being needlessly cautious—after all, the odds were firmly in his favor—Richard made up his mind, and confidently scratched away the last bubble.
…
Three emerald-green leaves glinted up at his dumb, disbelieving face. Then suddenly, the blank lottery ticket went up in a flash of purple flames, and in its place…?
•—|-1000-Year Old Ginseng-|—•
•[Rare]•
“Oh you’ve gotta be forking kidding me!”
Richard tossed the oversized root vegetable into the far corner with the other useless trash.
“Unbelievable,” he muttered, shaking his head in disgust.
Snatching the next ticket from atop the pile, he selected the category, and promptly scratched off two guesses in rapid succession.
Surely it can’t happen twice, right?
To his great relief, it was a defunct matchup. Even better, the actual item that appeared, following the purple ignition, looked nothing like a thousand year old root.
•—|-White Lightning Body Elixir-|—•
•[Epic]•
Huh. You know, that really isn’t half bad.
The vial in question wasn’t especially large, about as long as a grown man’s pointer finger, but it was so thin as to make the glowing blue liquid sloshing around inside rather lacking in comparison. As Richard watched, sparks of white lightning arced across the surface of the liquid—a miniature lightning storm in a bottle.
Richard set the peculiar consumable aside. He’d need a body tempering manual to make the best use out of it anyway. When he had access to all of his library balconies once more, he’d think about it. It’d be good for another star of prestige at least. Then again, it would also probably lock him into purely white lightning based advancements from then on—a not especially versatile prospect—so maybe he’d pawn it off onto one of the girls instead.
The next ticket was much the same.
•—|-Hardened Steel Body Elixir-|—•
•[Epic]•
Another decent choice, and far more versatile than the first. Richard set it aside and moved on.
•—|-Health Recovery Elixir-|—•
•[Epic]•
A vial of concentrated healing solution. Heals moderate to extremely severe wounds.
•—|-Mana Recovery Elixir-|—•
•[Epic]•
A vial of concentrated mana recovery solution. Recovers an exceptional amount of mana.
•—|-Strength Enhancement Elixir-|—•
•[Epic]•
Increase strength by eight points.
•—|-Endurance Enhancement Elixir-|—•
•[Epic]•
Increase endurance by eight points.
•—|-Barrier Chalk-|—•
•[Epic]•
Creates a mana barrier wherever a line is laid down.
•—|-Enchanted Ink Well-|—•
•[Epic]•
A well of mana-infused ink. Contains far more ink than the bottle size would indicate.
Richard pumped his fist.
“Yes!”
And with that, his stint of consumable-collecting officially came to a close. And with eleven Epic tickets to spare no less! Extremely happy with his selections thus far, Richard contemplated how best to use the remaining tickets. Of course he could just keep the influx of epic consumables a’flowing, but something told him that’d be an incredible waste. No, instead he thought some decent gear would serve them well here. Both now and well into the future.
And so, without further ado, Richard plugged in the equipment category, squinted his eyes against the flash, and got to scratching. He had an entire tutorial to outfit, after all.
+++
Robin, Denise, Marlene, and the others were just sitting down to an early lunch when Richard exited the tent he’d holed himself up in for the past half hour.
Raising a hand to shade his eyes against the midmorning sun, he leaned back, felt the wind rustle through his nonexistent hair, and let the cheerful chorus of birdsong gently wash over him. Knowing, in his heart of hearts, for the first time in a long time, that everything was finally right with the world.
He took in a deep, steadying breath. Feeling, all of the sudden, like a brand new baby. Complete, almost. Whole, you could say. Letting a breathy sigh of contentment escape his lips, he noticed the gathering of women and children by the sounds of chatter and the scrape of cutlery. Swaggering in their direction, the unmistakable bounce of ample pep in his step, he made sure to hold his hand out just so.
As to make the ring currently adorning his finger gleam and sparkle in the midmorning rays. The first to notice his approach was Alice, and this time, he actually didn’t mind the attention.
“Little bro!” the blonde girl leapt to her feet, made to sprint forward and embrace him, then hesitated. “L-little bro? You look… different.”
Oh? Had she noticed? Hah! What was he saying? Yes of course she had. How could she not,after all? His brand new bling was rather hard to miss. Striking, was it not?
“You should really stop making that face. It’s creepy.”
Richard faltered on his next step, nearly falling flat onto his face. Then, as if to add further insult to injury, the others quickly nodded their agreement.
Huh?! These…! Bah! What did they know anyway?! Ungrateful…! The nerve-! Obviously they were each as blind as a bat, so why should he even care what they thought?!
Richard very nearly said all of this out loud, before he remembered why he’d even come here to begin with, and swiftly recovered his composure. Although now, he was beginning to question whether they actually deserved his gifts or not. Now wearing a rather sullen expression—one which seemed, for whatever reason, to actually put the children at ease; I mean what was that all about?—Richard stomped his way over to the crackling campfire, found a vacant seat, and promptly climbed into it.
From his elevated position, he glared around at all those present. He was generally met with open smiles and expectant glances.
“I can’t believe these little…” he muttered, before smoothing out his expression, and attempting to put on a magnanimous façade. This despite the fact that he was still very much fuming on the inside.
“I brought gifts,” he ground out through gritted gums, working the expression into the facsimile of a smile.
He was somewhat gratified to note the looks of chagrin that briefly flit across their faces. Of course it was then quickly replaced by eagerness, greed, and, in some cases, incredulity, but then, what had he really expected from this pack of uncultured jackals?!
I mean really?! They haven’t even thought to compliment me on my spatial ring yet! Brutes! Brutes I tell you! The whole lot of them!
With a sigh, Richard tapped his ring of plenty with a thumb, thrilling at the brief contact, and in front of him, an assortment of items suddenly appeared, as if from thin air. Causing many of those present to jump. Richard tried not to grin. He was ultimately unsuccessful. Maya began rubbing her hands together. Richard’s expression soured.
“Ooo! Looks like Christmas came early this year! Which ones mine?!”
Richard sent a quick message to his protégé.
<Watcher> Hey. A little help over here?
The little empress, for her part, immediately rose from her place atop Sanya’s lap, much to the little girl’s dismay, before floating over to rest on his instead. Richard leaned forward and began whispering in the little girls ear, pointing out different items in turn as he did so. Eventually, the little girl nodded her understanding, and Richard spoke up once more.
“I spent a good amount of time deliberating over your future development paths, and while I recognize there isn’t much we can do while trapped under this dome, that isn’t to say that we’re completely bereft of options.”
The others were looking intrigued now, eyes bouncing from him, to the assortment of equipment, and then back again.
“After speaking to my goddess,” he lied through his teeth. “And pulling a few strings, I was able to acquire a number of items that should either play to your strengths, or shore up your weaknesses. This is the first gift I have for you.”
There was a ripple of excited chatter at that last statement. Little did they know the second gift promised to be much less pleasant than the first.
“Now then, am I right in assuming none of you have coalesced your ability cubes just yet?” Richard asked.
Robin cleared her throat.
“Actually, a few of us have, if fairly recently. Some are still having difficulties, but I’m sure it’s nothing that won’t work itself out in time.”
She decidedly did not, look in Denise’s direction, but the sudden aggression the woman showed in attacking her plate was evidence enough of to whom she was referring.
“Fantastic!” Richard was genuinely surprised by this. “Then it looks like my gifts could not have come at a more perfect time. We’ll start from left to right then, shall we? Just like last time.”
Richard turned to the person on the far left, and instantly regretted his decision.
“Maya…”
The young woman was literally bouncing up and down in her chair she was so excited. It left him concerned it would collapse under her. Richard whispered in Penelope’s ear, gesturing to the item in question.
“This one’s for you,” he said, and as he did so, a hand of ambient mana reached out and picked up the item, shuttling it through the air, and into the young woman’s hands.
Eva, catching sight of the item, snorted.
“This is…” Maya was at a loss for words.
“Hah! A bit on the nose, don’t you think?” asked Denise, her mood lightening for the first time since last he’d seen her. “Not that I’m complaining, mind. I think it suits you.”
Maya shot a glare in the woman’s direction, to which she merely chortled.
“Is this some sort of a joke? Because if it is, it’s not very funny.”
“Maybe you just don’t get humor,” Eva retorted.
“Don’t get-?! I get humor! I’m the funniest person here! It’s just that this!” she waggled the item in the air. “Isn’t funny! It’s just plain mean is what it is.”
“Hmm. Sounds like something someone who doesn’t get humor would say.”
Maya growled. Glanced down at the winking jesters mask she held in her hands, and slumped in defeat. Turning and shooting puppy dog eyes Richard’s way, as if in hopes all this was somehow a big mistake. Richard didn’t see what all the fuss was about. It was a really good item. People would’ve, and probably had, killed for one just like it in his previous timeline.
“Surely it can’t be all that bad,” Robin tried to mediate. “Here, read the description. Maybe it has good, uh, upgrade points or something? I’m still unsure how items works in this place.”
And so, still grumbling a bit to her self, Maya did just that.
•—|-FARCEUR’S FACE MASK -|—•
•[Epic]•
DESCRIPTION: A mask beloved by a teller of tall tales. A lover of farcical slapstick and a repeat delver into the realm of absurdity. This mask was the trademark of a famed jester—the star of one of their more renowned plays—and has thus been imbued with the deeds of one who spent their lifetime entertaining the masses. Grants the ability, Fool’s Agility.
•[Fool’s Agility]•
The person who dons this mask will be granted a measure of preternatural agility while under the threat of death or injury, at the cost of every action they perform appearing as if it were plucked straight out of a farcical slapstick comedy.
Upon hearing the full description, Eva’s quiet snort turned into a bout of full on deep belly laughter. Maya’s already sour expression puckered up even further. Before she could complain however, Richard moved onto the next in line.
Let’s see if we can’t blitz through these next few shall we?
Next came Eva.
•—|-SOLARIS IMPERIUM GAUNTLET: INFANTRY DIVISION-|—•
•[Epic]•
DESCRIPTION: A gauntlet issued to each carefully vetted member of the Solaris Imperium’s elite infantry division. The wielders of these power gauntlets aren’t merely the pride and joy of Imperium society, but they’re also the mainstay of the Imperium’s rapidly growing power base. This gauntlet has been imbued with the glorious deeds of every Solaris shock trooper that’s worn it. Grants the ability, Solar Flare
•[Solar Flare]•
Releases a wave of sound, light, and heat which not only burns, blinds, and deafens, but also has the capacity to interfere with electronic based constructs and or systems.
Eva turned over the impressive looking bronze gauntlet in her hands, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
“Seriously?! She gets that, while I get this?! In what world is that fair?!”
Ignoring her protests, Richard moved onto Marlene.
•—|-MANIFOLD HANDKERCHIEF-|—•
•[Epic]•
DESCRIPTION: The favored prop of a chivalrous magician who mystified dukes and duchesses, emperors and empresses, again and again, with mere slight of hand. Due to his unrivaled mastery in the art of misdirection, this plain white handkerchief has been imbued with the confounding deeds of a quick fingered gentleman. Grants the ability, Infinite Faces.
•[Infinite Faces]•
This handkerchief can be unfolded an infinite number of times.
Marlene stared at the rather small handkerchief and it’s vague description. Although, to no one’s surprise, she didn’t voice her obvious disappointment and confusion. Merely bobbed her head in thanks and pocketed the item.
If only she knew just how powerful that item really was in the right hands. It had been incredibly difficult to part with it, in fact, though he didn’t hold it against her. She would learn soon enough.
Robin was next, and she got a pair of bluebell earrings.
•—|-Beatific Bluebell Earrings-|—•
•[Epic]•
They came with the rather interesting ability: Rapturous Address. Which, at the cost of mana, gave her words potent charismatic influence. Every word from her mouth feeling almost rapturous in their utterance. It was similar to other mental persuasion abilities—in that it made others more predisposed to listen to what one had to say—which normally, for him, would’ve been a big no no. But then, he trusted her not to abuse it unjustifiably. The leery way she was currently eyeing the pair of earrings, now that she knew what they did, spoke volumes.
Denise received a pair of Black-Steel Vambraces which granted her the very basic, though very useful, Steel Bulwark ability. Like all equipment based abilities, at the cost of either mana or stamina, in this case a mix of both, one could activate the effect for a certain duration of time. With her, this effectively meant she could temporarily make her skin as tough as black-steel. A very useful ability for her borderline berserking combat style.
Denise slipped them on immediately.
And speaking of berserking, Skye received an Iron Feather Cuirass, a chest piece which resembled scalemail, which possessed the ability Reflexive Maul. Effectively, when she got hit, Opon forbid, the overlapping, wickedly sharp feathers were more likely to take chunks out of the enemy than anything.
Skye, likewise, slipped hers on immediately, causing those closest to her to edge away not so subtly.
Hmm, maybe that wasn’t the best idea? Though I kind of fear trying to take it away from her now. Uhhh…. Oh well! What’s done is done.
They would just have to live with the consequences. The little girl grinned.
Moving on!
Jimmy got a pair of Fleet Foot Sandals, which granted him the ability, Stutter Step. What was basically a movement ability, allowing him to step from one point to another, as if he were flickering through space. The grin he showed Richard, after he’d had the ability read out to him, was more radiant than he thought he’d ever seen on the lad. So much so that Richard couldn’t help but return it.
Donald got a +10 Strength ring, which he was extremely ecstatic about. Chance got a +10 Resilience ring, which he was markedly less excited about. Until he actually put the ring on of course, at which point the tummy ache that perpetually ailed him, seemingly, went away all at once. The kid able to look around in wonder instead of bottled trepidation. Likely terror free for the first time since the tutorial had begun.
And finally, both Sanya and Alice got to share a pretty pink parasol. As for why the joint gift and blatant gender profiling? Well! It was because, #1, he’d ran out of tickets, and, #2, that dumb parasol was likely the most valuable of the bunch.
I mean seriously, I don’t know whether to call it good luck or bad. If the kids weren’t here, it would’ve undoubtedly been useless.
Had been believed to be useless throughout the entirety of his previous timeline. And yet withthem? This trash tier, bottom of the barrel item, renowned for being the most worthless of all the Epic grade items, might actually serve to set them up for life.
•—|-PINK PARASOL OF TRANSMOGRIFICATION-|—•
•[Epic]•
DESCRIPTION: The beloved umbrella of one who was widely renowned as, not only the greatest alchemist of her generation, but also the youngest by far. As she ascended through the ranks, working her way towards godhood, her favorite parasol remained her only friend and companion. Forming an inseparable bond between the two. As such, it has since retained a measure of her past deeds, as an alchemical prodigy. Grants the ability, Transmogrify Materials.
•[Transmogrify Materials]•
Randomly turns one material into another.
An invariably strong and infinitely versatile ability, no doubt. Until, that is, you took a closer look at the fine print. His Truth Seeker’s Sixth Sense quickly revealing why this wasn’t the most sought after equipment item in all of the tutorials.
By some strange twist of deeds this item has gained a measure of sentience, and will listen to none that do not resemble its master. A unicorn hugging, rainbow loving, puffy pink princess obsessed six year old girl.
Comments
A B
Edit suggestion: Which ones mine -> Which one's mine
Gopard
Thanks for the chapter!
CloudyBall
I wonder how the other Gods get affected by resetting the timeline. Unless Opon is the strongest God or is in some way above all others, I imagine the other Gods already know about the change and are planning accordingly.
non observant God
Thanks for the chapter
Moon Winchester
I’m excited to see the path of progression here on out for everyone. Though I believe he needs to be very careful speaking Opon’s name since I have a feeling that a God that powerful that can turn back time of reality itself or however, the regression ability works, may not be favored. I also have an inkling suspicion that she is dead. Since if my guess is right, and that she is the concept or the aspect of time I have a feeling that she is a being that is both alive and dead in a Schrodinger type way.
