Bonded Summoner

Book 2. Chapter 3: Alliance Headquarters

Jake’s party was now getting ready to arrive at their destination [Contested World] of [Ariminium]. They had decided on this location, in particular, for several reasons. First, it wasn’t overly far from where they had started near Earth, at about a week away.

There were more desirable locations, but they found they could be weeks of travel away. This particular world was not contested as a fringe world, but one assaulted by the outsiders after it had already joined the greater multiverse. Once a world completed its [Trial], that didn’t mean that it was completely safe. It was only by becoming a [Bastion] that it would be safe from assault, and even then there were some circumstances where after enough world losses, it would become vulnerable to assault once again.

The second reason was that this location should be a hub for trade with some nearby [Cultivators]. Jake’s family could not directly travel to a realm filled with Cultivators at this time, but they did some trading at this location despite it being contested. Merchants always look to make money despite there being risks, so there should be a good chance of them being able to pick up what Fhesiah needed to improve her cultivation and get started with her Cultivator Alchemy.

Technically, she had already picked up a [Pill Furnace] and [Cauldron] for alchemy from the Market, but she sneered at them when she saw them. They were little better than Ophelia hammering something together into a vague shape of each in her forge, not knowing anything about Qi, she said.

Still, she used them to produce some resources and prepare her learning for when she had gotten the real deal. The final reason was that it was a newly contested world, and the level range was currently limited to Tier 1. Outsiders and Adventurers would both be limited from Tier 0 to Tier 1, or level 25, at the greatest.

This should allow Jake and his party to participate in the war somewhat, and get a feel for how these things work out without being at risk against creatures that could potentially kill them with little more than a thought. This was also one of the worlds where the war was going particularly well, though that wasn’t to say there wasn’t conflict or strife in the world.

From what they could tell, the world had its history steeped in the roman pantheon, and the geography primarily matched that of Europe. The world was a little larger than Earth, and from what Jake read, the natives were primarily Human. That didn’t mean there wouldn’t be other races from the Multiverse, however.

At any rate, it looked like a great place for them to get their feet wet in the [Multiverse], and it was convenient. The last few days were mostly uneventful, Berri slowly becoming a member of their family. Jake was very much looking forward to seeing the girl in actual combat. Her mace was completely devastating, and she had destroyed their 10,000 Tier-0 Credit golem beyond its self-repair capabilities in a single [Mace of Hestia] attack. They had realized that they were due for a more powerful training golem now that they were Tier-1 anyway, but it was still a surprise at just how much power she could bring to bear.

Jake looked over at the albino [Dark Lamia]. After that episode, there was no sign of the malicious personality. She was thrilled at just about everything they did and enjoyed making food with Jake. Jake was glad that Fhesiah and Ophelia had a talk with her, and recommended that they too take things slowly as he and Ophelia did. Her outburst when asked deeper about it later, was that she’d been prime breeding age for quite a while, and hadn’t been able to: not allowed. Her body was like that of a beasts, and could go into heat the moment it sensed that mating was near or available.

Jake wasn’t around for the conversation, but apparently, there had been more than one time where she was close to mating, but it had been taken from her at the last moment. Not only that, but there was a particularly vicious matriarch that tortured her with it, taking a potential mate and breeding with them in front of her as she was restrained. It sounded absolutely horrible.

Jake found the whole situation strange being a human from Earth. They had just met, but the lamia had been denied for so long that she would be willing to mate with just about any human or elf; her race being one that could be quite practical about breeding. That didn’t make Jake feel good about the matter, but she was coming around to the understanding of family and that she would have to devote herself to Jake and the rest of them in a more permanent fashion than how a [Dark Lamia] bred with humans and elves to move forward.

That also wasn’t a problem for the lamia; Jake was essentially a Noble and Champion of Hestia, so she had no problem wrapping her head around the idea that Jake could have many mates, but she couldn’t. It was the same for her species, the Matriarchs being able to have their own harem of men, only the lesser females only having one mate. She was very excited by the idea of joining Jake’s family and was ecstatic about how nicely the three of them were treating her in general.

Still, Jake much preferred their bond to grow naturally, and for their relationship to be built on love and affection, rather than just lust. Their bond had already reached level 2 over the last few days, them doing little more than just spending some time together like they normally did as a family, and… Jake might have enjoyed a number of hugs.

His relationship was already dangerously close to the lust side with Fhesiah, but he could feel that her lust was only so great because she had felt love in the first place. Also, she may have tweaked her body just a little too much. She was not overly affectionate outside of the bedroom, as any affection that Jake initiated would just lead them back to it. There was also a sense that she held herself back, to leave more of Jake to Ophelia. In the end, her having fun all the time was based on the idea that she liked to tease those she loved and enjoy all of their reactions because she cared about them in the first place.

In contrast, Ophelia was much more on the affectionate side, whether inside or outside of the bedroom. Their training was filled with tender touches and kisses during breaks, and she monopolized as much of his side as she could while they were watching movies or playing games. Jake could always count on her being next to him during everything they did, whether it be fighting or playing with a wide smile on her face.

“Everybody ready?” he said. Everyone was dressed in their adventuring clothing. Over their last week, they spent many hours going over potential equipment. They sold various materials from the [Trial], which included many Tier 1 and above materials. The Champion of Apophis’s dark anti-dragon plate was especially valuable, despite being heavily damaged and full of evil energies that had to be purged before being used.

Jake and Ophelia had merely upgraded from what Jake had eventually learned was a young drake scale mail, being Tier 0 like it was, to what was a Tier 1 drake scale mail. Fhesiah had undergone the largest change, as she now wore equipment that looked to be some mixture between a ninja and a samurai. Her bracers and greaves had extra protection so that she could use them to guard against attacks as she closed in on targets with her short reach claws, and her chest piece had plates protecting her vital areas. Jake thought her plated mail looked somewhere between samurai armor and lamellar plate, having somewhat exaggerated shoulder guards and samurai-like helmet.

Her goal was to awaken her bloodline soon, but for now, she wore some powerful-looking red claws on strong gauntlets that exceeded even the [Yeti Claws] they had earned, and now had demonic runes inscribed on them. She could use this to enhance her own casting when she used it.

“I’m ready, Milord. I’m so moved, I really feel a part of the family, sharing your colors.” Jake smiled at Berri, as they would all call her now. It had turned out that Thokk’ wasn’t even a given part of her name. It was a prefix that was for outcasts or cursed like herself. Nagy’dosa was also not really a family name but was more like her clan, or conclave that she was from.

Jake had wanted her to change her equipment, but she really felt that it was important to her and they could not match the effectiveness very well with purchased gear; lined with spikes and blades that followed her snake body as it was. Jake had thought ‘the multiverse market has everything,’ but it turned out that this wasn’t quite right: at least within their price range. To have something like her armor at Tier 1 would require a custom order, which was not affordable for them. They could easily get lamia armor, just not like hers.

Jake guessed that a regular lamia, or even a dark lamia at her level would struggle utilizing the same equipment. The weight was countered by her [Advanced Monstrous Strength] and her core granting her enough mana to flood her body with it and empower her. Now, with Jake’s [Divine Reinforcement], the armor might as well be cloth as far as how much it impeded her.

They settled on using a special tool available in the [Alliance Shop] that allowed her to change the colors of her armor, almost like you could dye things in certain video games. Jake also enchanted the armor to increase its durability like their own. Still, Jake just shook his head at the idea that she was supposed to be a Priestess. She was armored as heavily as a knight riding a horse wearing barding, all by herself, though he actually thought she was a tier above that: like an armored vehicle that drove itself. Jake guessed she was close to one ton in weight with her armor.

The other girls just sent assurance and confidence through the bond; they were ready. They went through the portal, and they arrived at one of the main Alliance cities on the [Contested World]. The sun was high in the sky, and they were in a large plaza that had an arch that they had just walked through; this was an arrival point for those using subspace travel. The plaza was busy, and almost nobody took notice of their entrance, other than the lamia seeming to draw some extra glances, as large as she is.

There were many other people dressed in equipment, but there were also many people in regular outfits for being out on the town. There were many races, but most were human, and buildings were much more varied than even the Victorian-style world they had visited. There were no vehicles or mounts in this plaza, and the buildings were of mixed, but generally medieval-looking architecture. Their target was not far ahead of them, however. This world’s [Alliance Headquarters] was in view of the portal in which they had just exited.

The Alliance HQ was meant for coordinating the war and adventuring efforts on the entire world and was a hub for various services given by [The Framework]. While the building itself didn’t have high walls in front of it, it was a large building that stood both wide and tall, covered in balconies that had arrow slits and other covers for casters Jake guessed. If the enemy gathered in this plaza, they could easily rain death down on their foes.

Jake’s party went inside with little fanfare, people only giving them slight interest, mostly to Berri’s large size and armor. Jake had his old spear staff out, as he hadn’t wanted to identify as Hestia’s champion in the city. He wouldn’t hesitate to bring it out if they got into a challenging fight, but for now, he wanted to be low-key. Well, the red armor with gold trim was perhaps flashy for that, Jake supposed.

The building was even larger on the inside, as there was some spatial magic at play, the giant lamia having no problem entering the door and moving through any of the halls. Their first order of business was to gather information, so they spoke with reception before heading to the market square.

When they entered the market square, they found they were once again outside, or at least, it looked like it. Jake thought that the building was fully enclosed, so perhaps some effect like them being in the dungeon was at play here. There were clouds in the blue sky and the ambiance was bright, but Jake could not see the sun.

Jake saw a middle-aged gentleman selling some ritual materials close to where they had entered. He had done some research on Familiars, and wanted to see what they had available. The girls followed, each of them with their heads on a swivel except for Fhesiah. Luckily, the plaza wasn’t packed, allowing Berri to move through without people needing to get out of her way.

Ophelia said, “I’m going to go check out those smithing materials. You want to come with me and take a look, Berri?”

“Oh! Sure thing, sister.”

The two went off, and Fhesiah took to talking with the shop owner as Jake perused his wares, referencing the Wiki. Certain aspects of his Menu were only available in his Refuge, but in the HQ they would work as well.

“Have you seen any Cultivators here, Mister?”

“I have seen one occasionally. There are definitely a few here trying to sell their wares trying to get credits for use on the Market, or for long-distance travel. You’ll find them off to your left there, near the back.”

Fhesiah’s head snapped in that direction, and Jake could tell she now spotted them, outside of eyesight as there were stalls and people, even small market structures in the way.

“Ah. Thank you, Mister. Much appreciated.”

Fhesiah held off on going, waiting for Jake and potentially the other girls before they looked over there. Jake eventually found what he wanted and purchased them, and he was excited for what he managed to obtain. He wouldn’t be able to make use of it until they arrived back at their refuge. Jake and Fhesiah headed over to the Cultivators, Berri and Ophelia not yet done with their shopping.

Purchasing here would have only a minor tax and no transfer fees, so there was an advantage to purchasing in this location. In addition, there was a lesser hold over the [Law of Balance] pricing for items sold here, so there was a risk of their dungeons becoming a little more dangerous than they otherwise would be. However, they knew that this was something they would have to accept for buying what Fhesiah needed, but at the same time, the gap would not be large as long as they stuck to Tier 1 items.

They rounded a corner of a building, and Jake spotted them. It was a group of men and women wearing eastern robes of the same orange color, many with blankets filled with wares in front of them. As they got closer, a few of them looked on with astonishment. One man in the front, with the most ostentatious looking orange robes with clouds and a sun on it spoke.

“Venerated one! What–”

Fhesiah released some of her Aura, allowing her Dao of Dragon Flames to be felt. Some sounds of astonishment came from those who looked on with interest.

“That’s enough of that. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll keep my visit here to yourselves, got it?”

She spoke in a commanding tone and met each of them in the eyes with her own. The man that originally spoke looked conflicted, but he nodded his head. “Of course, venerated one. How can this one serve?”

Fhesiah held her head high, and Jake couldn’t help but feel odd seeing this scene. She had always appeared to be overly prideful and carried herself like she was above others, but actually seeing others treat her like this was normal was strange to him. Mostly, he had previously thought she was just messing around. Jake noticed that these cultivators had also joined the [Framework].

[It’s somewhat surprising, husband, but at the same time it is not. There are those willing to resort to Unorthodox methods for advancement after all, so accepting the Framework for power is definitely the lesser evil to be accepted. I too have made my peace with it, but I bet for someone of my standing, this is quite rare.]

She took out a slip from her robes, and handed it to the man in front. “Here is a jade slip with what I require. I expect to pay as close to the law of balance as I can afford.”

The slip was filled with energy, and Jake assumed the man perused it. He nodded, and handed it to another man that Jake could clearly see a pill cauldron on display. The man looked excited, and the pill cauldron disappeared into a sack that he was holding. They gathered everything, and they handed it over to the man. “Please, come with me to the [Alliance Node], and we’ll make a contract. This way you can be sure it’s not over or under-valued.”

Fhesiah nodded, like it was only a matter of course. Jake thought these people all belonged to a sect, and he wondered why they were here. They arrived at the Alliance Node, and Jake noticed it was like a black obelisk, but it was an octagonal prism with a flat top. Jake noticed there were lines in the ground where it was placed that extended out from the sides of the prism, allowing eight people to stand in them and interact with their [Menu] from there. Jake watched as Fhesiah spoke with the man.

“Tell me, what is your name, and what is your sect?”

“It is Zeke, venerated one. I am an elder from the Dusky Sky sect.”

“You, an elder?”

Jake realized she was pointing out that the man was only Tier 1. An elder should be a stage weaker than some of the most powerful people in the world at most, and sometimes would simply be stuck at some levels lower than their peak of the Tier, instead.

The man grimaced, “Our world is that of low Qi density. Few Tier 2 Cultivators exist there, but nearly all of them left for the Battlegrounds, and they never returned.”

“Battlegrounds?”

Zeke sighed. “Tartarus and The Framework offer opportunities to gain advancement, while contributing to the war effort. Whether they are initiated or not, Cultivators can join to earn the breakthroughs or special materials they need to ascend. In our world, a Nascent Soul cultivator could never exist: the density of Qi was simply too low to support one. But by going to a Tier 2 Battleground, the opportunity was possible. A decade ago, our best left, and most never returned.

My understanding is that a battleground is a varied competitive event, which can have its own rules. There are many kinds, some even resemble Trials that many of our Sects might create. Those that returned from this were only a handful of those that had initiated, and they said that it was a strange team-based event where they had to capture and control points on a map. They fought strange races and creatures, and were awarded for their contribution.”

Jake realized this completely matched what Battlegrounds were in [The Labyrinth] game that he played.

Zeke continued, “Chaos ensued back on our world as those fought for the top now that the peak cultivators were gone, but when the dust settled, many materials were recovered, including what you are buying today. Many of us seek Credits to travel to higher density worlds, so that we can advance away from the chaos created in our world. The Framework might protect us against other initiated fighting us, but it can’t protect us against those who are not. They…when they know you can’t die permanently, well, there are worse things than death.”

Jake grimaced at this, but Fhesiah just nodded.

Zeke sent over the contract to Fhesiah’s Menu, and Jake grimaced at the price, but was happy overall. She would spend most of their currently available [Tier 1] Credits, but Jake saw it as a worthwhile investment. In a way, Jake was surprised at how cheap this was, and guessed they had made this as cheap as possible without harming their Ledger significantly.

“This actually helps us out quite a bit. We gave you a good price, but many of us are not so great at fighting. Each time we die, our foundations are harmed slightly, taking time to get back what we lost. We haven’t had many takers on purchasers here or on the market, so we may be able to use these funds to travel somewhere else more appropriate for us. Many thanks, venerated one.”

“I am glad we could reach an accord. Take care on your travels, Zeke of the Dusky Sky sect.”

The man bowed, and he went to return to his people. Jake wanted to know more about these people, but it was just as well. Fhesiah said, “They are those who cultivate the more wishy-washy Paths of cultivation. They can spend their whole lives pondering just an emotion, like the ones you feel when you gaze at a beautiful sunset. They are not much for fighting, but I’d wager that their Tier 2 Cultivators could remove your desire to fight by filling you with happiness, or crush you with despair. Likely not very effective against the mindless creatures of Tartarus, is all.”

“What about how they treated you?”

Fhesiah showed a big smile, “What, is it really so surprising, husband? The fact of the matter is, demons like myself are excessively rare. I told you how humanoid beast cultivators are born. My existence is proof that I have at a minimum a Nascent Soul parent or ancestor. How could they not treat me well when said ancestor could conquer their entire world? That’s not even considering the draconic heritage part. So, how is it? Aren’t I amazing, husband?”

Jake smiled at her and said, “Of course. The reminder is lit aflame permanently in my chest. I’ve thought you were amazing since you helped me destroy my first box with Mana Bolt, or maybe it was when you destroyed my mail.”

Jake and Fhesiah went to find Ophelia and Berri, and saw that they had just wrapped up their shopping.

“Find anything good?”

“Yup! They really had some neat tools and books. We should really be able to make some good stuff soon!”

Berri was very excited, and Ophelia had a happy smile on their face. “She’s right. The books we found do not directly grant skills, but there is a lot of knowledge to be gained by the different paths in smithing, even if indirectly. By applying some of them, eventually the skill can be gained and advanced with the Framework’s help.”

They still had some sales pending, so it wasn’t as if they were completely broke. Fhesiah would be able to use the [Pill Furnace] and [Cauldron] to make her own resources, and also some items for Jake and the rest to improve their effectiveness. Not only that, but many Cultivator resources were rare, she could sell them for a large profit on the [Multiverse Market] if she found the right niches to fill.

Fhesiah was ecstatic that she had gotten what she needed, and she looked like she was going to bolt for the portal. “With this, I should be able to make the pills to reawaken my bloodline! I will need more special resources to advance once I am in [Foundation Establishment], but within the week I should have my own claws and join you in [Tier 1]. There are also the materials for several [Foundation Establishment Pills] so it will not take me long to catch up.”

Jake also purchased some supplies for his trade skill, finding the pricing to be more favorable than the [Multiverse Market], and the selection good as well. Berri was going to take to improving her leatherworking and armor crafting to work together with Ophelia, as she had often had to work on her own repairs of her skin-covering armor and clothing. She would focus on working with monster materials, allowing her and Ophelia to make better use of what they looted in dungeons.

Once they were done in the market, they headed to the [Command Center]. This room was dedicated to coordinating the war effort and was where they could grab [Quests] related to reconquering the world and pushing out the invaders. Jake thought the room looked a little bit like what he saw in movies as the bridge for spaceships. There were people sitting at workstations that had information screens and there were people rushing around, and Jake wasn’t sure what they were all doing.

Now that the Wiki had opened up to him further once he had completed his [Trial], he had learned that there were several major ways that they could assist in the war effort.

First, they could complete incursions like they always did. This was still an effective means of containing the enemy, and most of the time they would have to wait in a queue in order to have one aligned to them; it would often be much more than the twelve hours he was getting when fighting incursions on Earth, a [Fringe World].

The second option was to merely adventure around the area, and kill outsiders and reclaim cities. Often, when outsiders capture a city, this would be where they congregate before assaulting the next. Smarter creatures like those that lead others would gather here, and so taking back the city would both prevent further assaults but also kill many, pushing the creatures back.

The third way, and the reason that they were now here, was to close a [Rift]. A rift was like a portal that led to the enemy, and it would spawn more and more creatures over time. If left unchecked, those creatures would eventually gather and assault towns and villages in the area, and it could lead to them assaulting a city with enough having spawned. Once a [Rift] was contested, it would usually spawn a [Challenge]. To successfully close the rift, they would have to complete a sort of boss battle. The larger the rift, the larger the challenge would be.

The [Command Center]’s main service to the average adventurer was identifying rifts and classifying their level range and appropriate danger levels. These things could change, but the command center used divination and mystical calculations to determine and predict the threat levels at each rift once identified. [The Framework] was an all-seeing eye near any initiated. It could not see or act where it had no eyes, on a [Contested World].

Information was power, and as part of the [Law of Balance], there were rules for how [The Framework] could interfere with the great game that was being played. Even though [The Framework] was more or less omniscient, it could not watch where it did not have eyes here, so part of the job of the [Command Center] was to coordinate and have adventurers look for enemies and seek out these rifts. The spawns from rifts could not sit idle and just gather an unending army underneath a mountain or anything like that either; their spawns would need to make themselves known with assaults at predefined points determined by consensus between [Tartarus] and [The Framework].

Many of the final ways that can be used to fight back the outsiders in a contested world did not apply to Tier 1. There were more advanced means of waging war only available on Tier 2 and above worlds, such as some of the things Odin had mentioned, so Jake and the party would not see them just yet, but there were three more ways available to them.

One was Tier 1 to Tier 2 [Trial], which they would not be taking on for quite a while, and another was a [Permadeath Trial]. This trial had even more influence than the tier-up trial, but it had even greater risk, just like it sounded: death was permanent inside, and it had similar scaling in difficulty to the [Trial] Jake had taken. Champions could appear inside, or even an evil God’s [Chosen]. Jake and the party would not take on this trial until they had a resurrection spell, as once they had that, they could still have some leeway if an individual party member didn’t make it inside, to be able to recover.

The final way to assist the war effort was a [Raid]. This would only become available at two points in time: when the world was about to be reclaimed, and when the world was about to be lost to the outsiders. The raid was often what would tip the tide in either party’s favor, as whoever won either one would often push the momentum so far in their direction that the world would be reclaimed or lost in no time at all. A Raid was not required in order to finish conquest, but either side could activate it; Jake read it often was, the rewards for either side’s victory great enough for them to take the risk.

Even if the world was about to be reclaimed, the number of initiated lost in a lost [Raid] would be so many that combined with all the [Rifts] opening, the planet would slide to the outsider’s favor and be eventually lost in an accelerated fashion, especially in thanks to resurrection timers. Conversely, so many rifts would be closed and the rewards for completing an almost lost world’s Raid would allow the initiated to push back the outsiders and reclaim their world.

That fact felt unfair, but the win rate of the raid was definitely more favorable to those that were winning when the [Raid] started. Not only that, but with great risk came great reward. Those that completed the raid would have massive gains in both loot but also their own personal progression and talent.

Jake and the girls reviewed the [War Map] which showed a grid of the surrounding area and purchased and synced their [Map] for their [Menu]. They now had a map of the surrounding area, and while most rift information would not update in real time, if they had eyes on them, they should update for everyone, allowing some to be updated in that way.

The people nearby paid them no mind, but one of them helped them find a rift nearby that spawned recently and was in the 10-15 level range: just a few hours away from a city that they could portal to. Other adventurers would head to this location, and they should be able to join them if they hurried.josei

Higher levels could and did assist with closing lower level rifts as if they waited long enough that rift would upgrade and become a problem for them, however, they were usually busier closing the much larger rifts already; their efforts better spent on closing the higher level ones. There was still a sort of scaling feature of the [Challenge], but the higher-level attackers were usually worth the difficulty increase.

Another feature of the [War Map] was that it showed the overall war effort. The [Conquest Progress] bar indicated just how close or far away they were from initiating the [Raid], or otherwise winning or losing the war. Currently, the progress was in the [Alliance]’s favor, but not by very much. It was increasing, and it was at about 65%.

When a world was contested, the progress would start at 50%, so this world was doing particularly well in the war. Jake noticed that the slider had the final 10% marked in red on both sides, and the word [Raid] was written, so that must be the section where a raid could be initiated. They headed over to the portal room and were then sent over to the new city.

Jake was not exactly excited about this next part. He had imagined riding a centaur, but he had not realized just how awkward it would be, riding someone that he knew and talked to. Jake could wear some sort of harness and his girls could fly him holding onto something that held onto him, but that would be a weakness in flight that could be exploited, needing one or both girls for him to stay in the air. Jake had a sort of feather-fall-like spell he could use, but in the heat of combat that was not something he wanted to rely on.

Not only that, but even if he had some beasts he could summon from [Advanced Summon Beast] that he could ride, they would only last up to thirty minutes and he would have to constantly re-summon them. The main problem with those were the creatures just couldn’t compare to the other girl’s speed. No, the safest and most optimal was for him to ride… on Berri.

They had crafted a sort of backpack… basket, platform thing that Jake could sit or stand in. Perhaps sensing his trepidation, Berri decided to reassure him. “I told you, Milord, it’s no problem at all. I can hardly feel that I am wearing this. During our trip, I will enjoy having you close to me. It should be fun.”

If it was just Berri, Jake wouldn’t be so embarrassed about the premise, but Fhesiah's teasing never ended. “What’s the matter, Jakey? You’re just going to ride your woman in front of everyone; you shouldn’t be embarrassed, you should be proud. Now, hurry and mount your woman from behind. I was quite surprised that she has all the right equipment for even that, too.”

It would probably hurt Berri’s feelings, but Jake would make it a priority for him to be able to fly or otherwise travel quickly and safely, too.