The Eternal: Dragonborn
A World of Ga’em Novel
By Dhayaa Anbajagane
GATEWAY TO DANGER
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
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CHAPTER ONE
A flash of darkness struck the air, like lightning descending the sky. A thunderous blast spilled into the winds, resonating for a second before the sounds of silence took over. A plethora of goblins collapsed, their bloodied bodies flush against the forest floor, their eyes cold and empty.
“Well, that takes care of that,” I sighed, swinging a sword of black, a glowing jewel of mystic purple embedded where the blade met the hilt.
“What do you mean that takes care of that?” Nyx said, his voice reverberating within my subconscious. “That was like the umpteenth Goblin squadron we’ve had to take on, Zoran. If anything, there’s going to be a lot more of them.”
And as if on cue, an impish cry came from beyond the trees and glowing eyes sprung from the darkness. A pack of goblins rushed out of the shadows, charging with blazing pace. I casually held up my sword, letting it swing gently just as the creatures jumped at us. The blade went clean through their small bodies, throwing their severed sections against the tree bark, killing them long before impact.
“Okay maybe you have a point,” I said as I flicked my weapon, letting the goblin blood slip off. “These things are going to keep coming at us for as long as they can.”
DING!
A screen of translucent white appeared before me.
Congratulations! You have defeated Goblin Horde (Lv 70). Rewards: 100000 XP. Rewards 80000 Sol.
Ugh, that XP won’t even take me 1% closer to my next level, I sighed.
My thoughts broke when more sounds entered the air, and I instinctively looked ahead, the orange of the evening sky contrasting the darkness I saw before me.
I focused harder at the shadows and activated my Night Vision skill. The black between the trees washed away, showing me clear images of goblins running in from ahead, swinging wooden clubs and metal spears as they approached me.
I decided to take the attack to them and surged forward, sword in hand, the tip pointed right at the goblins. A few quick swings later a multitude of bodies lay frozen on the forest floor, lifeless and silent.
“You could just purge them all at once you know?” Nyx said. “A single spell and they’d all be done for. It’s kind of sad to watch the Phantom Lord go after each goblin one by one.”
“Well, for one, casting a mass spell like that might take down the whole forest, which I’d prefer not to do, and second, I’d rather take the goblins out physically with Dawnbreaker than cast an overpowered spell. I need to work on using all my skills more. It helps to be well-rounded.”
“Fine,” he mumbled, unimpressed.
A thud sounded, sending tremors along the ground and pebbles skittering off the surface. I perked up, a smile on my face. Something big was close by. I rushed towards the sound, moving over the ground with silence. A few seconds in I came upon a small field standing in the middle of the forest.
And there, on the grassy enclave, was a giant goblin. The creature stood about ten feet high, a primal necklace of rock and teeth around its neck, a massive club of metal-adorned wood slung over its shoulder. Its eyes were a sharp green, like moldy leaves, and its skin was many shades darker.
The beast looked around the field, glancing at high treetops and low bushes as it moved around. I stayed in my position a few seconds longer, trying to gauge what was going on before deciding to step into the open. It wasn’t like I couldn’t take this beast out if I wanted to, but I’d rather know what it was doing instead of just killing it in an instant.
As strong as I was, however, I still needed to be wary of the enemy. The Ga’em was clear on the rules it had set to this world, and one of them was that no matter how strong a person was, an assault to their vital regions, regardless of how weak the attacked was, could cause massive critical damage, potentially killing them.
I diverted from my thoughts and focused on the giant’s head, using my Analyze skill on the beast.
DING!
Race
Goblin Warlord
Level
125
Health
2790
Mana
500
Stamina
2670
Goblin Warlord, I thought as I read the words off the screen. And he’s quite strong too.
“Strong?” Nyx scoffed. “That’s a joke coming from someone like you.”
I know, I know, I smiled.
One thing that was still on my mind was why these goblins had come after me in the first place. The small forest we were in, Tigrea, was not one that goblins frequented, and so it was odd that these creatures were attacking us now. It all seemed very unnatural.
“Didn’t Ijyela tell us the shadow of darkness has increased ever since…” Nyx said.
She did, I replied.
“Maybe that’s why these creatures all have much higher levels than we’d expected.”
We’ve also never explored this region, I said. It’s possible it just so happens the creatures here are much stronger.
“Maybe,” he said.
The Goblin Warlord grunted and hunched low, glaring at me through the trees. It caught sight of me almost immediately, and its body language changed, vigor infusing into its bones. It lifted its club high into the air and yelled - a war cry. All of a sudden, hordes of small goblins rushed out from behind it and made their way to its side, ready to attack.
“Well,” I mumbled. “That came out of nowhere.”
“This is going to be fun,” Nyx chuckled.
I ignored him and strode out of my spot, taking the fight into the open field. The goblins eyed me as I walked, eagerly holding their weapons, waiting to attack. The warlord slung his club forward and pointed it at me, yelling out another cry. The goblins all echoed his signal and scampered towards me.
“Are you still sticking to using Dawnbreaker?” Nyx asked.
I sighed. “Fine, I’ll use a spell,” I said. “But not one that’s too strong.”
“That’s fine,” he said, sounding excited.
Seriously, you make it sound like I never use any spells,
I rolled my eyes.
I thrust my hand out, feeling energy course within me. I sharpened my vision, focusing on the goblins, their shape, their features. Everything. A word floated out of my inner mind, urging me to say it.
I opened my mouth to speak. “Al-”
A dark shadow passed over my face, distracting me for a second.
I heard a massive blast, and when I looked again, a horde of goblin bodies lay on the ground, broken. The warlord lay in a clutter of trees, branches digging into his flesh and trunks pressing him down to the ground. Every, last goblin had been killed.
“Pretty impressive huh?” a strand of hair floated in front of me. An elf stood there, her obsidian black hair flowing in the wind, the streak of silver distinct in its shades of darkness. Her big moonsilver eyes looked at me, radiant elven skin glowing as the sun descended the sky.
So much for using a spell, Nyx muttered, clearly disappointed.
“I almost attacked you, Freya,” I sighed, dropping my still-hovering hand and letting my concentrated energy dissipate back into me.
“Well, the important thing is you didn’t,” the elf said, sliding her silver longsword back into the sheath on her back. “Oh, and also that I managed to take out all the goblins myself.”
“That’s hardly surprising,” I chuckled. “The small ones were like Level 70 or something, and you’re what? About level 190 now?”
“I’m at 214 actually,” she chuckled.
I stared at her. “Okay, you leveled up waaaay to fast.”
“What can I say?” she grinned. “The super-rare XP boost potions I’d obtained helped a lot. I’ve been grinding quite a bit too.”
“Yeah, but you went from Level 47 to Level 214 in like three months.”
“I feel like you’re just sore that you’ve been stuck on the exact same level those three months.”
“No, I’m not.”
“What are you talking about? Of course you are,” Nyx chuckled.
Shut up, I complained.
“Are you talking to Nyx again?” Freya raised an eyebrow.
“Uhhhhh,” I looked at her. “Yeah?”
“I see,” she said, her voice suddenly void of any expression.
I wasn’t really sure how Freya felt about the whole concept of a spirit just living in my mind. About three months ago, when I’d suddenly found out I was the Phantom Lord, there were too many things happening at the same time for me to keep track off. And in my deluge, I kind of forgot to mention anything about Nyx to Freya until nearly a fortnight later.
Needless to say, she was not impressed.
“Honestly, I think she’s fine with me,” Nyx said, sounding quite chill.
She’s never even talked to you before, I said.
“But she’s never tried to either, which means she’s fine with me.”
I don’t get your logic, but okay, I mumbled.
Freya took a step closer to me. “We should keep moving,” she said. “The fact that we found these many goblins here shows us that we’re getting close.”
“Did you check the maps?”
“Our destination isn’t on the map,” she said. “Remember what Ijyela told us? This place was lost a long time ago. It isn’t on any of the modern maps.”
“Oh yeah, which was why it even weirder that she felt those presences in there.”
“Exactly,” she said. “The numerous goblins we faced so far attest to the fact that something weird is going on. The warlord especially. I would not expect to see a Goblin Warlord in a forest like this, unless there was something else happening close by.”
“Well, there have been a number of recent reports where goblins and imps have been invading villages and towns.”
“It’s like they all got invigorated at the same time.”
Though it sounded mysterious, this was a pattern that had started those three months ago, and it was a pattern that we understood well. There was this certain event that I’d accidentally set into motion back then, and the culmination of the after effects were what we were seeing now.
In essence, it was all because this man called the Dark Lord had resurrected again. Of course, I’d taken him out in combat those three months ago, but the things is, the Dark Lord was an Eternal, just like me. And that meant that every time he died, he’d resurrect to a random location, with only a bit of his power reduced.
I hadn’t seen the Dark Lord ever since I beat him three months ago, but it seemed likely to me that he was still alive. The fact that goblins and imps, the most basic creatures of darkness, had quickly become stronger and more active was akin to the fact that he was, and that he was already starting to influence the tides over the lands.
“Pick up the pace,” Freya said from ahead of me. “For a man with super speed, you sure do walk slow.”
“Fine, fine,” I mumbled as I shuffled up to her. Should probably check my Ga’em menu, I thought as I let my index finger slide down through the air.
DING!
A vertical column of five circular icons slid down, and I looked at the first one. It contained a shadowy silhouette of a humanoid upper body on it, the shade contrasting against the translucent white background. I tapped on the icon, and two screens slid out, expanding from behind it and taking space on either side.
The screen on the left contained the 3D full-body image of a young man in his early twenties. His body was toned, but not especially muscular. He had high cheekbones, a chiseled jaw and a skin tone that was a shade between tan and pale. His hair was a radiant silver-grey, the locks falling softly onto his forehead. His eyes were a shade paler than his hair and had flecks of grey in them, as if spirits and ghosts were trapped within.
Still pretty good looking, I thought playfully as I looked at the 3D caricature of myself. I then turned to the screen on my right.
Stats
Items
Equipment
Skills
I tapped on Stats, and a new screen opened up in front of me.
Name
Zoran Diablo
Level
521 (12% to next level)
Health
12650
Mana
14200
Stamina
11090
Strength
1598
Agility
2361
Dexterity
1236
Wisdom
3409
Constitution
1265
Intelligence
1380
Endurance
1109
Charisma
862
Luck
20
I put my finger to the screen and flicked it to the side, sliding the old data away and letting a new set of information come into my vision.
Name
Zoran Diablo
Race
Eternal
Abilities
Resurrection
Spirit King
Titles
Phantom Lord
Undead Emperor
Resistances
All Arts
Alignment
Neutral
Reputation
Level 10 - “The World shakes in your presence”
“What do you need to look at your Stats screen for?” Nyx asked, sounding genuinely confused.
Nothing really, I thought. You know how my information suddenly changed the last time around?
“You mean how it all basically got replaced when you broke the first part of the Seal of the Eternal?”
I nodded. Sometimes I just check to see if my Ga’em menu has added or removed any data from my information, I said. I know it won’t happen, but it’s more of a reassurance thing.
“Ah, I see,” Nyx said. “Well, I don’t blame you for feeling insecure about this though. Last time the Ga’em menu did kind of throw the Phantom Lord stuff at you out of nowhere.”
Yeah, I sighed. I thought about how the people around me could still
blindly trust the Ga’em menu while I couldn’t really afford such a luxury.
The Ga’em itself was basically a hidden entity that helped everyone interact with the world around them. It was an invisible power that bridged a connection between one and everything that they could do. The screens that I used were all examples of how the Ga’em interacted with living things and gave them information about the world around them.
Now there was something else called the Ga’em menu, which was what I was using right now. This menu was a powerful interface that existed between an individual and the Ga’em and helped them customize themselves completely.
My skepticism towards the Ga’em menu came mainly because of how for a long time it had told me I was a normal person, and then suddenly switched to identifying me as the Phantom Lord the moment I’d discovered that on my own. Of course, I knew it wasn’t the Ga’em menu’s fault that it was unable to display the information, but after that incident, I’d just begun to question, even if only a little bit, if the things that I saw on my Ga’em menu were actually accurate in any way.
I mean, what’s to say all of this wasn’t wrong too? Maybe I’m not really an Eternal. Maybe I’m not the Phantom Lord.
You do realize there’s solid proof that you’re both an Eternal and a Phantom Lord, right? Nyx asked, adding his usual touch of snark in there.
“Yeah, yeah,” I mumbled.
“What?” Freya turned to me, confused.
“Nothing,” I whispered, realizing I shouldn’t have spoken out loud.
“Uhhhh, okay,” she looked at me for a second and then turned away.
I’m probably gonna hear about that later, I sighed quietly.
The Eternal: Dragonborn - A LitRPG Saga (World of Ga'em Book 2) Page 1
