by Brent Tyman
“If matters little, what the ‘Deep Watcher’ thinks or what you think,” I hissed. “Get back to work or…”
“It hates the machine!” the Fiend suddenly snarled back, its eyes as black as the void, “It hates…”
With the wave of my arm, one of my Wrath Demons put a quick end to the useless Fiend, slicing it in half with a giant sword.
I gripped the handles of my throne tightly, causing the metal to groan, creak and warp to my touch.
That was the twelfth one so far today; the corruption had progressed much further than I’d thought.
“That blasted Watcher,” I hissed. “When the machine is built, the ancient Void Demons will finally be free to roam, and under my command. The Deep Watcher should rejoice at my efforts, as those Demons were its kin, before the accursed Almighty got her damned hands on it.”
As usual, my Wrath Demons made neither movement nor sound, until I instructed them to. My words were wasted on them.
“My Overlord,” a thrall said, drawing my attention. “Efficiency on the machine’s construction has fallen to thirty-four percent.”
As soon as it uttered those words, I wanted to wring the vocal cords from its throat.
“Of course it has!” I snapped, curling my hand into a fist. “That brat Demona has caused half of my armies to abandon their posts. I don’t care what it takes. I don’t care which planet you burn. Find me more blood for the machine or I’ll feed yours to it.”
The thrall simply nodded, any lick of emotion long since burned from its black heart.
I had underestimated Demona’s prime bond. Even her mother, the Demon Queen, hadn’t had a bond this… potent. It was infuriating.
I sat back on my throne and growled softly to myself.
The Deep Watcher wouldn’t be able to stop the machine. It could only harm me if I broke the rules the Almighty had whispered into its ghastly form.
Many Demons had gone missing, which must have been the Deep Watcher snatching them into the void in their sleep. The continued construction of the machine was drawing more energy than I had anticipated. Many of my kin were paying the price.
It mattered not.
Once the machine was built, I would finally look into the void.
And the void would do my bidding.
??? – Valdura
The darkness retreated from my eyes and I opened them to see an unfamiliar stone ceiling above me. The noise of wails and groans filled my ears as I looked around at my surroundings.
Beastkin were everywhere, in every bed. Many were injured, and I knew I had been too late.
“Gods that hurts,” a Beastkin growled as a cat girl applied ointment to his wounds. “Damn those Ogres.”
“Is that where you got those wounds?” another asked from a nearby bed, holding up a gashed wrist. “An Ogre sliced my wrist, but I sliced its arm off in return.”
“Nah,” the first Beastkin replied. “Stone shards from the Titan hit me when it first blasted through the west gate. Knocked me right out.”
That confirmed my worst fears. The Titan had already reached the town. The fact that I was still alive and in the town, based on the rubble I could see outside the door, meant that the Titan must have continued on to the surface.
I had to get moving to stop it.
“Did you see the humans who felled the Titan?” a third Beastkin asked. “To think humans have gotten so strong.”
“They dropped our own furnaces on it, nyaa,” a cat girl said. “Thank the Gods the fighting is over. So much rebuilding to do, nyaa.”
The Titan had been felled? By humans?
I had tagged the Titan with my magic before, which allowed me to track it wherever it went. I closed my eyes and willed its location to appear, but there was no response.
It was true; the Titan had perished. I sighed in relief and took comfort in the fact that its passing had avoided much devastation.
The Troglodread was still loose, though, and I had to take care of it before the curse took hold once again.
“Nyaa,” I heard and saw a cat girl peer down on me. “You’re awake, nyaa. The human will be pleased.”
“Human?” I asked, out of curiosity as I raised myself to a sitting position on the bed.
“Nyaa,” she replied. “The brown haired one with the shiny white armor. His name was passed around afterwards… nyaa…. Ah... Alex it was, nyaa.”
“Alex?”
“Nyaa. He brought you in on his shoulder, nyaa. Anyway, are you feeling okay?”
If I recalled correctly, I did see a man fitting that description just before the Troglodread knocked me down. He brought me here?
“Yes,” I said, “Thank you for your hospitality, but I must leave immediately.”
“Won’t be able to go anywhere till the tunnels are cleared,” a nearby Beastkin quipped. “That’ll take a few days.”
I stood up and stretched out my limbs, noting that I felt far more invigorated than I had felt in years. My armor was still on my body, but several straps had been loosened, which I promptly corrected.
“That will not be a problem,” I said, as I finished my last adjustments. “I note that my sword is not here.”
“I don’t think you had a sword on you, nyaa,” the cat girl said, her tail swishing behind her from side to side. “You could ask the human about it.”
It likely had been lost during the Troglodread attack. No matter. “Very well, thank you again. I will be taking my leave.”
“Again, those tunnels…”
The Beastkin’s voice faded out from my senses as I blinked back into the Valduran tunnels. The next thing I knew, I was in a dark tunnel, rubble spread out in all directions.
I paused for a moment as I waited for any sign of nearby movement, before following the trail of rubble in one direction. It would lead me to the Troglodread, one way or another.
The Beastkin had spoken true about some of these tunnels, many of them had caved in on themselves, likely because of the Troglodread.
It did not impede me at all, though, as I used my gravity magic to shift the rocks aside, crushing the ones that didn’t have enough space to move. The path cleared for me as rocks either disintegrated or flew away from me.
Eventually, following the many signs it left behind it, the Troglodread was in sight. It snarled and huffed as it loitered next to a pile of rubble it had no doubt created in its wake.
It hadn’t noticed me, yet, as I silently approached. That suited me just fine. I raised my hand and mouthed the words for my spell.
“Ethereal Spear.”
A surge of blue light erupted from my hand to form dozens of giant translucent spears that hurtled towards the unsuspecting Troglodread. The monster howled as my spears stabbed through its body, pinning it to the wall.
It tried in vain to wiggle free but to no avail as another spear pierced its head. It shuddered for a moment, frozen in place before falling limply to the floor as my blue spears dissipated.
It would not harm anyone ever again.
I waited for the curse to take effect, almost trembling in anticipation, but when minutes passed and nothing happened, I stroked my hair in confusion. This was strange…
Only when I double checked my stats, did I realize that they’d been restored to their original values—values I had not seen in years. Did this mean the curse had been lifted?
How?
I had tried many healers across multiple nations, and none had been able to help me. How had the curse suddenly been lifted? And why now, of all times?
The only logical conclusion was that I had been healed in the time between the Troglodread’s attack and my coming to in the Beastkin infirmary.
What had that cat girl said? A human had carried me into the town? I had to find this Alex and learn the truth. I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would finally get my life back.
I had been a shell of myself for far too long…
Rhydranus Vos Yunissa - Malvora, the Yunissan Capital<
br />
“How many soldiers have we lost thus far?” I asked the faces that ringed the table, my council.
“Thousands have perished in the past day,” Alenei said, pushing aside her hair as she read out the reports. “The Demons have become our main obstacle, going so far as to using our tunnel networks to travel to the surface.”
“This whole endeavor was a fool’s errand from the beginning,” Dolassan, a council member hissed. “We should not have meddled with Tringall’s Dungeon. Courtiers in the city state council have begun to ask about our strange actions. We cannot keep this farce up for much longer.”
“None on the city state council would be able to prove a thing,” Alenei assured me. “All the talk is centered on these Demons.”
“Until they wise up and investigate the Dungeon. What will they think when they find mining equipment in the hands of our fallen soldiers?” Dolassan reasoned.
At that point, the council fell to bickering amongst themselves, shouting over each other in a futile effort to be heard. Some wished for us to cut our losses while the others desired to continue our efforts.
“Enough,” I bellowed, slapping my hand onto the wood, causing the table to quiet. “I will have order.”
“Chief Chancellor,” Alenei said. “I suggest we send more soldiers to Tringall and use the unease of the city state council against them. Surely they would allow many of our troops into the Dungeon, where we could recover the bodies while continuing operations.”
“Madness,” Dolassan hissed. “Our own Dungeon has become unsafe, and you wish to send more troops away on a fruitless endeavor? One that has, may I remind you, thus far produced zero results and likely never will.”
“The artifacts are very much real, and the eventual reward will be worth it,” Alenei said, which only aggravated the councilman.
“We will continue the operation,” I stated, my tone ensuring that everyone knew it was a final decision. “The other nations grow more powerful each year. Every effort will be taken to give us an edge. Yunissa’s survival is on the line and I will pursue every potential angle to ensure its prosperity.”
“But Chief Chancellor…” another council member began, but I waved any further comments aside.
“Dismissed.”
The councilors grumbled as they left the room while I stood up and walked to the window.
Snow fell onto the city below and gave Malvora a serene look. The palace overlooked the main street far below, where Yunissans scurried about on their daily business.
They had no idea of the danger that lurked outside these borders, or even below us.
It was my duty to lead this nation to greatness.
“Verceius,” I said, and my servant appeared a moment later.
“You called, Chief Chancellor?” he asked.
“Both the Sovereign and the Head Commissioner are still in Tringall, yes?”
“I have not heard any different,” Verceius said. “I believe so.”
“Hmm,” I said, running a hand along my chin. “Perhaps it is time to visit my daughter at the Academy. Make the necessary preparations.”
Verceius retreated from the room with a bow and I looked out the window again. The world would become a dangerous place, as the three nations fought to see who, ultimately, would survive the cataclysm that was coming.
For my people, I would persevere and lead us to victory. Even if we had to find and use the foul artifacts from the depths.
Nothing would stop Yunissa’s rise to greatness.
Nothing.
END BOOK 1
Afterword
Thanks so much for taking the time to read this book!
I really hope you enjoyed it, this one was pretty fun to write and I can’t wait to continue onto the next book!
It would be much appreciated if you could leave a review on this book, it definitely helps inspire me on getting the next book out.
Seriously, they help so much!
If you would like to take a look, my other series also connect with this universe and for those that have read my previous books, I hope you enjoyed the references to them!
I also have a mailing list now, too. If you want to get informed of new releases from me then please feel free to sign up here.
If you would like to reach me, for any reason at all, drop me a line on my email at: [email protected]
Or contact me on Facebook here.
As it is with all my books, a little quiz to get your thoughts churning on the story.
How much did you think Alex’s Strength stat grew in that last battle?
What exactly happened to the Goddess at the start?
What could this Deep Watcher be?
What could the Titan have meant about its final words?
Who is this Almighty that the Overlord mentioned?
What could have caused the Demons to go crazy like that?
How much damage will Anny do when she runs into things, now?
Thank you and stay safe!
Appendix
Alex and the Ladies
Alex - Our protagonist with hazel eyes, brown hair and gets called handsome all the time. RPG’s are his bread and butter, and he can’t get enough of them. If there’s RPG mechanics to take advantage off, chances are Alex will be right around the corner.
Juliana – Juliana Vos Tasberg, the heir of the Tasberg Sovereignty. Extremely formal on good days but that seems to be slipping fast the longer she eyes Alex. With long dark brown hair, emerald eyes and a generous endowment of breasts, her beauty would have anyone stunned in their tracks.
Clarissa – Clarissa Vos Hoganna, heir to the Hoganna Federation. A fancy title but Clarissa is more interest in a particular man that has come into her life. With flowing blonde hair, blue eyes and an endowment that even exceeds Juliana, it makes sense no one can resist her charms. Her sultry attitude is quite the bonus too.
Alex’s Additional Clan Members
Anny – Anny likes to just be called Anny but her given name of Anaisia Fardonna is nothing to sneeze at. If cshe entered a marathon, it would likely be over before the first person has taken a step. Sporting short black hair and brown eyes, Anny has proven to be an invaluable addition to the Clan. Did I mention she was fast?
Known Stats and Skills
Alex Augere
Strength: 68
Speed: 2
Defense: 95
Magical Power: 1
Magical Capacity: 1
Luck: 1
Skills
Growth: Increased growth for a selected stat
Magic Spells:
Dynamic Healing - Heal a target for a range of ailments at significant magical cost
Clarissa Vos Hoganna
Strength: 32
Speed: 35
Defense: 111
Magical Power: 41
Magical Capacity: 59
Luck: 8
Skills
Royal Born - Start life with a base of five in all Stats.
Healing Touch - Base healing is doubled for all healing spells.
Anaisia Fardonna
Strength: 11
Speed: 71
Defense: 8
Magical Power: 35
Magical Capacity: 9
Luck: 3
Skills
Pathfinding - Always know the way forward, and know those in your way.
Groups
Here are some links to groups that might be useful to you.
There is the Harem lit facebook group you can go to for more books of the harem genre.
Plus, we have the GameLit Society group for books with game elements.
And to top it all off, the LitRPG books group for LitRPG’s books, although the clue is in the name.
LitRPG Group
To learn more about LitRPG, talk to authors including myself, and just have an awesome time, please join the LitRPG Group.
