NOVPUB
Chapter 22 - 22 - The Royal Vault
"You have one hour to make your choice," the guard said as he watched carefully while I entered the Royal Vault.
We had been walking underground for quite some time. There had been more guards than I could count on the way there.
One thing was sure.
Everything behind those doors was insanely valuable.
But just like I had said before, I had to make the right choice, which wouldn't be easy given the sheer amount of objects inside the vault.
With only a glance, I almost lost my mind.
Countless weapons exuded a strong, powerful aura. Dozens of books contained spells and techniques more powerful than the last. Rings, accessories—there was anything anyone could ever ask for in this place, and I had to make my choice in less than one hour.
The first choice that came to me was the category of item I wanted to pursue.
I immediately ruled out spells.
I would never be able to master a spell in time for the tournament tomorrow. I needed an instant power-up, nothing else.
That left me with the weapons and the accessories.
I decided to look at the accessories first.
There were many of them: cloaks, rings, necklaces—you name it. Honestly, what was hardest was trying to tell what each item did. I wouldn't be able to figure it out by only looking at them, so I decided to try one of the rings before me.
It had a red gem in the center with gold all around it.
The moment I grabbed it, a metallic noise echoed within me.
-Ding!
[You have activated a secondary function of the system: Analysis.]
[Analysis: You are now able to get in-depth analysis of items, materials, and more. To activate it, you only need to touch an unknown object.]
[Analysis of the Ring you hold in progress...]
[Analysis Complete]
[Blood Ring]
[Grade: Epic]
[Description: A crimson ring forged from the heartblood of an ancient vampire lord and cooled in the marrow of a slain Archmage. The ring pulses faintly with warmth when worn, syncing with the user's heartbeat. It thrives on blood—yours or your enemies'.]
My eyes widened.
A ring from an ancient vampire.
Why was such an object inside the Royal Vault?
I didn't know much about the world and its multiple races, but it didn't make sense to me that they held powerful items from other races. Nevertheless, I continued reading the Base Effect of the Ring.
[Effect: Blood Conversion (Passive): Whenever the user takes damage, 15% of the health lost is converted into Mana. The conversion rate increases to 25% when health drops below 40%.]
[Other Effects will be revealed as you become stronger and the Ring absorbs more blood.]
It was definitely good. It would be a solid pick for the fight, especially since I wasn't the most conservative when it came to my mana usage. I could be clumsy at times, given the amount of time I had spent learning how to cast spells.
The other effects were also bound to be quite powerful. There was no doubt about it.
Though, if this Ring was only Epic, I couldn't wait to see what the rest of the Vault could have. That's why I placed the ring back where it belonged and grabbed onto the long, dark cloak right over it.
[Cloak of Darkness]
[Grade: Legendary]
[Description: A cloak that was once worn by Death itself. When worn, you become one with the shadows, able to dissimulate yourself in the blink of an eye.]
[Effects]
[Shroud of Dissonance (Passive): While worn, Jake's presence becomes harder to detect. Reduces the perception range of enemies by 40%. If the wearer remains still for more than 3 seconds, he becomes nearly invisible to anyone not directly looking at him. This works even during conversations if he remains subtle.] 𝓃𝓸𝓋𝓅𝓊𝒷.𝓬𝓸𝓂
[Shadow Cast (Passive): During nighttime or in poorly lit areas, the user gains +20% Agility and Spellcasting Speed. Stealth-based skills are 50% more effective while in this state.]
This time around, there were two effects, both of them looking useful. However, for the tournament—not really. This cloak would be nice to have when snooping around at night, to explore places I wasn't supposed to access. But that wasn't what I was looking for. The Blood Ring was still a better choice here.
Around fifteen minutes had passed, and I knew I needed to go faster as I was spending too much time analyzing things. I needed to accelerate and grab hold of more items to learn what they could do.
This time, I decided to head toward the weapons.
[Blink] was the perfect spell to use when fighting at close range since I would be able to teleport right behind someone and stab them in the blink of an eye.
That's why, if I could get hold of a powerful short sword or dagger, I thought that the combination of the two would be extremely powerful and might make me win the tournament altogether.
I walked toward one of the first daggers I could see, and the moment I grabbed it, the Analysis skill activated.
[Blood Dagger]
[Grade: Epic]
[Description: Forged in silence beneath the ruins of a forgotten blood cult, this dagger feeds not on metal or magic—but on the blood of intention. Its edge never dulls, and its thirst is never quenched.]
[Effects]
[Bloodbind (Passive): On successfully striking an opponent, the dagger links Jake to the target. For the next 30 seconds, Jake can sense the target's direction, heartbeat, and intent (hostile/fearful/neutral). If the target dies while linked, Jake regains a portion of mana (10%).]
[Veinpiercer (Passive): Ignores magical or physical armor if the target's Loyalty is 40 or higher. Designed to kill people close to the user... silently.]
[Other Effects will be revealed as you become stronger.]
This dagger was definitely powerful, and it also had a similar effect to the Ring. It made me think that maybe the two of them might be related.
Though it seemed the owner of the dagger hadn't been a vampire based on the description.
Nevertheless, I quickly forgot about it and immediately tried to hold all kinds of different items. Most were powerful and interesting, but none of them even came close to the Blood Dagger.
The one hour ran out.
The guard entered and asked, "What did you choose?"
"This dagger," I said as I showed him the Blood Dagger.
Its handle was completely black while the blade was bright red.
