Vol.6 Ch.5.1 – Serious Upgrades I
Chapter 5: Serious Upgrades
Alisha looked so adorable right then, so eager to show what she'd found, her long ears twitching and her eyes practically sparkling. It was so overwhelmingly cute it took me a moment to actually look at what she was holding.
They were a set of... runes? On pure white parchment, fifteen perfectly matching pairs of them. I willed the appraisal into view and...
“Gods below,” I muttered.
Legendary soul-bind tattoos. They could be used to bind magic items to a person's soul, allowing the wearer to summon those items to them at will and making it impossible to destroy the items so long as their soul stayed intact. Of course I had seen tattoos like these before, they weren't unheard of. But so far I had always been hesitant to use them as I'd simply never had equipment valuable enough that I would want to tie it to my immortal soul. But not only did I have such items now – and would be getting even more soon – but these were the legendary version of these tattoos, which came with the enormous benefit that they could be removed and reapplied at will, making sure you didn't need to marry your spirit to an item you might one day want to get rid of.
“These are perfect,” I finally said.
“Did I do good?”
“You did great,” I said and patted her head, causing her to grin.
“That's good,” she said, “because I found something else as well.”
“Oh?”
She put the tattoos into her bag of holding, then pulled out something else. It was... a throwing knife? No, a sewing needle? It was large enough to be a stiletto but it had the distinctive eye of a needle, with a tiny bit of gold thread tied onto it. Did this have something to do with my newfound ability to see the threads of fate? Was that why she picked this out? I let the appraisal run over it and was immediately disappointed when I skimmed the text and didn't see any mention of the threads of fate. And then I paused when I realized what I had just read.
Weaver's Lament. A fairly normal legendary throwing knife, enchanted for durability, sharpness, armor-piercing, the works. That alone wasn't too impressive. Useful, especially if I could soul-bind it so that I could recall it at any time, but not particularly revolutionary compared to my normal throwing knives. Except for that last line.
'Upon striking the target there is a small chance for the target to be tied down with golden thread. The thread is nigh impossible to break and will cut flesh and bone if the target struggles against it.'
If Athena had been telling the truth about my Luck stat then a 'small chance' was more or less a guarantee for me. And after what I had experienced in the treasury so far I was fairly sure Athena had been understating it, if anything.
“This is incredible,” I said. “Thank you.”
“You're welcome,” she said, then spread her arms wide, waiting for me to hug her.
I chuckled and stepped forward to catch her in a hug, then spun her around. When I sat her down I gave her a soft kiss, then asked: “And did you pick out anything for yourself?”
She looked away.
I just crossed my arms and waited. And waited.
Finally she broke. “I don't really need anything. I have all the magic items I need. I'd much rather pick out stuff to help everyone.”
“I would feel much better if you got yourself something for protection,” I said. “Something to keep you safe.” I still vividly remembered the fight against Carl, where a stray force blade had taken Alisha's foot clean off. If that force blade had hit her somewhere more vital...
“Any armor would slow me down,” she all but whined. “But if you insist...”
“Would it help if we looked together?” I asked and she instantly perked up.
“Sure!”
**
Only minutes later we arrived in front of a pedestal holding a regal-looking dress, white with golden trim, exactly the kind of thing Alisha would wear for important occasions, except this one was a legendary magic item enchanted for durability, made to cushion blunt impacts and deflect bladed weapons, resistant to heat and cold and covered in a sheen of magic that would make Darklight fizzle out. Oh, and it alleviated the strain of casting magic. And, as an added bonus, it framed her small chest in a much nicer way than her usual tie-up top.
“Iris Robes,” Alisha muttered. “Who is Iris?”
“A minor goddess,” I said. “Goddess of rainbows. I've never met her but I heard she also works as a messenger, same as Hermes.”
“She does,” Anna said, reminding me that she had stayed by our side. “Mother actually deals more with her than with Hermes.”
“How is she?” I asked.
“Not as arrogant as the major Olympians,” she said. “She seems to understand that the crown is more powerful than her by far, even if she's immortal.”
I held my tongue, not wanting to say anything, but evidently Anna had already figured me out.
“You wanted to say she acts that way so mother lets her guard down, right?”
I nodded, trying my best to hold the wince in. The queen hadn't gotten to where she was now by blindly trusting people and it had been stupid of me to think she hadn't considered that possibility. And I hadn't, really, but I was far more cynical in my dealings with the gods than most people I met.
“Don't worry, mother is aware of that possibility. But she doubts it's an act.”
“How so?” I asked.
“If it is an act then it doesn't benefit her,” Anna said. “She shows mother deference in front of her court, which shows weakness. But even so, mother doesn't let her guard down around her. She doesn't grant her any concessions, doesn't tell her anything she shouldn't, just in case she's not genuine.”
I nodded. “Good.” Then I remembered how we had reached that topic and turned back to Alisha. “So, do you think this is something for you?”
She shifted. “It looks gorgeous and it sounds perfect. And if my husband wants me to wear it...”
“He does,” I said, placing a finger under her chin to make her look up at me before kissing her.
“Then I guess I have no choice,” she cooed.
“Save it for later,” Yume said, reminding me that she was still following along as well.
I supposed she was right. We were here for a reason, after all. And so, after one last gentle kiss I pulled away from Alisha, then looked up to see Athena approaching our little group.
“I had thought you would split up,” she said.
“That was the plan,” I agreed. I supposed it must look a little silly, Alisha, Yume and Anna huddled around me when we were supposed to be looking for magic items on our own. “But it turns out having ridiculous luck means it's easier for me to help them find stuff in this place.”
Athena thought about that for a moment, then nodded. “I suppose that makes sense.”
“So, did you help Selene find whatever she was looking for?” I asked.
“She is currently talking to Hephaestus about it,” she said. “You can go find them later. Hephaestus said he finished fixing your sword.”
It was like a weight had been lifted off my chest. It seemed ridiculous that I had been worried about Helios Edge but gods damn it, I had grown attached to that sword. “Thank you for telling me.”
“You're welcome,” she said, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. Gods but she was easy. “But I actually wanted to show you the item I had been looking for.”
“The mythic item you wanted me to pick, right?” I asked. She had told me before that mythic items weren't something you should choose lightly, so for her to insist I pick a specific one, it had to be something amazing. “Is it something that will help with the threads of fate?”
She shook her head. “No, I've known this would be perfect for you since long before you gained the ability to see the threads.”
I nodded, trying not to let my disappointment show. I needed to stop obsessing with the threads. It was important but I couldn't focus on just that. “So, what is it?”
She took a breath, then reached into a pocket and pulled out a little box. She opened it, revealing a ring.
It wasn't an eye-catching ring. Rather plain, really. A silver band with inlays of a light purple metal and flowing script carved into it. The thing was beautiful but in an understated kind of way.
“You're not proposing to him, are you?” Alisha asked.
“What?!” Athena asked, outrage in her tone. “That's way too early!” she added, then turned red when she realized what she had just said. I could tell she wanted to slap her hands over her mouth but she was smart enough not to do that when she was holding a mythic item.
“A mythic ring,” I mused. “What's it do?”
“I already told you how I was slightly obsessed with you after that first time we met, right?” she said.
I nodded.
“It was mostly your behavior but part of it was your stats,” she said. “I couldn't fathom how someone with Luck like yours could be so powerful. And so I began obsessing over it, wondering just how powerful Luck could be if it soared to those heights.”
I didn't interrupt her and neither did the girls.
“Then one day, when I was picking out magic items for a Chosen One I stumbled upon this ring. I never asked whether Hephaestus forged this or whether we acquired this ring elsewhere but once I saw it I couldn't stop thinking about it, couldn't stop thinking about you.”
Alisha's smile was as smug as I'd ever seen it but still she kept just as quiet as I did.
“You still remember Albrecht's necklace?” Athena asked.
“The fist-shaped meteor,” I said. “The mythic item that lets him substitute his Strength when casting spells.”
She nodded. “This ring is similar. It is called the Destined Hero's Band. It augments your Strength and Dexterity according to your Luck.”