Chapter 554 - Level 80

I, hereby announce the beginning of Season 8 "Blade in the Darkness". Happy New Season, and may the release rate be ever in our favor.

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Jon opened his eyes.

It was morning.

He was still in Arcwind Valley where the mountains and the terrain were reshaped by last night's fight.

The chaos didn't let anything in its place. Many corpses were lying around the place some even turned into charred mess. However, the most important corpses were the two large Dragon Skeletons lying on his left and right.

He killed two more Dragons, four in total by. Mirmulnir around Whiterun, Nahagliiv near Rorikstead, Nahkinax and Thurlotyol in Arcwind Point.

More to that, his power experienced a serious leap as he went through a Breakthrough and absorbed Two Dragon Souls at the same night.

He felt invincible.

But last night… Last night he experienced all sorts of pain that he almost lost his mind a few times in a row. The Lightning that struck him during the Aetherial Tribulations almost made him grow deaf and dumb.

Even the remaining clothes on his body were completely burnt and he was left naked.

Finally, he decided to move. He tried but he found it hard. It was as if every joint in his body was overloaded with enough tension to break the back of a mammoth. If he let his body move carelessly right now, it would only brew disaster.

The best thing to do after getting hit by that crazy amount of lightning is to exercise some stretches and flex out all that tension. He put his hands on his hips and broadened his shoulders then pushed against his hips and stretched his spine left and right.

*Crackles*

Each segment in his spine from the neck to the sacrum made a crack as all the residual lightning energy was released.

"Boy boy boy boy… this felt amazing!"

Jon took a deep breath then started to twist, flex and stretch again. Each time he released the tension, it was akin to the thunder coming out of his bones.

"Damn it felt good."

Jon stood up in an energetic manner but the moment he kicked the ground up, the world started to go down in his point of view.

"Whoopsie!"

Or rather, it was him kicking the ground too hard, almost jumping unusually very high. He enjoyed the moment mid-air and rolled his body around then made a very intentional Superhero Landing. He couldn't resist it at all even though he was still as naked as the day he was born.

There was nothing around him, not even anyone. Arcwind Valley was as silent as the dead lying around.

Yet the surprises didn't stop here, once he opened the system screen, there was a truckload of notifications waiting for him.

< Congratulations! You have forcefully skipped the "Frozen Heart Formation" stage to the "Thunder Heart Formation" stage. The growth speed was unprecedented. You have leaped from Lv.74 to Lv.80 in one night. >

< For such a monstrous growth speed, A Blessing has been Rewarded. >

———————————

[Blessing of Shor]

- Heartbreaker: Weaker opponents submit faster while Stronger opponents become weaker with time. On the other hand, Losing Resolve weakens you.

———————————

< You have absorbed 2 Dragon Souls! >

< Something awakens within you! >

< [Blessing of Akatosh: Inner Dragon] has been updated. >

———————————

[ Blessing of Akatosh]

- Inner Dragon: Kril??

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< [Wrath] has sustained a lot of damage, going into recovery mode. >

< [Ahzidal's Evil Fists] are damaged, request repair. >

< [Ahzidal's Boots of the Apostle] are damaged, request repair. >

< [Ahzidal's War Belt] is damaged, request repair. >

< [Helm of the Dragonborn] is damaged, request repair. >

"You can't be serIOUS… WHA…"

< WARNING!!! You're Voice is in an energized state. Please restrain your Voice or else anyone in the range of 100 Feet around you may get affected! >

"DAAAMN!"

Jon was no longer sure where to be surprised so he just held his head and started thinking. This is a good situation but also very annoying nonetheless. He knew his Voice would get out of control someday and this day is today.

He can still control his voice if he must but it is like trying to walk on eggshells. Alina can help him control his voice for sure but this means he needs to stick with Alina for some time… and now that he thinks about it, this isn't too bad after all.

He started gathering the things that were thrown around. Fragments of his armor, the chains he uses, the weapons thrown around and anything that can be looted from the dead cultists. He also found the body of Helmer Bloodsail, the supposed Dragon Priest of the Wise Dragon Cult.

Jon took a deep breath and then spoke to the dead of the valley.

"DISINTEGRATE!"

The intentional power of his voice caused all the corpses lying around to turn into ash. He had no intention of burying them one by one and that is the last courtesy he can offer for the defeated.

Nothing remained in the valley after that other than the ash, dust and stone. Now that the heat of the Battle and the Tribulations has finally passed by, the snow started to descend again and cover the scorched land.

Jon smiled as Winter finally showed itself. Unlike the game, when the winter descends on Skyrim, everywhere from Falkreath to The Rift and the Reach get covered in snow. This season will be tough on the Imperial Legion and the Stormcloaks may actually gain more momentum.

"SIGH…" Jon sighed but as he did, a gust of wind ruffled all the snow and Jon hurriedly covered his mouth.

"… ThiS WOn't be easY!"

Jon tried hard to lessen the tension of his voice but this would take some time to get used to. He just had to move on right now.

But before that, he summoned the [Haven Cube] by casting "Recall" and went in to put all the scrap in a pile and pick up some new armor to fit into. He picked a new set of clothing and browsed his armor collection to end up with the [Ebony Mail]. He had to combine in with normal Ebony Boots, Gauntlets and a Helm. His looks were as frightening as that "Ebony Warrior" from the game so he got rid of the helm.

Speaking of which, Jon has now reached the equivalent strength of Level 80 from the game which means a certain event should get triggered and that is the "Ebony Warrior". This warrior is an NPC that used to appear after level 80 in one of the Major Cities and would challenge the player to a duel. His reasoning is that there are no enemies left to conquer and no quests left to do. Basically, it is the game creators assuming that by the miracle of reaching level 80 during a gameplay, the player should have finished everything.

But that isn't the case at all. Jon is currently at that level and he didn't catch wind of Alduin yet. So… will the warrior still appear and issue a challenge.

The answer is a blunt and simple "No". The Ebony Warrior is not some canon character from the World but rather an Easter Egg added by the game. Another example of that is an NPC called M'aiq the Liar who is also an NPC which was added to mock the game concepts and logic. He also appeared in many different installments of the game.

The truth is that Jon has spent an endless fortune trying to locate both M'aiq the Liar and the Ebony Warrior long ago but no one even heard about them. There are indeed many Knights that are clad in Ebony and many Khajiit are known as M'aiq but no one ever heard about a Heroic Warrior in Ebony or a Khajiit whose forefathers were all called M'aiq.

Either way, Jon went out of the Cube all clad in armor and grabbed his sword [Bloodskal] and the Daedric Halberd [Cliffhanger] on the way.

He scanned around by magic but he found no one in the entire valley. It wasn't that big of a deal anyway as he knows this place well. He would simply get out and catch up.

{Augur!}

< Your growth is blooming. >

{I know. How is the data flow?}

< The knowledge you gained is immense. It would take me time to fathom the mysteries of the higher realms. >

{… Okay…}

< On another note, I had an interesting visitor this morning. An Elf that called himself Ancano. >

{Hmmm… so he found you.}

< He had questions. Many of them. He also knew that I can't lie yet even though, he threatened that he would cut my lifeline. >

{How problematic? What did he want to know?}

< You. >

{Me?}

< Driven to madness and lusting for power, he asked of what it takes to retaliate at you and wanted a method to kill you. >

{Oh! This is alarming. What did you tell him?}

< The Truth, it is all I can tell. >

{You told him how to beat me?}

< Indeed. >

{Awesome!}

< Your reaction is within my calculations. I assume that you are excited to battle him. >

{You're kidding? Of course I am. I will return now and go slap his ass.}

< It would be better if you wait. The Elf needs to undergo a lot of preparations before he can tap into the power that the Eye holds. >

{Wha… You can't just give me a bone then dip me in cold water! Dammit! How long?}

< With the turn of the year. >

{That's like… a month or two. Tsk! I may as well go on some interdenominational tour or while I am at it.}

Even though he just murdered two dragons, Jon wasn't satisfied because his new gained power was overflowing and he needed something strong to fight for him to stabilize his foundations. Any further growth in the near future may actually do more harm than good as Control must always be in balance with Power.

{Alright, Augur. My new Status, is it analyzed yet?}

< Almost finished! >

{Come on. Why am I, the male lead, must go with a makeshift system while other male leads get theirs instant results from the get-go?}

< If you are done complaining, you can access it now. >

{Thanks, Augie!}

————<Status>————

• Name: Jon Dare

• Title: Boss, Thane of Winterhold, Krilon

• Race: Human (Nord)

• Age: 20

• Level: Early Thunder Heart Formation

(Game Level: 80)

• Class: Arch Arcane-Warrior

• Craft: Master Binary Enchanter

• Bloodline: Firemane (Fireborn/Titanborn)

• Birth Sign: The Serpent (eating: The Shadow)

———<Abilities>———

[Nord]

- Battle Cry <Power>

- Northborn <Effect>

[Firemane]

- Fireborn <Effect>

- Titanborn <Power>

[Battle Spirit] <Power>

- Basic Aura: Madness

- Advanced Aura: Red Tyrant

- Manifested Aura: ?Dragon? ★

[Astral Access] <Effect>

[Eternal Flesh] <Effect>

[Serpent Birth Sign] <Effect>

[Way of the Voice] (1/3) <Effect>

- Sky Above (Hear the Sky) ★

- ???

- ???

[Ahzidal's Genius] <Effect>

[Gautfang Martial Style] <Power>

[Enchanted Tattoos (25%)] <Power>

[Chaos Infection] <Power>

[Bardic Knowledge] <Power>

[Secret of Arcana] <Power> ★

- Knowledge of the lost secrets of Magic. Utilize the Magicka of the World through mental energy for a period of time.

[Scholar's Insight] <Effect> ★

- Gain more insights through studying.

[Seeker of Sorcery] <Effect> ★

- Magic costs 10% less and Enchanting is 10% more effective.

———<Blessings>———

[Akatosh]

- Dragonborn <Effect>

- Dragonsfire <Power>

- Inner Dragon: Kril?? ★

[Shor] <Effect> ★

- Heartbreaker: Weaker opponents submit faster while Stronger opponents become weaker with time. On the other hand, losing resolve weakens you.

[All-Maker] - Root of Power <Power>

[Talos] <Effect>

- Fortify Thu'um 50% (amulet)

- Old Man's Coin (amulet)

[Kyne] - Storm Child <Effect>

[Sheogorath] - Mad Champion <Power>

[Azura] - Dawn's Beauty <Power>

[Boethiah] - Berserk <Power>

[Mephala] - Golden Tongue <Power>

[The Shadow Stone]

- Hide in Shadows <Effect>

- Blur

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The status may not provide anything beyond Jon's knowledge but sometimes the Augur has a deeper understanding of the inner workings of Jon's power. For example, Jon realized that his Aura is starting to reach its final form but, he surely guessed it would be something Draconic but the System was sure of it.

Other than that, he was still digesting large amounts of knowledge from the things he learned in High Hrothgar Temple to the forbidden tomes of Apocrypha.

But here comes the interesting part.

The Inner Dragon blessing of Akatosh, which mutated from the Dragon Affinity blessing of the Totem Dragon, is now showing its form. While still incomplete, it showed some information. "Kril", Jon is sure that it is a Dragon Language word and it partially means Dare. The full word is "Krilon" but there seem to be more words coming up.

The second and the very interesting part is the newest blessing, The Blessing of Shor himself.

Now if you are a Nord and ask who in Oblivion "Shor" is, you will receive a beating enough for this lifetime and a couple more. If you are truly ballsy and say the word "Lorkhan" in front of a Nord, that's more beating you shall get.

For a partial person like Jon, Shor is Sheor is Shezarre is Sep is Kota is Lorkhaj is Lorkhan is Doom Drum is the Totem Fox. The most arguable Deity that pops up in all the known Pantheons. He is the world Creator, the Dead Divine, the Ninth of the Eight, the Owner of the Heart and the Two Moons. The Nords' most favorite idol and the whole reason the worship of Talos is a thing.

In the beginning, the Nordic Pantheon had a unique Deity called Ysmir, a reincarnation of the dead Shor. Ysmir was many people before and always described as a Mad Warrior until that Mad Warrior reincarnated as Hjalte Early-Beard, the man who would later become Tiber Septim. With Wulfharth returning from Sovngarde as he always does, Ysmir's title was passed to Tiber Septim and thus, a Dragonborn of the Blood of Akatosh came in union with the Essence of Lorkhan. That when Talos was truly born.

It was expected for both Akatosh and Talos to bless Jon but for Shor to go out of his way and bless him as well. This is a massive sign.

The blessing is called "Heartbreaker", an ironic name from the et'Ada who lost his heart. The function, however, is scary. "Weaker opponents submit faster while Stronger opponents become weaker with time. On the other hand, losing resolve weakens you."

This was the first blessing that had a downside but for it to weaken stronger opponents, it sounded exactly like how tricky Shor can be. Still, this downside about losing resolve was also ironic. In the Nord Mythos, it is said that in the war between the Clan of Shor and the Clan of Ald (Auri-El), Shor lost resolve when he gave up his heart to prove his innocence to Ald. When Dibella remarked that Shor lost resolve, she was beaten by Tsun. It is said that after that, the war continued with Shor dead with no heart and still continues in the Dawn Era beyond the veil of time. [Unofficial Source: Shor Son of Shor]

To sum it all up, in order to use this blessing effectively. Jon must dominate his opponents even more and if his opponent is strong, he must drag the fight till he wins. But if he loses resolve, he will face the same consequence as Shor and get his heart broken.

He either becomes a Heartbreaker or a Heartbroken.

{The fucking irony!}

(Hehe…)

As he was walking, Jon heard a faint laugh around him. He recognized the unpleasant voice and looked down at his Shadow.

{Quit being a creep!}

(Don't be harsh on me, partner. I only want what's best for us.)

{That's what a creep would say.}

(Hehehe…)

The voice faded and Jon unamusingly sighed in his mind. Shadow would always love to creep out whenever Jon passes a milestone as if he was waiting for something. Even though he is creepy, Jon can't deny the wisdom of Shadow and his uniqueness.

But that's something Jon would want to dwell on now, he finally saw the end of the valley and signs of human activity.

Two men among many stood out the most. Wulfur and Jonrad with all the Agents he brought with them.

They all saw Jon coming down the path towards them and their eyes widened and their breath was held. It is as if they saw a predator of a kind. Still, there was something different going on. Jon looked around but he couldn't really put his hand on it… that of course, until the Nords around him started muttering.

"Hail to Ysmir."

Jon furrowed his brows hearing these words. He was about to question what's going on but even Jonrad and Wulfur spoke the words.

"Hail to Ysmir!"

"Hail to Ysmir!"

Jon tilted his head for a moment before just realizing what happened.

It wasn't only him who heard the Voice of the Sky, it wasn't his newfound ability to hear the Wind whispers the same ways the Greybeards do. It seemed that… the Sky had actually spoken.

It was akin to a miracle.

The Nord Agents in the team were even about to kneel to him but with just [Telekinesis], Jon stopped them from going down while shaking his head. No mortal should kneel to another.

{Free her.} Jon pointed at Delphine.

The Agents followed his command as if it is heaven-given and brought her to him. Jon gazed towards his father who was once a Blade and saw his look towards Delphine is a bit sympathetic. Jon didn't really want to let her go but he can at least decide after hearing her out.

{I heard you were looking for me, Delphine.} Jon spoke via Telepathy.

Delphine seemed to have been in a state of uncertainty now that she witnessed what she witnessed. She infiltrated the Dragon Cult in order to expose them to Winterhold and as a reward, they would let her meet the Dragonborn whom Jon Dare was harboring but jokes on her and the whole world, Jon Dare is the Dragonborn.

He has the ability, the authority, the knowledge, the background, the power, the money, the people and literally everything he may so much desire. Are the heavens favoring this guy so much so they hand him the fate of the World as well?

"Normally… I would have asked for proof that you are Dragonborn…" She began speaking.

{I know but I don't have to prove anything to the likes of you.} Jon replied, seemingly losing patience.

"I believe that you really are a Dragonborn, believe me I am on your side…"

To her remark, Jon rolled his eyes back and let out a long but faint breath.

"… I am a former Blade, the Blades are a sworn order of warriors that is dedicated to serving people like yourselves. You must know that. Knight Brother Jonrad Firemane is like that too." Delphine said as she looked to Jonrad.

"I am no longer a Blade. Nobody is a Blade anymore." Jonrad spoke with indifference.

"But… the Oath! You guided him and protected him during the fight…" Delphine wanted to retort.

"Is it not expected from me to protect my son? This has nothing to do with me being a Blade." Jonrad replied.

It seemed that there were two kinds of Blade Remnants, those who no longer care about what it once was like Jonrad and Fultheim, and those who still carry their oath like Delphine. Jon had nothing against the Blades, actually, he admired the order itself and considered it to be full of wonder and mystery but sadly and as all things, it came to an end.

The Empire is no longer what it used to be, the world itself is no longer what it was, the age is turning. Even he, the Dragonborn, is the Last. The whole ordeal was very sigh-worthy.

{Cut to the chase.}

Jon finally had enough of Delphine. He knows what she has in mind but to corner her tight, he needs her to speak it.

"Alright." She replied in confidence, "I have tracked most of the Dragons using the Dragonstone as I am sure you already did. What I found out is that the Dragons aren't coming out from hiding. These Dragons were dead for thousands of years and they are… coming back to life."

Jon would give Delphine 5 performance points but would deduct them again for being too…

"Outdated!" Wulfur replied.

"What?" Delphine seemed confused in a second, "So… you too have figured that out?"

"If you at least stuck around Winterhold for a few hours, you'd have known this is public knowledge. The Temple of Kyne updates the people on the news of the Dragonborn and the Dragons." Mirren said in a ridiculing tone.

"Yes, sister-in-law has taken full rights for any Dragonborn related news to her Temple." Wulfur added.

"Then… if we agree on that, we can investigate the reason why the Dragons are being revived." Delphine tried fast to regain the lead in the conversation.

"…" No one even replied.

Jon turned around towards the valley he came from and the rest had a funny look on their faces.

"You people… you know that too?" Delphine seemed taken aback.

"Before you say anything, it is not the Thalmor." Wulfur said.

"Then…" Delphine wanted to ask about what they know but there was something else diverting everyone's attention.

Jon hummed softly but without much effort, the winds started to move with his breath. Something has caught his attention as he finally opened his mouth for his words to shake the world as he speaks.

« Show yourself! »

These words were directed to the mountain and the valley beyond. As soon as the echo was no more, two gigantic shadows were cast on Jon and his group of agents. Those who looked at the Sky were in full alertness and tried to get ready for a battle they felt inevitable.

Two Dragons appeared. One landed not too far from Jon, the other kept distance in the back.

These were Onikkeindrog and Trahdruniik, two of the four Dragons Jon fought yesterday.

"Drem Yol Lok, Dovahkiin (Peace Fire Sky [Greetings], Dragonborn). I came to speak."

The Great Dragon, Onikkeindrog, showed himself directly to Jon. Hostility was there for sure between the two and the fight can go off once again at the slightest wrong movement but Jon kept his imposing domineer.

"Drem!" (Peace)

With this word, Jon agreed to converse with the mighty Wise War Lord, the golden Onikkeindrog.

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