End of an Era (Project Chrysalis Book 2) by John Gold (popular books to read .TXT) 📕

Femida logged out of the game for lunch. She was practically glowing with happiness and anticipation of new adventures.

In the kitchen, her mom was baking chicken and lemon pie. Her father apparently had something important going on in the game.

“Hey, mom. What’s going on?”

“Oh, Fiji, you decided to take a break? Today’s an important day for your father at work, so I wanted to surprise him.” Her mom stopped there and noticed her daughter’s happy expression. “What’s up?”

Fiji was waiting for just that moment to share her modest happiness.

“We found an Easter egg from the keeper - a hidden skill! It turns out that Sagie’s been using it for a long time without even knowing that it was special.”

“Fiji, I know that you found a good chosen one, but remember his health. He could die before the two of you get to the Crossroads of Worlds.”

“It’ll be fine, mom. I’m already working on that,” the girl replied with a laugh. “I won’t let my chosen one die too soon.”

***

The siege of Spring Forest had been going on for more than three months. The elves themselves didn’t think much about it since they had everything they needed for life right there in the forest. It was the elf princes who were afraid of the mana reserves in their crystals running out. That would mean the end of the shields. To solve the problem, they dropped the shield every once in a while, letting in a few undead for groups of wanderers to kill. It was a good way for a lot of high-level players to do some leveling up.

The Black Rose was beginning their diversionary war at the edge of the elf forest. Bernard understood perfectly well how to win, so he tossed the elves a few books on mysticism along with some hints about the gods’ altars. Two months later, the elves worked out how they could beat the undead. They could take on the usual undead themselves; killing the gods in charge was much harder.

During the war with the undead, the young gods decided to work together and exchange information. The information Leon gave them about how to identify the fallen gods’ followers was sent to the alliance, which led to priests being posted at the entrance to every city around the world. Their job was to check everyone who passed through the gates. Information about how to fight back against the gods themselves was also circulated, so the young gods discovered how they could take on their rivals and emerge from the war triumphant.

That day, the League of Hunters received its greatest orders ever: eight orders to kill eight gods in Project Chrysalis.

***

It’s been six months since the last Hunters trial, and Fem and I have only grown our skills. Even given the 100-level difference, father is still a good sparring partner for Fem. She focuses on strength; he uses his agility and technique, preferring blows that do extra damage. I use every spare minute to work on my magic and professions. The island is a treasure trove of rare herbs that spoil quickly outside the River of Life, as they can only exist where there is a heightened magic background. Thanks to them, my herbalist skill skyrockets. Evidently, how rare the flora is plays a role, too.

Today, we’re going to the auction on the next island over, where there’s a small town. As soon as we walk in, Fem gets a message from the League of Hunters.

“Sagie, there’s a personal offer from the League of Hunters…it’s about the gods.”

“What are they offering?”

That’s new. They’re sending personal assignments now?

“The dwarves have a goddess named Miridia, the patron of all craftsmen and resource gatherers. The job is to find her main altar and destroy it. There’s a partial version, too, which is to find where her main altar is and pass that information on to the League. They’ll pay twenty million. You’ve got to be kidding me! I’ve never seen that much money in my life!”

“What about your armor?”

“That’s different. We aren’t that wealthy, so I could always use money, and this is a great offer. I want to do it. Are you in?”

Visiting Teurus’ main temple gave me invaluable knowledge and books. I’m not afraid of Hell, I know where the people I care about are, I know how to get in touch with them, and I need to keep pushing myself. I could use the opportunity to pick up new connections among the Hunters and learn more about the Project Chrysalis world.

“Fem, if we accept the job, we’ll become enemies of everyone in Miridia’s cult. They’ll announce a lifelong vendetta against us. Are you prepared for that? I’m used to being alone and always expecting an attack, but is that the life you want?”

Fem sniffs proudly.

“Silly Sagie. The world isn’t going to keep moving unless you give it a kick in the butt.” She looks out at the ocean, that stretches out towards the horizon. “We need to keep this thing going, so I’m okay with the risk.”

One drawback with my enhanced mental resistance is that buffs are practically useless to me now. My resistance to poison does the same thing to the effect that potions have. Fem doesn’t have to worry about that, however, and she needs reserves for when I’m not around or can’t help.

Far from being against me leaving, my parents practically push me out the door, saying that I need to move on.

“When we found out that our son was going to be a wanderer, we were overjoyed but we were also prepared for the moment when you would grow up and leave our home.”

“Why were you so happy?”

Father chooses his words carefully. “Sagie, understanding that your son has received immortality is the greatest gift any parent can be given. You get