After a few more futile attempts at persuading Grigold to provide assistance, Shiv eventually gave up and sent him back to wherever it is that summons came from, instead moving onto seeing what starter equip and skill he would wind up with.

  He was really hoping that he would get something he could make practical use of. After all, while Grigold might have had a high rarity, he was incredibly unreliable in combat and couldn’t even be counted on for the usual things summons helped with thanks to his title and personality.

  At least he has great passives, I just need to survive long enough to make proper use of them.

  Shiv then went on to acquiring his skill and equip, hoping that the increased odds from the passives would give him something with a bit more practical use.

  They did, rolling him a rare equip, but again it wasn’t what he was hoping for.

  [Equip: Talisman of C’tahn (SR) | Type: Talisman]

  [Equip Effect: Pray to C’tahn with talisman in hand to possibly receive assistance]

  [Skill: Radar (C) | Type: Support]

  [Skill Effect: Sense living creatures within a 30 meter radius.]

  What the hell kind of equip effect is that? Possibly receive assistance? It’s super sketchy to begin with and it’s not even guaranteed!

  Shiv couldn’t tell if he was lucky or not. On most occasions, simply getting a rare in any category was likely to put a player at a massive advantage compared to most of the competition. But while he had happened upon both an SSR and another SR, he found them to both seem so unreliable that he honestly considered himself in a bind.

  And as far as the radar skill was concerned, it had some uses, but didn’t seem capable of differentiating between what was and wasn’t a player. And to make matters worse, when it says you can sense living creatures, it’s not just talking about notable ones. Even right this second, Shiv could sense what seemed to be countless insects and rats hiding about all around him and it was almost about to make him sick. At least he would have a much easier time finding food from now on.

  And so, Shiv decided it was time for a change of scenery.

  “Alright, let's get out of here and go see the old man. Maybe he can help give me some advice.”

  Packing away what few possessions he had into his patchwork bag and hoisting it over his shoulder, Shiv climbed up the rusty ladder that lead to the grating above.

  ***

  The run down ruins of the Lower Grotto were a dangerous place. Not only were there thugs and thieves hiding behind every corner, but the black clouds in the sky threatened to release cursed rain at any moment. If you were lucky, it would simply cause you to suffer a slow and agonizing death. Or, if not, you turned into an abomination, damned to suffer endless agony until someone managed to finally put you out of your misery.

  People referred to such pitiable horrors as Cursed Pilgrims, as they were always in search of a place to die.

  As he looked past the shimmering red-grey hue that blanketed the grotto, Shiv found too much reason to be wary of the sky. Although the black clouds broke here and there, revealing the red sky above, there were still far too many of them. And because they were a perpetual abyss, there was no way of knowing how close they were to bathing everything in death at any moment.

  Usually, when such rain came, hiding within one of the myriad buildings scattered about was enough. But sometimes, the sky fell with such ferocity that such measures fell short. On such occasions, there was only one place to go; the shadow of Ascension’s Embrace.

  Ascensions Embrace was what the massive island that hovered above the central grotto was called, the place that every grotto denizen would happily kill their neighbor for the mere chance of getting into.

  The island, which was so massive that it was more apt to refer to it as a continent, held on its dome an immense tower that reached beyond what the eyes could see, and was the goal of those who participated in the royale. Or it was for Shiv, anyway.

  In reality, most people who risked their life in the royale didn’t care about climbing the tower. What they wanted was just to live on the surface of the island, which was above the clouds, free of the cursed rain. Or so they hoped, at least.

  All people really knew was that those who won the royale supposedly found themselves plucked up to Ascensions Embrace and were never heard from again. It wasn’t much, obviously. And some wondered if the winners weren’t simply dead, or had perhaps found themselves in a new, fresh type of hell. But it was a string of hope for people who desperately sought to escape the hopeless lower grotto. The absurd system at least acting as some form of proof of it all.

  Unfortunately, Shiv was heading in the opposite direction of Ascension island, so if the sky released its wrath, he would have to find another way. He doubted it would come to that, however.

  Tempted as Shiv was to look over the other menus as he walked in order to get a better grasp of his options, he knew that was a bad idea. It was never smart to be distracted as you traversed the grotto, not unless you were keen on dying, at least. Whether it be from a petty thief who thought you might have a piece of moldy bread on you, or a horrific pilgrim deciding to gorge on your flesh for a moment’s respite from the agony of its own existence. Not to mention that Shiv was a player now, and if he made that too obvious, it could invite all kinds of trouble.

  It took Shiv a good few hours to make his way to the old man’s hideaway. He had thought there would be more trouble, but surprisingly, it had been perfectly peaceful. Too peaceful, actually. He could have sworn that he sensed people come close to him on multiple occasions through his radar, only for them to suddenly turn and walk away. Hell, he even made eye contact with someone on one occasion, and they turned and ran like they saw a pilgrim or something.

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  Granted, Shiv was a cautious sort, but knew full well how much of a daredevil he really was. Perhaps the boredom of the treck just had him wanting some excitement, the cowardly man simply displaying a greater sense of self preservation.

  But still...objectively speaking, I’m just a kid. Why be that afraid?

  Putting his doubts aside, Shiv came upon an old abandoned aquarium that the old man had made his base. Pushing past some broken, rusted gates, he made his way inside, walking through some large doors to find himself in a massive room with a ceiling that looked to be several dozen meters high. Shiv made his way into the depths of the enormous structure, the halls twisting around themselves in waves, with branching paths acting as a natural maze to confuse any would be invader. Broken glass littered the floor, crunching under Shiv’s boots with every step.

  As shiv made his way further into the massive complex, he eventually came upon an innocuous square shaped hatch that went below the first floor. It opened with a squeal, revealing a ladder that sunk into darkness. After about two minutes of descending in total darkness, Shiv finally reached the bottom, a long passage leading both left and right opening up with a small red light illuminating the branching path.

  Turning to the right, Shiv walked in the darkness for about a minute before almost walking into a door at the end of the hall. Opening with a creak, he saw the back of a familiar figure hunched over a desk as he walked into the room, a pen in the mans hand as he scribbled on a tattered sheet of paper, one of the many strewn about all over the room.

  Shiv didn’t know how the old man had gotten it all to work, but a lightbulb on the ceiling illuminated the desk, while in a corner of the room was an actual functioning fish tank with some strange looking fish in it. This was likely one of the few places with functioning electronics in the whole grotto, if not the only one.

  “Hey, old man, I’ve got some good news!”

  Hardly paying Shiv any mind, the old man simply gave a noncommittal grunt as he continued to write on his tattered piece of paper. Seeing how at ease the old man always was whenever shiv came by, he figured he must have some way of knowing who it was that was coming.

  Maybe he also has one of those cameras I read about hidden somewhere? Not that it matters to me.

  “What are you writing about this time?” Shiv said, as he peeked his head over the man’s shoulder to figure out what was being written on the parchment.

  As usual, his handwriting is so messy that I can’t make out a thing...

  “Well, whatever, never mind that. More importantly, it happened! I’m a player now! I knew I could trust my gut!”

  At those words, the old mans hand finally stopped moving as he slowly leaned back in his chair. Putting down the pen that he had held in his hand for some thirty hours straight, the man took off his glasses and massaged his temples with a look of resignation settling in his eyes.

  “I see...well, good for you, I guess.”

  I had hoped it was just the boy’s imagination, but...to become a player so young is too cruel...

  Although he rarely spoke of it, the old man had been a player as well once in the past. While people in the grotto were dangerous even at the best of times, he knew from firsthand experience how the sliver of hope that the royale provided could turn even the most docile of men into immoral monsters. And, if after joining the royale you decided you wanted to drop out, you either had to amass an almost impossible amount of money, or else receive a stigma that would horribly cripple you for the rest of your life, just as the old man had.

  It was better to die, really.

  “Yep!” Shiv said cheerfully, oblivious to the old man’s thoughts.

  “But anyway, I’ve had some crazy rolls, but I honestly question their worth, so I was hoping you would help me make some sense of it...”

  “I’m busy...is what I would like to say, but I’m well aware that you’re just going to nag me until I help you, so fine. Tell me what you’ve got and I’ll do my best to- Woah!? W-w-what the fuck!?”

  After turning around and looking Shiv in the face, the old man suddenly sprung out of his seat, landing on the table as he desperately kicked his legs to slide as far away as he could while bringing his arms up to cover his face as he shouted at the top of his lungs. His eyes and mouth were like round saucers as a whirlwind of papers flew about the room amidst his desperate outburst.

  “Woah!? W-what the hell old man!? What are you freaking out for!?”

  “Wha-I-you-” The old man stumbled his words through chattering teeth, desperately trying to bring order to his own thoughts.

  “P-pilgrim...you’re a pilgrim!?”

  “Huh!? W-what are you talking about!?”

  “Y-you don’t know? N-no but, you wouldn’t be so sane if you were a pilgrim...not that you’ve ever really been sane, but, still...” Finally calming down, while still keeping his distance, the old man started to get his thoughts in order, as well as his pounding heart.

  “You...have you looked in a mirror lately?”

  “No...but...” At those words, Shiv suddenly recalled the man that had run away from him earlier in the day.

  Looking around for something, anything, that could cast a reflection, he made his way over to the aquarium tucked away in the corner. The old man still desperately staying clear of him, flopping off the opposite side of the table that Shiv had walked by with a thud as he poked his eyes over the desk to observe him wearily.

  Looking into the reflection, Shiv’s blood went cold as he looked into his own eyes, which had turned pitch black, with two shimmering golden pupils staring back at him.

  Just like the Scars of Rafael that had blanketed the skies eight years ago.