Shadow Blood and Fire

"Hutton District, Eli Dengare Baxter?" The elderly man and his granddaughter exchanged confused glances. He turned his head around and asked curiously: "We will call you Mr. Eli. What about your teacher? He is not in Hutton District?"

"My teacher is not on this planet," Eli shook his head. The elderly man misunderstood Eli, as any normal person would since Eli's teacher refers to his system.

He heaved a sigh and then said heavily: "It is human nature to live and die. Your teacher will be proud of you knowing what you have become. I am old, and so are most of my friends if they are still alive.

My advanced arts exercise has kept me going a few years longer than my buddies, but I feel that I am going to see them very soon."

Before the elderly man finished his words, he bent double and was caught by a fit of violent coughing.

"Grandpa!" The girl shouted with distress in her voice. With tears hinting in her eyes, she helped the elderly man to his feet and gently patted his back. "I am fine, just some old wounds that never healed," the elderly man waved a comforting hand at his granddaughter.

Eli's brows arched as he checked the man's life force and found it was brown; he cracked a smile and put in, "You shouldn't force the arcane energy too hard. It's hurting your lungs."

"Does Mr. Eli also dabble in medicine? How could you know that?" The elderly man said incredulously. Before Eli could say anything, the girl explained, "My grandfather had a close call with death once when he was young. In order to protect his family, he was forced to use resonance weapon strength that he could not yet fully control. That incident left him with two injured lungs. He didn't go to the hospital in time and hence sowed the seeds of irreversible damage. Since it was an internal injury, it was almost impossible to cure its symptoms completely."

"Mr. Eli knows the way of universe and was able to pinpoint the cause of my grandfather's injury; I wonder if you know a way to cure him?" 

She looked at Eli and batted her lashes. The girl would do anything to alleviate her loving grandfather's pain.

Eli was dumbfounded; he had just made a guess. How could his luck be so bad?

However, since the damage was caused by overexertion of arcane energy from a resonance weapon, there was nothing modern medicine could do to help. Even the high-grade mutant that possessed such abilities had given up on the elderly man since the injury had been neglected for decades.

However, the girl finally saw a sliver of hope in curing her grandfather.

"I might as well be frank with you: The Adenea family is quite influential at the center of Hutton. You will be heavily rewarded if you can save my grandfather. You have my word," the girl locked her eyes onto Eli's and announced firmly.

Eli hesitated for a second unsure of what to do.

Heck! Why not? I need money; who doesn't anyway? It's not a difficult thing to do anyway. Since I can just ask the system like the last time I wanted to learn my skills," Eli realized that the system would offer a solution if he asked, and if the system didn't have a solution, he didn't care about an old man he didn't even know.

Eli watched as their faces lit up with glee. "I need to prepare. I will bring the cure to you in two days. Does that work for you?"

"Of course!" The girl exclaimed as a smile finally broke over Atlas's cold and distant face.

Eli couldn't help but admire her beauty. She looked much prettier when she was not frowning.

"Thank you, Mr. Eli." Although the elderly man tried to remain calm, his trembling voice betrayed him. He turned to the young man and said:

"Atlas, why don't you exchange comm numbers with Mr. Eli, and give him a ride home as well."

The elderly man then turned around to Eli, "Call Riott whenever you are ready; he will come to pick you up. In addition, feel free to let Riott know if you need any help."

"Thank you," Eli nodded.

Eli was given a ride through the lakeside park to his home.

He thought it was going to be in a Turbo-like vehicle, but it was an aircraft; it was a Rampager V12 with a price tag of at least two hundred or three hundred million, obviously a sign of enormous wealth and power.

However, Eli didn't agree to help the elderly man because he wanted to fawn over the rich and powerful. "The elderly man named 'Earl Adenea' seemed very approachable and easy-going, and needing money being the second reason, but I can still sense the power he commands. He cannot be an ordinary citizen. There is more than what meets the eye," Eli shook his head and thought to himself.

After Eli got home and had a cool bath and a pastelion dessert, he chose to honor his promise to that old man.

"System, is there a way to heal him?"

Ding!

[Starlight dew]

[Divide into four equal fractions and consume twice in a week]

[Do you wish to accept 1 vial of Star dew]

'Yes'

[1 vial of starlight dew purchased]

'Purchased?'

[All DBS coins have been used]

'DBS Coin?'

[DBS Coins can be used in the Shop (level 5)]

'Okay, that's new; why don't I know how much DBS coin I have before making a purchase?'

[DBS Coin Balance cannot be seen until level 5]

"So that's the system's money system?"

Eli's eyes began to spill smoke; he felt like the system was swindling him out of his hard-earned money.

"Why did you let me use all of them?!" Eli's voice was a mix of accusation and bewilderment.

*********

After days of brooding over the loss of his DBS coin, he was ready to embark on his mission to deliver the cure. Yet, an unexpected repeat invitation from Auntie Visoki arrived, compelling him to accept. Before setting out, he consumed half the contents of the blood vial.

Daily Quest Completed:

Push-ups: 100/100

Sit-ups: 100/100

Squats: 100/100

Running Distance: 10/10 km

Weight Lifting: 100/100 kg

Blood Consumed: 20/20cl

[Quest Reward: Gift Pack]

Eli's gaze shifted between the Gift Pack, the one from yesterday, and Lord R'ahlu's gift pack. With three unopened gift boxes before him, he decided to discover their contents, considering he had some spare time before his visit to Auntie Visoki's abode. The boxes, each wrapped differently in blue, green, and purple foils and ribbons.

[Would you like to open the box(Unknown)?] "Yes."

As the blue ribbons unfurled, a small box opened to reveal a grand silver coat. [Samaritan Coat (Uncommon)] [Stamina +5]

Eli donned the coat, and instantly, a searing heat enveloped him, as if he had stepped into the midst of summer. The heat was his alone to bear, as sweat cascaded down his body while the environment remained unaffected. He quickly shed the coat; in the sweltering climate of Metropoll, it was more a burden than a boon.

"Hey, system, are you messing with me again?" […]

The system's silence was more infuriating than any taunt, its string of dots a silent mockery that only served to provoke him further.

Taking a deep breath, Eli commanded, "Alright, open the next box." [Would you like to open the box(Unknown)?] "Yes."

The green box unwrapped itself, levitating and shooting forth amidst a myriad of stars. A slight smile graced Eli's face; this box's vibrant display hinted at a reward far more promising than the last.

Yet, when the box opened, it released a flurry of sparks, and… nothing else. "Nothing?" Eli's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "You damn system!"

[The rewards are either dropped or not by the box(Unknown)]

Eli steadied his breathing, determined not to let the system's whims get the better of him. "Fine, open the last box."

The purple foil parted without ceremony, revealing a white key adorned with two gems, gold and blue.

[Congratulations, you have received your first Conquest Key (Elite)]

[Item: Dungeon Key]

[Rank: Elite ]

[Rarity: C (also reflects the difficulty in acquiring the item)]

[Type: Key]

[A key that transfers you to an instant Conquest]

[ Category: Dual Conquest ]

[DBS Coin Rewarded]

[50 Exp Gained]

"Conquest Key?" Eli murmured, the term sparking a cascade of thoughts. The word 'conquest' conjured images of epic battles, territories won, and challenges overcome. It hinted at a journey fraught with peril but promised glory and power in equal measure. Eli speculated that the key could unlock a quest of significant importance, perhaps leading to a realm unexplored or a treasure unclaimed.

With the weight of the key in his hand, He deliberated for a long time, before making up his mind..

"I'm sure there will be no problems as long as I just take a quick peek inside."

If things looked bad, all he had to do was run away, after all..'

Discretion is the better part of valor, and Eli knew the value of living to fight another day. 

He'd been running 10 kilometres every day for a while now, so he was pretty confident of running away, actually.

***