100\% Drop Rate: My Special Ability is Perfect Replication

Chapter 144: The Ten Gods

Nirvana perked up and asked him to explain that. Doing so reminded him of Drekar and made him wonder when was the best time to summon the ancient assassin.

’I could use him to protect my family.’

Though he didn’t like just using Drekar like that. He didn’t like the idea of a sentient being as a total slave in general. Summons were somewhat like animals and couldn’t be killed permanently.

But Drekar was a man. He would die. He had hopes and aspirations. Faust never wanted to see his own potential or enjoyment limited by another person, so it was natural he felt awkward with Drekar as a slave.

’We’ll make it work for now, at least. Until my plans start to take proper shape. And I really shake this game up.’

The elevator stopped with an electronic hum, the doors opened, and people filtered out.

This floor led to a hallway that ran on for miles in either direction. Red carpet hugged Faust’s feet perfectly as he stepped onto the floor. Classical music streamed from hidden speakers.

The hallway was bare and empty, but the walls beside the elevator were see-through.

He hadn’t noticed from outside, but the entire Compound Zeta seemed to be made from some glassy material that was a one-way window.

The world outside was deep into the night, flashing with red lights as cars and construction vehicles passed by.

Nirvana pulled him along when he stopped, towards a massive door that led into an even grander auditorium.

Seats spiraled down towards a stage in front. People flocked to seating, keeping gaps between them and people they didn’t know. Two days ago the world had been normal; now the sheep were thrown into unfamiliar lands with unfamiliar people.

They took seats near the front where everyone was avoiding. Faust took the first seat next to the walkway. An old habit. Zen tried to joke with Nirvana and sat beside him, but she shoved him off.

Faust craned his neck to see the top of the auditorium. The whole place felt like a giant dark cavern with wires instead of roots on its walls and ceiling. Steel beams and supports held up the monolith, crisscrossing in the dark like giant fingers.

The stage was big enough for a team of a hundred dancers and a whole orchestra to perform.

They did just that.

Coming out with a rush of music and cheers. The confused energy of the crowd didn’t deter these professionals. Soon the energetic music and the perfect coordination of the dance had people cheering and standing.

Faust tapped his legs absentmindedly, following the tune of the trumpet. Those guys were really damn good. He peeped the cameras in the ceiling and even the drones, whose buzzing was drowned out by the now roaring crowd of ten thousand people.

This was being broadcasted around the world. Maybe even being streamed to the Origin Trials.

He relaxed into his chair, Nirvana leaning against him. She was bobbing her head to the music, eyes bouncing from Faust to the stage. The warmth of her body felt startling.

Maybe this whole compound thing wasn’t so bad.

Ding!

The system’s chime drowned out the loud music as a blue transparent screen opened in front of Faust.

[Glad we could all make it. It is I, the Earth System. I have been tasked with delivering a fast and efficient speech on behalf of the ten gods. So buckle up and read fast.]

Images began to flash with text below, detailing the building of Compound Zeta and the other ten thousand compounds around the world.

The metals, screws, and bolts practically erected and fastened themselves. The construction machines moved with unnatural precision and speed, rushing past each other in maneuvers that would violate multiple safety procedures.

It was like watching a circus show, except thousands of tons of dirt were being excavated and then transformed into the materials used to create the Compound.

Above it all, in every video of the construction, was a single human floating above the madness, shrouded in purple and blue flames.

And screaming in horror.

The silence of the anguished scream combined with the system’s almost PowerPoint-esque presentation was eerie. Multiple people were dying over the precise chaos.

[Thanks to the multiple Avatars of Dia the Builder, all sites were up in hours. These Compounds will house Players from the same Novice Villages to stimulate cooperation even when you’re outside the Origin Trials.]

Multiple voices rose as people started to ask the most important question.

"Does this mean we have to move?" Nirvana wondered.

"We just got here," Zen grumbled. "They better give us a week off before we move."

"A week? You aren’t a very diligent performing monkey," Spider taunted with a small smile. "I doubt the system will even give us a day before the next part of the trials begin."

Thalia nodded. "This is entertainment after all."

[Do not worry about the move. It will happen tomorrow night, and it will happen through the Spatial pathways laid when building this place.]

An image of Earth popped up that unnerved Faust a bit. It was like a giant ball of water with a ring of earth around its center. It was strange to see the world change so suddenly.

Apparently, one of the reasons the Earth was made a line—other than trapping the monsters in Antarctica—was that spatial travel was easier in straight lines. Or at least the magic circles used worked better like that.

They could maintain connections all over the planet at those ten thousand compounds and drop Players in to deal with Gates.

It would also serve as a way to drop off Faust and the others later. Novice Village one was assigned to Compound Alpha, which was thousands of miles from here.

Theoretically, Faust could travel back anytime to check on his family, before they were moved to Compound Alpha. But in reality, powering magic circles required Beast cores and constant investment of spell materials.

For the first week travel was free, but soon he would be paying.

Then the system went on about rules, making jokes about getting other Players pregnant—which got Faust really pointed stares from Thalia and nervous ones from Nirvana.

What it harped on the most was irresponsible use of abilities. The message was clear. This place was very hard and expensive to build. Do not break it.

[Finally, we may begin our selection... of Olympic Knights!]

The Orchestra retreated to the sides, playing haunting music. The dancers fled the stage. The next moment, ten pillars of light rose from the ground.

Their intensity washed over the crowd, making all the Players back up, draw weapons, and become incredibly tense—washing their frightened faces in different colors of light.

No one could blame them.

Faust’s spirit was shaking slightly. He had stood before Vi—a Gold-rank expert—and barely flinched. But this divine power flooded every aspect of the room, warping reality with its powers.

Colors grew sharper. It became painfully hot and deathly cold at the same time. People in the room moved slower and faster at the same time.

Nirvana was flat against her seat, eyes bright with fear as she held on to Faust like a life raft. Thalia was still with horror, barely even breathing. Zen’s usual smile fell off his face, replaced with a look that resembled a trapped hamster.

If Faust was shaking already, then it must have been hell for people with weaker spirits. He saw some people faint and couldn’t blame them.

[The ten gods are here to bless you with their power tonight!]

[Anta the Horn: He is the first insult between men. The first bullet fired from the gun. And the last fire on a desolate battlefield. He is the human personification of "yeah, let’s just burn it all down."]

[Gold the King: Sovereign of them all. The one who shows the way. I like to think of him as the bossy side of humanity that organizes the stupid side.]

[Heart the Undying Lover: Your heart pounds from just hearing her name. She is the symbol of both beautiful love and maddening desire. Make sure to watch your partners around her.]

[Chronos the Reaper: A grumpy old man that hates his job. He is the unending river of time and the silent approach of death. He is also very boring and a killjoy.]

[Dia the Builder: Make sure to thank her for building the big house for you. She is the embodiment of inspiration and engineering. Need something done? She probably knows like ten ways how.]

[Nefari the Wise: Now this guy’s a riot. He can turn any conversation into a bomb and still be friends with everyone after. He is the little wisdom humans accumulate with time. If you ask me it’s not much, but he’s cool.]

[Nera the Bonechill: Icy and unwelcome. She is the logical and emotional aspect of humanity. Which is why she is so inhuman. I apologize if I offended you with that, Mistress Nera.]

[Casus the Wealthy: Greed personified. Never gamble with this asshole. He is always the richest in the room and still wondering how he can take from others.]

[Klaus the Void: I don’t know why he’s even here. This was one of the few times we’ve ever heard from him. He is the shadow of everything you don’t know. Every dark place in the world, all the things that can’t be known, they all belong to him.]

[Lucius the Lightbringer: The hero of the ten. He is the strange part of humans capable of sacrificing themselves to help others. The light that illuminates the dark.]

***

A/N: Sorry about the placeholder, I was so slumped yesterday that I just slept. Then after that I had a lot on my plate at work today.

Here’s Faust’s stats for quick reference since it’s been a while.

Status

[Name: Faust]

[Level: 9 (580/2000)]

[Constitution: 264 (+90)]

[Strength: 261 (+180)]

[Agility: 408 (+50)]

[Spirit: 356 (+40)]

[Schema: The Perfect Match, Blood Lord, Worldbreaker, Walker of Narrow Road, Silver Ghost, Iron King]

[Schema Abilities: Schema Replication, Instance Replication, Attribute Drain, Blood Regeneration, Distance-Damage Amplification, Annihilation, Narrow Path, Pathfinder, Unknown Trespasser, Twilight Denial, Hand of Authority, Ignore Lesser Beings]

[Skills: Mirage Lv3, Appraise Lv3, Acid Shot Lv3, Severe Hit Lv2, Dark Maw Lv2, Dash Lv2, Observe Lv2, Heavy Fireball Lv3, Focus Lv3, Craft Golem Lv1, Bolster Lv2, Winged Serpent Lv2, Shadow of the Mind Lv1, Shadow Step Lv2, Light Clones Lv1, Stance Break Lv1, Auto Cast Lv1]

[Equipment: Slime Tether +3, Jackal Dagger +3, White Travelling Cloak +3, Midnight Fur Hat +3, Iron Cutlass +3, Shaman’s Necklace +2, Unyielding Axe +2, Moon Leviathan +2]

[Summons: Silver Knight, Silver Archer, Red Wolf, Direhorse, Wind Elemental, Nine-faced Scourger.]

[Combat Power: 1110 (+230)]

[Origin Coins: 14519]

[System: 100% Drop Rate]