As usual, I checked with the healers in each fortification. No deaths. No permanent injuries to anyone. All injuries were already taken care of at the fortification. Nothing to do but for me to go home. And that was a good thing.
I found a line of carriages waiting. The Earl had arranged for carriages for anyone that wanted one. I waited in a small line and soon I was getting into a carriage. The carriage ride home was uneventful.
I went to my office, sat behind the desk and pulled out the loot I received from the Skeleton King. There was an actual crown, a scepter, and a tome. Identification on the crown showed:
Crown of Rulership
Level: Epic
Description: This crown can be used to ensure the absolute loyalty to the owner of the crown. It can affect up to 500 people simultaneously. Once a person is under the influence of the crown, they will retain all skills and knowledge from before but will support the crown owner completely. The influenced are willing to give their lives in support of the crown owner. The wearer may not release anyone from the crown’s influence.
- If the user dies, those affected will be released from any and all agreements, including system enforced agreements.
- If the crown is destroyed, those affected will be released as if the user died and will turn against the user. Usually in a violent way.
Usage: Wear as a crown, look at the person, and say “Be my Paladin”.
I immediately hated it. It seemed like mental slavery to me. I could imagine several despots back on Earth that would kill to have something like this. With 500 absolutely loyal troops, you could take over a small country. Especially since you could refill those slots where people died. It was a horrible evil item. I wonder if I could destroy it safely. It didn’t matter; I would find a way. I placed the crown into my storage ring.
Identification on the scepter showed:
Scepter of Domination
Level: Epic
Description: Totally dominate one person. This person will live to serve you and only you. They will literally die on your command. You cannot release anyone affected by the scepter.
1. If you choose another victim, the current victim dies.
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2. If you die, the victim dies also.
3. If the weapon is destroyed, the victim dies.
Usage: Touch the intended victim with the scepter and say, “I am your god”.
This was even worse. True mental slavery. It was going into the destroy pile along with the crown. Two evil pieces of loot. What bad luck.
I took the tome I received from the Skeleton King. The tome was a Tome of Raise Undead. Are you kidding me? Is it even legal to have such a thing? I definitely wasn’t going to learn that spell. Maybe Eldro could help me destroy them. Into the storage ring it went.
I took out the tome I received from the Ghoul Lord expecting it to be something like a Hell Portal spell with the luck I was having. Instead, it was a Tome of Teleportation. A very rare book. I had asked Eldro about one before. If someone found one and didn’t want the spell, it almost always went to an auction house in the capital. The last one sold for just under one thousand gold. Yes, one thousand gold. I could see the temptation. But I wanted the spell for myself. The utility of having such a spell was just too much for me not to. I opened the book and began to read. Rather than a few seconds like my other spells, this one took over an hour. I could feel the concepts expanding in my mind, space, time, energy, mass. All connected, all different yet the same. I struggled with understanding, but little by little gained it. Then once I reached a threshold. BAM, the spell settled in place.
I brought up its description:
Teleportation Spell:
Able to move instantly from one spot in the cosmos to another. Destination must be well known and within range. Range determined by spell skill level.
Spell Skill Level – Distance - Condition:
1 – 1 Meter – Must have line of sight
2 – 10 Meters – Must have line of sight
3 – 100 Meters – Must have line of sight
4 – 1 Kilometers – Known destination
5 – 10 Kilometers – Known destination
6 – 100 Kilometers – Known destination
7 – 1,000 Kilometers – Known destination
8 – 10,000 Kilometers – Understanding of relative direction and distance
9 – 100,000 Kilometers – Understanding of relative direction and distance
10 – Unlimited inter-galaxy travel
Rather limited in the first two levels but rapidly becomes very useful at 3 and beyond. I was ecstatic. This would, in time, let me go just about anywhere I needed. Hell, interplanetary travel would be possible. Of course, I didn’t know of any other planet besides Earth, but still possible.
As I finished my self-congratulations, I noticed a loose page at the end of the tome. It was a note. “WARNING: This spell is a level 10 spell. Trying to learn this spell without a high intelligence and 30+ level in a magic class will probably result in failure and madness, if not death.”
Really, really. That should have been in front of the tome, not at the end.