Godfather's System

047. Crucible - 24

"Can't we rest for just five minutes," Jertann gasped as he ran behind me as we rushed forward to cut the path of another beast before they could meet with the second line.

For the last four hours, we were continuing our extremely exhausting pace of fighting on the front line of the camp, an elatriss away from the other line, rushing back and forth to kill any large beast that was on the path of meeting with the line of the unaffiliated.

I even used Charisma sparingly to occasionally draw the more crowded waves of the smaller beasts, which allowed the smaller beasts to gather around me, only to be cut down by my halberd.

I had lost my earlier hesitance to show off for one important reason, the reaction of the knights against that elephant-sized tiger. With their incredible performance, I developed a better understanding of what might have been truly threatening to the ruling powers, and what I had was certainly not that.

That didn't mean I loved the necessity to show off, but ultimately, it was a good compromise between getting stronger and hiding my real secrets.

"No," I answered. "It's almost noon, and I told Zolast that we'll be ready before then. I'm not going to fail because of your slow feet, boy."

As amusing as it was to push him, it wasn't my aim as I teased him. No, it was just a welcome side effect as I experimented on another Charisma trick, trying to create that 'command connection' between us. It was slow going, and for a few times he had realized the weirdness, but his straightforward nature made it easy to convince him it was just his exhaustion acting up.

A lengthy experiment, but not a waste.

[+5 Experience]

The notification brought a smirk to my face, not because of the immensity of experience. At this point, five points didn't mean anything to me. I had a simpler reason for my excitement.

The first successful connection between me and Jertann.

It wasn't flawless. The beast that died under Jertann's hammer was worth about fifty points for me, meaning I barely managed to take ten percent. Of course, there were other interesting implications, like the fact that Jertann only got one point from that kill, but those implications, I left for the future.

Presently, I was more interested in the immediate implications. It didn't help if I gained experience from Jertann, as I could have killed the beast faster. But what if I could extend that to hundreds of people all along the line

As I faced another large beast this time another rat I let Jertann take the point against the beast, supporting him from the side. Of course, my 'support' made sure the beast couldn't find an angle to deliver a blow to Jertann, who was allowed to beat it down aggressively.

He had the necessary Strength to handle the task easily as long as he didn't need to worry about the counter-attacks.

I just hoped that he didn't develop some dangerous habits.

"That's the last of it," Jertann said as he took down the beast. "Let's go back."

I just nodded, moving back, acting like half of the camp wasn't watching us. The Blacks and Greens watched from the back, but neither passed the border, just relying on watching us from a distance. A more established gang would have retaliated immediately, but their recent establishment worked to our benefit.

"Excited for your Promotion?" I asked even as I killed a bird that was attacking us, the number of smaller beasts increasing with each second.

"Maybe," he answered as we walked forward. "It's a bit surprising with everything going on I didn't have the time to think. It's something I was working on for the last year. I didn't expect it to be completed in just a day."

"That's life. It's easier to achieve things once you have the proper tools," I said. Allowing him to gather enough Experience twice was only easy because of my overwhelming combat ability.

It was not impossible to replicate for the others, but clearly, the knights and other nobles didn't have any intention to babysit the random farmers.

As we walked back, the camp parted around the others. The members of our camp had looked at us with reverence. Yet, I was happy to see it was mostly Jertann who was the target of their gazes. While fighting, I made sure to prop him up as more inspiring. A young, strapping man who could take down a beast in several blows in a few seconds was much more impressive than an old man who required more than a minute to achieve such a feat.

At least to the amateurs. Luckily, after the latest exodus, the camp was devoid of anyone I could treat as a professional.

Well, except for Zolast, who was watching me with a renewed expression of interest, I had no chance but to let it slide. He had his secrets, I had mine, and unless one of us was willing to shed the polite fiction around it, it would stay that way.

"That was a nice day of work, now, why don't you go and take a midday nap, boy," I said as I looked at Zolast, who pointed to a large tent. Unlike the tent that had been used in the inner camps, it didn't have silver runes coloring the fabric, but as the wind blew the flap of the tent, I managed to get a glimpse of the interior.

And saw a large, complicated pattern, drawn on the earth, one that gave me the impression of power. It was not mere decoration and establishing that clearly exhausted Zolast, as evidenced by his expression.

"Let me show you your new tent," Zolast said and led Jertann toward it. Then, before entering, Zolast pointed to a large plate. "Your lunch is there as well," he said before he entered, and firmly closed the tent.

A good excuse for me to stay around just in case someone tried to barge in. However, as I grabbed the plate, I moved around, looking for a gap in the tent. Zolast tried to keep the tent completely closed, but the material didn't allow it.

With the gap, I could see what was going on.

Jertann stood at the center of the tent, and soon, the distinct glow of the leveling appeared around him, but rather than spreading around like the times I leveled up, it was pulled into the pattern and disappeared. Soon, another glow appeared and disappeared just as well.

Jertann was level thirty.

"Now, to the Promotion, kneel and pray for your god, so that he could know your heart, and maybe bestow the mercy needed to survive in this dark world," he started as he stood in front of Jertann.

So much for not being a priest.

Jertann stayed on his knees, praying for a long time.

"I have something else," Zolast said. "Something that can help you to not only survive but also help to protect everyone in the camp. But I want you to promise you're not going to reveal the truth about it," Zolast explained, whispering, his voice soft enough that I was barely able to hear despite my advanced Perception.

"I " Jertann started, only to freeze when Zolast pulled a box, one that was made of silver with gold runes around. It was smaller than the box the guard had used to hide the blue stone but then opened, and the intensity of its glow surprised me.

So did the color, a shockingly bright green.

"Is this an ability stone," Jertann gasped in shock. "But, that's a treasure. Even a noble" Jertann gasped, his tone lingering.

"Would spend a fortune on that, only to use it for his own luxury, and nothing else," Zolast answered, his tone sharp and unyielding. "That's why I'm going to seal the information so you can't reveal it to others."

There was clearly a story behind his distaste, one that I had no intention of going around poking others' life stories. I had more than a sufficient number of my own issues to deal with. The ability to seal the information was another fascinating detail, but with a world where any noble could use magical interrogation, it made perfect sense.

"Do you accept this mission to protect the innocent," Zolast said.

"I I accept," Jertann answered. Zolast pressed the stone against Jertann's temple, and it turned into a soft, golden glow, infusing Jertann's skin.

The promotion was different than leveling up. There was no explosion of light, just a slow merging with the golden glow. Jertann paused and started to look into the emptiness. I remembered from my own experience that it wouldn't last in reality, merely a few seconds once it started although it lasted more mentally.

Then, Jertann stood up, looking at his hands with elation on his face. "I that ability it's impossible," Jertann gasped in shock.

"It's a gift. I have already sealed the information so you can't talk about its origin. Still, make sure you don't show off too much near a noble, not unless you want to be forcibly recruited to their house," Zolast said. "Now, go and defend the camp."

Satisfied, I went back to the seat Zolast had prepared for me and finished my food. With Jertann strong enough to anchor the unaffiliated, I was free to experiment freely.

I wondered just how much I could extend the connection of the Charisma

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