The Path of Ascension 2: A LitRPG Adventure

19

Liz scoffed at that and fell backward into the couch. “Pshh. There are a very limited number of resources at the highest Tiers. That’s why everyone leaves as soon as they can. It’s better to get out to the higher realms, where Tier 50 planets are more common. But you’re not wrong. No one is advocating for a new Emperor or something. It’s all about who should get access to this rift or that resource. It leads to groups advocating for their own benefits, and Uncle Manny has to balance it all. But Duke Ignite is from a separate faction, so I don’t know much about him.”

Camilla looked at Liz like she had grown two heads. “Wait, who are your parents? I know you call Aiden Uncle, but now you’re calling the Emperor Uncle?”

Matt had to chuckle at the look on her face. They hadn’t deliberately kept her in the dark, but it wasn’t something either of them mentioned to her.

Liz flipped her hair and looked imperious. “You have the honor to be in the presence of the daughter of Leon and Mara. The two royals. You may now pay obeisance.”

Her demeanor dissolved into a giggle, and she lightly punched the gob smacked woman. “Relax. I’m just f*****g with you. I’m just me.”

Camilla rolled her eyes. “So, who are your actual parents, then?”

Liz c****d her head. “Oh. No. I was joking about the obeisance. Not who my parents were. I’m on The Path to get out of their clutches. Such tight, tight hugs.”

The wide-eyed look from the dark-haired woman was enough to lighten the mood.

Matt was still shocked that they, or rather he, wasn’t the reason they got attacked. It was that they were frugal and didn’t want to waste their mana stones that made them a target.

I guess I’m not the center of the universe after all.

It was slightly humbling in a way, but he had to laugh. Matt wasn’t someone special, just someone they thought was an easy mark.

Any more conversation was interrupted with Liz jerking slightly. “Oh, I’m getting a call from the duke.”

With a flick of her finger, the screen lit up, and Duke Ignite sat in a room that looked more like an office.

“Good day, Miss Moore.”

“Hello, Duke Ignite.” Liz’s demeanor and tone changed; she even had an expression Matt had never seen before.

“I just wanted to inform you as the person involved in this scandal that it’s been taken care of. Mostly.”

“I don’t like the sound of mostly. Please elaborate.”

“The i***t leading that little operation was a royal, and like all of his family members, was involved in a family meeting about five months before he started this idea. Like all of those who attended, they wore items that could suppress their AIs. The king was obviously there as well, and I can’t be sure that he wasn’t involved. I wanted to warn you. I doubt that he will try anything, but I wanted to be sure you were aware.”

“Thank you. I will inform my parents of your excellent service.”

The duke waved that off. “I won’t say no to a favor from them, but don’t think I wouldn’t do it for anyone I found in this situation. I dropped a hint that there were VIPs involved in this little debacle, and that the king might want to be incredibly careful with his actions. But I’ll be gone in a few hours. I’m only staying around to finish the checks of the other victims.”

His eyes and arms flared with orange light, but they quickly cooled, and the apathetic look returned.

“I pushed for the maximum reimbursement from the king, so you will each be getting a Tier 7 mana stone. I wish it was more, but the restrictions of The Path are limiting me here.”

“What about the others? Will they be made whole?” Liz’s question made Matt think of all the others as well. Twenty thousand was a huge amount of people to reimburse.

Duke Ignite nodded at the question. “I’m offering transport back to The Empire, and citizenship to any who want it. It’s all that I can personally do, but with the compensation from the king for their rough treatment, it should be enough to set most up nicely for the future. If they so wish.”

“I thank you for taking the time out of your day to inform me.”

The duke said nothing else, and the transmission ended.

Before anyone else could say something, Camilla blurted out, “f**k! I wasn’t sure you were serious.”

Liz just shrugged. “He’s only a duke. It’s really not a big deal.”

Matt and Camilla both gave the blood mage a look, before shaking their heads at each other. Liz had a different outlook on some things.

Two days later, they were preparing to leave the planet and were waiting their turn to board the teleporter platform. It would send them to the Tier 4 planet that was the first stop on their journey.

When they finally reached the new world, they found themselves on a plain of grass. The world was fairly weak at Tier 4, but the surroundings had been leveled with magic of some type, as the ground was scorched for nearly a mile out. The rudimentary buildings of a temporary settlement were already going up. A teleportation city was always a busy place, especially one that linked directly to the capital of a kingdom.

Anyone who had landed here was planning for the long haul, and some had already gotten the first few jumps in. Some people were already heading to the surroundings and scouting out fresh areas to subjugate on the new world. Matt and the other three headed to the edge of the city perimeter and found other groups who were boarding a large flying ship.