Sallow and Araneida finished off the last of the Ogres, slaying the remaining ones that had lost all will to fight after the death of the Shaman. Jack's approaching footsteps caught the duo's attention, causing them to cast their gaze at the Tamer, who simply stretched his neck a bit, rubbing it. “My Lord, I see that you were successful.” Sallow commented, before placing his greatsword back onto his back.

  Araneida pounced onto Jack, purring a bit like a cat as she clung onto him, rubbing her head against his face. The Tamer simply laughed. “Araneida, come on – have a sense of personal space.” Jack joked, pushing the arachnid off of him before getting back up. Sallow approached closer.

  “Feeling fine?”

  “For the most part. Though I have to say my muscles feel a bit sore after activating ‘Leaders Transformation’.” Sallow chuckled, before exhaling. “That can be a side effect. The skill takes a great toll on the user's body, especially with the way it drains magical energy at a rapid rate.”

  Jack simply gave a soft sigh, before rubbing the back of his neck one more time and then looking around at the massacre of the Ogres that had occurred here. “I thought you said it’d be difficult to take on so many of them at once.”

  “Hahah… Well, as soon as you take their leader out of the equation, it makes dealing with them a lot more manageable, since they can’t coordinate without orders from their leaders.” Sallow replied, turning around and walking over to the wrappings of his greatsword he had pulled up, picking them back up before wrapping up the blade once again. Then, the Grey Overlord turned back towards Jack. “Shall we see if this tribe of ruffians have anything useful lying around?”

  Jack shrugged, turning towards the largest building in this village, which most likely was the home of the Shaman. “Sure, we can do that. You two search the smaller huts, I’ll go after the big prize.”

  Araneida and Sallow gave a quiet nod in response, immediately moving to begin searching through the huts, while Jack moved towards the larger building. It was most definitely nowhere near the buildings he had seen in the Goblin clans — being quite simple in architecture, but at the same time, it was rather impressive that a race of what Sallow described as ‘violent ruffians’ was able to build something like this.

  It had a solid foundation, it on its own was made of mostly wood with robes tying it all together – though the rope was definitely not normal, as it looked rather reddish and upon closer examination and feeling of the rope, it had a rough, almost boney texture. It was definitely made from some kind of material harvested from other monsters.

  Jack moved inside the building, pushing to the side the drapes that covered the entrance. Despite the rather large size of the building outside, the inside was rather small and cramped, with columns and supports placed all over the place – very clearly showcasing that despite being able to build something like this building, the Ogres still didn’t have enough knowledge to make it support its own size in a minimal method.

  At the back of the single room that made up the building, was a makeshift throne – crafted from cloth, scraps and if Jack's eyes were not deceiving him in his old age, bones from what he could only guess were other monsters found in the dungeon. “Looks like the Shaman held quite the pride in his triumphs over other monsters.” Jack commented in his mind, before moving towards the throne.

  Upon closer examination, the throne definitely was intended to show off how powerful the Shaman was and the ‘oh so mighty’ position it held in this tribe, however the throne, based on its looks alone… Looked quite… terrible. Poorly put together, like a toddler that wants to be perceived as intimidating and strong, but fails miserably at that.

  The Tamer closed his eyes for a second, before pulling back his fist and then smashing it into the throne, shattering it into fragments in an instant, sending the various things that had been used to make it and that hadn’t been pulverised in his punch, flying all over the room. As the dust created by the impact settled, Jack's eyes fell onto a particular box hidden behind the throne. He smirked.

  “Hidden loot. Predictable.” The tamer reached for the box, picking it up and carrying it away from the throne, placing it down in the center of the room, before examining it a bit closer. The box was intricately designed. It was seemingly made of wood, however what kind of wood Jack was not able to tell. It had the same ropes that were used in this building tied around it, most likely keeping the thing together. Last thing to note, other than the rusted beyond recognition metal on the box, was a small animal skull, wedged on top of the box.

  What animal the skull belonged to, once again, Jack was not able to tell, as it did not look like any animal he was familiar with. Shrugging slightly, the tamer carefully searched for a way to open the box. After a small bit of feeling around the box, he managed to find a small opening between the box and its lid, allowing him to pull it open, breaking off the robes and metal that was holding it together. Tossing the lid to the side, Jack turned his attention to the singular item in the box.

  A small, palm sized, red gemstone shaped like a rectangle.

  Jack raised an eyebrow, picking up the gemstone in his hands. It felt rather warm and there was a certain beating to it – as if it had a heart inside it. It felt smooth, edgeless. Despite the intricate cuts that made up its look, it wasn’t possible to feel them. The entire gemstone just felt seamless.

  “Weird… Why would the Shaman keep a gemstone locked in a hidden box? Is there something special about it?” Jack narrowed his gaze, trying to gain some more information about the gemstone, however unlike usually, no menu appeared. In fact, when he sharpened his gaze a little too much, the gemstone seemingly vanished from his view — however upon adjusting his gaze back to normal, the gemstone reappeared. It was as if the thing had some kind of resistance or immunity to any ability that may give more information about it. “Maybe Sallow knows more about this.”

  Jack stood up, stepping over the box and throwing one more look around the room. However, there was nothing else of interest in the room. Just some amateurly made weapons and scuffed looking armour made of cloth and leather. Without wasting another moment, Jack left the building.

  Outside, he met up with Sallow and Araneida, who seemingly had finished their searches – and by the looks of it, had not found anything. “No luck?”

  Sallow shook his head. “The huts are barely staying together and inside are just some pelts laid out on the floor for most likely sleeping purposes as well as worn out weaponry, which would not serve any use to us.”

  Araneida just let out a slight sigh of disappointment.

  Sallow then noticed the gentle glimmer from Jack's right palm. “I assume you found something?” Jack nodded. “Indeed.” He lifted up his hand, showing off the red gemstone to Sallow. “However I have no clue what it is. It doesn’t allow me to take a closer examination, so I was wondering if you perhaps knew what it was.”

  Upon seeing the gemstone, Sallow raised an eyebrow before reaching for it. “May I?” Jack shrugged and then nodded. Sallow picked up the gemstone, examining it closer, sharpening his eyes occasionally as well as trying to get a good look at the gemstone from as many angles as he could. Jack crossed his arms while Sallow examined the gemstone, waiting patiently for the Goblin to finish. After a little bit, Sallow pulled the gemstone away from his face. “This is rather fascinating… and strange.”

  “Know what it is?”

  “Somewhat.” Sallow replied, handing the gemstone back to Jack. “If I am not mistaken, the item is most likely an arc crystal – a variant of what are known as power crystals.” Jack raised an eyebrow, causing Sallow to exhale gently, before turning his back against Jack.

  “To be honest, I myself know little about them. The power crystals are gemstones that can be found mainly in areas with immense magical energy presence in the air. In fact, they themselves are essentially crystallised forms of magical energy, which hold quite the power inside.” Sallow threw a gaze over his shoulder at Jack.

  “There are three power crystal variants I know of - arc crystals, prime crystals and alpha crystals. Each one possesses a different amount of magical energy inside them, with prime crystals having the most and arc crystals the least. The crystals can be used in various ways, but the primary way I know how to use them is to eat them and absorb their power inside yourself.” Jack scratched his chin, his gaze falling onto the red gemstone in his right hand.

  “So… they’re sort of a way to gain more power?”

  Sallow looked unsure. “One could interpret or simplify it down to that, however there is more to it. Mainly, consuming a power crystal is highly, highly dangerous – since the amount of magical energy contained within is far too immense for most beings to be able to handle absorption into their bodies.”

  “I see…” Jack looked at Sallow more seriously. “Would you say I am strong enough to handle it?” Sallow fell quiet. He looked away, before exhaling and turning to face Jack. “I will admit, you possess far more strength that you should, however I still believe it would be a very, very dangerous move to consume the crystal. While you most definitely have a higher chance of success than the average individual, if something, even the tiniest of things goes wrong, you will be obliterated by the crystal's power.”

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Jack remained silent for a moment.

  “And if it goes right and everything is successful?”

  Sallow looked concerned now. “My lord, I do not—”

  “Answer me Sallow.” Jack cut off the goblin. Araneida was also slowly starting to become a bit distressed, her gaze bouncing between Sallow and Jack with clear signs of nervousness. While she was unable to speak, her moves and tipsy behaviour alone showcased her growing concern. Sallow remained silent for a bit, before sighing. “...If it all goes right, you’ll gain a considerably large amount of power – potentially even undergoing a strong internal change to accommodate said power.”

  “So it’s high risk, high reward…” Jack moved his hand holding the crystal above his head, examining its glimmering, beating core for a bit – just standing there, silently. Sallow shed a cold sweat, shaking his head. “My lord, it is not a good idea – it is not worth the risk—”

  “If we wish to break out of this dungeon as soon as possible, then I have to acquire as much strength and power as possible. If this crystal can help me do that, then the risk is very much worth it.” Sallow was lost for words, unable to usher out even a sound of protest.

  Jack lowered his arm and let out a rather heavy exhale. “I appreciate your concern, Sallow, but I’m afraid I’ll ignore your advice this time.” The Tamer turned his back on the two familiars. “Give me some time. I’ll consume the crystal and then we’ll be on our way.” Sallow and Araneida exchanged worryful gazes, however, unable to do anything to realistically stop or change Jack's mind, the two moved away, creating as much distance as possible between them and Jack, while still being able to keep the Tamer in their field of vision. Jack stood silently in place for a moment, hesitant to actually go through with what he had just said he would do.

  And could anyone blame him?

  “I’ve done crazy things in my time as a military mercenary, however… eating a stone? Man… My master would call me a psycho.” After a deep breath, the man exhaled heavily, before bringing the crystal up to his mouth and then biting into it. The gemstone, surprise surprise, was solid hard – his teeth unable to even dent it, however, after a bit more of struggling, he managed to crack the gemstone. Then, the Tamer made a rather rash decision — while he had intended to consume it slowly, biting off bits… It would be way faster if he just..

  Gulp.

  Jack swallowed the entire gemstone — with a little difficulty as the thing was rather large and had almost started to make him choke, however he managed to gulp it down. At first, there was nothing. Then, a sharp pain hit Jack in the chest, causing him to collapse to his knees.

  It felt like he had just been sniped by four different snipers at once.

  His entire body felt like it was burning up. Magical energy began to leak out from his body, growing stronger and stronger. Then, a menu appeared in front of Jack.

  [ WARNING ]

  Consumed an Arc Crystal.

  Beginning to the absorption process…

  Chance of success: 32%

  [ WARNING ]

  “Well shit—”

  As the full absorption process began, Jack let out a scream of agony, his entire body being overwhelmed by sharp pain — like he was being burned alive from the inside and outside at the same time. An explosive magical energy burst left his body, creating a thick cloud of it around Jack. Sallow and Araneida shed a cold sweat watching their master from afar. “Come on my Lord… endure it. Make the crystals power your own.”

  Jack continued to let out blood curling screams of pain. His very skin was beginning to be seared and even at parts, be burned away by the magical energy surrounding his body. The Tamer coughed up blood, falling down to the ground even more, his entire body trembling. This pain he was going through at this moment – it was far, far greater than even the pain of the Rank Evolution. It felt like he was going back and forth through hell.

  It was a nightmarish feeling – an experience that was slowly beginning to eat away at his very mind, as if the magical energy was gathering in his head.

  “I must… endure it. I must succeed…” Jack pushed out under his breath. Even talking was beginning to hurt like hell. It felt like all of his vocal cords were on fire, actively being incinerated. It was an indescribable pain.

  After a bit, Jack, heavily panting and practically gasping for air, was pushed to the ground so much that his face was basically resting on it. However, the determination to endure the pain and ensure that this absorption was a success didn’t fade from his eyes. The Tamer grit his teeth sharply, blood splashing out from his mouth as he forced himself to rise up. His entire body trembled — his very bones felt fragile, like he would break apart any second now. However, the man prevailed. He forced himself to get back up onto his feet, however not nearly enough to fully stand up.

  The immense, thick magical energy cloud around him shifted. The burns and scorched skin parts around his body suddenly began to slowly heal, as the man breathed heavily. Then, the magical energy began to be pulled back into his body. Jack let out a hellish groan of pain — still very clearly tormented by the immense power entering his body.

  However, he endured – even if he did stumble a bit, he forced himself to remain standing on his feet, not falling over.

  [ ALERT ]

  Absorption process 81%.

  Finalising the process…

  [ ALERT ]

  Shortly after this alert window, the last remaining bit of the magical energy that had surrounded Jack was sucked back into his body – forcing a hellish scream from Jack. His outer body looked mostly fine, with his skin healing - however on the inside, he felt like there was a rampaging fire that had been ignited over gasoline.

  The man stumbled again, however didn’t fall over.

  He breathed heavily, sweat dripping from his face, before a sharp, sharp pain shot in his chest, before rapidly expanding across his entire body. Jack fell down to his left knee, barely able to keep himself from fully collapsing. After the sharp pain, another announcement window appeared.

  [ ALERT ]

  Absorption successful.

  Arc Crystals power has been absorbed.

  Beginning the empowerment of the user…

  [ ALERT ]

  Then, shortly after the last message of the window rang, Jack suddenly lost consciousness, falling to the ground. “My Lord!” Sallow and Araneida rushed towards Jack, however before they could even get close, an immense force was sent from Jack's body, pushing them back. The windforce then turned into strong magical energy that leaked from Jack's body – lingering in the air for a few seconds – before rapidly reentering the Tamer's body. A moment of peace.

  Then, Jack's body thrashed around – tossed and thrown across the ground, as if something inside him was trying to break out. His body shone a dark orange colour, with a pair of bright orange eyes shining where Jack's eyes were, before his body returned to a normal state.

  …Once again, peace.

  Sallow and Araneida exchanged gazes. One thought crossed their minds – Was it over? Then, Jack suddenly groaned, before getting up, rising up to his feet, before taking in a deep breath and exhaling. Sallow, shedding a sweat, took a step towards his master. “...My Lord?”

  Jack opened his eyes, a momentary orange glow escaping them.

  Then, he looked up to a simple announcement window that floated in the air in front of him.

  [ ALERT ]

  Congratulations, the Arc Crystal has successfully been integrated with your being.

  All of the power has been absorbed.

  Rank Evolution successful.

  ‘Jack Alfred Gragbone’ has moved up to A-Rank.

  Unused skill points have been automatically distributed.

  [ ALERT ]

  Scuff.

  Jack smirked.