Chapter 9: I Have a Priceless Gemstone |
Where could he find power? Where could he find strength?
Wandering the streets of Stormwind, Allen's mind was completely consumed by this question.
His first instinct was to complete the main quest given by the system, the one that required him to "weave a great deception."
But as he walked along, he had casually deceived a few passersby, yet the quest progress hadn't budged an inch.
Perhaps it was because they were all insignificant little scams?
What the system wanted was a truly great deception, wasn't it?
Unconsciously, Allen had tricked his way all the way to the front of the Cathedral of Light.
He stopped and looked up.
The Cathedral of Light stood majestically at the edge of Stormwind, its white stone walls glowing with a holy radiance under the sun.
A sudden wild idea struck Allen.
Since the system's main quest couldn't be completed, preventing him from unlocking the DND class-change system, then he could go unlock a World of Warcraft class instead!
He was already here; might as well see if the Light would favor him.
He straightened his clothes, put on a pious expression, and blended into the crowd entering the Cathedral of Light.
The interior of the cathedral was even more magnificent than the outside suggested. Rows of tall stone pillars supported the dome, and the beams of light cast through the stained glass windows looked like stairways to heaven.
Scattered worshippers sat on the pews, candlelight flickered before the holy statues, and the air was filled with the scent of incense.
Allen looked around and quickly found his target: a female bishop in a white robe was arranging candlesticks before the altar.
Her face was kind, her gaze gentle, and she seemed to be enveloped in a faint, shimmering aura.
Allen quickly stepped forward and bowed deeply. "Reverend Bishop, I am a lost soul from a distant land, who has finally arrived at the hall of the Light today. I... I wish to receive the Light's baptism and become a follower of the Light!"
The female bishop turned, her gaze resting softly on him. "Child, the Light welcomes all who sincerely seek it."
Allen's expression grew even more devout. "Please pray for me! I yearn to feel the warmth of the Light!"
The bishop smiled, nodded, raised her hand, and placed it on Allen's head. Closing her eyes, she began to pray in a low voice.
The prayer was ancient and solemn. Allen felt a warm power flow into him from the top of his head. It was just warm at first, then it rapidly heated up, becoming scalding hot, and finally—
"Aaaaaaah—!"
Allen let out a pained cry, his whole body curling up like a boiled shrimp as he staggered backward, nearly knocking over a candlestick behind him.
His skin took on an eerie red hue, and his hair seemed to smoke faintly.
The bishop opened her eyes, looked at the disheveled Allen on the floor, and a flicker of understanding passed through her gaze.
"Child," she said gently, "the Light is not suited for you."
Rubbing his painfully scorched head, Allen felt like crying but had no tears.
Not only was he not favored by the Light, he was actually afraid of it? Why?
Since things had come to this, becoming a Priest was clearly out of the question. Allen looked at the female bishop.
Since the path of the Light was blocked, then...
"Alright. But, Reverend Bishop," he said, pulling a malachite-green stone from his robe, "I have here a gem of incalculable value! It's a rare Arcane Crystal, a treasure seen once in a hundred years! Look at this quality, this luster, it's truly a rarity! I'll sell it to you cheap now, for just one gold coin, how about it?"
Before Allen departed, to thank him, Innkeeper Farley had given him the short sword Allen had found earlier, along with a large bag of malachite.
Malachite sounded like a gemstone, but in reality, it was just a byproduct mineral found with copper ore in Azeroth, completely worthless, not even worth a copper coin.
It was the kind of thing you'd consider a waste of pocket space. Not wanting to let it go to waste, Allen had been trying to sell this bag of malachite by tricking people along the way.
[Deception Check: Failed]
The female bishop watched him quietly, her eyes seeming to see through all disguises.
Then, she smiled.
She raised her hand and gently patted Allen's head, the gesture like a loving mother comforting a naughty child.
"Child," she said softly, "the Light will forgive you."
Allen was stunned.
He stood there, watching the bishop's retreating back, a complex, indescribable emotion welling up in his heart.
He shook his head, dispelling this inexplicable feeling, and slunk out of the Cathedral of Light.
The path of the Light was officially a failure.
But Allen wasn't one to give up so easily.
He lifted his head and turned his gaze to the distance, to the other side of Stormwind. Several tall, purple spires shimmered with a mysterious glow under the sunlight, their peaks wreathed in faint arcs of arcane energy.
The Mage Quarter.
That was the Arcane Sanctum of Stormwind, the hall of mages.
If he couldn't be a Priest, surely he could be a Mage?
Allen took a deep breath and strode in that direction.
The architectural style of the Mage Quarter was completely different from that of the Cathedral District. Most people walking the streets were robed mages.
Allen stopped before a grand Arcane Sanctum. At that moment, a group of mage apprentices was entering through the main doors together. Allen's eyes darted, and he silently blended into their midst.
Once inside the Sanctum, Allen looked around and quickly locked onto a target.
It was a young mage apprentice, looking no more than fifteen or sixteen, with long brown hair tied in a simple ponytail, her face still bearing traces of childish innocence and naivety.
She was struggling to carry a stack of books toward the stairs, looking like the type who was kind-hearted and easily swayed.
Allen quickly stepped forward, blocking her path.
"Hello!" He put on a sincere and pitiful expression. "I'm the child of farmers from the Stormwind countryside! Since I was little... I've held the Arcane Sanctum in the highest esteem, dreaming of becoming a mage! But my family is too poor, we can't afford the tuition, and I can't find anyone to recommend me... Could you help me?"
The young mage apprentice was stunned.
Her name was Amy Marlin, and she was indeed the easily swayed type.
Looking now at the glimmer of desperate longing in the eyes of this "poor country boy," her heart softened.
She knew perfectly well that she was just an apprentice herself, with no authority to decide who could enter the Sanctum. But she simply couldn't bear to see this young man thrown out by the cold, heartless mages inside.
"My name is Amy Marlin. Um..." She hesitated for a moment, then pulled a fist-sized crystal orb from her robe pocket. "This is a Leyline Resonance Orb. It can be used to test arcane affinity. To become a mage, you first need sufficient affinity..."
She handed the crystal orb to Allen. "Hold it, concentrate, and imagine yourself connecting with the surrounding magical energies."
Allen took the orb, took a deep breath, and did as she said.
He concentrated, imagining magical energy flowing into his body...
The crystal orb showed no reaction.
He tried again, concentrating even harder...
The orb remained utterly dead and silent.
Amy bit her lip. "Um... try again? Maybe you need to relax a bit..."
Allen tried a third time, a fourth time, a fifth time.
The orb was like a dead thing, not even a flicker of light.
The expectation on Amy's face gradually turned to awkwardness, and then from awkwardness to sympathy.
Allen released the orb, staring at it with an expressionless face.
Seriously?
All of them? Seriously?
The Light rejected him, and the Arcane ignored him?
Did they know that the last person rejected by all primal forces, left with nowhere to turn, was an orc? That guy later embraced the embrace of fel energy. Oh right, his name was Gul'dan.
Since things had come to this...
Allen took a deep breath, lifted his head, and a sincere smile reappeared on his face.
He pulled out that same malachite-green stone from his robe. The same piece of malachite.
"Alright. But, Miss Amy," he said with utmost sincerity, "I have here a gem of incalculable value! It's a rare Arcane Crystal, a treasure seen once in a hundred years! To thank you for giving me this chance, I'll sell it to you cheap now, for just one silver coin, how about it?"