The Quest (Dark Paladin Book #2) LitRPG Series Read online

  The Quest

  a novel

  by Vasily Mahanenko

  The Dark Paladin

  Book#2

  Magic Dome Books

  The Quest

  The Dark Paladin, Book #2

  Copyright © V. Mahanenko 2017

  Cover Art © V. Manyukhin 2017

  English translation copyright © Alexandra Tussing 2017

  Editor: Barbara D. Jenkins

  Published by Magic Dome Books, 2017

  All Rights Reserved

  ISBN: 978-80-88231-28-8

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This book is entirely a work of fiction.

  Any correlation with real people or events is coincidental.

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  ALSO BY VASILY MAHANENKO

  The Way of the Shaman LitRPG Series:

  Survival Quest (The Way of the Shaman: Book #1)

  The Kartoss Gambit (The Way of the Shaman: Book #2)

  The Secret of the Dark Forest (The Way of the Shaman: Book #3)

  The Phantom Castle (The Way of the Shaman: Book #4)

  The Karmadont Chess Set (The Way of the Shaman: Book #5)

  The Hour of Pain (The Way of the Shaman Bonus Story)

  Dark Paladin LitRPG Series:

  The Beginning (Dark Paladin Book #1)

  Galactogon LitRPG Series:

  Start The Game (Galactogon: Book #1)

  Short Stories:

  You're in Game!

  (LitRPG Stories from Bestselling Authors)

  The Hour of Pain (The Way of the Shaman Bonus Story)

  Table of Contents:

  Chapter One. The Sanctuary

  Chapter Two. Preparation

  Chapter Three. Alveona

  Chapter Four. The Meeting

  Chapter Five. Lady Lecleur’s Estate

  Chapter Six. Mummers

  Chapter Seven. “Shazal” Treatise

  Chapter Eight. The Lecleurs’ Treasury

  Chapter Nine. The Reverse

  Chapter Ten. The Secret of Lecleur Estate

  Thank you for reading The Quest!

  Chapter One. The Sanctuary

  “MAY EVERYONE PRESENT bear witness that I swear to follow, to the best of my knowledge and ability, the following oath:

  Consider the one who taught me the laws of my class to be my mentor, share my wealth with him and help him in his endeavors; consider all Paladins my brothers, and whenever possible come to their aid without prior arrangement and without reward; convey lessons and teachings verbally to the young Paladins who are bound by the obligations and oath by the laws of the class, but to no one else.

  Strive for the benefit of my class to the extent of my strength, knowledge and ability, refraining from inflicting any harm and injustice to my class. I shall, honestly and forever, transfer the excess of my personal resources, in the amount of ten percent, for the needs of the class. Whatever dwelling I enter, I shall enter as a guest, for I shall know no other home than the Citadel of my class.

  Whenever I see or hear that with respect to my class which should not be disclosed, I shall keep silent and treat that thing as a secret. May I who follow the oath steadfastly receive good fortune in the Game and glory with all Paladins for eternity; and the one who violates it or whose oath is false may suffer the opposite. So be it!”

  White light washed over me from head to toe, indicating that the Game accepted my oath. From now on I was a full-fledged Earth Paladin, the only survivor out of five recruits sent to the Academy, the only one whom Archibald had been able to pull out of the mages’ hands.

  The catorian was standing nearby, looking too pleased for someone who had just been chewed out, first by the blue-skinned Viceroy, and then by a weird bearded Judge. Due to recent events a scandal had broken out in the Game, and Paladins had spared no effort to inflate it. It was not like hunting recruits was not allowed, but killing noobs before official presentation was sort of bad sport. In our case it had been plain genocide. Everyone was indignant and demanded that the Viceroy and the Supreme Judge make a resounding statement and adequate response. As soon as Archibald pulled me out, the case initiation suggestion had popped up and I immediately accepted it. My soul craved blood and revenge. But those plans were not to be. The odd-looking Judge, who looked like an overgrown gnome, had taken this right away from me simply by showing up.

  The case you initiated and investigation thereof have been transferred to Supreme Judge Koni

  No reward, no punishment, no satisfaction from righteous revenge. It felt somewhat frustrating. The high-born elven upstarts deserved a good spanking. Would someone, please, fet
ch me a belt!

  The ceremony of being made a Paladin of Earth, however, had turned into a one-man show. Oh, it’s my first night, oh I am so nervous! Glancing at the spectators, I noted how few my brothers in class were. There were only about forty players in the hall; most of them were elves. I would bet a hundred to one that I would not hear from them today anything like “Long live new Paladin Yaropolk!” Not as though I really wanted to. One glance at Nartalim’s father Garlion really filled me with certainty of how “glad” they were to see me here. The elf kept staring at me, and I understood really well the way he felt.

  You became a full-fledged player

  8 artifact properties are available for redistribution

  Check your choices carefully

  The defense and attack amulets bought in the Academy worked fine, improving the properties “Defense” and “Weapon” by 5 points, so there was not much sense in putting lots of available points into them. One point for each would be enough, just so that the properties would not disappear, making the amulets purely decorative. The situation with the “Spiritual integrity” was somewhat more complex. Given that for the next three years no one could take me under control it was not necessary. In the short run I could drop it and then start using it again in a couple of years. So, the only two left for further development and upgrading were “Context Search” and “Neuronal network”. Knowing full well what an advantage the “Neuronal network” would confer, since at level 15 it was capable of automatically analyzing the video it recorded in 24х7 mode, I invested 4 out of my 6 points available into it. The remaining two went into “Context Search”, thus making available to me not only comparisons of the surroundings by the Book of Knowledge, but also navigation and an alphabetical index.

  “Welcome to the family, brother Yaropolk!” As soon as I confirmed redistribution of artifact properties, the gray-haired head of class for Paladins on Earth nodded approvingly to me, completing the ceremony. Gerhard van Brast’s bright blue eyes shone with such incomparable wisdom and understanding that I could not but respect him. You rarely meet a person whom you can’t help trusting as soon as you meet his eyes. Gerhard van Brast was one of those. He looked sort of like Sean Connery in “Highlander”. He was as regal and steadfast. Nodding again, to the Paladins this time, Gerhard left the room, followed by two guards. His departure broke the dead silence that had hung over the entire ceremony. To the right of me I heard a snuffling voice loudly speculating on Gerhard’s sudden public appearance. Now, that was interesting! During the last three years the Head of class had never appeared at any public events. Already rumors and tales were circulating among our people, each stranger than the next. But Gerhard’s appearance today stopped all the wagging tongues. He was alive, strong and, importantly, of sound mind. I doubted that it was my humble self that had caused the head of the class to appear here.

  “Come with me, brother‒we need to anchor you to the Citadel.” Sharda was dragging me out of the hall and I couldn’t hear what else that snuffling guy was saying. “After that you have an appointment with the Judge‒ he wants to hear your version of the events. Also, brother Garlion wants to talk to you about the death of his son Nartalim. Then you are expected in the Sanctuary for assignment. There you will also receive your first quest and access to the Dungeon.”

  There were many more “thens” and “afterwards”. As Sharda clarified, no matter where I am assigned, the Citadel will pay for rent and transportation and provide a stipend for the first three months. I will receive access to the Citadel library after living in the main world for at least six months. If I had not had such a high level – eleven – I would have had to first spend some time at the special training range for newbies, upgrading and leveling up to an acceptable point. In that case I would have been in debt to the Citadel, because the class training ranges were not free even for class members. One granis or one year of working for the benefit of the class was the price of not being very successful in the Academy.

  “Anchor point,” Sharda said curtly, pointing inside the large hall and letting me come in first. In the center, without any apparent support, a sphere was hanging. It was about two or three meters in diameter, and pulsing with blinding blue light, creating quite an unreal picture. It felt like a fairy tale. It seemed like the sky itself had descended, washing the hall with its innocent pure light, shying away from the dark corners. Menacing shadows lurked there, waving threateningly in the same rhythm as the pulses, trying to reach the center and vanquish the small blue sun.

  “WHO?” A resonating voice reverberated through the hall. The surface of the sphere visibly rippled, and my body responded with acute pain. I trembled, trying to endure it silently: it would not do to betray my weakness. The voice fell silent and the pain subsided.

  “Brother Yaropolk!” Sharda introduced me, bowing his head slightly to the ball as a way of greeting. Rightly considering that it wouldn’t do me any harm, I copied his gesture. “Newly graduated from the Academy.”

  “THE SOURCE WELCOMES THE NEW PALADIN!” I tried to brace for the new wave of resonating pain. But it didn’t work. First I bent down, and then fell on my knees. I didn’t fall on the floor only because I had thrust out my hands. It took the Source forever to finish its greeting! Finally the voice faded and I was able to catch my breath. The gnome was standing next to me as if nothing had happened. I wanted to ask why the voice affected me in that way, when the agonizing pain pierced me once again:

  THE YOUNG ONE MUST JUDGE THEM AND

  DISCOVER HIS TRUE PAIR

  TO FIND WHAT IS LOST AND DEEM

  IF THE WORLD’S PUNISHMENT IS FAIR

  Anchoring to the Paladins’ Citadel is complete

  “Charades again!” Sharda said with displeasure, as he wrote something down in a small book that was floating in the air. “From all that was foretold, brother Yaropolk, all I understood was that you might become one of the Panel of the Judges of the Game. Become one of the Arbiters. The rest you’ll have to figure out for yourself.”

  “What was that?” As the darkness in front of my eyes faded, I rose to my feet and hastened to peek into the book over the gnome’s shoulder. The book fluttered a page with a calligraphy drawing on it in front of me, shut itself loudly and disappeared into a portal.

  “The first prophesy,” Sharda answered laconically, as if that statement was supposed to make it all clear to me. My silence was his answer: “Did you not know about it? Oh yes, you weren’t there at the first class of training before the Academy! So, we will repeat that lesson. Before anchoring to the class citadel, each new player receives a personal prophesy. Some are told clearly what they need to do, some are given an elaborate hint that changes are needed and indications regarding the path of development. You, brother Yaropolk, were told what you could become or what you might be able to accomplish in your life. Only your prophesy has more that is not clear than is clear. Oh well: that’s your luck… What does it mean, “discover his true pair”? Are you going to become a part-time matchmaker? He-he-he!” Sharda laughed at his own guess, but immediately turned serious again, “I hate charades.”

  The bluish tinge of the “sun” floating in the middle of the room faded and gradually turned to white. The anchoring was over. There was a dull click, and the door opened with a protesting squeak, as if no one had oiled the hinges for a millennium or two.

  “I see that all the mandatory procedures are over. Yaropolk, may I congratulate you? You are a free player now.” The Supreme Judge appeared in the doorframe.

  I shrugged my shoulders, considering the answer was obvious. The Judge addressed the gnome:

  “I’ll see Yaropolk to the departure area. May I?”

  Even I figured out from Sharda’s grimace how “glad” he was at the Judge’s proposition, but in some situations there is simply no choice:

  “It will be my pleasure to palm off to you a novice who has not completed training,” the gnome responded, trying to look indifferent, and then took off to mind
his own affairs.

  “Yaropolk.” The Judge gestured, inviting me to walk with him down the hall. As soon as I approached Koni, the Game informed me of the status “witness”, beginning the procedure of examination and the impossibility for a third party to interfere with this process. The broad-shouldered Judge grinned, seeing my displeased face, and slowly started along the long hallway. There was nothing I could do other than follow him. At the last moment I looked back and met the eyes of the gnome, who peeked out the door. It seemed someone was way too curious.

  “I would like to reassure you from the start – there is no threat in this for you,” the Judge had a low and pleasant timber of voice, enveloping one’s mind and making one feel relaxed. “I know practically all the circumstances of the case; I just need to clarify some details. But first of all, as one Judge to another, I can offer you some advice: never deliver a verdict on a case with which you are familiar less than ninety percent. Even if you deliver a correct verdict, it is not good practice; it will have an adverse effect later when the Panel of Judges of the Game makes the decision regarding your membership. I hope professional advancement is part of your long-term plans?”

  “I don’t know yet.” I responded honestly, trying to overcome the euphoria that was washing over me from talking to the Supreme Judge. I had never felt reverence or obsequious urges towards the high and mighties until now, so I doubted that I had developed a bout of idol-worshipping all of a sudden. My experience of dealing with Dolgunata only fueled my doubts. To counteract this, there was still a thought buzzing in my head that it was forbidden to exert mental control over novices during the first three years after they graduated from the Academy. Understanding how dangerous it would be to start an open confrontation with the Supreme Judge, I squashed my indignation. I would do better to use my accumulated ardor for self-control.