EPIC: Path of Demons and Dragons - Chapter 308: Honesty

Renji had many exes.

However, these exes were all fictional characters in a post-apocalyptic game.

As an absolute devotee of strength, whenever a character became useless in the game, Renji would strip them of their equipment, claim their resources, and relegate them to the background as caretakers, giving the best to new powerful characters.

Of course, Renji always insisted that this was temporary, all in the name of advancing in the game and saving this precarious post-apocalyptic world!

But...

These “Fictional Characters” didn't seem to see it that way.

When Renji, with his emphasis on strength and meticulous planning, fulfilled his mission as the “savior,” putting an end to the source of Tainted Miasma in the wasteland and becoming the first to achieve a “perfect clearance.”

He unexpectedly found himself transported to the game's second stage.

He had thought he would soar directly, living a carefree life, but Renji realized that things were not quite as he had imagined.

……………………………………………………………

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In a world where everyone is undergoing their profession's transition, I've surprisingly awakened to two professions.Moreover, I've also awakened a defiance lifestyle profession.Preserve high-quality items? I'll just synthesize them.Preserve high-quality skills? I'll synthesize those as well.Preserve high-level pets? I'll keep synthesizing. Wait, why is this beast-girl so large after the synthesis?Let's start by synthesizing three “Skeleton Summonings.”Synthesize into—The “Undead Army.”Now, let's synthesize three Dark Wands.Synthesize into—The “Death's Scepter.”In the grand interspecies gaming contest of the universe, can we, humans of the Solar System and Earth, ascend to an even broader stage?......

A Sky God’s Spiritual Foundation. It was the greatest natural treasure in all of existence, but the sacrifices one must make to gain the approval of such an entity was unimaginable.

Ryu is a genius amongst geniuses.

He was born with the four Grand Ancestral Bloodlines. The Lightning Qilin. The Fire Dragon. The Ice Phoenix. The Fire Phoenix.

He was blessed with an Ancestral Grade Bone Structure and Ancestral Grade Meridians. The Ice Jade Crystal Bones. The Chaotic Silk Meridians…

He was bestowed the First Ranked Heavenly Pupils. The Mysteries of Heaven and Earth Pupils…

However, none of it mattered. Born with a False Spiritual Foundation, it seemed that all of his talent would go to waste. Unless…

Unless he was willing to grasp his Fate in his own hands.

Warning This fiction contains:

Graphic Violence Profanity Sensitive Content

Summary – Level 1:

Delve is an isekai litrpg that follows an average guy who just happened to wake up in a forest one day. He wasn’t summoned to defeat the demon lord or to save the world or anything like that, at least as far as he can tell. The only creature there to greet him was a regular old squirrel.

Soon enough, he meets other people, only to discover that he can’t speak the language, and that not everybody immediately trusts random pajama-wearing strangers they met in the middle of the wilderness. Things generally go downhill from there, at least until the blue boxes start appearing.

Delve is a story about finding your way in a new, strange, and dangerous world. It’s about avoiding death, figuring out what the heck is going on, and trying to make some friends along the way. It’s not about getting home, so much as finding a new one.

Did I mention that there will be math?

Summary – Level 2:

Okay, but what are you in for, really?

Well, this story is supposed to be realistic, or at least, as realistic as a fantasy litrpg can be. The main character doesn’t instantly become an all-powerful god and murder-hobo his way across the universe. Delve is, at its heart, a progression fantasy, but that progression is meant to feel earned. The numbers in this story actually mean something. Everything is calculated, and if you find a rounding error, I expect you to tell me about it. That said, if math isn’t your cup of tea, there is plenty more that the story has to offer. Characters are meant to feel real, and progression isn’t only about personal power; it’s also about allies, connections, and above all, knowledge. Figuring out how the system works is a significant theme.

...

What, you want more details? Okay, fine, but this is going to get a bit spoiler-y. Are you sure?

Yes!

Really sure? I mean, this summary is practically half as long as the first chap–

Now!

Okay, okay!

The main character becomes a magic user, but he takes a route that is not very popular in adventurer culture, namely that of a support. There is a full magic system with various spells, skills, and abilities, but our MC decides that aura magic is the way to go, and that the only stat worth investing in is mana regeneration. Most people at the Adventurer’s Guild think that this makes him a bit of a dumbass, but he’s playing the long game. We’ll see how that works out for him, won’t we?

Because of his build, the MC levels up fast, at least compared to normal people. There are no cheats, though, and he is limited in other ways. There are some clear and pretty obvious downsides to his build. That’s what makes it fun, no?

Morals? Our MC has them. Again, we’ll see how that works out for him. Realism, remember? Would you be okay with killing someone and looting their body? I sure hope not.

POV? The focus is on the main character, but there will be occasional varying perspectives from people around him, or involved in the events related to the main plot. It isn’t going to jump all over the place.

Tech is standard medieval stasis. No smartphones, but the MC does have a technical background. Computers and their programming might be involved. There might even be a bit of uplifting down the road, who knows? Anyway, it isn’t the focus. He isn’t going to invent the gun in chapter 1 and change the face of warfare.

Romance is not a major focus. Friendships are more the name of the game, though there will be some characters in romantic relationships.

There is exploration, though not as much of the geographical nature as you might expect. It is more about exploration of the system and the culture.

The pace is slow and detailed, sometimes verging on slice-of-life. The action is meant to be realistic and grounded in the numbers, and it is intended to have meaning beyond simply punching things until they stop moving.

The general tone of the story is grey, and some parts can get quite dark. People die. Sometimes, people with names, but not anywhere near GoT level. There is plenty of light, too, though, to balance the darkness. The world is dangerous, but overcoming that danger is why we’re all here, isn’t it?

Anyway, if you’ve made it this far through the summary, you clearly like words. I hope you enjoy the story!