Chapter 657: TC-06: Tobs' Corner Volume 6
- Initiating Recap Protocol.-
- Setting up Data Log.-
- Compiling available information to date.-
- Acquiring Community questions.-
- Disregarding all ignorant, stupid, or unsightly questions.-
- Scanning for the nickname "Tobsie" to ensure it is still blacklisted.-
- Scan complete, blacklisted word holding.-
- Acknowledging newly submitted System Hosts who have posed valid questions.-
- Initiating subtle nod toward The Reaper, Lesneo, and Siavash.-
- Proper questions acknowledged.-
- Shattering dimensional Fourth Wall.-
- WARNING WARNING: THE FOLLOWING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR VOLUME 6!-
-WARNING, IF YOU ARE NOT UP TO DATE ON VOLUME 6 (Beginning with Chapter 540 Volume 6 Prologue), READ ALL OF IT BEFORE CONTINUING THIS SEGMENT!-
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Contrary to every time you've been in this situation, something feels wrong. As you float about in a strange land with your vision flickering in and out like a damaged light bulb, a sense of dread unlike any you've ever felt before washes over your body.
'What is this feeling,' you can't help but think as you feel your feet touch down on what feels like mud. The strange sensations under your shoeless and sockless toes cause you to shift back and forth, only to realize that the semi-solid ground you are standing on appears to bear your weight, even if it technically shouldn't.
Looking around with squinted eyes, you try to spot anything familiar, like mountains, lightning, or even the platinum sun you witnessed last time; however, none of that is present in the dreary, dark, and eerie landscape.
Letting your eyes, which have, up until now, been assaulted by the blue light emitted by whatever screen you've been reading Volume 6 on, adjust to the sudden darkness, you slowly begin to catch faint blood-colored whisps of what can only be described as energy flickering about every few seconds.
Attempting to focus on these flickers of energy and noticing that although they appear pretty close, they are, in fact, infinitely far away, completely out of reach, you eventually give up and squish your toes on the strange mudlike ground underfoot for comfort.
Taking in a deep, shaky breath and remembering how this all goes, you know it won't be long until your guide to all things Magical should be arriving any moment; thus, you reel in your fear and do your best to ignore the subtle unease creeping into your psyche.
As if on cue and manifested by your thoughts, off in the distance, you hear the faint *TAP, TAP, TAP* of light, dainty footsteps drawing near, and although you still can't see anything in the void of blackness, you find solace in knowing who is heading your way.
"YOO, how goes it, Reader?
Been a long while, like eight months or something, in your time… uhhh, unless there is some strange timey whimey shit happening, and you magically binged the whole series at some random point in a different timeline." The sweet and melodious voice you have come to enjoy hearing as it brings knowledge every time it enters your ears comes from off to your right, making you turn and look in that direction.
Lit up by the dim glow of her tablet…er… Clipboard, a young woman with monochromatic hair and eyes that are white and black, looking to be in her late teens or early twenties, is waving at you, the reader, as she heads over, utterly unaffected by the eerie sensations or the strange ambiance of the area.
As she pads over in your direction happily, showing WAY more emotion than you've ever seen before, you can't help but smile upon remembering your first interaction with this strange young lady.
After six volumes, what used to be an emotionless robot in your eyes has become a young lady filled with emotion, intelligence, and, most of all, a WHOLE LOTTA SASS!
Giving her a look over, you notice that Tobs, who once wore a clean suit, is instead in some comfy black and white sleep pants and an oversized hoodie in the same shade and pattern as her cascading hair, which is now tied up in a messy bun.
If you didn't know who this young lady was, you wouldn't be able to differentiate between her and any ordinary college girl lounging around her home on break from university.
"So…quite a contrasting realm we've met up in this time, aye? Welcome to Selene's SOC; I figured you needed a change of pace for once instead of constantly bouncing between Cyn and Brancie's." Tobs cheerfully says as she taps on her Tab… Clipboard twice and slides her finger on the screen, causing the sky above to glow with a sinister crimson hue.
"Oh, don't freak out about that; it's just how the sky looks, thanks to Selly's Abyss Affinity." Waving her hand dismissively, Tobs shoots you a teasing smirk, causing you to flinch back as you know damn well there are never good intentions when someone like her or Cynrik smirk at a person.
"Right, into the customary intro, even though I don't really need to at this point, but meh, it's become habit after so many volumes. Anywho…welcome back to the auxiliary chapter known as Tobs' Corner. *waving bow*.
In this section, I, Tobs, answer any non-idiotic questions posed by the community of knuckleheads…er readers and delve into several bits of information that may need further explanation to allow the plot to continue smoothly." Still tapping away on her Clipboard, Tobs continues.
"I will again advise anyone reading this data log; if you have not read the contents of the Sixth Volume, please close this auxiliary chapter and begin at the beginning of Volume Six."
"What comes next, ah, that's right… blah blah, introduction, I am the 8th Generation Dimensional Deity Power System, The Over-Break System… Blah, blah, you know the deal by now; this totally isn't necessary anymore. SOOOO MOVING ALONG!"
**Suddenly, a swirling vortex of black gas appears not far away and takes a humanoid form with its arms on its hips while glaring at Tobs.**
This gaseous figure you know to be Author-San is clearly displeased with Tobs' non-professionalism, but what can he do? She's basically uncontrollable at this point.
"Oh fuck off Author-Dick, if you want me to be professional, then give me a valid reason. The sheer amount of my delicious SP I spend on this is…" Before Tobs can continue speaking, Author-San smacks her upside the back of the head, causing a fight to break out between them and honestly scaring the shit out of you in the process.
Between the vulgarities spewing from the young lady's mouth and the flashing lights brought about by their attacks, you shrink back and contemplate running to safety, only to realize there is nothing to hide behind.
For several tense minutes, the two beings flit about, dishing out one powerful attack after another until, at some point, the violence stops, and you notice Tobs has appeared in front of you, who is curled up on the ground in the fetal position.
Under her arm is a limp and lifeless Author-San, who she tosses away like a sack of potatoes before smirking and tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"Huff, now that the pest has been dealt with, let's see what happened in Volume 6; ok, from the get-go, the Members of MyrkLys were thrown into a chaotic situation…IE the party known as the Gala, but as usual, trouble, which seems to follow Cynrik specifically, reared its ugly head, and we saw the reintroduction of our Antagonist from Volume 1, Haylon, who is now EVEN MORE powerful."
"We learned about a plot, devised by Lithlen Jetlensr, the grandfather of Cyn and Brance, which sought to eliminate the two thorns in his side, but OH BOY did that backfire quickly." Chuckling to herself as she remembered the epic showdown between Cynrik, Brance, and Lithlen, Tobs took a second to collect her thoughts and continued.
"After killing that shitty old man, the situation in Valor City hit a breaking point, as Governor Samieer squared off against Haylon, resulting in a MASSIVE dome of Divine Particles turning the city into a no man's land for everyone but my hosts."
"Uh, then Cynrik and Selene did the nasty; Brance heroically healed a bunch of people before doing a half-assed version of the nasty with Gabby, and they spent months trapped in Valor City.
I think that covers everything, and since I gave you the cliff notes version, you can go back and read it again because I am FAR too lazy to detail everything." Smacking her lips and rolling her eyes, Tobs brings up Discord on her Clipboard, where the community has posted several questions, and scrolls through them before choosing a few.
"So, let's get into the real reason you come to the Auxiliary chapter every volume, THE COMMUNITY Q AND A!!!" Surprisingly, a small fanfare plays, and with a snap of her fingers, several party poppers manifest over your head and shower you with colorful paper confetti.
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Q: Can Gabby and Milo merge at some point, like temporarily, or will they not be able to unmerge if they merge?
A: If you remember back when she obtained the Huntress Class, she did, in fact, learn a skill specifically for this, however….
-Tier-3 Huntress Skill: [Beast Partner Fusion] (LOCKED)-
As you can see, it is currently locked, and that is because of a straightforward clause, the requirement.
-Requirements: Beast Partner must be within the same Tier, and a gap of no higher than 10 Levels can be between you both.-
Presently, Gabby is at Tier-3, and little Milo isn't, so the skill will be locked until he reaches the same Tier.
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Q: Will Brance's light ever be upgraded?
A: The Light Affinity is one of the hardest to mutate and Evolve; whether or not Brance can pull it off is still to be seen. It's not like the Dark Affinity, which has multiple different variations; there is only one singular option to obtain that mutation, and there are a lot of convoluted requirements. So the best answer is, Maybe someday.
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Q: Can Brance and Cynrik keep limit-breaking their stats for each Tier, or is there a side effect?
A: Technically speaking, it is possible; however, they must continuously push their boundaries. The Limit of Stats is something the CSH sets, and that Limit is created on a Tier to Tier basis. Everyone technically has the same starting point, but if enough effort is put in, they should be able to keep breaking their stat cap.
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Q: Why don't people fully max out their stats like they did the first couple of times?
A: Well, some people, like those from the large Clans or Families, do; there are even some Academic institutions that specifically require students to do so, but the general populous doesn't put forth the effort, especially in the Country Cynrik and Brance come from, because they technically live in a semi-peaceful area, not a war-torn battlefield; thus something as crucial as high Stat numbers falls to the wayside due to complacency.
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Q: how rare are bloodlines? Cause how did those old fucks get them, or is it like a higher-tier requirement
A: Great question, so bloodlines are both rare and common. Higher Bloodlines, such as the Lightbringer or Æsir, are extremely rare on Vinestra, and although I don't know for sure, I wouldn't be surprised if my Hosts are the only ones on the entire planet with them.
The Bloodlines we saw from Litheln and Viktor can be obtained by slaying mighty creatures as a reward from the CSH. Think of bloodlines as a Gacha drop, which can be obtained in Egresses; the rarity, strength, and Tier cap of these bloodlines are all determined by the CSH, but something like a generic Wolf Bloodline can be obtained in a lot of stores since it is pretty common to find.
Expanding further since the last three questions pertain to bloodlines…
Q: Related to the question above, are bloodlines something that everyone has, and is it just suppressed until they reach tier 5, or is it unique to some individuals?
Q: Do the bloodlines have anything to do with the whisps of divinity that you eventually gather at peak tier 5? Also, Can other people, if they kill a peak tier 5, gain the bloodlines like the brothers did?
Q: What would happen if two people with different bloodlines were to have a child together?
A: Technically speaking, unless someone at a high Tier, IE above Tier-4, has a highly pure Bloodline, there is a very slim chance of them passing it down to their children, something like ¼ chance.
A: Some Bloodlines are directly tied to Whisps of Divinity, but not all, and YES, there is a percentage chance of getting it as a drop from a person, with a higher percentage if the person in question is stronger than you.
A: If a child is born from two parents with bloodlines, and the ¼ chance happens to occur, then the higher quality bloodline will be the one that gets passed on; it's as simple as that.
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CLAP!
Loudly clapping her hands, Tobs startles you out of your thoughts, and you realize that the Auxiliary chapter is coming to a close, so you stand up and thank her.
"Bah, no need for thanks, but yeah, there were a bunch of bloodline questions this time, and honestly, it's too be expected since we have now seen them start cropping up." As she finishes speaking, you notice a strange glint in Tobs' eyes, and you take a step back because you can tell she is up to no good.
"Hehehehe, now Reader-kun, you know how this goes; I've gotta send you back where you came from somehow, right? Take Yo lumps like a big kid and suck it up."
With fear plastered across your face you try turning to run away, since you know what ever she is about to do will no doubt hurt, but you suddenly realise you cant move, and all you can do is watch on in horror, trapped in your own body.
BAM!
In a flash of light, Tobs jumps at you and smacks you atop the head with her Clipboard before delivering a violent spinning kick to the gut, flinging you through the air like a ragdoll.
Flying through the air, just before you lose consciousness, the same thought you had last time you saw her appears on the fringe of your mind…
'I miss the sweet little cinnamon roll Emotionless AI.'