Sealed in Steel [ Tank Litrpg ]

Elian had one last errand for the day—visit Gideon for Viney's check-up.

"Oh, wait. I have another one," he muttered to himself. "I still need to do my Tribulation. I should've asked for the priest to help me with it too," he added, clicking his tongue in annoyance. Still, it'd be a good opportunity to test the Warkodon mace.

Entering Vigor Hill, Elian passed by plenty of burnt shops and houses. It seemed that the riots were heaviest in this area. There were also plenty of people with bandages. Even the guards. A few of Khalamundi's golems roamed around to keep a literal huge eye on things.

I hope nothing happened to Gideon, Elian thought, noting the aftermath of Thalman's schemes.

The horrible suffering of Thalman didn't excuse the damage he caused. Elian was certain several people died yesterday night in Thalman's desire to distract Khalamundi.

Gideon's carriage was in its usual spot with deep scratches and holes on its fine wood and a couple of its windows shattered. This usually empty area wasn't spared the violence last night. Looking through the broken glass, Elian found that the carriage had been boarded up from the inside. Gideon had quite a valiant effort defending himself here. This meant that he most likely survived.

"Gideon!" Elian knocked on the door. "Are you alright in there?"

There was no answer. Elian continued to knock and call, but Gideon didn't come out. Elian tried to open the door and found it locked. Was Gideon even inside?

Thankfully, a passerby gave Elian the answer.

"Looking for the crazy floramage, are you?" A Dagalan pushing a cart laden with burnt planks, probably from a building that met a sorry end, passed by. "He went to Forge Hill to look for supplies."

"Supplies?" Elian repeated, raising his brow. Gideon must be preparing for their trip. Good news that he was unharmed. "Do you know when he'll return?"

"Do I look like his mother to you?" The Dagalan roughly laughed as he walked away, thumping his tail on the pavement behind him. "I'm not even human."

Deciding to check on Gideon the following day, Elian headed back to the Cauldron. But he didn't return to Borlen's camp just yet. He went deep into the forest on the northern side of the Cauldron, looking for a suitable place for Tribulation. A couple of times, he'd stop walking to listen for hints of someone trailing him.

No, not Jadewell. She had already left the Temples of Tribulation. Rather, part of Elian hoped one of Thalman's clones would show up. Elian knew that was impossible; Thalman was locked up without Aether, according to the other priests.

But Elian wanted to talk to Thalman one last time.

"To say what?" he asked himself. "To say sorry about his fate?"

He shook his head as he sat on the ground. He ingested a drop of the potion that granted additional Attack Power—he should've asked for stronger potions from Ihadir.

Next, he opened a bottle of fulgurate oil and inhaled its sharp scent, akin to gasoline. He shouldn't have done that because he ended up gagging. Choosing not to be stingy with it, he rubbed several drops on the mace. The ivory shone bright for a second to indicate the fulgurate oil took effect.

He then stripped his clothes and strode to the middle of an area free of trees, but had rocks littered around. His chosen spot was in the middle of two particularly large boulders.

Clouds gathered above as the tattoos of the Magistrate's Curse surfaced on his skin.

Kneeling on one knee, he pointed the mace down and used it as support, holding it in place with his left hand. He held his right arm close to his chest to protect the temple's bracelet and Viney as he bowed down and tucked his chin. He concentrated on his bracelet and thought, 'Energy'. A slight tingle went up his body as a light blue shield covered him—this must be his Energy converted into Health.

He had wanted to test how Barkskin and Aether constructs mimicking the structure of a spear lobster shell would fare against the Tribulation, but Viney was still sick. The plant symbiote's health wasn't regenerating back to full, even though the Magistrate had removed the negative miasma hurting Elian.

"Get well soon, Viney," said Elian. "We'll look for Gideon tomorrow. For now… potato salad Tribulation!"

A flash of blue. The first Tribulation hit Elian and the boulders flanking him. Chunks of rocks flew as the boulders got shaved. Elian got pushed a few inches into the soil, his knees and the mace.

Another flash. The next strike shaved the sides of the boulders some more and weighed down Elian. But he suffered no damage.

The rewards of the Tribulation appeared.

Choose two of the following rewards:

+ 670 Health

+ 490 Energy

+ 300 Attack Power

+ 300 Magic Power

+ 300 Armor

As always, he picked Attack Power and Health. Attack Power was the best way to gain Armor, eight times more effective than choosing the Armor attribute itself. Since he was getting so much Armor, he didn't pick it for his second choice. Health was preferred since a lot of stuff could pass through his physical defense, ranging from an insanely powerful physical attack to a mediocre magic spell.

Elian called up the Covenant of the Gods, which displayed his attributes. "Let's see how much Armor—holy cow!"

Elian Ward | Human | Level:17
Health: 12,085/12,085 (+917)
Energy: 2,753/3,670

ATTRIBUTES:
Attack Power: 0
Magic Power: 0
Armor: 584,284
Magic Resilience: 0

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DIVINE BESTOWAL:
Greater Curse of the Berserking Abyssal Eye III
Greater Curse of the Powerless Physical Immortal III
Lesser Curse of the Overzealous Judge I

ATTACK POWER
Internal: 149 (Base), 4,390 (Tribulation)
External: 3000 (Equipment), 231 (Enchant), 200 (Potion)
Multiplier: x8 (Berserking Abyssal Eye), x0 (Powerless Physical Immortal)

ARMOR
Internal: 10 (Base), 63,760 (Powerless Physical Immortal)
External: x1.15 (Enchant)
Multiplier: x8 (Powerless Physical Immortal), -2,400 (Host Attribute Absorption)

One more Tribulation away from six hundred thousand Armor. And he was only level seventeen! He also noticed upon checking the details of his Attack Power that the Warkodon mace had begun charging. It wouldn't take long until he'd reach a million armor, the baseline to join the guards of the imperial palace of Solvi. No wonder the Tribulation that could crunch boulders was nothing to him. No doubt, the strikes of regular Giants would just tickle him. Stacking multipliers was fearsome.

"I'm going to make the Giant King regret he placed this Curse on me."

The following day, three hours past sunrise, the followers of Tharguras and many others gathered to witness his two hundred and eightieth Tribulation. If Tharguras succeeds here, he'd need to get past twenty more Tribulations to reach the Greater Boon of the Magistrate and be granted the status of Enlightened Penitent.

Elian was with Borlen's group. While waiting for Tharguras to finish his lengthy preparations, they sat on a platform made from wood that they had fixed over Borlen's wagon. They had a better view on the platform compared to swimming the crowds.

"On the morrow, we'll depart," Borlen said. "Brother Elian, I invite you once again to join us and visit Tellerin. The trip will be interesting, I assure you. We'll be travelling on trade routes. Perhaps you can find a weapon to rival your mace."

The tribespeople of Tellerins produced many goods considered luxury by other places, for they are made of material not found outside the Tellerin dunes. When they set out from Tellerin, Borlen's group carried many goods that they dropped off in various places. Merchants bought their items on credit, sort of, sold them to nobles and the like, and paid the Tellerins on their return trip. And so, Borlen's group would have earnings and capital for their trade caravan for next year.

"As much as I want to join you," Elian said, "I'm set on Ohmenstrat. There's a Boon there I must get. We'll meet each other again, I'm sure. The Temples of Tribulations might call for aid if an invasion does occur."

"Ah… the lands of Raelyon will be in turmoil again. I'm old enough to have seen past wars over these lands. Invaders do not touch the Temples of Tribulation; rather, they try to gain their favor. It seems different this time. I fear the worst does not come to pass."

"It won't," Elian said. "I promise that. Look, Tharguras is heading to the crater."

The shockwave from the Tribulation flung their platform off the wagon and sent them tumbling into the crowds. Entangling himself from dozens of limbs, Elian could hear a mighty cheer.

Tharguras succeeded.

Elian didn't stay long with the blue-robed pilgrims, hurrying to Vigor Hill on foot. He had kept his promise to Borlen to witness Tharguras' Tribulation. Now, Elian must attend to his other friend, Viney.

"Thank the Storm God that you're here," Elian said, finding the tall yet thin Gideon fixing the windows of his carriage. "I need help. Viney, my plant symbiote, needs help. It's not healing."

Guardian Exactor Vine | Plant Symbiote | Level: 16
Health: 727/1,460
Energy: 705/705

ATTRIBUTES:
Attack Power: 146
Magic Power: 146
Armor: 946
Magic Resilience: 146

TRAITS:
Host Attribute Absorption – Absorb (2,400) Attribute points from the host and gain a third of it.
Rejuvenating Roots – Restore (2.4) Health Points of the host every second.
Barkskin – Coats the host with hardened tendrils. Costs a quarter of the symbiote's Health and Energy to create, shared equally with the host. The protective layer possesses half the attributes of the symbiote.

One look at the sickly Viney, and Gideon ushered Elian inside.

"Word is that you defended the temple," Gideon said as he lit magical fires under small cauldrons. "I assume my creation was injured during the fight?"

"Yes," Elian said. "Viney saved me."

"Viney… I find your chosen name for it unappealing. But do tell me of the heroism of my creation. Who is the enemy that you faced?"

Elian chewed his tongue, thinking whether to tell Gideon the complete truth or not. He had already told Gideon about the Giants. As an ally, Gideon should know everything.

"It was Thalman…" Elian began his story.

He didn't spare any details, though Gideon didn't ask for many of them, including what he suspected to be the ultimate plan of the Giants. He also narrated his meeting with the priests and the Magistrate.

Gideon sighed as he stirred a pot. "Last night, I thought I was going to die when a group of armed men were outside the door. They did try to get in through the windows. I fended them off with my creations and concoctions. After they left, I covered my windows and sat in thought, pondering mortality and such. If your story about the Giants were true, then I will die not too far into the future. It now appears that the Magistrate confirmed your vision of the future."

"Uh, sorry for being the bringer of bad news," Elian said. "I really wish for a different vision of the future."

"There is the possibility that you're lying about the Magistrate agreeing with you."

"Do you think I'm lying?"

Gideon shook his head. "No. And that saddens me because the future I dream of, one where I am free to create life to my heart's content, is shrouded with death."

"We can change the future," Elian said. "I will try to do it. With your help, I'll have much bigger chances of succeeding. Be my ally in this fight."

"Do you trust me to be an ally?"

"Yes, I do. We have no history, you and I. But I know that you're loyal to your creation. And Viney, your creation, will go to war with the Giants. I know you'll be there to support Viney."

Gideon smiled. There was a glint of inspiration in his eyes. "I certainly will support Viney. Let me take a look at it. We'll get it back into shape."

Unfortunately, getting Viney back into shape wasn't proving easy. Gideon's concoctions weren't having any effect on Viney. Elian wasn't sure what was supposed to happen, but Gideon was distressed about what wasn't happening. Thalman's negative energy had unforeseen effects on Viney, probably similar to the mutations of the plants and animals near the Forbidden Temple.

Gideon flew to his cabinets. "This requires a stronger potion. Perhaps an elixir of Plant Restoration. But I do not have the essence of the Goab Goab flower! My stores of powdered Venturin leaves are depleted. And also…" He rattled off exotic ingredients that Elian barely recognized.

"Can we get them around the hills?" Elian asked. "I'll hire hunters to find the ingredients."

"No. The surrounding environment does not support these magical plants, for they only grow where Aether is thickest. I sincerely doubt we can find any of what I need in the markets of the hills."

"What! Where do we go then? I'm not going to let Viney die." His plans were going to be derailed again, but he couldn't bring himself to abandon Viney, which saved his life.

"The nearest place we can harvest them is fraught with danger and uncertainty. If not there, we'd have to go to the floramage union headquarters, which would take—"

"What's this nearest place you speak of?"

Gideon looked at him. "The Sabyn Mountains."

Is fate guiding me? Elian nodded. "To the Sabyn Mountains we go, a slight detour to Ohmenstrat."