Survivor: Rise of the Almighty

Chapter 20: Ancient Ruins and the Artifact

I stood, staring ahead, the tension in the room growing thicker with every passing second. The heavy wooden door creaked open, and the soft shuffle of footsteps filled the air. The second woman entered, her armor gleaming in the dim light—white and red plates that reflected the faint glow of the candles on the walls. The armor looked so intricate, so finely crafted, it had to belong to someone of importance. Her hair, black like the night itself, flowed down her back, and for a moment, I was frozen.

There was a certain power in her presence. I couldn't help but focus on her, feeling the weight of her gaze, or perhaps imagining it. My thoughts were interrupted when I noticed Helena move silently to the side of Lord Lucian, her eyes sharp and unblinking as she looked down at me. She didn't say a word. The silence between us felt heavy, like a secret buried between us, but I couldn't fully comprehend what was happening.

I shifted my attention back to the woman in the plate armor. There was something about her—something that made my instincts flare with both curiosity and caution. What did this mean for my quest? Was she here to test me? Or was she another obstacle I'd have to face along the way? My heart pounded, but I stayed still, not letting my thoughts show on my face. I had to focus, but the more I looked at her, the more questions formed in my mind.

What was her role in all of this? What was her connection to Lord Lucian, and what did they want with me? These questions gnawed at the back of my mind, but I kept my composure. I couldn't let myself become distracted now—not when I was so close to uncovering the truth.

I remained in my place, waiting for the moment to come when I could finally understand what all of this meant.

As I watched her, a storm of questions raced through my mind. The woman in plate armor—Freya Mikaelson, I realized, my heart pounding in my chest. She had always been cold and distant whenever we met, her eyes always hiding something, a wall I couldn't breach. But last night… last night had been different. The deal had been clear—her body would be mine for a single night in exchange for saving her from the assassins. A night that had passed, and yet, the memory of it lingered in the back of my mind.

The way she had acted last night, during the sex—there had been something else there, something unexpected. For someone so distant, she had allowed herself to be vulnerable in a way that suggested there was more to her than what she let on. And yet, as I stared at her now, her posture stiff and rigid, I couldn't reconcile the cold, untouchable persona she usually wore with the woman I had encountered in the privacy of her chambers.

What was she doing here with Helena, standing beside Lord Lucian like this? What was her involvement in all of this? My mind couldn't wrap around it. Why was she here, in the same room as me, when the arrangement we made was so simple? She owed me nothing more than that one night. And yet, here she was, positioned like an important piece in whatever game was being played.

Then Lord Lucian spoke, his voice slicing through the haze of my thoughts. He revealed that the quest I had received had been issued by none other than Helena Detalia, the Duchess of Shrewberry. I felt my breath catch in my throat. Helena Detalia, the Duchess? She was a high-ranking noble, the kind of woman who would control entire regions with the snap of her fingers. This wasn't just some trivial quest—this was a political move. A powerful noble like her didn't just send someone on a random errand.

It was starting to make sense now—the secrecy, the weight of the task, the careful way everything had been orchestrated. It was all tied to Helena, to Freya, and to Lord Lucian, whose involvement I was still trying to piece together. The walls of the room seemed to close in around me as I realized just how deeply I was entangled in something far bigger than I had ever anticipated.

What was I even doing here? What had I gotten myself into?

My thoughts swirled, but I kept my face neutral, unwilling to give away the turmoil running beneath the surface. There was still so much I didn't understand, so much I needed to figure out. But right now, all I could do was wait and listen, knowing the next move would be crucial.

My thoughts drifted back to earlier, when Gwen had handed me the quest. She'd told me it was a shortcut to becoming a D-rank adventurer, that it would make things easier. Five gold coins for a task that seemed so trivial—if you looked at it at surface value. But now, standing here In this room, I was starting to wonder if that was just a hook. A way to reel me in for something much bigger. Something I wasn't sure I even wanted to be part of.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I'd made a rookie mistake. Getting involved with nobles this early was a bad move—anyone who had spent more than a few years in this world would know that. Politics were like quicksand. The more you struggled, the deeper you sank. And here I was, being dragged right into it, without even realizing what I'd stepped into.

All of this because of five damn gold coins? Was it worth it? I was already thinking about it, but then again, I didn't really have much of a choice. The system had already issued me a mission. Rescue Freya Mikaelson, deliver her and her party safely to Torak. Fail, and I was dead. Simple as that. This world didn't do second chances. At least not for rookies like me. But this? This was something different.

I had a choice here.

There was no risk of instant death if I turned this down, but I'd also have no quests from the guild. Gwen had warned me about that, and I wasn't stupid enough to ignore her advice. No quests meant no progress, no chance of leveling up. Hell, no chance of survival in the long term. That was the price for opting out. But still… did I really need to accept this mission?

I wasn't exactly poor. I didn't need the money. Five gold wasn't going to change much, especially not when the bigger picture seemed like a mess waiting to happen. The mission, from the looks of it, wasn't going to be just about a simple escort to Torak. Hell, this had all the hallmarks of a political shit show in the making. I wasn't ready for that, but the question remained—did I really have a choice?

I needed answers. What exactly was I being roped into here?

I straightened up, my gaze shifting to Lord Lucian. I wasn't about to be dragged into something without understanding it first. "What exactly is this quest about?" I asked, making sure to leave out any hint of commitment. I had to make it clear—there was no guarantee I was accepting this, not by a long shot.

Lord Lucian didn't answer right away, letting the silence stretch out between us. And then he stood, slow and deliberate, his eyes dark with something I couldn't quite place.

"This is not a request," he said, his voice low and heavy. "This is not something you can simply take or leave, Kaizen Vale."

His words hit like a punch to the gut, and I could feel the weight of them settling in. There was no choice. There was no out. His words made it clear that this was beyond a mere favor or an invitation. This was an order, whether I liked it or not.

I could already feel my pulse quicken, but I forced myself to stay calm. The last thing I wanted was to show weakness in front of him, or in front of Freya, who was still standing like a statue by the wall, her eyes fixed somewhere in the distance.

So this was it. I was either in or out, no gray area. The tension in the air was thick, and for a moment, it felt like the entire room was holding its breath. The game had changed, and I was in deeper than I ever thought I would be.

The tension in the room was suffocating, and I could almost feel the weight of every single word that was about to come from the Duchess's mouth. Helena Detalia finally spoke, her voice smooth, yet edged with authority. I wasn't sure if it was her beauty or her power that made her so damn intimidating, but it didn't really matter. I wasn't here for the pleasantries. I was here for answers.

"About fifty years ago, Rostalio was plunged into a devastating war with the Vermillion Empire," she began, her tone calm, yet cold, like she had no emotional attachment to the events she was speaking of. "Countless cities were destroyed, countless lives were lost."

I already wasn't feeling this. Wars, destruction, death—this was the kind of shit I wanted to avoid. But hey, I didn't get to choose the quests, did I?

"Two days north of Torak, by horse carriage, there's a fortress." She paused, letting the weight of the information settle. "It was destroyed by a group of magic knights, but the ruins of the fortress still stand. Inside the main castle ruins is an artifact. An artifact that's connected to the very beginning of Rostalio as a kingdom, almost 300 years ago."

I blinked, feeling my stomach drop for a second. An ancient artifact. That sounded like one hell of a find, but at the same time, it smelled like trouble. Big trouble.

Helena continued, her eyes locking with mine as if she were trying to drill the importance of this into my skull. "If the artifact is returned to the royal family, the Vermillion Empire has promised not to cause another war. That's why this quest is so important. That's why it has to remain a secret." Her gaze never wavered, and I had a feeling she was keeping something from me. But I wasn't about to press it. Not yet.

Before I could even think of responding, Lord Lucian spoke up, his voice low and menacing.

"The quest is simple: a group of adventurers will travel to the ruins and retrieve the artifact," he said, his words hanging in the air like a sentence of death. "You don't need to know any other details beyond that. As for the rest, my children, Neralia and Lashley, will handle the finer points."

His cold gaze flicked to the twins, who had barely moved, still standing in the corner of the room. They didn't say a word, and I didn't expect them to. Their presence was enough of a statement.

"You," Lucian's eyes turned back to me, "have the brute strength as spoken for by Alaric and his men. You'll be the muscle. That's all you need to know."

He leaned forward, his voice dropping into something more dangerous, more personal. "No one knows about this quest. Only the people in this room are privy to this information. If there's a leak, I'll know who to blame. And I suspect you, Kaizen Vale. You trust me the least. Prove me wrong."

I could feel the weight of his words, the implication hanging heavy in the air. It wasn't a threat, it was a promise. And if I fucked this up, I wouldn't just be dead—I'd be fucking destroyed.

For a moment, I just stood there, processing it all. An artifact, a secret quest, the royal family's desperate need for it, and the looming presence of these people who had just handed me a fucking loaded gun with a hair-trigger. Sure, it seemed simple enough. A bunch of adventurers going to some ruins to grab a shiny object. But everything about it screamed trouble.

I looked around the room, my mind racing. Freya, still as cold as ever, stood silently off to the side. The twins, Neralia and Lashley, weren't much better—just watching, waiting for something. But what?

Fuck it. I didn't need to know everything. The quest had been laid out, and I didn't have a choice. It was time to get to work.

As I processed all the details, I realized something. Despite all the secrecy, despite the political games, I wasn't in as bad a position as I thought. This was an artifact, not a king's ransom. It didn't scream "life-or-death war" as much as it screamed "political power grab"—and I was in the perfect spot to not give a shit about any of it.

Right now, this wasn't about doing something noble or heroic. This was just a job. Simple. Find the damn artifact. Get in, get out, get paid. What could go wrong?

And then I remembered where I was. I wasn't here for the simple shit. This was an Isekai. There were no easy jobs in this twisted-ass world, not unless you were one of those lazy nobility or a fucking cheat.

So, I gave myself a mental slap. No more thinking like a rookie. No more thinking like I had any say in the matter. This wasn't a simple artifact quest anymore. This was another fucking mission. And I had to treat it like one.

I squared my shoulders, looking directly at Lord Lucian. "Fine. I'm in. But you can forget about me playing nice with your political bullshit. Keep the secrets. Keep the details. I don't give a fuck. But don't expect me to sit on my ass and pretend I'm some loyal dog for your cause."

Lucian's eyes narrowed. "I don't expect you to be loyal. I expect you to do your job. That's all."

I gave him a sharp nod, then turned my attention to Freya, still as silent as ever. But something flickered in her eyes, just a hint of… I wasn't sure. Maybe something I couldn't place.

And just like that, I knew. This wasn't just about an artifact. It never was.