Sworded Affair [LitRPG Apocalypse]

"I'm going to need you to expand on that," Emma demanded, after a moment's thought.

She wasn't necessarily opposed to a bit of identity fraud, but that didn't mean she was eager to take on whatever problems came with it, at least not without being forewarned.

"In this case, it's probably easier to show you," Princess Astaroth admitted.

Emma couldn't see exactly what was going on, just that her friend's outline moved, doing something with her hands, before a pop up suddenly appeared, clearly visible despite the dim light.

[Don't Be a Stranger: Take on the mask and powers of a fallen ancestor (Princess Astaroth). Whilst you wear this ring, all who gaze upon you shall perceive only the mask.]

A powerful concealment effect, and beneath it, another name altogether.

[Astrid Rosen - Level 17 Warrior of Light]

Even a few months ago, Emma would have been a lot more upset at the reveal, but a lot had happened since then, and given how every member of her immediate family had surprised her with their own secrets, by now she considered it just par for the course.

"So that's your real name," Emma mused. "How naughty, impersonating royalty like that; don't you know the punishment for such a crime is death by hanging?"

"I didn't do it just for fun," Astrid huffed. "The real princess got herself killed in some ritual gone wrong, and someone had to pick up the pieces before Sweden's magical community tore itself apart in a succession crisis. It was only supposed to be for a few weeks, originally, just long enough to pretend to give up my right to the throne, before retiring somewhere remote 'for health reasons'."

"Then the apocalypse happened," Emma quickly put the pieces together. "Most of the aristocracy died off in the big cities, communications went down, and suddenly everyone nearby was looking to you for guidance."

[That sounds familiar.]

True enough, Emma could see the parallels to her own situation; times were hard, and people inevitably gathered around those with power and looked like they knew what to do. Never mind that she was entirely new to all of this and making it up as she went along.

"Alas, I failed to anticipate the end of the world," Astrid sighed. "A massive oversight, truly. But yes, you've got the gist of it. I was lucky enough to be far in the North when it happened, in a town small enough to get only the weaker demons, and it wasn't like I could sit back and do nothing with my borrowed power, not while people were dying around me.

I helped in the aftermath the best I could, but once things started settling down and people got their breath back, that's when the uncomfortable questions started. The Princess left quite a few obligations behind, ones I'd prefer not to deal with, even if I had the required skill-set, which I don't. A public death should be enough to settle the score, and put all of this behind me for good."

"Is that really believable?" Emma questioned. "Death by foreign misadventure, just as debts start to mount. Surely, people will suspect foul play."

"People will always suspect," Astrid agreed. "That's just the nature of court politics. That being said, it fits well into the pattern of known behaviour; the princess was always whimsical, known for doing the bare minimum in her duties and frequently disappearing to attend events in private."

[Sadly, this is true. If Princess Astaroth were a diligent and sensible girl, she'd still be around. An unfortunately combination, really, of being just talented enough to think she knew everything, and headstrong enough to make deals she didn't really understand, without consulting anyone who might know better.]

Reading between the lines, Emma figured that the Princess didn't even consult with the System, which had never shied away from warning about dangerous situations; that would certainly explain Edith's low opinion of the dead girl. Emma herself listened to such warnings diligently, but then, she was self-aware enough to realise that she was new to magic.

Someone born and raised around magic, praised for her talent, and add a dash of teenage rebellion into the mix? Emma could see how easily that would go off the rails.

"Say that I agree to help," Emma spoke again, before the silence became awkward. "What do I need to do exactly?"

"We've been hidden from sight long enough to make our battle convincing," Astrid declared. "All you have to do is kill me, and trap my soul into that sword of yours. You've still got space for one more, right?

[No Pal of Mine: Capture the souls of the worthy, gaining a simulacrum of equal level to the User. Maximum 1 active per 10 levels, rounding up. 10 minute cooldown when defeated.]

"Yes," Emma confirmed, after a glance at her status just to double check. "There's no real limit on capture, just on how many I can keep summoned at a time."

"Excellent," Astrid grinned. "In that case, you just need to store my soul away. My body will self-destruct, a standard measure upon death to prevent bloodline theft, conveniently hiding the evidence of fraud. Then, you just need to place my soul into the backup body I mailed to your tent, and that's all she wrote. Princess Astaroth is dead, long live Astrid Rosen."

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

This was, in Emma's opinion, still a rather dubious plan. She'd been planning to test such a resurrection already, using Sir Bearington and the Menagerie blueprint as a baseline, but she'd yet to get to the animal testing stage, let alone human trials.

"If you're sure," Emma grimaced, raising Epitaph for a well-telegraphed, two handed. "Don't blame me if the transfer doesn't work."

"I'm confident," Astrid proclaimed. "I'm by no means a Master, but my family specialised in soul magic. That's the main reason I was chosen for this deception in the first place."

True to her words, Astrid made no attempt to defend herself as Emma swung for her neck. It was a slightly disappointing end to the night, considering how Emma had been looking forward to an actual fight against her friend.

[Astrid Rosen captured.]

"Don't worry," Astrid's floating head spoke, even as it burst into flames alongside the rest of her body. "We can spar later, with my actual abilities, not the fake I've been forced to muddle along with."

Then, Emma was alone, left in a slowly dissipating cloud of black smoke, hoping that she wouldn't emerge from the barrier smelling like sardines.

"Princess Astaroth has fallen! Emma Knight is the victor!"

Right on cue, Master Europe's voice heralded her return to the main hall. Following the script, Emma raised Epitaph in a traditional martial salute, ignoring the crackling flames that consumed what little of her opponent's body still remained.

The reactions were rather restrained; one man in the crowd grimaced, and another brought out a notebook and pen, and was either writing a note or sketching the scene. Otherwise, people seemed to take it in stride, probably because they'd spent the night watching people die and only sometimes get back up.

"With that, tonight's festivities have come to an end!"

Master Europe was the first to leave, vanishing immediately after his final proclamation. Evidently, his insistence on keeping to time wasn't just a character trait, he was actually looking towards the next block in his schedule.

Emma didn't linger, either, feeling no particular need to console the defeated, and eager to see what exactly Astrid had sent as a backup. Given how the night had gone, she half-expected someone to intercept her on the way out, but surprisingly everyone steered clear as she departed the hall, capping off the second night of three designated for Practitioners.

Status page below as it's been a while.

Emma Knight

Public Title: Magus

Hidden Title: Auditor

Commendation: Order of the Empire, First Class

True Form: Level 20 Damned Apostle

Anima: 500

EXP: 16,474/17,500

Abilities

Summon Unholy Sword {Epitaph}

Sword x Sword: Can fire beams of anima directly from its tip.

No Pal of Mine: Capture the souls of the worthy, gaining a simulacrum of equal level to the User. Maximum 1 active per 10 levels, rounding up. 10 minute cooldown when defeated.

Captured: The Leech King, Sir Bearington, Earthbound Immortal, Antipode, Duplicate, Monitor Lizard, Astrid Rosen

Flying Sword: Epitaph can change size, and fly up to 60 miles per hour.

Sacred Sword: Epitaph does additional damage to enemies of the Evil alignment.

Oversoul: Instantly possess the body of a living target.

Parallel Lives (Cooldown: 1 minute): Swap places with your active Summon.

Angel of Extinction (Cooldown: 12 hours): Summon an Angel within line of sight. The Angel is invulnerable and departs after 12 seconds, killing anyone who saw it.

Return (Cooldown: 24 Hours): Teleport Home. Cooldown resets when Home is in danger.

Traits

Wolf, Ram and Heart (Toggle: OFF): Attacks are imbued with Death magic, significantly increasing damage and carrying a [Level]% chance of inflicting Instant Death.

Ephemera (Toggle: OFF): Become intangible.

Null Zone (Toggle: OFF): All incoming magic fails.

One with Everything (Cooldown: 10 minutes): If Anima would be reduced to 0, stop at 1.

Babble Fish: You are fluent in every language.

Rorschach's Blot: Attempts to observe you remotely produce nonsensical images to those bearing ill-intent. You will be alerted when observation commences.

Home Is Where the Hearth Is: EXP gains doubled for 1 hour after eating a home-cooked meal.

In Her House She Waits Dreaming: Choose a target location to make your Domain; upon death, respawn there immediately without limitation. Your Domain may only be moved once every 30 days, and destruction of the Domain invalidates this trait until the cooldown expires. Your future selections as a Magus will be Death-aspected by default.

Current Domain: N/A

Half-Demon Homunculus: Level 10 Chandler Stored in Eden's Echo when not in use.

HP: 100

MP: 100

EXP: 2025/3000

Appearance

Red hair, green eyes, plain complexion.

Clothes

Purple Tunic & Sandals

Space Suit

Traits

I'm a Candle: A modern understanding of non-magical candles.

Everlasting: Your candles will last forever, barring external interference.

Noncombustible: High resistance to heat and fire from all sources.

Blood of the Enemy: Blood taken from those you slay may substitute for one reagent when making Candles. Candles made using this trait are Demonic.

Breath Control: You can hold your breath for (Level)*2 minutes without losing focus.

Candle Attributes

Black: Consumes nearby light, leaving impenetrable darkness.

Hallowed: Repels beings of evil alignment or intent.

Soothing: Emits a potent soporific that can put an elephant to sleep.

Chaos: Emits a different negative effect each time it's lit.

Pathfinder: Creates a link between two candles. When both are lit, a portal is formed.

Guardian: While lit, you are invulnerable within your own home.

Toxic: This candle's fumes are deadly.

Inventory - Eden's Echo: A ring containing fifty cubic metres of storage space, capable of instant transfer. Living beings are held in stasis and slowly heal. All sapient creatures are less likely to attack the wearer. This item is invisible except to the wearer, who cannot wear other jewellery. Currently contains:

Eternal Wind: No matter near or far, all are one. Light a candle with yourself for two ships in the night, build a bridge where none still stand.

24,799 Thrones

Qilin Horn

A Practical Guide to Entropy

Portable Crafting Bench

Blueprints - Menagerie

Crystal Emporium Voucher (50% off)

Quests

It's the Green You Need

Bonus Objective: Form a summoning contract with the Hydra once it has enough heads.

Bonus Reward: ???

Who Wants To Live Forever?

Objective: Pay your respects at the Grave of Sectmaster Horizon.

Objective: Discover who manipulated his Son to turn against the Empire.

Bonus Objective: ???

Reward: ???

Bonus Reward: ???