Novels by Quil and Ink

“If you do a good job…” Rhys looked around at the children gathered inside the hut. “Not only will you keep that pouch…” He pointed at the injured girl kneeling on the floor. “I’ll heal her too.” The room fell silent. “…Huh?” The fear on the children’s faces slowly gave way to confusion. Even the girl everyone called Big Sister looked stunned. For a few seconds, none of them spoke. It sounded too good to be true. No noble. No wealthy merchant. No powerful Beast Tamer. No one would ever make an offer like that to a group of slum children. One of the twins suddenly gasped. He hurried forward before dropping to both knees. “Please…” His voice trembled. “If you can really heal my sister…” “I’ll do anything.” “Anything you ask.” “Please save her.” The other children quickly followed him. One after another, they knelt beside him without hesitation. Rhys quietly watched the scene. He hadn’t expected this. He could tell the injured girl was important to them, but he

After finishing their meal, Rhys and Grace left the inn and made their way toward the mayor’s residence.Neither of them was in a hurry.Their pace was relaxed, but both knew the walk itself was part of the plan.Someone had been keeping an eye on them from the moment they stepped out of the inn. Syrax had already confirmed that.Now all they had to do was wait.It didn’t take long.Less than five minutes later, a small figure darted out from a nearby alley.Bang.“Ouch!”The boy stumbled into Rhys before falling hard onto the street.Rhys immediately turned toward him and raised his hand.The boy’s face turned pale.Almost on instinct, he threw both arms over his head and curled up, expecting a beating.Instead…Nothing happened.A calm voice reached his ears.“Are you alright?”The boy slowly lowered his arms.Rhys was standing in front of him with one hand extended, offering to help him up.Beside him, Grace looked genuinely worried.The boy froze.His eyes widened in disbelief.“I

“So…”Rhys stood up from his chair.“Let’s put politics aside and get back to the reason we’re here.”Grace blinked.“Have you heard everything you wanted to know?”“Don’t you have any more questions?”Rhys nodded.“For now, I know enough.”He stretched his shoulders.“The rest can wait until after the mission.”“We have plenty of time to talk later.”“But if we keep sitting here…”“We’re only wasting daylight.”Grace smiled and nodded.“Alright.”She stood up as well.“In that case…”“Should we head to the mayor’s office now?”She glanced toward the window.“We arrived this morning.”“It’s already been several hours.”She rubbed her throat with a small laugh.“And after talking this much…”“My throat is getting sore.”“Maybe we should grab something to eat first.”“Then visit the mayor.”Rhys nodded.“Sounds good.”“Although…”He raised a finger.“There’s one thing we need to do before meeting him.”Grace tilted her head.“One more thing?”A second later, realization flashed across h

Rhys frowned thoughtfully.“So Sage Dent belongs to that second category?”Grace nodded.“That’s right.”“And he’s not the only one.”She leaned back in her chair.“Besides Valaris Academy, there are two other academies led by World Class Beast Tamers.”“The Ironhand Guild has one.”“So do the Witch Tower and the Magic Tower.”She began counting them off on her fingers.“There are also two major chambers of commerce.”“The Merchant Guild.”“And several other influential organizations.”She smiled faintly.“Even the Dragon King falls into this category.”Rhys raised an eyebrow.“The Dragon King?”“Yes.”Grace nodded.“The pattern is actually very simple.”“Almost every major organization has at least one World Class Beast Tamer standing behind it.”“The kingdoms acknowledge their strength and grant them a certain level of independence.”“In return, those organizations obey the law and avoid causing unnecessary trouble.”She shrugged.“It’s beneficial for everyone.”“Those organizations

“Five World Class Beast Tamers…”Rhys leaned back in his chair as he considered what Grace had just told him.“That’s quite a number.”Grace nodded.“It is.”“Normally, whenever someone shows the potential to become a World Class Beast Tamer, the royal family will do everything it can to bring that person into the royal bloodline.”“The easiest way is marriage.”“If the Beast Tamer is a man, they’ll marry him to a princess.”“If it’s a woman, they’ll arrange a marriage with one of the princes.”She smiled faintly.“Once that happens, they can legally grant that person the title and authority of a Duke or Duchess.”She folded her hands together.“That’s one of the reasons my position has always been so dominant.”“I’ve earned the support of two World Class Beast Tamers.”“None of the other candidates can compare.”Her expression gradually became more serious.“Of course…”“Once I lose my succession rights…”“My father will most likely recall Duke Carmichael.”“He serves the kingdom fir

Before discussing something as sensitive as the royal succession, Rhys and Grace decided to find somewhere private. They entered one of the better inns in Ellenwood City and rented its finest room. Business had nearly collapsed after the disaster. Very few travelers still came through the city, so the innkeeper greeted them with unusual enthusiasm. Every request was handled immediately, and privacy was guaranteed without them even asking. Once the door was closed, the outside world seemed to disappear. Rhys and Grace sat across from each other with a small table between them. Grace took a deep breath before raising one finger. “Let’s start from the beginning.” “There are thirteen royal children in total.” “Eight princes.” “And five princesses.” She smiled. “But you don’t have to remember all of them.” “Only four are actual candidates for the throne.” “They’re the only ones with enough influence and support to realistically become the next sovereign.” Rhys no

Max quickly checked his current status.[ Name: Max ][ Title: Expert Survivor, Trailblazer, Stronghold Defender, Guardian, Strongest One ][ Guild: Codebreakers ][ Level: 35 ][ Health: 2,640/2,640 ][ Spirit: 411/411 ][ Physique Rating: C+ ][ Talent: Infinite Cache (SSS) ][ Active Skills: Spirit Pulse Lv5, Specter Step Lv5, Fast Appraisal Lv5, Beast Arm Lv0 ][ Passive Skills: Keen Sense Lv5, Bio Adaptive Constitution Lv5, Battle Trance Lv5, Bronze Skin Lv5 ][ Skill Points: 11 ][ Reputation Points: 201 ][ Inventory Slots: 9 ]The only skill still at Level 0 was Beast Arm.Max used five of his Skill Points and raised it directly to Level 5.Once that was done, he finally headed toward Jett’s workshop.The familiar smell of oil and scorched alloy greeted him as soon as he entered the area. He had come to test the modified Dragoons Jett had recently repaired.However, before Max could even reach the workshop, he noticed a crowd gathered outside.Apparently, everyone wanted to se

Max scrolled farther down the list, and a smile appeared when he saw the next item.[ High-Grade EMP Grenade ] [ 3/3 ][ Cost: 30 RP ][ Effect: Emits a concentrated electromagnetic pulse on detonation. Immediately disables drones, turrets, and mechanical units within a 100-meter radius. Effective even against shielded constructs. ]Max remembered that the Gene Traders also sold EMP Grenades for 10,000 Experience Points.Since he had been stuck at the level cap, he had already bought a couple of them before.This version, however, was clearly superior.Unfortunately, it also came with a much higher price.Reputation Points were not easy to earn, and spending thirty of them on a single-use grenade felt excessive to Max.The hundred-meter range was certainly impressive, but he already had other options he could rely on during an emergency.For now, he moved on to the next item.This one immediately caught his attention.[ Neural Gear Interface ] [ 1/1 ][ Cost: 200 RP ][ Effect: A devi

[ Gene Weapon Awakened: War Lance ][ Grade: Low ][ Type: Piercing Lance ][ Effects: +12% Piercing Damage. Attacks ignore 10% of the enemy defense. Effective against armored targets. ][ Secondary Effect: Perfect Thrust - repeated strikes on the same point increase penetration chance. After three consecutive hits on the same spot, the next thrust guarantees armor break. Cooldown: 3 second.Activation Cost: 12 Spirit Energy per activation ][ Durability: 50/50 ]Max wrapped his hand around the lance and tested its balance.It was noticeably heavier than a sword, but that extra weight came with a clear advantage. The weapon had far greater reach, and its ability to pierce armor was something Max could immediately appreciate.“A lance… finally, something for range and armor penetration,” he muttered. “But low-grade… it won’t be enough.”His attention went to the glowing crystal in his inventory.[ Prototype Gene Weapon Core x1 ][ Effect: Can be bound to a Gene Weapon to unlock hidden

[ New Gene Skill Acquired! ][ Skill: Beast Arm (Level 0) ][ Type: Active ][ Description: Temporarily transforms the user’s right arm into a beast-like appendage, increasing raw strength and impact force.Strikes deal +25% bonus damage and can fracture defensive barriers.Duration: 20 seconds.Cooldown: 120 seconds. ][ Activation Cost: 70 SP ][ Note: Transformation places strain on the body. Overuse may cause fatigue or minor tissue damage. ]Max stared at his right arm as the faint glow disappeared.For a moment, he had seen claws forming over his fingers and his forearm swelling with a strange, unnatural strength. Now everything had returned to normal. He flexed his hand, still remembering the uncomfortable weight that had filled his arm during the transformation.“…Beast Arm,” he muttered. “Interesting.”He threw a punch toward the wall but stopped just before his fist could make contact.Even without activating the skill, he could already sense what it was capable of. It was c

[ Congratulations! Monthly Rankings Concluded! ][ Survivor Leaderboard - Cycle 2 Complete ][ Requirement: Level 10+ ][ All calculations finalized. Rewards are now being distributed. ][ Congratulations, Survivor Max! ][ You have achieved Rank 1 in the Monthly Leaderboard. ][ Special Rewards have been granted. ]“Whoa… Another month had passed, huh…” Max muttered, surprised that he had somehow remained Rank 1 even after being stuck at Level 30.‘I guess it’s because I’m the first to reach Level 30…’By now, several other survivors had also reached Level 30.Aya herself had already reached the same level after the last Global Event.At this point, it would not be surprising if Max checked the Guild Leaderboard and discovered several other Guilds had survivors around the same level.The reason he and most of those survivors were stuck at Level 30 was simple.The requirements for reaching the next level were extremely difficult.They needed to absorb ten B-Grade Energy Cores, raise f

About an hour earlier, Aya had been sitting with the newcomers while they ate, doing her best to make them feel more comfortable.She started with simple questions. Where had they come from? How long had they been traveling? What had they encountered in the Grid Region?None of those questions revealed anything particularly sensitive, and Aya was willing to exchange information in return by telling them about the Ark Region.Nadia, who still had her pack close to her, eventually decided to speak.“We saw more than Reapers, Hounds, and Dragoons out there,” she said quietly. “There’s another type of machine… one we haven’t seen mentioned in the chat after entering Ark Region.”Henry nodded and continued the explanation.“They’re called Xcavators. Mechanical units built for tunneling. They move underground, using grinder-like heads to chew through soil, rock, even the hardest concrete…”Aya paused.This really was new information.Since entering the Ark Region, she had never heard anyone