Titan: A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 4) by Jez Cajiao (beach books .txt) 📗

is, but the Legionnaires are also provided everything, from food, to clothes, to wages, to medical care. They are given homes, training, all of it. To give them half on top of all that…”

“Hmmm, well, okay. I hadn’t thought about that…” I admitted, and Romanus grinned at me.

“That’s what you need us for. And believe me, that’s still a huge increase for the average Legionnaire. As to the Skillbooks, Spells, and related items… will you be allowing Legionnaires to bid in an internal auction before they’re offered externally? It’s traditionally how they have gained such things, if their role didn’t specifically require them.”

“No,” I said flatly, and I saw his face stiffen slightly. “If the Legionnaires want a spell, they can explain why they need it, and if we have it available, and there is no greater need for it, they’ll be granted the item. Maybe I will offer one as a bonus for bravery or something, but it won’t be charged for. I refuse to hoard such things for simple hoarding’s sake. Real power is only useful if you use it, and our people will be at the shitty end of combat too often as it is.” I paused for a moment, considering. “I and others that are skilled in using spells will also teach certain spells to the Legionnaires, as time goes on. I’m thinking that every Legionnaire should be able to use a healing spell, a ranged attack, and a buff or something, at the very least, with more powerful spells being reserved for those that have a real aptitude for it. This is how the Legions used to be.” I abruptly remembered, then forced the memory away, in case Amon used it to pour in his grief again. In that split second, I’d seen enough, though; a marching formation of the Legion, firing barrages of what had looked like Firebolts, hundreds and hundreds of them slamming into screaming and charging hordes of undead, while an Imperial Battlemage had fought with a Lich, summoning spells that almost warped reality. Amon sat atop Shustic, ready and waiting, but allowing the Legion to carry the day.

“All Legionnaires?” Romanus asked slowly. “Not just those who are most in need of the spells, like the Praetoria? All Legionnaires, from the lowest to the high, able to use spells?” he repeated, and I nodded, cocking my head to the side.

“Is that a problem? They have Abilities from their Classes anyway, right?” I asked, and he rose from his crate, clapping me on the shoulders with both hands, gripping tightly, and looking me in the eye.

“Jax, you have given the Legion a future, offered to pay us more, provided a real reason for us to exist, and now you ask if it’s all right that you intend to train us all in the magic that only a fraction of a fraction could ever afford? Son, believe me, the Legion is used to far, far less.”

“They don’t deserve less, though,” I said flatly, and he blinked as he released my shoulders, his eyes watery. “The Legion risks its people’s lives every goddamn day for shits who don’t care. Well, I care, and so does the Empire, and fuck those assholes who take and take. I’ll spend lives when I have to; I need to do that, and I accept that now. But when I can, I’ll make sure those who follow me are gaining as I do, growing as I do, and living their lives to the fullest. To do less…” I said, shaking my head.

“I know,” Romanus agreed, smiling understandingly. “When you talk like that, it makes our hearts sing. Too long, we’ve been dismissed, despised…”

“No more. Never again if we win, either,” I said fervently, and Restun snorted.

“Well, an easy fix there, then. We just have to kill them all until there’s none left, eh?” he quipped, a faint smile on his face.

“Damn right,” I said simply. “Right; let’s get a move on. I need to go kill something.” I grinned with excitement, and they laughed, separating to let me walk out and around the small private section to the area where the others waited.

Chapter Eleven

I joined the rest of the group, noticing that most were equipped with the same Legion Scout armor that I wore; Jian, Arrin, Stephanos and Miren anyway. Lydia wore heavier ‘Full’ Legion armor, as I termed it in my head, as did Grizz. Bane shifted nearby, and I realized that he wore something similar to the gear that Yen and Tang wore now, different from the simple armor they’d worn in our first encounter.

I looked closer and saw that I’d been wrong; they were wearing the same armor, but the various bits that had been removed to it to make it look less uniform, less…quality… were improved.

Instead, they wore the gear with pride, the scruffy accents and changes were covered by distinct Legion-made panels, and it gleamed darkly. Their ‘Praetorian Scout’ armor was similar to mine, but it was smoother; its lines just seemed to…flow. The metal was blackened and much more of it was scale than solid, but it looked amazing.

Bane didn’t wear it, not fully, but he’d had sections of his armor replaced with parts of one, while sections of other unfamiliar kit had been added in. Original bits of his Mer armor that looked like animal shells had been removed, and new, more… graceful pieces had taken their place.

“Damn, man…” I said appreciatively, whistling quietly as I looked it over. He spread his arms out, inviting everyone to see it. “That looks great; can you hide as efficiently as before with it?” I asked, and he shook his head slightly, but seemed unconcerned.

“Not as easily as when my old armor was new and intact, but the damage my armor had taken of late meant its bonuses weren’t working anymore, so this is a marked improvement. Add to that, it’s far, far better for defense, and it’s a clear upgrade.”

The next ten minutes or