Chapter 76: The Treasure of Artemis Unveiled

Luke opened his inventory and tapped the latest item he’d received after slaying the spider.

[Aracna’s Leggings – (Uncommon)
Description: Light, flexible pants crafted from the hide of Aracna, the spider guardian. Reinforced for durability without compromising agility.
Enchantment:

[Spider’s Leap (Uncommon)]: Grants enhanced jumping capability.
Requirement: Level 10+ in any class or race.]

He tapped [Equip] without hesitation.

The rugged, worn trousers from his adventurer set shimmered out of existence. In their place, sleek, form-fitting black leggings snapped into place—smooth, flexible, surprisingly comfortable.

He glanced down, flexed his legs once, then nodded in quiet approval. “Not bad.”

Light. Mobile. Zero restriction. The fit was perfect.

Satisfied, he turned toward the altar. Charlie was still standing near the spider’s corpse, sword raised, motionless. She hadn’t lowered her guard—not even with the beast lying broken at her feet.

Luke stepped up to the pedestal. Floating above it was the treasure.

A necklace. A single blue gem suspended in midair, pulsing faintly, like a heartbeat frozen in glass.

He reached out. Fingers brushed the surface—

[Mission Complete]

[Reward Received]

A long breath left his chest.

Finally. Weeks of false leads. Ruined churches that led to nowhere. Ambushes. Dead ends. All of it, leading here. To the real thing.

The Invention of Artemis.

He stared at the now-empty pedestal, then opened his inventory. The necklace sat there—its glow soft, steady. Almost… alive.

A thought crept in, quiet but undeniable.

If I’d found this place a few weeks ago… I would’ve died. Simple as that.

But now? Now he was strong enough. Strong enough to fight something that once felt impossible—and walk away breathing.

Luke tapped the item. The tooltip unfolded, and his eyes widened.

“…It’s Unique?”

[Artemis Invention (Unique)
Description: A prototype crafted by Samael, the Inventor.
‘A gift to help you on your journey. Good luck. It was collecting dust in my workshop anyway.’

PS: I am not liable for any discomfort it causes. – Samael

Enchantments:

[Spatial Storage (Rare)]: Grants access to a pocket dimension where items can be stored.
[Artemis]: (???)
Requirement: Soulbound]

“What the hell…?”

Luke squinted, reading the description again. Then again. There was a message embedded in the item. Personal. Deliberate. That wasn’t normal.

Did the Inventor actually leave this for whoever found it… or did the System generate it specifically for me?

His gaze dropped to the enchantments—and stopped. “It’s a damn storage item.”

He tapped [Equip]. The necklace shimmered into existence around his neck, cold against his skin. The moment his fingers brushed the gem again, a flicker of light surged behind his eyes.

A room appeared inside his mind. Square. White. Empty. No walls, no doors, no windows. Just… space.

The vision collapsed the instant he pulled his hand away. “That was… weird.”

He bent down, picked up a pebble from the cracked floor, then pressed his fingers to the gem once more. The room bloomed back into existence—silent, waiting. Luke brought the pebble close—

It vanished. No sound. No flash. Just… gone. When he focused, he could see it now sitting in the center of the mental room, like a thought placed on a shelf.

Luke blinked. “Holy shit.”

For a moment, he just stood there, stunned. Processing. “If ordinary people back on Earth got their hands on something like this…”

Storage items weren’t just useful. They were world-breaking. Food. Weapons. Medicine. Or grenades. The possibilities were terrifying.

He exhaled slowly, letting the adrenaline settle. For the first time since arriving in this world, he finally had a place to keep everything. His gear. His tools. His supplies. And maybe most important—his two precious health potions.

But then his eyes narrowed. There was something else. Another enchantment.

[Artemis]

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

It sat just beneath [Spatial Storage], plain as day. But no description. No activation key. Nothing.

He focused on it. Tried mentally prodding. Willing. Even whispering the name aloud. Nothing. Frowning, he crossed his arms. “Might be locked. Or… conditional.”

Whatever it was, he wasn’t unlocking it today.

Luke adjusted the collar of the necklace, then turned toward Charlie. She stood by the spider’s corpse—silent, still. Her sword was lowered now, but her presence remained sharp, coiled like a spring that hadn’t fully relaxed.

With a tired breath, Luke flashed a crooked smile. “Alright. Let’s get out of here.”

His gaze drifted one last time toward the altar. “I just realized… we killed a monster. Inside a church.” He paused. “Pretty sure that’s not how blessings work.”

***

Night had fallen. The bell rang out in the distance—low, cold, unmistakably the midnight toll.

Luke didn’t slow down. On the road back to the Haven, he kept testing the necklace. Fruit. Pebbles. Branches. Anything he could grab. One by one, each item vanished into thin air, swallowed by the pocket dimension.

Storage. True storage.

He didn’t have to choose anymore between essentials and extras. Now he could carry everything. And the space inside… was bigger than he’d ever imagined.

But testing revealed a few important limitations. First—the necklace had to be equipped. If it held anything inside, it couldn’t be unequipped. Second—Charlie couldn’t interact with anything stored inside.

Soulbound.

Just like his kukris and their magnetic return, the necklace responded to him and him alone. His. Completely. Which, honestly, made it perfect.

He pushed the tests further. Killed a few monsters along the way. Stored the meat inside—the blood didn’t spill, the cuts didn’t rot. Inside the pocket dimension, time simply… stopped.

Then came the furniture.

A chair? Check.

A single bed? Shockingly, yes.

Wooden cups, cracked plates, salvaged junk from abandoned homes? All of it.

Piece by piece, he was building a house. Inside a necklace.

All he needed now was a water barrel. Fill it with purified water, seal it, drop it inside. And just like that… he’d be ready to survive the Wild Zone for days without setting foot near civilization.