“Your bracer will do nicely in helping me to take victory in the next fighting contest. Thank you for your assistance, Junior. Your pointers were excellent.” He laughed. It was cold and grating on Domonos’s ears as he coughed blood into the dirt. Domonos tried to get up, his entire body fighting him.
Tujo snorted.
“Here’s a pointer, for you, protect your head!” Tujo kicked Domonos viciously.
Darkness found him as he collapsed, not before a few more kicks hit his head.
Father, brothers, Qin’er—it looks like I will not be seeing you again in the future.
He wanted to destroy Tujo, destroy the Willful Institute filled with lies and deceit, taking everything from him and expecting him to not fight back. He was nothing more than where he was born from, in their eyes.
In the darkness there was nothing but sweet relief.
Chapter: Path to Khusai
Erik hadn’t looked at his notifications since the end of the competition. He was still on his mount as Rugrat led them through the forest, one following the other.
Erik was thankful for healing spells. Otherwise, the chafing would have been unreal.
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Skill: Alchemy
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Level: 43 (Apprentice)
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Able to identify 1 effect of the ingredient.
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You have discovered the formula: Weak Healing Powder
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Has been added to your Alchemy Book
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“Alchemy Book? I’ve never seen such a damn thing,” Erik complained. All he had was some ability to never forget the ingredients that he had found out all the effects for. It was useful, but there was a reason he had copies of all his Alchemy formulas on him. He didn’t have them all remembered.
“Rugrat, when you imprint something in your mind, it’s there forever, right?” Erik asked.
“You mean like when I made that crossbow back in Alva Village?” Rugrat asked.
“Yeah.”
“Well, I guess it technically isn’t imprinting. Yeah, I got a good idea of how it worked and the complexities about it. Taran and I were getting ahead of ourselves. There is a thing called imprinting; it is supposedly something that comes with the higher level skills. That when someone makes something in the higher levels, because of their knowledge they can understand how to make something. So say I made a special hammer; if I made it close to perfect, like really close to perfect with another weapon, then the Ten Realms would download the blueprint into my head permanently and I could make that hammer all day and night. What I was seeing with the crossbow, well, I had just got my Simple Inorganic Scan spell—basically, well, it was like the Simple Organic Scan.” Rugrat shrugged.
“What was black and white before turned to color with sound—you could understand a lot more.” Erik nodded. It made more sense now.
“Yeah, I just never corrected anyone. Also, I don’t know what stage one would need to be at to be able to imprint actual products into their mind, like blueprints for me and formulas for you.” Rugrat conjured the Mana Blade and started playing around with it and making it take on different and new shapes.
In that case, then memorizing ingredients must be a subcomponent or smaller part of that memorization.
“Rugrat, you remember all the kinds of metals you work with?”
“Nope, I get to know the enhancers. If I can list out the enhancers, I’ll change the metal then—” Rugrat snapped his fingers next to his head and tapped on his temple. “Stored right in here.”
“Same same, little different,” Erik said.
Rugrat took a long pull from a ceramic jug before letting out an ear-splitting belch. “Damn, had some good beer there, or mead, or…” Rugrat looked in the jug. “Whatever this is.”
Erik continued through his notifications. “Whoa, that’s not bad. Another quest.” Erik grinned.
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Quest: Alchemist Association Trial
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Congratulations! You have passed the first stage of the Alchemist Association, unlocking this quest.
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Requirements: Complete second trial
Complete Path of Alchemy trial
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Rewards: Become Alchemist candidate
150,000 EXP
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“I didn’t think that there would be a quest along with this. Seems like it’s not that easy of a task.” He couldn’t worry about it now; he was already on his path to complete the quest. He moved to the next notification.
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Skill: Riding
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Level: 7 (Novice)
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No bonuses at this time. You must prove your skills first.
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91,541/700,000 EXP till you reach Level 26
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“So where are we going next?” Erik asked.
“Well, that was Girus of the Hechonate kingdom. Thankfully, we’re near the edge of the Hechonate kingdom, so aiming to get out of here first, then maybe a caravan heading the way we are. Also, we’re passing into a lawless area—you know, countries, or kingdoms and dynasties that aren’t too pleased with one another, so might be roving groups of bandits, soldiers, general lawlessness and stuff,” Rugrat said.
“That makes me feel much safer.” Erik pulled out his gift box and opened the top. “Having money again doesn’t make me feel all that safe, on the other hand.”
He pulled out a scroll that was in the bottom of the box, sending everything else back into his storage ring.
He rolled open the scroll, reading the title. “Potion of Enhanced Strength? Well, thank you, Girus.” Erik continued to read on, getting absorbed into the contents, only pausing to glance around as they cruised through the forest that was gradually turning darker.
Erik saw a weird looking ingredient growing.
“Wait a minute, let me just harvest this,” Erik said, getting off of his mount.
“Hurry up about it,” Rugrat was checking the map as Erik took a few tries to harvest the plant and store it away for later study or use. Erik got back up on his mount and followed Rugrat who was studying the map.
“Rugrat, where are we headed?”
“Dervin Swamp. Apparently good for ingredients, bad for the creatures. At least less people around?” Rugrat said.
“What about paths through?”
“There are a number of them. Also, with our scans, I think it will be a bit easier to pass through,” Rugrat said.
Riskier terrain but not dealing with large groups of people. Fuck, I hate swamps.
“I wonder if there are any gators. Could make some jerky,” Rugrat said, completely unfazed.
“I see another bunch of ingredients. I’ll just quickly harvest them.”
“Is this going to become a thing?” Rugrat asked.
“A thing?” Erik asked, a trowel in one hand as he walked over to the patch of ingredients.
“Nevermind, it already is.”
Chapter: Second Applicants
“It’s a shame that he wasn’t able to find any contacts we could get Mana stones from. We’re going to have to spend thirteen hundred gold instead of just eleven hundred,” Yao Meng complained to Storbon as they were walking through the forest outside of Vermire Trading Outpost.
“Do you just care about the gold now?” Storbon asked with a grin.
“No, but going from riches to paupers doesn’t feel good. I wanted at least a few more meals from the cookhouse.” Yao Meng made his lower lip tremble, even getting a laugh from Tian Cui and Setsuko.
They entered an opening where twenty-one people waited, surrounded by guards from Vermire.
Seeing them, the lead guard bowed to them and waved to the others.
They all departed quickly, leaving the group fac
ing Storbon’s team and Jasper.
“Hello, my name is Jasper and I want to make you an offer. I see that two people didn’t want to come with us. If any of you aren’t interested in the jobs you’ve been told about, then you are free to leave as long as you agree to an oath to never tell anyone about this.” Jasper looked at the people.
Most of them had everything that they owned with them. There were men on crutches, others had bandages on missing limbs, their eyes sunken and dead.
There were young families who were thin as rails, just holding onto one another.
Older people who were stopped with the passage of time.
A woman stepped forward. “You offered us jobs and a shot at a new life and we want to give it a try.”
“Good. Then we just need an oath that we won’t hurt one another or try to bring harm to one another, then we can be on our way.”
They completed the oaths and everyone relaxed a bit more.
Storbon waved for his people to fan out. They would deal with any outward threats and protect them as they moved.
They were much slower than Storbon and his people who took care of threats in their path.
Those who had been in the Beast Mountain Range were surprised with the ease that they moved forward and the simple way that Storbon and his team talked to one another.
***
They passed through the last checkpoint into Alva Dungeon just a week later.
The dead eyes looked at the dungeon in wonder as the stooped backs straightened.
They were met by Elise’s assistants, who took over briefing everyone, getting them fed and checked over at the healing house.
Storbon returned to the barracks and found Glosil waiting for him.
“You ready?” Glosil asked.
“I hope so,” Storbon said.
“Get some rest. We go the day after next. I’m hoping that we kill enough beasts that you can get another round,” Glosil said.
Storbon nodded. Having to spend over a thousand gold just to try it out was a steep price, but what was gold against potential Experience and increasing their fighting skill?
***
Elise looked over the new townspeople who were eating the food supplied by the cookhouse. The people who had been wounded were being assessed by the healers and alchemists, who quickly went to work figuring out a way to heal them.
Healthcare was free in Alva. The healers and alchemists were paid a retainer fee to look after people. Though if someone wanted to modify their body for Body Cultivation or to open their Mana gates and advance their Mana Gathering Cultivation, then they would have to pay the healers and the alchemists separately.
The healers and alchemists were an odd bunch to the wounded, who never knew whether they would recover their limbs if an infection would settle in.
The healers and alchemists saw a way to improve their skills, and gain Experience through the endeavor to boot, a win-win situation.
Elise cleared her throat. The people in the healing house quieted down. The healing house was the same size as the old hospital and set up in a similar design, with formations that regulated the temperature and private areas where patients could be treated.
“You will be allowed housing rent-free for one month as you find jobs or pick higher education. Loans will be provided for those who wish them. You will need to take an oath against the loan to pay it back in the future.
“We have several schools here: smithing, Alchemy, tailoring, cooking, farming, healing, and more. Also, there are jobs to work in the iron mine, traders who go between cities or work in our trading squares. Then there is the barracks as well, where one can apply to be a defender of Alva Dungeon, learning new fighting skills.”
“What if we don’t find a job in a month?” a man asked.
“You will be evicted from your home. If you do not have a residence, then you will have to leave Alva Dungeon. If you are off trading, then you will have to make oaths to pay back the money that you owe. Otherwise, everyone will be taking an oath to never reveal Alva Dungeon to anyone who isn’t from the dungeon,” Elise said.
It was strict but these rules had been put in place to guard everyone. She saw people looking at one another; a couple held hands; a spark of life returned to an older lady’s eyes.
It was their first group, but Elise hoped for more. They had a lot of space and were meeting their demands. Now the only way they could grow was with more people pitching in and helping out.
Chapter: Event in the Swamp
Erik and Rugrat were on foot, leading their beasts as they used their scans to make sure that they were walking on packed ground instead of stepping into swamp water.
They’d stop every so often with Erik using his tools to gather different ingredients along the path.
The entire swamp air was heavy and stunk of decay and rotting.
Rugrat was slapping himself, trying to kill off the bugs that called the place home.
Erik was largely unaffected as he used poison on his skin to keep the bugs off.
They were covered in the nasty black mud from the swamp as they pushed onward.
Erik stopped as Rugrat was complaining, slapping himself and moving forward, talking dark things about Ten Realms mosquitoes.
“Do you hear that?” Erik asked.
“Hear what?”
“I think someone is in a fight.” Erik looked in the direction of the noises.
A lightning strike came out of the sky and slammed into the ground.
“Incoming!” Rugrat yelled. The two of them dropped to the ground. Their beasts were quivering and fought against their grip, trying to run away from the noise.
Lightning struck trees, causing them to explode and crash down.
Erik and Rugrat were covered in dirt, leaves, and bits of wood as they quickly got to their knees, scanning the area and looking for where the spell had come from.
“What in the hell was that?” Rugrat came back up holding his rifle, using the scope to look at where the lightning strike had landed. “Looks like some big kind of swamp creature made from trees. And there’s a band of people hiding behind a mage with a Mana barrier. The tree thing got hit and it’s burning slightly, but it’s still in the fight.”
Erik pulled out his spotting scope and checked the area.
The mage was a man wearing simple clothes. On his hands and around his neck, there was glowing jewelry.
Must be enchanted to increase his abilities.
The wooden creature leaped forward. There was a flash of light as a being of lightning appeared from the side and smashed into it.
The wooden beast let out a confused noise as lightning rushed over its body and burned. The lightning beast slashed out at it. It was small but its claws were sharp and fast. The lumbering wooden beast couldn’t react in time as its forelimb was hit, stripping vines and wood from its arm.
“Let’s go around,” Erik said. It wasn’t their fight and he didn’t want to get involved.
The wooden beast turned its head to glare at the lightning beast.
The lightning beast was already rushing forward. It jumped from stump to fallen tree and raked its claws across the wooden beast’s face, destroying one of its glowing green eyes.
The wooden beast let out a howl and charged at the lightning beast that was turning around to face it again for another rush.
The lightning beast dove to the side as the wooden beast tried to slow itself, slamming into a few trees.
Lightning flowed from the lightning beast into the water of the swamp, passing through and hitting the wooden beast. The lightning beast grew dimmer, its power falling.
The mage made some symbols with his hands as he drank down a vial of blue powder.
The others who had been hiding behind them were now moving. Arrows landed on the wooden beast as magical staffs were put to use, hitting the beast with elemental attacks.
The damage was piling up as the wooden beast tried to recover itself.
Pu
rple binding chains seemed to come out of the swamp and hold the beast there. It fought against the bindings as the groups piled on their attacks.
Wood, moss, green ichor, and vines were torn apart and splattered across the ground as the wooden beast’s reactions grew slower.
Rugrat and Erik continued on their path, trying to circumvent the group. Unfortunately, their path was taking them closer to the fight as they avoided the murky waters that hid far more dangers.
The wooden beast let out a yell. Its arm extended crazily as it swung around. Using it like a whip, it smashed through the dead trees. The attackers jumped out of the way, but two weren’t fast enough and were sent flying, bloodied and bruised. One slammed into a tree; another fell into a dark pool.
The water started to move as a black slime rose out from the water and rushed toward the stunned person.
The people in the group yelled out as the woman started to rise.
The black slime jumped on her.
She started to scream as the slime started to dissolve whatever it came into contact with: her armor, her hair, her exposed skin.
It worked its way up from her boots, moving for her unprotected face.
“Clean!” Another woman’s voice seemed to command the very heavens as a white glow appeared around her.
A ray of cleansing light burned through the swamp, landing on the slime and the woman who was being consumed by it.
The slime was now being the one burned away.
It quickly released its prey and rushed back into the water.
The burned woman was in bad shape. A man with a shield rushed forward, grabbing her and pulling her away. She cried out in pain but he continued pulling her out of danger.
The wooden creature raised itself up on its hind legs, breaking the restraining chains. Wooden thorns covered in a dark-green poison shot out of its body in every direction.
Five people were struck with the thorns. The thorns had found purchase in two people’s skin. Their veins started to turn the same dark green as the poison, rapidly spreading through their bodies.
The Third Realm Page 5
