I would have punted the little flame out the window right then if I could have.
Chapter 7 – A Thug Named Billy
For maybe the fiftieth time that morning, I repeated the same statement, “Excuse me, I was hoping you could help me find someone.” This time I was asking a bartender at what passed for a bar.
The bartender was a Cherub girl with long black hair. It was a little disconcerting to see a little girl serving alcohol. I just kept reminding myself she was probably older than I was. She looked up from the glass she was cleaning and asked, “Who are you looking for?”
“Billy,” I answered.
She stopped cleaning the glass and looked up at me in surprise. “And why are you looking for that thug?”
I frowned. That was the same question I’d been asked many times. At first, I gave the full long story of how I met him and how he gave me advise. The way he forced me through town at knifepoint. Now, I kept it much simpler. “That thug tricked me into a deal. I owe him crystals.”
“I can’t believe he’s still pulling that scam,” the bartender complained with a shake of her head. “Unfortunately, he’ll be laying low until the time limit on your deal runs out.”
That’s what I’d been told by a few different Cherubim. Sighing, I sat down at the bar. “I don’t suppose you could tell me what the penalty is?”
“Ten times what you owe him,” the girl answered.
I cursed Billy to the deepest pits of the inferno.
“And if I don’t have the crystals to pay him?” I asked.
The girl winced. “You . . . end.”
I cursed Billy further. I found myself agreeing with Asher’s earlier sentiment. I would not leave Purgatory until Billy was dead.
“Thanks for the information,” I said, leaving a tiny crystal on the counter. After that, I couldn’t afford to leave any more behind. I couldn’t even afford to spend the crystals on further training.
As we left, Asher spoke up. “We need to get into the tower. You need to farm as hard as you can. We need to have a thousand tiny crystals ready.”
I could only nod and start running for the entrance to Purgatory. I had gotten to the point where it took me about two hours to clear the first room, which yielded about thirty tiny crystals. I needed to give the room an hour to reset before I could go back inside. In order to be able to pay Billy, I needed to clear that room at least seven times a day for the next five days. That would leave me with about ten tiny crystals. A cheap meal only cost one tiny crystal. So, I could do it. That only left me four hours a day to sleep, and that was a problem. Long story short, I needed to get faster. I needed to be able to clear that first room in less than an hour and a half.
There were risks involved in trying to clear faster. I needed to carefully monitor my EP usage, more importantly, I needed to be extremely efficient. Any wasted energy and I would waste time trying to recover. Moving from demon to demon faster put me at more risk of getting injured. Worse, one death at the wrong time and any progress I made would be wiped out. Still, I needed to try. My existence depended on it.
Before going in again, I sent up a small prayer. “God, if you’re listening. I could really use some help right now.” I didn’t get an answer. I supposed I didn’t really expect one. The only thing I could do was hope he was listening and decided to show me a little grace.
I laughed a little when I heard Asher mutter, “Ditto.”
I learned quickly that I could defeat at least six demons before my EP was nearly empty and I was able to do that in ten minutes. It took eighteen minutes to recover. From those six demons, I made between eight and nine tiny crystals. With the small pouch I purchased, I could store the crystals and teeth that dropped without needing to open my inventory, saving me on both time and SE. That way I only needed to open my inventory once before I left Purgatory to store whatever I earned. If I could continue at that pace, I would clear the room in just about an hour and a half. It was doable if just barely.
I was forced to push myself. I cleared the room, went out, waited out the timer and went back in. About every third or fourth run, I’d come across one of the lesser sloth demons, the big ones. They paid out best, but they were also the most dangerous. Still, roughly ten tiny crystals per kill made a difference.
Days passed in a blur of smashing furniture and demons. I earned experience, invested it into unused points. I had long passed the ten unused point threshold, but Asher didn’t want me to spend them until I had Billy paid off, not that I could blame the flame. We were earning solid experience still. And after five days, I had done it. I had the crystals to pay Billy.
As I returned to my room, I heard a crack of thunder that shook me to the core. I’m not sure how I knew it, but I knew. I had broken a deal and there was a severe penalty attached to it. And wouldn’t you know it, as soon as I got in line to enter my room, someone made themselves known behind me.
When I felt the poke of a knife, I didn’t need to look behind me to know it was him. Sounding much friendlier than I hoped he was expecting, I said, “Billy, I’ve been looking for you all week.”
“So, I’ve heard,” Billy replied sounding very friendly himself. “I’m sorry to tell you this, but you broke our deal.”
Trying to sound despondent, I said, “I know, terribly sorry about that. I did try to find you. Doesn’t that count for something?”
“Unfortunately, that’s not the way it works. Now you owe me even more,” Billy said, sounding apologetic, but I could still hear the joy in his voice. He was enjoying this. He really thought he was going to put a permanent end to me without dirtying his hands.
Frowning but still not turning to face him, I asked, “How much?”
“Ten times the original amount. Payment’s due now . . . unless-” Billy trailed off. I could feel his smile broadening.
“Unless what?” I asked, curious what his offer was.
Billy practically vibrated with excitement. He drawled out slowly in that odd accent of his, “You could do me a little favor. Take care of a little nuisance for me? Nothing too difficult, really.”
I really didn’t like the sound of that. If I didn’t know any better, I would think he was propositioning me to kill someone. Shaking my head, I answered, “I think I’d rather just pay you.”
Billy clicked his tongue, “That’s too bad. I supposed you’ll need to pay up, that is, if you have them? Cause if you don’t, well, I’m afraid this might be the end of your existence. That would be a real shame. I mean, you had so much potential.”
Nonchalantly, I replied, “Alright, no worries, I have your crystals.”
“I’m sorry to hear- Wait, you have them?” Billy tensed in surprise, his voice sounding almost disbelieving.
“I do,” I said, opening my inventory and pulling out the crystals with both hands cupping the pile of tiny crystals. Each one was about the size of a small diamond which made it easy to hold so many.
Billy growled, lowering his knife slightly. I took that as my chance to get some distance from the blade and to face my attacker.
“Now, I give you the thousand crystals and we’re good, right?” I asked loudly, making sure everyone around us heard. “No more blackmail schemes?”
Billy’s eye twitched and his lips snarled, “Aye, we’re even. But we’ll never be good.”
I hadn’t expected anything less.
“Put the knife away and I’ll give these to you,” I said, nodding toward the knife he still held in his hand.
Realizing he was threatening someone in a very public manner, Billy quickly sheathed the dagger in his belt. He cupped his hands together and held them out for me to transfer the crystals.
I poured the crystals into his hands and asked, “All paid?”
Billy nodded, though it looked like it pained him to do so. The sky thundered and just as before, I knew I had fulfilled the obligations of our deal. He then took a single step back, the crystals disappearing, most likely into his inventory. “I’
ll be seeing you around.”
I grinned at him. “By the way, Billy, one last question, if you don’t mind that is?”
Billy looked hesitant, but gave his consent anyway, “Go ahead.”
I cleared my throat loudly, I wanted to try to draw as much attention as possible. Then I asked loudly, “I’ve heard it’s not looked upon very well when one of us sides with the demons, is that true?”
Billy’s eyes widened and looked around worriedly. He gave a nervous, almost panicked laugh, “Of course, of course. Absolutely. No one would ever be so stupid as to side with the demons.”
Seeing the other people around me suddenly look much more interested, some even moving hands toward their weapons. I smirked and leaned in close, with my voice lowered so only Billy could hear me, and said, “I thought as much. Anyway, I think we’re done here. Best of luck, Billy. I hope you die a slow and painful death.”
“You first,” Billy spit out angrily, turning swiftly and walking away.
Asher clicked his tongue. “I still say you should have gotten the mob to kill him for us.”
“I want that privilege for myself,” I replied. I looked sadly at my inventory, only thirty-nine crystals left. It was enough to survive but not much more than that.
I was surprised when someone clapped me on the shoulder followed by a gruff voice with another accent I couldn’t exactly place, the voice saying, “You’ve got guts. Not much for brains, but plenty of guts.”
I looked to the source and saw a man almost a head shorter than me but thicker and bulkier. I was instantly wary of him after I saw a dagger sheathed at either hip. Had I just traded one scumbag thief for another?
“Names Theo,” the man introduced himself, offering me his hand.
“Victor,” I replied, shaking his hand cautiously. Part of me worried I had somehow struck another deal but there was no indication that I had.
“Let me buy you a drink,” Theo offered.
“Uh, thanks, but no thanks,” I said. “I really just want to get some rest.”
Theo nodded, thankfully not looking offended either. He smiled and said, “Well, I’m around if you ever change your mind. Just a little bit of advice. Make some friends, people to watch your back when you’re not in the tower. I promise you this, Billy isn’t done with you.”
No, I didn’t think Billy was done with me either.
“Thanks,” I said. I wasn’t ready to trust anyone, at least, not yet. Billy had made me overly cautious of everyone in Purgatory. We were all here for a reason, none of them good. If any of us was genuinely good in life, we would have gone to a much better place. Instead, here we were, fighting for a place in heaven. After seeing Billy, being exposed to his . . . attitude, I was very certain most of us wouldn’t get there no matter how strong we got.
Theo nodded and walked over to join two people, a lithe dark-skinned woman a little shorter than he was with a bow slung over her back and a tall pale man walking with a cane and wearing brown robes. They exchanged a few words before moving together away from the bunkroom line.
I hadn’t noticed, but it seemed everyone went back to their own business. Leaving that as a worry for another day, I got back in line, eager to get back into my room and spend my experience. I was at ten unused points as of the day before. Today’s efforts should have given me enough to get to eleven. It was far more than I thought I would be able to get. On the other hand, I worked hard to get that far that fast. I wondered how many people stumbled about, trying to clear as far as they could everyday only to die over, and over again.
For a moment, I wanted to chase after Theo and his friends and ask them questions. The moment passed when someone behind me coughed, reminding me I was in line.
When we returned to the room, I pulled out my scroll and dumped the experience I’d earned into Body.
Body
Experience to Next Point: 801
Unused Points: 11
There it was. I had more than 10 points. That meant I would be able to learn a new Body Proficiency and I couldn’t wait.
“Not long and I’ll have enough for a third Body Proficiency,” I said excitedly to Asher.
Asher made a noise of agreement, “Mm, yes, you will. But you won’t have the crystals to pay for them, will you?”
Leave it to Asher to destroy whatever happiness I might have found. “How much do I need?”
“For a skill you can use without using your points, two hundred crystals. And the price just goes up from there.” Asher’s answer left something to be desired. “Tomorrow, we’ll go back to the blunt weapon school for a little training. But first, I think it’s time you used some of those points. Not all of them, just a few. Put four points into recovery, just four. If we’re going to train, you need a better EP recovery rate.”
I grinned stupidly. I was excited to finally get stronger.
Name: Victor Goodspeed
Highest Floor Cleared: 0
Experience Earned: 0
Hierarchy: 4th
Rank: 12th
Title: Sinner
HP: 60/60
EP: 70/70
SE: 10/10
Body
Experience to Next Point: 801
Unused Points: 7
Strength:
8
Reflex:
6
Constitution:
7
Recovery:
8
Soul
Experience to Next Point: 100
Unused Points: 0
Faith:
1
Spirituality:
2
Righteousness:
2
Fortune:
8
Applied Statistics
Health Regeneration
6
Energy Regeneration
8
Spirit Regeneration
2
Attack Power
16
Divine Power
2
Speed
3
Accuracy
50.60%
Perception
3
Critical Strike Chance
0.40%
Demonic Resistance
1
Luck
0.01%
It was a little disappointing. My EP regeneration doubled but it felt like such low return on investment. Four hard earned points and I only doubled it.
“Do you know the formulas for my stats?” I asked, looking to Asher.
Asher replied, “No, you need to invest points into each stat for me to figure it out. Obviously, two points of recovery gained you two points of EP regeneration, but we don’t know if that was all that was involved. I would bet crystals that your constitution is involved somehow but we won’t know for sure until you put more points into Recovery to find out to what degree.”
“Well, given my constitution is now less than my recovery, I would guess it’s probably a two to one ratio,” I said.
Asher bobbed up and down. “Probably, but we need to test more to make sure. For now, we don’t want to spend any more of your unused points.”
“What are we saving them for?” I asked, then quickly clarified. “I know we’re not spending them to make sure I get as much experience and as many crystals as I can because the rates reduce with the more points I actually use. But it feels like you’re saving them up for something specific.”
Asher studied me for a moment before answering, “That’s a fair question and here’s my answer. There are Body Proficiencies that require specific stats. I don’t know what those requirements are yet. We don’t want to spend points if we don’t need to. At least, not until we know for sure what proficiencies are going to work best for you. And determining what proficiencies are going to work best for you will depend on your fighting style. You’ve barely scratched the surface of fighting with a mace. You’ve learned how to stand and take a big swing, but there is so much more to learn. And that’s if we decide the mac
e is the best weapon for you. A little more practice and we might discover that a spear or sword is better for you, maybe even something more exotic like a flail or whip. The good news is, we’re still early in your training, it’s not too late to change weapons. Just understand, there are risks involved if we do.”
That bothered me a little. He’s the one that pushed the mace on me to start with. Why was he talking about changing now?
“I know I pushed the mace,” Asher continued. “But you were under the executioner’s blade with that thug. The mace gave you just barely enough power to do what we needed. Now that the pressure is off, we can re-evaluate if that is something you want to continue.”
I nodded. That, I could understand. The thing was, I was comfortable with the mace. I liked the balance of the weapon because it felt good to me. And I know it’s a bit twisted, but it was like playing baseball again . . . if the balls were demons. And I said as much, “I like the mace.”
Asher bobbed. “Still, it won’t hurt to explore other options, and now is the best time to do so.”
“Are you saying this because you think the mace is a bad fit for me?” I asked. It only occurred to me then that he was bringing it up for exactly that reason.
“No, I think the mace is a good fit for you,” Asher said. “But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a better fit.”
“Asher, look, I appreciate you giving me the option, but that’s a waste of a proficiency slot. I’ve already spent the slot on the mace. I like the mace. I’m good with the mace,” I said. “Regardless of Billy being paid off, we don’t have the time to waste by trying out other weapons. That thug will be back. You know as well as I do, he’s not done with me, nor I with him. Now, let’s move on. We’ve got another proficiency slot. How do you suggest we use it?”
Purgatory: The Devil's Game Page 9
