I bent down, hands pressed at the base of the mountain, and scootched it a few steps to the left. I’d knocked most of the snow off, which was unfortunate, but that would come back in a few weeks.
For now, the stark brown of the mountain clashed against the ocean blue, meaning I’d have to install a grove or something.
That would be long, repetitive work. But the work would be my own, and for that, I would cherish every moment of it.
{Rough Night}
“Forgot the Tent?”
[Instances of [Lingering Mental Trauma] have been cleared]
{Rough Night : Exhaustion VI : indefinite]
When I finally came to my senses, I was very, very tired.
It was night now, the street long since deserted. I was left alone, in a puddle of cold sweat.
Ignoring the exhaustion, I felt a lot better. As far as I could tell, my mind was in far better condition.
“I guess that explains it,” I groaned.
Despite doing a thorough search, I hadn’t been able to find any signs of a therapist in the nameless city, something I’d expected to be in high demand.
Apparently, instead of counseling, the video game sends your brain through a separate process, forcing it to confront and adjust to trauma, as well as modifying the troubling memories, causing them to feel more like a movie or a game than something that actually happened in your life.
Sure it was nicer than going insane, but exactly how much control did the game actually have over my mind?
Was there a limit?
Birds crowed in the darkness, settled in rows on wooden rooftops.
That line of thinking would have to wait.
Unfortunately, tonight, I had a tight schedule.
Speaking of which, I cleared my throat, and tried something.
“Time.”
{Time}
[(11:47:24 pm)]
I dismissed the notification, nodding to myself. “Thirteen minutes.”
After wandering around, I found the heart of the market, with much larger, more elaborate stalls, sometimes with three or four merchants per stall.
Despite the time of night, the merchant NPCs were still up and about, trying to get sales.
One approached me, smiling wide. He had piles and piles of merchandise under each arm, as well as a towering assortment of goods piled high ontop of a rickety wooden backpack.
“Hello good sir! I’m Clevey Geaves, and you look like a man of refinement. Might you be interested in a trinket or bobble? A book? A mask?” He leaned close in a mock whisper. “We don’t ask.”
In short, I found a generic merchant who may or may not work for some sort of underground cartel. Figured I’d spot someone like that wandering around in the dead of night.
“Time,” I whispered, glancing up.
{Time}
[(11:51:24 pm)]
I gave him a soft smile. “Do you have any flowers?”
He grinned, tossing boxes off one arm, onto the stack on his back, while juggling other crates in his hand, pulling out an assortment of exotic flowers, before I had the time to blink.
“Lady friend?” He asked, holding up a bouquet of bright pink flowers, with heart-shaped stems and delicate white and gold patterns within the petals. “Why settle for a rose? Jupiter’s heart smells nice, tastes like sugar, and makes a potion that kills the undead.”
I gave him a look, and he shrugged.
“Flowers are weird. It’s half the fun.”
I handed him a few gold coins. “I want fifty bright, colorful flowers, a hundred outfits for children, and as much food as the rest can buy. You can get all that, can’t you?”
Graves Cleve
{Time}
[(11:58:04 pm)]
With the last of my purchases complete, I walked into an empty alleyway, beside two of the largest merchant stalls.
Memories pushed against the sides of my mind, aching.
I breathed in and out, centering myself.
A cold hand clamped down on my shoulder.
“Boy,” a figure warned, speaking from the darkness of a black cloak. “Be careful where you go.”
“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to elaborate?” I asked.
“There are some things best left alone,” he muttered. “I have said my part. Do what you wish.”
The shadows seemed to deepen, and the man faded away.
{Time}
[(11:58:34 pm)]
“Well that’s not ominous at all,” I grumbled, stepping into the alley. I entered an offshoot from the main alley, doing my best to ignore the slick black puddles and broken cages that ran on either side.
The houses around caved inward, giving way to a massive patch of darkness, shrouding silver cages.
I stepped forward.
Children pressed against the sides of their cages, hissing and snapping, reaching toward me. Of course, they knew better than anyone that escape was impossible. Until purchased, they would respawn in their cage, each and every night. If they broke their cage, then the cage would rebuild itself.
They were draining the ocean with a spoon. They were stopping the wind with an old napkin.
Despite this, they just kept fighting.
It was either commendable or downright insane.
Beyond the metal cages were rows of wooden ones, each in perfect condition, without so much of a scratch.
The slaves here simply stopped fighting. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t fight if given the chance, it just meant that they understood appearing respectable and coherent would give them a better shot at being purchased.
It was either commendable or cowardly.
But beyond those cages, I noticed something new.
Beyond the wooden cages, children roamed, bound to the wall by thin lines of twine.
I locked eyes with a little boy, a tusk growing out of the side of his mouth. One of the girls grabbed him, pulling the boy from my sight.
These people had completely given up. Their eyes were dull, and their expressions downcast. They would not try to escape. They would not think about escaping.
I didn’t know what to make of it.
Instead, I took another deep breath, and continued walking.
A voice appeared by my side, melding with the shadows.
“Hello, Sir. Welcome to the Bestiary.”
“Madelaid,” I said, offering a smile. “Just the person I wanted to see. Where’s your boss?”
She jolted at her name, and quickly pointed down the hall.
“He’s busy at the moment, I’m afraid,” she whispered. “But I’m sure he’ll take a break for one of his regulars.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
At this, the other children bristled, some banging and thrashing against their cages.
I frowned, watching the scene unfold.
“Tell me boy, are we doing this again?” Urgot asked, flicking his whip.
At first, I hesitated, but he wasn’t talking to me.
“You broke out again,” Urgot snarled, cracking his whip in the air.
A boy hung by his wrists, glowering. Scars crisscrossed up his bare chest, flickering red in the candlelight. Despite his younger features, he was enormous, his toes brushing against the floor as he hung. His skin was a pale gray, and his eyes bloodshot red.
Urgot snapped his wrist, and a slit appeared across the length of an arm. To his credit, the boy didn’t even wince.
“You’ve got a customer," he spat.
Urgot glanced behind him, putting on a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Ah, so I do! Grind, is it?”
“Yes,” I said.
“I’ll be with you in a minute,” he chuckled, snaking the whip back.
“No worries,” I chuckled back, flicking gold rings into the air. “I’d just like to speak to your boss, that’s all.”
Urgot wavered. “This is my store.”
“Really?” I asked. “Sorry, you just didn’t seem like much of the business type. Surely you wouldn’t leave a customer waiting?”
His gaze flickered to the money in my hand, then back down to the boy.
Eventually, he turned toward me, smiling wide, flashing blackened teeth. “My apologies. I seem to have forgotten my manners.”
“No trouble,” I said. “That boy, how much would you say he’s worth?”
“Him?” Urgot paused, scratching at his chin. “Well he’s a feisty fellow, and a strong one, so he’ll do hard work without issue. I’d personally suggest mine labor. Specifically deep mine, or ash cart labor. Something with a lot of fumes. He’s an Ureden, so he’s suited for it. But I’ll warn you, he’s a handful.”
I smirked. “A bit of spark won’t be any issue.”
The boy spat on the ground. “I’ll kill you.”
I flicked a gold coin to Urgot. “Give me the keys.”
“Oh, this is too much,” Urgot cackled, stuffing the coin into his pocket before fishing out the keys to the boy’s chains.
As soon as I unlatched the chains, the boy froze in place, arms pinned to the sides.
{Purchase : unnamed servant}
[Servant will be bound by certain rules]
[Servant bond is not affected by distance.]
[You may choose to freeze, control, or kill the servant at any time.]
[Accept?]
[Y/N]
“Yes,” I said.
Chains of energy wound up from the ground, searing into other invisible chains.
[Urgot has given ownership of {Unnamed} to {Grind}]
The new chains dug into his skin, before vanishing, and he dropped to the floor on his knees.
{You gained a servant}
[You may order this servant to do whatever you wish.]
[To kill servant, say “Kill.”]
[To freeze servant, say “Freeze.”]
[Servant is currently Bound. To unbind, say “Release.”]
[Note : Commands will not trigger unintentionally. ]
I smiled.
“Release.”
The chains evaporated, and the boy jumped to his feet. He had first promised to kill me, but some of that anger had faded. Now, with his hands and mana unbound, he started to get a feel for just how outclassed he currently was.
I put on a smile. “I’m going to be busy for a few moments, so I need your help.”
The boy looked down at his arms, then legs, testing each. “Why should I?”
{Time}
[(12:00:00 pm)]
The Bestiary shuddered, cages smoothing over, blood draining into cracks in the floor, which then knitted together.
“There’s some piles of clothes outside, with food,” I said. “Break the cages here, then grab those.”
The boy started. “Cages?”
“All of them,” I said, gesturing. “Open all of them. I have a big order.”
Urgot beamed, doing the math in his head. “You’re buying my entire stock? That’ll be—”
I dumped the bag of gold rings into his hands. “You’re quite right, the first payment was far too much. However, I believe that, plus the rest in the bag should be more than enough to purchase your entire stock, yes?”
“Smart man,” Urgot grunted. “Deal.”
{You gained [94] servants}
Urgot barely had the time to look before he’d been blown headfirst through a wall.
“What’re you doing?!” The boy screamed, grabbing fistfuls of his pale copper hair. “He’ll kill you!”
“Not if I kill him first,” I said. “Also, I want my money back. Go help the others.”
Then I was gone, soaring high into the night.
Toxin energy exploded outward, fanning into the air. Around it, buildings and houses had been leveled, leaving a large patch of barren dirt.
Urgot sighed, clicking his tongue as he watched me land. “I’ll be honest, I was getting my hopes up. Instead of a client, I got another hopeless wannabe.”
I brushed dirt off my jeans and shirt.
He frowned. “Let me guess, you just reached a thousand health or strength or whatever, and now you think you can challenge the most powerful Npc in the unnamed city.” He scoffed. “I’ve got news for you boy, you’re nothing. I’m more powerful than you’ll ever imagine.”
~Slave Lord~
{Urgot}
[1000 Str 1000 Hp 1000 Mana]
[ 50 Leach, 40 Klr ]
[3 Brutish]
I took a breath in, then out, and flexed.
{GRIND}
Level 0
Rank “Radiant Echo”
[ 124,255 Hp 113,132 Str]
[112,030% AtkSp 112,002 Mana 112,503 Dur 112,500 Dex]
The raw force of my power stripped the paint from the bulbs around us, weathering rock down to dust. Buildings began shaking, cracks splitting out through their foundations. The bag of coins—previously in his hands—was torn away and cemented several feet deep into a nearby building.
Urgot staggered back, hands over his face. “WHAT ARE YOU?!”
“I don’t have the faintest idea,” I admitted, appearing beside him.
The ground exploded where I’d moved, triggering a shockwave Urgot could barely withstand.
“Do you understand just how helpless you are, right now?” I asked.
Urgot opened his eyes and screamed, flailing helplessly in the air, thousands of feet above the cloud level, where his skin froze in the cold.
“You’ll survive," I said as we fell. “The terminal velocity for first area fall damage is rather low. Besides, I’d assume you have much, much more than a thousand health, right?”
I clapped my hands, slicing clouds, rocketing the two of us back down, knee deep into the ground.
{Urgot (-1956) 1000 Hp}
Urgot staggered away, spitting black blood.
I grabbed him by the hair and brought a knee to his face, the impact shattering several buildings behind us.
{Urgot (-113,132) -15088}
“Impressive,” I said. “That’s what, one hundred thousand health? I see you're found of nice round numbers, yes?”
He summoned a potion from his inventory, chugging it down.
[{Urgot} has consumed a {Legendary Potion of Rejuvenation}]
[{Urgot} has been restored to 2x maximum health]
[Additional health over maximum will deteriorate within (24) hours]
“Please,” he said between gulps. “Let’s talk business, okay?”
“You have more slaves than in the bestiary. You’ve been getting them from somewhere after all. Release them,” I said. “All of the slaves under your control. Then I’ll let you go.”
His eyes flashed white, and he gritted his teeth. “Eat—”
{Urgot (-113,132) 1000 Hp}
The town shook with each blow. Every speck of greenery was plastered over walls. Black blood punctured through walls. In some areas, the air turned to a plasma, igniting on my hand.
{Urgot (-113,132) -24264 Hp}
Urgot downed another potion, then broke into a run.
“How much do those cost?” I asked. “A week’s pay? A month? And there’s that ludicrous amount of health you’ve earned for yourself. You know you respawn, right? Why be scared of death?”
Urgot tore his outer shirt off, mopping up the blood that covered his head, before he lost consciousness.
I plucked the cloth off and snapped my fingers, generating enough heat to burn it all in a matter of moments. “Urgot, you’re helpless.”
He swallowed hard, offering a smile, his teeth washed unnaturally white by the potion. “Come’on kid. Give me a chance, would you? Perhaps we could come to some sort of an agreement?”
“I'll take it back,” I chuckled. “You are a businessman.”
I crushed his face into the floor, evaporating bare rock.
{Urgot (-113,132) 1000 Hp}
Urgot choked, hands clawing at the foot over his neck. “What’d I do to you?” He hissed.
“You enslaved and tortured my daughter,” I said.
There was a moment of silence, before Urgot started to nod. “Listen, buddy, I think you’ve got the wrong guy,” He whimpered. “I don’t have humans in my cages. But there’s the second area, you know. There’s some real dangerous slavers there, so maybe one of them got your daughter?”
“You make a pretty good point” I admitted. “I’ll have to pay a visit.”
I flicked his forehead and The Slave Lord of the first area popped like a grape.
will make changes made.
