[Congratulations, you have selected a clan name! You will now be able to scan for clan members in a town. Raise your rank to unlock more features.]
[Clan: Potion’s Will. Rank: D. Clan standing: Hidden. Sects: Off. War: None. This is a peaceful clan… for now. Peace bonus: 2%. Crafting fame: 0%. Combat fame: 0%.]
Somehow, I ended up compromising a little with the apprentices. Fortunately, an option to change clan name for the price of too many spirit coins did appear, not that I had plans to waste that kind of money.
[How long will you continue to defy the heavens? +10,000 spirit coins. +1 heavenly spirit coin. Total number of spirit coins: 135,100. Heavenly spirit coins: 10.]
Alright, System, we’ve got to talk, I thought. Don’t give me any more menus, for the love of God. If it doesn’t make me any money, I don’t want to keep track of it. I’m already working on these quests.
[Active quest reminder:]
No, don’t, I thought, forcing myself not to smack my cup down in annoyance, but it was too late.
[Three. Complete these to become eligible for more.]
[Absolute World of the Mythic Alchemist’s Wand Gathering. Gather 2 Lilyfire plants, 4 Quad Snapper herbs, and 2 Rust Apples. Use them to make the potion in the next step. Use pure water from your fountain.]
[Create a complex blighted potion. Reward: **Exotic Chest**.]
[Create 1 complex potion to increase your class rank. Your class rank increasing will increase the attractiveness of your shop significantly. You may even be able to create royal grade and other potions.]
The first one was actually easy. I’d simply use the brochure to find the ingredients. In fact, I planned to do so while we were traveling. The second could fuck itself. The third was a factor in the city trip, a way to improve the business, bring in new customers, and also learn more about the world.
“How am I not blackout drunk?” I asked Chenzu.
He stopped halfheartedly playing his lute to give me a goofy grin. “You have to drink more than others, but as you’ve insisted, there’s a trip tomorrow and there’s no point in risking it.”
“That doesn’t explain anything,” I said. “What do you mean I have to drink more than others?”
“It’s kind of the same for all magicians, but even more potent the more powerful you become,” Milia said, setting down her glass. “For you, maybe four or five glasses. I think. I’ve heard of the stories, but master magicians… have a difficult time getting truly drunk.”
“That’s why you never speak business with them over drinks,” Chenzu said.
“I don’t know about that. If you’re lucky enough to get a master magician to hear you out, they’re likely not there to wait for you to get drunk. You’re trying to convince or beg them for something,” Iris said. The elf yawned, stretching, and the beastkin’s drunk ass openly watched until noticing my glare.
He grinned sheepishly. “Disciples off limits?”
“She’s intoxicated. Both of you, actually,” I said, voice tired. “And my disciples are indeed off limits when they’re drunk.”
“Naaaaate, my friend, who used to be a prick,” Ramon said, patting my shoulder multiple times.
“Boy, if you don’t get—”
Opal crashed into my cheek, giggled, and let out some hiccups. “Sir Nate-Nate-Nate. I bet I could touch Mandi’s new shocker for more than three seconds and survive.”
I peeled the fast-speaking pixie off my cheek and gently passed her back to Mandi, mentally patting myself on the back for imposing the one-drink limit on the teenagers. “Don’t let her go frat boy on me.”
“A… what?” Mandi asked as she accepted the drunk pixie.
I simply shook my head, mentally scowling at the system for not translating.
Maxus had pulled Ramon away, who still got drunk despite being under the limit. His realm was high and yet he still couldn’t hold his alcohol. At least, not Chenzu’s bottle of unknown berry booze. It was amazing, but likely made by a dwarf that wanted to prank his friends.
I ended up having to escort everyone home. I could’ve been petty, made Milia come with me, but the exhaustion began to take its toll. Wolverine did join, watching over me as I strained to stay awake.
After bathing that night, I fell asleep the moment my head touched the pillow. I woke up the next morning with the warmth of the blankets and Milia. Numerous thoughts came to mind, including the big one. My future. Not just my future, but the apprentices, the disciples, and even Milia’s. Just what did it mean for me to be in this world? I answered that question before. Now, how could I expand this bubble of peace to the disciples and the apprentices? Even the apprentices had problems but weren’t telling me about them. Not that I was a qualified guidance counselor, though at this point, I could probably apply.
I stopped zoning out and looked at Mazu, the golden fox, laying down next to Wolverine. Lady Feathers was snuggled into my side.
“She was supposed to wake you,” Mazu said, his voice a mix of slight annoyance and tiredness. “They have good news. You may want to check out their home.”
Knowing what that meant, I shook Milia awake. “Are you up for seeing what a baby elicrone looks like?”
Her eyes lit up and she hopped out of bed, grabbing my arm, smiling. “Come on, let’s see.”
[For surviving temptation, you have received the following permanent boon. Uncharmable. You cannot be charmed, nor mind controlled. Now you don’t have to worry about your wife slaying anyone for trying to do so. Quite a useful boon for the big city… and visiting family members.]
I almost burst out laughing from the prompt. Some of the words also alarmed me, hinting at danger and also in-laws with the ability to charm people.
We hurried outside and to the coops. Sure enough, a baby elicrone peeped next to its father. It was about the size of a chicken with somewhat bright feathers.
“Well, look at you. Shoot, congratulations,” I told them. The elicrones made cheerful, maybe… grateful noises?
“The gift of life,” Milia said softly as she knelt down, palm out. The baby elicrone actually walked onto her hand.
[The gift of life, such a precious thing of nature. Milia was able to bless the land. Your garden can now accept the seeds and grow low-ranked spiritual herbs.]
A faint light blue aura surrounded everything, including myself, before fading.
I stared at her as I took in what just happened. Dryads probably never revealed the details of their relationship with the land around them and how blessings worked, and I was sure not many got the opportunity to witness them.
After a few seconds, the chick returned to its family and Milia stood.
“They’re so cute.” She turned to me. “Let’s get ready for the…”
Her sentence didn’t finish, as the sound of the teenagers, Tom, and Chenzu could be heard on the pathway, though they were still distant. She blushed faintly, probably realizing she still wore her nightgown. “Like I said, let’s get ready.”
The disciples would be approaching with their lightning horses. They had informed their employers of the trip some time ago. Since they were escorting me, the town’s potion maker, the employers didn’t mind, even gave them things for the trip.
Milia and I hurried inside, brushed up, and changed into fresh daytime clothing. Although I did laundry the prior day, it just now occurred to me that for the trip, we’d have to do things the old fashioned way. Of course, I’d pack enough clothes and more, but the length of the trip seriously opened my eyes.
We’d likely find a decent inn with a laundry area or staff doing it for us. Not that I wanted strangers washing my clothes for me.
“Let’s make some breakfast,” I said while feeding the pets. “There’s no real rush to get on the road—in the air, since we’re riding Beakwing.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Milia said. She smiled at me as I gave her a dubious look. Not that many of my sayings or idioms from Earth made their way into anyone’s vocabulary. Milia was just testing the words and looking for a reaction.
She kissed me and took the pans out of my hand, volunteering to make breakfast instead.
“Good morning,” Mandi greeted cheerfully as she entered the shop. Her storage rings seemed to gleam, making me wonder briefly about how much stuff she stored in there. Perhaps the cost of said ring.
“I see someone’s cheery this morning,” I said. “That excited about the big city?”
“You’d think I’d have gotten the chance to visit one at some point and be used to them, but it’s always towns, small cities, and if I’m lucky, medium cities. Even my parents got the chance to go to the capital.”
Lucas, Harmony, Chenzu, and Tom came in shortly. We had a little breakfast before I asked everyone to make any last-minute errands. The teenagers had none. Neither did the disciples.
“Your librarian friend?” I asked.
“She understandably can’t make it on such short notice,” Harmony said.
I felt relief at that. Being stuck looking after a non-clan member would suck, especially with this being my first trip to a major city in this world. She’d probably have knowledge for many things, but for this flight, I wanted to keep the townspeople out of it.
Cheetara and I headed into town to talk with the mayor and then Serina. She wasn’t too happy that we were leaving but had known of the trip for a while. She handed me the map I requested. Milia knew the way, but I wanted to study the world.
“It’s going to be quite boring without your group around,” she said. “Try not to be gone for too long.”
Thinking about the coffee I had this morning, I chuckled. “We’ll likely be gone for about a week. If this works out, we’ll be looking at a proper town instead of this.”
Serina snorted. “An E-rank is just a small step in the right direction. Good for staving off the crime and ranking up the guards a bit, but it isn’t something noteworthy. I can’t rank up the bank and gain the ability to issue loans until this town makes it to D… Rank C will give me the opportunity for bigger loans and better interest rates. More revenue for the town, and more benefits for me. I wish I could become the first to reach an S-ranked bank, but…”
“That would require us to miraculously become an S-ranked city,” I said. “Yeah, I don’t know about that. Not that I’ve been to many places.”
“You’re heading to Whirl-Waters, yes? It’s a B-ranked large city,” Serina said. “Try to snatch a few ideas and bring them here. Also hard dwarf-made cherry choke wine.”
“Do I even want to ask?”
“No, you definitely don’t,” Serina said as she pulled out a small bag of gold coins. “But if I’m going to help build up this backwater into something noteworthy, I’d like to have something delicious to pass the time.”
“Have you written home, yet?” I asked. “Maybe to your husband, parents?”
Serina snorted. “Thank Wanda, I’m not married. Thanks to hiding here and making our family look good, I’m not obligated to attend any balls, garden parties, wine parties, mixers, and other excuses for nobles to backstab each other. Father’s a higher tier noble than I am, and has no time to pester me. Mother… will probably think I eloped.” She narrowed her eyes. “And they always assume we elope.”
I laughed. “Maybe there’s truth to that.”
“Pfft, eloping is expensive even for a noble,” Serina said. “At least for humans.”
I wasn’t sure what she meant specifically by that.
Shrugging, I took her gold, promising to get her the wine as soon as I arrived, and started back to the shop.
I accessed the town menu once more to make sure everything was good to go, only to find funding at one hundred percent.
[You have earned town points, but without being a lord, you cannot access specific town stats.]
“More fucking stats,” I said. “Yeah, get that shit out of here. It’s not my job.”
I closed the prompt and continued at a brisk pace, mood bright. What? You couldn’t expect an unqualified individual such as myself to do the mayor’s job for him.
You know, if the people around knew I wasn’t from this world, they’d probably freak out. More so if I meddled with their politics. I knew little about town stats anyway, but noted it as something to look into later.
My fiancée, apprentices, disciples, pets, and farmhand were waiting for me. Tom seemed to be wrapping up his morning job and preparing to head back to town, carrying some of the produce with him. He’d be selling some of it on our behalf, keeping ten percent of the profits. He was also allowed to keep food for himself.
Needless to say, the man looked like he wanted to give me a bear hug.
“We’re off to the big city,” I said.
“You be safe,” Tom said. “You’re doing so much for Kyushu, even taking a really long trip just to rank up the town. If there’s anything else I can do for you while you’re away, let me know.”
“Thank you, Tom, and I appreciate your help,” I said, shaking his hand. “The watch tower right there is magical in nature. If you want, you can ask the mayor to station a couple of guards or so to use it, especially if you come out here at night.”
Tom nodded. “I should be fine, but I’ll take you up on that offer if need be. You’ll get the full report of everything upon your return.”
The disciples had their lightning horses ready, Beakwing looked excited, and everyone seemed ready to just take off, our first direction being west, then taking a northeastern road.
“Are you sure there aren’t any obstacles that would get in your way?” I asked my disciples.
“Did you look at the map?” Nuwa asked, smiling.
“Good point,” I told the smartass. Her smile became a grin. “Alright, everyone, on your rides, let’s go. We’re finally about to have some fun.”
Wolverine barked twice. Cheetara raised a paw, meowing a cheer. The scene was so absurd, I laughed, everyone joining in seconds later as they mounted their animals.
“Thank you for taking us, Beakwing,” I said. He grunted cheerfully. At least, it seemed that way based on his mood.
I’d asked the griffin about the trip days ago and he agreed, excited to hunt in new places. How I could tell still scared me a little. This wouldn’t be the first time I wondered what the hell was going on with my body.
Would I start hearing my pets talk? I mean, Mazu talked, so it wouldn’t be surprising. But it sure would be weird.
I liked my pets the way they were, but I also wouldn’t complain if they started talking. At their evolutions, it didn’t seem like the case. I believed they simply weren’t the type of spirit beasts that communicated using human speech, though fully understood it.
Human speech was probably primate tongue to them, for all I knew.
With one last look at the E-ranked town of Kyushu, silently promising to return with progress, we took off. Beakwing into the sky, the disciple’s lightning horses taking the western path toward the village. We flew above them, of course, following the map’s drawn pathways.
The decision to not pile on Beakwing for a really long and uncomfortable trip was everyone’s, of course. My idea first, but everyone agreed.
Prince Myster scowled as the messenger boy approached him with no news of a new Raider sighting. He’d planned at least six assassinations, but over time, he wondered if someone considered no more than a joke was even worth the gold. So he went with the most cost-effective solution. Get one of his loyal men to hire a bandit king to kill him. Cheap, easy, and no one would bat an eye. The rumors of a promising new hero would die quickly. All focus would return to the game for the throne.
He tried and failed at ruining Raider’s reputation due to the cunning man being an unknown, making it impossible to fabricate evidence that he’d done anything or been to the places of the accusations. The pesky commoners were so fast to defend the prick that Prince Myster found himself becoming enraged numerous times.
Alas, he would not be forced to get his own hands dirty for some commoner pretending to be a hero. He had his own special force.
Honestly, if Raider wasn’t competing for the crown, Prince Myster would’ve offered him a job or reward for eliminating his sister’s Black Cross. Sure, they belonged to his father, but everyone knew Ling commanded them as if they were her own personal guard.
Her original force, a group of powerful women, remained jobless, collecting government pay but being ignored by their patron. Most people would love that. These women, the Poisonous Roses, were trained until they were driven nearly insane. Now they were professional magicians, longing to prove themselves to Ling. They were disciplined, highly disciplined, that they didn’t attempt to kill the Black Cross for following their patron’s orders. Perhaps one of them knew they’d die.
Poison snakes, that was what Myster secretly called them.
“I will find you, Raider,” Prince Myster said. “I don’t care how much Elric schemes to have you in this game. I’ll make sure you regret interfering with my throne.”
Prince Myster stood up from his chair, letting his book fall to the tiled floor. He walked over to the window to glare down at the city. Soon, these people would be singing praises about him.
They’d sing more when he destroyed the emperor, his son, and the Astral champion. Nothing would be left to stop the prince from controlling the world. He wouldn’t wage war on the other kingdoms. They’d willingly submit themselves, praise him for taking down the world’s biggest threat, beneath the Peace Spawner and maybe the seven natural disasters. Soon, everything would be his, as it was Prince Myster’s birth right.
The man with angular features, eyes like a hawk’s, turned and strolled out of the room, but not without magically locking every object within.
