Chapter 175: The last drop
It was a good sleep.
In fact, perhaps it had been one of the best I had had since arriving in that world.
I slowly opened my eyes and spent a few seconds staring at the ceiling.
Then I felt my body.
A powerful force was circulating through every part of it.
I got out of bed and made a few movements to test my body.
The weakness caused by the Concentrated Mana Potions had diminished considerably.
The magical energy of the Light-Devouring Owl meat I had bought the previous night contained an impressive amount of elemental energy.
I was about to leave to visit the library when I heard a knock on the door.
Tok. Tok. Tok.
I frowned.
—Who is it?
—It’s me.
The voice was familiar.
Ruby.
I walked to the door and opened it.
Ruby entered the room with her elegant steps, her red high heels making a sharp sound against the floor.
But as soon as she stepped into the room, her expression changed.
Her eyes widened.
She stared at me.
Then she tilted her head slightly.
—George...
She took a few more steps.
Her gaze traveled over my body.
—Did you level up?
—Yes.
Ruby continued staring at me as if she were trying to confirm it through her own senses.
—I just managed it last night.
She narrowed her eyes.
—That explains this sensation. Your magical fluctuations have changed completely.
I couldn’t help but show a small, proud smile.
—Ah, right. I suppose you came for the spoils of war.
Ruby nodded.
—Exactly.
—Then I have good news.
I reached for my storage belt.
—I managed to sell all those trophies.
I took out a small bottle.
—And I managed to get some treasures in exchange.
I held out the Concentrated Mana Potion.
Ruby took the vial.
She examined it for a few seconds.
She seemed to recognize its contents.
Then she handed it back to me.
—You can keep it.
I blinked.
—What?
Ruby shrugged.
—A low-grade potion like this is of no use to me.
I looked at the bottle.
Then I looked at her.
—Are you serious?
—Of course.
She placed a hand on her waist.
—For you, however, it can still bring some benefits.
Then her smile disappeared.
Her expression became serious.
—Just be careful.
—Don’t consume these potions continuously.
—And never forget to give your body time to recover after using them.
—Otherwise, your body’s condition will become very poor.
That was almost amusing.
She was giving me exactly the same advice the biochip had already given me.
But I was still surprised.
I had expected her to at least show some interest in the potion.
After all, this wasn’t just any bottle.
A Concentrated Mana Potion had considerable value for any acolyte.
It was the kind of resource that could be exchanged for several merit points.
And merit points were extremely difficult to obtain, after all, the Subterranean World was never peaceful.
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POV Salin — Pseudo-Wizard — Acolyte of the Subterranean World.
Unlike eternal darkness, the Subterranean Cave had never been a peaceful place.
I knew that better than most.
Even the native subterranean species, which had occupied those lands for countless generations, didn’t possess completely reliable maps.
The subterranean tunnels could stretch for kilometers.
Some were narrow, damp, and suffocating, so cramped that even certain subterranean creatures had difficulty passing through them.
Others, however, simply opened up without warning.
Narrow tunnels could transform into gigantic caverns more than a thousand meters wide.
Some seemed like small worlds hidden beneath the surface.
There were hills, valleys, underground rivers, dark lakes.
The strangest thing was that, in that environment, the ground wasn’t necessarily the only path.
The walls and ceiling were also part of the territory.
Creatures with innate abilities could walk along vertical surfaces.
Others used spells to fly or simply hover in the air.
Some even rode creatures capable of walking along walls, such as giant spiders and certain types of subterranean monsters.
And amid that vastness, there was DarkGem.
One of the thousands of cities built in the Subterranean World by outlaw Mages.
The city’s location was extremely secret.
The rocky stratum surrounding DarkGem was rich in metals and minerals capable of interfering with magical probes.
Combined with the deep caves, winding tunnels, and countless creatures of darkness hidden in that place, this made it almost impossible to find the city by chance.
Even if someone found the correct region, they would still have difficulty distinguishing the only passage leading to DarkGem among thousands of tunnels.
They had to be guided by someone who knew the way.
There were rumors that a powerful Level 2 Mage, one of the outlaw rulers of DarkGem, had created a gigantic illusion formation around the city.
It was said that the formation was capable of erasing all traces of DarkGem’s existence.
Even if an enemy found the exact region and searched every stone, they would still be unable to identify the city’s true location.
I didn’t know whether the rumor was true.
But living in DarkGem, I quickly learned that it wasn’t wise to doubt the accomplishments of Mage Masters too much.
Inside that city was a tavern known as The Last Drop.
It was one of the few places I could enter without having to think too much.
Or perhaps it was precisely the place where I could think the least.
For us, outlaw Mages who lived in the Subterranean World, there was no natural distinction between day and night.
Without some external reference, it would be easy to completely lose track of time.
For that reason, the ancient Mage inhabitants of DarkGem had inherited certain habits from the surface.
The outlaw Mages used their knowledge to mine enormous quantities of firestones.
Then, they built magical formations capable of making them light up and turn off according to the corresponding times of the surface world.
It was a simple solution.
But it worked.
Thus, DarkGem managed to establish a routine.
The city also ended up attracting a large number of outlaw acolytes who had been cornered by the outside world.
These acolytes formed the city’s first large group of loyal residents.
When the night screen was turned off that night, the streets and alleys of DarkGem began to light up.
A faint and irregular illumination covered the dark buildings.
A small oil lamp hung above the door of The Last Drop.
I stopped in front of it.
I took a deep breath.
Then I pushed open the old door.
Creek...
As soon as I entered, the noisy atmosphere of the tavern reached my ears.
It was only seven at night.
And the tavern was already packed.
I looked around.
Practically every known subterranean species seemed to have a representative there.
Of course, this didn’t include the lower-class species.
Such as Stone Rats, Murmuring Toads.
Creatures of that kind would never be able to attain the status necessary to become residents of DarkGem.
There were mainly intelligent creatures or semi-human species capable of imitating human appearances.
Then my eyes found a group of large Satyrs walking in front of me.
I observed their faces.
My stomach tightened.
I was human.
A genuine human.
Not a creature that needed to wear old clothes and imitate our species in order to survive in that city.
A Satyr stepped into my path.
I stopped.
I looked at him.
He didn’t seem to realize what I was.
So I raised my leg.
BAM!
My kick struck his body.
The Satyr was pushed to the side.
He let out a grunt and glared at me.
I continued walking.
An ordinary human might not survive in DarkGem.
But I wasn’t an ordinary human.
I was a peak Level 3 Acolyte.
In fact, my strength was already very close to the limit separating an acolyte from a true Mage.
In DarkGem, aside from the Mage Masters who rarely appeared in public, an outlaw Pseudo-Mage like me was an extremely respected existence.
Wherever I passed, the subterranean natives would normally make way.
But that night...
My face was grim as I walked toward the counter.
BAM!~~
I slammed my hand hard against the wooden counter.
—Give me a bottle of Blood Alcohol!
The entire tavern fell silent.
On the other side of the counter, old Wick continued calmly cleaning a glass.
He didn’t even seem impressed.
He rolled his eyes.
Muttered something.
Then he bent down and took a bottle of wine from beneath the counter.
He slid it across the wooden surface toward me.
I grabbed the bottle.
I removed the cap.
The next instant, the strong smell of Blood Alcohol filled the tavern.
I saw several faces turn toward me.
Some creatures literally began salivating.
I ignored them all.
I rarely drank.
But that night, I needed to.
I tilted my head back and took several generous gulps.
The liquid burned my throat.
It went down to my stomach like a flame.
—Cough!
My body contracted.
—Cough! Cough!
The drink was too strong.
I coughed violently.
A splash of liquor flew through the air.
Much of what I had drunk ended up being expelled by the coughing.
That’s when I heard a noise behind me.
I looked.
The Satyrs had approached.
They threw themselves onto the ground.
Their large, wet tongues began licking the liquor spilled over the stones.
It was repulsive.
DarkGem had rather strict rules.
Only intelligent creatures could become residents.
And, in addition, they needed to have an appearance sufficiently similar to that of humans.
For that reason, many Satyrs, Goblins, and Chameleon Demi-Humans were forced to wear old clothes, but when necessary, they didn’t hesitate to drop the act and reveal their savage natures.
So I simply raised the bottle again.
I tilted my head back.
And drank the rest of the Blood Alcohol in one go.
I was sad because my wife had died... That damn acolyte who controlled a golem killed her. She had been pregnant for a week. Maybe I should have taken better care of her... She didn’t deserve to die like that.
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1686 Words