The Newt and Demon - Book 4 Chapter 4,5,6 (Patreon)

Chapter 4

Level 20

Theo left Throk’s workshop grinning to himself. The Marshling hadn’t questioned him further on the project, not after gold was exchanged. His request for the new stills was tied to the discovery he made in Tero’gal. While the Dreamwalk wouldn’t allow him to bring in items from the mortal plane, the realm didn’t mind at all. Where the Dreamwalk acted as a mirror to the real world, sheathed in dreams, Tero’gal was its own planet, complete with the standard rules of the system.

The excessively hot day, and demand from the citizens for more air-conditioner liquid, revealed the value of that pocket realm. So long as his greenhouses and mushroom caves could keep up with demand, he could pop into Tero’gal to craft up potions. Perhaps without the bonuses provided by the alchemy lab, but it was better than nothing. There were many projects that required volume over quality, and Theo decided the best place to craft those would be Tero’gal.

On his way from the workshop, Theo was intercepted by Alise and Gwyn. They had news to share and dragged him over to the town hall, leading him into a spacious meeting room on the second floor. Cold air blew from a metal box in the room’s corner, cutting through the humidity of the day. The alchemist assumed his position near the window, and waited for news about his allies.

Alise cleared her throat before speaking, a smile hanging on her face. “As you might imagine, both our allies are excited about the [Kingdom Core] you planted. Gronro requested formal aid. You can view the request in your mayor screen. Well, I guess it’s an Archduke screen, now.”

“They have a day’s worth of your potion,” Gwyn said. “So, we’ve sent some adventurers over to bolster their forces. Rivers is already complaining about something.”

Theo tapped his fingers on the table. He knew Rivers was going to be a problem from the start. The way the mirrored Qavell was bad for everyone, leading to a group of corrupt nobles that pushed everyone else down. The alchemist found that sentiment rich. He owned most everything within town and determined the rates without competition. Every dictator must have thought themselves incorruptible.

“Your call on Rivers,” Theo said. “We need to create a formal system for them. Something to make sure they pay their fair share.”

“It’s more delicate than you can imagine,” Alise said with a sigh. “We’ve been working on a strategy. Azrug wants to starve them out financially. Not sure I like that idea.”

Theo thought for a moment before responding. The only place anyone could export anything was through Broken Tusk. With the pass to the north cut off, it just wasn’t possible to move goods without going through the port. He could charge Rivers whatever he wanted for use of the port, or buy everything they wanted to export at a low rate then export it himself for a profit. But he had to think about what his idea for the town was. From the start, he wanted Rivers and Daub to work with him.

Theo sighed. The problem was their trade guild. They were called the Chairs in Qavell, a system Rivers had replicated. A few people controlled all trade within their town, resulting in rampant over-charging and collecting of dues.

“Rivers needs to dissolve their trade guild,” Theo said.

Gwyn and Alise shared a look then nodded at each other. “Azrug was working with Fenian on that before he left,” Gwyn said. “He suggested starving them out. As in, create different rates in the port.”

“Those unaffiliated with the trade guild get our standard export rates. While those with the guild get hit with a massive fee,” Alise said, finishing the other Lady Administrator’s thoughts.

That seemed aggressive, but Theo didn’t have any better ideas. While it was nice to hope that Alran would just do the right thing, that didn’t happen. On those open planes between two powerful towns, Rivers and Daub found themselves in an ideal situation. They could seize the moment and reforge themselves, or get the hammer from the other two. That was all there was to the problem.

“Tell Azrug I like the plan,” Theo said. “Meanwhile, we’re bleeding cash until we can get our trade fleet up.”

“If you think we’re bleeding now,” Gwyn said, chuckling nervously. “Grot from Gronro told us how we keep the power of the [Kingdom Core] up.”

“Money?” Theo asked. “Go figure. Seems like we could really use that coin mint.”

“And Fenian is in the wind,” Alise said.

“Zarali and Xol’sa illuminated us,” Gwyn said. “Coins are pressed with power, right? What is the latent power in the air used for? It’s used to generate the monsters in the dungeons, as well as quests. Which in turn generate coins.”

“Meaning the adventurers going into the dungeons are harvesting the processed power by killing monsters,” Alise said. “Meaning Aarok is going to help the town out until we get trade going.”

“That’s fortunate,” Theo said, still tapping his fingers on the table. “Any silver or gold from my mine?”

“I don’t have a recent report from the mine,” Alise said.

“The juniors were taking care of that. I didn’t see any mention of silver or gold, just an increase in general production,” Gwyn said.

“Well, Gridgen knows I want silver. I’ll trust him to sniff it out. Alright. Good news about everything else. Bad news about money. Gwyn, could you please tell Throk that my stills are high-priority?”

The administrator groaned. “Yeah, yeah. He’s gonna yell at me.”

“He certainly will,” Theo said. “But I’m worried about potion production. If I fall behind, Gronro is in trouble.”

“Got it, mister Archduke.”

Theo snorted a laugh. “Alright. Come find me if you need something. I’m going to… Well, I better not say.”

The pair stopped him before he left, having a few more administrative things to talk about. It was mostly about the Elves within the town, and how they wanted to formalize a language program for them. Theo was fine with that, seeing as his his weaver Kaya didn’t speak Qavelli. While the alchemist was working on learning the Elf-tongue, it wasn’t going well.

Finally released from the meeting, Theo headed off for his lab. He found Salire downstairs and chatted for a bit. It was hard to catch up with the woman, but she had several more requests for the day. There was a rush of people coming in during the morning, all looking for weird stuff. The alchemist made his way upstairs after a bit and used his [Glassware Artifice] to generate many vials and flasks for his trip.He took an [Enchanted Fermentation Barrel], two stills and their parts, then went outside the lab to look at his [Dimensional Storage Crates].

The [Lesser Plant Golems] were great at collecting and tending his various gardens, including the mushroom caves. So good that they were filling the contents to bursting, leaving reagents scattered on the ground nearby. He collected them all in his inventory, focusing on the [Swamp Truffles], snatched a few more things he forgot in the lab, then focused on his [Dreampassage] ability.

The world around him swirled, and he passed over that dark Bridge yet again. Then there was the soft grass of Tero’gal under his feet, and the pleasant breeze that blew without end. He took a deep breath and collapsed on the ground. The grass tickled his face as he stared up at the perfect blue sky, thick clouds floating lazily by. Theo experienced no fatigue while in his private realm. He hadn’t tested if it would drain his stamina, but he suspected it would be minimal.

“Then you have to question,” Theo said, finding that speaking aloud in the realm helped him think. “Does my mana drain? Maybe.”

Theo found a flat area near the mouth of the spring to set his gear up, finishing by placing a table near the condensers. While he was low on [Swamp Onions], he had enough to do a 200 unit test run of fermentation. He started by grinding 1,000 units of [Swamp Truffle] up for the stills, adding his [Enchanted Water] to each to top them off. The alchemist let out a hoot of excitement when the [Flame Artifices] kicked to life. They weren’t generated by the system, but a creation of Throk.

While the stills and the [Fermentation Barrel] were working, Theo turned his attention to the sheet of paper Salire had handed him. It was filled with new orders from customers. People were mostly interested in his [Healing Pills], now. It was nice to see that they were a success, and they were easy enough to make with enough of the [Solidify] modifier. Time moved strangely as he crafted, but the experience rolled in all the same. Every worry about the way things were going in town melted away in his private realm, and before long he saw the notification he was waiting for. The [Drogramath Alchemy Core] rolled over to level 20.

[Drogramath Alchemy Core] received experience (1%).

[Drogramath Alchemy Core] leveled up! Level 20.

Obtained free [Drogramath Alchemy] skill point for hitting level 20 with this core.

[Drogramath Alchemy Core] gained an additional skill slot!

[Drogramath Alchemy Core] gained an enhanced effect: +6 wisdom.

A rush of accomplishment flooded through Theo. It was more than a normal level up, it was the breaking of the level 20 barrier for that core. He was right about the block, it had to do with mana control and how that influenced reagents. While he didn’t understand it completely, it was the only thing required to break through. The alchemist scrolled through the list of abilities, finding the one that he’d coveted for a while sitting there.

[Reagent Deconstruction]

Alchemy and Herbalism Skill

Rare

Understanding the composition of reagents leads to their deconstruction.

Effect:

Increases the user’s ability to deconstruct reagents.

+1 Intelligence

Zarali was convinced that this was the best skill he could have taken. As he selected it and slotted it into his core, he didn’t know if he agreed. It would be useful, he knew that much, but how useful compared to other skills? It was one of those things that required practice, which made it even more of a gamble. That didn’t dampen his excitement for the skill, though. Even as the stills and barrel went to work, he headed over to his table to practice.

As expected, the skill used mana to deconstruct materials. What Theo didn’t expect was how difficult it would be. His first hour of practice resulted in scorch marks on his table, having exploded the reagents rather than deconstructing them. He took a break to tend to the stills, cleaning them out and setting them for another run with attribute-enhancement reagents. While he worked, he thought about what went wrong.

When he pushed his mana into the reagents, they resisted. But a thought occurred to him the moment he finished loading up his stills.

“Reagents are made of properties. And that’s a bit meh because properties are just aspects of magic,” Theo said, holding his hand over a [Wind Tulip].

The alchemist focused his mind as he drew mana into his hand, watching as the purple flames danced. He allowed it to drip over the green flower, keeping the concept of wind in his mind. During refinement of the plant, he found that the modifier was [Elemental Wind]. That seemed to be the reagent’s base property, something that was inherent to it. As the liquid fire dribbled over the flower, thick smoke rose, leaving behind a pile of green ash.

At first, Theo thought he’d destroyed another sample. Until he realized what had happened. Focusing on an actionable property like [Elemental Wind] had burned away everything else, sending it into the air as smoke. What it left behind was the base of the properties, something more primal than anything he’d seen before. He poked his finger into the pile, willing the system to inspect it.

[Primal Wind]

[Primal Essence]

Legendary

Created by: Belgar

Grade: Excellent Quality

Alignment:

Drogramath (Middling Bond)

Alignment Effects:

Reduces the chance of volatile reaction while bonding.

1 Unit (powder)

The primal representation of the [Wind] property.

“Double-weird,” Theo said, scratching his chin.

The quality was too good for a first try, and the alignment bonus came through. There was only one thing to conclude from this round of experimentation. His theory about extracting pure essence-stuff was correct. More impressively, the effects of his lab translated to his personal realm. That meant there was some manner of soul-bond between him and the lab, which he couldn’t decide if he liked or not. Did he share a similar bond with every building he owned? It was impossible to tell without more experimentation, but he went further.

“Concentration goes a long way,” Theo said. “But there’s more, I think.”

Theo could always rely on there being a ton of junk in his shared inventory with Tresk. He searched before he found something suitable. A pile of mundane plant leaves that Tresk had gathered near the ocean. He couldn’t recall what they were called on Earth. They typically grew near the coast and should have had enough concentrated salt within for him to split away from the base plant. The alchemist placed 10 units of the leaves on the table and urged more mana into his palm. He focused on the idea of salt. That specific compound, nothing vague.

“The stuff you put on food,” Theo said, trying to make his will manifest.

The purple fire dripped, eating away at the pile and sending smoke spewing into the air. It bubbled for some time, but was swept away by the constant breeze. It left behind a pile of dense crystals, exactly 3 units by weight. He inspected it to be sure.

[Salt]

[Food] [Alchemy Ingredient]

Common

Created by: Belgar

Grade: Excellent Quality

Properties:

[????] [????] [????]

Theo scratched his head for a while. While excitement begged release, this produced a confusing situation. He’d refined a mundane item into an alchemy ingredient with [Reagent Deconstruction]. This was a tough concept to wrap his mind around, as he was under the assumption that magical items were magical. Mundane items were not. Having not discovered the first property was not confusing, though. That required intent, and he’d never eaten raw salt intending to discover a property. Why would he have? He licked his finger, dipped it in the salt, and had a taste.

“Yep. Salt.”

The two properties revealed were [Ease] and [Repel], both of which would need testing. If either were useful, this would be a great ingredient to distill. Those plants grew all over the place on the coast, sprawling out with no end. But, there were orders to fill in the shop so he got back to work.

“A task for another time,” Theo said, going down the list of requests.

It took a few more hours to get everything ready. Theo had a hard time figuring out how much time he’d spent in Tero’gal, but he couldn’t feel the power waning. Instead, he remained there to practice his skill and experiment within the realm.

The wheat field seemed of little use, but Theo couldn’t bring himself to remove it. He didn’t know why, but it brought a great sense of nostalgia. The cottage was fine enough, and when he entered to write down some notes he saw that someone vandalized his journal entry. He chuckled, stuffing it in the drawer and writing his thoughts on a new page. Tero’gal would be a great place to practice his new core, but he noticed his mana had depleted. A supply of [Mana Pills] would be necessary if he wanted to make the most of this place as a practice realm.

Stamina wasn’t diminished as greatly as mana, though. That might have been an effect from the lab, though. But time rolled by, and the alchemist found himself more eager to return to the mortal realm. Heading over to the edge of the island, he looked down to observe Tresk and Alex for a while. The gosling didn’t join him on his journey, although maybe she should have. The Marshling was fighting through some foul-looking dungeon, appearing to be frozen in place. With his inventory full of the orders and more [Refined Hallow Ground Essence], he pushed off and descended into those clouds.

A moment later he was standing in the lab with only five minutes having passed in the real world. It was hard not to grin when he heard Salire knocking on the lab’s door, then letting herself in.

“Also, Theo… Just don’t feel like you have to rush yourself for the orders. Okay?” she asked.

“Of course not,” Theo said, withdrawing all the requested items from his inventory and setting them on his table.

“Oh. Alright,” Salire said, awkwardly moving to collect the items. “Guess we’re just gonna ignore that, huh?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I checked your stocks. You didn’t have enough. Now you do,” Salire said, chuckling. “Since I’m getting paid, I’ll ignore it. Just be happy that my weird boss’ lab is missing a table, a barrel, and 2 stills. Yep.”

“Exactly,” Theo said, clapping a hand over the woman’s shoulder. “Glad you’re reasonable.”

Theo fished the salt from his inventory, scooped it up from the table, and held his fist out. “Want some salt?”

Theo departed the lab, leaving behind a confused shopkeeper with a handful of salt. While he trusted Gridgen to do the right thing with the mine, it wouldn’t hurt to check up on the man. The combat signal from the [Lesser Metal Golems] didn’t help matters, either.

Chapter 5

Status and Schemes

Dead Dog Mine was a valuable asset to Broken Tusk. While the influx of Elves had bolstered their ranks, there was no longer a trickle of people asking for citizenship. Theo found Sarna Dev outside of the mine, instructing some of her newer hires on how to work the mine. Theo waited nearby, eyes lingering on the crate outside. It was full of nuggets ready to be smelted, slated to become ingots for export. He thought about their export strategy, and how it had evolved over the weeks.

Without the northern pass, and with Fenian in the wind, it was impossible to send anything afar. Every trade deal they’d made with buyers in Qavell vanished. Coins that once flowed now dried up like a creek bed in a drought, leaving the alchemist to fret by the mine. Now those resources were bound for the towns within the Free City Alliance. Rivers would get a trickle at an absurdly low rate, while Gronro got the most.

Do you know if undead drop loot? Theo asked through the [Tara’hek Communication] skill.

Alex chirped a response in his mind before Tresk could speak. The alchemist pat her on her little head.

They drop stuff in the dungeons. But I don’t think the undead attacking our alliance are generated by the system, Tresk said.

There’s a thought. How were they generated?

No clue, Tresk said, her voice sing-song.

And that was their conversation. The Marshling was pushing herself hard to level up her new core. Theo withdrew the box Khahar gave him, staring at the contents. The even smaller box within contained several vials with seeds. And a letter. Reading it for the first time was like a punch in the gut. A heartfelt message and instructions on how to grow the impossibly rare plants. But those thoughts fell away when Sarna snapped her fingers, gaining his attention.

“How can I help you, mayor?” she asked.

“Actually, it’s…” Theo stopped himself. He liked that old title better. “It’s about the mine. I just wanted to check on production.”

“Then why do we give production reports?” Sarna asked, laughing. “Come on. I’ll give you the tour.”

The Human woman led him around the mine, showing him the new veins they’d struck. They weren’t actually veins, just sections of rock that spawned in the nuggets. Columns of stone rested in the center of passageways, rich with glittering copper. A few levels down, and Theo was impressed with the expanded iron tunnels. Further still and he saw the purple-black nuggets of [Drogramathi Iron]. She gave him the numbers on their production and he was satisfied enough.

“Silver is still a problem, huh?” Theo asked.

“We’ve been focused on expanding the upper floors,” Sarna said, closing an iron door behind her.

Theo had the idea to create staging areas in the tunnels. Large, defensible rooms that rested in choke-points. Down a dimly lit hall, he spotted a [Lesser Metal Golem] standing over the bodies of several demon-dogs. The alchemist was certain they had names, but he hadn’t bothered to learn them. Just another strange quirk of the system that wanted to make the mine more dangerous.

“Your guys are doing all the work down here. I even saw one use the gate,” Sarna said. “Then there’s the doom room. That’s what the miners call it—they hate it.”

There was a reason they hadn’t dug deeper from this point. When Theo discovered the room with his [Tunneling Potion], he found Alex. After that, it seemed too dangerous to dig deeper. Fear of a cavern beneath had stayed both his and the miners’ hands. Instead of backing away from the problem this time, Sarna got Gridgen and they got to discussing the idea of digging deeper. They toured more of the mine, and the pair had another discovery to show.

“Solid,” Gridgen said, swinging a pick against a pale gray wall. It reverberated in his hand, but produced no chips.

“This is the edge of the mine,” Theo said, looking back onto the darkened tunnel from where they came. “It’s massive. Wait, that means no one can mine from the other side, right?”

“Yeah, that’s a good thing. But that might not bode well for your idea of finding a cave,” Gridgen said.

Theo tapped his foot for a moment, a new nervous habit he’d picked up. Something within him whispered that if they dug down, they’d find a cavern. It wasn’t the normal whisper he’d experienced from his Drogramathi cores. Those had been mostly silent. It was something else. As though the [Tara’hek Core] was doing the whispering. Alex chirped.

“Alright,” Theo said. “Well, do you guys need anything? Are we good on the whole mine project?”

“Better than good,” Sarna said, puffing her chest out with pride. “Give the word and we’ll dig down.”

Theo thought for a moment before responding. “Let’s take a look at the bottom level again.

Theo, Gridgen, and Sarna made their way back to the bottom floor. It was nice to see all the Elves working, and they all seemed happy enough. Even if some still didn’t speak the native Qavelli tongue, they got by with gestures and a few words. The most important thing was that they were fed, clothed, and housed. It would be a disservice to Fenian’s big plan if he let those people down.

The group examined the bottom floor again. Gridgen summoned a few miners to knock some walls in around the strange Demonic shrine, but they got no response from the devices within. On the other side was more rock, simply confirming their theory that the room had been placed by a god magically. Discussion and prodding went on for hours without an answer, but it was enough information for Theo to move forward.

“Just keep doing what you’re doing,” Theo said. “I’ll talk to Aarok and see what he thinks.”

“Whatever you want, boss,” Gridgen said.

The day waned, and Theo’s stomach grumbled. He got the sense that Alex was also hungry, and fed her a few worms on their way to the tavern. Stepping out from the mines and into the humid air of the Season of Fire covered him a sheen of sweat that didn’t seem to fade. The alchemist picked at the hole in the front of his robes as he went, noting that the fabric had stitched itself back together slightly. Slowly, but it was working.

Tresk signaled she was headed for the tavern, but Theo picked up Aarok on the way. The Half-Ogre was doing his thing at the Adventurer’s Guild and seemed eager enough to eat.

“Been a while since you’ve invited me,” Aarok said.

“Not sure I’ve ever invited you,” Theo said. “You normally just drop in.”

Today’s menu was interesting. While mead was served nightly, Xam had prepared some Karatan steaks from Rivers and Daub. Once Theo told Tresk about the dish, she appeared next to him in an instant, using their [Tero’gal Dreampassage] ability. The party sat, Alex in her little box, and they waited for their food.

“Thought I already gave you approval for the mine thing,” Aarok said, sipping his mead.

“Things change. I wanted to make sure,” Theo said.

“You have my approval,” Aarok said. “I think of it like this, right? If there’s stuff underground, we should get it. There might be some fancy alchemy ingredients, right?”

“There may be.”

“Or monsters,” Tresk said with a nod. “You know me. Always eager to kill monsters. Stab stab stab.”

“How about Gronro?” Theo asked. “How are they actually doing?”

“Extremely well,” Aarok said. “They’d have been overwhelmed without your potions, which… Well, I don’t really want to say anything.”

“Come on.”

“It’s ‌odd. Right?” Aarok said. His face took on a hard expression. “You had a potion ready before the undead attack.”

Theo let out a sigh, shifting his gaze to the window. Light faded over the town outside, casting long shadows across the bathhouse. He’d wondered if Fenian had used him for that purpose, or if there was more to it. It would be impossible to predict what the Elf was doing, leaving all questions as useless to ask.

“Is your concern about Fenian?” Theo asked. “You’re assuming he caused the undead, right? Well, good for him. Aarok… Broken Tusk has independence.”

Aarok leaned in, looking over his shoulder then back at the alchemist. “And you’ve claimed a realm. Another impossible thing in a town of impossible things. When does it end, Theo?”

“It’s my realm, too,” Tresk said, glaring at the Half-Ogre. “Oh! I met that Benton guy. God of death winter?”

“Death and winter,” Theo corrected.

“You’re talking to other gods?” Aarok asked, letting out a sigh of frustration. “You want me to tell you about protecting the mine… Meanwhile you’re off talking to weird gods.”

“He’s a minor god. In an infant realm. From what I understand, he just ascended. Was only level 100,” Theo said.

Aarok slapped his face, and continued to do so until the food was delivered. Tresk had already devoured hers by the time he stopped smacking, leaving angry red marks on his cheeks. “Alright. I’m going into optimistic mode. Here it goes. Any moment now.” Another series of slaps. “What do we always do when you pull some crazy crap out of your butt? We exploit it. How can you exploit this realm thing for the town?”

“I already am,” Theo said.

“Yeah, I saw your stills,” Tresk said. “And a powdery substance that looked suspiciously like… Salt.”

“Salt?” Xam asked, poking her head into the booth.

“Do you make a habit of eavesdropping?” Theo asked.

“I do. And I’m running low on salt,” she said with an excited nod.

Theo rolled his shoulders, trying to work out a knot that was forming in his upper back. This was a problem that needed to be sorted like a Broken Tusker. Seize whatever weird crap happened by the hair and make it work.

“I’m happy to sell you salt, Xam,” Theo said.

“I’m happy to buy it,” she said, holding her hand out. “Gimmie.”

“I don’t have any on me. It’s been a busy day.”

“Deliver it here, and you’ll have coin. Market rate, of course,” Xam said, vanishing before anyone could say anything more.

Theo cut a bite out of his steak, forking it and staring at the meat for a long moment. Aarok was always going to find out about the realm. The alchemist was bad at keeping secrets, but did that even matter? He trusted these people in town with his life. Often enough to call them his brothers and sisters, not just numbers on a spreadsheet in his interface.

“Time moves differently in Tero’gal,” Theo said. “5 minutes out here is like 12 hours in there. So, I get an extra 12 hours a day to work on projects.”

“How in the hells does that work?” Aarok asked.

“Magic!” Tresk shouted.

“I can imagine hundreds of scenarios where it would be useful. Time-sensitive tasks that require alchemy. I can bring things between our realm and the mortal plane, so that’s even better,” Theo said.

“Alright, Theo. I don’t need to say this, do I? I trust you to exploit it for our gain,” Aarok said.

“Always for the betterment of Broken Tusk,” Theo said. “Now, can we talk about something else? I’d like to eat.”

Aarok honored his Archduke’s request and changed the topic away from the alchemist. Instead, he talked about the training program they’d established for the residents of Gronro-Dir. The surprising part was that he’d also roped in some people from Rivers and Daub. Cut off from the unified Adventurer’s Guild to the north, they didn’t have support. Without the Half-Ogre’s offer, they would have disbanded. Lacking funds to continue, and holding only one regional dungeon, they needed Broken Tusk’s guild.

So they signed contracts, facilitated by Alise, that put Rivers and Daub’s Adventurer’s Guild as a vassal to Broken Tusk’s. That gave Theo an idea, which Aarok had already thought of. It was another way to free the small town from the nobles, creating the possibility of a coup.

Theo leaned in after hearing the news, fixing his gaze on Aarok. “I’ve seen how a coup goes, my friend. I’ve been in the streets when they rounded the other up. Do you understand how that ends?”

“Don’t act like you’re the only one with blood on your hands, Theo,” Aarok said, throwing his shoulders back and locking eyes. “You can’t pretend like you don’t have a last resort. Last resort. That’s what this is. Not our first pick.”

Theo relaxed, leaning back in his chair. It wasn’t a horrible idea. In fact, it was his first idea for making Rivers more useful to them. He and Tresk had discussed the idea of taking them by force and installing their own leadership, but that would never end well. But as a last resort, it wasn’t bad. Instead of pursuing that idea any further, the alchemist thought about Alran Cherman’s most valuable feature. He tapped his foot a few times before nodding to himself.

“Cherman might give up the reins willingly,” Theo said. “What if we let them pick a leader, and Alran can take up a different position.”

The alchemist felt the idea flow from his mind and through the [Tara’hek Core]. Into Tresk’s stabby little brain. “Spymaster?” she asked.

Theo nodded to himself. That wasn’t a bad idea. Alran was far too informed for someone in such a small town. He knew about the war with Veosta before he should have, and the undead attack. Which meant his network of informants was vast, or just extremely good at what they did.

“We could use a Spymaster,” Aarok said with a nod. “Think he’s willing to give up his position as head of the Chairs? To be a spy full time?”

“I suspect he’s already a spy full time.” Theo chuckled. “That’s me going full Broken Tusker. Finding what a person is best at and making them do it. He could be listening right now. If so, please contact me so we can discuss this.”

Aarok snorted a laugh. “Alright, I need to head out. Thanks for the food.”

“No bath?” Tresk said, offering him puppy-dog eyes.

“No. I’ve got something to attend to,” Aarok said, standing. “As much as I’d like to take a bath… Gotta settle for the bath in a bottle.”

Aarok departed. Tresk and Theo shared a look, then a shrug. They made their way to the bath and settled in for the evening. They discussed the problem over their private communication, coming to no definite conclusion. But the alchemist understood the importance of being informed about his enemies, having served in that role many times before. He couldn’t stop his mind from wandering to Yuri. To Khahar, fighting a war in the heavens. Perhaps that man would fight wars forever. Ceaseless engagements without respite.

But there were other things to talk about before the pair entered the Dreamwalk for the night. Theo had been putting off his [Governance Core] pick for a while, but not for lack of trying. The options didn’t appeal to him, but that was before the planting of his [Kingdom Core]. Now there were a few things that caught his eye, clearly unlocked by his role as Archduke.

[National Status]

Governance Skill

Legendary

Grants the owner of a nation the ability to view information about their nation. This skill includes a communication network between all towns and cities within spheres of influence.

Effect:

Grants a new tab in your administration screen, allowing you to view information about your nation.

Allows you to communicate with the leaders and administrators of subordinate towns and cities.

Grants a portion of your existing administrator skills to your subordinate towns or cities.

“That’s one of them skills,” Tresk said, floating in the water as Theo read it off to her. “Where you just gotta take it. Right?”

“We have communication already, but it would be nice if we had a different one. Currently, only the person holding the crystal can use it,” Theo said. “And I think Alise and Gwyn can only use it because I set the Lady Administrator title for them.”

“Kinda silly that you just pass out lord and lady titles like they’re candy,” Tresk said.

“Why? I can take them away whenever I want,” Theo said, waving her away. “It costs nothing, and grants them more privileges to use our shared administrator interface.”

“Just saying. Some people might take offense to that,” Tresk said.

“Those people can go kick rocks,” Theo said, closing his interface.

The alchemist wouldn’t select the skill tonight. If the leaders in the other towns called him so late, it would be annoying. Instead, he would do it tomorrow morning. It was time to have a bath and nothing more, so he soaked in the warm water and let his worries wash away. Aarok’s words were comforting, even if they came from such an aggressive person. He had a mind for war, even if he’d never fought one. He and Luras were slated to join the Qavelli Irregulars before they were discharged. A blow to their egos, but the training remained.

Theo checked the status of the nation when they were done with their bath. He found that their energy had dropped from 50% to 45%, and decided it was time to experiment before bed. It was a brief experiment. Inserting one gold coin brought the energy of the town up 10% from where it was. But that wouldn’t remain static. The alchemist knew enough to understand it would cost more as the nation grew. As the requirements of the towns within it burgeoned.

Tresk, Theo, and Alex headed off to their beds in the Newt and Demon. A flash of an idea passed through his mind, but he half-way dismissed it. Wouldn’t it be nice if they had a house to call their own? Not just a room next to their lab? An idea worthy of pursuit, once he wasn’t worrying about generating enough money so an entire nation wouldn’t go under.

Chapter 6

Eggplants and Realms

A tangle of planters loaded with reagent-bearing plants spread into the distance. Alex hunted in the underbrush, desperate to find bugs and worms to stuff into her bill. Theo brushed his hand along the leaves, not feeling the same sensation as he did in Tero'gal. It was a dull sense of feedback compared to the more-real realm, whatever that meant. The more time the alchemist spent away from the mortal plane, the more he wondered what it was to begin with. Was it reality as he knew back on Earth, or another reflection cast by the system?

Questions without answers seem to plague him, now. But that wasn’t among his chief concerns. Grinding experience had become his singular focus, everything else giving way to that need to advance. While his other cores were gaining experience, feeding points into his personal level, he had hit a wall. The conclusion was logical, though. Without all 3 of his current cores at level 20, his personal level wouldn’t advance. So he’d summoned more planters than he needed, found a steady pace of work and went at it.

Tresk approached from a distance, finding a ponderous path through the wooden boxes. Theo greeted her with a nod, but she’d been off lately. It was as though she was constantly thinking about something, and the answer was clear. Since the attack, she hadn’t reacted. No additional combat training, or clever tricks with potions.

“Because they didn’t work,” Tresk said, chuckling. She was getting better at reading his mind by the day. “Spent all that time working on our strategy and it fell apart.”

“So, you’re giving up?” Theo asked.

Tresk let out a sharp laugh. “Like hell I’m giving up. I hired 5 adventurers to shadow you all day. Real mean sons of bitches good at stealth. Gave them orders to bonk you over the head and drag you back to town if you left.”

Theo was less surprised than he wished he was. That was on-brand for the woman. Under the spiky exterior, she did it out of love.

“I appreciate it,” Theo said, focusing his mind. If he tried hard, he could feel some of her emotions and thoughts. Not as clearly as she could, but it was there. “You’re waiting for me to get my next core. To see how good it is as a defensive class.”

“Yup,” Tresk said, pointing a finger at the book he held. “Any progress with old Tor-whatever’s secret language?”

“Standard Dronon nonsense,” Theo said with a shrug.

Each page of the book she’d given him was a piece of an overall pattern. He didn’t have the word to describe it accurately, but it was like the spell arrays Xol’sa used. Each piece of the overall array were words in her own made-up language. Those words were placed in a sequenced, circular pattern on the page. Since Toru’aun had given him the key, it was easy enough to understand. Those individual symbols connected with the other, creating a webwork of other arrays. Knowing where to connect them was a matter of attaching one part of the story to the other until it all flowed.

“Good news on that front,” Theo said, turning the book around for Tresk to see. “The first spell she gave me is defensive. Hard to tell with the story-telling nature of her magic, but I think it makes a temporary magic shield. Shell? She calls it a shell, if I had to translate it into Qavelli.”

“Well, there’s a question for ya. Is it a constructed language, or something more ancient like Axpashi?” Tresk asked.

“Have you been dumping points into [Intelligence]?” Theo asked.

“No. I’m stealing your brain juice.”

“I think there’s a general Drononi language somewhere. Toru’aun based her magic language off of that,” Theo said. “I know, because it’s similar enough to Drogramathi.”

“Sounds boring. I mean, super interesting. Whatever. The language part is boring, but the spell part is cool,” Tresk said. “We need to expand our realm so you can practice in Tero’gal more.”

Theo expected a massive surge in his power when he got his new core. He still didn’t understand Toru’aun’s spell completely, but Xol’sa could help with that. The Elf had been too busy working on his [Dungeon Engineer] core, but that would stop soon enough. Once he had an understanding, he’d simply have to help the alchemist. There were too many questions about the way the magic worked. It wasn’t the time to think about those things, though. The Dreamwalk was fading, and Theo had enough experience to hit level 20 in his [Drogramath Herbalism Core]. Once he left the dream realm, he’d be hit with choices.

Since Theo pointed out Tresk’s lack of training, she decided to take the last bit of the Dreamwalk and do more training. The Marshling produced a series of weapons and forced him to try them out. He found none of them to his liking. Not the small daggers, the sword the size of him, or the spears. They all felt weird in his hands.

With a thought, Theo produced the service weapon they’d given him to kill the harbinger. For the time, it was considered an antiquated weapon. Gunpowder wasn’t just on the decline, it was basically useless, but the people who sent him to kill the Harbinger insisted it would work. Something about magnetic acceleration and depleted uranium would pierce whatever defenses the creature had. It hadn’t worked, but the weight of the weapon in his hands was a comfort.

“Now, if I could have one of these,” Theo said, charging the rifle on the side. It made an extremely satisfying mechanical sound. “We’d be in business.”

“Damn, boy. Yeah, maybe we could build guns. You wanna go out there and shoot people? All pacifist and everything.”

Theo sighted the weapon, resting his finger on the trigger. A long, steady breath and he squeezed slightly, then let up. Memories of the Harbinger came back. He didn’t shoot back then, did he? Everyone else did, but he didn’t. The alchemist allowed the weapon to fade into nothingness without shooting.

“That’s a matter of synergy,” Theo said. “Unless we find a class that uses guns, what’s the point? I’ve had the idea for a cannon for a while, but the towers basically do that. We’ll leave this for another time. Maybe when I build my airship.”

“Your what?”

Theo waved her off. That was still an infant idea in his mind. He strove to keep those creeping ideas out of his head, focusing on what he could work on now. Instead, the pair talked about what they could do now that would help the town. Money, training, and ideas were the concepts they settled on. Although boats were the most important thing, the shipwright could only work so fast.

When the Dreamwalk ended, Theo sprung up from his bed. The system greeted him that morning with a series of messages.

[Drogramath Herbalist  Core] leveled up! Level 20.

Obtained free [Drogramath Herbalist Core] skill point for hitting level 20 with this core.

[Drogramath Herbalist Core] gained an additional skill slot!

[Drogramath Herbalist  Core] gained an enhanced effect: +6 Vigor.

…

[Theo Spencer] leveled up! Level 20.

[Theo Spencer] received one free point.

[Theo Spencer] received an additional core slot.

With the complexity of Toru’aun’s magic, Theo went with another point into [Wisdom], putting him at 29. The additional point in his [Drogramath Herbalist Core] put him at 21 [Vigor]. He selected the [National Status] skill and slotted it into his [Governance Core] before looking over the skills for his herbalism core. While there were selections that seemed good, they came with a problem. He had enough new things to learn without adding another thing to the list. But one skill stuck out to him.

[Grove Tender]

Herbalism Skill

Rare

Drogramath’s legendary desire to blanket the world in reagents has been translated to this skill. Your success in tending to plants will increased significantly.

Effect:

Increase the rate of growth for all plants you tend.

Increase the survival rate of all plants you tend.

Reduces the chance that spirit plants will wither under your care.

+1 Intelligence

Every part of the skill was alright. Not amazing, just decent compared to the other options. But it was the last line under the effects section that gave Theo pause. He removed the wooden box from his inventory, withdrawing the note written by Yuri himself and smiled.

“Spirit plants,” Theo said, running his finger of the assorted seeds. “You have to wonder if he planned this out.”

“What are those?”

“Legendary plants that are notoriously difficult to grow,” Theo said. “So hard that you cannot grow them without the correct skills. And they take a long time to grow even with the skill.”

“So, you’re taking that skill. Right? I mean, Khahar gave you the seeds,” Tresk said, poking her finger at the box. “That means they’re worth growing.”

Theo selected the skill and slotted it in his [Drogramath Herbalist Core] without question. He felt a mental ping and ignored it for the moment, returning the box to his inventory. Opening his administrator’s interface, he found the new section promised by the [National Status] ability. He found information about both Gronro-Dir and Rivers and Daub, detailing their income, production, citizens, and so on. But there was also a small window. A chat box.

Grot: What the hell is this?

There was even a small image of the Dwarf’s face as an icon on the side. Theo suppressed a laugh and responded, mentally typing his message.

Theo: Just a new feature. How’s it going up north?

Alise: Hey! Theo, we need to talk about this. You can’t just unlock skills and not tell me.

Grot: The north is fine. Running low on them cloud potions, though.

Theo: They’re undead-killing potions.

Grot: Whatever. I need more. Gonna run out today.

Theo: I’ll have my people work on it.

Alise: Are you ignoring me?

Grot: Nice talking to you Archduke. Gotta kill some undead ;)

“Alright, I’m not cool with the Dwarf using emojis,” Theo said, shutting the interface off. “That’s one step away from filling my interface with eggplants.”

“Egg-what?” Tresk asked.

A loud series of bangs came from the front door downstairs. Theo winced, but grabbed Alex to use as a shield and went downstairs, flinging the door open. Alise didn’t look happy with this turn of events, but she didn’t look thrilled either. She looked as though she just got out of bed, still wearing a silken nightgown that swept the dirty ground.

“Why are you ignoring my messages?” she asked.

Theo held Alex in front of him. The gosling chirped,then nipped at the air between them.

“I figured you’d be here to beat down my door. No need airing our dirty laundry in the group chat,” Theo said.

“Group what? Alright, explain.”

Theo explained the new skill, reading the description for her to hear. Since she was one of two Lady Administrators, she shared many of his skills from the [Governance Core]. Apparently, that extended to his nation-wide skills.

“Basically, I was going to tell you,” Theo said. “Figured it would be nice for you to have. You know, so we don’t need to use the annoying crystals.”

“I don’t think the crystals are annoying,” Alise said, crossing her arms. But her face softened after a moment, then her eyes went glassy. “But this gives us an insight into what each member of the nation has. Oh! I’m going to skin Alran alive. He’s been lying about his stockpiles.”

“Surprised? I’m not,” Tresk said.

“As long as you’re angry at someone else, I’m happy,” Theo said with a shrug.

“Alright. I’m going to gather my people. I haven’t even had breakfast, Theo,” Alise said.

“Yeah, I like your nightgown,” Tresk said, giggling.

Alise narrowed her eyes, turned on the spot, then stomped away.

“Hope she’s not too pissed,” Theo said, opening his interface to check the messenger. He laughed.

Alran: I can explain.

Alise: Explain when I peel the flesh from your bones, you worm!

Gwyn: We’ll have a meeting. Calm down, Alise.

Alise: >:|

“Alright, am I missing a button here,” Theo said, inspecting the interface. He couldn’t find anywhere to type out the emojis. “Maybe if I just think about an emotion while typing… Oh. Yep.”

Theo: :P

Alran: He’s sticking his tongue out at you. Direct your ire toward the Archduke, please.

Alise: >:(

“Enough of that,” Theo said, closing his interface. “I’m not about to watch politics devolve into a series of rude emojis.”

“But you could.”

Theo shook his head, heading out without saying another word. He stuffed Alex in his satchel and headed off to eat leftover steak. Assuming there was any left over, that was something that Xam often sold out of immediately. Still, she had a way of cooking up something simple that was still delicious. The group took their seats at the booth and sipped on tea as they waited for their breakfast to be prepared.

“Oh, Tresk,” Theo said, opening their shared inventory and removing one waxy, green leaf. “Meant to ask you where you got this. On the coast, right?”

“Yeah, they’re all over the place.”

“Can I ask why you have them?”

Tresk popped the leaf into her mouth and began chewing. “It's yummy.”

“Fair enough. Mind collecting more? Like… A lot more?” Theo asked.

“Yeah. No problem.”

Unfortunately, Xam didn’t have any steak leftovers from last night. Instead, she provided delicious Zee flatbread, slathered in gravy and ground wolf meat. It was a pleasant meal, but the gravy didn’t go very well with the sweetened moss tea. Something about the savory dish sat at odds with the sweetness of the earthy tea. That hardly seemed to matter. Comparing the spread before him to the wolf meat stew the tavern was known for before she got her cores, this was a feast.

When the meal was done, Theo handed over Alex for the day and headed for the monolith. Tresk was on wall patrol duty today, and wouldn’t venture outside of the protective range of the towers. She rarely got to spend one-on-one time with the gosling, owing to her constant delving of dungeons. But the alchemist didn’t have to wait long for Xol’sa to open his portal, and stepped through the moment the shimmering pane of black glass appeared. He stumbled, then righted himself, finding the Elf standing there with a look of surprise on his face.

“You really should give it time to stabilize,” Xol’sa said.

“I’m a bit of an expert on dimensional travel, now.”

“Doubtful. Come. To the study,” Xol’sa said, gesturing to the twisting staircase that encircled the interior of the tower.

Xol’sa had a collection of interesting artifacts. Things that weren’t just limited to the realm of magical practices. He had several alchemical devices that Theo was interested in. With his limited time, he had no chance to ask about them. Today was no different. The alchemist withdrew his [Toru’aun Mage’s Core] from his inventory and held it out for the Elf to inspect.

“Is it finally time?” Xol’sa asked, his normally placid face looking excited. “For me to no longer be the sole mage of Broken Tusk?”

“It is, my friend,” Theo said. He took a seat in a red, plush-looking sofa and set the core down on the table. Then he withdrew the book that the god had given him and got to explaining everything.

The Elf watched with a mix of emotions that ranged from shocked to impressed. Once Theo explained how he thought Toru’aun’s language worked, Xol’sa could make some sense of it. He claimed to have some racial skill that helped with languages, but the alchemist’s theory was that he was simply incredibly smart.

“There’s a few things to discuss here,” Xol’sa said, steepling his fingers. “Uz’Xulven brought you to Uz’Godan Bokrak Tal to speak with Toru’aun. Then, she allowed you to pass into Tero’gal. Damn, that’s interesting.”

The Elf rummaged through his things for a moment, finding something to record the information. His pen flew across the pages, writing faster than the speed of thought.

“I’ve used my [Planar Mage’s Core] for years to pass over the Bridge to go from one place to another,” Xol’sa said, drawing a simple diagram on the page. “But never through.”

“Why not?” Theo asked. “It’s easy enough for me. Your core should have some skill that lets you pierce the realms, right?”

“Right. But guess what? No one invited me to take the Bridge. Unlike you… Well, that’s interesting. Right? If you think about it, just having a core doesn’t allow one to take the Bridge,” Xol’sa said, tapping his pen on the page furiously. He left large blots of ink to stain the page. “But you’re saying your mortal body goes to Tero’gal? The whole thing? What about Tresk?”

“Yeah, Tresk goes too,” Theo said.

“Fascinating,” Xol’sa said. “And you said Tero’gal rests with the infant realms. That’s even more interesting. I need to research this. Could you please call on me the next time you go to that realm?”

“Absolutely,” Theo said. “I’d like to understand it more myself. It’s all a bit… You know… Weird.”

“Extremely weird.”

“So, how is your new core?” Theo asked.

“Oh, you wouldn’t believe the things I can do,” Xol’sa said, chuckling. He laughed for long enough to make it maniacal. “I’m experimenting on the [River Dungeon] to start. It takes a lot of mana, but I’ve been able to manipulate the way it works. We can have instances, lockouts for certain people… I can make it so only those with passes can enter.”

“Instances. So more than one group can run it at a time,” Theo said, nodding. “How many can you support right now?”

“Right now? 2. But my core is still low,” Xol’sa said. “More importantly, I have a better idea of how the energy is fed into the dungeons. And something even more interesting.”

“What’s that?”

“Remember how I told you there was more than one source of power for the dungeons? That’s why they’re growing so quickly? How we sent the power off to other dungeons in the network, triggering a massive monster wave?”

“I remember.”

“Want to take a guess which realm has become the second most dominant one? Next to Drogramath’s, of course.”

Theo only had to think for a few heartbeats to conclude which realm it was. He tapped his foot a few times before looking the Elf in the eyes. “Tero’gal.”