Chapter 68: 67. Remember

Ratska charged toward Ruzfol, but I held him off as I caught his neck with my left hand. I raised him off the ground, and he thrashed around trying to release himself from my grip.

Silence filled the room, and the guards lowered their spears. They no longer looked at us with disdainful gazes; most of them stared at Akeniska with wide eyes and tilted heads.

The remaining guards grinned as they leered at Ratska, and he cursed them as he screamed at me to let him go.

I didn’t take him for the type to get angry, but this isn’t the first time that the Lizardfolks treated him badly.

Asides from Quaya, Zinnia, and Gerz, everyone else either called him a dwarf or sneered at him. I wondered about the reason behind their behavior, and I planned on asking the chief about it when the time was suitable.

All of a sudden, Ratska stopped flailing and moving erratically, and he inhaled deeply.

“First, it was the town’s guard calling me a dwarf. Then, this smokey bastard treated me like invisible air,” He shouted, “And now, I am being called a dwarven slave! What the hell! Have some respect! I am not sure why you’re acting this way, but taking out your personal issues with Gnomes on me is a sign of immaturity and lack of foresight.”

Akeniska’s face darkened and when the Gnome spoke coherently, she crossed her legs and fidgeted with her fingers as she waited for him to stop speaking.

Is it just me, or she’s disappointed with Ratska’s reaction?

I released the grip on the Gnome’s neck and put him on the ground. He thanked me and proceeded to massage his neck as he stared at Akeniska.

She sighed and opened her mouth.

“It’s just a mistake, and you’re overreacting. People like you are slaves in the place that we came from, and my regal speaker didn’t know any better,” her voice was high-pitched, and it was unpleasant, “you’re embarrassing your companion and erroneously framing my guards as racist people, so I’ll make an exception for you. Ruzfol will apologize to you in person later on, and you’ll be given permanent access to an exquisite room in my castle to alleviate your frustration.”

“What a load of bullshit! We certainly had problems with slavery due to our feeble bodies and ineptitude as fighters, but calling us dwarves is an insult to the dreadful history between them and many of our tribes.” shouted Ratska, “More importantly, I am pretty sure your scribe already identified me, so you should have enough information about me not to blunder like that. Besides, stop shifting the blame to that speaker of yours; We all know that you’re the one who wrote the text on the scroll.”

Ruzfol was still holding the scroll with both hands, and he was staring at the text. He didn’t react when Akeniska and Ratska spoke about him; it seemed like he was in a state of trance.

I wasn’t convinced that a servant would do such a brazen thing that might undermine his master’s reputation. I guessed that she wrote that part intentionally, to see whether she could get away with it or not.

Akeniska stared at the regal speaker for a moment, before she sighed and looked at Ratska.

“What do you want?” She tilted her head as she spoke with a stern voice, “keep in mind that I’m only tolerating you because of your relationship with Jason.”

“Apologize,” Ratska crossed his arms, “Now, in front of all your guards.”

“Cocky, aren’t you?” she giggled, “Guards! Eject him from the castle.”

The armored Lizardfolks that were standing behind the throne charged in our direction and most of them hissed as they did so. Ratska hastily pulled two potions from the bag of holding that was attached to his waist, and he raised both of his arms as if he was about to throw the flasks at the enemies.

Those explosive potions might kill many guards; an unnecessary bloodbath will ensue after that!

Akeniska grinned as if she was interested in the mayhem that would happen, and her speaker hid behind her throne. I realized that the only way to stop the bloodbath was through my interference, even though I didn’t want to use my powers due to my body-soul connection issue.

Besides, most of my offensive skills would’ve caused a lot of inadvertent damage to the surroundings.

This is the best opportunity to try that skill; I hope it doesn’t deteriorate my body-soul connection too much…

“[Aura]” I whispered, and black translucent fog surrounded my body. Then, the fog extended to the surroundings until it filled the room; all the Lizardfolks stopped in their tracks and started trembling.

Akeniska’s body started quivering, and she spoke softly with a soft voice.

“What a powerful skill…,” she said, “you don’t see such a thing every day; it seems like you’re slightly better than other Initial Returnees when they were at your level. Please, turn off your aura; it’s suffocating me, and the guards are losing consciousness already.”

Many Lizardfolks fell unconscious to the ground, others huddled toward each other, and some of them rolled into balls to protect the vital parts of their bodies.

Oh, it’s working better than I expected!

These guards had levels in the eighties, which was impressive even though most of their classes were of the common grade. I didn’t expect my aura to have such a staggering effect, but I wasn’t going to complain about a positive thing.

The Lizardfolks looked miserable, but I didn’t turn off my aura yet.

“Apologize to Ratska first,” I said, “Then I’ll turn off my skill.”

Akeniska clicked her tongue and stared at Ratska for a couple of seconds.

“We’re sorry for the inconvenience,” she whispered.

It wasn’t a perfect apology, but it was good enough.

I turned off my aura but didn’t let my guard down. There was a high chance for the guards to attack us once more, and I needed to be ready in case such a scenario occurred.

As I expected, some of the Lizardfolks held their spears and resumed charging at us. However, Akeniska held her hand and shouted.

“Stop the assault,” she ordered, “I need all the guards to leave, except for Rauchlim. You should also leave, Ruzfol.”

Perfect…

Then, she turned toward me and spoke.

“Thank you for keeping your word,” she spoke with a softer voice; it wasn’t as jarring as her previous one, “What is it that you’re seeking by visiting our humble city? Is it wealth, resources, or even women?”

“A city whose gates are made out of Mythril isn’t exactly humble, is it?” I shook my head, “No, I came for something else entirely.”

“Maybe you’d like exotic experiences?” She asked as she tilted her head, “Follow me. As for the Gnome, Rauchlim will take him to his room; don’t worry about his safety, I wouldn’t risk making you my enemy anyway.”

I looked at Ratska, and he gave me a thumbs up and winked. He showed me one of the destructive potions that he was about to throw earlier, then he hid it back inside the bag of holding.

It seems like he can take care of himself…

His mood visibly improved after Akeniska’s apology, and he hummed a tune as he followed Rauchlim through a door in the opposite wall.

I followed Akeniska as she entered through another door that was adjacent to the previous one, then we ascended a set of spiral stairs.

“I am sure you’ll like what I prepared for you…,” she whispered.

I raised an eyebrow but followed her nonetheless. There wasn’t much light in this area, so I could only rely on my [Flawed State of Being] skill to lead me upstairs.

Akeniska opened a door, and light passed through it. She entered and motioned for me to follow her.

I found myself in an exquisite room. It was wide, with an area of at least one hundred square meters. The ceiling was decorated with gems of different shapes and colors, creating mosaic imagery. The floor was made out of white tiles, and they remained unblemished even after we stepped on them.

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There wasn’t much inside the room. A king-sized bed, two large tables, and a small nightstand. There was a door on the left side of the king-sized bed, and a large balcony to our right side.

Akeniska motioned toward one of the room’s corners; a table was there, and on top of it was a bag of holding.

“I hope you like that gift,” she whispered, “I can give you more; different things too. Just ask, and I’ll try to satisfy your wishes.”

I walked toward the table and picked up the bag of holding. It had a volume of about a thousand cubic meters, and it was filled to the brim with Mythril nuggets.

Not a bad quantity, if I was a regular adventurer that is…

“You know that mining a resource without an official license can get you in deep trouble, right?” I asked Akeniska as I turned around.

She flinched and looked away from me.

“We came early to this area, and we even had to pay extra fees to pick an area that had a reserve of valuable resources close by,” she whispered, “It’s not like we got it for free; we paid a lot and my citizens are working day and night to extract it. I can give you ten times this quantity, so how about you turn a blind eye, and vouch for us among other Earthlings for about a month? We won’t bother you after that, and we’ll prepare more Mythril for you during that month.”

I pretended to think about her offer for about a minute, but I already decided not to accept it; it wasn’t what I came here for, and it wasn’t enticing compared to what I could get if I hired them.

I clicked my tongue and shook my head.

“I’m sorry, but your offer isn’t enticing enough for anyone to entangle themselves in this illegal business,” I grinned, “Don’t try to increase the offer, as I didn’t come here to get such a thing. I came to cooperate with you.”

“Cooperate?” she tilted her head, “Can you elaborate, please?”

“I need experienced blacksmiths, and I’ve heard that the majority of this city’s citizens were masters of the craft,” I said, “Is it true that they crafted weapons for the fighters of a planet on the brink of its second breakout? That rumor seemed wild; such people shouldn’t even be here on earth unless someone had connections and bribed powerful people to bring them along.”

Not only were the blacksmiths too skilled for such a newly integrated planet, but even the fighters and the regular citizens were also over-leveled for the threats of the current Earth.

These people came from a world that had the system for quite a while, and they planned to use their advantage to thrive on our planet.

Even a poor gal like Zinnia who couldn’t afford the Translation skill had a decent level compared to most Earthlings once they emerged out of the tutorial…

I stared at Akeniska, and she was still silent. She closed her eyes, then clasped her hands together.

“Competition on advanced planets is fierce, and a new city lord like me can’t make a name for herself there. Many powerful people immigrated into my city looking for success, but we stagnated on our previous planet Sihlium.” she whispered, “Newly integrated planets are filled with opportunities, and I took a gamble. I loaned a lot of mana stones and did what I needed to do to bring all of my city’s citizens along with me. The Mythril is our only hope; we might be able to pay the debt if we make good weapons using it and sell them to rich Earthlings.”

I held the bag of holding and moved closer to Akeniska. I gave it to her, then I spoke.

“Too bad, there is no way for you to take your bribe. The contents of this bag of holding are nothing to me by the way,” I said, “I opened a guild, and I want all of the town’s citizens to immigrate to its eventual location. I’ll provide the resources needed to craft weapons, and we’ll discuss the remuneration later.”

“Oh,” she opened her eyes widely, and hissed softly, “This is too much to take in; I’ll need more details. Besides, I should consult with the citizens on this matter because it concerns them all.”

“Of course, feel free to ask anything,” I said as smiled, “You see, my guild isn’t just a regular one. We’ll have a monopoly over certain potions, and all the citizens will be able to buy them at discounted prices if they join my guild.”

“What kind of potion are you talking about?” she asked. Her tail moved around quickly, and her eyes were opened widely.

“Before that, I need to use the bathroom,” I said, “Where can I find it?”

My bladder was hurting ever since we arrived at the castle, and this was the best chance for me to empty it; Besides, I had to check the descriptions of those potions before showing them to this woman.

Akeniska motioned toward a door that was to the left of the King-sized bed. I thanked her and entered the bathroom.

There was a large bathtub to my left size; big enough to be a swimming pool according to earth’s standards. The toilet was to my right side, and I quickly discharged my bladder’s contents there.

I can’t believe that I didn’t urinate for more than two days; the system changed our bodies a lot…

Then, I took two potions out of my storage ring. The flasks were similar to the ones that contained the regular potions, but the contents differed.

The two flasks held a dark green liquid and a navy blue one respectively. The liquids twinkled when I exposed them to the light that came through the bathroom’s small window, and the phenomenon was pleasing to the eye.

I was about to examine them, but I heard whispers in the bathroom. I quickly hid the potions, in case I got ambushed by strong people.

I looked around, but I didn’t see anything. However, I felt my ears perking up when the voice whispered my name.

Hold on a minute, I’ve heard that voice somewhere before…

Then, the voice became loud enough for me to hear without concentrating too much.

“You need to remember, Jason,” he whispered, “The threads of fate are finally tying up, and everything will depend on you.”

I traced the voice’s source carefully until I found myself in front of the bathroom mirror. It was three meters tall, and two meters wide, and I could see the image of a cloaked figure inside it.

I looked back at the space behind me, and the cloaked figure wasn’t there. It was as if the mysterious person only existed inside the mirror.

The figure had a large gray robe that covered most of its body, and a dark hood that revealed none of his facial features. He wore thick black boots and dark chainmail gloves.

The outfit was similar to something that I’d seen before, and I remembered it vividly.

He’s that ‘Albert’ that I met in that dream that I had during my first class evolution; why is he appearing now of all times?

“I assume you’re one of the Glitchers,” I said, “What do you want from me? Can’t you explain the situation first?”

“I’ll be there when you least expect me,” his voice echoed, “that’s when you’ll need us the most. Remember, nothing is free in this world.”

I blinked, and the Glitcher was already gone.

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Special shout out to:

chris

GenericKane

Water Dragon

Bladesunder

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