Chapter 14 - Two surprises, one stone

Grumble~

I gripped my gut, the rough motions of my stomach screamed back at me.

“I haven’t eaten in quite a bit, no getting around it then. I only have 10 Rhan left… oh!”

I tried holding out but my hunger wouldn’t allow it. I had never experienced it on that level before.

I opened the pouch attached to my waist and pulled out a small red shard which glistened with a bright shine through the centre.

It was a monster core, one of the easiest get-rich methods in the dungeon as well. I picked that up just as I left the dungeon, I found it where the Howler was devoured.

How much would something like this cost? I’ve never gotten one before so I’m completely clueless… maybe it’s best to get it appraised by a professional.

It was a little late to be running around with it but I didn’t have another choice, I was practically broke.

I found a tacky store wedged between two larger buildings that appeared to fit my needs. Upon entering the store I was greeted by the smell of freshly lit candles which calmed my angst.

The older woman behind the counter greeted me with a warm smile as I entered through the front door.

She was dressed in beautiful purple robes with a silk material hanging from her hair, it rested on her shoulders like an open veil. The woman herself was quite well into her years but still displayed the mature beauty that most men would turn back twice for.

“Where did you find this, if you don’t mind me asking?”

She looked confused after inspecting it closer, her eyes widened further as she examined it.

Will it be a problem if I tell her I found it in the dungeon that Uriel brought me to? I don’t even fully understand it myself.

“A monster dropped it, it was a Shadow Howler.”

Her jaw dropped.

“A Shadow Howler? Those only spawn from the sixth floors though, I underestimated you.”

…

I don’t think it’s an underestimation, I barely believe it myself! That monster was from the sixth floor, how could I have beaten it then?!

While my thoughts ran rampant, my face reacted with a childish grin and forced a goofy grin to shine through.

The old woman glanced over to me once more and frowned, “Peculiar…”

Oh no! I let my inner thoughts show again, does she think I’m weird now?

She held both hands over the shard and channelled a powerful aura that lifted the stone above the countertop.

“Is this magic?”

“Yes, appraisal magic to be exact. Is it your first time seeing it up close?” The woman asked with a cheery smirk.

“Uh…yes it is. I haven't been an adventurer very long.”

Her face pulled to the centre as her jaw dropped. “But you already made it to the sixth floor? You’re a strange case, much more interesting than these nameless youngsters I usually see coming in here.”

She plucked the shard from the air and handed it back to me with a smile.

“It’s quite potent with magical energy although its size is quite small, I can sense that the monster was quite strong. If you want to sell it, I wouldn’t mind buying it for 900 Rhan.”

“Nine…nine hundred?!” I blurted out.

I knew monster cores were lightly rarer but I didn’t realise that they could sell for so much on their own! No matter how I look at this, it’s a golden opportunity!!

“Normally they wouldn’t sell for so high but since it's quite potent this core would be incredibly useful for crafting.”

“Crafting, do you mean like making weapons?” I asked.

“Yes, if you’d like I can craft or enchant something using magic cores. Although there would be a slight commission fee because of the tools needed.”

My hand gravitated to my chin as I thought it through,

Making my gear stronger would be worth it since I would be able to hunt more monsters… but I focused on gear last time. I need to stop and eat sometimes too.

I followed the advice of my restless stomach which groaned through the silence.

“I’ll just sell it for now.”

After placing the monster core behind the counter she handed me a coin purse the size of my hand.

“Pleasure doing business with you child. Oh and need anything magical done, then come to me. I’m sure we can be quite useful for each other going forward.” She winked.

“Thanks, I’ll be sure to come back soon.” I blushed with a nervous smile.

I somehow ended up with 1000 Rhan and had only one objective on how to spend it…

Growl…

“Should I go to my usual place?” I thought for a moment but my stomach began to growl even louder than usual. “I don’t think street stalls would be too filling right now…”

“Rei?” A faint voice called out from behind me.

As I turned around to the soothing voice, I noticed Kana strolling towards me from the end of the street. She seemed to have just exited the store next door with some documents in her hands.

Is she still working, doesn’t she ever sleep?

“I thought that was you, what were you doing in there?” Kana enquired as she walked up to me.

She took one glance at the store's sign and smirked. The angelic presence she brought, instantly brightened up the dreary street corner we stood in.

“This is an appraiser isn't it, did you find something interesting in the Tower?”

This might be bad, I haven’t told her about Uriel yet. I planned on keeping it to myself until I got some more answers but maybe I should tell her about the dungeon…?

I don’t think I completely understand it myself. So I left out the parts about Uriel and my…unique ability and just told her about finding a dungeon. It wasn’t weird for adventurers to enter dungeons after all.

After finishing my story, her jaw dropped. Once I mentioned the magic core that I found she was left speechless.

“…Uh…I– I don’t…” Nonsensical noises fell from her hanging mouth.

“I promise it wasn’t too dangerous and I even managed to make some good money from it!” I assured her.

I was touched to see how worried she was for me, it was a look I hadn’t seen from her before. To be fair, I had never done anything so dangerous before.

Kana lowered her head without a reply, I thought that maybe I must have messed up. I hadn't made her mad before so I didn’t know what to expect.

She wouldn’t punch me, would she? I mean I made almost a thousand Rhan from only 1 monster. Who could get mad at that…?

“…Rei.”

“Yes?!”

My body stiffened and both arms became glued to my sides.

Kana raised a finger to my nose and pressed it against my face.

“One meal. You owe me one meal for going into a dungeon without telling me!”

My body and mind were in perfect sync, neither one could have imagined those words coming from her mouth. Kana…somehow managed to ask me to take her to dinner?!!!

Even though I was delighted to go out with her and eat, I was still intimidated by the menacing finger being pressed between my eyes on the other end of that scowl.

“…okay,” I nodded in agreement.

-

On Floor 13 of the Tower.

A large tree towered over the forest of interlocked vines and vegetation. Within the furthest heights of its leaves, a feathery creature cowered in the dark. Its dull eyes focused on the radiant figure that stood before it.

The monster was easily larger than a fully grown man and yet it was cowering from someone, for something with a human appearance no less.

Who could bend a beast to such limits?

Her ivory hair flowed down to her ankles with a light pink tint at the ends. Starry pink eyes pierced into the darkness as the monster clawed at the bark of the tree trying to push itself away from her.

She approached it with a bland expression and reached out her dainty thin fingers. They crossed into the dark and pressed against its feathery body.

“You pitiful creature, you’re born in the walls of this prison called a Tower… you have no choice but to bend to my whim.”

A powerful light was born from her hand and broke out of the darkness. It overwhelmed the creature in a potent bubble of light and consumed it.

“That fool Ellios chose the humans over his own kind, for that…he will pay dearly. Let’s see how his precious humans do against my playthings.”

The powerful glow from her hand rested over the monster's skin and filled it with a raging green light. The monster's screeches flooded the Floor and writhed in response to the aura that crippled its body.

A beast that was once only a few inches taller than her, now towered over her as if she were a child.

It lowered its head to her and allowed her to rest her hand over it. No traces of cowardice remained as the monster had become completely submissive to her.

“No creature has more authority than I do, I’ll crush anything that stands in my way. Go and wreak havoc, my pet.”

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