Chapter 292 - Entirely honest (Patreon)

Flameheart Medallion (rare) - This copper medallion can unleash a torrent of heat when fueled with mana. Capable of projecting flames, it serves as both an offensive tool to scorch enemies and a defensive mechanism to create barriers of heat that deter attackers.

Edgekeeper Blade (rare) - Cycling mana through this blade dramatically enhances its sharpness, allowing it to cleave through enemy armor and flesh.

Guardian's Wristband (rare) - By channeling mana, this steel wristband generates a forceful energy field that can forcefully repel enemies and their attacks. The wristband's protective energy not only guards the wearer but can also be used to push adversaries back during close combat.

Beacon Pendant (rare) - When activated with mana, this brass pendant emits a blinding light. This intense illumination can be used to momentarily blind attackers, providing a tactical advantage by disorienting them and making it easier to land decisive blows or evade incoming attacks.

Not bad at all if I have to say so myself. I'm especially surprised by the last one. I mostly just copied the inscriptions and the effect of one of the items I found on the 4th floor. Still, it did work, even when the item I made is much uglier and probably low rare instead of mid-rare.

“Minion, here, play,” I give the medallion, blade, and wristband to my disciple. Then I sell the pendant.

Vega quickly and possessively grabs the items and rushes back into her corner of the facility where she continues to train her kinetic demon heart while also examining the items.

Just a few hours and my limit of three days will pass, and we will leave the Sanctuary. The plan is to head to the Bastion and maybe the Valley while leveling Vega until she gets her Primary class.

Of course, the plan changed a bit as I spent close to two days out, dealing with that monster that will totally get paid back for everything.

The asshole was probably as strong as the Fallen Hero or even stronger. It's hard to measure it properly without fighting both. It also is a hunter kind of enemy. Some that can track mana, disrupt mana, and with tough body.

Well, at least I got its arm and now have got myself a nice blade from Voidsteel or whatever.

Voidsteel Slicer (Epic): The Voidsteel used in this blade is renowned for its vibration-absorbing qualities, allowing the wielder to cut with unmatched precision and sharpness. The Voidsteel ensures the Slicer is nearly indestructible, effortlessly cutting through almost any material.

The blade is extremely durable and sharp. I also tested it, and it works nicely with my [Resonance]. Surely an upper epic weapon. The only disadvantage is that it doesn't have a handle and just some weird metal stump that was connected to the bone of the monster. It's something I will deal with later.

I probably could melt some metal and mold it around the stump into the shape of a handle, but it wouldn't be as durable as the blade. It also wouldn't be as conductive, and it could just crack during a fight.

So for now, I will keep it as it is. I can just create armor around my body and hold it in a gauntlet. Simple as that.

“Master, they are ugly.” Vega comes to me holding the three items I gave her. Even though she is saying that she is holding them carefully.

“Forgive me, Your Highness, the next time I will not forget to add some golden ornaments to fit your delicate tastes more,” I answer her.

At first, she blankly stares at me, and after a second, she smiles, "Okay!" She returns to her corner to continue to practice.

I'm indeed not appreciated here.

I return back to the mana crystal in front of me and examine it more, making sure to remember the inscriptions. The plan is to use them as inspiration for the future when I will make my own lair. There are already a few places I have in mind after returning to Earth.

One of them is the Moon. Yup, a Moon Base is on the menu! I have to think big, don't I?

Another idea is a floating city. If I improve my kinetic energy just a little bit, I should be able to make a smaller island float, right?

Or maybe I can create my evil lair somewhere in the middle of an ocean.

On top of a mountain maybe? I can decide to be a bit assholish and declare some mountain range in Switzerland to be mine. Or some nice valley in Colorado.

The options are endless.

I find it a bit amusing that there are still 4 years left in the tutorial, and I'm already thinking of abusing my powers after the tutorial. Seeing the floors within the tutorial, Earth will probably have more pressing problems than my floating city.

Feeling the presence of Darren nearby again, I sigh and place an anchor near Vega and another one near him after expanding my domain.

I teleport next to him, acceptably spooking him, but he quickly calms down and starts observing me with that annoying skill of his.

"First, I would like to apologize, we never wanted to..."

"Sure," I cut him off.

He looks around, and Nina also steps closer. She bows her head too, together with the men that are around them. All of them are the people that scared Vega and forced their way into my room. All at once, they apologize too.

At this point, it starts feeling a bit annoying. That's what I get for not appreciating Tess while I had her to deal with this stuff. Even good old Hadwin…Okay, this feels weird, let's not go deeper and think about this.

"So, what do you want?" I ask Darren.

He gestures at his men, and they leave, leaving only him and Nina in front of me.

"There is something we wanted to tell you, Nathaniel." He fixes his clothes a bit and looks straight into my eyes, "I wanted to be entirely honest with you about a few things."

"Do you mean your meat farm down in the tunnels?" I ask.

His breathing quickens, and his pupils expand. Through kinetic energy, I feel his and Nina's heartbeats speed up even through their natural barrier.

Their stances shift a bit too.

"I hope you can understand why…" Darren starts carefully.

"Stop using that annoying skill," I interrupt him with a warning.

I don't like the way he looks at me and how he is trying to read me. Sure, I'm hypocritical as I'm doing the same thing, but I don't feel like I owe anything to a bunch of cannibals.

The annoying feeling disappears, and the way he looks at me changes. He also starts looking a bit more unsure, trying to guess my mood or reaction.

"We have over three thousand people here in the Sanctuary," his voice quietly sounds in the facility. "It's something we would be unable to feed without constant deaths. After some time, the animals move further to avoid being hunted. There are also weeks when we are unable to hunt any."

Nina moves closer and puts her hand on her father's shoulder.

"Trust me, if we had any other option, we would never do it. Never," he emphasizes. "To kids, we only give the food we got from hunting animals. Also, the food we offered to you was always only from animals."

In this, I trust him. After finding out, I checked, and he is not lying.

"Does everyone know?" I ask.

Darren shakes his head, "Not everyone knows. I know what you probably think, to give people the option to decide on their own. But Nathaniel, even if they knew and decided on it, it would only hurt them. I know it's not morally right, and I will bear full responsibility for it and the punishment, whatever it will be. All while hoping we will find a way to go on without doing this."

That's when Nina joins in, "Father likes to talk a lot, so I will say it. If you stay here, if you help us, we believe we will be able to go on without it. We know that you are strong and if you would help us to hunt just a few high-level animals once in a while, it could be enough food for weeks."

It almost makes me laugh, "Did that man agree to help you, or have you forced him from the start?"

Darren takes over again, "Irvin agreed at the start. He really wanted to help, but after some time, he… partially changed his mind. So my predecessor did what he had to. I still think Irvin could escape if he really wanted to; I think he still wants to help us that way."

Finally, the man's mask cracks a bit, showing his frustration, "I know how shitty all of this is. I know!" he nearly shouts. "I just don't know what else to do. I really don't…"

A shitty situation indeed.

"I will be leaving in a few hours," I tell him.

The facility becomes eerily quiet, even Vega listening to our conversation.

With a sigh, Darren nods, "I will leave you alone to your things then, Nathaniel. Thanks for everything."

After he leaves, I move back to the facility where Vega waits for me, "It's rude to eavesdrop on other people's conversations," I tell her.

"But master does it all the time!" she looks at me, slightly confused.

"Masters can do whatever they want." I pinch her cheek a bit. "How is your mana orb?"

"It's still very small and pale blue, but I can keep it for a bit longer now," she forms one over her hand, showing me the results of her hard work.

At the same time, she keeps sending her mana senses into the area, constantly careful of danger. Partially, she also does something to her Kinetic Demon Heart.

Unlike my [Focus] that I like to use to concentrate on a single thing, she uses her [Concentration] in a bit different way. Yes, the same as me, she can concentrate on a single task, and I can split my [Focus] into multiple “threads.” But Vega seems to have a better talent for using [Concentration] to concentrate on multiple things at once. Of course, each “instance” isn't as powerful as if she focused on a single thing, but even this isn't without advantages.

I already decided not to hinder her from doing so. It will be more helpful if she does something she has talent for rather than blindly follow my advice.

"Good job," I hand her a small mana stone, "You can train with this too. It should help you a bit."

"Thanks!" she immediately takes the stone and rushes to the spot where she keeps all her things. All carefully guarded like the treasury of an old dragon.

I turn around to return to examining the mana crystal for the last time when the transmitter in my pocket activates. This time it feels weird, a bit different from before when Darren used it.

(I hope I got your frequency correctly, so answer if you hear me, guy with fucked attribute balance.)

(That's a rude thing to say to a cute young man, granny,) I send back.

(My old ass is cuter than you.)

Okay, now I really feel insulted.

But she continues before I can answer, (I don't like to waste my words, so I will be brief. You owe me, right? Do you intend to pay it back, or it means nothing to you, and I should forget about it?)

(If you ask for too much, I will refuse, but yes, I owe you something.)

(Good. Do you remember the man they keep in the tunnel and use as cattle? My father?)

(It's hard to forget.)

(Good. In exchange for all the help I gave you, I want you to kill him.)

The already shitty situation became even shittier.

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