Chapter 34 - Days LXIV - LXXX: Threats

I woke up early, went to leave the food I bought yesterday in ruins close to the third gate, and then headed to the city center. I took the bowl with me. When I arrived, the hunters were already gone. Luca was keeping an eye on the device, but I didn't care and went straight to buy food. He tried to stop me.

- Hey Peter.

- Fuck you - was my answer, and I did not stop.

- You really want to get yourself in trouble?

- I paid my tax yesterday, so fuck off - I finally turned around to face him.

I had a knife in my pocket and was really ready to stab him. He probably saw that I'm not gonna back down to his whims.

- Fine, Peter. But Nacho is gonna hear about this. You owe him. You owe him a lot of crystals.

He even repeated himself, so I could clearly understand he is gonna do it, but I did not care. I had enough. I bought the usual 80 points worth of fruits and vegetables. Four portions of water, four nice pieces of meat with seasonings, and four oranges. Then I went to the bonfire, to cook it, and also shared some with firekeepers. They were really thankful. After eating I headed back to leave the bowl in the house, and food in ruins, close to the third gate where I already had some. Then hunting started.

Since it was already late I didn't go for rats and looked around for some goblins. I managed to find two groups of five. It was almost dark by then, so I went to my little camp by the wall.

For the entire two weeks, I hunted rats. Every single day I spent at least 12 hours doing that. By the end, I took it a bit easier since I was tired, and the food didn't last, so I had to starve for an entire day which made the last battles very difficult. I got a few nasty cuts, but since I was gonna heal it with help of the device, it was not that big of a deal. Upgrading strength gave me an explosive speed, which proved very useful at dodging, and moving around to keep the state of the fight the way I wanted. The numbers on enemies side didn't mean anything.

By the end of the week, In the ruins I kept my food, I had 1268 hidden rat crystals. I took 60, and all the goblin stones I had and put them on top in the backpack, so it looked like there are only one hundred worth ones in there. I even swung by my house to pick the ones stashed there. Then I headed to the city center.

It was dark when I finally arrived. Not many people were hanging around outside. It didn't mean that people were sleeping. I could clearly hear loud conversations and even moans of pleasure coming out from few houses.

It so happened that Luca again was keeping an eye on the device.

- Nacho wants to talk with you - he said.

- I don't care. Here is your fucking tax, and leave me alone - I said while putting my hand inside the backpack.

I took out a handful of goblin crystals and gave it to him. I was careful to not take the rat ones by accident. He took them, but still went for Nacho. In the meantime, I sold the rest for a total of 8k points. I quickly healed my wounds and got rid of the exhaustion. All of it was 2,5k total. That left me with 12 030 on my account. I boosted my constitution 20 times for a total of 6050 points. I still had 5 980 but the upgrades now were pretty expensive, and I didn't want to be left with an empty account, so I just filled my backpack with food. I also bought some oranges to share with firekeepers. Another 90 points were gone.

While I was doing all of this shopping, I noticed that there are more things available on the device. They probably upgraded it while I was gone. For example, I could buy small pieces of metal, like iron nails, or short blades. I immediately bought a knife, a wide piece of sturdy wood, few nails, and two leather straps. All of it for only 360 points.

I took my things and went to sit beside the fire. Before Nacho with whole his gang came out, I already managed to share food with firekeepers and made my new shield.

- Hello Peter - said Nacho.

- What do you want? I paid my tax.

- I know. I know. The thing is some people have seen you with a backpack full of crystals, and you didn't share.

- Why should I? Do I owe you anything? I don't think so, so gey your dogs, and fuck off.

He laughed.

- Fine. It's an unwise decision, and you are gonna regret it.

Two firekeepers smiled hearing that, but they didn't say a thing. Nacho went back inside. I knew he is gonna try to get me very soon. I spent the rest of the night chatting. I found out that both Wuxia and The Mariachis upgraded the device. The next upgrade was apparently ten times more expensive. I immediately noticed that there is a pattern to it. Each time the price went up ten times.

Few things got cheaper. Few new things appeared in the store. Nothing more groundbreaking than iron. But there was another important piece of information. Apparently, the woods changed. It used to be a neverending forest, but now there was an end to it. A giant canyon appeared more or less a day of travel from the city, and it was full of orcs. Greenskin, muscular and tall. With sharp teeth and metal weapons. Nobody dared to approach them.

I immediately thought that it might have something to do with upgrading the device. I started to wonder what else changed, and why? But I had no answers. I also tried to find something about Aisha's whereabouts. She apparently joined the Mariachis. Part of the group led by a curly-haired blond man named Mark. That was all.

In the morning, after hunters left, and I made sure Nacho and his boys were among them, I headed back. There were few guys tailing me, but I noticed, hid, and ambushed them. They were skinny scavengers. One got knocked down by a single punch, and the rest agreed to leave for some food. I shared a bit and was back on my way.

They didn't try to follow again. I made sure to check and strolled around some more for a good measure. I took the food to the storage, ate there a bit, and went back to my home to finally get some sleep.

Day ended with 5530 points on my account and 1208 rat crystals hidden in the storage.