4.4 - Level 20

4.4 - Level 20

Theo left Throks workshop grinning to himself. The Marshling hadnt 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 Terogal. While the Dreamwalk wouldnt allow him to bring in items from the mortal plane, the realm didnt mind at all. Where the Dreamwalk acted as a mirror to the real world, sheathed in dreams, Terogal 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 Terogal 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 Terogal.The inaugural upload of this chapter took place via N0v3l-B1n.

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 rooms 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 its an Archduke screen, now.

They have a days worth of your potion, Gwyn said. So, weve 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.

Its more delicate than you can imagine, Alise said with a sigh. Weve 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 wasnt 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 Administrators thoughts.

That seemed aggressive, but Theo didnt have any better ideas. While it was nice to hope that Alran would just do the right thing, that didnt 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, were bleeding cash until we can get our trade fleet up.

If you think were 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 Xolsa illuminated us, Gwyn said. Coins are pressed with power, right? What is the latent power in the air used for? Its 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.

Thats fortunate, Theo said, still tapping his fingers on the table. Any silver or gold from my mine?

I dont have a recent report from the mine, Alise said.

The juniors were taking care of that. I didnt see any mention of silver or gold, just an increase in general production, Gwyn said.

Well, Gridgen knows I want silver. Ill 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. Hes gonna yell at me.

He certainly will, Theo said. But Im 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. Im 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 didnt speak Qavelli. While the alchemist was working on learning the Elf-tongue, it wasnt 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.

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 couldnt 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 theres 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 couldnt 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. Hed 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 hed 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 hed spent in Terogal, but he couldnt 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 couldnt bring himself to remove it. He didnt 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. Terogal 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 wasnt 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 didnt 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 labs door, then letting herself in.

Also, Theo Just dont 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 were just gonna ignore that, huh?

What do you mean?

I mean I checked your stocks. You didnt have enough. Now you do, Salire said, chuckling. Since Im getting paid, Ill 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 womans shoulder. Glad youre 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 wouldnt hurt to check up on the man. The combat signal from the [Lesser Metal Golems] didnt help matters, either.