Irie was busy packing all the valuables and money of the company onto a stream of carts along with the help of several adventurer's who now worked for Styx. This was a giant warehouse which stored all of the local companies valuables.
There were a couple of other warehouses, and they stocked other materials which were being cleaned out by other teams.
Off to the side, all the local branch managers were ties up in ropes with gags over their mouths. The racoon beastman was among them with fear plastering his face.
"What is going on here?"
A group of seven entered the warehouse. Three were the inspectors from the main branch of the Silver Wheel Investment Company in another city, while the others were all Second Step rankers who were under the company's employ and were currently guards for the inspectors.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at them while Irie rapidly assessed the situation. She had been hoping to leave before the inspectors arrived as she wouldn't be able to capture them due to their guards.
"I am moving our stock to a new, secure location," She said in the most innocent way possible.
The inspectors weren't stupid. They looked at the restrained board members and could quickly figure out who was in the wrong here. They also had a report about Irie being in cahoots with the dungeon from the racoon beastman who was tied up and gagged with the rest of them.
Trying to diffuse the situation before violence ensued, one of the inspectors played along with the narrative.
"And why do you need to move the company stock to a new location?"
"Because," Irie began an nodded her head towards the captives, "a certain group of people were siphoning company materials away and into the market for personal profits."
"Any where are you moving them to?"
"Some recently acquired warehouses in the West Regalt District. Here is the paperwork."
Irie grabbed an envelope from one of the carts storing goods and went to hand it over. The inspector was actually beginning to doubt the report they received as this new branch manager was very convincing in her act.
The envelope was something she had just spotted and improvised with.
The moment she got close to the group she opened a flask of water from her waist and splashed it across in front of her. She controlled her mana network and cast a water blade spell as powerful as she could.
The splashed water turned into a large blade of water that shot through the group before anyone could blink.
All three inspectors had stupefied expressions on their faces as the top half of their bodies slid off the bottom halves right as they too collapsed lifelessly on the ground. One of the Second Step guards also had his torso cut three quarters across. He was alive at first before he too died from rapid blood loss.
⠀
[
Lance Ernest (Auditor <Lv. 14>) killed!
+ 0 exp
]
⠀
[
June Rathford (Inspector Recruit <Lv. 19>) killed!
+ 0 exp
]
⠀
[
Samuel Launcestor (Swordsman <Lv. 27>) killed!
+ 0 exp
]
⠀
[
Clyde Reverent (Accountant <Lv. 16>) killed!
+ 0 exp
]
⠀
"You dare!" The remaining guards attacked, but Irie unleashed her earth magic in full capacity while the other adventurers, including two Second Step rankers, jumped in the fray too.
"Hurry it up," Irie commanded in a steely tone, "we only have a brief window before the city guard arrive. Leave the killing to me so you don't have your names reported."
Irie waved her hand and thirteen magic circles appeared in the air simultaneously. Each had a different set of instruction in it which controlled a root of hardened stone that stabbed through the air, shifting direction suddenly in sharp corners according to the pre set instructions in the formula.
She had practiced this with Therina and the others until she controlled it instinctively and could create a lethal attack of a maximum of thirteen at a time.
Each cost 50 mana to cast, so it also took a large toll on her mana pool, but much like Therina and the others, her reserves were enormously larger than the average adventurer or mercenary of the same level. Her mana was even higher than Therina's before she evolved due to being a mage class and being more attuned to mana.
She could cast the same magic to the same extent approximately four times in a row with her current mana pool.
The guards went into defensive mode instantly. They were well trained and twisted and turned to avoid the stone roots which stabbed through the air like an everchanging net. It was harder than it appeared, as one guard jumped and spun above one of the roots before it abruptly shifted 90 degrees and stabbed straight through his chest.
He saw it change directions suddenly and could do nothing but watch as it took his life.
⠀
[
Laurence Potol (Spear Master <Lv. 21>) killed!
+ 0 exp
]
⠀
[
Jun Beartooth (Beast Swordsman <Lv. 22>) killed!
+ 1,548 exp
]
⠀
[
Experience threshold met. Level Up!
Lv. 15 -> Lv. 16
⠀
Accumulated skill experience bonus:
Earth Magic <Lv. 5> -> <Lv. 7>Earth Essence <Lv. 24> -> <Lv. 26>
Swordsmanship <Lv. 13> -> <Lv. 14>
Dagger Arts <Lv. 11> -> <Lv. 12>
Concealment <Lv. 10> -> <Lv. 11>
Eloquent Tongue <Lv. 14> -> <Lv. 15>
Parallel Processing <Lv. 7> -> <Lv. 8>
⠀
All Stats(Excluding Luck): +1
Class bonus: Int +1, Mnd +1, Vit +1
Mana: 2,625 -> 2,854
]
⠀
[
Species: Human
Name: Irie Naeckle
Class: Apprentice Earth Mage
Age: 23
⠀
Mana: 2,854/2,854
Exp: 0/9,483
Level: 16
⠀
Str: 21
Dex: 23
End: 32
Vit: 28
Int: 43
Mnd: 40
Lck: 7
⠀
Skills:
Neutrality (Racial) <Lv. MAX>
• +20% Adaptability.
• +50% compatibility with bloodlines and other racial additions.
Earth Magic <Lv. 7>
• Pebble Shot – 5 mana/min
• Stone Spear – 10 mana/min
• Stone Snake – 25 mana/min
• Quake – 15 mana/min
• Stone Shot – 10 mana/min
• Earthen Stone Spear Eruption – 3 mana/min
• Stone Root Shot – 50 mana
• Boulder Crush – 2 mana/min
Earth Essence <Lv. 26>
• Enhanced Vitality I
• Attribute Alignment I
• Defense Alignment
Beginner Water Magic <Lv. 8>
• Water Shot – 15 mana
• Water Blade – 45 mana
Beginner Lightning Magic <Lv. 4>
• Paralysing Touch – 20 mana
• Spark – 10 mana
Archery <Lv. 8>
• Twin Shot – 5 mana
• Rapid Fire – 5 mana/shot
Swordsmanship <Lv. 14>
• Charging Cut – 15 mana
• Double Sweeping Slash – 17 mana
Spear Arts <Lv. 3>
Dagger Arts <Lv. 12>
Trap Setting <Lv. 5>
Hidden Weapons <Lv. 8>
Concealment <Lv. 11>Eloquent Tongue <Lv. 15>
Parallel Processing <Lv. 8>
⠀
Titles:
Child of Mana, Mother of Monsters, Natural Mana Controller, Dungeon Touched, Child of Earth
]
⠀
Irie clicked her tongue in annoyance as she was originally planning on building up more potential before levelling up. She looked at the dead "human" and kicked off his helmet to reveal a pair of beast ears, indicating that he was instead a beastkin.
The final guard was killed as well shortly afterwards and Irie had the adventurers knock the captives unconscious and throw them on the a wagon hidden in crates.
She also picked up the citizen card of one of the other branch managers as hers would immediately be flagged and she would be arrested for leaving the city with it.
It was late afternoon when the procession left the warehouse and met up with other wagons.
To the guards guarding the eastern city gate, Irie and her cohort only appeared to be a merchant group heading to the next town to barter their goods.
"Stay safe, a lot of adventurers have died in recent times, especially since the Duke posted the bounty on the nearby illegal dungeon lord. I hear you don't want to be captured by them."
The guard was especially talkative, mainly due to Irie's beauty enrapturing him. She shared some pleasant words with him and informed him that she would see him when she returned. She used her stolen identity card and slipped out of the city with the train of carts and carriages without issue.
The guards looked over the carts and in a couple of containers, but they were mostly just given a brief eye inspection on the outside and immediately passed through.
Out in the open fields, a large number of crates, now with bloody corpses in them, were discarded on the side of the road.
~~~~~
⠀
Styx waited on his throne for all the returning parties. Irie was a couple of hours away due to the large line of goods she was bringing, while Aura and Therina would be back any second.
The wolfgirl had picked up a rare specimen too. Everyone had been unable to even see her through some weird application of Phantasmagoria, but she had been able to. In fact, she had even been able to tell how powerful she was and had wet herself out of sheer terror.
"You can't eat her," Styx said to Aura in her head as soon as she returned with Therina and bonus passenger. "At least, not right now. Bring her to me."
The blonde beauty with a wet skirt and robe was feeling incredibly light headed and would pass out any moment when she was placed on her feet in front of the dungeon.
"Walk," Aura said with a deeply unhappy expression.
The woman shooks and collapse on the ground as her knees gave out under her own weight.
"Walk."
Aura commanded again and the woman in the robe tried to stand up over and over, but her legs kept giving out underneath her.
"I… I can't… Please…. P-please don't…. k-k-kill me…"
The woman stuttered and collapsed on the ground fully. Aura didn't want to carry her anymore now that she wasn't allowed to eat her but was forced to. Otherwise, she would never make it to Styx. She tried looking toward Therina to have her carry the woman, but the naiad turned her head and feigned ignorance to the request.
The blonde voluptuous woman fearfully looked at everything around the dungeon as Aura walked inside and into the bowels of the giant underground labrynth of giant caverns.
They first entered the giant area with monstrous pillars, a maze like bridge on the top floor and large grassy plains, wooden arched bridges, flowers and growing trees down on the lower floor. From there, Aura headed east through several caverns containing large stepped fields of Wheat-M2, Corn-M1, Mana-C Cotton, and many other various grown products.
Potatorns were a new hybrid vegetable Styx created, which stored low amounts of mana, had a potato like appearance, but grew on trees rather than in the ground.
Dark elves, elves and beastman watched from storage barns and extravagant farmhouses that were still being constructed. The blonde woman also saw them and despite her deep set fear, was curious what they were all doing in the dungeon.
Monsters openly walked around without attacking anybody, and some even used them to pull farm equipment or carts loaded with goods. Others slept in nests or were patrolling the dungeon.
The faint sound of hammering could be heard too if she strained her ears, indicating that there was production going on inside of the dungeon as well. Everywhere was a constant pleasant temperature, controlled by large vents in the ceilings which circulated hot air through the dungeon.
Aura finally reached the throne room where Styx was waiting. She dumped the blonde woman on the floor unceremoniously and huffed before vanishing. Styx could see through her eyes and feel everything in the dungeon, so he naturally knew she had simply entered his and the girls' home, commandeering the bed to herself out of unhappiness.
"Go see Aura," Styx told Therina, who nodded her head and promptly left, leaving the collapsed woman and Styx alone in the throne room.
Styx looked down at the blonde woman collapsed on the ground and trying to support her torso with her arms. He didn't say anything and patiently waited.
The woman eventually managed to prop herself up and even managed to weakly stand. She looked at Styx and steeled her determination, but the quiver in her voice betrayed her deeply set fear.
"I demand to be treated fairly as a prisoner."
"Treated fairly? I suppose by your standards, that is."
"…"
"You are in no position to demand anything, unfortunately."
"What do you want?"
"I want to know some things."
"…"
"Nobody else was able to see Aura, but you were. How?"
"I demand-"
"Enough! You are in no position to make demands."
The blonde woman shook and almost collapsed at his raised voice. She looked down at her urine saturated robe and was deeply ashamed. She pulled off the dirty robe and exposed the expensive emerald green dress below, which matched the vivid color of her eyes.
The woman stuck out her exceptionally large chest and stated.
"I wish to redeem my freedom. State your price."
Styx pinched his brow in frustration as the woman before him appeared to be the type who was stubborn to the end. Instead of just making demands, he decided to negotiate with threats. A poor tactic that contained no guile, but it was the truth of the outcome if she continued to be uncooperative.
"Are you aware of what your fate was to be, should I not have notified Aura to bring you to me?"
"…I assume I would have been killed?"
"Yes. But rather than saying killed, calling it being eaten would be more appropriate."
The woman shivered and her knees buckled as Styx continued.
"Do you know what will happen if you continue to be uncooperative?"
"…Killed?"
"Try again."
"Ea… eaten?"
"Correct. So, it would be best if you answered my questions then. How could you see Aura when nobody else could?"
"I was born with… natural mana sight."
Styx raised his brow in surprise before responding, "Now, that wasn't so hard, was it."
"I… I wish to redeem my freedom."
"Sigh… You don't seem to understand. You are currently outside of your kingdom's laws and protection. You will do as you are told."
"I, Rebecca Euklid, daughter of Duchess Edna Euklid, promise to give you anything you desire so long as it is within my power."
Styx raised his brow and the blonde beauty revealed her name and identity to him to form leverage, unaware that it held the exact opposite reaction in Styx's mind.