Chapter LXIX (69) - The Gnome and the Mine

When he woke up, he found the cargo hold free of water and the skeletons standing in place placidly, uncertain how to continue without commands.

Having the ship afloat and drained of lake water opened up its space tenfold. Now Anata and Mort explored the entirety of the ship while he was away. Unfortunately, while Mort was great at helping Kizu keep an eye on Anata, the monkey’s curiosity rivaled the girl’s. The next day when Kizu finished his classes, he found his bond with Mort numb. He rushed back to the ship, jumping and running, his leg brace nearly falling apart at the overuse.

When he arrived, he found both of them safe, but completely inebriated. Anata hiccupped as she grinned up at him from where she lay on the deck. Mort wasn’t much better off as he continued to push an empty bottle around across the deck, constantly going off course and crashing into obstacles like the broken mast.

It didn’t take the skills of a trained detective to follow the trail of spilled liquid leading down to the cargo hold. There, Kizu located the opened crate that held a stash of ancient rum. Kizu, realizing he needed to stay and watch the monkey and girl until they sobered up, in case they decided to try something stupid like swimming, ended up reading a book about dimensionalism on the deck. When Aoi arrived later in the day, he set her up to watch over the incapacitated duo while he jumped across the lake with the crate of rum in tow.

Unfortunately, consecutive jumps with the crate still remained outside of his skill level, so he mostly dragged the crate through the muggy forest, his leg aching from the effort, until he reached town.

As the weekend approached, so did the nightlife in town. Obnoxious singing boomed from across the street from Jeri Co. Kizu did his best to ignore it as he pushed open the door and entered the shop.

The top half of Jeri’s head looked up from behind the counter and beamed at him.

“The Kaga boy! What a delight! I was just thinking about your father the other day. Quite a crafty chap. He once subtly incited two different companies in Ilosin-Don into tearing one another apart, only for him to swoop in after the destruction and take all the clientele for himself, creating a monopoly. I still marvel at how he managed to play both parties like a bugler rallying troops. What’s that behind you? A box to fill or a box to empty?”

“To empty,” Kizu said, lifting the crate up to the counter with a grunt.

Jeri climbed up onto the counter and peered into the box. He gave Kizu a quizzical look before popping open a bottle and sniffing it. Then he took a swig of it. Kizu was shocked by the brazeness of the action. He could have brought any number of toxic liquids. But Jeri nodded his head and smiled dreamily.

“Rum? And of Ilosinean make as well. Wherever did you find such a lovely drink? It's been a scarce commodity since the invasion.”

“I found it while fulfilling an assignment from the town’s quest board.”

“Ah, loot,” Jeri said knowingly. “Well with a decent knack for finding this sort of product, you might consider joining a delving company after graduation.”

Not wanting to think about the World Dungeon, Kizu shifted the subject back.

“You’ll buy it?” Kizu asked hopefully.

Jeri considered, his thumb tapping his bearded chin.

“How many bottles do you have?”

“Forty,” Kizu said, then amended his statement. “Actually, only thirty-nine. And that’s if you include the one in front of you. My niece accidentally got into one.”

“Thirty-eight in total. It breaks my heart to say so, but while rare, the island lacks the standard consumers of this rum. I doubt most here would be willing to pay for it. My sister will be moving here with her son in a few weeks, but besides that, my wife and I are the only gnomes around for almost a thousand kilometers.”

“So, you won’t buy it,” Kizu said, his heart sinking.

“I didn’t say that! I just wish for transparency in this exchange. You may have a fine supply; however, the island lacks any of the demand needed to see it at its full potential.”

“Couldn’t you transport it to the mainland in Hon or Tross?” Kizu asked.

“Currently, Jeri Co is my only remaining open storefront. I might be able to find distributors on the mainland, true. But that would also cut into the profits I offer you. The more links within the supply chain, the thinner the profits are spread.”

Kizu voiced his understanding. “How much are you willing to spend?”

Jeri scratched his bald scalp. “It breaks my heart, but maybe 3,000 Yennies.”

Disappointment weighed heavy on Kizu’s shoulders. “That’s fine.”

Jeri nodded his head solemnly, as if grieving alongside him.

“The total will be 114,000 Yennies.”

Kizu’s heart skipped a beat. “Wait, you meant 3,000 Yennies a bottle?”

Jeri pulled out another bottle and examined it, this time with a monocle over his real eye. “What else would I mean? It seems the bottles each contain the same amount of liquor so that would be an accurate measurement. Though I suppose we could weigh the bottles just to be certain. I’m very glad to have some of this in stock, even though I know it's basically robbery, but it will be good to have some authentic rum for when my sister arrives.”

Jeri kept on jabbering as he searched each of the bottles for cracks or defects. After finishing his inspection, he shuffled through some things below the counter before popping back up and hanging Kizu a sack of coins.

“I hope you don’t mind, but I took out a few Yennies for the earring. No need to contact your father this way.” He gave Kizu a wink.

“Actually,” Kizu said, slowly looking around the room. “Do you mind if I do a bit more shopping before I leave?”

The old gnome waved him away as he began unloading the crate of rum.

Kizu wandered the shop, he wanted to find a gift to give Emilia tomorrow. There were a million different things vying for his attention, from the wicked looking weapons that each glowed different ominous shades of color to the pottery inlaid with moving images. Not everything in the shop was magical, but those were usually the most eye-catching items on display. His attention was snagged by some prosthetic limbs laid out on a shelf. They looked nowhere near as magnificent as Arclight’s prosthetic arm, but the limbs looked functional. He picked up a fake leg and it attempted to kick him until he set it back down. Glancing at his own mangled leg, he wondered how effective one of these might be. Roba had warned him that most limbs would leave him worse off than his current situation. The amount of blood storage he’d lose alone should dissuade him entirely. Even if one of the legs worked as effectively as his had before, he would be crippled magically. So just replacing one disability for another. Still, it took effort to tear his eyes away and continue his search.

Eventually, he examined a wall lined with jewelry, each object labeled in the Universal Script. His eyes fell on a silver circlet. The center gleamed with a cut sapphire. It was labeled, Soul Stabilizer. According to the details, it helped relax a person’s soul, and, by extension, their body. Kizu glanced at the price tag. 12,000 Yennies. More than a tenth of what he had just earned by selling the crate of rum. With a moment of hesitation, he reached up and took the circlet. In the end, he purchased it more because of how pretty it was than its actual functionality.

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Kizu also looked at the furniture offered. He wanted to better furnish their ship. As it was, they only had a table, some chairs, hammocks, and crates. But, in the end, he decided not to get anything today. He would wait until he had mastered long-distance jumping. That way he wouldn’t need to worry about lugging the stuff back with him.

When he returned to the ship to store his new funds, he found Aoi in the cargo hold rummaging through the crates. She was so deep inside a large crate that only her legs stuck out.

“Looking for something?”

His voice made her jump, and he heard a thump as she banged her head on something inside.

“Yes,” she said, pulling herself out of the crate to glare at him. “And don’t sneak up on people. It’s exceptionally rude.”

“Sorry, princess, not all of us were raised with perfect manners in a castle,” Kizu said dryly. “What were you looking for?”

She rolled her eyes at his jab. “A grimoire. Remember how I mentioned the other day that any necromancer worth marrow owns one? It got me thinking that the necromancer that led this expedition must have owned one too.”

“I thought you already found it? Wasn’t that what brought you out to this boat in the first place?”

“It’s incomplete. It should have a lot more personal information and records of experimentation in it. What I found is more like a jumble of information on the basics of necromancy. I think it’s a compilation of the necromancer’s first notes rebound into a new grimoire to make space for his actual secrets.”

“Maybe the other volume just fell apart over the years. It was submerged underwater.”

“Not a chance. Even I have enchantments safeguarding mine against the elements.”

“What if he had other enchantments?” Kizu suggested. “Like to have it destroyed on his death to keep it out of the hands of rivals.”

Aoi considered that for a minute. “It’s not impossible,” she admitted. “But I’ve never heard of any records of necromancers doing such.”

“It’s hard to find destroyed records.”

“You’re awfully snarky today,” she commented, unamused. “Usually, necromancers are surprisingly supportive of one another. Often pooling resources and assisting one another. They have to be, otherwise the governments would wipe them out.”

It made sense. It even sounded a bit like the witch covens in the Hon Basin.

“Well, what if the necromancer just brought the grimoire down into the World Dungeon?”

“That’s my worry. But even still, I feel like there should be something on board.”

Kizu shrugged. “Well, good luck, I guess.”

Back on deck, Kizu cast a line into the water. The sinker dragged the hook and bait deep underwater. From there, he watched but let his mind wander.

Before, he had assumed the monstrous jellyfish accessed the lake before it grew. But what if it was created by the mage who owned the ship. It might be an Awakened creature. Just because it didn’t speak to him didn’t mean it couldn’t speak altogether. Not all creatures were as friendly as the snake he had encountered. The Awakened snake who had told him about the cove. As he recalled the conversation, Kizu remembered it said the cove used to be the entrance into a gnomish mine.

Abandoning his rod, Kizu jumped to the shore. He walked along it, examining the stone wall with both his natural and spellsense. It didn’t take long for him to notice something peculiar.

A cavity in the wall that first appeared to only be about a meter deep, twisted into a tunnel. He spotted a rusty upturned minecart and the head of a pickaxe. Kizu was hesitant to delve any deeper, worried about accidentally ending up in the World Dungeon without any of his equipment. Based on what the Awakened snake had told him, it should just be a mine. But the necromancer had docked his ship here before descending into the World Dungeon. And there might very well be a good reason why the mine had been abandoned by the gnomes.

Using his fire fist spell, Kizu scorched an X into the stone beside the cavity to help him locate it quickly.

Then he jumped back to the ship to gather up his things. As hesitant as he was to go into danger, he decided that ignoring the potential danger the mine posed would be incalculably stupid of him.

He considered bringing Mort with him but decided against it. The monkey was still recovering from his excess drinking earlier in the day. And besides, he still wasn’t comfortable leaving Anata here alone. Especially since she was still pretty intoxicated. She might fall into the lake. Even without alcohol in her system, Anata appeared to struggle with moving around on the gently swaying deck. It would be more useful to have his familiar here, anchoring him to the area and acting as a compass needle for Kizu’s return.

He took out his box and examined Sojan. The knife looked the same as always, an ebony black glint. It had saved his life multiple times down in the World Dungeon. He owed it a body but was uncertain how to find one. Resolving to keep an eye out for any creatures to use the knife on down in the mine, he sheathed the knife and belted it to his uniform. Then he pocketed the bell and the atlas as well.

“I’m going to need my necklace for a bit,” Kizu told Anata as he came back on deck. “Do you mind letting me use it?”

She handed it over to him, still wobbling and smiling. Kizu hoped that by the time he returned she’d sober up a bit. Mort, at least, looked a little recovered. He now glared at Kizu from the shade. Kizu could feel the muffled headache coming from the monkey through their bond.

“Where are you going?” Aoi asked from across the deck.

“Just checking in on our neighbors. I found a cave nearby that leads down into a mine. I want to search it and make certain there’s nothing dangerous living inside.”

Aoi’s eyes lit up and she tossed a braid over her shoulder. “You’re not planning to go alone, right?’

“I mean, I was,” Kizu said. “You’re welcome to come along. But I thought you hated this sort of errand.”

“If there’s not a necromantic base on the ship, then I bet it’s down in that cave.”

Kizu shrugged and jumped with her across the lake in front of the mine’s entrance. At the very least, she didn’t slow Kizu down as he started down the cave. She activated her scrying orb to illuminate the path.

Using an old trick picked up from adventuring novels, Kizu stayed to the leftmost path at every fork in the mine. Hypothetically, that should allow him to map out the entirety of the mine.

“These paths are tiny,” Aoi complained as they crawled through a half-collapsed section.

“Built by gnomes. Like your skeletons. It’s actually surprising more of the tunnel support beams haven’t collapsed. These gnomes definitely have great workmanship.”

“If you hadn’t rushed me, I would have brought one along.”

“It would have just slowed us down,” Kizu said dismissively.

Most of the tunnels required them to crouch and the old equipment looked child sized. Thankfully, Kizu had grown up sleeping in a cupboard by the fireplace, so he didn’t mind the tight spaces. While he said nothing, Kizu couldn’t help but be impressed by Aoi’s resolve as they continued on. She complained occasionally, but never once suggested returning.

“Hold on,” she said suddenly, putting a hand on his shoulder. He turned back and looked at her.

“I sense something ahead.”

Kizu frowned and looked ahead. He saw nothing and sensed nothing even with his spellsense. Just the same weaving tunnel with old mine cart tracks underfoot. He said as much.

“I sense a soul up ahead,” she clarified. “You wouldn’t be able to make it out. But it’s drifting along.”

He let her take the lead and fell behind, one hand on Sojan and the other prepared to cast spells.

Aoi froze in the path as the tunnel opened up.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered.

Kizu looked over her shoulder. A silvery, translucent woman floated in the center of their path. Her skirt waved slightly, as if in a breeze, despite the air remaining still. She turned towards them slowly, revealing a face with blotted out eyes. It looked as if someone had scribbled them out with ink. Despite the creepy eyes, Kizu thought her a near flawless beauty. Right up until she opened her mouth, revealing the same scribbled darkness.

She reached a hand out toward them and spoke.