The many sounds of the Tavern always brought some feelings of comfort and normalcy to Christopher. He liked hearing the chattering about mundane topics, the sounds of alcohol pouring, and the clanking of coins on the tables. Christopher sat comfortably as he took it all in, sipping from his tankard of Sessu.
The drink was deliciously cold, courtesy of an employee with Soul Frost. A second tankard stood on the table, waiting for Sunchal’s arrival. He could empty his mind for a bit, his only goal the Sessu in front of him.
Christopher infused one of his practice spheres with Soul Light, still riding a high from the latest revelation. It only took a little bit of Soul Force to produce a weak glow before it bled quickly from the special metal. The sphere allowed him to practice without inconveniencing anyone, so it now made perfect sense why they used this metal. He knew that he could get the sphere a little brighter still, as Atyat had shown him.
He wanted to practice Soul Current most of all, but he doubted that the people here would appreciate a torrent of water wetting their feet. Establishments like this had a ban on the use of Soul Current as well as several other Soul Arts. He guessed that pub brawls could get rather ugly in Lumen with the existence of Soul Arts.
After more time passed, he finally reached the bottom of his tankard. ‘How long have I been waiting here?’ Christopher wondered.
It was not easy to tell the time in Lumen, but might Sunchal had somehow forgotten about their meeting? After some more time and after another tankard of Sessu Christopher gave up waiting. The tavern was getting busier at this late hour and he got some side-eye for hogging a booth by his lonesome for such a long time.
‘Where the hell is Sunchal?’ Christopher wondered. Could the unscrupulous merchant have forgotten about the meeting? Christopher could not help but worry a little, wondering if something had happened.
Sunchal’s morality in regards to business was almost certainly very out of step with this world, which could get the man in some serious trouble. What if Sunchal had actually left Lumen, making a run for the capital, he had brought up that very possibility during their first meeting. Leaving now would certainly be suicidal, the entire area around Lumen would be crawling with creatures of the Blight.
Christopher left the Bottomless Tankard, setting out for the Sleepy Wizard Inn. Sunchal had told him that he was staying there during their last meeting, finally trusting him enough to share that information. Although Christopher would not put it past the man to give him a false address. He decided to check in to make sure that his new ally was alright.
The Inn turned out to be a respectable one, but also rather empty. At least it all looked clean and well kept. Christopher figured that the Inns would be in a tough spot now that there were no travelers coming into the city anymore.
Christopher walked up to the reception, behind which stood a wiry woman with graying hair. She sported a hopeful expression.
“Welcome to the Sleepy Wizard Inn, what can I help you with?”
Christopher felt almost guilty to dash the woman’s hope of a new customer.
“I am looking for my friend, his name is Sunchal. Has he been in lately?”
She kept a blank expression, hiding her thoughts. “That name does not ring a bell. Why are you looking for this man?”
Well, maybe he was given a false location after all. Christopher still pushed on, figuring that the Inn might have some confidentiality regarding their clientele.
“We were supposed to meet up for drinks but he never showed, I wanted to know that everything was alright. I know that he stays here.” Christopher proceeded to describe Sunchal’s appearance.
The woman kept a blank expression for a while, until she seemed to come to a decision. Something in his voice must have enticed the innkeeper’s trust.
“I actually saw him leave only a few hours ago, but that is all I know.”
That was certainly recent, and that might be around the time that the two of them were supposed to meet up.
“Did he behave strangely, or did anything seem different when he left?”
“He seemed somewhat rattled, and he left in quite the hurry as well.”
“Can you tell me anything else of note? Did he carry all his belongings; did it look like he was leaving permanently?”
“No, he did not carry his belongings as far as I could tell. Should I be worried?”
“Ah no, never mind all that. Just tell him that the friend he was supposed to meet with will be back here tonight.”
Christopher was slightly disturbed but was not sure how to proceed any further. He confidently departed the Inn, not answering as the Innkeeper hurriedly asked for his name. Hopefully, he was just overthinking things.
On his way back to his lodgings, he ran into a small crowd gathering around one of the narrow side streets.
There were some screams and yelling, which made him all the more curious. He eventually managed to push himself towards the center of this large group. Many of them were looking with a concerned expression towards something on the ground. Two guards were busy trying to wrestle the crowd away, trying to restore order.
Christopher looked at the scene before him, it not really registering in his mind. Christopher’s was in disbelief as he stared in front of him. Sprawled on the stones, red blood covering his otherwise colorless and drained body, was Sunchal. His eyes were open and lifeless, reflecting the light from the torched upon him.
Christopher stood shocked; Just trying to process what he was seeing.
‘Fuck, what in the living hell has happened here!’
Christopher had started to think that Lumen was relatively safe, not counting the day of the invasion. The sight before him quickly dispensed him of that notion. He might not have liked everything about Sunchal, but he had started considering the unscrupulous merchant as a friend.
The spectators were looking on with horrid fascination at the scene before them. He had read that crime and especially murder was rare in Lumen and elsewhere. Killing allies in the war against the Blight was truly a sin beyond compare here.
Christopher forced himself to look at the sprawled-out body, checking for the cause of death. Christopher felt nauseous at the sight. It looked like someone had cut open Sunchal’s abdomen, spilling out his guts. His body also looked unnaturally white, as if drained from his blood. There was also no blood on the ground despite the open abdomen. It was obvious that this had been some kind of attack, but by whom?
Was this really just his immoral business sense catching up to him? Sunchal’s trick with selling the Soul Bound clothing attested to that possibility. Christopher had no doubt that there was some criminal element in Lumen, maybe they had tried to send a message that such tactics could not be used against them. But would they also leave the body in such a state? Why would they drench the body of all his blood?
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There was an even more worrying possibility. What if it had been a creature of the Blight that had killed his friend? The Summoned would be their number one target if their existence was discovered. Did they have any kind of presence in Lumen though?
This scenario would put Christopher in some serious danger as well. Just the thought of the Blight hunting down summoned in the city send his mind reeling; Christopher would only attract more attention to himself in the subsequent loops when he increased his strength and influence.
What about that imprisoned blue-haired woman that he suspected of being a summoned. Was she in danger as well?
He put other summoned out of his thought for now. Christopher should probably prioritize his own safety at the moment. Or had he messed up already? If the perpetrator was an agent or creature from the Blight, then the Blight might very well connect him to Sunchal.
And what about the guards. They would surely investigate the murder. What were the odds that they would find out about his connection to Sunchal? The two of them had been drinking together at the Bottomless Tankard in public view for some time now, and they were scheduled to meet at this very moment.
‘Shit, and I just asked about Sunchal at the Sleepy Wizard Inn. I’m so screwed.’ At least he had not given her his name, but his description coupled with their meetings might point them in his direction. Christopher felt the walls closing in, beset by possibly both the Guards and the Blight. His feeling of safety within these walls had evaporated completely.
Snapping out of his thoughts, he noticed another group of guards approaching the scene of the crime. Worst of all was that Captain Merrem was leading the procession.
‘It is high time to get the hell out of here.’ Being brought in for questioning would most likely end badly. His story and identity would not hold up to a more extensive investigation. He fell back from the front of the crowd before departing at a non-suspicious pace in the opposite direction of the approaching Captain.
——————<>——————
Christopher’s position in Lumen felt a lot more precarious. Besides the pressing issue of not getting killed it would also be a real waste if he had to abort this loop early. Christopher decided to prepare himself in case that he was forced to use [Bookmark] before the attack.
He immediately made his way to the previously visited exchange shop, looking to switch his wealth of Venarian coins into a precious metal bar that he could carry with his [Soul Mark]. He could always change it back into coins just before his final round of betting.
Christopher had also given more thought to the exchange on this current turn. He had checked in periodically, and the prices for materials like metals had switched quite a lot during the last few weeks. It was not surprising since there had been a transition from times of peace towards times of war, which had thrown the market into upheaval.
Magic conducting metals had skyrocketed in value, while some precious but less useful metals had seen significant drops compared to the start of the turn. This was a great opportunity to once again boost his capital. If he changed his coins for one of those metals that had seen a big drop in cost due to a switch to a wartime economy, then he could make a significant profit at the start of the next turn by selling it straight away, before the prices would drop.
Christopher looked around the exchange. The shop had a wide-open space in the center, while glass stands against the wall displayed all kinds of precious goods and their corresponding prices. This was one of a few shops that allowed him to exchange his Venarian coins for precious metals and materials. The plates that he had his eye on were thin and merely served as an example of the goods on exchange.
The exchange shop had a large warehouse, probably protected by both mundane and magical means, that stored the materials. The shop tried to make sure that they had at least some of everything available for the parties interested in buying. Christopher walked up to one of the glass casings, already having a preference for a precious Soul Force repelling metal. This metal was much cheaper now then at the start of the turn. His [Soul Mark] ability was not able to activate with items over a certain size and weight, but for now that should not be a problem yet.
He once again pondered over his options, mentally comparing them to the prices of the start of the turn. He had chosen somewhat poorly with silver on his last turn, not even considering the change in values. Silver had neither increased nor decreased in value much, so it could have been worse.
Christopher settled on a metal called Palladium, which was a lustrous silvery-white metal. It was a metal that was mostly coveted here for its rarity and its use in jewelry. It did not conduct Soul Force well, which made it less desirable at the moment. It had dropped in price by forty percent compared to the start of the loop, which would give him a significant profit at the start of the next loop.
He requested the trade at the exchange counter. He exchanged all but two silver and thirteen bronze coins for a single lump weighing just short of 350 grams. He was sure to specify that he would require a single bar. He had to wait a few minutes for the Palladium as they had to transfer the material from the warehouse. Upon receival, Christopher swiftly departed the exchange. Christopher covertly placed a [Soul Mark] on the metal while it was in his robe pocket, after which he quickly dissipated it within his Soul.
He nervously made his way back to his lodgings, afraid of trouble soon finding him due to the death of Sunchal. There was too much linking the two of them together. As he walked, he pondered some more on [Soul Mark] and his need for Soul Bound items.
The three items that he could bind to his soul with [Soul Mark] had started to feel a lot more limited. One slot would always be reserved to bring his wealth in the form of a precious metal. One other he would likely reserve for some quality clothing, leaving the last one for his Adeline dagger.
For this reason, he finally considered buying some Soul Bound clothing from the interface store. He now knew that it was possible to make Soul Bound weapons, but he did not believe that there was any tailor that made Soul Bound armor. He wanted to be properly equipped across turns.
He kind of had to keep the robes and the dagger for now since the caravan that he was travelling with had only seen him in that equipment. They would surely be severely confused if he suddenly had a change of equipment mid-journey. Christopher smirked as he conjured the image of him magically switching to a suit of armor.
Christopher still had some Soul Points to invest in a power-up
He browsed the Interface looking for something that would increase his combat power or anything else that might increase his chance of survival. It suddenly seemed a lot more important with potential enemies in the city hunting down summoned. There was a lot available, both regarding weapons and armor.
He looked at the single available staff after he willed up an image of the staff on the interface.
image [https://i.imgur.com/qBV4mux.png]
It was certainly a good one, but also very expensive, costing a total of 1800 Soul Points. It looked impressive enough, seemingly made from some unknown yellow/golden alloy that seemed quite reflective. The middle was seemingly made from a metal that shifted continuously in slightly different silvery hues. There was just one problem, he did not even have enough Soul Points. His balance of 1510 Soul Points was not sufficient for this purchase.
He also took a look at some of the armor. His eyes fell on a pair of sturdy black leather boots that had metal soles all the way through.
image [https://i.imgur.com/xAzlLYe.png]
Those were kind of interesting. Those metal soles could apparently synergize with Soul Push and Soul Pull. He knew that the fighters performed their superhuman feats by strengthening their muscles with Soul Force, but how could the metal soles be used to increase his abilities? He thought it was pretty interesting and he imagined some interesting potential with Soul Arts infusions. Maybe some applications with Soul Push and Soul Pull would allow him to do some impressive maneuvers, or to dish out devastating kicks. Would he be able to jump on top of a wall with the right abilities?
Christopher suddenly realized that he did not even necessarily need to buy Soul Bound items. Once he looped again, he could simply buy equipment before the next twenty-four hours had passed. That way he would simply loop back to his body with all that equipment on his person. Honestly not a bad option at all for his armor and clothing. The advantage of dispersing and summoning those from his Soul was less important than for weapons. It would be amazing if he could switch out weapons mid-fight.
However, the items from the interface store seemed to be made from some amazing alloys that would probably be impossible if not very hard to find in the regular world. He also really wanted the improved conduction of a Soul Bound weapon. That also gave a potential edge to having the Soul Bound boots from the interface store, instead of him commissioning a comparable pair himself that was not Soul Bound.
Buying the boots right now made less sense since he did not even know Soul Pull and Soul Push yet, but the staff might be a great option. He pondered this as he made his way back to the lodgings. Christopher kept scanning the shadows around him for hidden threats.