Tutorial Day 2

I’m unembarrassed to say that I passed out in the double bed as soon as I saw it. I didn’t even bother looking around the rest of the room. The pillow and white linen sheets were just too inviting. Now, as I blearily opened my eyes and found myself in an alien room, many things were coming back to me, along with worries that my brain had dismissed yesterday.

I had been transported to a Tutorial World or something like it. Literally vanishing from a Portal on Earth to arrive here. Vanishing from a Portal filled with workers and my family!

Any sluggishness I felt vanished as I sat bolt upright. What did my family think had happened to me? Kai’s offhand comment about being here thirty years, as well as Fong’s locket, took on a-whole-nother meaning. First, that number was impossible. Humanity hadn’t had the System that long, so he likely just meant nearly thirty years. But, if I had to spend twenty four years here, like he likely had, what would my family think happened to me?

The answer was glaringly obvious—they would think I died.

My infuriating Mental Fortitude Skill inserted a thought into my head. ‘At least I had left them in a good place.’ I picked up my pillow and attempted to tear it apart. I figured I would be able to with my Strength Stat of Ten. The fabric proved itself to be stronger than I could have ever imagined.

What was it made of?

That tangent almost succeeded in pushing my worries off the center stage in my brain, but I shook the considerations away with a few thumping punches into the offending pillow. There were still so many other issues. Smegma had vanished just before I was teleported here. That likely meant that he or his Demonic Vault Skill were undergoing an evolution.

But it didn’t have to mean that. What if the Demon was somehow locked out of this place? How could I possibly—

This time Mental Fortitude was beyond helpful in stopping the toilet bowl of my negativity. I sighed. It was right, I hadn’t even tried to access Demonic Vault this time—so I may still be able to.

Sending a bit of Mana into the large Sun that was the Skill in my Mental Universe did yield results.

Demonic Vault 4.3.4

Crendalar Five – Abyss Sect’s Wares

Skills

Consumables

Armor

Miscellaneous

Available Currency: 142,011 mC (Mana Coins)

I was unsure if that was a good or bad thing if I was being honest. It ruled out the Skill going through an upgrade. Or at least I figured it did—since the last few had rendered the Skill unusable.

So, then where was Smegma?

My worry increased exponentially thinking I might be trapped in a Tutorial Realm, Planet or Dimension, without the Demons knowledge of the System. Outdated or not…

Still, it wasn’t something to worry about just yet. He’d always returned before, right?

I moved to the Miscellaneous tab and began scrolling through options. Thankfully, Alchemy Equipment wasn’t far into the list. Disappointingly there were no Recipe Books or instruction manuals listed. Maybe I’d get one with the purchase? But based on the Miner’s Pick, I doubted that.

Miscellaneous Professions Gear

Alchemy Pill Cauldron (1)

Low-F-Rank

Durability: Unlimited

This Pill Cauldron needs a constant application of Mana, Endurance and Qi to run. It will repair and strengthen itself making it unbreakable. The Pill Cauldron will create more even Flames the better the Magic Control.

Cost: 100,000 mC

—

Miscellaneous Professions Gear

Alchemy Potion Making Set (1)

Low-F-Rank

Durability: Unlimited

This Potion Making Set uses precise knowledge and measurements to create base liquids that can be infused with Endurance, Mana or Qi to realize their full effects. The set will repair and strengthen itself making it unbreakable. The Potion Making Set will create better Elixir’s Potions and Flasks with more precise Magic Control.

Cost: 1’000,000 mC

—

Miscellaneous Professions Gear

Alchemy Body Enhancement Tub (1)

Low-F-Rank

Durability: Unlimited

This Tub uses is designed to contain and strengthen herbal mixtures designed to force body evolutions. The creation of which needs precise knowledge and measurements to create. The set will repair and strengthen itself from body run offs making it unbreakable.

Cost: 100,000 mC

There were a few other items related to Alchemy that I didn’t quite understand, and so I skipped them. Of the three I wanted, the Potion Making Set was the one I wanted the most. The reason was simple. Potions, Elixirs and Flasks were by far the only items I’d heard of or seen on Earth. However, the price tag made it impossible in my current situation.

I’d never heard of a Body Enhancement Tub, and figured I’d like Smegma to explain that one to me before I purchased it. The Alchemy Pill Cauldron I had heard mentioned by Smegma already. It was what he had suggested I get to help heal Eva—another thing I’d left undone.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Strangely, when I was downstairs I hadn’t seen many Pill Cauldrons, if any. I couldn’t recall them, at the very least. Maybe I could go out on a few excursions and collect Crystals, Cores or something similar to exchange for mC?

As long as the selling feature worked without Smegma…

I attempted to sell one of the Scales from my Necklace and discovered that it was functioning. I quickly canceled that transaction, still feeling like the HeartScale and its smaller compatriots were needed.

This wasn’t a decision I needed to make right now anyway. First, I should explore my new room and this building. Maybe I could find some things with some value that wouldn’t be missed…

I got out of bed and found a set of blue clothes folded neatly atop a dresser that I hadn’t made note of the previous night. Had someone come in and placed the clothes there when I slept? No, Adam had said that only people I gave access could enter. Well, and me and the guards, I supposed.

Somewhat out of spite I attempted to sell the blue robe and got no response from Demonic Vault. Figured.

This clothing must have already been there when I entered. Taking a look at myself highlighted just how badly I needed them. My clothes were about to fall off. All except for my Miner’s Boots which were held together by the thin metal that protected my feet. I chuckled and slid the rest of the way off the bed.

My laughter died as the lights turned on in the room and the bed glowed for a brief instant. I caught the glow from the corner of my eye and spun to find the bed made up behind me.

“Wow, my parents would have loved this!” I whispered, and gave a low whistle. I stared at the bed for another minute—debating about messing it up just to see it function again. However, I wasn’t sure if it only worked once per day or something like that, so in the end I left it alone—mostly due to not wanting to potentially create extra work for myself.

Instead I spun and examined the rest of my room. There was a bedside table with a lamp on it. A lamp that wasn’t lit, which led my gaze to the ceiling, where a massive overhead fixture was sunk. It was what provided the nearly blinding amounts of light.

After that I noted that I had two closets. One looked normal, with sliding doors, and another that literally looked like a floor to ceiling nook with no doors. I opened the closet first and found two other sets of clothes. One black set, that consisted of a tight lycra t-shirt, and pants and another robe that had white coloring, and a green leaf symbol over the left breast. I stared at it, marking it as odd.

It looked a bit like a Doctor’s uniform—which might mean it was meant for a Healer. So, either everyone got the same uniforms, this room had a previous owner who had left some clothes behind, or the room was able to analyze and take Roles into account…

I decided right then that no one would be coming into my room. Not until I knew more.

Next, I went to check the cubby and felt that strange tingle run over my skin as soon as I walked into it. I froze, and then stepped back out, looking at myself. I ran my tongue over my teeth and felt a distinct lack of fuzziness that I associated with cleanliness. I stripped out of my defunct clothing and stepped back into the nook.

The same sensation washed over me, and I smiled. I could get used to a magic shower. It was certainly going to be a time saver. Maybe not great for my sanity—since I enjoyed long scalding hot showers when I needed time to collect myself—but then again I’d been having those far less frequently thanks to Mental Fortitude.

I put on the blue robe, hoping it was something for Alchemists or Gatherers and then moved to my door. I opened it and found myself face to face with Adam, who had a hand raised to begin pounding on the exterior. He looked upset.

“I’ve been husking knocking for five minutes. Did you not change the settings to notify you?” He shouted.

I winced. Maybe he was supposed to say something like that to me after he told me to bind the door—but he’d left in a bit of a huff.

“Oops,” I mumbled and then spun to apply the setting changes he’d failed to instruct me on the previous night.

“Oops?” Adam scoffed. “You’re lucky you opened the door now, otherwise you’d definitely have missed breakfast. The only reason I was sent up here was to inform you that you had fifteen minutes until the buffet closes and the classrooms return to Alchemy stalls!”

With that message delivered, Adam stormed away, clearly still unimpressed with me and my lack of discipline. Or at least I figured it was something along those lines.

I rushed down the stairs nearest my room, and thankfully did arrive on the ground floor while there was still a massive table of food set up in the center of the Foyer. I rushed to grab a plate and then looked around to find a place to sit and eat. What I discovered explained what Adam had meant when he said the classrooms ‘returned’ to Alchemy stalls.

Many of the stalls were currently filled with groups of men and women wearing the same blue robe as me. I considered joining an existing group but thought better of it. I needed to eat quickly and I’d likely have other opportunities to speak with the people here. However, I only had one such chance to eat before the Alchemy equipment might magically reappear.

I quickly grabbed a helping of some type of meat in gravy, a biscuit-like bread, some sautéed greens and something that had the same fluffy consistency of eggs, while clearly not being the earthly eggs I knew of. Mostly because of the purple coloring.

I rushed to an empty table and began scarfing down my food, discovering that it was all quite delicious. I caught a few people giving me looks as I hurried to finish, but ignored them for now—wanting to possibly go back for seconds.

The purple eggs were, in fact, the exact same consistency as normal scrambled eggs, making them far more palatable—as long as you ignored the color. The meat tasted like pork but clearly was more gamey. The ‘vegetables’ were the best part but what they were, I couldn’t tell.

I managed to get a second plate, by skipping the biscuit for now. Thankfully, the table I sat at didn’t magically refill with Alchemy Beakers, Flasks and other apparatuses. Instead, the people around me began to stand up and slowly clean up their areas before they themselves moved to gather equipment from nearby glass cupboards that I had failed to notice.

The central buffet wasn’t cleaned up but there was a far more ‘mundane’ method for its removal. One of the guards approached and simply summoned the whole thing into a Spacial Bag. I briefly wondered what would happen to the heating elements if the Bag froze things like my Necklace, but dismissed it as unimportant.

A lady in her mid-thirties approached my table and coughed politely. “Do you mind if I start getting Alchemy Equipment out and placing it on one side of the table ‘till you finish.”

Mouth full of food, I nodded and gave her a universal thumbs up. She thankfully had spoken English and also understood my gestures. With a polite smile, she began moving to the nearest cupboard as I continued to stuff my face.

By the time she returned with her first load, I was left with only the biscuit and a mouth mostly empty. Carefully, I asked, “Where do I put the plates?”

She smiled and pointed to a table in the corner of the room, currently empty of all plates but with a guard standing by it, tapping his foot. I rushed over and the man snatched the plate out of my hand, making it vanish right after my fingers left it. “Next time, show up on time, newbie.”

I shook my head and moved back to the table to see if the friendly girl was willing to chat. She was setting out equipment. I stopped a good five feet from her and said, “Hi, I’m Brodie. Thanks for your help.”

She smiled at me, and answered, “You’re welcome, now kindly husk off. I’ve got work to do and don’t like people hovering.”

I blinked at her casual dismissal of me—with a smile no less, and then stepped back when I realized she meant it. I looked around the room and discovered many groups and individuals in the same situation. Each group clearly was already getting to work, moving back and forth between cupboards and collecting herbs.

Some conversations could be overheard.

“We need the Gatherers to really start focusing on less Grasses and Herbs, and finding more Fruits.”

“You know as well as I do that the Fruits are often eaten in the field. Don’t expect too much—since they spoil so quickly.”

“Are we out of Blood Leaf again?”

“We had so much more resources before the War…”

I stood there just listening to the scattered conversations, unsure if I should be attempting anything. Eventually, I made a decision and moved to the cupboards and drawers which I’d seen other individuals collecting materials from.

Mostly, I just wanted to check them out, but I was also hoping that my Skill would recognize a few. After several minutes of searching, I had to admit that I was way out of my league in this room. I slowly left and checked the other classrooms.

My mood soured further each time I discovered new containers of Powders and Herbs that my Skill couldn’t recognize even with the name provided. Finally, I entered the smallest and least frequented room and immediately knew something was different. Just looking at a few of the cupboards and shelves I could see blue hovering plaques.

Fire Grass

Rank: Low-F

I instantly recognized the red plaque since my Mining Skill and done something similar. Of course, then it had given me information on the vein as well as the rank and name, but I instantly felt better knowing that one of my two Gardener Skills would be able to help me—especially if I leveled it.