Rory spent the next two and a half days hunting in the snake room. He didn’t partner with Gusss because he had run out of snake knockout potion and, according to Elphina, it took two weeks to make. Something about distillation and concentration. Sure. Whatever.

Instead of just staying around the edges of the fabricated jungle, he decided to push in just a little. He tried a cycle of going around the edges and slowly making his way in. It quickly became apparent that as he moved inward, the levels of the snakes got higher. Thus, he started killing level 2 and 3 snakes as she had begun going deeper than before. Besides his first rainbow snake encounter, those were the strongest he’d managed to slay. All together, the jump in levels of his targes gave him enough myst to get him to level 8.

Based upon that limited experience, he believed that the closer the spiral got to the middle, the stronger the snakes would grow. Sure, it wasn’t always true, as exemplified by Lucifer (what in its right mind would want to mess with him?), but he felt it was a fair rule to run by so far.

It also hadn’t missed his notice how lucky he was to basically have his own personal hunting grounds. He had plans to see if there was an equivalent in the mammal area in the next weeks. But he wanted to wait until he reached tier one, or level 15. Snakes, for all their toxic danger, were very limited. Mammals had a lot more options, and thus he was planning to play that area a bit conservative.

That said, Rory used the time in the snake jungle as an opportunity to practice some of the things he'd been learning about camping and tracking. The camping part wasn’t bad. He figured out how to use some of the new equipment he had purchased the evening prior after leaving Steph. The tent he bought based on advice from his research was a nifty device that managed temperature, offered a softer floor than the hard ground of the jungle, purified the air, and kept most things of low level from entering.

As for cooking, well, that was a bigger challenge. He had managed to burn his first few meals. It was a shame to waste the snake meat, but they were the lowest of the low level – less than barely even 1% myst each.

As for some of the other lessons, it turned out that tracking snakes in a jungle was pretty much impossible, at least for him. He still tried, of course, but it was an abject failure.

In the end, he succeeded at doing what he had really wanted, which was to gather two more souls that would hopefully add to his agility. The capture rate was really low, but he wasn’t complaining. Having reached level 8, Rory had seven unused SVs. He could max out Withdraw Soul and get three upgrades to his body, but Rory hesitated. First, because he didn’t know if the level of the summons mattered. It didn’t say either way in the description. And second, even if it didn’t, he was already going through a lot of change that was preventing him from sleeping through the night. All and all, it seemed like an unnecessary risk for now.

And his body was definitely continuing to change, mostly when he was sleeping for whatever reason. That morning he was pretty sure his strength had risen again, although it was hard to be sure without checking. He had decided that he would only look at his Soul Summary after he got measured, allowing him to compare what he saw to what Steph told him. He felt it was important and would offer insight in how his body changed compared to what his busted wielder tree showed. Additionally, it would make for good insight into preparing for the changes he would go through when he eventually did invest in Withdraw Soul.

***

The following evening Rory was on his way to see Elphina after having just sold all his snake meat again. He had a decent amount saved up now, over £13,000. Not even close to enough, but it was an excellent start in his mind. Definitely a passable baseline to build the future.

He went to the front door of the shop to say hello to Penny and get a face full of scents all at the same time. It was fine. He actually planned on possibly buying something this time. Maybe. It made him a little nervous, but his research said it might be a good idea for a budding relationship.

What he found when he got there was not what he expected. Two identical floating white vehicles with blacked-out translumin windows were parked illegally in front of the shop. As Rory approached, he noticed the expensive-looking vehicles were spotlessly clean, glistening in the light of the street lights with only one thing marring their perfection. It was a small projection on the bottom left of the back windows of both vehicles. Surprisingly, Rory found he recognized it. It was the same serpentine “M” he had seen on chief’s house back in the slums.

Confused and concerned, Rory rounded the cars only to find someone standing behind the pair of grav transports and just outside the front door, as if guarding the entrance. The guy was only about five feet tall, had very short black hair, slanted black eyes, a flat nose, and a superior expression. Now even more concerned, Rory approached and tried to step around to get in. The man held his hand up, a hand Rory noticed that was gloved so he couldn’t tell if the man was a wielder.

“Shop is closed today,” the short man said in a curt voice.

Rory mentally shook his head. This happened in the slums occasionally too. One time Rory had gone to sell something to the metal shop on the outskirts as they gave better prices on recyclable M-steel than Mick, but they were “closed.” And by that, Rory meant two of Mycroft’s guys were standing outside the entrance letting everyone know to come back tomorrow. Of course, all the hollering inside told people that Chief had not been pleased about something, most likely his cut.

Given what Elphina had told him about competition trying to take over the place, it seemed rather obvious what was going on. Normally Rory wouldn’t want to risk drawing attention by getting involved in the city any more than he did in the slums. But this was also his store now and, well, he found he liked the old lady.

With that in mind, Rory decided he’d see if he could keep this whole situation from going bad. He looked innocently at the man. “I have an appointment to see Penny and Elphina. I’ll just go in and do my business. Thank you.”

Then Rory stepped to the right to pass. The man stepped the same way, hand still out. “No. The shop is closed.”

“Are you putting me on? I know it’s open.” Then he pointed at a window. “Look, I can see people moving inside.” They both could see through the window into the smokey room making it obvious he was right.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“Renovations,” was the man’s answer.

Rory sighed. Really? That was what he was going with? “Look. I have an appointment and I’m going in.” At that point, Rory took a step forward and to the left.

The man’s other hand, also gloved, reached out and grabbed Rory’s arm as he was attempting to pass. “Stop!”

Rory yanked his arm free with no resistance. Likely not a wielder then. Or he didn’t want to show his strength in public.

“Don’t touch me!” Rory’s hissed.

Then he shoved past the man and reached the door. A hand grabbed his arm again, with a little more force in the grip. Rory looked over his shoulder, yanked his arm again, and freed it. This time it was hard enough that it caused the guy to stumble into the wall.

None too pleased, Rory opened the door and walked into the smelly place. What he saw was what he had expected but feared. There were four men of similar appearance and stature standing around the room looking intimidating. One at the counter who was dressed in blue instead of black like the others. He was clearly trying to bully tiny Penny, who looked a mix of angry and scared.

They all wore gloves which Rory knew was a tactic to hide who was a wielder and who was not. All faces turned to Rory when he closed the door on the petrified face of the man outside. He might have job troubles coming.

“Get lost!” the guy at the counter loudly ordered. “Store’s closed.”

Rory shook his head and pointed at Penny. “A worker is right there and I have an appointment.”

Deciding to get to it, Rory looked from him to the young woman and said pleasantly, “Hi, Penny. Thanks for making time for me. I wanted to talk to you about a small gift for someone. Where’s your grandmother by the way?”

The relief on her face was nearly tangible.

“Hi, Rory,” she rushed to say. “She went out to buy some ingredients that we couldn’t seem to get any other way for some reason.” Clearing her throat, she turned her body blatantly away from the guy in front of her without moving, and asked, “What kind of gift?”

The blue-suited one was clearly the boss of the group with the others his guards or toughs. Just like with the guy at the door, it didn’t matter if it was in the slums or in the rich city, the same model for bullying enforcers still worked.

Of course, the boss was displeased at being ignored. He whipped around fully to Rory and literally yelled, “Get out!”

Rory raised his eyebrows. “I’m happy to wait for my turn if you’re in line. There’s no need to shout, mate.”

As likely as violence seemed to be, Rory wanted to avoid it, so he was trying to talk them all out of a fight. He just did not have enough information to do anything other than talk. What if they had laze pistols? Plus, these guys might simply be hired muscle to send a message. He had no proof one way or another if they were the actual competition that Elphina had mentioned. After all, he knew that Chief had occasionally hired out help if he couldn’t use Mycroft’s guys for whatever reason.

On top of that, any or all of them might be wielders, and if so what level they were. Alternatively, none of them might be. Even if they were, they could still be carrying guns. Guns were a problem for Rory. So Rory was going to be nice and calm and he just had to hope that they didn’t want to wreck the place or accidentally hurt Penny.

The boss guy glared at Rory with his hands at his hips. Rory just stood there, innocently, while thinking about what to do if they pulled laze pistols.

He knew he was no tactician. He’d been fighting beasts and had surprised a few thugs. These guys looked more professional than Mycroft’s or Marvin’s. And Rory still did not know how to fight people all that well. Plus, if a fight broke out, five on one wasn’t good odds.

So, Rory decided he would try to take the tension down another notch. He had an idea that he had seen this work a few times between slum enforcers. He once had seen Mycroft and his equivalent at a neighboring slum almost to come to blows when someone new had come and calmed them all down. Rory had no idea who he had been, but he tried taking his posture and using his words.

Smiling genially, he put his hands behind his back and said with a bit of arrogance, “Gentlemen. We both want things here. Let’s agree that today isn’t the day to discuss it. Maybe sometime in the future, we can work it out in a friendly way, and all of our bosses will be happy.”

The blue-suited guy’s face changed immediately to one of confusion and then concern. “Who’s your boss?” he asked cautiously.

“Let’s say he likes to stay behind the scenes.” At this point, Rory was totally making it up as he went. But maybe there was a chance to buy a little time. “As he owns this place as of a few days ago, it would be a shame if something happened to it. He would look at that… unkindly.” Rory intentionally put a little bite and changed his face to be a little firmer when he spoke that last word.

The man looked shocked for a few moments but collected himself quickly, fixed his suit, and said, “Agreed.”

Rory nodded, his smile returning. “I’ll be managing his relationship with this… shop.” Rory’s tone had changed to one of derision when he was describing their store. Hopefully, Penny wouldn’t be offended. But he finished his fake threat with, “I’ll likely be around a few time per week for at least a few minutes. You know, to check things are running smoothly. And profitably.” Then he held his hand out, aiming at the door. “For now, gentlemen, have a lovely day.”

The blue suit nodded, waved his hand, and followed two of his guards out after which he was followed by the other two.

When the door closed, Rory relaxed his body and turned towards Penny, who he was surprised to see running towards him. Was she really that mad about what he said? Well, he’d be okay. She was tiny and wasn’t armed.

But instead of a blow and blame for being a wanker about the whole thing, Penny’s thin arms wrapped around him under his arms and her head was on his chest. She was pretty tiny so her head only went to below his sternum. His arms out, he was so surprised he didn’t react for a moment. Then he patted her back and let out a breath.

“Hey, Penny. You okay?”

She nodded into his chest, but wouldn’t let go.

“Uhh. Penny? Can you let go please?”

She coughed and back up a step, fixed her robes, and wiped at her eyes.

“When do you think Elphina will be back?” he asked, intentionally not mentioning any of that.

“A few hours,” she answered, still blushing slightly. “She had to go to a warehouse in another part of the city to get ingredients. Those… gits” she spat angrily, “did something to stop us from getting shipments.”

Rory sighed and nodded. “I bought a little time, but that’s all. Bluffing can only take you so far. Something this big really is beyond me.”

“I know,” Penny said sadly. “I appreciate today at least.”

Rory thought for a minute. “Why don’t you send your grandmother a comm?” he asked. “Say that today is the best opportunity she’ll have to be out and get what she needs. The more she can pick up today the better. They won’t be back until they figure out I’m a fraud, which should take a few days. I hope at least.”

Penny’s eyes widened and she nodded vigorously. Running behind the counter, she commed her grandmother by vid and told her about what happened. Rory turned away and let them have their privacy. A few minutes later, Penny finished and turned back to Rory.

“Oh. By the way, did you come by to check up on us or was there something you actually wanted?” she asked.

Rory jumped a little at that. He had forgotten. “Right! Yes. Thank you.” Clearing his throat, he said, “I actually need your advice. I wanted to buy something nice for a friend but I want it to be small and not too… much, I guess?” he finished lamely.

Penny looked at him slyly, put her hand on her chin which was on the counter, and said with a teasing tone, “Is this friend a giiiirl?”

Why does she have to roll out the word like that? This is embarrassed enough as it is!

Blushing, Rory nodded. Penny jumped up, giggling and clapping. “I know just the thing. Let’s go to the perfumes.”