Lord Braxand kept his true feelings of irritation neatly out of sight as he responded to his guest, “You still have doubts?”
“Doubts? No. I am certain that this is the right path forward. Concerns, though? Yes.” Valena, the Court Alchemist, answered.
He didn’t like being questioned, but decided to let her impudence slide since she was an essential part of his plans to replace the City Lord. Not to mention, she had brought him the information about the mortal alchemist and how he had actually crafted two elixirs–not one. Without that knowledge, he might’ve actually believed that Samantha had given him the rumored potion, instead of a flawed version. If he didn’t already know that Valena would gladly stab her own mother in the back to gain even a scrap of influence, he would’ve considered her a trustworthy ally.
“Go on then–voice them.” he commanded.
“For starters, who is that girl and why is she here at the safehouse?” Valena gestured to an unconscious Samantha laying on the ground nearby. “Aren’t you concerned she’ll hear?”
“That girl is our infamous saboteur. She blew up the warehouse last week and also put a few of my lesser family members to shame in the Coliseum–got them exiled to the next floor.” he explained, “I had the mercenary knock her out with the strongest sleeping poison I owned, so she should be out for the next couple hours at least. Feel free to re-dose her if you’d like, though. I can always give her the antidote if I want to speak with her sooner.”
“I’d feel more comfortable with that, yes. You can never be too careful.” Valena said, soaking a cloth with the nearby sleeping poison and holding it over Samantha’s nose and mouth for a few breaths. Valena wondered if this girl had really gotten past all of the warehouse security when her own agents couldn’t, or if Lord Braxand was keeping the truth in his back pocket like he always did. The girl didn’t even look to be out of her teens yet, though admittedly it was hard to tell with cultivators.
Eventually satisfied when the rhythm of the girl’s breathing didn’t change, Valena returned to the conversation and dropped the soaked cloth on a side table, “Now then, my next concern is whether or not the elixir you did receive is enough to push you up to Peak Bronze. If it isn’t, I don’t see how our original strategy is going to work. You and I both know you won’t stand a chance against the Ruler as you are now.”
Lord Braxand worked to reign in his killing intent as his temper flared. If he lost control now, it would not only mean that he lacked the ability to manage his aura and his emotions, but it would prove that she had succeeded in pricking his pride. He needed to maintain a strong front.
“Valena…” he said smoothly and calmly, the woman instinctually drawing back from him slightly, “Rest assured, it is enough. I have been at the threshold to Peak Bronze for the last several years, and only needed a little something to help push past the barrier. I’ve just been waiting for the elixir to fully mature before consuming it. Besides, even if this is not the more potent of the two potions it will suffice for our purposes.”
Seeing that his words didn’t completely assuage her fears, he continued, “As you well know, no one with more than four open meridians has ever reached Silver. Thus, the Ruler has only chosen to invest in the meridians for his skin, bones, heart, and lungs. You are right that his martial prowess is unmatched, but that is never how I planned to challenge him in the first place. I not only have more open meridians and access to more arts than he does, but I can attack the area he has left most undefended–his mind. All I need for him to do is to come out from the protective wards of his palace. That is where our partnership comes in. You provide the alchemicals to lure and enrage the spirit beasts, and I have my family members herd them where they need to go. When the walls are breached and the ravenous beasts rampage through his city, the Ruler will have no choice but to come out and intervene–if only to take credit and glory for fending off the enemy.”
Still dissatisfied, Valena asked, “If you were so certain of victory in the first place, why go through so much effort to obtain the elixir? It could’ve ended badly for you.”
Lord Braxand brought his hand up to his chest in mock offense and smiled, “Lady Valena, I am still a cultivator at heart! Who in their right mind would turn down power like that?”
Valena looked back at him blankly, refusing to play along with his eccentric persona.
He sighed and lowered his hand, “Just think about it for a moment. There would be nothing anyone could do if that elixir actually helped the Ruler break through to Silver. None of us would be able to oppose him, and the extra 500 years of life the rank up would give him would ensure that he would maintain his iron grip over this city for centuries to come, long after we were dead and buried. In other words, preventing him from getting that potion was crucial regardless of the risk, and me gaining some extra power is simply a nice additional benefit.”
He stopped speaking for a moment to take in her reaction, seeing if this was enough information for her. She was frustratingly good at masking her reactions, so it was difficult to tell one way or the other. He disliked revealing so much of his hand, but he needed her to follow through with her end of the plan. If he couldn’t get her to fully commit, she was likely to turn on him. Of course, he didn’t want her to get too comfortable with having the upper hand either. He changed his laid back posture ever so slightly to be a touch more predatory.
“Is there anything else that’s bothering you?” he finished, his words taking on a slight edge of warning.
Valena raised her hands in surrender, finally determining that she had pushed her luck far enough for one conversation, “Very well, consider me convinced. You’ll not hear any more complaints from me. When do you need the powdered doses? I have most of it prepared and am just waiting for your order to deliver it.”
“It will take several days to gather the volume of beasts needed to truly threaten the city. If you already have what I need, I’ll take it now and start sending my men out to the herds we’ve been tracking.”
Valena bowed to him and began to leave, but before she fully departed he called out cheerily, “Oh, and remember! Once I am the City Lord, you will remain the Head Alchemist for as long as I rule. I will elevate your position and provide you with more rare materials than you’ll know what to do with! You can experiment and create to your heart’s content, but…”
Valena paused in the doorway to let him finish speaking.
His tone turned dark, “...if you betray me… well… I don’t need to remind you of what will happen then.”
The woman paled at these words, bowed once more in acknowledgement, and rushed out the room at a pace that could just barely still be considered a walk.
----------------------------------------
Samantha sluggishly awoke from her poison-induced slumber to the sounds of a man and a woman conversing. The woman’s voice was unfamiliar, but she knew who the man was at once. She did the best she could to appear like she was still asleep, keeping her breathing and heart rate steady so as not to draw any attention to herself. After several moments without any noticeable reactions from them, she deduced that she was in the clear.
After her anxiety settled somewhat, she noticed some system messages had been patiently waiting for her attention.
Sleep poison resistance has increased to Rank 2 - 0%.
You have reached Rank 2 of sleep poison resistance! Future encounters with sleep poisons will have their effects and duration decreased by 2/3rds . Changes have been made to your status page.
As she finished reading the short notification, she heard Ol’ Man Whisper offhandedly state, “...Feel free to re-dose her if you’d like, though…” and fought off a new wave of panic. Samantha had 18 qi in her pool when Alex had first poisoned her, and she was up to 36 now. This meant that she had already been unconscious for around three hours. She needed to remain awake so that she could get out of whatever mess she had found herself in this time.
In case she needed the extra energy for what happened next, she pulled another 15 qi from Silas to bolster her pool further. This brought her total to 51/88.
“Samantha! Are you awake again? I’m nearby, but can’t sneak any closer. That dumb dog is guarding the area. I can fight through if you need me to, though.” Silas told her as he felt the energy be siphoned away from him.
“No, stay where you are! I’m still figuring out the situation and need to concentrate. Lord Braxand is the one who’s taken me, and–”
Samantha cut off the thought as she heard the woman’s footsteps approach. Hoping to fool the stranger, she subtly took as deep a breath as she could before a wet cloth was placed over her face. She pretended to continue breathing by raising and lowering her stomach, and occasionally let out air through her nostrils so the woman could feel her breath through the cloth. If the other person paid close attention they would notice that she wasn’t inhaling at all, but hoped that the small detail would be overlooked.
After applying the cloth for a few false breaths, the woman took it away and departed. Samantha’s ruse had worked perfectly, as far as she could tell.
Unfortunately, there was still a dampness left over on her face that she was sure would cause her to be re-poisoned if she breathed in too early. She had to continue to practice false breathing until the liquid fully evaporated, but with her cultivator’s Endurance she could maintain this state for several minutes without too much difficulty.
“Sorry Silas, I needed to focus for a second. Can you tell me where they took me?” Samantha sent.
“I don’t know how far, but away from the city. We’re in the forest still, but they took you beneath the ground. They opened up a large dead tree and walked inside carrying you.” he reported.
“Okay, great job.” she praised, trying to send feelings of appreciation and pride, “Continue keeping watch and I’ll let you know if I need you to do something.”
Just as she was wondering what made Ol’ Man Whisper take such drastic action against her, he mentioned to the woman whom he called Valena that ‘even if this is not the more potent of the two potions, it will suffice for our purposes’, and knew she had been found out. She didn’t know how he discovered that she had taken the more powerful elixir for herself, but now that the secret was out she and her family would likely be in grave danger. She’d need to resort to her emergency contingency.
Samantha devised a plan of action while Lord Braxand and Valena openly discussed their plans for insurrection against the current City Lord. Considering the perilous situation she found herself in, she couldn’t be bothered to concern herself with the politics themselves. What was horrifying, however, was Lord Braxand’s plans to lead dangerous beasts into the city to achieve his goals–and this plan was already being put into motion.
She needed to warn her family, but first she had to escape from wherever Alex had taken her.
Samantha was admittedly naive in many areas, but even she was not ignorant enough to believe that Lord Braxand would let her ascend the floor peacefully without more interference after their last encounter. After she had completed his mission, she had replayed all of their conversations within her memory–scouring every word and action for an exploitable weakness that would allow her to fight back. It wasn’t until she received an Attribute increase notification during her first day of training that she finally thought of something.
The sight of the system message reminded her of the conversation she had with Ol’ Man Whisper on the day of her duel with Eileen, right before the banquet held in Samantha’s honor.
“... I received a final System notification that I had failed the quest and was deemed unworthy. My Vortex mark shattered, halving my qi pool and regeneration, and I never received another notification again–even to this day...”
Samantha’s [Hyperfocus] had connected this memory to the description of a certain Utility Art that she had found while shopping at the ‘Art of Combat’. She theorized that if he had been telling her the truth about the consequences of failing his hidden quest, then this utility art would be able to exploit that weakness.
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She had no doubt that Ol’ Man Whisper had spies watching her actions, so Samantha decided to play it safe and requested that Thomas get the tome for her through a third party. If Ol’ Man Whisper caught wind of her learning this technique, then he would be on guard against it and wouldn’t give her the opening she needed. So, after receiving the manual, Samantha had secretly learned the art in hopes that it could protect her if things went poorly. However, now that the moment was upon her, she was worried that it wouldn’t be enough. She would need to make skin to skin contact with him without drawing suspicion–twice. Not to mention that if he lied about not being able to receive notifications, he would immediately realize what she was trying to do and probably kill her.
Samantha continued to feign sleep as the two finished their conversation and plotting. Once Valena left her and Ol’ Man Whisper alone in the room, Samantha gathered her courage for the moment when she would need to strike. Although she was risking swift retaliation, she was not willing to play it ‘safe’ and potentially miss her window of opportunity. If she did nothing, the best case scenario she could imagine was that Lord Braxand would prevent her ascension and then offer her knowledge about how to cultivate without the system in exchange for her service. In the worst case, she was as good as dead already–she just didn’t know it yet.
She waited patiently as she heard him walk around the room and shuffle some papers. Her current best bet to make contact was to continue her act of being unconscious so that he would be forced to give her the antidote to the poison. When he got within touching range while administering the cure, that was when she would make her move.
As she predicted, she didn’t need to wait long before he approached her. He brought some sort of bottle up under her nose, and his hand was so close to her face that she could feel the heat radiating from it as he held the concoction in place. This was the perfect opportunity.
Needing to make her performance as believable as possible, Samantha inhaled once. The fumes sent an icy jolt of pain through her mind, but that was actually perfect for displaying a semi-genuine reaction. As the pain hit her, she released a blast of killing intent to mask her actions and activated [Swift]. However, instead of using the speed to attack, she jerked her body forward as if being unexpectedly awoken had caused a body spasm. She used the forward jolt as an excuse to brush her cheek against the exposed skin of his hand, and as soon as contact was made she activated the art.
You are attempting to establish a [Geas]. Designate the amount of qi to reserve (minimum: 5, maximum: 20) and define the task for the [Geas] so that the target can be properly notified of your intent.
She recalled the description of skill as she reserved 20 qi for the art and carefully considered the exact wording of the task she would assign.
Geas (Common)
Qi Cost: Minimum 5 qi/geas
By reserving 5-20 qi of your overall pool, you can form a contractual thread between you and your target. Each contractual thread can be assigned a single, well-defined task which the target must be able to reasonably complete. If the target knowingly refuses to complete the task, they will receive damage to their cultivation base proportional to the amount of qi reserved. When the task is completed, the contractual thread will be harmlessly dissolved and the invested qi will no longer be reserved.
The manual that she had learned [Geas] from had also provided additional information that the system-generated description didn’t elaborate on, such as features of the art that were discovered through experimentation. For example, after the [Geas] notification was sent to the target they had 24 hours to review and respond to the contract. If that time elapsed, the system would count the non-response as a rejection, and the user would then have the opportunity to try and overpower the target’s natural qi defenses and force the contract without their consent.
Forcing a [Geas] came with downsides, however. For one, if the user failed to overcome their target’s qi defenses, they would receive backlash damage to their own cultivation base as if they had broken the [Geas] themselves. Secondly, even if the user succeeded in forcing the contractual thread, it would naturally be weaker than a mutually accepted one. Moreover, the target’s qi defenses would continue to reject and chip away at the forced connection, causing the power of the [Geas] to wane over time and eventually dissipate.
If Samantha’s theory was correct, because Lord Braxand failed his cultivation quest and no longer received notifications, he would have no idea that she had just initiated a [Geas] against him. As a result, she could spend the next 24 hours preparing for the moment when his notification expired and she could begin her assault. Since he didn’t know it was coming, he would be unprepared to respond and that would hopefully give her an advantage.
Normally, a Peak Copper would not be able to break through the natural qi defenses of a High Bronze. In general, the more qi a person could hold and generate (qi pool size and regeneration) and the denser their qi was (cultivation rank), the more resistant they were to outside qi intrusion and the more powerful their own intrusive qi attacks became. Lord Braxand’s qi was incredibly dense, however his qi defenses were weaker than they should be since his qi pool size and regeneration were halved when his Vortex mark shattered. In addition, Samantha’s qi attacks were stronger than they should be because her qi pool size and regeneration had doubled from her body’s qi saturation. This meant there was actually a chance that she could force a [Geas] on the man.
Since this entire plan was dependent on whether Lord Braxand noticed what she had done or not, Samantha observed his smirking form with both terror and trepidation. Then, she resisted the urge to physically flinch as she finalized the wording of her task.
Target has been sent the terms of your [Geas]. Awaiting reply.
He showed no sign that he sensed anything amiss at all.
Lord Braxand stood, closed the unlabeled bottle held in his hand, and set it down on a side table next to a damp cloth. “Had a good nap? You’ve been sleeping for… three or so hours at this point.”
Samantha slowly stood and brushed the dirt off of her robes, not saying anything in response yet. She quickly took in the small room, since there wasn’t much to see. It was a windowless, cube-shaped space with tan colored floor tiles. The walls and ceilings looked to be smoothed, gray stone, while the singular door was made of wood. The space was sparsely furnished with high quality pieces: a desk and chair, a side table, and some bookshelves with books.
After seeing her surroundings, she turned her full attention to Lord Braxand. His demeanor appeared unbothered at the moment, but she feared that if she said the wrong thing that that could change in an instant. So, she chose to remain silent to get a better gauge for his mood before saying anything.
“Let’s get straight to the point. I know that you took the better of the two cultivation elixirs for yourself. You’ve stolen from me–and don’t even bother trying to pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about. Your lack of immediate questions about why you’ve found yourself in this situation is proof enough that you know why you’re here. Do you have anything you want to say in your defense, or shall I just tell you the consequences of your actions?”
Choosing her words carefully, Samantha said, “I don’t deny that I took one of the elixirs for myself, however I can’t say with any certainty that one was better than the other as both felt incredibly powerful and unlike anything I had seen before. And, to be fair, I followed your order to the letter. Your exact instructions to me were ‘retrieve the cultivation elixir from Harold Greene’s alchemy workshop and return it to me’. I found a cultivation elixir in his workshop and returned it to you, as promised.”
He looked down at her with an odd expression between disdain and respect, “I could’ve perhaps overlooked your transgression if you had taken the flawed concoction for yourself instead. As you said, I asked for only a single elixir from the alchemy lab, and I could’ve considered it a bonus payment for your hard work and subsequent success. Taking the elixir I actually wanted though, the one meant to advance the City Lord into Silver… that I cannot allow to pass without suitable punishment.”
“Lord Braxand, I have no alchemical training or knowledge whatsoever. I do not understand how I could be expected to reliably differentiate between the two grades of elixir.” Samantha offered weakly.
“And so you just… what? Picked which one you would keep at random?” he snarled, his anger getting the better of him and his killing intent flooding the room. “I’m not sure if that excuse makes this offense better or worse. Perhaps I gave you too much credit. I have use for clever agents, but none whatsoever for fools.”
Samantha dropped to her knees as the wave of unrelenting pressure crushed her to the ground, and Lord Braxand stood over her menacingly. Though filled with dread, Samantha saw an opportunity to attach her second [Geas].
She reached forward and grabbed hold of Lord Braxands feet, as if pleading and begging while pressing her face to the floor in a kowtow. She felt one of her fingertips brush against the skin of his ankle and immediately reserved another 20 qi for the art while setting the terms of her task.
Target has been sent the terms of your [Geas]. Awaiting reply.
“Please, Lord! Mercy!” she gasped, hardly able to breathe, “I admit it. I knowingly took the stronger of the two elixirs for myself. I will do whatever it takes to repay my debt to you.”
The pressure in the room suddenly eased, though it did not completely vanish.
“And that,” Ol’ Man Whisper announced cheerily to no one in particular, “is how you successfully interrogate someone without resorting to the barbarics of violence!”
Ol’ Man Whisper let out a boisterous laugh while slapping his knee. Samantha looked up from her still-kneeling position dumbfounded.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that! You’re the one who started playing this dangerous game first, after all. Sometimes you win, sometimes you…” he pointed to her as he spoke the next word, “...lose. But now that we’ve been open and honest with one another, let me tell you what’s going to happen next. I understand that you probably made this terrible decision due to feeling pressured about your upcoming ascension and wanting to gain power quickly. Luckily for you, you no longer need to concern yourself about it, since I will not be permitting you to ascend. This lovely safehouse will be your home until your Vortex mark shatters.”
Samantha strongly suspected that this was a tactic the powerful cultivator would employ, but she put on a shocked expression anyway, “Isn’t there any other way we can resolve this?”
He raised a skeptical eyebrow at her, “Perhaps you didn’t realize it at the time, but that elixir was priceless. I would love to hear how you plan to repay me for the loss of a priceless object in the next week.”
Samantha didn’t have a response for that.
“So you see the problem… but don’t worry! I have decided to take you under my wing. Once your connection to the system is severed, you will work for me in return for the knowledge I’ve spent decades accumulating–just like an apprentice would for their master. And, since this folly stemmed from your youthful ignorance, I won’t even hold it against your family. I will uphold the trade contracts made with the Cray’s and your businesses will prosper. Really, I think in the long term you will actually thank me for my benevolence. Actually, why don’t you thank me for my generosity right now?”
“...Thank you, Master Braxand.” Samantha said with all the forced humility she could, returning to a kowtow position to hide her expression of contempt.
“I’m glad you understand your position. Oh, and one more thing! I can sense you are very close to breaking through to Low Bronze. I suggest spending your time here trying to advance before your system access is revoked. If you don’t manage it before then, you likely will never be able to. I’ve left a few books on the subject in your room for you to research and study–they’re ones that my own family members have used for the process.” he explained.
Samantha raised her head from the floor and looked at the man, trying to understand his motivations for encouraging her to advance and even providing her with study aids. Her best guess was that he was planning on holding this slight against her for the rest of her life, and her service would last much longer if she gained the extended lifespan of a Bronze. Not to mention that she would be more useful as an asset at Bronze than if she was stuck at Peak Copper forever.
As she was considering his reasonings, Ol’ Man Whisper turned to the nearby door and called, “Alex! Take my guest to her accommodations.”
The Low Bronze promptly came into the room to fetch Samantha, practically dragging her towards the door until Lord Braxand motioned for him to stop, “No need to be so rough with the girl, she knows her place now. And remember I’ll be back in a few days to check on her, so make sure she is well taken care of.”
“Yes, Lord Braxand.” Alex said dutifully, putting Samantha upright and letting her walk under her own power.
As Samantha was led through the underground complex, she made mental notes of anything and everything. She counted how many rooms there were, what hallways led where, and placed all this information into a mental map of the facility for later reference.
Alex led her into a space that was nearly identical to the study-like room she had just left. The main differences between the two lay in the furnishings and the door. There was a bed for her to sleep on against one wall, a small desk with a couple of books next to the bed, a toilet, and a sink. On the bed there was a mundane change of clothing and a set of sandals. The room would feel almost home-y, if not for the only door being made of solid, qi-enchanted metal. It was obviously intended to prevent anyone from breaking out of it.
“Just so there’s no ambiguity here, don’t bother trying to escape from this room. The walls and doors are tough enough to withstand attacks from at least a Mid-Bronze, so you’d only be hurting yourself. I’m stationed outside at all times as well, so I will be both your guard and caretaker for the next week. Knock three times on this door if you need something, but don’t you dare call me over for stupid reasons or I’ll ignore you from then on. Got it?” Alex said, looking a bit bored.
Samantha nodded, and he proceeded to close the door behind her and lock it into place.
As soon as she was left alone, Samantha grabbed the books off of the desk and started skimming through them to see if they would actually be helpful for her progression into Low Bronze or not.
The first book mainly addressed what Core Types could be available for a person to select when ranking up based on what meridians they had open and what (if any) tenets they had uncovered. Since there was not anything she could change about those things in the time she had left, she didn’t do much more than scan what options could be available to her to get a general idea of what she could expect.
The second book was much more helpful for her practical needs. It detailed the process of core formation and different strategies she could adapt if she began to lose control. She allotted an hour of time to studying and picking a handful of different procedures she thought would work for her, then put the book away. As much as she would love to be more prepared, she had a lot to accomplish before Lord Braxand’s [Geas] notifications expired and not a lot of time to accomplish it. If she didn’t start right away, she could really be stuck in his service forever.