It was a rebel group.
Once they realized that I was human on the inside, and even better, had a mysterious distaste for the current government, they left me alone for the night.
With nothing better to do, I eavesdropped on their conversations--and the conversations of other passing rebels. Apparently, Marianna the Harlot Queen had usurped the throne after the royal family had all died out, and numerous rebel groups had risen up to challenge her. That stupid bitch had gone so far out of her way to manipulate me to do her dirty work, and although I was still enraged that she took everything from me, I had to respect her somewhat.
I was never one to use lesser tactics, such as cunning or trickery to finish quests or to get what I want. It was always my irresistible charm and my immeasurable power. Her checkmate on not just me, but the entire royal family was a good one, but I have no intention of bending my knee to such a disgusting whore. She wasn’t even pretty. No one would’ve wanted her. Why else would so many people want her dead? Well, that might have something to do with her dystopian policies.
Apparently, Marianna had no idea how to run a country, and after killing all the king's advisors, she hiked taxes up and immediately cracked down on separatists throughout the country. The rebels were constantly paranoid over the city police, which had scarcely been a problem before. It seemed Marianna had sought to create a police state.
I figured that once I could regain my old body and powers, I would usurp her and become the new king of this land. At least I would be successful because everybody loved me. That is if I could find a way to fix this clusterfuck. In the meantime, I could see how the rebel groups worked from the inside so that when I became king, I would have no problem smashing them to bits.
Morning came, and the rebel hideout soon became alive with activity.
People came in and out to dump random things into the nearby chests--weapons, potions, armor--but the only thing I was being used for was a convenient garbage can. By sunset, the only things I were able to recycle were the usual bits of trash--candy bar wrappers, paper cups, dirty napkins, and leftover food. Now that the situation had changed, I knew it wouldn't be a good business decision to keep producing paper goods.
The problem was solved once the girl and guy returned.
They burst the door open carrying lumpy sacks that clinked and clanked and wasted no time to dump the contents into me.
+1.18kg Scrap Metal
+1.5kg Scrap Metal
+2.11kg Scrap Metal
+7.14kg Scrap Metal
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
The guy tossed the empty bags aside and stared into me, watching as I hummed, and my insides glowed to smelt the scrap into something usable. A minute passed, and his face turned to a scowl. "Hurry up," he demanded.
Hummmm.
"It takes time," the girl soothed.
Thack. A throbbing pain shot through me. Assface McGee had kicked me. "Well, it needs to take less time. We don't have forever."
+2147 Earth Element
+24 Fire Element
+190 Water Element
+24 Air Element
+11,930 XP
+3 Levels [Level 8]
+3 Class Points
That was underwhelming. It was a ton of scrap iron, but it only amounted to just a few levels. This was probably because I was breaking out of noob territory and the levels had higher XP requirements. At least I did get a quick few levels from just one haul--and now I was even closer to my goals.
This was good.
Thack. "Hurry up and make us some knives," Assface shouted.
Even if I could make knives--it was just a skill unlock away--I wouldn't. This guy was clearly a jerk. Instead, I dropped another point into the sensory tree.
"Unlock Smell."
"Smell Unlocked."
The wholesome scents of the world flooded through me. Burning metal, moldy wood, dust and grime and sweaty people. Ah, yes, the stuff of life. Not a good life, but it is life, nonetheless--and I hated it. If I weren't forced to take these skills to unlock the ability to move around and manipulate my surroundings, I wouldn't even think about dealing with this stuff. Why was this even a thing? What purpose could the sense of smell offer a trash can?
Is this punishment?
No. This was just another stepping stone. All of this was.
Thack. "Knives!"
I really wished I could speak, but the next skill in the sensory tree was Taste. There wasn't even a guarantee that such a thing could be unlocked. Oh well. I dropped a point into Vend: Metals so I could do some metalworking just so I could get this guy off my dick.
"Unlock: Vend: Metals."
"Vend: Metals Unlocked."
Great. With this skill, I could do basic metal working to pump out things like ugly little trinkets, aluminum cans, letter openers, and--you guessed it--knives.
Hummmmm.
"I think it's doing it," the girl said.
"Thank you," he said with a sigh of irritation. "With weapons being banned, knives are going hot on the black market."
Click.
+Short Knife (Common), Level 5
Mmm, yep. That's a knife. More of a dagger, really, and I assumed that's what he was asking for. I didn't care to see what the stats were since I already knew they would be of noob quality.
I slid open my glass visor, and he took it, inspected its edge, weight, balance, then nodded with vague satisfaction. "Good enough," he said. "Make more, and we will bring more scrap."
Even without me being able to speak, the deal between us was set without words. If I supplied knives and weapons for free--and missing out on XP in the process--I would get regular shipments of scrap to melt for a more reliable source of experience points.
He turned to the girl. "Can these make bombs?"
Before she could answer, the door slammed open, and a terrified face appeared. It was a dirty man, a homeless guy probably, and he seemed out of breath. "Thomas! Jenna!"
"Father," the girl said. "What's wrong?'
The lunatic hobo rushed to throw blankets over everything. "It's the Black Watch! They're coming!" He grabbed a huge sack and hesitated before covering me with it.
"Shit," Assface said. "Make sure that--"
Heavy knocks thudded against the door. "City Police," the voice on the other side said. "We needs ta do a rou-tine inspection."