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In the previous chapter, the apothecary diagnosed Violet’s illness, but there wasn’t much that could be done except forking money for medicine.
Chapter 10
Long Con
Outside the Dungeon town, yet hidden in the Underground, this tavern was where all the sad rejects like Violet gathered. The musty place reeking of piss and gloom welcomed everyone, from weary troglodyte slaves to ratkin vagrants.
Underground Tavern
There, Violet spent most of her time, playing around with beetle fights or working on a nefarious plot to scam the Thieves’ Guild.
That day, she sat at the counter, waiting for Lorely to deliver her counterfeit goods to unsuspecting spies and return with their money.
The name of the tavern wasn’t worth mentioning, but Violet enjoyed it because the bartender reminded her of the only father figure she ever had.
The person in question was a rare sight to behold. It had an exposed brain with a single massive veiny eye, a smile filled with sharp teeth, and a spiky spine sticking out from its back. Tentacles protruding from its bottom swiftly mixed cocktails and served drinks.
That’s right, it was a beholder wearing a tuxedo and a bow tie.
It was difficult to understand why they'd pick the ugliest entity around to serve customers. Usually, you’d rather have a bartender that didn’t sap your sanity just by looking at it, right?
But it had great redeeming qualities that couldn’t be overlooked, like the sheer volume of drinks that those tentacles served at once, and like shooting disintegration rays at the cockroaches that crawled by.
Anyway, it looked at Violet sprawled over the counter with a pitying gaze. It poured mushroom wine in a ceramic cup and served it to her with a grand sweeping motion of its tentacles.
Her cheek was resting inside her elbow while she toyed with a strange looking beetle. Acknowledging the bartender’s service, she sat upright and gulped down the wine. There was nothing like Dungeon’s nutritious wine. Even the crappiest stuff tasted like a ballet of sweet earthiness that had nothing to envy the Surface’s products.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Thanks.” She put her cup down with a heavy thud. Her hair spilled down from her hood and revealed pure white streaks.
In the span of a year, not a single colored hair remained on her head. And her face quickly regained wrinkles after each time she received healing treatment. On the other hand, no one around her changed at all. This realization made her sigh once again.
Bartender
Beholder
“By the void, how long are you going to keep that lifeform around? Remove that filth off my counter.” The beholder pointed its chin at the beetle, which was peacefully sucking a blob of sweet jelly.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Yo, what the fuck are you saying?!” She slammed the counter, making the stag beetle bounce.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“I raised this SSS-rank Chariot Stag Beetle with these queenly hands ever since it was a larva!” She hysterically waved her hands as if to shove them on the beholder.
Even if it was only for gambling, it was the first time that Violet proactively followed her passion instead of just being swept by the flow.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“And this awesome bad boy is boosted with my fleshcarving masterpiece! He’s so powerful that we’ve been banned from fights and gambling!”
She said it as if she was proud of it, but hearing those words coming from her own mouth was like stabbing herself. She missed playing around so much.
After her outburst, Violet sighed and sprawled limplessly over the counter. Her index affectionately patted the beetle’s tattooed back. It was a mutilation of fleshcarving, the signature technology tree of the Dungeon.
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Just like the insect, Violet’s body was engraved with sigils and magic circles that had permanently reshaped her being into an ersatz warlock. There was little visible trace on her, as it was mostly inscribed under her skin. But even if it was no longer active, her transformation remained.
The beetle climbed on her finger after finishing its meal.
Both Violet and her Chariot stag beetle transcended their natural species, turning into unstoppable weapons of carnage… Both of them were unwanted and rejected.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“He’s just like me for real.”
Violet craved affection, like most humans did. The harpies treated her well, but they always acted weird and chaotic, draining Violet’s energy. They regularly competed for Lorely’s attention and picked up fights with Violet.
What she sought was a true home, a place where she was needed, accepted, and loved.
At your service, my queen
Just give me a good king~
But even with her newfound freedom, she couldn’t find a cozy home anywhere close to the Dungeon’s alienating and cruel world.
Bartender
Beholder
“Why don’t you go to the colosseum instead of playing with beetles?” The bartender, with a rare sensibility uncommon to beholders, noticed Violet’s forlorn expression.
Bartender
Beholder
“Wealth, honor, entertainment. You can win it all with your skills, just fleshcarve your fighter.”
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Too expensive. I don’t wanna go to town.” Violet shrugged.
The bartender didn’t pry further. There had to be a reason why Violet roamed in the Underworld without settling in town despite proving her skills in fleshcarving.
A rabbitfolk in tattered cloth stumbled inside the tavern and headed towards Violet.
Violet pulled her hood as low as she could, hiding herself from unwanted attention.
Beggar
Rabbitfolk
“Please, ma’am. Could you spare a coin for this lowly beggar?” The rabbitfolk put his only able hand to his heart in a prayer.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“No, I need to buy my medicine too!” Violet growled.
She donated some changes to that rabbit in the past. The poor lad was probably the gladiator or the toy of a random noble in town.
Even if it didn’t change anything in the grand scheme, Violet believed that all acts counted. But ever since then, the rabbitfolk remembered her and always asked her. It made her uncomfortable to refuse even if he wasn’t harassing her.
Bartender
Beholder
“You heard her. Don’t bother my customer.” It shooed him with a wave of tentacle.
Beggar
Rabbitfolk
“Sorry for bothering you during your drink. Have a good day, ma’am.” He wandered away to beg the other customers.
After a moment of lonely drinking, Lorely finally walked in.
Her look and demeanor had changed drastically over the months.
She looked cool in her sturdy clothes with the tools hanging on her as if she was prepared for all situations. Maybe the habit did make the monk, because Lorely carried herself with the confidence of a veteran.
Violet smiled. She would definitely hire this reliable looking adventurer if she needed an escort.
Lorely sat beside Violet and crossed her legs with a slick motion. She slipped a bag of coins in Violet’s pockets.
Violet’s Rook
Lorely
“They bought it.” She quietly giggled, sharing her euphoria with her partner-in-crime.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Should I write another paper for the next delivery?” Violet chortled at their own plans.
Violet’s Rook
Lorely
“The spy was really happy with the mage guild’s ‘leaked’ papers, but aren’t you running out of subjects?”
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Eyyy, no way~ I can do that shit for years. Tower doesn’t have the faintest clue about fleshcarving. They’re interested in knowing its applications, potentials, and weaknesses, but they can’t reproduce the procedures so they can never verify the made-up experimental data, hahaha!”
Violet’s Rook
Lorely
“Hm, alright, but don’t put my name in the authors!”
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Ok, let’s see this time… How about ‘Performance of Fleshcarved Insectile Soldiers in Warfare: Case Study of Enhanced Chariot Stag Beetle’? They’ll lose their shit when they’ll learn about weaponized hordes of insects, haha!”
Violet’s Rook
Lorely
“Good idea! We can even send them a sample to intimidate them!” Lorely pointed at the beetle chilling on the counter.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“What?! Forget it! I’ll write about the theoretical application of supreme elemental mastery.”
Violet’s Rook
Lorely
“But you’re the only one in the world with Supreme Earth Magic. Isn’t it completely useless?”
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Of course not! I can speculate about Supreme Air Magic. You know how they love Air school of Magic, they’ll eat that shit and daydream about it in vain.” It was easy to drive research efforts into a deadend with misguided yearning.
They argued over another cup of mushroom alcohol.
Naturally, Violet had to write about things she knew to make the lies convincing. But she received such extensive insight upon receiving her artificial blessing that it was no problem.
In fact, her enlightenment made great breakthroughs for the Dungeon regarding their understanding of spirits and their relation to artifact synthesizing. She was proud to be the chosen one to deliver this reward for the collective suffering of her sisters.
Violet’s Rook
Lorely
“Mistress, I think we should go.” After a quick trip to the toilet, it was time for them to go to her regular meeting next door with the apothecary to buy her discounted potions.
Violet felt generous after getting a pay. She handed a coin to the rabbitfolk from the bartender’s change and quickly ran away.
Underground Inn
They headed straight to an inn a few buildings away and waited for the dark elf in a room.
At first they were suspicious of her discounts, but the dark elf proved to be sincere about building her business model on regular delivery. Her discounted potion was an offer that Violet couldn’t afford to pass up.
Apothecary
Dark elf
“Hi! I’m sorry, did you wait long?”
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“No, don’t worry! We just arrived.”
Apothecary
Dark elf
“It’s a relief, then. I hired an assistant not too long ago, a minotaur who’s passionate about herbs, but he’s a mess to clean up after.”
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Rather, I should be thanking you for taking your time while you’re busy with your new apprentice. What’s more, you’re offering us good deals…”
Apothecary
Dark elf
“Aww, it’s alright~ It’s practical for my business to have periodic sales. It lets me organize the production and save costs in storage.”
Apothecary
Dark elf
“Anyway, here’s the usual. Are you going to take it right away?” The dark elf was ready to pour it into a glass.
It was their usual practice, because in case of allergy or unforeseen problem, the dark elf could intervene right away. Violet had no reason to change their routine and drank the potion on the spot.
Destitute Sovereign
Violet
“Oh, that’s pretty good. The taste is different, did you-” Violet didn’t finish her words and suddenly wobbled back into her chair.