Chapter 253: Level 2 spiritual cores

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After everything that had happened, the mountain’s inner world was completely out of control. Explosions, enraged Light-element creatures, unstable tunnels, and an absurd amount of elemental energy had transformed the place into a true disaster zone.

For any acolyte with even a little common sense, that meant only one thing: the treasure hunt was over.

Therefore, when I returned to Sunshine City, I made sure to blend in with the other visiting acolytes and, most importantly, appear completely innocent.

—Damn monsters!

—We almost got killed in there!

—That mountain went completely crazy!

—I lost almost all of my resources!

I complained along with the others, cursing the creatures inside the mountain and displaying all the indignation that an acolyte who had just survived a calamity was expected to show.

I handed over the required amount of mission materials and left Sunshine without attracting any attention. No one suspected me.

The return to Arcangrove Tower was peaceful.

Now I was a Pseudo-Mage. And this change in identity immediately caused a huge storm within Arcangrove Tower. I couldn’t help but smile slightly.

As for the Nark Family badge I had obtained at Kar-Dur Tower, its purpose was also quite clear. It meant that the Nark Family was willing to protect me within the Kar-Dur region.

But that did not mean I had become an official member of the family. I had not signed any magical family-binding contract with them. Therefore, there was no reason to interpret the badge as anything beyond what it actually meant.

Besides, I had barely finished the mission when I was dragged directly to Ruby’s room. My Blood Fairy girlfriend had apparently heard about my return, and as soon as I entered the room, her eyes immediately locked onto me.

—Tell me right now.

—What did you do during this mission?

She crossed her arms.

—How is it possible that you leveled up and became a Pseudo-Mage?

I looked at her and smiled before walking over to the table and placing my hand on it. Then I began taking a few things out of my storage. Five mysterious dark-golden gemstones appeared on the table.

One of them was much larger than the other four.

Ruby immediately became curious.

—What are those?

She reached out to touch the largest stone.

The instant her fingers touched it...

Tzzzz!

A small light emerged from the surface of the stone.

The luminous flame burned her fingers.

Ruby immediately pulled her hand back.

I looked at her fingers.

The skin in the affected area had turned dark. But Ruby did not seem concerned. She simply moved her hand, and the burn marks immediately disappeared, returning her fingers to their original state.

This time, however, she did not touch it again. She stared at the stone.

The stone itself was protecting itself.

That meant... it possessed some kind of consciousness.

Ruby narrowed her eyes.

Then she bared her fangs.

—What exactly is this?

I smiled.

—A Level 2 Spiritual Core.

I spoke slowly, savoring every word.

Ruby froze.

Her red lips moved silently.

—A Level 2 Spiritual Core...

She repeated.

—A Level 2 Spiritual Core...

Then her eyes widened.

—You killed a Level 2 demon?!

She moved closer.

—Where’s the corpse?

—Did you extract its blood?

—Quick! Tell me!

I was speechless.

I spread my arms.

—If I had actually encountered a Level 2 demon, do you think I’d still be alive to talk to you?

Ruby fell silent.

Then she smiled faintly.

—You’re right.

I shook my head.

Ruby was going through an extremely important period in the evolution of a Blood Fairy. And for her race, one of the fastest ways to increase their strength was to consume the blood of powerful individuals.

I completely understood why she had become so excited upon hearing about a Level 2 Spiritual Core.

Besides, I noticed that she was looking at me with an intensity that was different from usual.

—George, let me drink some of your blood?

—Absolutely not!!! I answered without hesitation.

According to the Biochip’s analysis, any individual whose blood was sucked by a Blood Fairy would suffer some degree of weakening. This weakening could directly affect the target’s physical and magical attributes.

And those were precisely the attributes I valued the most.

Lorgy was the best example. That Bloodline Apprentice had reached the peak of Level 3 and was about to undergo his Advancement Ceremony to become an Official Mage.

When my Golems defeated him, his physical wounds could have been healed within a week or two. But that was not what happened to his strength. According to information from his family, his mana had suffered a decline.

He had not lost more than twenty points, but even that reduction had been enough to prevent him from advancing normally.

After analyzing several cases, I began to suspect something.

Blood Fairies could probably extract some factor related to the bloodline present in their hosts’ blood. While strengthening their own bloodline, they simultaneously weakened the individual who provided the blood.

If that were really the case... how could I let Ruby drink my blood? Then I had a bold idea... I calmly sat in the chair and lowered my pants, revealing my cock, which quickly hardened.

—How about you swallow my cum? I’m pretty sure semen is far more potent than blood, don’t you think?

Hearing my words, Ruby swallowed hard, unable to believe my audacity; yet deep down, she grasped the logic, after all, if blood strengthened her, semen had to be even more effective. Ruby knelt before me, and before she started sucking my cock, she removed her dress, revealing a pair of melons with pink nipples.

Glup!!~~

I grabbed one of the horns on Ruby’s head and forced her to take my cock deep into her throat—a deliciously wet and hot deep-throat experience.

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After making her suck my cock until my balls were drained, she licked her lips and stood up.

—Your cum actually tastes good, she said before leaving the room, as if she hadn’t just sucked out my soul. I got dressed and returned to my room.

Raticati was already waiting for me. During the three months I had been away, Arcangrove Tower had changed quite a bit. With Ruby’s support, Raticati had opened the first Rat Shop inside the tower.

It was still a small shop. But the products were different. Many of them were rare resources that were difficult to find in the outside world.

Raticati had also begun observing the acolytes. He realized that many of them possessed magical materials or ordinary resources that they had no intention of using immediately. Buying these materials could turn the small shop into a genuine trading hub.

But there was a problem. A shop needed inventory. And to operate on a large scale, I would need to constantly provide high-quality materials.

After hearing everything Raticati had to say, I nodded.

Then I opened my storage, and a huge pile of magic stones and materials appeared before him.

Most of them were Light Crystals.

The acolytes who spent their days exploring only the mountain’s outer perimeter had few opportunities to find high-quality materials.

Moreover, those Light Crystals had been bathed in the ocean of light during the mountain’s active periods. After passing through the filtering process of the Light-element creatures, what remained were lower-quality materials.

But the crystals I had brought back were completely different.

They were high-grade Light Crystals.

I picked up a particularly large crystal. It was almost the size of a human skull, and I tossed it to Raticati.

—Find someone capable of shaping it into a jade pillow.

Raticati almost fell backward trying to catch it.

If I could rest my head on a high-grade Light Crystal while meditating... The results would probably be much better.

Not long afterward, Raticati happily left, carrying a bag full of materials.

As soon as the door closed...

My smile disappeared.

Now it was time to think about the things that truly mattered.

During the three months I had been away, Mage Lucius had publicly announced that he would take Kalikol as his disciple.

And according to Raticati, during practically all three of those months, Kalikol had remained on the fifth floor of the Mage Tower.

No one knew exactly what the two of them were doing there.

If Lucius had finally decided that now was the time to kill me and leave his experimental subject, Ruby, without a safe haven, allowing him to increase his control over Ruby’s mind, then using Kalikol to deal with me wouldn’t be a bad idea...

From the moment I fully understood the conflict of interests between Lucius and Ruby, I already knew that sooner or later he would treat me as an enemy.

I just hadn’t expected him to move so quickly.

Those Mages were extremely cunning.

To them, acolytes were, in many ways, simply resources that could be used.

If there were no restrictions imposed by the higher administration of the Mages, perhaps these individuals wouldn’t even allow new Mages to emerge—Mages capable of competing with them for rare resources.

But I couldn’t control what Lucius would do.

I could only control my own progress.

And as long as my rate of advancement remained beyond their expectations...

Any trap would have difficulty keeping up with my footsteps.

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Raticati’s POV

After leaving my master’s room, I immediately returned to my own room.

As soon as I closed the door...

I could no longer contain myself.

—Hahaha!

I began laughing and dancing.

My bag seemed to have transformed into the greatest treasure in the world.

Every time I took a magic stone out of it, my heart raced.

—Wonderful!

I picked up a stone and kissed it.

Then I gently caressed its surface.

—So beautiful...

At that moment, I could only think about my master.

I wanted to run back to him.

I wanted to passionately kiss his shoes.

Perhaps, if I did that, my master would finally understand the full depth of my loyalty!

—Master... How generous you are!

I continued organizing the stones.

Until...

There was something strange.

Among that pile of treasures was a white stone.

It was approximately the size of a human fist.

I frowned.

—What is this?

I took out my magic staff and carefully passed it over the white surface.

The answer appeared in my mind.

[Unknown Item from Another World]

I froze.

—Another World?

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