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Path to Prosperity - B1 Chapter 42
🕑 Added 2024-07-15 10:00:10 +0000 UTCHe didn’t know what to expect to happen, but the Glacia Knights’ reaction was the complete opposite. It was lackluster, for the lack of a better word. Ulfhar and his Glacia KNights asked some questions but also said he didn’t have to answer anything if he wasn’t comfortable.
“Your Ego’s power and special abilities belong to you. They’re your secret, and you should never feel you must tell anyone. Nobody has the right to force you to reveal your Ego to someone else,” Ulfhar reassured Percy. He looked like he had something else to say, but let it go, “Don’t worry about it. If you can tell us as much as you’re comfortable with, we will help you grow stronger. Because strength is what you need if you want to come with us to the Wintermoon estate.”
The Glacia Knight Captain was excited and glanced more often to the carriage, licking his lips as if he anticipated the future.
Why does it feel like I’m being used for...something?
Still, Percy felt good. It was the first time he had told someone about his Ego, and nobody said anything negative. His gut feeling, telling him to keep his Monster Card and Ego a secret at all costs, had been wrong.
They knew about the Gnoll Card and didn’t make a move when I was unconscious, and it doesn’t feel like anything will change just because I revealed I have an Ego. Maybe that’s the point. Everyone here is a Cardist, and Lady Reeze and Ulfhar have Egos. They’re just like me. I guess revealing my Card and Ego to them isn’t as special as it would have been in Raewood.
Perhaps that was why Percy felt compelled to share. He felt a strong sense of belonging with the Glacia Knights, a feeling that they wouldn’t attack him out of envy, but rather accept him as one of their own.
“We can just say we found an Ego on our way to the Wintermoon estate. That way, we can add him to Lady Reeze’s retinue and train him. Lady Reeze can claim his honor if he achieves something, whereas our ladyship can vouch for him. That should solve all problems,” One of the Glacia Knights, Igor, smiled brightly, “We won’t have to reveal anything about the faux pas with the Pleacis and the Infernal Lair. Lady Reeze can earn merits for finding and hiring an Ego, and Percy can come with us without attracting any suspicion.”
Ulfhar glanced at old knight Liam, who stared intently at him and sighed deeply, “The Patriarch has to know about the Infernal Lair. We won’t hide something like that from our lord!”
Igor’s lips parted, but he nodded. Their lord had to receive a report. The incident with the Infernal Lair was too important to ignore.
Percy watched the exchange with interest and was secretly happy not to be the center of attention anymore. The dozen Glacia Knights’ intense stare had been overwhelming. It had only been a few seconds, but that was enough for him.
Putting his lack of social skills aside, Percy liked becoming a squire of the Glacia Knight Order. Knowing his future wasn't etched in stone was nice even if it was merely in name and nothing official. As long as he didn’t mess up here…he might be acknowledged as a member of the Glacia Knight Order in the future. If he worked hard enough, Ulfhar might discover some talent in him and recommend him to the higher-ups. Turning into a Glacia Knight would open many doors to wealth and power that would have been locked to a nobody like him otherwise.
I need to give my best until we reach the Wintermoon estate. Once there, I might be able to grow even stronger. If I can gain the same benefits as the kingdoms’ Imperials, I…
The corners of his lips tugged into a vibrant smile. The thought of growing stronger excited him, but imagining being more than just an Adventurer with an Ego sounded even better. He might not be a noble, but who said he couldn’t become a Knight with the strength of an Imperial?
I might as well make use of this. They don’t seem particularly interested in my Ego and care about my comfort.
Thus, Percy cleared his throat and unsheathed his iron dagger. The piece of metal hardly resembled its former deadly appearance, but the Glacia Knights’ chats died, and they turned in unison to the youth.
“I can do this with my Ego,” Percy announced while using [Consume] to devour the iron dagger before everyone’s eyes. The abomination, in its smallest form, manifested and shrouded the iron dagger in eternal darkness before it disappeared again.
[Iron Dagger - Corrupted/Damaged - has been consumed. 49 Prosperity has been added.]
The Glacia Knights couldn’t see the notification, but that wasn’t necessary. They saw what they had to see.
“I can consume anything in my possession, including slain monsters and the like, to progress faster. There are more twists to my power…but I want to wait a little bit before I reveal more. I have yet to discover my Ego’s secrets. There are still many things I don’t know.”
Utter silence swept across the campfire for a few seconds before Igor cleared his throat.
“So…you can consume the Demon corpses as well?
The others looked at each other and groaned, “We shouldn’t have burned the demon carcasses.”
Liam looked at Ulfhar, who nodded slowly. He tapped the pouch hanging from his side, and a massive corpse appeared next to them. It was the Pleacis, dead, obviously. Percy jumped up in fright while the Glacia Knights chuckled. They enjoyed his reaction.
Ulfhar unsheathed his longsword and severed the Pleacis’ head before motioning to Percy, “This is a Mutant Elite Demon. You can use it if you want. Show me how effective your power is!”
“I can’t.” Percy shook his head. There was no interface, “My Ego doesn’t consider it my possession. You killed the Pleacis, so it’s your prey.”
Ulfhar tilted his head but nodded, “Hereby, I present you the Pleacis’ corpse. You are to accept this carcass to protect Lady Reeze. Without your courageous act, we would have failed our mission.”
The Glacia Knight Captain’s first few words were already enough. Two interfaces, one for the Pleacis’ head and one for the rest of its carcass, appeared before his eyes.
“It considers both the head and body as my possession,” Percy murmured.
“We need the head,” Ulfhar said immediately, and Percy nodded. Surprisingly, the interface belonging to the head disappeared.
So…someone can gift me something but also retract their gift? That wouldn’t work with transactions, though. Interesting.
“Are you sure I can take the carcass? Is it not too valuable to give me?” Percy asked, his eyes glimmering brightly. He was drooling at the sight unfolding before him.
[Pleacis(Headless) – Elite/Demonic/Mutant – 156,035 Prosperity]
“The corpse would earn us some gold, but I’m sure everyone here values Lady Reeze’s life more than a few dozen silver coins or one gold coin,” Ulfhar said curtly while his gaze traveled to his companions. The Glacia Knights nodded, though one or two looked a little displeased.
If possible, they would have stored the corpses of all demons in the spatial devices, but the Archyeas’ carcasses released their demonic essence into the surroundings. Due to their demonic essence’s special prosperity, they couldn’t be stored and had to be burned. Thus, the Mutant Elite Demon was the only bonus they’d gained on this mission.
Nobody dared to say anything, fearing their complaints would unleash the seven hells upon them.
“Take it before my subordinates eat me alive,” Ulfhar laughed, and most Glacia Knights joined him. Only Percy remained silent as he nodded.
He walked up to the headless carcass and activated [Consume].
His Ego reacted violently. It was as greedy as Percy. His hand cracked as a massive shroud of darkness gushed out of his hand. The abomination towered above the Pleacis carcass, revealed its rows of razor-sharp teeth, and crashed heavily into the lifeless demon, devouring it within seconds.
The Glacia Knights had been calm and composed, smiling at Percy as they observed him eagerly approaching the demon corpse, but they tensed and jumped up when his Ego moved. Even Ulfhar unsheathed his broadsword as the abomination of his Ego swallowed the demon whole.
They broke into a cold sweat in the middle of the night and stared at Percy, their eyes widened in terror and confusion as the darkness retracted into his palm.
“W-what was that?” One of the Glacia Knights asked, his legs giving in. His armor clattering as he fell was all that resounded into the silent night.
“You told me to consume it. That’s what I did,” Percy responded, his innocent voice resounding, “Did I do something wrong?”
He was irritated, and the interfaces popping up before him didn’t help.
[Pleacis(Headless) has been consumed. 156,035 Prosperity has been added.]
[Your Tier increased by one rank.]
A flood of mana entered Percy’s body without warning. It flushed through him with shocking intensity and occupied his body and mind. He wasn’t sure how long he stood there but noticed everyone watching him with wide eyes.
“Can you hear us now?” Liam stood next to Percy and looked at the youth worriedly.
“...Yeah. The mana flood was a little intense, but I’m fine.”
“You really ranked up,” Liam whispered, his eyes glimmering.
“I did.”
Nobody talked with Percy about what had just happened or the fear all Glacia Knights had felt upon seeing his Ego at full power, but Percy could see something new in their eyes. The Glacia Knights didn’t look at him like a greenhorn anymore. He was much more than a helpless youth after his demonstration.
Percy was powerful.
Igor eyed Percy vigilantly but did his best to smile when he gave him a bowl full of their leftovers.
“Thanks, but I think I’m still fu—...” The youth was interrupted by a small thunderous grumbling. His stomach denied what Percy had just said.
The Glacia Knights burst into laughter, releasing their tension. Igor smiled and pushed the bowl to Percy.
“We have more food. Starting tomorrow, you can help us hunt and cook to do your part here. Don’t worry about getting exploited. Every squire of the Glacia Knight Order would have to hunt, cook, and take care of everything else. You’ll have to listen to us and follow our orders if you want to stay here,” He winked at Percy, whose lips parted for a rebuke.
Learning how to cook cannot hurt, and it’s not like I hate hunting. Hyean can help me track some monsters. I want to know how strong we are either way!
“Okay!”
The atmosphere improved a lot through the night. Percy was too energetic to sleep after he emptied a few more bowls. More than half of the Glacia Knights decided to sleep while the group responsible for protecting their little camp for the next few hours chatted with him in whispers – while watching their surroundings with sharp eyes, of course.
Percy felt great. Having been kidnapped left a sour aftertaste, but that was long since forgotten. They saved him with several expensive potions and an even more expensive Healing Artifact. Being mad or angry at them wouldn’t help anyone. If anything, it would harm his relationship with the Glacia Knights. That was not something Percy was willing to risk.
Thus, he accepted his fate and asked numerous questions instead. At some point, the first rays of sunlight were already peeking across the expansive Meiso Plains, Percy asked one of the questions he was most interested in.
“If my guess is right, the rift was a portal connecting to one of the seven hells. That is what we call the Infernal Lair, right? But what exactly was the red marble that dropped when the Infernal Lair disappeared?”
Ulfhar studied Percy for a while and retrieved the red marble he was talking about, “Do you mean this?”
Percy nodded slowly, his eyes drawn to the marble. Simultaneously, his Ego reacted. It wanted the marble.
“I’m impressed you saw the marble. Most wouldn’t have noticed it. But you are mistaken about one thing.”
Ulfhar studied him, but when Percy remained silent, he just shrugged.
“The Infernal Lair is not merely the portal,” He pointed at the marble, “This is a seed, the seed that grows into the Infernal Lair once nourished, to be precise.”
Percy’s hair stood up to its end, and his eyes widened.
“You’re telling me we’re traveling around with an Infernal Lair…in your pockets?!”
