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Path to Prosperity - B1 Chapter 26
🕑 Added 2024-06-29 12:13:02 +0000 UTCA single flower had been plucked, but that was enough to kill a mature Gnoll. It was more than enough reason to be vigilant but not enough to run for his life. That wasn’t necessary.
Percy eyed the plucked flower and inspected it intently from a safe distance. He studied the dim glow shrouding the ocean-blue petals, the flower’s vibrant stalk, which seemed to writhe in pain, not unlike the dying Gnoll, and the light brown roots, which were also shrouded in something.
No. The roots release something. Is that mana? Maybe, I don’t know. One thing for sure…this mana mist, or whatever it is, is deadly.
It was hard to see at first, but once Percy knew something shrouded the roots, he could see the mist much better. It enveloped the Gnoll and killed the monster. It stopped writhing and ceased moving altogether a few seconds later.
The Gnoll was dead, yet Percy didn’t consider moving from the spot. He stayed right where he had been while supplying his eyes with mana once the mist disappeared when he cut the mana infusion.
It took several minutes and almost his entire mana reserves before the mist dispersed. The deadly flower’s root had stopped releasing the lethal mist.
What is this flower? I’m drawn to it, even though I know how deadly it is.
Percy shuddered. He knew instinctively that the flowers were something special. It was obvious that the Gnoll had been in a similar situation and that many monsters would react similarly. They would love to pluck these flowers – preferentially without the dying part, of course.
His attention drifted to the plucked flower near the dead Gnoll while countless thoughts flashed through his mind. At last, his curiosity and greed overwhelmed his fear of the unknown. Percy emerged from the thicket, his head flicking left and right in vigilance as he approached the flower slowly. At last, his eyes drifted to the Gnoll, which he inspected quickly.
There are no surface injuries. It stopped breathing just like that.
A shudder spread through his body as he imagined what would happen if he had been in the Gnoll’s stead. What if the Gnoll hadn’t been there? Percy would have plucked the flower carelessly. He didn’t want to acknowledge his foolishness, but Percy knew himself better than anyone.
Fear flickered in his eyes as he eyed the plucked flower. He didn’t dare to walk closer, let alone touch it, to claim possession of the flower.
I’ll be dead if I take a single sniff of the smog. If there is a small dose left in the roots and my touch triggers the plant’s defensive mechanism… No, I cannot afford to risk it.
Despite thinking like that, Percy desired the flower. A simple plan was needed to transfer the flower’s possession to him forcefully.
Percy focused on the surrounding mana and absorbed it, replenishing his reserves swiftly. Thanks to the mana-dense environment, filling his body with mana didn’t take long. His reserves were little, but it should be enough for the task ahead.
He stared intently at the plucked flower, took a few brave steps closer to it – until his nerves caved in – and used [Consume].
Coin of Prosperity was a confusing Ego. Not much was known about Egos, but Percy learned that Coin of Prosperity was somewhat unique among the known Egos. That was part of the reason he had yet to gather the courage to tell others about it. But the reasoning wasn’t that simple.
Percy was not afraid that the Guild would take advantage of him anymore. Maybe he was worried about that before, but not now. Now that he was more knowledgeable, Percy understood that the Guild would support him rather than take advantage of his Ego. They would love to gain an unaffiliated Ego. He wasn’t tied to nobles and thus was perfect to be trained as a powerhouse of the Guild. That was as far as Percy’s understanding of the Guild and their relationship with the kingdom’s nobility went.
The Guild wasn’t mistreated, but they lacked powerful Egos. Percy could reveal his Ego and receive support…if he wasn’t afraid of his Ego’s power and what others would think if he revealed the full potential of his Ego – or what he’d learned until now.
Percy used [Consume] on the plucked flower, knowing he hadn’t claimed it yet. There was no interface, but that didn’t matter. All it needed was enough mana to claim the plucked flower by force.
That was exactly what Percy did.
The abomination of darkness shot out of his palm, draining his mana rapidly even before reaching the target. The abominations’ maw shot wide open, revealing its rows of razor-sharp teeth, and swallowed the whole flower.
[Paresis Doom has been consumed. 985 Prosperity has been added.]
“Oh shit!” Percy blurted aloud, ignoring the exhaustion that came with the strain of using up his mana reserves instantly. Consuming the flower, apparently called by the name Paresis Doom, devoured Percy’s mana reserves entirely. It wasn’t precisely inconspicuous either.
Still, using [Consume] on the plant rather than touching it until his Ego would officially acknowledge it as his possession was much better than dying. He was exhausted and strained, which wasn’t favorable in his current position away from civilizations, but that was also something Percy had considered.
[Your Tier increased by one rank]
It was difficult to hide his smile when the flood of mana hit him. His exhaustion was no more, and hunger replaced the strain on his body. Percy snickered at the oh-so-familiar hunger and retrieved the remaining snacks from baker Leonhard.
“I sure hope you’ll bake me an amazing batch of cookies,” Percy mumbled into the forest while wolfing down the baker’s snacks until nothing was left.
The snacks should have lasted him a week, maybe even longer. He’d spent a small fortune to purchase them in case he got hungry after harsh training sessions or felt like snacking in the middle of the forest. His expression soured a little when the last cookie disappeared in his mouth, but his expression lit up when he glanced at the notification again.
Almost 1000 Prosperity for a single flower. There are more than a dozen of them!
Greed flickered in his eyes before they turned dull. Percy’s mind was wiped and turned blank for a moment as he closed the distance to the remaining flowers. He was ready to reach down and pluck them without thinking when a squeal rang out from behind him. His eyes regained their vigor, and he spun around.
The Gnoll isn’t dead?!?
His right hand reached for the iron dagger as he turned to the source of the noise, only to discover that the Gnoll was still lying there unmoving and that the noise came from…a squirrel?
Percy’s eyes squinted to tiny slits, and he infused some of his recuperating mana into his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things.
But there it was, a little squirrel with a sleek, furry body. Its pristine white fur created a huge contrast to most monsters. There was not a spot of dirt on its body. That wasn’t the only oddity Percy noticed about the squirrel, but it was the most prominent.
He stared head-on into the squirrel’s face, unsure what to do. Was he supposed to say something?
It held a small nut in its tiny paws and looked back at Percy as if wondering who the idiot with a death wish was.
It squeaked again, tilted its tiny head, and turned away. Percy stared behind the fluffy little beast as it disappeared in a bush.
What in the seven hells was that? Did a squirrel just save my life?
Percy turned to the Paresis Doom flowers and frowned deeply.
They bewitched me, didn’t they? Is that how the Gnoll died, and why I feel drawn to them?
He made two decisions at that moment. First, the Paresis Doom flowers would be spared for the day. Second, Percy swore that he would return to the Paresis Doom flowers once he learned how to harvest them without getting killed.
It was a matter of fact that they would kill him now if he tried collecting them now. However, Percy was more agitated about the Paresis Doom flower bewitching him when his guard was done. It was his mistake to lower his guard, but that didn’t mean he allowed some flowers to go after his life!
I underestimated the danger of the wilderness…again!
He grit his teeth in anger. If not for the squirrel, he would be dead…killed by a flower.
“Shit!”
Earning almost 1000 Prosperity for every Paresis Doom was extraordinary. Just thinking about collecting a dozen and selling them for more than ten silver coins per flower at Erdwin’s shop filled his heart with excitement. But risking his life was plain stupid. It was already a risk to [Consume] the Paresis Doom plucked by the Gnoll.
He recalled the Gnoll and turned to it.
“If I cannot get anymore flowers, I might as well turn you into more Prosperity,” Percy thought aloud, before freezing into his tracks when he saw his reflection in the bloodthirsty eyes of the Gnoll, who was supposed to be dead.
But instead of staring into dull, lifeless eyes, Percy stared deep into vibrant eyes filled with hatred…but also pain.
How?!?
He stumbled backward, his hand shooting to his dagger. Percy unsheathed the dagger smoothly and circulated mana through his entire body, ready to face the deadly beast, which had yet to move from the ground.
Percy remained tense in his combat stance, but the Gnoll didn’t move. Not even a growl escaped its mouth.
“You…cannot move.” He mumbled, his eyes widening in surprise.
Since when is it staring at me? How did I not notice that it was awake??
He remained still and didn’t dare to breathe for a while. His guard was up, and he waited impatiently for something to happen, but the Gnoll didn’t move. Several incredible long minutes passed before Percy accepted the Gnoll’s condition. It could barely move its eyes, which remained locked on him. It looked deep into his eyes, but something was off.
Why does it feel like it wants me to end its misery?
For a Gnoll to think like that was…unique. They were considered bloodthirsty, wild, and not afraid of death. However, the monster before him was not like that. It was bloodthirsty – nothing changed about the bloody glint in its eyes – but there was something much more profound. There was fear.
Percy swallowed hard. He couldn’t imagine what the Gnoll was going through to welcome death, but Percy was glad he didn’t touch Paresis Doom. He escaped a massive black flag.
The first step was hard. Percy was still vigilant of the Gnoll, thinking it might lung at him suddenly, but by the time the second stride followed, Percy knew that the Gnoll wouldn’t move.
He shuddered as he bent down with the iron dagger in his iron-tight grasp.
Percy looked one last time into the Gnoll’s eyes before he pressed the tip of the mana-infused blade against the Gnoll’s chest.
“Rest in peace.”
As the words escaped his lips – Percy had no idea why the urge to speak to the Gnoll overcame him – the iron dagger’s tip pierced into the Gnoll.
The monster didn’t even flinch as the blade cut through its chest. It dug deep into the Gnoll’s chest and pierced his heart, yet the monster didn’t move. It couldn’t.
Percy didn’t have to watch the Gnoll as the light of light dispersed, leaving a dull, empty shell in the monster’s eye to know that it died. His Ego informed him in a familiar way.
[Gnoll – Mature/Poisoned – 285 Prosperity]
[Gnoll’s Blade – Low Quality – 401 Prosperity]
[Gnoll’s Leather Armor – Damaged/Low Quality – 43(175) Prosperity]
…
Usually, the interfaces would fill Percy with excitement, but not now. He felt…different. It was hard to put into simple words, but Percy could tell that something had changed. He didn’t even know why, yet it happened.
To his misfortune – or was it great fortune? – Percy couldn’t pay much attention to the change happening to him. He was distracted by one particular interface and a mass of compressed light that emerged from the Gnoll’s chest.
Percy recognized the compressed light as the Essence of a monster. He read about it often in the last few weeks and knew that it was rare to see a Monster Essence. The Monster Essence whirled around and shot in all directions before stopping above Percy’s open palm, transforming into a small…card.
[Monster Card – Gnoll(Common –⭐⭐ ) – 25,000 Prosperity]
“Holy seven hells!”
