[Chapter 63. Work Delegation]
Searanox woke up in the velvet covers of her bed on the fourth floor of the Guild Tower. Iris was still clinging to his body, her nude form partially covered by the sheets. Her soft fur warm against his skin. He ran his fingers through her mane and softly scratched the side of her head, his touch gentle and possessive.
"It's time to get up, Iris. We have to talk about a few things." he said in a calm voice as he sat up on the bed, the cool morning air a stark contrast to the warmth of their shared space.
With a small yawn, Iris stretched her arms. Her claws extending for a moment. She looked up at him. Her silver eyes still heavy with sleep, the pupils contracting slightly in the dim light. "About?" she asked while getting up as well, her movements fluid and graceful despite her recent ordeal.
the thought was a quick one before he answered her, a flicker of cold amusement crossing his mind.
"I want to know about the System Shop." he said, getting straight to the point. His voice flat and devoid of emotion. "Tell me everything you know about it."
She thought for a moment, her mind accessing the vast repository of knowledge she still possessed from her time as a Guide. "It's a foundational System interface, typically appearing after Awakening." she began, her tone shifting to that of a knowledgeable instructor. The words measured. "Its inventory scales with the world's average power level and economic state. The items offered are by design, rudimentary and intentionally subpar. Think of it as a baseline, a starting point to prevent total collapse. Not a path to true strength."
He listened, his expression unreadable as he processed the information. His fingers tracing patterns on the velvet sheets. "So the trash I bought yesterday was exactly that. Trash. By design." It wasn't a question.
"Precisely." Iris confirmed, her silver eyes unwavering. "High-value items—the kind of gear that truly makes a difference—won't be found there. They are reserved for shops inside a city. Or more likely, as loot within high-level dungeons or from rare, powerful enemies."
"Iris." Searanox said, his voice low as his fingers threaded through her mane. The soft fur yielding to his touch, "I'm giving you a full set of equipment. Armor and accessories. You will train them. Make them function in my absence."
Her silver eyes remained locked on his, unwavering. A silent acknowledgment of the command.
"Start in the forest." he continued, drawing her closer. The space between them shrinking until he could feel the warmth of her breath. "Until you deem them strong enough to enter the Burrowing Depths with you."
"I'll be gone for a day at most. No need to rush. You get your reward when they can clear it on their own." His tone was calm, almost casual. But the demand was unmistakable as he brushed a stray strand of silver from her face, the contact lingering just a moment too long to be merely functional.
She pressed her head against his chest, the soft fur a warm weight against the fabric of his shirt. A soft purr escaping her lips, a sound of contentment and obedience. "I understand. They will not fail." she promised, her voice filled with absolute certainty and unwavering loyalty that went beyond mere words. A vow that resonated in the quiet room.
With a final, lingering caress that traced the curve of her jawline. Searanox left her. From his storage ring came two sets of the same simple armored clothes the four women had, the metal plates woven into the leather and cotton catching the dim light as they appeared. He placed one on the bed while he adorned the other, the unfamiliar feel of the gear settling around his form. On top of the small pile, he placed a dirty silver bracelet and the simple necklace. Followed by a simple HP ring and earring, the items forming a small, glittering pile against the dark fabric of the sheets.
"And Iris." he said, his voice dropping slightly, "don't damage them permanently. But make sure Carmen has something to heal. She will be a great asset in the future… in more than one way."
The last part was barely audible as he flung his coat over his shoulders while stepping through the door, the soft click of it closing echoing in the quiet room. Leaving her alone with her task and the promise of reward hanging in the air.
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Searanox walked onto the balcony and flew off on one of his travel drones, the wind pulling at the dark fabric of his coat as he ascended. He looked at the counter in his vision and noticed that it was almost time for another tour through all the dungeons. He started in the Burrowing Depths, the familiar darkness a welcome change and ended with the Howling Caverns. The memory of the fiery Dire Wolf still fresh in his mind; it took him a total of two hours to clear all of them and properly loot them.
To his dismay, he only got silver coins and a pair of armored boots on top of the measly two thousand seven hundred Exp. The disappointing spoils a bitter reminder of the grinding reality of this world for those without his advantages.
He put on the slightly better boots from the dungeon before he hopped on his drone to be carried toward the far east, toward the new dungeons his drones had discovered a day ago. The unknown a siren's call that he couldn't resist. While he was flying on his drone, his eyes caught sight of his storage ring and the empty fingers next to it. The bare skin a stark contrast to the gleaming metal. Then he looked over to his other hand, and a small smile tugged at his lips. A flicker of an idea forming in his mind.
With that thought, he opened the System Shop and looked at the simple ring. The glowing text a familiar sight. He bought one simple MP ring and slid it onto the finger next to his storage ring, the cool metal a satisfying weight against his skin. Then he looked at his status. The glowing text appearing in his vision, a list of his ever-growing power.
He bought another and put it on his other hand, the simple silver band clicking into place with a faint satisfying sound. He then checked his TP again. Watching the numbers climb as the ring settled. It was at 556. With a bellowing laugh that echoed in the confines of his mind, he bought five more and put one on each finger.His movements almost mechanical as he watched his TP rise with each one he added, the blue light of his status window flickering with each transaction. He looked from the 681 to his fingers. Which were adorned with shitty rings, the cheap silver gleaming in the light.
He thought, laughing. The sound a harsh, grating thing in the quiet air.
But he wasn't done. He bought another one and placed it on his thumb, but it did not shrink down like the others to fit. The ring hovering awkwardly before vanishing back into his storage with a soft chime. He didn't expect it to work, so he wasn't really upset about it. The experiment a simple, logical extension of his previous discovery. The next thing he tried was placing more than one ring on each finger, but nothing happened the same as before. It did not shrink down to fit his finger either, the rings simply stacking uselessly.
At the thought of the earrings, he mentally stopped. He had not really thought about earrings before, their potential overshadowed by the immediate utility of the rings. But two all-stats bonuses were even more broken than the MP regeneration of the necklace, the implication staggering. He was not thinking in terms of ordinary people; he was thinking about his stats and what benefited him. His mind went logical, as he weighed the options for a normal person. To have four all-stats bonuses by simply buying two earrings for six silver coins was insane.
He bought two earrings and held the two dull silver earrings in his hand, the metal cool against his palm before bringing them to his earlobe. They snapped into place and were secure, the sensation a brief sharp pinch. As he gently pulled on the earring that had just affixed itself to his ear, the other one snapped onto it as well. Right beside it, the second pinch a faint echo of the first.
Just so he wouldn't curse himself later, he bought another earring. Holding it up to his ear. Nothing happened and placing it on the other one produced the same result, the ring simply hovering before vanishing.
"Thought as much." he said as the earring vanished into the storage ring, the words a soft. Almost inaudible murmur.
With a soft tug and the mental will to take it off, the earring came loose. The sensation a brief, sharp sting. He then placed it on the other ear, where it snapped in place with a familiar pinch. With an understanding nod. He took it off again and held it like a piercing on the upper part of his ear and lo and behold, it affixed itself.
"Mhh~" With a soft verbal acknowledgment, he fidgeted with the earrings a bit more until he was satisfied with their placement. They glinted in the light as he arranged them in a pattern that pleased his aesthetic sense.
Then he looked at his status again.
