"To the deep caves?" Varis asked. "Are you out of your mind, rat? Slaves beg me on their bleeding knees every single day to get out of the dark zones. They cry and offer me their daily rations just to sweep the courtyard instead. And you want me to voluntarily send you in?"
"I have good stamina, sir," Theo replied. "I’m just not cut out for the grinding wheels. It’s too slow, and the dust is terrible for my lungs. I want to swing a pickaxe. I guarantee I can haul twice the quota of raw crystals if you let me work."
However, Varis wasn’t an idiot. He had been a guard at the pharmacy branch long enough to know a strange situation when he saw one.
But what could a malnourished slave possibly scheme in a pitch-black, monster-infested cave? Varis quietly did the mental math.
The guards received a shiny silver bonus for every extra cart of high-grade spirit crystals hauled out of the lower tunnels.
A terrified slave swung a pickaxe weakly. A willing slave who actually wanted to be down there? He might just hit a rich crystal vein and line Varis’s pockets with pure profit.
"You think you can handle the dark, kid?" Varis snorted. "Fine. If you want to throw your life away down there just to make my ledger look good, I’m certainly not going to stop you. Follow me."
Theo followed the guard across the pavilion to a desk near the supply shed.
Varis pulled out a ledger, dipped a quill in ink, and hastily scratched Theo’s slave number under the deep-mining roster.
"There. You start in the caves tomorrow morning," Varis grunted. "You owe me for this favor, boy. I expect two full carts of crystals by sunset, or I’ll personally throw you to the cave-crawlers."
"Thank you, sir," Theo nodded respectfully. "Since you did me this favor... could I ask you a quick question about the compound?"
"Make it quick," Varis sighed, crossing his arms.
"I was wondering about medicinal herbs," Theo asked. "Things like Bone-Mending Lotus Seeds. Is there any chance a miner might find raw herbs growing down in the deep caves?"
Varis sighed. "Herbs? Growing in the dark zones? You really are an idiot. The only things growing in those caves are toxic glowing mushrooms and blood-sucking shadow bats. If you want high-grade herbs, the only way is buying them from the inner quartermaster with real silver coins. And a slave like you will never see a silver coin in ten lifetimes."
"I understand. Thank you for the information, sir." Theo said.
....
The rest of the evening passed without incident. The slaves were far too exhausted to talk or fight.
When Theo returned to the barracks, he sat on the edge of the mat, closed his eyes, and allowed his body to enter a state of deep meditation.
The night felt short.
At exactly 6 AM, the bell rang once more.
"Morning," Theo whispered, sitting down next to the Reborn Empress.
Liana slowly opened her eyes.
"You went to the main yard yesterday," she stated. "Did you secure your... better role?"
"I did." Theo smiled faintly. "I got myself transferred to the deep caves. I’ll be mining spirit crystals starting today."
Even so, Liana’s dark eyes narrowed. "The caves? Are you trying to die?"
"I know what I’m doing," Theo replied, dipping the bread into the warm water to soften it. "Open up. You need to eat if you want to fix those shattered veins of yours."
Liana clearly wanted to argue, her pride rebelling against his commanding tone. But her stomach betrayed her with a soft rumble.
She sighed and parted her lips to accept the softened food.
Theo fed her carefully, just like the night before.
As she swallowed the last drop of water, the world around him froze, and the familiar chime rang clearly in his mind.
[Investment successful.]
[Investment: One portion of morning ration and clean water.]
[Target Identity confirmed: Reborn Empress Liana.]
[Calculating base investment value...]
Theo’s pulse quickened. He stared intently at the screen.
He already had 5,000 credits from yesterday. What was the system going to hand him today?
[Reward calculation complete.]
[Congratulations, Host! Reward granted: Auxiliary Class Unlocked - ’Iron-Blooded Guardian’.]
Theo blinked, almost dropping the bowl. Another class?
Before he could even process the words, a sudden surge of raw power erupted from the very center of his chest.
[Auxiliary Class applied. Host receives a +10 increase to all base stats.]
Theo gasped, his teeth clenching together as his structure forcibly upgraded itself.
A mortal’s base stats in this world usually hovered around a flat value of five.
Gaining a sudden, flat +10 to every single attribute meant he had just tripled his raw power in the blink of an eye.
Though, the intensity of the sudden power surge made his hands tremble slightly. He took a deep breath, forcing the energy to settle down into his core so the passing guards wouldn’t notice anything suspicious.
"What did you just do...?" Liana whispered, her eyes locking onto his face.
She had felt it.
"Just practicing my breathing technique," Theo lied with a straight face, standing up from the bunk and grabbing his bowls. "I have to head to the caves now. Keep your head down and rest. I’ll be back before sunset."
Minutes later, Theo stood at the entrance of the deep caves.