In the office sat a glum-looking Bull, his face dark as he stared at me for about thirty seconds. "So, got any wonderful news for me this time?"
"You didn't mention that you managed to gouge out Turiy's eye. And how the hell did you even pull that off? His speed is about four times yours, even though he's a pure mage."
"Well, first of all, I think you forgot where we studied. Second, the element of surprise. And about the eye – I figure in this world, with all its craziness, his eye is probably seeing better than before by now."
"That's true enough, but he's way more pissed at you than I initially thought. The Osm Clan has put a 2,000 gold bounty on your head. Bring you in alive and it's 5,000. You haven't grasped the empire's economy yet – a lucky adventurer might earn that in ten years. A simple peasant will never see that kind of money. An average barony brings in about 500 gold a year. Even for minor aristocrats, catching you is an incredibly profitable venture. So you need to be wary of literally everyone."
"Even you?"
"Me you can, for now, not worry about. Just so you know, the head of a branch, even in the shittiest village where there's nothing to earn, holds the rank of count and answers only to the emperor and the guild master."
"Got it. So staying at the guild is no longer safe?"
"Actually, the guild is exactly where you have nothing to fear. But joining anyone's party or leaving the village – I don't recommend it."
"Why not just get rid of me inside the building? Is there some kind of magical alarm here?"
"You could say that. I can't say more, but trust me – I know everything that happens in this building. And almost everything that happens in the village."
"Alright, I understand. I need to think about my next steps."
"Then I won't keep you."
I left the office and headed straight to the guild's tavern/restaurant/bar. Under squinting stares, I ordered dinner and sat at a far table. I noticed about a dozen appraising looks from various groups, though some looks seemed almost supportive. A waitress I hadn't seen before brought my meal – lentil and meat soup, bread, and kvass. I ate slowly and went up to my room. I decided to practice meditation before bed – spent a couple hours on it, raised Intelligence by two points, and went to sleep.
In the morning, I went through the obligatory routine: relieved arousal, did physical exercises, and headed to the communal shower. There were more people there in the morning hour, and plenty of appraising glances, but no one approached. I left the guild and went straight to Dex's shop to deliver my goods.
Dex met me at the counter, loudly arguing with some old woman. I waited without getting into the details. After ushering the old woman out and seeing me, his face became troubled. He quickly closed the shop door and called me upstairs without even bothering to return my greeting.
"You need to leave here fast. There's such a bounty on your head that every stray dog will try to kill you or capture you."
"What about you?"
He gave a mirthless smirk and replied, "You see, dear, I'd take the job too – gods know 5,000 wouldn't hurt me. But the problem is, I can't stand the Osm Clan. I don't know what you did to piss them off, but I sure as hell won't help them."
"I made a certain Turiy from that clan one-eyed, if you're curious. And I'm not planning to leave the village. Not yet."
"Turiy? The mage, the mentalist Turiy? That's not even funny – you couldn't have gotten within 100 meters of him."
"Well, you can not believe me – I've no reason to lie."
Dex stared at my face, trying to figure something out, then started hysterically laughing. He laughed so hard tears ran down his face and he collapsed onto the table. I stood patiently waiting for him to calm down. Apparently he had his own history with that asshole.
"Well, you've made my day – haven't heard such good news in a while. The precious son of that rotten clan lost an eye. But seriously, you'd do well to disappear into the woods for a couple years. But then you can't level properly, and without that you won't survive. So why did you come to me so early in the morning? Miss me already?"
"I brought your seaweed."
"Ooooh, looks like you took my advice and lured them with blood. Excellent, excellent. Let's go downstairs and finish the deal."
Downstairs, I placed 50 bundles of blue Dragon's Seaweed on the counter.
You have completed the quest "Deliver 50 bundles of blue Dragon's Seaweed to Alchemist Dex."
You received 1500 EXP.
Dex handed me the gold coin himself. He was busy, and I had plenty to do, so we said our goodbyes and I headed to the bookshop. Lera greeted me with a smile – either she didn't know about my problems, or she was playing her role well while planning to take me out. I trusted her 99%, but there was always that chance she was a pro of the highest order.
"Lera, could you show me what other useful books you have that an adventurer might need?"
"Of course, come on – I'll show you everything." We went to one of the shelves. "These are all weapon combat skills. Reading them lets you raise your skill level, or acquire it if you don't have it. For example, this is the most common one – Fencing Mastery. Our bestseller."
"Do skill books disappear after learning?"
"No, of course not. But we don't rent them – only sell. And these books wouldn't make any profit anyway – they're only 50 coppers each."
I carefully reviewed the selection and picked books for:
Hand-to-hand combat
Knife fighting
Short sword combat
Archery
I didn't see a throwing knives skill – I'd work with what I had.
"Just so you know, Nika – you have to read these books thoroughly, or the skill won't take. The deeper you understand what's written, the more benefit you'll get."
"And if I already know hand-to-hand combat but don't have the skill?"
"Then the system will extract everything you know and give you the skill at a high level based on that."
"Alright, let's also look at magical skills now. And do you have crafting skills? I need Smithing."
"Smithing?" she asked, surprised, looking at my feminine figure. But after five seconds, she quickly went to another shelf and brought me a fairly thick book. I stacked the books on the counter, and we went together to the magical skills shelf.
This time I was interested in something ranged, or maybe a trap skill. No traps on the shelf. From the skills, I chose only Dark Arrow – it fired bolts of shadow. Though it had poor penetration against armor, it inflicted a slow and weakness debuff. I paid 22 silver for everything – Lera offered to discuss a discount like yesterday, but I declined and paid full price. Then I pulled her toward me and kissed her full lips. When I asked if there was a place to rest, she led me to an adjacent room with a couch. I undressed her, sat her on the couch, mounted her, and started my ride. We tumbled around for about an hour.
You received 400 EXP
Strength +1
Agility +1
Endurance +2
Fertility +5
Arousability +5
Attractiveness +3
Dominance +2
Vaginal Sex +1
You have reached 25 in the Dominance stat. Choose a perk:
Mistress: Your sexual partners become dependent on you and more loyal.
Commander: During sex, if you dominate your partner, you receive 25% more experience (scaling perk).
You have reached 25 in the Arousability stat and gained the perk "Nymphomaniac" (you are always ready for sex – even after sex with zero arousal, desire remains in you).
I was strongly drawn to Mistress, but I didn't have time, and enemies wouldn't let me dominate. Sure, it's good to know that someone you fuck is loyal to you, but right now experience mattered more – I needed to get stronger fast. After leaving Lera's shop, I returned to the guild, bought supplies so I wouldn't have to leave my room for the day, and sat down to read.
Hand-to-hand combat +8
Knife fighting +13
After reading two books, evening fell. I put aside the other three books and left my room. My plan for tonight was hunting.