As I come out of my meditation, I decide to count this day as day three, better to play it safe than risk hurting Ruby. As I go about my morning routine, I decide to set today as the day to move in and prepare the new base instead of scouting. Once my old base is empty, it should be time to let those idiots upstairs know I'm still alive and get a little payback.
So I set out to finish moving stuff out of the old base after I finish breakfast. It takes me several trips over the course of a couple of hours to move everything. At this point, the only things left in the old room are some rocks, the bucket and the two cans of oil I found.
I take the bucket and partially fill it with dirt and clay from the cave-in, then add a little water to turn it into mud that I can use in place of mortar. I then carry the bucket and bricks to the start of my tunnel, then, using the bricks I brought and the bricks I used when I made the tunnel, I start building a patch that will fit the hole and hopefully hide the tunnel.
⟨⟨-DING-⟩⟩⟩⟩
- Congratulations, the Bricklaying skill has advanced to level 3!
√ Masonry
√ Level 3
- Strength +3 Endurance +3
- Able to build simple structures using brick or stone.
It takes me about an hour to build the false wall and figure out how to close it from the sewer side. Once it's ready, I go back to the well room and pour the two cans of oil on top of the pile of trash. Then I do a quick check of the well to make sure I haven't forgotten anything, which it turns out I have.
I completely forgot about one of the small storerooms, so I pick up all the trash in it and throw it on the pile. Just in case, I go to the mushroom area and collect all the edible mushrooms and take them to my new base camp. Then, when I return, I collect all the poisonous mushrooms and throw them in the trash pile as well.
⟨⟨-DING-⟩⟩⟩⟩
- Congratulations, the Herb Gathering skill has advanced to level 3!
√ Herb Gathering
√ Level 3
- Intelligence+3.
- You can collect common herbs and plants.
'I don't know if this will make the smoke poisonous, but I really hope it will!'
I cast fire beam three times to make sure the trash pile is well lit and the smoke goes straight up the shaft, then run into the sewers laughing all the while.
MP: 115/205
⟨⟨-DING-⟩⟩⟩⟩
- Congratulations!!! the Ray of Fire skill has advanced to level 3!
√ Fire Lightning
√ Level 3
- MP cost 25
- You launch a fire beam that deals 40 points of fire damage.
I close and block the false wall and then sit and wait.
Castle throne room from Zamart's point of view.
It is noon and the king is gathering the entire court to hear the requests of his nobles. Everything is going on as usual and I am practically dozing. However, I am suddenly awakened when I smell a scent that does not belong to me at all.
'Activate magic eyes!'
Glancing around I see a strange element in the air spreading rapidly throughout the throne room.
"Evacuate the king immediately!"
"Everyone evacuate the throne room!!!"
I watch as the royal guard evacuates the king and his council through a secret door behind the throne. Meanwhile, the nobles panic and stampede towards the door. I can already see several corpses and smoke can now be seen rising from the pit.
I quickly cast several spells, the windows are forced open with the first spell and the second spell creates a violent wind to blow the smoke out of the windows. The third spell creates a bubble of pure air around me.
It came out of the well, it must be the work of that beast man. The king is going to be furious and do something stupid, I bet.
I wait until the throne room is empty and the doors are closed before walking towards the bodies. The guards posted at the well are all dead and several nobles have also died. I check them all to see if any can be saved, but cannot.
So, I head to the well and send a remote eye to see what happened. I find that the pile of garbage is still smoldering. I try to cast a spell to put out the fire, but it's too far away and will drain all my mana, so I cancel it and decide to let the fire put itself out. Then, I turn and walk out of the room and head to report to the king.
King's room.
The king, who has changed his clothes, paces back and forth waiting for me. Chancellor Marvok and Knight Commander Tarrik attend to the king and await orders. I enter looking tired and old, I bow to the king, who stops walking.
King Raden says "Well? Report!"
"Your Majesty, six royal guards and eleven nobles who had no anti-venom spells are dead. The smoke originated from the pit of a pile of burning goblin corpses and other trash. I opened the windows and left a wind spell to blow the smoke out, but unfortunately I can't put out the fire because it's too far down."
King Raden says "Argh! How dare that thing! Tarrik, as soon as the smoke clears, I want you to lead a squad of your best men to kill that thing! No, better make it two squads!"
Knight Commander Tarrik salutes and says, "Yes, Your Majesty!"
King Raden says, "Marvok, once the smoke has cleared, I want all the servants in the palace and throne room to clean every inch, including the ceiling. You must keep cleaning until there is not a trace of that stench left!"
Chancellor Marvok bows and says "Yes, Your Majesty."
King Raden says "Pen! Pen!"
Master Spy Quill appears, bows and says, "You summoned me, Your Majesty?"
King Raden says "Make sure the rumors about this indicate that it was an assassination attempt by one of the other kingdoms! Make especially sure that's all the other summonings hear!"
Master spy Quill says "As you command!" and then vanishes into the shadows.
King Raden says, "Zamart, what do you make of this? I mean the reasoning behind it."
"Your Majesty, I can think of two possibilities: one is that he has found a way out and this has been his parting gift. The other is that he has not been able to find a way out and this is to lure us down, where he can attack and possibly escape."
King Raden says, "If it is the first, I will tear this country apart to find it. However, if it is the second....". Tarrik summons two more squads to protect the entrance to the well while you are below."
Knight Commander Tarrik says, "As Your Majesty commands, there is no way that beast will escape me!"
King Raden says, "Zamart, what else would you advise me?"
"I would have the courage to tell him that this is a problem of his own making!"
"If the beast escapes, I would advise him to find a way to seal the pit permanently. For if he can get out and join the rebels, he might as well lead them back inside."
King Raden says, "Good thinking, Zamart. Marvok, if that thing escapes, I'll let you seal the well."
Chancellor Marvok says, "Yes, Your Majesty. However, I would like to point out that this will make the castle nobles unhappy, as they have grown accustomed to having a convenient place to dispose of toys they no longer use."
King Raden says, "As if I care if they have to try harder! Everyone, you have your orders, move along!"
Chancellor Marvok, Knight Commander Tarrik and I bow and walk away, leaving the king to keep walking and muttering. Outside the king's room, I see Marvok and Tarrik rush out to carry out the king's orders. I realize that I have not been given any tasks and slowly walk back to my room.
As I walk through the castle and see the fear on people's faces, I realize that it is not fear of the attack, but fear of the king's mood. I wonder if I made the right decision to stay and serve the king. If I were younger, I would have definitely run off to join the rebels.
Maybe it's not too late, there are no mages here who deserve to be my apprentices. Maybe among the rebels I can find someone worth passing on my knowledge to. Hmm, come to think of it, I didn't mention to the king that the fire in the well was started by magic. So I've already done that. He committed treason, didn't he? And if things go wrong there, the king...be looking for someone to blame....