Chapter 17: Long Nap

  Day 5

  I don't know for how long I was asleep, but all I know is that it wasn't enough.

  My enitre body ached and my eyes were puffy. My body felt weak and even just getting up was gonna be difficult.

  Nonetheless, I pushed myself to sit up.

  Groaning as my hands push me up until I was finally sitting, stopping and staring out the window.

  I was still groggy so I didn't notice that when I first entered the room, the window was never opened.

  I could see a house right outside with their window open as well. In the inside there was a man brandishing his sword.

  His eyes were dull and his expression somber.

  Noticing my gaze, he lifted his head and glared at me.

  I felt a chill run down my spine as I turned away.

  'Shit, what's his problem?'

  I slowly got up from the bed, rubbing my eyes.

  *

  Message: I was starting to think you would never wake up.

  *

  '???'

  I didn't understand what the assistant was saying.

  'I just slept like normal. I can't see the sun but it's probably the morning. I don't think I slept more than 10 hours'

  *

  Message: You've been asleep for 2 days

  *

  My eyes widen as my mouth dropped.

  '2 days, how! I thought I was only tired. It's not like I have any injuries that would need time to heal'

  *

  Message: While you are fine physically, your mental state was shit, especially after abusing the Mental Outburst skill. Even if Igor healed your entire body, his healing can't fix your psychological condition.

  *

  'I guess that makes sense'

  Yawn

  I was still tired despite having slept for so long.

  I walked over to the door, dragging my feet as I walked. Putting my hand on the door handle, I twisted it before stopping.

  'Wait, I should stay in here until I fully wake up. I need to be in top condition so I can learn more about this world'

  Quietly untwisting the door knob, I tiptoed back to the bed and sat down.

  I stared as the door and concentrated on what I already know.

  'First off, this thing in my chest is what Igor uses to control me. If I want to break free from his grasp and leave, I am going to need to learn more about what he put in my chest'

  Slowly my eyes gained more focus as I was deep in thought.

  'This thing is keeping me alive but if I ever become a big problem for Igor he could take this thing in my chest away. If he does I will die in a few seconds. So I need to find a way to heal my chest and get rid of the fake heart he's given me. Maybe if I find a way to kill him I can leave without having to heal the hole in my chest, but....'

  I bite my nails in frustration as I felt the blood rushing to my head.

  'If the thing in my chest is powered by him, it will wither away when I kill him, killing me along side him.'

  *

  Message: Wow, I'm impressed by how you've changed. Your thinking ahead now. That's great, I won't need to babysit you as much. Putting your growth aside. Have you check your status window?

  *

  Reading the message the assistant gave me, I felt irrated slighty but unlike before I wasn't as mad. The underhanded insults he was throwing are slowly losing their sting. Not because he was less hurtful but because I found the things happening around to be more important and deadly.

  'I hope I gained something from my previous fight.'

  I opened my status window.

  *

  Name: Colt Smith Lv: 8

  Class: None

  Trait: Immortal. Blank seed (Growth Type)

  Curse: Mark of a Eldritch God.

  Skill: Poison resistance Lv1(Passive)

  Self-immolation Lv 2

  Fire resistance Lv 3 (Passive)

  Translate(Temporary: 1 day left. Get to htting the books and learn.)

  Numb body Lv 3 (When you reach level 10 this skill will Change into a strong version of Numb Body. Also I noticed that you didn't give much of a reaction to my previous jabs. You ignoring me? You do know I will always be here right?

  Slow mind Lv 1 [Dangerous] (Description: Slows time in you mind. Don't use unless necessary. Seriously don't use it.)

  Mental Outburst (Static Skill)

  Lucky Shot (Passive)

  Equipment: None

  Heath: 80

  Attack: 45

  Defense: 42

  Mana: 65

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  *

  I read the status window and ignored some texts that were there.

  I shifted my focus to the skill Translate, my heart rate increasing.

  'Just one day left. Damn, how am I going to communicate with the people here if I can't understand them. This is going to set back my plans for escaping even further because I need to learn a new language from scratch'

  By this point I had already bitten off all my nails on my hands.

  'Shit, I need to calm down first'

  I took a deep breath and held it in. I stared at the door knob to concentrate on holding my breath for as long as possible, then blowing out the air and taking a deep breath again, repeating the process until my heart rate settled.

  'OK, So before thinking about escaping as a possibility I need to learn the language. Igor will probably find someone to teach me. I doubt he will let me loose without a way of communicating. Maybe he has some artifact that can allow anyone to understand different languages. Even if he does have an artifact like that I thinks it still good to learn the language without the artifact.'

  I looked up at the ceiling as I sighed

  'And then there's Mia. I'm don't understand her. She's too kind. I think she wants me to let my guard down and have me open up to her. I didn't over hear what Igor and Mia were talking before, but he probably told her to keep an eye on me and report to him about my actions.'

  'Maybe her clumsy behavior is just so I think she too stupid to be a spy. But'

  Part of me thought she wasn't acting. She seemed somewhat genuine, her fidgeting of the keys and being embarrassed about the mess of books, it looked real to me.

  'But she can't be that clumsy and kind. She has to have some kind of goal she wants. She probably going to use me for something'

  I remember how on earth when I was younger, I meet a girl who was kind. She reached out to me and became my best friend. I thought she really cared about me. She was my only friend and I was happy that she chose to even hangout with me.

  I clenched the bed sheets as I clenched my teeth.

  'But all that was a lie.'

  I can still remember her talking to her friends as she said the only reason she befriend me was because I looked pathetic, like an abandoned dog on the streets.

  I remember how her friends told her that she was soo kind, they showered her in complements.

  She used me to make her looked good.

  It was written all over her face, like she was saying 'Oh look at me, I'm such a good person that I even hang out with people like him. Weirdos.'

  I shoke my head.

  'No. Stop. You're getting sidetracked. You have other things to think about. You can't let the past hinder you Colt. Keep it together'

  Right as I was about to think of what I should do next, the door open slighty.

  "Colt? You awake" Mia said as she peeked her head inside.

  "Ah, you finally woke up. I was worried something happened to you and you weren't going to wake up."

  She walked inside, leaving the door opened as she entered.

  "I hope it's not too loud outside. I opened the window for a bit to let the room air out."

  She walked over to the window and closed the window, locking it.

  "So, how do you feel?" She said as she turn around to look at me.

  Her expression was soft and her voice was calming, it made me almost relax but I fought the calming sensation overtaking me.

  "I'm fine." I said awkwardly.

  I was blanking on what to say, it was easy talking to Igor because I had to treat him with respect, he was my master and the one holding my life in his hands after all.

  But Mia wasn't. I didn't really know how to talk with her casually, the only thing coming to mind were conversations from anime and TV show, which weren't exactly accurate to the way people actually talked.

  Thankfully she didn't point out my awkward response as she walked over to the door.

  "Come on, I'm done cooking some meat and veggies. " she said as she left. Leaving the door slightly closed.

  *

  Message: Wow, your such a bitch. Can't even handle talking to a girl.

  *

  'Man. Shut up!!'

  *

  Message: Your were talking to her just fine the last time, why are you shtting yourself now?!

  *

  Thinking back to when i last spoke with her, the assistant was right.

  But that was because I was too tired and barely staying awake.

  Now that I'm at a much better state, I could admire her beau- I mean, I could think straight. Yeah. That.

  *

  Message: Just get up already, I can't stand watching you like this. I'm cringing.

  *

  I shoke my head to get my shit together and got up and left.

  I walked down the hallway and already smelled the food.

  It was at this moment where the feeling of hunger hit me like a truck.

  I was starving.

  Mia was stiring a pot with meat and vegetables as I instinctively sat down at the table, waiting expectingly to be served.

  I was salivating at the smell alone, It was hard not to get up and just eat straight from the pot as I watched her slowly pour the food in two bowls.

  'Damn it, why are you going soo slow. It feels like my stomach is eating itself right now, Come On!'

  My foot tapped impatiently on the floor as I watched her bring the food over to the table, putting spoons in the bowls.

  My foot stopped tapping as I reached for a bowl.

  Smack

  Mia smacked my hand as she glared at me.

  "Wait a second! I'm not done" she said

  She went over to the bar where she had two drinks filled with water.

  She grab the drinks and ploped them on the table, handing one towards me.

  "Here"

  I grab the drink and set it aside. Not wanting to waste more time I began to eat.

  I devoured the food in an instant, leaving nothing behind.

  Mia either didn't notice me eating like a pig or just decided to ignore it.

  She ate her food gracefully.

  After I finish, I slowly regained my senses.

  I recompose myself, taking my elbows off the table and sitting up straight.

  'I should forget my previous actions and just asks what I'm gonna do'

  "Um. Mia, I'm wondering what exactly I'm supposed to be doing. I wasn't really told what my job or goal was."

  Looking up from her bowl she shot me a confused looked before realizing that i was never given instructions on what I am supposed to do.

  "Ah, yeah. I thought I told you already. I'm sorry. Igor told me that I will be teaching you our language since your translation skill will be gone."

  She brought her spoon up to her mouth before sipping on the broth.

  "While I'll teach you about our language, you'll be learning magic from me as well. Unfortunately Igor told me that you have to learn to use the sword by yourself."

  "Oh, Igor said that you'll fight in the coliseum once a day. Everyday."

  My heart rate spiked.

  'Everyday! SHIT'

  Mia noticed my face stiffed and smile sympathetically.

  "Don't worry, you'll be facing monsters more your level, I don't know who you'll be fighting, but I know that it won't be harder than the orge you fought"

  Picking her bowl, she reached over and grab my bowl from the table, walking over and setting it on the table next to the furnace.

  Laughing sheepishly Mia says softly to herself

  "We should get going, Igor waiting for us."

  What caught me off guard was the slight twich in her face. It was only for a short moment but I looked like she was holding back pain."

  What made me further believe she was hurt was because after she got up from the table, she seemed to have trouble picking up a suitcase off the floor.

  *

  Message: Well, aren't you going to help her? You see a woman in distress and you don't even lift a finger. Wow, such the gentleman you are.

  *

  I shift uncomfortable in my seat before getting up to help her.

  'This is fucking bullshit! I'm only helping because she fed me'

  I grab the suitcase and pull it up to my chest, carrying it like a basket.

  "I'll help" I said

  Mia's mind stalled for a second before accepting my offer.

  She pulled a cloak out of nowhere, handing it to me.

  "Put it on, we cant have anyone seeing you"

  I thought for a second why she didn't want me to be seen.

  Putting on the cloak and picking up the suitcase again, I figured it was because maybe somepeople that were at the colleseum might recognize me, specifically the one that lost their money because of me.

  With that done, we left.

  ######

  We didn't go to the Chain market surprisingly. We walked past all the houses and out of the residential district.

  We entered the shopping district where the Chain Market was at, but instead of heading towards the Chain Market we headed towards the edge of the shopping district, where a large tunnel was lit up by floating lights.

  The tunnel was full of dirt and the stench of sweat and armpits. It reeked so bad, you could taste the air and puke.

  On the floor there were tracks for what seemed like trains.

  Coming In and out of the tunnel we're mostly dwarves, but there were also other races there as well, pushing carts of precious metals out of the tunnel.

  "Igor told me to him here but...."

  Holding her nose and keeping her mouth shut, she decided not to finish her sentence.

  The dwarves gave us weird looks as we stood there doing nothing.

  Muttering under their breath one of them called us lazy bums.

  I didn't care. The stench was to much for me to give a damn.

  'How the hell are they fine? Don't their noses work?'

  *

  Notification:

  Poison resistance Level up

  Poison resistance Lv 2

  *

  '!!!!'

  It's actually poisonous!

  I used the neck part of my cloak and covered my nose.

  'I mean, I'm glad my skills are increasing but If I stay here too long my skill won't protect me from the damage'

  "So you said Igor was waiting for us here right?" I looked over at Mia.

  "Yeah, he said he would be waiting for us here, but...." her voice trailed off.

  "Sorry for the wait" I heard a muffled voice behind me.

  Turning around I saw Igor with a Gas mask on, twiddling a knife between his finger.

  Looking at the gas mask closely, I saw there wasn't a filter. My guess is that magic filtered the air.

  He was probably smiling under his mask, considering how upbeat his tone was, but it's not like i could see.

  "I'm glad you guys made it on time, let's get down to business"

  "We got here early" stated Mia

  "I'm glad you guys made it on time" Igor repeated with the same tone as before, ignoring what Mia was saying.

  Mia only stared at him exasperated, before keeping her mouth shut.

  "Today, we'll be helping out in the mines today. Colt, catch"

  Tossing a black bracket over, I caught it.

  Examining it appearance it looked to be a metal bracelet welded into the shape of braided hair.

  "Just put it on, you'll see what it does."

  Putting on the bracelet, my hair change to blonde, my eyes became blue.

  People with blonde hair and blue eyes were usually attractive, although for me, nothing seem to really change about my looks.

  "Alright let's go"

  Walking ahead of us he walked into the tunnel.

  Walking into the tunnel a thought suddenly hit me.

  All the tunnels around the city remind me of a tree spreading out its roots.

  What if this entire city and its tunnels are connected to that tree thing.

  I wouldn't know, something like that is just weird. An entire civilization inside of the roots of a metal tree.

  Snapping out of this crazy thought I tried to focus on why we were here.

  'Igor probably wants a special metal for himself. that or, he wants to speak with someone that works here in the mines. But why bring me and Mia. Is it so he can supervise us? Or does he need us for something'

  Slowly a small chill run down my spine as I felt somewhat ominous was waiting to happen if I continue down this tunnel.

  Unfortunately, I didn't have a choice. I wasn't fighting it anymore but my body moved by itself when Igor told us to go.

  Sighing, I mentally prepared for whatever awaited for me.