Maijessie tore open a Town Portal scroll. She and Gotti, laden with packs, reluctantly returned to the Rogue Encampment.
Leo immediately pulled out the enchanted hourglass. No matter how it was set, its sand always fell in one direction. Each hour filled a single mark at the base; after twenty-four, the sand vanished, and the cycle began anew. He set it to keep time, then tightened his dried clothes, donned a rain cloak, and climbed onto the roof to watch the wastes.
It was his first night sleeping outside. Rain had fallen again and faded, but the sky remained heavy and gray. No moon, no stars.
Strange—how could he see so far in the dark? Then he remembered. At level 12, Reinhardt's relic had awakened.
The thought of Reinhardt pulled grief over him. He uncorked his wineskin, leaned against the chimney, and drank to the echoes of distant monster cries. He poured a little onto the roof, a toast for his comrade in Heaven—even if this world only spoke of High Heavens, never a kingdom of man.
Warmth spread through him. He packed the wineskin away, then checked his charms.
But the small charms were gone. In their place, a new icon glowed on his helm, identical to the charm's symbol. Startled, he tapped it. A black void appeared, endless and silent.
A storage space? Like the novels he once read. He tried placing a potion inside.
{Current charm: +5% attack rating, +5 light radius. Parse item? Level 1. Requires 1,000 gold.}
A 30-gold potion costing 1,000 to parse? Robbery. He swapped in a Rejuvenation Potion.
{Parse item? Level 1. Requires 1,000 gold.}
He fed the coins.
{Parsing… one hour required.}
The time passed.
{Parsing complete. Ability gained: Instantly restore 35% life and mana. One charge. Triggered by thought.}
Not bad—barely faster than drinking, but in a desperate fight, it might save his life. He tested other items. Only gear and potions could be parsed.
A hum. The hourglass shook. Leo jumped down, shut the door, and opened another Town Portal.
White light flared. The two women rushed through, relief flooding their faces when they saw him safe.
Maijessie sniffed. Her face darkened. She thrust out her hand.
"Stupid brother. Out here alone, and you dare to drink? Hand it over. From now on, you only drink outside with my permission."
She took his wineskin. Then, with a tilt of her chin, ordered more. He sighed, pulling them out—twenty skins in all.
Her eyes narrowed. She confiscated ten.
Leo's face lit up. His sweet sister had left him half.
But her cold smile froze him. "Miss Gotti, my inventory is full. Please carry the rest. And don't give him any unless I allow it."
Leo cast pleading eyes at Gotti. Overwhelmed, she closed hers, accepted the wineskins, and scolded him seriously.
"Maijessie's right. Leo, this was reckless. We were worried sick, and you were out here drinking? If something had happened… Forget it. I'll take first watch." She hurried out.
Maijessie giggled. "Looks like Gotti has feelings for you."
Leo gaped. When had these two united against him?
He picked up the bags, sighing. Life went on. Best to check what they'd brought back.
Twenty thousand gold glittered inside. Gotti truly was a lucky star.
Then he sorted the runes. Five in total:
* Tal Rune (x2): Weapon—+75 poison damage over 5s. Armor—+30% poison resist. Shield—+35% poison resist. Req Lvl 17.
* Ral Rune: Weapon—+5–30 fire damage. Armor—+30% fire resist. Shield—+35% fire resist. Req Lvl 19.
* Eth Rune: Weapon—–25% target defense. Armor—+15% mana regen. Req Lvl 15.
* Tir Rune: Weapon/Armor—+2 mana after each kill. Req Lvl 13.
Excellent finds. He stored them away.
Then came the charms—forty small ones. Thirteen with Strength, twenty-seven with Dexterity.
No more poison-resist charms, so his poison resist stayed at 15%. Seven with fire resist brought that to 25%. Twelve with lightning resist, for 20%. Eleven with cold resist, for 15%. Ten were plain.
His Strength and Dexterity now stood at 100 and 91. Enough for the Ancient Armor—or so he thought.
He tried equipping it. Nothing. Checking his sheet, his stats hadn't increased as expected.
He removed charms from page one of his stash, stats dropped. He placed them on page two—no change.
The truth sank in. Charms only worked from the first inventory page. The "big backpack" ignored them completely.
Leo wanted to weep.
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