The cacophony of snores and the stench of unwashed bodies were my alarm clock. Dawn hadn't yet breached the grimy window of the flophouse, but the deep, instinctual part of my brain that remembered a 9-to-5 job was wide awake. There would be no more sleep.
My body, however, felt incredible. The lingering effects of the healing draught had worked through the night, leaving me feeling rested, alert, and stronger than I ever had in my old life. Or the original Zane's life, for that matter. I lay there for a moment, watching the faint glow of my system screen in the pre-dawn gloom.
[Aetherial Shop]
[Balance: 15 Aether Crystals]
Fifteen crystals. Enough for another terrible exchange into a fake crystal, or a single set of basic rations. It was nothing. The thrill of survival from last night had faded, replaced by the cold, sharp reality of my situation. I was broke, homeless after today, and living on borrowed time in a city that had already killed me once.
The plan was simple, brutal, and born of necessity: hunt.
The original Zane's memories provided a location—the Sewerways beneath the industrial district. It was a notorious breeding ground for low-level pests like Void-Touched Rats and the occasional Lurker. It was also the domain of desperate thugs and gangs who claimed tolls from anyone foolish enough to venture down, but it was the only hunting ground I knew of that was accessible and wouldn't immediately get me killed by something a dozen ranks above me.
I needed to be smart. I couldn't just walk in with my dagger and hope for the best. I navigated the shop's menu, my eyes scanning the [Consumables] section again. I needed an edge.
[Basic Rations] Nutrient-dense, bland-tasting food.
Cost: 5 Aether Crystals.
It was a third of my net worth, but an army marched on its stomach. A hunter couldn't afford to be weak with hunger. Purchase.
A dense, brown brick of what looked like hardened oatmeal appeared in my inventory. I took it out. It was odorless and hard as a rock. I broke off a piece with my teeth. It tasted like cardboard and faintly of almonds. It was utterly disgusting, but as I chewed, a wave of steady energy spread through me, banishing the last hints of fatigue. It worked.
Balance: 10 Aether Crystals.
Ten crystals left. Now for the real risk.
I pulled my dagger from my inventory. The Aether-Iron felt cool and comforting in my grip. But it was short. Too short. If I faced more than one rat, I'd be overwhelmed. I needed reach. I navigated to [Weapons] and filtered by price. The cheapest thing with more length than my dagger was a simple, unadorned spear.
[Iron-Tipped Spear] Rank: 1 A simple wooden spear with an iron tip. Offers reach against lesser foes.
Cost: 40 Aether Crystals.
I was 30 crystals short. I stared at the price, a rock settling in my gut. There was only one way. I had to go now, with what I had, and hope I got lucky. It was a terrible plan.
I stowed the dagger and the remains of the ration brick in my inventory. With a deep breath, I slipped out of the flophouse and into the cold, grey light of a Ravenhall morning.
The industrial district was a symphony of noise and smoke. Massive piston-driven hammers thumped against metal, and steam vents hissed like angry serpents. The air was thick with the smell of coal, ozone, and rust. Following the hazy memories, I found a rusted iron grate set into the ground behind a reeking tannery. One of the bars was loose, a known entry point for those who didn't want to pay the "official" entrance fee.
I pulled the grate open, the screech of metal lost in the industrial din, and climbed down into the darkness.
The stench hit me first—a thick, humid miasma of decay, stagnant water, and something else… something metallic and wrong. It was the smell of corrupted Aether. The tunnel was barely wide enough to walk through, with a narrow channel of sluggish, filthy water running down the center. Dim, phosphorescent fungi grew in patches on the walls, providing an eerie, greenish light.
I summoned my dagger. Its faint hum was the only comforting thing here.
I hadn't taken ten steps when I heard it. A skittering. Multiple sets of claws on wet stone.
From a side tunnel, three shapes emerged. They were the size of large cats, their fur matted and patchy, revealing weeping sores beneath. Their eyes glowed with the same faint red as the Lurker, but their forms were more solid—twisted rodents with elongated, needle-filled maws.
Void-Touched Rats. Rank 1.
My heart hammered against my ribs. One, I could handle. Three was a problem.
They charged, moving with unnerving speed.
Instinct took over. I dropped into a clumsy crouch, presenting a smaller target. The lead rat leaped. I didn't try a fancy slash; I just thrust the dagger up like a pitiful stake.
The creature impaled itself on the blade with a sickening squelch. It shrieked, thrashed, and then dissolved into black smoke, leaving another pea-sized void crystal behind.
But the other two were on me. Claws ripped at my leg, tearing through the cheap cloth of my trousers and drawing lines of fire across my calf. I cried out, stumbling backward. I kicked out wildly, connecting with one and sending it tumbling into the sludge with a splash. The other scrambled up my side, its teeth snapping for my throat.
I grabbed at it with my free hand, my fingers sinking into its foul, damp fur. I could feel its unnatural strength, its frenzied writhing. I slammed it against the tunnel wall once, twice. On the third impact, its struggles weakened. I drove my dagger into its side.
It too dissolved.
The third rat was climbing out of the water, shaking sludge from its fur, its red eyes fixed on me with mindless hatred.
My leg was bleeding, my heart was trying to escape my chest, and my body was trembling with adrenaline. I was panting, the foul air burning my lungs. This was nothing like the desperate, lucky kill of the Lurker. This was messy, brutal, and exhausting.
As the rat charged again, I didn't have the strength for finesse. I met its charge, taking a deep scratch on my arm as I wrestled it down and ended it with a clumsy, brutal stab.
Silence returned to the tunnel, broken only by my ragged gasps.
Three rats. Three void crystals. I collected them, my hands shaking.
[New Currency Acquired: Void Crystal (Rank 1) x3 - Convert to 30 Aether Crystals?]
Convert all.
[Conversion complete.]
[Current Balance: 40 Aether Crystals.]
I leaned against the slimy wall, wiping my brow. Forty crystals. The cost of the spear. But my leg was bleeding, and my arm stung. I was already injured. I couldn't keep doing this. I was one bad encounter away from being another corpse in the sewer.
I needed that spear. I needed every advantage I could get.
I pulled up the shop, found the Iron-Tipped Spear, and without hesitation, selected Purchase.
[Purchase confirmed. Balance: 0 Aether Crystals.]
The dagger vanished from my hand, and a moment later, a six-foot-long wooden spear with a simple, sharp iron point appeared. It was heavier than I expected, but the weight was solid, reassuring. The reach was immediately comforting.
I was back to zero. But I was armed. And I had a goal.
I looked down the dark, dripping tunnel. Somewhere down there were more crystals. Enough for a healing potion. Enough for that Aether Reinforcement technique.
Gripping the spear tightly, I pushed off from the wall and limped deeper into the darkness. The hunt was on.