A bedraggled group of soldiers sheltered beneath the jungle canopy. Osmal sat under his tarp, chewing on dried tack.
No wonder they called it a rainforest. Everyone was soaked and miserable, despite having waxed cloaks. Even the horses looked depressed.
Their first two encounters with monsters had been shockingly successful. Turns out that was just luck. A week in the wilds proved fortunes could change fast.
As they rode, Osmal did a quick mental head count. Five were missing. The dense jungle was full of nasty surprises. Ravines, cliffs, and narrow chokepoints made ideal ambush sites. A double-edged sword. The same terrain that protected them also hid monsters.
Osmal groaned as his horse tripped on a root, aggravating his wounds. The pain was just another reminder that a good chunk of his hard-earned merit would go to medicinal elixirs. Two soldiers—one missing fingers, another a hand—would likely go into debt to recover. Merit that should have pushed his cultivation forward would vanish into healing tonics.
He'd already done the math in his head. All cores and harvested parts would be divided. About 25% taken as tax. Even after paying for treatment, his final tally should be enough for some progress.
His first mission was coming to an end. That thought lifted his mood. As they rode back to Fort Thragg, his eyes scanned the jungle looking for threats.
For a moment, his eyes linger on Lina, who was riding next to Captain Tommy. Those two had been spending a lot of time together as of late. Perhaps she was trying to scam the captain. The thought made him smile.
Tommy had returned from the wilds, alive, but a pretty smile could be more dangerous than a monster.
Oh well, it wasn't his problem. Tommy was a smart man; he could handle himself. Probably. After a grueling week, the thick brick walls of Fort Thragg finally came into view. For the most part, the group was in good spirits, at least until they got the news. While they'd been gone, the tax on all spoils had risen.
40% of all cores and monster parts were now required. That was double the previous tax. Blatant highway robbery.
Even Captain Tommy couldn't hide his displeasure.
"What the hell do you mean, forty percent?" Tommy demanded.
The inspector gestured at their bulging saddlebags. "I don't make the rules. This is a direct order from Duke Wastrol's youngest son. He arrived two days ago. If you have a problem, take it up with him."
Tommy's face smoothed, but his eyes still burned with anger. "I see…"
It would be unwise for a man of Tommy's lowly rank to argue with a noble of such esteem.
Osmal could only shrug. It was to be expected. A high-ranking noble had arrived, and laws became suggestions. The same would happen when the elders or core disciples arrived. More pigs to wallow at the trough.
Good thing he'd hidden a few extra cores. Not a great haul, but even with expenses, he'd come out net positive.
Released from his obligation, Osmal had three days to rest before going out again. Not much time, but his injuries were minor. He'd mostly recovered and even absorbed the cores from their recent sortie.
Every bit of energy pushed his core further. A little closer to breaking his earthly shackles and advancing to Sky Core.
Even with the robbery, each sortie was still worth it. Rewards kept getting better as more supplies arrived.
With the duke's son in the fort, the Kingdom Merit Exchange was stocked to the rafters. Rewards went from juicy to mouthwatering.
It was a blatant flex by the Kingdom of Adro—Earth and even Sky-level techniques on the exchange. Body and core tempering manuals that could advance a cultivator to the next stage.
For a whopping hundred merits, he could buy a manual to reach Sky Core. A tough goal, but it was within reach. Only a few months of risking life and limb to afford it.
That was how they got you. So what if death waited around every corner when the rewards were this good?
With the new update, soldiers and cultivators shifted from reluctant participation to a frenzy.
Osmal was no different. His fingers itched at the thought of a technique usually reserved for outer disciples. To make this worse, the supply was limited. The juiciest fruit would soon be snatched up.
A lot of people were about to die chasing merit.
Who could blame them? Osmal was already itching to go back out. This was the chance of a lifetime. His current manuals could only take him to the peak of the Earth stage. Without a better manual, he would remain trapped. That was unacceptable.
The same was true for soldiers and conscripts. This was a chance for those stuck in the dirt to rise above their station. Few would succeed, but that was the way of the world.
To rise was to shed one's earthly shackles, in defiance of man and monster alike. Ascension wasn't a challenge to the heavens.
It was scavenging—scraping together enough strength to reach the top of the cultivation world's dungheap before it buried you.
With his next scouting mission only a day away, Osmal headed to the tavern in the central fort. He really needed a drink. The Kingdom of Adro knew how to make decent wine—better than the swill the sects produced.
He wasn't here just to drink. He wanted to find Ash.
After their group sold all the monster parts, he'd come away with some crowns burning a hole in his pocket. He couldn't spend them if he was dead, so he might as well extract a little more gain before the Blade Mountains swallowed him again.
The table in the back corner was open, so he sat. An hour and a half passed. Nothing. The staff had begun giving him dirty looks as soldiers trickled in. He was about to leave when she finally arrived.
Dressed in a mottled brown cloak, she headed straight to the back. Osmal noticed the looks she drew and returned them with a glare. First come, first serve.
Ash flopped into the chair across from him.
"A full bottle. Not that bottom-shelf swill. The good stuff," she said to the barkeep.
Osmal nodded. "Tough week?"
She snorted. "Something like that. Most of our strike force didn't make it back." Ash sighed, slouching in her chair.
Osmal took the bottle as the server set it down, uncorked it, and poured her a tall glass. She drank it in one go.
"That's the spot," she said, smacking her lips.
"So, why did most of your strike squad die?" Osmal asked curiously.
"Ruins," she said.
He raised an eyebrow. "What kind of ruins?"
She tapped the table.
Knowing how this worked, he dropped a coin onto the wood with a clank.
She grinned. "It's a ruin of the Sumatran Empire," Ash said.
Osmal whistled softly. "That's going to kick up a stir."
"Damn straight. Before I left, I overheard the duke's son talking with his sycophants. He's going to gather some soldiers to clear it and bring back its riches,"
"You don't say. He is not going personally, is he?" Osmal asked..
She tapped her lip thoughtfully. "Unlikely. I got the impression his lordship will not set foot outside this castle," Ash said.
"Why is that?" Osmal asked.
"He was being carried around on a pylon quin. Apparently he doesn't want to dirty his new boots," Ash said.
"I see. So some unlucky bastards are going to be used as cannon fodder to raid the ruins," Osmal said.
"Probably," Ash's eyes sharpened as she leaned on the table. "So what else are you in the market for? I can sell you a half step Sky Elixir for thirty crowns."
"That's expensive. It won't be of much benefit since I already used one," Osmal said.
She batted her lashes. "Even at half effectiveness, it's still worth it. An industrious man like you can surely afford it,"
"Fifteen crowns," Osmal said.
"Twenty-five," Ash countered.
A few minutes later, he left with the elixir. The moment he stood from the table, the other customers descended like circling jackals.
The elixir was expensive, but still more than worth it. He doubted she had many of them in stock, and given a half-dozen people were hovering nearby, they would be gone shortly.
Elixirs were a remarkable piece of alchemy. The problem was that they were a combination of several herbs combined to make the liquid. Said liquid would then be absorbed into his body using his manual.
His core and body would absorb the energy and be strengthened. The first use always showed the best results, with subsequent uses showing diminishing returns. This was because your body built up a resistance to the magical herbs used in the elixir. By the fourth use, there would be almost no effect. All pain and no gain.
Even by the fourth use, the elixir would still be just as expensive, and with so little gain, why bother? Might as well save up for something else more useful.
There were plenty of ways to grow stronger, but the problem was that most required prying open the vaults of stingy elders or doing favors for snobby nobles.