*Felix PoV*

I stand up, it hurts a little, but actually moving is easier than ever!

Haha! I have one pattern now!

No one can look down on me again!

Take that Kevin!

Oh right, he’s dead…

Mister Timotei got to him…

Hah, serves him right!

I look around me, there’s blood everywhere in the basement,  I see a few pots in the corner, but I don’t see any of the monster’s corpses.

I got drenched in blood and guts while butchering those, and my body absorbed it like a sponge!

Right now all the blood over me is dry, it’s a disgusting feeling.

I don’t know how long I’ve been here, but during that time I was in a dreamland, and I lived the live of a nimbus eagle!

It was not very long, the poor thing only lived 7 years before Octavius got to it.

But from this I managed to learn the <Flight of the nimbus>!

With this spell I can make clouds in my vicinity, and it’s an ability the nimbus eagles know instinctually.

But frustratingly enough they don’t use it for combat, it’s only for mating purposes.

And even more frustratingly the nimbus eagle I was living as died a virgin!

Why do I have to stay like that even as a bird?

Can’t you throw me a bone?

I also learned that high level monsters can take a human-like form, the mother of that nimbus eagle was a beautiful, completely marble white lady with great wings.

Sigh…

I have to make sure Octavius doesn’t learn about that.

Even if she’s not my real mother she’s a lovely lady, I can’t let him put his lecherous hands on her.

I go upstairs, but I only see mister Luca doing some housework, is everyone else outside?

That bastard Octavius waited until I was out of the picture to have all the sex, hasn’t he?

Last time I thought I’d get to see him do ‘it’ again, and maybe I’d also get some!

But it was actually just a hunt.

A very worrying hunt.

So many monsters…

Mister Luca finally seems to notice me.

“Look who’s finally up, you’ve been in <trance> for a whole week!” Mister Luca then points upwards “Go clean yourself first, there should also be a change of clothes for you in your room, Tim prepared them.”

I nod, go upstairs, and enter the bathroom.

I undress and go into the shower.

Mister Timotei has helped me a lot hasn’t he?

I remember that shortly after we got here he pointed his spear at me and interrogated me…

So scary…

But after I told him that I just didn’t want to be a bandit anymore, and that I took the first chance I got to leave that life, he’s softened up to me.

I think he decided to trust me for some reason.

I mean, I’m glad, because that was the truth, but if I was on his position I wouldn’t have trusted me.

I’ll find a way to thank him.

I finish showering and wrap a towel around my waist.

But while I’m going to my room I find miss Bianca in the hallway!

And from the fright I accidentally drop my towel!

She’s looking at me…

“What the hell are you doing?” Miss Bianca doesn’t have any reaction “Nobody wants to see that, hurry up and cover yourself.”

After that she goes to her room like nothing happened.

Sigh, I’m not Octavius…

I bet he could’ve turned that encounter into something fun…

I’ll just be satisfied that she didn’t care enough to be mad at me or hurt me…

I cover myself and quickly go to my room to dress up.

It’s just a long robe, but it’s surprisingly comfy.

I go downstairs feeling a little dejected.

Now that I have one pattern I’ll make thar Octavius spill out his secret!

I go to the kitchen and make myself an omelet, I made extra portions for mister Luca and miss Bianca, it’s the middle of the day, they’ll probably be hungry.

While I’m eating, mister Luca also grabs a portion.

“So has anything interesting happened during the week?” I’m quite curious.

Mister Luca nods “Octavius has made some sort of makeshift workshop on a terrain we own, and he has been working nonstop for this entire time, those girls Antonia and Aurora have been helping him too.” He takes a big bite out of the omelet “But other than that it’s been a very interesting week for me, I learned how to make a makeshift bloomery.” He seems to be in a good mood. “Oh, and I’ve heard that the prince is going to visit basil soon, everyone is talking about that.”

Yeah, I bet they’re ‘working’ hard.

Wait!

This might be a chance!

If he’s doing his thing, and I go there…

I might get to see it!

Hehehe, Felix, you’re a genius.

“Are they eating properly? His arm is still broken too… I’ll go and give them a meal” After that I finish my omelet and stand up “he’s probably pushing himself too much.”

Mister Luca shrugs “I guess.”

I also hear miss Bianca’s voice “I’m also going!”

Sigh… of course you are.

 

* * *

 

We are in a place full of black sand, with a single cave opening on the middle, I also see a few... chimneys? They're all scattered around.

Miss Bianca and I didn’t speak at all on the way here, she’s completely ice cold.

I’m carrying a piece of cloth with a few sandwiches I hastily made with the things I could find.

I look around, but I don’t see anyone here.

They really just said they were ‘working’ and went too fool around, didn’t they?

However, miss Bianca goes into the cave, and I follow her, of course.

We see a shirtless Octavius sleeping on top of a turtle shell and miss Aurora and miss Antonia are on the floor, also sleeping, they’re all drenched in sweat, I notice miss Antonia’s jacket on the floor, she’s just wearing her leotard, and the inside of the cave stinks.

This is why you don’t work for a week straight…

I missed the good parts, didn’t I?

Miss Bianca claps loudly and shouts “Wake up motherfuckers!”

Octavius almost jumps and looks a little perturbed. Good.

Miss Antonia does jump and yells “Kya!”, it looks like she got scared.

And miss Aurora opens her eyes and blinks, yawns, and goes back to sleep.

“What?” Octavius is the first one to regain his senses.

Miss Bianca throws the sandwiches at him and chuckles “I brought you some food, better be thankful.”

Hey, I was the one that made that!

Sigh…

Octavius catches them without much trouble “Yeah, thanks.” He yawns after that.

I notice that miss Bianca is rolling her eyes, but she still looks a little happy.

Why?

What’s the difference?

Miss Bianca asks him “So have you done anything worthwhile during this week?”

”Ehhh? You didn’t notice the other times you came?” miss Antonia looks astonished.

“Nope!” miss Bianca claps.

Octavius has a prideful smirk, “I’ll show you what I’ve made.” And he walks towards another turtle shell with a few small blades on top of it “All of them are a unique” he grabs one “for example, this is the <Nimbus knife> if you throw it, it will increase its speed mid-air.”

Miss Antonia grabs another one “And this is the <Laser dagger>!” She’s pointing it at us! “If you channel your mana into it you can shoot one of those lasers the root tortoises do! Try it out!”

Miss Bianca grabs it and points it at the sky, the blade shines with a green light and makes a weird chirping sound, like a bunch of birds just going to town, it’s quite nostalgic to me actually, a similar sound could be heard constantly in the mountain I was born is as a nimbus eagle, and a breath later a massive green ray shoots from the blade!

“Hoh! It’s power scales so well too!” miss Bianca looks genuinely impressed “It’s less quick and efficient than my normal spells, and it’s a little loud, but for people like Irina or Matilda that don’t have many ranged options it would be useful.”

Miss Aurora still on the floor yells “We also have the <Tortoise tongue>, the <Eagle edge>, <Sky skewer> and <Cloud cutter>!”

Miss Antonia makes a small jump “I named them!”

Octavius still has his dumbass show-off smirk on “Of course, none of them fall short of each other.”

“These artifacts are all very impressive, definitely much better than what I expected from you.” Miss Bianca nods “But I think you have forgotten one important part, how are you going to sell them?”

Octavius looks surprised for a second, did he not think about that?

“I, uh, planned to ask Anton about it…”

Miss Antonia freezes up “Hmm… We could try going to the <Basil clan> or some of the other wealthy residents!” she’s quick on her feet though, she even managed to think of a solution on the spot.

Miss Bianca chuckles a little “Of course, that’s an option you have, but do you really think you have enough time for that? Nobles are as shrewd as serpents, they’ll notice you don’t have much time, you only have a few days left after all, and they’ll exploit that.”

Miss Aurora sits on a wall “What are you proposing?”

Miss Bianca points toward Octavius “The <Sycamore auction>!”