After hearing my request, Rauchlim obliged and led us on our way to the next destination. We went through the castle, intending to go out through the back side’s gate.

Outside the Royal Court, we saw a garden that was much different from what you’d expect to see in the middle of one of the harshest deserts on the planet. Furthermore, it was lusher and livelier than the last time I saw it, with the addition of two more fountains, a large pond for fish, and a large tree that went as high as ten meters.

Truly a magnificent sight, it’s amazing what living creatures could achieve through the help of the system.

The weather was delightful, and the rapid currents of the wind provided a much-needed refreshment.

Vivian seemed especially content with the atmosphere in the garden, taking off her hood and taking deep breaths as she walked around and admired the beautiful flora that decorated the surroundings.

Rauchlim, on the other hand, wasn’t as enthusiastic. He likely preferred the hotter weather, and the novelty of the garden must’ve worn off in his eyes after seeing it multiple times.

Even though the gal wanted to stay longer, I refused, telling her we could go back later. Rauchlim explained to her that she could always relocate to their town and that he’d welcome her in his house or help her rent a place if she wanted to.

We kept walking on our way, and Rauchlim kept on trying to convince Vivian to settle in their town.

“You’d be able to see this garden whenever you want if you’re a citizen here,” he gave her sound arguments, but I could see that he wanted her to live there because of his personal desires, “Our town has one of the most sought after resources, and the architecture is shaping up nicely. Besides, I can protect you, and we’ll be able to beat many powerful enemies if we team up!”

“Umm, no, but I appreciate your offer,” she tried to keep her distance from him, but it didn’t seem like he’d give up any soon, “Not to be rude, but the garden is one of the only positive things about this place in my humble opinion. I can’t imagine living under such scorching sun for a long while.”

“Oh, so it’s food that you think wouldn’t be compatible!” He nodded repeatedly, “I know of many restaurants and diners! They make dishes that cater to a wide range of taste palates, and they have chefs from different kinds of races.”

“No,” she shook her head, “The city is quite amazing, and I’m sure the food will be delicious as well. However, there are other aspects that aren’t likable enough.”

“If it’s the enemies that you’re worried about, then let me assure you! I have a level of one hundred twenty-one, one of the highest leveled creatures on Earth,” he puffed his chest, “Strong monsters? No problem! A scary creature appearing in the middle of the desert? I’ll be the man of the hour! Rescuing maidens is a specialty of mine.”

“Can you fight the weather and make it colder, and more refreshing,” Vivian suggested, “If so, then please increase the humidity of the weather, decrease the temperature, and make the sand disappear! Only then would I think about staying here long term.”

“We can do something about that,” he kept going, but his voice got much weaker, “For sure. I mean, how about you visit our town once in a while? Sure, that’d be reasonable, right?”

The two of them kept going back and forth. Rauchlim always initiated the conversation, and Vivian rejected his advances subtly for the most part.

Nevertheless, he didn’t give up.

What a persistent lizardman!

I shook my head at Rauchlim, but I admired his perseverance. I was about to strike up a conversation with Rauchlim to take his attention off Vivian, but something unexpected happened.

My head ached terribly out of nowhere, and my whole body kept spasming all over. Dizziness, hallucinations, and nausea.

Sensations that I hadn’t felt for ages, and never had I expected to get these symptoms once again. I used to get sick relatively easily as a child, but with the arrival of the system, my body gained an unprecedented level of fortitude that protected me.

I fell on my right knee, gasping for breath. I couldn’t even steady myself to get up, and my hands kept shaking.

I could tell that both Rauchlim and Vivian were looking at me in my current situation, but their words weren’t clear at all.

Oh shit…

After thinking of the possible reasons for this situation, I realized that it had to be because of my damaged body-soul connection.

Shit… What do I do now?

I started hyperventilating, and I couldn’t think clearly for a while.

It took a couple of seconds, or maybe minutes, for the majority of the symptoms to subside.

Both of my companions were shouting my name, and they were as worried as I ever saw them.

“Jason,”

“Jason! What’s going on!”

I finally managed to stand up, leaning on Rauchlim’s shoulder. After looking around the place, I realized that many people were gathered around us. Lizardfolk, humans, and even some unique creatures that I’ve never seen before.

They were all worried about me, each of them trying to help and offer what they could. I genuinely felt embarrassed that I couldn’t do anything in such a situation. If a powerful enemy appeared, I would’ve been unable to defend myself, much less my companions.

“Are you all right, Jason?” Vivian prodded, “If there’s anything I can help you with, just say the word!”

“Aye, brother! You got a heat stroke,” Rauchlim said, “Truth be told, I don’t know what I should do to help. Maybe we should take you back to Her Highness’ castle?”

I shook my head, thanking each one of them for their offers of help. I brushed it off, saying that a certain skill of mine caused this state because of its brutal cooldown.

They didn’t buy my story, but they calmed down and kept going on our initial path toward the system trading station.

We kept going, speaking as if the whole weird situation didn’t happen. Rauchlim kept trying to flirt with Vivian, and she changed the subject each time while admiring the surrounding scenery.

I sighed, realizing that I had to do something about my body-soul connection before the Rankers’ meeting.

Enough is enough…

I focused and tried to call Loki through the InterGalacticLine. The call connected as soon as it went through, and Loki greeted me. As usual, the conversation happened through telepathy, so I wasn’t worried about my companions noticing anything strange about me.

“Yo! If it’s not my favorite blessed!” a lot of background music was playing, and I recognized a lot of the songs, “You forget about me for around a week, and now you appear again? What kind of audacity is this?!”

“I need help,” I tried to sound as serious as I could.

“Oh! So, it’s your body-soul connection then! Let me check real quick,” he went silent for a couple of seconds, “Oh shit! How did you manage to fuck it up even further? Man, you’re in deep shit.”

“I know, I know. Please, cut the lecture short and offer me some practical advice,” I pleaded, “I don’t have time, and after what happened a couple of minutes ago, I think I might lose myself all of a sudden.”

“Hmmm, then, I’ll suggest this,” he said, “Open your shop window, and an item will appear.”

I did as I was told, and I was presented with an item called a Remedial Connective Panacea. However, its price was something that I couldn’t handle at all. It cost a million shop points, and I was left with less than a hundred thousand after buying the Empathy and Sleaziness stats last time.

I could technically get enough shop points if I found many fossils of dinosaurs and converted them, but that process would take a while.

And I needed a short-term solution.

“Can’t you give me a loan?” I suggested, “I don’t have enough points right now, but I’ll be able to get them in time. I swear!”

“Well, I can give you a loan, but would you really want that?” He said, “It won’t solve your problem once and for all; it’ll just serve as a temporary measure to prevent the worst from happening. Moreover, the loan itself is a bit tricky; you’ll have to pay very high interest, and I don’t advise you to do that because you’ll regret it.”

“High interest?” I was flabbergasted, “Aren’t you, my sponsor? Why can’t you help with that? I’m sure you don’t need the extra shop points!”

“That’s how it works, you need to learn to rely on yourself,” He laughed hard at my sincere words, “Remember the reason why I took you in as a blessed. It was because of the potential you showed me, not because I felt sorry for you and decided to hold your hand along the way.”

“Is this the only way to fix that problem,” I asked, “Aren’t there other ways? The cheaper the better too!”

“Well, you can keep practicing mana control, that’ll help you in more ways than you can imagine,”

“Uhh, can’t I skip that hard part and buy a mana control skill from the shop.”

“Sure, you can do that, but you’ll miss out on a lot of progress, including the possibility of healing your issue,” he explained, “As always, you need to rely on yourself. You’ll grow weaker if you constantly rely on the system to teach you skills. Keep in mind that the system is a modern-ish thing, and ancient people got by without relying on it.”

“Uhh, okay,” I found the conversation with this elusive deity to be largely unproductive, “I guess we’ll talk again soon, see you later!”

“One more thing,” he blurted out, “Talk to that lady about your problem, she’ll help. This path will likely yield the results you’re looking for.”

I thanked him and turned off the InterGalacticLine.

Rauchlim and Vivian were still talking, and their relationship didn’t seem to have improved.

Not long after, we entered the System Trading Station. The clerks greeted us, and it felt good to see their familiar faces once again.

“What can we do for you, sir?” said one of the clerks.

However, I thanked them and told them that I’d be looking for items on my own.

After about half an hour of looking, I started to feel desperate.

“So, are you making any progress?” Rauchlim asked as he walked around the lobby of the System Trading Station.

I shook my head, and looked back at the screens.

None of the limited items that I’d been looking for were available.