Victor Crossroads adjusted the high collar of his coat as a few lightly placed enchantments warded off the local mosquito population. He splashed himself with a touch of perfume he made back when he was an apprentice alchemist. It was hopefully enough to cover the scent of a long day’s work paying off his debt to the Mirror church. The sisters of reflection barely let him take a break for a second as he worked on finishing his deceased master’s creation. If he could do it, all his financial problems would be solved forever, and there wouldn’t be a need for towns like Tar.

 

Pain spiked through his head when he walked into the late afternoon sunlight. It had been happening a lot lately, and he knew what it meant. Somehow his body was running low on Ichor. He needed some Ichor to sustain himself even if he wasn’t a 5th rank. Usually, that was supplied by food, not hard refined Ichor supplied by the church for his experiments.

 

He had some time, and a message from Clouse let him get off early. If he was quick about it, he could get some flowers for his lover. Unfortunately, work took more out of him every day, and it wasn’t until he was free that he got any energy back.

 

Ichor powered more than monsters; it also helped adventurers or, in his case, alchemists of the 3^rd rank. The tin box in his pocket had been hard to resist while under the eyes of the sisters. Victor didn’t want them to see him self-medicate.

 

An alley gave him the chance he needed to stuff a small glowing golden cube in his mouth, refreshing him. His headache eased as the sunset and the Ichor filled his depleted body. He felt like a dry sponge held under running water after years.

 

He didn’t know how much longer the sisters would supply him. Then he would have to find refined Ichor by less than legal means or complete his master’s research.

 

On his way to meet his friend, he reserved a bouquet of moon roses to pick up after meeting Clouse. He wouldn’t expose his lady to Clouse if he could help it. The 5^th ranked adventurer was a friend, but he could be a bit much.

 

He heard the loud conversations of adventurers before he entered the three-story building. Yellow liquor had already been set aside at his friend’s table. A type of drink with a heavy dose of Ichor mixed in for higher-ranked adventurers. Unfortunately, despite the easygoing appearance of the adventure hall, it was heavily regulated. Ichor needed to be refined and purchased; after all, consuming raw Ichor had unpredictable effects on humans.

“Victor, come on, your food is getting cold.” He saw an inch-thick hunk of meat sitting on a bed of broccoli half submerged in a pool of blood and seasoning. By the look of it, Clouse told them not to cook it. “Oh, is it not to your liking. I warned you not to date that Silvia girl; no matter how good her legs are, she had some concerning dietary restrictions.”

 

“I’m no longer with Silvia, and elves are all vegans; it’s a cultural thing.”

 

“Weird, that’s what it is; who doesn’t like meat.” Victor really didn’t like when Clouse talked about Silvia.

 

“Why am I here?”

 

“Is hanging out with your good buddy Clouse, not enough? You seem so sad, cooped up by the Mirror priestesses all day. So I thought we could go on an adventure, just the two of us. We can visit the countryside, help some local farmers and enjoy adventuring like the old days.”

 

Victor sighed. “Justin and his girlfriend finally took Amy up on the offer for a threesome, didn’t they.”

 

“I haven’t seen them in days, and without Justin, I can’t get into the Rampart estate to check on them,” Clouse said.

 

“I can’t help you; I have too much work. I should be resting for another grueling day tomorrow, but I made time for my girlfriend that you’re monopolizing.”

 

Clouse took a heavy jar out of his bag of holding and placed it on the counter. Inside the jar, there were golden eggs filled with Ichor.

 

“Monster eggs, but the ichor levels are low; they would hardly be strong if they hatched.”

 

“So, you don’t think any of them could become something like the 7^th rank that attacked.”

 

“Maybe in a few centuries, but leeches aren’t very intelligent until they reach rank 3, and 99.9% of them die before rank 2,” Victor said, remembering some old details about swamp monsters from his adventuring days.

 

“Well, that’s a bust; then I thought a deadly monster was out for revenge on its mother's killer might get my teammates out of Rampart Manor.”

 

“I’m sure Justin will mess it up and cause a fight. But, knowing Amy, she is looking for the opportunity to make it happen.” Victor said.

 

 Victor finished his meal quickly, avoiding the broccoli, and drained the seasoned blood on the plate. “You know that isn’t cooked; you could get worms.”

 

“You don’t know much about farming enchantments, do you. There are protections against creatures with the parasite skill.” Victor said before leaving Clouse to his drinking.

 

...

 

With the sparkling blue moon roses in hand, he made his way down the dark alleys of Port Tar until he found her. She smiled with ruby red lips as he presented his peace offering. Liana took the bouquet and breathed in deeply. The flowers wilted and died in moments, and she looked at them sadly before letting them fall to the alley floor.

 

“Sorry, maybe fake flowers would be better next time. Report to me your progress towards artificial Ichor.” Liana said, and he complied. When he was done, she nuzzled against the small of his throat. “I’m sorry.”

 

Victor gripped her hand even as he felt her compulsions sweep over him. She was a monster that fed on human blood, but since knowing her, she felt more human than anyone he had ever met.

 

“That book you were reading, what was it about?”

 

“Tragedy, the human failed to love the monster when the siren’s spell broke. So his feelings were all a lie, and they killed each other.” Liana said.

 

Victor pulled out his tin and slipped a cub of Ichor in his mouth. “That is disappointing because we won’t end like them.” She gave him a sad look that broke his heart.

 

Her lips parted, and he felt her fangs prick his neck.

 

…

 

Silas was in the cloaca of the duckling. He lucked out, finding her maze of a vagina instead of the other inner openings. Unfortunately, asphyxiation was already playing its crazy magic, and the duckling was nearly dead but not dead enough to get out of an experiment.

 

He had to wonder, could he gain stat points without leveling? If he could, it was time to power grind and get swoll. Resistance training was the name of the game, and while he pushed, the duckling pushed against him. He connected his suction cubs to two sides of the tunnel and pushed against it. One way or another, he would find a way to cheese the system.