I did as he said, nodding at the lady after she’d lifted her head. It might not have been appropriate, but I didn’t care. I’d worked at a restaurant before and had no doubt that dealing with the arrogance of vampires all day had to be at least as painful as a bite in the neck. Probably worse.
Seeing her swallow and avert her eyes, I immediately recognized that she misinterpreted my intentions.
“Ignore her or she’ll think you want to purchase her for the night,” the lich said.
I spun to look at him. His gaze was forward and completely void of emotion.
I mimicked the arrogant vampire from before and sighed with disgust. “She’s a slave?” I said.
“Perhaps,” he replied. “Some are, and some choose to be here.”
Looking around the room, I made sure to do so in a less animated manner than normal. There were six or seven of the vampire hostesses. They were all beautiful vampires that looked about my age or even a few years younger. It was likely they were much older than I was though. Many of them had serving trays, while others had taken the arm of a guest and were escorting them toward the front desk.
I checked my popup to try to divert my attention.
+10 Str
+8 Dex
+12 Int
I had no idea what creature’s blood was used in the drink I’d taken, but such a small amount gave an unbelievable number of stats. Whatever it was, I needed to get my hands on more. I placed my glass on one of the servant girl’s trays and didn’t look at her.
By the time we reached the front desk, the arrogant vampire from before had finished his business and turned to leave. In the short walk from one side of the foyer to the other, my wonder had faded and was replaced with repugnance. The emotion had fled from my face, except for the fire in my eyes.
In truth, this guy was a jerk, but he hadn’t done anything to me to earn such a look. As his conceited gaze met mine, it startled him. He didn’t fidget but froze for a microsecond. It felt like if I had directed my mana in that moment I could have melted him where he stood with nothing but a glance. The more I experienced the oppression of the Underworld, the more I hated it.
The guy recovered a moment later but watched me closely as he made way and walked around me like I was a vicious beast that could pounce at any moment.
“Better,” the lich said.
I was beginning to think that Shamash had the right idea after all. Even if I returned to Lilith sooner rather than later, when I became powerful enough I might have to return to the vampire realm to wipe this place out. If only it was that simple. The people being oppressed here were also vampires. It was my compassion for them that was fueling this desire. Did their evil nature make these feelings wrong?
Shamash took the lead when we reached the front desk. A male vampire in a long coat with a large three layer stacked collar greeted us. I followed the conversation well enough. A room would cost 50 of the dark coins for an hour, or 200 for the night. The alternative would be 5 Minor Dark Orbs for an hour or 20 for a normal stay. I’d hoped that the orbs went further than they did, but since we could use them to pay directly, it was at least convenient. 20 Minor Dark Orbs were really nothing to me. I could make many times that in less than an hour with Core Creation.
At Shamash’s request, I removed an Advanced Dark Orb from my inventory and handed it to the man.
A vampire’s lack of expression made even their smallest reaction stand out, so when the clerk’s eyes widened it was like he’d screamed in surprise. He bowed his head in my direction immediately as if thinking I was some young lord.
So weird…
We didn’t stick around but took a card that looked like a small mana tablet and headed straight to our rooms. There was a staircase that seemed to belong to some ornate castle, but also a wide open space that we used to fly up to the top floor.
When I stepped into our room, it was as if something had knocked me upside the head and forcibly turned off my Night Vision. Instead of the blacks, purples, and reds that seemed to be everywhere in the city, the room was filled with aqua blue, gold, and white. The floor was royal blue with gold designs throughout, and the ceiling was aqua, with gold runes acting as trim where the walls and ceiling met. A glossy ebony table with silver specks that reminded me of marble was placed in the middle of the room. There were cushioned chairs all around it. The other rooms, like our kitchen, restrooms, and bedrooms, were accessible through dark wood doors. There was a fountain of blood on one side of the room that looked like a small waterfall that fell from the ceiling.
I swallowed deeply. It wasn’t just a normal room that we’d purchased, but one of the suites. It was twice the cost of a common room and with the Advanced Orb we’d paid for 25 days upfront.
One Intermediate Core was worth 10 Minor ones, and an Advanced Core was worth 100 Intermediates, or 1,000 Minors. As for a Master Core, that was still something we’d have to look into. Asking too many questions was bound to draw attention, so we’d figure out the higher end exchange rates later.
“Can you feel the energy coming from the walls?” Shamash said.
It took but a moment for me to sense what he meant. “I do.” I reached over and touched the wall. I could even feel the slightest hum, or vibration, coming from the wall.
“It is a spell to give us privacy. I will add a few of my own, but this should provide us the most safety while we’re here.”
“Good.”
My attention was drawn to the room’s extravagance. It was giving me a view into what vampire royalty lived like. The final thing I took in was the blood fountain. Everything else in the room was beautiful to behold, but the fountain gave the entire room a hellish ambience, ruining it for me.
When Shamash suggested we go, I left without qualm.
Stepping out of the Javed Hotel, I wasn’t surprised when we headed toward the Las Vampire Strip.
The city had numerous qualities to it that I detested, but at the same time, I knew why Shamash had decided to bring me here. It wasn’t just my level and bloodline that needed improving. There was the blood of countless species I needed to Drain to grow as powerful as possible, and just as many Blue Magic Forms that I could acquire. For growth in these two areas, Hallow was precisely what I needed.
Chapter 7 – Vampire Shopping Trip
It would have taken many sleepless weeks to visit every store in the city and to see everything. Shamash had no intention of wasting time. Due to the nature of Hallow it had no government overseeing businesses, so there was nothing keeping sellers from fraud and scamming their clientele. One had to be careful when making any purchase. Those with an experienced eye could find treasure for cheap in the smaller shady establishments if they had the patience. For those with less expertise, and less time to look for such hidden treasures, they could instead give the bigger establishments their business. Of course, doing business with a shop that had earned a good reputation meant that everything would sell at a premium.
As we landed at the entrance to one of the largest establishments that was near the middle of the Strip, I asked the lich if he would hold some orbs and make purchases for me so that I wouldn’t attract unnecessary attention on myself. He outright refused. Nowhere in the contract did it say that he wouldn’t help me in this way, but because it could take the attention off me and put it directly on him, he wouldn’t do it. If he was in his lich form, then it would be different. Everyone knew what was in a lich’s contract, so no one would attack him if they knew what he was. Instead, they would focus on me so that they might have the chance to make a contract with him themselves if they managed to kill me. He was already doing me a favor in this way.
I would’ve let out a slow disappointed breath but feared some vampire might see me and think I was inferior. On second thought, I let myself display a visible cringe. I didn’t like the whole vampire hide-your-facial-expression game, nor vampires themselves, so why not instead have fun with it? If they thought less of me, they might not pay as mu
ch attention to my purchases…
There was a vampire walking out of the store that was already looking at me because of my cringe, so I made a point of scrunching up my face in the silliest manner possible.
The guy stiffened, then proceeded to change directions to get away from me as quickly as possible without looking as if he was in a hurry.
“What was that?” Shamash said through mind-speak.
“10 points,” I replied, with a human sized grin.
He looked at me unmoving with perfect vampire posture for a few seconds before responding. “Just don’t offend the clerks or anyone that looks like they could kill you as easily as blowing their nose.”
“Vampires blow their noses?”
“Focus,” he said before heading toward the shop.
It was much more than just some small shop, but closer to the size of a large grocery store. The dark stone stairs climbed to an entrance that was twice overhead with two pillars to either side that were just as tall and held up large orbs. Each large orb looked like it had a tesla coil inside except it was made of Dark Magic lightning and possessed a small dark cloud at its center.
I’d already caught up with Shamash. He noticed what I was looking at. “These orbs are signs used by merchants that deal in the three prime categories of goods: blood, orbs, and gear. The orbs are costly, so normally only the more trustworthy shops that have been around for a while will be able to afford one, let alone two.”
Once inside, I found the place to be laid out more like a mall than a grocery store. It was partitioned into three departments. In the left wing I could see the outer wall was lined with bottles of red, orange, and purple. There was also what looked to be barrels, or kegs, stacked up. This was the blood department.
The right wing was even larger. Its outer wall had shelves of garments and there were mannequins wearing armors of different kinds.
The middle was the smallest section, but certainly not the least. There were shelves and display stands filled with a variety of mana orbs.
“Why are they displaying orbs?” I directed my thoughts to Shamash.
“Not all orbs are the same even within rank,” he replied. “Because of the unique properties they hold, some Minor Orbs can be worth more than Advanced ones. These unique properties relate to the unique abilities and alignments some creatures have.”
Shamash surprised me by first leading us to the largest department that was filled with gear. It was like walking into a sporting goods store except in the place of baseball bats and golf clubs were swords, maces, axes, and pole weapons of all kinds. Jerseys, helmets, pads, specialty clothing, and sneakers were replaced with various armor pieces and magic garments. In place of exercise equipment were shields and mobile siege equipment.
I’d slowed to browse a stand of helmets when he interrupted me. “Don’t bother with the normal equipment. As a Blue Mage, you have the ability to utilize equipment in a unique way.”
Normal equipment? The item in front of me looked like a horned Viking helmet that gave a 40% bonus to Constitution. A full helmet with a humanistic faceplate next to it was even more unique. It cast its own forcefield in a 20-foot radius that would slow creatures with a low Strength stat. How exactly was that normal?
He saw the question mark written all over my face and explained. “In the long term, gear will have a limited affect, but in the short term, it is the quickest way to give you a decent power boost. If you handpick random items, most of them won’t stack together. As an example, if you buy a helmet, bracers, greaves, and a breastplate with a Strength bonus, normally only the most powerful buff will apply. There are exceptions. The most common is to buy item sets that are made to work together. Also, if you are a master blacksmith, you will know the numerous ways items are created and the many techniques used that give items their buffs. With this information, you can hand-select individual pieces that will work together. For most people, all that they can do is try things on until they find items that work together. Come.”
The lighting here was clinical, even if it would have been difficult for a normal human to see well. The purple light was bright and even throughout the room. Through Night Vision everything was incredibly clear so that the items on display were easy to examine. Besides the discrepancy in the items being sold, the only thing that made it feel different than a normal shopping experience in a human mall or department store was the armor-clad guards that were stationed at the entrance and in every department. The faceplates of their armor were fastened and hid most of what they were looking at, but you could feel their eyes as they watched you while you shopped.
We came to a stop in the back of the department where jewelry was being sold. There were rings, necklaces, bracelets, and pendants in mass. Some of them were as simple as bands of metal, and others were intricately crafted pieces of art. I immediately noticed the prices and I did a double take.
As I’d walked through the store, I’d still browsed as we headed toward the back and had seen a number of price tags. The prices weren’t written on paper, but the price floated above each item like mystical runes made from red traces of mana. The helmets I saw spanned between 1,000 Dark Coins and 12,000. If I was only relying on coins, then I would be in trouble. Breastplates started at 3,000 and went up as high as 30,000. Weapons had a similar range. The jewelry, though, was on a whole different level. It started as low as 300, but easily reached up into the 100,000s.
“The smaller the magic item, the more costly it is in general,” the lich said. “Many creatures have different forms as they get to higher levels, so physical armor isn’t always practical. Some armor does accommodate transformations, but advanced forms often have better defensive abilities than the armor can provide. There are higher end armors that are an exception, of course. Jewelry can offer equally good buffs without the difficulties that armor brings.”
“So we are looking for jewelry that will work with my Blue Magic?” I replied.
“If the price is right, but there is an even better option.” He pointed to one end of the display.
At first glance, the items looked like nothing more than pieces of jewelry not yet put together. It wasn’t a bunch of unfaceted rings and pendants though. These were the gemstones and already configured precious materials that could be faceted into jewelry. Their buffs were the same as the already finished pieces.
“Can I help you find something?”
I looked up to find a squinty-eyed vampire behind a counter that doubled as a display case. When we’d walked past the counter he hadn’t been there. As I turned to face him, he slightly bowed his head. It wasn’t a full bow, so he must have a high status here.
I took a quick glance behind him to see numerous items displayed on the wall. What mainly caught my attention were the items’ prices. Not a single piece was less than 100,000 coins.
With a high-pitched tone, Shamash addressed the man. “I am looking for unfaceted gems that give the highest quality Dark, Fire, and Light Magic enhancements.”
At the mention of Light Magic, the vampire associate’s eyes seemed to twitch. He quickly glanced at me, giving me a quick scan, before glancing back.
I wasn’t worried about him finding out that I was a Light Mage and human. Blue Magic hid all of that. If someone came asking, though, they’d likely find out that I was a Blue Mage that had access to Light Magic. Once I began fighting in the arena, I was hoping to keep that as a trump card, but it seemed that might ultimately be impossible.
He didn’t stop at just bringing out one of each item that Shamash was asking for. He first put on a pair of gloves, then unrolled a black leather towel. Beginning with Dark Magic jewels, he laid out a column from greater to lesser. In the next row, he did the same with Fire, then in the last column he laid out the Light Magic ones.
I had to admit that I was surprised to see anything that buffed Light Magic being sold by a vampire merchant, but that was because of my flawed experience from vampire pop culture on the surface world. Th
e Head Mistress had once healed me, so I knew that I should have expected it, but it just seemed odd.
“The bottom row gives 75% buff to their corresponding alignments,” the merchant said, waving his hand over them.
75%—even their low-end stuff was 25% higher than my Light Magic Scepter…
“The second row is what we consider the gold standard, giving 100% to their alignment. These gems are flawless.” His gloved hand indicated the second row from the bottom.
Most of the jewels in the second row were nearly identical to the bottom row except the jewels were higher quality.
“Now,”—the vampire looked at me, narrowing his already squinty gaze—“to make transformations more comfortable, this third row holds alternatives that have the same benefits as flawless gems, but they aren’t alignment sensitive. They also tend to be more durable. This does make them much pricier though.”
The third row from the bottom didn’t hold gemstones at all, but expertly sculpted metals that were about the same size. I guessed that their designs were what gave them the ability to enhance magic. Arcane Engineering seemed to use many of the same principles as jewelsmithing, but I was far from being able to discern how these advanced pieces worked.
I impressed myself by how well I controlled my reaction to seeing the outlandish prices. Perhaps I was just growing used to being shocked all the time.
The bottom row held what was the closest to what I might call reasonable. The Dark Magic gemstone sold for 16,000 dark coins. The Fire Magic gem was a bit higher at 20,000, but the Light magic one was a full 35,000. I didn’t bother asking why there was such a price difference. Even though they did have Light Magic items to sell, they were certainly rarer than any other alignment-specific items.
The jump in price from the bottom row to the next one just from the 25% enhancement increase was nearly double. The flawless dark gem that gave 100% to Dark Magic was 30,000 dark coins, the fire was 35,000, and the light gem was 60,000. They were cheaper than buying already finished jewelry, but the discount was only 10-20% at most.
Underworld - Scorching Sun: A LitRPG Series Page 5