The Fool's Freedom

It was only natural that the first stop would be Mr. Muge’s place. The strange construction that was the Enchanter’s Bane had become even stranger. The tower had grown into a monstrosity of wood and ropes that swayed in the wind but somehow managed not to fall. It was the first thing anyone would notice about it.

And it was a miracle of magic anything so janky managed to stay up the way it did. Alan wondered what was the point of it since anyone going up the tower would need a really strong stomach and to be tied by a bunch of safety ropes.

The smithy glued to the initial building had also grown, and so had the size of its chimneys which bellowed smoke at strangely wide intervals.

Alan saw a familiar person near the entrance, sitting on a large chair with closed eyes. Tullis’ armor had grown even more outrageous and strange. Pieces of leather attached to metal plates with haphazard spikes covered his large shoulders and the front of his feet below the knee. Strangely, only a few leather straps were pulled over a muscled chest, held by a ring of steel that glowed with the telltale sign of active enchantment.

That was a new one.

Tullis opened his eyes when Alan and Ashlyn approached and stretched out before yawning and scratching his ass. Alan appreciated the honesty exuded by the guard.

“Heya,” he greeted. “Welcome to the Еnchanter’s Bane! What can we do you in for?”

Ashlyn raised an eyebrow while Alan laughed.

“Hello, Tullis.”

The large man looked at Alan, and the two stared at each other for a long while before he nodded.

“I remember you, man. Robert!”

“What, no. Name’s Alan, we talked about the Sane Rabbits and stuff.”

“Those bastards. Who would be ‘fraid of a sane rabbit? Though, they did gut a few gang rats the other day, or so I hear.”

Alan felt a weird sense of déjà vu. Was the man playing, or had he really forgotten everything about their meeting a bit more than a week ago? It was not that far back.

“Say, you with any of the gangs? We don’t like them gangs.”

“I—, no. We’re not with any of the gangs. I’m here to meet Mr. Muge and trade stuff.”

“Friend of the boss? Why didn'tcha say so in the first place? Come in, come in.”

Alan sighed and walked in followed by the amused Ashlyn. It somewhat hurt his ego that Tullis didn’t recognize him, but it was only natural. Alan hadn’t spent much time in the Sanctuary.

“That guy was strong,” Ashlyn said.

“Oh?”

“He is equipped to the teeth with enchanted items. While I doubt they are of the quality the System provides, it is still insane. And another was watching us from the weird wooden tower.”

So observant, Ash.

“Mr. Muge is an awesome guy, and it makes sense he has some capable people around him. Some adapt faster than others.”

The interior was as cluttered as Alan remembered, only now instead of tree trunks and raw ore, there were broken pieces of strange armor, furniture, and all kinds of parts such as cogwheels and springs. What they were for was a mystery.

The proprietor in question could once again be seen behind the same improvised counter which hadn’t changed at all. He looked up and instantly plastered a wide chubby smile on his weathered face.

“Alan! You are back. Quick, show me!”

“Uh, hey Mr. Muge. This is Ashlyn.”

“Mhm mhm. Show me your hand, boy!”

The fuck?

Alan reluctantly showed Muge his hand and the man produced a pair of goggles out of one of the many pockets on his leather apron before he rolled up Alan’s sleeve and started examining every pore.

“Damn it all!” Mr. Muge suddenly exclaimed and the goggles flew into one of the many piles of trash. The man took a few moments, and then as if nothing happened turned his charming smile that accentuated his puffy cheeks toward the two.

He didn’t explain anything as he cursed under his nose for a few seconds and Alan didn’t dare ask. “Sorry, sorry. Nice to meet you, Ashley.”

“Ashlyn.”

“That’s what I said. Now, to business! What do you have for me?”

His eyes were glittering stars, having forgotten about the apparent failure from a moment ago. Now all he cared about were the items Alan would produce.

“Mr. Muge. This is Ashlyn, a very dear friend of mine and the one who will be doing most of the trading,” Alan countered. The man seemed to care for nothing but items and enchantments.

Mr. Muge’s eyes focused on Ashlyn as if seeing her for the first time.

“I apologize for my behavior. I haven’t slept in… when were you here? A few days ago?”

“It’s been more than a week.”

“Oh… Then two weeks. Yes. Sleep is wasted time I say. Thank the System for the trait. [Sleepless] is its name and I loathe that I didn’t have it back on Earth. I would have achieved so much more. Ah… anyways, what can I do for you?”

Sleepless doesn’t sound great. I’ve been needing less and less sleep despite my low Vitality, but I’ve dozed off a couple of times. Nothing beats a good rest.

He had to look into the lessened need for sleep. Was it a hidden trait of his class or did it depend on something else? His stamina often got replenished by mana; it was an unconscious process for him now as were most of the functions of [Warlock’s Body Mastery]. Maybe that had something to do with it.

In a whirl of shadows that produced a genuine look of envy from Mr. Muge, Alan took out what were once Davis’s gloves. It felt strange to trade the man’s weapon as if it were a natural thing after his death. It felt wrong. wrong. Yet, it was better than wasting it.

“This is curious. What do they do?” Mr. Muge asked as he examined them.

“Punch harder, I don’t know exactly. Belonged to a friend of ours.”

Mr. Muge looked up, suddenly focused on both of them. “I am sorry for your loss.”

Alan nodded, not saying anything. Ashlyn too remained silent.

“What are you searching for?”

“Weapons for Ash, a good bow or simply enchanting the one she has, as it is great. Maybe a knife or a machete?”

“Yeah, that’d be good.” Ashlyn agreed. They hadn’t talked much about what she’d want, but it was not hard to guess.

“I take it that quiver and axe you have are also System enchanted?” Mr. Muge asked with hungry eyes, then shook his head. “Let me see what I have.”

He went to the back room, which was conveniently behind the counter. A few minutes later he came back with a couple of bows. He then took out some large knives from behind the counter. Each was different and curved, some simple, others masterpieces of craftsmanship.

“Best I can do for a bladed weapon is [Imbue Fire], like the dagger you have, or a sharpness enchantment which holds really well. There is also a weird one I’ve been working on. It’s called [Tear] and it’s fucking awesome!” Alan chuckled. The man seemed nonplused as he carefully lifted a large hunting knife from the table. “The effect is in the name. It doesn’t cut despite the smooth edge, but tears the skin and flesh, making the wound that much worse. Like a chainsaw. This baby will leave your enemy writhing in pain long after a healer gets to them.”

The man’s explanation was impressive, and he seemed really into the concept of sadistic violence delivered with something he had made.

“That sounds good enough,” Ashlyn said. “But what we are offering is a System item.”

Nice, Ash!

Mr. Muge sighed. “I know. I cannot compete with the System, be it durability or effect. I can add a couple of [Light] sticks. They are useful against the wailers, as light seems to weaken them. They make good flashlights too.”

Alan liked the offer. More options never hurt and it was not like he lacked inventory space. Still, he waited for Ashlyn’s cue. The girl had taken the lead on this one and she simply stood there, waiting for Mr. Muge to continue.

“You cannot even tell me what the gloves do!” Mr. Muge argued.

“I’m sure you will figure it out.”

The old man squirmed a bit, then cursed. “Fine. I will add a bottomless bottle.”

“Bottomless bottle?”

“Well, it is not bottomless. It is the only spatial enchantment we have and it is really, really hard to produce. I call it that because that’s the goal.” He took out a small glass bottle covered in leather. “It is very hard to break, the [Glass Maker] we employ is the best of the best. The bottle can only hold about five liters of liquid or so, but I say that’s more than enough considering its size. How about it?”

Ashlyn seemed satisfied, and Alan was too.

“So, the knife, a couple of [Light] sticks, and two bottomless bottles. We have a deal.” Ashlyn smiled and gave her hand.

“I never said—, ugh fine. Happy customers bring more stuff. You’re a savage one, girl.”

“Thank you.”

Alan chuckled and picked up the bottle Mr. Muge offered him. It was a curious item and he truly could feel some spatial energy from it. It was very weak, but it was there.

“Is that all?”

“Not at all!” Alan said, making the man’s eyes widen as he produced the blood-red core from the elemental. It instantly piqued Mr. Muge’s attention.

“What is this curious thing?”

“We fought a blood elemental of sorts, that’s all that it left behind.”

“Hmm, interesting indeed. But how do I know this has any value?” Mr. Muge squinted.

“Beats me. You’re the [Enchanter],” Alan said.

“It is I, indeed. I do love new materials. Very well, let me see the bow.”

Ashlyn unshouldered her bow and gave it to Mr. Muge. He examined it letting out ‘ahs’ and ‘ohs’ all the while. “Excellent craftsmanship. This is not one of ours, is it?”

Ashlyn shook her head, “No. I traded for it in the World Temple. We met the people who made it—elves.”

“Truly?” Mr. Muge gasped and held the bow with reverence. “A weapon made by the mystical Elves. Amazing. You say I can buy more? I haven’t visited the World Temple much. Me and the gangs, we don’t get along.”

“You should check it out sometime,” Alan said, then hesitated. “And the elves… might not be like you imagine them to be. They are cursed, have sharp teeth, and are quite… alien-looking.”

“Ah, damn. Can’t have pretty elves with all the other gifts of the System…” Mr. Muge sighed. “Very well then. I can enchant this bow with [Imbue Fire] in a way that will apply the skills to your arrows, or [Strength] if you prefer it. It will take a while, so I will give you one of my longbows to use in the meantime. It has a [Strength] enchantment.”

The bow he produced looked well-made, even if it was not as beautiful as the one traded by the elves. Alan wondered if they were only selling subpar products.

“[Imbue Fire] sounds amazing. Thank you.” Ashlyn said while examining the replacement bow.

“Sure thing. It will take a couple of days. Now, anything else?”

“Well…” Alan hesitated. They had talked about keeping Florence’s items for now. Both were very useful and could prove invaluable given their specific enchantment. The ring especially, even though the destructive power of the wand couldn’t be underestimated.

Alan still had something to trade. First, he produced the two pieces of his broken System spear. It had a bit of sentimental value as his first weapon, but it was only taking up space at this point.

“Hmmm.”

“It is not enchanted.” Alan hurriedly said, “But it is one of the weapons the System gave. And, I will add this.”

With another whirl of shadows, the broken monocle appeared on the counter. Mr. Muge instantly switched his attention to it and his eyes soon grew wide.

“This enchantment… It is damaged, but it is unlike anything I have seen. Where did you get this?”

“I found it in a ruin,” Alan replied. It was kind of true. “It used to give the names of things before it broke, and sometimes levels up to a certain extent.”

“This is not a System enchantment. The System enchantments are perfect and so intricate one could spend a lifetime learning a single part of them. This is much better than anything else, but it was done by a living being. Fascinating. How did it break?”

“I examined something that I shouldn’t have with it.”

“So many secrets, so many. Ah, it’s fine. Keep your secrets.” Mr. Muge said, then grimaced. “I don’t have anything of equal value to give you for this. I would if I could, but… my skills are not there yet. This item, though, will be invaluable to me and my study of enchantments. I can give you weapons, but you already have a great dagger and I am sure you’re hiding some stuff on me. Hm.”

“It’s fine, Mr. Muge. You can always owe me an item or five for giving you the monocle. Just don’t try to swindle me.” Alan said. The man was bound to come up with more and more enchantments, and it was a great idea to have him owe a favor. There was one thing Alan was interested in though.

“Do you have any enchanted cloaks by chance?”

“Cloaks? No. We can enchant armor. Leather, when it’s hard and thick. Anything softer or cloth requires a skill level much above what is currently possible. I’m sorry.”

“That’s alright. You will get there.”

Mr. Muge smiled and slapped the counter, startling Alan. “Yes, I will.”

They exchanged some pleasantries and Alan and Ashlyn left the Enchanter’s Bane. Ashlyn had gotten all the good things but Alan was very happy. His best friend needed to be safe, and Mr. Muge owed him. It was a productively spent time.

“You sure they won’t just kill Emerson while we fuck around?” Alan suddenly asked.

“Walter is sure they will be executing him publicly. To establish their place as rulers and to win over some more support. Emerson is not very well-liked.”

It was worrisome. Alan had been ready to storm whatever hideout The Future had, but now he realized how stupid the thought had been. Strong as his new skill was, he was one man with limited mana and he knew little of those inside. It was arrogant to think that one Dungeon made him the strongest. And arrogance would lead to an early grave.

He could not afford to die now that he was finally living. No matter how painful it got.

“What now?” Ashlyn asked.

“Now let’s see what the best the Sanctuary has to offer is.” Alan smiled. “To the Elven Bottom!”

“Idiot.”