Published at 16th of February 2024 2:21 pm

Chapter 30. Consequences

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Violent knocking stirred Nox the following morning. He checked his manameter. The fifth bell was still a quarter of an hour away. It was break day, and Nox wanted to sleep in before taking samples of his brews to the shops outside of campus.

The knocking got louder.

"Give me a second!" He yelled.

"Hurry up, Nox," Kris said through the door. "We need to talk."

The mana lamp crudely hung from the ceiling needed a new light enchantment. Financial constraints kept Nox from updating it. The lights in the workshop were bright enough for Nox to get by. Now he had to dress in darkness. He found everything but his socks and a shirt. Nox settled for his still-dirty university-issued coat before exiting his bedroom.

"Good morning, Professor," Nox said, rubbing his still-sleepy eyes. "How can I help you?"

"What were you thinking?" Kris demanded. The bags under her eyes suggested she hadn't been to bed yet. Green splatters and soot marked her green coat and the thigh-high leather boots underneath. She wore shorts, an armored corset, and a green blouse. It looked like a delving outfit. "Just because you have a badge saying you can delve doesn't mean you should without your first planet. You could've died down there."

"With all due respect, Professor, my alchemy compensates for my shortcomings," Nox replied. "I ended up forming a Shaping planetoid, destroyed the rift, and came out on the other side alive."

"But you got two students killed. If that weren't bad enough, they had to be aristocrats. Do you realize how bad that looks? Not just for you but me too? You're my apprentice, for Ygg's sake. The department might've cleared you, but that won't stop people from talking. People are going to talk and point fingers. The Oakhearts and Singhs have allies in the city. You're going to struggle to find decent party members."

"We kept the support mage safe from the Rift Lord after both of our vanguard fighters perished. She wouldn't be alive if Lillin and I didn't put down the rift's ruler."

"That's not enough to absolve your name." Kris sighed. She sat on a stool and leaned against the central workstation. She placed her elbows on the oiled wooden surface and her face in her hands. "I just wanted to get back after investigating the dungeon. Your mess has kept me up and running around since the first bell."

"I'm sorry, Professor," Nox said. "I only wanted to get enough coin to fund another round of brews. Another delve or two, and I'll have enough gold to pay for the rest of the semester."

"There won't be another delve any time soon." Kris looked up at him and held out her hand. "Give me your badge."

"What?" Nox's hand darted to the bronze emblem on his lapel. "No. I need this to pay my way."

"You'll need to find another way to gather funds," she replied. "As your mentor and sponsor, I can remove your delving rights. You're banned until you complete your Shaping planet to Diya and Dean Woodson's standards."

Nox scowled. "If I'm to blame for Roque and Victor’s death, you hold a part of the responsibility, too. I barely have enough time for alchemy, let alone Shaping practice. If I had more time, I wouldn't have to delve so soon after the semester's start."

Kris's stern expression grew colder. "You're not wrong. I expected too much from you."

"Why even sign me up for so many courses?"

"If you fail to find the funds, that's two months to learn as much as possible before you head out into the world to find your own way. You could prove talented enough to interest the other professors and win their sponsorship. Maybe I was wrong to have such high hopes for you." She sighed. "If I deem your performance satisfactory, I hold the right to change my mind. However, I will have the final say over your party members until you have a fully-functioning Shaping planet. It needs to satisfy your teachers and me while working harmoniously with your star."

"That could take months. I don't want to rush the process." Nox wanted to argue, but he felt defeated. They could've completed the rift with just Roque's death, but Lillin wouldn't be satisfied. He couldn't afford to break their contract. Nox gave her his delving badge, feeling defeated.

"You shouldn't," Kris replied. She pocketed his delving license. "You'll need to rely on alchemy alone to pay for the rest of the semester until then. I'm sorry, Nox, but you brought this on yourself. You should've never delved without checking with me. I could've warned you about the party. Roque Singh doesn't have the best reputation. The Oakhearts aren't much better. They're skilled fighters but too immature for delving. Professor Wolfhammer only looks at combat prowess. He doesn't pay much attention to the rest."

"Is there any work for someone with my skills?" Nox asked. "Anything that gets me enough coin for alchemy materials will do."

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"With your schedule and the current mark on your name?" Kris shook her head. "I don't think so. You're the Merchant Queen's firstborn. Turning one gold into five is in your blood. I'm sure you'll figure something out. Maybe you'll prove you're as smart as you portray yourself to be."

Nox seethed as he walked the woman out of his accommodation. He wanted to yell and curse at her. At the same time, he acknowledged that he wouldn't have his current opportunities without her. Kris initially offered to pay for the whole semester. She only reduced it to half because of Lillin. It wasn't just Nox's ambitions on the line but Kris's reputation. He needed to be more firm with Lillin. Her future meals needed to come from outside the University.

First, Nox needed to organize the sale of his stored brews and turn his coin into more. The delve had earned Nox several glands, essences, and new materials. Lillin had Roque's enchanted weapon stored in her dimensional pocket alongside other bits they had stolen off the corpses. Selling them in the city would prove difficult. However, Lillin excelled at finding black markets and fencing goods despite her annoying needs. He hoped she would help gather the necessary funds.

A young woman walked into Nox just as he entered the apartment. Her hazel eyes appeared alarmed. Her skin tone and features betrayed her south-of-the-Sapphire-Straits heritage. She wore a pale blue dress cut so low the neckline almost plunged to the navel. She looked at him, shocked, eyes darting over her shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I should look where I’m going.”

“It’s quite alright,” Nox replied, putting on his best smile. “Were you visiting, Vys?”

Before she could answer, Pudge walked through his open door with an equally gorgeous woman on his arm. Everyone but the shorter man froze—eyes darted between faces. Then both women looked at Pudge.

“Eliza. Piya. This is Nox. He lives in the workshop below.” Pudge went on to introduce both women. “Eliza is from the war mage department. We’re in the same healing magic class. Piya is an arcane researcher. She and I are working on modifying and enhancing beasts using life magic.”

“Good morning.” Nox stifled a yawn. He nodded at both women.

“You said your flatmates would be asleep,” Piya hissed. Nox connected the name to her southern continent appearance. She also sat near the front in his Intermediate Spell Weaving class.

“Don’t worry,” Pudge said. His smile had an oddly reassuring aura. Even though Nox had no skin in the game, he felt oddly comforted by the shorter man’s smile. “Nox is the most discreet man I know. No one will ever know you were here.”

“Pudge is right,” Nox said. “I’ll forget you were ever here as soon as I return to bed.”

“Thank you.” Both women smiled. They kissed Pudge goodbye at the door. Eliza left straight away.

Meanwhile, Piya paused. She waved at Nox. “Thank you again for your discretion. My family would be serious if word got out.”

“It’s quite alright,” Nox replied. “I’ll see you on Seconday in Diya’s class.”

Piya froze. She glanced between Nox and Pudge. Then she left.

An awkward silence hung over the room after Pudge closed the door. He and Nox stared at one another for an eternity. Then the shorter man burst into a fit of laughter. “I’m not going to hear the end of that.”

“Two women in one night and at the same time?” Nox chuckled. He peeked through the open door into Pudge’s room. Livestock and small wildlife still sat in cages piled against the wall. The smell emanating from the room still reminded him of stables with no stableboy on the payroll. “I’ve got to say, Pudge, I’m impressed.”

“It’s not a big deal.” Pudge grinned. “Just don’t tell anyone about it, alright? The girls don’t want this getting out. Their families are rich, conservative, and I’m pretty sure Piya is betrothed.”

“You don’t need to worry. I can be discreet. Just share your secrets sometimes. I’ve never taken a woman as beautiful as them to bed. Let alone two.”

“It’s not that big a deal.”

The two men returned to their individual quarters. Nox still hadn’t recovered from the delve and tried to go back to sleep but failed. The conversation with Kris and then Pudge’s curious liaison had his mind stirring. Instead, Nox looked inward, studying his mana system. A simple Shaping spell occupied the new planetoid.

Nox was far from completing his Essence Glass Shaping spell. However, he had ironed out the most straightforward element of it: the mana cage. Repeatedly using the process while the mana density around his star continued to grow had birthed a planet around the spell. Conjuring three-dimensional shapes out of mana had become more manageable since. Since it was a core part of his future Shaping spell, Nox didn’t see it as a problem. He guessed growing a planet around it wouldn’t prove too challenging. Instead of waiting until he completed the spell, Nox could build around it, adding levels and layers.

Nox Ratra

Apprentice

Crystalize Essence | Shaping

53/53 | 10/10

It was the first time Nox had helped feed Lillin a Rift Lord. Usually, she feasted biannually, generally eating ordinary novice and apprentice mages. They marginally empowered her human shell—the body that once belonged to the real Lillin Grey—winning her a couple of extra units of maximum mana. Meanwhile, her mimic half gained more biomass but no new magic. Every few feeds, Nox saw benefits. His star grew, and his mana zone gained a half-an-inch.

The benefits from her latest feeding were significantly greater than any before. Nox didn’t know why Lillin only consumed the worm and not Mistress Maraka. He didn’t quite understand how it worked, and Lillin had never explained. However, she ascended to journeyman and completed her Manipulation planetoid.

As stated by their contract, Lillin shared a fraction of the benefits with him. His star didn’t gain enough mana to ascend. However, he was half as close to his destination as the day before. Kris would likely grow suspicious if he grew too much too quickly. Nox wanted to destroy Sundarshahar as soon as possible but also needed the time to make allies. Besides, Nox needed to complete his Shaping planet and upgrade his star’s spellform.

The extra mana would make alchemy significantly easier, and he’d have more energy to experiment with new spellforms. Nox needed both to stay at Woodson University. The seventh bell was ringing in the distance when he drifted off again.

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