NOVEL NEXT Chapter 166 – Vol. 3 – Chapter 31
Chapter 166 - Vol. 3 - Chapter 31
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After having his conversation with Rose, Mathias went to his grandfather's kitchen to prepare a quick meal for his body, looking around the fridge that was full of vegetables, eggs, and meats. There was also cooked food, but he didn't bother himself with that, as he went to cook something that couch Adrian instructed him to eat, in order to lose weight.
The plan was for him to start his process of slimming down to Lightweight Division, which required him to be at the limit of 70 kgs, while he was right now at 79 kgs, a big boy for the Lightweight Division, but taking in account the fact that he was 1,83 meters, from old Adrian's view, Mathias would fit well as a contender at Lightweight, Welterweight and Middleweight.
Such that he was doing a trial weight-cut, in order to see if his body would allow for such a shift in weight, having to cut almost 10 kgs to reach his first target.
'Bland food, bland food. Heh, don't starve. Besides being required to sweat like a pig, that crazy old man wants me to drop to 70 kgs. I wonder how ripped I will be if I reach that state. I have about 17% body fat right now, while the old man said our aim is to get to 10% or lower.'
With his own thoughts in his mind, he craved some food, but then again, he had to lose weight, and keeping to the instructions received, Mathias began boiling 3 eggs, while in the meantime he was preparing his vegetables, a cauliflower, spinach along with some tomatoes that he threw in the pan to cook.
With a burner on his left, preparing the eggs, and with his right hand on the frying pan steering the food around, cooking them evenly, adding some water to not burn his food, he sprinkled some salt and grounded black pepper, before covering the pan with the lid.
'Smells good. I saw the old man having some soup in the fridge, I'll have that tomorrow.'
Minutes passed, and with his food ready, he picked up the eggs from a cold bowl, starting to do a soft knock on the table with the head of the egg, cleaning around some of the shell, while doing more on the back end of the egg.
Done with cleaning around the shell on those locations, he placed the first egg at his mouth where he took a deep breath of air, blowing the egg out of its shell, repeating the same for the other two eggs.
It was a fancy way of cleaning out his boiled eggs without spending time cleaning out piece by piece, and cutting the eggs into smaller pieces, he started wolfing down along with his vegetables.
Afterwards, he cleaned his plate, washing the dishes, then when he finished his cleaning he moved toward the living room, where he took out his shirt, and seemingly prepared for his late workout session, but he didn't begin, as if something blocked him.
'I don't have changing clothes … Wait, let's see if I got some of my old clothes here.'
Then, while looking around the living room, there was a cabinet at the corner of the room that he opened, revealing neatly packed clothes, from trousers to shirts, to underwear, he had everything there.
'Good, I can start training. I'll find a pair of underwear after the session is done.'
Saying that to himself, while in the center of the living room he started doing his warm-up while his phone was playing Hardstyle music to boost some extra motivation as if he was catching some spirit from one of the Legends of his grandfather's era.
Gladly there was no neighbor to experience the bass from Mathias's music of choice, but his body for sure appreciated that bass, and like this with old Augustin probably not even aware of what was happening in the living room, for about 2 hours Mathias covered all the towels that he covered the living room carpet in sweat.
*Huff* *Huff*
'Good training session. Let's get a cold shower, and check around the emails, and the forum. I'll see after that what I might spend my time with. Maybe watch some UF fighters' highlights? Or some Analysis of the Greatest Fights?'
Covered in sweat, he went into the bathroom, getting in the shower cabin directly under the cold water which made him tremble initially, having goosebumps all over him.
'Just like Wim Hof, I'll become the Iceman. Goddamn, I still don't like the first touch of cold water on my body.'
Fifteen minutes was the time he spent in the cold shower, and with a towel covering his intimate crown jewels, he returned in the living room beginning to search for a pair of underwear, and what he managed to get his hands on was a pair that he used to wear when he was chubby.
"I got natural air-conditioning." remarked Mathias starting to laugh at how his balls weren't settled down by the underwear, being left to hang around.
Nevertheless, he settled this problem when he got his hands on a pair of comfy trousers that fit him even after 2-3 years have passed since those clothes were left here from one of his summers spent in the countryside.
Wearing the clothes of his younger self that fit him perfectly, except the underwear, he returned to old Augustin bedroom, where he sat at the computer, accessing the Satisfy forum using his account, searching for the big news of today.
<Who will be the first player to reach level 100?>
This forum thread had hundreds of thousands of likes and comments that were by far on the plus sign. Curious by nature, he clicked on that thread leading him to a forum discussion thread, where the OP threw a simple question, exactly like the one in the title.
Scrolling down, he saw the forum members give their thoughts, some tried to have educated answers giving arguments to their option, while others just went with their guts. Yet, there was also a part of the members who were there to troll around, not caring about the census more than the enjoyment of making fun of others.
'Kraugel, Red, Hurent, Chris … ohh, I saw Vlad's name quite often. What level was he again? Let me check.'
Pulling out the ranking ledger of Satisfy on another tab, he saw the whole situation of Satisfy rankings and discovered how far he was compared to the top ones.
[RANKING LEDGER]
1 Kraugel - Lv. 85
2 Red - Lv. 83
3. Chris - Lv. 81
4. Zibal - Lv. 80
5. Vivian - Lv. 79
6. Malakai - Lv. 79
7. Hurent - Lv. 79
8. Bodre - Lv. 78
9. Paula - Lv. 77
10. Mihara - Lv. 77
.
.
'Wow, this guy has turned crazy or something? He was only level 63 five days ago. It seems that getting fired for him was a blessing in disguise.'
'A monster has been born. Heh, I wonder what kind of shit luck has he stumbled upon to level so much? Did that Count take pity on him, and let his bodyguards give him a bus ride?'
What Mathias didn't know about Vlad was that he didn't move away from Moroiz Duchy and found an incredible cheating way of leveling up, which was assassination contracts. Since he got fired, he worked on building his reputation as a trustful worker in the underground circles of the Saharan Empire, and with the Counts' connections, he landed in the Underworld of the Empire.
A place where the corruption of the Empire was at full display, where the black auctions were staged weekly having all sorts of exotic goods, from exotic slaves to rare materials, from drugs to weapons.
Currently, Malakai was crawling inside the sewers of Moroiz City, with the intent of assassinating a new target that was assigned by a Syndicate Leader who promised a hefty reward for whoever killed said target.
'Fuck me sideways, this sewer stinks so badly. Now I understand why Matei told me that the sewage systems of that old Roman Empire were mostly unmaintained in the later years of its existence.'
'As the small mice told me, my target is the drug cooker of the Daggerford Syndicate, Felic. From what I could understand with regard to the power level of the people of this city, the scum of the Earth is in the level 80-140 bracket.'
'The higher the rank in their respective organizations the higher the level.'
'Still, who would think the Count was being played by that dude on his finger? As if he was a nobody. What was his name? Iraneus? That bastard with sick armor shining with dark green as if it belonged to the death theme.'
Crawling around the sewage system, he opened his map to check his location in the underground system of Moroiz City, and he was getting closer and closer to the location given by the quest.
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[Assassinate the Drug Cooker Felic]
Rating: A
Iraneus who has his own agendas inside the Moroiz City, has launched an invitation to any assassin in the Underworld Circles, to kill a key person to the operations of the Syndicate.
Having reached the door of the Underworld Circles, you have accepted one of the many jobs sent by the various corrupt and criminals of the Saharan Empire.
Quest Clear Condition: Assassinate Drug Maker Felic
Quest Reward: +2 levels and a random reward from Irenaeus on return
Quest Failure: The event 'Irenaeus's Scorn' will be triggered.
.
.
Checking his map, Malakai began pondering on where an exit could be since he was all covered in dirt and manure coming from the whole city, and while he was moving around a specific zone of the sewer, he could see something akin to stairs coming from the brick wall.
'Bingo. That's my entry to the enemy location.'
'... I think.'
Slowly moving from where he was toward the steps, Malakai reached a clogged wall, but the steps were still an indication he was on the good path.
From the upper body to his feet, he was covered in dirt and manure, and his hand touching the brick wall got to form a print. Tapping around the wall, in an attempt to find an opening mechanism, he suddenly stopped as if he got a revelation.
'So stupid. I could just use my shadow skills to check over the wall if there's some opening mechanism or not.'
'[Shadow Breathing]'
With a deep breath from his body, a dark miasma started taking form like an aura, and with each inhale and exhale, more of this miasma started to appear around himself until his figure in the dark sewer almost vanished. After activating his unique skill, he pressed his hands on the wall, and with his black eyes focused on some opening in the wall.
'[Shadow Snake]'
The dark miasma around him started to wave around, beginning to channel itself in the extended hand of the young man and along the way, from the opposite side, a jet of black miasma exited, forming itself into a black mamba. that stuck out its tongue, just like its real counterpart.
'This place seems abandoned. Another part of the sewage system, but it leads out. I can feel the breeze of the air making contact with the Mamba. Good, let's find something akin to an opening mechanism since I am still limited.'
'Hah, I still can't believe how old Bayek managed to teleport around using his Shadow Realm or using Shadow Wrap. Meanwhile, poor me has to deal with those annoying walls the hard way, by finding how to open them.'
'Stop complaining, this is what an assassin should learn first. … Would be what the old man might say to me if he was right now with me.' commented Malakai in his mind, focusing his entire mind in controlling the shadow mamba, using his somatosensory system coming from the shadow to feel around the wall.
Minutes passed and yet he still searched for a way to open this wall, still this didn't mean he got nothing from his exploratory job. Fact that he now could confirm this wall had an opening mechanism.
'This is annoying. I should call Matei and ask his opinion about this stupid wall. He is always good at puzzles.'
Trying for a bit more, he was contemplating about calling Mathias but then dropped the idea, facing the challenge in front of him with his own hands instead of relying on someone else to carry him. Such that, after another 15 minutes that he was checking the wall, he finally senses something out of place with the wall.
While the mamba was moving around the wall, checking each bit from a uniform finish to the wall, he felt a sudden shift in the wall construction. He returned back with his snake in that spot, beginning to coil around, making him understand that there was a lever mechanism.
'So it was a lever mechanism, but inserted inside that box space.'
Forcing the snake to coil around the lever, Malakai as if he was an Air Bender pushed his hand deeper in the wall, triggering the snake to start moving out from the box while pulling the lever, which triggered the sequence of opening the closed sewer wall.
Once the wall was opened, and he did the first step inside the dry sewer tunnel, a notification appeared in front of his eyes, alerting him of the danger he was stepping inside.
[Ding!]
[Warning!]
[You are about to enter the instance 'Daggerford Syndicate Base C'. Once you step inside, you'll be targeted by the people inside the building. The challenge level of the instance has been assigned to be A grade.]
Unbothered by this notification, as if he already had experience in entering dangerous places, he stepped forward, moving toward the black mamba which attacked itself to his leg, enveloping itself to Malakai's body.
Continuing his walk calmly, without hurrying himself, soon started hearing signs of activity, to the point where he slowed down his approach toward the end of the sewer tunnel.
"Damn it! I want another match. How can I lose to someone like you to dice rolls."
"Hahaha, it sucks being you. Drop down immidiatly 5 gold coins for the last bet."
*Clank*
"Let's do it again. I have 50 gold coins on me. Do you have the guts to do it for 20 gold coins?"
"Woah, Barrow is playing big tonight!"
"I extorted some protection money from a merchant last night. Since I have been selected to be on guard on the Rat Tunnel, I have to make the most out of it by gambling and drinking."
.
Malakai who was moving closer and closer toward the group of bandits, he casted another one of his skills in a serene way, [Shadow Veil] which made all of his dark miasma, the shadows around him to morph around into a veil that wrapped around him, making him blend with the dark surroundings.
Even if the sewage room those bandits numbering 6 of them was used as a station base, the lax way they were gambling without a care in the world, as if no danger could be possible touch them down in the sewers. Yet, Malakai started walking toward this room in a strolling manner, getting more relaxed once he saw the level of the bandits
[Barrow - Lv. 64] [7500/7500 HP] / [Chiper - Lv. 58] [6500/6500] / [Rivior - Lv. 63] [7700/7700 HP]
Their levels varied from 60 to 65, which to Malakai who was approaching closer and closer to the gambling bandits, it looked pathetic, as he even fought against some NPCs that had level 120 inside the Count's guards, and it was there that he understood one thing.
He had a lot of room for improvement.
Taking out two daggers, one with a form closer to a scimitar, while another one had a normal dagger shape, but containing some marks on the blade similar to scales, which released some cold smoke, but the bandits were too drunk into their gambling.
'Let the blood fall and my shadow to envelop your own.'
Saying that Malakai moved toward the one called Barrow who was acting arrogantly, boasting about his meager gold pouch and focusing on rolling the dice with the best technique he could possibly use. However, a cold whisper resounded in his ears, which sent a chill on his spine.
"[Shadow Dragon Claw]"
[Critical!]
[You have dealt <6828> damage to the target.]
Barrow's chest was impaled with one of Malakai's daggers, an one hit kill coming from the Shadow Master Apprentice who using the shadows created by the candles inside the sewer room, moved with a boosted speed toward the weakest from the group, not giving them a chance to react properly.
"[Backstab]"
[You have dealt <1552> damage to the target.]
"[Eviscerate]"
[Critical!]
[You have dealt <4268> damage to the target.]
Casting his two classical rogue skills, the first techniques he learned from his Master, Bayek, it was still not enough to send the one called Chipper on his way, and with other basic stabs, along with a smooth throat slash, the jumped to his next targets who were by now getting up from their seats, roaring.
"SOUND THE ALARM, WE GOT AN ENEMY ON THE BASE!" called out the one named Rivor, who was gambling with Barrow, toward the other 3 guys who took out their swords.
One in particular who was soberer than the rest rushed to sound the alarm, being required to strike a bell that would alert the upper level of the base, but he was far slower than Malakai who followed next to him like a phantom.
"That's really stupid of you, to mess with my operation? Tsk, tsk. And, you are so close to that alarm bell."
"What would happen if I cut the rope mechanism?"
Hearing that question, from the man they could barely see, the bandit struggled to the best of his abilities to reach the rope and call for enforcement.
Nevertheless, he saw how Malakai moved faster toward the bell, cutting the rope with a swift swing of his dagger. He picked the bell in his hand, destroying it with his shadow manipulation.
"I wonder how loud you can scream for those fools on the upper level to hear you? Want to try?" inquired Malakai in a sarcastic manner, later on giving a sinister smile on his dirty face.
"KILL HIM, GUYS! DON'T GET DISCOURAGED JUST BECAUSE HE TOOK TWO OF US IN A CHEATING MANNER!"
"Kek, cheating? I wish I could cheat in this world. Now let's see how long you can last against my shadows."
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