The Newt and Demon

Theo woke well before Tresk the next morning. His sleep became restless in the early hours, visions of things left undone playing through his mind. The alchemist couldn’t tell what time it was outside, only able to conclude that the inky blackness of twilight still hung over Broken Tusk. The visions that brought him awake were those regarding his new tome. “Basic Drogramathi Alchemy” sat in his inventory, unread. More than anything, he wanted to explore its secrets, but something told him ‌they weren’t so easily discovered. He snuck out of the bedroom and settled in at the shop, lighting a candle and moving Azrug’s chair.

The first quarter of the book described the illustrious history of Drogramath. Theo ignored most of this, finding it to be impossible to understand. The phrases the book used were nonsense, using as many metaphors to describe real things as not. He let out a heavy sigh as he turned to the chapter regarding distillation. It was as bad, if not worse, than the introduction section. Where he expected to find details on his craft, he found more nonsense. His ability to read the book brought him no closer to understanding it. Despite this, he went through the entire section on distillation, committing it to memory.

Buried deep in a description of Drogramath’s mastery over a realm Theo wouldn’t attempt to pronounce, there were a few gems. While most of it eluded him, a small section concerning the demon lord’s persistent fire, whatever that meant, related to temperature control. It said that Drogramath tempered his enemies with a flame, like a blacksmith heats a blade, and that constant heat wasn’t always the solution. Theo took this confusing message to mean that distillation wasn’t only about keeping the fire at a constant temperature. Some essences might extract better if he changed the intensity of fire‌.

The alchemist withdrew some parchment from his inventory and started scrawling. He labeled it as “Drogramath Decrypted” at the top, referring to the page numbers and his interpretation. At the end of a few hours' work, he was left with more contradicting information than information that agreed. Letting out a frustrated sigh, he leaned back in the chair and stared at the ceiling. When he first cracked the book open, he expected all of Drogramath’s secrets to reveal themselves to him. Theo wanted one, brilliant flash of inspiration to fill the gaps in his knowledge. But the only thing he got was confusion and disappointment.

Theo shrugged, standing and stretching on the spot. Fenian thought the book was a gift, holding that coveted secret knowledge, so it would be worth investigating. For now, he put it on the back burner and planned to do something different for the day. The alchemist wanted to take the day off from distillation to spend his time working on the town. He planned to use his 4 level 30 monster cores when Tresk woke up, eager to see if there were any new picks. Then, there was the matter of the stonecutter’s endeavor. If he knew Ziz as well as he thought, the Half-Ogre would go nuts and cut as much stone as possible.

Theo felt something tap his shoulder. He spun around, heart hammering hard in his chest, and spotted the grinning face of Tresk standing there. “Didn’t even hear me, did you?”

The alchemist clutched his chest, letting out a sigh of relief. “No, I didn’t,” he said, letting out a few calming breaths. “You scared the crap out of me.”

Tresk chuckled, picking up the book and looking it over. “You can read this?”

“Yeah, but it’s not helpful,” Theo said, waving her off. “Whatever cultist wrote it had more to say about Drogramath than his alchemy.”

“That’s demons for ya,” Tresk said. “Cults, in general, like to guard their knowledge.”

“Well, on to exciting things,” Theo said, groaning as he rose to his feet. “Let’s use our monster cores.”

Tresk bounced with excitement. Theo withdrew a [Monster Core] from his inventory and held it high, willing it to go into the shop. It disappeared and two messages crowded his vision.

[Alchemy Lab] has advanced to level 8!

Select a direction you wish to expand the lab into (north/south/east/west).

[Alchemy Lab] has advanced to level 9!

Select a direction you wish to expand the lab into (north/south/east/west).

Theo frowned, expecting a lot more levels from the level 30 cores. He selected east for both, preferring that the building expand toward the river, where he owned property. The shop rumbled under their feet; the floorboards creaking as the shop visibly expanded back. It was a good five paces of new space.

“Didn’t get level 10? Shame,” Tresk said, tutting.

Theo held another core in the air, watching it disappear and receiving another barrage of messages.

[Alchemy Lab] has advanced to level 10!

Select a direction you wish to expand the lab into (north/south/east/west).

[Alchemy Lab] has advanced to level 11!

Select a direction you wish to expand the lab into (north/south/east/west).

[Select Upgrade Option]

[Root Cellar]

A cellar for preserving reagents is housed under the lab. Reagents placed inside of the cellar decay at a slower rate.

[Experimentation Room]

A reinforced room is placed behind the lab, creating a safe place to conduct explosive experimentations.

[Drogramath Distillation Specialty]

Specialize your lab in Drogramath Distillation. This option is only available to owners with the [Dronon] race and [Drogramath] heritage.

Effect:

Reduces the likelihood that essences will explode when interacting.

Increases the rate of distillation in all stills.

Increases [Wisdom] bonus for all [Alchemists] within the [Alchemy Lab].

Provides the [Alchemy Lab] with a [Drogramath Still].

“Well, that’s not fair,” Theo said, laughing. “There’s an obvious winner.”

Theo expanded the shop east again, the building rumbling under his feet as he read over [Drogramath Distillation Specialty]. It was an option that only showed up because of his Dronon Drogramath heritage. Any of the effects alone would be worth it, but to get that many at once was absurd.

“That’s an obvious pick,” Tresk said, laughing.

Theo selected [Drogramath Distillation Speciality] and the building rumbled again. Dark, purple energy swirled around the building, consuming them for a moment before subsiding. The pair shared a look before sprinting upstairs to inspect the lab. The first thing they noticed was how much larger it was. Two Theos could lie down, feet to head, in the newly created space. The next thing that dominated the room was a wicked-looking still, looming near the copper stills created by Throk. It looked like a pot still decorated on every available surface with nasty spikes and blades. The condenser apparatus was incredibly complex, containing more loops and turns than should be possible. It was made of a purple-black metal that Theo had seen before, on his new knife.

“That looks like a torture device,” Tresk scoffed.

Theo inspected the new still.

[Drogramath Still]

[Alchemy Equipment]

Legendary

Created By: ????

A 500 unit capacity Drogramathi still with attached advanced condenser. The advanced condenser allows for a more efficient cooling of essences, decreasing the time needed to distill. The Drogramathi metal increases the spread of heat, providing an even distribution across a run.

Effects:

Distillation time reduced.

Occasionally produces more essence per run.

“500 unit capacity,” Theo said, whistling. He checked the lid, putting a [Alchemical Grinder Artifice] over the top. The artifice fit itself to the top and latched on. “I wish it didn’t look so demonic.”

Tresk shrugged. “Looks like a fancy piece of gear to me.”

Theo looked at the remaining 3 [Monster Cores] in his inventory, weighing his options. It was unlikely the 3 cores would bring the shop to level 15, and he had enough upgrades to keep him happy for a long time. He had a feeling that the fancy equipment would outpace his skill, making it a bit of a waste. A plan formed in his mind, a plan aimed at extracting maximum profit from the stonecutter’s operation.

“Tell me if this is stupid,” Theo said, running his finger over the sharp edges of the still.

“If you have to ask…”

“What if we invest these cores into the town,” Theo said. “Get it to level 10 and take the [Stone Roads] upgrade. Then sell all the stone from the quarry, invest that back into cores.”

Tresk thought for a moment, shrugging. “The problem with laying your own stone is that you have to keep laying new stone when we expand. I’d say put the monster cores into the town and see what the level 10 upgrade is. Adventurers have been putting cores in, anyway. We’re almost at level 8.”

“Right,” Theo said, nodding. “That’s settled, then. I’m guessing your plans for the day involve stabbing things.”

“You guessed right,” Tresk said. “We’ll have some breakfast, first.”

The pair went back upstairs. Tresk handled the food and Theo prepared their morning tea. The alchemist wanted more variety in their diet, but that was a task for another day. They settled on more wolf steaks, mostly because the Marshling had more wolf steaks in her dimensional bag than she knew what to do with. She talked about how excited she was to test out her new core. While it didn’t provide any world-breaking advantages, it was still a big step up from her common grade core. Theo couldn’t imagine how big of a leap it was from common to legendary.

Azrug arrived earlier than normal, coming with the dawn. “Did this place get bigger?” he asked, craning his neck from the door. The boy normally didn’t say a word, but the sudden expansion of The Newt And Demon left him wondering.

“We upgraded to level 10,” Theo said. “Got some fancy new features.”

Tresk came down the stairs soon after, patting her stomach and grinning. “I’m off to the dungeon.”

“Bye,” Theo said, waving her off.

Azrug entered the shop as Tresk left, walking to the back and looking toward the front. “It’s a lot bigger.”

“It gives two to four paces on average per level,” Theo said.

Azrug spent some time walking around, admiring how large the space had become. Theo left him to it, heading off into the swamp to test his new knife. He decided against doing any distillation runs today, favoring a calm walk and gathering. The [Drogramath Alchemy Knife] was cumbersome to use. The alchemist dug a [Spiny Swamp Thistle Root] out of the ground and cut away the stem. A pulse spread out from him like a rolling wave of purple energy. When the wave subsided, he could see everything around him that was alchemical in nature. There were the [Spiny Swamp Thistle Roots], which he knew of, but also something buried deep in the ground. The vague, glowing shape that the knife created wasn’t enough to identify it, but Theo didn’t feel like digging.

The alchemist picked a path along the eastern wall, passing by the gate and noting the fishermen outside. He didn’t know what they caught, or where they sold it, but they were out there every day. He cut a [Water Lily] near the wall and the pulse washed out over the river. Glowing shapes danced near the shore. Theo investigated, getting as close to the water’s edge without getting wet. A green weed danced in the current, just below the surface. He knelt, getting his knees wet and muddy, and cut a piece off. Another wave of revealing magic pulsed out, but he ignored it. He inspected the reagent.

[River Kelp]

[Alchemy Ingredient] [Food]

Uncommon

River kelp is known for its medicinal properties.

Properties:

[Regeneration] ???? ????

Theo already had a source of the [Regeneration] property, the [Spiny Swamp Thistle Root], but hadn’t created any essences from it. He stuffed the item away into his inventory and made his way further upriver. Mussels grew near the pebbled shore, but none of them were alchemy ingredients. Small crayfish scattered away from the shallows when he approached, but he doubted they were reagents. He found a small, rounder-shaped bivalve creature similar to the muscle and reminding him of a clam back on Earth. It was alone, and a pulse radiated from the alchemist when he pried the thing open. A small, misshapen white pearl sat near the meat of the thing. He picked it up and inspected it.

[River Clam Pearl]

[Alchemy Ingredient]

Rare

The pearl of a river clam.

Properties:

[Hone Edge] ???? ????

Theo did not know what the [Hone Edge] property could be, but his intuition told him it was something similar to a poison. Not that it would apply any negative effects to a weapon, but that it would change them somehow. He wondered how he would get the hard thing down into a mash for the distillation process. The alchemist shrugged, placing the item in his inventory before moving on.

Tresk arrived at the dungeon, informing Theo how much she loved the new core. He didn’t understand how combat cores worked, or how they enhanced someone’s abilities, but she explained it. The increase in core quality more than doubled her damage. It also made her impossible for equal-level monsters to detect when she used her [Sneak] skill. She raved about being able to leap from the shadows, destroying anything with ease, and they were making their way to the 10th floor boss room. The alchemist told her to be careful and keep him updated.

I stole a few more [Lesser Healing Potions]. Don’t worry about me, Tresk said, cackling.

It was midday by the time Theo found his way to the quarry. His journey was a winding thing, the knife sending him in a zig-zag pattern across the countryside. He found more reagents thanks to the knife than ever before, the glowing indicator revealing things he would have never seen with the naked eye. The quarry came into view, joined by the sounds of hammers and chisels on stone. Ziz spotted him, waving excitedly.

“Come look, boss,” Ziz said, gesturing behind the workshop.

Theo joined him, his eyes going wide at the massive pile of shaped stone. There must have been 50 blocks the size of the alchemist’s head piled up. They were all hewn expertly and when he ran his fingers across the surface, he could find no imperfections. He inspected the block, confirming his suspicions.

[Marble Block]

[Building Material]

Quality: Perfect

A block of white marble.

Ziz must have lied about his [Stonecutter’s Core]. The blocks had lost none of their quality, meaning that he was a craftsman worth note. Theo knew, from his time brewing potions, that messing up any step of the way would degrade the quality. The Half-Ogre knew his stuff, and his speed at processing the blocks was absurd. The laborers worked near the quarry, grunting and working a winch to crane the blocks out of the hills.

“You’re a lot better at this than you let on,” Theo said, running his fingers over the blocks again.

Ziz had a permanent grin on his face at this point. He slapped one of the blocks and shrugged. “What can I say?”

“Let’s see what Fenian thinks,” Theo said. He withdrew Fenian’s crystal from his inventory and held it tight. His head rushed for a moment, as though the line was trilling on the other end, then it passed.

Theo, how are you? Fenian asked.

Well, thank you. I have a question about stone—again.

Let’s hear it.

My laborers are better than expected. I can expect 50 blocks a day. Marble, at perfect quality, Theo said.

Marble? Did you say marble? Sorry, I’m in a high-magic area right now. You couldn’t have said marble, Fenian said.

Yeah, they’re marble. I inspected the finished product. About the size of my head, Theo said.

I’m sending my friend to Broken Tusk, Fenian said. They will want a deal for wholesale, but you’re sitting on a goldmine. You can expect him to offer 25 copper a block.

Theo tried to do the mental math. His mind always worked in strange ways when doing mental arithmetic, and his low [Intelligence] stat wasn’t helping. After some effort, he determined that the blocks Ziz had crafted so far would fetch somewhere around 12 silver coins.

My guys are going to lose it, Theo said. Fenian, thanks for the information.

No problem. I’m going to contact you with an order in a few days, Fenian said. Bye.

The connection terminated, and Theo returned the crystal to his inventory. Ziz was looking at him expectantly and the alchemist smiled. “Five percent off the top,” Theo said.

“What?” Ziz asked.

“When you pay me back for the startup, 3 gold coins, all I want is five percent of sales,” Theo said.

Ziz narrowed his eyes. Theo knew immediately that he should have said a higher number to start. “How much can I get for a block? 2 copper? Maybe 3? Come on, don’t leave me hanging.”

Theo laughed. The Half-Ogre laborers of Broken Tusk were underpaid. They sat on a goldmine of resources they’d never exploited. “Fenian knows a stone trader. What you’re cutting here is marble at perfect quality. The Elf is going to send the stone merchant to confirm, but we can expect 25 copper coins per block.”

“Per block!” Ziz shouted, grabbing his head with both hands. “Per block?”

“Yes, as in each block,” Theo said, grinning. “12 silver a day. You’d pay your debt in a month.”

Ziz swayed on the spot, leaning against the pile of stone and breathing hard.

“Do I need to give you a [Lesser Health Potion]?” Theo asked.

“Maybe,” Ziz said, taking a few steadying breaths. “By the Gods. Five percent? You’d really do that for me? You’d give me and these mud-slinging laborers a chance like that?”

“I would,” Theo said. “There’s no sense in me trying to run a quarry. I don’t have the time, or the skill core to do it. If I get my money back on my investment, I'll be happy.”

“How am I supposed to say no?” Ziz said, reaching his hand out for Theo to shake.

The alchemist took his hand and shook. “It’s a deal.”

“I’m guessing we have to reserve some stone, split them into cobbles to pave the town,” Ziz said.

“No, we’ll sell everything here,” Theo said. “I’m off to upgrade the town to level 10. If the upgrade options suck, I’m going to pick [Stone Roads].”

“I better get back to work,” Ziz said, his eyes going wide. He turned to the other four laborers and shouted, “work faster! We’re gonna be rich!”