Gestation by John Gold (love books to read .txt) 📗

Hm, what would happen with eleven of them? I can’t wait until I get to Level 1.

A month of farming monsters with the local guild earns me respect in Sural, and I only have thirty contracts to go until I hit esteem. I have seventy completed contracts under my first-rank belt. I’m evil incarnate, but I’m still wearing Level 1 sandals. That means I need to buy new clothes, as the old ones are fraying and about to uncover my tattoos.

About to set off on my long journey, I need to think about how to pick up some money.

“Hi, Miss Hela.”

“Hey, Sagie. Looking for another quest? You’re already up there with the leaders—leave some of the quests for the others.”

She was getting her giggles in at the expense of “the others.” Hela loves it that a kid has been able to complete way more contracts than the adult players.

“That’s nothing. For a beautiful girl like you, I’d find a way to the center of the Hashan Desert.”

Hela’s face went from laughing to serious in an instant.

“You’ve never joked once since I’ve known you. Was that your first?”

“Nope. I mean, I’m doing it for myself, but I like it when you compliment me. You’ve been the only one to all this time, and that means a lot to me.”

“So, you want to take a trip out into the desert? The aura out there is so bad the caravanners and marauders don’t even go in there! There isn’t a single person or oasis in the desert.”

“I’m not afraid of auras or monsters. And I’m a kid, so I don’t need food.”

“Got it.”

“Anyway, I’m here to find out if there are any contracts for killing monsters in the Hashan Desert.”

“Yes. The caliph offers ten gold for every monster you kill, and you get the money automatically from the monsters you kill, but they’re really strong. All of them are local bosses, and people have even come across some raid bosses out there. The desert is teeming with them. Sometimes, they even come out to the outskirts of the desert.”

“Basically, it’s a nasty place you shouldn’t go to if you’re not ready for it. Perfect. Where do I get the contract?”

“Head up to the fourth floor. There’s a board with open quests.”

“Thanks, have a good day!”

There’s one problem with the quest: you need a pack animal for all the trophies, and it has to be highly resistant to fire and mental damage. That kind of damage is constant throughout the desert, and it only gets worse the farther in you go. Time for a trip to the market square.

There’s a whole row where they sell animals, including pack animals. I’m offered everything short of ghosts and dragons, though I can’t find anything I like. Instead, I head over to see the seller with the widest selection.

“Hello there. Which of your pack animals has the most resistance to mental and fire damage?”

“What, heading out into the desert?”

“Yep.”

“Croots are all that survive out there.” He points at the large body of a lizard with thick skin and bone plates. It’s as big as an aerocar, has six legs, and each of the legs is the size of my torso.

“Oh, so you’re trying to sell me your most expensive pack animal.”

“No, it’s just that that’s the only one that can live in the desert.” He forgot to tell me that the creature really was his most expensive one.

“It probably eats its weight every day! It’ll die in the desert on the second day.”

“Well, take some grass with you, buy a wagon, and ride in that.”

“…” There isn’t much else you can say to a stupid idea like that. I’d rather carry everything myself than buy that creature.

I’ve never seen a dumber attempt to fool a buyer. And that’s with a boosted reputation? At least, it gave me an idea.

I end up buying a one-seater cart with bags hung on it and harness…myself. Yup. I haul the empty cart straight through the city, with everyone turning to look at me—all I need is a horse mask. Hm, that’s a decent idea.

Just like that, I get through the area and start out toward the desert. Running isn’t hard, my strength is practically unlimited, and I can empower myself if I need to. My cart, from what I can remember, is called a rickshaw, and I’m the chauffeur.

I run through the forest all day, then cross the steppe and reach the desert as evening breaks. This is a good spot to spend the night. I camouflage the cart and log out to sleep in real life.

The best mornings are the ones that start with a run, and mine is no different. The local beasts are so happy that meat is running up to them that they make the mistake of trying to taste me. Their skins and trophies are the first I add to my collection, and I get to the desert by noon. Then, I’m on my way to the center.

∞ ∞ ∞

Damage taken: 100 (ignored: 0)

800/900

Resistance to mental damage: +0.01%

Mental damage ignored up to 16/second

Ah, how I’ve missed those messages. It’s time to take off the bandage with the poison, otherwise I’ll die inadvertently. There’s nothing but sand, dunes, and lots of monsters in every direction. The latter attack me as soon as I catch their eye, and they all have mountains of health.

The desert is enormous, stretching almost two thousand kilometers deep into the continent. Over the course of the day, I make it about thirty kilometers and reach the limit of my health.

∞ ∞ ∞

Damage taken: 1000 (ignored: 106)

108/900

Resistance to mental damage: +0.01%

Mental damage ignored up to 108/second

Resistance to fire: +0.01%

Thermal damage ignored up to 122/second

The numbers look minuscule, but I need to boost my resistance. All of my new spells have a recoil, most of which are capable of killing me. The incident with dragon breath showed me that I would have died if I’d had just one more point of intellect. But I have an