[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 34 - The Right Choice

Despite only barely fulfilling the daily quota, Freddy felt dead tired. His body was struggling, and his constant abuse of it didn’t help one bit.

With a shiver in his arms and a lop in his gait, he waddled back to the camp. He visited the public ‘bathhouse,’ or, rather, the cleansing pond used for washing clothes and bathing.

Enchanted with ether script, the water within had strong cleaning properties and made hygiene simple, if, admittedly, unenjoyable. The frigid liquid had an uncomfortable zap that left skin feeling irritated and itchy. The pond was tiny and cramped, and using it was always coupled with rude, impatient shoves by those waiting their turn.

After wrapping things up, taking a dump in the small underground cavern nearby, and returning to his tent, he donned his other uniform as he started his first day on his second job.

The forager suit was quite different from the miner one. The focus was on light fabric and camouflage, with shades of green and brown dominating the entire get-up. In stark contrast to the steel-plated boots, he was provided lightweight sneakers that dulled the sound of his footsteps.

He put the foldable yellow sign on his belt, the one he was to use to quickly identify himself if he accidentally startled a worker, small scissors, a razor-sharp scalpel, a delicate trowel, and the large bag with an assortment of specialized containers in case he encountered any of the rarer plants. His regular dagger and baton for self-defense were naturally there, too.

He also brought a small net he could use to capture rare flying bugs, but he was bringing it along as more of a weapon against critters that bit and stung than a tool to catch them.

With that, he was set.

His walk back out into the caverns was a painful ordeal, and he wondered whether he could get away with a bit of healing. When the agony became unbearable, he took out his knife and nicked a few juicier mushrooms.

The small healing burst did nothing of use besides momentarily easing his pain. And that was more of a demerit than a cure since he relied on his sensation to judge whether he was pushing himself too far.

Based on his recent experience, his leg was whatever the crippled equivalent of ‘a bit tired’ was. He had perhaps enough juice for a short foray into some yellow zones.

For foragers, abandoned yellow and red zones and the edges of black zones were the only places to consistently find good herbs. Since mining was the main priority of the expedition, flash-burning newly discovered caves was the primary way to clear them. It was the safest way to claim unexplored areas, and plants naturally weren’t a big fan of it.

Even then, the areas that nature had reclaimed mostly had the more common specimens, as the rarer plants took much longer to sprout or only did so under a complex set of conditions.

Making his way past the heavily populated green zone, then through a tight series of green-fungus-dominated caves, he walked into a yellow area, notably near the hidden lake he had discovered previously.

It wasn’t the best place to forage, but he might as well look for vestiges while already out.

The moist caverns were a terrible area to spend time in. The stale, mossy stench, intense humidity, and a lack of solid, non-slippery ground to stand on made this place a nightmare for Freddy. The thoughts of progress with his abilities had made him forget that the slimy stone of this cave would be challenging to walk on with his leg’s state.

As expected, mushrooms and moss were this area's primary source of exciting herbs. The butterfly crown was the most valuable fungus he could find. It was a golden-wing-shaped shroom, lined with intricate patterns and a waxy, glossy surface. It smelled of pine and old oil.

These went around forty to fifty dollars a piece. While that seemed quite pricy, one thing after another worked in tandem to make actually earning anything a monumental pain in the ass.

First, extraction was a delicate process. These had a visible, green-tinged seam along the middle, which was practically the only place they could be cut without leaking all the juice they held in their bodies. To make matters more complicated, that seam was a thin, wiggly line that, in some mushrooms, had gaps, making it impossible to extract them by cutting along it.

They could still be removed from the wall altogether, but that wasn’t a perfect solution. The mycelium led deep into the stone, and too much damage to it could cause the mushroom to rapidly wither and lose all its properties.

With that in mind, as well as the fact that the extraction process, locating, and even just identifying precious herbs took time… Yeah. If it weren’t for the incentives, he’d take swinging tools at a wall any day of the week.

Freddy started cutting, and immediately, 1% Lifesteal kicked in, as expected. His gentle, methodical extraction was far from enough to make any noticeable impact on his body. Until he accidentally nicked one of the shrooms.

White juice immediately began flowing out, and Freddy was startled to realize how much more significant that burst of healing had been than those he got when just cutting usually. The effect was instantaneous, meaning that a long-held question of his finally received an answer. Causing bleeding didn’t produce a sustained heal. But it did seem to impact the overall amount of life force he received, meaning that his talent still registered the injury as more significant.

It wasn’t long until he noticed that not all shrooms were made equal. Some had a notably higher impact on his talent, and he presumed that meant they were more ripe or something.

After cutting only seven mushrooms, three of which he ruined by accident, and storing them by simply throwing them into the bag, he allowed himself a quick break beneath one of the lanterns. Just doing that much had winded him since he had to stay focused for several minutes as he performed the incision along the seam. The bigger problem was staying still in uncomfortable positions despite his body’s loud protests against doing that.

The light source illuminated the narrow corner of the cavern he was passing through, and the moist, smooth rock wall shimmered like an assortment of jewels, momentarily mesmerizing Freddy with its beauty.

Deciding he was safe enough to take a break, he slumped against the wall and closed his eyes, entering the netherecho.

“Oh, come on,” he said in an annoyed reaction to the immediate appearance of a big pile of shifting rocks—a giant remnant.

As his star grew, the range he could actively perceive when entering the netherecho expanded. This remnant was along the outer edge of his field of view, which put it at a comfortable distance, but no amount of space was enough when faced with something that could poof him out of existence if it had any form of ranged attack.

With half his focus on the rocky mass of ether, he briefly scouted the nearby area for interesting vestiges. The regular assortment of water, dark, earth, metal, and so on was present, with several charred vestiges likely originating from the burning of nearby caves.

One among them stood out. Not for any good reason, though. A fish with muscular, human-like legs was dancing just to Freddy’s side, isolated from all other vestiges in the area. Goofy-looking ether constructs were far from a rarity, but this was among the few that nearly made Freddy audibly laugh. Not that he’d risk offending it by doing so.

As he observed the vestige in action, something unusual caught his attention. Every vestige had a certain degree of resonance with his ether shells. This had nothing to do with how ‘good’ a choice the vestige was for a particular ability, but it was instead an indication of how closely connected it was to the concepts within.

For example, his Create Water had positively vibrated in response to the generic concept of water; in that case, it had been an excellent choice. But there were numerous examples where slotting in barely passable ideas into an ability was the secret to making it work, such as sliding in sharpness into Create Water Weapon.

What caught Freddy off-guard was that this vestige resonated with not just one but all three of his tempering techniques, and not just a little. All of them were buzzing in resonance as much, if not more than Create Water had with the water vestige.

Was this perhaps a concept of tempering?

A single glance at its appearance was enough to conclude that it wasn’t.

So… What exactly was it?

‘Might as well ask,’ Freddy thought.

Keeping an eye on the pile of rocks, Freddy took a leap down and landed just a bit away from the dancing fish. He approached it by dancing along, and this vestige luckily didn’t take offense to Freddy’s approach. Unfortunately, it seemed to like it a bit too much.

“Mmmm,” it purred in a deep, manly voice. “The perfect specimen has arrived. Your seed will be optimal for—”

Before it could finish its sentence, Freddy was bolting toward his body. Moments later, he was out of the netherecho, shivering in fright.

Having nearly avoided the most traumatic experience of his life, Freddy was keenly aware of just how much he missed having Bloodshed around.

‘Well then… Fish with legs, mating dance, ‘optimal seed’… Resonance with tempering techniques… Hmmmm,’ he mused internally.

He felt confident that he knew precisely what that thing was. It was the concept of evolution. If one really stretched it, tempering techniques could be defined as a method to forcefully ‘evolve’ desirable traits. A more effective internal water cycle, denser body fluid, and greater internal toughness were the three traits Freddy was ‘evolving.’

Which left him wondering—exactly what would the concept of evolution achieve? Would it be something similar to the generic concept of tempering? Or maybe it would be more specific or even more generalized than that?

Either way, he didn’t know. He wasn’t willing to gamble with Hundred Wet Hells, and he already knew that compression was best for Abyssal Depths.

After a quick visit to his ethercosm, he stood right before the empty shell holding his Water Body Tempering Technique. This was among the most widely used abilities, especially among non-combat water-affinity archhumans. One would be hard-pressed to find a water arch that didn’t have it in at least some form.

For those who fought for a living, growing this ability down its standard, health-improving generic water or life from water route was a luxury. Most frequently, people evolved it into a temporary combat boost or a strength or endurance-enhancing tempering technique.

Freddy didn’t have the knowledge needed to shape this thing into something optimal. He didn’t have a guide to tell him which concepts to use or a mentor who would advise him on the best path.

For all intents and purposes, no matter what he did, he was shooting in the dark. Might as well try going big or going home.

…

Yeah, but he would have to tackle that horny fish somehow, wouldn’t he?

With a somewhat open-ended plan, he dove back into the netherecho. The fish was still dancing near his body, and he thought he knew what to do.

Preparing himself mentally, he yet again danced his way to the fish with bulky human legs.

“Mmmm, my sweet, sweet lover has returned to me,” it said, exuding passion. “Mmm, yes, you scrumptious little creature. I shall devour you whole.”

‘This shit isn’t fucking worth it,’ was the only thought he had as he snaked his way closer to the vestige.

Just as he stepped into range, and the fish spread its nasty, hairy legs, he swung the scythe and cleaved straight through one of the limbs.

“Aaargh! That is not attractive at all!” The fish exclaimed as it toppled to the ground.

That was it. Now, all he had to do was—suddenly, a giant stone flew past Freddy, and he had to duck with all he had to get out of the way. The rock smashed into the fish’s body, leaving it almost entirely disabled, just on the brink of unraveling.

‘Shit!’

Something he did had caught the attention of the remnant, and without much hesitation, he conjured the ether shell for Water Body, flung it at the fish, and ran before the absorption process could even finish.

The giant mass of rocks was barreling towards him at an abnormal speed, and with only a fraction of a second left, before it could crush his projection, he finished absorbing the vestige and returned to his body.

He opened his eyes with a panicked start and immediately looked around for threats. As he realized that he was safe, he calmed a bit. A centipede was slithering on his leg, but he grabbed that bugger with a pinch and flung it across the room.

The merciless beating of his heart sent sharp pangs of pain through his knee, and with a sigh, he got up, preparing to head back to rest for that day. Even as he got up, his tempering technique was in the process of evolving in his ethercosm. As the process finished, a soothing sensation washed over him, and he managed to calm himself a bit.

While he wanted to test his new ability, it was time to head back to safety first.

His way back down the caverns was arduous. As he exited the tight tunnels and into an open area, a ragtag group of four approached him.

‘Oh, for fucks—’

“What’s up, man? You’re that scars guy, right?” A tall, lanky man with buck teeth smiled down at him.

At his side were two shorter men, both clearly physically capable. He wouldn’t rate their physiques as those of dedicated martial artists, but they definitely had the looks of long-time manual laborers.

Neither of those three caught more than a cursory glance from Freddy.

The fourth man gave off a very different vibe. He was of average height, perhaps a bit taller than Freddy, and had long, black hair and a scruffy beard. His green eyes were sharp, much like that of a predator, and he, unlike his compatriots, definitely looked like he fought for a living.

The other three kept trying to ask him questions, but Freddy’s gaze didn’t leave the approaching man for an instant. Even though this man was a one-star arch, just like him, he instinctively knew—this person was dangerous.

“Howdy, partner!” He greeted Freddy, his cheerful tone contrasting with his intimidating body language. Given that the other three men shut up immediately, it couldn’t have been more evident that when this man spoke, others listened. “You’re one of them foragers, right?”

Freddy simply nodded.

“Heard you got injured recently. I’ve seen your match in the Wastes. Shame you can’t make a return,” he said with what was probably intended to be a pleasant smile but looked like the grin of a cat playing with its food. “Say… Would you mind cluing a brother in?”

“What do you want to know?” Freddy replied calmly.

“What’d you do in that fight?”

Deciding that there was not much point in hiding it, Freddy answered. “Timed Flowing Strike to counteract the momentum of the attack.”

“That’s some shit, ain’t it?” Then, with a scratch of his head, “Well, you don’t look like you’re pulling my leg. Impressive stuff. I’ma say it again, shame you won’t be back any time soon.”

“Is that meant to be a threat?” Freddy asked cautiously.

“No, no, god forbid!” The man said as he waved Freddy down. “I’m just making an observation. You’re in no state to get beaten up.”

Freddy just barely stopped himself from biting his lips. As soon as he realized what was happening, as if on cue, the man continued.

“Say… You must have realized it too by now, right?”

“Realized what?”

“They gonna do anything they can to keep us here as long as they can,” the man said with a derisive sneer. “The absolute scam ‘healthcare,’ the expensive food, the fines for the tiniest misdemeanor… I’ve been here for much longer than you newhorns and I’ve seen very few people leave this place. Usually, those with highly efficient non-combat talents or with minimal debts make it… The rest of us?

“They keep hammering us down with debt after debt until we have no hope of ever paying it back. This work is nothing but suspended death row.”

“The food is expensive?” That was the only thing Freddy actually heard in all that was said.

This man’s cracking of the code was cute, but the expensive food was news to Freddy. As far as he knew, it was entirely free. For a moment, he was afraid that they would start billing him somehow without him realizing it.

“Uh… Have you not seen the menu?” The man asked, genuinely confused. “If you eat anything but the disgusting mystery slop, your daily quota will be hundreds of dollars larger than usual the next day.”

“Oh,” Freddy said, suddenly realizing what the man was saying. He already knew this, but… “But the mystery slop is free,” he said, confused as to why anyone would spend so much on such trivial luxury.

All four men suddenly looked at him as if his head wasn’t screwed on straight.

The man with the buck teeth cut in, “You’ve been eating that disgusting shit? Dude, you’re a fucking animal—”

“Now, now,” the bearded man cut in. “There’s no need to get nasty. If anything, I admire you. I can’t stomach that crap, but if I could, I’d eat it, too.”

“Look,” Freddy interrupted. “I’m tired as hell, and I have to go get some rest. Did you guys come to just chat or?”

The men looked at each other briefly, and the leader cocked his head at Freddy. “You foragers get… special privileges, I hear, right?”

“Yup,” Freddy confirmed. “Creams, potions, pills, injections, all sorts of stuff. What, you guys looking to trade?”

They all hesitated briefly.

“Yeah…” the man said slowly. “I guess you could say that.”

“Well, what are you offering?”

“You supply us with goods. We give you a spot in our crew.”

“And what does this ‘crew’ of yours do?”

“Look,” the man said, shifting his posture a bit. “I can tell that you’re skeptical of us, and I get that. But you know it already. You’re fucking dead, dude. We’re all probably going to fucking die. We have to get smart. Work together. If we get enough people on our side, we’ll stand a chance at overthrowing the camp.”

“Uh-huh… Well, I guess you do have a point,” he answered. “But what if I said no?”

The subtle shift in their stances told him all he needed to know. If he said no, he would die. If not right where he stood, then soon enough.

“Well…” the man sharpened his gaze. “We wouldn’t be delighted to—”

“Actually, I’m in,” Freddy said unhesitantly. “You guys are right. I’ve known it for a long time. It’s just that my talent is no good for combat, believe it or not.”

They suddenly relaxed, and the head honcho stepped up to place a hand on Freddy’s shoulder. “I get it. We’re all scared. But don’t worry,” he said with an easy smile. “You just have to supply us with goods, and I promise you, you’ll have a good place to stay once we’re out of here.” Then, he shook Freddy’s hand. “Just make sure you don’t, you know… Accidentally reveal anything to anyone. The guards aren’t going to act without enough proof of what we’re doing, but we will make sure that word doesn’t get out.” And then, with a subtle tightening of his grip, he added. “No matter what we have to do.”

They shook hands and soon parted ways. Freddy returned to the camp, sold the four shrooms he acquired for little money and no special benefits, and immediately headed to one of the official tents.

He told them everything about the men that threatened him, including their looks, plans, and everything else he remembered. In hours, an investigation was launched, the men were apprehended and interrogated, more witnesses were found to testify against them, and by the end of the day…

Freddy stood in a crowd of workers, all scared shitless and stiffly observing the display.

It didn’t take much to get ‘exiled’ from the camp. Most probably knew that meant death, but there was at least some deniability.

As the four men stood tied up, whimpering and crying with their mouths gagged, he stared them down with a cold, unblinking gaze.

The sleazy businessman Stephen White held a short, cheesy speech about loyalty and integrity. And as soon as he was done, the men were beheaded to be made into an example of what happens to those who rebel against the administration.

Freddy was granted a small favor of his choice for his show of loyalty. He requested that the ban on emergency treatment for him be lifted, and he was promptly granted this wish—as well as extra credit for non-emergency treatment for his leg.

He returned to the tent, ready to drop dead from exhaustion. His mind rushed back to a moment in his childhood, something that hadn’t happened in a while.

***

“You shouldn’t be afraid, Fred,” his adoptive father said.

That night, Young Freddy sat on a short wall in the twenty-sixth district, observing the night streets with his dad.

“Many racketeers bet on the fact that you’ll be too scared to report them to the authorities. There is always a chance that the cops won’t act and you get stabbed, but that is pretty unlikely. It’s risky, but you shouldn’t fear risk.”

With the gentle smile that Freddy missed more than anything in the world, his father pet his head and repeated, “You shouldn’t be afraid.”

***

Freddy’s eyes snapped open. Before he realized it, he had dozed off. A pang of sickness spread through his body, and he forced himself up as he puked the barely-digested slop sitting heavy in his stomach.

The image of the men’s beheaded bodies briefly flashed through his vision, but he pushed it away. His mind rushed to justify his actions, but that wasn’t what he wanted to do, so he pushed those thoughts away, too.

He just wanted to sleep.

Usually, in moments like these, the restless nights that gave him no peace, he wondered why they had disappeared. Were they dead? Or did they just abandon him?

But it was alright. He could come to terms with either reality. If they were dead, that was what they deserved. And if they had abandoned him…

They had made the right choice.