A Rattling Monster

Chapter 17: The ratmen are alive

Sevens levels, I level up seven times thanks to that orphanage. My attributes are now:

"Attributes:

Name:???

Race :Rodent

???

Level : 7/20

HP:67/67

MP :92/92

Strength:11.4

???

???

Wisdom:18.4

???"

If I didn't go that curse back in that cave, I could have cast a lot more spells. I am still a little disappointed. I spread my venom in the night, but I just receive the experience point after the evening of the next day. That means, during the day, no one died or just one. I didn't stay to see my massacre. I am able to plan the destruction of human kids, and do it but seeing them dying is still too hard for me. I am not a sadist or a monster. I just need to survive. So, let's think. If it is in the evening that everybody died, that means it was around dinner. So, they all have drink water during the breakfast, the lunch, maybe a small meal around 4 o'clock and the dinner. My poison was not enough to provoke death on the first two or three meals but killed a lot after it.

The most basic reflex, if you are sick, is either drink a lot or rest a lot. They probably tried both things on the children. But it was not a disease like everyone thinks. It's a poison, that help doomed them. I tried to think about the poison contained in [Venomous Bite] this time. I really hope that I can manipulate the effect of the poison as I want. I really need to hear the news about the circumstances of their death. Just the general symptoms, not the excruciating pain that was brought with them. But, for my potential destruction of Ronta, I need a lot more power. First, let's talk about what was perfect and what I need for a larger scale plague. The most important part is the target, they were children, they were weak. I wonder if I still managed to kill the sisters. If I did it, the future will be really smoother. But that's highly unlikely. The well was a huge factor too. The fact that it was a minor water tank has allowed my poison to stay relevant. In the probable huge water tank that can answer the need of such a large city, my [Create Poison] will be worthless.

But it is not level 2 like before. The gains of this attack are numerous. My level and my attributes have been raised, like my MP pool and my Wisdom, two very important factor for me. That means more spells and more recovery of my mana. Then my skills, they have been turned in [Create Poison lvl 5] and [Poisonous Being lvl 3]. Clearly, the quality of the victims takes a huge place in the rise of my skills. Because I didn't kill more children than the birds. But, I gained 3 level for the creation of the poison and 2 for my passive related to poison. I wonder what the death of a true adult will grant me.

The unfortunate part is that I need a new test subject, for comparing the potency of a basic poison and an advanced one. And for that, my reserve of bread is already gone. Maybe I should try to find a rat, their pathetic resistance will be overpowered by me. But as usual, they are hiding, scared of the demon walking in the sewers. Finding a prey will be tiring but my patience has increased with each kill. Let's see if I will be rewarded once again.

Sleek Sleek Sleek

(And with those strange sounds that should be laughs, I think, a plague rat was hunting in the sewers. On the surface, more and more unrest can be seen and the different powers in the city are currently reunited in the City Hall. No one remembers when was the last time that the Mayor, the Guild Master of the adventurers, the Great Magus and the Archbishop were seen in the same place.)

Currently, 3 men and one woman are sitting around a table and none of them are willing to speak. They all look at each other, thinking that this tragedy is the doing of the others. Even if, for the public opinion, they are trustworthy and honest, secretly they all have shady deals with a lot of notorious people. Either the transport of some rare materials by the Guild Master Lansco. Or the redirection of the public funds by the Mayor Graeme Sorrel Tyne. No one really knows what are the unspoken experiments done by the Great Magus Aesseryn. And the doing of the Archbishop Mathews is not as clean as everyone thinks.

It is the main reason that incited them to never meet in the first place. The best they have done is just writing a letter once in a while to one of the other powers. Because they are both scared of others and scary for the others. The leverage they have can result in a potential treason of every single one of them, a thing that none wish. If one is accused, the others will follow. Even the local Church can join the rank of the convicts. But in this state of suspicions and secrets, all of them actually agree on something. They have to talk about the current problem.

Slowly losing patience quicker than the other Mathews finally begins to talk.

"As you all know, yesterday, the day after Aria, one of the two orphanages of Ronta was hit by a terrible disease."

He stops right after saying this, to see the reaction. Lansco and Graeme nod at this remark while the cold Aesseryn doesn't even blink.

"Three local sisters that were capable of curing minor wounds and disease were incapable of stopping that disaster. Losing hope, one of them ran toward the nearby Church. The father responsible for it, father Gregory rushed toward the orphanage. But unfortunately, that delay had done its work. No children were left breathing."

"We already know that archbishop. Tell us the details about the plague."

The mayor interrupts the man of the Church. Those stories were already common knowledge, but even his spies didn't manage to really gather information on what type of disease it was.

"Agree we didn't meet here to waste times on useless information!"

It was the turn of the magician. Only the adventurer was still silent. Unperturbed by the comments of his two neighbors, the Archbishop finally reveal the truth.

"You know that before that incident, strange things have happened near the North Church and the West Church."

"The bird."

That was the first time Lansco talked.

"Yes the bird, thinking that a connection could be found between the two, our best priest and "hum hum" some alchemists have worked together."

Shocking news for Graeme and Lansco, Mathews actually asked for help and asked the Mage Tower for help. Even if the alchemists are mostly independents, their headquarters are in relation with the Mage Tower. Some could say they are the only people that a magician trust besides his fellow peers. A large portion of mages are alchemists too. But after dropping that bomb, the face of Mathews shows a bitter smile.

"And they really made a connection. The problem is, I sincerely hoped that they couldn't have."

"Why are you so dark right now? Are you not suggesting the worst possible outcome? Right?"

This time was Mayor was clearly panicking. If it is something that even the powerful Church fear, what can a city like Ronta do?

"Do you remember the fight between our world and the demon world, a hundred years ago?"

"I was there, the Hero killed the Great Demon King but unfortunately, the portal between the worlds was broken. The coalition between all race except the banished one was broken."

It is good to know that Lansco is at his 173e year. He was a proud and young dwarf back in the Portal War.

"Thank you for your fight dwarf warrior, but it is especially this part of the History that I have to talk about. During those dark times, even the undead that have pledged to erase all life forms have made peace and fought beside us. The orcs, the trolls even the spider Queen stopped their assault. But the one, the treacherous, the cunning, the unnameable one."

"Hold on, hold on, back off. Are you suggesting that? Are you really saying that they are still alive? Even after a century of hunting and the conjoint effort of everyone, every race?"

"Aesseryn, please."

At this word, the mage shows a strange looking liquid inside a bottle. It is green and is moving on his own it looks like. She shows after another bottle. Inside there are multiple particles floating in the air. They are red and strangely big.

"The first is the poison used in the orphanage, as you can see, it is poison. I don't want you to know but the children have suffered during more than 5 minutes after the poison has begun its attack and before dying of a heart attack. The second is the disease spread on the birds. My magicians have attached a spell on it to make it visible. Both are the spells that many races have always mastered. However, the combination of those masteries is only found in one race. A race that all fought and thought they were exterminated. But they are alive. The ratmen are still alive."