Evil Sorcerer System 4 (Patreon)

The first thing I did in Lamford was find an inn. I rented a room for a week and lay in a bed for the first time since coming to this world. I slept for the whole day and into the following morning. If not for my growling stomach, I would have kept sleeping.

I'd almost forgotten what it was like to have a bed. And now that I was treating my body right, I was feeling all the aches and pains I should have felt during my trip.

That night, I extended my rental for another week with a few more silver coins. I would need at least that long to feel healthy again.

But rest alone wasn't enough for me. I needed food as well. I feasted on what meals the inn provided, then found a local store down the road to see to my other needs. The fresh food was as welcome a relief as somewhere to sleep.

It took three days of eating and sleeping before I felt ready to leave the inn, and until then I hadn't realized how much I'd been running on my healing spell.

To my relief, I also discovered that my mana replenished itself naturally when I was fed and rested. The whole soul-absorption thing had only been necessary because of how badly I'd been abusing myself. With food and sleep, the recovery rate was fairly substantial.

On the fourth day, I started exploring Lamford. The cobblestone streets came in two types, an older, well-worn kind and some much newer paths. Apparently Lamford was experiencing a resurgence, if the crowded streets weren't proof enough of that.

It was still a town rather than a city, but between the inn and two good streets full of stores and a large market square, there was enough that the local farmers probably thought of it as a small city.

I browsed the local stores and eventually found a bookshop. I wanted to learn everything I could about this world, so I asked the shopkeeper to load me up with books. Thankfully, the spells I'd purchased involved long hours of reading in the local language. Without that, I probably would have been illiterate. But between those spells and my recent reading of the travel book, I was able to engross myself in several works.

I started with history, which filled in a lot of gaps for me. I followed it up with language, religion, politics, and eventually what passed for local math.

The last one was disappointing. The local mathematics was good enough for accounting purposes, and that was it. I was no math whiz, but I could have written a better text myself. Still, I'd paid good money for it, so I took it back to my room at the inn to read anyway.

By the time the first week was over, I had bought and read a dozen books and was filling out my clothes a little more. I'd been scrawny ever since my near-execution, and my trip through the wilderness had turned me gaunt. But now I was filling out into normal proportions again and even had to loosen my belt a notch.

By the second week, the guards were eyeing me again, and I realized I needed to be seen going about my business. So I went and visited the local cart maker.

"Sure, I can make you a cart. What's going to be pulling it? Horse, donkey? Either?"

I bit my lip. "Let me get back to you on that."

I realized I'd need a horse to pull it. After confirming prices with the only horse seller in town, it became clear I was about to run out of money.

I probably shouldn't have spent quite so much money on books. Thankfully, I knew somewhere I could drop them off. I just needed to wait for the right day.

I'd been checking my quests after waking, and one morning I received something approximating what I'd been waiting for.

Today's Quests:

Quest 1: Absorb a soul. (100 evil points)

Quest 2: Make contact with a local sorcery cabal. (1,000 evil points)

Quest 3: Assist in the schemes of other sorcerers. (10,000 evil points)

"I'm headed out to shop for goods at some of the local villages," I told the guard.

"You don't look like you have your wagon and horse yet," the guard said skeptically. He was the same one I'd spoken to when I entered the city, the same one who'd been eyeing me every day since.

"I'm just going to talk to some locals and get prices. I plan to return to the same inn. My room is still rented and I have some things left there."

The guard narrowed his eyes a moment, then shrugged. "Just remember, passing the walls will cost you another copper."

I left Lamford behind. The town wasn't nearly as welcoming to strangers as I'd hoped, and I realized I'd need to look elsewhere if I wanted to settle down. Still, it had been a good enough place to recover.

This time, I carried a backpack of camping supplies with me. As before, I killed forest creatures and absorbed souls right up until midnight.

Quests completed! +1,200 evil points.

The substantial influx of points was a welcome one, especially now that I was running low on funds.

Purchased Traveling Merchant Disguise. -250 evil points.

The purchase came with a fine traveling outfit that was probably a bit gaudy for Lamford. I would get rid of the bright orange scarf and floppy hat, but the quality traveling boots and trousers were comfortable enough to keep.

The real prize was the heavy pouch of coins that came with it, which was also why the disguise had been so expensive. The pouch was twice as heavy as the one I'd taken off the knight and his sidekick, who had only been carrying pocket change.

Now I could at least afford that wagon and some wine to complete my fake identity's backstory. Becoming one of these traveling wine merchants would let me travel freely through the area while I searched for a place to settle down.

And if bandits tried to kill me like they did the original Alden Reed? Well, I had plenty of tricks that would keep me alive.

Night came quickly, and I slept much more comfortably with a small tent, fire, and bedroll.

***

The next day I made my way back to the nameless village where I'd met the huntress and her son. I came with a bundle of books under my arm.

"Jandon, do you remember me?" I asked as I found Aia's son playing with grass and mud outside their small hut.

The boy blinked up at me and nodded. "Yes, you're the guest mama had for dinner a week ago," Jandon replied.

"That's right. Your mother wanted me to give these to you. Read them well. They're good for your mind." I placed the books on the steps of their little home. Then I departed.

Truthfully, I'd hoped to see Aia again, and maybe stay for dinner if I could. Though the food in town had been objectively better, there was something nice about a home-cooked meal.

"Thank you, mister!" Jandon waved to me as I left. When I glanced back, I could see him cracking open one of the books.

I smiled. I'd thought about trying to sell them back to the merchant I'd bought them from, but this was a better use for them.

***

I traveled back toward Lamford until nightfall, camped, and then made my way to the city by morning. But when I arrived, the gates were shut, despite it being two hours past sunrise. There was a line outside the gate as I approached.

"What's going on?" I asked the villagers gathered around the entrance to town.

"The guards won't open the gate. Apparently, they had some sort of sorcery scare," replied one of the villagers.

My eyebrows climbed. "Sorcery?"

The villager nodded. "Yeah, sorcery! In our town of all places."

"Truly? How... frightening."

"That's right! Apparently the Archcleric and his men captured a suspect and are interrogating her about her accomplices. There might be a whole cabal somewhere in town!"

"Well, it's a good thing we're outside town then." I gave the villager a friendly smile and then sat down as though I intended to wait all day. But in truth, I needed a moment to browse my System menus and think.

I thought back to the quests I'd had the day I left town. Two of them had mentioned other sorcerers.

I'd thought the quests were random, but now I suspected my System had detected the presence of other sorcerers before anyone else had.

I checked today's quests, which once again mentioned the existence of other sorcerers.

Today's Quests:

Quest 1: Instruct an initiate in spellcraft for one hour. (100 evil points)

Quest 2: Make contact with a fellow sorcerer. (1,000 evil points)

Quest 3: Assist in the schemes of a master sorcerer. (10,000 evil points)

My eyes landed on the second quest. A thousand points just for saying hello?

The city was certainly under quarantine, with guards searching the streets. But with my tricks, I doubted they could catch me.

If I could complete that second quest by making contact with whoever the Archcleric was holding prisoner, I could get a thousand points. Even if I had to spend some points to do it, that would be a good deal. Doubly so if she could introduce me to her sorcerer friends, who would be worth a thousand points each.

I was potentially looking at a feast of points greater than all the points I'd farmed in the wilderness put together. All I needed was the guts to take the risk.

3x Invisibility Scrolls purchased.

3x Teleportation Tokens purchased.

-390 evil points.

I slipped out of sight and pressed myself up against the town wall while invisible. Then I activated a Teleportation Token. When I reappeared, I was inside the city and still invisible.

Thanks to my time in this town, I knew exactly where everything was. I walked the streets under cover of invisibility. I spotted several guards running around, but no one came to stop me.

They were just normal guards rather than Knights of the Order of the Golden Sword, but even so I kept a Teleportation Token in hand in case I needed to make a hasty escape.

Despite all the guards running around, slipping past them seemed completely effortless. I got all the way to the town jailhouse, where I waited for someone to open the door. Thankfully I didn't have to wait long, and someone came before my Invisibility Scroll ran out.

A man in white and gold robes stepped up to the jailhouse door.

"I need to interrogate the prisoner again. We already searched the inn and it was empty," said the man in white and gold.

"The prisoner is all yours, Archcleric!" The young guard blocking the way eagerly hopped aside with a bowed head. "Catch those bastard sorcerers for all of us."

"Indeed we shall."

The guard opened the door, the Archcleric stepped in, and I followed close behind.

As I trailed him, I got a good look at the Archcleric. Sure enough, this was young Jandon's father. He had the same shape to his face as the boy I'd met, but this man carried more of an air of pampered nobility. The Archcleric had likely grown up as minor nobility, a privilege he hadn't extended to his illegitimate son.

I watched as the guard pulled a key from his belt and approached a cell with a small figure huddled on the ground.

"We've roughed her up a few times, sir. But we haven't started with hot irons or pliers yet," the guard said as he swung the cell door open. He looked at the terrified bundle of rags and hair in the corner and spat on the ground in her direction.

"Good. If she doesn't reveal the location of her fellow villainous sorcerers, we will be forced to resort to harsher means of getting her to talk. It is nasty work, but it needs to be done," the Archcleric said with grim determination.

I had no doubt this conversation was being held within the prisoner's earshot on purpose. The threat of torture was often more effective than the torture itself.

The Archcleric stepped into her cell to address her. One hand gripped the shining sigil of his goddess, while the other he held out protectively between himself and the tiny, terrified girl in the corner.

"Girl, you lied to me. There was no one in the inn you mentioned. Your friends are hiding somewhere in my town, and I won't have it. If you're unwilling to speak, you won't like what will happen to you."

The girl sniffled, eyes wide and shaking.

"I-I told you the truth. That's where we were staying..." she said weakly.

"You must have a fallback position. Where is it?" the Archcleric demanded.

"Outside the city. If they're not at the inn, they're already gone." The girl sniffled and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Impossible. The gates are shut."

"My master is powerful. He doesn't need to walk through your gates to escape." There was just a bit of smugness in the girl's voice. It was hidden under a layer of weariness and terror, but it was still there.

The Archcleric pulled his open hand back as though to slap the girl, but seeing her dirty face, he grimaced and just gave her a kick with his boot.

"You will reveal their location! I know you know it." The Archcleric snarled.

The girl remained silent.

"Fine then. I'll fetch the torturers. Admire your hands now, because this is the last time you will have all your fingers." The Archcleric departed, and the cell door clicked shut behind him. I waited for both him and the guard to leave. In the cell, the girl was sobbing to herself.

Once they were gone, I pressed my palm against the keyhole and cast Dark Bolt, destroying the crude mechanism inside. Then I stepped into the cell, took a knee, and dropped my invisibility.

"Hello. My name is Alden Reed."

Quest Completed! +1,000 evil points.

<Note>

Current total points: 1,910

This really has gone on way longer than I thought, but I can't leave you guys on a cliffhanger like this. I think it's time to move it out of Short Stories and give it its own category, like Jabberwocky and Long Live the Emperor.

I will make one, though if I end up taking it on as a series, it will get a full rewrite to fix some stuff and keep the powerscaling appropriate. Right now the MC has basically skipped straight to being a highly competent sorcerer.