Ethical Looting

Ch 37: Ethical Looting

(I was feeling quite good today so I made a 4000 word chapter, enjoy.)

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Felix's POV

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"Hehe, you'd be surprised~ It is an 'SS' rank one called 'Seraphim of Judgement's Bloodline'!"

"That's amazing!"

I was as surprised as Irene said I would be. This was great! Even if her Bloodline was not as powerful as the other two girls, she would still be a wrecking ball for most people. Besides, I had planned something to make her stronger. I hadn't seen the description of 'Primeval Blood Oath' yet but I got a hint about it just from the rituals, more specifically a very special ritual…

"But it says that it's 'Partially Unsealed'."

"Does it say that there are hidden conditions?"

"Nope"

"Then you're fine. Every Bloodline is 'Partially Unsealed', you have to unlock it as you progress. "

I didn't ask Akashic Record about it but I could infer that it awakened our bloodlines at the bare minimum standards to save on Aether.

"Oh! Alright! Now listen carefully."

And so she described her Bloodline.

In a nutshell, she was a 'Paladin'. Her Bloodline gave her the buffs: (VIG)x1.8, (STR)x1.5, (AGI, END)x1.4, (MAG)x2. She had Compatibility with Law of Force, Air, Light and Life. She was compatible with two very rare Laws of Light and Life. What was even more interesting was that her Bloodline gave her a keen perception of other people and their feelings. It was a downgraded version of my telepathic abilities.

(A/N: I rushed through her stats because most of them would become quite irrelevant in the future. I have plans for her.)

This kinda explained why she has always been so perceptive. I have already witnessed many times in the gym how people had the tendencies to choose weapons most compatible to their bloodlines, even when they had not awakened yet. Perhaps Bloodlines affected people in other ways as well.

"Damn! That's pretty good!"

"Hehe~ They are nowhere as good as yours though~ You have to take care of me in the future~ I wonder how Silia and Mel would react to the news~"

"Not as dull as yours, that's for sure."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You had more reaction to my face than to the stats I told you."

"Huhu~ Salty Felix is so CUTE! Come here!"

I was still lying on her lap when she pulled to her gigantic boob- *ahem* heart, and gave me some heavenly suffocation. They were sooo soft…

After some time she released me from the hug, to my sadness.

"Irene, I have two pieces of good news for you."

"What is it?"

I had a teasing grin at her question.

"Think about it~ I was having issues with the feelings caused by the tendencies of my Bloodline~ These issues also showed up when I was still unawakened~ I wonder when I was having these issues~"

Irene's face was blank for a second but suddenly her lightbulb switched on. Her face became beet red as she thought about it. Perverted as she was, she was still an inexperienced virgin.

"Huhu~ Where did my perverted Irene go?~ I thought you would be bolder than this~ I'll be eating you up you soon~ But there is another good news~"

I hadn't told her about it yet, thinking that it would be a good surprise for her.

"We Primeval Dragons have a special ceremony to declare our wives. It is called a 'Primeval Blood Oath'."

"Hmm? Will we get married?"

Her face was still beet red in embarrassment but she still turned towards me and questioned.

"Huhu~ That's a given, but it will only be a ceremony between you and me~ No one else~ We can have an official human marriage later on in life. Now my question is, does my Seraphim want to make love now or after our after our marriage?~ Though, an Angelic Bloodline holder losing her maidenhood before marriage does sound rather hot~"

"No! If we can marry, then we'll do the thing after the marriage or whatever pact you are gonna make!"

She was stalling for time. I knew she was a little nervous since I hadn't even properly made-out with her, yet. It was quite understandable.

"Huhu~ Alright then~ I'll start making the preparations~"

'Hey, Akashic Record, you heard us, right? I would need quite a lot of Aether for this one.'

[How much exactly?]

An emotionless voice rang in my head.

'I haven't checked it yet, but I can infer that it's a lot. If you want the specifics then I'll tell you a bit later.'

[Alright, We'll first inform the Main Consciousness then.]

'Okay'

"Hey, we're gonna lag behind others if we just sit here! Let's go kill somethings!"

I knew that she was trying to divert the topic but I didn't tease her for it. What she said was quite true.

"Hup! Alright, let's get moving then. Our first stop is the tavern."

I regretfully stood up from her lap and declared.

"Hmm? Why not the chieftess? She seems to be the one who gives the most quests."

"Huhu~ We'll go to her eventually but first we need to find a treasure before anyone else does."

Irene had stars in her eyes when she heard the name of 'treasure'. She quickly stood up and ran towards the narrow road leading back to the village.

"What are you waiting for?! We have a treasure to find!"

I shook my head at her behavior and chased after her.

While we were running back to the village, I decided to check the 'Primeval Blood Oath'. As soon as I willed it, a panel with red font appeared.

[ [Primeval Dragon Heart]

[Primeval Blood Oath] ]

I willed the 'Primeval Blood Oath' panel to open.

[Primeval Blood Oath:

You can bind with your partner(s) through a consensual draconic blood oath.The oath will not bind if your partner(s) don't consensually agree with it or have manipulated souls.

Your partner(s)'s Bloodline will be improved depending on the quality of their Bloodlines and the type of oath you make with them.(Concubines are an exception)

Enhances beauty and alters the partner(s) body to fully accommodate your reproductive organs.

Able to communicate with partner(s) transcending space. This connection cannot be accessed by anyone but you and your partner(s). Not even your Universal Consciousness.

Able to lock on to your partner(s) spatial coordinates(range dependent on 'Law of Space' proficiency and Mana).

Able to transfer your lifespan to your partner(s).

Able to share Accumulation in Laws, to and from your partner(s).

Partner(s) incur instant body and soul destruction should they romantically or sexually engage with someone other than you, your partner(s) or someone you consciously approved of.

Types of Oaths:

Oath for the Main Wife: This Oath gives the highest amount of power to the partner among any oath. Upgrading their Bloodlines to their limit and even give some traits of Primeval Dragons to them. But you can only make this type of oath once in your near infinite lifespan. Choose wisely. The Oath takes a substantial amount of your source blood.

Aether needed: 2200 Enas

Oath for the Normal Wife(s): This Oath gives a decent amount of power to your partner(s). Upgrading their Bloodlines sufficiently enough. You can make as many oaths of this category as you want. The oath takes a drop of your source blood.

Aether needed: 400 Enas

Oath for the Concubine(s): There will be no power given to the partner(s). Their rank can be upgraded to a Normal Wife later on,if you wish to do so. You can make as many oaths of this category as you want. The oath takes no source blood.

Aether needed: 20]

'Hey Akashic Record, it seems I would need a minimum of 3000 Enas of Aether'

I couldn't leave out my red fox Silia and my innocent little Mel, now could I?

[That is far more than We predicted. It might be difficult.]

'Hey look at the plus side. The Oath will also upgrade their Bloodlines. You will have even stronger people by your side if you agree to it. Just imagine what an upgraded 'SSS' rank Bloodline would be able to do.'

[We will have to discuss with the Main Consciousness]

'Take your time, but don't take too long, my future wife is gonna get impatient~ Besides~ I bet you have never heard of a Virgin Primeval Dragon, yet here I am. You don't know how much control I have to put into caging in my Lust.'

[We are already discussing it. We'll communicate with you later.]

It didn't respond anymore. I felt a bit bad for ransacking it but my lovely future wifes took the priority. Weddings are expensive.

I snickered to myself and closed all the panels in front of me.

As for the 'Primeval Dragon Heart', It would need my full concentration to delve into it, I'll have to find some free time alone to do so.

As we were running towards the village, Irene suddenly turned back to me and shouted.

"Hey Feelee! How do I add you as my friend?"

"Let me send you the request. What's your name?"

The 'player names' were only visible if one wanted to make them. The only exceptions were the red tagged PK and wanted players. They had their names up all the time, until their full sentence was carried out.

"FluffBall!"

"....."

I could only say 'as expected' in my mind…

"What?!"

"Nothing…Come closer, I'll send you the request now."

One could only send a person a 'friend request' if they were within 5 meters of the intended person.

It was a convenient but inconvenient feature at the same time. Things could have been so much easier if it didn't exist…

Though we could still communicate with others through the forum Akashic Record has created and the guild chat.

"Are you Anomaly?"

"Yep"

"Hehe~ What a chunni name~ Here, done"

[Player 'FluffBall' has accepted your friend request]

I ignored her tease and started to run towards the village.

I stopped Irene when I started seeing players far away.

"What's up?"

*Tear*

"Here, put this on your face. Better safe than sorry. We'll carve up some wooden masks after we get some basic supplies."

I tore the hem of my tunic and gave the fabric to Irene. The tunic was quite long so I didn't need to worry too much.

*Sniff*

"Hehe~ I'll be smelling you all the time now~"

"You're such a weirdo~ but I love it!"

I also put on my mask and we resumed the journey.

The road was clear and devoid of any creatures in its vicinity so we safely ran towards our destination. We came across quite a few players on the road but just passed by them. The ones that attempted to ogle on Irene were instantly flooded by my bloodlust, making their attempts, merely an attempt.

"H-Hey, I don't feel good all of a sudden. Maybe there are some side effects to the capsule…"

"Hehe~ Ow!"

As I was snickering to myself, punched me on my side.

"Tsk, Mr. Anomaly, I asked you to control yourself didn't I?"

"Hey! This much is fine, don't overreact!"

"Hmph!"

She acted annoyed and started running at full speed.

But I knew that she was feeling quite giddy inside… Why can't women be a bit more honest with their feelings…

We finally made it back to the village and entered the streets.

The players were prancing about even now, gushing over the realism of this 'game'.

I even saw someone getting slapped by an Etherian Lady. The idiot probably asked some perverted shit to her, thinking it was a game.

I led Irene to the tavern and opened the door.

*Ding*

"Thuh booze iz two coppers, take it or leave it!"

(The booze is two coppers, take it or leave it!)

A middle aged man sat behind the bar counter and shouted.

(A/N: I really don't know why but I wanted to do a southern accent for this guy. Let may tell yawl, it wuz rilly fun!)

"Hello Sir!, we are not here for a drink. Do you perhaps have a job for us?"

"Goddammit! Another wunna yawl has come! Naw! Ahv naw job fahwar yawl tuh offer! Now, scoot awf!"

(Goddammit! Another one of you has come! No! I've no job for you to offer! Now, scoot off!)

I was already being quite respectful but the bastard was now taking advantage of it. He even dares to berate Me!

Suddenly, I felt my arm being grabbed tightly by delicate fingers, taking me out of my thoughts.

"Honey, it's okay, take a deep breath."

Irene whispered to me and I did as I was told.

'This is dangerous. I really need to get serious about controlling these feelings or else I'll be the one who gets controlled by them. This is too detrimental to my plans.'

If Irene wasn't here and her perception, then I really would have done something irreversible right now. And any chance of negotiations would be lost.

I calmed myself down as much as I could and put on my act.

"Ah Sir, you know that these are hard times. We are just trying to put together some honest, hard-earned money. Even a single copper would do."

Money wasn't what I was after here so I just put up the lowest amount possible from the get go.

Even the grumpy bartender seemed a bit taken aback by my offer.

"Tsk, yawl rilly is kewyute desperate arncha. Yawl say thus whole dawgone place? Klane it up an Ahl give yawl two coppers each."

(Tsk, you really are quite desperate aren't you. You see this whole damn place? Clean it up and I'll give you two coppers each.)

[Bartender Hank has given you a Quest!]

[Quest: Clean up.

Rank: F

Description: Bartender Hank has taken pity on your circumstances and commends you internally for trying to make an honest wage.

Mission: Clean the tavern for Bartender Hank.

Rewards: 5 Exp, 2 copper

Additional mission: Do a great job at the clean up.

Reward: Hank may give you additional copper.]

"We'll take it!"

"Yeah"

We both agreed to it immediately.

"Tsk, tsk, rilly too desperate… Alright, thuh brooms is behind thet dower. Yawl can take klanein' rags frum may later."

(Tsk, tsk, really too desperate… Alright, the brooms are behind that door. You can take cleaning rags from me later.)

[Quest: "Clean up" has been accepted!]

We took the brooms and started to clean up the floor first.

I felt extremely demeaned doing this job but I controlled myself. This was a pretty good exercise to curb my Pride and slowly let me get the hang of my new-self.

Irene was here with me too. With her by my side, rather than a job, it became a rather fun side activity. She really looked like a cozy housewife, tending to the house.

"Tsk, it's good tuh bay young…"

(Tsk, it's good to be young…)

While doing the work, I was also scanning every corner of this place for something.

In the past timeline a guy had found a Mythril ring somewhere in the tavern while doing a clean up mission.

It happened when Etheria had just launched for 4 days, people were just having fun in those early days so no one really hid things and posted them on the forums to brag about.

If my theory is correct then some influential guy probably came over here for a drink while traveling and lost it here.

I maxed out the use of my enhanced sight and started scanning the whole place like a Lidar Sensor.

'Hmm, if I was in an affluent person's place then I would have sat at a more secluded and proper table…'

I broomed and collected the dust at the side and slowly made my way to the corner tables. Thankfully, the tavern was only a single floor.

As I made my way there, I still couldn't find the ring. In frustration, I started to broom a bit harder.

Suddenly, I saw something slightly shiny in between a crack in the wooden floor.

The Greed in me wanted to just snatch it right away but I controlled it. Thankfully, it wasn't as potent as my Pride and Lust.

I turned my neck slightly and saw Hank looking at us with scrutiny.

I acted normal and continued my job, like nothing had ever happened.

I decided to try my 'Compel' on him.

As I had expected, he had far more resistance and Mental Guard than a normal manaless person would. His mana was quite abundant at that. He was probably a retired combatant.

But at least he didn't seem to have any mental protection skills or items on him, and just had a relatively sturdy soul that had started to erode with age. There was still a chance for me.

I started to use the subtlest of 'Compel' that I could muster and 'Compelled' him to have more trust in us.

It would be a slow process, but time was something we didn't lack right now, especially for a Mythril Ring.

My Mana Regen could easily take care of such small continuous usage. Ah~ It was great to have mana in the atmosphere~

After some time, Irene and I were done with the brooming and fetched some cleaning rags from Hank.

He seemed a bit more gentle now and didn't click his tongue all the time. I could feel my 'Compel' slowly making some progress.

*Squeak* *Squeak*

As we were dusting the tables and chairs, I heard Hank wiping the glasses. He had finally stopped watching us.

My time had come.

One table at a time, I slowly made my way to the corner.

After I reached my destination, I started to clean the legs of the chairs.

My other hand slowly snuck into the crevice and grabbed hold of the metal ring. I took it out and sneakily put it in my pocket. There was no such thing as an 'Spatial Inventory' in this 'game'. If you had bags or Spatial storage Items, an 'Inventory' panel would be created for easy sorting and marking the item's ownership, that's it.

It would probably take too much resources from Akashic Record to create individual 'Spatial Storage Dimensions' for each player.

I resumed my work and didn't act suspiciously at all. One the side, I was still 'Compelling' him as much as I could. He could still give us some extra rewards if we did that. Quest rewards could be manipulated.

.

.

.

.

Finally, the work was done.

"Ah honestly thought thet yawl guys wuz robbers wheyun yawl came in with chur masks. But yawl both did uh great job! Hehe, She's lookin' kewyute fahn now, isn't shay? Ahl bay gittin' sum extra customers tuhday."

(I honestly thought that you guys were robbers when you came in with your masks. But you both did a great job! Hehe, She's looking quite fine now, isn't she? I'll be getting some extra customers today.)

I was quite embarrassed when I heard him. In my anger I didn't even consider his plight. Two masked people coming to your tavern, in the afternoon at that, was probably a very nerve-inducing experience for a retiree. Again, this prefaced how important it was to curb these outbursts.

"Don't worry about it. We just have our circumstances to put on these masks, but they are nothing criminal, I promise."

"Thet Ah can tell! Hare yawl go, Ahv put 5 coppers fahwar both uh yawl! Call it uh gift frum grandpa! Do come by thuh tavern sum tahms! Whuts chur levels anyways?"

(That I can tell! Here you go, I've put 5 coppers for both of you! Call it a gift from grandpa! Do come by the tavern some times! What is your levels anyways?)

[Congratulations! You have completed the Quest: "Clean up!"]

[Rewards: 5 Exp. 2 copper coins

Additional Rewards: 3 copper coins

"Uh, we're both still Level 1…"

"Yawl both hav been slackin' too much, Ah tell yawl! Wheyun Ah wuz chur age, Ah wuz swingin' swords in thuh mornin' an meditatin' at night! Yawl both don't saym lahk yawl hav weapons either!"

(You both have been slacking too much, I tell you! When I was your age, I was swinging swords in the morning and meditating at night! You both don't seem like you have weapons either.)

The Ethrians also had Akashic Record connected to them, giving them a system. The difference was that their systems only gave them a clear representation of their power and how to further progress their Bloodlines. They didn't have a leveling system like us, nor any of the other bells and whistles that Akashic Record had to create in order to make it look like a 'game system'.

They had to train in order to progress their physique and meditate in order to enlarge their Mana Pools further.

These 7 years were extremely precious to us Earthlings. I could not let them squader this chance in this timeline again.

"Hehe~ We'll manage somehow, Sir."

"Tsk, tsk, wait uh sekunt."

(Tsk, tsk, wait a second.)

*Crash* *Crash* *Crash*

He crouched down behind the counter and started to sift through his wares. When he came back up, he had two slightly big knives (a size bigger than kitchen knives) in his hands.

"Hare yawl go! Thet ode coot Raynar made these bayuddies uh size too big fahwar uh pocket knife. Take them, an don't die, too many youngsters don't come back hare after uh single visit."

(Here you go! That old coot Raynar made these baddies a size too big for a pocket knife. Take them, and don't die, too many youngsters don't come back here after a single visit.)

Vestiges of life and numbed sadness could be felt when he said those last words…

"This… Thank you for your consideration but we can't take them."

My consciousness and my Pride, both didn't want to take anymore from Hank. I was already feeling a bit guilty at using 'Compel' on him and 'ethically' looting him.

"Shut up an gist take them. Thay'll gist rust settin' hare. Gist visit thuh tavern wheyun yawl both start makin' sum money. It's an investment, yawl hear thet?! An investment!"

(Shut up and just take them. They'll just rust sitting here. Just visit the tavern when you both start making some money. It's an investment, you hear that?! An investment!)

I wanted to resist more but we were quite desperate too. In the end I relented and took a knife. Irene also came forward and took one for herself too.

"Thank you so much. I will never forget this favor."

My mind, heart and soul synced when I said those words.

"Me too! I'm gonna become super strong in the future! Just tell me if you ever need some ass-kickin'!"

"Hehe! Ahl look forward tuh it, lass. Now git movin'. Thuh sun iz still up, go do sum work. Thuh chieftess should hav sum proper work fahwar yawl."

(Hehe! I'll look forward to it, lass. Now get moving. The sun is still up, go do some work. The chieftess should have some proper work for you.)

We exited the tavern while saying our goodbyes to Hank.

"Hey Felix, why did he call himself grandpa? He looked like a middle-aged man to me."

"Did you forget that the lifespans of people with Mana are very long. In the culture here, being called a grandparent doesn't indicate old age. You probably have to be called great-great-grandparent in order to feel old here."

"Oooo! By the way, did you get the treasure?"

"Yep"

"What is it?"

"Close your eyes and give me your hands."

Irene was confused but still did as she was told.

I sneakily slipped the ring on her left ring finger while pressing and prodding other parts of her hands to confuse her. Thankfully the ring was a magic ring and adjusted to Irene's finger size as soon as I released some mana into it.

"Open your eyes, Babe."

Irene opened her eyes and expanded them further when she saw the ring on her finger.

The ring was quite simple. It was made of Whitish Silver Mythril and had glyphs engraved on it delicately.

"Babe, this is not the engagement ring. I'll make a proper one for you when the time comes. Just wait for a bit."

"Okay! But what does the ring do? I recognize most of the glyphs on it."

"Huhu~ l let's go level up and get the 'Observation Skill' to find out."

"Tsk, I know that you already know what it is, you tease!"

"Hehe, stop yapping and let's go kill some innocent and cute animals! We already got an advantage over everyone else with these knives!"

"Hey don't put it that way! It gives me the creeps!"

"Hehe"

(A/N: I'll be making the series in mostly Third-Person POV from now on, to pace things up. We've had enough Felix's POV to understand his thinking processes now.

Leave a power stone if you like my content…and…

Thank You all for reading this chapter!!!)