Chapter 30 Sneaking Off

"Damn it..."

"I've been complaining about needing rest for ages now but here I am" I sighed, I just couldn't find it in myself to fall asleep even though almost everyone else had already collapsed in the streets from partying all night.

"Oh well, I guess I'll find some other time to sleep" yawning loudly I began to make my way through the streets of tempest, there were still some people up but that probably wouldn't last long with how things were going.

"I know that you are there, so why don't you just come out already" the person who had been following me for a hot minute now finally showed himself.

"Mind telling me why you're sneaking off"

"Does it matter?" I asked while turning around to face those amber eyes of my adoptive father.

"No, not really" he hummed nonchalantly as he sat with his legs dangling down from the top of a building.

"What do you want?" I asked and he simply shrugged without much effort at all.

"I'm just curious as to why you aren't resting like everyone else"

"I'll sleep once I finish the shit I have to do" I probably should be trying to sleep but I just couldn't find the will to actually try. 

I was too on edge to be honest, I felt as if something bad would happen the moment that I shut my eyes and fell asleep. Also with so many people asleep or drunk I found it even harder to give in to my ever present exhaustion. So I ended up deciding to just get some of my plans started in hope of calming my mind a little.

"Language" he chuckled at the annoyed expression I gave him.

"Anyway, since when did you become such a workaholic?" I wanted to rebuke that but said nothing mostly because it was kind of true, even if it irritated me to admit it.

"Since I became a responsible person and started walking in your footsteps" I whispered under my breath but he still heard me.

"I'm so proud" I wanted to punch him in the face for that sarcastic remark.

"Just promise me you'll get some rest, you look like you need it" he hummed with a worried smile causing me to roll my eyes slightly.

"Fine...alright yeah fine, I'll get some sleep once I'm done" I'd at the very least try anyway.

"See you in the morning then" with that he vanished, he was probably heading back to the town center to check on everyone there.

"See ya" not waiting anymore I made my way through Tempest back home, more specifically I made my way back to my room.

"Haven't been in here for a while" I muttered as I waved my hand causing strings of magic to flow out of me and into the walls, ceiling and floor.

"That should stop people from just teleporting in here or listening in on me" enchanting the whole room was relatively simple all things considered.

(Maybe I should have told him...) I thought but quickly dismissed the idea.

"No...it's better this way" I hummed silently before nodding to reaffirm myself.

(And hey, if this works out as well as I hope it will, well, let's just say it's going to be one hell of a surprise) I chuckled at that while glancing around my room.

(This is something I need to do, to give them something back for what they have done for me) moving over to my bed I easily moved it out of the way before placing my hand on the wooden floor.

"Alright, time to get to work" as I spoke the floor began to warp and change.

With the help of certain abilities I was able to not only create a secret entrance but I was also able to create a staircase going down to a rather large and open underground room. The room was filled with shelves, glass containers and various other things you could see in a laboratory. I also took my time to hide this place even more by enchanting the whole room with some of my own skills and enchantments.

(In hindsight it might have been best to build this within the abyss but for right now I'll just start here. I can just move my more dangerous and secretive experiments over there when the time comes anyway so whatever) if I was being honest with myself I just didn't really want to spend a lot of time away from Tempest at the moment.

"Anyway, let's get started shall we" I muttered while cracking my fingers.

"First thing's first then" with a quick wave of my hand a small black sphere about the size of a baseball appeared in front of me

"The size shouldn't actually matter mostly because I'm able to warp the space inside of it however I want" I said to myself while narrowing my focus. I don't know why but talking out loud just helps me work even if it looks weird to those watching, not that there was anyone else here with me but still.

"But what about..." I mused as I began changing the inside of the sphere.

I began to increase and decrease the complexity of the world inside the sphere. I created mountains, rivers, forests and filled them with all kinds of wildlife that acted almost perfectly to how their real-like counterparts would. I then ended up removing all of it and replacing it with a simple and completely plain white void with nothing in it. I was using this as a test but also as a way to practice my proficiency with this skill. I had needed Raphael's help before but now with my Unlimited Proficiency skill I could figure out how to do it on my own.

"So the more complicated I make the inner workings and environment the greater the drain on me...that's not ideal" I cursed softly, it appeared that I had hit my first major roadblock.

"And the moment that I stop giving it magicules..." the Sphere crumbled and disappeared the moment I stopped supplying it with power.

"It breaks apart into nothingness" I sighed knowing that this would be harder than I originally had expected it to be.

(I need a work around if I'm going to get this working how I need it too) I thought as I began to try various things but I would soon find that nothing I tried would actually work.

"Shit..." I hissed as I once again watched as the sphere fell apart like a ball of loose sand.

"I can't keep supplying it with magicules twenty four seven. In fact even with my absurd amount of power it would be a drain on me and this is only with just one of them, if my plan actually ends up working out I could have thousands of these active at one time. So in the end even I wouldn't be able to maintain something like that for long" I grumbled in frustration as I tapped one of my horns in thought.

"So what exactly am I to do?" I hummed but nothing came to mind at that moment.

"This might take me longer than I expected...but hey, it wouldn't be fun if it wasn't challenging" I smiled, I had gotten used to frustratingly complicated experiments like this.

"I need some way to keep it stable and constantly supplied with power..." I rested my head on my hands and began to brainstorm possible ideas.

"If...if I think of it like a computer or some other electronic device then that makes it simpler. It needs power to function and without power it shuts down, the problem is that generating magicules is a hell of a lot harder than generating electricity" I clicked my tongue as I created another sphere.

"I can't use black blood either as bringing large amounts of it here could cause unseen problems down the road, especially if I'm not constantly monitoring it"

"A way to get a steady and constant stream of magicules...wait!" That's when it finally hit me, a solution I hadn't even considered until now.

(Raphael) I called out through the link I shared with Rimuru and immediately got a response.

[Yes?]

(Do magicules regenerate over time? Not the magicules inside us monsters but the ones that fill the environment around us, do they regenerate over time if they are used in large amounts?) I asked as a somewhat rough plan began to form in my mind.

[Magicules within the environment will be replenished if used, however this process can take some time depending on the exact amount that is used. Do note however that actually depleting an area of magicules completely is an incredibly difficult task for most people] she explained and I grinned.

(Thanks Raphael) I said with some excitement that was clear in my thoughts.

[You are welcome Suu] she responded before leaving my mind.

"I got it!" I yelled once she had fully retracted her consciousness from me.

"I don't have to constantly supply them with magicules, not if I can make something like a generator that pulls them in or collects them instead of creating them..." There were still some pieces missing but if I could find a few key things then it was definitely possible.

"Seems I'll be able to pull this off after all, let's give it a try..."