BXBX NOVEL Chapter 132: Assimilation (3)
His eyes met with Viktor\'s.
"You look stronger," Viktor said.
This impression didn\'t stem from Jake\'s level-ups in the dungeon. Viktor could tell that something significant had changed within Jake.
It could be a new experience that had shaped him into whoever he was now or something else.
"I\'ve returned with a backpack of experiences, just like I told you I would," Jake chuckled. We have a lot to talk about, but I don\'t see Master Aaron here. Let\'s postpone our talk for later. I\'ll call him here."
Viktor nonchalantly nodded.
He didn\'t dwell too much on Jake\'s change and returned to work. He was a little slower than usual, meaning his head wasn\'t empty of thoughts.
Jake smiled and turned around.
There was an important, impending conversation between him, Viktor, and Aaron. It involved Viktor\'s attitude and willingness to help Jake with his archery.
\'It has to be related to his imperial household,\' Jake thought as he left the workplace. He manifested his game system and headed to his friend list.
His friends and sister were online like usual, grinding whenever possible.
Jake also saw that his new friends, Prince and Sin, were also online.
He clicked on Prince\'s name and messaged him.
[Archer: Are you in the capital? I want to have a talk at the table.]
[Prince: Time\'s priceless, my dark horse! Our endeavors, however, make our moments more precious than any currency! You need me or us now?]
[Archer: It\'d be good to have you two come.]
[Prince: Give us a few minutes. Where you want to talk?]
[Archer: Red Moon Restaurant. I\'ll be here soon, too.]
Jake closed off his game system and casually headed to Last Night, The Warmonger Empire\'s Capital.
He didn\'t let the bounty get to his head.
Not only was he close to the capital, but Jake also believed that unnecessary battles between him and the three guilds vying for The Warmonger Empire\'s Imperial Family\'s connections would not favor the latter.
In fact, he was confident it\'d work in the opposite way and only trouble the guilds more.
That said, if Jake were to enter a dark alley, no one would come to his aid.
\'I\'ve thought about it for a whole night and during lectures,\' Jake reminded himself. \'I\'m not making any money off this game, and I\'m putting in so much time into it that I should at least get some pocket money myself. I must sell Cerberus to Prince. He\'s the best person I could sell it to.\'
After hours of contemplation, Jake had come to the decision that selling Cerberus was the best option for him.
He\'d already told himself back on the tutorial island that he could carry up to four summons.
It wasn\'t like he sacrificed a lot of time for them, either.
Getting a fifth one would meddle with his schedule and plans.
\'If I exclude the casual quest with Mary and Robert, I haven\'t given enough time and attention to Medusa,\' Jake thought. His tattoo on his left chest heated up. \'Oh, come on! Don\'t listen to me right now! I promise to try Assimilation with you soon, so wait for your turn! I\'ll also play a hunting game with you.
I\'ll shoot arrows with mice lodged on the arrow points and have you chase after them.\'
Jake grunted.
His chest burned so much that he thought he had gotten a heart attack.
But it was Medusa\'s happiness that folded him.
He helplessly smiled and resumed his walk.
Jake\'s summons played a significant role in his strength. Those were legendary existences with powers the closest to the purest mana. He could learn much from them and rely on them in dire times!
They enabled him so much that Jake couldn\'t bring himself to take more summons until he had developed his current companions to the level in which they could speak and fend for themselves.
Jake would never allow himself to treat his summons like sources of power and nothing more. With more summons in his team, he\'d inevitably fall into that trap, so he held himself back.
Join us at mvlemp _yr now.
His legendary class had infinite potential, so it wasn\'t like Jake was losing a great source of power! He could develop so much more with his current companions!
Everyone agreed with Jake. There was even a heated battle between Ender and Odin for who had the more potential, causing Jake to sweat like a pig.
\'Stop listening to me now!\' Jake screamed.
No one cared.
Of course, losing Cerberus meant that Jake potentially would lose on Cerberus\' Quest. Cerberus also had a connection to Hades, who was known to be a god of the underworld. The Lord of Death.
Prince was an undead, so Cerberus suited him.
Jake, however, wouldn\'t give up on this quest as easily.
\'I can\'t come and tell them that I will sell Cerberus to them only if they agree to take me along to the quests related to him. I can\'t be oblivious to it either, as we aren\'t close friends. Well, I\'ve thought about it, so I should be able to get the bargain done,\' Jake thought.
Jake mainly chose Prince to sell him Cerberus because he wanted to reciprocate him and his sister for their help and sacrifice.
Prince was also rich, so he could afford the legendary summon. Jake\'s rational side made him think about his own benefits, and he was now an adult who should think of himself the most.
It all converged into Jake\'s steel decision.
At last, Jake was before the restaurant.
He\'d been there with Mary and Robert before, and now he brought two unusual players with him.
"Oh, my dark horse—" Prince spoke in his artistic tone.
Sin elbowed his armor and said, "Good afternoon."
"Hi guys," Jake chuckled. "I guess we have to book a private room upstairs."
Because Prince didn\'t want to expose his face, Jake was forced to take a room on the second floor of the restaurant for their talk. It cost more, but he paid for it since it was his decision to come here.
He also had enough money as he had sold the epic skill before.
Jake began the casual talk and then spent his time talking about his experiences after the siblings\' sacrifice. He told them that he had managed to steal the legendary boss, commanded Ender to snatch the loot, and that he had entered the golden door.
It was unknown what Ender\'s darkness had done to Cerberus\' loot. It could have been obliterated into nothingness or spat out somewhere around The Condemned Dungeon or inside its corridors.
No one knew.
Damien and Rebecca grinned.
They liked that choice.
"I don\'t know what that golden door was. It could be a door to Hades\' treasury, right? Anyway, I got skills from it, nothing physical, so I can\'t share them with you guys… but, well, you guys must have realized that I don\'t have a normal archer class," Jake faintly smiled.
The siblings nodded in sync.
Jake laughed, "Because of my class, I\'ve extracted the fifth summon. I want to sell it to you."
"Sell?" Damien leaned forward and cast his smile at Jake. "You\'re such a selfish man, my dark horse. The days we\'ve spent together in the corridors of darkness, where we bathed in blood and sweat, mean nothing to you? What about our heartbreaking sacrifice?!"
Sin only side-glanced at her brother and decided not to speak at all.
"It means a lot. I also have smelled Sin\'s perfume so much that I nearly got a headache," Jake smiled.
Prince dismissively waved his hand, "Get used to them!"
"Yeah, shut up," Jake instantly replied with a broad smile.
Sin chuckled.
Damien sank into his chair and crossed his arms, "You got me here, Jake. I\'d not give something as precious as a legendary summon for free, either. How much do you want?"
Jake gulped.
Legendary weapons and skills were already on the market, but they were still new and sold for an astronomical amount of gold coins. If a player converted those gold coins into real money, they\'d be able to get two cars or maybe even more!
Jake wasn\'t sure about it as he didn\'t have that much experience.
He only saw numbers, and those made him nervous.
"I… I was thinking of twenty-five thousand dollars… but I can give you a discount and lower it to fifteen thousand dollars. I will also share my experience with you," Jake spoke slowly, barely managing to utter those words.
Getting so much money through a game felt unreal to him.
It was also a single summon.
Jake understood how precious Cerberus was, but it was still difficult to talk about those numbers. He hadn\'t worked a part-time job yet, and all Jake\'s money came from his parents. He helped them with various tasks and got an allowance from them, but that wasn\'t even comparable to what true adults had gone through.
"Just twenty-five thousand dollars? Discount? You\'re looking down on me and yourself, my dark horse! Your experience is definitely not worth ten thousand dollars! Heck it! I will pay your tax for that transaction myself," Damien said.
Hearing this man\'s words, it felt like all life evaporated from Jake.
He stared at him with fish-like eyes.
Jake was at such a loss of words that he couldn\'t continue his plan…