Alpha Zero (Alpha LitRPG Book 1) by Arthur Stone (top 5 books to read TXT) 📕

“You’re a mage?” the ghoul inquired warily.

“Not quite. But my magic works. Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.”

I wasn’t going to clarify that, as of today, of all the people on my blacklist, death had only gotten to Treya.

Or that my so-called mother hadn’t died by my hand.

There was no reason for my modest army to be privy to such demoralizing details. Tomorrow we were going into battle, so it would behoove us to keep up morale.

“What is your degree of enlightenment, Beko?”

“Third.”

“And you’re an omega, I assume?”

“Yes. They say I’m a weak omega. I don’t understand what it is. Nobody wants to teach me.”

“It’s all right, I’ll teach you. How old are you?”

“I don’t know. This winter Megaera said that I must be over fifteen.”

“No kidding! You’re big, then.”

“Satat is bigger. He’s fifteen, too, but taller than me. And stronger.”

“That’s fine. The bigger they are, the harder they fall.”

“You think Satat will fall? Why? I’ve never even seen him stumble!”

“Uh, never mind. It’s just an expression where I come from. Anyway, let’s get to bed or we won’t be rested tomorrow.”

“Let’s. I wish I’d been asleep long ago. When you sleep, you don’t feel hungry.”

Chapter 15 Knife with a Surprise

No Stat Changes

Come morning, the only signs of the storm raging through the night were puddles of mud. The sky was blue and clear, the rising sun unblurred against the horizon.

We breakfasted on modest portions of bread and lard before setting out in search of work. Beko brought me to an elderly woman who issued us a basket, shaking her head as she informed us that the basket had been returned to her yesterday by Little Tatai, empty of everything but the scent of wild leeks. She had deduced the rest. Still, if we could try our best to make sure the spoils of the day end up with her and not with Fatso Oren, she would appreciate it, and so would the miners. Otherwise, they would be once again deprived of the tasty seasoning in their pottage.

Despite her namesake from my former life—a wicked fury from Greek myths—Megaera ended up being a kind and pleasant lady. So kind, in fact, that she gave us each a portion of yesterday’s barley porridge. It was revolting to the taste, but our team needed energy, so we thanked her profusely for her generosity.

Then Beko led me to the passage in the main wall. It was closed for the night by an iron lattice gate, but wide open in the light of day. Downhill, dozens of tiny vegetable gardens painted green every square foot of flat surface. And further down, at the foot of the mountain, a raised awning provided cover for drying nets. Seeing as the locals dealing with farming and fishing were constantly running inside and out, keeping a guard detail in charge of closing and opening the gate would be a waste of resources.

As we descended the meandering path, I tried to commit to memory every possible detail for analysis. The gardens were unimpressive, at least when compared to Teshimi’s handiwork. The Crow Clan’s late harvester would plan out every inch of soil, resulting in perfectly neat and delicate patches, whereas these were a mess of greenery and easy-to-grow tubers. Just about anyone could grow such plants, no special skills required. Heck, even I would manage it with some basic instruction. The gardens were tended to exclusively by women of varying ages. A pair of the younger ones passed by us, Dutch hoes at the ready.

Down below, a fishing boat was being pulled ashore as a couple of men were moving towards us, carrying a basket without visible effort.

As we passed by, I glanced inside. That explains it. I was disappointed to see maybe fifteen-twenty pounds of fish. The fort housed several hundred people, young and old—no way such hauls would be enough to feed them all.

Upon our arrived, a short sandy-haired fella turned away from the banked boat.

“Where are the Carps?”

“I don’t know...” Beko replied, his voice trembling.

The very mention of his nemeses had him reeling.

“Chaos take them!” the lad boomed, frowning. “The nets need cleaning. We’re catching nothing but weeds today, barely any fish.”

“Perhaps tomorrow there’ll be a better haul,” I suggested politely.

“Why would it be better? Ain’t nothing but juvenile kote swarming the waters. They avoid our nets and scare away all the regular fish. And you can’t even take a dip in the deeper parts cause of those beasts... Are you done wasting my time now or have you got more suggestions? Scram!”

I grumbled under my breath as we turned to go.

“Not the friendliest type.”

“That’s Romris. He’s always angry. And Satat’s cousin,” Beko explained warily. “If anyone hurts Satat, he runs and tattles to his cousin right away.”

“So if we give Satat a thrashing, we’ll have this shorty to deal with?”

“Uh-huh. They’ll take everything again. But I won’t let them! Not this time! It’s mine! Mine!”

“I’m starting to wonder what it is you’re hiding from them with such vigor,” I chuckled, but seeing Beko immediately tense up, rushed to reassure him. “Relax, I’m just kidding. Even if you’re hiding the emperor’s own crown in your trousers, that’s your business.”

“Are you sure you’re not trying to take mine in exchange for the lard?” Beko inquired, still wary.

“No. Whatever you’re hiding, it is clearly more valuable than my lard. But let’s get down to business.”

“What business?” the ghoul looked puzzled.

“Wild leek. Where is it?”

“It grows further down, where the ground is pebbled. It grows quickly. We need to pick young stalks only. The youngest. Those are soft. Old ones are tough and don’t smell as good. And the