Construction Mage - Chapter 9: Windfall

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After giving Clay a moment to settle down, the talks about reparations continued.

“Ahem,” Commander Kayston cleared his throat. “It seems the victim’s side would like one of your skill books as reparation. What do you say to that?” He turned his gaze to the red-haired woman.

Alara quickly leaned in toward his companions and whispered amongst themselves before turning to Clay.

“Sir Clayton, we unfortunately do not have the skill book you seek. We don’t believe we’ll be able to trade for it either, as we do not have any connections to those who deal with nobles, but we can instead give you the Meditate skill book we are in possession of. Its value is approximately the same as the Earthen Wall spell since it is a general skill any class can learn. What do you say?”

“Even the cheapest skill book goes for a hundred thousand Lyons,” Garrick’s wife, Thalia, whispered into Clay’s ear. 

“So I should accept as it is?” Clay whispered back.

“Yes, it’s a great deal. In fact, the typical price it sells for is greater than what we’re asking for if we were to turn to the open market. Most Delvers chose to barter skill books with their peers, so their rarity inflates their worth.”

Hearing that was enough for Clayton. He may not know what the Meditate skill did, but it was already a great windfall that suddenly fell on his lap. There was no need to cause trouble and push for anything more, especially against kids.

“I accept.”

Arbiter Kayston nodded to his words. “Well then, I believe we have come to a resolution. That is, unless someone has something else to add?”

A quick look around the room showed no one making a move, so the commander clapped his hands together, marking an end to the matter.

“Please hand over the skill book immediately, and then you may all go.”

The red-haired girl turned to the man in plate armor, who sighed and glanced over at their stocky peer in turn. The man took a moment to ruffle through his backpack, which was as large as he was, and fetched out a book with a plain leather cover.

The commander inspected the item before pushing it over to Clay. The large man excitedly picked it up right away.

[Common - Meditate(I): A skill that puts the user into a meditative state, hastening their recovery of stamina and mana. Requires 10 points in Wisdom to learn. Learn now? (Yes/No)]

It’s no Earthen Wall, but this fits me quite well! Even if I don’t find a place to use it while in the dungeon, I can use it outside and prepare for a second run. With this, maybe I can focus my stat points on something else the next time I level up, too.

Clay almost wanted to select yes right away, but seeing the Delvers across from him getting up made him pause. He had no experience using a skill book, and didn’t know how it would affect him. Reining in his urge, Clay decided to wait until he was alone.

He watched as his seniors left, none of them bothering to acknowledge him. It didn’t surprise him, considering he was the reason they took a financial hit. Countless times, he had seen part-time kids being scolded by wealthy customers for shortchanging them a few cents. No matter how rich someone was, he knew most didn’t take well to any kind of losses, no matter how negligible.

They swiftly filed out of the room, leaving behind Commander Kayston, Thalia, and Clay.

“Well,” Thalia called out, grabbing the attention. “Since I’m here already, why don’t you bring out the ledgers for me, Commander Kayston? I’d like to take a look while I continue my lessons with my student here.”

“Of course,”

Then the man was gone. It was like he teleported. Clay sighed upon noticing his teacher’s gaze. He knew he had it coming for skipping out of lessons without a word, but he didn’t regret it. Back then, he could get by with what he had already learned. It made no sense for him to lose precious hours of rest to continue his education when he was already exhausted and starving from a day’s work.

Hmm, it’s not a bad idea to learn more now, though. Once I settle down, reading a book is probably the best source of entertainment I’ll get in a world without the internet and TV.

***

After spending the remainder of the afternoon going through ledgers and learning how to read and write with Thalia, Clay was finally able to return to his little haven in Myrilune’s Cove.

The first thing he did upon his return was to go to the well out in the courtyard to fetch some water. He didn’t hesitate to pour the first bucket all over himself to wash out the filth from sitting in a musty cell for half the day. Clay didn’t care about how cold the water was or the cool evening breeze.

This is way better than what I had to endure out on the worksite. No wells were around there, with the closest water source being a kilometer away. I had to carry heavy buckets back, and most of the time, I had to make do with a damp piece of cloth to wipe myself clean instead of getting a good wash in. 

I really miss a nice hot shower and having water come out from the tap whenever I want.

Shaking the water and the idle thoughts out of his mind, Clay quickly returned to his room. It was getting dark, so he lit up the candle on the desk and pulled out the skill book.

Selecting yes this time when prompted, the book transformed into tiny motes of golden light and evaporated away. The light show vanished before it even made it halfway to the ceiling.

Clay took a moment to inspect himself, twisting and turning to take a look at different parts of his body. The movement also heated his cold body up while the wet clothes clinging to him dried.

I don’t feel anything, but that’s just how it goes, I guess. Just like with the stat increases.

He then brought up the status screen to confirm the effects of the skill book.

Status:

Name: Clayton Stratton

Age: 30

Class: Earth Mage [Apprentice] - Level 1

Profession: [None]

Resources:

Health - 100%

Stamina - 112/112 [1.6/min]

Mana - 95/100 [2.4/min]

Stats [Mage]:

Stat Points: 0

Strength: 15

Endurance: 16

Agility: 10

Dexterity: 9

Intelligence: 10

Wisdom: 12

Skills:

Spell Manipulation(I): 1

Earth Blast(I): 1

Meditate(I): 1

Perfect. My third skill, and the first learned one. 

Satisfied with the results, Clay proceeded to get changed into the new set of clothes he had bought. He hung the old ones on the chair to dry and went over his equipment.

The clerk at the leatherworking workshop had sold him on the importance of maintenance, so he took out a bottle of oil and began tending to his gear. That included the chest piece, leggings, gloves, and boots.

Once he was done, he lay down on the sorry excuse for a bed and glanced over at everything he owned. Just some clothes, a shovel, and a set of leather armor. Seeing this, he couldn’t help but let out a wistful sigh.

I have nothing left connecting me to my old world. Who knows where my wallet and phone went? Probably sent flying when the truck hit me. My clothes and shoes were all sold to secure my seed fund. I’ve really become someone indistinguishable from the natives of this world now.

He began reminiscing about his old life. It was tough to make ends meet, sure, but when compared to what he had to deal with now, it was heaven. He knew he had taken it for granted and yearned for that kind of life again, but reality was harsh.

Lying on his bed with nothing to do, he stared out the window with a blank look. It felt off, no longer being assaulted by the night breeze throughout the entire night. He actually had a roof over his head—a proper shelter to spend the night in. There was no need to be so vigilant of his surroundings anymore. He could relax. 

That was until nature called. 

He let out another sigh, this time a weary one, as he got up to grab the empty bucket in the corner of the room, along with the one he filled with water in preparation to wash his hands.

What a life. Shitting in a bucket and pissing in a jar. I should’ve been more grateful for what I had.

Emptying his mind, he tried not to think about the leaves he had to use instead of toilet paper and swiftly finished his business before diving into bed.

***

The next day, he had woken up with the first light. Perhaps it was the unfamiliar bed or the excitement of having become a Delver; either way, he couldn’t sleep in. The bathroom visit from last night reminded him how much he hated his current life. Sure, defecating in the privacy of a room was much better than outdoors, but this wasn’t the type of life he wanted to continue living. After all, what respectable modern person was satisfied with shitting in a bucket?

As soon as he woke up, his mind was focused on a new project. He would build his own toilet. While he didn’t know how to make the familiar porcelain bowl, he was determined to at least scrounge up something sittable. 

The first challenge at hand was the constraint of materials. There was nothing on hand, and he didn’t have much money left, either. That’s why his option‌ fell on what he planned to rely on in the foreseeable future—magic.

Pointing his palm at his bed, he began casting an Earth Blast, but consciously tried to manipulate the spell instead of just letting it go on autopilot. 

Dexterity was a stat that allowed him to control the throughout of his magic, and he also had a skill called Spell Manipulation. Clay tried to leverage that best he could, attempting to will his spell into a rectangular block. 

Unfortunately, the results weren’t as stellar as he had hoped. His efforts did have some effect, but the block of hardened earth seemed more like it had been shaped by some toddler while they were playing around in a sandbox. 

I don’t think I’ll be able to stack this, with all the bumps and ridges it has. I’ll have to add a lot of water if I want to reshape it into anything usable. Wait, that’s exactly what I should do instead of creating more abominations—at least until my dexterity and Spell Manipulation skill have leveled up some more.

With an idea in mind, Clay went straight to work. He fired off several Earth Blasts into the hay that made his bed and collected it all. He then retrieved a bucket of water to soften up the material. He drew on his old ceramics class experience to shape it into a ‘U’ shape. After a whole hour of hard work, he finally got something that resembled a toilet seat.

All that time to make this ugly mess. I hope it’s at least usable after it dries. Now that I think about it, maybe I should’ve hired a craftsman to make a toilet seat for me using wood or whatever. This didn’t cost me anything, but—I’ll just wait and see how it dries for now, I guess.

After setting aside his artistic creation by the window to dry, he went down to the dining hall, spending thirty Lyons on a hearty breakfast that had some meat before making his way to the dungeon.

He repeated his strategy from the day before, searching for a trail that led to the exit as soon as he entered the withered forest of the first layer.

With every Feral Kobold he met, he fired off an Earth Blast first before resorting to his shovel. Some hit, some didn’t, but the few that did managed to stagger the oversized pest and slow its movements down. He suspected it had fractured or broken some of its bones, but it still took too long to cast and did too little damage to rely on.

That didn’t mean he would stop using it, though. As someone who had played games in the past, he knew the importance of spamming his skills to grind their levels up. So far, all three of his skills were level one, and he was hoping to change that.

Whether it was luck or not, Clay eventually found the white pagoda that was his ticket out of here. It only took him an hour and a half this time, so he didn’t exit immediately. Instead, he ventured around the pagoda, making a ruckus to lure more Feral Kobolds in.

There was something he wanted to do with their remains today, so he went until he could carry no more.

The artificial sun in the first layer of the dungeon mimicked the movements of the real sun outside. By the time he had collected as much as he could carry, it was almost noon.

Upon exiting the dungeon this time, he didn’t go to the stalls nearby to sell his loot. He strode out of the Delver enclosure and went into the heart of the second ring.

He headed straight for the same leather workshop he had bought his armor from and slammed down a burlap sack full of rats. The clerk was stunned at the sudden intrusion, staring at the newcomer towering over her.

“Can you teach me how to skin these things?”

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