bookpower Chapter 227 – Rambert
Chapter 227 – Rambert
“For a second there, I wasn’t sure you’d help us.” Percy said.
“What choice did I even have?” Rambert shrugged as he walked closer.
The only reason he was alive was because Percy had turned him into a clone. Of course, Percy had been pretty banged up after their battle, but Micky had made things easier for him by eating Grian’s soul.
“I’ve upheld my end of the bargain. Betrayed my House for you. Even rushed here to save you from the fucking Divine Root. It’s time to do your part.”
Percy nodded. Naturally, Rambert wouldn’t have helped the man who’d killed him out of kindness. His hastily stitched-up soul wouldn’t hold by itself. Percy had intentionally left the seals incomplete, as a fail-safe in case Rambert decided to betray him.
And that wasn’t even the biggest issue. Ironically, it was the Moirais’ Decree that did the most harm, by sucking out any life mana Rambert tried to use to heal his body. This was why he was still in this decrepit state despite his bloodline. Even after slaughtering every single resident of Bogside town, it wouldn’t have been enough to repair his second core. Not that Percy would have ever allowed him to commit such an atrocity – of course.
Currently, there was only one person in the entire province capable of fixing Rambert in time, and he couldn’t even hope to set up a meeting with Archibald unless Percy talked to his grandpa first.
“I promised you a chance, not a certainty. And things have gotten even more complicated since then. Before we dive into the details, I’ll need to confirm a few things with you.” Percy replied.
Walking by his side, Nesha helped him up. She looked a little better than before, the potion having lifted the bulk of her exhaustion. Still, Percy wouldn’t have involved her in this fight if he could’ve helped it. While she’d already proven herself, her mobility and defences were lacking. Had the fight lasted longer, or had Percy not already deciphered Jason’s abilities, things could have gone badly. This was why he’d hoped to take him down by himself. Sadly, things hadn’t gone to plan...
“Just do what you must.” Rambert nodded.
“To start, I’ll need your word that you’ll never tell a soul about my secrets. In fact, you shouldn’t even mention me or Nesha again.”
Rambert grimaced upon hearing his first demand. Percy didn’t press him either, waiting for him to come to terms. Of course, they both knew that Rambert hated him with a passion – it wasn’t like he’d hidden it – but he’d have to make some concessions if he wanted to walk out of this forest alive.
Even giving him this chance was merely out of principle. Now that Percy had gotten everything he needed from Rambert, it would be easier and safer to just dispose of him. Whether Rambert survived would all depend on his answers.
“Fine.” Rambert spat after a while. “I won’t pretend to like it, but I’ve seen enough that I don’t ever want to involve myself with you again. Besides, I’m sure the Divine Root will get to you soon enough...”
Percy listened to Rambert’s answer while paying close attention to Nesha with his Mana Sense. Only after failing to get a reaction did he allow himself to relax.
“Next, swear you’ll never lay a finger on any member of House Avalon.”
“Tsch. A bit much, isn’t it?!” Rambert snarled.
“Rambert, I’m not playing games with you. Do as I ask or our deal is off.” Percy stared at him coldly.
“Listen, pal... I’ve no intention of participating in this war a moment longer. Or even staying in this province for that matter. My family is bound to figure out I’ve robbed them clean, if they haven’t already. I want nothing more than to get healed and run halfway across Remior.”
“That’s not what I asked.” Percy didn’t relent.
But Rambert gritted his teeth.hough his involvement couldn’t be understated, regardless. After all, it was through him that Percy had managed to coordinate with Nesha.
In any case, the familiar started with Jason’s body, apparently finding it a great deal more appetizing. Percy ignored him, searching Rambert’s corpse instead. It didn’t take him long to find the five spatial amulets the dead mage had stolen from his family’s vault, stuffing them with elixirs.
“Wow! How many are there?” Nesha asked.
“According to our estimates, around 175 thousand doses. Their entire stash for the next three years.” Percy replied, checking the storage devices one after the other.
“That much?!” Nesha was taken aback.
Percy shrugged.
“It’s a little more than the standard, but they’ve also lost a lot of people during the war. It must’ve massively cut their consumption down...”
Each of the amulets was no larger than his own, containing about one cubic metre of space. Naturally, that was plenty to accommodate tens of thousands of the pinky-sized vials, though Rambert had still been forced to pack them quite tightly to make all of them fit.
“Percy... with this much...” Nesha spoke again, apparently having done the math in her head.
“Indeed. They should last us for well over a decade. Enough for all of us to advance. And we can do that even faster, once we make it to the Thirsty Valley...”
Next, he scratched his head upon thinking of a problem.
“I’m almost out of rainbow grass. We’ll need to get more within the next couple of months.”
“It won’t be easy. Now that the Divine Root knows it’s part of the recipe, they’ll have their eyes out for any large movements.”
Percy sighed. It was true, though he didn’t regret telling Deimos about it. He still hoped they wouldn’t give Orin much trouble. Besides, they’d probably figured that part out already. At any rate, this meant they’d have to be more careful when procuring it. That, or Percy would have to find a different deattunement ingredient to replace it – neither of which was going to be easy.
“At least, Jason is dead. Hopefully, they don’t have any other karma users.”
Neither he nor Nesha said anything else. Instead, they took a seat by the base of a nearby tree, watching Micky as he disposed of the bodies. It was a rather disturbing scene, as always, but Percy was happy to see his familiar a lot more energetic than he’d been in weeks. As good as Regulation was, it couldn’t entirely replace a proper meal.
‘It’ll make our journey easier, at least...’ he smiled.
Next, he looked down in his hand, fiddling with a small box he’d also looted from Rambert. An unexpected treasure.
“What’s that?” Nesha asked, apparently only now noticing it.
Percy’s lips couldn’t help but part upon hearing the question, revealing a bright, toothy grin. Opening the latch on the box, he lifted its lid, as both of their eyes landed on the aquamarine-coloured object shimmering within.
It looked a little like a petal, though it was rather oblong. Furthermore, it had an oval hole in its middle, the rest of its surface looping around it. In fact, its glow seemed to travel in wave-like patterns around the petal, almost giving it the appearance of a river...
“Is that what I think it is?!” Nesha seemed to have put two and two together.
“Yeap...”