A Mountain of Loot
They took about an hour to move all the corpses. There were at least forty-five of those enormous insects. Luckily, at some point they managed to remember the palanquin Joe and Dean had built long ago to carry the animals they hunted, so they went back to get it and forced Joe to haul it while the others piled up all the bodies in one place.
After leaving them right next to Lua's house, everyone sat down to rest, a mix of exhaustion and relief settling over them.
"Why were all of us punished?" Racher complained, letting out a sigh that sounded more like a lament. Even though he was a ghost—just like Edward, the slime—he could still use his skill to touch physical objects or equip tools. Still, his strength was the lowest in the entire group.
Lua, standing with her arms crossed, watched them in silence before answering calmly:
"Because the spiritual race is a collective. If someone gets in trouble, everyone is in trouble. If one is in danger, everyone is in danger. And if one becomes strong, everyone grows stronger together."
Her words hung in the air like a quiet lesson that none of them dared to challenge.
Without saying anything else, Lua first added Liora to the party before activating the collection of all the corpses. As soon as she did, the bodies began to glow with a pale light until they transformed into an enormous pile of materials and objects that covered most of the ground.
All the players stared in complete silence, their expressions a mix of surprise and resignation.
"That's cheating…" Sig muttered under his breath, visibly annoyed. He wasn't just talking about Lua's ability to instantly turn everything into loot, but also about the fact she kept all the corpses for herself. Still, they couldn't really complain—after all, it was their own fault. If Lua hadn't been there, the village—which was barely under construction—would have been destroyed.
Liora, without waiting for any instruction, ran straight to the mountain of items and started picking them up with contagious energy, storing them in the bag Lua had given her.
Lua allowed herself a small smile as she watched her, then also stepped forward to collect some materials.
"Lua, look," Liora said suddenly, stopping as she held up a strange necklace. The accessory had a small ant sealed inside a transparent capsule.
Lua stopped what she was doing and came closer, intrigued. The other players followed too, trying to contain their curiosity.
"Avid Ant Necklace"
[Rare Quality]
Type: Accessory (Necklace)
Main Effect:
Allows the user to summon an Avid Ant, a small pet creature that automatically collects items dropped when enemies defeated by the user or their group.
Automatic Collection: The ant picks up 1 item every 3 seconds.
• Restrictions: It does not collect items belonging to other players outside the group.
• Simultaneous Item Limit: It can carry up to 2 items at a time before returning them to the player.
• Active Pet Limit: Each player can have up to 3 collecting pets active at the same time.
• Speed Factors: Its collection speed varies depending on the ant's level, how well-fed it is, and its loyalty.
• Interaction: Can be fed special food to temporarily increase collection speed and strengthen its bond with the user.
Durability: Unlimited (the creature does not die, but may refuse to work if it goes unfed for too long).
Description:
A necklace forged in blackened silver, with a tiny transparent container where the Avid Ant rests. Its pincers, although small, can carry over a hundred times its own weight. When activated, it rushes out to gather loot with almost comical enthusiasm, waving its antennae from side to side. Despite its voracious nature, it strictly follows the rules of looting and never steals from other players.
Notes:
– The bond with the ant increases if it is fed regularly.
– If not fed for 3 days, its collection speed decreases by 50% until it eats again.
– Feeding it refined sugar increases loyalty and grants a small temporary speed bonus.
– It can evolve if it reaches a high level of loyalty and perfect feeding for 7 consecutive days.
– Remember: the maximum limit of active collecting pets per player is 3.
"That's actually amazing… and totally broken," Sig exclaimed, raising his voice as he stepped closer, his eyes gleaming with interest.
The others also approached, fascinated by the discovery.
"Look, there are more over there," Loli said, leaning down to look through the scattered loot. Among all the materials, at least five more identical necklaces could be seen.
Lua picked one up with a thoughtful expression. She had never seen anything like it.
"How are these even made?" Lua asked quietly, turning to S.I.A.
"Uh… um… I don't know. Should I try to look it up?" S.I.A. replied quickly.
"No. It's not necessary. I'm just curious… after all, they were ants that used to attack us," Lua said calmly, handing three of the necklaces to Liora.
"For me?" Liora asked in surprise, her eyes bright with a little excitement. Even if she didn't fully understand what everyone else was saying, the item seemed beautiful to her.
"Put them on. They'll help you. You can keep them," Lua said simply, nodding in affirmation.
Liora smiled and put all three necklaces around her neck. As soon as they touched her skin, they merged into a single necklace with three transparent compartments. For a moment, the ants seemed to pass through what looked like invisible glass, growing until they were almost ten centimeters long. They immediately scurried toward the piles of materials, picked up several objects, and climbed up her leg to deposit everything into the bag she wore at her waist before hurrying off again.
The two remaining necklaces, Lua kept for herself to study later.
"They're helping," Liora said with a soft voice, her eyes shining as she ran back and forth collecting more items with her little hands.
The rest of the group watched her in silence, a hint of fondness mixed with resignation in their expressions. It was obvious that, if they could, everyone would try to get a necklace like that.
Once everything had been gathered, Liora—as usual—began carefully sorting everything in order:
🪵 Collected Materials
• Iron Ore ×101
• Copper Ore ×135
• Hardened Mandibles ×13
• Ant Carapaces ×33
• Sensory Antennae ×13
• Minor Igneous Core ×1
• Large Mana Stones ×8
⚒️ Mining Tools
• Iron Mining Pick ×12
• Reinforced Mining Chisel ×8
• Sturdy Blacksmith Hammer ×1 (Uncommon)
🔨 Sturdy Blacksmith Hammer
[Uncommon Quality]
Type: Blacksmith Tool
Effect: +10% chance to create higher-quality equipment.
Durability: 120 uses
Description:
A heavy hammer with a head forged from tempered steel, ideal for long forging sessions.
🧥 Mining Gear
• Sturdy Miner's Gloves
• Copper-Reinforced Boots
• Deep Pocketed Vest
💍 Accessories
• Subterranean Sensor Amulet ×1
• Avid Ant Necklace ×5 (Collecting Pet)
📜 Blacksmith Recipes
• Recipe: Mine Mandible Dagger
• Recipe: Forged Copper Spear
• Recipe: Iron Mining Pick
• Recipe: Copper-Reinforced Boots
"Lua, what should I do with all of this?" Liora asked after carefully arranging each item in order.
"You can put it up for sale," Lua replied calmly as she separated the large mana stones, which couldn't be sold, and also set aside the necklaces.
"Yes," Liora said with a small nod, picking up the little merchant insignia.
That insignia carried several useful abilities designed to help any vendor. It was also divided into levels, and since Lua had officially hired Liora as the settlement's vendor, she had given her the highest-tier insignia without charging anything.
"Master Merchant Insignia"
[Rare Quality]
Type: Accessory (Insignia)
Level: 3 (Maximum)
🎖️ General Description:
A silver rune-engraved insignia adorned with a simple balance engraving. Even though its appearance was modest, it represented official recognition as a high-ranking merchant. There were only three levels, and this was the most advanced.
🎯 Main Abilities:
🌟 Value Appraiser
Allows the user to see the approximate price of any item, material, or tradeable creature. The accuracy is about 80% on average, though it can vary depending on rarity and the user's prior knowledge.
🧮 Quick Calculation
Grants access to an accelerated mental calculation function, letting the user perform complex operations in seconds.
💰 Arcane Purse
A passive skill that allows the user to withdraw or store coins without opening their inventory. Coins appear directly in the palm of their hand.
🛡️ Protected Trade Zone
While the wearer remains in selling mode, a 3-meter radius safety area is created. No one can take items or coins without their permission.
✨ Special Ability – Settlement Contract
Available only to Liora because of her official contract with the village leader.
📘 S.I.A. Consultation
Allows the user to spend 1 Mana Fragment to ask a question to S.I.A., an artificial intelligence specializing in trade and logistics.
• Each query consumes 1 fragment.
• The answer appears as a private mental message.
• S.I.A. can provide market data, trade route information, economic rumors, and negotiation strategies.
📋 Special Notes:
– The insignia cannot be stolen or transferred without the user's consent.
– If the user dies, the insignia automatically returns to the settlement's storage.
– Except for the consultation ability, all other functions consume no mana.
Liora held the insignia in both hands, even though she knew she didn't need to touch it to activate its abilities. She simply liked feeling its weight. Thanks to it, she could see the approximate price of each item before noting it down on a small tablet and laying it out on the sales mat.
While she was checking over the minerals, Silver walked over and quietly spoke with Alfred. They wanted to buy all the minerals they could to bolster the settlement's stock of tools. Alfred patiently waited for Liora to finish writing down all the prices before completing the purchase.
So, another two hours passed, during which Joe was still being scolded by Loli and Sig for refusing to help earlier. Meanwhile, Silver finished crafting the shovels they needed to start working properly. He even made a few masonry trowels, though they came out slightly deformed because he didn't have the correct recipe for them.
Even though it was getting dark, no one wanted to wait until the next day. With determination, they began mixing the mortar. The stones had been prepared in advance, and everyone knew Lua could dry the materials instantly with her magic.
Joe was forced to use his strength to stir the mixture with two shovels while the others used the palanquin to carry the mortar. Under Steve's guidance, they quickly started to raise the wall of Lua's room.
Every time Steve requested it, Lua cast her drying spell, hardening the mortar in a matter of seconds. By the time night fell and only the lanterns around the construction site were still lit, Lua's house—or at least her room—was completely finished. A simple wooden door connecting to what would be the main hall had already been installed and secured.
Lua stepped inside the room and, moving calmly, set up the bed she had crafted especially for Liora in one corner.
Since the mission was to rebuild the entire house, Lua decided to give everyone who had helped that evening a small reward. Without much ceremony, she handed each of them a large mana stone.
…
That night, Lua sat on the edge of her bed made from pelts, looking around the room illuminated by the lamp she had placed near the wall. It had been a long time since she'd had a fully sealed space to rest.
In the opposite corner, Liora lay in her new bed. Only her face peeked out from the blankets as she watched her curiously.
"Lua… can I sleep with you?" she asked softly, her voice barely a whisper.
"Come," Lua replied with a small smile.
Liora immediately got up and ran over to her bed.
And so, the two of them fell asleep peacefully, in silence, while outside the only sound was the quiet murmur of the players who remained, while others logged out to sleep in the real world.