Monster Evolution System: I became a Rat-Chapter 94: Sealing

"There is a room, 78, in Hotel Asmadon. It is on the western side, a less crowded area with wider roads. In Hotel Asmadon, there have been a series of wild sightings and ghost, paranormal activity sightings."

Gringha looked around the tavern, then back at Rosacer with a smile.

"Have you heard about the Mist City?"

Rosacer shook his head in denial as he gestured for Gringha to continue.

Gringha began, "The Mist City, a dreamland from the southern islands, was once located beyond the Great Humorous Sea. But soon after the Great Karmic Catacombs came into being, it was engulfed by them along with many others."

He paused.

His voice turned hoarse. "But this city was special, revered by a God. It was supposed to resist the very annexation of the dungeon, and it did. Some of the people of the lands of the Mist City were able to escape before it was totally engulfed. Their God’s revelation paved an escape route for the devotees."

He turned toward Rosacer and, with a rough exhale, took a sip from his beer before smashing the jug onto the table, foam spilling out.

"Rumor has it the ghosts in Room 78 are residents of the Mist City, turned into ethereal humans by the Karmic Catacombs."

"So, the owner of the hotel is now looking for a priest to perform a holy exorcism on the ghosts. But here is the catch. The people who were turned into ghosts by the dungeon are still pure and human. So unless a priest personally kills those people by going inside the Karmic Dungeon, into the Mist City, there is no way to exorcise them. And here is the real catch. Nobody can really do that."

Rosacer frowned, his expression tightening. "So..."

Gringha smirked, his voice now a little sharper. "Nah, we do not have to solve it. Just pretend to. Making a connection to Room 78 is something much more doable."

"And why?" Rosacer asked.

Gringha leaned back slightly. "A new way to enter the Karmic Dungeon."

Rosacer asked, "How can that be possible?"

Gringha gave a faint nod and reached into his pocket, retrieving a coin. On it, the Ernest emblem was etched. A king of the once mighty Royal Ernest Empire stood engraved upon its surface.

"Royal Ernest... This is the key to connecting to the Mist City. The Royal Ernest Empire, in ancient times, influenced many nations, even small islands such as Crescitok, now deemed the Mist City. Mages all around the world are obsessed with items related to Ernest, and this is one of the reasons. It connects the Karmic Dungeon to the real world, other than its physical manifestation in Mount Har’Our."

’So the Karmic Catacombs were in Mount Har’Our...’ Rosacer noted silently.

"And mages of the Caesar Kingdom might not pay much, but the others will. I have talked to mages from Asmara and Rein. They are more interested in those items than Caesar. And if we taint the items in Room 78, a little bonus is guaranteed," Gringha added, taking another sip of his beer.

Rosacer did not respond. He chugged the whole drink in one go. Then he asked, "We are thieves now?"

Gringha laughed and added, "And robbers, if necessary."

"Vermis is a strange city. You know it, and I do too. The architecture and planning of this city were clearly done by corrupt, narcissistic personnel. So it does not really matter even if we are wanted in this city. Nobody really cares about this place, other than the eastern druggies. This is the best place to be bad, if there is any."

Rosacer did not respond. He stayed quiet and still. The waiter came and poured another drink into his jug, filling it to the brim with foam, then left.

"There are no strong adventurers either. We both would be enough to even take on the police, if they do not send the special forces too quickly," Gringha said. Then suddenly he paused as he recalled an incident.

He started over as the memory came back to him.

"A team of special forces recently chased somebody, but the guy was able to escape. He was alone too, if my memory serves right. He was a murderer... See how pathetic these people are..." Gringha completed his sentence.

Passing some money to the waiter, Gringha then added, "Anyway, if you are up for it, do reach out to me. But remember, the offer is limited."

As he slid the money across, he put his hand on Rosacer’s shoulder and leaned close to his ear to whisper, "Do not spill. It is not wise to spill in Vermis."

After that, he turned toward the exit. Acting drunk, he stumbled his way through.

The waiter picked up the coins, turned toward Rosacer, and sighed. "It is as he said. The city is beyond saving. The corrupt officials will soon turn this city into a dump. It is better you move while you can."

Rosacer did not respond. He gulped down the beer in one go and stood up. His bills were already paid. He turned toward the exit, leaving behind the heavy music and the smell of ale.

The sealing was hungry again. He pulled out a rat and fed it to it after taking both of them out of the inventory.

"I should find a better sealing method..." Rosacer muttered as he lifted his head toward the sky. The snake-like building glistened in the sun. He turned toward it, the library.

He stood before the massive door, etched with symbols esoteric and unknown to him. He did not wait as he quickly pushed through it. The sounds of footsteps and murmuring people silenced as the door closed behind him.

In front of him, the librarian sat at the counter as always, his neck bent as he was deep inside his ledger.

Rosacer did not greet him and instead walked directly toward the staircase. He passed through the lower floor to the upper level and soon was met with the familiar scene of books levied across the room and a man sitting alone near the arched window. The man, as always, had a calm and quiet presence, his white hair as pale as clouds.

He did not even raise his head to see who had entered, his eyes fixed on the book in front of him.

Rosacer slowly walked up to the man as quietly as possible.

"Eren," he said.

Upon hearing Rosacer’s voice, Eren finally closed his book and raised his head toward him.

With a small smile, he said, "Adventurer."

Rosacer nodded. "Rosacer," he reminded him of his name.

"Ah... right. Rosacer. I remember it," Eren said. His cloak looked heavier, perhaps slightly wet.

"What brings you here today, then?" he asked, his hand still resting on his closed book, covering its title completely. He did not even place a finger or bookmark inside it. It seemed the contents were something he wanted to hide.

"Is there any sealing method for items of ancient times?" Rosacer asked, not questioning Eren’s attempt to conceal the book.

Eren cleared his throat and leaned forward. "Of course."

"There are Blood Rituals, Malignant Rituals, Serpentine Rituals, and Moloch Rituals, if you are brave enough."

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "There are more as well. But tell me, what kind of item is it? Every ritual is different and might not be suitable for the item."

Rosacer quickly shoved his hand inside his coat and pulled out a knife. It looked like an ordinary carving knife with no visible specialty.

Eren looked at it with a perplexed expression. He took the knife from Rosacer’s hand and carefully examined it, but still could not determine what was special about it.

"There is already a seal on it. It is some... kind of Serpentine seal, judging from the coils, it seems. I would have to examine further to determine what specific variant it is. But why do you want to seal this item? It looks quite normal."

Eren rotated the knife, searching for any emblem or creator’s mark, but none was present.

"The previous seal has to be removed, or the new seal will not work," he added, finally handing the knife back to Rosacer.

Rosacer took the knife and asked, "And how can I remove the previous seal?"

"It is simple. Ask the one who performed the ritual to undo it," Eren said calmly.

"I cannot do that. The one who sealed this is not someone I can reach now," Rosacer replied.

Eren paused, then added, "Alright. I will look into it. But you should also search for information yourself."

As he said this, he turned quiet again, subtly gesturing for Rosacer to leave.

Rosacer gave a faint nod. He retraced his steps, then turned toward the aisle dedicated to sealing techniques. He specifically searched for books regarding Serpentine seals.

But it seemed those kinds of books were rare. At last, he chose some generic books on sealing and a few complex ones that did not truly belong to Serpentine practices.