“Do you even notice a difference at this point?” Sofia asked, grabbing her scepter and letting it go.

Saria shook her head, “Nope. 30% charisma, no visible change.”

“What’s even… Charisma is going to become my main stat at this rate. Does it even do anything? Like, beyond the body altering stuff?”

“Pretty sure it helps against poisons, curses, and stuff like that. I believe. Don’t quote me on this.”

“Ah so all stuff I’m already immune against? So as far as I’m concerned, the staff just makes me 30% more infertile. Great.”

“I mean, it’s not like you’re going to be holding it while…”

“Sh- Shut up, hoy. Bookie is right here!”

Hearing his name, Bookie, lying on the floor, looked up from the sheet of paper he was scribbling on, watching Saria and Sofia with a questioning look.

“It’s nothing, your drawing’s cute, Bookie,” Saria said, putting a hand on Sofia’s shoulder.

Bookie seemed happy, and focused his attention back on the scribbles, feet kicking in the air.

“So, when are you seeing Speed again?” Saria pressed, leading Sofia to another room.

“Soon. He’s the one making me wait this time.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. It’s my fault though. Tons of messages being sent all around the world because of the trial. On the upside he’s making some serious money with all the traffic, so it’s not all bad. A large part of the letters he delivers here, too… I have two entire barrels full of envelopes already…”

“Good luck with that. Speaking of the money, did you take all the Mithirl to Zangdar?”

“Sure did. Can’t leave that out in the open, it’s like asking to get robbed. I’m going to use a good third of it for my leveling box I think, but you can help yourself to the rest if you need.”

“Hmm… I don’t really need it, but Cinthia could really use an armor upgrade.”

“She can have some too,” Sofia said with a nod, “Though she’ll probably want to pay me for it unless I force it on her... Any Recessed offering their essence already?”

“More than one. Death is hoping you can take another three from Him, Sorrow is preparing to gift you a few as well, Suffering said she would consider giving one if you build her a Temple next to Sorrow’s, and Domination seems to have decided you could just keep his if you get rid of his two failed Apostles.”

“Didn’t he want me to bring them back to a place of his in an artifact somehow?”

Saria shrugged, “Guess he changed his mind.”

“I have to extend my thanks to him then. Currently I’m at nineteen, so assuming I can handle Death’s, and that mother shares at least two, I would be at twenty seven. Plus the one Love promised me. I’m only missing two.”

“Not gonna ask Speed for one?”

“No, he’s got too few as is, it wouldn’t be good for him to lose one. It’s better to take from the big ones who will barely miss them. Honestly I half want to get one from Peace. Just as payback.”

“Probably not the best idea, but surely there would be a few Gods who will come to you with offers.”

“If not I have good hope that the temple district will draw in one or two when the city gets big enough.”

“Hmm… Hey, did you try the key yet?”

“Jin’s key? No, Pareth’s got it still, he’s been even busier than me. We can try it out tonight, probably?”

“Without me then, got plans with Alith for the evening, she needs my fake dragon breath. You’ll tell us how it went.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Alith?” Sofia repeated, “I don’t know that name,” she deadpanned.

“You’re not the only busy person, shocking, I know,” Saria teased, “I bet she can’t wait to come either. She told me she needed me for the final step of whatever she’s doing so, you’ll see her tomorrow I’d wager.”

“I know, I’m joking too. Haven’t heard from Ihuarah either, but he’s been getting closer so I guess he’s just taking his time travelling.”

“I can imagine him stopping for sightseeing,” Saria agreed, before changing the subject to something else.

Pareth and Sofia stood in Zangdar, outside of the castle, in front of a bone door Sofia had just placed down.

“That should work. I made the lock’s hole too tiny on purpose, I wonder if the key will fit anyway, it did say ‘any keyhole’.”

Pareth untied the Mithrium key he had kept on the backside of his sternum, and hesitantly pushed it against the hole. They key shrunk to fit inside.

“Not that surprising, considering the catalyst can do the same. Try unlocking the door first.”

Pareth turned the key to the right, and the lock clicked open before he could even turn the key halfway.

“Hmm… Take it out, I want to try something.”

Sofia made the lock pop out of the door, and quickly locked it back up with her aura, since it was all bone aside for one lone spring. “Now?”

This time the key did not fit in the lock.

“So it’s really only doors. Funny how that works. Well, let’s go explore ‘The penthouse’.”

The lock back inside of the door, the key fit perfectly inside once again, and when Pareth turned it left, the lock clicked, and the door lightly swung open.

“After you.”

Pareth opened the door, fully revealing a small entrance plunged in darkness, its design quite similar to the one in the secret house Sofia had found on Cerberus beta.

Sofia looked around the door, from the back it just looked like it was still closed.

Better not to get too caught up on the details…

“Let’s suppress our mana before going in, just in case.”

Pareth nodded and walked in. Once they were both inside, Pareth retrieved the key and closed the door behind them.

Immediately, Sofia felt like her power got drained.

Oh woah… The divine essences are completely listless.

[Connection lost]

“More than a bit lost, yeah. Storage items still work though. Must be somewhere else in the Margin.”

Pareth pushed a button on the wall, Sofia expected to see the lights turn on, but instead it was Jin’s voice that came from the walls.

“Hello. Welcome to the penthouse. It’s yours now. Assuming Anna is still around, she will be giving you a tour, hi Anna, I truly hope you are doing well. If not… Open the panel on your right and charge the battery with mana. A million should be enough but the more the better. It’s just a house, one that could hide you from death itself, but just a house nonetheless, so make yourself at home. Bye.”

“Ah so it actually runs on mana. Sure will make things more comfortable.”

Sofia opened the panel and quickly dumped most of her mana into the weird red canister labelled ‘battery’, which devoured it like a gluttonous beast. The room immediately came to life, lights turned on, a light tune started playing from where Jin’s voice had come, and the entrance room slowly rose, the door disappearing down.

A lift again. Why not just have the door lead directly up, though?

The lift slowly ascended for a good thirty seconds before stopping in front of a new, fancier door, cutting off the music with a ‘ding’. The fancy door slid to the side by itself revealing the true penthouse.

The main room was a wide open space, with an inside balcony from the second floor, in sleek tones of gray, with a lot of potted plants giving the place some color, and a small indoor waterfall running down a vertical Asterite slate, the sound of which gently broke the silence. It was clean, neatly organized with unknown technological things from earth all around, and a large bookshelf on the left wall. But most stunning of all, an entire side of the room was entirely one perfectly clear window, giving a wide view over a gigantic earth city overflowing with colorful lights, contrasting against the starry night sky.

What the hell?!

Sofia instinctively walked toward the window, the city below was mind-boggling, with flying vehicles all over, and even people walking down the streets.

Is this real?!

Sofia extended her mana toward the city below, but she could only feel about a dozen of weird layers of shifting mana outside. No city, no people.

Some kind of illusion magic? It’s so incredibly detailed! Hell, my eye is even picking up the people’s heat signatures?! I can zoom in so far!

While Sofia was bewildered at the sight, Pareth had grabbed a rectangular thing from a table and was reading the paper which came with it. Pointing it at the window, he pushed a button, and the scenery instantly changed to the same city in broad daylight under a clear blue sky. He pushed it again and the city disappeared to give a sea view from above, with a rocky cliffside visible below if one looked down. And not only the view changed, but each one came from appropriate ambiance, they could actually hear the sound of the waves and the cries of the ugly white birds flying outside.

It’s going to be tough to compete against that with my house in Ser’Extra…

This would be such a nice spot to sit down and read books for weeks on end…