Shifter - Infinite Transformation-Chapter 57: Thief

I didn’t owe the eggs anything. In a way, I didn’t even know why I was here. It was stupid. Suicidal.

But then there was the Juvenile Nature Dragon’s request. As easy as it would have been to ignore it, that didn’t feel right. Not only did I owe the dragon for all the Essence it provided, as well as the major update to my Accessible Shifts, but I had the distinct feeling I would regret not helping. And I no longer wanted to live with regret.

Even if I had to die at some point, I wanted to live my life without it.

With that in mind, I shifted into my Lesser Wisp form and surged toward the corpses, hoping to drain them. The Lesser Wisp’s sight was just as confusing as last time, but it was no longer unfamiliar territory. I outlined the corpses, focused on the energy gathering within them, and empowered myself by draining it.

It worked... somewhat.

Even better, the Lesser Wisp form helped me detect a few interesting things. Objects shimmering brilliantly in the same particles of energy as other lifeforms. Yet they shone much brighter, as if the energy within them had been compressed. That energy also felt far more complex, as though it had been guided through an overly intricate structure to take on a particular form.

The particles were unmoving, and so were the objects. I only recognized them properly after transforming back into my main form. Feeling more energetic than before, I rushed to the bed where Captain Anthea had had her back blown out a minute or two ago. She’d been quick on her feet, but she must have forgotten some of her belongings.

Never mind. I regarded the objects.

They’re not hers.

The first was a broadsword. It emitted a presence that reminded me of Powers, but swords couldn’t contain Powers. Instead, they could carry Essence Circuits. Some Inscribers still used runes to enchant weapons, but even I knew that Essence Circuits had been gaining more traction over the past few years.

Inscribers weren’t happy about it, claiming Essence Circuits should be treated with great care and attention to detail, but none of that really mattered. The fact was, the weapon before me was enchanted, equipped with two interwoven ether circuits running along its wide blade. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

They didn’t look particularly special, if I was being honest, but the Lesser Wisp form had revealed more than enough to prove that assumption wrong. The weapon was quite valuable. A single glance was enough to tell that it was incredibly sharp. And it had belonged to one of the captain’s loverboys rather than Captain Anthea herself.

Why? Because Captain Anthea used a whip, for one. And because there was a small etching along the side of the sword’s handle.

’For the greatest lover. May your lips never leave mine. A.’

"Well... he’s dead now," I muttered, feeling a little sorry. But only a little.

I killed them to protect myself. To survive this mess and escape.

Shaking my head, I forced myself to focus. The second object was much smaller than the sword. A bracelet, also etched, though more subtly. It contained only a single Essence Circuit, but it appeared far more complex than the ones woven into the blade. It wasn’t engraved with a poem or some cringeworthy one-liner, yet its elegant design hinted clearly at the owner’s gender.

Even if it belongs to Captain Anthea... does it really matter?

No. It didn’t.

I took the bracelet and stuffed it into my pouch.

My gaze drifted back to the sword. It would have been great to take it as well, but there was nowhere to hide something that large without attracting attention. Maybe I could retrieve it later. Yes. That would do.

Decision made, I transformed into the tiniest of Deathstalk Squirrels and squeezed through the side of the tent. Even if no one was standing guard at the entrance, I didn’t need to push my luck. I’d been fortunate enough so far.

My tiny feet carried me to the other tent. The one storing the eggs and various valuables. Once inside without being noticed, I slipped between crates, crystals, and objects I couldn’t identify before transforming into a Blue Slime.

Risky as it was, I needed rest. My head was pounding, and Shift was nearing its limit. As for my other injuries, I could only hope that a few hours as a Blue Slime would be enough to fix them.

If not...

I shook my head. It would be enough. All I needed was a few hours.

With that, I squeezed deeper into the pile of goods and went to sleep.

***

Anthea couldn’t find the invader.

No one matching his appearance or name had been located in the direction she had been pointed to. That shouldn’t have been possible. Escaping her grasp was no easy feat. Her Power allowed her to distinguish illusion from reality. No one, not even the stealthiest assassin, could hide from it while standing before her.

Yet she had lost track of the invader–Merle Mueller–even though he had been nothing more than an old man.

He hadn’t even been particularly powerful. Merely Mid-rank of the First Tier.

Furious–not only because he had escaped, but because he had interrupted and ruined the most enjoyable part of her day–Anthea returned to the tents. She needed to assess the damage to her assets.

She stepped into the camp containing the spoils they had acquired from the Eserian. That included the materials taken from the Grand Dungeon. They were invaluable and could not be lost under any circumstances.

Using her Power, Captain Anthea detected nothing amiss. She wasn’t sure what the Core of a Blue Slime was doing among crates of Shyria shards and other valuable resources, but that was hardly her concern. The important items were still there.

Studying the eggs, she grimaced. Acquiring them had cost hundreds of Nightingale Knights. Truthfully, she didn’t fully understand what made them so valuable. But considering how many powerful Chosen had died retrieving them, they had to be special.

And maybe, just maybe, not knowing was for the best, especially after all the trouble the empire had gone through. Knowledge was dangerous more often than not.

I still have to find and kill that soldier.

Phillip Lecoste. Anthea still didn’t know how he had escaped her grasp. He had delivered the egg to the tent, and then vanished. No one in Camp Ashborn knew where he was, or even who he truly was.

That brought her failures to a total of two. Two people lost in a single day.

"The gods must be playing with me," Anthea muttered, double-checking the inventory list before returning to her tent, fully prepared to draft a report detailing her subordinate’s failure.

"Darlings, how is our victim doing?" She pushed aside the cloth at the entrance and stepped inside. "Is he dea–NOOO!"

That day, Captain Anthea mourned the loss of her most beloved lovers and the expensive spatial bracelet she had gifted to one of them. But it was only the first of many misfortunes that would follow her.

For misfortune clung to her like a pest. As for the soldiers she had lost, not even the Power of Identify could help her make sense of it. She was lost. And angry. So very angry.