Pain was my whole world for what felt like years. I sat up groaning.
"Oh, don't push yourself, Tern," Nil said.
"Where are we? Also, what happened? My memory is fuzzy after I was thrown back."
"A magic stone explosion. That means you cracked that goblin's magic stone when it was still alive. And where we are, well, we are still in the Infinite City. There was a house, so I dragged you into the building."
"Well, how in the hell am I still alive? I had a collapsed lung. That is what my appraisal skill told me."
"I fed you an A-rank potion that was able to repair all of the life-threatening internal injuries. That was 3 days ago. Earlier I fed you another potion. This one was your E-rank potion. I wish that it was a C-rank potion, but you will just have to heal with old-fashioned rest."
"You fed me an A-rank potion. That probably is worth more than all of the money that I have ever had in my entire life. Why would you waste something that is that valuable on me?" I asked, exasperated.
"Well, for one, my clan is filthy rich. Two, you are my party member, so I would have used an S-ranked potion if I had one. And three, on a selfish note, we are far enough into the city that it would be a sketchy proposition for me to get out alive."
I pulled Nil into a hug. "Thank you, Nil. I will never be able to repay you. If you will it, my life is yours."
"No, Tern, you would do the same for me. I have only known you for a month or so. But you are part of my clan. I may not have the power to give you the Moondrift name, but you mean everything to me," Nil said.
She pushed me back down to the bed and kissed my forehead. "Go to sleep. You need to heal."
I did as she said. I fell back into slumber.
...
When I awoke again, my pain was much less. Not gone, but I felt like I would be able to walk. Doing so was hard and slow going. I walked from the bed to the worn-out leather armchair in the corner fifteen feet away. When I sat down, I was drenched in sweat.
Pulling a piece of hardtack and cheese out of my storage space, I ate. It was the best food I had ever eaten because I was so hungry.
Eating helped me regain my strength. I got back up and walked out of the room, running into Nil in the hallway.
"You should not be out of bed yet."
"Well, I needed a change of venue, so help me to another room," I said.
Nil helped me into what I would call a family room. A dwarf was in the front window.
"Nil."
I fell into the chair in the room, pointing at the man. She pulled her warpick.
"Who are you? Are you Adventurers' Guild?" Nil asked.
He held up a guild pin.
"Come in through the door."
...Once he was through the door, Nil asked, "What is your name?"
"Well, my name is Drulgar Valthorn, and you found something that you should not have, and consider this your warning to stay away from cult interests. But the goddess has told us not to kill you, but to help you. So here is a relic of the Blood Silk Oath," Drulgar said.
He placed an item on the table and walked out of the building before Nil or I could speak.
"Bring that over to me, Nil. I will use my appraisal skill on it."
Nil did what I asked, putting it on the table next to me. Casting my appraisal skill, I got the following message:
–A relic of the Blood Silk Oath–
Item type: Amulet
An item that all members of the Cult of the Gilded Wound will respect. Any non-cult member with the gumption and strength to complete a challenge imposed on them by the Goddess Vaelith, the Gilded Wound, gains her favor. Wearing the relic around your neck will increase the effectiveness of all potions by 5%, and if the lifeforce of the wearer would go below 20%, the amulet will give a boon of an extra 20% lifeforce. The amulet only works once per year.
Creator: Cult High Priest Velmorr
I read the description to Nil. I picked up the amulet and put it on. The amulet was a thin gold chain with a hanging gold coin with the silhouette of the goddess.
"Why did you do that?"
"It feels right. Like a benevolent call," I said.