In the end, it took Arthur two and a half days to reach his target of five million credits and not the entirety of the week like he'd expected. He’d also had to sell far fewer than he predicted, six-hundred and forty to be exact and not the thousands he’d feared. It was all because of the notification that popped up when he tried putting up his first batch of elixirs for sale on the second day.

  The notification had been more than a little alarming, and he’d briefly feared that someone had found a way to replicate his Apokalyptic wares. Thankfully, after a bit of searching, he figured out what was going on. It turned out that those who’d bought his potions initially were reselling them for outrageous prices- one of them had been won on a bid for 62,000 credits– and Arthur finally understood what was going on. He’d known his elixirs were special, they’d been given the Unique modifier, after all, but it looked like he’d underestimated just how special they were.

  It made sense then, that people would try to reverse-engineer them and figure out his secrets. Arthur wasn’t worried about any of that happening. He’d done a little research before dropping elixirs containing his blood on the market. Arthur’s blood was recognised as a perfect catalyst, meaning that it was perfectly used up in any creation it was a part of. There was no way of extracting or even identifying it. After all, once it became a part of something, his blood simply did not exist anymore. Perfect catalyst had been a line in his blood’s description long before it had reached epic rank, at a time when he couldn’t even read the entirety of it.

  Arthur immediately blacklisted those who were reselling his product. It wouldn’t affect them in the long run- they’d just use proxies to buy his goods- but it would make their lives slightly harder. He didn’t care about the price gougers too much, but he had to set a precedent to dissuade people from doing the same thing. Until he was more established, blacklisting was the only deterrent he could provide.

  Arthur had been tempted to put his elixirs on sale for an outrageous sum like 100,000 but decided against it. If he took away the Unique modifier from his elixir, its effects were worth a maximum of 5,000 credits. If he exceeded that number too much, he risked hurting his honest customers. That and he doubted the thieves would buy his product at such an exorbitant price. Sure, maybe he could sell his first elixir for a hundred thousand, but once everyone realised he had a lot of product to sell, they’d just wait him out to lower the price. Pricing his elixir at 7,500 credits showed the fake customers that their actions had consequences and was a small enough increase that they’d hopefully allow him this little victory.

  True to his predictions, the elixirs continued to sell like hotcakes, though there was an initial ten-second delay where they seemingly debated whether they should let him get away with his daylight robbery or not. Making two and a half times more than he predicted every elixir meant he hit five million credits halfway through day three and he decided to continue for a little while to make the most out of the gold rush.

  Thirteen hours later, Arthur finally called it a day. His body was drenched in sweat, he was both cold and hot and his muscles wouldn't stop twitching. That made sense considering he'd spent two-thirds of his health fuelling his alchemy. Arthur was honestly surprised he hadn't gained a single level in the skill yet. Sure, he'd been repeating the same actions again and again, but it reached a point where volume had to mean something. With his final push, Arthur had managed to acquire an additional one and a half million credits to go to his Wovan revival funds. He doubted he'd need most of it, but having a little extra cash never hurt anyone.

  Twenty minutes later, Arthur had gotten the shakes under control. He wondered how the hell he wasn't anaemic right now with how much blood he'd lost, first to make his elixirs and secondly to get a large supply of it ready for his ritual magic. The skill asked for a thousand litres of ether-infused liquid and his blood was by far the most potent liquid he could get his hands on. So far, he'd managed to fill two-thirds of a bathtub, around two hundred litres; near enough his body weight in blood.

  It was no wonder then, that Arthur felt weak– his regeneration was prodigious, but he’d religiously abused his body. Arthur wasn’t surprised then, that the universe decided that was the most opportune time to send him a guest. The area he could sense auras in had increased significantly, almost an entire kilometre when he focused himself. That being said, Arthur wouldn’t be surprised if he could feel this guy coming from across the ocean, that was how powerful he was.

  As if someone had plucked the sun from the heavens and condensed it down into a human form. Arthur wondered if his presence felt as potent to wayward observers. Arthur had become very powerful as of late, enough that he was confident in saying he was one of the strongest beings around at his level range, on Earth and the wider universe. He wasn’t confident in facing the man walking up the cobbled path to his cottage though.

  Kazi Alukai, The Will of Earth had come to visit.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Arthur wondered why the Prime had come. More importantly, how had the man even found him? If Kazi was here to claim the bounty, then Arthur would be forced to clear the cottage he’d grown to love. It would mean giving up all the protections Iris had set up here. He’d become so much easier to track and his life would descend into a constant chase where he’d be fleeing bounty hunters in his every waking moment. Unless I can kill him fast enough.

  Arthur immediately dismissed the thought. He wasn’t confident in beating the strongest Prime when he was at his best, never mind his current state, with zero ether and drained of two-thirds of his health. This is why you should never be too greedy for money, Arthur chided himself. Knowing there was such a massive bounty on his head, he should have never let his health get so low, no matter how safe he might have felt in this cottage.

  Arthur opened the door before Kazi could knock and he was probably one of the few people on Earth who saw the powerful Prime at less than his best, one hand raised awkwardly to knock on a door that had already been opened. The videos didn’t do this guy justice, Arthur mused as he got his first good look at the King of Kazakhstan.

  Kazi Alukai looked like he’d walked straight out of a fantasy novel, as regal and dignified as a lion who’d mastered the savannahs- hell, his silver black locks looked like a mane and framed a face that could have been used as the defining picture for nobility.

  Arthur was beautiful, he'd have to be blind not to see that, but this man was majestic.

  “Will you continue to stare at me or are you going to invite me in, Mr Ward,” Kazi said, an amused smile on his face.

  "Oh, shoot. Sorry," Arthur babbled. For some reason, he didn't want to swear in front of this man. Maybe some of his mother's teachings about respecting his elders were finally coming through. At least it doesn't look like he's here to fight. Arthur invited the Prime into his kitchen and set about making a cup of tea. Living in England- even for the few days he'd been here- had taught him to love the beverage and unique culture associated with it here. Arthur used the special blend he'd ended up buying after his discussion with Edward Agroth. He'd been saving it for a special occasion, and if meeting Kazi Alukai didn't count, he'd never get around to drinking the tea.

  The room was silent while he worked, neither of them saying anything, but it didn't feel awkward. If Arthur ignored the fact that this was the Kazi Alukai, it reminded him of the days he'd spent volunteering in an old people's home for work experience. He wasn't dumb enough to say that out loud though. Arthur had a feeling the Prime wouldn't find the comparison as amusing as he did. He placed two cups on the table and finally sat down opposite the man.

  "So... how did you find me?" Arthur asked.

  "Wherever the sun's light touches, my vision reaches," Kazi said grandiosely. Arthur just stared at the man. The Prime stared back. Finally, after thirty awkward seconds had passed, Kazi Alukai looked away and cleared his throat.

  "The planet told me," he said dryly.

  Arthur's gaze turned incredulous. "You're telling me Mother Earth snitched on me. Actually, scratch that. You make it sound like she's alive."

  "Snitched on you. Hmm, that is an apt way to put it. And alive. Well, technically, she is, though that might be too strong a word. Earth has a consciousness, all planets do, though not exactly the same as sapient kinds. That will change as she continues to evolve, but right now, she has no goal beyond her continued survival."

  "And snitching on my whereabouts aligned with this goal?" Arthur asked, sceptical.

  "Do not ask me to understand the thoughts of a planet," Kazi Alukai defended himself.

  "Isn't that your entire shtick though? You're literally The Will of Earth. Being Earth's spokesperson is your job." Arthur had no idea why he was talking like this to the Kazi Alukai. The old man made him feel comfortable, enough that he almost suspected that the Prime had a skill at play. Arthur had grown strong enough to sense such things by now and Kazi Alukai was using no such thing. He was just easy to talk to.

  "Well, when you put it like that, I can't really defend myself," Kazi Alukai replied, smiling wryly.

  "So, back to why you're here. Earth wanted you to find me because she thinks I'm conductive to her continued existence and preservation. You're not here for the bounty or anything else."

  "I'm here for two reasons actually. Three if you count my personal desire to meet the first Originator the multiverse has seen in the last two thousand years. And no, I do not wish to claim the bounty. For starters, it is wrong and disgusting to covet that which is not my own. Even if I were a less scrupulous individual, it wouldn't matter. As a Prime, your Origin blood is useless to me. No, the main reason I came here is to give you a warning."

  The room suddenly became warmer as Kazi Alukai unconsciously let a little of his aura loose. Arthur's rose to match it and the room immediately cooled. The man smiled sheepishly at him. "Sorry, I got a little carried away there. For starters, how much do you know about the Origin Hunt?"

  "Would you believe me if I said that was the first time I've ever heard the words?"

  "Well, no one's allowed to tell you, so that's not surprising, but who's going to stop me? I can't be sanctioned the same way as normal System users," Kazi Alukai said in his gruff voice. For a second, Arthur saw a hint of the domineering king the media portrayed him to be.

  "The Origin Hunt is basically a game that's played every time an Originator is found," Kazi began. "There are rules to hunting Originators. I won't ho into the politics of it, but suffice to say, as savage as these thieving bastards may be, they're not too unfair. Your situation is actually far better than most others like you. Ezrial's daughter somehow reduced the time of the game from the standard six months down to fifty-five days."

  "Ah, would you look at that. The bastard administrators have banned me from the System store. Now for why I came here.The first reason is to give you a warning. The nobles over at Feyton aren't happy with Iris' meddling- many aren't- and they're trying to push for an extension to the games. Thankfully, they didn't get what they wanted."

  "Everyone- even those on your side- did, however, agree that you've received a little too much help from the fae princess and so it's been decided that all the anti-tracking and defensive magics she set up in this cottage will have to be removed."

  "You have three days leeway Mr Ward, and then your location will be broadcast to every bastard hunter on the planet. Prepare yourself well. In seventy-two hours, you'll begin the most important fight of your life, a battle for your very right to survive."

  Etherious: The Locus of Power has gone live. As a self published author doing everything myself, my novels success lies entirely on my shoulders. As such, the first day of a books launch is by far the most important time that determines how well my book will do.

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