After I left the store, I sent a message to Ed.

  Lucas: “Ed, where are you at? Want to go hunting?”

  He responded almost immediately.

  Ed: “Lucas, terrible timing. I’m on a hunt right now with Burns and a bunch of other folks. He told us not to get distracted, so no messaging until we finish. I have to go, but I’d love to hunt later.”

  Nice. I hadn’t expected Burns to return so soon, let alone already leave again with folks on a hunt. Or maybe he’d picked up Ed to join the scouts still searching for the Mech-mantis lair? Either way, that was a good sign. Two hunting trips in one day could help Ed progress a ton.

  I headed back to my castle house, eager to share those sweet suits of armor and the other pins. Jeeves greeted me at the door with a hot towel for my face and a silver tray holding a tiny purple cake, floating in a pure white liquid.

  “A bit of refreshment produced by your new oven.”

  That was right. I’d forgotten about the new oven that made delicacies from the home worlds of defeated enemies. I studied the little snack with interest.

  “Twilight Bloom Torte. This rare delicacy is one of the much sought-after masterpieces of the legendary culinary sorceress, Marvella Duskwreath, who believed that the very pinnacle of cuisine evoked powerful emotions. The torte is made from the rare Evershade Blossom, which blooms only once a century beneath a violet sky. Sampling this dessert once in a lifetime is considered an extremely rare boon. Marvella's motto, "A bite of twilight, a shield from the night," is repeated across the multiverse.

  The floral sweetness of the torte, magnified by the honeyed texture of the signature Tears of Eternity sauce it rests in, will imbue whoever consumes it with a sense of calm wonder and a protective shield that will absorb all incoming damage up to 50% of the diner's health points. It cannot be circumvented by any attacks below legendary level.”

  I whistled softly. “Now that’s a dessert.”

  “Indeed, sir,” Jeeves said.

  “Did the oven make any more?” I could imagine passing those little beauties out to my entire team before a boss battle for a huge boost.

  “I am afraid not, my lord. The more elevated the cuisine, the more work is required to produce tinier portions.”

  “I guess that’s a truth that spans the multiverse.”

  “Very insightful of you, sir.”

  I grinned as I lifted the tiny bowl that held the dessert and placed it into my inventory. Maybe my inventory’s special enhancements would multiply it.

  “I’ll save that one for a special moment. Have any cookies?”

  “Of course,” Jeeves said, not missing a beat and a plate stacked with 2 dozen gooey, warm chocolate chip cookies appeared on the tray.

  I took one and tossed the others into my inventory. Wouldn’t mind multiplying an old favorite like that either. “Perfect.”

  One of the short, squat, golden steins from my vault appeared on the tray next, filled with cold milk. “Even more perfect,” I said as I took the cup, dipped the cookie, and took a slow, luxurious bite. Pure heaven.

  “It is the little things that make the big things more accessible,” Jeeves said.

  “You got that right.”

  “Actually, it’s steak that makes things better,” Nigel said from my shoulder, startling me. He’d remained quiet during my shopping trip. Before I could summon a steak, one appeared on Jeeves’s silver platter, perfectly seared, and covered in a delicious orange sauce.

  Nigel jumped to Jeeves’s shoulder, and although my butler wasn’t entirely real, he managed to remain corporeal enough to hold Nigel up while he snatched up the steak.

  As I headed for my bedroom to take a shower and a rest, Jeeves asked, “Would you like me to invite Lady Ruby, Master Tomas, and the rest of your team to join you in inspecting your new vault?”

  I spun. “I got another vault?” I’d honestly forgotten about the possibility and instantly pulled my Keys of the Treasurer from my inventory. Why hadn’t I thought to check it sooner?

  Sure enough, a second large iron key now hung next to the one with Velexis’s scythe symbol. It sported the broken crown of the Deep Tide Seal of Conquest, Tydrion’s house artifact.

  I was tempted to go check out the vault instantly, but forcibly resisted the urge. I’d told Andy that I’d invite the entire team next time, and they’d be doubly excited to see a new one. I was pretty eager too, but tried to temper that eagerness with the fact that Tydrion had supposedly been nearly broke. It might be a mostly empty room.

  “Please invite them over in an hour.”

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Very good, sir.”

  Jeeves disappeared and I spent 20 minutes soaking in my giant tub. It filled in seconds with scalding hot water that would have boiled me alive back on Earth. My superhuman constitution could handle it just fine, not to mention that with my One With Flame ring, I was immune to fire and heat damage. Still, I enjoyed the soak, my muscles slowly relaxing from the strain of the recent fighting.

  As usual, Jeeves had cleaned and repaired all of my gear by the time I emerged, so I descended to my living room feeling refreshed. A 4-hour nap with my stat-boosting Night Mask of the Mauvari Catelaines would have been nice, but I didn’t really need it.

  Down in my living room, I pulled out my Recliner of Half Time and spent the 20 minutes until my team arrived practicing with runes for 40 minutes. My Runesmith ability had jumped all the way up to level 23 with the boost from my new emblem. It had to be close to evolving. The per-level boosts meant I could learn new runes in a flash, and creating runes flowed like I’d been writing them for months.

  I started with simple runes, then moved on to more advanced ones, and as I practiced, concepts that had gotten dumped into my brain from those runesmith tomes seemed to gel and become more real. My new Voidscript Finbone Quill made inscribing runes into the little wooden blocks I’d purchased as easy as writing.

  It was like wielding a laser engraver. Depending on how much mana I pushed into the quill, it would mark runes deeper into the wood. That would help enormously when I tried inscribing more powerful runes, or ones into more durable surfaces, especially if I intended them to last longer.

  Time passed way to fast as I practiced. Basic runes to convert or manipulate mana came easy, and even the barrier rune I’d struggled with in Noctarus’s castle worked much better. Nigel enjoyed slapping them and shattering them into sprays of sapphire light.

  With each failure, I tried different modifiers, and by my 10th try, Nigel had to hit with real force before he could break the barrier. I moved on, exploring new areas that the tomes had revealed when they poured so much knowledge into my mind.

  Regeneration domes showed real promise. The faintly-glowing domes would increase mana density and improve regeneration speeds. I could only manage a 10% improvement, but they had the potential for a lot more.

  I even managed to create a flash-bang effect with one block. Unfortunately, I didn’t warn Nigel, and the blinding flash of light, followed by a concussive thunderclap was a lot stronger than I’d intended.

  Nigel yowled in surprised, leaping all the way to the ceiling. He hung there for a second, claws digging into the exposed beams. As soon as his vision returned, he dropped and bolted from the room. It took a lot of cajoling and apologizing and promising steak before he returned, his shaggy fur still standing out along his back.

  I held him, scratching behind his ears and rubbing his little furry back until he calmed down. “Sorry about that,” I repeated for the 50th time. “Learning includes trial and error.”

  “I don’t like the error part,” he growled.

  I chuckled and he added, “I’ve never seen a rock get scared.”

  “Me neither.” Another of his random statements was a good sign.

  The rest of the team arrived then, rushing into the room in an excited group. Ruby swept Nigel off my lap and hugged him. He hadn’t purred while I scratched him, but started up immediately when she grabbed him. Turncoat.

  Tomas exclaimed, “Another vault?”

  “I guess so. Count Tyrdion did challenge me to a formal duel, so bonus score.”

  “What are we waiting for?” Andy asked, and Lana added, “Treasure!”

  I stood and dropped my chair back into my inventory. “Speaking of treasure, I’ve got that promised loot for some of you, and bonus items for everyone else.”

  I extracted the suits of armor. Everyone went wild as the full extent of how awesome they were became clear. Andy took the fact that he didn’t get one stoically, but Lana couldn’t hide her disappointment.

  “With a suit like that, I wouldn’t have to fear monsters so much,” she whispered.

  “I’m hoping to get more. In the meantime, if you think you need a better set of armor, talk with Jeeves about it and we’ll make it happen.”

  She managed a smile. “Gracias, jefe. You are a good friend, Lucas.”

  “These are so boss!” Jane exulted and did a full backflip in her new armor. The suits looked amazing on Tomas and Steve, but the ladies looked like total elven princesses.

  Ruby pulled me into a hug and kissed my cheek. “I don’t know what to say.”

  Steve appeared next to us and snorted. “As if he wants you to say anything. And seriously, even if you barely knew Lucas, a gift like that deserves a lot more than a little peck on the cheek.”

  “You know, you’re right,” she said, and pulled my head down for a quick, passionate kiss right on the lips.

  I tried to pretend it was no big deal, but wow! Her lips triggered fireworks through my entire soul, and I had to exert all my willpower not to step into the kiss and wrap her in my arms.

  Ruby took a step back and winked. “Better?”

  Steve laughed. “I’ll say! Lucas, I wish I had a camera. Your face! Dude, I can’t decide if I want you to finally admit you’re a couple, or to keep pretending. This way is so much fun, so take your time, I guess.”

  I forced myself to take a deep breath, but that just drew in the scent of her and fired my blood again. Imagining diving into ice-cold water, I got control over myself and managed a smile.

  “Guess I have to get you legendary armor more often.”

  They both laughed, and I turned away, pulling out the bag of emblems and handing one to Andy and Lana. “Here. These make you part of the team, and give you a boost.”

  “Thanks, boss. Team patches!” Andy exclaimed, and even Lana looked pleased when she Identified the emblems. As soon as they attached the emblems to their armor, Andy’s suit changed to look just like the matching suits the others just got.

  “Oye!” Lana exclaimed. “You got a suit?”

  “Skin,” Andy said with a grin. “Team uniform.”

  She did the same, and with a flicker of thought, I changed the look of my Colossus Mantle to match theirs.

  “I like it,” Tomas declared.

  “Loot round one was a total win,” Steve chortled, rubbing his hands together. “On to loot round two!”

  Together we climbed to my bedroom and took the door down to my basement. Still felt weird descending the short flight of stairs and not ending up in my living room. Sure enough, a new vault door had taken the place where Sixel’s vault had stood before I traded it back to the Elaris clan. A golden plaque above the door read “Blacktide”.

  I paused and gestured with the keys to Jeeves. “I’m making you the official Treasurer so you can access the vaults whenever I need stuff.”

  I should have done that immediately. Jeeves had proven invaluable with his ability to access my inventory directly. Now I might be able to pull something useful directly from one of my vaults with his help.

  “Very good, sir.”

  “This is so exciting,” Lana gushed as we approached the door.

  The others looked eager, but their excitement was tempered by the memory of Velexis’s hoarder vault room. We’d found some good stuff, although most of the best items were still locked away. No doubt, Cyrus would pull the same stunt with Tydrion’s treasures, but even I felt a rising sense of anticipation. There was just something awesome about opening a treasure vault for the first time.

  “Here we go,” I said as I fit the huge iron key into the keyhole.