The Last Experience Point-Chapter 183: Zach’s Estate

Chapter 183: Zach's Estate

It didn’t matter how much he tried to hold back the fear. It didn’t matter that he was in no greater peril now than he’d been in only a short while ago. It didn’t even matter that death was death and all death was equal. No, none of these things mattered. Because to Zach, the how of it all was still very much relevant. For this reason, he could fight against a gigantic, T9 superboss without so much as flinching, and yet in this situation, he remained totally and completely unable to control his quivering; this, as his current duration of Unleashed Phase ticked down to 0:20.

“Jimmy,” Zach said, his voice unsteady. “Am I about to die?”

“Nah, man, no way.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

Tena smiled at him. “I trust Jimmy too.” She and Jimmy then exchanged glances, and there was an awful lot of complexity in the way that they looked at each other. Tena looked like a young woman trying her best to be patient, and Jimmy gazed at her like a guy who knew he’d screwed up but wanted to do better. Neither of them seemed to pay Zach much mind despite the possible end of his life fast approaching.

At the moment, Jimmy stood just a few feet away from Zach. Over the past few minutes, he’d gathered several purple healing stones from various adventurers, which he’d then handed off to Donovan, who was now closest to Zach. Both seemed relaxed and calm: the opposite of the way he himself felt. Right now, his mind was flashing back to Archian Prime: to the pain and terror that came with a death by exertion debt.

“Please don’t do this to me,” he’d begged Queen Vayra as the seconds had ticked away. “I don’t want to die!”

This time around, there’d be no impulse to beg, because nobody here actually wanted him dead. Rather, if today ended with Zach drawing his final breath, it would be solely due to a miscalculation on the part of Jimmy. And to make it all worse, Zach still had no idea what Jimmy even planned to do. From the look of things, it appeared like he was just going to rely on purple healing stones, which was not going to be enough.

“So like, if you really do have some great idea, why do you keep refusing to tell me what it is, Jimmy?” Zach asked him.

Jimmy chuckled. “It’s because then you’ll start overthinking everything and convincing yourself it won’t work even though it definitely will.” He pointed his thumb at himself. “But I’m a master at cheesing shit, so I know this is gonna work.”

There he is again with that word, Zach thought fearfully. Cheese.

Most of the adventurers had already departed, but a number, including Rian, Lienne, Tena, Donovan, and Zephyr had stayed behind, and so too had Duchess Fiona Darkmae and a few of her guildmates. There had also been some new arrivals to the scene of the raid as well. Right now, lined up side by side behind Zach, there were three doctors standing just ahead of an ambulance.

“Don’t worry,” Fiona said to him. “Kalana would never forgive me if I let you die in my region. If whatever Jimmy is planning doesn’t work, I’ve had some of the best doctors rush out here.”

Zach looked over his shoulder where a gurney, an IV, a breathing tube, and numerous other medical devices were already set up for him in the event they were needed. Fiona, for her part, had raced to get them out here before even fully understanding the nature of Zach’s impending medical crisis. Yet Jimmy rolled his eyes at all of it, insisting it wasn’t going to be necessary.

What the hell is he planning? How am I going to make it through this?

Unable to avoid thinking back, Zach recalled vividly that it wasn’t just the betrayal that stung. No, the greatest pain of all was very much physical. He remembered just how much it hurt. That pressure in his chest. The inability to breathe. He remembered all of it. And having put himself on the verge of yet another such situation, the memories seemed to become even clearer and more vivid, almost as though this was something that had happened to him mere seconds ago.

I never should’ve used Unleashed Phase. What the hell was I thinking? I can’t handle a Very High debt! I just killed myself again, didn’t I?

Now, with ten seconds left to go, Jimmy drew his staff. “Saved up one last cast for you, Zach.”

“One last cast?”

“Yep, so get ready. Here we go. Gonna use it in five, four, three, two…one!”

A light appeared above Zach, one that coincidentally happened to be a bit more pronounced due to the passing of a large, lone, and fluffy cloud overhead. There, glancing upwards, he saw the cartoonish, blue-white heart, that began spinning faster and faster as it lowered down on top of him before disappearing with one final flash of white. By now, Zach easily recognized the buff: Breath of Invigoration.

With that, the timer on Unleashed Phase ended just as the buff hit, and now, Zach froze. He felt his skin go cold even amid the hot evening day, and it was likely due to fear alone. His throat dried, the hair on his back stood on end, and the next heartbeat or two passed in utter terror: terror that soon revealed itself to be justified and rational.

Just like that, it began.

“No!” Zach cried out in alarm as Donovan, Fiona, and the doctors began rushing towards him, but oddly enough, not Jimmy or Tena; the two of them remained where they were, confident and sure of themselves.

Oh Gods! No!

A pain gripped him immediately. And not just any pain, but the same pain as on Archian Prime—exactly the same. There was no difference in intensity: none at all. It was just as immense and all-consuming as it’d been last time. Everything hit him at once: the tightness, the squeezing sensation, and all while it felt like an elephant was sitting on his shoulders. He dropped to his knees and realized that he could no longer breathe. Hell, he couldn’t even gasp. In mere seconds, his lungs became starved for oxygen while the tightness became so agonizing it felt as though his heart were being squashed inside his chest. This was it. He was dying. He was…he was actually dying!

And then, inexplicably, he drew a massive, unexpected breath.

“Haaaaaaaaaaah!” he gasped suddenly as the first tick of Breath of Invigoration came in and fresh oxygen filled his chest. It confused him. It surprised him. He wasn’t even sure if this was happening to his own body as sweat ran down his face. How had he breathed?

“Donovan, him with the first purple!” Jimmy shouted. “Now!”

“Got it!”

Donovan slapped it down onto his shoulder, yet Zach was in such a state of fear and panic he didn’t even feel the man’s heavy-handed palm as the stone disappeared into him, and at once, the pain began to lessen very, very fast. He took a second breath, and this one came just as much a surprise to him as the first had.

“H-holy shit!” he cried out. “I can breathe! I can actually breathe! Oh my Gods, I’m breathing!” He stood upright, though he was a bit wobbly. “Jimmy, this is incredible! Whatever you’re doing it—”

His words caught in his chest, his knees collapsed once more, and the same exact, horrible, terrifyingly crushing pain returned. He fell back down, he again struggled, and once more, it was to no avail. All his relief reverted to fear as he was, like before, unable to even gasp. His eyes widened, confusion again struck, and he entered a full-blown state of panic. And then…then the buff ticked again, and instantly after it did, he was able to inhale sharply, fresh air filling his lungs as he thanked the Gods for the very existence of oxygen itself.

“Wh-what the fuck is happening?” he yelled as the pain continued to lessen once more: only to ramp up for the third time, and for his chest to tighten. But like before, the buff ticked, and he was able to breathe.

“Every time my buff ticks, it eats up your exertion debt for a few seconds, and during that time, the purple stone heals you,” Jimmy said, a smug but not entirely undeserved look on his face. “That stone’s probably gonna run out soon, though.”

Zach wasn’t even sure what the hell Jimmy was talking about until he experienced it firsthand and it clicked in his head. Following another tick of Breath of Invigoration, the pain in his chest did not lessen as it had previously. Sure, he could still breathe, yes, but now, it was more accurate to call it a desperate, half-fulfilling wheeze than a breath of air.

“Donovan, hit him with another.”

“Yup.”

Donovan slammed a second purple into him, and within seconds, it began to repair his heart—or at least he assumed that was what was going on. This assumption was based on the tightness lessening, and like before, he felt like he could easily stand up. But this time, he stayed on his knees, and he waited for the stamina granted to him by Jimmy’s buff to be consumed by his E-debt. And once it did, there were a few seconds in between each tick of Breath of Invigoration where the purple stone was unable to heal him at the same speed at which the exertion debt was damaging him, and thus, the pain returned.

But now, Zach’s fear was under control. He realized that the crazy idea Jimmy had conjured up had actually worked, so he learned to tolerate the intense pain as he gradually began to view this as something more of an “ordeal” he’d need to endure as opposed to something that would kill him.

“Jimmy,” he panted. “I think I’m going to be okay. I think I’m actually going to—gahh!” he cried out as the chest tightness felt like a fist closing around his heart. “St-stone,” he said. “Need another.”

Jimmy looked at Donovan and nodded, and Donovan clapped him over the back with it. This time, Zach winced, feeling it. Still, he gave a thumbs-up to the man in thanks as another tick of Breath of Invigoration came in, allowing his body to heal while the debt consumed the stamina it granted instead of draining the life out of his heart.

I’m going to live. I’m actually going to live.

For about a minute that felt like a year, Zach remained in place, his knees on the dirt, sweat running down the sides of his face, his heart pounding away. And then, finally, it all just seemed to stop. It was over. He’d actually made it through.

“Oh, shit, wow. I owe you one, Jimmy,” Zach panted out, barely able to form words. So instead, he looked Jimmy right in the eyes, hoping to communicate through the exchanged glance how grateful he was and how much it meant to him that Jimmy had actually kept his word. It actually seemed to restore a piece of himself: a faith in people Fylwen had robbed him of and that he’d wondered if he’d ever fully be able to get back.

“I think we should give him one more purple,” Jimmy said. “Just in case there’s any leftover heart damage or whatever. I mean, I don’t know how that shit works, but if his body takes the stone, it means he needs it. Otherwise, nothing will happen when you use it right?”

“Yeah, that’s how they work.”

Donovan’s palm crashed down on Zach’s shoulder, and now Zach wondered if he’d need a red stone to repair the bruise he’d be left with as Donovan struck him hard enough to make his body jolt. Interestingly, the stone crushed then vanished upon impact, which meant there was, in fact, some lingering damage in need of repair. Yet Zach was now flooded with such relief, gratitude, and joy at being alive that he didn’t even realize how injured he actually was until after he felt himself begin to heal. Suddenly, his wheezes reverted to breaths, and the final bit of tightness loosened, freeing him.

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“You good?” Jimmy asked him.

“Yeah, I think so.” Taking another deep breath, Zach stood upright onto both feet. “I definitely think I’m good. Yeah.”

Almost as soon as Zach finished speaking those words, he felt abruptly winded, he lost his balance, and then he bent his entire body forward and rested his palms on his knees while panting.

“Or maybe not, actually,” he said, struggling to catch his breath. Fatigued, he raised his right hand, made a waving gesture at Jimmy, then placed it back on his kneecap for support. “I think I need another purple.”

“No you don’t,” Donovan said with a grunt. “You need to go to bed. You’re just exhausted.”

“Maybe. I’m feeling really weak right now.”

Fiona cleared her throat, drawing Zach’s attention. “Do you mind if I have my doctors check you out really quickly? Just so I can give Kalana peace of mind.”

Zach, unable to raise his arms, gestured by nodding his head, and then he allowed himself to be led to the back of an ambulance, where they sat him down, put a stethoscope to his chest, and asked him to breathe. Another doctor took his blood pressure, and a third asked him questions such as whether or not there was any pain when he inhaled. Very quickly, they concluded he was simply suffering from exhaustion and needed some bed rest—a diagnosis Zach himself had made hours earlier and without needing a doctor to tell it to him.

“Do you need a ride somewhere?” Fiona asked.

“Yeah, just to the Grand Library. I can dance my way home from there.”

“Is that a…euphemism for something?”

Zach shook his head. “Nope. I don’t know if this is like an adventuring secret that I’m not supposed to tell you or whatever, but to get to Elendroth from here, I literally have to win a dance competition against five mermaids and a pink, tutu-wearing rhinoceros.”

“He’s telling the truth,” Jimmy said. “That’s really something you gotta do. Well, unless you win enough tickets bowling or playing one of the other games. But the dance is probably quickest.”

Zach, still breathing heavily, made a waving motion in the air with his hand. “No, I don’t actually think you can even use tickets to go from Faded Island to Shores of Wrath, Jimmy. I’m pretty sure you need to win the dance-off. I’m not an expert on Hamen’s Isle, though, so I’m not sure.”

“Actually, I think you’re right. I never went that way before. I came here with tickets, but I haven’t tried to go back yet.”

One of the doctors, a middle-aged, red-headed woman wearing a white coat with a stethoscope around her neck, seemed to find all of this troubling. “I don’t understand how leveled people perform healing miracles like the one I just saw,” she began, “and I certainly have no idea how literally I should be taking what I just heard, but I would strongly advise against…against ‘dancing’ until you’ve rested. I also think you should get a 12-lead ECG. What I just saw looked to me like someone suffering multiple, completely separate heart attacks.”

“Because I did,” Zach said. “That’s not a joke. I actually did.”

The doctor seemed dumbfounded but did not challenge the claim. Instead, she addressed Fiona. “Duchess Darkmae, I realize leveled matters fall far outside my field of expertise, but as a physician, I cannot recommend he…dances right now.”

She nodded, then looked at Zach. “I can just have you flown back to Kalana's island on one of our jets. It’s the least we can do for all your help removing that boss from our region. You wouldn’t even need to go through Shores of Wrath. I can take you right there. Kalana gave me the coordinates when I visited a few days ago.”

Zach cringed just at the suggestion, and he declined immediately. “No thanks. I really don’t like flying. The last time I flew on an airplane, I had a really bad panic attack. It was the worst ten hours of my life, and from here to Elendroth is probably an even longer flight than that one was.”

Once again, the doctor spoke up. “Why not simply take a sedative, then? You’ll go straight to sleep and wake up almost there. In fact, I can prescribe you one and make sure you get it right before takeoff.”

Zach cringed yet again, as this sounded to him like one of the most unappealing, strangest suggestions anyone had ever made. But for some reason, this caused Jimmy’s ears to perk up like he was Elvish. “Wait, hold up, hold up,” he said. “Do ya’ll got benzos here?”

“Benzos?” the doctor asked.

“You know, like, Xanax? Benzodiazepines?”

She looked at him askance. “I’ve never heard the term.”

Jimmy, raising his finger, launched into an explanation that made Zach feel a bit worried, as given Jimmy’s drinking problems, the fact that he was suddenly able to describe exactly what he was referring to seemed to imply that Jimmy had a bit more going on with him than merely a passing hobby in learning the compounds that made up pharmaceutical agents.

“Basically,” he said, “it’s a central nervous system depressant that amps up your GABA receptors.”

“Oh, that makes sense,” the doctor replied. “And now that I think about it, the term you used, ‘benzodiazepine,’ also makes a lot more sense, too. Hmm, let me guess: it’s a chemical fusion between benzene and diazepane? Is that what you’re asking me for?” fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

Jimmy snapped his fingers. “Yes! That’s exactly right! Yeah. So, uh, do you guys got that?”

The doctor frowned, and this time she looked really serious in a way that was highly off-putting and made Zach nervous. “What you just described, young man, is the illegal street drug called ‘Still Rage.’”

Fiona’s mouth dropped open. “Wait, what? Is that what Still Rage is made of?”

“Yes, Duchess Darkmae. Your friend Jimmy here just requested we synthesize him the dangerous, illicit substance ‘Still Rage.’”

“I did?” Jimmy asked.

“Yes. You did.”

Now, Zach, too, felt his mouth pop open in surprise. “Wait, the stuff Jimmy just said…that’s what ‘Still Rage’ is made of? I didn’t know that.”

“I assure you that it is.”

Zach glared at Jimmy. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Jimmy? That shit has killed thousands of people. And how do you even know this? You’ve been here a few weeks and you’re already hooked on SR?”

Jimmy threw up his hands defensively. “Nah, Zach. It’s just called Xanax where I come from, and doctors hand it out all the time if you know which ones to go to.”

“And…people don’t die from it?”

“Huh? Oh, no, even more people die from it. Like 10k a year worldwide. But only if you use too much or don’t know what you’re doing like I do. I'm an expert drug user, Zach. Where I'm from, I do two things really well: game and chill with my friends on benzos.”

The doctor gave him such a disgusted look that Zach actually worried she might hit Jimmy. "That's is a terrible thing to say."

“And wait," Zach added, "did you just say doctors prescribe it?”

“Yeah, you can get a script for it.”

“But it kills people.”

“Right.”

“So why do they prescribe it?”

"For anxiety."

"Aren't there alternatives?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess."

"So why do they give out Still Rage?"

"'Cause it's the shit. And thanks for letting me know what it's called. Gotta get me some Still Rage."

"No you don't! And also, did you just call it the shit?"

Before Jimmy could answer, the doctor interjected. “What am I sitting here listening to? I seriously doubt every word of what he just said." Her frown deepened. “Even in Giant’s Fall you can’t legally purchase or prescribe Still Rage. There's nowhere in North Bastia you can get those pills: not legally, anyway.”

Zach was too exhausted to explain the half lie, half truth that Jimmy was from a colony on Earth, especially since level-1 people didn’t even know there was such a thing as Planet Earth, let alone that it was the birthplace of humanity. Instead, still seated in the back of the ambulance, he merely shrugged and said, “Well, it’s not legal anywhere around here, Jimmy. So, whoever was prescribing it to you…don’t expect anyone to prescribe it to you here.”

Jimmy chuckled. “You’re funny as hell, Zach.”

Baffled, Zach tilted his head to the side. “Funny? Funny how?”

“Imagine thinking somebody prescribed it to me. No way, man. I bought that shit.”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Zach, still exhausted, took a moment to gather himself before he spoke. “Are you telling me it’s legal where you came from, but you still bought it illegally anyway?”

“Yeah.”

“And you’re admitting that?”

“Yep. Now, can we get some or not?”

“Absolutely not!” Fiona, Zach, Tena, and the doctor all said at the same time.

Jimmy sighed. “Fine. Then in that case, I’ll just take some of whatever you were gonna give Zach. I’ll fly with him too. I could use some sleep.”

The doctor recoiled. “Not a chance. I’m not prescribing you anything. You’ve just revealed yourself to have an addictive tendency, and that’s a major red flag. Duchess Darkmae, I strongly suggest you let me put this young man on the regionally circulated list of drug seekers to protect him from accidentally killing himself. It's for his own good! I'm actually the one who added that other young man, Tyson, and I believe this 'Jimmy' should be added as well.”

Jimmy made a very strange, depressed “yowl” sound like he wanted to shout the words “owe” and “no” at the exact same time. “W-wait! Don’t do that. Chill.”

“No, definitely do it,” Tena said. “I’m gonna help Jimmy get off drugs and alcohol, but the last thing I need is him sneaking away to doctors to get bogus prescriptions. Especially once he learns what they’re called here.”

Rian nodded. “Yeah, put him on every list you have. Jimmy’s a dangerous, Orc-hating racist and drug addict. We can’t feel safe until he’s on all the lists. He's a danger to himself and others. Actually, I say this with love and caring: he should be locked up for a few years, too.”

“Rian, you better shut your ass up,” Jimmy said, scowling.

“What? I’m only acting out of concern for your health.” Even as he spoke, he winked at the doctor and pantomimed writing a name on an imaginary list in the air.

“If I'm banned from doctors, I want Rian banned from fast food. He's killing himself every time his fat ass orders takeout.”

“At least that's legal, Jimmy.”

Zach wanted to chuckle but he was too tired. “Everybody just chill,” he said, using Jimmy’s word, which was starting to grow on him. “I just want to go home. And I don’t want to spend hours and hours on an airplane, either. So um, is there like an inn or something where I can spend the night here? It’s already pretty late, and once I'm rested up, I can just zip through Hamen's Isle and get home that way.”

Fiona seemed to perk up at the question. “Of course, Zach! Why not stay at my estate? Not only will you be far more comfortable, but the Royal Roses is long overdue for an official visit, and there's a quick, but very important export issue we need to iron out.”

Zach moaned. “Let me guess,” he said, shocked by the words that came out of his mouth even as he spoke them, “this is about the expiring shipping contract on coco exports moving through Giant’s Fall?”

“Yep.”

Why in the fuck do I even know these things? he thought to himself, both impressed as well as disgusted. I’m seventeen, and I’m acting like I’m fifty.

Not only did Zach know about the expiring shipping permit due to his days lazily lounging around and watching the news at Kalana’s home, but he also knew that the Royal Roses badly needed to renew it, but no one of sufficient rank had been able to fly here to Faded Island for the past several weeks due to the atomic bomb and the subsequent war. He also knew that, as the fourth-in-command of the Royal Roses—sort of, as he still didn't consider this to be totally real—he actually had the power to sign the stupid contract as long as he cleared it first with either Haisel Ragora or Vim Alazar.

Gods curse me for actually getting involved in guild paperwork!

“One second,” he muttered. He removed his phone and dialed a number. A voice replied immediately.

“What the hell do you want now, Zach?” Vim growled at him. “You hang up on me, and now you’re already distracting me during a crisis. What is it this time?” Gunshots were ringing out in the distance as well as the sound of distant explosions.

“So uh, Duchess Darkmae wants me to, like, sign a renewed shipping contract extending the—”

“Yes!” he called out suddenly, his voice becoming enthusiastic. “The coco beans! I forgot about that. It’s a good thing you’re there after all. If that expires, we’re going to be out a lot of gold. We make big money shipping those out to the rest of North Bastia. For once, you’re seizing the initiative, Zach. This is what I like to see.” More gunshots rang out, and then Vim said, “Have dinner with her and her guild tonight and see if you can get our rates up to 10%. I won’t accept anything less than 7%, but go for 10% if you can. Also, I want that deal done by morning so we can announce it on the morning news.”

“Eh, I don't know if I feel like doing all that,” Zach said, another moan following his words. “Since when do I even care about fucking coco beans?”

“Since I gave you a private estate with three-hundred acres of land currently valued at fifty-million gold.”

Zach’s heart lurched with the force of a Very-High Exertion Debt. “Wait, you did what?”

“Don’t you remember? I told you this before.”

Zach, shocked, asked him for clarification. “You did?”

“Yes, you fool! Everything that was Varsh’s is now yours. You're also set to receive your first guild stipend in three days. Earn it!”

Zach's mind flashed back to when they were storming their way through Shadowfall Coast late last night atop his Kralzek's Beast, and now, he did sort of vaguely remember a conversation like that. “Oh yeah, right. You did say something about this.”

“That's right. It can think when it wants to. Good to know. Now, I have to go. Make that deal, Zach!”

Vim disconnected, and now, upon returning his phone to his pocket, Zach looked at Fiona, and he shrugged. “Okay, let’s get something to eat and talk about coco beans, I guess. But after that, I’m going on another two-week vacation. I think I'll spend the first half at Elendroth, and then the other half at my new mansion or whatever it is that I just found out I have and still can’t believe is real. Oh, wow. Even saying that feels amazing and weird.”

She smiled at him. “Sounds great. I hope you like filet mignon.”

“No clue,” he replied. “In all my life, I’ve never been able to afford it.”

“Oh! You’re in for a surprise, then. Hey, Jimmy: would you like to tag along? You and uh…was it Tena?”

Tena beamed. “Yes, Duchess Darkmae. And Jimmy and I would love to join you for dinner. It would actually be a super-huge honor. I’m…I’m a really big fan of your movies. The Blonde Dancer II is one of my favorite movies ever.”

Fiona smiled at Tena. “It was one of my favorites to make! Oh, and in private, you can just call me Fiona.” She then looked over towards Donovan, Zephyr, Rian, and Lienne. “And you four?”

“Just tag along with us,” Zach said to them. “I’m too weak to make sure Jimmy doesn’t drink tonight.”

Donovan barked out a laugh and declined, but Rian accepted, and so too did Lienne. Zephyr, like Donovan, politely declined and claimed he needed to get back to Angelica’s, a term that Fiona was clearly unfamiliar with but did not inquire about. And so, with that, she called for a DEHV to come pick them up, and Zach hoped he could keep his eyes open long enough to do whatever bullshit thing Vim and her wanted done.

I can’t believe I have to negotiate a shipping contract and sign documents for a guild I’m not even a real member of.

Zach needed to catch some sleep. At least this would be quick.