If a hen, the female fish, was interested in a room, it would enter the room and wait for her pair to “do its job”.
Different milters built rooms of different styles. Some used whole shells, some used hard dirt, some dug places inside corals… Fein Werder found it pretty interesting, so he stayed for a few more years to observe how the small silver fishes gave birth to their next generation.
In the second year, he saw a silver fish who had black spots on its body built a delicate breeding room inside a rotten plank from shipwrecks. However, no hens came.
In the third year, the “black spot” did the same trick by making a rotten wood piece into his breeding room. Even Fein Werder was impressed by the stable triangle design which could support two mating lovers no matter how “violent” they moved.
Yet no hens joined.
The fourth year, the fifth… The black spot failed to attract a “she” again in the eighth year, and Fein Werder was getting a bit worried about the small bachelor.
The usual life expectancy of a silver fish was about ten years, which meant this one did not have many chances left.
During the eighth year, the black-spotted fish constructed a miniature and adorable room just like how humans did. Fein Werder could not help approving the genius’ work. At this rate, it was very likely that this one silver fish would bring civilization to the tribe.
Regretfully speaking, such a finely-crafted room still had no visitors.
In the ninth year, Fein Werder began to understand that it was not the room that discouraged potential mates. It was because… the “black spot” looked unsightly among its folks.
Fein Werder realized that female silver fish regarded someone’s look as important as the room.
He silently mourned for the misfortune of the little fish.
In the ninth year, using rotten wood again, the black spot created something yet more complex. It was a fortress, a castle with multiple levels.
It did attract hens this time. However, each time a hen entered the “castle”, the black spot would immediately slaughter it with a weapon.
This time, the black spot managed to draw 39 hens to its home. He killed them all and used their blood to bath the castle in red.
“A fish left single for too long had gone insane…” Fein Werder commented.
The black spot did not get to meet its natural death. The “chieftain” of the tribe ordered guards to siege the castle and executed the black spot in the end.
The story did not end here.
Rather, this was where Fein Werder’s story actually started. As an observer, despite his sorrow when he witnessed the sad ending of the little bachelor, Werder never interfered with the tribe’s business.
When it ended, Fein Werder prepared to leave this plane since there was no more to see. Before he could do so, however, he saw something strange. The “castle” built by the black-spotted fish had undergone amazing changes.
It turned into a Mystery Item without being affected by any external magic!
Fein Werder did not say what the item could be used for in his book. He, however, understood the great value possessed by such an item. Great excitement affected his neutral standing. The man thought he had discovered the right approach to create a Mystery Item.
He no longer saw himself as an observer. He turned into a merciless killer and began slaughtering the fish before using their blood to taint their “breeding rooms”.
But he did not find another Mystery Item.
He did some more experiment on the bodies of the fish, which yielded nothing.
In the end, the silver fish tribe became extinct in his hands while he only obtained that one Mystery Item in the shape of a castle.
Previously, Angor only regarded the story as a “story”. He did not believe someone would watch fish building houses for ten years.
But he found it similar when he heard about the poorly-made cloth doll.
Perhaps it was poorly made in the views of humans. To the fishes, however, the houses they built were great treasures.
With no particular process, the simple castle became a “Mystery Item”.
A doll too simple to be a child’s toy became a Mystery Item called the Cursing Puppet.
They had the same ring to them.
“Maybe the appearance of a Mystery Item is triggered by strong emotions or desire?” Prome offered an opinion after listening to Angor.
Angor shook his head. “I’m not sure. The story is not validated anyway. But I do know alchemists can create such items. I have no idea how though.”
“Mortals-wait, even fishes can produce Mystery Items? Such… mystery.” Dave was lost in thought. He then said, “Now I really want to know more about them. Maybe I can accidentally create one, and I’ll be beyond rich!”
“Thirty years ago, the Floating Mech City sold a Mystery Item called ‘Whelk of The Dreaming Coast’. It can put all non-lifeforms into dreams regardless of their levels. Due to such a useless effect, the item was only sold at ten thousand crystals. So don’t get too worked up. Not every Mystery Item is valuable,” Prome commented.
Put non-lifeforms into dreams?? Angor was surprised. Can randoms objects have dreams too?
“Practice what you learned. There are cases where a tiered alchemy item sold for more than seven million,” said Prome as he patted Dave’s shoulder.
“You must mean those high-tiered ones, Master. There are even better ones called tactical deployments, which are priceless. I wouldn’t care about Mystery or whatnot if I can make something like that,” said Dave as he pouted.
They chuckled and decided to end the topic.
Angor suddenly remembered seeing Lydia talking to Sunders in a strange way, so he decided to ask Prome about it.
“Who is ‘Lady Lotus’ who was inside Chamber 1 today? Why’s everyone afraid of her?”
“Lady Lydia, you mean? She is-”
Before Prome could say much else, a tiny head poked out from the corner of the stairway.
“Lady Lotus is now at Midnight Sovereign??”