Chapter 23

As Arikado and Julius ventured through Jiang-Shi's lair, Julius cursed himself for not killing the vampire while he was there, but at the same time grateful so they could capture a Succubus in the gem.

They battled low-level monsters until they reached into the deepest trenches of the castle, where a bunch of Sara lookalikes bombarded them. Arikado warned, "It's the Succubus pack! Trap one of them in the rock!"

As one of them tried to high-kick Julius, he dodged and hit her with the whip. Arikado shot flames that incinerated all but one. Julius hurled the empty gem at the Succubus while Arikado stabbed her with a finishing blow. As the monster's soul was sucked into the gem, Julius pondered, "Should we kill Jiang-Shi?"

Arikado shook his head. "Normally I'd say yes, but we might end up needing more monster souls down the way. Let's just go back to Japan."

After a thankfully short flight, everyone regrouped in Soma and Josh's dorm. Arikado transferred the Succubus soul to the empty gem. "Now all we need is some sweat of pure fear."

Mina raised an eyebrow. "How are we supposed to get that?"

Josh raised his hand. "I experience fear every day."

Arikado considered that. "I'll just have to collect your sweat in a vial and pour it into the gem."

Hammer wrinkled his nose. "That's disgusting!"

Julius criticized, "Do we have a different choice?"

Josh sulked. "Just wait around for a bit. I'll start having anxiety later."

Soma asked, "Do you think you should see a therapist? You suffer a lot from this."

Mina nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, it could really help you! After we collect your sweat, we'll make an appointment at the counseling center on campus!"

That evening, Joachim appeared. "The new dawn is approaching. Can you feel its warm rays?"

Julius rolled his eyes. "Stop trying to sound sophisticated with your poetic metaphors. You'd burn if the sun reached your skin."

Everyone groaned while the two entered a verbal dispute.

The next morning, when Soma and Josh were running late for their class, Josh underwent a panic attack. Soma grabbed his phone. "Arikado? It's time to get Josh's sweat. Please hurry. We might not make it to biology."

Arikado sprinted to the boys' dorm. "I have the necessary materials." He collected some of Josh's sweat and sealed it in a beaker. "Thank you for enduring this suffering for our sake, Josh. Hammer should be honored to have a younger brother like you."

Josh reddened. "Aw! I'm just glad that I'm of use to everyone."

Arikado responded, "You were always of use. Never let anyone tell you otherwise." He left to go back to Julius and Hammer.

Upon his arrival, Hammer crossed his arms. "I hope that this works."

Julius poured the sweat in the gem. The rock pulsated black for a few moments. When it stopped, it was completely black. Julius stepped back from it. "Looks like we got ourselves a new Ebony Stone. That was a lot easier than getting the Crimson Stone."

Arikado closed his eyes. "Now let's focus on creating a Philosopher's Stone. I doubt Joachim can be helpful, since no one successfully made one."

Hammer complained, "Now how are we supposed to save Sara if there's no way to make one?"

Julius grimly stated, "We'll just have to figure out the secret ourselves."