Remembering yesterday still made my body feel sharp pain, but I needed to leave all that behind. "Giving up is not an option," I kept telling myself.
I went into the back of the shop and was met with the same sight as all these years: hanging meats and a bone-piercing cold. I walked behind my companions, who were changing into their work suits to start the day. The suit was made of leather and covered them from head to toe, with small crystal pieces over the eyes that allowed them to see through. Without wasting time, I took mine, and we entered the room where animals were skinned.
The metallic stench filled every corner of that room. Toxic gases accumulated since they couldn't just be let out, as any mortal person who smelled them would die immediately. Despite the cold seeping from the walls, sweat drenched my back as soon as I crossed the threshold. The air was thick, heavy with a penetrating aroma of magical entrails and acid-burned skin.
In the center of the slaughterhouse, on obsidian tables with containment runes, lay the still-warm carcasses of a Shadow Panther and a Snow Deer. Their bodies were huge, every muscle still seemed full of spiritual energy.
The reason my three companions were so valuable was because they knew how to prevent spiritual energy from leaking due to an improper cut. Also, spiritual beasts had a nervous system that carried an extremely toxic liquid. If this fluid touched the animal's meat, the entire animal would be completely useless in a matter of seconds.
The blades couldn't go in randomly: a false cut and the nerve poison would contaminate all the meat. The Panther had hidden glands under its skin that released shadow gas, lethal in enclosed spaces. The Deer, on the other hand, stored spiritual cold in its bones: breaking one could freeze an entire arm in seconds.
All morning we worked to completely skin both animals. Each part was carefully placed in special containers that prevented the meat from losing spiritual energy so quickly.
Each of these animals would easily give old Hanes a hundred spirit stones, and that's just for cleaning the animal. The clients did all the work of hunting them, and my uncle charged a fortune.
The sound of a bell announced that the client had arrived. I took the containers and brought them to the front for delivery. Old Hanes was there, and I fleetingly noticed a surprised expression on his face when he saw me.
I didn't know what he was thinking, so I handed over the jade containers and left quickly.
"Sebas," old Luck grumbled without even looking at me, "stop wasting time and come help. We have a batch of Steel-Tooth Salmon that arrived from the north port. There are too many, and we have to deliver them today, so hurry up."
The Salmon were the worst. Their scales were as sharp as razors, and their meat, though extremely valuable to cultivators, was incredibly soft. Also, their entire bodies had small poison sacs that would break with the slightest touch, making them extremely difficult to process.
I swallowed. I walked to the conservation barrel and opened the lid. Green steam began to come out despite wearing the safety suit and some aromatic herbs; the stench was unbearable. Gritting my teeth, I peered into the barrel. The salmon's silver bodies shone as if they were made entirely of silver. With tongs, I took one and put it on the table.
"Careful, kid," Harold said from the back, calmly sharpening his knife. "This time I don't think you'll survive if you cut them wrong."
Harold was right, so I got nervous. With trembling hands, I grabbed the knife and plunged it in at an angle, cutting just below the jaw where the acid sacs couldn't reach. I followed the spine precisely and began cleaning the salmon. One after another, I got them ready for consumption. My bucket of entrails filled up, so I took it and went to the waste area. The entrails had to be separated manually since they were sold to alchemists, so I began carefully placing them into other jade containers.
As I separated the entrails, I felt a hard, rock-like ball inside one of them. With a knife, I opened the fish's stomach and there it was: a green sphere the size of my thumb. Its surface shone like a precious jewel, and on its surface were swirls that moved as if smoke were trapped inside.
"What is this…?" It was incredibly beautiful and soft to the touch. Despite the cold of the room, it felt like a small ember that filled me with peace and comfort. The more I looked at it, the more I thought it was calling to me.
And just then, the bell rang.
The sound of footsteps approached. Uncle Hanes. I felt panic; if he saw me stealing something, he could kill me right then. Without thinking, without option, I made a decision and swallowed the orb without hesitation.
The taste was indescribable: it was the most disgusting thing I had ever eaten. The taste of viscera combined with blood was extremely bitter, as if eating bile. My throat closed up, but I forced myself to swallow it. Just then, Hanes walked in.
He stared at me, frowning.
"What are you hiding, you bastard?"
"N-nothing…"
Because I was enduring the disgust, I stammered a bit, and I was sweating as if I had run a marathon.
The blow came without warning. The handle of a butcher's hook hit my side. Then a kick sent me flying against a table.
"If I find out you're stealing, I swear I'll take out your stomach and make you eat it. Understand?"
I just nodded. Coughing blood, my ribs roaring like bent metal, I endured. I didn't cry. I didn't scream. I just swallowed the bile, the blood, and the fear, as always.
When night fell and the meat was salted, packed, and sealed in jade boxes ready for delivery, seeing my exhausted state, old Luck offered to wait for the client, so I took the chance and dragged myself out of the slaughterhouse while thanking old Luck for helping me.