Deep black skin an hair, like coal. Not what you would expect to find in a bedroom. I don't even know how to qualify this thing. It looks human but doesn't have any genitalia and it's whole body is darker than even the skin tone of the nomads I met in the desert in the south contient.

Aside from that, it seems I was wrong, the liquid it is in isn't water, it has a color, light blue, and is emmiting a faint amount of light and magic power. Also the tube is not made of glass but some sort of corundum. That is the best I can deduce, my knowledge of minerals is lacking.

There doesn't seem to be any built-in way to get the body out of the tube. So either the purpose of this thing is not to get out of it's prison, either it's supposed to be there until it is released.

While I was studying this sleeping creature, Veria searched the room. I couldn't see her but heard her walk around. She walked from one side of the room to the other until she paused for a second. Then I heard stone scraping against stone. I turned around to see the wall open to reveal another room. Veria smiled at me with a hint of pride, not the same one as the childish one from this morning, a more mature one that comes from her years of experience. Also it seems she isn't bored anymore.

I gazed at the new room, it was really different. The walls were covered in some sort of thin layer of enchanted stone, probably the kind that prevent the spread of disease judging from what else there is, namely two shelves filled with jars of different liquids with sometime body parts from monster and humans and a large stone table. Still no data on the research that was done here.

Veria noticed some old bloodstains on the table while I examined the jars. The tags were written in a language I couldn't comprehend. And of course Pampil isn't answering when I ask her so I decided to shift my attention toward the table. Magic sight couldn't make more than a blur of elements and powers, it lacks the precision to analyse what I believe is an array of magic contraptions. It must be the apex of the enchanted items I found in this cave.

Magic had no effect.

I tried to infuse mana in it but it wouldn't react, it seems to lack something. Some condition needs to be met to use this.

At that point I heard Veria gasp, I looked at her to see her staring at the tube with a mix of fear and surprise.

It can see you.

I turned my head to see and met the thing's eyes, they were now open, showing off the two purple globes filled with some sort of mist of a slightly lighter color. The lack of pupils made it impossible to "look" but I could still feel that thing gaze on me and Veria. It didn't move anything else than it's eyelids and looked around. Also the message doesn't mention detection which is conserning.

I don't know what I should do. I could get that thing out of it's prison but it could end with it dying or becoming agressive. I could also study the things here for longer but that thing's look feels bad for some reason. I think I'll just leav this place as is and go to the last part of this place I didn't explore.

While I traveled with Veria, I had an idea on how to cross the lake on the other side of which is the greenhouse. For that we'll need to go back to the tower with the artifacts first.

After getting what I needed at the tower I guided Veria toward the lake and put the artifact around my neck. I took a few seconds to calculate the distance and proceeded. The first frost bolt hit the water about two meters away from the bank. The second one quickly appeared right after and I had to shift my aim at last second to hit two meters further. I jumped on the ice platforms and repeated. Veria tried to follow but realised she coul jump on the platforms but not stay on them as they would end up sinking under her weight.

I'm glad I remembered the artifact that could repeat a spell for half price. With this I should be able to slowly cross the lake by creating ice platforms and resting on the few rock that are above the water's surface.

I took four frost bolts to reach a fourth of the way. I wanted to get some mana back before going further so I stopped near an emerged rock. Veria followed but just as she was jumping to get on the rock a gigantic maw rushed out of the water and swallowed the ice platform and Veria at the same time. I was so surprise that I couldn't even react. I just stared at the gigantic whale-like creature that swallowed my companion. I got back to my senses when it's body came back in the water.

I instantly used Cold shivers on it to slow it down and get my bearing.

Your opponent feels cold from it's core.

The maw I just saw only had tooths on the outer part which mean Veria could still be alive inside that thing. The problem is how to get her out of this monster then out of the extremely cold water befor she dies either digested or fom hypothermia.

I should first lure the thing out of water and then try to hurt it. I made two platforms and jumped from one to the other until the beast approached again. When it was about to jump out of water I pushed the ice platform with telekinesis and jumped toward the rock. The monster tried to follow my movement and ended up getting out of the water in a weird angle that made him hit the rocks violently. He didn't ground though.

Target hurt itself, 53 blunt damage dealt.

As he was falling back in the water I tried to think of another plan but the beast shrieked in agony before I could focus. It retched loudly until something came out of it's maw. Veria jumped out, covered in sticky fluids but alive. She had to use her hands to avoid losing balance and slipping in the saliva of the monster. She then pulled a bag from her belt and threw it in the monster's mouth. The beast shrieked even louder and started to thrash around violently.

It took about ten seconds for the beast to die, it tried to flee at some point but died in the water and floated to the surface. Veria brought the body to the rock we are sitting on with her hook and cut some parts of the beast. It's kind of sad that she poisoned it, I kinda wonder what this giant fish would taste like.

On another topic, I need to make sure that no other monster attacks Veria while she jumps on the ice platforms. Her weight and the limited footing makes her an easy target while I can stay on a platform or create a new one whenever I want. I can even move the platforms with telekinesis.

The best course of action was to have me act as a scout whith magic sight and give a signal when Veria could cross. She caugh up quickly and we crossed the lake in an hour. Moving didn't take that long but I had to wait for my mana to come back while resting on the rocks.

While we were resting Veria would take some time to clean some of her clothes and equipement. On the last stop she even took me on her lap. I didn't understand why but didn't mind so I let her do it.

Once we reached the other side of the lake one obvious thing appeared, that greenhouse is way larger than I thought. The glass construction is large enough to fit thirty drakes. Also there isn't a single plant, this isn't a greenhouse. There actually is nothing inside. And I can't see any door.

When we came closer I used magic sight and scannec the strange structure. The front didn't reveal anything so I circled it and I found a back entrance. The door was actually quite easy to spot as there is a doormat right in front of it. No handle was in sight so I just tried to put my paw on the door to try if it did anything. My paw went right through it, an invisible passage. I'm not even surprised this time.

The place looked really different from the inside, I don't know how but it felt like somwhere completely out of this world. It had the same dimensions than what you could see from outside but that was the only thing it had in common. All the walls, floor and ceiling are covered in a dark purple color moving slowly, just like water would flow. The place is filled with furniture made of a grey white kind of wood and marble. There even is paintings on the walls.

Veria followed me inside and shared my surprise, but adapted faster, as I was still procecing how this place even worked she was already opening the cupboards and drawers. Most of them were filled with everyday items like a comb, some candles, a fiction book and a pair of glasses. Those were well made but nothing uncommon compared to what we saw before.

I knew the place had two floors and about 10 rooms so I methodically searched each one. The first floor is starting from the hallway with on it's sides a dinning room and kitchen plus an extra living room that leads to a large bath that could fit in a palace. On the second are three sleeping rooms with barely more than a bed and a locker and a study.

I looked through everything. Even the study was filled with useless books and a few magic scrolls that weren't finished. It still feel like there is something I missed.

I lost Veria about ten minutes ago, she went back downstairs after she saw all the rooms. I need to check something outside, I'll see her later.

Once I could see the whole structure from outside I reallized what I missed, there is a part of the house that doesn't match with the inside, one of the three bed rooms should be bigger than the others while it isn't. I came back inside and nearly fell in the stairs as I was rushing to the room. I tried pushing the bed out of the way but it wouldn't move. I then tried to get the locker out of the way but it didn't work either. Why do witches hide their research so well?

I used spells and curses on the wall but it didnt work either. At one point I was so mad I started firing frost bolts at random. Then I hit the room's door and a hole opened in the wall.

I felt like an idiot.

In the hidden room I found two bookases and an armchair. The books here are far more interesting than the ones in the study. Some are about monsters and artificial creatures like golems, other about ice magic's ability to preserve living beings and psychic magic. One of them stood out, a coverless book that was half the size the other were. I opened it and skimmed through the pages to get an idea of what it is. Dates and description, it looks like a experiment journal. The first words on the first page are:"Artifical lifeform experiment number 11".