Divine Luck: SSS-Rank Battle Maid Harem

Bruns took a few days to gather supplies, double-check his information, and ensure he had enough talismans. Then, he ventured into the sewers with the goal of first establishing a barrier at the border between the sewers and the tunnel leading into the Underworld.

The barrier would inform someone on the surface that an underworlder was passing through. It was a first alarm in case there was an attack or an underworlder tried to sneak away. There probably wasn't much they could do if the underworlder was sneaking away after hiding in the sewers or the city. But it would let them know the underworlders had been active.

And if the barrier sensed an underworlder entering the sewers from the Underworld, it would give the ones on the surface enough time to prepare for an attack or to catch the underworlder.

That wasn't the barrier's only purpose, however.

If it detected one or more underworlders after Bruns and his group entered the tunnel to scout it, it was a sign that Bruns and the others had lost. If they had, the underworlder coming to the surface was most likely stronger than Bruns.

The barrier was the first line to give as many as possible as much time to run as possible.

Zach had been reluctant since it might worsen the situation if it was used, but he even gave Bruns an anti-underworld energy potion. He wasn't sure about its strength, but it was potent. It would save Bruns' life if he was faced with a foe he couldn't defeat.

If Bruns managed to get deep enough before finding it, it would also serve as a good tool to disrupt the Underworld. Of course, that depended on what they would find down below, deep in the pitch darkness of the Underworld.

Bravely facing the fear of the unknown, Bruns and the others entered the tunnel.

On the surface, Zach and Alzara were starting to develop a trial-ready medicine for underworld energy poisoning. It was an almost endlessly diluted version of the original anti-underworld energy potion that had been dried and turned into tiny tablets that melted in contact with liquid.

They could be ingested directly, dissolved in a cup of water, or, for easier mass distribution, mixed in with the water supply.

It was risky since there could be other contaminants and adverse reactions to a medicine that had yet to finish the testing stage. That was why Zach made sure to have as many volunteers as possible test it first.

It wasn't an immediate cure, and the first version ready for trials was a little off. It wasn't great for pushing the underworld energy out of human bodies. It mostly stirred it up and worsened the symptoms.

That was a side-effect of the medicine trying to push the underworld energy straight out of the person's bone, flesh, and skin. It was gentler and better than the anti-underworld potion.

But unless it was a familiar who used it and who could withstand the burden of forcing the underworld energy out of their bodies directly through all the meat, it wouldn't work in the long run. The bodies of humans would break down before they were fully cured and freed of the underworld poison.

There might have been other side effects, but they didn't show.

In the next version, Alzara added binding agents to the medicine, that tied the underworld energy to the medicine and the medicine to the person's excretion and exhaled breaths. It was better but came with the side effect of intense diarrhea and painful gasses from both ends of the body.

It was bearable, and it got rid of the underworld energy somewhat efficiently.

But Alzara could make a better version. So, she did.

After another few rounds of improvements and trials, Alzara finally made a tiny white pill that effortlessly drove the underworld energy out of a poisoned person's orifices in streams of smoke.

It could be unpleasant, but that was it. And after suffering for weeks of poisoning, the poisoned citizens could happily bear with it. They would have liked a more in-depth warning before Zach and the others mixed it into the water supply, though.

Panic broke out when sick people started spewing dark grey smoke from all the holes in their heads all of a sudden.

The panic was quickly extinguished since the bursts of smoke only lasted for a few moments for each person, but it was a mess, nonetheless, not that Zach was bothered.

He was holed up in Alzara's lab practicing his spear and Material Extraction. Nessa, Dukiel, Violina, Anerias, and their classmates were the ones who had to deal with all that.

There were more than one or two students who muttered complaints about Zach since he was the only one not contributing to the clean-up after the panic. It was his fault and such.

It was just that the panic from suddenly giving everyone medicine wasn't the only thing he was responsible for. He was also responsible for the medicine that would cure the citizens. He had earned the right not to participate in the clean-up or care of the patients.

After the initial panic, the only thing that filled the camp outside the city was excitement.

It was a cure!

They were saved. They were finally free of the endless vomiting, never being able to hold food down, never sleeping an entire night without waking up several times because they were cold, had to puke, were too warm, shivered, or it felt like worms were crawling around inside them.

They could start returning to their ordinary lives soon.

There was still a lot of underworld energy in the city, especially in the center and in the sewers. But that would get better with time. And with the talismans, they had nothing to worry about.

Life would soon return to normal, aside from a greyish hue that seemed to linger in the city due to the underworld energy.

It was great.

Until it wasn't.