《Slave Origin Playthrough [Grimdark Gamelit]》 Authors Notes - 3.17.2024 Hello. These are the list of new changes that will happen in the overhaul. If you are a new reader, please feel free to disregard. -Lock''s starting area in MSS has been changed from the Ludd Estate to a different Area. -Instead of spending only 7 chapters on Lock''s Slave Life, this arc will be expanded and encompass multiple branching questlines & guide the majority of his actions in the beginning -New starting companions for Lock -Stole won''t make an appearance until later in the series, possibly chapters 40~50+ -Lock will receive the Shadow Mimic Wolf''s Core at a later date as well and it will no longer be his first Core -Adventurer Grading System will no longer feature the ''lettering'' system (I.E no longer 10F, just 10). This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. -Lock will be completely unable to access any sort of System Window or from looking at his stats for the moment. -Chapter word count will be reduced from 5K~ to around 2.5K: This was done to help pace out the story a little better and most readers tend to read these chapters on phones during commute or when they have a short break. I believe 2.5~3K on Royal Road is recommended to help the readers digest the reading bits at a time. -I changed the formatting. I started writing my stories on .text which is why I kept the old format. But I have started using google sheets and it''s much more friendly for paragraph formatting. I want to specially thank some of my earlier readers who were among the first adopters, you guys are what made me want to bring a better work. (Grimm Lorehound, Masterthetime, R. Ortus Aurora -actually named Aurora because this name stuck, Delphoh, Chronim) just to name a few. I am currently on Chapter 7 and will release 10 at once, once I can get up to 15 chapters. I will also end up deleting a majority of the old chapters ?? I apologize. Not entirely sure if people are aware but I am ethnically Korean and was lucky enough to stay fluent in both English and Korean (I''m in the U.S). I wanted to bring that Korean-webnovelesque feeling and combine it with the folklore & mythology that I grew up with while fusing it with Western Fantasy. After re-reading my work, I believe I wasn''t doing that very well and wanted to bring a story with a higher level of completion. Thank you guys for your patience. Prologue - World: MSS I¡¯ve always liked books and games since I was a kid. I think it¡¯s because I never really had any friends. After school, it was always off to the latest violin lesson or cram school. So of course, no time for friends. I don¡¯t think my parents had any spare time for me either; it¡¯s hard to spend time with your child when there¡¯s a corporation to manage. My friends were the characters in the books I read and the NPCs in the games I played. In the sixth grade, things got bad, like real bad. We had to sell the house, the car and we moved to this one bedroom apartment in the Bronx. Things got better, eventually. We weren¡¯t as wealthy as before but we were ok. I was happier but my parents weren¡¯t. I think they missed our old life, especially my mom. They got divorced right before I got into high school. I wasn¡¯t too bothered by it, I was old enough to know that they did everything they could and would be happier apart. So I got to go to school as a full-time student but surprise surprise, a guy with no social skills since elementary school isn¡¯t going to become Mr. Popular overnight. So I never really let go of my controllers or reading under my covers using the flashlight. Years passed and as I got older a lot of things changed. I didn¡¯t have to study anymore because I started working at a start-up company. The few kids I knew well enough to greet in the hallway were replaced by coworkers near my cubicle. People came into my life for a short period of time and eventually left. I even got to have a girlfriend at one point. But there was one thing in my life that never changed: Games. That was because there was a game I¡¯ve been playing since I was in high school. I found it when I got tired of the stereotypical AAA games. I wanted something unique, something different than the usual games that I''d play. That¡¯s when I found World: Mountain, Sea and Sky or MSS for short. It was a singleplayer soulslike RPG made by an indie company. The game provided a lot of different starting scenarios and ways to build your character. It also featured a party system with thousands of different NPCs, each with their own unique backstory. It might have been the gamer in me, but I loved the brutal difficulty too. Each time you died, that was it. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. No multiple save files. If you got a Game Over, that was it. You had to start over from the beginning. Today was a special day and not because it was my 30th birthday. After 14 years of playing, I had finally reached the ending. My character was staring at a portal which would lead to the final boss. I felt confident with this party. I had raised each of these NPCs from the bottom and knew that they wouldn¡¯t betray me unlike the last playthrough. ¡°Damn, finally. Let¡¯s do this.¡± Click. Click, click. I moved my character to the portal. A white dialogue box popped up. ? Tutorial Complete ? ? Continue? ? ¡°That was the prologue? That¡¯s kind of impressive actually.¡± Why would I not continue? I was a gamer. No matter what challenge the game threw at me at this point, I would have to face it if I wanted to beat the game. Also I was curious about what kind of Core or items the boss would drop. I clicked on [Continue] as the game began to load. I wondered if there was a new game+. Most people on the forums didn¡¯t seem to have beaten the game yet. But now that I think about it, there has never been a post about someone beating the game. ¡°Maybe people just gave up. Or they¡¯re too ashamed to say they beat the game using a Mod to lower the difficulty.¡± ? Welcome to World: Mountain, Sea and Sky ? ? ??: ????? ????? ? ? Bienvenia a Mundo: Monta?a, Mar y Cielo ? ? »¶Ó­À´µ½ÊÀ½ç: ɽº£½› ? ¡°What the hell?¡± My screen started flashing the message in dozens of different languages, some of them familiar and others not. They started scrolling through my screen like how the ending credits are rolled out. They started scrolling down faster, soon becoming illegible. At a certain point they just became a blur on my screen, making it seem like my screen had died. I waited a bit to see if anything else would happen. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you crashed.¡± I slapped the side of the monitor. What about the drops from the final boss? What about my ending cinematic that took me fourteen years? Hell, I didn¡¯t even get to see what the final boss looked like. When the game showed me the ¡®Prologue Complete¡¯ box, I had already been filled with that same sense of wonder and adventure when I first discovered MSS. Just as I was wondering all these things, the screen turned back on. ? Welcome to World: Mountain, Sea and Sky ? ? You are currently the 1,679,583rd [Player] ? ? You are the 1st [Player] from Earth to finish the [TUTORIAL] on [ORIGINAL DIFFICULTY] ? ? Loading¡­ ? Then everything went white. ¡°Fuck! My eyes!¡± Chapter 1: Samak Desert (1)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
The stark contrast between the flash of light that enveloped me prior and the total darkness I was in now was jarring. I felt like I was in a dark room with the windows shut and the lights turned off. Covered in nothingness, I tried to move my arms, legs, turn my head and everything else I could think of. However there was no response from my body. ¡°Am I really in MSS?¡± My instincts told me yes. As impossible as it was, I had been transported inside the game. A dozen questions popped up in my head. Who were the developers? Was I dreaming? How would I get back home? But one question silenced them all: How was I going to survive? MSS was no place for people. It was set in the Continent of Ales where all different types of fictional races and mythical creatures existed. I had seen what happened to regular NPCs that stepped foot outside the city walls. I wouldn''t survive two seconds out here. ¡°Survive by understanding where I am first. If this really is MSS, I might have a chance.¡± Before I could finish my thoughts, the first of my sensations returned and it was touch. Someone was slapping me. Then my hearing was back. ¡°Wake up.¡± Hearing the gruff voice stirred something within me and everything seemed to just click. I was able to open my eyes and look at where I was. I was in a tunnel, surrounded by rocks on all sides. There were torches lined along the walls and from them I could see that the tunnel stretched on, much further than I could see. Looking up I saw a face I had not expected to see. Ever. He had dark green skin and two tusks jutting from the lower side of his mouth. I knew it was a man because he wore a loincloth but he was crouched in a sitting position revealing his genitals for me. I had seen this face before as a combination of pixels but never in real life, yet the resemblance was undeniable. I recognized immediately what he was and tried not to let the fear show on my face. ¡°An orc.¡± One of the six starting races that were available when starting a new game. Was it possible that I was reborn as an orc? ¡°Good. You awake.¡± When he stood, his johnson¡¯s head underneath the loincloth came dangerously close to brushing against my face. I tried to move my arms and realizing that my wrists were bound by rope, studied the orc instead. His head was almost touching the ceiling and his muscles rippled with each movement. I squashed my plan for trying to fight back immediately. I knew without a doubt that if he had wanted to hurt me, it wouldn¡¯t be much of a fight. I looked down at my legs and found that they weren¡¯t the deep-green, light-purple or snow-white color of orcs in MSS. Instead they were kind of pale and light-colored. ¡°You.¡± I jolted and looked at the orc. ¡°Stand up.¡± Seeing that I was struggling to stand, the orc just picked me up like a child with one hand and set me down. It was only standing next to him that I realized how much smaller I was than him. There was a instinctive fear that came from being in close proximity to a sentient being so much larger. Especially in the tunnels, it felt like I was locked in a cage with an animal. ¡°Walk human.¡± I obeyed and walked in front of him down the tunnels. ¡°Ok. Stay calm. Let¡¯s think about everything that I know so far.¡± 1. There was an Orc in front of me, leading me down the tunnels. 2. My wrists were bound and I was his prisoner or something similar. 3. I was human, not an orc. 4. I was most likely in MSS. When I put all these facts together, I could only draw one conclusion. ¡°Shit, am I in the slave preset?¡± MSS always started by allowing you to choose your race but that was where the player¡¯s choice ended. The player¡¯s character could be thrown in any number of starting scenarios. If you were lucky you could be born into a noble family inside the city walls. Some of the more common starting scenarios started with you as a regular citizen of whatever nation you were in, especially if you were human, elf or dwarf. Starting as a Slave was definitely not one of the common ones. Why? 99% of the time you died in the first five minutes. ¡°It¡¯s ok. Just survive. That¡¯s my number one priority. Don''t get distracted.¡± I tried to convince myself that it was not that bad. MSS was brutally hard, yes. But it never set impossible tasks in front of the players. There was always, always a way. My captor led me down the tunnels and I began to hear the clamoring of people talking. Soon we got to the exit of the tunnels and he pushed me through. Bright light assaulted my senses and made me realize that I was staring at the sun. I closed my eyes to calm them and opened them again, trying to make sense of the situation. The opening led us to the bottom of a huge canyon. I saw hundreds of people, most of them human though there were a good number of other races mixed into the crowd. Elves, beastman and even dwarves were present. All of them had their wrists bound with rope like me. Some of them were sporting bruises on their faces like they had been beaten down. Most of the noise had been from them. I saw each individual dealing with this situation differently. Some had sunk to their knees and laughed in disbelief while others sobbed. Still, I saw others staring straight ahead with calculating eyes, trying to look for a way out of this. ¡°So it''s not just me.¡± The orc pushed me again, growling. ¡°Run again and I kill you.¡± He drew a line over his neck using his thumb to illustrate his point. ¡°Ok.¡± If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Ooh-kay?¡± The orc frowned like he just heard a strange word then glared at me. ¡°Curse word?¡± ¡°I understand!¡± I tried to wave my hands in front of me but failed due to the binding on my wrists. He made a strange chuffing sound, breathing hard out his nose. I saw him eye me up and down. ¡°Ah. Shit.¡± My brain registered the pain before my eye saw the punch. I doubled over, agony spreading slowly from my gut to my chest. I tried to breathe in but all I could manage was little gulps of air, wheezing like a fish on dry land. ¡°Walk.¡± He grabbed me by the shoulders and pushed me in the direction of the stairs. We reached the bottom of the stairs, the pseudo-courtyard area where all the other prisoners had been gathered. With every step, I stirred the orange-red sand, kicking up miniature clouds of dust around my legs. There were only a few places in MSS that had this climate and only one region which had green skinned orcs. ¡°Samaka Desert.¡± Now I had a bit more information than before which was progress. There was a platform built into the cliffside and I saw a group of orcs approach it. While most of the orcs remained at the bottom of the stairs, a few orcs climbed the stairs and took place on the stage. One bearded orc stood out in particular, mostly due to the fact that his armor was composed completely of bone. One of his shoulder guards was made of a large reptilian skull. Two men, both elven, came rushing onto the stage carrying a stand with a large crystal orb on it. They placed it in front of the bearded orc and left just as quickly. The bearded orc placed one hand on the orb and spoke, his voice amplified. ¡°Attention.¡± The courtyard fell silent. The only thing that could be heard was the stifled sobs but that disappeared soon enough. ¡°I am Warchief Thoktur. You have all been brought here to be given a chance.¡± I noticed some of the slaves looked up with expectant eyes. Maybe there was a chance to get out of this situation? ¡°You have been given a chance to serve the great horde of Samaka!¡± He roared and raised one fist in the air. It was one thing to theorize that this was the Samaka desert, another to have it confirmed for me. I was in half disbelief, that this could all be a bad dream or a candid camera prank on a TV show. But the harsh sun beating down on us, the air so dry that I felt like coughing every time I took a breath, the red dust that seemed to stain the entire place in scarlet, these were all only pointing to one thing. ¡°It can''t be.¡± This really was MSS. Just in time every single orc enforcer that was on the ground with us roared in unison, shaking the air with their voice. I looked back and forth between the canyon walls, afraid that it would start a rock slide. Warchief Thoktur continued with his speech. ¡°You will be given equipment. Training. And the best among you will even be allowed to absorb Cores of your choosing.¡± I felt my eyes go wide with shock at the mention of Cores. The essence of MSS was Cores. They were referred to as Spirit Cores and could only be attained by killing monsters. Absorbing a Core into your character allowed you to inherit a part of the monster''s powers, namely its Stats, Passive and Ability. Cores were the lifeblood of a character¡¯s build, how they would fight and be treated by others. ¡°Not characters. People now.¡± I had to remind myself. ¡°But not all will receive this honor. The Samaka Horde has no room for the weak.¡± He pointed at the tunnels I just came out of. ¡°All of you will enter. Only a few will survive.¡± The sobbing started up again. ¡°There are monsters. But there are also weapons. Precious few might even find a Core.¡± I was standing next to a male elf with clear skin and teal-looking hair. I noticed him first as he began to shake. What I imagined was fear was actually indignancy, he spoke up loudly enough to be heard. ¡°You can¡¯t do this! Do you know who I am?!¡± All the prisoners looked at him with a mixture of shock, fear and awe. He was doing what everyone was thinking of doing but no one could work up the guts to do. ¡°I am Thenolian of house-¡± The elf never got to finish what he was saying because the orc behind him grabbed him by the hair and kicked him in the knees. When the elf was down, the orc began to kick him and stomp on his face. I saw the elf curl up into a ball and try to protect himself but he was against a 7-foot tall orc warrior. Even in-game stats wise, an untrained Elf''s [Physical] stats would never measure up to an trained orc warrior''s. From the corner of my eye I noticed that the other prisoners were staring at the scene with undisguised horror. I forced myself not to look, keeping my eyes fixed on the stadium. It must have taken about five minutes but I knew it was over when the elf¡¯s whimpers turned to silence. He had been beaten to death. Like I said, 99% of those in the slave preset died in the first few minutes. Warchief Thoktur had kindly waited for the elf to be finished being beaten to death. He continued speaking like nothing had happened and in his defense, nothing probably did. Killing a defiant slave was the same as throwing out a sheet of toilet paper after he wiped his ass clean, just part of everyday life. ¡°The door will be open for seven days.¡± Thoktur finished. ¡°Or until we have 100 warriors emerge.¡± ¡°100?! There¡¯s at least triple that number here.¡± I tried not to move my head too much as I tried to get a rough count of how many slaves there were. I saw a dwarf who was doing the same and he narrowed his eyes, suspicion all over his face. Then he quickly turned his face, breaking eye contact. Everywhere I looked it was the same. Some eyes looked pleading while other looked resigned. But most of the eyes I met were glowing with hostility. ¡°With that one sentence he turned us all into enemies.¡± I realized. The orcs led us one by one towards racks that held various weaponry. It was being managed by an elf wearing glasses and armor similar to the orcs. From what I could guess, he was most likely a slave who had survived this entire process. ¡°Ok then!¡± His voice was chipper despite the harsh sun and the dour mood that the slaves radiated. ¡°You may choose one weapon! Then off to the entrances you go!¡± He pointed to the cliff walls where I had come out from. There wasn¡¯t just one entrance but hundreds of them built into the rock, some of the lower ones having stairs and the higher ones having ladders. It made sense, if we all went in through one entrance, it¡¯d most likely be a bloodbath. While I was contemplating this, another slave mustered the courage to speak up. Perhaps because it wasn¡¯t an orc we were talking to, but an elf. ¡°It¡¯s unfair! Those who get there first will have an advantage!¡± The elf beamed at the crowd, friendly. But I knew how this was going to go. ¡°Good question! Who said that?¡± The beastman raised his hand. He had white pointed ears on top of his head like a cat. The elf with glasses walked up to the cat beastman and grabbed him by the ears pulling. ¡°Don¡¯t you worry! Our orc masters won¡¯t let you enter until everyone is in front of an entrance! Any other questions?!¡± ¡°O-Ow! Ow! S-Stop it! It hurts!¡± ¡°I said, any other questions?!¡± The elf pulled harder. ¡°C-Can we choose the same entrance as o,others?!¡± The cat beastman must have been stupid because I don¡¯t think he understood what was happening. The elf took out a dagger in one smooth movement and slit the beastman¡¯s throat. He left the beastman gurgling on the ground, wiping the blood off of his dagger on the corpse¡¯s shirt. ¡°The answer to that is, a resounding yes!¡± The smile never left his face. There were no more questions after that and we formed multiple lines to pick our respective weapons. I looked carefully at what most of the other slaves were choosing. Long-reaching weapons like spears and longswords were popular. Also others chose something that they could use with ease, like a warhammer or an axe. Before I could make my decision, I was being led to the weapon rack by my orc. ¡°Choose.¡± He grumbled as he cut the ropes around my wrist. ¡°Fast.¡± I looked around at the weapons. I had never touched one in my entire life. ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter now. I have to choose one.¡± I could have chosen something easy to use like a hammer or greataxe. They were big and wouldn¡¯t require much skill, I just needed to aim carefully and swing. Daggers were out of the question. Then there were the spears and whips which would let me keep others at a distance. ¡°No. It doesn¡¯t matter what the weapon is, I can¡¯t use it too well anyways. What I really need is something to defend myself with.¡± I skipped through all the popular weapons and found what I was looking for at the end of the rack. A shield and shortsword. They were filthy, crusted with blood and rust. But they would have to do. I picked them up and turned around to find the orc looking at me. ¡°Good, fast.¡± He commented and led me to the cliff side. ¡°Choose entrance.¡± Like how I had been meticulous about choosing the shield over other weapons, I had to be careful about choosing my starting point. I already saw some of the slaves choose the same entrance. Most of them were of the same race and speaking in low whispers, most likely trying to convince the other to work together. But the rare few had more sinister reasons. I saw a large man choose the same entrance as a young elf girl, blatantly leering at her. ¡°I said fast.¡± The orc reminded me. I forcibly turned my eyes away from those already taken. ¡°Think. Think.¡± I had to gain every advantage I could with every choice I made. In the end I decided to choose one of the entrances at the very top that could only be reached by a ladder. ¡°I don¡¯t think the others will want to spend their energy climbing a ladder before entering the tunnel and since it¡¯s high up, maybe I¡¯ll have some sort of high ground advantage.¡± It wasn¡¯t science but it was the best I could do. By the time we reached the top, I was sweating and out of breath. I barely raised my torso over the ladder head, rolling sideways and lying flat on the ground. My captor was right behind me and besides the sheen of sweat on his brow, he seemed fine. ¡°Get up.¡± He ordered. I obeyed, albeit much slower than before. I looked over the edge of the platform and saw that while we had spent the time climbing the ladder, the rest of the slaves had chosen their weapons and stood at an entrance. I was the only one who had chosen an entrance this high up, the ones on the same height as mine were empty. ¡°That means I won¡¯t see anyone. I hope.¡± I gulped. A shrill call was heard through the canyon, bouncing off the walls and alerting everyone. My captor walked me over to the rusted metal door and he opened it, gesturing me inside. It creaked, which echoed down the tunnel. While the tunnels I had seen before were lit by torches, this one had magic stones embedded in the walls, giving off a soft bluish-white glow. ¡°In.¡± That was all he said. I stepped inside the door and he shut the door behind me. Click. Bang. He locked the door.
Chapter 2: Tunnels (1)
[ World: MSS - Loading... ] "Speech" "Thoughts"
The tunnel was deceptively roomier than how it looked from the outside. The ceilings were at least triple my height and it was wide enough for five people to walk side by side comfortably. Compared to the one I had woken up in, it was a mansion. Yet, the size of the tunnel didn''t stop me from feeling claustrophobic, the knowledge that I was locked in here against my will was suffocating. "There''s always a way out in MSS. Let''s check the door first." I managed to keep myself calm. One thing I learned in 14 years of MSS was to check every nook and cranny, even if they looked like nothing at first glance. Instead of walking down the tunnel right away, pressed my ear to the door slowly. I stayed in the position, seeing if I could hear the orc''s footsteps. Either the door was too thick or my [Hearing] stat wasn¡¯t high enough. I decided to try the handle anyways, but the door was just a flat slab of metal. There was no handle from the inside in the first place. Looking around, I tried to see if I could find anything of use. Seeing the magic stones illuminating the tunnel, I tried to dislodge them to see if I could carry some with me. I used my hands at first but they didn''t budge. I resorted to using my sword to try and pry it out, but it ended up chipping the already dull blade. ¡°Pity. But it makes sense. They wouldn¡¯t leave a bomb lying around for us to use.¡± Most magic stones caused a small explosion when thrown with enough force. These weren¡¯t big enough to cause real damage but it would still have been useful in my current situation. Who knew what godforsaken things I would encounter in these tunnels. The next thing I tried was much less practical and bordered on insanity. ¡°System.¡± As soon as I said it out loud, I felt heat rise to my cheeks though no one had been around to see. I had read enough webnovels to know that I should have received a cheat ability or at least my status screen. Upon saying the word, I had hoped a blue screen or free floating information would be flooded into my brain. But of course, nothing happened. This meant a lot of things. Most likely the people of this world didn¡¯t have the concept of levels or stats. Furthermore they would have no way of keeping track of achievements or quests. ¡°Then how will they know they leveled up?¡± Without knowing you reached level 10, 20, 30 and so forth, you wouldn''t know when you were ready to absorb a new Core. I shoved the question into the back of my mind. I had to focus on the present. Looking at the long winding tunnel ahead of me, I gathered my courage started walking. ¡°Ok. I just have to get to the end.¡± I racked my brains, trying to see if this was a dungeon that I recognized from one of my countless playthroughs. ¡°Samaka Dessert and dark-green orcs. Damn it. There¡¯s too many possibilities and not enough clues.¡± I walked down the corridor, slowly. I had my sword out and the round shield strapped to my opposite arm. Whenever there was a fork in the road, I followed the path that was less steep. I wanted to be as high up as possible. I walked for what seemed like an hour or so. Every now and then, I would stop and kneel, listening for any footsteps or voices. After doing this about a dozen times, I let myself relax. I hadn¡¯t heard anything so far and little bits of hope began to surface. ¡°Maybe I can reach the end without any trouble. Just by walking.¡± I continued on in this manner for what seemed like hours. Without anything to tell time by, I actually had no idea how long I walked. But when I was feeling the strain of sleep and imagined that it was near nighttime. But it didn¡¯t take long for the lethargic energy to leave me, because after turning the next bend, I stopped in my tracks. I walked backwards as slow as I could, hiding behind the wall again. Sticking my head out, I tried to get a better look. The creature I saw was about five feet tall and with bluish-green skin, completely naked. It looked vaguely humanoid except for the ugly round nose and bright yellow eyes that outshined the magic stones. On top of its head there were two tiny horns sprouting from a mess of tangled hair. In one hand it carried a wooden club and in the other, some kind of furry animal which was squirming. As I watched, the creature slammed the mess of fur against a rock multiple times. Flecks of blood flew onto its face and it grinned as the animal stopped moving. It sat down on the ground and started licking the blood off of his hands. I recognized the creature as one of the early-level monsters from MSS. I imagined that I could see the blue box that often popped up on my screen. [ Lesser Dokkaebi (???) ] - Grade 10 Monsters in MSS were graded from 10 to 1, with 10 being the weakest. I had probably hunted millions of these things. But this wasn¡¯t me sitting behind a screen. This was real life. Stolen novel; please report. But most importantly of all, it was in my way. ¡°Fuck. Is this really happening?¡± It was clear what I had to do. I had to kill it. I sat behind the wall, observing it prolonging the inevitable. The creature finished licking the blood off of his hands and then squealed, kicking its legs into the air in joy. ¡°Gee! Gee!¡± I just couldn¡¯t get over how ugly and repugnant the thing looked. In comparison my orcs could¡¯ve won a beauty contest. The Dokkaebi turned to its fresh kill and started ripping off the fur. By all rights, I should¡¯ve been disgusted but I could only think about how hungry and thirsty I was. I fantasized about a scenario of me killing the monster and stealing its kill. I saw the monster bite into the raw carcass and tear out a piece of meat with its teeth, chewing with glee. ¡°Am I still willing to eat that thing?¡± The answer was a resounding yes. With hunger and thirst driving me, I carefully tiptoed out from behind the wall and approached the creature. During its feeding frenzy, the Dokkaebi had turned its back to me. It was ripping the carcass apart with its bare hands, tearing meat off of the bone and devouring the creature with relish. As I got closer and closer, I thought my heart would beat out of my chest in nervousness and fear. Yet, a small part of me wasn¡¯t scared of the Dokkaebi, but scared that there wouldn¡¯t be enough meat left for me. I was close enough to count the hairs on his head and smell the musk around him. Being this close to him, I could see that his proportions were off. His limbs were too skinny for his rounded body, and the neck too thin to support the enlarged head. His fingers were long and spindly, like a spider¡¯s legs. I was so close that I was sure I could reach out and rip the meat out of his hands. Instead I stabbed him in the back. I¡¯m not sure about the life of a regular person since I didn¡¯t have many friends. But from what I know about our society, stabbing someone isn¡¯t easy to do. I remember reading a scientific study about butchers and other professions that work in slaughterhouses; how these individuals were more likely to suffer from mental disorders. What I wanted to say is that it¡¯s not easy stabbing a living, breathing thing the first time. Most of people tend to chicken out or the guilt overtakes us midway. I let my fears get the best of me. I¡¯ll never make that mistake again. The blade sunk about two inches deep because at the last second because I loosened my grip on the sword. ¡°Oh Fu-.¡± Was my thought as everything went to shit. ¡°REE! REEEE!¡± The creature went mad and immediately turned around. I lost my grip on the sword and it clanged uselessly to the floor. In that short second, the creature¡¯s face was permanently burned into my memory. Eyes wide with anger, fear and a ruthlessness that I had never faced before. Its lips and teeth are stained with blood and meat gristle. It lunged towards me and threw me on the floor, clawing at me with its hands. Its hands were all over my face, my eyes, nose, mouth; my brain couldn¡¯t comprehend what in the hell was happening to me. ¡°Shield. Shield. Block, block block!¡± I had managed to hold onto my shield and I brought it up to my face but the creature knocked it aside with its hand. I brought my other arm and pressed it against the creature¡¯s face which was digging into my shirt, its sharp fangs trying to get at my stomach. Immediately the creature switched tactics, biting into my forearm. The pain awoke a memory in me. When I was just a kid, I went swimming in a lake with my grandparents. I had a tube wrapped around my waist and a book in my hand, reading while floating on the lake. Before long, I drifted to the middle of the lake where my feet couldn¡¯t touch the bottom any more. It wasn¡¯t a big deal, my grandpa came and got me but I felt the same thing I felt back then. Fear of death. ¡°AAAAHH!¡± I heard myself scream as I slammed my shield into the creature¡¯s temple, knocking it away. The Dokkaebi scrabbled on the rocks, shaking its head and I saw it head for the wooden club on the floor. But I didn¡¯t let the creature get away, I jumped on its back and started slamming the edge of my shield on the top of its head. I was considerably bigger and probably heavier, yet the creature managed to get to its feet and run backwards, slamming me against the rocky wall. I felt a stabbing sensation all over my back, some of the rocks must have pierced my skin. But with adrenaline running high, I ignored it and tried to get my arm without the shield around Dokkaebi''s neck, hoping to choke it. At the last second, the creature opened its jaws and I saw it trying to bite my forearm again so I released him falling backwards. The creature spun around immediately and got on top of me, but this time I got my shield up. Its teeth and claws were leaving bloody gashes all over my body as I moved my shield to try and keep up with its speed. But I was too slow and the creature took another big bite on my shoulder. ¡°AGH FUAAA!¡± I was going to die. Killed in this tunnel and no one would ever know how I died. When I first got put into this tunnel, I thought that I¡¯d be able to survive. A small part of me still believed that this was no different than when I played MSS in the real world. If someone asked me to name a monster¡¯s habitat, skills and the Core it dropped I would be able to answer it at the drop of a hat. I knew the location of every secret equipment, bosses and achievements. Yet, I was going to be killed by this Grade-10 monster. I had underestimated this world I was in. The stain of scarlet bloomed over my shoulder as the Dokkaebi wrapped its arms around my neck like a lover¡¯s embrace, trying to bite at my neck. I got my shield there in time but it was an awkward position; the Dokkaebi used its hands to try and pry it away. I used my weight to roll us on the ground, so that I was on top of the creature. Shoving the shield into its chest, I picked up a rock and smashed it against his head. The creature¡¯s head rocked back and I saw his eyes glaze over. It was dazed. I remembered the orc that beat the elf to death back in the canyon. The orc did not underestimate the elf. He had continued until he was certain the job was finished. So I did the same. I didn¡¯t stop. I kept smashing my rock against its head until the only movement left in its body were slow twitches. Even that stopped in time. I sat there on top of the Dokkaebi, breathing hard and blood trickling down my face. I got off of the creature and leaned against the opposite wall. The rabid creature which had been screaming murder just a moment ago was now motionless. Its eyes that screamed madness were lifeless, and the blood stained face looked no different than raw sausage bits. This moment felt so surreal, yet I myself had never felt so present in the here and now. The sense of being alive, the fact that I existed in this place and at this time were undeniable truths. The corpse in front of me was proof. I had thought I''d feel guilt or remorse, but instead I felt relief and intense joy. It was a feeling I had never felt before in my entire life. It didn¡¯t take me long to identify what it was. ¡°I survived... I''m alive¡±
Name: N/A Race: Human Age: 24
Level: 3 Stats [Physical]: 2 [Mental]: 1
Spirit Core Slots Available: 1 Spirit Cores: N/A Skills: N/A Achievements: N/A
Chapter 3: Tunnels (2)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
I only realized I had blacked out because I had to open my eyes. ¡°Right. I was fighting the Dokkaebi.¡± The corpse was in front of me, just the way I had left it. ¡°And I won.¡± The sense of survival was exhilarating, almost enough to make me forget the pain that my body was in. But not quite. I turned my head slowly, looking at the wound on my shoulder. The skin was all but gone, either torn off or eaten by the monster. If I had one thing to be thankful for, it was that the Dokkaebi''s teeth had been razor sharp, each bite mark looked surgical compared to what I had done to his face. I tried to move my arm and had to fight through the pain, slowly testing it out. ¡°I¡¯m lucky I had the shield. At least I still have the other arm left.¡± There was a hissing sound in front of me and I saw that the Dokkaebi''s body was dissolving. It broke apart into little bits of bluish-green light and floated upwards, disappearing when it touched the ceiling. Eventually the body was gone and in its place was a small dagger and 5 coins. ¡°Fuck.¡± I let out a little laugh. ¡°There¡¯s no system window but there¡¯s still loot.¡± I couldn¡¯t make up my mind on whether this was a world similar to MSS or the actual videogame MSS. In MSS, you had two options after slaying a monster. You could dissect the body yourself and break it down for monster parts. Or you could leave it as it was, the body yielding coins, equipment. The only exception to this rule was when the monster body turned into a Spirit Core, in which case either parts or equipment would drop randomly. I got to my feet, careful not to put any weight on my right arm while standing up. I tried to figure out my current situation. ¡°If the body dissolved then I probably was out for less than a minute. Any longer and I wouldn¡¯t have been able to see it happen.¡± I felt my lips press together into a grimace. ¡°Someone could definitely have heard what happened and come over to investigate. The last thing I need is someone seeing me in this state.¡± Working quickly, I picked up the dagger, my fallen sword and the coins. I went over to the animal carcass but just like I had feared, it was beyond saving. Still, just in case I picked up a piece that looked like its ribs. The innards were still clinging to it but I was desperate and took it with me. Instead of moving away entirely, I rounded the corner and waited to see if anyone would show. I started counting, making the random decision that if no one showed up by 600, I would relax. It wasn¡¯t until I counted well past 1000 that I took a deep breath and sat on the ground. ¡°First things first.¡± I looked at the rib meat, imagining that MSS had been friendly enough to give me an [Analyze], [Identify] or something similar that would summon a blue box with descriptions. ¡°Rabbit Rib Meat. Safe for consumption.¡± I said to myself, my voice cracked and hoarse. Now that I thought about it, this was a different body. Would my voice be different now? ¡°Ah. Ah, ah ah.¡± I couldn¡¯t detect any changes and it wasn¡¯t like I had anyone to ask. I turned my attention to the meat and brought it close to my nose, taking a whiff. Nothing really stood out to me but it did nothing for my natural aversion to consuming raw mystery meat. I closed my eyes, trying to convince myself. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. You made your characters eat raw things in dungeons all the time. The only thing that happened was that their morale went down. This is MSS. It¡¯s the same thing, you¡¯ll be fine.¡± Before I could change my mind I took a small bite off a hanging piece. I gagged as a pungent metallic odor flooded my sinuses. The more I chewed, the tougher it got. I gave up on chewing it and just swallowed it. I repeated the process with a couple of more bites, chewing it just enough times for it to be mushy to not get caught in my throat. I didn¡¯t realize I was cold but eating started to warm me up. The heat started from my stomach and spread throughout my body. Warm and feeling full, my eyes felt the pull of sleep. It would be foolish to fall asleep here, especially because people could be coming over to investigate. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I¡¯m so close to the entrance though. Maybe just a few minutes.¡± When I woke up, the magic stones in the walls had dimmed. ¡°These magic stones must be linked to the sun somehow.¡± I had often seen dungeons in MSS that imitated the day and night cycle of the sun. I moved my arm around, feeling much better than it did before I went to sleep. Moving quickly I got up. If these really were Day Stones, that meant it was night outside. ¡°So I spent a couple of hours sleeping. Not too bad.¡± I made sure everything I had was in order, tucking the dokkaebi dagger into my pants waistband. I retrieved my sword, staring at it. ¡°Next time, one strike. I won¡¯t hesitate.¡± I sheathed the sword and continued down the tunnels. That was day one. On day two, I encountered another Lesser Dokkaebi. This time I snuck up on it right after it finished sucking the blood off of its fingers and grabbed the furry animal. I didn¡¯t hesitate this time and the battle was over quickly. However, one of the worst things about stabbing them in the neck was that it gave the creature some time to struggle. It also gave me a front row seat to see life drain out from its eyes. I tried not to think about it too much. The raw meat went down easier than it had before. On day three I didn¡¯t encounter anything. I simply walked aimlessly through the tunnels. Since there were no more forks in the road, all I had to do was go straight. Unfortunately I didn¡¯t see any Lesser Dokkaebi nor the small furry creatures they fed on. I began to doubt whether I was going the right way, or whether my sense of time was way off and that a week had already passed. ¡°No. Focus on what you can do for now and that¡¯s going down this tunnel. It¡¯s only day three. You can make it.¡± Now it was finally day four and I felt the gnawing worry growing, feeding on my fears and uncertainties. Still, I had to press on. There was nothing else that I could do. The only other option was to just sit here and accept my fate. ¡°No. I¡¯m going to live.¡± I picked up the pace. Clang. I stopped, thinking I heard something. Clang. Clang clang. The sound of metal hitting metal. Something was up ahead. I didn¡¯t want to rush into the situation unprepared. I lowered my body and walked close to the walls. Luckily it was nighttime right now and the stones had dimmed considerably. I stuck to the shadow, making my way down. The sounds grew louder and I heard yells going up ahead. There was actually light blazing out from the end of the tunnel. If I approached too quickly, I could have been blinded, so I crept. I saw that the entrance opened up into a large chamber and thankfully the opening was high up. That means I wouldn¡¯t have to walk into the actual chamber to see what was going on, I already had a bird¡¯s eye view from where I was. ¡°Taking the ladder was the right choice.¡± I felt a small sense of victory. Still, I didn¡¯t want to take any chances. I got down on my stomach and crawled to the opening, peeking out at what was happening below. The chamber was large, reminding me of my middle school auditorium. There were two groups that were fighting. A group of Lesser Dokkaebis and a group of slaves, most of their faces familiar. I saw a sturdy dwarf swing his greataxe and cut into the torso of one of the monsters. But a second later, another Dokkaebi snuck up behind the dwarf and smashed him over the head with a wooden club. Already I saw corpses littering the floor of the chamber, belonging to both people and monsters. Some of the Lesser Dokkaebis abandoned their crude wooden clubs, picking up the weapons of the fallen. The ones who picked up a spear or mace didn''t fare well, their bodies were too unbalanced to use those effectively. Actually even the wooden club looked less effective than just using their claws and teeth. But some of the dokkaebis had managed to pick up daggers and shortswords, using them to devastating effect. As more and more bodies fell, the monsters were gaining an edge. ¡°GODDAMMIT! FALL BACK! FALL BACK!¡± One of the larger prisoners, a bear beastman by the looks of it, waved the other slaves back. I saw the slaves beat a hasty retreat, a few more of them falling in the process. They all piled around one large entrance and ran into it. ¡°Gii! Ree! Ree!¡± The group of dokkaebi did not follow. They threw their arms up in the air and started to celebrate, dancing and feasting on the corpses of both their own and the slaves. I saw one of the wretched little things claw apart the stomach of its own kind, picking up the intestine greedily, slurping it up. I wanted to throw up. I studied the chamber a bit more and realized there were numerous other openings all on the same side that I was on, albeit on ground level. Then on the opposite side was a single doorway. ¡°All the entrances lead to this one spot. Or maybe just a number of them lead here.¡± I finally understood what the orcs wanted. The orcs only wanted slaves who were able to get through this tribe of Dokkaebi. I wouldn¡¯t be too surprised if there were multiple monster nests in the tunnels, with different tunnels leading to them. Then each group would have to fight their way out, this would be the final test. However, from what I just saw, it seemed impossible. There were too many Dokkaebis down there. They had outnumbered the slaves at least 2-to-1. ¡°If one of the Slaves had a Spirit Core, maybe we¡¯d stand a chance.¡± I shook my own head. ¡°No. If they had a Core, they¡¯d be an adventurer or a soldier. I doubt the orcs captured adventurers or soldiers as prisoners. Not like they¡¯d be so easily captured anyways.¡± I kept on studying the chamber. The monsters had settled down now and most of them were napping, the others grooming themselves by licking the blood off of themselves. ¡°Of course we¡¯re outnumbered. Some of those slaves probably killed each other before realizing we¡¯ll have to work together to get through this entrance.¡± I sighed as more of the puzzle pieces clicked into place. ¡°They reduced the numbers through infighting then further again by the monsters. Those fuckings orcs. If they just told us or-¡± I stopped my line of thinking right there. It was pathetic. There was no point in blaming the slaves or the orcs, nothing would change about my situation. The things I had to do, the things I could do, those were what I had to focus on. ¡°MSS never throws you into a situation that¡¯s impossible. There''s always a way out. Always a secret to be exploited.¡± I crawled away from the tunnel entrance and spread my belongings on the ground. I had 12 copper coins, my sword, shield and the 2 daggers I got from the Dokkaebis. ¡°Think. What else is in this cave that I could use?¡± I could go back and try the other routes that I did not take. They seemed to lead to the lower levels, perhaps I could luck out and come upon an easier monster nest or one that was already slaughtered. There was always the chance that I missed something on the way here, some kind of plant or tool. ¡°No. That¡¯s going to take too long. Besides, I didn''t see a single plant on the way here.¡± There was nothing else in these tunnels. It was just me and these tools. The magic stones dimmed, signaling that it was night time. At the same time a lightbulb went off in my head. I took the daggers from the Dokkaebis and started chipping away at the rock around the magic stone. I had tried when I first entered the tunnels but my tools had been too weak then. This wouldn¡¯t be the first time you had to kill a monster and utilize its drop to gain an advantage in the dungeon. Most [Special Fields] required- My thoughts stopped as the magic stone popped out of the wall and into my cupped hand. I had a plan. Chapter 4: Tunnels (3)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
I spent the night picking magic stones out of the walls. Along the way one of the daggers finally broke, the blade breaking off into a dozen pieces when I struck a particular hard piece of rock. My next dagger fared better, the blade simply fell out of the handle. Covering it with a piece of cloth ripped off from my shirt, I painstakingly picked out more magic stones, careful about handling them. By the end, my hand was covered in tiny cuts and scrapes from working so close near the walls. Then magic stones lit up again, even the ones I had taken off of the rocks. ¡°Good. The magic is still present in the stones even after I took them out of the rocks.¡± This proved my theory, that I was on the right track. If the magic stones did not light up at daylight when taken out of the rocks, it would mean that the magic in them was in the tunnel walls themselves. But my gamble had paid off, the rocks would work as intended. I tested one out by going back deeper into the tunnels and throwing one. Boom! It wasn¡¯t a huge explosion, but big enough to hurt a Lesser Dokkaebi. It might not be instantly lethal, but it would definitely be enough to buy me time. I took off my shirt, which was more rag than shirt at this point, and put all the magic stones in it. It would serve as my satchel for now. Now there was only one pressing concern. ¡°I need to find a way to get down there safely and a back-up plan in case the door is locked.¡± My entrance into the chamber was about 15 feet up from the ground. I was not sure of this body¡¯s capabilities yet, though it was far superior to my original body back on earth. However I still doubted whether it was ready to drop 15 feet free fall without spraining an ankle or worse, breaking a leg. Both would be deadly, especially since I¡¯d be surrounded by Dokkaebis. ¡°I need to decide soon. The slaves will probably attack.¡± I knew that the slaves would try and mount another attack soon. It was the 5th day and they would be growing desperate. Even though I had the magic stones, I wasn¡¯t particularly confident in my plan. I would probably be overwhelmed by the monsters even before I had a chance to cripple a few of them. So I would need a distraction, something to distract the majority of the Dokkaebi¡¯s while I made my escape. I squashed any remorse I had felt using the other slaves. If they were smart, they¡¯d make an opening and follow. ¡°Just think of that one slave who purposefully chose the same entrance as the elf girl. Those are the type of people you¡¯re using.¡± It made me feel better, but not much. With nothing else to prepare or do, I went over to the opening of my tunnel overlooking the chamber and decided to take a small nap. I seated myself at an angle where I was sure I wouldn¡¯t be seen by the Dokkaebis, not that they¡¯d look up anyways. ¡°Is it really ok to take a nap? What if I miss it?¡± I had doubts but I was sure that the fighting would be loud, plus my nerves wouldn¡¯t let me fall into a deep sleep. I closed my eyes, leaning against the wall while sitting. ¡°Pssst.¡± I dreamt that someone was trying to get my attention. ¡°Pssst. Hey you. The one without the shirt.¡± I hated how even in the dream, I was shirtless. ¡°Hey, ugly.¡± Who the fuck? I opened my eyes, looking around trying to see if I really had been dreaming or not. I couldn¡¯t see anyone in the tunnel with me, nor was it possible that a Dokkaebi from the chamber below was trying to get my attention. ¡°Over here, ugly.¡± The insult had definitely come from near me, so I looked in the only other places I could think of. The openings around me. Waving a hand in another entrance were two figures I had not seen before. One was an elf girl with dark tanned skin, curly hair and a small heart shaped face. She wore her hair in a ponytail that created a little bob above her head. Both her face, neck and bare shoulders were covered with light blue tribal painting. The other figure was of beastman descent. She had ram horns that curled down to her chins and pink fluffy hair around her face. Even from this distance I could see that one of her eyes was fully human, while the other looked like a lamb with horizontal pupils. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Finally, the ugly man looks.¡± The tanned girl whispered. I frowned at her, trying to figure out what was happening. What I knew was that we were both above the chamber hanging from our own entrances. The other fact that I knew was that somehow these two slaves had met and decided to team up. The third was that they wanted my attention for some reason. It didn¡¯t take me long to make my decision. I turned my back to them and ignored them. The reasoning for my decision was simple. Right now, I was in a situation so that when the group of slaves attacked, I would have to put my plan into action. I needed all the rest and energy I could get. This was the 5th day and I didn¡¯t want to put anything to chance. I just couldn¡¯t think of a single thing that they could offer me that would help me with their plan. They both had their shirts on and I saw no sign of battle on either of them, meaning they had not encountered any Dokkaebis. ¡°So there¡¯s no way they have a stockpile of magic stones like me. Most likely I¡¯ll end up getting the worst part of the deal, having to cover all three of us. But that¡¯ll cost more stones than me just covering for myself.¡± The strongest reasoning for my decision: I had been betrayed in the past. Of course, I had been betrayed in the MSS universe when I was still clicking away in front of my computer screen. The NPCs in this game had been brutal. They backstabbed my character over Cores and sometimes, even over some coins. Most of the time, I would team up with random adventurer NPCs just to find out that they were ¡®plunderers¡¯, a term we used in the forums to refer to NPCs who hunted other adventurers. So naturally, I was distrustful of anyone who was trying to get my attention. ¡°Hey, psst. Don¡¯t ignore us!¡± The girl said again. I tried to tune her out. ¡°We have a way to get down there!¡± Well now, that was interesting. I stuck my head out of my opening. ¡°Well, now he listens.¡± The elf told her beastman, or rather beastwoman, companion. She didn¡¯t respond, just holding her hands together nervously. ¡°You said you have a way to get down there?¡± I asked. She smirked at me. ¡°Yes. And I know you have a pile of magic stones that are still working.¡± I looked beside me and cursed. My magic stones were peeking through the makeshift bag I made out of my ripped shirt, shining light everywhere. It was a miracle that the Dokkaebis below hadn¡¯t noticed. ¡°So what? Are you offering a trade? How to pick the magic stones off of the walls for the knowledge of how to get down?¡± I was still wary of them and was not willing to part with my knowledge easily. But if they truly did know how to get down, it would help me tremendously. ¡°Nope. Teaming up.¡± The elf held out a bundle of rope. ¡°We lower ourselves down and you cover our retreat with the magic stones. They blow up, yes?¡± I studied the girl¡¯s appearance. She was definitely elf, but from where? There were a number of different cultures in Ales for the races and their appearance could vary drastically different depending on where they were from. The hint must be in the war-paint on her body¡­ ¡°What¡¯s an Elf from the Delirious Jungle doing here?¡± The girl narrowed her eyes and shared a look with her pink-haired friend. ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter. What matters is that we all want to escape. Are you waiting for the next wave of attacks?¡± I nodded slowly. ¡°Well, I¡¯m proposing that we work together.¡± She said again. ¡°The problem is that there¡¯s only one rope.¡± I didn¡¯t want to be stuck up here as I threw down magic stones to cover their retreat, just for them to escape. ¡°Well yes. That¡¯s something we haven¡¯t thought through yet.¡± She scratched her head and smiled. ¡°How about we think that through together?¡± I felt my lips curl into a frown. Did she really not think that far ahead? Combined with the warpaint on her body plus the carefree attitude, as well as her lack of reservations in asking me for an alliance, I could only come up with one identity for her. ¡°An Elf Barbarian from the Delirious Jungle.¡± Only a barbarian could approach another slave in this tense environment with a carefree attitude like that. Actually, now that I thought about it, I wondered if this was even her plan. I looked at the beastman girl trying to guess how much of this might have been her plan. ¡°Does it matter? What matters is if they can help you survive through this.¡± ¡°Well?¡± The elf barbarian urged. ¡°They could be attacking any minute now.¡± ¡°Name.¡± I said finally after thinking. ¡°I want your name.¡± ¡°L¡¯teya, fourth daughter of Agda. You can call me Lety.¡± ¡°Lety, fourth daughter of Agda. Swear upon your mother¡¯s name and ancestor¡¯s name that you won¡¯t leave me behind.¡± ¡°I swear.¡± She said easily. The pink-haired girl looked at the elf, eyes wide with shock. ¡°Probably her first time dealing with an actual barbarian.¡± But I, on the other hand, had dealt with them hundreds, thousands of times. Once a barbarian swore to the name of their mother, father or ancestor they would never break that oath. Ever. ¡°You have a deal. Here¡¯s what we¡¯re going to do.¡± My idea was simple. They¡¯d throw over half of the rope to my side and I¡¯d fasten it. Then they would check to make sure that it was firmly fixed in place from their end. When the attack happened, they would descend from their side first, swinging from the rope and land. I would cover their retreat while this was happening. Then when they landed, they would protect the area around where I would descend then us three would leave through the door together. It sounded good in theory but I knew that there were hundreds of things that could go wrong with this plan. What if the rope broke after they landed? What if they failed to keep the rope safe from the Dokkaebis? What if they got killed? What if I threw a magic stone in the wrong spot and burnt the rope? But this was the best way that I could think of. ¡°If I could¡¯ve descended first it would¡¯ve been better. But I don¡¯t want to trust them with my magic stones, and they don¡¯t want to trust me with the rope. Tch. At Least I can trust that the barbarian girl will keep her promise or die trying.¡± ¡°I told you he looked clever!¡± I heard L¡¯te¡¯ya¡¯s voice from the other side entrance. There was no fixture on my side of the tunnel for me to tie to rope on. So I took the rusty sword and plunged it into the soil, trying to get it deep enough until only the handle was sticking out. I had to take a rock and hammer it in little by little, hoping that the small noise wouldn¡¯t be noticed by the Dokkaebis. I didn¡¯t quite manage to fix the rope yet when I heard the elf barbarian half-whisper-half-yell to me once more. ¡°Psst! Hey!¡± I tried to ignore her but she kept getting louder in her calls for attention that I feared the Dokkaebi¡¯s would hear. ¡°What?!¡± I was almost too loud. ¡°Look!¡± I saw her point to the chamber. I saw a couple of slaves exit from the tunnels stealthily while the Dokkaebi were frolicking around. ¡°Scouts!¡± I ran back to the sword and stopped trying to stab it deeper into the earth. I just tied the rope to the handle, trying to make it as tight as I could. ¡°Why didn¡¯t that dumb barbarian just tell me they¡¯re about to start attacking?!¡± Right as I finished, I heard the sound that summoned both fear and excitement. ¡°GI! GI! GI GI GI!¡± ¡°REE!¡± ¡°CHARGE!¡± One way or another, I was going to get out of these tunnels.
Chapter 5: Food & Sleep (1)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
The sound of metal and the scent of blood filled the chamber, echoing off of the walls. I saw more of the Dokkaebis pick up the daggers and shortswords this time, leaping directly at people¡¯s unprotected faces or stomachs. Guts were spilled and screams of both men and monsters alike pervaded through my senses. ¡°Hey! Get yourself together, human!¡± I saw L¡¯teya wave both her arms from the other side, frowning. She held up the rope with one hand and pointed to it. ¡°Is it good?!¡± ¡°Get a hold of yourself. Focus on what you have to do.¡± I quickly nodded yes and I saw her lean back, testing her weight. Then the elf barbarian and beast girl swung down, ending midway between the entrance and the floor. Working rapidly, I took out the magic stones I had worked so hard to farm. I was lacking sleep and energy but there was one thing I had enough of. Doubt. What if these didn¡¯t work? ¡°Don¡¯t think. Just act.¡± I threw the magic stone as hard as I could down to the nearest Lesser Dokkaebi. Boom. ¡°REE!¡± The stone exploded. It hit the creature on the shoulder and immediately exploded. The creature actually flew back a few feet from the blast impact. I saw that the entire upper shoulder was gone and in its place was what looked like a burnt piece of bone. The right side of its face was beyond recognition, the explosion had burned off its entire lower jaw showing the skeletal bits beneath. The creature writhed in pain and I knew it wouldn¡¯t be getting up any time soon. Say what you will about the barbarian girl, she didn¡¯t waste time trying to slow her descent. She just slid down and I winced at the rope burn that her hand would undoubtedly have later. But if it bothered her, she didn¡¯t show. L¡¯teya landed deftly on the ground and rolled once, and in one smooth movement drew two small battle axes. One of the Dokkaebi¡¯s thought it had the surprise on her and dashed towards her with the wooden club raised above its head. In the blink of an eye she blocked the club at its handle with one of her axes, and with the other chopped into the creature¡¯s trapezius. Meanwhile, I threw the stones at any Lesser Dokkaebis that approached her from behind, leaving wrecks of burn victims everytime I threw. ¡°Fuck! Hurry up!¡± The beast girl was struggling to go down the rope. ¡°Hey! Look! Those guys!¡± I heard one of the other slaves yell. ¡°They¡¯re thinning the monsters! We can do it! Push! Charge!¡± I wasn¡¯t relieved that help was on its way. On the contrary I felt my heart clench, caught in the vice that you feel when you know that things are going the wrong way.
¡°The door will be open for seven days.¡± Thoktur finished. ¡°Or until we have 100 warriors emerge.¡±
No. I couldn¡¯t let this happen. To increase my chances of survival, I had to get to the door as fast as I could. I had to be one of the 100. I took a magic stone and threw it towards the battle between the other slaves and the Dokkaebis. Then I threw another. And another. The results were devastating, slaves who were caught in the explosion ended up much like the Dokakebis. Limbs blown off or skin burnt to a black crisp. But I had strategically aimed closer to the Dokkaebis and the line broke further, the slaves were starting to break through. ¡°Human! Now!¡± L¡¯teya had cleared the space around the bottom of the rope, dispatching any Dokkaebi that approached with lethal efficiency. Her fight had no flair, no art to it. It was designed to kill and she was good at it. The pink-haired girl on the other hand was much less adept, she held a spear in her two hands and just jabbed at any creature that approached, until the elven barbarian could finish them off. I didn¡¯t have time, so I grabbed the rope and jumped, using my hands to try and slow my descent. My hands burned and I imagined I could smell smoke. But a moment later, I felt my feet land on the bottom of the chamber. ¡°Come on! Let¡¯s go!¡± L¡¯teya cleared the way in front of us, using her axes. I followed closely behind, throwing magic stones to deter any Dokkaebi from chasing after us. It must have only taken a couple of seconds but it felt like an eternity. There was smoke filling up in the chamber now and the screams were decreasing. Corpses strewn across the floor made this place look like a mini warzone. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Probably what the orcs wanted.¡± We reached the door and opened it, slipping through. ¡°GODDAMIT! FALL BACK! FALL BACK!¡± It seemed the other slaves wouldn¡¯t make it.
I had been bringing up the rear so I was the one to close the door shut. I backed away from it, a magic stone in one hand and a shield in the other, fearing that another Dokkaebi would come through. Or perhaps another slave or two had managed to sneak through and would seek revenge for the stunt I pulled. ¡°T-They can¡¯t get through the door.¡± It was my first time hearing this voice but I instinctively identified that this meek tone could belong to none other than the pink haired sheep girls. I turned around and finally got a good look at my two collaborators. They were older than I had assumed, because they weren¡¯t girls, not really. They were women and it was evident because the clothing they had on didn¡¯t hide much. I had assumed that because they didn¡¯t have any blood smeared across their shirts that they hadn¡¯t seen much violence. But I could tell that these weren¡¯t their original clothes. L¡¯teya was much more muscular and taller than I had initially expected, accentuated by the way too small tshirt. The sheep girl was slimmer than I thought, wearing an oversized t shirt which hid her size. I wasn''t interested in sharing stories or prying about what happened to them, anything other than immediate survival was a distraction. ¡°You did good there, human.¡± L¡¯teya patted me on the back, throwing her head back and laughing. ¡°Ha! Now that will be a story worth telling.¡± I didn¡¯t share the sentiment. I grabbed her wrist and took it off of my shoulder. We were in another tunnel but this time there were no magic stones embedded in the walls to light the way. Instead, there was sunlight peeking through all the way from the other side. If I walked, I¡¯d finally be out of this hellhole. As I took a step, the barbarian lifted one hand in front of me, barring me from leaving. ¡°Whoa. We just went through life and death together! The least you could give us is your name.¡± I stopped myself from saying something along the lines of ¡®get your hand out of my way before I chop it off¡¯. Where the hell was this aggression coming from? She had held up her end of the bargain and I should be thankful to her. If anything she went above and beyond what I had been expecting. Hell, I could give her a name if she wanted. Except that I didn¡¯t know the name of this body. Now that was a problem. ¡°...You alright there, friend?¡± L¡¯teya waved a hand in front of my eyes. I took my chance when she moved her arm out of my way to wave it in my face. I brushed past her and walked towards the exit. ¡°Hey!¡± ¡°Lety. I don¡¯t think he wishes to talk. Let¡¯s just get out of here, ok?¡± I heard the barbarian grumble but heard them walking right behind me. To be honest, I didn¡¯t like them walking behind me like this but I knew that if the barbarian girl wanted to hurt me she could regardless of whether she was in front of me, behind me, or above me. So I said nothing and kept my pace, trying not to let my nervousness show. ¡°Survival. Just focus on that. Not friends. Not thanking someone. Just live.¡± When we exited the tunnels, the sight that greeted wasn¡¯t a welcome one. We exited back into a place similar to where we had been before, except there was no stage this time. Dozens of orc warriors and different races in orc warrior garbs stood, loitering around. As soon as we exited, one of them caught our eye and yelled something to a human in orc warrior clothes. The human came running over to us. ¡°This way.¡± He ordered and led us to the others. The slaves had been gathered but we weren¡¯t being monitored as closely as before. ¡°They know that we¡¯re too tired to try something anyways.¡± There was a small pond of water and we saw some of the slaves drinking from it. I couldn¡¯t tell when these slaves got here but a small part of me was irked that I wasn¡¯t the first. Regardless, I approached the pond and drank from it, trying to count how many slaves had made it through the tunnels in total. ¡°About 80 or 90. If I took my time and stayed in the tunnel even for a few more hours¡­¡± I shivered. Those tunnels had almost become my grave. As I had predicted, we didn¡¯t have to wait long. There were dozens of exits out of the cliff wall, though much fewer than the number of entrances on the other side. I mostly saw smaller groups like mine come out, I counted that the largest group to exit the tunnels had been 10. I recognized one of the faces from the group of 10. I noticed him because he was the one who chose the same entrance as a young elf girl. He now had a scar across his face. The girl wasn¡¯t in his group. I swallowed and stopped myself from staring. That¡¯s just the kind of world this was. ¡°Bar the doors!¡± One of the orcs yelled out. I saw the warriors, both orc and other races, obey. They ran up to the entrances and locked them, sliding a steel bar in place. No extra time, no waiting for stragglers. This was it. Once it was done, the same glasses-wearing elf who had passed out the weapons stood in front of us on a small wooden platform. He didn¡¯t even need to yell, by now we all knew what was going to happen and gathered as a small crowd in front of him. I felt a smile stretch across my lips. ¡°Not even a week and we¡¯re already doing what they want without them saying a word.¡± Survival was a strong motivator here. ¡°Congratulations!¡± He seemed to smile at each and every one of us in turn. ¡°You all survived!¡± It sounded so genuine that I half wanted to believe him. But I couldn¡¯t get the scene with him and the cat beastman out of my mind. ¡°You have a long month ahead of you. There will be training, drills, oh I¡¯m sure you will find out soon enough.¡± He pushed his glasses up his nose. ¡°For today, we have prepared food and tents for you all to sleep in. Enjoy!¡± He walked off of the wooden stand and left in a hurry. A couple of the other slave-warriors followed him though most of the orcs remained behind. They formed a loose perimeter around us, keeping us encircled but with plenty of room for ourselves. I didn¡¯t have long to think or study our surroundings before murmurs spread through the crowd, the slaves were talking to each other. ¡°Hello there.¡± A man came up to me and held his hand out for a handshake. The only thing I could notice about him was that he was human and well-built. ¡°Some of us over there are going to eat together. I was wondering if you¡¯d like to join us?¡± I looked over to the small crowd of people that was rapidly growing. It was the humans, they were congregating together. Now that I looked, everywhere around me the different races were sticking together. I saw groups that had left the tunnels spit on the ground, insult each other and shake fists at one another¡¯s back as they chose to stick with their own kind. ¡°What the fuck?¡± I was surprised but only for a second. I knew that racism in MSS was strong and that people tended to stick to their own races. Especially for non-adventurers where race was more important than one¡¯s abilities. ¡°But we¡¯re going to get Cores. They mean to use us as battleslaves, not just some house slave.¡± I kept my mouth shut. Perhaps the man took the silence for affirmation because he grabbed my hand, shaking it. ¡°Haha! I¡¯m Theodore and the folks over there are all good blokes! I left the tunnels with some of them myself! You look like you¡¯ve been through a lot. I¡¯m sure you have a story to share. Why don¡¯t we-¡± I snatched my hand out of his. ¡°I¡¯m not interested.¡± I told him. The man tilted his head, not understanding. ¡°Excuse me? I don¡¯t think you understand the situation but look around you. Everyone is-¡± ¡°I said I¡¯m not interested.¡± I had considered his offer, but for me whose goal was survival I didn¡¯t think sticking with the humans would be the best choice. If anything I wanted to have more information about our next task before even choosing to cooperate with someone. But more so than that¡­ That man with the scar was in that group. Even a loner like me had standards for who I wanted to surround myself with. The man spat at my feet. ¡°Don¡¯t come begging when you change your mind.¡± I scowled at his back as he went back to the group and started talking to a few people. I caught more than a few glances my way and rude gestures. But looking around, not all the groups that came through the tunnels had broken up. Quite a few of them had chosen to stick together, whether it was through the shared experience of almost dying together or recognizing each other¡¯s abilities, they ignored each other¡¯s race. ¡°Maybe I should have been nicer to the barbarian and the sheep girl.¡± I didn¡¯t have time to wallow in regret however. The food and tents had arrived, piled on a wagon pulled by beastman and human slaves. I took one look and said the first thing that came to my mind. ¡°Motherfuckers.¡± I whispered. There was not enough for everyone. Chapter 6: Food & Sleep (2)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
These fuckers had only brought enough food for the majority of us. Not all of us. From what I could see, there was approximately enough food for maybe 60? 70 people? The wagon with the tents on it was the same. There were tents and bedrolls piled on top of one another, but nowhere near enough to house 100 people. I wasn¡¯t the only one who noticed the lack of supplies. ¡°Hey! What gives! There isn¡¯t-¡± The person who was speaking up shut up quick. The glasses wearing elf had come out from the shadow of the wagon. He did a little ta-da gesture. ¡°Ta-da!¡± Creak. Creak creak. A third wagon rolled into view. This one had piles of firewood on it. ¡°At least they won¡¯t let us die out in the cold.¡± I recovered from my initial reaction of blaming the orcs. After all, I had promised myself to focus only on what can be done to make my situation better. For now, I decided to listen. ¡°Sorry!¡± The elf put his hands together and bowed in front of us, looking flustered. ¡°I tried to get enough food for everyone but it seems some of our orc masters got a little hungry waiting for you guys!¡± I heard some of the orc warriors chuckle. ¡°So we decided to do this the fair way. We will be performing an ancient sacred rite called Mak¡¯gora.¡± He finished. ¡°Mak¡¯gora? Here? Now?!¡± Mak¡¯gora was a purely orcish custom, though I knew that certain beastman and barbarian tribes practiced the same rite just under a different name. Mak¡¯gora roughly translated to ¡®Duel of Honor¡¯, in which one individual may challenge another for¡­ well, for anything really. From what I knew of orcish culture in MSS, they usually did it for the right to lead. But I had seen instances where the two orcish warchiefs would perform Mak¡¯gora, and the winner¡¯s horde took everything that belonged to the losing horde. Traditionally these duels were to the death. ¡°I see your faces and you¡¯re worried. Do not worry. No one expects any of you guys to be a full-fledged Arosh just yet.¡± The elf swiped one finger on the wagon, checking it for dust and blew on it. ¡°Arosh, another orc term. It means warrior.¡± I was listening intently, desperate for anything I could find that I could use to my advantage. ¡°You may challenge another and if you win, you will receive enough provisions for the night. Of course, when challenged you may wish to forfeit as well. But you may challenge another as many times as you like. Feel free to challenge others to Mak¡¯gora with any number of people you wish, as long as you can find a group big enough to challenge.¡± ¡°It¡¯s basically a team battle.¡± I understood the idea immediately. None of us had cores or any combat training yet. This was just another weed-out test, the stronger ones would receive shelter and food while the weaker ones would either die or be left behind. ¡°Oh and make sure not to finish the duel to death. Anything else will be allowed.¡± The elf finished, smiling wolfishly. ¡°I¡¯ll be standing by and watching.¡± I organized what I knew about this battle that they¡¯d organized over resources so far.
  1. We were allowed to form groups or teams and engage in an all out battle
  2. There was no permanent losing, you could challenge another as much as you wanted
  3. No killing.
I wondered about the last rule. ¡°If I kill someone would they kill me or punish me? They also didn¡¯t say anything about maiming. Not that maiming is a big deal when you have a power healer on hand. Looks like their goal for this is to create a hierarchy of who the strongest slaves are. If I want to take advantage of this, my best option would be to-¡± I immediately tried to look for L¡¯teya but I was already a step too late. Rumors about Lety¡¯s skills in battle must have somehow spread through the camp or people had recognized her as a barbarian. People were flocking to her, asking her and the other beastgirl if they could all team up together. ¡°Yeah it would have been shameless to ask her after I was so cold to her anyways.¡± Just like Lety, I saw a few other individuals who had attracted small crowd of their own. There was the man with the scar over his eye, who had now the biggest number of humans in his faction. The other was a tall lizard beastman with green scales over his body, except his face which was surprisingly human. I looked around and there were groups forming rapidly. ¡°Damn it. Do I have to try and go at this alone?¡± Worst case scenario, I would simply starve and sleep without a bedroll or tent. It wasn¡¯t the end of the world but I needed every edge I could get. But for once, I was lost. I just didn¡¯t have enough experience with people. ¡°Fuck. What am I supposed to-¡± ¡°Haha! Perhaps next time. Move aside human. Yes Yes, I understand but I already have someone else in mind.¡± I heard the barbarian¡¯s familiar voice and looked in her direction to see L¡¯teya push the crowd aside, coming in my direction. She laughed, shoved and slapped people in the back but parted the crowd to get to me. She held out a hand. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°You never told me your name, human. How can I repay my debts if I don¡¯t know your name?¡± I was caught completely unawares. I needed a moment to think so I gestured with my chin to the pink-haired beast girl. ¡°What about your friend?¡± ¡°Clover. Clover Weinport.¡± She said sheepishly. I had wracked my brains for a name but I could only think of the stupid orc locking the door after I had entered the tunnels. ¡°L-Lock.¡± I muttered. ¡°That is a good name!¡± Lety laughed and slammed my shoulder with her hand. I winced but did not complain. ¡°No family name?¡± The beastwoman, Clover, was less than convinced. ¡°...Slaveborn.¡± I provided. ¡°Goddammit, if I never even had a chance to practice lying because I never had people around me.¡±\ Clover¡¯s eyes narrowed further. ¡°Lety, perhaps we should go somewhere else and-¡± L¡¯teya, bless her barbarian upbringing just kept on patting my shoulder. ¡°That is a great name, Lock Slaveborn!¡± She held her hand out again. ¡°What say you to teaming up for this, Makoreah?¡± ¡°Mak¡¯gora.¡± Clover corrected quietly. I traded grips with her. ¡°Done.¡± ¡°Ahaha! Not a man of many words!¡± As soon as we traded grips, Lety turned to the people who were surrounding us, hoping to be in the same group with her. ¡°I am sorry but us three will be acting alone! Haha! Best of luck to you.¡± The crowd grumbled but dispersed just as quickly, cutting their losses. I saw most of them rush to other groups that looked powerful. I did catch a few glares and more than a few people staring at me, trying to figure me out. I was actually wondering the same thing that they were probably wondering, why would L¡¯teya choose to team up with me? I asked her as soon as we had a little privacy from the crowd. ¡°Because those who came to me just now all wanted me to save them, Lock Slaveborn.¡± She smiled. ¡°I cannot help everyone. But I can help those who are willing to fight. And I saw you in the tunnels, Lock Slaveborn. You were more than willing to fight. There is a fire in your eye that reminds me of my people back home.¡± ¡°She definitely has some unique circumstances on why she ended up here.¡± I threw the useless thought away, now wasn¡¯t the time to delve into backstories and NPC quests, if ever. Now was the time to plan and strategize. ¡°So what will we be doing?¡± L¡¯teya cupped her mouth with her hands and yelled. ¡°I CHALLENGE YOU! YOU, BIG MAN WITH THE SCAR! WE CHALLENGE YOU TO MAK¡¯GORAH!¡± I briefly made eye contact with Clover. I was checking to see if this was part of the plan. Unfortunately she looked just as confused and flabbergasted as I was. ¡°Did this barbarian just screw us over?¡± I was going to suggest challenging some of the weaker looking groups that I knew we had a good chance of beating. Some of the groups were wounded, ripe for the picking. Yet, I knew deep inside that L¡¯teya¡¯s honor would not have allowed that sort of conniving plan. Even so, she had beaten me to the punch and enacted her own plan. But in a way, I admired what she did. She knew her strength and she was willing to trust in it, battling against the unknown. ¡°That¡¯s something I need.¡± The human group looked to their leader but he just smirked. ¡°I forfeit.¡± He raised a hand in mock surrender. L¡¯teya frowned in confusion, but I understood his plan immediately. Why did he need to take the risk and fight us when he could just pick on a weaker group? ¡°Oh well, that was anticlimactic for the first battle.¡± The elf shrugged but some of the orc captors were glaring at the human leader. By nature, the Mak¡¯gorah was an honored rite among their people and he had used it dishonorably. But unlike my fears, they didn¡¯t kill him. ¡°Of course they won¡¯t. There¡¯s only a 100 of us now and we¡¯ve proven ourselves. They can¡¯t just go around slaughtering us all willy nilly. It¡¯ll have to be someone a bit more powerful than just the rank and file soldiers who wants to take things into their own hands.¡± That made me think that the Samak Horde had something special planned for us, the slaves. ¡°Well then here you go.¡± The elf stayed true to his word and ordered the slaves near the wagon. The slaves moved quickly, grabbing bedrolls and just enough food for L¡¯teya, Clover and I. Just as I was about to grab my bedroll, I heard another challenge shouted in the night air. Towards us. It was the man who had tried to recruit me to join the human faction. He was holding a longsword with two other men on either side of him. They both carried spears, looking at me menacingly. ¡°It¡¯s true that we can challenge those who already have food and bedrolls? And take theirs?¡± The man confirmed with the elf. The elf nodded and clapped, delighted. ¡°Exciting!¡± He looked at us. ¡°What do you say?¡± Just as L¡¯teya was about to reply, I clasped my hand over her mouth. ¡°Mmph! Mmph!¡± ¡°Quiet.¡± I whispered and released her once she calmed down. ¡°What is it, Lock Slaveborn?¡± I saw the elf quirk an eyebrow at Lety¡¯s mention of my name. ¡°Surely you don¡¯t think we will lose.¡± I didn¡¯t reply, studying the three men. They weren¡¯t wounded in any way that I could see and their hungry eyes were roaming over L¡¯teya and Clover. Regardless, I wasn¡¯t worried about their motives or skills, I was sure that L¡¯teya was more skilled and powerful than any random human slave. I had been studying the slaves for quite a bit now, and I realized that most of them, except a few, were regular people. Farmers, merchants, villagers and the list went on and on. These weren¡¯t adventurers or warriors, just everyday persons. But that was why it would be dangerous. Why would they challenge us, knowing about Lety? ¡°There¡¯s a trick.¡± I chewed my bottom lip and looked at the scarred man who was staring at us with intensity. ¡°L¡¯teya, how did you plan to end the battle?¡± ¡°Knock them out of course. The slave-elf said no killing.¡± She insulted the elf so casually, that the glasses-wearing elf had no chance to respond. ¡°That¡¯s not good enough.¡± I muttered, seeing a picture form in my head. ¡°That man is going to send men to us, three at a time until we¡¯re tired. You can¡¯t just knock them out.¡± ¡°What do you suggest then?¡± Closer chimed in finally. ¡°We need to send a message. So that the rest of his cronies will be too scared of us.¡± I couldn¡¯t believe I was saying this. What was I, the Godfather? ¡°Hahaha!¡± The elf-barbarian laughed and slapped me on the shoulder. ¡°I understand what you are saying! To instill fear in them!¡± Her next words were delivered at normal volume and there was a weight to them. ¡°I assure you, the message will be sent.¡± I nodded. Thinking, rethinking, double-thinking and triple-thinking what I was about to say. ¡°Let me take that guy with the long sword.¡± I asked. Lety slapped me on the back. ¡°Done! I knew I saw the warrior¡¯s fire in your eyes! Ahahaha!¡± I swallow, my throat feeling extra dry. The moment I woke up in MSS, my choice was one of two. Learn to kill or die like a dog. I theorized that the elf had said ¡®no killing¡¯ because they¡¯d heal those who were injured. Then now was the perfect opportunity for me to get real-life battle experience without fear of dying. Except I was afraid, of what though I wasn¡¯t exactly sure. The glasses-wearing elf must¡¯ve grown impatient. ¡°Well? If you¡¯re not going to fight, then-¡± ¡°We accept!¡± L¡¯teya¡¯s voice thundered through the canyon and some of the orcs grunted in approval. ¡°In the game, the barbarians and the orcs were neutral to each other, plus their cultures were similar. L¡¯teya might get some special treatment from them if she could impress them here.¡± ¡°Good! Finally some entertainment! Clear the middle!¡± Just like how our captors formed a loose circle around us, the band of slaves did the same. They left the patch of flat ground in the middle empty, the reddish rock and sand disheveled from so many people having walked on it. We walked onto it and found that our opponents were already waiting for us. ¡°I told you you¡¯d regret it.¡± Thump. Thump. My heart was roaring in my ears and I thought it¡¯d burst out of my chest. I was nervous and scared, and noticed things about him that I hadn¡¯t seen before. How his forearms were taut with muscle, and how there was a splatter of blood on his shirt. He stood in a stance, holding the sword hilt at face level and the blade high, pointing straight upwards at the moon. ¡°I need a sword.¡± I had left mine back in the tunnels, using it to keep the rope in place. I put out a hand towards L¡¯teya without looking at her, keeping my eyes fixed on my own opponent. ¡°Lend me an axe.¡± She had two battleaxes. From the corner of my eye, I saw her tilt her head in confusion. ¡°But these are mine? A barbarian never gives up her weapon.¡± I had forgotten. Barbarians were attracted to their weapons like how crows were attracted to shiny things. They had no real love for money, except for the new shiny weapons and armors it would get them. I tried to get the glasses-wearing elf¡¯s attention to see if I could get a spare weapon. But when we made eye-contact, he took it as the sign that I was ready. ¡°Oh shi-¡± ¡°BEGIN!¡± Chapter 7: Food & Sleep (3)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
As soon as the elf gave the sign to begin, my opponent charged at me. He thrust at me with his sword but I managed to receive the blow on my shield. We repeated the same exchange a few more times, until he did an overhand swing and I tried to block it by holding the shield directly above my head. Big mistake. I think it might have been in a history lecture back in college. One of my professors had been a fanatic of the medieval era and he often taught us little fun facts. He was especially into medieval weaponry. A heavy and sharp enough sword -like the longsword or Zweihander- could decapitate men in a single blow with the proper swing. Of course, a full-armored knight with a shield was a different matter. But a regular person? They¡¯d probably be cleaved down to their chest area if not the hips. That¡¯s how heavy some of these swords were. Human skin and meat was simply unable to stand against the weight of the sword in combination with gravity. But this wasn''t limited to just swords. The art of war was a fearsome thing and humans loved to study the best and most efficient ways on how to kill their fellow man: Halberds, Axes, Katanas, Guns, Arrows and the list went on and on. All basic weaponry acted the same way, they had a point of impact that carried weight heavy enough to rend human skin, muscle and bone. The place on the weapon that carried the most weight varied: for the arrow it was the tip, for the halberd it was the blade. For the longsword that my opponent was wielding, would be the edge of the blade right before the point of his sword. I received that strike head-on with my shield. My body was Coreless and probably had never seen combat before until I had fought against the Dokkaebis. The shield vibrated and I felt my right shoulder give, hearing something tear from the muscle next to my ear. I fell to one knee from the blow, desperately trying to get back up to my feet. A smart swordsman might have lifted that heavy sword up and struck me with another overhand strike. Or perhaps he would have stabbed me in the throat or stomach, while I was on my knees with the shield over my head. Instead, the man pressed down harder, making this a match of raw strength. Instinctively, I ducked in closer to his center of gravity and he stumbled over me. ¡°Just remember that he¡¯s a regular person. Just like you.¡± ¡°AHHH!¡± I screamed and grabbed his waist, trying to lock up his arms. I didn¡¯t succeed but I was successful in tangling up his arms with my own. Clang! I heard the sword drop somewhere behind me. I stopped trying to tangle up his arms and got mine free. We both gained some distance and he lunged for the longsword fallen on the ground. So I punched him in the temple with the edge of my shield. It had been lethally effective in the tunnels when I had my first tussle with the Lesser Dokkaebi. This strike had rendered a Grade-10 monster almost unconscious, it should have definitely knocked this man out. But he raised a hand and received the blow on his arm instead. He stumbled but managed to pick up his fallen sword and swung it at me, but the swing went wide. There was no way it would¡¯ve hit but I was running on adrenaline and in my haste to get away, fell on my butt while backpedaling. He pressed the advantage and tried for another overhead swing but I was already rolling on the floor to get away. I heard some chuckling from some of the orcs and the more seasoned slaves. They were laughing at how I was fighting. To them I probably looked like an inexperienced fighter who didn¡¯t know what he was doing, and to a certain extent they were right. But right now I had to let go of everything that would hold me back in this fight. Pride. Ego. Any semblance of doing something to look good. I would let go of everything if it meant I could win here. The man lunged again with his sword and I ran out of the way, much more so than needed and it was met with another round of laughter. ¡°Why am I so afraid? It¡¯s just an injury, it¡¯s just-¡± I had to roll on the ground again. I figured out what I was afraid of. I was afraid of getting hurt. Of pain. Not knowing what you¡¯re afraid of and knowing what you¡¯re afraid of makes a big difference. Because now, I could rationalize it. Now that I knew, I could just accept that no matter what I did, I would get hurt. If I wanted to survive in this world, pain would have to become a constant companion. When the man stabbed again, I blocked it with my shield and instead of stepping backwards like I had been doing, I took a step forward. The man did the opposite and stepped backwards then tried another overhand strike. I wasn¡¯t foolish enough to receive it head on again and there was only one thing I could do in this situation to stop him. ¡°AHHHHHH!¡± My scream was more bestial than human at this point, I couldn¡¯t even recognize it anymore. Charging straight towards him, I used my shield to try and punch him in the face again. He tried to stab me but I didn¡¯t overreact and jump out of the way like last time. I felt the sword clip me on the shoulder but ignored it, tackling him to the ground. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Then I bit into his ear. ¡°AGH!¡± This one definitely wasn¡¯t my scream. I used the shield to keep punching at his shoulder joint, eventually managing to grab both of his wrists and hold them down to keep him from using the sword. His ear slipped out of my mouth so I grabbed another mouthful and tried to bite it off. It slipped off again so I repeated it, trying to get a better bite each time. ¡°STOP HIM! AGH! SOMEONE HELP! PLEASE! GET HIM, AGH! OFF! AGH!¡± Someone came and grabbed me by the armpits, holding me back. I struggled and tried to slam the person hold me with the shield in a backhand blow, but she caught my elbow easily. ¡°Easy there. Shh. Easy, Slaveborn. It¡¯s over now.¡± It was L¡¯teya. Eventually, I calmed down and looked around me. L¡¯teya¡¯s eyes were clouded with worry and her friend Clover was standing far from us, her eyes wide with fear. The expressions on the face of the other slaves were much more varied. Fear. Awe. Disgust. Admiration. Defiance. Envy. Lust. But none of them were willing to meet me in the eye. Lety¡¯s opponents had been scalped. They were lying on the ground but awake. Their comrades had already dragged them away so I assumed that she was done much earlier than me. Lastly, my opponent. His ear was a mangled piece of meat-flap. He was clutching it and rolling on the ground, sobbing in small hiccuping gasps. When it felt like his ear had slipped out from between my teeth, what had actually happened was that I tore off a piece of it. Not knowing that I kept on going back, ripping off more pieces each time. Now there was nothing left on the left side of his face, except just a bloody stump and a blood-blogged hole. ¡°Agh..¡± He stopped rolling and just lay there, droplets of blood staining the sand. I spat and looked at the glasses-wearing elf expectedly. ¡°Oh. Um. Yes. Congratulations!¡± He smiled at me and winked. None of the slaves responded. Only the orcs cheered, laughing and talking excitedly in their own language. One of them snatched a bedroll from the wagon-slave and handed it to me himself, slapping me on the back. ¡°That was a fight worth watching!¡± He laughed and piled some extra food on my bedroll. I didn¡¯t bother replying. I just nodded, thanking him. Wanting to clean myself I approached the crowd that was between me and the well. It was the human faction. They parted without a word. I walked past them and found the scarred man sitting where he had been this whole night: a wooden stool. ¡°He sits on that thing like he¡¯s king.¡± I didn¡¯t need to say anything, taking a piece of drumstick of whatever animal these orcs slaughtered, I ripped off a piece and swallowed it. The oil, meat-juice mixed with the blood around my mouth and dribbled down my chin. He turned his head quickly. I think I got the message across.
After I cleaned myself from the well, I took my bedroll and food, choosing a boulder where I could set up. I also had a view of the matches that were happening. As expected, after Lety¡¯s battle, the number of people challenging the ¡®skilled¡¯ became 0. I saw that the scarred man and the lizard beastman hadn¡¯t fought yet, eyeing up the competition. But there were some other fighters of note besides the two, though none of them seemed to match up to Lety¡¯s prowess. ¡°Lock Slaveborn!¡± L¡¯teya climbed on top of the boulder, her food and bedroll with her. Clover heaved herself up as well, though with more effort. ¡°Let us share our meal together! To celebrate our victory!¡± She lifted up a skin that was either filled with water or wine. I had drunk mine of course, but I couldn¡¯t taste it back then. The only thing that the waterskin did for me was that my throat was no longer dry and I wasn¡¯t heaving for breath. Thump. Thump. My heart was still beating. ¡°I¡¯m alive. I¡¯m here. I¡¯ll be treated better tomorrow. I took a step further away from death.¡± I clenched my fist, looking at the competition below. ¡°Lock?¡± L¡¯teya repeated. Something in me wanted to brush her off, tell her to get off the boulder but I suppressed the urge. I knew what was happening, I was acting emotional. I hadn¡¯t fully processed what happened just now. Being thrust into this world of violence as a slave, this was the first time that I had a chance to really sit down, eat, drink and talk with others. Like a normal human being. ¡°Heh.¡± I allowed myself a small laugh. It was funny what these Orcs did to me. If I hadn¡¯t been willing to take the lives of those Dokkaebis I would never have seen the open sky. If I hadn¡¯t bitten off someone¡¯s ear I would never have gotten to eat and drink again. Everytime I embraced a little bit more violence, my treatment became more humane. ¡°Not the orcs. MSS. That¡¯s what this world is.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I trivialized everything when it was on a screen. Now it¡¯s real.¡± ¡°What is so funny?¡± L¡¯teya asked. I shrugged. ¡°Nothing.¡± I looked her in the eyes, trying to convey my sincerity. ¡°Thank you.¡± I told her. She smiled and threw back her head, laughing. ¡°It is nothing! Twice we have overcome death! We are practically comrades!¡± She slapped me on the back. ¡°Tell me, where did you learn to fight like that?¡± I debated how to explain this. ¡°Back in my hometown village, there was a fighter who made his money by brawling at the local tavern. He uh, he bit someone¡¯s ear off.¡± I saw Clover narrow her eyes. ¡°That was the most words you¡¯ve ever spoken in front of us!¡± Lety explained, taking a bite of her food. Her lips, glossy with oil and meat juices, she continued. ¡°I had thought you were simple!¡± I ignored the casual insult, she was a barbarian after all. She probably meant nothing by it. ¡°Which village are you from?¡± Clover asked. ¡°...You wouldn¡¯t know it. It¡¯s very small.¡± Clover opened her mouth to argue but L¡¯teya spoke first. ¡°I come from a Tribe to the east of here! We have buildings that touch the sky goddess herself, providing shelter to pilgrims from all over the world!¡± Her eyes were looking at something far away, something we couldn¡¯t see. ¡°Hm. There¡¯s definitely some kind of story there somewhere.¡± I still couldn¡¯t figure out why a Barbarian from the Delirious Jungle would end up here. ¡°Lety, the one you said to keep an eye on.¡± Clover joined in. ¡°He¡¯s finally fighting.¡± I turned my attention back to the makeshift area. Many challenges had gone answered and just as many had gone unanswered. There were wounded among the slaves, dripping blood and eyes filled with hatred looking towards their aggressors. The condition of the victors varied. Their injuries ranged from heavy to light, but most of them seemed to be fine for the most part. ¡°Hierarchy. They succeeded. Simultaneously they created factions.¡± I understood now. ¡°This must be to keep us occupied with infighting. Never thinking beyond the threat in front of us, keeping us from rising up together against them.¡± It wasn¡¯t like I was a historian, I had actually majored in Computer Science. But I had always enjoyed history classes. It was basically Lore for the human race. It wasn¡¯t like the Orcs were dumb either. I could tell that this wasn¡¯t the first time they had slaves. They had done this many times. The one L¡¯teya wanted to keep an eye on was the lizard beastman. He had to be at least six and a half feet tall. He towered over the group that had gathered around him. I saw him point to a tough looking dwarf who had just won his duel. ¡°You.¡± The reptilian beastman spoke just as I had imagined he would, a not-quite whisper that slightly tinged with hissing sound. ¡°I challenge you.¡± The dwarf scowled. ¡°I ain¡¯t one to turn down a challenge.¡± The crowd around them dissipated immediately, leaving a circle in the middle. The dwarf hefted a huge warhammer that was taller than his own body. The lizardman brought out a spear from behind him, which was hidden by his height. The glasses-wearing elf was ecstatic. ¡°Begin!¡± I had expected the lizard-man to lunge forward using his greater reach to his advantage, stabbing with the spear. Instead he whirled it around his body in wide arcs and the sound of cutting air whistled through the canyon. The people who had been nearest to him had to take a few extra steps backwards lest they be cut. He began to walk forward, the spear tip whirling around him and creating a barrier that promised lacerations. But the dwarf didn¡¯t flinch. ¡°AGH!¡± He gave one loud yell and charged forward, bringing his warhammer around for a side swing. But the reach difference was too much and the lizard-man simply left a dozen tiny cuts on the dwarf. The dwarf charged the lizard relentlessly, bleeding from a dozen cuts but his opponent easily outpaced him, using his long limbs to stay out of reach. It was evident that the lizard was staying just slow enough to allow the dwarf to charge him and get cut, while speeding up when it seemed like the dwarf would strike him. The dwarf yielded soon after. ¡°Is it just me or did that lizard look over here?¡± I hoped it was my imagination. Just as soon as it started, the first night was over. As Lety and Clover continued to chatter, I ignored their noise and plodded over to my bedroll. I wrapped myself in it and tried to sleep. I started laughing despite the looks that Lety and Clover shot me. All I could think of in this situation was how much more comfortable it was to sleep on a bedroll than back in the caves.
Chapter 8: Samak Desert (2)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
The orcs left us alone until morning. Most of the slaves slept along with their own factions, sticking to themselves. Some groups kept watch, but it was unnecessary, our captors changed shifts and a new group of orc warriors observed us. I somehow doubted that they¡¯d allow any one slave group to attack another in the cover of night. One change that I noted was that the Dwarf who lost against the lizard lost some of his members, they had either defected to either the lizardman¡¯s or to another group. Some of them had come to us but Lety refused them citing her earlier reason.
¡°Because those who came to me just now all wanted me to save them, Lock Slaveborn.¡± She smiled. ¡°I cannot help everyone.¡±
It was admirable in a way, L¡¯teya would never turn away because of someone¡¯s race or lack of strength. Rather she turned people away because of who they were. I imagined that each of the different factions that were forming had different standards for who could join them and who couldn¡¯t. For example, it seemed the Lizardman was looking for people with prior experience in battle. On the other hand, the human group only accepted humans. ¡°If I were in their position, what should I look for?¡± I laughed at myself. Loner by nature and a newcomer to this world to boot. Who was I to think about people wanting to be in a group with me? ¡°I¡¯ll be lucky to survive today.¡± They didn¡¯t serve us breakfast and most of us just ended up washing up at the well, which was quickly drying out. With a hundred people sharing this for washing and cleaning, it would be gone by the end of the day today. Most large groups avoided each other even at the well but smaller groups came and went freely. Luckily the orcs had plans for us. It wasn¡¯t the glasses-elf who came to break the news to us, but an orc warrior. I could tell right away from the amount of armor and warpaint that he was a high ranking officer in the Samak Horde. ¡°You Chosen should be honored. Today we will treat your wounds and lead you to our war camp. In there you will find everything you need to serve the Horde.¡± He kept his sentences short and precise. The warriors herded us until we were roughly in a line. They didn¡¯t bother enforcing marching orders, we just walked as one big group of people, surrounded by the green-skinned warriors. We walked towards a crevice in the canyon walls that I hadn¡¯t noticed before. ¡°Finally I¡¯ll get to see what¡¯s outside of this canyon.¡± Walking through the opening was a different experience altogether. So far I¡¯d only seen orc warriors with large weapons bordering on colossal. These warriors were tall and built like a freight truck, their muscles compensating for most of their mass. On either side of the cliffs, there were ledges serving as footholds and temporary resting places. On some of those ledges were orcs, clad in black bandages from head to toe except their eyes. They crouched above and around us, blending with the long shadows of the afternoon. One of them leaped down from the ledges and spoke with the orc leading the procession briefly. ¡°How many.¡± ¡°100. 17 heavily wounded and 31 lightly wounded.¡± The orc, who I assumed was a gatekeeper, made a hand signal in the sky and the other shadow-clad warriors melted back into the shadows. By the time I looked back, the gatekeeper was gone. The lead orc continued to lead us through the canyon for another half an hour. Most of us were silent except a select few. Growl. ¡°Hey. I¡¯m hungry. How long until our mealtime?¡± L¡¯teya asked one of the orc guards closest to us, rubbing her stomach. ¡°Does she have no fear?¡± These warriors had seen us fight together last night and I had the irrational fear of me being punished along with her. Luckily the orc guard ignored her and kept us walking. The rest of the trip was uneventful. Soon we were out of the canyons and I finally got a look at where the orcs had been leading us. It was a large village with tall stone walls in the reddish color of the Samak Desert. I saw a few buildings that were tall enough to peek above the city walls, and from what I could see every single structure had been built out of bricks. There were eight watch towers with archers on it and from the closest one, I could tell that it wasn¡¯t just orcish archers guarding the city but elven and beastman as well. There was only one huge double-door gate that led into the city and we were standing in front of it. The door was carved out of stone and I could only imagine the resources that went into moving this thing. Ornate artwork had been carved into the door, depicting scenes of battle involving orcs, dragons and other monsters. There was no ceremony, the door began to open by itself. ¡°It could be powered by magic.¡± I reasoned. My thoughts stopped when I saw what lay inside the city. Skeletons. Starving children. Diseased vagrants wandering the streets. Topped off by the smell of rot and death that came leaking out. I hesitated as did all the other slaves who were with me. ¡°Is this where we¡¯re going to be living?¡± ¡°Come.¡± The leading orcish warrior ordered and continued walking. Against our will, we all obeyed. I saw other slaves, not from our group, walking throughout the city. I saw the occasional orc warrior pass by, shooting us a curious look. I had no doubt about it, I had seen this place before. ¡°This is the Samak Horde¡¯s main city. But it wasn¡¯t like this.¡± The Samak Horde was one of the largest orcish warbands and one of the strongest military powers in the Samak Desert besides the beastman and the humans. When I had seen this city in the game, it had been overflowing with merchants, water and proud orc warriors. Now it was filled with slaves and the air of stagnating death. ¡°This might not be the MSS that I once knew.¡± I would have to keep that in mind, everything that I could use was valuable information. They led us to the center of the city, continuing to pass by scenes that were familiar to me. The marketplace was barren except a few orc street vendors and the residential areas had most of their windows and doors barred shut. In the center of the city was the tallest building, surrounded by four pillars. It was shaped like an upside down U, the crevice serving as a huge opening. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Warchief Thoktur was waiting for us. Just like before, he stood on a stage surrounded by his honor guard. Now that I was used to seeing orcish faces so much, I could tell the difference between them as well as their possible ranks. I was busy filing away information when Thoktur placed a hand on the same crystal orb he used to speak to us before. ¡°Welcome potential warriors! You have received the honor of being chosen to serve the great Samak Horde!¡± The orcs cheered. I grimaced. ¡°As promised, you will all receive training. Some of you will even receive Cores should you prove yourselves further.¡± He said gravely. Without even looking around, I could tell that the eyes of the slaves would be alight with hunger. I was practically salivating myself. I absently noticed that the glasses wearing elf was all the way at the corner of the stage and he was ordering other slaves about, preparing something. ¡°But first, we require an oath. An oath of allegiance to the Horde.¡± Thoktur gestured and the elf approached our group of slaves. They were holding collars in their hands. I had never seen them before in MSS. ¡°What the fuck¡­¡± I could immediately tell that these had been tampered with magically. They weren¡¯t just regular steel, there were bluish-green runes etched all around the metal band. Instinctively, I knew that once these were put on, they couldn¡¯t come off. Ever been in a situation where you knew something was coming but you were helpless to avoid it? Like a split second before a car collision? That¡¯s how I felt. I would end up putting these collars on. ¡°Pledge yourselves to the Horde. Prove yourselves and once you are recognized as a warrior, you will be allowed to take these off.¡± ¡°The elf is the only slave not wearing the collar.¡± I kicked myself for not noticing it before. All the slaves who were doing menial labor had a collar on their neck, while others like the glasses-elf had no such thing. While I had been furiously thinking, the orc warriors had been taking the collars and placing them on our necks. Most of us did not resist. Except Lety. ¡°This is no such thing for a warrior! This is a farce! Fight me! I challenge you!¡± She struggled against her orc captor. But he was a fully recognized warrior of the Samak Horde, rank and file or not. He most likely absorbed a Core or two. She was Coreless. He didn¡¯t struggle much as he used one hand to hold her hands behind her back and handed off the collar to another orc who collared her. L¡¯teya deflated immediately. ¡°Why didn¡¯t they kill her?¡± I had to wonder. Sure, we were more valuable before but she had practically challenged them. The children in the streets, the lack of life in the city. There were probably no gold trading hands inside the city walls. They had captured slaves and were going to use them as soldiers, for something specific that they couldn¡¯t expect orcs to do. In addition, now as Slaves, this group of one hundred was treated much better than before. Almost like we were no longer expendable. I could only come to one conclusion. ¡°This city is dying.¡± Whatever the orcs were going through, it was something they themselves or the current slaves couldn¡¯t handle. I felt a smirk stretch across my face. ¡°This is a chance.¡± A semblance of control returned to me. They needed me for something and if they were going to use us as soldiers I would have plenty of opportunities to act freely. If I played my cards right¡­ ¡°I could get stronger than them without them even realizing what was happening.¡± A city being suffocated by lack of food, water and funds should have scared me. But I could only see opportunity. In the 14 years I spent playing MSS, if I learnt anything it was this. The more freedom a player character could have inside the city, the more powerful they could become. Secrets would be more easily available. Hidden equipment would be left unsupervised. There would be gaps in watches and security. If I could have freedom to move about at night, I could gather power. Slowly, but it would become drastic over time. ¡°As long as I survive through whatever tests these orcs throw at me, I can grow stronger.¡± Snap Clink Click The collar closed around my neck. But I didn¡¯t resist or pay it any mind. This was a new item that I had never seen before but if it was magic, chances were that it could come off in the same way: by using magic. Once all of us had been collared, Thoktur continued. ¡°Now! There is no time to rest! The Cursed Sun still beats down on us and there are still hours left in the day! I bid you luck, warriors!¡± Thoktur raised one fist into the air and gave a short warcry with his honor guard and the warriors following suit. He turned back and stepped off from the stage, disappearing into the temple. ¡°Tch. If I can get to the temple and get my hands on some of the equipment¡­¡± I rubbed the collar on my neck, the cold metal soothing in the desert heat. The glasses-elf was explaining to us where we¡¯d be sleeping and where we should report to in the morning. In fact, he said he¡¯ll lead us there right now. Behind the temple were the temple grounds, though to the orcs religion and combat were one and the same. The grounds was a barren place of dirt and sand with racks of wooden and steel weapons on the side. The orc who had led our procession had been waiting there for us. We spent the next hour learning how to march and stand in formation. I could tell from the way he approached it that it was a formality. While we had been training, more warriors showed up to watch. After our training the glasses-elf took over and explained more things to us. ¡°Training here at sundown. After marching training, you may pick up a weapon and ask any of the individual orcs here for training. Some of them are instructors.¡± He pushed the glasses up his nose. ¡°I am also an instructor and I look forward to¡­ instructing you.¡± Remembering how he killed the beastman without mercy back at the canyon, I doubted he would attract many eager students. I was glad as I heard him explain that the weapons in the courtyard were free for us to take, however. I had been growing increasingly worried about my lack of a sword. ¡°Now, you may take your weapons and go to the instructor. Meals are provided at the barracks twice a day, where you will be sleeping and spending most of your time. Though I doubt you¡¯d have much free time.¡± He let us be and most of us headed straight to the weapons rack. Dozens of slaves picked up the spear or the same battle axes as L¡¯teya. It seems that their battles had left an impression on most of us. But I remained firm by my decision, picking up the sword and shield. I had to think far. Even if my survival wasn¡¯t guaranteed, I had to think of the possible future where I did manage to get free and was in a position to make choices for my own future. I picked up a sword and shield again which were in a considerably better condition than the ones from before. Now to find an instructor¡­ Looking around the courtyard, I saw instructors for spears, axes, warhammers and even a bow. ¡°Isn¡¯t there a sword and shield instructor?¡± I frowned as I continued to look. There wasn¡¯t any. The closest one I found was an instructor who used a warhammer and shield, and another who used a greatsword. ¡°Tch.¡± I clicked my tongue. ¡°Maybe I should just pick up the spear or axe. [Aura] would work fine with those-¡± ¡°Are you looking for someone to train you in the art of the sword, young one?¡± Startled, I turned around to find the source of the voice. Sitting on a wooden stool and leaning on a cane was an ancient looking orc. His dark green skin was mottled and gray, his hair had all but fallen out leaving patches of skin sunburnt in this desert. He wore dirty robes, stained with filth and splotches, which hung loose on his skinny frame. His wrists were bound together in manacles connected to each other, impossibly large for his frame. But the most striking thing of all were his eyes, which were clouded over. The orc was blind. Compared to the other instructors who wore armor and had a physique more typical of a warrior, this orc was obviously homeless. I ignored him, turning to walk away. ¡°A 100 years ago I was taken under tutelage by the Sword Saint himself. Now I speak to the winds, hoping that someone would hear my plea and take on my sword, lest our art be lost to the ages.¡± I froze. Did I just hear him say the [Sword Saint]? ¡°Most think me mad. But truly truly I tell you, I traveled as one of the Sword Saint¡¯s three disciples. Hear my cry, for I dream of redemption but there is no road forward.¡± I slowly turned around. The orc was whispering by now. ¡°The path of death whispers to me, sweet tales of blood and bone. But I must resist for I carry on the will of all the swords that came before. Hear me, O young flame.¡± I rolled my eyes and decided to humor him. ¡°Name.¡± The orc stopped his manic whispering and looked up, though I knew he could see nothing. Whenever he shuffled his feet to turn towards the sound of my voice, I could see that his ankles were bound in the same way as his wrists. ¡°Tell me your name and the Sword Sage¡¯s name.¡± I knew the name of the [Sword Sage]. I wouldn¡¯t correct him of course but atleast I wouldn¡¯t have any what-ifs lying around in my head. It must have been the gamer in me, so used to talking to every NPC, exploring every crevice and breaking random boxes. I just had to be 100% sure before I moved on. ¡°My name is Arrosh Bloodedge. And my master, the [Sword Saint], was named, forgive my unworthy lips for saying your name Master, was Nearnigh, the sword that brings eternal sleep.¡± ¡°...¡± I couldn¡¯t say a thing. Because I recognized those names. Nearnigh, the [Sword Saint] was an optional boss of SS-grade difficulty. Arrosh Bloodedge was one of his three stooges that were required to be defeated if you wanted to get to Nearnigh. I could be sure of one thing now though. ¡°This isn¡¯t the MSS I know. This is World: Mountain, Sea and Sky 100 years in the future.¡±
Name: Lock Slaveborn Race: Human Age: 24
Level: 3 Stats [Physical]: 2 [Mental]: 1
Spirit Core Slots Available: 1 Spirit Cores: N/A Skills: N/A Achievements: Sword Saint Candidate* (Pending) Chapter 9: Samak Desert (3)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°I¡¯m meeting this guy here? Now?!¡± Meeting someone related to the [Sword Saint] was a big deal. There are six [Hero] class bosses in World: MSS, one for each race. Nearnigh the [Sword Saint] represented the humans. [Mushin], the champion of the beastman whose tales were lost to legends. The elven [Grand Magus] who hid himself away in the deep recesses of the world tree. Referred to simply as the [Blacksmith], the dwarves practically worshiped their hero like a deity. Then there was the orc hero, [Autarch], the first and only Orc Emperor in history. Lastly the nephilim race were represented by the- ¡°I sense that you are still there, young flickering ember.¡± Arrosh interrupted my thoughts. ¡°Heed my cry! For you are but an ember! Swaying with the wind! But the remnants of my master¡¯s will-¡± ¡°Please, stop.¡± I hissed, looking around to make sure we didn¡¯t garner any unwanted attention. But no one seemed to be looking our way, and I could see why. Arrosh was effectively dressed like a homeless orc and locked in manacles to boot. He looked no different than the other poor denizens of this city. Why would anyone bother turning their attention to a slave talking to a homeless man? ¡°I need to fish for some more information. This guy isn¡¯t supposed to be here. But if he¡¯s right, I¡¯m 100 years in the future.¡± Some other random thoughts flashed through my brain. ¡°If I¡¯m a 100 years in the future for MSS, what about my homeworld? Has it gone through 100 years too? What exactly happened to me?¡± ¡°Why am I even here?¡± I must have been silent for a while because Arrosh began to fidget. ¡°Young blade, what do you think about my offer?¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing to lose.¡± If this truly was Arrosh, the disciple of the [Sword Saint], which I was 99% sure he was, this would definitely not be a waste of time. This would be me taking my first step into survival. For now, while I didn¡¯t have access to Cores or equipment, the only thing I could do to get stronger was strengthen my body. ¡°Yes. I will.¡± The blind orc¡¯s mouth hung open in shock. ¡°You will? Truly, young sword?¡± ¡°Fuck¡­ am I being conned?¡± But I didn¡¯t voice it. I read enough wuxia webnovels to know the saying: In murim beware three things: Children, Women and the Elderly. I needed to take advantage of this chance. ¡°Then follow me.¡± The orc turned and hobbled out of the temple ground. I hurried and followed after him. ¡°Wait, you can¡¯t see but I¡¯m one of the slaves here. I can¡¯t just-¡± ¡°The Children of the Desert will not care, young wind. As long as you return to the barracks before the moon graces us with her beauty.¡± He answered, limping into the alleyways. ¡°Damn it if only he didn¡¯t get the name of the [Sword Saint] correct¡­¡± Panic grew as I entered the alleyways with him. He turned and turned again. The alleyways were built like a maze, and within a few minutes I was no longer aware of where we were, growing less confident by the second of finding my way back on my own. So I stuck close to Arrosh, holding my sword and shield firmly. Maybe he was just bait for an ambush to kill some too-trusting slaves and loot their organs. I was sure that a [Black Market] would be well and active in a dying city like this one. But what greeted me at the end of our trip wasn¡¯t a group of thieves or organ plunderers. It was a small deadend, empty of debris with a single stool leaning against the wall. Arrosh walked to the stool and set it upright, sitting down. Abruptly I remembered that he was blind and I had followed him here. ¡°Damn. If he really did mean to hurt me¡­¡± I had been too caught up in the name [Sword Saint] to have thought out my actions. I promised myself to never make that mistake; I would have to stay cold and logical as possible. ¡°Oh? Young ice, have you emptied yourself of worldly thoughts? I sense a chance in you as when the autumn leaves are covered by winter snow.¡± I didn¡¯t exactly understand what he was talking about but nodded, but remembering he was blind spoke. ¡°I¡¯ve followed you here, Arrosh Bloodedge. You said you could pass on the teachings of the [Sword Saint] to me.¡± One of the teachings of the 6 [Hero]-class bosses in MSS, what could it be? I remembered scouring online forums and hidden fields in MSS. Strangely, I was always drawn to the 6 [Heroes]. I played each of the 6 races and found every questline, hunting zones and secret items. For about 2 years I was obsessed with finding a way to succeed these [Heroes] and taking their monikers for myself. Alas, I had found out that it was impossible. Even if you defeated these bosses, there was no in-game dialogue with NPCs referring to you as the [Grand Magus] even after you defeated her and the same was true for the other [Heroes]. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. They dropped some sweet loot though. ¡°I sense your ambition, like an ageless tree which has been growing for an eternity. Since when could such obsession have taken root in one so young?¡± Arrosh whispered to himself, then said to me. ¡°Bow.¡± ¡°...Excuse me?¡± ¡°Bow!¡± Then in the blink of an eye he closed the distance between myself and him, gliding like a ghost over water. His cane struck me on both my shoulders, and I collapsed to my knees. ¡°Bow as if you are a dog begging for scraps from a stranger¡¯s table, for that is what you are. Pray and hope that the stranger takes pity on you and becomes your master, for that is the only path to true strength.¡± Dazed, I obeyed putting my head to the floor. ¡°Good, good.¡± I could¡¯ve sworn I heard a smile in his voice. The stool scraped, signaling that Arrosh had sat down again. I slowly lifted my head, rubbing my shoulders. ¡°From now on, I shall teach you as my master had taught me.¡± I narrowed my eyes but didn¡¯t say much. Arrosh might have been the Sword Saint¡¯s lackey in the game, but he had been strong. I wouldn¡¯t squander this opportunity. ¡°Now stand and hold your sword. I sense that you are holding a shield as well, you may hold onto it.¡± When I obeyed, he walked over and used his cane to move my arm and legs here and there, making sure my head was held straight over my neck. ¡°Hold, young one.¡± He muttered and stepped back. I waited for the next set of instructions to come. ¡°The art of the sword is like a dance, moving when the wind blows but still as the earth before creation. All paths of the sword lead to but one path: blood and bone.¡± The blind-orc started whispering to himself, using his cane to correct my posture whenever something wasn¡¯t to his liking. I kept waiting. ¡°Blood stained winds blow into my village, threatening to bring rain. Thunderclouds are dispersed by war and the raven crows at midnight. Dogs feast on the corpses of the innocent and justice is blind to the sins of power.¡± ¡°...what am I doing here?¡± I was slowly growing tired and felt my wrist start to droop. He lashed out with his cane and slapped them back into position. ¡°I know your idle thoughts, young storm! How can you hope to swing the blade when you cannot hold it? How can a newborn babe hope to walk when he does not yet crawl? Can there be rain where there is no sky? Trees where there is no earth?!¡± He thundered at me. ¡°...This is not the attitude I was expecting.¡± He had practically been begging me to follow him here, for someone to receive his teachings. But as soon as we were alone, he forced me to bow to him and was now having me just stand here doing nothing. Yet, I continued to sweat and fatigue built up. ¡°Rot builds up like canker sores, until it overtakes us all. Anger builds up like a dam, leaking out in excess like a puss. Cleanse yourself, purify yourself so you are the spring of water that may turn into an ocean, enveloping all else.¡± Each time my arms were lowered, he put them back in place with his cane, continuing with his mad whispering. I grew increasingly tired but it gave me time to think. Lately, I''ve been pushed into one situation after another. This was the first time I really had the time to stay still. I thought about MSS and my situation. I had already accepted how crazy my situation was. That was done as soon as I was pushed into the tunnels and had come face to face with an Orc followed by my life-and-death battle with a Lesser Dokkaebi. I had already become accustomed to being a captive of these orcs, my fate being sealed simultaneously the moment I accepted the Slave Collar. Now what would be my next steps to survive? ¡°Cores.¡± The answer came easily. I needed Cores. It didn¡¯t matter if Arrosh was truly the [Sword Saint]¡¯s disciple or not if I didn¡¯t have any Cores to supplement myself. I could have all the [Skills] in the world and I¡¯d still be nothing without [Abilities]. MSS put a distinction between [Skills] and [Abilities] for characters. [Skills] were something that you had to learn through minor achievements. For example, raising your [Handicraft] stat by two stages while using kitchen knives would get you the skill [Cut]. This skill stayed with you and couldn¡¯t be taken away. [Abilities] came from Cores and Equipment, as soon as you erased a Core or took away the equipment those [Abilities] would disappear since they weren¡¯t something you learned yourself. But [Skills] would only take you so far. Cores provided stat bonuses as well as a random passive and active ability of the monster. If I could only- ¡°We are finished, young hilt.¡± Arrosh¡¯s voice brought me out of my thoughts. I was drenched in sweat and there was a puddle where I had been standing. Judging by the pungent smell radiating off of the orc, he had sweated quite a bit as well. His brow was beaded with effort and he limped over to the stool and sat down. I hadn¡¯t realized how tiring this was for the elderly orc. ¡°Thank you.¡± I whispered. He waved a hand. ¡°The Cursed Sun sets, and the moon will grace us with her presence. Return to whence you came. Tomorrow, I will meet you at the destined place where we met, the Temple of these orcs.¡± Truthfully I wanted to stay and ask him a couple of questions. Such as how he ended up here, what happened to the [Sword Saint] and even just for a general overview of the world. But the atmosphere wasn¡¯t quite right so I gave him a slight bow, wincing in pain as a spike of pain traveled down my neck and back, all the way to my heels. I tried to turn around, feeling that same pain arc through my body starting from my hips to my upper shoulders. ¡°Go. Before the others notice.¡± He said. I gritted my teeth, and made my way back to the temple grounds through the alleyway. Or atleast I tried to. ¡°How do I get back again?¡±
By the time I reached the training grounds, the sun had already set. Seeing the last of the slaves being led out, I sped up and naturally joined the dredges of the procession. Some of the orc warriors gave me a look but didn¡¯t comment. Some of the slaves certainly minded though, holding their noses and stepping away from me. But to me, the opinions of the orcs mattered more. ¡°It was true. They didn¡¯t care as long as I came back.¡± I took a deep breath and steadied my gait, trying to walk as normally as possible as to not arouse suspicion. Gut feeling told me that Arrosh wasn¡¯t supposed to be there and neither was I supposed to be associating with him. How he had been getting around with those giant manacles on both wrist and feet was a question better saved for another time. What really mattered to me was the significance of what I had just experienced. ? Achievement: Sword Saint Candidate* ? ? Quest - Succeed the inheritance of the [Sword Saint] ? ¡°If only I had a system window.¡± Cursing how something I took for granted before left me in the dark so much, I continued walking with the other slaves. ¡°Haha! I¡¯ve been looking for you, Lock Slaveborn!¡± Lety and Clover were walking in the opposite direction of the procession and walked next to me. I saw the sheep-beastwoman scrunch her nose in distaste at my state but L¡¯teya just laughed it off. Being an elf, one would assume that she would find my current state to be disgusting. But there were many kinds of elves, just as many as there were orcs, and L¡¯teya with her tanned skin and black wavy hair was anything but the typical elf. Only her pointy ears hinted at her race, her toned muscular body furthering her from the typical image of an elf. I found myself surprisingly glad to see the two, even Clover. ¡°You¡¯ve cheered up.¡± I stated. ¡°I had thought the collars had dampened your will.¡± The moment I said the word collar, Clover furiously motioned an X in front of her chest behind Lety¡¯s back but the damage was done. L¡¯teya drooped, melancholy evident in her face and posture. ¡°I¡¯ve failed as a warrior.¡± She muttered. ¡°Oh.¡± I cleared my throat. ¡°I¡¯m sure that with your skills, you¡¯ll be allowed to take it off soon.¡± Lety cheered up visibly at that and Clover sighed in relief. ¡°How the hell did these two end up here and become friends?¡± No matter how I looked at it, the two were a mismatch. Clover¡¯s last name was Weinport, which sounded like a merchant¡¯s name to me. Not only that, when we had first met she had looked relatively clean with healthy skin. Her back was straight and despite her quiet nature, she looked at people in the eye when she spoke. All the signs of a well-to-do upbringing. She reminded me of the kids that I met at the various fundraisers my parents used to bring me to. ¡°Don¡¯t get distracted.¡± With Lety and Clover¡¯s antics and small talk accompanying me, we reached the barracks sooner than I thought. Which was good, because I was starting to feel the limits of my body. The training that Arrosh offered was more tiring than I had initially thought. ¡°Maybe that¡¯s a sign that it¡¯s working.¡± I was still in half disbelief about trusting in the homeless orc but all the signs he displayed pointed towards his words being truth. The barracks was a large rectangular building with two wings. Naturally our orc captors separated the women and men, and the men¡¯s side was much more crowded than the other wing. Luckily there were plenty of beds to go around. I chose a bed that was the farthest in and nestled to a corner. The beds were actually nothing more than slabs of rock carved into the foundation of the building. Taking one of the bedrolls, I was about to lay down. ¡°I wish to speak with you.¡± It was the spear-wielding lizard beastman.
Name: Lock Slaveborn Race: Human Age: 24
Level: 3 Stats [Physical]: 2 [Mental]: 1
Spirit Core Slots Available: 1 Spirit Cores: N/A Skills: N/A Achievements: [Sword Saint Candidate] Chapter 10: Samak Desert (4)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°If you are willing of course.¡± His hissing manner of speech made me shudder involuntarily. ¡°Don¡¯t show weakness.¡± Without even knowing, I had grabbed my sword. The lizardman smirked, though whether it was at my expense or the situation it was hard to tell due to the reptilian eyes. ¡°As you wish. But I come in peace. We may dance another time.¡± ¡°Speak.¡± I kept my words short. ¡°Privately.¡± He frowned. Though it wasn¡¯t blatant, some of the slaves were looking this way. They were pretending not to, but many were whispering and giving us the side eye. ¡°It¡¯s not about me. It¡¯s about L¡¯teya.¡± I put two and two together, figuring out why the lizard has approached me. ¡°If you¡¯re asking me to join you, it¡¯s a no.¡± His frown deepened. ¡°Why?¡± Organizing my thoughts, I released my sword and shield. I didn¡¯t want him to get the wrong message that I was hostile towards him. Far from it, logically speaking I shouldn¡¯t be hostile with any group except the pro-human faction because of the duel and I assumed that soon enough, that¡¯d be forgotten as well. The choice I was making was based on logic alone. ¡°L¡¯teya is stronger than you.¡± As soon as the words were out in the open, I saw his eye twitch. ¡°How so?¡± It was true. From what I could see, this beastman was weaker than her. For the moment at least. While the beastman toyed with the other slaves using his long reach in combination with the spear, I just couldn¡¯t see him defeating L¡¯teya. One would think that he could give L¡¯teya a fight for her money but¡­ ¡°Years of dealing with forming the best party through trial and error are telling me that she¡¯s stronger.¡± But it wasn¡¯t something I could say out loud, so I opted for a one-sided shrug instead. ¡°Hm.¡± He stared at me, his reptilian eyes unblinking. Abruptly he reached out with his hand. I flinched. Amused, he introduced himself. ¡°Skaris of Clan Deepeater.¡± ¡°Lock Slaveborn.¡± I clasped his forearm, exchanging grips. ¡°Interesting name.¡± He commented, then turned around without further ado, adding. ¡°I wish you luck on the battlefield.¡± It took me a while for sleep to come. But it did come, and even if it was made out of rock, I slept on a bed for the first time since I awoke in this body.
Day 25. In the morning, all the slaves were gathered in the mess hall beneath the barracks. Just like the beds, the tables were carved out of stone and so were the chairs. Some of us were too weak to move the chairs to a comfortable position, mostly the humans and elves. The stronger races such as dwarves and certain beastman had no problem. Lety was an exception to the elves of course. I usually sat with L¡¯teya and Clover. It was a meaningless gesture in my opinion since there weren¡¯t enough tables for all the groups to sit separately. But L¡¯teya insisted. ¡°Haha! Eat more Clover! Or you will collapse again during training today!¡± More than three weeks had passed since we arrived at the orc¡¯s city. My daily routine consisted of breakfast, group training and then sneaking away into the alleyways with Arrosh to practice how to ¡®stand still¡¯. But I had learned some tricks from the drills that we always did in the morning, learning how to thrust and slashwhile still keeping my shield ready to defend myself with. I was getting increasingly better at manipulating each arm. ¡°Again! Fate clings heavily to you! Your sword arm must move with enough force to throw off the fingers of destiny that clings to you, young star!¡± Though most of Arrosh¡¯s speech was still too cryptic for me to fully understand, he had finally grown satisfied enough to let me swing the sword for the last few minutes of our training sessions. Skaris had never approached me again, but I did see him eyeing me here and there. I tended to avoid him and the other slaves that I wasn¡¯t close with. If I had to mention one small thing that happened in the barracks, it was that the scarred man in charge of the human faction tried to monopolize the breakfast and dinner portions. Skaris and L¡¯teya put a stop to it immediately along with help from other slaves. From what I could see, in the last three weeks most of the slaves had thrown away the air of inexperience around weaponry. Most of us could pick up weapons without being afraid of it now, and the awkwardness disappeared from our movements. Even Clover had developed a hard edge, throwing away her oversized spear in favor of a bow and throwing knives that she kept hidden throughout her person at all times. From what I had heard she¡¯d been having problems with certain slaves leering at her and passing off-handed comments. But she seemed to handle herself just fine. Even I felt confident enough that if I saw a [Lesser Dokkaebi] again, I¡¯d be able to take it in single combat. Comparing myself to a grade-10 monster wasn¡¯t the proudest moment but a win for me nonetheless. ¡°Damn am I getting used to being a slave?¡± I slapped myself on the face. ¡°Wake up. It wouldn¡¯t be weird for you to die at any second.¡± Just because I was behind city walls and was steadily making progress wasn¡¯t a sign that I was safe. A grade-1 monster could decide to attack and level half this city. Some wandering adventurers could summon a grade-S boss monster and create a catastrophe comparable to a natural disaster. Or our orc masters could decide we weren¡¯t worth the effort or get their mystery situation handled and have us all executed. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. That was the type of world I was in. So from that day on, I took to carrying around a kitchen knife. Whenever I would have time, I¡¯d sharpen it or try to carve small figures out of branches that were lying around. ¡°Are you bored? That¡¯s a strange hobby you picked up. It doesn¡¯t suit you.¡± Clover Weinport commented one day, watching me carve wood while eating dinner. ¡°...It helps me relax.¡± It was a lie, but it wasn¡¯t like I could tell her that I was trying to unlock the skill [Cut] or raise my [Handicraft] stat. So the days went on. Eating. Training. Practicing. Talking. Sleeping. One morning after our group training, the glasses-wearing elf stood at the front and cleared his throat. Some of the slaves who had taken to practicing with daggers and had been receiving lessons from him gathered immediately, Clover included. From hearsay, his personality was just as I had surmised, cunning, paranoid and dangerous. The rest of us gathered soon after grabbing our drinks. ¡°Tomorrow you will be allowed to go outside the city walls and hunt in one of two areas at a time of your choosing.¡± There were excited murmurings. ¡°Outside the city walls, if you head east you will find a field called the Desolate Sands. You are free to hunt there the entire day. If you head North, you will find the Samak Bluffs. You may also hunt there if you wish.¡± He finished off with this. ¡°Any Core you find, you may choose to keep. But if you are not back by the next morning, we will send out a search party.¡± His eyes gleamed with delight, just screaming ¡®please escape¡¯ to all of us. I recognized both fields as monster zones populated with grade-10 and grade-9 monsters. ¡°Not the best hunting grounds but we can keep the Cores¡­ hm¡­¡± I started going through the list of monsters that spawned in those fields. ¡°Tomorrow instead of heading here, you can follow whichever warrior is heading towards the one of the two fields you prefer.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s it. Carry on as usual.¡± ¡°Desolate Sands or the Samak Bluffs. Hm. Which one would be better¡­¡± My thoughts were preoccupied with monster names so that I hadn¡¯t noticed that I was already in front of Arrosh. ¡°Young dream, do you dare to carry plans of grandeur, in this holy hour wherein we hold the sacred sword? ¡°God, I swear this guy¡¯s getting worse.¡± Ignoring my annoyance, I answered him. ¡°No, I dream of the sword and the sword alone for only its blade song is the music I answer.¡± Lately, I had been answering Arrosh in the same cryptic way that he spoke, hoping to annoy him enough to drop his ¡®act¡¯. Yet Arrosh had taken a liking to my new style of speech and that was exactly the day when he started letting me swing the sword. So now, whenever I had a chance to talk with Arrosh I spoke in his fashion, hoping that he might eke out some more teachings as I got on his good side. The downside was that Arrosh was the one person I spoke the most with. So at breakfast or dinner when I had to speak to either Lety or Clover, it slipped out without me meaning to. ¡°Come. The awaited hour approaches.¡± Arrosh stood from his seat and entered the maze composed of alleyways and I followed suit. Once again, we practiced standing still or as Arroash called it, ¡®Basic Stance¡¯. I held the shield with my left arm, right above my heart ready to cover my face at a moment¡¯s notice. My swordarm slightly behind my torso, almost covered by the sword. ¡°As all roads lead to one ending, so one beginning leads to many roads.¡± He muttered, correcting my posture. But the instances where he had to correct my posture were decreasing everyday, sometimes he even ended the training session early and allowed me to practice swinging the sword. Today the aged orc nodded to himself and walked over to the stool he always sat at, facing me. Sometimes I wondered if he could see, his blindness did not seem to hinder him the least. ¡°Where will you be heading tomorrow, young branch?¡± I didn¡¯t have to ask him to explain what he was talking about, there was only one thing he could be referring to. ¡°I haven¡¯t decided yet.¡± I muttered. ¡°Beware the shadows that appear in the Desolate Sands on a cloudless day, for there lies a six legged snake that you are not yet ready to face. In the Samak Bluffs, run back towards the city when you hear the scream of a maiden and her lover combined into one, for it signals the beginning of the hunt.¡± He advised. I frowned, though my concentration did not slip. For the first time, I half understood what he was talking about. He was referring to the boss monsters of each respective zone. The Desolate Fields was basically a barren wasteland, a shadow would surely signal a flying monster. The ¡®scream of a maiden and her lover¡¯ was referring to the boss monster in the Samak Cliffs. This was the most normal advice he had given me yet. ¡°I shall etch the words of your teachings into the walls of my heart.¡± I replied in kind. I thought I saw the hint of a smile at his lips.
The next morning L¡¯teya, Clover and I readied ourselves and got ready to leave. It wasn¡¯t a verbal agreement or contract that we devised, but a silent agreement of sorts. At least until one of us said otherwise, us three would move together as one unit. On one hand, it gave me a sense of security that I wouldn¡¯t be hunting alone. On the other, I was terribly aware of how unbalanced we were. ¡°Three people without cores, all focused on melee combat. Not a single one of us is specialized enough to take on any of the traditional roles.¡± Parties in World: MSS were usually comprised of members who specialized in one or two things but all three of us shared similar traits. Clover with her daggers, would need to get up close to the enemy. The same could be said for L¡¯teya and I. If I had to choose one positive aspect, it was that at least one of us had a shield. Namely me. ¡°But in MSS just a shield isn¡¯t good enough. Core settings, Skills and the stats to back it all up. Those are all required to be a real [Shielder]. Not that I would want to be one, that¡¯d be wasting my potential as a human.¡± There was nothing worse in MSS than becoming a jack of all trades. ¡°Come Lock Slaveborn! You are thinking too much!¡± L¡¯teya led me by the arm to the front of the barracks, where two groups of orc warriors were waiting. One group would escort the slaves to the Desolate Sands and the other to the Samak Bluffs. Clover was waiting for us there. We had all been given ill-fitting leather or metal armor, depending on our preference. However I felt that everyone but me had managed to find something that fit them perfectly. My breastplate was a bit too tight, which was better than it being loose L¡¯teya told me. My leather boots were the same way. L¡¯teya exchanged a greeting with Clover and started walking towards the group that would lead us to the Samak Bluffs. ¡°Damn.¡± That wasn¡¯t the field I wanted to go to. ¡°L¡¯teya. Clover.¡± I said after much deliberation. Both the elf-barbarian and the sheep-beastwoman turned to look at me, wondering why I had stopped them. ¡°Would it be alright if I got to chose where we hunt?¡± I was fully prepared to go alone if they said no. Lety laughed and spread her arms wide open, clapping Clover and me on the back. ¡°Anywhere is fine my friends! But where did you want to go?¡± Clover pushed Lety¡¯s arm off, not because she didn¡¯t like the elf barbarian but most likely because she didn¡¯t like being under the barbarian¡¯s arm at the same time as me. ¡°Is there a reason you chose the Desolate Sands?¡± She asked directly. I just shrugged. ¡°Gut feeling.¡± ¡°He has good instincts!¡± Lety added. One night, I had filled her in on how I had managed to figure out that the Dokkaebi Dagger was crucial in mining the magic stones from the tunnels we were trapped in. Since then, Lety had often been more than willing to listen to me when I said I had a gut feeling. She almost treated me like a barbarian witch doctor, often asking me how the skies looked today. ¡°But it looks like today it¡¯s working in my favor.¡± The two listened to me without resistance, it seemed both had no real preference about where to hunt. ¡°I simply chose the cliffs because I thought we¡¯d be able to get a better look at our surroundings.¡± Clover said. Just as Clover finished speaking, Skaris, the lizard beastman, approached us. ¡°Greetings, to my fellow cousin.¡± He greeted Clover, putting a fist in the palm of his hand and bowing slightly. Clover did not return the gesture and said simply. ¡°I¡¯m afraid my family is not one of the martial clans.¡± ¡°Ah, pity.¡± He turned his attention to Lety and me. ¡°May I ask you which field you plan to hunt on this fine day?¡± He already knew, judging by the fact that we were standing near the orc warriors who¡¯d head to the Desolate Sands but asked anyways, probably out of politeness. ¡°Desolate Sands.¡± I replied simply. ¡°So it seems, might it be too presumptuous to travel together just for a short while?¡± His forked tongue flickered. ¡°Ahaha! A strong warrior such as you is always welcome!¡± Lety said good naturedly. But I knew better. Something was afoot. Whatever happened on this hunt, things would change for the Slaves. Especially for me. Because one way or another, I planned to return with a Core. Chapter 11: Desolate Sands (1)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
Mounds of red sand stretched as far as the eye could see, dunes that looked more like ugly red scars in this barren land. Everytime I took a step, my foot would dig into the shifting landscape causing me to expend more effort than normal. Sweat dripped down my face, clouding my vision and signaling to me that I was losing moisture fast. I tightened the sash around my head, which covered everything but my eyes. Three suns hovered in the sky, cooking us alive. I had taken off my armor long ago, finding that I was being slowly broiled within. I looted a cloth and leather armor for my torso from one of the monsters we were currently hunting. ¡°I see another group in the distance!¡± Clover alerted us, her face wrapped in cloth as well. She had wrapped the sashes in such a way that her horns were still visible, but if they suffered from the heat she did not complain. Lety had covered her face but because she was so tanned already, I thought it might be a moot point. ? You have entered a Special Field: Desolate Sands ? ? Field Effect - Desolate Sands is now active ? ? Field Effect - Desolate Sands: -30% Movement Speed ? ? Field Effect - Desolate Sands: -1% HP when wearing Heavy Armor ? ? Field Effect - Desolate Sands: Native Monsters are Immune to Negative Effects ? Soon the monsters that Clover warned us about made themselves known, descending the dune in a haphazard shuffling movement and heading towards us. [ Agwi (??) ] - Grade 10 ¡°Tch. These guys were disturbing even in the game, they¡¯re just outright horrifying in real life.¡± The monsters were around 7 - 8 feet tall, much taller than the orc warriors who remained behind right before entering the Desolate Sands, with gray pallid skin that seemed to absorb the light. They shuffled on the sand with stumpy feet that were way too short for their body and inconvenient for moving around anywhere except where there would be sand. Here, those stumpy feet with the wide surface area made them half-slide, half-shuffle over to us with deceptive speed. Their body and head made up the bulk of their size. The Agwi had distended bellies with long skinny arms that would be used to stuff whatever they could pick up into their oversized heads, except for the part that their mouth and throat were comically small, much smaller than even a regular humans. There were 36 types of Agwi in MSS with differing grades between them. I was sure that the developers of MSS had based them off of the same type of mythical creature from buddhist folklore back in the real world, but lately I questioned which came first. ¡°Disgusting.¡± our newcomer commented. He was short for an orc, probably because he was barely more than a kid in my opinion. He wore a long tan robe that hung to his ankles, revealing his braided leather sandals. My eyes were naturally drawn to the staff he carried, which had three skulls dangling from the end: a reptilian skull, a human skull and what was undoubtedly a shrunken orc head. His name was Puca, an apprentice witch doctor and was currently out on this expedition with us to gain experience on account of his master. I had seen some other slave groups with smaller numbers such as ours be joined by the young generation of orcs. I saw young warriors, other witch doctors and even archers. It really made me wonder why the orcs had kidnapped us but now wasn¡¯t the time to try and figure out why. Lety and I moved to the front as the first of them reached us. Despite being the same Grade-10 Monsters, these guys seemed gave off a completely different feel when fighting, simply because of their size. The first Agwi reached its freakishly long hand towards us, the fingers ending in long yellow claws. Luckily they were slow and with Puca with us, it hadn''t taken too long the last few times. I didn''t think it would be any different. I blocked the strike with my shield and hacked at the arm, my sword not quite able to cut through bone. But my job was just to hold the arm there while Lety dealt the crippling blow: she leapt from the side and sliced through the arm using her dual battle axes. Yellow pus gushed from the wound as the creature moaned and pulled its arm back, sucking greedily on its own wound and drinking the pus. Its face turned to pure bliss, a repulsive expression on a vulgar face. Clover fired her bow and a few arrows found their mark, causing the pus-filled belly to start leaking like a jar with cracks. The other two Agwi went mad with hunger and they greedily fell to their stomachs, lapping up the dripping pus from their brethren¡¯s skin. This was why the Agwi, despite their size and potential danger, were classified as Grade-10, they weren¡¯t intelligent enough to control their bottomless hunger. ¡°Well done, slaves.¡± Puca slammed his staff on the ground and waved his staff, the shrunken head tapping against the skulls in constant rhythm. Tap. Tap tap tap. Tap. Tap tap tap. ? Pucaloxtl Ayidaweddo has cast [ Squishy Skin ] ? A cloud of black dust came into existence around the Agwi¡¯s and I saw them get coated in the fine powder. But the monsters didn¡¯t notice, too busy sucking greedily on the wounds. Their eyes were curved in joy, concentrating on the fact that they had something to drink. ¡°Disgusting.¡± I had to agree with Puca¡¯s earlier sentiment that the Agwi were a particularly nasty sort of monster. L¡¯teya didn¡¯t waste her time being disgusted with the creatures like me, she ran up one of their backs and chopped off one of their heads. Clover followed suit, making another Agwi¡¯s head into a pincushion of arrows. ¡°Your turn, slave.¡± Puca said, just loud enough for us to hear. I didn¡¯t need to wonder who he was referring to. For some reason the adolescent orc was intent that I ¡®do my part¡¯. In the earlier parts of the hunt, I scarcely did more than block one or two strikes of the monsters, allowing Lety and Clover to do most of the work. I think my actions must have seemed cowardly to the orc, and since then he had been urging me to finish of at least one monster in our encounters. I couldn¡¯t run up the back of the monsters like L¡¯teya did or attack from afar like Clover. So instead I ran up to the remaining Agwi, still stucking on its stump of an arm, and sliced into its belly. The belly exploded into fluid but I had leapt back just in time. This time the pain must have overcome hunger, and the Agwi wailed mournfully towards the three suns and fell to the ground, wheezing for breath. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. I walked up and beheaded it in one stroke. "You are getting better Slaveborn!" Lety cheered for me. I grimaced, remembering how I froze up while beheading the first one a few hours ago. "Well that was then and this is now." Either Arrosh¡¯s training was working or I was simply getting used to killing monsters. After my experience in the tunnels combined with my time in the Desolate Sands, I felt that I was getting used to the adrenaline rush when hunting the creatures. Yet, something about our fights with the Agwi felt lacking. When I thought back meeting that first Dokkaebi in the tunnels, I remembered everything in clear detail. The feel Dokkaebi''s breath on my face and its manic eyes while clawing at my face, its fangs looking to tear into my stomach. In comparison, these slow and dull witted Agwi were hardly a challenge. A brief white light surrounded me and then disappeared while I was thinking. ¡°That¡¯s the second time Slaveborn!¡± Lety exclaimed, slightly muffled through the cloth-mask. ¡°Soon you will be able to Sanctify your soul!¡± Initially I had been confused about what ¡®Sanctifying¡¯ my soul meant. But I soon figured it out. Due to the lack of a system window, the people of this world were unaware of levels. However they did know that once you killed enough monsters, your soul would grow stronger. In MSS, you unlocked a Core Slot every 10 levels until level 90. L¡¯teya and Clover¡¯s explanation that ¡®Sanctifying¡¯ my soul would let me absorb more Cores was enough for me to put the two and two together. My soul being ¡®Sanctified¡¯ referred to the levels in multiples of 10s. ¡°So once I hit level 10, I¡¯ll definitely know.¡± We left the Agwi corpses alone and they disappeared into dust, leaving behind various monster drops. There were dried up organs as well as a few coins, magic stones and even an arrow. Clover retrieved some of her arrows which weren¡¯t too damaged and naturally stowed the new arrow away. Puca took everything else. The [Dimension Ring] on his hand glowed then opened up an invisible portal which sucked in all the useful items on the ground, transporting it to a pocket dimension. Lety whistled. I had yet to see another orc with a [Dimension Ring]. Perhaps this kid was special? [Dimension Rings] served as the inventory mechanic in MSS. Without it your character could only carry so much; there were physical limitations to how much one could hold. A backpack would help but without a [Dimension Ring] to hold all the spoils of your hunt, you¡¯d be severely limited in how much profit you could make from your hunt. After all, MSS was a game that was focused on farming. Killing monsters to get loot and Core, use those to buy better gear and get stronger, all to hunt stronger monsters. ¡°And this little fucker is taking everything. Though I guess I should have expected it.¡± It wasn¡¯t all bad though, there were two upsides to having Puca here. One, he was a witch doctor class meaning he balanced out our party a little. Witch doctors were basically the orc version of a mage. With him, we had an easier time with these grade-10 monsters than we ought to have. Second, just like mages, Witch Doctors couldn¡¯t take Spirit Cores. Which meant the moment a Spirit Core dropped, we would be free to take it. ¡°Unless he has a [Incubator] in that dimension ring of his.¡± I somehow doubted it though. An [Incubator] was a tool used to transport Cores, which would disappear after a certain amount of time or be absorbed on touch. They were extremely expensive and I doubted they¡¯d want to use one on a grade-10 or even a grade-9 Core. It was only around grade-7 that Cores started getting expensive enough to warrant the use of a such a tool. I tried to see if Puca left something behind that might be useful. ¡°Let¡¯s move.¡± Puca rattled his staff, gathering our attention and started walking across the bottomless sand. He used his dimension ring again and summoned a paper map, muttering to himself and walking in front of us. I needed that map. I knew of at least 2 dungeons in the Desolate Sands that could speed up my growth, in an explosive manner. But for the life of me, I just couldn¡¯t figure out where we were. One of the most frustrating things about the desolate sands were that there were no real landmarks to discern where we were. We¡¯d either need a map or a guide who knew how to read the stars, winds and the pattern of the sands. Of the two, Puca held the former and the latter was nowhere to be seen. ¡°He almost talks as much as you, Lock Slaveborn.¡± Lety commented and when I stared at her she shrugged. ¡°Very little.¡± It was true, the teenage orc didn¡¯t talk much. Clover held her hand on her mask right where her brow would be. ¡°I think I can see more monsters in the distance.¡± I could tell she was squinting by the way she leaned forward. ¡°I feel like I can make it out if I just try¡­¡± Puca ignored her and kept walking. Lety was intrigued though and walked next to the sheep woman. ¡°More monsters? I hope they¡¯re more formidable this time!¡± Clover suddenly jerked back. ¡°...¡± She was speechless. ¡°What the¡­¡± It was the first time I saw her like that, not knowing what to say. Puca must have picked up on it. ¡°What is it?¡± Clover didn¡¯t speak right away and when she did, Puca stopped in his tracks. ¡°Adventurers.¡± She half-whispered. ¡°I see adventurers.¡± The orc witch doctor ran across the sand and grabbed Clover by the front of her shirt. ¡°Where?! How many?! What race?!¡± He sputtered out, spittle flying in Clover¡¯s face. ¡°I, I don¡¯t know!¡± She retorted. ¡°Four? Five? I think they were human? Or elves? I can¡¯t be sure!¡± ¡°Shite!¡± Puca cursed and held onto his staff tighter, releasing Clover. ¡°Were they coming this way?¡± It was Lety who answered, leaning forward to catch a better look. ¡°They are.¡± ¡°AGH!¡± Puca slid down the sand mound that the three of them were standing on, gesturing Lety and Clover to follow. ¡°Come! We have to warn the others?¡± ¡°Warn the others?¡± I closed the distance between myself and Puca. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Do not question me, slave!¡± He shoved me back. Hard. ¡°Just do as I say! We are heading back! Now!¡± ¡°It¡¯s too late. They¡¯ve spotted us. They¡¯re coming towards us.¡± Lety said calmly. She drew her battle axes. ¡°Less than five minutes. They¡¯re faster than us.¡± ¡°They must have some kind of Core that lets them move across the sand.¡± Puca must¡¯ve been younger than I thought or he didn¡¯t deal with stressful situations well. Then again, he wouldn¡¯t be out here with us learning how to lead a party if he was an experienced orc officer. ¡°Get down from there! We¡¯re going to run!¡± He practically screamed. Lety frowned, genuinely curious. ¡°And expose our backs?¡± Puca opened and closed his mouth, unsure of what to say. ¡°Give me the map.¡± I grabbed the map out of Puca¡¯s belt, and spread it open in front of me. He snarled at my disrespect but didn¡¯t take it back, choosing to sneer. ¡°How the hell would you know where we are?¡± How? Because in MSS you didn¡¯t have a nice little minimap telling you where to go and where you were at all times. MSS forced you to use manual maps until you could afford magical ones. So it wasn¡¯t a huge deal for me to look at Puca¡¯s map made of paper and ink, look around at my surroundings and figure out where we were. ¡°Good. We¡¯re near.¡± I pointed a finger on the map. ¡°We¡¯re going here.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t even know where that is, human.¡± The orc spat the word like a curse. For a moment, I fantasized about stabbing Puca in the neck and stopped myself. ¡°What the hell am I becoming?¡± I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. ¡°...I saw it on the way here. A door. Maybe we can hide in there.¡± Puca glowered at me but didn¡¯t protest. It must have helped that he was so young. This time, he did snatch the map out of my hands and looked at the spot where I pointed. ¡°Follow me.¡± He muttered. L¡¯teya had her eyes fixed on the horizon. ¡°They attack.¡± She muttered then abruptly grabbed Clover by her waist, sliding down the sand mound. Lightning flashed out of the clear blue sky and struck the spot they had just been at, superheating the sand into glass and sending fragments of it flying everywhere. ¡°Run!¡± L¡¯teya yelled and Puca led the way, running in front of us. ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? Another bolt landed right behind us and I heard the hiss of sand turning to glass. ¡°Holy shit.¡± While running, I turned around to catch a glimpse of the aftermath. The sand had turned into brownish-yellow glass on the outer edges but the inside was glowing an angry red, creating wisps of steam. The air in that area was so hot that it bent, blurring our pursuers in my vision. ¡°That looked like a standard Mage spell, [Lightning Strike]. So at least one of them is a mage.¡± I wasn¡¯t entirely sure of the situation we were in, but one thing was for sure: Puca knew who they were. His fear was unnatural for an orc, even for a Witch Doctor who typically stayed away from the front lines. If Lety and Clover were to be believed, these adventurers had spotted us and started attacking us. I could only surmise that they mistook us all for orcs, or knew that we were the orc slaves and attacked us anyways. But now I was sure of one thing. There were some factions out there that were hostile to the orcs to the point they would attack on sight. Storing that information into my head for later, I ran.
Chapter 12: Desolate Sands (2)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
The mage cast his spells without rest. ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? ? ??? has cast [ Sand Tornado ] ? ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? With the mages spells exploding all around us, we kept our heads low and ran as fast as our legs could carry us. Deep inside, we all knew that if we were caught, it would mean certain death. On the positive side, we were too far for anyone other than the mage from their party to reach us. That gave us some time to put a distance between us since traditionally, mages were the slowest moving member in every party. I felt my heart jump every time a lightning strike crashed near me, the crackling sound of thunder catching up after my eyes had already seen it. Smoke rampaged all around us, rising slowly from the singed sands. The whole place was turning into a wasteland of smoke and lightning. "If even one of these hits us, we''re dead." Lety basically carrying Clover under one arm while dodging left to right. Puca ran ahead of us and we were matching his speed despite his orc heritage. I had expected Lety to keep up with Puca but she wasn''t the only one. I, for one, was surprised at my body¡¯s endurance in this chase, we¡¯d been running for almost an hour now. My legs were burning and no matter how deep of a breath I took, it wasn¡¯t enough. But I hadn¡¯t collapsed in exhaustion yet and had managed to stay in line with the others. ¡°Just a little more!¡± My thoughts mirrored the panic that my body felt, coming all jumbled. ¡°H,How much longer.¡± Clover managed between gasping breaths, still recovering. Puca didn¡¯t answer, opting instead to scream. ¡°UWAAAH!¡± He sped up and I knew that must mean we were at the last stretch. His legs became a blur as he started sprinting faster than before and this time, we started lagging behind. The distance between us began to grow wider but the lightning strikes had begun to die down. "Has he run out of Mana?" ¡°¡±A-Ahead!¡± Clover shouted and I looked to see where she pointed to see a sign of a monster that might be heading out way. ¡°Fuck, this is the last thing we need.¡± Any time we spent on dispatching this monster could put us in danger. The creature hadn¡¯t revealed itself yet, it was moving below the sand. Its movements were marked by the clear trail of sand being blasted towards the air as it began to surface. There were simply too many monsters who behaved this way for me to identify it yet. ¡°Sand Shark? Desert Mole? Gecko Soldier? More Agwi?¡± I readied by shield, just as the sand exploded and it revealed itself. [ Death Worm (§à§Ý§Ô§à§Û-§ç§à§â§ç§à§Û) ] - Grade 9 The creature was only about three to four feet long, hardly befitting of the gargantuan Agwi we had been fighting moments ago. It was bright red mixed with patches of brown scales, and where there was supposed to be a mouth there was a round hole with serrated teeth like a lamprey. It jumped up on the sand and started crawling towards us. My response was immediate. ¡°EVERYONE STOP!¡± To my surprise everyone stopped running. Except Puca. Puca kept running and tried to cast a spell on the Death Worm but he was too slow. The Death Worm curled in on itself and pounced towards the vibrations it sensed, and coiled itself around Puca, its mouth biting down on Puca¡¯s neck. ¡°W,WHAT IS- AHH! SLAVES! HELP!¡± He dropped his staff and tried to tear the Death Worm off. I saw Lety start to move at my side and immediately stopped her with a hand. ¡°Dont.¡± I warned with a look, trying to convey the gravity of the situation with my eyes. Lety slowly blinked and obeyed. Clover stared wide-eyed at the monster. ¡°To think the Death Worm would appear here¡­ fuck. I should have known this. If it came even a few minutes late, it might have been able to slow down our pursuers.¡± ¡°Mmpth! Mmpth!¡± The Death Worm¡¯s body was wrapped around Puca¡¯s mouth now. All of a sudden, Puca¡¯s body went rigid and arched, then collapsed on the ground. The Death Worm¡¯s body began pulsing, slowly drinking all the blood out of Puca¡¯s body. ¡°Holy Shit. That was close.¡± The Death Worms are grade-9 monsters that live in deserts. They weren¡¯t too dangerous¡­ unless you were below level 10. These creatures carried a venom that had an [Instant Death] mechanic for all characters that haven''t reached level 10 yet. Or in gamer terms: insta-kill. The creature could spit the venom but most of the time, people died because they chose to touch the monster. The monster¡¯s whole body was covered in the poison. So that meant you could only attack it from afar. At our pace though, we had been on a collision course with the creature. I wasn¡¯t aware of what level we were, but I knew for sure that we weren¡¯t 10 yet. ¡°Slowly.¡± I mouthed to Lety and Clover and began to inch across the sand, past the feeding Death Worm. ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? ¡°???¡± I felt my hairs rise on end like I had seen in my physics class for a static electricity demonstration end. It took me a second to realize what would happen. ¡°DUC-¡± When I opened my eyes, the world had been split in two and were spinning in opposite directions. I tried to get a sense of whether I was sitting down, lying down or even standing up but hit the sand with my chin instead. Rolling to the side, I yelled out for L¡¯teya and Clover but only heard the constant sharp piercing sound. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Shit. Get yourself together.¡± I felt myself drool stupidly, but didn¡¯t care. I had to get to my feet before our pursuers or the Death Worm noticed us. ¡°-orn, look!¡± As my hearing came back, so did my balance. I caught the last parts of what L¡¯teya was telling me bu saw that she was pointing at something. I groaned and tried to see what she was pointing at. A perfectly round sphere made of red energy was floating in the air, right above Puca¡¯s burnt corpse. The orb was being revolved by speckles of sand-colored energy. A Spirit Core. ¡°Did the lightning strike kill the Death Worm?¡± But now wasn¡¯t the time to wonder what had happened. I knew that our pursuers were closer than ever, we needed to run. It didn¡¯t take me long to decide what needed to be done for us to survive. ¡°Lety! Take it!¡± I don¡¯t know what came over me ever since we started being chased, but I had started giving out orders. I think it¡¯s because deep inside, I knew I was the best person to make the decision. Even in the tunnels when I was working with L¡¯teya and Clover, I had been to one to come up with the plan to get us out. All those nights of playing MSS, creating forum posts outlining best places to hunt and best ways to raise your character was giving me a surge of confidence even while everything was flesh and blood. I was pretty confident in navigating the game using knowledge alone. I think deep inside, L¡¯teya and Clover must have sensed my confidence too, else why would L¡¯teya point out the Core to me? She had been deferring to me to make the decision. L¡¯teya¡¯s hearing must have recovered faster than mine because she leaped across the sand and touched the Spirit Core. As soon as the tip of her finger touched it, it dissipated into dozens of scarlet-colored sand streams which went straight into L¡¯teya¡¯s chest. I saw her scream into the sky, exhilaration and fury on her face. She drew her battle axes. By that time, I had walked over to Clover who had recovered. ¡°Run!¡± I yelled to them, realizing that my hearing was back. Lety gave me a confused look. ¡°But I just-¡± ¡°Just fucking run damn it! They have a mage!¡± I had never spoken this way to L¡¯teya nor would I have dared to in any other situation, but we couldn¡¯t afford to lose more time. Lety growled in frustration and stowed her battle axes, running over to me and helping Clover her. This time she hefted Clover entirely. While she did so, I checked Puca¡¯s body seeing if there was anything of use. I took his staff, dimension ring and the map which had parts of it singed off. Luckily, the location of the dungeon and where we were was still intact. ¡°Damn these guys are so fucking poor they can¡¯t even afford potions.¡± Potions were expensive but I thought that the orcs would have some on their person, if not all of them at least their Witch Doctors. I broke out into a run with L¡¯teya on my heels just as another [Lightning Strike] struck Puca¡¯s body. ? ??? has cast [ Sand Tornado ] ? ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? The winds around us began to pick up and the sand rose with it. The miniature tornado formed before we could run out of it and battered at our skin, bits of sand leaving cuts on our bare skin. ¡°Behind me!¡± I muttered to L¡¯teya and put my shield in front of my body, crouching to cover mostly my chest and head. Making sure L¡¯teya and Clover were behind me, I walked into the barrier of sand using the shield as a battering ram. At first the barrier resisted then slowly, I sunk into the barrier, getting cuts all over. But the hard part was done. ¡°Now!¡± I yelled out and stepped through in one stride, trying to spend as little time in the barrier as possible. My shield took the brunt of it, softening up our path so we could get through without too serious of an injury. We didn¡¯t stop however, and continued running. ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? ? ??? has cast [ Lightning Strike ] ? ¡°Does this guy not run out of mana?¡± Keeping my eyes peeled was no easy task as the mage continued to use his spells endlessly. ¡°There! To the left!¡± L¡¯teya was the first one to find what I had pointed to on the map beforehand. It was a small grove of palm trees and a pond in the middle. ¡°Into the pond!¡± I yelled and tried to speed up, but my legs refused to listen. ¡°FOR HONOR!¡± L¡¯teya sped up, faster than before and picked me up in the opposite hand holding onto Clover. Holding Clover by her waist and me by my collar, L¡¯teya sprinted full speed and before I knew it we passed by the first of the palm trees. ¡°After them!¡± I heard a voice shout from behind us and I knew it was our pursuers. But L¡¯teya¡¯s [Physical] Stat must have been boosted greatly by the Core, we were already at the pond and L¡¯teya jumped in while holding both of us. The pond was cool and refreshing, the complete opposite to the agonizing heat that had perpetuated throughout my stay in the Samak Desert. I felt my skin soak up the water and if I wasn¡¯t being chased, I wanted to stay here for hours just drinking my fill and bathing myself. The water was deeper than it looked from the outside, extending downwards for dozens of feet. Quickly spotting our destination, I made eye contact with Lety and Clover to make sure they¡¯d be following and swam straight towards the underwater cavern. The cavern was actually an entry way and we came up above water on the other side, an underground alcove. We dragged ourselves to dry land, determined not to waste time. The ground wasn¡¯t the bumpy jagged feeling of rock, but smooth polished marble. The platform made of marble led deeper in until it met the cavern walls, housing a double door embedded in the walls. ¡°Do we enter the gate?¡± Lety asked. I stared at the double door confused because I had never seen it before. ¡°This wasn¡¯t in the game¡­ no. Don¡¯t panic. There¡¯s definitely something here.¡± I ran to the door and began studying it. The door was made of bluish-white stone and there was writing carved into the stone. I touched the words hoping to elicit some kind of response but couldn¡¯t find anything. ¡°Shit.¡± I tried slamming the door hard with my shield. Nothing. ¡°Did I just get us killed?¡± ¡°I know these words.¡± Clover offered. ¡°I recognize them.¡± I backed away from the door immediately, giving her room to study it. ¡°Do you know what it says?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an ancient form of Beast Tongue¡­ they used to teach it at the temple.¡± Clover frowned. ¡°This one here says¡­ push¡­ and this one here says, traveler¡­ I think there¡¯s a method to open it.¡± Shhng. ¡°Then you had best hurry up. We have a visitor.¡± I heard Lety¡¯s battleaxes make a ringing sound, she must have drawn them from the leather loops on her belt. I swallowed, wishing I had taken a long drink from the water. "No matter what, get that door open." I told Clover and walked to join Lety next to her. From the water rose a single figure. He was black-haired human and very tall, almost as tall as some of the orcs. The first thing I noticed about him were his clothes, which he was wringing the water out of with his hands. He was wearing a skin tight leather armor that stretched from his neck to his ankles. Over the armor he wore a loose sand-colored cloak that had sleeves for him to put his arms through. Everything about him screamed ¡®desert dweller¡¯ to me, except his skin tone which was deathly pale. While wringing out the water out of his cloak, he looked at us with one eye. ¡°Scaredy-cats, the lot of them. They thought this was a trap y¡¯know. Told¡¯em it wasn¡¯t. As usual, I¡¯m right.¡± He drawled. ¡°Not nervous at all. Probably a high leveled adventurer. No reinforcements, they¡¯ll wait outside.¡± I began to take note of all the information available to me. I saw Lety rocking on her heels, debating whether to dash towards him or not. ¡°Oh, I wouldn¡¯t do that, pretty elf lady.¡± He finished wringing out his cloak and put one hand on his waist, where what looked like a dagger was still sheathed. ¡°I¡¯m way stronger than you.¡± The man stared straight ahead at Lety. Then his eyes wandered towards Clover, who had her back to him. ¡°And you, stop whatever you¡¯re doing, beastlady.¡± ¡°I need to keep him occupied.¡± ¡°Tell us who you are.¡± I hadn¡¯t drawn my sword yet but held my shield at the ready. He smiled, and I saw blackened rotten teeth. ¡°Let¡¯s just say we have a vested interest in making sure these orcs don¡¯t get any stronger.¡± ¡°Then are you guys freeing the slaves?¡± Could it be that some other faction were trying to free the slaves from the Samak Horde? ¡°You can say that.¡± His eyes wandered over Lety and Clover, and I saw the man lick his lips. I recognized the look. Whatever he was, he wasn¡¯t here to help us. I drew my sword and the man raised an eyebrow. ¡°You sure you want to play it like that, young¡¯un?¡± Putting my shield in front of me, I stepped towards his right side. Assuming he was a righty as most people were, he would most likely wield the dagger with his right hand. I wanted to give L¡¯teya the greatest amount of opening as possible, since with her Core and battle skills she¡¯d have a much better chance than I did of finishing this guy off. ¡°Quick. Before they think he¡¯s down here for too long.¡± I muttered, not caring if he heard us or not. Lety didn¡¯t answer, just growling. ¡°Look, I hate to get my hands dirty. You have no idea who you¡¯re messing with. You¡¯ve been slaves for less than what? 6 months? A year? This is probably your first hunt.¡± He drew his dagger, narrowing his eyes at me. ¡°Trust me young¡¯un. I¡¯m not so rusty as to be killed by three Coreless.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t know that Lety managed to absorb a Core thanks to their mage.¡± Lety and I needed to either kill him or distract him long enough for Clover to open the door and hopefully get it shut behind us. The worst case scenario was if he took too long and his ¡®scaredy-cat¡¯ friends decided entering this alcove was worth the risk. I continued to encircle him, but it wasn¡¯t easy. He had his back towards the water and could dive in to grab reinforcements at any second. We needed an opening. ¡°You know there are two ways to piss someone off.¡± I started. The man¡¯s attention snapped to me, his face an ugly snarl. ¡°If this is a bad joke-¡± ¡°The first is to leave something unsaid.¡± I interrupted him before he could finish his threat. He sneered, his curiosity getting the best of him. ¡°and the second?¡± "The second is-" I attacked without finishing.
Chapter 13: Desolate Sands (3)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
3 weeks. It could be a long time if you thought it was long, but it was also a short amount of time if you thought it was short. For me personally, 3 weeks was too short to learn everything that Arrosh had to teach me. Arrosh Bloodedge, one of the three disciples of Nearnigh, commonly known as the [Sword Saint]. In the game there had been no option to get anywhere close to Arrosh, the other two disciples or Nearnigh on friendly terms. They were optional boss fights and that had been it. In this life however, I miraculously encountered Arrosh and managed to become his disciple. I wished more than once I could see a system screen and check to see if I unlocked a new quest or achievement, but that was impossible. So I did my best in those 3 weeks, listening to everything that Arrosh wanted of me. But I realized one thing. ¡°He only taught me to stand still.¡± I want to say I attacked the assassin in a flurry of blades, using my shield to deflect every thrust with his dagger. Instead what happened was that I ran towards him and raised my shield, barely managing to block his dagger that came close to stabbing me in the eye. As soon as I tried to thrust into him with my sword, I knew instinctively that it was clumsy and was bound to miss. The assassin dodged me easily and pivoted, kicking Lety in the stomach and sending her flying. Simultaneously he twisted his body and aimed at my stomach, forcing me to stumble backwards. Then all his attention was on me. I realized that his limbs were freakishly long, in a two-on-one battle like this where he was outnumbered, all he had to do was keep us at a distance. He drew himself to his full height looking like a nightmarish bird of prey and swiped down with his inwardly curved dagger. I had thought he was going for a downward strike and raised my shield, but felt nothing. ¡°JUMP!¡± L¡¯teya yelled and I felt my body obey before my brain could argue. The man¡¯s dagger swept the place where my feet had been moments before, most likely aiming for my ankles. He quickly stopped mid swipe and did an upward slash, which I managed to block with my shield. But the power behind the slash was too much and I was still in the air; I flipped over backwards and landed on my back on the ground. I saw his shadow descend on me, coming at me for the finishing blow. But he had to turn around and face Lety, she had been about to cut his arms off at the shoulders using her axes. ? Abay Munet has cast [ Wind Barrier ] ? The cloaked man pushed out with his arm, shoving her hard in the middle of her chest. I was getting to my feet when the wind began to pick up around the three of us. ¡°Shit, is he using a Core Ability?¡± Just as I had finished the thought the wind solidified, encircling him in a half dome tornado. Both Lety and I were buffeted by the fierce winds and pushed back, being forced to give ground. Additionally we were knocked on our backs, spending much-needed seconds to get back up on our feet. ¡°Don¡¯t let him in the water!¡± I cried out, automatically taking my stance as the wind came down. ¡°We can¡¯t let him get reinforcements.¡± The man¡¯s face turned to me, twisted in fury. ¡°You think I''ll run from you? A couple of slaves?!¡± He closed the distance between us, his long limbs allowing him to strike at me with his dagger while his vitals stayed just out of my reach. I blocked the first thrust, but I was too slow for the second and he pierced my armor, stabbing into my shoulder. I felt blood beginning to drip down my arm from the wound but instinctively knew that it had been a calculated move, trying to weaken my shield arm. Lety was attacking from the other side but the man had too much of a reach advantage and experience. He kept slamming his foot or palm into her stomach or chest, sending her flying and focusing the entirety of his attacks on me. All I could do was hold onto the shield and try to block each one. But it was impossible to block all of them, some of them slipped through and left me with dozens of tiny cuts and shallow stab wounds. ¡°At this rate it¡¯ll be death by a thousand cuts.¡± We would lose at this rate. Everytime he went close, he could activate his [Wind Barrier] to keep us away and regain his position. I made up my mind. He kicked Lety away again and lunged towards me, another stab aimed at my shoulder. I stepped forward and let him stab me. Whether it was coincidence or not, the knife stabbed into the same shoulder where the Dokkaebi had left its mark. I wondered if getting hurt in the same place like this would leave permanent damages and absently wondered if a cleric would be able to heal it. But I had promised myself not to be afraid of pain and to never let my fear be an obstacle to survival. There was a popular saying on the forums. Let them slash into my skin and muscles, and I¡¯ll take the bone. It came about because in MSS, there were no ways to avoid damage sometimes. Moves that caused instant death, moves that had the avoidable mechanics, there were simply too many factors to expect a perfect run. This saying became a meme among us MSS players back then, because it perfectly described how we felt when we won. There was no winning in MSS without risking something. I was going to survive, even if I had to suffer some wounds. He tried to pull the dagger out but I didn¡¯t let him, I released my sword and shield to grab onto his forearm. ¡°Lety! Now!¡± ? Abay Munet has cast [ Wind Barrier ] ? I felt the winds stir around us but Lety managed to make it in time before he activated his ability again. The elf barbarian leaped onto his back from behind and tried to behead him in one stroke. He evaded at the last second twisting with his non-dagger arm and backhanding her across the face but received a nasty gash on his rib and shoulder. The [Wind Barrier] activated and I let myself be flung away, rolling on the ground to hastily pick up my weapons again. When I mean roll I don¡¯t mean that I rolled like in video games. I rolled shoulder over shoulder, on my stomach like an insect. ¡°AGH! What did you do?!¡± The man¡¯s wounds were green and bubbling, leaking blood. L¡¯teya absorbed the [Death Worm Core] which had an active ability that applied poison to her weapons. It worked the same as it did for the monster, it would insta-kill people under level-10. If he was level-10, he would be keeling over soon. But I knew that couldn¡¯t be the case, both L¡¯teya and I were under 10 and were having a problem facing him. Judging by how tough of a time we were having, he was definitely higher than 10. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°I changed my mind. I¡¯m going to kill you first, elf.¡± He hugged himself with his long arms and I saw the skin on either side of his back beginning to bulge, sprouting two additional arms. I recognized the ability. It came from the core of a [Lesser Tsuchigomo (??ÍÁÖ©Öë) ], a grade 9 monster commonly found in dungeons. If he had a [Tsuchigomo (??ÍÁÖ©Öë) ] core, he would have sprouted two more arms on top of that. ¡°The other was a grade-10 Core, and now a grade-9 Core. ¡± He rushed towards L¡¯teya, tossing the dagger between the four arms until the last second when he intended to attack her. L¡¯teya tried her best to evade but received a nasty stab wound on her thigh. Unlike me, who had the leather armor and received only shallow stab wounds, her wound sank to the handle. But we both underestimated just how tough an elf barbarian could be, because L¡¯teya traded the stab wound for another pair of long gashes on the man¡¯s ribs. The wounds bubbled and hissed, turning a sickly green. But our opponent paid it no mind this time, continuing to push L¡¯teya back. Even when I attacked from behind, he used one of his four arms or his long legs to keep me at bay. Click Grr-grr-grr ¡°Lety! Lock! Now!¡± I heard rocks sliding; Clover must have managed to open the door. Right after, Clover started firing her arrows. ? Abay Munet has cast [ Wind Barrier ] ? ¡°3 seconds of casting time.¡± I had been counting the charge-up time to his moves and met Lety¡¯s eyes. ¡°Now!¡± Right as the Wind Barrier came into existence, Lety and I stepped back out of its effects. ¡°You fucking rats!¡± I heard the man¡¯s compliments as soon as the Wind Barrier came down. As soon as the barrier came down, Lety rushed in with her axes swinging wildly. But I had to give the man credit, he didn¡¯t flinch. Most likely he saw us get out of range just before the wind came up and had been expecting this. What he didn¡¯t expect however was Clover starting to cover us with her arrows. I saw him gather his arms to himself, kicking Lety in the stomach to gain distance for another instance of [Wind Barrier]. Then his beady eyes darted back towards the water. He was planning to run away, despite his earlier words. ¡°No you don¡¯t.¡± I had already seen him cast it twice and figured out the timing. For me, it wasn¡¯t about figuring out the enemy but always about working up the guts to do what¡¯s necessary. I had three seconds left to make my move. 3 Right as Lety got kicked away, I stepped in silently. He didn¡¯t even notice me, probably because I wasn¡¯t even a threat to him. 2 I [Cut] him, a skill that I had finally unlocked after carving dozens of wooden figurines in my spare time with a kitchen knife. 1 The thing about the [Spider Arms] was that it was originated from a grade-9 monster, so it could only be a grade-9 skill. No matter how many arms he made it wouldn¡¯t measure up to the original nor be a perfect copy. I aimed right at his fingers with the [Dimension Ring] that I noticed earlier. ¡°GUAHHHH!¡± I bent down, picked up some fingers and rolled away just as the wind barrier came up. Without pausing to look to see if I got the correct finger, I ran through the door that Clover was holding open. ¡°Clover, the door!¡± Lety was the last one to come through, and she turned to face the doorway in case he got through in time. ¡°On it!¡± Clover pushed a spot on the wall, and hidden pressure plate pushed in. Grr-grr-grr The door began to close and I looked through the gap, meeting the man¡¯s eyes. His face was warped into a snarl, glaring at us. He was holding his hand close to his chest and I saw the bloody stumps that I had left him. But he didn¡¯t give into his anger and charge at us like I had expected him to. ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting right here¡­ little mice.¡± I saw him mouth the words right as the door closed. <> Thump Thump Thump Clover looked at us, biting her lip. ¡°That was close.¡± I leaned against the wall, my heart pounding. ¡°Fuck. Fuck. FUCK!¡± I knew what abilities he had used. I even knew the weaknesses that the combination of his Cores and fighting style created. Because of the long channeling time of the wind barrier, if we had just been fast enough to get inside his range while he casted it, one of us could have finished him off. Or even when he used his [Tsuchigumo] ability, it should have split his focus into controlling four arms instead of two. My eyes hadn¡¯t been able to notice it but my gut told me that he used the fancy dagger juggling to hide his slower speed. But all that knowledge meant nothing because my body was too weak. ¡°I need to get strong¡­ much stronger.¡± I started thinking about the dozens of ways that situation could have gone wrong. We were lucky to have gotten off with just wounds. If he hadn¡¯t underestimated us, or if his party came down or if the Mage had been able to summon [Water Elementals], then- ¡°Lock Slaveborn, your wounds.¡± Lety broke me out of my thoughts. She took out a couple of bandages from her pack and began to wrap my shoulder. ¡°We¡¯re lucky to have gotten away.¡± I said, searching Lety¡¯s expression. L¡¯teya must have been frustrated as I was because she didn¡¯t reply back in her usual jovial manner. Her lips were pressed into a thin line, most likely from frustration. ¡°Right. Barbarians hate running away from battle.¡± I looked down at my weapons that I threw on the ground. Checking for damages, I found that my shield had been chipped from the earlier battle. It looked small enough that I ignored it. Checking my sword, I found the same. ¡°L¡¯teya, your weapons.¡± I wanted to make sure the [Death Worm Venom] hadn¡¯t corroded her weapons. ¡°They¡¯re fine.¡¯ She said after a moment, then frowning added. ¡°I can feel him from the other side. He just leapt back into the water¡­ now I can¡¯t sense him anymore.¡± ¡°It must be the Death Worm Spirit Core. Perhaps it gave you some abilities.¡± Clover said in awe. The ability was a passive called[Tremor Sense]. Just like the Death worm had been able to, now Lety would be able to detect movement through vibrations in the ground. Combined with her active ability she¡¯d make a great Elf Assassin. ¡°But she¡¯s a Barbarian, you know from the game that they¡¯d never agree to that.¡± I sighed, thinking about what a waste it would be. But more than that, I had been impressed that Lety had been able to activate the Core¡¯s active ability so fast. It hadn¡¯t even been an hour since she had absorbed it. Could it be that being able to use a Core was common knowledge in this world? It raised a question for me who was so used to having the Core Abilities just appear on the skill bar and click on it. How would I use a skill if I absorbed a Core? ¡°No. It probably has to do with the fact that Lety is a barbarian and she was being trained to become an adventurer.¡± I tried moving my shoulder. ¡°Lock, perhaps Puca¡¯s dimension ring has something?¡± Clover asked. ¡°The dimension ring.¡± She was right, I had been disappointed at Puca¡¯s lack of potions but hadn¡¯t bothered to check the ring. Nodding solemnly, I took the ring out from my pocket and handed it to Clover. And at the same time, I quietly pocketed the finger that I cut off into my pocket. ¡°You¡¯re not going to check it yourself?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, please.¡± I was too busy trying to see if any of the fingers in my pocket had a ring on them. I leaned back, relaxing for a moment and feeling the cold rock cool me down. The battle had been quick but it had also been challenging. I was out of breath and soaked in sweat when we ran through the door. Not hearing an answer, I peeked from one eye to see Clover studying me. ¡°I¡¯ve never used a dimension ring before.¡± I tried to give an excuse. ¡°Oh.¡± Clover cocked her head to the side. ¡°It¡¯s easy. I¡¯ll teach you.¡± She placed the ring on my hand and taught me how to activate the ring. ¡°All you have to do is push some mana into it and it should open up. If it doesn¡¯t it might mean that it¡¯s been personally linked to Puca.¡± ¡°I doubt the orcs are rich enough to afford that high quality of a ring.¡± But I didn¡¯t bother correcting her. I closed my eyes and imagined my mana that was circulating through me. Arrosh had briefly touched upon it during our training, having me sit on the floor and simply try to feel the mana coursing through me. It had taken me a few tries but now I could feel it pretty consistently, as long as I had the time. But pushing mana into an outside object was something new for me. Closing my eyes, I imagined that my mana was stored in my heart and spread throughout my body like a magical circulatory system. I pictured my heart pushing out a pulse of blue mana that traveled down my arm and into the ring. ¡°You did it!¡± I saw that above the ring was a bend in the air, almost like an invisible black hole. ¡°What do I do now?¡± ¡°Since we don¡¯t know what¡¯s inside, you should just try to imagine pulling out everything at once.¡± I did as she asked and everything inside the ring came spilling out into the hallway. Monster parts that Puca had picked up, a few coins and most importantly of all, potions. ¡°Yes!¡± Lety came over and picked up a potion. ¡°4. Not bad.¡± I took one in my hand, turning it this way and that since it was my first time seeing it in real life. Then Lety uncorked it and began unwrapping my bandage from the shoulder. I tried to jerk away away from her. ¡°It would be much faster to apply the potion on the wound.¡± Lety said with a frown and Clover nodded from the side. ¡°Oh. Yes. Go ahead.¡± I had forgotten about that. Potions in MSS could be applied in one of two ways: orally or directly poured over the wound. Orally was usually slower but kept morale high. I found that pouring the potion over a wound healed them more effectively but lowered morale for some odd reason. Now I knew why: it was painful. As soon as the potion hit the stab wound, I felt my mouth open automatically, to try and scream out in agony. Smell of burning flesh entered my nostrils and I saw black as my eyes rolled back from the pain. I couldn¡¯t even manage the scream because my lungs couldn¡¯t suck in enough air to do so. ¡°Easy there, Slaveborn.¡± Lety held my arms down, keeping me from flailing around. Just as fast as it began, the pain passed. My armor was soaked on the inside from the sweat. ¡°With this we saved half a bottle.¡± She shook it in front of me. ¡°Are you ready to move?¡± As much as I wanted to just stay and fall asleep, L¡¯teya was right. There was no point in wasting time. We were in a dungeon being chased by a party of higher-leveled adventurers. The only way to find a way out of this situation was to move forward. As soon as my feet felt steady, I stood up. When we left this dungeon, we would have to be stronger than the adventurers waiting for us, else we''d all die. Chapter 14: Desolate Sands (4)
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Clover Weinport. The Weinports were a wealthy merchant family hailing from the Beastman Kingdom of Zimmskar. They made efforts to keep good relations with both the Free States of Jayu, and the Human Empire; Turina. They were one of the few families left that still bothered to trade between the three major powers, dropping by all sorts of other places along the way. Clover had been to many places with her parents and took pride in her work. Transporting the magical goods of the Babel Towers, which would surely better the lives of people everywhere. Trading with the Barbarian Tribes of the Delirious Jungle and the Scarred North, bringing them new technology and types of food. Even more so, she took pride in the fact that the Weinport Trading Company visited nameless villages that weren¡¯t even marked on some major maps. There were entire villages that depended on the Weinport Trading Company to bring them enough stores for the winter. It was actually on one of these trips that Clover got kidnapped by the Samak Horde. They were staying the night at a remote village on the outskirts of the Jayu State, too close to the desert for any other caravan to visit. Not because of the heat, no merchant worth their weight in coin would turn down an opportunity to trade for mere heat. Rather, the reasoning for avoiding that area that Clover ignored was precisely why she was here. There had been news of the Samark Horde growing more aggressive, expanding their borders and taking captives. Clover knew it had been dangerous but she still followed her parents; as the next heir of the Weinport Trading Company, it was her duty to see things through. She still remembered the attack with clarity. People screaming, buildings on fire and blood running like water through the village roads. Funnily enough, the orcs didn¡¯t bother with anything resembling a sexual assault. After all, what was the point? Only orc women could give birth to orc children. Contrary to belief, the orcs were well disciplined and had no emotions at all in their faces. Only resignation and duty. They slaughtered everyone that was too old to be taken captive and would probably not survive the journey. The young were left behind. This wasn¡¯t Clover¡¯s first time seeing an orc horde¡¯s handiwork, she knew their thought process. If they survived, they would make valuable captives in the future. If not¡­ well, orcs always welcomed a challenge. They would accept the challenge of revenge driven children in a heartbeat. She still did not know whether her parents and friends survived or not. She was in the midst of getting on a carriage when the orcs attacked and kidnapped her. Clover wondered whether she would ever get to find out what happened to them. In the beginning she thought about giving up. What was the point? She came from a merchant family and the orcs¡¯ weed-out process for developing strong warriors wasn¡¯t something she was confident to survive through. But whether by luck or fate, she met L¡¯teya in the tunnels. The elf-barbarian immediately accepted Clover as a friend. ¡°You have clear eyes! No lies!¡± Clover would forever be thankful to L¡¯teya. It was she who brought her out of the tunnels and gave her another chance at life. She swore to herself that she would grow stronger, strong enough so that when the chance came she could pay back her friend. But there was another person who kept plaguing her thoughts. Lock Slaveborn. It was a ridiculous name, she thought. Way too obvious that he was lying. There was no way that a person¡¯s surname could be called ¡®Slaveborn¡¯. He was unassuming enough, tall and lanky with just the right amount of muscle to pass off as a farmhand. His black hair had grown out enough to cover his eyes and reach the bottom of his neck. He had obsidian eyes that were always shifting from side to side, trying to see everything and catch something that could be of use to him. On some level, Clover respected him. On the other hand, she didn¡¯t trust him. L¡¯teya had once told Clover that ¡®Lock Slaveborn would be good-looking if born an elf. Pity.¡± Clover honestly did not understand why L¡¯teya continued to trust him. He was savage, ruthless and calculating; everything that L¡¯teya hated about some of the other slaves. Yet, everytime Clover brought it up L¡¯teya defend him saying that he had eyes burning with a ¡®warrior¡¯s fire.¡¯. She had to admit that Lock was nothing if not a survivor. Clover still remembered watching him fight during their Mak¡¯gora. Lety had taken on two of the slaves, one for her and one meant for Clover. Another thing to be thankful about. The Weinport Heir had plenty of time to watch Lock¡¯s fight. ¡°He¡¯s a fucking animal.¡± She told Lety when Lety asked her what exactly happened. Weinport hated to curse, it was a sign of mental weakness and lacking control over one''s emotions. But no matter how many times she replayed Lock¡¯s fight in her head, that was the only term she could think of to describe him. He used his teeth and his shield with barbaric, no offense to Lety intended, ferocity. He was nothing like the other people that she met, orc, beastman, human or even the barbarians whether they be human or elf. There was a wildness about Lock that scared her. He never backed down, no matter how grave the injury. He was willing to tear out someone¡¯s throat like a wild beast just to ¡®leave a message¡¯. He reminded her of a monster in human form, always looking for the moment to tear out someone¡¯s throat. And now¡­ She saw him pocket the [Dimension Ring] from the man who attacked them at the entrance of the cave. Why? Why did he not share it with them? They could have found something useful together. He didn¡¯t even know how to open one up, so there was no point in hiding it from them. But she had seen his eyes right before he closed them. Distrustful. Calculating. Looking so far ahead that Clover couldn¡¯t even imagine what he was looking at. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. But she knew one thing for sure, Lock was growing stronger. It was evident in his fight with the man. Even Clover, with her limited expertise, could tell that he was different. Controlled and calm, he kept his animal nature chained up. Yet, Clover knew that it lurked just beneath his skin ready to emerge at any time. So she¡¯d watch him. Then she¡¯d teach him so that she could keep tabs on what he knew. And if Lock ever betrayed them¡­ Well, at the very least Clover would be ready.
The dungeon we entered was a marbled hallway, an upgrade from the tunnels from our first trial as a slave. The hallway looked like it belonged in a grand castle, dark-blue marbled pillars towering over us with ceilings so high that I couldn¡¯t make out the design that was drawn above. If I squinted my eyes just right though, some of the paintings on the ceiling became visible. From what I could see, they were signs of various beastman praying and worshiping a figure covered in light. ¡°We were lucky that Clover could open the door.¡± Lety said, clapping said woman on the shoulder. ¡°Not luck.¡± I kept my comments to myself though. It wasn''t a coincidence that Clover could read the lettering on the door. It had been a gamble, but an educated one. The theme for this dungeon was that it was one of the last remaining temples of a forgotten beastman goddess. As long as we had a beastman in our party, we would be able to ignore over half the traps in this temple. The door had been unexpected, but the fact that Clover could open it was because we entered a temple meant for a beastman in the first place. That was the first reason I chose this dungeon: we had Clover with us. Though I had to admit that it had been a relatively close call. I looked at the ceilings once more, seeing the drawings fade in and out with the flickering torches.. These torches were placed strategically on the gargantuan pillars, just enough so that we could see around us but not everything. There were shadows in place that provided plenty of hiding spots for monsters. We had been walking side by side so far, and I wanted to change that before we met any monsters. ¡°Wait.¡± I stopped walking and the other two followed suit. ¡°Let¡¯s change our marching order.¡± ¡°Is that necessary?¡± Clover asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I answered and pointed at the two. ¡°L¡¯teya, you will be in the front and using your new detection ability to find any monsters. Clover, you stay in the middle and keep your ears peeled.¡± L¡¯teya with her [Tremor Sense] could detect any walking monsters before they got to us. Clover¡¯s enhanced hearing and vision would be most effective in the center. ¡°And you¡¯ll bring up the rear?¡± Clover asked with a bit more bite than normal. ¡°Yes.¡± I had no intention of explaining any further. Truthfully, I could have been in the front but I doubted my ability to engage in combat and give orders on the fly at the same time. I knew enough about this dungeon to help us get through it, but if I was in constant danger and panic I wouldn¡¯t be as effective as I could be. This marching order was the best we had of getting through this without any hindering injuries that would affect us if we ended up finding those adventurers outside. ¡°When we fight, not if.¡± I had to correct myself. Always expect the worst. ¡°Ok. Fine.¡± Clover shrugged and I saw Lety shake her head. ¡°Something¡¯s going on.¡± It wasn¡¯t unusual for Clover to give me an attitude, but never like this. I just brushed it off as the newly added stress of being in the dungeon. Or perhaps I did something that she didn¡¯t like. Either way, what was important was that we were in formation. ¡°Lety, let us know as soon as you sense something. You too, Clover.¡± The backs of their heads nodded and we continued on. We spent the next few minutes in silence as the tension began to build up in the air. The feeling that a monster could attack us at any second had us on edge. This was different from the time we had been charged with escaping the Dokkaebi Tunnels. The hallway was many times larger, and the light source was weaker. I kept my eyes peeled as well, though I doubted I could do a better job than Lety¡¯s [Tremor Sense] or Clover¡¯s naturally enhanced beastman¡¯s [Hearing] Stat. ¡°Something¡¯s approaching us.¡± Lety lifted her axes. ¡°Damn. It hasn¡¯t even been 10 minutes since we started walking.¡± But it was to be expected. I chose this dungeon not because it was safe, but because it could get us stronger faster. The drop rates for Spirit Cores in MSS were horrendously low, some of them as low as .003%. The highest were in the single digits. So how did players raise their chances of getting Cores? There were two ways. You killed as many monsters as possible or entered places that had a higher Core drop rate than normal. This was the second reason I chose this dungeon; this place had both. It had a mob of monsters ranging from grade 8 - 10 depending on your luck and had a higher Core drop rate for these monsters. This dungeon was also friendly we didn¡¯t have to go too far in to find the monsters. They¡¯d come to us. Namely, monster waves. ¡°I¡¯m hearing them too! There¡¯s a lot of them!¡± Two creatures leapt at us from the shadows, and the sound of barking filled the halls. ¡°Clover, behind me!¡± I stepped in front of Clover and took place next to Lety. [ Pyogyun (?È®) ] - Grade 9 These guys looked like a love child between a pitbull and a tiger; the only difference being that they were completely black and possessed a large flap of skin attached to their front leg and back leg. They ran on all fours like a dog but at the height of their run, the monsters would glide for a few feet then repeat the motion all over again once landing. Their eyes were roughly at our height and I froze at seeing just how large these creatures were in real life. These eyes shone red in the shadows and I saw the spittles fly from their mouths in a maddened frenzy at the sight of us. Lety didn¡¯t hesitate to step into the onslaught of the canines and with her first strike, cleaved the leader¡¯s head in two with a downward strike. She tried to follow up with a horizontal slash to blind the creature but had to back up as the other two jumped in. I slid in next to her and raised my shield, feeling the creature slam into it. I hadn¡¯t been ready for how strong it was and slammed into Lety from the force of its blow. ¡°Shit!¡± I felt my balance slip and was about to fall backwards. If I fell backwards and the creature got on top of me, they would be free to attack Lety from both sides. Luckily Clover slammed her bow into the creature¡¯s snout and forced it to yelp and back off. I fell to my knee and immediately stood up, eyeing the situation. The pyogyun that Lety slashed was pawing at its jaw. The jaw was not just four pieces of loosely hanging meat, dark purple blood pooling on the marbled floor. ¡°I¡¯ll finish it off!¡± Lety leaped towards the creature, her axes already swinging. Meanwhile its partner had recovered and lunged at me once more, but this time I was ready. Right before impact I took a step forward to cancel out its momentum and my stance held. ¡°Clover!¡± Thankfully she understood what I wanted her to do. Clover dashed to the side and pelted the creature¡¯s hide with her arrows. It howled in pain and tried to get around my shield, its jaws snapping shut next to my neck. Its claws scratched my shield and slid off, leaving long gashes on my thighs. The beast roared and placed the entirety of its weight on my shield, trying to tip me over. Taking a knee, I shoved my sword into the soft part of its belly. There was a bit of resistance from my sword, but the sinewy muscles gave and I felt the blade sink in almost to the handle. The pyogyun yelped in pain and backed away instinctively but that ended badly. I felt its guts spill out onto my hand and the floor and it basically cut itself open on my sword. But the movement was too sudden, I lost grip on my weapon midway. The battle was pretty much over though, Lety¡¯s pyogun was no longer moving and the one in front of me lay on its side, breathing laboriously. I grimaced at the sheer amount of blood these things spilled on the floor. The marble had been stained a dark purple, almost black in some places. In addition the one I had cut up had spilled all sorts of things from its stomach. I felt queasy and quickly picked up my sword, trying not to look at the scenery. ¡°Guess killing a few Dokkaebi and Agwi isn¡¯t enough to prepare me for this.¡± It was the thing about Pyogun, they just resembled dogs way too much for me to completely see them as monsters. The [Lesser Dokkaebi] and [Agwi] had literally been stuff out of my nightmares, creatures of imagination. But the Pyogun kind of looked like something I could see at a zoo. It reminded me of who I used to be before I came to MSS. ¡°That was¡­ surprisingly not too bad.¡± Clover said. Lety wiped the blood off of her axes on the creature¡¯s fur. ¡°I expected a tougher battle.¡± ¡°Because of the formation we were in.¡± I thought to myself. As long as the formation of a party was correct, most dungeons shouldn¡¯t be too much trouble barring level differences. Lety had been at the front and detected the Pyogun early on, allowing me to step to the front at the right moment. This gave Clover the protection and room she needed to fire her bow. I noticed from our practices that Clover wasn¡¯t the best archer out there and needed plenty of time to line up her shot. Hence, why the one with the shield, I.E me, had been the one to stay behind her and get ready to support her. ¡°Not that I plan to be a tank for long.¡± Right now, I was fulfilling the role of a tank but that would soon change. ¡°I¡¯m hearing more footsteps. Same as before.¡± ¡°I also sense them¡­ and there¡¯s more of them this time.¡± Lety confirmed. I nodded to them. ¡°Same formation.¡± 1 wave down. 9 more to go.
Chapter 15: Desolate Sands (5) [+2 EXP] [+4 EXP] [+1 EXP] The next two waves were the same as before, two Pyogyuns (?È®) followed by another pair. We used the same tactics, Lety taking out a single creature while the Clover and I teamed up to slay the remaining one. To my disappointment none of them dropped Spirit Cores. I knew how difficult it would be to receive a core, even with the Dungeon¡¯s higher drop rates but I couldn¡¯t help but expect that the next hunt would drop one. ¡°Three waves of Pyogyun¡­ that¡¯s not good.¡± To completely conquer this dungeon, we would have to survive through 10 waves of monsters and followed by five additional waves of monsters and finally face the boss. Although I could classify the 15 waves together, I separated them into two because the monsters that they populated were completely random. When I had been playing MSS, each wave had been randomly generated and I found that the first 10 and the last 5 waves drew from different pools of monsters. Additionally, the Pyogyun we were fighting now were the weakest of the waves. The next wave was another wave of Pyogyun. ¡°Damn it, again?!¡± Lety growled, brandishing her axes. ¡°Come at me!¡± Each successive wave of Pyogyun would stack our ¡®unlucky¡¯ streak. If we got 9 successive waves of Pyogyun¡­ ¡°Don¡¯t even think about that.¡± I concentrated on holding my shield up, making sure I wouldn¡¯t be knocked over by the lumbering beast. While I was busy shaking off my thoughts of the ¡®worst case possible¡¯ scenario, Lety yelled out in warning and surprise. The Pyogyun that Lety had been occupying behaved differently than its peers, it leaped above her and used its patagium to gain height, bounding over to where Clover and I were facing the other stray. ¡°Watch out!¡± Clover warned just in time. ¡°Shit.¡± Right as the one in front of me tried to tackle me once more, I slammed the shield into its sensitive nose. My [Physical] strength wasn¡¯t anything impressive, but I was learning more and more that stats weren¡¯t everything while I was a living breathing being. [Critical Hit] didn¡¯t occur by chance, but it occurred through experience and exploiting weak points, just like how it happened in real life. The last three waves had been more than plenty for me to figure out the Pyogyun¡¯s weakness. As I expected, the creature in front of me recoiled while yelping. I used that moment to step in with a quick thrust aimed at blinding the creature. I missed and my sword failed to pierce the hard skull, leaving a long gash on its brow. But it was enough, I saw the dark purple blood start to drip down its face into its eyes and for the moment it was blinded. Moving quickly, I tilted my shield upwards just in time to receive four clawed paws. ¡°Uff.¡± It knocked the breath out of me and I actually rolled over backwards, trying to kick at it even once while falling. I missed my kick but had bought myself precious seconds by not allowing the creature to pounce on me from the air. ¡°HIYAA¡± L¡¯teya leaped from her position and landed on the creature¡¯s back. She stabbed into its flank with one axe, using it as a handhold like how mountain climbers do with their pickaxes. With the other she began hacking away at its patagium, the flap of skin connected to its forelegs and rear legs allowing it to glide in the air. We were lucky to be fighting these creatures inside this dungeon, anywhere else and they would have flown circles around us. Luckily the gargantuan pillars kept their maneuverability to a minimum. Clover had been firing non-stop at the Pyogyun I had stunned but I saw more arrows littering the floor than sticking out of its hide. Besides, the creatures were too thick skinned for her bow to do more than inflict a mere flesh wound. Only Lety had the power behind her strikes to kill the cursed dogs in a single stroke. I would have to wait for an opening and disembowel them, leaving it to slowly bleed out. Which is what I did. The creature had been stunned and blinded by my earlier stunt. I ran from the side, avoiding Clover¡¯s arrow path. Trusting that she would stop shooting once I was near, I darted in and slashed the creature on the side of its stomach, aiming low. I didn¡¯t need my sword to sink deep to do the job, just barely more than half its length. Being greeted with a howl of pain, I backpedaled in panic as it snapped at the space where I had just been. But the damage was done, its stomach was leaking blood like an inflated water pool that had been cut open. [+2 EXP] Lety climbed down, her Pyogyun long since dead. ¡°I do hope that¡¯s the last of them.¡± I nodded and waited til the one I had cut open stopped squirming. It was losing blood fast so it didn¡¯t take long. Stepping close, I wiped the blood off of my sword on its fur. It¡¯s chest was still heaving and I heard wheezing breaths. I kind of wanted to throw up. ¡°Ugh.¡± I didn¡¯t mean to but my thoughts came out, unbidden. But I kept my eyes on the two dying Pyogyuns until they began to disappear into light. ¡°Oh! Clover!¡± Clover¡¯s body was briefly surrounded by light before it faded. Her eyes widened, the sheep-eye much bigger in contrast to her other human-eye. ¡°I felt it!¡± ¡°You felt it?!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Clover leapt into the air and gave L¡¯teya a hug. The barbarian laughed. ¡°So she¡¯s level 10 as well.¡± I¡¯d be lying if I said I wasn¡¯t bitter. During the second wave, L¡¯teya¡¯s body briefly shone the same light that Clover¡¯s just had. I had thought it the same as before but L¡¯teya indicated otherwise. She said that she felt her Soul was ready for another Core, when I asked her to elaborate the elf-barbarian couldn¡¯t find the words to do so. But this meant that when someone reached level 10, they¡¯d know by the feeling of their soul. It seemed like Clover had also just felt the same thing that L¡¯teya had. At this rate, I was the only one who was still away from the milestone. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Not that I even know what level I am.¡± I cursed the lack of a system window. ¡°It felt like my soul expanded? Like how everything was so full but now there¡¯s enough space for something to come in? I¡¯m not sure how to describe it.¡± Clover said apologetically, looking at me. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I tried not to sound curt and mostly succeeded. Then I frowned. ¡°L¡¯teya, do you sense anything?¡± ¡°No, why do you ask?¡± Usually the waves came right after one another. But now we were supposed to be on the 5th wave but there was nothing here¡­ ¡°Shit.¡± I got back into position. ¡°There could be something in here with us.¡± My instincts were screaming that something was here. The wave should have started already. As brief as Clover¡¯s celebration was, it had cost us precious seconds in getting ready. Could something had slipped through Lety¡¯s [Tremor Sense] and Lety¡¯s [Hearing] stat? The barbarian girl frowned and lifted her axes at the ready. ¡°I do not sense anything.¡± ¡°It could be staying still.¡± I explained, lowering my voice. ¡°There''s a limited number of possible monsters from this dungeon''s monster pool that could remain undetected to L''teya''s [Tremor Sense]. Were there any flying monsters? No¡­ perhaps [Skeletal Boa Constrictor]? No, Clover would have caught that. Could it be a spirit type monster? [Willow-wisp]? It shouldn¡¯t be invisible then¡­¡± Right as I was running through the various possibility in my head, the three of us heard a cackle. ¡°Kikiki¡± Lety whirled around immediately towards the sound of the voice and threw her axe. But it just bounced off a pillar, hitting nothing. She growled in anger and inched towards the fallen axe. ¡°Invisible¡­ laughter¡­ Beastman-type Dungeon¡­¡± I muttered out loud, trying to organize my thoughts. Something slammed into L¡¯teya¡¯s head from the side and sent her flying. The creature was visible for barely a second before disappearing from sight again. But I saw enough and the clues had been there. ¡°Shit! Huddle up! Clover, to me!¡± Clover hesitated looking at Lety who stumbled to get to her feet. It was only when L¡¯teya got to her feet that Clover listened to me and huddled up beside me, putting our backs together. L¡¯teya joined us soon after and I saw that the side of her head was bleeding. But judging by the look in her eyes, she wasn¡¯t dazed or anything of the sort. ¡°Are you good, L¡¯teya?¡± I felt the need to ask. ¡°What are we facing?¡± Was her only response. I almost gave the answer. Almost. ¡°I¡¯m not too sure, I didn¡¯t get a good look at it. You?¡± I redirected the question to Clover. ¡°It was¡­ gold. That was all I saw. A flash of gold.¡± ¡°Trust a merchant¡¯s daughter to recognize the glint of gold when she sees one.¡± Clover was half correct. The creature currently hunting us was the [Lucky Beckoning Cat (ÕФ­Ã¨)] - Grade 8. It was a bipedal feline creature that held a bag full of gold in its left hand and a sword in the other. It had matted stringy hair, dried out by mud, blood and lack of care. On its forehead should be an extra eye, giving it an eerie look. The creature was a disgusting half-cat half-man hybrid and the MSS forums had been disgusted at how the game developers profaned a cute pop-culture icon into this hateful murder machine. Yet everyone loved to hunt it. This creature could only be encountered by chance in certain dungeons and never randomly out in a field. They always dropped valuable loot and a bunch of gold. And right now, it was right in front of us. ¡°If it dropped some [Rare] or even [Uncommon] equipment¡­¡± I licked my lips hungrily. ¡°What do we do?¡± L¡¯teya directed her question at me. I debated a couple of strategies. If Lety¡¯s [Tremor Sense] couldn¡¯t sense it then that probably meant the creature was clinging to one of the pillars. The reason why we couldn¡¯t see it was because it was using one of its abilities: [Hide-andSeek]. As long as the creature stayed still, it wouldn¡¯t be visible to us. That was probably how it got Lety. It waited in hiding until she got close, slammed her in the head with its coin bag then jumped on a pillar and turned invisible. ¡°The question now is how to make the monster show itself¡­ but I don¡¯t want to reveal that I know too much either.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Clover, you said you saw a flash of gold?¡± Clover nodded wordlessly. I had to speak carefully, almost like I was guessing. I wanted it to seem like I was throwing darts at the wall. ¡°...I heard some monsters are attracted to coin. Maybe we can lure it out with some coin?¡± ¡°They are not Clover.¡± Lety jabbed. I saw the beastwoman frown but didn¡¯t comment on Lety¡¯s little joke. To be frank, I wasn¡¯t in the mood for joking either. The monster didn¡¯t have a particularly high offensive power, but for a party of three with only one of them holding a grade-9 Core, we would have difficulty facing it. Most of the creature¡¯s grading came from its invisibility and the [Jackpot] passive. ¡°...Worth a try.¡± I took a coin out from my pocket and threw it towards one of the pillars. Clink. Nothing. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me a copper coin is not enough.¡± ¡°Perhaps it requires more.¡± Clover mirrored my thoughts. I threw three this time. Clink, clink clink. Again, nothing happened. ¡°Throw Puca¡¯s dimension ring.¡± Lety suggested. I hesitated. Anything that the creature picked up, it would go into its coin bag. Even after we killed the creature there was a chance that we wouldn¡¯t get it back. We had our healing potions in there and some valuable loot. ¡°Is that really worth your life?¡± The voice inside me argued back. If we didn''t get stronger in this dungeon, we would have to rely on the mercy of those outside. ¡°Tch.¡± I clicked my tongue but threw the dimension ring. ¡°YEOWWW!¡± Something black and golden flashed from the pillar behind us, passing right by us and diving for the dimension ring. I flinched and reacted a second too late, feeling that Clover did the same. The speed was unbelievable, it was faster than the lightning strikes that I had seen the Mage cast and even the dagger-wielding assassin we fought earlier at the door. But Lety must have been expecting it because she moved even before the creature did. ¡°Her [Tremor Sense], it went off the moment the creature moved.¡± I realized. The creature was just as ugly and sickly in the games. Skin stretched so tight that it was basically a skeleton covered in fur. Its gold bag covered in grime and the sword in its other hand chipped to give it a menacing look. It yowled at Lety and swung its gold bag, trying to get her out of the way. ¡°DODGE IT!¡± I managed to yell out. Lety leaned backwards but the tip of the bag brushed against her and I saw a flash of golden light envelop the creature¡¯s body. ¡°Oh shit.¡± [Lucky Strike], a passive of the Lucky Beckoning Cat which earned it the moniker, Gacha Cat. Every strike it hit with had a 1% chance of being a critical strike. Then 1% of those had a chance of being a [Jackpot]. In MSS mechanics, this meant you had a 1% chance of doing 2.5x damage and then 1% of those strikes had a chance to do 100x damage. No matter how well balanced your tank was, a [Jackpot] could get a character killed. The creature probably had the strength of a Grade-10 creature but combined with its [Invisibility] and [Lucky Strike], it had earned the grading of 8. That wasn¡¯t even counting the other passive and active abilities it had. Lety went flying through the air like before, except many times faster. She sped through the hallway like a bullet and struck the wall. I felt the breath I had been holding release when I saw her body twitch. If it had been a [Jackpot], there¡¯d probably be nothing left of her to twitch. ¡°GACHAAAA!¡± The creature yowled in its scratchy voice and sped for the dimension ring that I threw on the floor. Clover fired her arrows at the creature, trying to stop it from reaching the ring. It got down on all fours and dodging side to side, making a beeline for the treasure. Lety and Clover bought me enough time to get to the ring before it. I dove for the ring and picked it up, clenching it tight within my fist. ¡°YEOW!¡± The beckoning cat swung downwards with its sword. I instinctively raised my shield to block then rolled out of it, landing on my belly. The sword strike clanged uselessly against the floor and it growled in frustration. ¡°Don¡¯t let it get on the pillars! Keep firing!¡± I wasn¡¯t sure how many arrows that Clover had, but I had no intention of letting it go invisible now that we had it in our sights. The creature¡¯s attention remained focused on me, or rather the Dimension Ring on my fingers. It hunched and started bounding towards the pillars, none of Clover¡¯s arrows managing to find their mark. But her volley was doing its job, it couldn¡¯t move at the same speed as it did before. I made a split second decision. Taking the dimension ring I cut off from our assailant¡¯s fingers, I threw it to my right side. Then I took Puca¡¯s ring and threw it to my left. The response was immediate. The creature made a sharp turn and bounded towards me as soon as it heard the sound of my rings hitting the floor. It sped up and stopped right in front of me, confused at which ring to go to. But the hesitation was momentary, it immediately dove towards my right. ¡°Of course you¡¯re going to go for the more expensive one.¡± I was ready for the mangy cat and slammed my shield into its nose. It must¡¯ve been blinded by greed because my shield slam didn¡¯t do anything. It took a step back, stunned and then tried to get around me. I used the sword in my other hand and landed a glancing strike against its flank. Angrily, it swiped at me with its sword but I was already out of reach keeping my positioning between the two dimension rings. The feline monster purred and swung the gold bag in an overhead swing. Right at the ground in between us. The ground exploded from the blow and boulders made entirely of marble flew into the air, falling back down reminiscent of a meter shower. Right before the dust cloud covered my vision, I saw the Lucky Beckoning Cat raise its mouth to the air, crying out. ¡°G-GI-GI-GIIAAAAAAACHA!¡± It was a [Jackpot].
Chapter 16: Desolate Sands (6)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°G-GI-GI-GIAAAAAAACHA!¡± 1% of a 1%. A .01% chance of a jackpot. That¡¯s what just happened in front of me. I didn¡¯t even have time to ponder how close I had come to becoming an unrecognizable puddle of blood on the floor. I had to deal with the present, which was surviving through the falling boulders. Luckily there weren¡¯t too many boulders but on the flip side, they were the sizes of small boats. The dust cloud made it difficult to see but the loud booming sounds falling around me left me in panic. ¡°Please be alive.¡± I could only hope for Clover and Lety¡¯s safety as I tucked myself into a ball with my shield on my back. A I felt a few rocks hit my shield, but none of them were large enough completely pin me to the floor. But they would definitely leave a bruise, meaning if I didn¡¯t have my shield covering my head, neck and the upper part of my back I could have sustained serious injury. I waited out the falling debris, hoping against all chances that the three of us could make it out alive. When the rocks finished falling, I dared a look from under my shield. Thankfully the pillars were still standing, none of them damaged. The last thing I needed was the ceiling collapsing on us. The dust cloud was still heavy, but I could start to make various shapes through it. The Lucky Beckoning Cat was nowhere to be seen and I doubted I could find the rings. Even if the Lucky Beckoning Cat hadn¡¯t taken them in the chaos, they were probably buried under too much rubble. Besides, I had to prioritize the safety of L¡¯teya and Clover before those things. ¡°Do I?¡± I trusted the two but only to the extent that we were working together while we were slaves. But one day, we wouldn¡¯t be slaves anymore. My immediate focus had been survival. L''teya and Clover were just convenient people to have around in that aspect. But did I really think like that? I barely knew them. My future plans so far involved me and only me, hence why I kept certain things close to the chest. I could have better prepared us for this dungeon, I could have told L''teya about the full extent of her Core. Even more so, I could have even told them about the dimension ring that I looted off of the- I groaned out loud realizing that Clover probably saw me take out the other dimension ring from my pocket during the battle. There was a real possibility I had lost a lot of trust there. But did I even care about the loss of trust deep down in my heart? Was I concerned about the loss of trust because it was detrimental to my survival or because I actually cared about the two as friends? I didn¡¯t know what to think about this. It wasn''t like I had a wealth of experience to draw upon either. I had been a recluse, most of my time among my peers had been one of competition or agony. When my parents still had their business, us children saw the adults always try to one up another and mimicked it with no mercy. After my parents lost everything and divorced, I basically turned my back on society. It was my mom who taught me to never trust anyone, especially after what had happened to our family. ¡°God, I¡¯m 30 years old and I''m just now starting to realize I have trust issues?¡± But it wasn''t like this was the first time it was brought up. ¡°Lock!¡± Lety¡¯s voice broke me out of my self-pitying. ¡°Where are you?¡± I called out, ignoring the fact that I should be keeping quiet in case the monster was still around. I saw her limping through the dust cloud as she came into view. Other than a few wounds, she looked none the worse for wear. She had a hand over her ribs though, most likely cracked or broken. ¡°You are alive. Again.¡± Lety¡¯s eyes held a certain amount of mirth despite the situation we were in. ¡°I always said you were a survivor.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s find Clover.¡± The worry in my heart subsided somewhat at seeing that Lety was alive, perhaps the beastwoman would be fine as well. I lent my shoulder to the elf-barbarian and she leaned on it with thanks. We stumbled around the wreckage, trying to find Clover. ¡°There.¡± Lety spoke first, pointing a finger. I helped Lety maneuver around some of the larger rocks and found Clover unconscious with one leg pinned under a rock. Dread gripped my heart until I held a finger to her nose, feeling the slightest flow of air going in and out. I sighed in relief. ¡°She¡¯s alive.¡± Lety frowned. ¡°Her leg is broken.¡± She was right. Clover¡¯s leg was twisted unnaturally from the knee. She was most likely running when this rock landed on her joint and twisted it hard enough to break it. It wasn¡¯t any larger than her leg which was the reason why she was even breathing at all. I wasn¡¯t a healer but it looked like a healing potion might do the trick. ¡°Normal people would say doctor not healer.¡± A voice whispered in my head. ¡°The potions?¡± Lety asked. It was my turn to frown. ¡°Lost. Or taken.¡± She grunted. ¡°Help me move this rock, Slaveborn.¡± We struggled against the rock pinning Clover¡¯s leg. It took a few tries, mostly because L¡¯teya was injured. If she wasn¡¯t I was sure that she could¡¯ve moved this on her own. As it were, we stopped to rest because she couldn¡¯t get enough breath. ¡°The rib-injury must be more serious than she¡¯s letting on.¡± I told Lety to move aside and took a few minutes but managed to move the boulder off of Clover¡¯s leg. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. The pain woke her up. ¡°Oooo¡­. L-Lety? L-Lock?¡± L¡¯teya bent down next to the beastwoman, checking her for other wounds. ¡°Do not open your eyes yet. Do you feel dizzy? Sleepy?¡± ¡°H-hurts. My L,Leg.¡± I saw her try to sit up. ¡°No, stay down.¡± L¡¯teya forced Clover down and whispered to me. ¡°If she sees, she will hurt more.¡± I had heard some cases of people¡¯s adrenaline running so high that they didn¡¯t realize how severe their injuries were until they looked at it. Looking at the injury would trigger the sensors in the brain connected to pain, because now your mind was aware of the damage done to your body. It looked like whatever L¡¯teya knew about first aid, it wasn¡¯t too different from where I came from. ¡°I¡¯m going to take a look around. Call out for me if you see or sense anything.¡± If I wasn¡¯t doing anything here, I wanted to at least figure out our next steps. As I walked away from L¡¯teya, I heard the elf barbarian say reassuring words to Clover. ¡°Find a way out of this situation.¡± If the Lucky Beckoning Cat was still around, it was under its [Invisibility] skill because I couldn¡¯t find even a peep of it. Likewise for the dimension rings. The rubble created by the [Jackpot] were huge, some big enough to be the size of a large SUV. I used these as cover, trying to find a trace of the monster or something, anything that could be of help to us. ¡°Is it my fault? Did I make the wrong choice in bringing us here?¡± When we had been attacked by the other party, all that had been in my mind was how I could use it to my advantage and get to this dungeon, something I¡¯ve been aiming at since the orcs told us about the Desolate Sands. I had been aware of the dangers, yes, but it had been stuffed into the back of my mind. Was it possible that I grew complacent in the last month? ¡°Completely. I haven¡¯t come face to face with real danger since the tunnels.¡± It was true. The tunnels felt like a lifetime ago and besides fighting for my life with the [Lesser Dokkaebi] I first encountered, nothing left a real impression on me that I could¡¯ve died. Until now. ¡°I¡¯ve been taking it too easy.¡± This dungeon was one of the easiest dungeons that I could think of, with rewards packed to the brim. Then again, it¡¯s not like I was strong. ¡°Not even level 10 and trying to abuse my knowledge of the game. Some freaking cheat player I am.¡± As I rounded the corner around a rock, I felt a cool wind brush against my face. Wondering what it was, I followed the source of the breeze and found an opening where a part of the floor had caved in. It led further down, deeper into earth but the marbled walls and flooring below told me that it was still part of the dungeon we were in. But there was an issue with this; I hadn¡¯t been aware that this dungeon had another floor. It was simply supposed to be 10 waves of monsters and then- Click, hiss. Something made a sound down there. A sound like a claw hitting the stone floor. ¡°So you¡¯re down there, mother fucker.¡± If we could kill the Lucky Cat, there was a possibility that it would drop the dimension rings that it stole from us. In addition, [Lucky Beckoning Cat] always dropped useful loot, potions included. The solution was brutally simple, we needed to get down there and finish the job. I quickly turned back the way I came, reaching Lety who was sitting with her back leaning against a boulder. Her face was pale and I saw beads of cold sweat dripping from her forehead. Clover¡¯s head was in her lap. I knelt next to them and put the back of my hand on Clover¡¯s forehead. She was burning up. ¡°...You awake?¡± I whispered. Lety opened an eye at my voice. ¡°Did you find anything?¡± I opened my mouth to tell her I had found the Lucky Beckoning Cat. But if I told Lety, then what? Were we going to leave injured Clover here and go hunt for the monster by ourselves? It wasn¡¯t like we could piggyback Clover and go into the lower levels. Not to mention the fact that L¡¯teya, our party¡¯s powerhouse, had been injured. ¡°...I¡¯ll be right back.¡± I said instead. L¡¯teya closed her eyes and mumbled. ¡°M¡¯kay, Slaveborn.¡± I turned around, walking away from them. ¡°If I go to the entrance this way, I should be able to try and replicate what Clover did to the door and open it.¡± Then I stopped. Why was I thinking about leaving them here and escaping by myself? Shouldn''t I be trying to save them? ¡°But then I''ll die with them... and they''re just NPCs.¡± My survival instincts tried to rationalize my actions. My breathing quickened. In the last month I¡¯ve been here, I trained with the other slaves as well, not just Lety and Clover. I ate with them, slept in the same room as them and listened to their tales. Before there was a sharp delineation between what I considered people and NPCs. Now... not so much. It was much more grey. That was even more so for the otherworldly races that I had encountered. At first I had been put off by any race not human but the more I spent time with the the more I realized, everyone was just a regular everyday person. It was getting harder to lie to myself. No, I never lied to myself. I just chose not to think about it, because it meant that things would change. ¡°They¡¯re real people¡­ I just didn¡¯t want to admit it. Because acknowledging it meant I would have to choose.¡± What did I need to choose? ¡°I need to choose whether to trust them or not.¡± My thoughts remained silent this time. L¡¯teya, the elf-barbarian. Dark skinned and muscular, she turned heads wherever she went. She was skilled, much more skilled than the other slaves who obviously came with some sort of combat training. But instead of reaching out for them, she chose to take me and Clover in. She placed more emphasis on people¡¯s character than she did their backgrounds. She saved my life. Clover, the sheep beastwoman. She had pale skin, pink curly hair and two mismatching eyes: one with a horizontal pupil like a sheeps and another a humans. There were two ram horns that curled around her heart shaped face. She had a sharp tongue and a sharp mind, something probably honed from years of her traveling with her family. She didn¡¯t say much about it, but I knew there was a painful story behind her being captured. She, too, saved my life. No matter how much I tried, I couldn''t find it within myself to leave them down here while I tried to escape by myself. If I left them here to die, I''d be leaving a part of myself to die here along with them. But to save them, I would need to descend into an unknown part of a dungeon that I¡¯d never experienced even as a player. The only chance of them surviving was my successfully killing a Grade-8 monster, while I wasn¡¯t even level 10 and Coreless. It was suicide. Going down there went against everything I had done so far for the sake of survival: putting people at a distance, focusing on things like Stats and Cores¡­ ¡°Goddamn it.¡± I wasn¡¯t this type of person. I had always been a loner. I liked video games and reading. I liked spending time by myself, listening to music and writing strategy guides to post online. I liked getting into debates about the best fields to level up and sharing tips about MSS. It wasn¡¯t like I trusted L¡¯teya or Clover either. I tried to hide that dimension ring from them and I was always tiptoeing about the information I shared with them. I never needed anyone. Ever. Then why the hell were my footsteps heading towards that godforsaken hole in the ground? ¡°You¡¯re such a fucking fool.¡± I said to myself, grinding my teeth. I made sure my sword¡¯s edge was true, sharpening it against a nearby slab of marble. Looking over my round shield, I made sure there were no obvious cracks or dents that jeopardized the integrity of the metal. The shield would do its job and block what it was meant to block. My sword would cut what it needed to cut. Slowly, ever so slowly I stepped into the darkness below. Into the darkness.
¡°H-He¡¯s not coming back.¡± ¡°Shh. Sleep, Clover.¡± Lety tried to move her hand over the sheep woman¡¯s eyes, but Clover turned her face away. Both their faces were pale and pallid, having lost the glow of life and losing it still. They weren¡¯t in danger of death, not really. But L¡¯teya felt that she had several broken ribs, even if she tried to move ignoring the pain she would be easy pickings for whatever monster came for her. Clover¡¯s leg needed no explanation. The two were at Lock¡¯s mercy. Lety knew that Lock would have to pull off a miracle. He¡¯d have to win in single combat against a monster without a Core or any sort of formal training. Yet¡­ for certain reasons she wasn¡¯t worried. The same reason that she was glad to find a human with a stash of exploding magical stones in the tunnels. It was the same feeling when Lock bit off his opponent¡¯s ear when they had to fight for food and shelter, ensuring that no one challenged them after. The way that Lock led them to this dungeon and had avoided confrontation with those adventurers who had been hunting them. Lock Slaveborn had a way of making things happen and doing whatever he needed to do in order to survive. ¡°H-Hid dimension ring from us.¡± Clover¡¯s voice shook, both in pain and indignation. Lety smiled sadly. ¡°Yes, I know.¡± She whispered. ¡°He w-won¡¯t come back.¡± The sheep beastwoman closed her eyes. ¡°Going to leave us here.¡± L¡¯teya looked into the darkness that Lock walked off into. She was a barbarian and she had known how to fight her entire life. The elf-barbarian seen people die for honor and kill for much less. She had seen warriors choose between their duty and family, being forced into situations where they had to risk losing everything that they had built as a warrior. She recognized the look in Lock¡¯s eyes. They weren¡¯t the eyes of a coward. They were the eyes of a man on the brink of something great, of making a choice that would shape the rest of his life. ¡°Hopefully.¡± L¡¯teya spoke into the silence. ¡°He won''t leave us here for long.¡±
Chapter 17: Desolate Sands (7)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°Son, if you made a decision, follow it through. You never know what will happen from that decision until you see it through to the end.¡± My dad''s words flashed through my mind. ¡°Useless information.¡± I told myself, trying to focus on not falling to my death. I had looked for a way down to the subterranean level and luckily, the floor had caved in such a way that it left little ledges suitable for me to jump on. I leapt to and fro from each platform, following the way down. I wasn¡¯t afraid of heights, but one wrong step and I could fall to the basement¡¯s floor. The height wasn¡¯t enough to kill me, what really worried me was breaking a leg or becoming injured. At that point, I wouldn''t even need the Gacha Cat to come kill me. I would slowly starve to death, unable to move. Right now, I needed every advantage I could get. I finally reached the floor and let out the breath I¡¯ve been holding. I shrugged and rolled my shoulders, working the stiffness out. Then, bending low to the ground, I listened. Too many people think of listening as an act. I thought different. I''d survived in high society where every bit of information was a weapon. I learnt that being ignored meant people would say anything in front of me. Why should they be wary of a kid whose parents lost everything? No, listening wasn''t just an action one did. Listening was a state of being. I had to play to my strengths. What had kept me alive so far wasn¡¯t because I was reborn with a blessed physique or overwhelming talent for manipulating mana. No, what kept me alive so far had all been how I played my cards. It had been about gathering information and using that to increase my chances of survival little by little. If I wanted any chance against beating this grade-8 monster, I needed more data than I would know what to do with. Nothing. Slowly rising to my feet, the next thing I did was study my surroundings. Unlike the hallway I had just come from, this was more normal sized; reminiscent of a hotel lobby. I had expected the corridor to stretch on and on but it ended in an enclosed room. No way in and no way out except through where I was. If the beckoning cat truly did come down here, then there would be no way for it to leave. In the middle of the room was a statue standing on a large block of marble. There were ceremonial items around it, a sword, a helmet and a pair of gloves. ¡°It¡¯s a shrine.¡± I realized. I walked up to it, taking a look. I had chosen this dungeon precisely because we had Clover in our party. If I remembered correctly, the theme behind this dungeon had been for beastman to come and prove their strength to their goddess. Not [Mushin], their hero but Goddess with a capital G. It was a temple dedicated to the goddess Oung. Oung was a goddess who was said to be the mother of beastman, their origin story. The statue had been built in her image; a tall broad shouldered female wearing robes belonging to a martial sect. Long hair tied into multiple rings on either side of her head, the rest tied up into a long ponytail. This particular version of her was looking upwards. ¡°Is it referring to that story where she was locked in a cave with nothing to eat but garlic and chives for 100 years?¡± I stepped around the statue, studying it. This wasn¡¯t a part of the dungeon back in the game and it tickled the gamer¡¯s curiosity in me. I convinced myself that if the beckoning cat hadn¡¯t attacked by now, it wouldn¡¯t be the first one to attack me. Even its behavior before wasn¡¯t as aggressive as that of the other monsters. It relied more on ambush tactics. The sword and helmet were greenish-blue with rust. They weren¡¯t metallic smooth but crusted over from years of being exposed to the open air. The gloves had seen better days but were still usable from what I could see. I stopped myself from picking up the glove. ¡°Focus.¡± I told myself, I wasn¡¯t here to explore the hidden part of this dungeon. I was here to defeat- no, kill the Lucky Beckoning Cat. ?You have witnessed a Reflection of Divinity ? ?You gain +1 [Mental] ? ?You have found the Hidden Piece: Oung¡¯s Trial ? ?Quest: Oung¡¯s Trials ? I turned my back to the statue, trying to think of a way to lure the cat out of hiding. I was sure that it was in here somewhere. Cursing the fact that I lost both dimension rings, I debated scattering a bunch of copper coins in the air- [ Human. ] I froze when I heard the voice from behind me. What the fu- [ Plunderer or Warrior, which are you? ] Chills went up my spine and my body started to shudder against my will. Actually scratch that, I wasn''t shuddering. My body was shaking. Ever had an experience where you thought you were alone then you catch something from the corner of your eye? The feeling that you¡¯re being watched? Perhaps you decided to close your closets extra tight that night or covered up the mirror in your room. Or maybe you decided not to look out the windows. This feeling was the instinctual fear that came from not understanding something, the fear of a being so alien that I had no chance of just knowing what it was. Something was in here with me and it scared me. The voice was both feminine and beast-like, melodious and feral. I heard it from behind me but realized when it spoke the second time that it had been projected directly into my head. But I didn''t beat World: Mountain, Sea and Sky by collecting bottle caps. Despite the fear that overtook my basic reptilian brain, there was a part of me that was detached and analyzing the situation. ¡°Is there another monster in here?¡± No. Too eloquent for a monster. [ Matters not. I have waited many years for one of my children. I sense one of them above. ] The word, ''one of my children'' came together with a lot of clues I had about where I was. It only reaffirmed my decision to not turn around. I knew deep within my bones that if I saw the being that was behind me, I would never forget it. If it truly was what I suspected it to be, this dungeon was no longer something I understood. Hell, MSS was something I didn¡¯t understand anymore. [ You will take the Trial in her place. ] [ Do you Accept? ] ¡°W-What trial?¡± I managed to squeak out. [ Slay the Monster. ] ?Quest: Oung¡¯s Trials - Accepted ? ?Rewards: ??? ? This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. The presence that filled this room disappeared. After a long while, I turned around and found the statue gone. That wasn¡¯t the only thing that had changed. The sword, helmet and gloves had been restored to whatever they had been originally. The gloves were made of light brown leather that left my fingers bare. The sword was a flat symmetrical blade, a gladius. The helmet was a mixture of silver and brown metal. It was a familiar shape, something I¡¯d often seen in movies featuring ancient greece. I knew loot when I saw it. I laid my sword down, picking up the gladius and the helmet. The helmet fit like a sock and so did the gloves. The sword was a bit awkward in my hand but I¡¯d grow used to it. As soon as I picked up my shield the entire room disappeared into darkness. When I opened my eyes, it wasn¡¯t the setting of the shrine that greeted me. I was standing on a circular platform made of the same blue marble as the shrine from before, surrounded by darkness on all sides. My vision ended at the edges of the platform and a few dozen feet in the air. For all purposes, I was in a dome. It was too sudden for me to make sense of what had just happened. There could only be one explanation anyways. I had just heard the voice of a Goddess in MSS. She had asked me to take on a trial which involved me slaying a monster, then transported me to an arena in the middle of nowhere. Considering that it was a dungeon themed after beasts with the religious lore based around beastmen, the goddess must have being Oung. Her child must be referring to Clover. By all rights, I should have been cowering in the fact of this information. I knew that this went against everything that I had planned for myself. Yet all I could do was stare at the being in front of me: the Beckoning Cat. It hissed, baring its rotten fangs. The only reason it hadn¡¯t attacked me yet was because there was a translucent wall in front of us. If the wall came down, I knew it would try and rip me to shreds. But I wouldn¡¯t panic. I would stay calm. I had already made up my mind when my feet led me down here: only one of us would leave here alive. ¡°If you made a decision, follow it through. You never know what will happen from that decision until you see it through to the end.¡± My father¡¯s echoed. Some people might think what I was doing was a dumb decision. Hell, I thought it was dumb. But¡­ But I failed to try and convince myself they weren''t real. That they were just NPCs on a screen. No, they were living, breathing and fighting to survive just like me. Most importantly though, L''teya and Clover had saved me. More than once. Now wasn''t the time to dwell on why I was doing this. It was time to think about how I''d win this. How I''d kill this monster. ¡°I dream of the sword and the sword alone for only its blade song is the music I answer.¡± I muttered to myself, raising my sword and shield. ¡°As all roads lead to one ending, so one beginning leads to many roads.¡± Arrosh Bloodedge¡¯s teachings answered me. I understood now why the only thing that Arrosh taught me was to stand still. It was the root of all things, the beginning of all. Only from a proper stance could I use swordsmanship to its fullest potential. Only once I mastered standing still with the sword could I master moving with it. [ Slay the Monster. ] Oung¡¯s command rang with absolute authority. I was still in half disbelief. But none of that mattered now. I had a job to do and thankfully, it seems the Goddess was on my side. After all, if it wasn''t for her I''d still be hunting for it with its [Hide-and-Seek] ability. She''d practically delivered him straight to me. The mana wall came down. The Beckoning Cat and I simultaneously exploded into movement. He began by swiping his gold bag at me and instead of stepping back, I ducked and stepped closer. I felt the bag swish above me, feeling the strands of my hair move from the wind. I knew when it was thrusting with the jagged sword and spun sideways to dodge it. The Beckoning Cat tried to twist his body, its feline skeletal structure bending in a way to try and make contact with either the gold bag or sword to my body. ¡°Can there be rain where there is no sky? Trees where there is no earth?!¡± Arrosh¡¯s voice thundered in my mind. Instead of getting ready to defend or launch a proper attack, the creature had overextended itself. There was no sky to its movements and no earth to its attacks. The first two had been decent but this last move? It was too much. I pushed straight into its chest with my shield, knocking it off balance. Moving quickly, I thrust with my gladius once, then twice more giving the creature three puncture wounds to the chest. It wouldn¡¯t be enough to kill the grade-8 monster, especially considering my lack of skill and [Physical] stat, but it would be enough. Instead of trying to recover, the Beckoning Cat yowled and kicked me in the stomach. I couldn¡¯t get my shield there in time and its claws dug into my armor, ripping through the leather and into the soft skin. I flew backwards and tumbled multiple times. Pain spread from my abdomen. Groaning, I touched it and my hands came away sticky with red liquid. I tried to get to my feet once, then again when I fell. The pain in stomach was too much. I finally managed to succeed the third time. This was what happened when you fought against a grade-8 monster with a Coreless body. A single strike was enough to put me in a state where I could barely fight. ¡°Fucking fight damn you!¡± I cursed at myself. There was the imagery of a coin being flipped in front of its forehead, it was using [Coin Toss]. If the coin landed on heads, the Beckoning Cat would receive 2x to one of its stats for the next 60 seconds. However if it failed a random stat would be halved. [Coin Toss] only affected hidden stats, meaning it couldn¡¯t affect [Physical] or [Mental] directly. The Beckoning Cat had two abilities, one of which was [Hide-and-Seek]. It had already shown us the invisibility skill but had kept the other active ability on stand by until now. The coin landed. ?Lucky Beckoning Cat has cast [Coin Toss] ? ?[Sight] has been reduced ? Tails. ¡°NEOOOOW!¡± The creature wailed as a deep blue glow outlined its body. I had no idea what hidden stat [Coin Toss] reduced. It could be anything from [Handicraft], [Movement Speed], [Mana Regeneration] or even something useless like [Smell]. But I wasn¡¯t going to play it safe when luck was on my side. I half-hobbled and half-ran at the creature, holding my shield first. I had to press the advantage, not giving it chance to get used to whatever debuff it just received. "GRAHH!" I yelled and slashed with the gladius. The creature reacted just a little bit too late and I slashed at its hand. Instead of hacking off the hand at the wrist like I wanted to, I ended up cutting the sack cloth instead. The sack split open and spilled its contents. Silver, gold and other items fell all over the small arena. Among them, my eyes were immediately drawn to two things. The [Dimension Rings] and some Healing Potions. The sight of the healing potions gave me renewed vigor despite my stomach pain starting to worsen. ¡°DIE YOU FUCKING GACHA CAT!¡± I ignored the growing pain and swung wide, trying to catch the gambling cat unawares. But I had grown a little too eager, so I ran in without thinking. The cat hit me with its sword, cutting deep into my shoulder. The jagged edge grinded against bone and I screamed out in pain. It felt the blade''s teeth tear through muscle, tendor and bits of bone. ¡°Rot builds up like canker sores, until it overtakes us all. Anger builds up like a dam, leaking out in excess like a puss. Cleanse yourself, purify yourself so you are the spring of water that may turn into an ocean, enveloping all else.¡± Luckily for me, the monster didn''t continue its attack. It leaped backwards, somersaulting effortlessly. It seemed wary and kept scratching at its eyes. Regardless, I couldn¡¯t make a mistake like that again. Any random hit from the Beckoning Cat could turn into a [Lucky Strike] or worse, a [Jackpot]. The cat must have picked up on my hesitance because it laughed and began to swing its sword wildly in the empty air while approaching me. ¡°Kikiki!¡± I wanted to put more distance between us now, but the stomach wound was slowing me. If I blocked instead of dodging, a [Lucky Strike] or [Jackpot] would seriously injure me at the very least, if not outright kill. The wound in my gut was making it difficult for me to maneuver between the cat''s attack pattern, with each swing of the sword I was forced to duck or lean back. Every movement caused me to wince and I felt my body grow duller from blood loss. I felt the scarlet rivulets beginning to seep through my pants, leaking down from my wound. ¡°YEEEOW!¡± The Beckoning Cat¡¯s attempts finally bore fruit and it landed five hits on my shield in quick succession. They were glancing hits at best but he was fast, way faster than me. By all rights he could have kept wailing on me but the fifth strike was what I had been dreading since the beginning of the fight: a [Lucky Strike]. When the last sword strike hit my shield, I was lifted off of my feet and tumbled end over end for only god knows how long. ¡°GACHAAAA!¡± The cat yowled. If I had been hit by one of those boulders earlier, this would have been what it felt like. I shuddered to think what could have happened if I didn''t have my shield. If that strike hit skin, I would have lost a limb or suffered a lethal wound. I was lucky that there were no walls for me to slam into either. That would have debilitated me, the same way it had for L¡¯teya and my body was certainly a lot less sturdy than hers. I got to my feet, raising the shield to my face, except it didn¡¯t come up. When I looked, my arm was hanging limply and the shield lay on the ground uselessly. The Beckoning Cat¡¯s tenacity had paid off it seems. Just in time, the blue glow around the Cat¡¯s body disappeared. ¡°Y-Y-Y-Y-YEOW!¡± The Beckoning Cat threw away the now empty sack cloth. The image of a coin spinning in the air appeared over its forehead. ?Lucky Beckoning Cat has cast [Coin Toss] ? ?[Aggression] has been increased ? A yellowish light surrounded the feline monster and its eyes widened, pupils dilated. ¡°YEOW!¡± The creature let out the loudest yowl yet, and ran straight towards me. Time slowed. Three weeks. I said it could be long if you thought it was long and short if you thought it was short. I had thought it was short. Perhaps it was longer than I thought. I didn¡¯t panic. Nothing had changed about the situation just because my arm was broken. The shield had been a safety, nothing more. Any hit from the Beckoning Cat could have killed me, regardless of the shield. The shield had done its job and allowed me to survive through that 1% chance of a [Lucky Strike]. I didn¡¯t need the shield anymore. Besides, I wasn¡¯t the disciple of Arrosh Bloodedge, the Shield Master. He was the disciple of the [Sword Saint]. What really mattered was that I still had the sword in my right arm. A utility skill gained from using Kitchen Knives. As pathetic as it was, it was the only skill I could use. Coreless and low-leveled, I had nothing else. The monster charged in blindly and that made it easy to predict its path. I stilled myself and for the first time, felt that my body stand in exactly the way I wanted it to. The same way that Arrosh had wanted me to. I sidestepped right when the tip of its blade covered my entire vision. I spun and slashed out with the sword, activating the only skill I had in my arsenal, [Cut]. ? Lock Slaveborn has used [Cut] ? ? [Mushin¡¯s Gladius](copy) recognizes [Sword Saint Candidate] ? ? [Mushin¡¯s Gladius](copy) reacts with the skill [Cut] ? ? [Mushin¡¯s Gladius](copy) used [Sever] ? ? Lock Slaveborn unable to use [Sever] ? ? [Mushin¡¯s Gladius](copy) used [Cleave] ? ? Lock Slaveborn unable to use [Cleave] ? ? [Mushin¡¯s Gladius](copy) activates [Aura] ? ? Lock Slaveborn has used [Cut] ? My sword arm burst into blood as the skin was torn off. I saw lines of energy running from the sword, feeding off of the mana in my arm and sucking it out greedily. My heart started to pump faster, trying to keep up with the flow of mana being sucked out from my mangled arm by the gladius. The blade took my mana and transformed it into a shadowy energy that extended about an inch from the blade on all sides. But my timing was off and my swing was clumsy, I tripped over my own feet and felt the creature''s knee slam into my wounded stomach. Still, the blade cut through the Beckoning Cat''s waist like it was butter. Before I passed out, I saw two things. The gladius splintering off into a thousand different pieces. And a perfect sphere rising from Beckoning Cat''s corpse: A Spirit Core.
? Quest: Oung''s Trial - Complete ? ? Reward - Oung''s Blessing ? ? Race Incompatible ? ? Searching nearby... ? ? Candidate Found: Clover Weinport ?
Chapter 18: Desolate Sands (8)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°Don¡¯t you dare fucking die!¡± Someone pounded hard into my chest and I woke up, all my memories returning to me at once. I took in a deep breath like I had been submerged underwater, hearing myself wheezing for breath. It felt like all the air had been released from my lungs at once and now it was struggling to suck up all the oxygen. ¡°He¡¯s back!¡± I sputtered at the force of the blow, my head briefly lifting from the cold floor. The last thing I had seen was the Beckoning Cat¡¯s body, cleaved in two and the Spirit Core- ¡°Core.¡± I managed. ¡°S-Spirit Core.¡± ¡°Quiet.¡± The voice left no room for argument. I let my head flop down to the floor and looked around, trying to see what was going on. I wasn''t surrounded by the darkness, standing on a platform anymore. This was the shrine from which I had been teleported. It seemed that I had been transported here after the fight to the death. Now that I had a moment to think, I considered the ramifications of what just happened. There had been almost no mention of the Divine Beings in MSS except through lore you could find through various hidden pieces. Namely, you could find out by closely following the path of the 6 [Heroes]. They were related to the 6 deities somehow but the game had left the details veiled in shadow. It was one of the things I had enjoyed, picking up the most useless looking weapon and seeing a vital piece of lore written on it. But the question remained: had that presence truly been Oung? ¡°Bite on this.¡± Without waiting for an answer, someone shoved a piece of cloth into my mouth. What? ¡°GHHH-GH,GHHHH¡± I convulsed and screamed through the cloth as burning hot liquid was poured on my stomach, bringing me out of my stupor. Having the sense to look up finally, I saw Lety and Clover, the former pouring a healing potion all over my stomach and even my shoulders. I saw bits of smoke curling up from my wounds. Feeling the last of the burning sensation leave my body, I let go of the rag from my mouth. It fell to the ground with a wet slop. ¡°You two are alive.¡± The pain was fading rapidly, my wounds healed now. All of a sudden, Clover¡¯s face changed from worry to uncertainty. She started to chew her nail, her thumb in particular. Then looked at L''teya for guidance. ¡°Yes we are, thank you.¡± Lety was solemn, a rare moment for her. ¡°Thank you, Lock Slaveborn.¡± Then she returned the look at Clover, rather pointedly. Clover swallowed and looked at me in the eyes, her pink hair disheveled. ¡°You have my thanks as well, Lock.¡± I didn¡¯t answer, just grunting and sitting up. There was something in the corner of my mind that said to cherish this moment but I just didn¡¯t know how. So I did the only thing I knew how to do and got straight to the point. ¡°What happened to you two? I passed out.¡± ¡°After you disappeared, Clover and I waited for your return.¡± Lety explained. ¡°After waiting for a while, a strange light came over Clover and her leg was healed. Working together, we got ourselves down here where we found you.¡± I liked how Lety described situations leaving only the important bits in. ¡°Was there anything else here?¡± ¡°You mentioned a Spirit Core?¡± Lety shook her head. ¡°We did not see anything of the sort.¡± I sighed. I couldn¡¯t help but feel that I had been ripped off by the goddess. I had gone through all this to come out with nothing- ¡°Let¡¯s not think like that anymore. That wasn¡¯t the reason you came down here.¡± I came down here to save Clover and L¡¯teya, hopefully to get them some healing potions. Oung hadn¡¯t promised anything and if Lety¡¯s words were to be believed, the supernatural healing that Clover received to her leg was obviously some form of divine intervention. Lety, Clover and I had all survived. ¡°Perhaps you absorbed it already?¡± L¡¯teya obviously had no idea what I was talking about, she was just trying to make me feel better. I waved her off. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°No, you should check.¡± She insisted. ¡°Close your eyes, search deep into your soul. If you have truly absorbed a Core, you should see it.¡± I decided to humor her and closed my eyes. ¡°Now imagine your soul as a room. Find yourself in it and look around.¡± Doing as she asked, I felt the sensation of being pulled out of my body. It was that sensation of free-falling I often had as a child, drifting between the state between sleep and awareness. I opened my eyes immediately, suddenly scared that I was going to get teleported into another arena forced to fight a monster in single combat. When Lety saw my shocked face, she smirked. ¡°Again.¡± I nodded and repeated the process, concentrating on imagining a room. The pulling sensation happened much quicker and I could feel that I was still at the shrine in front of Clover and Lety. Yet with my eyes closed, it felt like I was in a dream or a vision. There were two little pedestals in front of me. One was empty, on the other stood a familiar figure: the Lucky Beckoning Cat, otherwise known as Gacha Cat. ¡°I did absorb it!¡± I yelled out loud. A little too loud, probably a bit uncharacteristic of me. Lety yelled with me and even Clover did a little clap. I looked at my hands, my chest and touched my face, making sure this was all real. I had been doubtful that I could even absorb a Core when the people of this world mentioned making ¡®room in your soul¡¯ for Cores. It had been a point of concern since my soul wasn¡¯t technically from here. ¡°Holy shit I have a Core?!¡± Joy spread through me. When I played MSS as a kid, I would always go to sleep thinking about what kind of Spirit Cores I would like to have. It was kind of like how people fantasized about being a superhero or a monster trainer, for me that fantasy involved being a real-life MSS adventurer. ¡°Do you know how to use an ability?¡± Clover asked. I shook my head. ¡°It¡¯s all about visualizing. If you don¡¯t know what the Core does, there is a high chance you won¡¯t ever know. But if you fought the monster yourself you should have a good idea.¡± The elf-barbarian explained. I already knew the Gacha Cat¡¯s two possible Core abilities though: [Invisibility] and [Coin Toss]. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°Please let it be invisibility.¡± I stayed still, trying to imagine myself growing invisible. ¡°Are you upset?¡± Clover asked after a while. "Why''re you glaring?" ¡°Fuck.¡± I cursed inwardly, then imagined a coin being flipped. ?Lock Slaveborn has cast [Coin Toss] ? ?[Jealousy] has been increased ? My body was covered in a thin yellowish light. ¡°Oh! Oh! A gold coin! I saw it! Right above your forehead.¡± Lety almost jumped then swiped at my forehead. Even Clover¡¯s eyes had grown with greed for a moment. It was typical. Core Abilities that had superficial effects just for the sake of it were rare in MSS. So it wasn¡¯t too surprising that Lety or Clover might never have seen anything like it. I tried to see if I could sense which of my stats had been increased but no dice. I couldn¡¯t even tell if it had been my [Physical] or [Mental] related stat that had been affected by the skill. ¡°Fucking trash skill¡­ why couldn¡¯t I get something like Lety¡¯s [Death Worm] Core? If only I had something useful¡­¡± For the first time I found myself jealous of the woman. Lety smacked my head. ¡°Ah!¡± I glared at her. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Your eyes were not like your usual self. They were full of darkness.¡± She said, frowning. ¡°So basically I just pissed you off. Must be nice to lean back on your barbarian cultural heritage to just do whatever you want¡­ I wish I had something like that.¡± I sighed and tried not to glower or glare at the two. There was a bright side though. This grade-8 Core came with the active ability [Coin Toss], meaning it came with the better of the two passives: [Lucky Strike]. The other passive that the Beckoning Cat possessed, [Greed] wouldn¡¯t exactly help me anyways. It wasn¡¯t much to feel better about, but it did improve my mood a little. By .001% if I was being exact. ¡°Enough of that.¡± I pushed everything unrelated to my task at hand to the back of my mind. Oung, my sudden use of Aura and the supernatural healing that saved L¡¯teya and Clover. ¡°We need to continue and finish this dungeon.¡± ¡°Still?!¡± Clover backed from me, her eyes fearful. ¡°We almost just died!¡± ¡°There¡¯s only one entrance out of this dungeon and that was the way we came in. If we¡¯re unlucky those guys could still be waiting there for us.¡± I explained. The last thing I wanted to do was face them without being prepared. Sure, I had a Core now but Clover was still pretty much useless against them. She¡¯d need to have at least one Core of her own and if not, we needed to ransack every corner in this dungeon until we found something useful. Just because the situation inside the dungeon had changed didn¡¯t mean that our situation outside had gotten better. ¡°We need to grow stronger in this dungeon. They already outnumber us.¡± I told her. Clover nodded then held a hand to her head, hissing in pain. Alarmed, I asked. ¡°What is it?¡± I looked at our surroundings. ¡°Nothing.¡± She muttered. ¡°I¡¯ve been having these sharp headaches since I woke up.¡± L¡¯teya and I shared a look but the elf-barbarian shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not like this girl would have mana deficiency or something similar to it¡­¡± I decided to wait and observe for now. ¡°What¡¯re we going to do about these?¡± L¡¯teya gestured to the floor. It seemed that the various loot dropped by the Lucky Beckoning Cat had also been transported with me. I saw the two Dimension Rings as well as other useful drops, such as potions. The jagged sword that the cat had been wielding was also there. I bent to pick up the Dimension Rings then stopped. ¡°Right. I hid it the first time around.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. We already knew about it.¡± She shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m sure you had your reasons.¡± I opened my mouth but no words came to me. Clover didn¡¯t look too hurt and neither did L¡¯teya. If anything, L¡¯teya had a smile on her face and was grinning from ear to ear between the two of us. It seemed the two of them had overcome this even before I had. The elf-barbarian grabbed us both around the shoulder. ¡°We trust you, Lock Slaveborn.¡± That drove a pang of pain through my heart. This must be what they called Guilt. I debated whether to come clean with them, about my goals about who I was. But would they believe me? It was a long story of how I got here and even longer to explain the process. Hell, even I didn¡¯t understand some of it. I was only beginning to think about it now in this dungeon because I was worried about more than just survival. ¡°You can tell us when you¡¯re ready.¡± Clover closed the matter, seeing the struggle on my face. ¡°As L¡¯teya said¡­ we trust you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true. They do.¡± At that moment, my background or my reasons for why I hid the dimension ring from them didn¡¯t matter. What mattered was that when their life was in danger, I had risked mine to save theirs. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have hid it.¡± I sighed to myself, wishing I could wind back time.. But it had become a habit by now, trying to do everything in my power to get even the smallest advantage I could for my survival. It would be a long time before I could get rid of it. Grabbing the two dimension rings off the floor, I debated handing them over to Clover. In the end I put one in my pocket again and handed Puca¡¯s to her. But Clover had noticed my hesitation and raised a pink eyebrow at me, questioning. ¡°I¡­¡± What should I even say? ¡°Let¡¯s take stock of our items later.¡± She smiled in understanding. ¡°Will do.¡± Little steps, small steps and everything in between. I would take it slow. We looked around for more useful things on the floor. I kept the Beckoning Cat¡¯s jagged sword for myself. Continuing to search, I also found the hilt of the gladius I had used; the blade all but gone. Regardless, I stowed the hilt in my dimension ring. Clover stowed all the health potions since in battle, she¡¯d be the one most likely to administer them to us. I found my shield, but it was dented beyond saving so I left it on the floor. The helmet that I had been wearing during the battle was rusted over once more, back to how it was when I initially found it. The gloves were in the same state. It was slightly disappointing, since I had thought that perhaps they might hold more clues or were powerful items themselves. I stored the glove and helmet anyway. L¡¯teya found herself a pair of leather bracers that protected her forearms. There was also a jagged axe that she kept to replace the one she lost before. She was still dual-wielding but the set was mismatched now which seemed to depress the barbarian. As I said before, Barbarians are very sensitive about the state of their equipment. Once we were satisfied with what we collected, we started climbing out of the shrine and back into the dungeon. ¡°So what is your goal, Lock?¡± Clover asked. ¡°It seems like you have a plan in mind.¡± I thought about all the things that I needed to do. ¡°First and foremost, survival.¡± Lety smiled with her teeth. ¡°Then?¡± ¡°...Getting stronger. I don¡¯t plan to stay as a slave of the Samak Horde for my entire life. Right now they¡¯re beneficial in that they provide protection and even training.¡± I answered automatically. ¡°But they¡¯re doing that for a purpose.¡± Clover nodded. ¡°I might have an idea of what they¡¯re planning to do.¡± I looked at her, listening. ¡°Look around Lock, they have nothing in this desert. No agriculture, no valuable minerals. But what they do have in abundance is monsters and dungeons.¡± She shrugged. ¡°But they lack the manpower to farm those things.¡± ¡°So we¡¯re just going to end up as dungeon divers for them.¡± I muttered, the pieces starting to come together. ¡°Partly.¡± Clover and L¡¯teya reached the top before I did, mostly because I had stopped to talk and think. ¡°But there was another rumor about the Samak Horde I heard back when I was- before I was captured.¡± ¡°Rumor?¡± That piqued my curiosity. ¡°That they found out the best way to make money is the slave trade. They will sell some of us as a slaves to the other nations.¡± L¡¯teya helped me up out of the collapsed floor. ¡°That¡¯s how I was captured. I was looking for my brother who was captured over a year ago.¡± ¡°Huh. So she had that kind of backstory.¡± This was the first time L¡¯teya had told me anything about herself besides the strictly necessary. I really felt the need to apologize. ¡°I was looking around the city, hoping to catch wind of my brother.¡± The elf-barbarian dusted off her hands. ¡°Did a little digging, but it seems he was sold off to a different country. Which country, I am not sure.¡± ¡°What was his name?¡± I looked around quickly, making sure everything was as we left it. There could be a monster straying around here. Come to think of it, since I killed the Lucky Beckoning Cat, shouldn¡¯t the 6th wave have started? ¡°Altan, first son of Agad.¡± L¡¯teya¡¯s [Tremor Sense] didn¡¯t seem to have picked up anything either. ¡°I will remember that. But I fail to see why selling us to other countries as battle slaves is illegal in the first place.¡± ¡°Strictly speaking, it''s not. Mostly it''s taboo to deal in slavery in the Zimmskar Kingdom.¡± Clover answered my question. ¡°The Samak Horde is right in between the Turina Empire, the Free States of Jayu and the Zimmskar Kingdom. The Zimmskarans hated slavery, their nation was born of former slaves. It''s becoming a political issue now, especially since the Samak Horde has been kidnapping beastman and selling them to the Turina Empire.¡± I wasn¡¯t too aware of what she was talking about. Some of these countries were new to me. ¡°The Zimmskar Kingdom is the country of beastman, who are descendants of the slaves from the Turina Empire. They have a strict no-slavery pact with the Turina Empire and even the Jayu States; if they¡¯re caught trading beastman slaves who''re Zimmskar citizens¡­ it could cause a global conflict.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s always a Black Market.¡± I recalled my time in the game. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s iffy now because it¡¯s the Samak Horde and some other lesser powers doing the kidnapping, training and selling. Technically these Orc Hordes are not under the same treaties that the larger empires are. The Turina Empire and the Jayu States are big enough to say they can¡¯t police everything that goes on in their lands. Which is reasonable.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the major players in this landscape¡­ this is useful information.¡± "Are you from Zimmskar?" I found myself curious about how Clover got captured after Lety had opened up.. "Yes." Clover looked sad, but it disappeared fast. "I was following my parents on some business near by when..." ¡°What about you? How were you captured?¡± Clover changed the topic to me. Now, how do I answer that? That I was sitting in front of a Computer Game about to defeat the final boss of a game called MSS when I was transported here? That I¡¯m actually from a different world who was reborn in this body? That I wasn¡¯t aware of the real name of this body and that Lock Slaveborn was a name that I just made up? ¡°...I don¡¯t remember.¡± I decided to feign ignorance. I trusted L¡¯teya and Clover but couldn¡¯t bring myself to share everything. I needed to gather my own thoughts first. Hell, was I even the same person who I was a month ago? Surely not. If anyone ever needed therapy, it was me. "And to think I turned it down all those times after my parent''s divorce... It took a supernatural event placing me in a video game world to convince me I need one." Clover shrugged, my deflection not bothering her as it used to before. ¡°It''s because she trusts me now.¡± I felt like I was using their trust and to some extent, I guess it was true. "Then is Lock Slaveborn not your real name?" Lety asked, looking disappointed. Clover laughed. "It is... for now." I answered her and it seemed to cheer the elf-barbarian up for now. We began to head deeper into the dungeon where I had left L''teya and Clover. It should bring us closer to the part where we had been waiting for the monster waves. We reached it soon enough but made sure there wasn''t anything that we should be worried about. ¡°I¡¯m not sensing any movement.¡± L¡¯teya had been scanning the area. She pointed towards the hallway where the monsters had been coming from. ¡°What should we do?¡± She had been directing the question to me. I didn¡¯t have to think too hard about what our next steps were. Regardless of whether monster waves would continue or not, our objective of clearing this dungeon didn¡¯t change. I put us in the same marching order as before, L¡¯teya in the front and me in the back with Clover in between us. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± It was time to resume our dungeon exploration.
Chapter 19: Desolate Sands (9)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts" Document
Report from Arione Popwindale - Grade-4 Mage 113 A.S, Month of the Crow Day 104 in the Samak Desert This is my report about the Samak Horde situation in the Samak Desert: I will start with the desert itself as understanding it is pivotal to our plans. From what I can see of the Samak Desert, it is a place unsuitable for the growth of advanced civilizations. There is no natural food and scarcely any reliable sources of water. This is due to the three monsters that rule over the wasteland like Kings. These monsters rule over their vast territories either alone or by commanding their troops which could be a sub-species or direct family members. I¡¯ve outlined the monsters I¡¯ve seen below. [Gargantuan Death Worm] - Grade 4 Probably the only one among the three that is not a named-variant or boss-class. But that makes it all the more impressive that this grade-4 creature has managed to carve out a territory for itself among the other two, which are above normal monsters. I believe it may be the weakest of the three, but definitely the biggest. Rather than ruling over its territory, it is more correct to say that it has devoured everything within that part of the desert. Most Gargantuan Death Worms I''ve seen travel together in packs, burrowing together and slithering against one another in a mating frenzy at night. This Death Worm seems to have eaten its pack and then some, because it''s at least 10 times the size of any other Gargantuan Death Worm I''ve come across. [Suri] - Grade 3 (Named Variant of Grade 6: Skeletal Vulture) For this monster, I¡¯m only estimating its grading base upon my initial sighting. It was my 53rd day in this desert and I managed to find refuge at a large oasis. The moon was bright and I sat around a campfire with my party members, confident in our strength at fighting off any monster that might decide to disturb us. When Suri came upon our camp, I had thought it to be a regular Skeletal Vulture. However, its bones and eyes had all been colored black. If it had been a moonless night, we would never have seen the creature approach. It stayed awhile watching us. The creature has a skeletal body but only its head resembles that of a living bird. It flies silently and only at night. It drank from the oasis and left us alone. We followed it for a few days, making observations but turned back when it got into a battle with a Guhgoogi (???), a grade 4 monster. Suri defeated the Guhgoogi easily and ripped off strips of flesh as the creature continued to scream. It has no stomach to speak of, so it wasn''t feeding. I had a disturbing feeling that it enjoyed the screams. [Enla Enla] (ŸŸ¡©Á_) - Grade 3 (Boss-class) Probably the most passive of the three creatures. I¡¯ve only seen it once. The creature is the desert storm itself, with a face of the most attractive woman you could think of. I saw it rip apart three orc base camps, just by going through it. I can¡¯t speak much about it as it seems mostly ephemeral. However if you find a sandstorm coming towards you with the cries of a woman accompanying it, run. I have no idea how the Samak Horde has managed to survive out here. However I know this. The Slave Trade is their main source of income and without it, they¡¯d have to sell their services to the best seller, i.e turn into mercenaries. If the Turina Empire is truly hoping to create a position of power in this region, the first thing to do would be to strangle the Samak Horde¡¯s slave trade. I recommend putting one of the Three Great Houses of Turina in charge of this. If my estimation is correct, the Samak Horde should be no stronger than them. Just beware of the monster territories. Arione Popwindale Explorer Extraordinaire No Lands Unseen, No Rock Unturned
From Church Documents vandalized by Arione Popwindale The emperor commands that the Great House of Akka Xalud wipe out all traces of orc presence in the Samak Desert. The Church requires you to eliminate a certain adventurer-mage by the name of Arione Popwindale. His descriptions are provided below. He has been suspected of being a [Player]. In Light, Shield and Flame, let the Emperor¡¯s will be done. Cecilia Lightridge High Inquisititor of Light Try and catch me, you backstabbing cult asshole fucks. Fuck the Church, fuck your gods and fuck your Great Houses too. I¡¯ll wipe the floor with you noobs.
¡°About time you got here. I knew you weren''t scared of traps, you were scared of getting wet.¡± Abay Munet cackled at his own jibe, leaning back against the blue marble door. He had been sitting here since he lost those three rats earlier. He was still seething inside, but fought hard not to show it. If the assassin showed that he was bothered by his failure, the others would pick on this weakness right away. The assassin cradled his hand with the missing fingers. ¡°You¡¯re the one who rushed in without knowing what you were getting yourself into. I warned against this.¡± A blonde man floated out of the waters. His hair was tied in a ponytail and reached his waist, yet not a single droplet of water could be seen on him. As a matter of fact, his whole body was dry. The man held a wooden staff with a yellow crystal embedded into a mangled mess of branches which served as the staff head. Even without the staff identifying his class, his whole wardrobe screamed mage. Long beige robes tinted with yellow and accented at the edges and his pale skin told the signs of long days spent in a Mage Tower, studying. Abay wondered how much the man was being paid compared to himself. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°And it looks like I was right, I''m failing to see any corpses. You failed.¡± The mage finished saying as his feet softly landed on the platform of the hidden alcove. ¡°You little-¡± Abay snarled and made a motion to get up. ¡°Both of you, that''s enough.¡± The cold voice cut between them and even the prideful mage dropped his smirk. The rest of the party had emerged from the water. Jason Carid Akka Xalud had wild orange hair with black strands that jutted in every angle, combined with orange pupils surrounded by black. If one saw him from far away, they¡¯d almost mistake the pattern of black markings on his hair as additional pairs of eyes. The scion of the great house wore his house¡¯s dark green insectoid armor like a well-fitted suit, the interlocking chitin shifting smoothly with every movement. Like Abay Munet, he was a dagger user. But unlike the assassin, Jason had two handles jutting out from behind his hips instead of one. Just over his heart was engraved his house emblem: A stylized centipede reaching for the clouds. ¡°You promised me a big game but failed, Abay.¡± Jason¡¯s lips curled. ¡°And I see that you lost some of your fingers to a couple of these pigskin slaves.¡± Abay quickly hid the hand with the missing fingers behind him. Jason continued. ¡°Where have they gone?¡± ¡°Into the dungeon.¡± The assassin muttered, looking away. Sighing, Jason strode towards the door. Abay flinched and moved aside immediately upon which the Mage smirked with delight. The fourth member of their party finally emerged from the water and promptly rolled over to their back. It was a young girl who was dressed in the formal priestess garments of the Church. She wore black robes with a silver sash cinched around her waist. Except in this priestess¡¯ case, the silver sash was tight to the point of almost breaking. ¡°C-Can¡¯t. Breathe.¡± The girl gasped, her round cheeks heaving. ¡°Mage. Pomi. Come look at this.¡± The mage, Kyrian Tricilan, had mixed feelings about not being addressed by name like the priestess was. On one hand, he was grateful. He was from the minor noble house of Tricilo, but had been born a bastard. Per Turin Empire custom, he had received the double -an ending marking him as a bastard: Kyrian Tricilan instead of Kyrian Tricilo. Everytime someone said his name, he was forced to face humiliation from his younger years. Perhaps Jason was being thoughtful. Or¡­ like all the other scions of the Three Great Houses, the mage had simply been beneath his notice. The priestess heaved herself to her feet and hurried to obey, not even bothering to look at Abay Munet who sulked in the corner like a wounded bird. She could have regrown his fingers but with her talent, she¡¯d be nearly out of mana. She wasn¡¯t willing to take that type of risk. Her mission had been simple: obey Jason Carid Akka Xalud. It wasn¡¯t like the Church was fond of their personnel healing others out of charity either. ¡°Beastman language¡­ ancient.¡± Kyrian shrugged. ¡°I can decipher it but I¡¯ll need to go back to the base and gather tools.¡± Pomi stayed silent. She couldn¡¯t tell what it was at all. ¡°How many slaves did you say you saw?¡± Jason asked. Then he whirled around, taking big threatening steps towards Abay. ¡°Actually, how many slaves left you in this state?¡± ¡°...Three.¡± The sound of Abay grinding his teeth actually echoed inside the alcove. Jason''s gaze was even. "I see. Perhaps they would have been worth something if we sent them to the gladiator pits or the colosseum if you were even a bit stronger. But as it stands, a couple of slaves chopping off your fingers is beneath my notice." Pomi stifled a laugh. ¡°Mage.¡± Jason said, his gaze still fixed on Abay. ¡°Think of a reason why Abay should be punished.¡± ¡°He disobeyed direct orders to wait for us and rushed in, getting himself injured.¡± Kyrian started speaking immediately. ¡°Not only that, he claimed that the Slaves took the dimension ring off of the dead orc when we couldn¡¯t find it. Which was his excuse for running ahead of the group in the first place.¡± Truthfully, it hadn¡¯t been Jason¡¯s orders that Abay broke, but Kyrian¡¯s advice that they all act together. Kyrian had an infuriating tendency to play it safe, almost too safe. But it scarcely mattered now. Abay had failed to find the dimension ring that the slaves had, failed to capture the slaves and had lost his own dimension ring not that he would admit that in this situation. He knew better than to speak up in his defense so he stayed silent. Jason Carid Akka Xalud barely contained the anger that he felt. ¡°This was a waste of my time. We¡¯ll decide on your punishment once we get back. We leave at once.¡± Abay felt panic in his heart. He knew all too well what the Great House of Akka Xalud called ¡®punishments¡¯. Being tied hand and foot by Core-sealing tools, he¡¯d be lowered into a hole full of poisonous insects. They¡¯d force him to ingest a parasite that¡¯d leech off of his mana and vitality for weeks, harvesting it from his stomach using these long metal hooks that they would force down his throat. They would keep him awake for days, forcing him to watch over their insect nests. ¡°I need a way out of this.¡± Abay slammed his forehead to the ground. ¡°Lord Jason! Please! Give me one more chance!¡± Jason turned to leave. ¡°The three slaves have the dimension ring on them! I saw it! They¡¯re trapped in that dungeon and from what I can see there¡¯s no other way out! They have to come out here!¡± ¡°I have no time for your whims. Mage, prepare.¡± Kyrian walked to the water¡¯s edge and his staff began swirling mana, manipulating the water. Bits of water began to rise out of the surface and it formed a large bubble, just big enough to fit two people. Of course, the two people who would ride in it were decided. Pomi made a face but didn¡¯t complain; Jason was not in the mood and she was smart enough not to test his patience. Unlike Abay. ¡°Please! Allow me to remain here! I will wait for them!¡± Jason snarled. ¡°And what will I tell my brother when I come back to him without anything to show for my efforts for the entire day? You think I¡¯m like you, Abay Munet? From some backwater nameless family? My brother is the head of this expedition and you want me to go to him empty-handed without the person responsible?¡± Kyrian grimaced. It wouldn¡¯t matter whether Abay came back or not. Today had just been an unlucky day for Jason¡¯s party and the Akak Xalud scion would get punished by his the expedition leader, an older and more established Akka Xalu, regardless of his ability to shift the blame on someone else. Their head commander, a distant brother of Jason Carid Akka Xalud was renowned for his cruel nature. Honestly, it was much less of a punishment and more of an excuse to enforce his sickening hobbies on others. Yet no one could say anything about the inhumane treatments of the Akka Xalud¡¯s sickest scion who hurt even his own family. Strength was the beginning and the end, the ultimate reason to just do whatever your whim fancied.. Such was the rule of might among the Three Great Houses of the Turina Empire. ¡°...Please Lord Jason. I saw them. They held a dimension ring.¡± Abay said, his head still on the ground. ¡°And my dimension ring too.¡± He already had a plan. He would have to kill the three, take his own dimension ring and make a run for it. If he could just convince Jason Akka Xalud to leave him here- ¡°Fine. Mage, You stay here.¡± Jason turned his orange and black eyes on Abay. ¡°Keep an eye on this vulture. Meanwhile, I''ll go out and gather as many as I can.¡± Jason clenched his fist. He would not be outdone by the other. Kyrian struggled to come up with something. That he was a mage, and although minor he was still a claimed member of a noble house. Yet, he was a bastard and he was only a grade-8 mage. Without backing and power, it was his fate to be ordered about. At least he could delay going back to that oppressive camp for a while longer. ¡°Yes, Lord Jason.¡± Abay breathed as the Akka Xalud scion stepped into the bubble, the priestess named Pomi following eagerly. Kyrian fought the urge to roll his eyes as the chubby priestess stuck her tongue out at him behind Jason¡¯s back. He finished navigating the spell through the oasis, sending the two out into the desert once more. The mage turned around to see Abay nursing his wounded hand, looking at the now-missing fingers. ¡°Now what?¡± Kyrian asked. He had no love for the man, mostly due to his character. Honestly, the only difference between the Akka Xalud¡¯s brand of cruelty and Abay Munet¡¯s tendencies was that Abay Munet tended to aim at women, children and the elderly. All those whom he knew were weaker. The Akka Xalud family didn¡¯t seem to care about any of those qualities. The only cared about one thing, and it was their victim''s ability to feel pain. ¡°Now we wait.¡± Abay muttered then met Kyrian¡¯s eyes. ¡°The two women are mine. You can take care of the man.¡± Kyrian didn¡¯t bother arguing. It wasn¡¯t any of his business what happened to these slaves. It was either becoming Abay¡¯s playthings, being sold to a noble or being a gladiator in one of the arenas in the Jayu States. They would be dead either way. He wasn¡¯t being paid to be a hero, he was just a mage. The Great Houses were moving and now wasn''t the time to catch their attention.
Chapter 20: Desolate Sands (10)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°Left!¡± L¡¯teya cried out. I pivoted on my right foot and took a large step towards the left, slashing with my new jagged sword. If I wasn¡¯t mistaken the weapon probably had a [Bleed] property. It was evident in the way that I slashed the Pyogyun which had been preparing itself to leap into the air. I dispatched it quickly, slashing it across the eyes and then stabbing it through the mouth and into the throat. The corpse continued to leak blood even after the creature had long stopped moving. The feeling of disgust, fear and guilt had long since disappeared. Since we started delving deeper into the dungeon, more and more beast type monsters had been running towards us. No more patterns of monsters coming at us in nice little groups of three. Dozens of them came running at us, some of them barking with maddening yelps like the Pyogyun. Others under the cover of darkness like the Keuikegen (ëÓðë¬F), another grade 9 monster. Through all this, I had realized two things. One. That there would be no more waves. Two. The nature of the dungeon had changed. Normally we should be going through a puzzle section right about now, instead all the doors were wide open and monsters poured through in an endless swarm. Luckily, absorbing the Gacha Cat¡¯s Core has done wonders for me. My body¡¯s movements were sharper and I could see in the darkness much better than before. It wasn¡¯t advanced enough for me to call it [Darkvision], which only unlocked when my [Sight] stat got high enough. But it allowed me to warn of the Keuikegen which tended to come crawling from our blind spots. With L¡¯teya¡¯s [Tremor Sense] and my newly found sight, we were able to stem the tide of monsters before they could overwhelm us. I had to admit, I wasn¡¯t fond of the Gacha Cat¡¯s Core. My original goal upon finding out that I had been born into a human body was to become a knight, and that goal still hadn¡¯t changed. Knights were users of [Aura], a racial trait unique to humans that allowed them to coat any weapon in the mystical energy. Then after becoming a Knight, I''d have to specialize further. No time to ponder upon that now when I didn''t even have the faintest idea how to activate it. Aura¡¯s main selling point was that any damage it inflicted counted as True Damage. Furthermore, it ignored 90% of my opponent¡¯s defense ratings. Yeah, all the opinion of the forums was that it was OP. ¡°Yeah, it was lucky that I got born as a human.¡± Well, it¡¯s wasn''t like the other races didn¡¯t have their own racial traits. For example the dwarves could- ¡°Pay attention Slaveborn! Above!¡± I was forcibly broken out of my thoughts by L¡¯teya''s warning which came a split second before a Keuikegen leapt on top of me. It had thick curly black fur with a navy sheen when in the torchlight. No muzzle of snout protruded from this furball of a monster, the only thing visible through its thick mess of tangled fur were two yellow orbs which served as its eyes. We had learned early on that L¡¯teyas axes were of no use against the creatures. The fur was simply too dense for her blades to swing through in one blow, a natural counter to slashing. It fell upon me to stab the creatures to death, or Clover to try and pierce them with arrows. It was hard work, avoiding the creature''s ability and staying on the move while keeping it from overwhelming us. ?Keuikegen has used [Disease: Weakness] ? The Keuikegen in midair began to shake and I saw brown clouds beginning to roll off the creature. Acting quickly, I side-stepped and kicked off of a pillar, leaping above the creature which was still in the air. I stabbed downward with three quick thrusts, hoping that one of them would be enough to either kill or incapacitate the creature. I landed on my feet and looked back to see the creature falling lifelessly to the floor. ¡°Whoa.¡± Clover muttered. ¡°Lock Slaveborn¡­ your movements.¡± L¡¯teya¡¯s expression mirrored Clovers. ¡°You¡¯re getting stronger! The Core must be working!¡± Of course, it was a grade-8 Core after all. The stat boost would be substantial. To be honest though, I was surprised by my movements too. My body had acted before I could mentally prepare myself. The moment I thought about trying it, I was already in the air. If I remembered correctly, the Beckoning Cat gave a significant boost to [Reflex] and [Proprioception]. I was amazed at the difference a single Core could make, even if its active ability was largely useless. ¡°Maybe Arrosh will let me swing a sword now.¡± Thinking of the old blind orc, I wondered how long we¡¯ve been here. It had to be nightfall by now. It felt like weeks though. L¡¯teya waded into another pair of Pyogyuns, leaving large cuts on their sides which bubbled with poison. The poisoned monsters acted in a frenzy, losing what little reason they had left and behaving erratically. We could leave them to die, but it was much quicker for me to put them out of their misery while they were starting to slow. Clover stayed behind us, providing support fire. With L''teya and I serving as the frontline and having received a considerable power-up in the last few hours, Clover could afford t0 take it easy. Her headache had been growing worse and most of the arrow were on the ground rather than in the flesh of monsters. L¡¯teya kept glancing at the beastwoman, worried at her condition. It took awhile but eventually we reached a point where there were no more monsters. Quickly, L''teya found a spot near the pillars where we could keep a lookout and take a breather. ¡°Let¡¯s rest.¡± Clover practically begged, her breathing strained. I was drenched in sweat too and took a seat on a nearby collapsed section of a wall, trusting L¡¯teya to warn us of any danger. I still performed my part, keeping an eye on the shadowy corners where even the torches couldn''t illuminate. "It still looks the same here." I muttered, realizing that the design of the dungeon hadn''t changed much despite the ground we covered. L''teya shrugged. "Monsters are the same too. I''m starting to itch for a challenge." The elf-barbarian was a little upset that she had been knocked around by the Lucky Beckoning Cat without the chance to get revenge on it. On the flip side, I think I gained a bit more respect as a warrior in the last few hours. I had told her the details about my duel with the Beckoning Cat and she nodded enthusiastically. Now she wanted a story of her own to tell, even at risk to her life. Barbarians. Clover held a hand to her head. ¡°Ow!¡± ¡°What is wrong, Clover?¡± L¡¯teya looked worried. ¡°Something is ailing you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It just feels like, agh!¡± She cut off mid-sentence and let out a hiss of pain. ¡°It feels like someone is pounding into my brain with a sledge hammer.¡± Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. I remembered the words that the statue had spoken to me.
[ I have waited many years for one of my children. I sense one of them above. ]
Something was happening to Clover outside of our control and at least a part of the fault lay with me. At the very least, I had brought us here specifically because this was a beast-themed dungeon that had a lower difficulty for a party with beastman members. But how was I supposed to know that a freaking goddess would interfere? ¡°Clover.¡± I struggled on how to say this. ¡°Below, where I fought the Lucky Beckoning Cat. There was a name inscribed there. I believe this dungeon was originally a temple dedicated to that name.¡± ¡°What was the name?¡± Clover winced as she asked, every word costing her effort. ¡°Oung.¡± ¡°...Oung?¡± Clover muttered. Her reaction was worrying. ¡°Yeah, Oung.¡± ¡°She¡¯s a goddess of the beastmen.¡± Clover answered. ¡°That¡¯s about all I know about her. As you know, my family wasn¡¯t particularly religious. Honestly it¡¯s more folktale than a religion in my country.¡± I nodded. For all purposes, Clover¡¯s family sounded like they had been relatively wealthy. Coming from a household where my parents had been in charge of a multi-million dollar empire, I too understand the lack of emphasis on religion in her household. Yet, I couldn¡¯t get the presence nor the voice out of my head. I doubted it was a dungeon gimmick. Somewhere deep in my heart, I knew that the voice had been real as the sword in my hand. If there truly was a divine being interested in Clover... ¡°Hmm¡­ it feels like if we play our cards right, we might get something more out of this dungeon than I expected.¡± The wheels in my head began to turn. Originally, my goal had been to outfit the three of us with Cores, preferably grade-8 or 9. Best case scenario, we could leave this place with two Cores each. Worst case scenario? The usual, death. But with Oung¡¯s interference the best case scenario could change to more than just a Core... ¡°It¡¯s worrying that there are no more Waves, indicating that the nature of this dungeon has changed. Could it be that Clover is in the middle of converting to a priestess?!¡± Adventurers in MSS could be separated into two large archetypes. People who absorb Cores for their abilities and develop their innate skills. Then those who cannot absorb normal cores, but rely on Mana Circles or Spirit, I.E Religion. These could be separated largely into Mages and Priests. There were further specializations but generally, they fell within the two archetypes. If we could get a priest in our party¡­ That opened up a hell of a lot more options. ¡°Can¡¯t we just escape after we finish this dungeon then?¡± Puca, our overseer, was dead. I was sure that we could get rid of the manacles around our necks somehow, somewhere. Maybe Clover converting to a priestess could be the answer to our problems. "But how would we cross the desert." One after another, more problems popped back up. Like I said initially, in the middle of this desert there was no point in running away. Monsters would kill us long before we could reach civilization. ¡°There¡¯s a door here.¡± L¡¯teya had been searching around the area and found something of interest. It was a gargantuan double door, made of blue marble just like the rest of the temple. There was no handle that I could see, not that any living being could reach it even if it was there. I held L¡¯teya off from pushing it open and looked around for any clues. I found what I was looking for in the form of a small stone tablet inscribed into the door itself. Strangely enough, the tablet was at our eye level not whatever giant creature the door was made for. The tablet was inscribed in the same language as the entrance. Clover came over to translate, but to her surprise she could read it fluently this time. ¡°That¡¯s weird¡­¡± Clover frowned. ¡°I think that you¡¯re becoming a Priestess.¡± There was no other way to say this. When Clover shot me a look of suspicion, it was L¡¯teya who came to my rescue. ¡°That makes sense.¡± L¡¯teya said, supporting her chin with one hand. ¡°Back home, whenever the witch doctor had to pass on his knowledge, the young ones would always complain of headaches. I congratulate you, on your ascension.¡± Clover had been about to shoot something back snarky at me, I could tell from her expression. But the beastwoman held her tongue at L¡¯teya¡¯s serious demeanor. Barbarians were a superstitious lot by nature and reputation; I was sure that Clover was trying not to hurt the barbarian¡¯s feelings. ¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense.¡± Clover finally settled on what to say. ¡°I never believed in the old tales, and stories of Oung are a fairy tale. It''s for kids.¡± ¡°Pfft.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but laugh, but quickly stifled it upon seeing Clover¡¯s expression. From my perspective, a beastman who lived in a world with mana, flying dragons and mages writing off a goddess as a fairy tale just didn''t make sense. It just showed how the people of this world approached things different than I did. I decided to respect her decision and wiped the remnants of the smile from my face. But L''teya thought different. "The gods are real, Clover." She said sternly. Clover and L¡¯teya quickly began to argue about the existence of gods. ¡°Those witch doctors are just using mana, there is no spiritual force at work there L¡¯teya. They¡¯re just mages that belong to a barbarian tribe, instead of a magical tower.¡± ¡°You say that because there are no beastmen barbarian tribes.¡± L¡¯teya had a good point. There were no beastman barbarian tribes. ¡°Yes, but there has been countless studies done on-¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter.¡± I ended the argument. ¡°We¡¯ll know if we leave this dungeon and nothing happens. What should focus on is entering through this door. This is obviously our next task. But before that, you never told us what the tablet says.¡± For a full grown adult, Clover got upset pretty easily. She huffed her cheeks but answered me all the same. ¡°It says this.¡± She read from the tablet, her fingers tracing over it. ¡°Enter those who would prove themselves worthy. The Last Trial awaits.¡± ¡°So a protection type of mission.¡± I could see what we would have to do unfolding. ¡°L¡¯teya, let¡¯s take a health potion each.¡± ¡°We have no injuries.¡± She stated. I shrugged. ¡°Just to be sure.¡± We each chugged a health potion each, down to only three bottles left in the dimension rings. Then before we went in, we took stock of the dimension rings once more trying to see if there was anything useful. We couldn¡¯t find anything that was worth our interest. Most of it was coin or ill-fitting equipment, which would be useless until we were able to escape this dungeon and find somewhere to sell it. ¡°On three.¡± Grr-t Grr-t Grr-t L¡¯teya and I heaved one of the massive stone doors open. It opened up into a large room, similar to the shrine I had seen downstairs except on a grander scale. There was a statue of Oung, that almost touched the ceiling. If the statue was alive, it would have been a perfect fit for the door. Feeling very small, I was the first one to step foot into the shrine to get a closer look. The statue had a long strand of beads wrapped around one wrist, and that same hand was holding a well sculpted-stick. On the other hand, there was a round bell-shaped object with a semi-circle slit. ¡°Rosary Beads, a bell and a cup?¡± The same items lay strewn at the statue¡¯s feet. The beads were made of dark, damaged wood. Many of the orbs that made up the rosary were chipped or had disintegrated into dust over the years. There was a bell-shaped instrument next to it, which had a wooden stick about my palm¡¯s length; obviously designed to hit the bell. Finally, a rusted cup stood next to them. Inside the cup was a clear, silvery liquid. ¡°The room did change.¡± Back in the real world, this room had nothing but the boss inside. Now it was this hidden event. ¡°Clover.¡± I found a similar tablet with beastman writing. ¡°Drink of my Water, my Dear Child of Sun and Wind, Slay the Enemy.¡± She translated for me, then made a face. ¡°I¡¯m not drinking that.¡± [ Drink. ] The voice that I heard before was back. There was no rhyme, rhythm or warning to the presence that filled the temple. It wasn¡¯t here, then it was. This time, the fear began from my feet and spread to my fingers. My body shook involuntarily. I dared to look at the statue. The stone statue¡¯s head was facing down and looking straight at Clover. Its eyes had been just plain round stone surfaces, but now they were distinctly alive. White sclera with black pupils that changed before my very eyes. In one second it was the cruel gaze of an eagle looking at its prey, then next the flat eyes of a snake. Then again, it changed to vertical slits, reminiscent of a feline. The rest of its body remained stone however. Clover¡¯s eyes rolled in to the back of her head and she stumbled towards the cup like a puppet. I knew that barbarians had a superstitious nature to them but I had underestimated just how much. L¡¯teya fell to her knees and bowed before the statue, trembling. I heard her mutter prayers under her breath. I tried to take a step towards the statue. [ Stop. ] The full weight of Oung¡¯s attention fell on me and I fell to the floor. It wasn¡¯ a physical force, but something more. It felt like my mind was being crushed in a trash compactor and all I could do was try to try to imagine I had meta-physical arms, pushing back against it. ¡°MMMMMMGGGHHHH¡± I screamed from my throat between clenched teeth. It seemed Oung¡¯s version of ¡®stop¡¯ meant I couldn''t move a single inch of my body, including my mouth. I watched helplessly as Clover took the cup in two hands and kneeled in front of Oung¡¯s statue. The statue¡¯s mouth opened, the stone grating against each other. It smiled down at Clover. The teeth were serrated and sharp, much too sinister for me to believe this was the same benevolent Oung who gave life to the beastmen race. The statue¡¯s mouth moved once more, and giving presence to its word in the real world. Before it had been speaking directly into our heads, now its voice filled the air. God, it hurt. I can¡¯t remember what the Goddess said and to be frank, I don¡¯t want to remember it. All I saw was that Clover¡¯s body lurched and her back arched at an impossible angle. She was having a seizure. Streams of what I could only imagine was mana flowed out like a fog from the statue¡¯s open mouth, and began to enter Clover¡¯s body through her mouth and eyes. It was like I had front-row seats to an exorcism except that instead of popcorn, I felt blood pouring down my earlobes and nose. Clover¡¯s body fell limply to the cold marble once the ritual was done. Finally it was over. Oung didn¡¯t use her real Voice again, but spoke into our heads. [ Child of Blood and Mana. Child of Leaf and Star. A Boon on my Priestess¡¯ behalf. ] Shhhhhhhhhhhh Crackle Crack Crack Crack The sound of the running water was followed by space being ripped open. When I managed to look up the statue was back to its normal position, the stone eyes without life once more. Oung had left us. ¡°L-Lock¡­ behind¡­ you¡­¡± Clover was awake, thankfully. But she was in worse shape than L¡¯teya and I were, whom were still groggy but recovering rapidly. The beastwoman pointed behind us, her finger shaking. Two portals. One swirling with black mana, the other with green and brown. Two monsters began to emerge. I could tell immediately these weren''t your everyday friendly neighborhood monsters. These were Boss-class monsters. [ May it serve you well. ]
Chapter 21: Desolate Sands (11)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
The first hint of the creature I saw was its massive reptilian leg, covered in spike-tipped scales emerging from the green-brown portal. The scales were gray with bits of green moss growing on it, reminding me rocks that you''d find near freshwater. For me, that small detail was enough to identify the creature. [Stone Tortoise] - Grade 8 Boss. ¡°It¡¯s a Boss-class monster! Powerful but slow, aim at the legs and stick close!¡± I snapped the necessary info and took up a position next to L¡¯teya. Looking behind us, I saw that Clover was still reeling from her experience with the Goddess. L¡¯teya didn¡¯t question how I knew the monster¡¯s identity when it hadn¡¯t even fully emerged yet. In the past 24 hours, I had been the one who had been giving orders in all our battles and so far, we hadn¡¯t had issues dealing with monsters. Except for the Beckoning Cat, our party had successfully hunted everything that this dungeon had thrown at us. But before, I had been giving mere hints, afraid of my companions raising too many questions. Now the situation was different. Two boss-class monsters. Even my duel with the Lucky Beckoning Cat didn¡¯t feel as hopeless as this. The creature could barely fit through the green-brown portal and it roared, trying to squeeze through. The portal actually warped and stretched to fit the tortoise. The sheer size of the creature had been enough to force the mana-gateway construct to adapt. As soon as the Stone Tortoise was completely through, it roared once more; the sound of falling rocks rumbling deep within its throat. The portal closed right as the last of its body stepped through. I saw the other monster emerge from the black portal and took a step back in surprise. The monster was a mixture between a rat and a bird. It had a rat¡¯s face, except the snout had been replaced by a beak and the small mammalian eyes replaced by those of a hawk. The front paws had been fused with bat-like wings covered in sporadic tufts of feather The creature scratched the ground once with its hind feet and its furred tail swished, cutting the air. Its talons made a sound like claw scratching a chalkboard, loud and sharp. The blue marble had long thin grooves where the talon-claws had been. ¡°Ujo(Ô¢øB)¡­ grade 7. Also boss-class¡­¡± I whispered and felt L¡¯teya stiffen next to me. ¡°...How do we defeat it?¡± The fact that it was grade-7 and also a boss class was enough to make even L''teya think twice before rushing in without a plan. Facing two boss-class monsters at once would be no easy feat. Thankfully, the two monsters weren¡¯t paying us any attention for the moment. The Ujo sat on its hindlegs, grooming its wings and face. The Stone Tortoise stayed still, staring at us. Regardless, I couldn¡¯t answer L¡¯teya because as we were right now, there was no way we could defeat Ujo. Maybe the Stone Tortoise, we would have a chance once Clover got up and miraculously learned some spell to support us. But Ujo? The monster was famous for being one of those ¡®gatekeeper¡¯ bosses. To access certain dungeons, you would have to defeat a Ujo. It was one of the first walls that a lot of new players found themselves being stuck on, a difficulty spike if you will. The monster tested your party in every way; it had the passive [Dull Edge] which reduced all physical damage by 99%. In addition, it had a passive that reversed all debuffs; any attempts to reduce its defense would only increase it. However the monster had no ranged or magical attacks to speak of. So a lot of people preferred to stay back and nuke it with spells. But that was a trap from the game developers. The Ujo''s last and third passive: [Disaster Sense] warned it of any spells that might do significant damage. The only real way to kill the creature was to bring magic weapons or characters whose Cores revolved around doing magic damage in melee. Even then, the Ujo excelled in close-up combat. To make matters worse, neither L¡¯teya and I had those type of magical weapons handy or Cores that could do magic damage. The closest thing we had was L¡¯teya¡¯s poison. Combined with the fact that the Stone Tortoise which boasted superior defense to both physical and magical attacks¡­ ¡°This isn¡¯t a boon. It¡¯s a fucking death sentence.¡± I cursed at the goddess. L¡¯teya and I began to slowly back towards Clover, who had managed to get on her knees. But she was still gasping for breath and I knew it would be awhile until she would even be able to stand. Plus, it wasn¡¯t like she would be any help in this situation. She was worse off than us. Atleast L¡¯teya could strike at the two bosses and hope to inflict some poison damage, and I could do the same with my [Lucky Strike]. [Jackpot] might be able to turn things around. But Clover¡­ Unless Oung gave Clover some serious buffs as a priestess, I didn¡¯t see a way out of this. ¡°Don¡¯t be pathetic. Try everything first.¡± ¡°The tortoise.¡± I muttered. ¡°What about it?¡± L¡¯teya was twirling the axes in her hands out of nervousness. ¡°We need to get under its legs.¡± That was the only strategy that made sense in my head. The Stone Tortoise was large enough to host all three of us under its stomach and as long as we could be aware of its stomp attacks, we¡¯d be relatively safe. If we stayed underneath the creature, we could hack away at it hoping to fell it. In addition, it would provide cover from the Ujo¡¯s aerial attacks ¡°What about Clover?¡± L¡¯teya said after a silence. That was the issue, she couldn¡¯t walk. ¡°Leave¡­ me¡­¡± Clover gasped out. I grimaced. ¡°How do I tell her if she dies, we¡¯re possibly throwing away our best bet in this fight? Or that her goddess might take it personally? If facing two bosses at once is a boon, I hate to see what she gives me if I got on her bad side.¡± ¡°Stop talking, Clover.¡± I muttered. ¡°L¡¯teya, I¡¯ll distract the flying boss, Ujo. You take Clover and get underneath the Stone Tortois and stay near one of its legs.. Beware of his stomping attacks. If he roars twice in a row, get out from underneath his stomach immediately. That means he¡¯s about to body slam the ground¡­ I¡¯m sure I don¡¯t need to explain to you what will happen.¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Lock Slaveborn!¡± Clover yelled, and I wanted to tell her to shut up in case it agitated the otherwise peaceful boss monsters. ¡°This is my fault¡­ just leave me.¡± Clover got to her feet, soaked in sweat. I saw the same dried blood near her ears that L¡¯teya and I had. Actually she had blood stains near her eyes, nose and mouth as well. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for me¡­ this wouldn¡¯t have happened. I¡¯ll distract the flying monster as long as I can.¡± She lifted her chin. ¡°That¡¯s the least I can do.¡± ¡°No Clover¡­ It was me. I brought us here. I was using you because I knew that a Beastman made the dungeon easier¡­ my plan just backfired.¡± Guilt and fear kept me from saying all that. ¡°Enough. We¡¯re comrades.¡± I turned away from her. ¡°Comrades don¡¯t blame someone for their problems. They work on solutions together.¡± ¡°...well said, Slaveborn.¡± L¡¯teya agreed. ¡°I am ready. My axes are yours.¡± ¡°If we get through this-¡± Clover began. ¡°Don¡¯t finish that sentence.¡± I snarled, cutting off the potential death flag that Clover had been setting up for herself. As if on cue, the two monsters roared as one and the Stone Tortoise began to lumber towards us. Thankfully it wasn¡¯t fast and I knew that L¡¯teya would have no trouble dragging Clover underneath its legs. The real problem lay with me and how long I could distract Ujo for. The creature screeched, a mixture between a squawk and the scream of a dog, taking into the air. Clang. Clang. I slammed my jagged sword against the ground multiple times, hoping to draw its attention to me and not the others. Ujo¡¯s head swirled towards me and it tucked its wings, dive bombing me. The only consolation I had in this situation was that we were in an enclosed space, which limited the Ujo¡¯s aerial attacks. Furthermore, there were pillars in all four corners of the room which I could use as a cover. Quickly rolling towards the pillars, I watched as Ujo swerved away from the pillars at the last second. I saw it swivel its head looking for me, so I continued to circle the pillar opposite of its position. But the ruse didn¡¯t last long and the creature spotted me. With its naturally high physical defense, debuff immunity and lack of ranged attacks the Ujo was a close ranged fighter. It spun around the pillar, descending towards me. ¡°Uoooooohhhhh¡± The low rumble of the Stone Tortoise followed by the sound of metal hitting stone alerted me that L¡¯teya had gotten to work on the monster¡¯s leg. ¡°I have to get over there now.¡± I eyeballed the distance between me and the Stone Tortoise, trying to see if I could make it before the Ujo could get to me. The creature had descended low enough to see me and it spread its wings, covering me in its shadow. It¡¯s long forked tongue flicked out and licked around the beak, akin to a person licking their lips before a meal. I guess I would be that meal. But I had to test out one theory. It was something only I could think of. Normally when people think of Ujo, they forgo melee attacks altogether. However, years of gaming taught me that high physical defense and status immunity to physical ailments were completely two different things. The jagged sword had left the previous monsters bleeding. With the lack of a skill to identify items, I couldn¡¯t tell if that was because of its jagged and chipped edge, or the sword itself had a [Bleed] effect. Perhaps in MSS that meant the one and the same, but the gamer instinct in me said different. ¡°Time to put it to the test.¡± A quiet voice in the back of my mind told me that I was getting too used to risking my life. But that¡¯s just how dangerous my first encounter with the real dungeon of MSS was. I ducked low into a ball. I¡¯m sure that a better swordsman might have been able to lower their stance and slash the creature¡¯s underbelly as it swerved by. But at this point with my skills, all I could do was ball up, roll forward and get back up on my feet. ¡°Shit, too late.¡± I had been hoping to get up fast enough to catch the creature¡¯s back, but I was too slow and the Ujo was too fast. ¡°C¡¯mon, c¡¯mon c¡¯mon.¡± I waited for the next attack pattern. The Ujo would either do another dive bombing attack or resort to a ranged attack. ¡°Dive bomb me. C¡¯mon. Give me a dive bomb.¡± My heart beat with both fear and excitement. I knew from the first attempt that rolling wouldn¡¯t let me strike the creature even if I had a thousand years. The only chance I had of making contact with my sword was simply ducking low and holding my sword up, letting the Ujo¡¯s momentum do the work for me. But the risk was great. If I ducked too low, the monster would adjust its flight trajectory to hit me. Too late and I¡¯d be skewered by its beak or claws. I had to get the timing just right. The Ujo didn¡¯t disappoint me, it tucked its wings in at ceiling height and spun-tumbled towards me. ¡°Not yet, not yet, not yet.¡± There definitely must have been a stat related to combat that the Gacha Cat¡¯s Spirit Core boosted because time seemed to slow in moments like these. My bet was on [Reflex] but now wasn¡¯t the time to find out. The creature was close enough for me to reach out with my sword and stab it if I wanted to. But that¡¯d fix the blade in Ujo''s body and I¡¯d definitely be on the losing side of the following tussle. But it was so close¡­ I chickened out and rolled forward. ¡°Fuck!¡± I stood up and spun around at the last second, even though I knew that I missed the timing completely. ¡°Slaveborn!¡± I turned to look at Lety and Clover. Lety was struggling against the Stone Tortoise, chopping away at its legs but getting out of the way every time it stomped. Clover was up on her feet now and was trying to do something with her hands? I saw bits of mana that pulsed off of her. If she was going to cast something though, now was definitely the moment. Anything would help. But neither of them had said my name. They were both busy. So then what did? ¡°Oh shi-¡± The Ujo did a fly by, slowing down in front of me and moving its talons like razors in front of me. I realized it a split second too late and it shredded my armor, leaving long bleeding gashes over my shoulder and arm. Luckily, it was my left arm but I reflexively raised it, forgetting that I had no shield. It flew by, leaving me soaked in my own blood. ¡°Slaveborn! Slaveborn! Slaveborn!¡± The creature¡¯s eyes narrowed in cruel joy, its beak continuing to chant my name. Then it landed on the nearest pillar, hugging it with its claw-tipped wing joints. Bringing its hindlegs close to its beak, the Ujo licked my blood off using the long flickering tongue. It began to shudder. I didn¡¯t know that the eyes of a hawk could roll back like that in pleasure. I had been too impatient and too scared. It had been almost impossible for me to make the correct decision simply because of nerves. I was feeling the physical effects of my emotions as well. My body was trembled with both shock from pain and nervousness. ¡°Again.¡± I muttered. I should have ran back to the Stone Tortoise by now. But if I couldn''t figure out a way for us to damage it, there was no point. This was my job and my responsibility, I had to find a way for us to kill this creature. ? Clover Weinport has cast [Sharpened Senses] ? ?[Reflex] raised by 5 ? ?[Proprioception] raised by 5 ? ?[Sight] raised by 5 ? ?[Hearing] raised by 5 ? ?[Smell] raised by 5 ? I felt it the moment Clover succeeded in casting her spell. Flickering lights of green descended over me and disappeared as soon as they touched skin. I had no idea what she cast or what it did, all I knew was that everything felt crystal clear. The moment that the Ujo started flapping its wings to take off, I was already in position at the base of the pillar. With me being so close to the pillar, it would limit the Ujo¡¯s options to adjust its attack last second. ¡°One by one. Eliminate its choices.¡± I lowered my body slowly, leaning forward like I was about to run. The Ujo could fly up to me and try to slash me with its talons instead of dive bombing me. But I made myself smaller, looking like I could hide behind the pillar at any moment. It had only one move in its arsenal that could hit me fast enough before I took cover. ¡°Come foul creature.¡± Interesting choice of wording on my part. Perhaps Arrosh had rubbed off on me permanently. Then I touched the wound on my open shoulder with my sword and splashed my blood into the air. The blood must have been the last straw because it dived toward me, screaming my name. I saw how its tongue was lolling back out of its beak in excitement. The way the pupils dilated as the creature shot towards me. Even the way the wings tucked in tighter to speed its descent, to get to me even a second faster was pronounced. I realized why I had chickened out before. Before, everything had been a blur but I now recognized that I was scared of this man-sized creature built to hunt humans. Its beak was designed to rip apart meat while its tongue could lap up any pools of blood. Sharp talons to wound us, with powerful wings to carry us away to its lair. It was one of those things that caused an instinctual fear in people, because it was ingrained in our genes. But now I knew what it was. Fear is always the most powerful when it¡¯s veiled in shadow, not so much when you get a closer look at it. For the umpteenth time, I cast my fear aside. My legs bent even lower, bringing my chest close to the ground. In a feat of supernatural flexibility, my spine twisted so that my chest was almost facing upwards. The bristly fur on Ujo¡¯s neck slashed my face, leaving miniature cuts over my skin. But the stinging sensation was compartmentalized and thrown away for the sake testing out this one theory. I stabbed the creature¡¯s belly with my sword. As soon as the tip of the blade made contact with the creature, the flow of time returned. The creature turned into a blur and shot into the air, out of my sight. Its own momentum should had caused the blade to cut into its stomach. All I had to do was keep my sword upright. I was doubtful whether it perked skin and was readying to repeat the maneuver when I heard a the clear sound of liquid dropping onto the floor. In my head I knew that my maneuver had done no real damage to the monster. Yet the creature was bleeding from a shallow cut on its stomach. It was not immune to status ailments. The creature was susceptible to [Bleed]. And if it could bleed... it could be killed. I readied my sword.
Chapter 22: Desolate Sands (12)
World: MSS - Loading... "Thoughts" "Speech"
L¡¯teya, fourth daughter of Agad was tired. They had spent this entire day hunting monsters out in the desert, these giant monsters called Agwi. They had been fun to hunt initially, but when the orc child ordered them to hunt more it irked her. Then they were beset by a group of humans who attacked with no warning like the cowards that they were. Everyone knew that proper combat was done by introducing oneself to your opponents first. Not knowing your enemy¡¯s name made for poor storytelling later. She knew that her enemies were human even before they met the dagger-wielding assassin. Only humans would attack like that, or at least that¡¯s what her tribe believed. In the Delirious Jungle, her tribe kept mostly to themselves, shunning any contact with outsiders. Yet that suffocating attitude was exactly what caused her brother to leave and get himself captured by the orcs. ¡°Possibly captured. Not sure yet.¡± Atleast that¡¯s what the rest of her siblings believed. But that¡¯s how life was like in the Delirious Jungle. Missing people were a daily occurence. Monsters were growing stronger and human expansion was growing more aggressive. Gone were the days when warchiefs spoke to each other face to face. Now, it was all these fancy men in fancy clothing with long-worded messages going back and forth. Just what part of ¡®Stay out of our land¡¯ was so hard to understand for humans? Her brother had pressed the elders to join the Jayu States. Altan, the first son of Agad. Her brother, the strongest warrior in the tribe. The one who should have become the next chief. Altan had hope. He had a vision, he had goals and a plan for how to achieve them. Altan wasn¡¯t like the rest of them. He was smart. He was strong. He was capable. He had been the leader for their generation. ¡°But the stupid ass got himself caught by the damned orcs.¡± Lety channeled her anger into her strike, hacking at the creature¡¯s legs. The Stone Tortoise lifted up its leg and stomped hard on the ground. L¡¯teya dodged out of the way, driving her axes into the ground to stop herself from being blown away or knocked down. Everytime the creature stomped with one of its massive feet, the floor shook beneath her, threatening to unbalance her. ¡°L¡¯teya!¡± Clover put both palms face out towards the elf-barbarian. Greenish mana swirled from her hands and shot towards the elf-barbarian like vines, wrapping around her. Surprisingly, there was no weight to them and the mana faded as soon as it touched her skin. Some of the elf-barbarians bruises disappeared and L¡¯teya¡¯s knee stopped aching.. That brought her back to the current predicament, trapped in a dungeon with a beastwoman and a human. Despite not having had the blessing of being born as barbarians, Clover and Lock were her precious friends. ¡°Comrades.¡± She corrected herself, remembering Lock¡¯s words from earlier. Lety dashed to another leg and began hacking at it; her mismatching axes trying to pry underneath the stone scale of this creature. ¡°FOR HONOR!¡± She yelled her battlecry, something that Altan had taught her to do when feeling overwhelmed. Lock reminded her of her brother. L¡¯teya continued to hack away at the Stone Tortoise, unaware that some of the wounds were starting to bubble and leak green. The Core that she absorbed from the Death Worm was full at work, coating her axes in venom. But she felt the recesses of her soul beginning to grow empty, soon she¡¯d have nothing left. But she wouldn¡¯t give up. Not as long as Clover and Lock were by her side. Meanwhile, the Stone Tortoise¡¯s scales were slowly turning green.
¡°Slaveborn! Slaveborn! Slaveborn!¡± The Ujo twisted its body in ecstasy, screaming my name like a lover caught in the throes of pleasure. I was long beyond caring, mostly because my body was in tatters. After realizing that the monster was susceptible to the [Bleed] effect, I continued to bait out its dive bombing attack. If I could stack enough of the status effects, I could possibly get it to phase two myself. Initially, I had been afraid that its ability to copy speech was a sign of higher intelligence. But the Ujo must have inherited its IQ from its avian-ancestry because it fell to my tactics again and again. But my body was growing tired. The health potions only healed wounds, it didn¡¯t erase the fatigue that was building up both physically and mentally. I made a few mistakes and that caused me to be in the state I was in now. My left arm was no longer moving; it was just a lump of flesh with the whites of my bone showing. My face had been rubbed raw from the creature¡¯s bristly fur. Each time I dodged its diving attack, I had to twist my body at an unnatural angle and my face would rub against it. Additionally, my hamstrings and back were starting to seize up. But if I cramped up during a maneuver¡­ ¡°It¡¯s coming!¡± I baited out another dive roll and once again, survived the ordeal. Blood fell freely from my head but so did the wounds from the creature¡¯s stomach. Shallow as they were, they were still wounds inflicted with [Bleed]. The Ujo did not have a strong enough regeneration factor to overcome it. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°It¡¯s possible. Just phase two and I¡¯ll take cover underneath the tortoise.¡± I gritted my teeth, inching my way towards the pillar. ¡°Lock! Help!¡± That definitely didn¡¯t come from the Ujo so I spared a moment to look at where the tortoise was, trying to find Clover. The tortoise had shifted its colors from stone-gray to toxic green. Its shell was starting to radiate a gas of the same color, and I knew that it had to be poison. It must have been using its active ability, [Store Damage], followed up by [Damage Discharge]. The Stone Tortoise could absorb damage at a reduced rate for an amount of time then create an moat around itself using the nature of that damage. It only worked with elemental type damage and being the fool that I am, I sent Lety, a poison user. ¡°Shit.¡± I had to get over there and help. If it used the combination, the Stone Tortoise must be in Phase 2. I had underestimated Lety¡¯ damage output. L¡¯teya¡¯s skin was spotted with green and quickly turned black. I saw her leap out of the way, getting out of the poison fog. Whatever Oung had done to Clover though, it must have rendered her immune to the poison. Her clothes were starting to slough off, but her skin remained healthy. L¡¯teya should have some natural immunity to poison thanks to [Death Worm], but the Stone Tortoise was a whole grade higher and a boss-class monster. ¡°Slaveborn!¡± The Ujo got my attention again and I saw the creature dive bombing me. My concentration was broken and I couldn¡¯t bring myself to react in time. I did my all to roll forward trying to avoid its aerial strike. Regardless I felt its bristly fur scratch the entirety of my back; a feeling akin to carpet burn and splinters all at once. I got to my feet and started running in the direction of the other battle. Since the Ujo could be affected by status ailments, the poison should work. I pumped my legs, sprinting faster than ever at the growing cloud of poison. Clover dragged Lety away, holding her by the arms. Lety¡¯s usually tanned skin was mostly black now. To my relief, Clover¡¯s hands glowed with green mana and I saw that the spot where she touched, Lety''s skin began to return to normal. I left the two to heal, hoping that the Ujo wouldn¡¯t change directions towards them. ¡°Blood.¡± I was covered in it, and the Ujo would follow me. True to my theory, I heard the flapping of its leathery wings and the Ujo was flying right above me. It hissed, then flew on ahead to try and cut me off. Just as it did so, I felt the world lose a little of its light. The torch lights weren¡¯t as bright and the flaps of the Ujo¡¯s wings weren¡¯t as loud. Even the scent of my blood, sickly sweet, was absent. ¡°Clover¡¯s buff ran out.¡± My body was spent but I wasn¡¯t out of tricks just yet. Right as Ujo rounded and faced me, it slashed out with its talons. I immediately imagined a coin being flipped. I was using [Coin Toss], the only shitty ability I had at the moment. Except instead of casting it on myself, I cast it on Ujo. ¡°Please, please please. Oung, if you¡¯re fucking listening make this work.¡± It was a gamble, but that was how desperate I was. It honestly didn¡¯t matter what stat my coin toss ability decreased for the creature, Ujo''s passive [Arcane Masochism] would always cancel out a debuff. In addition, the passive would then raise one of the three main factors that were crucial for close-ranged battle: speed, attack or defense. For characters, or for the people of MSS, it was nearly impossible to raise these stats directly. Most of them depended on hidden stats like handicraft or movement speed, and the other on equipment. This was one of the reasons why fighting a Ujo with lower leveled party was so difficult. It could dodge magical attacks and was almost impervious to physical ones. To boot, any debuff would make it stronger in a close ranged battle. But not every buff was necessarily was a good thing. I had a 33% of my gamble succeeding. ? Lock Slaveborn has cast [Coin Toss] ? ?[Smell] has been decreased ? ?[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Coin Toss] ? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]? Bluish light glowed briefly on the creature before it turned yellow, indicating that my coin toss had been successfully canceled by its passive. I didn''t have time to stand there and watch though.The Ujo sped up so fast that if it continued the trajectory it would crash into the floor and my heart did a little dance. The creature landed a moment later, albeit in a controlled manner. It used its talons to slow down, leaving long grooves in the marble. But the creature, naturally averse to landing and having to navigate on its own two legs, flapped its wings to take flight. I couldn''t manage something like a controlled strike before. The flying beast was moving way too fast and I''m ashamed to admit I ended up closing my eyes at the last second. But I thrust forward with my sword and felt it catch on something. ¡°Slaveborn!¡± It screeched, a fresh cut decorating its wings, dripping blood. Inflicting the wounds themselves didn¡¯t do any damage. They were too shallow for that. But the bleeding¡­ The creature was bleeding enough to fill a bathtub in seconds. As much as I wanted to stay and contemplate the effectiveness of a Bleed-build on a creature who was practically immune to physical-type damage, I forced myself to move. Clover had dragged L¡¯teya away and the poison was almost gone from the elf-barbarian¡¯s skin. I saw L¡¯teya try to get up but she was so weakened that Clover could just push her down and shove more healing mana into her. Clover didn¡¯t look so good either. Her clothes had been sloughed off and anywhere else, I would have offered her my armor. Her skin had lost all color and I saw that she still bore the aftereffects of Oung¡¯s treatment. It was a miracle that she had somehow learned to heal and cast buffs. ¡°Could it be that she¡¯s talented?¡± I reached the Stone Tortoise, stopping right at the edge of the poison cloud. Oung had called this a boon. Initially I had thought about it as a curse¡­ but was it really? These trials, what were they for? Of course Clover became a priestess. Hooray. But so what? These trials¡­ Oung¡¯s Trials to be exact, they were testing us. And this boon was the same. Oung had to be helping us in some sick, divine way. That meant that there had to be a way out of this situation. She didn¡¯t call this a boon for Clover, her priestess. Child of Blood and Mana, the way that humans were referred to. Then Child of Leaf and Star, the way she referred to elves. Then she said this was a boon for us. Did a goddess really act on such whims? Such understandable uni-lateral dimensions? No¡­ it wasn¡¯t just a boon. In this final trial, Clover had unlocked her spells but none of them had been that impressive. They were all standard Priestess toolkits. Maybe she needed to be pushed. Or maybe all this in my head was me trying to stall. ¡°I¡¯m gambling with my life again.¡± I wanted to blame this on the Beckoning Cat. The flapping of wings alerted me back to the present. ¡°BEHIND YOU LOCK!¡± Clover¡¯s voice warned me. I knew even without turning around that the Ujo had curled himself up, dive bombing me once more. Now was the time. I had no room to fail. ¡°This is going to hurt.¡± I ran inside the poisonous mist under the Stone Tortoise¡¯s legs and the Ujo screamed as it followed me in.
Kyrian Tricilan pored over the beastman script on the doorway. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Abay muttered. He sat with his back against the wall, a wet towel over his eyes. He had poured healing potions over his amputated fingers but still felt them ache. He cursed the priestess for leaving without healing his fingers and wondered how many coins he¡¯d have to pay. Then his thoughts strayed to ripping apart the black-haired slave and having his way with the two women who were with him. If Kyrian knew the rage that dwelled underneath Abay¡¯s tone, he gave no indication. He continued to study the writing, not deigning to dignify Abay with an answer. ¡°I don¡¯t care what you do. Just make sure that the two women are-¡± ¡°I said I understood the first three times you said it.¡± Kyrian snapped. He was bothered by Abay¡¯s tastes and behavior, but as a mercenary himself didn¡¯t want to talk too much about it. But the way Abay was so relentless in confirming their verbal agreement was sickening. Kyrian told himself that if the chance came, he¡¯d finish the slaves with his spells so as to keep them out of Abay¡¯s hands. He was a mercenary, but even he could show mercy to another person. Not like Abay could do anything to him anyways. Try as Abay might, Kyrian was a mage and was certain of his strength. Even if they were in an enclosed alcove like this one, there was plenty of moisture in the air to boost his lightning spells. If Abay tried to do something to him out of anger, Kyrian would just fry him and leave the body here. ¡°But then I¡¯d have to explain why he died to the Akka Xaluds.¡± He didn¡¯t want to do that. So he focused on opening the door. The sooner they got this over with, the better he would feel. ¡°Mana will light the way¡­¡± He muttered. ¡°Hey, do you have anything to eat? How about a story?¡± Abay laughed darkly. ¡°Surely I¡¯m the the only one thirsting with nothing to eat in this desert.¡± It was all too obvious that Abay wasn¡¯t talking about food. Kyrian did as the tablet said, and poured mana into the door. His bluish mana filled the gaps and the door lit up with light. One particular pattern caught his eye, not in the door itself but on the wall next to it. A perfect rectangle outlined by his mana, amidst an unassuming cave wall. Kyrian pressed it. Click. Grr-grr-grr The door opened. Abay stood up eagerly, his eyes alight with ugly rage. The mage sighed. He promised the Three gods that he would try his best to give them a quick death, but wasn''t sure of his ability to deliver. Mercy was a luxury for those with power.
Chapter 23: Desolate Sands (13)
World: MSS - Loading... "Thoughts" "Speech"
I couldn¡¯t just dodge out of the way and hope that the Ujo followed me in. I needed to be in the poison cloud myself, ensuring that the monster became intoxicated. What I hadn¡¯t expected was for the creature to fly without slamming into the ground or the underbelly of the stone tortoise, shooting towards me like a bullet. I fell flat to the floor, my limbs sprawled out. The Ujo slammed into one of the pillar-like legs and fell. It shook its head vigorously and began to sneeze. My [Bleed] stacks were still active and the poison was seeping into the wounds now. The same could be said for me though, my vision was already blurring. The Stone Tortoise roared and stomped down on the still dazed Ujo. There was no crunch of bone breaking, just a animalistic squeal as the creature fell flat to the floor. The Stone Tortoise stomped on the Ujo repeatedly. I felt someone grab me by the arms and drag me out, navigating through the chaos. There was a burning sensation in my throat and it worsened everytime I tried to take a breath. I began to hack and cough as warmth began spreading through my body. There was someone speaking rapidly next to my ear but I couldn¡¯t catch it above the Stone Tortoise¡¯s roar, the sound of its stomping and the Ujo''s frenzied screaming. I didn¡¯t dare tear my eyes away from the two monsters; waiting for the sign that my plan had worked. The Ujo¡¯s claws toe into the already open gashes left by L¡¯teya. If the creature knew that it was poisoned, it did not care. The clawed-bird tore open the wound wider and started to rip off chunks of flesh with the surrounding stone scales, its long tongue flicking out to taste flecks of blood. The Stone Tortoise however was the opposite, it went mad with pain and began stomping. Finally it used the move I had told L¡¯teya to watch out for, its legs withdrew into the shell. Without its pillars, the tortoises body fell on its assailant. Too bad that the Ujo was immune to physical damage at this point. The creature got back up, unphased and continued to tear into the tortoise. My head was drooping and I saw Lety¡¯s shoes enter my field of vision. Though it took more effort than expected, I raised my head to look at Clover and Lety. ?Clover Weinport casts [Enhanced Regeneration] ? ?Clover Weinport casts [Detoxify] ? I felt my wounds close up little by little. They were still green and bubbling, though even that was starting to recede. Examining my body, I saw that there was no black spots and neither did L¡¯teya. ¡°What next Slaveborn.¡± She had just been on the brink of death but the fire in her eyes did not go out. I looked at the poisonous cloud and the two creatures fighting within. The Stone Tortoise had already entered phase 3, there were stone pieces orbiting around its shell. They weren¡¯t just orbiting, but moved on the same planar axis that the tortoise¡¯s shell did, adding a complexity to its movements. This kept the Ujo from flying away; keeping the creature caged in. The [Bleed] and [Poisoned] status effects had successfully stacked; Ujo had entered its phase two. ¡°Heal me.¡± I muttered to Clover. ¡°What?¡± ?Ujo casts [Hateful Wound] ? All the wounds that were still open on me spurted blood and grew in size instantly. Shallow cuts grew deeper and wider, revealing soft tissue. Some lacerations grew enough to show the bone beneath, where I could reach in and grab my skeleton if I wanted. The pain was almost unbearable and I screamed for the hundredth time today. Was it even the same day? Clover pumped me so full of mana that I felt it in my blood streams. This body didn¡¯t have a talent for mana control, being a mage was out of the question. But I did have some sort of Mana Sense because whenever Clover used basic mana techniques to enhance her hearing or boost her physical strength; I could tell. For me and L¡¯teya this strengthening process happened more naturally. I remember Arrosh telling me not to bother yet as my body was utilizing it naturally and it¡¯d be awhile before I could grow enough of a mana pool to control it. Perhaps Clover really was talented and that was why she drew Oung¡¯s attention, not just her heritage as a beastman. Clover fought to keep the wounds from widening and mostly succeeded. I knew that the cooldown for this skill was a particularly long one, so we had some time until I had to get healed again. ¡°What was that?!¡± Clover snapped. ¡°You almost died!¡± I didn¡¯t bother asking how she could tell. Becoming a Priestess must have come with loads of benefits. ¡°Stay away from the Ujo. It¡¯s already poisoned. Focus on the Stone Turtle.¡± I stood up. ¡°Clover¡­ conserve your mana. When it uses that ability again, I might die for real this time.¡± The only good thing about [Hateful Wound] was that it wasn¡¯t targeted: anything that the Ujo wounded within range would be affected. The Stone Tortoise had been affected as well. I looked at the scene. The Stone Tortoise slamming the ground with its [Body Slam] and its [Stone Orbit] keeping the Ujo caged in. The grade-8 monster had expelled all the poison though, the poison mist was gone. The Ujo flew around the stones, getting slammed by them occasionally but taking no damage. It hissed and continued to yell my name, darting in to rip the scales off of the tortoise. Now that they were in their final phases and pitted against each other, we could finish the fight. There were no more tricks or strategy I could implement. There was only one thing left to do now. ¡°Now we just have to beat the shit out of them.¡± I ran in with L¡¯teya. I immediately got knocked back by the resulting shockwave from the Stone Tortoises body slam but darted back in. 1 minute. It was difficult to get the Ujo¡¯s attention again but as soon as it saw me, it dive bombed me like a starstruck lover. I misjudged the timing of my dodge and ended up slamming into one of the Stone Tortoises rocks, my wounds opening back up. 3 minutes. The Stone tortoise used a body slam again and both L¡¯teya and I got knocked away. Clover spammed her heal spell, keeping us energized just barely enough to jump back into the fray. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. 5 minutes. ?Ujo casts [Hateful Wound] ? I fell unconscious. 10 minutes. I was brought out of the battle by L¡¯teya but she suffered a broken arm while shielding me from a falling stone. Clover tried to close all my wounds but I told her don¡¯t bother and went to open up some more [Bleed] wounds on the Ujo. 13 minutes. Clover was getting better at healing because L¡¯teya¡¯s arm was fixed. L¡¯teya hacked away at the Stone Tortoise¡¯s leg and the creature fell to that side, the limb black from rot. No more body slams. 15 minutes. Another [Hateful Wound]. Clover had closed most of my wounds though and I only blacked out for a second or two. I woke up to see Ujo ripping off a strip of flesh from my ribs. I stabbed it in the eye with my jagged sword. 16 minutes. L¡¯teya suffered a head injury and I had to pull her out. The Stone Tortoise had lost all of its limbs now; lying on the floor helpless. This distracted the Ujo enough for Clover to take care of L¡¯teya and for me to bathe myself in healing potions. I shouldn¡¯t have because I screamed and caught the monster¡¯s attention. 20 minutes. I spent precious few minutes luring the Ujo back to the Stone Tortoise again. Another [Hateful Wound] caused me to fall to my knees. The Ujo actually had its beaks around my neck when L¡¯teya grabbed the things¡¯s head and shoved her fists into its eyes, blinding it. 26 minutes. The Stone Tortoise died, its body fading into light. I dragged the half-dead L¡¯teya and threw her to the Spirit Core that dropped. I had a feeling that the Goddess Oung¡¯s Boon would be the core of these two monsters. 29 minutes. I wanted to give up and contemplated whether I would return to the real world if I died. I told myself to stop being pathetic and dodged the dive bombing attacks by the Ujo. 30 minutes. Another fucking [Hateful Wound]. But L¡¯teya was healed up by Clover which was the good news. The bad news? Our only healer was now unconscious from mana exhaustion, while I lay on the floor bleeding out. 31 minutes. Before L¡¯teya could get to me, the Ujo landed and pinned me to the floor with its two legs. Then it reached down and ripped off my hand. It wasn¡¯t my sword hand. I tried to slash it and made contact, but the creature was bleeding from so many wounds that I couldn¡¯t even tell if I made another [Bleed] stack or not. 33 minutes. I started crawling towards Clover with one hand. My legs weren¡¯t working. L¡¯teya was locked in single combat with the Ujo. She wasn¡¯t as quick or nimble as I was; everytime the creature dive bombed her she took wounds. But L¡¯teya must have been just as talented as Clover was; she used the Stone Tortoises¡¯ core ability right away, creating rings of stone orbiting around her. It synergized with her [Death Worm] core, the stones were coated in poison. 35 minutes. Holy shit, another [Hateful Wound]. I stopped trying to crawl with my hand, it was a mangled mess. I bit down on the ground and made my way towards Clover, using my teeth. I could only hope that L¡¯teya was ok. If she fell, we were dead. 39 minutes. I barely made any ground towards Clover. My tooth fell out somewhere along the way and I resorted to using my chin to keep crawling. If the Ujo bit off my legs would I be able to crawl faster since I had less weight? Clover¡¯s eyes stirred and when she opened them, they weren¡¯t the mismatched pair of sheep and human eyes anymore. They were both sheep. 40 minutes. The cooldown for [Hateful Wound] must have been over, because I heard the creature yell my name and feel my wounds start to widen. But Clover released a wave of mana that enveloped me and held back the blood. It let me stand up shakily and look for my sword. I saw L¡¯teya latched on the creature¡¯s back, hacking at its wings. 42 minutes. I couldn¡¯t find my sword, too much blood and noise. I just stumbled over to L¡¯teya and Ujo, who were wrestling on the ground. I fell on its back and started to bite its neck. God, it was pathetic how every time I was backed into a corner I could do nothing but just bite like a toddler. 44 minutes. Clover joined in, holding my sword in her hand. Finally, the creature vomited a mixture of blood and poison. In its death throes it smacked L¡¯teya and Clover with its wings, sending them flying. I clung on, stabbing my stump of a wrist into its beak for grip. I screamed with it. The creature finally died¡­ and just like I expected, dropped a Spirit Core. I absorbed it before anyone else could. We survived.
¡°What happened here?¡± Kyrian Tricilan looked at the wreckage in the dungeon. The floor was caved in, revealing a massive hole that led to a subterranean level. He peered inside but saw nothing. His inquisitive nature wanted to go down there and check out what was there, but there was a sinister edge to the mana lingering in this place. He stayed above and quickly turned away from the opening. The large pillars were ominous, the torches on them creating strange shadows. It had been awhile since Kyrian entered a dungeon with a properly outfitted party. He felt a pang of regret at joining this expedition. The money was good and it funded his research as a mage; but he missed adventuring. To stay in the magic tower he needed money or academic results; both of which could be solved by hiring himself out to the Akka Xaluds expedition in the Samak Desert. ¡°Hurry, mage.¡± Abay Munet was walking ahead of him, walking down the hallways with large steps. The man¡¯s bird-like features were even more pronounced by the torches. His hook nose mimicking the silhouette of a bird¡¯s beak in the shadows and his abnormally long arms with the cloak around them creating the illusion of wings. Kyrian imagined this man descending like a vulture among the slaves who were no doubt injured and tired. ¡°How fitting.¡± Kyrian followed, trying to look for the slaves first. He¡¯d hold true to ihs promise to the gods and- Step Step Step Step The mage froze and so did Abay Munet. Three figures walked out of the darkness, coming into the torche¡¯s light. An unconscious woman with tanned skin and curly black hair was being carried. Her body was scarred all over, evidence of fresh healing. Her pointed ears identified her as an elf and even Kyrian could see why Abay desired her; years of training in whatever martial arts left her body toned. But right now, she was barely hanging on. Her breathing was ragged and thin. Following behind the woman was a beastwoman with pink hair. Kyrian was unsettled by her pretty face, marred by the sheep-like visage that her horns and eyes created. One of her horns had been broken and only a stump remained on the top of her head. She walked behind the elf-woman and the man carrying her, holding two axes close to her chest. The man carrying the elf-barbarian was in the worst shape by far. One of his hands was missing at the elbow and blood covered him. Kyrian couldn¡¯t tell whether this was a human or an exceptionally well-made [Blood Golem]. But golems didn¡¯t breathe and every time the man took an unsteady step, more blood leaked out of his mouth. His black hair was matted to his forehead, neck and head, tangled in open wounds that were starting to fester. He was piggy backing the elf-woman with his stump arm. In the other, he held a jagged katana, a tool made to make his opponents suffer before they died. All three of them had manacles around their necks, marking them as slaves of the Samak Horde. ¡°Move.¡± The man whispered. His voice came out as a rasp. "Think rationally. They''re just slaves. There''s no way that what I''m sensing is real." Kyrian was a careful man by nature, his bastard upbringing had made sure of that. He reached out with his mana sense, trying to get a sense of the three in front of him. Kyrian took a step back as something foreign and other worldly forcibly severed his connection. He wanted to try again, to check if it was a fluke but found himself stepping aside. It wasn¡¯t just the man¡¯s demeanor that made Kyrian hesitate. It was the look in the man¡¯s eyes¡­ no, not the look of them, but the very air around the man. The air of absolute Will, that nothing will get in his way. Complete trust in his own sense of self and the willingness to follow it through. Just like the scions of the Great Houses. Just like the Akka Xaluds who were plotting to overtake this desert. Abay stepped up, breaking the tension. ¡°You-¡± ¡°Abay, no!¡± Kyrian yelled. The man reacted instantly and his sword flashed, striking Abay Munet in the chest with a simple stab. Abay¡¯s dagger had been an inch away from stabbing into the slaves eyes. [Jackpot!] One second, Abay''s chest was whole and the next, there was a hole in it. Kyrian could see through the man''s body, a corpse now. On the other side of the hole was the black-haired slave, staring at him with the same expression as before. "Move." He repeated. Kyrian stepped aside, looking at the ground. He let the three of them go, or maybe it''d be more correct to say that they let him go.
That night Kyrian reported to his superiors about the slaves he saw and their strength. How one of them killed Abay Munet with a single blow. It caused a stir in the camp. Abay Munet didn''t have a great reputation but his strength wasn''t to be ignored. A full-fledged adventurer losing not once, but twice to a slave? News soon spread through the camp. These men had already been out in the Desolate Sands and parts of the Samak Bluffs, having captured slaves and slain their orc captors. But none of the slaves they had encountered or even an orc for that matter, had been at that level. Some men reacted with disbelief, believing that Kyrian must have been exaggerating. However enough people knew enough of Kyrian to believe the mage''s words, that there must be a slave of extraordinary potential in the Samak Horde''s city. It got the higher-ups excited about what other secrets the slaves of the Samak Horde could be holding. The stronger a slave, the higher they could set the price. A spy from the Jayu States heard of this slave and sent out a message bird into the night air . The Jayu Colosseum would have to get their hands on these slaves before anyone else, lest they pay a premium. After all, a talented slave with a good story was always a welcome addition to their ever-growing collection of gladiators. Buying from the Samak Horde and the Turina Empire''s slave traders were always a last resort: it was cheaper to get the slaves themselves. A traveling orc merchant heard the news on the wind and saw that the direction of the future was changing. She smiled, knowing that the future was as malleable as the shifting sands on her beloved desert. It really didn''t matter to her who bought the slaves; the Great Houses of the Turina Empire of the Jayu State. All she cared about was coin. She went on her way towards the Samak Horde, with her own stock of slaves. They''d have to host the auction a little earlier than planned but all was according to plan.
Name: Lock Slaveborn Race: Human Age: 24
Level: 19 Stats [Physical]: 12 Notable [Physical] Hidden-Stats: Handicraft, Sight, Hearing, Reflex, Proprioception, Flexibility, Hunger [Mental]: 8 (7 + 1) Notable [Mental] Hidden-Stats: Risk-Inclination, Willpower, Obsession, Bloodlust
Spirit Cores Slots Available: 0 Spirit Cores [ Lucky Beckoning Cat ] - Grade 8 [ Ujo ] - Grade 7 (Boss Class) Skills [Cut] Achievements [Sword Saint Candidate] [Reflection of Divinity] (1/6) Chapter 24: Captive (1)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
¡°Dad? Are you home?¡± The young man called out, opening the door to a small studio apartment. He retrieved the keys from the lock and shoved it in his pocket. He wore a brown blazer with matching slacks, the outfit completed with a button-down white collared shirt and brown tie. It was the uniform for his private school. Yet unlike his peers, there was no swiss-made watch on his wrist. His cufflinks were made of neither gold nor silver, no fancy design . Just plain plastic. Right now the latest fashion trend among the students were tie clips. Tie clips studded with diamonds for those who wanted something flashy, made of classic gold but engraved with their family initials for the ones who wanted to be fashionable but still fly under the radar. He didn¡¯t have any tie clips either. Upon a closer look, the young man¡¯s clothes were wrinkled and disheveled. Most of his peers got their dry cleaned everyday as a service at whatever high-rise apartment or hotel suite they stayed at. The boy had been ironing his own uniform for years now; yet his skill with the craft didn¡¯t increase at all over the years. It earned him more than a few snickers when walking down the hallways. He was used to it by now though. He walked into the studio, looking at the mess. Empty beer bottles and soda cans were strewn about. Newspapers and half-scrawled notes lay on the coffee table which should have been clear of clutter. There was a dirty little mattress on it with an equally dirty blanket. All the signs of his dad were here, but the man himself wasn¡¯t. Han walked through the studio, picking up trash and putting books into neat little organized piles. From the look of things, it wasn¡¯t the first time he cleaned this apartment. He fought down the familiar surge of frustration. None of his friends had to do this. They had a housestaff. Yet he should. His dad was never the same after the divorce. If Han didn¡¯t drop by once in awhile¡­ He sighed as he tossed a soda can he assumed was empty and a bit of it got on his sleeves. ¡°Fuck!¡± He spat and kicked the garbage bag that he had been holding. Thankfully, he was too timid to do any real damage. It was more out of annoyance than real anger at his father and the situation. He knew that his parents tried their best, that it wasn¡¯t their fault the company went under. Sighing and calming himself down, he went to the bathroom to try and minimize whatever stain the drink left on his cuff. He scrubbed and scrubbed, but the stain wouldn¡¯t come out. Click There was the sound of the door being unlocked and Han heard the familiar footsteps of his dad. He didn¡¯t bother going out to greet him, getting the stain out was more important. He rubbed the bar of soap next to the sink and put some on his fingers, dabbing at the delicate material of his shirt. ¡°Han?¡± His father¡¯s voice called. ¡°Here.¡± He spoke at normal volume. It wasn¡¯t a large studio, he didn¡¯t need to talk loud. ¡°I¡¯m just cleaning up.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± His father¡¯s footsteps, approaching the bathroom. ¡°Just-¡± The bathroom door opened and Han turned to face his father. But what greeted him wasn¡¯t the middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair he had come to expect. It was a creature, a bizarre hybrid between bird and rat. Its beak opened up at the same time as it spread its wings, blocking the door way. Then the monster began to speak. ¡°Slaveborn! Slaveborn!¡± Han tried to run but there was nowhere to run. He was trapped in an arena made of blue marble. The creature lunged at him and its beak ripped open his stomach. His intestines were falling out and the creature was slurping them up. Han tried to push the creature¡¯s head away but it was too strong. At this rate-
I woke up and everything hurt. I groaned and heard the faint sound of clothes rustling as someone rushed to my side. As soon as I tried opening my eyes, the desert sun flooded them like spotlights like I was the star singer for a musical. It was too much stimulus for my damaged senses and burnt-out psyche. I closed them and let my head plop down on whatever pillow or cloth I was on. ¡°Lock?¡± It was Clover, I recognized her voice. ¡°Thirsty.¡± I said eloquently. There were some more rustling and I tried to turn my body, a fresh wave of pain spreading from... from everywhere. I groaned once more but fought through it, trying to sit up. A hand held my back in place and something cool was pressed to my lips. ¡°It¡¯s water.¡± Clover muttered. I sipped from the cup and it tasted like honey. I wanted to hold the cup with my own hands and go bottoms up but felt nothing when I tried moving them. The scene of the Ujo slurping up my intestines like spaghetti from my dream came, unbidden. Simultaneously I remembered that the creature had basically ripped off my hand. I looked down expecting to see a bloody stump and was pleasantly surprised to see the appendage still attached to my arm. Actually I wasn¡¯t sure if it was right to call it my hand per se. Compared to the skin on my body it was much paler and free of any scars. I lifted it to try and curl my fingers, but they only twitched. It was practically numb. ¡°It will take awhile to get used to.¡± Clover told me like with the tone of someone who''d been through this. ¡°Here, drink some more.¡± I had a dozen questions at the back of my throat, but my brain told me quenching my thirst was more important. Complying with Clover¡¯s orders, I finished the cup in small sips. ¡°I''m sure you have a lot of questions, let''s make sure you won''t pass out like last time." Clover said. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. While she was talking, I looked at where we were. Stone ceilings, stone floors and even the bed I was laying on was made of stone. There was a thin blanket on top of me, stained yellow and brown with grease. I was back in the slave barracks. In my head, I knew we spent one day in the dungeon but my mind processed it as weeks. It was jarring to go so quickly from fighting for my life with the Ujo and being reminded that nothing had changed at all about my situation. But I did remember absorbing the Ujo''s Core and clenched my fist beneath the blankets. Maybe I could get us all out of here? A Boss-class grade-7 Core was nothing to sneeze at. ¡°You''ve been going in and out of consciousness. To be honest, it was all I could do to keep you from... from being gone.¡± She sighed, her voice tired. "I don''t know how but we managed to get back here. From what I hear, it was you who basically carried L''teya and I back." ¡°How long was I out?¡± I decided not to interrupt and kept listening. ¡°From what I heard, we weren''t the only ones who were attacked. Most of the slaves who went out didn''t make it back... and the ones who did make it back are heavily wounded. The orcs were refusing to treat the wounded for awhile... and still are.¡± That made no sense. I clearly remembered my hand being torn off during the fight. There was no way for my hand to grow back with out a proper healer in town. Only a priestess could work a healing of that sort. I raised the numb limb in question, raising an eyebrow at her. ¡°It was tough.¡± She said with a smile. ¡°Holy shit. Priestess for less than a day and she can regrow limbs already? Isn¡¯t she a cheat character by herself?¡± I didn¡¯t voice my opinion, opting to nod and waiting for Clover to continue. A severed limb could only be regrown by a dedicated healer, like a Cleric or a priestess, and only by a talented one I might add. There were lots of times when I recruited a healer into my party just to figure out that they weren¡¯t powerful enough to heal permanent injuries. The fact that Clover could do it spoke volumes about her potential. If the orcs found out... ¡°There¡¯s not a lot of information on what happened or what will happen. I think¡­ I think the orcs are on edge. There are more guards around and they¡¯re not letting us out of the barracks.¡± ¡°What about L¡¯teya? Where is she?¡± I finally asked. ¡°That¡¯s the problem.¡± Clover muttered, her tone low. ¡°They took her in for questioning two days ago. I haven''t seen her since.¡± ¡°Two days ago?¡± I frowned. ¡°How long was I out?¡± ¡°Five days.¡± ¡°Help me up.¡± I ignored the protests from my body and tried to stand but Clover pushed me down. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not well yet.¡± She snapped. ¡°Well, we can¡¯t sit around doing nothing. We have to find out what happened to L¡¯teya and what might be going on outside.¡± I had lost five days of valuable time. Right now, everything that Clover told me was pointing to the situation starting to change. It sounded like the adventurers who attacked us in the Desolate Sands weren¡¯t attacking us out of just chance or opportunity; it sounded like a coordinated effort to weaken the orcs somehow. Or theft of merchandise, I.E. the slaves. Either way, me lying here wasn¡¯t going to be of any help. ¡°You just got up Lock. You should rest.¡± She rubbed her arm. "It''s not like they''ll let us leave the barracks either. Plus you haven''t fully processed what happened to you. You almost died Lock and your body took a lot of life force to regrow that arm. You literally just regained consciousness." "Just a quick walk... I just want to make sure we''re safe." She was right though, I still hadn''t processed everything. Why the hell couldn''t I remember anything after absorbing that Core? Could Oung have something to do with it? ¡°Fine.¡± Clover said hesitantly. ¡°But as soon as you show signs of weakening¡­¡± ¡°I promise to come back.¡± This time, Clover helped me up and I got a better look at the room. Usually each rocky bed should have its own occupant, but most of them were empty. This place should have had at least 60-70 slaves if I wasn¡¯t mistaken but there were less than 20 people here. I didn¡¯t see the big scarred man nor Skaris, the lizard beastman. Just a few nameless stragglers who had failed to stand out from the crowd. ¡°How long were you waiting for me?¡± This was the men¡¯s side. Did Clover just stay here, waiting for me? She didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Come on.¡± Each step I took made me feel stronger and by the time we reached the end of the stairs, I was able to walk on my own. Stopping by the mess hall, Clover got me some food. I frowned at the thing she put in my hands. Usually we were served a piece of bread with soup, sometimes a slab of mystery meat. It wasn¡¯t the fanciest of meals but it was enough. Kind of like the school food you see on the internet. I wouldn''t know though, I went to a private school. Yet this thing she put in my hand was¡­ it was hard. It looked like a rock actually. ¡°They call it cracker stone.¡± She explained. ¡°The orcs are rationing.¡± I tried to bite into it but the thing refused to budge or crack. Actually I felt my teeth shake a bit. ¡°You have to wait for it to soften.¡± ¡°Is this what hardtack used to be like?¡± Instead of biting into it, I began to suck on the cracker stone hoping my saliva would soften it. At the end of the mess hall was the entrance where we would usually go out. Standing guard were two orcs, standing seven feet tall. They were the same grunt orcs who had been herding us around the entire time we''ve been under their care. It wasn''t like they ever mistreated us but -wait a minute- isn''t being a slave in the first place being mistreated? Maybe I was getting used to being held captive by the orcs. I really needed to get us out of this place. "Huh. Us, not just me. That''s not too bad." I contemplated a bit more, trying to gauge their strength. If they were the simple rank-and-file orcs, I probably had a chance especially with Clover by my side. Wait, was I thinking about fighting two orcs? I shook my head. ¡°And then what? You''re going to cut through the entire city of orcs with unknown strength? Get it together, gathering information comes first.¡± ¡°How long have they been there for?¡± ¡°Since we returned.¡± Clover responded, then narrowed her eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me-¡± I waved my hand negatively. ¡°Just wondering. And they took L¡¯teya two days ago?¡± Judging by the sunlight I could see through the doorway, it was still mid afternoon. ¡°They took her at night, so tonight it¡¯ll be three days. And before you ask, those orcs in the black garbs, they prowl the rooftops at night.¡± This was proving to be a more difficult situation than I thought. "Clover, I know there''s more things to talk about. But I need to know exactly what cards are in our hands. Did you happen to see what color the Core I touched was?" I asked, lowering my voice. Clover shook her head. "I don''t remember much after we slayed the final creature. I thought we all fell unconscious, but from what I hear you dragged L''teya and I through the gates, then fell unconscious. I was the first to wake up, I healed L''teya up but your wounds were... like I said, you could''ve died Lock." "Well, I didn''t." I leaned back on my haunches, debating when the best time to test my Core abilities would be. "What about your... newly founded abilities? Do the orcs know?" She shook her head. "No. I''m keeping it quiet... I couldn''t even heal you and L''teya all the time because I was doing it away from everyone''s eyes and ears." "Good. It''s good that you hid it." I relaxed. "Don''t let them find out." Clover nodded, her eyes glued to the doorway once again. "Lock." "Yes?" "How do you know all these things?" I froze. "It was always obvious. Your name especially. Lock I could understand. But Slaveborn? It''s very obviously made up." She continued. "I didn''t care too much about the name back then, it was always a matter of trust. I still trust you but..." Clover gave a little laugh, tinged with something that wasn''t herself. "Do you know I hear her voice now?" I didn''t need to ask whose voice. "You wake up from a near death experience and the first thing you try to find out is about what kind of situation we''re in. Most people would still be in bed. Then you ask me about what color Core you absorbed... Lock, normal people aren''t concerned about that. You know, I tried reading Puca''s map? I''m a merchant''s daughter and I saw hundreds of maps. It was gibberish to me. And you''re telling me you conveniently found a dungeon nearby that could hide us? Where only us three could enter?" I said nothing. "And you described Lety''s Core abilities to her like you were reading it out of a textbook. Those costs dozens, sometimes hundreds of gold." She tried to meet my eyes but I avoided it. "Tell me... who are you really? Are you some kind of noble? Or a Scion of a Great House? Are you a bastard? Is that why they sent you here?" "Why won''t you say anything?" I stayed silent. After a moment, Clover broke the tension between us with a strained smile. "I see." We had been sitting together at one of the stone tables nearby the mess hall keeping an eye on the entrance, just in case they dragged L''teya through those doors. For the first time I took a good look at Clover and her hair was disheveled, her clothes unwashed for a couple of days. Despite having only a single pair, Clover always managed to keep up a somewhat near and proper appearance, at least compared to L''teya and I. I saw that her face was gaunt and there were bags under her eyes. There were a lot of things I wanted to say but didn''t know how. How she wasn''t weak and exceptionally talented. That Oungs voice could probably be blocked out. That my real name wasn''t Lock, that my name was Han and I came from a different world. How she and L''teya were the first friends I ever made in this world. Call me a coward if you like, but I just couldn''t bring myself to say those things. I tried to think about what L''teya would do and placed my hand on her shoulder. Clover bowed her head and I pretended not to see the wet streaks on her face. Then she took her hand and placed it over mine, giving it a light squeeze. We stayed like that for awhile. I know it was trashy of me and completely out of the moment but I couldn''t help it: the thought struck me. "Wait... isn''t this kind of like... if we were kind of a thing... and things were going well between us?" I squashed that immediately and felt immense guilt. L''teya was probably being interrogated or imprisoned and here I was thinking with my pants. I felt heat rise to my cheeks from the shame and thanked all the six divine gods of MSS that Clover wasn''t looking at me. It was a stupid thought, she had just lashed out at me about whether I was someone she could trust or not. Well, she said she could trust me but... I guess it was complicated. I slowly removed my hand and Clover wiped her face using her sleeves. The orc guards must have noticed out little spat but didn''t bother saying anything. As long as we didn¡¯t try to escape or talk to them, I assumed they¡¯d leave us be. "You should go rest." I said weakly. Clover left towards her barracks. When this was all over... maybe I could tell them everything. Finishing my thoughts for later, I settled in to wait for L''teya.
¡°Ah, there you are.¡± The glasses-wearing-elf who had been in charge of the slaves since day one walked in, followed by two orc warriors. I awoke, startled by the voice. I must have dozed off without noticing because the doorway that was guarded by the orcs weren''t letting in sunlight, instead I saw dark clouds and the moon hiding her face above. ¡°Lock Slaveborn, was it?¡± He straightened his glasses, smiling at me with teeth. ¡°Come with us. I think it''s time we find out exactly how much you''re worth.¡±
Chapter 25: Captive (2)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
The glasses-elf walked in front of and the two orcs slightly behind me to either side. A triangle formation to keep me in check. I looked over the elf¡¯s armor, noting the daggers and the leather straps. Probably another stealth or dex-based build, though I¡¯d need to know more about how many Cores and which to make a judgement. This situation was a juxtaposition of my first experience in MSS. Back then, it was just one orc who was leading me. Now it was three guards. Strangely, I had felt more fear from that orc than from these three. I wasn''t scared, rather I felt relaxed. If the three decided to turn on me, I might not be able to win. However I was confident in my ability to run away or take one of them with me. It dawned on me then; they had no idea how strong I was. Hence the extra caution. ¡°If Puca, that witch doctor lived, they¡¯d have a better idea. But all their agents out in the field died. They¡¯re playing it safe. ¡° I must have caused quite a stir when returning to the city. ¡°What are you smiling about?¡± The elf said without turning around. ¡°Something funny?¡± ¡°He can tell I¡¯m smiling?¡± I forced myself to keep smiling, just to show that I wasn¡¯t scared. ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± He corrected me. ¡°You forget your place, slave.¡± The elf¡¯s cruel but jovial manner was much more subdued than the last time I had seen him. Now he was just all business. ¡°Fine with me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing, sir.¡± I added the honorific. There was no point in squabbling here. I thought the glasses wearing elf would say more but he remained silent through the rest of our walk. They led me out of the barracks and took me through the familiar roads. We were walking towards the temple in the center of the city, which towered over the other buildings. Taking the opportunity to look around, I saw shadows slinking on top of the rooftops and more guards posted on every corner. What the hell was going on? They led me into the temple. The moon was covered by the clouds and there weren¡¯t any torches inside, so it was dark. Due to my Beckoning Cat Core, I could see relatively fine, especially near the windows where the city light filtered through. I hadn¡¯t actually been inside the temple before so I took a good look, burning it into memory. The stone structure was a giant cube, on par with the skyscrapers from New York. On all four sides there were T-shaped gateways, reaching the full height of the building. Entering the temple meant you had to go through those openings and the sheer size of the building was humbling. I knew there were multiple floors by the presence of stairs. Constantly looking up filled me with a sense of vertigo and I stopped. Each T-shaped opening was connected to a path that led towards the temple center. While I was distracted we walked through the various pedestals which housed statues of, what I assumed, orc warriors in the past. All four walkways had statues on either side. At the end however, smack dab in the middle, was a statue that dwarfed the others. We stopped in front of the centerpiece. ¡°Pay your respects.¡± The elf took a knee in front of the statue and the two orcs did the same. This statue was twice the size of the others. It featured a hulking orc in skeletal armor, sharp bones stabbing out in all directions. On his head was a crown that resembled a jawbone. To me who had seen all the endgame armor this game had to offer, it looked mid-tier at best. Unlike the others which were beset on a pedestal, this one had a throne and the orc-figure sitting on it. This looked oddly familiar. I peered at the bottom of the throne like I had thought, there was a large club made of bone and a great shield replica, scaled to size. ¡°Isn¡¯t this the [Autarch]?¡± One of the six heroes who represented all the races of MSS, the [Autarch]. Lorewise. he was the first one to unite all the hordes into one, crowning himself the first Orc King. But he wasn''t present in any orc encampment, instead he was deep underground locked behind a dungeon. I remembered beating the shit out of him right before heading to kill the [Grand Magus]. This guy dropped some nice anti-magic equipment. The orc behind me kicked me in the bend of the knee, forcing me to kneel with my forehead on the ground. ¡°Kneel!¡± I fell to my knees and felt it scrape. There was a sharp stinging sensation, telling me the fall probably broke skin. Pain and blood. ¡°Ok so I can cross [Dull Edge] off the list.¡± The fact that I had scraped my knees at all was a sign that the Ujo Core I absorbed did not contain the passive ability [Dull Edge]. On one hand, I wished I had that passive ability. On the other, I was glad I didn¡¯t because my instincts were telling me that from now on, I had to tread very carefully. I would have to keep all the cards I had hidden while trying my best to figure out what my enemy¡¯s held. Well, I¡¯d have to figure out who my enemies all were though. Besides, the Dull Edge Core came with [Dive Bomb] which wasn''t the best for me. Either way, the only possibilities were [Disaster Sense] or [Arcane Masochism] which were both useful. Hell, [Arcane Masochism] might even make my trash skill, [Coin Toss] somewhat useful. Perhaps complaining enough about the uselessness about the Gacha Cat¡¯s abilities reached the deities¡¯ ears, namely Oung. She was the one who set everything up after all. ¡°Now move.¡± They led me deeper into the temple, then led me upstairs. I looked down the railing and saw that the layout of the second floor was U-shaped, allowing someone to reach the floor if they were daring enough to leap out. The elf walked with purpose, ignoring all the doors but one. He knocked carefully. ¡°Come in.¡± A voice muttered. The two orcs opened the double-sided door, holding one each. The elf gestured with his chin, looking like he had eaten something sour. ¡°In you go.¡± I went into the room and they shut the door behind me. When people think of temples, they think of colors like white, silver and gold. But that only shows that they¡¯d never been transported into a video game world and took a tour in an orc temple. The walls of this room were completely gray, made out of the same rock as the entire structure. But the decorations made of yellowish-white bone and blood-red crystals made it seem much more sinister than some boring old rock. Tapestry with designs of orcs in battle, drinking wine while using the head of their enemies as cups adorned the walls. Expensive rugs lined the floors. And in the corner¡­ a small shrine. Even my meager mana sense was tingling that this was a place of dark magic, of mana that I hadn¡¯t yet encountered. Something new, yet instinctively sinister. The orc in front of me was hunched over, wearing a wolf-cloak over him and sitting at a stone table. By wolf-cloak, I mean that the cloak he was wearing looked like it had been skinned from a wolf-type monster then all the fur ripped out. He had white hair, braided into pigtails on either side of his head and was smoking from a long pipe. Upon seeing me he smiled. Behind him was a stone bed and another pair of orcs. I had thought the beds were made out stone for convenience sake, perhaps it was an orc custom to sleep on hard surfaces. I promised myself to look this up in the future. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The two orcs on the bed were total opposites of each other. One was obviously female and she wore this weird leathery- holy shit, her cloak was made of human skin. I fought my natural urge to take a step back. She was just as old as the one in front of me, I could tell because the wrinkled and mottled skin. Unlike her counterpart, she was completely bald and black tattoos adorned her bare scalp. The other was a light purple skinned orc, identifying him as an orc from a different horde. He had a large manacle around his neck and was chained to the bed by his arms and legs. He didn''t seem fully conscious, his eyes narrow and mouth open slightly. Oh, all three were naked. The female orc took a sip of what I assumed was wine, some of it spilling over onto her body. I hoped it was wine. With her other hand she was... well, I won''t go into details about that. I hadn''t noticed but there was another behind me, probably an orc. They must have been the muscle of this outfit, because I felt him kick me in the bend of my knee forcing me down. His hands clamped over my hair, which were way too long now and twisted, pulling hard. In every other situation, I might have resisted but here, I stayed calm. My eyes never left the two elderly orcs in front of me. ¡°Oooh, I like this one.¡± The orc woman muttered. ¡°Restraint in a slave. How rare. He¡¯d do well in the pits.¡± ¡°It seems introductions are in order, slave.¡± The elderly orc gestured to himself. ¡°I am called Skurl.¡± ¡°Damur.¡± The granny said, her gaze never leaving me. Of course, the sex slave simply groaned. Whether in pleasure or in an attempt to join in the pleasantries, it wasn¡¯t clear. ¡°And you, slave?¡± Skurl prompted. ¡°...Lock Slaveborn.¡± I wanted to take a look behind me to see who was still holding my hair, but didn¡¯t want to risk incurring these people¡¯s anger. His eyes gained some mirth at my made-up name. ¡°Ah. Perhaps it was in your fate to serve the Samak Horde then.¡± I didn¡¯t bother correcting him. ¡°May I know whom I have the pleasure of serving?¡± I tried to sound polite as possible, subdued even. I needed to fish for information. They bit the bait all too easily. Perhaps it was because I was a slave or maybe because they didn¡¯t plan to let me leave this room alive. I prepared for the latter, looking for a mirror or a window. ¡°I am the Shaman of the Samak Horde.¡± Skurl said proudly. ¡°And the honored one behind me is-¡± ¡°-the one who holds the fate of your life in the palm of her hands, slave.¡± She finished for him. These two obviously weren¡¯t your everyday grandpa and grandma. I could tell right away from their fluid speech and their mannerisms. In the game, I saw these types of characters maybe once in a playthrough, twice if I really tried to explore cities. These were the type of orcs who spent time with humans and elves, the more ¡®civilized¡¯ races. That meant they had connections and political pull, not just within the horde but outside of it as well. The guy in front of me was probably what he said he was, a Shaman albeit a corrupt one. Else, why would he allow Damur to engage in her debauchery while in the same room? She must have paid him off somehow and if my guess was correct, Damur was the coin and brains behind this whole slave operation. Despite their corruption and sexual deviancy, they were the type who you''d frequently encounter on quests involving the Black Market, or underground operations. ¡°Damn, just like that I¡¯m thrust into the heart of the matter¡± I had thought it¡¯d take awhile to get to talk to people of power like this, yet here I was. There must be a way I could use this to my advantage. ¡°I like the way he looks when he thinks.¡± Damur took another sip. ¡°They chose well.¡± Skurl rummaged behind him and showed me an orb. ¡°Do you know what this is, human?¡± A small spherical object looking like it was made completely out of glass. It reflected the colors in the room, creating a dazzling display of gray, red and black. Of course, I recognized it. It was a grading tool. They used it at adventurer¡¯s guilds. By injecting it with your mana, the orb measured your overall strength. It could sense things like your stats and even the power levels of the Cores you absorbed. Taking all that information into account, it would grade the person from 10 to 1, giving them an adventurer rank. It wasn¡¯t the most accurate way to classify adventurers but the only method I knew of. But Lock Slaveborn wouldn¡¯t know that so I shook my head. ¡°Ah no matter.¡± He set the orb down in front of me. ¡°Place your hand upon it.¡± I didn¡¯t like where this was going. One of the greatest weapons in my disposal was secrecy, keeping my hand hidden. That¡¯s why I gave the jagged sword to Clover, to stow in the dimension ring before we arrived here. If they found out about my Core ¨C Ujo, the grade 7 boss-class monster ¨C I didn¡¯t know how they¡¯d react. They wouldn''t know exactly what Core I had, but just that I held a powerful one. I¡¯d lose the only advantage I had over my captors, the element of surprise. ¡°I fucked up.¡± Did I blow my chance of escape? Where did I go wrong? If I was in front of a screen, this would be one of those times I would be extremely tempted to press ALT+F4. ¡°Focus. Nothing has changed since you killed the Dokkaebi. Just because you absorbed two cores you think you¡¯re suddenly hot shit? You started as a slave and you¡¯re still a slave. One guard, three guards, the number of them doesn¡¯t matter.¡± My attitude coming in here was one of arrogance, but I reminded myself where I truly was. I breathed in and out, calming down. My greatest weapon wasn¡¯t the Cores. It had been my cold, rational decision making that got me until here now. Every inch, every opportunity I had to seek it out and hone in on it. Now was just one time among the many where I had to be vigilant. For now, I would have to play along. I put my hand on the orb. ¡°Do you know how to use mana?¡± I did but again, played dumb It wasn¡¯t hard, I knew this body wasn¡¯t as talented as Clover or L¡¯teyas. It would take awhile for me to pick up enough [Mana Proficiency] and the [Mana] stat. ¡°That¡¯s fine too.¡± Skurl looked at the person gripping my hair and gave a nod. My captor stabbed me in the shoulder, the same side that was touching the orb. ¡°AG-MMPH!¡± I yelled out but Skurl shoved a dirty rag in my mouth. ¡°Shhhh.¡± He told me, his eyes on the orb. ¡°Blood has always been deeply intertwined with our magic. Not just us orcs, but all living things.¡± He explained. ¡°One of the ways to force a mana to move is to bleed, to make your body feel like you are in danger.¡± The orb flashed some letters I couldn¡¯t decipher. But Skurl looked delighted. ¡°Damur! Grade-8! The same as that elf downstairs!¡± ¡°They¡¯re talking about L¡¯teya!¡± I struggled at the mention of the word ¡®elf¡¯. I had to find out more. My torturer twisted the knife in my shoulder and I stopped. I looked at Skurl and saw Damur, licking her bloodied hands. It reminded me all too much of the Ujo licking my blood off of its blood-stained talons and I shuddered. It only made my torturer stab the knife a little deeper and I couldn''t help but groan in pain. Damur''s eyes met mine and hers twinkled. ¡°He makes a nice sound.¡± She whispered, her voice sultry. ¡°Come in now! You may take him!¡± Skurl clapped. Wait, that was it? That was all the information I got? I tried to say something in protest but the gag was preventing me. The door creaked behind me and I felt the grip on the knife in my shoulder loosen. But the foot on the back of my knee kept the pressure there. I hated how thorough they were being with my treatment, leaving me no way to resist in anyway; even if I had planned to. A crazy thought of me spinning around and kicking the legs out from the orc behind me; then taking the two elderly orcs captive flashed through my brain. It''d be a risk but perhaps it would be worth it? ¡°You called, Honored Shaman?¡± The elf''s voice was immediately recognizable even without me seeing his face. ¡°Send this one to the cages with the others, Yulrien. Make sure to set him apart, he¡¯s going to go on auction. Hmm, put him near the elf though. He can go either last or before the elf. He''s also a grade 8!" ¡°Grade 8?¡± I heard the surprise in the elf - Yulrien''s - voice.. ¡°...As you will.¡± There were more footsteps and the two orcs grabbed me by the arms. They began to lead me out of the Shaman¡¯s quarters. ¡°Oh and bring me another bottle of this.¡± Damur¡¯s voice called out right before the door shut. They dragged me down the stairs and each step caused my shoulder to ache. I hissed and tried to rip my arm away from the orcs, insisting that I could walk down the stairs on my own. Honestly I had no intention of escaping but they didn''t know that. The pain was building up and I grew annoyed with each passing second. Especially since my meeting with Skurl and Damur had been anything but fruitful, except for the hint about L''teya. ¡°Do not resist, slave.¡± One of the orcs snarled at me. I finally lost my temper. ¡°Teach your grandmother to suck eggs, orc.¡± He punched me across the mouth and I spat blood on his face. He punched me in the mouth and in the stomach. I laughed at him doubling over. I was fed up in this situation and knew that they couldn''t kill me, I was merchandise. My options to deal with my frustration was either insult the orc or try to fight all three of them without my weapons, and in the heart of their city. I chose the former and felt that it had been a bargain. But it also let me learn something new: when I had been punched my an orc when I first got here I almost passed out from the pain. Now? It wasn''t debilitating at all. It just hurt like hell. ¡°Fucking crazy bastard¡­¡± Yulrien muttered and I took that as a compliment. They were leading me down to the basement levels. A long winding staircase greeted me and we began our descent. I kept quiet most of the way down, trying to see if I could tell exactly how deep underground we were. The orc that I had insulted kept pulling on my arm, the one with the shoulder wound and I lost track. The elf lit a torch and used it to light our way. We reached the lowest level which was full of cages. More than a man-made basement it was a large cave. Huge stalactites and stalagmites adorned the floor and ceiling, reminiscent of a dragon''s maw. ¡°In you go.¡± Elrien repeated, pushing me in front of an open cage. He was wrinkling his nose in distaste and I saw why. There was dark-colored sludge everywhere on the floor. The orc¡¯s blow must have broken my nose because I didn¡¯t smell anything and I silently thanked him for it. Most of the cages were lined up in neat little rows, though some were strewn throughout the cavern. With my enhanced sight, I recognized some of those faces as the other slaves. But not all of them were from my cohort, nor in slave attire at all. I stepped up to the cage and saw how filthy it was, just like the rest of this basement. Filled with waste. Seeing me hesitate, the orc who I spat on shoved me in. I fell into the cage and purposefully landed in a puddle, splashing my captors. It must have smelt horrible but thanks to my broken nose, I didn''t smell anything. Told you I got the better end of the deal. The orc kicked me as I laughed at him, splashing more of the shit-water on them. ¡°You¡¯re mad.¡± Elrien complimented me again. Then he shut the cage. With a resounding click, I saw him lock the door. He put his face close to the cage one last time, taking a good look at me. I gave him my best defiant stare. The damned elf just smiled at me and left without a word. "Ok that''s enough of acting crazy." Skurl had mentioned an elf and I knew that it had to be L¡¯teya. They were sending me off to wherever she was. One of the things I promised myself in the dungeon was that I wouldn¡¯t leave L¡¯teya and Clover behind. I''m not good at saying mushy words like friendship, but we went through life and death together. That means something. I owed it to them to try. So I had purposefully aggravated the guards, getting them to injure me and let down their guards. Finding out that this place was filthy was a stroke of luck; they would be busy washing themselves up for the next hour or so. Now... it was just a matter of finding L''teya and getting out of here.
Chapter 26: Captive (3)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
Now how was I going to find her? From a cursory glance, not all the cages were full. But it was difficult to check the identity of the prisoners inside each cage due to the layout. It looked like a kid just upended a box of Legos. Some of the cages were stacked on top of each other, others leaning on one another. Still, more were left away from the main pile. Worse, not all of the cages were occupied and my vision was obstructed by both cages, stalagmite and more. It was almost impossible to look into every single one and try to find the elf-barbarian I was looking for. ¡°First things first.¡± I walked around, trying to get a sense for the dimensions of my enclosure. It was just tall enough for me to stand up straight, strands of my hair brushing against the ceiling. I rattled some of the bars and even tried hitting them. Who knew, maybe I¡¯d hit a jackpot. Regardless, I quickly found out that the cage was sturdier than I thought. My meager strength wasn''t enough to even budge the bars. I wanted to see if my arm could fit through the bars, but they got caught at the biceps. Had my limbs always been this thick? The attempt aggravated my stab wound, leaving me sore and annoyed. I had forgotten about it, mostly because of the adrenaline but not that had worn off. Regardless, it seemed that any option I had of escaping the cage of my own power was out. ¡°Maybe this was a bad idea.¡± I tried rattling the cage bars once more; I had nothing else I could do. ¡°Excuse me... please stop that.¡± The voice came from the direction of a group of stalagmites that served as a wall to block off a cage from the rest. I tried to peer around them but from my position, it simply wasn¡¯t possible. I couldn¡¯t determine whether the speaker was a woman or man from the voice alone, it had been rather androgynous. Also it wasn¡¯t a voice that I recognized either. I can¡¯t claim to say I knew the voice of every single slave in our cohort but my instincts told me that this was someone new. ¡°I¡¯m Lock.¡± I introduced myself first. ¡°Are you the only one here?¡± ¡°...No. The others are tranquilized.¡± I jumped on the chance to gather some information. ¡°Did you by any chance see an elf woman? Tanned skin? Muscular? Six-pack? Red curly hair?¡± ¡°No... I¡¯m sorry. Please stop talking to me. I''m trying to sleep...¡± ¡°Fuck.¡± I cursed. When Skurl mentioned an elf, I had assumed it had to be L¡¯teya. There was no other elf that I could imagine would be grade-8 when measured by the adventurer¡¯s orb. She had a grade-9 and grade-8 core. Which meant- ¡°You dolt.¡± I had been mistaken. It was completely possible that she could¡¯ve been ranked as a grade-9 adventurer, even with two cores. Honestly, it was iffy where you¡¯d end up on the grading scale. It didn¡¯t account for things like synergy between the cores, simply your overall stats. Anything like how abilities worked in conjunction with each other and how well you fought as an individual wasn''t detectable by the orb. That''s why it was always a toss-up when you saw two adventurers fighting each other, and why information about someone''s Cores were so closely guarded. ¡°Is something the matter?¡± The voice asked. I didn¡¯t answer right away, pausing to see if I could peer around at the cages. I saw some other people, most of them lying down as if dazed. I couldn¡¯t see the expression on their faces, but the ones who were sitting swayed back and fro like they were in a trance. It seemed the voice was right, they had been drugged. I was curious now. Why weren¡¯t the two of us drugged? ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t want to talk.¡± I didn¡¯t want to ask the question right away. Just like when fishing, I couldn''t scare him. I needed to bait him out, make him feel safe first. ¡°I¡¯ve been here a few days now.... and everyone else is asleep.¡± ¡°Well, I gave you my name. I think it¡¯d be nice to put a name to your voice.¡± I sincerely wished I had a better way with words. Maybe it''ll come with time and experience. After a moment of silence, the voice answered me. ¡°Scarlet. My name is Scarlet.¡± I could tell now from the voice that Scarlet was a young man, perhaps in his teens. ¡°I see. Well, what¡¯s your story then?¡± I continued our conversation. ¡°What brought you all the way here?¡± ¡°Well, I was traveling in the desert with my Master when we got separated. We were being pursued by some¡­ bad people. I passed out when we were hit by a monster in the shape of a desert storm.¡± I thought I heard him shiver. ¡°It was bad. A lot of people died. When I woke up, I was in a cage and the next thing I knew, I was down here.¡± Ok, I was starting to get some information from him. From what he was telling me, I could be almost certain that he wasn¡¯t one of the slaves that were already here, being trained by the Samak Horde. Theoretically, Damur could have brought more slaves over. Perhaps the concentration of all the different slaves in one place meant that something was about to happen. Maybe a sale? Or an auction ¡°But why now? Why so soon? Wouldn¡¯t it benefit them to sell us off when we¡¯re stronger or use us as soldiers?¡± It must have been those attacks in the Samak Desert. This third party, whoever they were, were forcing the orcs to speed up their plans. By stealing the merchandise, the slaves, this new group must have made orcs nervous. So before they suffered any more losses, they decided to just sell us off for a smaller profit. Whether Madame Damur coming here was by accident or coincidence, it would make for a good showing to their guests. ¡°You go silent an awful lot.¡± ¡°Oh, do I?¡± I tried to change the topic. ¡°You an adventurer then?¡± ¡°Yup! I''m a mage. My master is one of the greatest mage in the Turina Empire! Grade-4 officially! Though unofficially I bet he can even be grade-2!¡± Scarlet¡¯s voice turned timid once more. ¡°Uh¡­ That was supposed to be a secret. Please don¡¯t tell him... if you see him.¡± ¡°A mage¡­¡± ¡°What¡¯s a mage¡¯s apprentice doing inside a cage like this?¡± I rapped my knuckles on the bars. ¡°You don¡¯t have any spells to escape?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I probably could... but I¡¯m sure my master will come looking for me. I don¡¯t mind waiting here. Besides, if I move around, it might make it harder for him to find me.¡± "Hmmm." If what this mage¡¯s apprentice was telling me was true, I not only had an opportunity to escape but possibly get a grade-2 mage to be in debt to me. The hard part would be convincing Scarlet to go along with me. Then we would have to figure out how to avoid the guards and once they realized we were gone, we¡¯d have to evade capture. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. This wasn''t just for my own benefit either. Scarlet seemed the passive type, waiting for something to happen to change his circumstances instead of taking an active role. Maybe I could provide that little push he needed. I had information about the Samak Horde that he didn''t and he had a way to get us out of these cages. It only made sense for us two to work together. ¡°First things first.¡± Everything was a hypothetical until I could get this mage¡¯s cooperation though. ¡°What do you say to working together? To get out of here?¡± That sounded weird to my ears. I''d never asked anyone for help before and it took a lot of guts to say that. Well, the first time is always the hardest. Scarlet must have been shocked at the directness of my question because there was no answer for quite a bit. Actually, maybe they just decided to ignore me. It''d be very typical of a mage to do so. Just when I was about to say something else, Scarlet replied. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ that sounds very risky to me. What if we get caught? These orcs are really big and scary¡­ if I just wait I¡¯m sure my master will come¡­¡± ¡°You can say that because you don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on.¡± I explained quickly, trying to retain the mage¡¯s attention. Just from the tone of the voice and the words that they were using, I was sure now that Scarlet was one of those ''passive-lazy'' types. I dealt with a lot of mages in MSS and they were a different breed altogether. It was like working with Mana on a daily basis twisted their brains somehow. Arrogance and a superiority complex were a given; part of the standard package. Most of the mages in the game had been half-mad, ranging from dark-robes-and-drinking-blood-mad to lab-coat-and-vials-human-experiment-mad. What I mean to say is that I¡¯ve never had a good time dealing with a mage. So I spoke quickly, trying to get my point across. ¡°These orcs are moving quickly, I overheard the shaman and that merchant lady speaking. The auction will be tomorrow.¡± I lied easily. ¡°I don¡¯t know who the guests would be but I assume they¡¯d be powerful people, with the means to transport their slaves across the desert swiftly and discreetly.¡± I got the sense that I had Scarlet¡¯s attention. ¡°It¡¯s obvious you¡¯ve never been a slave before. Do you have any idea how you¡¯ll be treated? Everyday will be a fight for survival and you¡¯ll be lucky to get a loaf of bread to eat. Since I¡¯ve become a slave I¡¯ve been sleeping on a rock every night, forced to fight monsters from sunrise till sundown.¡± ¡°But my master-¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t hear what I said earlier. They¡¯ll move us. They¡¯ll collar us and take us back to whatever place they came from. It could be the Turina Empire, if you¡¯re lucky. But I heard that the Jayu States are very interested in slaves lately as well. I''m assuming they haven''t found out you''re a mage yet. If by chance one of the potential buyers finds out that you''re human mage¡­¡± I took a breath. ¡°I¡¯m sure your master is a powerful man. How confident are you that he can find you across the continent? Or better yet, even if he does find you, can you be sure you¡¯ll be the same Scarlet you are now?¡± Silence. ¡°C¡¯mon, c¡¯mon, c¡¯mon.¡± I clenched my fist, careful not to say anything more. I didn¡¯t want to seem like I was the one who needed him more than he wanted me. I gave my sales pitch and I needed to make him think about the worst case scenario. Just by planting the possibility in his head, perhaps he¡¯d- ¡°Eh, I don¡¯t know... That seems farfetched to me.¡± ¡°Shit.¡± I relaxed my hunched shoulders. It looked like I¡¯d have to find a different way. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t seem impossible either¡­ but there¡¯s a problem here.If you¡¯re a slave what kind of help can you give me? I¡¯m a mage and you¡¯re just¡­ you know¡­¡± Scarlet trailed off. ¡°You do know they¡¯re grading us right?¡± I tried to summon every last ounce of confidence I had. ¡°I received a grade of 7. I know mages are graded too, what grade were you?¡± I crossed my fingers. ¡°My grading¡¯s not important.¡± Scarlet snapped. ¡°Fine... I guess... We can work together.¡± The breath I¡¯d been holding finally escaped my lungs. ¡°But I want your word that you won''t betray me.¡± The mage continued. ¡°My master always warned me about that... Maybe this is a bad idea after all...¡± ¡°You have my word.¡± I didn¡¯t plan on betrayal, on the contrary I needed to get on their good side. Perhaps that master mage was the one who could finally get me out of this hellhole. ¡°L¡¯teya and Clover first.¡± I reminded myself. ¡°I also want your word that you¡¯ll do everything in your power to get us out of here.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a given... I take my promises... very seriously.¡± Scarlet said without missing a beat, sounding a little annoyed that I¡¯d dare suggest such a thing. ¡°So what¡¯s the plan?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a plan.¡± I said confidently, smiling. ¡°What?¡± Another moment of silence. ¡°I said I don¡¯t-¡± ¡°I heard you the first time!¡± Scarlet half-yelled. ¡°Oh. Just making sure.¡± I heard the mage sigh. ¡°Just what was I thinking¡­¡± ¡°Well, now we don¡¯t have to sit here wondering about what will happen to us. Let¡¯s put our heads together and plan for a way out of this.¡± ¡°You sure have a way with words¡­ Mr. Lock.¡± I took the compliment in stride. That was the longest conversation I held with another person that wasn''t L''teya or Clover. Furthermore I had just gotten the cooperation of a mage. Sure he seemed young and a bit reluctant but I had to count my wins when I could. It took a lot of guts to get this far, from dealing with Damur and Skurl, to meeting Scarlet. A stroke of luck and a lot of effort. But it was worth it. ¡°It¡¯s because I really want to save them.¡± My acting with the guards, my sales pitch to the mage. They were all things I wouldn¡¯t have done a month ago. I¡¯d never done anything like it back in the real world either. But I wasn¡¯t just fighting for my own survival now, I had people that I wanted to make sure would get out of here alive with me. People that had believed in me and risked their lives for me. So the mage and I began to discuss what to do next.
¡°Ugh I hate this place.¡± ¡°Be on your best behavior. Brother left this to us, we can¡¯t disappoint him.¡± One of the gates of Samak City opened and a whole entourage of people entered. They numbered more than two dozen people, all wearing dark green chitinous armor with some variations. Those who held a sword and shield tended to have thicker and heavier armor than the rest. Mages carrying staves didn''t wear armor at all, sticking to long robes of dark green that flowed with the evening wind. At the front stood two individuals who strode forward without fear into the orc¡¯s territory, their armor and hair setting them apart from the others. Their straight postures and attitude oozing strength betrayed their identities, needing no introduction to onlookers. Jason Carid Akka Xalud accompanied his younger sister, Maria Biva Akka Xalud into the Samak Horde¡¯s city. Their armor was the work of a master set apart from the stock armor their honor guard wore, on the left side of mastercraft armor was a symbol: an orange centipede reaching into the clouds. Maria shared her brother¡¯s features. Pale skin, a high nose and sharp jawlines. But really, it was their hair color that showed their relation. Whereas Jason¡¯s hair was a mixture of black and orange, with the orange tufts looking like insectoid eyes from a distance, Maria had long silky black hair that hung down to her waist. Two strands of orange sprouted from the center of her bangs, creating the illusion of an insect antennae. Jason was armored in full plate mail, despite having the hilts of daggers strapped to his lower back. Maria¡¯s chitinous armor was akin to a Qi Pao, with dark green metal greaves covering her from the elbow to hands. The girl turned to her brother, a pout on her lips. ¡°It smells here.¡± ¡°I said to behave.¡± Jason ordered. His half-sister had done nothing but whine on their way here. He knew she was doing this on purpose. She was trying to get on his nerves and get him to dismiss her. Once out of his eyes, who knew what she might do. The only one who could realistically control her was their older brother and perhaps their father, the Patriarch. Jason vowed to not let her out of his sight. It was imperative that the auction went off without a hitch. ¡°Ah! Honored Guests! Welcome!¡± An elderly orc came to greet them, surrounded by an entourage of orcs behind him. Jason mentally went over the information he had on the man: Skurl, the Shaman in charge of the temple where the auction would be held. He was just a puppet though, financial power lay with Damure while military power lay with the Samak Warchief: Thokthur. The fact that Skurl had come to greet them was disrespect on two different levels. One. They thought the Akka Xalud house was not worth having Damure or Thokthur greet them. Two. They must be thinking that the Akka Xaluds were too dumb to realize who was really in power. ¡°Filthy orcs.¡± Jason longed to rip the throat of this elderly orc just to send a message but controlled himself. His sister on the other hand made no effort to hide her disgust. ¡°He¡¯s naked.¡± ¡°Do not speak. I will do the talking.¡± Jason whispered. He stepped up and held out a hand first, a gesture of good will, to exchange grips with the naked orc. ¡°My name is Jason Carid Akka Xalud, representative of the Great House of Akka Xalud, one of the Three Pillars of the Turina Empire.¡± Skurl didn¡¯t bother returning the gesture. Jason felt the centipedes within his skin struggle against his skin, threatening to break out in tempo with his rising anger. But Jason Carid Akka Xalud didn¡¯t rise to his position through birthright alone. He put a collar on his inner self, forcing it to obey to reason. Control was the weapon that he had been honing all his years, he would not let this orc be the reason he became an animal. ¡°I am Skurl, Samak Horde¡¯s Shaman. Warchief Thokthur sends his regrets that he cannot face you on the battlefield and as such, has sent me.¡± ¡°Animals.¡± His sister whispered. If Skurl heard, he made no reaction. ¡°I see, please send him my regrets as well.¡± Jason told him. He knew Skurl was well-versed in human politics, enough to know that what he just said now could be perceived as both a threat and open disrespect to someone from the Turina Empire. The sly orc was playing dumb, jabbing at Jason, hoping to get a rise out of him. He was probably doing this as some sort of petty revenge, for the guerilla tactics that the Akka Xalud had employed to steal their slaves from under their noses. On the flip side though, this was the cultural norm for orc. Perhaps it was a little of both. "I''m being tested." Jason realized. ¡°I would love to talk some more, but we have had a long night. My men and I would like to go to our lodgings immediately, if you¡¯d please, Shaman.¡± ¡°Of course, follow this way.¡± The scions of the Great House of Akka Xalud followed their guide. They weren¡¯t the only guests that the Samak Horde had planned to entertain for this auction. A merchant company led by three dwarfs from the Jayu City-States, representing the slave procurement for the Colosseum. Freedom Fighters from the nation of Zimmskar, here to buy out their own people should they see any. And a dozen other minor nobles and wealthy individuals. Then there were the uninvited. A certain [Player] mage being hunted by the Church of Turina, looking for his lost apprentice. A bastard of a minor noble house who had been discarded by the Akka Xaluds for his failure, seeking revenge. A blind-orc sword master who sifted through the future, looking for a way for his disciple to survive.
Chapter 27: Captive (4)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
Scarlet and I had a plan. I had to ask a bunch of questions to the lazy mage; who seemed to be just as distrusting as he was slothful. Actually, it might have been the way I had coerced him to agree to work with me that caused reluctance on his part. But the mage would honor our deal, as haphazard as it had been. He and I would work together for the duration of our capture until we were both freed, then go our separate ways. Our plan was only possible because the mage had been here for a few days now, around four days to be exact. I don¡¯t think it was a coincidence that the merchant came right as the slaves were attacked by this mysterious organization that were harrying the orcs, but it had worked in my favor. Scarlet had information that would have taken me a few days to get. He knew the guard shifts and what they did. They came once in the morning to administer the tranquilizers and once at night to do a patrol. We¡¯d had to aim for the night patrol, when everyone had gone to sleep. When I was being escorted to the Shaman¡¯s room, I didn¡¯t see any guards. But there was always the possibility that those stealth-based orcs were on standby and that my senses simply weren¡¯t advanced enough to pick up on them. For that, we had Scarlet who seemed to have an array of useful spells for a variety of situations¡­ except combat. ¡°How is a mage not well-versed in combat?¡± ¡°I told you, my teacher is mostly an explorer who seeks forbidden ruins and the secrets of this world!¡± Scarlet said hotly. ¡°My job is to support him in that endeavor... So of course, my repertoire of spells naturally leans towards support.¡± I didn¡¯t reply to that. It was a lame excuse but I didn¡¯t want to get into an argument with Scarlet, whom I was assuming was young. He had two moods: default lazy and angry when defending his teacher. Once we were both in the clear, I would go find L¡¯teya and Clover while he went off to wait in a place for his teacher. I secretly hoped that we¡¯d bump into his teacher and convince him to help me find my own party members but that seemed unlikely. For now this was the best plan we had. It was too late in the evening to enact our plan so we¡¯d have to risk waiting another day in the cells. We didn''t have a clear way to tell time though but it didn''t matter, when the second round of guards came they''d be the signal. ¡°Lots of holes in this plan.¡± I muttered to myself. I heard the mage yawn, I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d have heard me. ¡°Well¡­ that¡¯s the best we can do. Are we done?... I kind of want to rest...¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I nodded, despite knowing the Mage couldn¡¯t see me. ¡°I¡¯ll be resting as well.¡± There were some variables we¡¯d have to take care of. For example, the first problem I had to solve was how I would deal with the tranquilizer. There were a lot of different ways to put someone to sleep in MSS. Spells, potions, abilities¡­ ¡°There¡¯s a lot of us here, so they''re probably using a gas medium.¡± But I needed to make sure. ¡°Scarlet?¡± ¡°Hng?¡± The mage was either really good at acting or he was able to fall asleep at will, because his voice sounded like it was from someone who just woke up. We had just been talking less than a minute ago. I shook my head, blaming his peculiarities as those typical of the mage class. ¡°Do you have any idea what kind of tranquilizer they used?¡± ¡°Gas.¡± Scarlet said simply. ¡°Now, I know you never had experience as an adventurer before¡­ but when someone says they want to rest it¡¯s kind of rude to interrupt¡­¡± "Then how come you didn''t fall asleep like the others?" He gave an annoyed grunt and muttered something too quiet for me to hear. "I do fall asleep... I just wake up earlier. I''m a mage... I''m naturally resistant to magical effects. Now please... did the orcs not teach you manners?..." I bit my tongue, not bothering to dignify that with a response. The kid was pretty rude. Within minutes, silence ruled the cavern broken by the sound of droplets of water. ¡°Gas huh¡­ unless something has changed in this world in those 100 years, then it should be magical in nature.¡± I sighed. There wasn¡¯t much I could do about magical gas¡­ unless¡­ I activated [Coin Toss].
¡°It¡¯s too hot.¡± Arione muttered to no one in particular. Even at night, the desert air was arid and heat perpetuated throughout the city. Arione was tall, even for an elf. He towered over most people but here in the bustling city of Samak, he didn¡¯t feel out of place at all. Orc guards prowled the streets and they were even taller than him. Aside from the orcs, he saw a bunch of different races, obviously here for the coming auction. It was like the visitors had breathed life back in the city, orc merchants had set up shop in the town square and people were walking around shopping. Arione had light blue hair that fell to his shoulders in waves. His hair color, along with his elongated pointed ears clearly identified him as an elf and not wanting the attention, he wore a ragged cloak with the hood raised over his head. But if one were to look closely, they¡¯d see features that were a little too fine to be human¡¯s and light-blue eyes with flecks of gold. His looks earned him stares everywhere he went but tonight was not such a night. He had lost most of his party members in the sandstorm caused by Enla Enla the monster. As a result, he had been on the run, being chased by agents of the Church and other agents of the Great Houses of Turina. They had found out his identity as a player and had been hounding him relentlessly. But he hadn¡¯t become a mage by sitting around doing nothing. He had achieved grade-2 a long while ago, being able to cast all but the highest grade of spells. He could have taken over the magic tower years ago, becoming head mage of one of the prestigious towers of Babel. Yet, his status as a player made him cautious and careful. Any unwanted attention would be a hindrance and a weakness, not something to be used. Without his party members he couldn¡¯t defeat his assassins, but he sure as hell could give them a run for their money. Right now he had managed to lose most of his pursuers and followed the trail of his apprentice, probably the last remaining member of his party. He grieved for his lost party members, he had been with them for years now. They had been the closest thing he had to family. In fact, he hardly bothered to watch his speech around them and he suspected that the smartest among them had figured out his identity. Arione sighed, blinking the sand out of his long lashes. ¡°You better just be taking a nap somewhere Scarlet... This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. He wasn¡¯t like other players who saw these people as only NPCs. From day one, he knew that they were people. It helped that his Mana Sense was more advanced than most; Arione couldn¡¯t ignore the living, breathing, flowing abundance of life in the beings around him. It had given him a tough time at first and he couldn¡¯t kill people for quite awhile due to being so sensitive to life. But now¡­ well, living for 10 years in MSS would change anyone. He would have to rebuild his party from the ground up. Tank, DPS, Support, Healer. Anyone would do fine really, as he was pretty confident in his ability to raise a party. He wasn''t emotionless, he still grieved his teammates. But that was that and this was this. Life went on. Arione walked by an orc man selling lizards on a skewer. It smelled delicious but stopping even for a moment posed a risk that someone might recognize him. Personnel of the Great Houses, Akka Xalud in particular, were enjoying the night festivities and opening their purses with abandon. They sat in the marketplace by street stalls with small tables and stools, drinking and talking. It didn¡¯t seem typical of the cruel Akka Xalud house, but these guys were just hired soldiers. Regardless, stopping for too long meant someone might recognize him and he didn¡¯t want to chance it. He had already done his scouting in the city months ago, he walked towards the barracks where the Samak Horde held their slaves. Perhaps Scarlet had been captured and transported there. He had sensed his apprentice¡¯s magical signature close to the city and if Arione taught Scarlet anything, it was how to survive. Arione himself had honed it during his initial years being thrown into this world. Scarlet was a resourceful young man, he¡¯d have found shelter in this city. Arione turned the corner and saw the slave compound, a rectangular building made entirely of rock. There were two guards posted at the entrance. With a few hand signs, Arione cast a spell, identifying their overall strength. It was a spell that had recently gained popularity. It wouldn¡¯t tell you what cores someone had, but could give you a sense of how many and how strong those Cores were. Really, more of an art than science. But Arione wasn¡¯t just any regular mage, he was a [Player] who had been reborn into the body of an elf with exceptional high sense for magic. ¡°Hmm¡­ too weak to be grade-8¡­ A grade-9 core? With a slight hint of undead and necrotic mana. The monsters around here that fit that description are probably Agwi.¡± Arione smirked. ¡°Damn, these orcs are cheaping out. Only one-core warriors serving as guards to their most valuable merchandise?¡± He chuckled at his luck, then frowned. ¡°Or maybe they moved all their goods already.¡± Scarlet was a mage and even if the orcs only had a single brain cell between the inhabitants of this city, they¡¯d know that he was grade-A merchandise. Scarlet would be the type of slave who¡¯d be moved first and introduced last at an auction. Arione didn¡¯t want to let it come to that, where he had to rescue Scarlet in front of a dozen people who could rival him in strength. ¡°Yeah. That''s just asking to get ganked.¡± He needed to rescue Scarlet as soon as he could. Arione put his hand, palm down and ran his mana sense over the entire building, looking for his apprentice¡¯s mana signature. ¡°Nope. Not that one, nope. Too weak. Nope. Noob. Noob. Noob. Noo- oh what the fuck?¡± Arione¡¯s eyes opened in pleasant surprise. His apprentice wasn¡¯t in the building. But for a moment, his mana sense picked up a signature that he had never felt before. ¡°Actually scratch that, I did feel something similar to it before. When I met those inquisitors of The Church. But it was¡­ how do I say it? Different? More wild?¡± Arione felt a smile stretch across his lips. ¡°Okies. Let¡¯s do this.¡± Before all else, Arione was an explorer and right now, his curiosity was in the front seat. ?Arione Popwindale casts [Force Sleep]? Arione made a couple of hand signs, much more intricate than the motion from before. Mages of this world always had some kind of verbal, somatic or material component when casting a spell. But unlike the tabletop game he was used to, it was up to the mage¡¯s preference and mental state. Some mages found it easier to use hand seals, like him who grew up watching anime and reading manga. Kind of one of the secret ways that [Player] Mages recognized each other. For Arione, the hand seals of his childhood from a certain ninja book worked best.. The two orcs dropped like dolls whose strings had suddenly been cut. Arione walked into the building without a care. ¡°Nighty night, sleep tight.¡± He whispered to the sleeping orc guards. He spread his Mana Sense over the entire building once again, pinpointing the location of the slave he was looking for. This time however, the mana was much more subdued. Like it was trying to hide itself. Was it possible that this person felt his mana sense the first time and hid theirs in response? Now that was both interesting and impressive. He really hadn¡¯t seen talent like that since he¡¯d met Scarlet. But it wouldn¡¯t work on him, the gap between their experience and control over mana was like the earth and the sky. He¡¯d been a mage for 10 years not to mention the natural sense that elves had, boosted to hell and back. It wasn¡¯t like he was trying too hard to find this mysterious stranger yet he¡¯d still caught them in the second search. He turned left and strode up the stairs, keeping his senses outstretched. The signature led him to a large room with stone beds on either side. There was no one here except one. It was a woman from the beastman race, who obviously descended from a sheep lineage. She had ram horns that curled down the side of her head, extending a little past her chin. She had curly pink hair that extended past her shoulder and to the middle of her back. Arione noted that she was attractive, even with her mismatching eyes; one with pink pupils like a human and another like that of a lamb. But he wasn¡¯t interested in her that way, rather he noted her attractiveness like you would someone¡¯s resume. ¡°Konichiwa.¡± He waved a hand in greeting. The woman frowned and didn¡¯t answer. Arione was used to it though. ¡°Arione Popwindale, at your service.¡± He did a little hand flourish and bow. ¡°The guards at the front, was that you?¡± ¡°Impressive and continuing to impress! You¡¯re just nailing this job interview by the way.¡± ¡°I- what?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a priestess aren¡¯t you? A rather powerful one.¡± Arione continued, not bothered by her reactions at the least. He got straight to the point, with people like her who weren¡¯t strong enough to know what¡¯s what yet, it was best to take a direct approach. ¡°I can help you get out of here. Come with me.¡± The woman looked at him, dumbfounded. ¡°W-Who are you?¡± ¡°My name is Arione-¡± ¡°Not that, I meant who are you? How are you here? How¡¯d you do that to the guards? What are you?¡± Arione sighed. ¡°It¡¯s really a long story and as much as I¡¯d like to tell you a bedtime story and tuck you in, now¡¯s really not the time for that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not as half as witty or funny as you think you are.¡± She said, then covered her mouth with her hand like she hadn¡¯t meant to say that out loud. ¡°Nice.¡± Arione smiled but he couldn¡¯t entirely keep his voice under control, it wavered a bit at the end. That was the first thing one of his party members said to him when they met. Now, that party member was buried hundreds of feet below the ground in the middle of the Samak Desert. ¡°You still haven''t answered my question.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a mage.¡± Arione said, hoping that would explain a lot of things and in most cases, it did. ¡°I¡¯m here to rescue an apprentice of mine that¡¯s probably in this city¡­ either held captive like you, or hiding out. I sensed your mana signature while I was looking for him.¡± ¡°A mage¡­¡± She seemed to be mulling something over. ¡°I¡¯m also looking for someone. Two people in fact.¡± ¡°Oh you already have a party.¡± Arione shrugged. ¡°Are they as talented as you?¡± ¡°Me? Talented?¡± The woman¡¯s smile turned bitter. ¡°They¡¯re the ones who are talented. They¡¯re always protecting me. I owe it to them to look for them.¡± ¡°So¡­ maybe two fighters? Or two tanks? Or a DPS?¡± Arione¡¯s hope surged. Maybe if they were talented enough to protect this budding priestess and be acknowledged by her, he wouldn¡¯t need to look too hard for a party. Of course, it all depended on what type of people they were. ¡°I can help you.¡± Arione said. ¡°On one condition: you have to join my party if I help you out of this. Of course, I¡¯ll extend the condition to both your friends.¡± ¡°You mean it?¡± The woman¡¯s eyes lit up with something Arione had seen often before: hope. ¡°Yup. I¡¯ll even make a Mana Vow.¡± He held up a hand. ¡°But¡­ it¡¯ll bind you too.¡± Mana Vows. A verbal contract between two parties arbitrated by a mage. The contract would bind them until the agreement was complete. It was a subject of study for great a many mages. No one was sure how it worked or why it worked, all they knew was that if broken, the Mana Vow would take a bit of the person''s mana. Slowly but surely. A death sentence for anyone who used Mana to survive in this world. The woman was the cautious type. In Arione¡¯s experience most people would say yes immediately. She was a slave with a manacle around her neck and surely, she must have heard that the auction was happening soon. Yet she was still thinking about it. He was lucky that she was still here, if they had found out she was a priestess she would have been sold for much more than any other merchandise; perhaps rivaling that of Scarlet. But it was only Arione¡¯s superior senses that had sniffed her out. She must be both smart and cautious; it was obvious she managed to keep her identity hidden. ¡°Double points. Full marks actually.¡± He whispered. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll take the Vow, I¡¯ve seen it in action before. But you have to help me find my friends¡­ and extend them the invitation to leave this place together with you.¡± Arione had wanted to form a party with them but this was good enough for now. He also knew she''d say yes to his offer. She was a slave, what other option did she have? Being at the mercy of the orcs? A powerful priestess she may be, but it was a class that was powerless on its own. Blue light shone out of Arione¡¯s hand. ¡°I, Arione Popwindale swear on my Mana and the Elven Goddess that I will do everything in my power to help this individual and her friends, who are of this world, escape Samak City and the Samak Desert with me.¡± The blue light turned into a string and shot into Arione¡¯s heart, the end shooting into the heart of the woman in front of him. ¡°...If you keep your word and get all of us out alive, I will join your party.¡± The blue light shone brighter than disappeared. Arione felt the familiar feeling of the Mana Oath settling into his heart. If he broke his promise, it would steal away a little of his mana... permanently. That hadn''t been a feature in the game, he had learned the hard way how this feature worked in real life. ¡°Now, are you willing to tell me your name?¡± ¡°Clover. Clover Weinport.¡± Then she straightened like remembering something forgotten. Clover Weinport asked him. ¡°What was that thing about ¡®who of this world¡¯?¡± ¡°Oh. It¡¯s to avoid these people called [Players] in my party. Trust me, you do not want to get involved with them. The worst type of people really.¡±
Chapter 28: Captive (5)
World: MSS - Loading... "Speech" "Thoughts"
I tried to sleep but continued to toss and turn. It could have been any number of things. It could have been the fact that the floor of the cage was a cesspool of human waste and only gods know what else. I could have blamed it on nerves too. But really, when it came right down to it, I could only blame myself and my old enemy: fear. Being in this cage reminded me of how I first entered this world: helpless. These weren¡¯t just regular cages either, they were reinforced somehow. I was betting that anyone without a specific Core ability or a significant physical stat couldn¡¯t escape these. So I spent the night, trying all sorts of things. I tried sleeping standing up which didn¡¯t work out too well. I tried to sleep on the floor but my stomach kept tying itself in knots. I even tried to lean my head on the bars, hoping that I''d fall asleep eventually. So I spent the night testing and experimenting my Core abilities instead. The last thing I remembered before passing out at the dungeon was touching the Unjo¡¯s Core. I had no idea what color it had been, it was up to trial and error to figure out its abilities. Luckily for me, I had the perfect ability to test it with: Coin Toss. Everytime my Coin Toss landed on tails, I should receive a debuff. Except that the Core I received had the passive: [Arcane Masochism]. Oung really pulled through on that one. But Arcane Masochism should turn every debuff into a buff for Attack, Defense or Speed. With my first Coin Toss. from before, I was able to figure out that Arcane Masochism was indeed the passive I had inherited. So the active ability would be Hateful Wound, instead of Dive Bomb. I spent the night using Coin Toss every 60 seconds and testing out my abilities. Namely, I tried to get a feel for which stat I was receiving a buff for. It would be a bad idea to use this in combat and not know which stat got boosted. Eventually I was able to get a feel for which buff I received through dozens of trial and error. When my attack stat was buffed it felt like my blood was pumping faster and I felt full of energy. It¡¯s hard to describe the feeling when I got a defense buff, it was like I was wearing a really heavy coat in a storm while naked, rain pressing down on me from all sides. I thought the feeling for a rise in speed would be weightlessness, but it was something different altogether. My feet felt super heavy but there was a sense of freedom to my movements, like I could grip the ground and fling myself to wherever I Wanted. Since I was locked in a cage, I couldn¡¯t test them out too much. I debated using the rise in attack stat to try and break apart the cage but it might worsen my wounded arm. Another crazy thought was spending the night punching the cage, hoping for a [Jackspot], like that scene I saw of a blonde samurai who was buried alive. I threw out the idea altogether, deciding to stick to my plan with Scarlet; it had a much higher chance of success. I wanted to save my strength for the escape. My only worry was the sleeping gas. If it acted like a debuff, I should be ok¡­ if not, welp that¡¯d be it. Scarlet didn¡¯t have a spell for getting me through the gas either, it seemed like he had a naturally high resistance to magic-based status effects thanks to being a mage. Me on the other hand¡­ I¡¯d have to think about what to do. Then before I knew it, the slam of a metal door opening echoed through the cavern. The morning patrol was here. It was followed by footsteps and I could tell that it only belonged to a single person. This was definitely the morning patrol that Scarlet talked about, inducing the tranquilizer on the slaves. From what I could see in the darkness, all the slaves were still passed out or in a hallucinatory state. The guard didn¡¯t even come down the stairs all the way. Click Psssssss A minute passed and then another. Soon, a mild and sweet scent reached my nose. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out that this was the incapacitating agent that Scarlet had been talking about. I acted on instinct, holding my breath, praying that this was a debuff-based gas and not a status-inflicting one. In MSS, you could be put to sleep through magical means in one of two ways. One was through a status change, spells that instantly put you to sleep, like [Forced Sleep] for example. The second way was through a series of stacking debuffs that lowered your stats like [Alertness], [Energy] and so on. If it was the latter, my passive should counteract it. I instantly felt drowsy and I knew that it must¡¯ve been the former. This reaction from just taking a whiff must¡¯ve meant even a small dosage was enough, they just chose to overdose the prisoners to keep them sleeping the entire time. Smart. Well, at least Scarlet would wake in a few hours. The only concern was that we''d be losing valuable time and anything could happen within those hours. Just as I closed my eyes thinking that it might not be so bad to finally fall asleep, someone stuck their hand inside my stab wound. I think what you just heard is that someone grabbed my stab wound and squeezed. But no, what I meant is that I felt someone¡¯s hand rip apart the scab and stick their entire hand inside. Then they stretched that hand open, their fingers spreading the wound open even wider. Against my will, my mouth opened up to scream but my assailant was quicker than my voice, they clamped a wet rag over my mouth and pulled hard, slamming the back of my head against the bars. That was twice in one day I had been gagged by a dirty cloth. ¡°Pain is a necessity in times of war, only through blood can we learn how to survive.¡± If there was ever a time I was both horrified and happy at the same time, this was one of them. But hearing Arrosh¡¯s voice didn¡¯t lessen the pain, it only snapped my mind out of the stupor that the gas had been inducing. With my mind wide awake, I felt each of Arrosh¡¯s fingers spread the wound open from the inside, tearing it open. I heard myself gurgle but Arrosh pulled tighter, choking the air out of me. Trying to kick out, I lifted my legs but Arrosh forced my weight downwards, getting me to sit on my butt and my back against the bars. ¡°You must remain vigilant, young tree.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. We stayed like that for what felt like hours. Me, with tears rolling down my face and Arrosh whispering his cryptic messages. I didn¡¯t fight through the pain voluntarily; I took in large gulps of air through my nose, a part of me just thinking it might be easier to falll asleep from the gas and have Arrosh wake me up. But the blind orc¡¯s grip on my shoulder kept me awake. Finally, he released my shoulder but kept the gag over my mouth. ¡°Do not scream, for the shadows around us possess ears and tongues, all too eager to report to their masters.¡± Pop I heard the sound of a cork being unstoppered and bit down harder on the rag around my mouth. The sound was one I¡¯d heard often enough in the dungeon to recognize It for what it was. Arrosh poured the healing potion over my head and shoulders. It hurt like a bitch. Once I was done convulsing and whimpering from underneath the rag, Arrosh carefully untagged me. I turned around, searching for the old orc. He was standing behind my cage, the rags on his body even filthier than normal and seeming to look abnormally worn. In the last half-day I hadn¡¯t seen him, he seemed to have aged another dozen years. Wrinkles dominated most of his skin and the hunch he had was more pronounced than before. But the heavy manacles around his wrist and ankles were gone. And he was bleeding from dozens of wound. ¡°You¡­ Arrosh? I mean, Master... what happened-¡± He smiled, his teeth stained with blood. "It took me a while to find you, my disciple." Did he get those wounds from looking for me? That perked me right up. He didn¡¯t call me ¡®young tree¡¯ or ¡®young blade¡¯. He didn¡¯t use any cryptic descriptive words involving war, nature and the sword. The blind orc had spoken straight and true: He wanted me to listen. I initially wanted to lash out at him for the pain he caused me but now I knew it was for my own good. I sat back and listened to him speak. ¡°I had thought we would have more time, but I fear that after the moon tonight, nothing will be the same.¡± He continued. ¡°Fear not, for it is not the end of our road. Merely a forked path that will merge in the distant future.¡± ¡°The Great Houses of the Empire moves. Agents clad in shadow, from the beastman country seek their way in. The elves and dwarves overlook our shoulders, trying to catch a glimpse of weakness.¡± ¡°Then get me out of here.¡± I interrupted. ¡°I know you can.¡± ¡°I cannot, my disciple.¡± The elderly orc deflated. ¡°My oath binds me.¡± I clenched my teeth because I had no idea what oath he was talking about. Just what circumstances was he under? Why did he ask me to learn the Sword Saint''s teachings? What kind of things did he go through to get to me here? I wasn''t blind and dumb. I knew that he was an outcast from orc society. Blind and old, he had no place among the warriors. I could see it clearl as day, he must have had stayed in that alleyway corner day after day waiting for me. Just waiting... hoping that I''d show back up. For all he knew I could have been dead. Yet he went out of his way to look for me. Again, I was filled with regrets. I wished I had spoken more with the orc and gotten to know him. Why did it take me so long to see Clover, L¡¯teya and Arrosh as friends and not just tools to be used? If I had just changed my mind earlier, I would have known so much more about them. Then perhaps I would know more about his circumstances and his oath... and just been able to care for him. I could have gotten stronger with their help and pulled them up beside me. But it was too late for regrets. I just had to do better from now. ¡°I saw visions of the future. This city will fall.¡± I lookied at Arrosh¡¯s milky eyes. Something clicked in my head between all his talk about the future and his blindness. ¡°Kudan (¼þ).¡± I muttered. Kudan, a grade-4 monster that could see the future. It possessed a Core Ability which let you predict the moves your opponents were about to make inside the game version of MSS. However, the side-effect was severe: it reduced your [Sight] stat to 0, meaning you became blind. It seemed that here, in the real world, predicting the future wasn¡¯t limited to just seeing your opponents moves but prophetic visions... if I was right. Arrosh smiled. ¡°One day, I hope that you will trust me enough as your master to tell me your story, young one. If that day ever comes." My heart pounded. He was talking about how I surmised that he had the ability from the Kudan monster. But that last part, did he just say what I think he did? ¡°Arrosh, I-¡± He reached inside the bars and put a hand over my heart. ¡°There are many branching futures, with your death in many of them. Even your companions may fall. But there is a path to salvation.¡± The orc put his face close to the bars and whispered. ¡°The path towards the heavens leads to death, but the descent into darkness offers life. You must choose, whether to be bathed in light and lose all you hold dear or cover yourself in shadow and live to fight another day.¡± ¡°Avoid the scions of the Great Houses and the Wizard whose wings invite Death. For even catching a glimpse of them will catch you in a tempest between giants. If you wish to keep your life and those of your companions, you must have nothing to do with them.¡± Arrosh muttered. The way Arrosh spoke about it scared me. I was just thinking of this event as a slave auction, something that was bound to happen. But the orc made it sound like there were bigger things at play here. It also sounded like I wouldn''t see him ever again. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be helping me.¡± I mustered, the words spilling out of me. ¡°I was just using you, I never took you seriously. You barely know me. I never did anything for you. I was just¡­ I was such a fool, Arrosh. My friends, if I acted earlier we could have avoided all this. This happened all because I was only looking out for myself. I didn¡¯t trust anyone, even you. God, I only got this far because of you guys. You even got hurt while trying to find me. What¡¯s going to happen, Arrosh? Will I see you again?¡± ¡°You are still learning.¡± Arrosh¡¯s hand tousled my hair and I felt like a boy again, eating lunch next to the teacher in the cafeteria. ¡°And I do not blame you for the choices you have made, young human. I realize that it was tough. And to me, you will always be my disciple.¡± ¡°I too approached my master with ill-intentions. But he took pity on a young orc with no family and no friends. He taught me how to trust, to grow and to know warmth.¡± I had nothing to say. ¡°Now, I leave you with my teachings.¡± Arrosh bent down and handed me a shortsword through the bars. ¡°Take the sword and swing sideways.¡± The sword was just the right length for me to swing from the center of the cage without hitting the bars. I obeyed Arrosh and performed a two-handed swing. ¡°Now, in your hand lies a sword. But within your mind, also lies a sword. The two are one, yet right now, they are two. You must make them one. As your hand begins, your mind must also move. Only when your body and mind are one, will you achieve the first step towards mastering the sword.¡± Arrosh explained. He stepped back. ¡°Again.¡± I understood what he wanted me to do. Summoning the image of a sword in my mind, I focused on its edge. In my mind¡¯s eye, I zoomed in to the blade¡¯s edge, making it sharper and sharper. ¡°Now¡­ swing.¡± Arrosh whispered after a moment. Slowly, I changed the angle of the sword in my hand so that it would cut left. At the same time, the sword in my mind paralleled its movement. Arrosh had said this was the most important part, that the sword in my mind and the one in my hand was in sync. It was painstakingly difficult- ¡°Focus!¡± He snapped so loud that I thought he would wake Scarlet. The sword in my hand shifted, correcting itself to mirror the mind-sword. The two were at slightly different angles. Relaxing my wrist a bit, the two finally matched in angle, axis and form. Even more slowly, I began to move the blade in my mind sideways, cutting empty space. My sword-arm moved with the vision in conjunction ¡°No, it needs to be more perfect.¡± I zoomed in closer to the sword in my mind, closer and closer and closer, imagining that if an ant was crawling on the tip of the point, I could count the hair follicles on its legs. No, that wasn¡¯t enough, it needed to be closer so I could detect any minute differences between the one in my hand and A bead of sweat dropped from my chin. It could¡¯ve been my imagination but there seemed to be a thin layer of blue on top of the wooden sword. It was so thin that I could practically see through it and if I weren¡¯t moving so slowly, I would never have caught sight of it. Regardless, I knew it was mana because I felt myself growing more and more tired. ¡°The butcher¡¯s knife is covered in blood. A swordsman''s sword cuts only what the swordsman wishes to cut, nothing else. The battlefield is one of corpses and death, yet the sword must still move. When the warrior¡¯s arm grows tired, his mind takes over.¡± Arrosh muttered as I continued the movement. My shoulders started to burn and the imaginary shield I was holding lowered. ¡°Do not lower your shield, lest your heart become skewered by the rain of arrows.¡± Arrosh whispered, barely audible. I wanted to move my mind-sword as fast as I could. It was just imaginary. I could do anything with it, yet the point of this training was to have it be lined up perfectly with my actions in the real world. The faster I did this, the greater the chances of error. Arrosh was so adamant about building the perfect foundation that it had me half-convinced that this might lead to a secret skill. Finally, both swords completed the movement at exactly the same time. ¡°Again.¡± I obeyed. ¡°Again.¡± ¡°Again.¡± ¡°Again.¡± ¡°Again.¡± ¡°Again.¡± It wasn¡¯t Arrosh¡¯s voice commanding me to repeat the movement anymore, but my own. I hadn¡¯t realized it, but the orc ¨C no, he wasn¡¯t just an orc anymore ¨C my master had left. I gritted my teeth thinking of my companions. ¡°Again.¡± The next time I saw Arrosh, I swore that I¡¯d listen to his story. Not because he was a key figure in a quest related to the [Sword Saint]. But because he was one of the few people that I now had to protect. And perhaps, just perhaps if I became worthy enough, I¡¯d share mine.
Chapter 29: Captive (6)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°-and you can be the support and your barbarian friend can be the top laner! Of course, I''m the mid lane. We can recruit an archer who can be the ADC! With my apprentice playing the mage-type jungler we¡¯re the perfect team!¡± Clover ignored Arione''s nonsense. For a while now, he''d been talking nonstop calling her the ''perfect support'' that he''d been looking for. Arione and Clover were on the top of a rooftop, an easy feat with the mage''s spells. They looked at the towering temple in the center of the city, countless windows alight with candleflame beneath the moon¡¯s gaze. The two had spent the entire day tracking the whereabouts of their friends, and in the end both Scarlet¡¯s mana signature and all the information they gathered led them to the temple. Supposedly, an Auction was supposed to happen after midnight. Getting to this point had been no easy feat. Arione had to dodge soldiers belonging to the Great Houses at every corner while avoiding any orcs who might recognize Clover. But Arione doubted a random orc would recognize the pink-haired beauty. He had managed to get her fresh clothes and get the manacle off of her neck. She looked no different than a member of the various parties who were attending this event. ¡°Also, you keep leaving out Lock.¡± ¡°Hmm yeah. We¡¯ll have to see about him.¡± Arione answered honestly. Arione had gotten a few details and stories about Clover¡¯s friends from her. From what he could gather, the elf named L¡¯teya was your typical barbarian from the Delirious Jungle. Straightforward with a sense of justice to rival that of the misguided zealots of the Church. Judging people based only on their character and ''warrior''s will'' as typical of someone from her tribe. He felt that he could get along with her, albeit he''d have to put her in her place. She''d only listen to reason after he showed their gap in superiority. But this Lock character on the other hand¡­ Well, the name ¡®Slaveborn¡¯ was reason enough to suspect him of being a [Player]. What¡¯re the chances that someone who became a Slave had a name Slaveborn? That was just lazy naming sense in Arione¡¯s opinion and screamed on the spot improv. But he kept his thoughts to himself. He didn¡¯t want to upset Clover. The grade-2 mage could tell immediately that something was different about her and if he wasn¡¯t mistaken, she was probably a very special type of priestess. Either belonging to a rare sect with a few members or the first of her kind. He wanted to watch over her, help her achieve her potential and perhaps one day, earn her full trust to get her to join him of her own will. But for now, their Mana Vow kept the two tethered and he had every intention of using it to ingratiate himself into her life. ¡°What¡¯re we waiting for?¡± Clover folded her arms, shivering. They were high up enough so that the winds had gained a chill and for the beastwoman who had gotten used to the desert heat, it was freezing. Arione took off his cloak and made a motion to put it around her but the she stepped away. He shrugged. ¡°You know, I meant nothing by it. Just manners. Gosh, do you think you''re so pretty that every guy wants to hit on you at any opportunity? Sheesh.¡± He rolled his eyes. ¡°I believe you.¡± Clover answered dryly. ¡°Well? Are we waiting for a signal from your apprentice?¡± ¡°No.¡± Arione sat down on the rooftop, cross legged. ¡°There¡¯s a problem.¡± Clover saw him do a few gestures with one hand and the wind around them abruptly stopped, falling silent. Her hair, which had been flying this way and that, fell to her shoulders in their natural curl. She knew enough about magic to know that it was the mage who had done something, not to mention that she sensed the mana moving in his body long before he cast the spell. She was both astonished and scared of how fast she was changing; but Arione wasn¡¯t someone whom she wanted to reveal that to. She saw him purely as a business partner... for now. As her parents always said: never show weakness to a business partner. Though that would be moot point considering how much stronger Arione was than her. The social status was too different, Arione a powerful mage and herself, a budding priestess who needed help at everything she did. Yet Arione had made sure that the power dynamic between then never leaned too much in one direction. She appreciated the gesture but kept her gratitude for after he kept up his end of the deal. ¡°The place is crawling with insects. Er-I mean the Akka Xaluds.¡± Arione continued. ¡°They¡¯re one of the-¡± ¡°Three Great Houses, yes. I know about them.¡± Clover cut him off from repeating the unnecessary information. The Akka Xaluds were famous for their torture methods and brutal behavior. Her worry for L¡¯teya and Lock began to grow. ¡°It¡¯s not just them though. I¡¯m sensing mana signatures that should belong to Jayu State, and even the Zimmskar Kingdom.¡± He peered at her while mentioning her home country. If it affected Clover, she didn¡¯t show it. Arione nodded, strangely satisfied. ¡°I hope that won¡¯t be something that gets in the way of our agreement.¡± Clover was used to dealing with people, and it showed in the way that she kept on pressuring Arione to hold up his end of the deal. She didn¡¯t know exactly why, but Clover knew that Arione wanted her in his party. For now, that was her only bargaining chip and she used it ruthlessly, constantly pestering the powerful mage. Right now, the why didn¡¯t matter. Far from annoying the mage, her tactics seemed to delight him. He took them in stride, beaming right at her. ¡°It won''t. So, do you happen to have a dress handy?¡±
I repeated the movement over and over and over again. My only thoughts were that of the sword and its edge. How it would cut, how I should move it if an opponent came at me and... and the best way for me to kill. My heart, where Arrosh placed his hand, burned with heat and it fueled my movements. I wanted to spend this time thinking about L¡¯teya or Clover, about how to best rescue them. But now wasn''t the time to spend time lost in my own thoughts. If I was too weak when the time came, all that planning would be for nothing. 99% of the problems in MSS could be solved by being strong enough. Clover had briefly mentioned nobility in this world before but I had written it off as it didn¡¯t pertain to my goals back then. But now, it was coming back to bite me in the ass. Lack of information was all around me, and I needed to prepare myself so when I learned something new, I could act on it. The various powers that Arrosh mentioned, they worried me. It wasn''t like I could do anything about that right now though. I finished the maneuver, painstakingly slow, and turned my sword the other way. ¡°Psst... Hey...¡± It was Scarlet¡¯s voice. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re doing in there... but it''s almost time... I think...¡± Really? Was it that late already? Had I just spent the entire day swinging my sword around? ¡°Understood. You remember the plan?¡± ¡°Of course...¡± The young mage sounded excited. ¡°Here." This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. The air in front of me blurred, warping the images and melted away to reveal an elf with curly red hair. His features were smooth and regal, telltale signs of an elf but it was the pointed ears that were really the giveaway. In contrast to his fiery head, his eyes were deep blue. He wore dirty rags that were stained with black sludge same as me. He put a glowing hand over the door of my cage and I heard a click. ¡°Done.¡± I tested the door, opening it slowly and then closing it shut again. ¡°Change of plans.¡± I said. Even in complete darkness, I saw Scarlet frown. ¡°I¡¯m going to grab the patrol and interrogate them.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I know too little. I need more information on what type of situation I''m in.¡± I thought the mage would argue but his eyes just widened in what looked like excitement. ¡°You¡¯re going to¡­ fight?¡± He looked at me up and down. ¡°You?.. Against those orcs?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± But honestly, I was hoping it would be the glasses wearing elf. "But you don''t have to stay. I swear I won''t let them find out about you. If anything they''ll be focused on me." Or maybe the orc who punched me in the mouth would come. I''d like that. ¡°Do¡­ you want me to play support?¡± I don¡¯t know why but the way he said that sentence bothered me. Especially how he said ¡®play support¡¯ like it was a terminology and not a way of asking if I wanted help. If I didn¡¯t know any better, I¡¯d say he was talking like we were playing a very specific 10-person game. Either way, it was a kind gesture and it was always helpful to have a mage on my side in battle. ¡°Hmm¡­ can you silence the area? So no sound escapes?¡± He nodded. "But afterwards... I''ll be leaving. I held up my end of the deal after all..." ¡°Then use it at your discretion. And if I don''t see you, keep yourself safe.¡± I stood in the center of my cage again and hid the shortsword behind my back. He looked at me weird, like that had been a strange thing to say. But I didn¡¯t want to continue being someone who didn¡¯t care about a stranger¡¯s well-being outside of my own immediate needs. I wanted to change. Without giving me a chance to explain, Scarlet¡¯s image blurred and disappeared, leaving me alone again. It wasn¡¯t a moment too soon, I heard footsteps coming down the staircase. My heart began to pound with the familiar rhythm accompanying impending violence. Except this time I wouldn¡¯t be facing monsters, but people. Yes, they were orcs. Yes, they were my captors. But still there was a part of me that was screaming that doing this was wrong. My mind was brought back to the moment during the Mak¡¯gorah that the orcs had forced upon us. I had been more than willing back then¡­ so what had changed? ¡°Because I¡¯m going to kill them this time.¡± This wouldn¡¯t end with someone having their ear bitten off. The Mak¡¯gorah before had been a farce, our captors had kept watch to make sure that no one would die. But now, I was in a cave underneath the temple in the center of their city, submerged in complete darkness. If I spilled orc blood here, I would have to make sure there would be no survivors. Furthermore, if I got caught after escaping I¡¯d be killed. But I knew from day one that it''d come to this. I''d either kill the orcs or die like a dog. I tightened my grip on the sword. ¡°Hmm? There''s an awake one?¡± I had been too caught up in my thoughts and hadn¡¯t realized a pair of orcs had arrived in front of me. They exchanged glances then looked back at me. The guards must¡¯ve possessed some kind of darkvision, similar to me and my mind automatically went through the list of Cores that were obtainable in the nearby area which could provide the stat boost. All the while, my heart was pounding so hard I thought it¡¯d beat right out of my chest. One of them took a step towards the cage. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Coin Toss] ? ?[Reflex] has been reduced ? ?[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Coin Toss] ? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack]? I kicked the cage open and stabbed the orc''s throat. He opened his mouth to scream but no yell came, just blood. I had underestimated the orc¡¯s vitality because the throat wound wasn¡¯t enough to finish him. He backhanded me across my face with his fist and I almost fell over to the side, withdrawing the blade from his neck. But this wasn¡¯t the same helpless body from the tunnels being pushed around by an orc guard, fresh in this world. This body had a grade-8 and grade-7 boss-class core. The attack wasn''t nearly enough to stop me. So I jerked my arm to the side, taking my sword out of the side of his neck and kicked him in the chest to send him falling. If he wasn''t dead, he''d bleed out. His partner had already drawn his weapon, a mace and shield, and was charging towards me. He was screaming, but again there was no sound. Assured that Scarlet had done his job, I engaged the orc in melee by leaping just out of his range and darting back in with a simple thrust. I had expected the orc to bock with his shield but he was too slow, my sword sank into the meat of his shoulder. I felt the muscles part with ease, my sword sinking in with staccato-like rhythm as it hit bone and cartilage. Acting quick, I slashed downwards while my blade was still embedded and left a vertical gash on his deltoids. He tried to swing his mace again, but it was practically in slow motion compared to the monsters I¡¯d been fighting so far. I didn¡¯t even use my sword, ducking underneath his swing and I punched him in the jaw as hard as I could. As he fell back, I reached down and scooped up some sludge, throwing it at his face. He roared but I saw in the darkness that his eyes were shut tight, blinded momentarily. I sped up and stabbed him once in each kneecap, feeling the odd sensation of bone and cartilage being underneath my blade. He swung his mace again despite being on his knees and I easily knocked the weapon away by cutting his hand off at the wrist. My movements were smooth, I knew that I could flow into a maneuver that could leave his arms useless. Letting my instincts guide me, I cut into the space between his chest and shoulder, severing the rotator cuffs. His eyes still held defiance. So I punched him in the jaw again and again until it was gone. Once I stopped punching him, my ears popped and sound returned. Whatever spell Scarlet had used to block out all sound must¡¯ve been wind-based. I heard the ragged breathing of the orc in front of me, his eyes now holding fear instead of defiance. I had broken his nose and parts of his jaw. But I was still holding his head upwards, flooding his airways with blood. He was choking. ¡°Where are the other slaves?¡± I asked. He gurgled. I released his head and the orc fell face forward, spitting blood and phlegm onto the ground. ¡°Whoa...¡± Scarlet had appeared next to me and he looked down at the orc, then back to me. The young mage swallowed and looked away when our eyes met. A single ability, Coin Toss was all it took. Scratch that, two abilities. The active ability, Coin Toss in conjunction with Arcane Masochism became a cheat skill that allowed me to raise either my attack, defense or speed randomly every 60 seconds. It was funny, how the Coin Toss effect should have worn off after 60 seconds. But Arcane Masochism turned it into perma-buff that kept on stacking as long as I stayed in combat. A month ago, I couldn''t even have dreamed of looking at these orcs the wrong way. Now... I leaned down and grabbed the orc by the back of his hair, lifting his head up. I was careful to angle his head down so that he wouldn¡¯t start choking again. I kept my voice quiet, lest I alert the others. ¡°Tell me where the other slaves are and it''ll be quick, Warrior.¡± He didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Allow me.¡± Scarlet moved his hands in a few gestures and I thought I recognized them, they looked almost ninja-like. I wasn¡¯t able to tell what spell Scarlet cast from his mana signature, my mana sense was too weak for that. But I knew what it was as soon as the orc¡¯s eyes glazed over and he gained a dreamy expression. ¡°He knows how to cast Sleeptalk. That¡¯s a 2nd circle spell so he¡¯s grade 8. No wonder he didn¡¯t tell me his grading when I told him I was grade 7.¡± Sleeptalk wouldn¡¯t work unless the opponent was near under 30% hp in the game. I was slightly curious as to how to know when Sleeptalk would be effective in the real world, but stowed that question for later. ¡°Where are the other slaves?¡± I repeated. "Nice ones¡­ upstairs. Cheaper ones¡­ further¡­ down.¡± I cursed. That was the worst answer I could¡¯ve received. L¡¯teya would definitely be in one of the upper levels then. Why? It was simple. She was an elven beauty with tanned skin, an extremely rare trait among her race. She was also a barbarian from the Delirious Jungle, which added to her uniqueness. I wasn¡¯t an expert on the slave market but knew enough about the game¡¯s different races to know what would be valued. ¡°Guards upstairs? Downstairs?¡± ¡°Warchief Thoktur and¡­ Shaman Skurl guards upstairs¡­. below¡­ guarded by¡­ Madame Damure¡¯s guards¡­¡± Huh. Now that was interesting. Why would that merchant choose to guard the slaves whom were worth less? If she was truly as cunning as she seemed, there was no way she¡¯d forgo the choice to place her men near prime merchandise. I had seen Damur. She was drinking from a richly adorned cup with her pet-orc slave from a different horde, all the while Skurl was grading slaves like me. Damur was greedy... someone like that wouldn''t let Thokthur and Skurl guard the main attraction. Something smelled fishy here. Also why would they separate the slaves in the first place? ¡°It¡¯s for the clientele.¡± Scarlet muttered. I gave him a questioning look. He shrugged. ¡°My master told me a bit about the slave trade while we were here... They¡¯re looking for.. You know. Slaves that look nice and stuff.¡± ¡°What about us then?¡± Should I be insulted that he looked me up and down while saying ''look nice''? ¡°We¡¯re the battle slaves... probably.¡± He answered. ¡°The ones below¡­ I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°There¡¯s something fishy about the ones they¡¯re keeping below.¡± I smelt it. A Hidden Piece.
The path towards the heavens leads to death, but the descent into darkness offers life. You must choose, whether to be bathed in light and lose all you hold dear or cover yourself in shadow and live to fight another day.
I made my decision. ¡°I¡¯m going to head down.¡± I told Scarlet. ¡°Do you think your friend is down there?¡± He released his spell and the orc fell unconscious. I wanted to lie to get the mage to go with me, but our deal was over. Besides, I would be walking into danger based on Arrosh''s words alone. I didn''t want to risk someone else''s life for my little escapades. ¡°I think they¡¯re hiding something down there, and I intend to find out what.¡± I told him truthfully. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± He groaned. ¡°I held up my end of the bargain though..." ¡°Yes. You did.¡± I turned to him and smiled. "Thank you." God, the whole exchange felt so awkward I wanted to cringe and hide in a rock somewhere. It was probably just as awkward for Scarlet because I saw the boy blush and look away, sheepishly. "A deal''s a deal..." He muttered. I smiled but didn¡¯t say more. "Well... good luck with everything... Mr. Lock." Scarlet''s form began to blur. "Right. You take care too... and I hope you find your master." That sounded a lot better in my ears. I must be getting better at this whole temporary companion and alliance thing. One my hearing no longer picked up the sound of Scarlet''s footsteps from the staircase, I went over to the orc who was sleeping. I felt my lips curl with disdain at what I was about to do. It was like I was poking my hands into garbage, dirtying myself. I stabbed him in the back of the neck and finished him off. I had expected a part of myself to feel guilt. Or shame. Anything really. I didn''t. I think I wanted to feel guilt. But the part of me that felt guilt for doing this was long gone. It was either them or me... and I understood now. The same way that I had been ready to die when I wielded my sword, they had been ready too. I didn''t go around on a mass murder spree killing innocents just for the sake of it. This had been necessary. Or maybe I was just fooling myself. I quietly followed Scarlet''s footsteps but instead of going upstairs as he did, I went downwards.
Chapter 30: Captive (7)
World: MSS - Loading...
Clover entered the rooftop of the orc¡¯s temple and was brought back to a time in her life before the there was a manacle around her neck. The rooftop had been decorated to look like a garden in the distinct style of the desert. Instead of trees and flowers, she saw large cacti bearing fruits and flowers. Small shrubs and illusions made in the look of desert butterflies invited admiring ''oohs'' and ''ahhs''. In each four corner was a mini-oases with palm trees, a small pond and tables with benches. But these oases weren¡¯t for everyone, they were reserved for the most politically powerful at tonight¡¯s event. The orcs wearing standard bone-armor were gone, she saw orcs in doublets and suits making small talk with elves, humans and even beastmen. It was a shock to her who had only seen the grunt-soldiers, these were the leader of this city. They mingled with nobles and influential individuals like... "Like regular people." Clover thought. Maybe it was because they were her captors, but she had begun to demonize them in her head. Well, they still technically were but better dressed. She could tell whether a guest was a noble or influential adventurer by their attire: a decorated armor or robe made of the rarest of silk. Her merchant eye caught the signs of dresses that were no doubt custom orders, enchanted with magic so that the dress caused sparkles of light with every movement. Everything was bathed in moonlight and there were magical constructs hovering every few feet above the rooftop. Round spherical orbs made of metal that illuminated everyone¡¯s footsteps and seemed to follow a certain path made sure there was no hint of darkness. It looked like they were walking among the stars, enriching the experience so that it felt like they were in another world all together. Two months ago she would have given anything to make connections with the nobles here, for the betterment of her family business. Now it sickened her just being here. No hint of the poverty that ran rampant in Samak City was present here. Only splendor and riches. No sign of slaves or the near-death experienes that Clover remembered. Just people smiling and laughing, exchanging coins and looks of suggestion. More than once, a man touched her elbow to gain her attention trying to speak to her. ¡°Whoa.¡± Arione touched the tip of her elbow, not as harshly as the other men had. ¡°You¡¯re leaking anger¡­ mages like me can pick up on fluctuations in your mana that are caused by emotions. We don¡¯t want to give anyone reason to look at us funny.¡± Clover took a deep breath and calmed herself. ¡°Atta¡¯girl.¡± He spoke quietly. Clover was dressed in a tight fitting black dress with a matching shawl decorated with strips of pink. Arione had procured it from a nearby merchant. In other words, he went to the merchant¡¯s lodging and stole it. The mage seemed to favor tight fitting clothes over loose ones and gave her a wink once she had gotten dressed. When she asked him why he picked these in particular, he answered in a way that she didn''t understand. ¡°I just grabbed what I thought girls would wear to a club. We¡¯re in an orc city after all, maybe it¡¯s not as stuffy as a formal ball?¡± What exactly was a club? Wasn''t it a weapon? His mannerisms were those befitting of a mage trained in high society, though erring on the roguish side. He was tall, slim and deceptively muscular underneath his robes as Clover had found out when he carried her in his arms while flying to and fro. Despite the teasing, she had to admit that he was a gentleman. He never pushed and waited for her to answer, just like when he asked if she¡¯d be ok if they infiltrated this little event. While she was changing, he had actually left the room instead of just turning around. Arione had taken out a robe from his dimension ring, stowing his dirty grey robes in favor of a cleaner one. It was made of black velvety material and with his pale skin and light blue hair, the elven mage cut quite a dashing figure. More than one head turned when they entered the ball and Clover fought down a surge of excitement that came from being the center of attention. They weren¡¯t here to enjoy themselves, they were here to spy on people. She had to find L''teya and Lock. ¡°There.¡± Arione pointed. ¡°That''s danger numero uno.¡± They had chosen a little corner, leaning on the parapets. Arione bent low to whisper in her ear, their height difference making the movement more intimate than it should have been. ¡°The one with the dark green armor? Those are men who belong to the Akka Xalud House.¡± In one corner oasis, there was a group of humans standing guard around a bench occupied by two people. ¡°See how their armor doesn¡¯t have the centipede? That means they¡¯re just low ranking distant family members. Branch Houses.¡± ¡°And the ones with the centipedes?¡± She asked. ¡°Main Family. Scions.¡± He spat the word like it was a curse. ¡°Don¡¯t worry though, I¡¯ll be sticking next to you like glue.¡± Glue. Another word she was unfamiliar with. ¡°The guy''s name is Jason. Jason Carid Akka Xalud. Grade-5 adventurer. About 4th in power in the family heirarchy.¡± Clover eyed the man, a tall stocky man with the strangest hair she had ever seen. Plus his eyes shined an eerie orange even at this distance. ¡°That¡¯s his half-sister, Maria Biva.¡± Arione described the girl sitting on the bench nexto to Jason. ¡°Grade 7¡­ but a nasty piece of work. Heard some pretty disgusting stories about her.¡± Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. He then described the other three parties that had set up camp at each corner of the rooftop. ¡°That¡¯s Madame Damur, she¡¯s the biggest and probably only merchant for this city. Primarily deals in the slave trade and heard she made a fortune selling gladiators to the Jayu State. The oasis opposite of her are the Colosseum Representatives from Jayu. No doubt here to try and buy up all the slaves. Their biggest competition are the Akka Xaluds.¡± On the Jayu State side, were a trio of dwarves sitting an laughing surrounded by their guards. Unlike Madame Damure or the Akka Xaluds whose guards were entirely human or entirely orc, the Jayu contingent was a mixture of all races. Orc, Dwarf, Elf and even Human. The only race not present at their side were the beastman. ¡°And I¡¯m sure I don¡¯t need to introduce the last corner to you.¡± Arione finished. ¡°Or maybe it''s racist of me to assume that.¡± He was right, Clover didn¡¯t need a description of the entourage at the last oasis: they were beastman from the Zimmskar Kingom. Beastman of all shapes and sizes stood guard, protecting the head of their party: a deer beastman. Like all beastman his features were entirely human except for the antlers that sprouted form his head. From his toga and golden sash, Clover knew that he was a politician from the western region of Zimmskar. The easterners, like herself and her family, preferred the more modern approach to clothing, like militaristic suits and doublets that were in fashion in the Empire. It was ingrained in the culture of the westerners, the traditionalists to adhere to decorum of old. ¡°You remember our cover story?¡± Clover nodded. ¡°I¡¯m a small-time merchant who wants to get in on the slave trade and you¡¯re my hired guard.¡± ¡°Well, where do you want to start?¡± Arione rubbed his hands together. ¡°I¡¯m excited!¡± Their goal was simple: find out where the slaves were being kept. Arione kept his face hidden underneath the shadow of his shroud and cast a spell that blurred his face. He had told Clover that if anyone found out who he was, they might have a massacre on their hands. So she would have to do the talking. Arione left it up to her to choose whom they would talk to first. Clover¡¯s old training kicked in. She straightened her posture and patted her dress down to accentuate her curves. It wasn¡¯t needed, Arione had found something that fit perfectly. Then she locked eyes with one of the dwarves from the Jayu oasis, catching him staring at her. She smiled at him and began to walk towards him, a slight sway to her hips. The dwarf blushed and looked away. Arione whistled while walking next to her. ¡°Ok, now I believe you were a merchant who mingled with high society.¡± Clover made her move.
I had been going down the stairs for almost an hour now by my estimation. I could have been wrong, my sense of time had been messed up. To be fair, I''d been trapped in a dungeon without access to sunlight for a day, fighting for my life. Then I was unconscious for five days in a coma. As soon as I woke up, I was given all of few hours to recover before being dragged into an underground lair. There had been no time to get my bearings and really recover, both physically and mentally. More than the physical exertion, my mental fatigue was starting to pile up. Going down the stairs was a chore and I made sure to check every floor, no matter how tedious. Each floor was same as the one above, a large cavern with no light. There weren''t any cages containing slaves but I had found the armory. Most of the orcs'' armors had been too large for me. But I was rewarded with a well-balanced kite shield as well as leather pads for my elbows and knees. I also got rid of my sandals and took a pair of leather boots, that flexed with every step. My feet were already bruised and scraped plenty but it was better late than never. "Man will I ever get to buy proper equipment and dungeon delve just to level and farm some cores? Without having someone''s life at stake?" I finally reached the lowest level, which revealed a cave opening that dwarfed all the previous ones. Stalactites hung from the ceiling like icicles, threatening to impale whoever chose to disturb the peace within this darkness. Like the others, it had rough rocky patches and massive stalagmites which made it difficult for me to see more than a few feet at a time. If I hadn''t taken the boots, I would''ve stepped on more than one sharp rock and cut myself open. Continuing on my way I finally found signs of life. Footsteps and muffled voices, combined with indirect light from torches. "Let''s see what we got here." I stowed my sword and shield, so that they were directly over my back using the leather strap I had looted from one of the rooms. Bending low to the ground, I advanced on my elbows and knees. ¡°-you. Now move it!¡± I was close enough now that I could hear them. I peered over a small outcropping, keeping myself hidden behind a particularly large stalagmite. Torches illuminated the space beneath me, and the light stung my eyes. When I woke up in the barracks, I thought it was the sun that was too bright. This might be because I had enhanced eyesight from the Beckoning Cat''s core. It looked like anytime I was exposed to bright light from the cover of darkness, I''d be at risk of being momentarily blinded. An unexpected weakness, something that hadn''t been present in the game. I''d have to be careful in the future. Man, this reality patch really sucked. There was a line of slaves, their wrists and necks chained together being transported by hulking orc guards. I didn¡¯t recognize these guards, they were different than the Samak Horde. The first tipoff was that their armor was made of metal. The Samak Grunts preferred to go with light bone armor or no armor at all. The second was their weaponry, it shined and gleamed menacingly in the soft glow of torches. It was obvious that the failing Samak City wouldn¡¯t be able to afford this. These guys were either mercenaries or guards under Damure¡¯s command. But my senses didn''t particularly see them as dangerous. Quite the opposite in fact, I was fairly confident I could take them. The slaves were a mixture of familiar faces and new, but one thing as for sure. They weren¡¯t being transported above, rather it looked like they were being led deeper into the caves. ¡°Six guards. About a dozen slaves.¡± I counted. I looked to the slaves looking to see if there was anyone notable. To my pleasant surprise, the 7-foot tall lizard beastman was towering among them; Skaris. His face was entirely human, except for the red scales that adorned parts of his face and the scaled tail that lashed behind him. Suppressing a shudder, I observed the snake-human hybrid man. He usually wore his hair tied in a ponytail but right now, it was unkempt and disheveled. Unlike the others, his manacle was chained to his neck, wrist and his tail as well. I continued to watch, trying to think plan. It wouldn¡¯t go well if I went in guns blazing, that''d be suicide. I had no idea whether these guys had one core or two cores. Waiting paid off dividends because I spotted Yulrien standing near a stalagmite, leaning against it. I didn¡¯t catch him the first time because the soft glow from the torches didn¡¯t quite reach him and he was dressed in all black. The glasses-wearing elf gave orders to the orc guards and I caught bits and pieces of it. ¡° ¨C waiting. These guys ¨C check on ¨C Madame ¨C monster. ¨C wait here.¡± Then he walked off. Naturally, I followed him. Yulrien moved like the wind, weaving through the stalagmites and rock outcroppings without pause. He definitely had [Darkvision] because he saw things that even I had trouble seeing. I kept about 50 paces behind him, trying to step softly. He most likely had Cores geared towards stealth because I lost sight of him multiple times. Thankfully though, I had advanced sight and hearing; I never lost him more than a few minutes at a time. Yet the distance between us kept growing. He was much faster and more agile, not to mention probably used to traveling through this. Also he wasn¡¯t trying to stay undetected. I was slower, less experienced and frankly just less skilled overall. This raised a small flag in my brain that perhaps fighting Yulrien might be less than a good idea. ¡°But I¡¯ll never get a better chance than now.¡± From what I deduced, Yulrien was close to the orc inner circle. I¡¯d seen him answer directly to Damur, Skurl and even Warchief Thokthur. He¡¯d also been close to the slaves. Maybe he was a double agent, working for one-side or playing the other. It happened often enough in the game when following questlines. Yulrien held valuable knowledge¡­ and even if he didn¡¯t, he was too close to the powerful orcs. Whatever I did here, he would surely learn of it and report to his higher ups Plus my whole struggle with tailing him when he wasn¡¯t even trying to lose me was humbling. If he really decided to run away, I¡¯d never catch him. I lost Yulrien a while back but I continued. Unless Yulrien knew I was following him, he¡¯d have taken a straight path. My sense of direction was pretty much crippled, the rocks all looked the same and there was no sun. I relied on my instincts, following the general direction that Yulrien took. His steps led me all the way to the walls of the cave. But I didn¡¯t see him anywhere. I continued to sneak around, checking for any trace of him. Maybe there was a trap door somewhere? ¡°It could be a hidden door.¡± It was worth a try. I went around each section of the wall, punching and kicking the stony surface. If it turned out that there was no such thing as a hidden wall in this world¡­ well, at least no one saw me acting like a crazy person. This wasn¡¯t new to me either; I spent hours in MSS breaking boxes, walking around dungeons while hitting random walls. That was how I found most of my Hidden Pieces. Just as I was about to give up, my fist went through an unassuming section of the wall with no resistance. ¡°Found it.¡± It was an illusion, made to look like the wall. When I traced my hand over the surface, it was shaped just like a doorway. albeit a large one. I actually couldn''t even touch the top part, I would have to jump to see where it was and I didn''t want to risk the noise. I stuck my head in and found another set of stairs, descending into the darkness. No torches glowing the path. No magical stones illuminating each step. Yulrien definitely possessed [Darkvision]. There was no sound, no light and no sign of life down there. Perhaps it was because I absorbed the Ujo and Lucky Beckoning Cat Core, both beasts creatures. My instinct told me that I was in danger; I fought the urge to turn around and leave. It was like there was a certain scent to this place¡­ of rot and decay. Death. Still, I didn¡¯t have a choice. If Arrosh¡¯s future sight was to be believed, going down was the only way for me to get us all out of this. I descended the steps.
Chapter 31: Captive (8)
World: MSS - Loading...
The scent of rot and decay became stronger the closer I got to the bottom. Unlike the winding stairs embedded into the walls for the rest of this subterranean system, this one had been built straight with what looked like a ramp in the center. The steps were placed in a large downward slopping tunnel. The sheer scale of the whole place reminded me of the dungeon from the Desolate Sands, though perhaps not as large nor refined. The doorway that I entered hadn¡¯t been small either, obviously built for transporting things in and out en masse. Actually, the whole place reminded me of a loading dock, which got me thinking: What was Damur hiding down here? I got my answer soon enough. Brrrr Whuff Woooo Chichichichichi These were undoubtedly monster calls. Barking, strange chuffing sounds and even sinister laughter that sent chills up my spine, I would recognize them anywhere; they haunted my dreams every night since the Dokkaebi Tunnels. The cries were growing louder and I could tell there were more than a few dozen mixed in there. I could name them all, despite having never heard some of them in this world. But I¡¯d played the game for 14 years and heard the same digitized monster sound effects thousands if not millions of times. How could I not recognize them? Hobgoblin, Bool Dokkaebi, Pyogyun, Agwi, Kappa and more. I started to take the stairs two at a time, my footsteps muffled by the sound of monsters. Actually the sounds grew so loud that I had to consciously try and block them out. But atleast I wouldn¡¯t have to worry about Yulrien hearing me. I leaped down the stairs, skipping the last few and landing on the bottom level at last. I quickly hid behind the stairs before Yulrien could turn around. The room was shaped like a bird¡¯s cage, in the shape of a semi-sphere. Just like the stairs, it was obviously a man-made structure. Around the room were small cages, that contained the monsters I had heard. All the monsters I had named in my head were present, plus the ones that remained silent during my descent. Most of them were grade 9 and 10, though I did spot a few grade 8s. But one sleeping monster in particular caught my eye. Shadow Mimic Wolf¡­ Grade 7. A Boss-class monster. Fuck. ¡°I have to get out of here.¡± I hated Shadow Mimic Wolves with a passion and without a doubt, there was 0% chance of me defeating it as I was. Even if I had L¡¯teya and Clover were here with me, it¡¯d just wipe out our entire party. We didn''t have anyone that could match its mobility. First, this monster always had a dagger equipped which stacked [Bleed] just like my jagged katana. Second, they could teleport by using their ability [Shadow Blink]. Most game developers would have stopped there, but this wasn''t even the half of it. The two skill combos that really made the boss raid infuriating werethe active skill, [Sadistic Mimicry] and the passive skill, [Gloomy Disposition]. Anytime the monster wounded someone, they copied a random skill. Then there was its defensive ability: [Gloomy Disposition]. As long as this monster stood in shadow, it was immune to magical damage. Yes. You heard me right. Complete Immunity. Just like the Ujo, this guy had immunity to one of the damage types in MSS. Luckily, it wasn¡¯t as broken as Ujo¡¯s [Dull Edge]. In return for immunity to magical damage, the Mimic Wolf would receive a severe debuff to its defense as long as it stood in a shadow. It wouldn''t take a character that invested heavily in physical stat more than five strikes to kill it. Not that it mattered, this guy could just [Shadow Blink] away. And people wonder why it took me 14 years to beat this game when monsters like these are only grade 7. I studied the monster and noticed some things. This Shadow Mimic Wolf looked different from the ones I¡¯d seen in the game. They were supposed to be a mess of black fur that covered them from head to toe. This monster''s sprite in the game was a fur ball-werewolf cracked out on cocaine and adderall rolled into one. The only parts of its body the player was allowed to see were the whites of its eyes, its gangly arms and the protruding snout filled with rotting fangs. The rest would be hidden beneath the thick black mane which served as a natural defense against physical attacks. Yet, this one¡¯s fur was stained with streaks of white. ¡°This guy isn¡¯t just a boss-class¡­ it¡¯s a named variant.¡± Double Fuck. That meant this guy was probably higher than a grade-7. The grading system wouldn¡¯t necessarily change its grade, named variants took the grade of their normal counterparts. But on the forums, we often assigned our own grading system to these mutants. The named variants had similar abilities to their counterparts, always with a twist. For example, I had once encountered a named variant of the monster, [Dokkaebi]. One of its abilities [Dokkaebi Pouch] acted like a dimension ring, or inventory bag in other games. However the named variant had an ability called [Greedy Dokkaebi Pouch], which transmuted any item stored into gold. There were people who tried to livestream a Named-Variant Core run but they always failed. Mostly because these monsters were impossible to find. If you were lucky, you''d encounter a named monster every 10 playthroughs. Now that I thought about it, I never actually saw a livestream successfully record an encounter with a named variant. They were practically myths, only being shared on forums through screenshots and posts. Now that I was in this world, I wouldn''t be surprised if that wasn''t a coincidence. Maybe these monsters were smarter, more sinister and intelligent than we had all assumed. The AI for these monsters certainly seemed to be in the game version of themselves. My eyes continued to roam through the bird-cage shaped cavern, trying to see if there was anything else that could be of use to me. I saw Yulrien with his back to me, about thirty paces away. He was holding a piece of paper and checking things off of it. The glasses-elf stood in front of a table with large cylindrical objects containing spheres of different colors. Those were incubators. Normally when people think of incubators, they imagine warm casings that house eggs; a surrogate mother of sorts for the lifeform inside. In MSS, incubators were the opposite. They were cold to the touch and metallic, nothing motherly nor warm about them. They didn¡¯t host eggs, full with the potential of life. MSS Incubators housed Spirit Cores, the remnants left behind by dying monsters. Furthermore Incubators were the only way to transport Cores before it dissipated into nothingness. I saw 5 Cores and they were all labeled. Shadow Mimic Wolf - Grade 7 Flame Drake - Grade 7 Biyu - Grade 6 Inmyun Ho (ÈËÃæø{) - Grade 5 Hyo (Ïù) - Grade 8 All thoughts of escape went out the window. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. I licked my lips, eyes fixed on them. Quickly delving into my soul the way L¡¯teya had taught me, I found that I didn¡¯t have a Core Slot available yet. But I should be close to a level-up to 20, shouldn¡¯t I? And this room was full of monsters for that exact purpose. This would be risky but I¡¯d be a fool not to take the chance. ¡°Now,,, how should I do this?¡±
¡°Ahahaha! You will have to visit us next time Ms. Weinport! My villa overlooks the vineyard and it¡¯s a view worth dying for!¡± The dwarf¡¯s raucous laughter rang through the small area that they were standing in. Clover leaned her head to the side, smiling at him. ¡°I¡¯d love to, Mr. Olodo.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t call me that! We¡¯re friends now! Call me Tom!¡± He put a hand on her wrist, raising it and giving a little bow. Clover had befriended the three dwarves of the Jayu faction within the blink of an eye. Arione was impressed. She wasn¡¯t just talented at magic, but had obviously been trained on conversations skills as well as how to behave in formal settings. The beastwoman used her looks with deadly effectiveness; all three dwarves were practically swooning over her. He didn¡¯t even have to worry about anyone looking at him, he¡¯d become a background figure next to the dazzling pink flower. ¡°Stop that, Tomahud!¡± Tom¡¯s triplet brother ¨CRokdris Olopo¨C slapped the hand holding the maiden¡¯s wrist. ¡°How dare you lay your grubby hands on Ms. Weinport!¡± ¡°Please.¡± Clover batted her eyelashes and made it look natural, placing a hand on Rok¡¯s elbow. ¡°Call me Clover.¡± Right there and then, Arione thought Rokdris could die a happy man. Clover had to say her farewells, much to the sadness of the three dwarves. But the other guests who had come to this corner of the rooftop were now waiting to talk to the Jayu Merchants and there was quite a crowd building up. More than one individual were starting to look their way, an unwanted side effect of charming the dwarves. Arione tugged on Clover¡¯s elbow, signaling that it was time to leave. ¡°Please!¡± Yousef, the oldest of the three dwarves, practically begged. ¡°You must visit us at the Colosseum! The games are not as barbaric as you would think! I assure you!¡± Once Clover got away from the three, the other guests swarmed the dwarves with actually business. All that the pink-haired beastwoman did was flirt and get them to spill some information. Arione doubted the dwarves had any idea what Clover did and if they did, they would probably thank her for it. She had been positively glowing with charm during that conversation and if he didn¡¯t know she was a priestess, would have suspected her of possessing a Core specializing in allure. ¡°That¡­ was impressive.¡± Arione commented, once they were isolated enough. ¡°First time no one even paid attention to me. You looked so alive back there. Wowzers.¡± Clover didn¡¯t reply, taking a drink off of a nearby server and sipping at it. She didn¡¯t want alcohol to lower her inhibitions and it was never a good idea to get drunk at a social gathering like this. But she was thirsty and the orcs served nothing else; so sip she would. Clover studied the other three parties she had not approached yet: the Akka Xaluds, representatives of the Zimmskar Kingdom and the orc merchant: Damur. ¡°Well now we know that the auction is tonight and that it¡¯s not just Slaves that are on sale, there¡¯s rumors that there will be Cores for sale as well.¡± Arione¡¯s eyes hovered to the Akka Xaluds, making sure Jason and Maria were still there. ¡°No doubt, the Akka Xaluds are here for the Cores. Maybe the dwarves too, the colosseum could always use better fighters for entertainment.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to offend them so I didn¡¯t ask, but tell me more about this colosseum.¡± ¡°Colosseum. Largest Gladiator ring in the Jayu States and probably the whole world.¡± Arione provided without missing a beat. ¡°Adventurers against Adventurers, Parties against Parties, Monster fights, you name it. Rumor has it that they brought in a Grade-4 monster once. Closest you can get to showing a natural disaster without actually bringing one to your doorsteps.¡± Just like the Enla Enla which had killed his companions, monsters of grade-3 and above were more like forces of nature rather than individual beings. He grimaced but continued his explanation. ¡°The whole point is to get a gladiator that the audience can root for, you know? To be popular. But they haven¡¯t had a gladiator like that in years. So what¡¯s the next step? Artificially create strong gladiators by buying them Cores and just pit them against monsters. Easiest way to get people to sympathize. But the people can recognize it when it''s fake. Nothing rings the heart like a good underdog story.¡± Clover nodded, her merchant mind working quickly to fill in the gaps between what Arione left unsaid. The Jayu state was here to enhance the Colosseum experience. They wanted to buy potential fighters for the Colloseum. She was sure there would be fighters who came from all different types of backgrounds; maybe bastards, minor nobility and even famous adventurers. The dwarf brothers were just trying to fill out the archetype of the slave gladiators. Then there were the potential Cores that would go on auction. ¡°Coin. They talk about Core, Slaves, Colosseum and all those things, but at the end of the day; it¡¯s about profit.¡± With that realization, Clover felt that everything suddenly made sense. All those life and death experiences, the grueling training and the days spent out in the sun. Her fear as she walked through the Dokkaebi Tunnels and the flecks of blood that splashed on her face when L¡¯teya scalped their opponents during the Mak¡¯Gora. It had all been for gold. Being a merchant¡¯s daughter, the first thing she had been taught was the value of gold. In one moment it could be worth nothing, the next it was worth more than a man¡¯s life. Such was the fickle nature of the merchant trade and its lifeblood: coin. She felt her shoulders relax; Clover felt at home for the first time. ¡°So where to next?¡± Arione smoothed the wrinkles in his robe. ¡°I want to talk to them.¡± She said, her eyes fixated on a particular oasis. ¡°That¡¯s a bad idea.¡± The mage leapt in front of her just as she was about to take the first step. He put up his hands, palms out in an effort to placate the young woman. ¡°You don¡¯t know what you¡¯re doing.¡± ¡°No.¡± Clover answered him. ¡°I know exactly what I¡¯m doing.¡± ¡°Stop.¡± He hissed as she tried to push past him. ¡°You¡¯re getting too excited. We¡¯re both wanted people and the Akka Xaluds are the last people you want to talk to. You think they¡¯re all nice and friendly, falling for your charms like the dwarf brothers? Think again. They¡¯re Scions. Scions. They eat politics for breakfast and finish off with a nice serving of backstabbing.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not even taking into account they¡¯re Akka Xaluds. They¡¯re brutal.¡± He shook his head. ¡°We can get information from the Zimmskar Representative over there. Maybe they¡¯ll be willing to spill more information because you guys are all-¡± ¡°The Zimmskar Kingdom is the weakest group in this entire place.¡± She answered him. ¡°Just look.¡± Arione looked around the place and stopped talking, because what she said was true. Of all the merchants and minor nobles that were flitting around the place, sucking up to everyone, the Zimmskar Kingdom had the smallest gathering of them. It could have been the fact that the guards growled at anyone who came too close or the fact that they all looked at this whole event with disdain. At the end of the day, it was because the group was weak. They were here to buy out their captured people. The fact that they had to resort to officially participating in the auction meant they lacked the military prowess to do anything about it. Oh, Arione was sure that some slaves were from Turina or the Jayu States. But how would people know? Turina had elves, dwarves and even orcs. Same for the Jayu State. But Zimmskar? It was safe to say that almost all beastman called the kingdom their home. He shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s still a bad idea. I know Jason personally. He¡¯s not just strong, he¡¯s cunning and smart. He¡¯ll know what you¡¯re trying to do immediately. Hell, he''ll be expecting it.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t be doing the same thing that I did with the dwarves.¡± She looked across the rooftop, looking at the man in question. ¡°I¡¯ll be offering an exchange. Something that only I can offer.¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± Arione¡¯s mind went to the gutters. ¡°Do you really need to go that far?¡± Clover rolled her eyes. ¡°Im going to offer him information. Information on the slaves that are for sale tonight.¡± ¡°That¡­ could work.¡± Arione admitted. In an auction like this, the whole point was to save your money to get the best bang for your buck. Spending too much in the early rounds of the auction meant you wouldn¡¯t have enough funds when something you really wanted came out later. The reverse was also true, spend too little and it could have turned out that all the best products had been in the front. Leaving with a purse full of coins was almost as bad as leaving with a bad deal; traveling to the Samak Desert wasn¡¯t free. Not to mention the sheer cost of logistics of moving that many men. Having insider information on which slaves would come out during the auction could be a very powerful move. ¡°But he could have gotten that information from Damur.¡± Arione muttered, but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. ¡°She¡¯s a merchant. She¡¯s out to make coins.¡± Clover said flatly. ¡°A merchant wouldn¡¯t jeapordize their own chance to make more money.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wicked smart.¡± The mage sighed. ¡°Fine. But promise me this, if they even show the slightest suspicion that we¡¯re not who we say we are, I¡¯m getting us out of here? And we go look for my apprentice first. We never decided on the order for whose comrades to look for first.¡± Clover paused. That was true. They had never decided on the order. And if they stirred up the hornet¡¯s nest, then the clock would start ticking. The time they spent on finding Arione¡¯s apprentice could mean that her friends would already be sold off by then. Did she want to risk this?¡± ¡°Lock and L¡¯teya are counting on me. I can¡¯t just rely on Arione. I have to make some choices myself.¡± Arione saw the look in her eyes and took his position, just behind her. ¡°Remember, I¡¯m right here.¡± Clover walked towards the Akka Xalud Contingent, her eyes locked on the orange-haired warrior.
Kyrian Tricillan entered the orc temple unseen. He entered the city three days ago, after Jason tried to get him hanged in Abay Munet¡¯s place. Kyrian managed to escape but he had underestimated how much spite the Akka Xaluds could hold. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was Jason or one of his men, but they had sent word back to the Tricilo Family that their bastard son had disobeyed direct orders and deserted the frontlines. The words of the Great Houses of Turina were akin to law; his family had to respond in kind. So the current patriarch, his half-brother Kristoff Tricilo had one of the maids killed and her head delivered to the Akka Xaluds as an apology. The maid was Kyrian¡¯s mother, lover of the late Tricilo Patriarch, his father. Kyrian had always seen the Great Houses of Turina as heroes. He grew up with his head filled with tales about how the Great Houses of the Empire fought tooth and nail to build the world that they lived in. The Vetilius House with their Lance and Shield, protecting the downtrodden and weak. The Akka Xaluds who instilled fear in their enemies with Cores that mutilated their own bodies. The Kojisa family with their magical arts shrouded in mystery. It only took a year of being a mercenary mage for him to realize that those were fairy tales for children, to fuel their dreams of being adventurers. Adventurers who would go onto serve the Great Houses or the Turina Empire in one way or another. He¡¯d probably never get to bury his mother. He had wanted to be a hero. How low did he fall? Hunting slaves instead of freeing them. Listening to men scream in pain everynight, because the Akka Xaluds needed an outlet for their anger. Seeing the other mercenaries fall deeper into the madness of the battlefield, Kyrian withdrew into himself. Sex, drinks, violence; there were no heroes here, just men and their desires brought out by blood. Kyrian Tricilan was tired of following the orders of men who were no better than monsters. He was tired of calling them ¡®my lord¡¯, ¡®my liege¡¯ or even ¡®sir¡¯. The blonde mage didn¡¯t know what he should do nor why his footsteps led him here. All he knew was that something was going to happen and this was where it would. If something happened during the auction, he wanted to be a part of it. He wasn¡¯t a hero, it was too late for that. But he wanted to look Jason in the eyes just once and call him for what he was. A murderer.
Chapter 32: Captive (9)
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Yulrien was continuing to check on the Cores and Monsters, reading off of the paper in his hand. Occasionally, he scratched something off. If possible, I didn¡¯t want to fight here. Perhaps I could wait for him to leave and take all the Cores for myself. No, that wouldn''t work. I didn¡¯t have a dimension ring and it was impossible for me to carry them all. That meant the best option as to level up, absorb a Core and carry one out. The Incubators were obviously for sale, and I got a vicious sense of satisfaction from imagining me taking it from them. Above the cacophony of the monster noises, I was sure that Yulrien hadn¡¯t noticed me yet. The safest bet here was to wait for him to leave, kill a monster or two and take one of the Cores. But which one? It¡¯d be really nice if I could take the Inmyun Ho (ÈËÃæø{) Core. As befitting of a grade-5 Core, it¡¯d give me a ton of stats. It was a beige colored Core with three white orbs rotating around the central orb. Just from the color I could tell it would have the active ability [Hand in Hand]. It would give me a significant power up; I thought it would have taken years to even see a Core at this level. ¡°Calm down. It¡¯s not even mine yet.¡± But I couldn¡¯t stop my heartbeat from rising with excitement. This was why I couldn¡¯t quit this damned game no matter how many Game Overs I got. The sense of finding a new Core and wondering how much stronger I could get. Now that I was actually a living and breathing being in this world, I could almost understand why I got backstabbed by NPCs so often in the game. Almost. ¡°Now now, who do we have here?¡± I tensed, losing a precious second. That second could mean the difference between life or death. My hands moved, faster than I thought possible, gripping my sword and shield. But my shield was still strapped in place by the leather strap, so I ended up unsheathing only the sword. It would have to do. ¡°You will pay me my due respect, Yulrien.¡± It was Skurl¡¯s voice. So he hadn¡¯t been talking to me. If I had drawn my sword and shield together, they would have definitely found me due to the sound of metal scraping against one another. As it was, I stood in the shadows of the staircase, my sword halfway out of its sheath. My stomach felt hollow from the close call and my heart began to thump once more. Careful not to make a sound, I unsheathed the rest of my sword anyways. I promised myself that never again will I strap my shield on my back the same way. I¡¯d find a different method, easier to access at a moment¡¯s notice. Lesson learned. Skurl strode into view, the last few steps he took down the staircase billowed his wolf-cloak out behind him. Thanks to that I got a full view of his ass. Unpleasant, but I¡¯d live. His dark green skin was covered with white paint, he didn¡¯t have those the last time I saw him. Had it really only been a day? ¡°Please. I¡¯m not keeping up that farce any longer than I have to. It makes me want to gag every time I have to kowtow to Madame Damur. Not you too.¡± Yulrien¡¯s voice had that playful edge again, his thirst for blood disappearing without a trace. ¡°Hmph.¡± The elderly shaman looked around at the monster cages, looking satisfied. ¡°Any word from our master?¡± ¡°No.¡± The glasses-elf turned to face the orc, leaning against the table with the Cores. ¡°But he did manage to leave us a nice little present for tonight.¡± Yulrien jerked his head towards the Shadow Mimic Wolf. ¡°A named-variant of the Shadow Mimic Wolf. They call her Snow White.¡± Skurl approached the cage, fascinated by the sedated creature. ¡°How in the world did they capture a magnificent creature such as this?¡± ¡°Our masters said pretty please to the Kojisas.¡± The elf snickered. ¡°Then sold it to the Madame using a fake name. She doesn¡¯t even know that she¡¯s just being used.¡± Skurl circled the cage and then started to reach in a hand. The elf was leaning against the desk one moment, the next he had Skurl¡¯s forearm locked in an iron grip. ¡°Careful now, old man.¡± Yulrien warned, still smiling. The shaman made a face and yanked his arm away. ¡°The Kojisas? Do you mean the Great House?¡± ¡°Our masters found her and her Prince Charming in a dungeon. Then they brought in the Kojisas to put it to sleep just like now. They basically had to call in their Scions one by one, all but the Kojisa Patriarch himself.¡± Yulrien walked over to the Cores, picking up one of the Incubators. The Incubators were made mostly of metal and the size of a small child. Yet the elf picked it up with one hand. Either the lore I read about how heavy incubators were had been exaggerated and outdated, or Yulrien was both fast and strong. He held it out for Skurl to get a closer look. The Core was a translucent black with three red orbs inside of it. It was labeled as belonging to the Shadow Wolf Mimic. ¡°This is what her Prince Charming dropped.¡± That wasn¡¯t how a Shadow Mimic Wolf¡¯s Core was supposed to look like. A Shadow Mimic Core came in three colors; Completely black, translucent black with three black orbs inside of it and gray with black swirling lines. The only way for that Core to belong to a Shadow Mimic Wolf would be if that monster had been a named variant. When Yulrien mentioned Snow White¡¯s mate, ¡®Prince Charming¡¯, I thought he was using a metaphor. But could it have been that there had been two Named Variants acting together? This Core should have [Gloomy Disposition] and [Sadistic Mimicry]. But now, I couldn¡¯t be sure. It didn¡¯t matter, I had my eyes set on the Inmyun Ho. Still, the gamer in me was curious. ¡°Damn¡­ if this was a game, I¡¯d make one of my reserve party members absorb the Core just to study it.¡± ¡°Pity. No one will know this was from a Named.¡± Skurl¡¯s voice held deep regret. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. It was natural that Skurl thought this way, but anyone who¡¯d seen a Shadow Mimic¡¯s Core before would recognize that this was a Core for a named variant due to the unique coloring. I had felt it countless times while talking with L¡¯teya, someone who had been training to be a warrior for a barbarian tribe her entire life. She seemed to be severely lacking information regarding Cores. Such as what the different colors meant and even the fact that monsters could drop different cores at all. Knowledge regarding Cores was a closely kept secret and sometimes was worth more than the Core itself. Not everyone would be privy to that kind of secret. Except me I guess. I hadn¡¯t played 14 years of MSS just to kill time. Notebooks, forum posts and hours spent organizing data on the game was a testament to my dedication. ¡°Just remember the plan, old man. Once everyone¡¯s attention is on the Cores, I will unlock the cages. Then I assume our master¡¯s agents will act during the distraction.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The shaman took the incubator in two hands, turning it this way and that. ¡°I will be sure to make sure no harm befalls our merchandise.¡± ¡°Good.¡± The elf took the incubator back and placed it on the desk. ¡°Then we can both get what was promised to us.¡± The shaman¡¯s back was to me, but I heard him chuckle. ¡°Your wish to get revenge on the Samak Horde came true after all. Although you had to hold hands with their most trusted Shaman.¡± Yulrien glared at Skurl, but the shaman didn¡¯t flinch. ¡°Hoho¡­ Perhaps this old man spoke too much.¡± He smiled, the tips of his eyes curving downwards unnaturally low. ¡°Though I do wonder what your lo-¡± ¡°Watch your mouth, old orc.¡± The elf whispered, all mirth gone. ¡°If you even mention her with your filthy tongue, the Akka Xalud¡¯s plans be damned, I¡¯ll slit your throat where you stand.¡± The threat didn¡¯t scare the orc, he still had that hair-raising smile. But he didn¡¯t say anything else. ¡°I¡¯ve checked the monsters and their cages. They will be unlocked at the right moment.¡± ¡°How fitting! That the downfall of the Samak Horde will come from the hands of one of their most trusted, former Slave.¡± The Shaman clapped, his expression still mocking. ¡°Then I leave it in your hands.¡± Leaving Yulrien behind, he went back the way he came, by the large stairs. The elf stayed a moment longer and I saw his back heave, an attempt to control his anger. Then he too, left. Neither had seen me. My thoughts spiraled out of control, trying to connect the dots together from their conversation. One. Yulrien was betraying the Samak Horde and Madame Damur. Two. Skurl and him were working together. Three. They planned to kill everyone at the Auction using the Cores and the Monsters as a distraction. Four. There was finally a clue to the mysterious organization that was gunning for the orcs: Akka Xaluds. Five. There was another passage out of here. The fact that Yulrien was here and I didn¡¯t see him come down must mean that there¡¯s another way in and out of here besides the staircase. I couldn¡¯t see them hauling the monster cages out of the caverns and then up all those stairs. There must be a waypoint somewhere, a teleport mechanism on the ground connecting one place to another. They wouldn¡¯t want to risk their lives while transporting the monsters. The less work there was involved the better. I was sure that Yulrien was gone. Quickly shuffling to my feet, I did a once over around the cage-room. Nothing. Staring at the Shadow Mimic Wolf, still trapped in a dreaming state, I edged myself over to the desk with the five Cores. I literally had my pick of the litter here so to speak. The question was, which one would be best? Like before, I was leaning towards the Inmyun Ho. A grade-5 Core¡­ It could be useful in any situation. But now there were some other factors at play. The fact that they were transporting monsters meant there were mages nearby. Mages I would need to kill or subdue in order to get access to the teleportation circle. I also had to consider the Cores I already had. Until I got myself to a major city, I wouldn¡¯t be able to erase any of my Cores. Taking the Inmyun Ho would give me a powerboost, but was it really the right choice in the current circumstances? Ujo, the Core that turned my trash [Coin Toss] skill into something that let me kill those two orc guards without breaking a sweat. My choice was made. I turned towards some of the monsters who were still screaming bloody murder in their cages. I drew my sword and walked up the Kappa with only one eye remaining, the other swollen and shut closed. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Coin Toss] ? ¡­ ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]? I stabbed it in the forehead, heart and then neck in quick succession. If I could have, I would have decapitated the creature but the bars were in the way. No way was I going to open the cage and release the creature, not when I could keep the bars between us. Also these bars probably kept the monsters suppressed, keeping them from using their abilities. It died slowly, bleeding out from the three wounds. I turned to the others. Now I really felt like a cheat character. I was basically getting a room full of monsters, incapacitated for me to kill. Then I could have my pick of the Cores laid out on the table. This was basically a room full of loot. ¡°Isn¡¯t this like a mini hyper burning event?¡± I felt the corner of my mouth lift into a smirk. ¡°Shall I see how fast I can hit level 20?¡±
Kyrian Tricilan walked on the temple path, trying hard to be unseen. The first floor of the temple was bustling with people, getting ready for the auction. Orcs went back and forth, carrying pieces of wood and setting up a large stage. He saw other races with manacles around their necks, helping by setting up chairs. These slaves wouldn¡¯t be sold with the others; they were either too weak or not set apart enough. They¡¯d spend the rest of their lives serving the Samak Horde. The Tricilo Bastard felt pity for those souls, but knew that there was nothing he could do to help. The general layout was a semicircle of chairs facing the stage that they were building now. A part of Kyrian was astonished at the speed with which the orcs were building the structures. It was obvious that they were no match for the dwarfs who were masters of architecture and construction. But the speed with which the orcs built, that was impressive. He remembered holding his mother¡¯s hand as a boy, watching the dwarves and their men work on the manor. The orcs were in the wrong business; if they could get over their pride as warriors and work with the dwarves in the construction market¡­ it would be the latest craze among the nobles. Well, so he thought. He wouldn¡¯t know. He lived in a tiny shack with his mom, set apart from the other servants and the family manor. The shack only had a small kitchen and living room, where he felt asleep to his mother telling him bedtime stories of the 6 Heroes and the 3 Great Houses. It was only once he became enrolled in the Mage Tower that he''d seen how normal people live. ¡°Had lived in a tiny shack.¡± He corrected. A pang of pain went through him. He had rented out a small house after he graduated from the Magic Tower. He had sent the invitation to his mother multiple times, to come and live with him. Each time, she sent a reply telling him that she was fine, and that he should keep the house. Kyrian should have gone and dragged her; even if he had to go against his brother¡¯s wishes. His mother had lived in that until she died, waiting for her son to come back. He had wanted to do so much more. Become a great mage, a renowned academic and a powerful adventurer. Just a little more he kept telling himself... just a little more. Now he''d never hear her voice. See her face. He''d never visited her once after becoming an adventurer. The pain of missing someone with the knowledge that you''d never see them ever again... He didn''t have a single picture of his mother. Gods, he had been such a fool. Kyrian continued on. The mage walked through the crowd trying to find a familiar face or a clue as to what he should be doing. He was lost. He clearly felt the mana signature of the Akka Xaluds above him, though not sure how much higher up they were. Kyrian wasn¡¯t talented enough to pinpoint the exact location of his targets, just the general direction. Now that he was taking a good look though, he realized none of the real influential people were down here in the hall. Most of them were stragglers, lower-ranking members of their respective factions. No one here was worth Kyrian¡¯s attention. Kyrian lacked the courage to go upstairs. The mage lingered. If something did indeed happen at the auction he wanted to be here. Still, what could he realistically do? Did he really want to end it by calling Jason Carid a murderer to his face, and then become another nameless body out here in the sands? What would his mother think? Should he just forget about revenge? Kyrian was no hero, nor was he brave. Even before the awaited hour came, his will wavered as many of ours often do. He started to doubt. He started to fear. The anger at his mother¡¯s execution had died down from the roaring flame to glistening embers, no longer clouding his reason with emotion. But Kyrian wasn¡¯t wrong to think this way; his mother truly would not want the young mage to die for her. But still¡­ Kyrian wanted to do something, he just lacked the courage to do so. At the end of the day, he was just like everyone else. He faced death for his beliefs and fear of it held him back. What he needed was someone who could show him the way. Someone who felt fear as he did, but forged the path for people like him so that they could follow. Kyrian¡¯s thoughts went back to the man he met back in the cave. The man with the eyes that seemed to defy death, willing Abay Munet and himself to draw their weapons and fight. His missing hand, scarred face and countless wounds spoke of the dangers he had overcome within the dungeon. A mere slave¡­ with all the countenance of a hero. The nameless slave who killed Abay Munet in a single blow. ¡°Did he make it back in one piece?¡± There was no way for an individual, no matter how strong, to make the trek across the Desolate Sands back into the Orc City. Also, there was no guarantee that he even came back to this city. Who would? Nothing awaited him here except a life spent in chains. But¡­ Kyrian was curious. A simple question really; whether the slave was still alive or not. Kyrian watched as a procession of orcs began to lead slaves out of a doorway. Peering behind them he saw a staircase that led deep down into the earth; far away from the high sky where the Akka Xaluds were. Kyrian''s mother always told him to reach for the sky. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Minor Veil] ? Casting a quick spell to prevent others from paying too much attention to him, Kyrin slipped past the orcs, the crowd and everyone else too busy to wonder what a powerless mage like him was doing. He went down the stairs.
Chapter 33: Captive (10)
World: MSS - Loading...
Clover was less than twenty paces away from Jason Carid Akka Xalud when his guards blocked her path with sword and spear. The helmets shrouded their face in shadow , hiding any notable facial features. She felt Arione tense up behind her but didn¡¯t let herself flinch. Instead she smiled at the two guards. ¡°I was hoping to speak to Lord Jason Carid Akka-¡± ¡°Finish that sentence and I¡¯ll pit your tongue on my dagger.¡± One of the guards snarled. Arione¡¯s mana signature disappeared. For one fearful moment, Clover thought the powerful mage had either hidden himself or left her here. But the touch on her elbow reassured her that he was still there, he was thoughtful enough to let her know that he hadn¡¯t abandoned her. The guards didn¡¯t seem to notice anything either. The pink-haired woman realized that Arione¡¯s mana signature hadn¡¯t disappeared, it had been condensed. She didn¡¯t know how but she instinctively knew that he had condensed his significant mana pool into the shape of a ball, ready to be unleashed at any time. Swallowing her nervousness, Clover smiled at them again. ¡°You shall refer to him as ¡®Lord¡¯.¡± The guard finished, unaware of the exchange between Clover and Arione. ¡°I wish to speak to your Lord.¡± Clover complied easily. This wasn¡¯t the first time a soldier gave her a tough time and it wouldn¡¯t be the last. He sneered. ¡°He¡¯s not entertaining visitors.¡± ¡°But we are.¡± The other guard chimed in, giving her an once over. Clover felt a hot flash of anger and suppressed it. ¡°Oh really? Because I saw him entertaining the Zimmskar Kingdom¡¯s emissary just a moment ago and right now he¡¯s speaking to another merchant. My name is Clover Weinport and I¡¯m sure he¡¯d be very pleased if he finds out that-¡± ¡°That a no-name merchant like you failed to get his attention?¡± The guard¡¯s weapons refused to move. ¡°Find somewhere else to peddle your wares.¡± She felt her merchant training come into play. ¡°It¡¯ll only be a moment-¡± ¡°Get. A. Move. On.¡± He said each word through gritted teeth. Clover was at a standstill. ¡°And who are you to decide that she should get a move on?¡± The voice came from behind the guards but Clover hadn¡¯t noticed the woman until she had spoken. She was wearing a dark green dress with a long slit that started right below her hips, leaving the long length of her leg exposed. Her lengthy black hair was smooth and silky, evidence of having the money to take care of it as well as the luxury to keep it long so long. The most shocking part of her hair were the two strands of orange that stuck out from the top, resembling the antennae of the orange centipede design on her dress. Maria Biva Akka Xalud, Jason¡¯s young sister. ¡°This is why hired help is no good.¡± She rolled her eyes comically. ¡°I apologize on their behalf, Ms. Weinport. We have been running short on men and were forced to recruit rather hastily. I will talk to our Guard Captain about this at once.¡± Then Maria turned her eyes to the guards, her voice turning husky. ¡°As for you two¡­ I¡¯ll see you later.¡± Normally an attractive woman like Maria talking like that would give them certain ideas. Clover saw the two men go pale. ¡°Follow me please, Ms. Weinport.¡± Maria grabbed Clover by the wrist and led her through the small crowd around the oasis. Arione followed wordlessly. ¡°If I had known that you were attending, I would have prepared a seat for you at our own section of the venue.¡± Maria continued. ¡°Was your journey to the Desert ok? I¡¯m sure it was not easy having to deal with these animals.¡± She waved her hand towards the orc oasis absently, then turned around facing Clover. Maria was waiting for an answer. Clover stuck with the truth, bending at the waist as was customary of her people. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Lady Maria. But I believe we have never met. If we have met somewhere, you will have to forgive my lack of recall.¡± After a heartstopping moment of silence, Maria began to laugh. ¡°Of course we have never met!¡± She covered her mouth with one hand, using her height to look down at Clover. She put a hand on Clover¡¯s shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s not everyday that a merchant with no name works up the guts to talk to us. A beastman nonetheless!¡± Something about the way Maria said beastman bothered Clover more than the fact that she had casually disrespected Clover¡¯s standing as a merchant. Fake backstory or not, Clover felt insulted by Maria¡¯ attitude. Yet the woman herself looked into Clover¡¯s eyes with those avian-like orange eyes; unaware that Clover felt insulted or the fact that Maria¡¯s words could be construed as such. She wondered if this was behavior typical of a Scion. Maria looked at Clover like a kid who found a new toy; her eyes practically sparkling. ¡°Thank you miss.¡± Clover slightly dipped her head. ¡°Of course!¡± Maria clapped once and then began to lead the way towards Jason. ¡°So what did you want to talk to my brother about?¡± ¡°I have information about the slaves that are coming up for auction tonight. I¡¯d like to offer him my services as an advisor of sorts.¡± Maria glanced back, making sure Clover and her guard were following. ¡°Oh I¡¯m sure he¡¯d love that. Are you from the Zimmskar Kingdom?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ and no. I have been following my parents all around the world since I was a little girl. I was born in the Zimmskar Kingdom but I would not call it home. My home is with the merchant company.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ interesting.¡± Maria grabbed two drinks off of a server and handed one to Clover. ¡°And your hair is real?! I¡¯ve never seen it before!¡± ¡°Share a drink with me!¡± She said as Clover nodded in affirmation. ¡°Even if my brother turns down your offer, I hope you will sit with us. There¡¯s no other girls our age here and I was terribly bored.¡± Clover held the drink in hand, thinking. ¡°Oh just say yes!¡± The girl clinked her glass against Clover¡¯s. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure my brother says yes!¡± If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Clover couldn¡¯t get a read on the girl; whether she was faking or this upbeat personality was her real self. But seeing no harm come from being on the Scion¡¯s good side, Clover sipped at the drink. Maria¡¯s eyes shone with mischief. ¡°Oh boo! Down it! In one shot!¡± She knew Arione would be glaring at her disapprovingly but saw no other choice. The Akka Xaluds were obviously the most powerful faction in this entire place and she badly needed information from them. She had to get Maria Biva Akka Xalud on her side; even if it was only temporary. So Clover downed the glass. ¡°Yes!¡± Maria cheered and then took the glass from Clover, throwing the two cups behind her. They shattered but no one paid attention to it. ¡°We¡¯re friends now!¡± The orange-haired scion linked her arms around Clover¡¯s. ¡°And friends stay together forever! I¡¯ve never had a pink beastman friend before!¡± Arione stiffened but didn¡¯t say anything. If he spoke, there was a higher chance that they¡¯d pay attention to him or gods forbid, someone would recognize him. But with that one sentence, Maria had just made it that much harder for them to sneak out unseen. Arione and Clover waded through the crowd and finally reached the deepest part; Jason sat on a chair and he was talking to another beastman. It was obviously a representative from the Zimmskar faction; a beastman with dog ears on his head. ¡°Please, Lord Jason. If you could lend your-¡± ¡°As I¡¯ve said, my hands are tied. My condolences.¡± Jason stared straight into the man¡¯s eyes as he said this, unwavering. ¡°Perhaps there will be a future where we can better confirm the Turina Empire and the Zimmskar Kingdom¡¯s partnership. But even I, with the Akka Xalud House¡¯s backing, cannot speak for the entirety of the empire.¡± ¡°Yes sir, but I have heard that your House has brought funds and men, dedicated to liberating the slaves from the grips of these barbaric orcs. The treaty between the Turina Empire and Zimmskar Kingdom dictate that no beastman are to be enslaved!¡± The man¡¯s tone gained volume and Clover saw more than one individual starting to pay attention to them, while pretending not to. Jason laughed, his tone flat and callous. ¡°I assure you, the Turina Empire takes no part in enslaving or the capture of beastman from the Zimmskar Kingdom. But it was never in our treaty to prohibit their sale. Besides, the Turina Empire has vast borders, we cannot police everything that our people do.¡± ¡°Yet you are here, a representative of one of the Great Houses! If word got back about this to the Circle back in my home country-¡± Jason slammed his hand on the stone table, cracking it. The crowd around them went silent, emphasized by the hums of arcane contraptions flying about the night sky. ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± He whispered. ¡°I,I,I-er, W-What I m,m,m,meant was that-¡± ¡°Enough.¡± He shooed the man¡¯s excuses away. ¡°You can go back and tell your Circle what you want. I am here to fulfill my duty and you yours. Let us speak no more on this matter. I wish you best of luck for the rest of tonight.¡± The beastman stopped stammering and got up from his seat. He gave a stiff bow to Jason, which was not returned with a gesture of any kind. The Scion was ignoring him completely now; their business was done. Clover and Maria waited until the man was completely gone and the sound of conversations filled the air once more. Maria led the way, Clover in tow and Arione in his hood behind them. Arione fell back several paces, giving the three individuals the illusion of privacy. ¡°Brother. This is Ms. Clover Weinport.¡± Maria introduced. Jason looked at her. Clover was used to men¡¯s looks lingering on certain part of her body or giving her the once over. She was also used to being sized up as a merchant, seeing how competent she could be. Lately she had gotten used to being seen as merchandise, a slave whose value was being measured. Jason did none of those things. He just looked at her like a bug then dismissed her. ¡°I¡¯m tired.¡± He rubbed his temple then leaned on the table with his elbow, supporting his head with a fist. ¡°I wish to be left alone until the auction starts. I apologize to you, Ms. Weinport, but perhaps we can talk another time.¡± ¡°But brother.¡± Maria started. ¡°I promised-¡± Jason¡¯s head snapped to the younger Scion and then he snapped his fingers. He said nothing. Maria¡¯s head drooped in obedience. ¡°Ok¡­ Come, Ms. Clover, perhaps we can find someone else to hold a conversation with us.¡± As Maria¡¯s sentence finished the guards who had been blending in with the plantlife nearby with their chitinous armor came out of hiding, barring the way. They didn¡¯t take out their weapons like the two from before. The very air around them was different and Arione sensed the silent promise of death. These guys wouldn¡¯t give a kind warning to Clover; they¡¯d just kill her. They weren¡¯t the hired help¡­ These guys were real Akka Xalud fighters. Branch House members trained from birth to protect and serve the Scions from the Main House. Clover grew desperate. She needed to talk to Jason. She needed to get information. She needed to rescue L¡¯teya and Lock. This was the only thing that she could do for her friends. ¡°Wait, please Lord Akka Xalud. I have information about the slaves that are going for auction tonight!¡± Clover yelled out to Jason. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± Jason muttered and that was the end of their conversation. Because Clover rocked back on her heels by the implications of what he was saying. Jason Carid Akka Xalud didn¡¯t care about the catalog of slaves that were going on for sale? He didn¡¯t even seem interested and dismissed her entirely. Not a single moment of hesitation, an arched eyebrow or anything. He showed nothing at her mention of the knowledge of the slaves. Any merchant with a head on their shoulders would know how much her information was worth. Did he have that much money? That still made no sense, unless the Great House truly outfitted this entire Scion with enough money to rival the Jayu State Colosseum and the Zimmskar Kingdom. ¡°No, that can¡¯t be true.¡± Clover¡¯s merchant knowledge came in. In most auctions, the major players all possessed roughly the same amount of gold. The game of placing bids didn¡¯t come down to overwhelming the other parties with your wealth. It was about placing smart bets, saving your coin and getting the best deal, squeezing out the worth of a single coin. That was what auctions were about. So why did Jason not care about her information? ¡°It¡¯s ok, Ms. Clover.¡± Maria said in a false hushed whisper, her arm linked around Clover¡¯s. ¡°I¡¯m sure my brother will come around. Perhaps we can sit next to him during the auction and let slip a few vital pieces of information? Then he¡¯ll see your value!¡± ¡°Because he doesn''t care about the auction!¡± Clover felt like she got hit in the head with the gold bag of a Lucky Beckoning Cat. Arione must have come to the same conclusion that she did. ¡°M¡¯lady.¡± He mumbled. ¡°Perhaps we should try our luck elsewhere?¡± He was hinting that they should talk. Privately. ¡°Y-yes. Perhaps we should.¡± Clover¡¯s head was filled with all sorts of ideas. Just what were the Akka Xaluds planning? Why didn¡¯t they care about the auction? Was there something else that was going on for sale that only they knew about? Was there a collaborator here with them? But now, everything had changed and they needed a new plan. Clover carefully began to pull her arm out of Maria¡¯s grasp. ¡°Lady Maria, I thank you for your hospitality. But I must try my luck elsewhere. Such is the fate of-¡± Maria¡¯s fingers dug into Clover¡¯s arms so hard that it drew blood, sinking into her skin. Clover bit back a cry. ¡°But you promised.¡± She muttered, her orange eyes dilated with obsession. ¡°That we¡¯ll be together forever.¡± Clover saw a small centipede crawl out from the the sleeves of Maria¡¯s dress, pausing at the Scion¡¯s shoulder then back inside. It had been a light blue, a color that she¡¯d never seen before. ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for a pink friend¡­ it¡¯ll be so fun!¡± Clover leaned back, trying to put distance between but Maria¡¯s grip was like a bug bite, pulling back only ripped her own arm apart. Arione prepared to teleport them out of there. ¡°Ladies and gentleman!¡± The mage looked to the source of the voice and found a glasses-wearing elf wearing formal armor in the orcish fashion. It was a mixture of leather and metal, lavishly decorated with warpaints of different colors. The elf did a little bow, with exaggerated handmotions. ¡°The Auction will be starting! If you could all make your way down to the first floor!¡± Madame Damur was the first to get up and move her procession towards the stairs. The Zimmskar and the Jayu factions soon followed. Before Arione could teleport them out, Jason walked by them. ¡°Shit¡­ I knew I was going to get ganked. If I teleported here, one of them could shut me down and then it wouldn¡¯t be a Free For All, it¡¯d be All versus me. Damn.¡± 2nd-grade mage as he was, he did not have the confidence that he could escape all these different forces at play. There¡¯s only so much one person can do in MSS, that¡¯s why you always wanted a party. ¡°Maria. Come.¡± Jason ordered and Maria obeyed, dragging Clover behind her. "Leave your toy behind. We have work to do." Maria pouted. "But brother-" Jason didn''t answer and continued walking. "Oh fine!" Maria looked at Clover one last time before heading downstairs with the rest of the Akka Xalud contigent. "Don''t go anywhere ok, Ms. Weinport? I''d love to see you again. I''ll come look for you!" Arione sighed in relief. He had debated abandoning Clover, writing her off as a lost cause. The stakes were getting higher and he felt the hands of fate starting to close in around his neck. His 10 years of surviving as a [Player]-mage told him to get out of here. The only thing that had made him hesitate was the Mana Vow. But no amount of maximum MP was worth his life. There were ways to make up for lost MP after all. He walked up next to her. "Are you ok?" "I''m fine." She snapped, slightly annoyed. He didn''t let it get to him. She was more frustrated at herself than actually being annoyed with him. Probably. Her nerves were getting the best of her. On a side note, Arione saw that the arm was already back to normal. She had healed it without anyone noticing. The priestess was improving at a scary rate. "They''re not interested in the auction at all. They have something else planned." She told him, after making sure everyone else was out of earshot. "I should''ve known. Those bug bastards are always planning something." Arione scratched the back of his head, thinking. "Should I just nuke this entire place? Honestly haven''t been in a SNAFU this bad in awhile." He was no closer to finding his apprentice than before and still had no clue where Clover''s allies could be. "...We need to register for the auction." Clover pointed towards the staircase. "Down there lies our best chance of finding the people we''re looking for. "Agreed." They were on the same page for once. "I have the gold that we can use as a deposit. They won''t even let us on the bidding floor without it. You do know that, right? Ms. Merchant?" "Thank you." Clover had been worried about that exact part of their plan. She knew that Arione would have some gold, just not sure how much. But if he could answer so confidently about fronting the deposit all the while knowing that he might never get the gold back, he must have more than enough money lying around. Then again, it''d be strange for a powerful mage like Arione to not have emergency funds for moments just like this. "Hey! You can''t suddenly answer so sincerely like that!" Then the grade-2 mage did something strange, poking his index fingers together while looking down. "I just wanted you to notice me, Clover-chan." Whatever Arione was doing, it sent shivers up Clover''s spine and made her reassess their working relationship. "...I''ll pay you back one day. I swear it." The mage smirked at her, back to his usual self. "Oh, I''m counting on it."
Chapter 34: Captive (11)
World: MSS - Loading...
I left the bird-cage of stone full of monsters, heading towards where I last saw the slaves. On my back, I had my sword and shield, strapped in place by a strip of leather. Of course I had learned from my past mistake: the shield was strapped in a way that I could easily arm myself if needed. I would have preferred to hold them in my hand but they were occupied at the moment. I was holding a single incubator, containing the beige colored Core of the Inmyun Ho (ÈËÃæø{). A Grade-5 Core. I couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that I was being watched. It was like watching around the streets of New York with a glass briefcase, with stacks of dollar bills on display. In the end I ended up killing about half the grade-9 and grade-8 monsters before feeling the room in my soul expand, indicating that I was ready for another Core. I debated killing off the rest of the grade-8 monsters for the boost but some of them had begun screaming. I was afraid that Yulrien or Skurl would be notified or worse, their noise would wake the Shadow Mimic Wolf. ¡°Maybe I should have risked it.. It¡¯ll only get harder to farm from now.¡± The leveling system in MSS was set up so that higher-leveled characters couldn¡¯t level up farming at low-leveled monster zones. For example, once a character hit level 10, they wouldn¡¯t be able to gain experience from hunting grade-10 monsters. My level of 20 meant that grade-10 monsters as well as grade-9 monsters were useless to me, except for the materials they might drop. On one hand, I wanted to celebrate this new milestone. On the other, I dreaded what this meant for the future. I would have to start hunting bosses. The return on experience for hunting common monsters became less and less as the game progressed, obeying the law of diminishing returns. The only reliable way to level up was to start hunting bosses, namely running boss raids. For that, I needed a full party. Tank, DPS, Support, Healer and a Mage. Thankfully I already had people in mind for two of these positions. If I could get my friends out of this situation first. Damn. Friends. Since when did I get so comfortable referring to them as such? I ran past the stalagmites and felt my pupils contract, seeing fire in the distance. Torches. But these weren¡¯t the stationary torches that the orcs had placed in the clearing while herding the slaves before. These were being held by orcs, transporting slaves. I hid behind a rock and observed them. They moved in silence, except the occasional grunt. They were escorting a single slave and I recognized the man: Skaris. A seven-foot tall, red-scaled humanoid beastman was hard to miss and harder to forget. He left quite an impression. Skaris was moving with a slight limp and the orc behind him pushed the lizard beastman, causing him to fall. ¡°Stop pretending.¡± He growled. The beastman didn¡¯t respond but I saw that his scarlet eyes were alight with anger. He still had some fight left in him. He hadn¡¯t given up just yet. I quietly set the Incubator down, leaning it against the rock and making sure it wouldn¡¯t fall. Then I began to approach them. I made sure to circle around them so that I¡¯d be coming from behind the orcs. My footsteps were quieter than before and more surer, if Yulrien couldn¡¯t detect me I was sure that these orcs had no chance. I took the risk to pick up my pace, running towards them. To my ears the soft pat pat pat of my footsteps were loud enough to give me away from more than a hundred paces away, but the orcs didn¡¯t turn. Ten paces away, I saw Skaris¡¯ eyes widen. He was facing the orcs and must have had some kind of night vision, he had definitely seen me. But atleast he hadn¡¯t heard me. Five paces away, the orcs finally turned around but it was too late. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Coin Toss] ? ¡­ ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack]? ¡­ ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack]? Shiing I felt the blood in my veins speed up, and the sensation of my heart pumping blood more than doubled. My new Core had activated another instance of [Arcane Masochism]. I had just received two stacks of the attack stat buffs. The sound of metal grating against each other rang in my ears as I drew the sword and shield, decapitating the foremost orc with my first strike. Then before the other Orc could even react, I stabbed him in the heart, ripping the blade out the side of his chest right after. I followed it up by stabbing him through the mouth and the back of his throat. He had been about to yell for help or scream in anger. It didn¡¯t matter; I didn¡¯t give him the chance. I felt my newly absorbed Core activate automatically, but there was no need: the short battle was over. I had a feeling these orcs were the weakest of their warriors though, same as the ones I had encountered during their patrol. The strongest ones would be above in the auction, protecting Damur, Skarl and the really important merchandise. The two orcs fell with a thud and I winced. Next time, I¡¯d make sure that any battle I was in where sound could be an issue, there was a need to pay attention to the aftercare of falling corpses. Just like how I had changed the way I carried my shield on my back, I was learning. I was growing stronger at an unbelievable pace. I could see it in Skaris¡¯ eyes, his eyes held both fear and awe in equal amounts. I saw the man lick his lips but I beat him to it. ¡°You remember me?¡± I smiled at him. Skaris nodded. ¡°Lock Ssslaveborn.¡± Yes, this was the Skaris I remembered. He had a tendency to drag out any consonant with that hissing accent of his. It only reinforced his image of a half-lizard, half-snake man in my mind. If I looked at the most human part of him, his face. ¡°Skaris.¡± I greeted, acknowledging that I remembered him too. I bent down and touched his chains. The manacles around his neck was connected by chains to the manacles on his wrist and tail. No wonder he was limping. I remembered reading lore about beastman from the lizard tribe. They used their tails for balance. ¡°Stand back.¡± I muttered and stood back up, holding my sword. Skaris licked his lips and held out his arms, trying to stretch his tail out as much as possible as well. This was the first time outside of battle that I was using Cut. The orcs I had just faced had been wearing armor and I had pierced it with a single strike; testament to my offensive capabilities even without [Arcane Masochism] raising my attack stat. But now I was trying to cut chains. Somehow that made me nervous. What if I failed? It was like now that I was trying to do something on purpose, outside of the heat of battle, I had lost all my confidence. ¡°It¡¯s all the same¡­¡± I took a deep breath and conjured my mind¡¯s blade, aligning it with the shortsword in my hand. It happened much easier than before. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. But Skaris must have taken my breath for one of nervousness. ¡°Sssslaveborn. Perhapssss we sssshould-¡± ?Lock Slaveborn used [Cut]? Clang The chains were cut. Skaris stretched to his full height, towering over me. The past me would have been wary and intimidated. As it was I just gripped the sword tighter, readying my shield. Was he really about to- Skaris bent to his knees. ¡°I owe you my life.¡± He whispered. ¡°Sssslaveborn. Name your pricssse.¡± ¡°Just like that?¡± I raised an eyebrow, sheathing my weapons. ¡°No questions?¡± ¡°I wassss being dragged to my deatttthhhss. Yet you have ssssaaved me. I am curioussss about what has happened to you but honor dictatesss that I pay my lifepricssse firsssst.¡± I debated my options. I could demand that the price for saving his life was his aid in rescuing Clover and L¡¯teya from the auction going on upstairs. He was a formidable warrior and he would no doubt be of great help. This had been a calculated gamble after all. When I spoke to Skaris previously, he gave me the sense that he had been trained in warrior ways much like L¡¯teya had. My knowledge of this world extended past just raiding dungeons and hunting monsters; one of the best parts of MSS was the party recruitment factor. I had studied the different races, reading about their cultures and their cities as well. Warriors like Skaris tended to uphold a certain code of honor and they took things like this very seriously. I was hoping to get him to owe me a debt. ¡°I owe you a life debt, Sssslaveborn.¡± He said once more. ¡°Let me pay it.¡± I opened my mouth to demand my price then stopped. That was the old me. I didn¡¯t need people who I had manipulated into helping me. I wanted comrades, people I could trust. If I forced Skaris to help me, I could never trust him. ¡°My price is that you listen to my story first.¡± I swallowed, finding the words hard to speak. ¡°Then you are free to go on your way¡­ or help me. Your choice.¡± Then before he could say anything, I started telling him my tale. I felt my stomach knot into butterflies like I was giving a presentation, I really wanted to sell my story well. But what came out was not a story laden with emotion, but terse and clear facts. I started by telling him about L¡¯teya and how she was dragged away and then me. Then about how I had received Arrosh and Scarlet¡¯s help to escape, glossing over Arrosh and my relationship altogether. Finally I told him about finding myself down here and overhearing Yulrien and Skurls plans. Mostly I told him about why I was doing this, that these people had risked their lives for me. That I owed it to them to try and get them out alive. ¡°I think most of the people in this city will die. I intend to be one of the few who can get out of this place alive.¡± ¡°...And the resssst of the sssslavessss?¡± ¡°Not just them, but any innocent that I could help.¡± I shrugged at his quizzical look. ¡°Only if I can though. I won¡¯t be risking my life for it.¡± I meant it too. If there was enough time and I had the opportunity to save more of these innocent bystanders from getting caught up in these plans, I would do so. Something in me told me that this was the right step to take. Even my conscience, despite years of solitude and distrust, was pointing that this was the right way. That meant something, that this really was the right thing to do. If not me then who else could do it? As I thought about it more and more, I realized that I truly wanted to help them. Just like how L¡¯teya and Arrosh helped me, a complete stranger. A part of me wanted to do the same for others. But only if I could protect the people important to me first. Skaris studied me, tilting his head this way and that like an iguana. It was as if someone took all the habits of an iguana, implanted it into a human soul and placed them in a hybrid body. Slowly, he nodded like he was just starting to understand what was happening and why I was here. He had sat cross legged as I told my story and now got back up to his imposing height. ¡°I will help you Lock Ssslaveborn.¡± He held out a hand. ¡°Not jusssst to pay my life debt, but to help you achieve your goalsss. It would be an honor to die by your sssside, fighting for freedom hasss alwaysss been my peoplesss life calling.¡± ¡°I ssswear it on the name of my clan, Deepeater, to aid you wherever your journey leadsss you.¡± He was referring to the history of the beastman race, who had been slaves to the Turina empire in the past. Something that Clover had clued me in on. I wasn¡¯t a stranger to it, the beastman had been a race of slave-warriors when I had played the game. I took his hand, and we exchanged grips. After letting go of his forearm I got to business. ¡°I need to know what you can do¡­ and if they graded you, what grade you received.¡± ¡°Grade-9.¡± He answered easily. ¡°I have ssssuccessssssfully hunted a monster which dropped a Core¡­ my sssspear ssshall leave fire in its wake.¡± He wasn¡¯t telling me the name of his Core, it was understandable. I also didn¡¯t need him to spell it out for me either, I knew which Core he had absorbed: [Bool Dokkaebi], grade 8. It was impressive that he¡¯d managed to fell a grade-8 without holding any core of his own. Then again, he had had his followers back then. ¡°...I¡¯m sorry for asking so late but what happened to your¡­ friends?¡± He shrugged, the scales on his shoulder rubbing against those on his neck. ¡°Dead. They died to the Dokkaebi.¡± L¡¯teya, Clover and I had been extremely lucky. Even Skaris with all his prowess suffered casualties. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for your loss.¡± I was awkward but I wasn¡¯t heartless. I knew grief when I saw it. ¡°They died fighting to better their sstation in life.¡± He was talking about us all being slaves. ¡°I ssshall carry their will on their behalf.¡± Skaris hadn¡¯t been talking literally about his Core ability. But he could only be talking about one ability: [Playing with Fire]. Striking enemies would cause the spot to be set aflame, slowly burning skin and sinew. I considered his battle power. As a Grade-9, he wasn¡¯t of much help to me even if he was skilled. ¡°..Skaris. Do you have room in your soul for another Core?¡± ¡°Yesss.¡± He answered immediately. ¡°But I fail to ssseee why that mattress. Even if there were monsssterss around there isss no time to-¡± ¡°Follow me.¡± I cut him off preemptively, showing him would be quicker than me explaining things all over again. I delicately stepped over the orc corpses, leading the way. It didn¡¯t take long to find the Incubator, still intact. I pointed it out to Skaris. ¡°That¡¯s yours.¡± ¡°Sslaveborn¡­ I¡­ what isss¡­ you are giving me a Core?¡± His reptilian eyes blinked once, slowly; then again. It was obvious that Skaris was failing to follow along. The story earlier had been easy enough but I hadn¡¯t gone into detail about the Cores for sale, only telling him how this whole thing was a trap. He was out of his depth like an iguana in water, drowning in the untold information. Wondering if iguanas could indeed swim, I picked up the Incubator and passed it to Skaris. ¡°I¡¯m not saying this to hurt your pride. I know your skill with the spear better than anyone. But¡­ right now, we¡¯re going to fight people who have been planning this for months. You need this.¡± Skaris shook his head. ¡°I cannot take thisss. I have promisssed to lend you my ssspear. You do not need to bribe me with ssssuch thingsss. I will keep my promisssee. You sssshould take thissss for yoursssself.¡± ¡°I already took one.¡± I told the truth. ¡°And I don¡¯t have room for another core.¡± His eyes snapped to mine. ¡°How many Ssssslaveborn.¡± ¡°...Three.¡± ¡°Exsssstraordinary.¡± He measured me with his eyes, complimenting L¡¯teya. ¡°Truly. The barbarian choose well.¡± He was referring to how L¡¯teya had been the one to ¡®recruit¡¯ me into her faction of three. His mention of her reminded me that we had no time to waste. Also it could¡¯ve been because I didn¡¯t really know how to react to praise very well. Small steps. ¡°Quickly. We have no time to waste.¡± I glossed over his compliments. Opening the incubator, Skaris absorbed the Core. Then he sat down crosslegged with his eyes closed, he was examining his body and exploring the new Core abilities. If I had to give him a rough grading by my own estimation, maybe grade-8? Possibly higher than me with grade-7. Oh but I was probably a legitimate bona-fide grade-7 now. Maybe a 6. Or if I was being really technical, I¡¯d put myself somewhere between grade 6.4~6.7. I briefed Skaris on our next steps before escaping this cavern: finding the waypoint and destroying it. ¡°From what I heard from Yulrien and Skurl, transporting the monsters and cores to the floor above is the first step of their plan. I want to stop that or delay that from happening.¡± Skaris stripped the orcs of their armor, fitting easily into their armor. He was just as tall as them, though not as wide. Choosing scaled armor, he checked the straps. ¡°I know this waypoint you ssspeak of.¡± Skaris¡¯ eyes gleamed. ¡°The ssspoke of it many timessss.¡± I clenched a fist, pumping it without meaning to. ¡°Finally it feels like we¡¯re getting somewhere.¡± ¡°Lead the way, Skaris.¡± Then I added. ¡°I¡¯m watching your back.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure if those last words were needed or not, but said it nonetheless. The reptilian beastman gave me a smirk and then started running in a straight line. I had expected Skaris to run like those monitor lizards I used to see on the documentary channels. But he ran in long loping strides and I found it hard to keep up. With Skaris¡¯ speed, it didn¡¯t take long for us to find the soft illumination of torchlights ahead of us. The beastman hid himself behind a stalagmite. A man of his size had no business being this fast and stealthy at the same time. Casting my grumbling aside, I positioned myself next to him. The waypoint was in the shape of a large circle, more than big enough to contain multiple of those cages containing the monsters I had seen. More so, it glowed a faint purple and had runic lettering inscribed around and within it. Carefully, I used my rudimentary Mana Sense to try to see if I could pick up anything on it. The energy I sensed was so faint but I received an impression of something unstable and volatile, like it could break if used the wrong way. ¡°Lotss of them.¡± Skaris commented, brandishing two javelins that he¡¯d taken off of the orc corpses. I had to agree. There were three orc guards, each clad in metallic armor and another green-skinned figure hidden under robes; a shaman or witch doctor. We¡¯d have no way of knowing until we engaged them in combat and baited out a skill or two. Plus, the guards looked different than the ones from before. The warpaint seen on their skin glowed with eerie light and shifted in place, changing places. ¡°Lower-ranking berserkers.¡± I murmured. Skaris looked at me. ¡°Are you ssssure.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± This was an issue. Whereas humans had knights, orcs had berserkers. Just like humans, orcs had a racial trait that was unique to them: Totemic Possession. While humans honed Aura, orcs honed their totems by getting warpaints in the image of their totems. Depending on the totem that they got ¡®possessed¡¯ with, they¡¯d exhibit different types of abilities and stat bonuses. Unlike Aura though, the orc''s Totemic Possession was a passive trait. The good news: none of the orcs in front of us had the wolf totem. They¡¯d have found us immediately. The bad news? They had the tiger totem. ¡°Well, shit.¡± I ground my teeth in frustration. The most well balanced of all the Totemic Possessions available to their race, it would boost their speed and strength immensely. Lucky for us though, I could tell that these guys were early on in their paths as berserkers. You could tell by the color and pattern. The more experienced berserkers continued getting tattooed, upgrading their totems. If Skaris and I went against three bersekers, I¡¯d put our chances of victory around 30%. ¡°No. Less. 20% even. I¡¯m not skilled enough to fight against fully-trained warriors.¡± The orcs I¡¯d faced so far had been grunts. If they had gone so far as to receive Totemic Possession, they were likely trained to a much higher level. I hadn¡¯t even begun accounting for the Witch Doctor yet. ¡°What do you wisssh to do, Sssslaveborn?¡± We had to destroy the waypoint. My gut told me that it was a crucial step in freeing L¡¯teya and Clover, then getting out of this city safely. If those monsters were set loose in the city, the following chaos would just result in a massacre. Monster Outbreaks in MSS never ended well. I bit my lip, wondering if Skaris and I should just risk it. ¡°Excuse me.¡± I whirled around and saw a mage. "I want to help you... please."
Chapter 35: Comrades (1)
World: MSS - Loading...
Skaris and I both whirled around, moving as one. Even in this high-stress situation, a subconscious part of my mind observed Skaris¡¯ stance trying to learn something. He stretched one arm out completely, the javelin pointed at the stranger. The other, he held behind his back. Maybe I could do something similar with my sword and shield. The newcomer was a medium height man with blonde hair so fine, it bordered on white. It was so long that it almost reached his waist. He had fine features with pale skin, perhaps he would have been considered good-looking if not for the haggard look in his eyes or the bags underneath them. He wore beige tattered robes but I recognized the embroidery and runic markings on them just fine. He was a mage. I stepped closer to him, holding my sword. With my new Core, I could- ¡°Wait, I¡¯m not your enemy.¡± He said furiously, desperate to get the words out fast enough. I couldn¡¯t put my finger on it but I felt like I recognized him. Even the voice was familiar. But I hadn¡¯t met a single mage since I was transported here in MSS¡­ ¡°I wish to help.¡± He whispered. ¡°Please. I¡¯ve been following you since before¡­ since you killed those other two orcs. I heard everything about your plan. About how you want to help your friends. About how you want to ruin the Akka Xalud''s plan.¡± I wasn''t stupid enough to think that he was a spy; a spy would have turned back and told this Akka Xalud or whatever they were about our plans. If Skaris and I, two slaves, were caught this early on in our plan we''d be powerless. The crux of our plan was the fact that we were undetected and could assault key points that had protection just weak enough for us to get through. Then again, I wasn''t stupid enough to think that a mage was offering his help to us out of his own free will. Like I said before, mages are a peculiar breed. ¡°Identify yourself first.¡± I wanted to know more about him before I made my decision. ¡°Ssslaveborn?¡± Skaris muttered. ¡°There isss no need to quessstion him. Let usss kill him and be done with it.¡± The mage hadn¡¯t flinched or shown any reaction towards Skaris¡¯ statement. His eyes were on me and only me. ¡°You don¡¯t remember¡­ me?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve met?¡± I answered easily. ¡°...No.¡± He answered, resigned. ¡°Not officially.¡± He wasn¡¯t flat-out lying but was hiding something. I was determined to find out what. I didn¡¯t have the luxury of leaving my back to people I couldn¡¯t trust. I had people to protect; my decisions here had lives hanging in the balance. ¡°Tell me the truth.¡± I purposefully spoke harshly to him. ¡°Or turn back and never show yourself in front of me again. I don¡¯t have time to play cloak-and-daggers this night.¡± He needed to get the message that if he was only telling me half-truths, then any hope he had of cooperating with us was off the table. I saw the mage swallow. ¡°My name is Kyrian Tricilan. I was part of the party that attacked yours.¡± Memories came to me of lightning superheating the sand to glass, threatening us with certain death if we even looked in the wrong direction. ¡°That was you?¡± I was barely containing myself from lunging at the man. Skaris took a step menacingly towards Kyrian. ¡°Ssslaveborn.¡± Half of me wanted to listen to Skaris but the other half wanted to hear the mage out. Having a mage on our side could change things dramatically. There was a reason why all mages were arrogant and haughty: they deserved it. Their usefulness could not be captured in words alone. Offensive spells, defensive spells, buffs, debuffs, you name it. Anything that Core abilities couldn¡¯t do, a Mage could make up for. But then again, he did try to kill us. In the end, my reason won out over the desire for violence. I¡¯d be lying if I said my anger was abated, but I was desperate. ¡°Let¡¯s hear him out.¡± Skaris growled but didn¡¯t say otherwise. ¡°Speak. And speak quickly.¡± I didn¡¯t want to carry on a full conversation with the berserkers less than a hundred paces from us. ¡°I¡¯m one of the adventurers who signed up to be part of the Akka Xaluds forces.¡± He explained. ¡°I was part of the party that was chasing you towards the dungeon. Another adventurer and I waited for you to come out of the dungeon to capture you¡­ but needless to say we failed.¡± I was seeing where this was going. I¡¯d played MSS enough to know a tragic backstory when I saw one. ¡°So they sent you away after you failed? And now you want to work for the other side? Is that it?¡± ¡°...Jason Carid Akka Xalud had my mother executed.¡± The mage deflated. Ok, now I felt bad. Even Skaris expression loosened, but he didn¡¯t turn the tip of his javelins away. ¡°I worked personally next to Jason. I know how he thinks, how he works. You¡¯ve just heard of the Akka Xalud¡¯s plans. I¡¯ve seen Jason talk about it for months.¡± He continued, his voice getting heated. ¡°I can help you.¡± ¡°What isss your goal?¡± Skaris was studying Kyrian. ¡°Revenge.¡± The mage answered without missing a beat. ¡°I want revenge on Jason Akka Xalud.¡± I had to admit, he was selling himself really well. I hadn¡¯t even heard of the name ¡®Jason Carid Akka Xalud¡¯ until he said it. Just knowing the name of one of the major players was a big deal. But still, I couldn¡¯t trust him. All the comrades I¡¯d gathered so far had one thing in common: we worked towards a common goal. L¡¯teya, Clover and I had fought together as one because we wanted to survive. Arrosh wanted to pass on the Sword Saint¡¯s teachings to me and I wanted to get stronger, which were in alignment with each other. For Skaris, even if it wasn¡¯t for the life debt he owed me, I knew that he respected my decision to rescue my comrade. Perhaps there were even some lingering regret he felt for not being able to save his own. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. But this mage, if he was out to get revenge on Jason¡­ Worst case scenario, he¡¯d choose to make a stand when we had to run. If I was looking for someone whom I can use as a sacrificial piece at any moment¡¯s notice, Kyrian was perfect for that role. But wasn¡¯t that exactly what I didn¡¯t want to do? To see the people of this world as people? Not as NPCs that I can use at my own leisure? Maybe I was a fool for deciding this but I didn¡¯t want someone like that working with me. ¡°Ssslaveborn?¡± Skaris was deferring to me, wanting me to make the choice. It had been left unspoken, but I was the leader of our small party even if it was only two of us. ¡°No.¡± I said after a moment¡¯s silence. The look on Kyrian¡¯s face was pure dejection, like a guy who got rejected after asking his crush to the prom. ¡°Why?¡± He said finally. ¡°This deal has nothing but advantages for you. I am offering my services until you reach Jason, and then I could-¡± ¡°That¡¯s exactly the problem.¡± I cut the air with my sword. ¡°I don¡¯t need an expendable piece. I need a comrade that I can trust will escape this hellhole with me. Someone I can trust, someone with a cool head on their shoulders.¡± Kyrian rocked back like he got slapped. Even Skaris was surprised. ¡°Ssslaveborn. A mage could-¡± ¡°I know what a mage is capable of.¡± I whispered back furiously. ¡°But I¡¯d rather go against those berserkers myself than have a mage at my back whose only goal is suicide. I need someone who¡¯s going to stick through to us till the end. We have to think about what will happen after we escape.¡± ¡°The desert is full of monsters, and there¡¯ll be other stragglers looking for easy pickings. This city will crumble to dust tonight and I can¡¯t have someone who has his own agenda working alongside us. You and I, we both want to get out of here. Kyrian wants revenge. Those are two fundamentally different things.¡± I¡¯d seen it often enough, watching over my parent¡¯s shoulder as they managed their corporation. Trying to make the company bigger to push out better products and improve people¡¯s lives was different than trying to make the company bigger to make more money. I couldn¡¯t take this guy with us. ¡°For what it¡¯s worth, I¡¯m sorry.¡± I meant it. ¡°In your eyes, I¡¯m probably responsible for your mother¡¯s death just as much as Jason is.¡± ¡°But I need a comrade. Not a¡­ not whatever it is you are offering.¡± The mage had his head cast down, his blonde hair covering his expression. ¡°A comrade¡­ not an expendable piece¡­.¡± He muttered to himself. I was loath to turn my back on him but I didn¡¯t want to kill him after all that either. His story rang true and my heart told me so. The best I could do for him was to let him go. I turned to make sure nothing had changed with the berserkers. ¡°Mana Vow.¡± I barely heard the mage utter the word. I thought my mind was playing tricks on me, that it must have been the wind and made to turn around. ¡°I¡¯ll make a Mana Vow to you, Lock Slaveborn.¡± Kyrian lifted his head and gone were the self-loathing and dejection. Only determination. ¡°I swear to serve you until you and your comrades are safe. I will not put my goal above yours, and will obey your orders to the letter.¡± Before I could stop him Kyrian¡¯s blue mana swirled around the mage, forming a string. I had no idea what a Mana Vow was but could get the gist of what was happening from context alone. He was binding himself to me with the conditions that he had just uttered. From Skaris¡¯ reaction it wasn¡¯t anything harmful. Another feature that hadn¡¯t been existent in my own playthrough of the game. The string looped around itself and settled into the palace above Kyrian¡¯s heart. ¡°A Mana Vow¡­ on onesssself?¡± Skaris¡¯ tone implied the rarity of this situation.. ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± I couldn¡¯t understand why Kyrian was so desperate to help us. ¡°Because.¡± He looked me straight in the eyes, long blonde hair no longer hiding his own. ¡°I¡¯m tired of being a coward.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± I snapped. ¡°But turn this Mana Vow thingie off, comrades don¡¯t need-¡± The moment I said the word ¡®fine¡¯, the string of mana brightened and disappeared. I swore I heard Kyrian¡¯s heart thump, and the cave quake in rhythm. I didn¡¯t need Kyrian to explain that it was too late to cancel the Mana Vow, it had already been established. ¡°What¡­¡± ¡°The Vow wasn¡¯t about the words, it¡¯s about my intention. It was about me serving you as long as you were willing to let me follow you.¡± He brought out a piece of string and began to tie his long hair back into a ponytail. ¡°Do not worry, Lock. Even if I should break the vow, it will not affect you in the slightest.¡± ¡°I, er- what?¡± I was flabbergasted. But Kyrian was acting like a different person. He finished tying his hair and I saw the ring on his hand gleam. It was a Dimension Ring. He took out a long staff with a yellow crystal embedded at the top. He spun it with practiced ease, letting it float in the air then the staff snapped to his hand. The mage looked like a practiced warrior, making sure his blade was still sharp. ¡°Kyrian Tricilan.¡± He gave us a bow. ¡°Grade-8 mage. At your service.¡± I ground my teeth, still frustrated at how this situation was going. But I could sense that the moment for arguing back and forth was over. I knew the look in his eye and it was someone who was determined to follow a decision through to the end. My father had once had those eyes when trying to remake something of himself. Nothing I would say would change his mind. ¡°Fine. But remember that I¡¯ll be keeping an eye on you.¡± ¡°And I assss well.¡± ¡°I would have it no other way, Lock. Skaris.¡± Kyrian Tricilan crossed the invisible barrier of tension, easily joining us. Skaris stood to my right and Kyrian to my left. The three of us turned to see the four orcs, whom were talking. I cursed beneath my breath. ¡°What issss it?¡± Skaris heard me after I swore. ¡°The guards we killed. They¡¯re probably wondering why it¡¯s taking them so long to come back.¡± I looked at the two besides me. ¡°We need to strike now. Tell me what you¡¯re good at, Kyrian.¡± ¡°Offensive magic. Light, Water and Earth are my specialties.¡± ¡°Not bad.¡± I had known he was proficient with lightning magic, evidenced by the time he chased us through the desert. Now that I thought about it, him killing Puca had worked out for us and none of us had been hit by his spells. Maybe I shouldn¡¯t really be holding a grudge against him. Regardless, it was perfect for us. I knew for a fact that tiger totem users wouldn¡¯t have the magic defense stat necessary to fend off more than a few spells. ¡°What about curse magic?¡± Curse magic referred to debuffs in gamer¡¯s terms. ¡°Only one. But if you are nearby, you will get caught up in it.¡± The plan formed in my mind. ¡°Ok. I¡¯ll approach the orcs first, cast the curse on all of us. Then use as many offensive as you can to slow down the berserkers. Skaris, keep them back.¡± ¡°You want me to hit you with the curse?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I didn¡¯t repeat the instructions. ¡°I¡¯ll take care of the witch doctor so keep the berserkers off of me. Both of you.¡± Skaris nodded. ¡°Leave it to me, Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°...I will be watching your back.¡± Kyrian added. While Skaris and Kyrian went over their gear, I thought about what I was about to do. Was I really about to leave my backs to these two? I wasn¡¯t even accounting for the backstabbing aspect, but just how well we would synergize with each other. Did I communicate their roles clearly enough? Did they understand it? Were they truly at a level where I could trust them? This¡­ must¡¯ve been how L¡¯teya and Arrosh felt about me in the beginning. It was funny. This was the first time I had gotten comrades of my own accord, much like Arrosh and L¡¯teya had done for me. Scarlet didn¡¯t count, that had been temporary. This was temporary too but¡­ It felt a bit different. ¡° It¡¯s because we¡¯re all on the same page. Scarlet and I ultimately had different goals. But these guys¡­ they¡¯re going to be with me every step of the way.¡± As soon as they had checked over their equipment and signaled that they were ready, I dashed out from the Stalagmites; I began to sprint downhill towards the orcs. Nothing to do but trust them. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Coin Toss] ? ?[Footwork] has been increased ? I felt my feet slide forward and yet, when I took a step I could feel the ground beneath me more solidly than before. It was like I was gripping the entire cavern with my foot and the ensuing momentum was propelling me faster than possible. The surroundings became a blur and I was already within sword strike reach when the first of the berserkers noticed me. From the barely visible blue aura outlining my body, I could tell that Coin Toss gave me a buff instead of the debuff. Pity, at this point in time I would benefit much more from a Debuff. Low-ranking berserkers or not, they weren¡¯t berserkers for nothing. In a menacing display, all three of them drew their weapons in a flash and I brought up my shield to block the first of the oncoming attacks. While this orc kept me occupied, the two other berserkers leaped ten feet into the air like they were martial artists on TV. One of them held a colossal sword, a claymore and the other was using a halberd. I badly wanted to scream out now but left it up to Kyrian¡¯s discretion. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Reduce Sight]? I felt Kyrian¡¯s debuff spells descend upon the area like a heavy fog on a lake on a chilly winter morning. The feeling was akin to bugs whose legs had been dipped in ice crawling all over my skin. But for me, the sensation didn¡¯t last long. My passive, Arcane Masochism, activated and the feeling of being submerged in an ice bath full of bugs faded. ?[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Reduce Sight]? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Defense]? Boom Boom Time seemed to slow as the two orcs who were in the air landed behind me with their weight shaking the ground. It only took a split second for me to see that the orc in front of me had his burrows frowned and there were hints of darkness lingering near his eyes. If I was right, this was a debuff to their [Sight] stat. A grade-8 magician couldn¡¯t cast [Blind] but for a tiger-totem orc? Well, this was more than enough. Before the other two orcs could regain their sight or decide that impaling me along with their ally was worth it, I moved to action. My goal wasn¡¯t the berserkers, it was to kill the Witch Doctor before he could do anything. ? ??? has cast [Squishy Skin] ? ? [Squishy Skin] lowers [Defense] ? ?[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Squishy Skin]? ?[Arcane Masochism] rases [Speed]? I felt the speed buff in my bones this time, they felt lighter. From this, I knew that the witch doctor had done something and he was starting to act. Acting quickly, I ducked under my shield right as the berserker in front of me blinked. I had wanted to stab him in the stomach but he was fast, twisting to one side at the last second. I ended up stabbing him in the space right below his ribs, red blood starting to leak out from the wound. I withdrew my blade and spun around his body, passing him and sprinting towards the Witch Doctor. Crackle-Crack Crack Crack Crack There was a flash of heat and light from behind me, bringing me back to that day running away from the lightning strikes. But the spells hadn¡¯t been aimed at me, they were aimed at the orc whom I had just wounded. One strike wouldn¡¯t be enough to down the berserker, but it would be enough to alert everyone to the mage¡¯s presence. Skaris and Kyrian would serve as a distraction until I killed the witch doctor. ¡°Focus on your own task.¡± I stopped worrying about the two; drawing up the familiar imagery of a sword within my mind. I felt it when my latest Core¡¯s ability activated. It was as if someone took a word and dropped it in my head. It wasn¡¯t an intrusive feeling though, more akin to having forgotten something and being reminded that this word did indeed exist. Yet there was nothing else, except the word. No context on what it meant or why it was there. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Leap]? Prince Charming''s Core, the one that dropped from the named Shadow Wolf Mimic, was working perfectly fine.
Chapter 36: Comrades (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
I deliberated long and hard after reaching level 20. Whether to take the Inmyun Ho¡¯s Core as I had planned or to take the Core that belonged to a named variant. In the end, the fact that the Shadow Mimic Wolf¡¯s core was not only a boss-class but belonged to a Named Variant won out. I still wasn¡¯t sure how [Sadistic Mimicry] and [Gloomy Disposition] would have changed but now was the best time to find out. A named boss-class monster from grade-7 could rival a grade-5¡­ or even above. [Sadistic Mimicry] copied a random skill, ability or spell from any target I wounded and the term ¡®wounded¡¯ was very broad in MSS. As soon as I copied [Leap] from the berserker, I realized that this Core might not be so good after all. All it did was drop the name of the skill I had just copied from my opponent. No mental instructions on how to use it or even what the skill did. Except I was a [Player] and I knew pretty much every single thing there was to know about this game. I stopped in my tracks and bent low to the ground in a squat, feeling my hamstring stretch and quads constrict. At the same time, I felt mana from my heart pump into my legs the same way it did for my arms when I was using my sword. As soon as I released all the pent up energy and mana, I shot towards the witch doctor like a rocket. I saw him wave his gnarled staff and send out a wave of purplish smoke. But I had already received two stacks of [Speed] buffs, I easily landed and jumped above them, landing beside the witch doctor. ¡°Foolish human.¡± His teeth as well as his pierced tongue were blackened and decayed. Without preamble he took a big gulp of air and breathed into the space between us, filling it with black smog. Even with my speed, it was almost impossible to prevent it from touching. The tips of my fingers started to tingle and a numbness began to spread up my arm. ¡°Shit. [Decay Breath].¡± I recognized the spell, it applied a slow status and tick damage over time. Since [Slow] was a status ailment, my [Arcane Masochism] wouldn¡¯t activate. But with the Shadow Mimic Wolf¡¯s Core, I should be able to do something about the tick damage. Instead of getting out of the way completely, I ducked underneath the smoke and took cover under its shadow. Any spell that cast its own shadow was now my domain. [Gloomy Disposition] should cancel all magic damage as long as I was covered in shadow, in exchange for a massive debuff to my [Defense] stat. Sure enough, the tingling sensation stopped but the numbness was all over my body. ?[All Mages must Die!] lowers [Defense]? ?[Arcane Masochism] cancels [All Mages must Die!? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack]? ?You have been hit by a Magic Attack!? ?[All Mages must Die!]: +1 Stack of [Shadow Blink] ? I felt Arcane Masochism counteract the Gloomy Disposition debuff, turning it into an attack buff. The witch doctor hadn¡¯t expected me to duck into the smoke and hadn¡¯t bothered to gather distance. I quickly crossed the space between us with long strides and aimed a thrust right at his forehead, hoping to end the battle here. While I¡¯d love to prolong the battle and test out the various Core abilities of the Shadow Mimic Wolf, now wasn¡¯t the time. As luck would have it, the Witch Doctor slipped and my thrust only left a long gash over his forehead. He shrieked in both fear and anger, waving his staff wildly. He began to shoot purple mana bolts all over the cavern, most of them aimed in my general direction. He was shooting them too wildly for me to dodge so I ducked underneath the shadow of the rapidly fading Decay Breath. Gloomy Disposition activated each time a stray bolt hit me, but they dissipated upon hitting my armor or skin. Shadow Mimic Wolf had a nickname on the forums: Mage Killer. It could close distances with [Shadow Blink], mimic spells or abilities with [Sadistic Mimicry] and then shrug off magic damage with [Gloomy Disposition]. Now with my [Gloomy Disposition] and [Arcane Masochism], I was practically the same. The only thing I had to watch out for were spell ailments. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Squishy Skin]? I grinned as the name of a spell popped up in my mind and at the same time, the Witch Doctor began screaming. ¡°My voodo! You stole my voodoo! Where is it?! I can¡¯t use it!¡± He wiped at his eyes and then looked at me, half crazed. ¡°You¡­ how?!...¡± I didn¡¯t have any idea what he was talking about but wasn¡¯t going to pass over an opening when I saw one. I threw my shield like a frisbee towards the Witch Doctor and heard it clang off of his forehead, a direct hit. I would have loved to cast [Squishy Skin] but knew that Spell Activation worked differently than Core abilities, I¡¯d have to ask Kyrian how to use spells later. Jumping towards the Witch Doctor, I stabbed him in the chest right where his heart should be. ¡°My¡­ voodoo¡­¡± He clawed at me, taking his last breath. Shoving him off of me, I turned to the battle that Kyrian and Skaris were engaged in. Skaris was a living whirlwind of red flame. Every wound he inflicted on the berserkers were lit aflame, slowly burning the berserkers alive. In addition, Kyrian¡¯s lightning spells flashed, illuminating the air for a fraction of a second before submerging it in darkness again. From what I could see, the curse that Kyrian had cast at the beginning of the fight had worn off meaning 60 seconds had passed. Arcane Masochism¡¯s buff would last until the end of battle but I could use Coin Toss again. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Coin Toss] ? ¡­ ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]? I picked up my fallen shield and sped towards the battle. The Berserkers were using [Leap] with extreme prejudice, ignoring Skaris and trying to get at Kyrian. But the 7-foot tall reptilian beast-man had incredible reach even without his usual spear. Everytime they landed near the mage, Skaris was there and driving them back with a furious onslaught of stabs and thrusts. All three orc warriors were being held back, unable to find an opening between Skaris and Kyrian¡¯s llightning spells. But at the same time, they were too fast for Skaris and Kyrian to land a decisive attack. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. I managed to sneak up behind one of them and stabbed him through the chest. The berserker roared in fury and spun, his elbow almost crushing my temple. But I had experienced the orc¡¯s vitality before and they hadn¡¯t even been berserkers; my shield was there to block the blow. The orc¡¯s backspin elbow slammed into my shield and I heard the metal surface crumple like aluminum foil, the recoil almost knocking me off balance. Then the orc used an ability where his body glowed with blue light. Shit. ¡°Kyrian! Fire at him! Now!¡± I backpedaled as fast as I could from the orc. This orc was using [Luminescent Movement]. Kyrian fired off more lightning but it was too late. He leaped into the air and with each movement, his body started to fire lasers in random directions. ¡°Why the fuck does a low-ranking berserker have a grade-6 Core?!¡± I ducked behind my shield and saw the other two berserkers running for cover. [Luminescent Movement] turned you into a living disco ball that shot off lasers in every direction. The perfect Core Ability to kill everyone on the field, even if they were your allies. Teamkill notwithstanding, for the orcs who were now on the backfoot, this was the best thing they could¡¯ve done short of running away. I saw Kyrian dodge behind the stalagmites but Skaris just narrowed his eyes and stood his ground. Then he began to deflect the lasers with the javelins in each arm with superhuman precision. Holy shit. And I taunted him before, saying he was weaker than L¡¯teya. It was like watching one of those virtual reality games where you had to hit the bars with a stick. However, the bars were lasers moving at the speed of a hawk in flight and they came from every direction. Skaris danced with deadly rhythm, caught in the space between life and death. I realized that Skaris was keeping the orc busy, trying to keep him from approaching Kyrian. I watched in awe. I was obviously outmatched in terms of skill and the best thing to do would be to wait out the [Luminescent Movement], waiting for it to go on cooldown. But the orc landed near Skaris and began to tear into him with his Halberd, each swing sending more lasers firing out from his body. As much as I wanted to stay here, safe and hidden, I couldn¡¯t let Skaris do this alone. I got up with my shield, ready to run towards them. ¡°SSLAVEBORN! THE OTHERSSS!¡± There was a brief moment of hesitation as my brain tried to comprehend what Skaris was telling me to do. Was he telling me to leave the orc to him and eliminate the other two? He better not fucking die and waste the Inmyun Ho Core I fed to him. I changed direction, using my shield as cover but none of the lasers even came close. They flew towards the ceiling or left smoking snake-sized holes in the earth far from where I was. Seeing the two orcs start to creep up towards Kyrian who was being cornered by the stray lasers, I ran towards them. One of the berserkers noticed me and broke off, creating three separate 1v1 situations. For us, this was the situation we wanted to avoid the most. In a 3v3, we would have the advantage especially with a mage on our side. This was why I had been so adamant about killing the Witch Doctor, to turn the tides in our favor. But with that one berserker using [Luminescent Movement], everything had shifted in their favor. I engaged the berserker holding his claymore and dodged his claymore strike. It was a good thing I did, because it glowed a rainbow color and then slammed into the ground like a meteor. Another core ability, [Heavy Strike]. The heavier your overall weapon, the more damage it did. One of the best starting abilities you could use for a heavy weapon user like him. When he heaved his weapon out of the ground, I saw it dripping with venom and took back my initial assessment. He likely had a venom-inducing Core ability like L¡¯teya, most likely the same one. A venom-inducing ability in combination with Heavy Strike? Now there was a trash build if I ever saw one. As devastating as [Heavy Strike] was, there was nothing to fear if it never landed. I stayed just out of range, trying to bait out his meteor strike or a strike with a particularly large wind-up. He acted exactly how I wanted, raising his claymore overhead and trying to cleave me in two. Quicker than I thought possible, I slipped in inside his guard and slashed his stomach, running right past him without stopping. I heard the aftereffects of Heavy Strike, landing on the ground and pivoted hard on my heel, stabbing him in the back. The Tiger Berserkers weren¡¯t known for their defense, but I had to step on the ground harder than usual to get more than a few inches of my blade into their skin. That was the stat disparity between those that had unlocked their racial traits and those who hadn¡¯t. ¡°Fuck.¡± I almost had my head separated into two pieces by his retaliatory strike, a spinning slash using his whole body as a pivot. But I knew that after the move, he¡¯d take a second or two to orient himself. I closed the distance, ducking underneath the blade and stabbed him in the ribs, trying to angle my blade upwards into his heart. To my surprise he let go of his Claymore and grabbed my arm with both his meaty hands. His eyes bore into mine with near bestial fury. ¡°Got you now, human.¡± Mana swelled from deep within my stomach and poured out in an invisible stream, pouring into the orc. His wounds all doubled in size, the cuts widening and growing deeper. Blood spurted from the wounds as my Hateful Wound ability literally ripped open his wounds from the inside out. He released my hands with a cry of pain and I backstepped more gracefully than ever, swinging my sword like a rapier and leaving swelling lines of blood on his chest. Just in time, I used Coin Toss and felt it get canceled out by Arcane Masochism. Then I felt my blood begin to pump even faster than now; the telltale sign of an attack buff. The longer I stayed in battle, the stronger I got. I kicked the ground, jumping towards the berserker who was scrambling to pick up his Claymore. I heard lightning and saw its after-flash, followed by another one. Kyrian must have found a safe place to start casting his spells again. But the flashes of lightning had been deceptive, I heard the mage¡¯s voice cry out in pain a second later. Instead of finishing off the claymore-berserker, I stabbed him in the back of his knee hoping that it would cripple him. Then I made a beeline towards the direction of Kyrian¡¯s voice. Simultaneously I felt the spell Squishy Skin disappear from my mind, like someone took a paintbrush and grayed it out. Then it was replaced by a different ability. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Heavy Strike]? It seemed that anything I stole would have a timer on it and if I didn¡¯t use it in time, it would simply disappear. For me though, Heavy Strike was something I could definitely use unlike Squishy Skin, a spell. I ran by Skaris, still dueling the luminescent orc whose ability was starting to run out. There were less and less lasers flying about and more of Skaris¡¯ strikes were finding purchase, stabbing through the berserker¡¯s armor. As evidence, the orc was covered in burn wounds, some parts of his body sloughing off from the ensuing heat. The smell was terrible, acrid and sharp. The deadly dance between them had reached a lethal crescendo and even if I wanted to help Skaris, there was no room for anyone else. Instead, hastily stepping in between the two would put Skaris in danger. I couldn¡¯t allow his focus to waver now. I found Kyrian cornered by the orc I had first encountered, the one wielding a greataxe. My Hateful Wound had reached all the way here. The minor stab wound from before was now an open cut, separating the top part of his ribs and lower stomach. Still the orc didn¡¯t show any signs of slowing, the passive effects of his tiger totem fueling his vitality and speed. He rushed towards Kyrian, deftly running between the lightning spells which crackled all around him. Kyrian raised his staff and a tornado of sand formed between the two, albeit small. The berserker cleaved it in two by firing off a greenish colored slash of wind. But the tornado had done its job, it bought enough time for me to leap into the air and land on him while using Heavy Strike. I had leaped from behind him and caught him completely unawares. My sword slashed through his shoulder joint, leaving the berserker with only one arm. ¡°GRAHHH.¡± His screams echoed through the cavern right up until the moment I spun in place and parted his head from the rest of his body. ¡°Kyrian!¡± The mage was bleeding from a huge gash on his stomach and I saw gray ropey things poking out. Fighting the urge to throw up I took a step towards him but the mage stopped me. ¡°Behind!¡± He held his intestines in place and fell on his butt. Yelling something required core and his stomach had been split open, I couldn¡¯t count on him anymore. I turned to see the tip of a claymore inches from my stomach and had a vision of me trying to shove my intestines back in. Stepping back, I brought my shield to meet the edge but underestimated the orc¡¯s strength and the weight of his claymore. The berserker used another instance of Heavy Strike and the shield was split into top and bottom, along with a few of my fingers. ¡°Lock!¡± Kyrian really needed to stop yelling and making his wounds worse. I ignored the amputated fingers, I had been through worse only a day ago when Arrosh resorted to torture to keep me awake. My body being full of adrenaline helped. Sidestepping his next strike, I stabbed him in the stomach right as he lifted the claymore, wrenching it free and trying to widen the wound as much as possible. The berserker didn¡¯t even grunt, he was too caught up in battle for that. I felt the air get knocked out of me as he kneed me in the stomach and heard his claymore clang against the earth; this berserker had thrown his weapon away again. ¡°What kind of berserker throws his weapon away so much?¡± He kneed me in the stomach and I doubled over, feeling his arm wrap around me in a guillotine chock; pulling me in close to his ribs. I stabbed him in the ribs again and again, but felt his body tense, tightening the grip instead of loosening it. Within seconds, I started to see stars. I¡¯m ashamed to say I panicked. I was continuing to stab him, but it was no use. My arm was starting to go limp and my blade wasn¡¯t even penetrating his body anymore, just flailing helplessly. I was pretty sure Kyrian was passed out behind me and even if he were awake, there wasn¡¯t much he could do to help. Same could be said for Skaris. More stars. Shadows started to creep in at the edge of my vision and narrowed my vision like I had put on eclipse sunglasses. I struggled but it was futile, darkness continued to swallow more of my vision. I couldn¡¯t breathe. I tried to use Hateful Wound but it was on cooldown. Maybe a [Lucky Strike] or [Jackpot]? Nothing I had could get me out of this. The hole was getting smaller, I could barely see the ground anymore. In pure desperation I pulsed mana into my body. The orc responded in kind, strengthening his own limbs. A moment ago, I had copied Leap when stabbing him in the stomach. I tried to use it, bending my legs and bringing my weight back under my control. But the orc didn''t let me, he pushed down harder. I couldn¡¯t see anything anymore. Then nothing.
Chapter 37: Comrades (3)
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Falling into unconsciousness was a strange feeling. It felt like floating on top of water, yet submerged within. Everywhere I looked, darkness prevailed. No light of any kind could penetrated the thick curtain of shadow that surrounded me. Just like when I was dreaming, I was remembering and seeing at the same time. In a way, it was safe and secure. Nothing could get me here.
¡°One day, I hope that you will trust me enough as your master to tell me your story, young one. If that day ever comes."
Arrosh, piled upon his cloak. I¡¯d never get to tell him my story. He tried so hard to teach me, so I could learn how to defend myself. No, what he taught me couldn¡¯t be defined as simple swordplay. Arrosh had taught me the art of the sword. The sword was to a swordsman as a brush was to an artist. Your battle was the canvas and each movement, each maneuver was the brushstroke with which you painted. Blood was the ink of our craft, and our opponents the inspiration. I channeled mana into my legs, trying to lift the orc. I still had [Leap] mimicked. If I could just bend my legs and lift us up into the air somehow¡­
"Tell me... who are you really? Are you some kind of noble? Or a Scion of a Great House? Are you a bastard? Is that why they sent you here?" "Why won''t you say anything?"
Clover deserved better than that. If I could go back in time, I¡¯d redo that whole conversation with her. She didn¡¯t need to know the whole truth. I could¡¯ve just told her that my name wasn¡¯t Lock nor was it Slaveborn. That I didn¡¯t remember anything before meeting L¡¯teya and her. Clover deserved something close to the truth but I had failed her. For the gods¡¯ sake, she regrew my arm. I pumped more mana into my legs and felt something answer. The shadows in my vision retreated and like looking through a scope, I saw bits of the earth again.
¡°That is a great name, Lock Slaveborn!¡± ¡°What say you to teaming up for this, Makoreah?¡±
L¡¯teya¡­ Since this whole thing started I¡¯d never even caught a glimpse of her. The closest clue I had gotten to finding out about her was that the ¡®expensive¡¯ slaves were upstairs. But I came downstairs, listening to Arrosh. Had I just been fooling myself? If I had real courage, real strength I could have gone straight to her. But I was still too weak. L¡¯teya, the first one in this world to accept me. L¡¯teya, the one who never doubted me even for a second. She trusted me. I owed everything to her. ¡°AAAAAAGGGGHHHH¡± I heard myself scream and the darkness around my vision cleared up more. I dropped my sword and clawed my hands into the orcs bicep and tricep, trying to pry his arms away from my neck. I sucked in great big gulps of air, regaining strength with each breath. I felt my fingers sink into his arm. ¡°FUUUCKKK YOUUUU¡± I screamed and bit down on his wound, tasting coppery blood as his wound opened up. The orc didn¡¯t even let out a grunt of pain, he just squeezed and I had to fight for breath again. Countless scenes flashed before me.
¡°You¡¯re such a fucking fool.¡±
The words I had said to myself when descending into the depths, knowing that I was facing death at the blade of the Lucky Beckoning Cat. It was the first time I had risked my life for other people, or done something for others, period.
¡°Enough. We¡¯re comrades.¡±
When I first called L¡¯teya and Clover comrades, promising that I wouldn¡¯t abandon them.
¡°I was just using you, I never took you seriously. You barely know me. I never did anything for you. I was just¡­ I was such a fool, Arrosh. My friends, if I acted earlier we could have avoided all this. This happened all because I was only looking out for myself. I didn¡¯t trust anyone, even you. God, I only got this far because of you guys. You even got hurt while trying to find me. What¡¯s going to happen, Arrosh? Will I see you again?¡±
When I confessed to Arrosh all the filthy things I¡¯d done to him¡­ and when he had no need to forgive me for it, because for him I hadn¡¯t done anything wrong to him.
"Right. You take care too... and I hope you find your master."
Scarlet. A random mage I had met in the process of escaping those cages. Despite meeting him for only a brief moment, it left an impact on me. He was the first person that I worked together with voluntarily. In a way, he got me started on this path. He was the first one outside of L''teya and Clover I had trusted, even if it was only for a short while. To protect the people important to me, I had recognize the fact that there were other people. I couldn''t do this alone. I needed the help of others. Arrosh, L¡¯teya and Clover. Now, I had two more names to add to the list, two more people to protect. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Skaris and Kyrian. Kyrian was dying. It didn¡¯t matter that I barely knew him and that he had worked against me in the past. For this moment, we had fought in this battle together, tooth and nail with our lives on the line. We''d barely known each other for five minutes before going into battle, knowing full-well that we were leaving our backs to each other. Everyone was counting on me.
"If you make a decision... follow through with it till the end."
My fool of a dad''s advice. I channeled more mana through my entire body and then fell into my own shadow. Once more, I was submerged in darkness and the feeling of being underwater was back. This time though, I knew instinctively that I could weave the shadows around me and transport me to where I needed to go. Manipulating the shadows with my mana, I leaped out from the berserker¡¯s shadow and wrapped myself around his back. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Shadow Blink] ? ?[All Mages must Die!]: -1 Stack of [Shadow Blink] ? For the moment, I didn¡¯t give a shit that I used [Shadow Blink] or how it worked. All I could concentrate on was the fact that I finally had access to this berserker¡¯s vital point: his neck. No sword, no shield, yet my instincts demanded blood: I tore into his neck with my teeth, ripping off chunks at a time. The orc screamed and I felt his hands try and get me off of him; but my armor was slick with blood. His fingers continued to slip and failed to find purchase. I kept on sinking my teeth into his neck, biting through the thick layer of muscle. Then I felt him run backwards and felt my back explode in pain. But my mind neatly compartmentalized that pain and threw it in the trash bin along with anything else that was unnecessary for what I was currently doing: chewing through this orc¡¯s neck. He slammed me into the wall a few more times. Finally, after suffering for what seemed like an eternity, I felt my teeth sink into something soft and long. It felt different from the tough sinewy muscle I had been tearing my teeth into. Instinctively, I knew that my mouth had finally reached his esophagus. I bit it off. The orcs'' movements slowed and he fell on his face. Just to make sure, I cast [Hateful Wound]. The corpse convulsed but there was no life left in it. I spat out the piece of meat in my mouth.
Kyrian fell in and out of consciousness, his hands holding onto his intestines lest they spill out. Through his stupor, he caught glimpses of the battle. Skaris locked in mortal combat with the shining warrior, practically burning him alive. It didn¡¯t take long for the orc¡¯s ability to run out and even Kyrian could tell that the berserker was tired. Skaris stabbed him once in the heart and then in the throat, leaving the javelins there and picking up the halberd instead. When the reptilian beastman turned to help Lock, Kyrian saw the horrified look in his eyes. Lock had literally torn out the berserker¡¯s throat using nothing but his teeth. As Lock stumbled to stand, Skaris recovered from his mental shock and helped the black-haired slave. Lending him a shoulder, Skaris looked around searching for something. Then his eyes landed on Kyrian and the two began to limp over. ¡°Was he¡­ looking for me?¡± That was not possible. When Kyrian made his Mana Vow, he had expected for them to use him like¡­ well, like a slave. A card that they could throw away anytime they found convenient. But he had no qualms with that. Kyrian had no home to go back to and certainly knew that his fantasy about getting revenge on Jason was farfetched. Everything he wanted was out of reach, just like his dear mother. So he did what he could: he decided to go with Lock and help him save as many lives as he could. Just like the heroes in the story that his mother used to tell him. But he had been cornered by that berserker and knew that he¡¯d die here. As a mage, space was crucial in fights like this. The berserker had already gravely wounded him; there was no getting away. Yet Lock, the man who should be hating Kyrian the most, risked his life to rescue him. Kyrian had lain there, watching Lock¡¯s back. He¡¯d never seen someone¡¯s back while they were risking their life for him before. It was more agonizing than he imagined. Wanting to help but not being able to¡­ the helplessness of seeing someone you want to help slowly lose life¡­ The pain of not being there for his mother had returned to him again and again throughout that fight. He saw Lock get beaten down, coming close to death multiple times. Was this what it was like for people who forged a path ahead for others? Full of pain and misery? This was what he was looking for? Someone in pain and constant suffering? Not for themselves, but for others? Yes, Kyrian would never again serve tyrants as his ¡®lord¡¯ or ¡®master¡¯. Kyrian Tricilan swore that if he survived, he¡¯d be the one to watch Lock¡¯s back as he forged the path ahead for everyone.
I spat the blood out of my mouth and washed it down with water. ¡°Hold ssstill, Sssslaveborn.¡± Skaris brought a health potion over and began to pour it over my body. I heard the sizzling of a chemical reaction as my skin regrew and knitted itself together, even returning my crumpled neck to its original state. As long as I lived in this world, I¡¯d never get used to the pain of having a healing potion dumped on me after a battle. Skaris had been in the best shape and had gathered Kyrian and me in one corner. Then he looted the berserkers and even the witch doctor, taking their dimension rings. We had no need for armor, but were in want of healing. Badly. Luckily for us, the dimension rings held enough healing potions to bring all of us back to life. It wouldn¡¯t recover the mental fatigue, but it was better than bleeding out to death. There was an unspoken agreement that with a battle that hard, we needed time to just rest. I didn¡¯t know about Kyrian but I knew that Skaris and I haven¡¯t had a chance to rest in the last two or three days. ¡°Gods, just how long have I been down here.¡± I missed sunlight. So the three of us sat, sorting through the dimension rings. I kept feeling my lips curl up into a smile. Ever since I lost contact with Clover I had wished more than once I had a dimension ring on me. Especially when I saw the Cores in the bird-cage room. ¡°Can¡¯t I go back and get those Cores? Especially the Fire-Drake Core¡­ if I had Skaris absorb that¡­¡± I shook my head, dismissing the thought. It wasn¡¯t worth it. Cores would be worth less than shit if I didn¡¯t make it out of this place alive with everyone. ¡°Everyone. Huh.¡± That had a nice ring to it. ¡°Lock, I wish to ask you something.¡± The mage broke the silence between the three of us. ¡°Ask.¡± I closed my eyes and leaned back. ¡°But afterwards I want to rest.¡± ¡°...Why did you come for me?¡± I bit back a short laugh; there was no need to insult Kyrian. He did more than his fair share during the battle and most of all, I could trust him now. Hindsight 20-20 as they say. ¡°Because like I said, I don¡¯t need an expendable piece. I need comrades that can watch my back.¡± I peered at him with one eye open. ¡°It¡¯d also be a waste of a mage.¡± I had meant the last part as a joke but no one laughed. It was one of those moments I wished I had attempted more humor back in real life. I simply couldn¡¯t tell if I was unfunny or the people of MSS just ran on a different humor chord. Kyrian wasn¡¯t phased however. ¡°But I-¡± ¡°You are the one who ssswore the mana vow, fool.¡± Skaris spat. ¡°You forcsssed our hand in accsssepting you as one of ussssss.¡± Skaris made it sound like Kyrian was an abandoned dog that showed up at our doorsteps and begged to be taken care of. In a way he was right, but Skaris had no responsibility to adhere to that. Yet he¡¯d also protected Kyrian with his life. Could it be that Skaris had a soft side to him? ¡°That¡¯s beastman hospitality for you.¡± The joke was on the tip of my tongue but I swallowed it. I knew a tough crowd when I saw one. Kyrian let the silence last for a bit longer than spoke. ¡°I thank you both. Truly. I know I have already bound myself with the Mana Vow but for what it¡¯s worth, I will give my life to see you two reach the end of your goals.¡± ¡°Stop that.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Our goal is to leave this place. Alive and with everyone.¡± ¡°Now, when an adventurer says they want to rest, it¡¯s rude to interrupt. Let''s all rest.¡± I repeated, remembering when the red-haired mage had chastised me. ¡°You were an adventurer?!¡± Kyrian looked genuinely surprised. I didn¡¯t dignify that with an answer. I did wonder though, would 14 years of playing MSS count? Probably not. ¡°10 minutes. Then we break the waypoint and head up the stairs.¡± I outlined the general plan to the two and saw Skaris close his eyes for a brief respite. Kyrian looked over his staff, making sure there was no damage. I studied Kyrian. It was strange. I''d known him --and for that matter, Skaris too-- for less than an hour yet there was a bond between us that I couldn''t place. Were we comrades now? Would we stick together even after we escaped the city? Yes, I needed mage in the party soon but would it be Kyrian? Could I trust him? Surprisingly, I found that the answer was yes. He''d done more than his fair share in this battle. There was no doubt about it, Kyrian wouldn''t betray us. He had his chance and didn''t take it. The mage meant what he said; I could trust him to stand by my side and fight. Yesterday''s enemy had become a friend. Quite literally. I wondered what that meant for the future. Could I become comrades with orcs? That wasn''t a question unique to me. I had to consider what my current party members would want to do, namely L''teya and Clover. Now that Skaris, a former competing slave in a different party, and Kyrian were with me I had a lot of explaining to do. What if I ended up picking up an orc comrade along the way? Like Arrosh? Would they see him differently than our captors? Actually now that I thought about it, what about me? Other than Arrosh I saw orcs as an enemy by default. I felt a smile creep up on me. It was a wonder how I came to ponder such things. That reminded me; had I used [Shadow Blink] during my battle with the orc? That wasn''t possible. But it had happened for sure, I couldn''t have escaped any other way. I wracked my brains, trying to think of a possible explanation. [Shadow Blink] was an active skill but I had confirmed that the active portion of my Core was [Sadistic Mimicry], or whatever advanced version the Named Core had given me. Could it be possible that [Shadow Blink] was an extension of my active skill? Or even passive? After ten minutes had passed, I nudged Kyrian. "Kyrian. I need your help with something. I need to figure something out about a Core I just absorbed..." Normally, there''d be a strong aversion to revealing anything about my Core. But this time at least, I needed outside help to figure it out. If I was right about my Core... "Maybe grade-5? Hm. If I had to be specific I guess I could give it a grade of 4.7." Taking the Shadow Wolf Mimic Core might have actually turned out better than the InMyun Ho Core. Soon. Soon, I¡¯d find L¡¯teya and Clover. Then all of us could get the hell out of this place before all hell broke loose.
Chapter 38: Auction (1)
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Arione had found a little mask for Clover which came with a small handle. She held it up to her face, peering down at the auction floor. They were currently on the second floor of the temple, overlooking the first floor which had been transformed into one huge stage. All the statues, except the centerpiece, had been cleared away. The whole temple had only one ceiling, meaning that as long as people peered over the railings on the higher floors, they could see exactly what was going on in the auction. As such, all the would-be bidders stood on the second floor with them. The first floor was reserved for the merchandise, magical contraptions illuminating the center part of the stage. Arione stood a bit behind Clover, having no need for a mask. The spell he had cast over his hood, preventing anyone from seeing too clearly into his hood was still active. Combined with the fact that most of his face was confined in the shadow of his robe, he was just another anonymous bodyguard among many. The two studied the other bidders. The three dwarves chatting excitedly and throwing coins to the servers to fetch them more drinks. The Zimmskarians sitting with grim expressions, lamenting the fact that so many of their country men were slaves but their purse could only reach so far. Then the Akka Xaluds, Jason with his stone-gaze staring straight ahead and Maria¡¯s head turning this way and that excitedly. That wasn¡¯t even counting the dozens of other nobles and merchants in attendance. On the stage, a skinny human started the auction without preamble; introducing the first batch of slaves. Orc guards brought out two human slaves, both male and immaculately good looking. Broad shouldered, tall with short cropped blonde hair even Clover had to admit that they were attractive. But was that really enough? She was familiar with the adventurer guild¡¯s grading conventions and knew that grade-10 and grade-9 weren¡¯t that high. ¡°Ten.¡± One of the dwarves from the Jayu States said immediately. ¡°Twelve.¡± A minor noble on the second floor countered. ¡°Fifteen.¡± Said another. To Clover¡¯s horror, the numbers began to go up. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Arione asked, alarmed by her shift in mood. ¡°Nothing¡­ I just¡­ I guess I expected that but¡­ for them to do it so easily.¡± ¡°This is nothing compared to Turina.¡± Arione muttered. ¡°Keep your wits about you. And you¡¯re a merchant, you should know what they¡¯re bidding on isn¡¯t the current worth of the slave. But what the slave could be.¡± Even Arione¡¯s tone was unusually grim. He found this distasteful as well. But Clover caught on to what he was saying immediately. For the dwarves, they were looking for potential star fights for the Colosseum. Two good looking slaves who weren¡¯t that strong yet? They could pit them against weaker enemies and slowly feed them Cores over time. They¡¯d be artificially creating a story of a gladiator who was not only physically attractive, but rising to the top through hard work. As for the nobles, they could dress up the slaves and use them as man servants or shove them into any of the darker sides of the business they owned. Clover worked as a merchant; she wasn¡¯t completely blind to how nobles made a big chunk of their money. Sex trafficking, drugs and even crimes were quick ways to rise to the top. Clover had never met a noble who wasn¡¯t guilty of doing something. Especially if the noble family wanted to retain power but didn¡¯t have the talent to own dungeons or perform monster raids. ¡°Sold.¡± The dwarf, Yousef, won the bid and he leaned back in his seat. As he did, Clover made eye contact with the man. Less than an hour ago, he had been practically begging her to come visit them at the Colosseum. He smiled and waved. Clover gritted her teeth but forced a smile, waving her mask a bit. It only made sense he would recognize her, she was wearing the same clothes as before and he probably took a good look at the rest of her. Meanwhile the auction continued. ¡°1000 Gold!¡± ¡°1120!¡± ¡°Sold! To the veiled lady!¡± ¡°Sold!¡± ¡°490!¡± ¡°Sold!¡± ¡°Going once¡­ going twice¡­ Sold for 2480 gold!¡± ¡°Sold for 508! To the gentleman on the second floor!¡± Clover watched as men and women had their futures traded for a handful of coins or a fortune, not of their own will but by someone else¡¯s. These people had their power of choice stripped away from them. It was hard to watch. If there was a bright side to all this, it was the Zimmskar Kingdom. For once, the pink-haired beastwoman felt a hint of pride for her small nation. They worked vigorously to purchase their fellow countrymen. Their only real competition were the Dwarves and some nobles in attendance. However the dwarves stopped trying to buy up the beastman slaves once they had bought a few, the Colosseum needed a variety of fighters not just one race. The real problem were the nobles on the second floor. They were here to buy their latest toy and they only needed to buy one beastman slave. They were happy to trade in all of their budgeted coins for a single slave; the Zimmskar Representatives had to try and buy out all of them. It did not bode well for the fate of her fellow beastman. ¡°Sold! The rabbit beastwoman goes to the gentleman on the second floor!¡± ¡°The red-haired wolf beastman to an anonymous bidder!¡± ¡°Sold!¡± Clover could see the Zimmskar representative''s mood growing darker with every passing second. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Some of these slaves, Clover had never seen before. The Samak Horde must have more bases around the desert where they were training slaves or perhaps had caught some of them in the last few days. The list of slaves being sold was endless. Bid after bid, sale after sale. More and more slaves poured out onto the stage. Jason did not bid a single time. He sat with his arms folded, watching the proceedings. Just as Clover was beginning to think Jason would not speak at all for the rest of the night, her attention was stolen away by the next slave on auction. L¡¯teya. L¡¯teya¡¯s eyes were blank, staring straight ahead. Clover choked back a cry. ¡°That¡¯s my friend.¡± Clover whispered to Arione. The mage leaned over the railing, taking a good look at her. Gone were her armor and battleaxes, gone was the unkempt hair kept in a neat little bun with a leather braid. L¡¯teya was wearing a slip of a nightdress that hugged her curves. It left her shoulders bare and her captors had allowed the elf-barbarian¡¯s red curls to fall naturally over them. Her scars seemed even more pronounced this way, but only added to the woman¡¯s beauty. The former-merchant saw as clear as day what their captors were doing. They weren¡¯t even planning to sell L¡¯teya as a battle slave, they¡¯d chosen to market her as something else entirely. They¡¯d gotten rid of the fire that made the elf-barbarian who she was. They¡¯d stripped her of everything but the shell. She saw the nobles around her lick their lips and felt the heat in the air rise. It was worse on the first floor, some of the nobles had already started bidding. ¡°100!¡± ¡°500!¡± ¡°708!¡± The bids kept going up. She had to win this. Clover took a deep breath. If she had to keep her calm. In an bidding war like this one, those who lost their cool would overbid. She had to lure out her opponents slowly then up the price when they least expected it. As long as Clover kept her cool, they had a chance of winning this. ¡°How much did you say you deposited?¡± ¡°15,000 gold.¡± Arione said the amount like it wasn¡¯t a veritable fortune. ¡°And I have 10,000 more on hand if you need.¡± Gold had stopped being an issue for Arione a long time ago. ¡°Ok.¡± Clover raisd her placard and called out her bid, her voice cutting through the clamor. ¡°850.¡± Right after Clover said her offer, the person she dreaded the most countered it. ¡°1500.¡± Jason Carid Akka Xalud. The bids died down instantly. It wasn¡¯t because they didn¡¯t have a meager 1500 gold. Plenty of people in the auction hadn¡¯t bought a slave yet and many were willing to pay for an elf slave. But a lot of the nobles were from the Turina Empire and knew who Jason was. They weren¡¯t bidding out of concern for their purses but because of the potential repercussions. No one wanted to get on Scion''s bad side, especially when this was the first bid that he placed. ¡°1730.¡± Yousef, the oldest brother of the merchant company representing the Colosseum from the Jayu States. He sneered at Jason from across the railing. Jason didn¡¯t let it get to him. This was just a game to him but it¡¯d be entertaining to show the dwarf his place. Since losing Abay Munet, he¡¯d been looking for a frontliner for his party in addition to the mage he had lost. This elf-barbarian was obviously a warrior despite the orcs trying to sell her as something else. He recognized a diamond in the rough when he saw one. He was train her from the ground up, in the Akka Xalud fashion. ¡°2500.¡± He said the number easily. ¡°...3000.¡± Yousef gritted his teeth. Yousef was like Jason. He saw the L¡¯teya for what she was, a gem. A beautiful elven barbarian from the Delirious Jungle, who became a gladiator in the Colosseum? If the rumors concerning Barbarians and their battle prowess was even half as true, she¡¯d be worth her weight in gold. He¡¯d manage her personally and take extra care about which Core they introduced to her. The crowd would love her. ¡°4000.¡± Jason tapped a finger on the railing, the only show of emotion he allowed himself. ¡°5000.¡± ¡°5500.¡± Clover¡¯s voice was just as composed as Jason¡¯s. Arione didn¡¯t mind at all it if Clover used all of his gold, he actually welcomed it. He considered it an investment. The mage could always get more gold, through many different means. Finding a skilled Priestess? That wasn¡¯t something he could do with gold alone. Especially now that the church was hunting him for being a [Player]. Jason¡¯s eyes strayed towards Clover, one eye twitching. ¡°...6000 gold.¡± ¡°We¡¯re starting to gain attention¡­ that¡¯s not good.¡± Arione pulled his hood down, stepped back and bumped into something. ¡°Master¡­ It¡¯s me¡­¡± Arione turned to see the red-haired elf he had been looking for the last week. ¡°I was waiting for you¡­¡± ¡°Scarlet!¡± He hissed and hugged his apprentice. ¡°Where the fuck were you?! You know how long I spent looking for you?¡± ¡°Mmm. I was locked in the dungeon downstairs¡­¡± Scarlet didn¡¯t return the hug but failed to hide the smile. ¡°You never came¡­ and here you are on a date with a pink-haired beauty¡­¡± ¡°You tsundere.¡± Arione smiled ear to ear. Scarlet ignored the word. It wasn¡¯t the first time he heard his master mutter words from his homeworld, where [Players] came from. ¡°What about the rest of our party?...¡± ¡°No. You and I¡­¡± Arione shook his head. ¡°This isn¡¯t the best place to talk about it.¡± The young red-haired mage bowed his head. ¡°I.. see¡­ and your date?¡± Clover was still in the midst of bidding. ¡°6800.¡± ¡°That¡¯s our new priestess.¡± Arione¡¯s expression darkened. He had found Scarlet, his apprentice. Right now, they were bidding for L¡¯teya, the elf-barbarian. Once they won the bid or figured out who L¡¯teya was bought by, it would be easy for a man of his skills to grab the elf and leave. The only one who was unaccounted for was Lock Slaveborn. Lock Slaveborn, whom Arione was 99% sure was a player. Was there really a need to wait for Lock? The Mana Vow around his heart reacted, a flash of pain like someone poked him with a needle. ¡°I need to make sure. As soon as I¡¯m 100% sure¡­¡± Arione observed the stage, studying L¡¯teya. He could see why Jason and Yousef were in over themselves. ¡°7500.¡± Jason still had gold to spare and he showed it by creating a gap wish each bid. ¡°...7600.¡± Yousef¡¯s face was red and Arione saw the man clutching the railing so tight his knuckles were turning white. Arione must have noticed it too, she put the nail in the coffin for yousef. ¡°8500.¡± ¡°Pigshite!¡± The dwarf let go of the railing and cursed, leaning back into his chair. He wasn¡¯t really mad, he shot a smile towards Clover shaking a finger at her. For him this was just part of the business, win some or lose some. He didn¡¯t have the high stakes that Clover did nor did he have any idea of how nervous Clover was. Now there were only two players in the game. ¡°8800.¡± Jason countered. ¡°Ladies and gents! We have 8800 gold! A record price! Do we have another? Will the pink-haired lady raise?¡± Clover raised the placard. ¡°9000.¡± It was a small increase compared to before. Arione saw the Akka Xalud Scion smirk as he upped the price. ¡°10,500.¡± ¡°Clover, you can use all 25,000 gold.¡± Arione whispered. ¡°But don¡¯t forget our promise.¡± Clover hesitated. She knew the value of gold. If she bought L¡¯teya for 25,000 gold, how much would Lock cost? How would they pay Arione back? Could they even pay him back? In a moment of clarity, Clover took a step back from the auction and looked at the situation. Was this really the right way to go about rescuing her friends? Wasn¡¯t this just switching out the orcs for Arione? Could she trust him? ¡°Going once!¡± Clover couldn¡¯t let L¡¯teya fall into someone else¡¯s hands¡­ was a month together with L¡¯teya really worth that much gold? ¡°Going twice!¡± Scarlet looked at Clover, her face twisted in turmoil. Then he looked at his master Arione. Then the red-haired mage remembered Lock Slavebor. The desperate look in his eyes as he spoke about looking for his companions. How the man shifted from being a sword-demon in one moment, to the most awkward person Scarlet had ever met. Lock had told Scarlet to take care. It felt nice when Lock said that. It was like Lock didn¡¯t want anything from him, but still wanted Scarlet to be well in the future. No one ever said nice things like that to him without wanting something in return. Scarlet wanted to help. ¡°Lock¡¯s alive.¡± He blurted out. ¡°He helped me escape.¡± At Scarlet''s words, Clover fell out of her thoughts and came back to reality. Lock was alive. Lock Slaveborn was alive. Lock, L¡¯teya and she could get out of this place together. The three of them could pay back any amount of gold¡­ With Lock¡¯s uncanny luck and unrelenting will, Clover believed that anything was possible. L''teya always said so; that Lock had the eyes of a warrior who would fight to his dying breath. If she could just bring all of them together, everything would be fine. Filled with hope, Clover looked at Jason. He had been raising the bid by increments of 1000. But surely even a Scion of the Great House did not have pockets lined with an endless supply of coin. There should be a limit, even for him. When she said 9000, instead of bidding 10,000 he bid 10,500. Why not 11,000? Simple. He was nearing the end. ¡°15,000.¡± Clover raised the bet, years of her merchant background telling her that this was the final blow. Jason¡¯s eyes widened and stared across the railing at her from the other side of the temple. His eyes bore into hers, anger swirling around him. ¡°That animal bitch¡­¡± He whispered. ¡°Going once!¡± Somehow Clover had said the number right above Jason¡¯s budget. He didn¡¯t come here to play bidding wars, he came here to massacre the orcs. But it wasn¡¯t even about the auction, he could take L¡¯teya after killing everyone. It was the fact that someone beat him. More humiliating was the fact that this someone was a filthy beastman, who were a race of slaves. ¡°Going twice!¡± Jason¡¯s centipedes squirmed underneath his skin, threatening to get out. His Core, [Hive Mother] cried for her children to be released; that they were hungry. The leash he kept on his innerself was corroding and he wanted to let it disappear. Jason Carid Akka Xalud wanted nothing more than- He saw a familiar face next to the pink-haired bitch. Not her hooded bodyguard, no. But the boy next to him. The red-haired elf brat. Wasn¡¯t he?... Wasn¡¯t he that accursed mage¡¯s disciple? The one who followed him around? The mage who had a bounty out on him? ¡°Arione Popwindale?¡± ¡°SOLD!¡±
Chapter 39: Auction (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
Arione saw Jason¡¯s expression change and knew that he had been made. He didn¡¯t bother thinking about why, shit happened sometimes. Arione had a strict policy about not dwelling on mistakes, there was nothing to learn from them. Whatever MSS threw at you, it was better to roll with it. The mage put a hand on Scarlet and Clover¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Welp. I think we¡¯ve been made.¡± His fingers twitched, aching to take out his staff and start blasting spells. ¡°Don¡¯t say a word unless he¡¯s asking you a direct question.¡± Jason Carid Akka Xalud waded through the crowd, Maria in tow. People gave him a wide berth, no one wanted to go near the Scion right now. Especially not after he was shown up by someone none of them recognized. On the contrary, many of the people on the second floor were looking at Clover, trying to figure out who she was. ¡°...Master?¡± ¡°Even he wouldn¡¯t attack us here.¡± Arione wasn¡¯t sure if he was trying to reassure Scarlet or himself. ¡°You told me he was brutal and dangerous.¡± Clover said between clenched teeth. ¡°Point taken. Be on your guards everyone, just in case.¡± Arione then looked between the two. ¡°Clover, this is my apprentice, Scarlet. Scarlet, this lovely lady is Clover Weinport. Now look sharp everyone.¡± Arione gave them all of two seconds to exchange greetings. Jason finally reached them and looked at Clover, sizing her up. Then proceeded to ignore her completely. ¡°Pleasure to meet you here, Mage.¡± Jason greeted the mage with a curt nod. ¡°Likewise. Can I help you?¡± Arione¡¯s face was hidden by the shadow of his hood and the obfuscating spell. ¡°I¡¯d like to talk with you. Somewhere in private.¡± The Scion wasn¡¯t one for using a lot of body language, but his eyes shifted from left to right indicating that there were too many ears listening. Perhaps that was the reason why Jason hadn¡¯t used Arione¡¯s real name. The last ounce of respect he¡¯d show for an enemy. ¡°He really doesn¡¯t beat around the bush.¡± Arione went through his checklist. Could Jason kill him in a one on one? No. Would he try here? Maybe. Was he curious about why Jason wasn¡¯t releasing his centipedes and threatening to kill him after all this? 100% Yes. Arione cleared his throat. ¡°Fine. Scarlet, stay with Clover.¡± ¡°Ok¡­ Master.¡± ¡°Do not forget our deal.¡± Clover muttered, worried. Arione winked at her as he left with Jason. Maria looked mournfully at Clover then followed after the two shortly after. ¡°...What deal?¡± Scarlet asked after a moment of silence. Clover looked at the red-haired mage, noticing him for the first time. ¡°Your master and I have a deal. I help him look for you and he helps me find my comrades. Thank you by the way, for telling me about Lock.¡± ¡°It was¡­ nothing.¡± Scarlet shrugged. ¡°Clover Weinport.¡± She reached out for a handshake but Scarlet shoved his own into his robes. ¡°Scarlet. Just call me Scarlet.¡± The young man had a habit of mumbling the last bits of his sentence. Clover fought the urge to bite her nails. A nervous habit she developed during childhood. None of her tutors could get her to stop and it had driven her parents crazy. She was nervous about how L¡¯teya had looked. Had she been drugged? ¡°...He was looking for you guys.¡± Clover smiled, that sounded like Lock. ¡°When¡¯s the last time you saw him?¡± Scarlet told her about his experience with Lock, how the human tricked him into working together. He glossed over the parts with the orc guards, not wanting to dwell on the memory. ¡°Then he told me¡­ to take care.¡± He finished. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound like Lock.¡± According to Scarlet, Lock had not only been the one to get Scarlet¡¯s cooperation but had been nice to Scarlet afterwards. Even towards her and L¡¯teya, he had been a little bit more than courteous when treating them. Now he was suddenly all smiles and charm? Clover wondered if they were talking about two different people with the same name. ¡°Long black hair? Broody? Shifty eyes? Awkward?¡± Scarlet offered. ¡°Ok, now that sounds more like him.¡± She laughed slightly. Even the gloomy red-haired mage cracked a smile. It was a strange feeling for Scarlet. He had definitely spent more time with his master than he did with Lock. Yet, it was only when talking about their shared experience with Lock that he felt at home with Clover. There had been an air of uncertainty before when introduced by Arione. But now when they talked about Lock, all of it was gone. It felt like they were comrades. Scarlet withdrew mentally. ¡°We will now be entering intermission! Please come down to the first floor if you have made a purchase!¡± ¡°...I¡¯ll go with you.¡± Scarlet straightened, he was a little taller than Clover. ¡°Since master is not here, I¡¯ll have to protect you.¡± ¡°Thank you, Scarlet.¡± The two walked towards the stairs and met Yousef and his brothers. ¡°Nicely done, lass!¡± He wagged his finger at her, playfully glaring at her. ¡°You got me there!¡± Clover gave an elegant dip of the head putting on her merchant¡¯s face again. ¡°Perhaps next time, Mr. Yousef.¡± After exchanging more pleasantries Clover reached the bottom of the stairs with Scarlet right behind her. The red-haired mage wasn¡¯t like Arione, he didn¡¯t bother hiding his elf-heritage. His deep blue eyes, pale skin and refined features drew more than a few looks from the lady nobles. Some of them thought he was a slave and wanted to approach Clover. But Clover gave them no room to do so, she went to one of the human slaves who were working to direct the buyers. Recognizing her, she had made the most expensive purchase after all, he led her to a small room. The room had chairs and a table. ¡°Please wait and we will bring your purchase over to you.¡± He bowed once and left the room. The Priestess paced the room. Scarlet took a corner for himself and leaned against the wall. He knew what she was feeling all too well, he had often been on the waiting end of his comrades before. Being a mage meant you were always the last one in and first one out. It wasn¡¯t the best feeling but atleast he was alive. ¡°Always put your life first.¡± In his head, Scarlet repeated one of the many teachings that Arione told him. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. They didn¡¯t have to wait long. The door opened and the human returned with two orc guards in tow. They had L¡¯teya in between them, still wearing the same clothes as before. Clover said the words she¡¯d been wanting to say for a long time. ¡°Take the manacle off of her neck.¡± Once the manacle came off, the human began to explain what other things would go on auction next. Items, Cores and even monsters. Clover wanted nothing more than to chase them all out and see to L¡¯teya, but ended up listening to the whole thing. There was no reason to arouse suspicion. Soon enough, they left. Clover rushed to L¡¯teya and wrapped her arms around her neck. ¡°Lety¡­¡± Finally they were free.
Jason had led Arione to an isolated room and left two guards outside the door. Strangely, the Akka Xalud¡¯s guards weren¡¯t anywhere to be seen and neither was Maria. Somewhere during their walk here, she disappeared. But for Arione that was a good thing, it meant they¡¯d be left alone. He followed Jason into the room and listened to what the Scion wanted to talk about. ¡°...What do you say, Magus Popwindale?¡± ¡°After trying to kill me for months, this is your offer?¡± Arione¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°You Scions really are good at talking.¡± Jason shrugged. He was sitting on a chair while facing Arione. The mage had refused to sit and remained standing. As soon as they entered the room, the mage had taken out his staff but Jason didn¡¯t bat an eye. The mage wouldn¡¯t be able to kill him, he had countermeasures in place. He¡¯d taken down mages before. A grade-4 mage wouldn¡¯t be too hard to hunt¡­ or capture. His brother might like that. "So let me get this straight." The elven mage continued. "You''re offering me gold on top off calling off the bounty in exchange for my services? Is that it?" "50,000 gold. Plus calling off the bounty behind the scenes. You will still be pursued, Arione Popwindale. The Church must still keep up appearances. But my house''s influence runs deep, and the Church has far greater matters to attend to then chase a mage around the world." Jason bared his teeth. "Provided that you swear not to step foot in the Turina Empire ever again.." ¡°I want 50,000 more gold on top of what you offered me.¡± Arione countered. ¡°And guaranteed safety for myself and my own out of this place.¡± ¡°The little beastman bitch and your disciple? Done.¡± ¡°The elf we just bought as well.¡± Jason drummed his fingers on the table, thinking. After a moment, he smacked the table with his palm. ¡°Done.¡± Arione nodded. ¡°Is that it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving then.¡± Arione had a bitter aftertaste in his mouth. He hated the Great Houses with a passion but Jason¡¯s offer had been too good to pass up. What Jason asked of him was laughably easy as well. The mage was sure that Jason thought of him as a grade-4, so the conditions of the trade were in his favor. Arione turned on his heel, making to leave. There was a knock at the door. One of the guards opened the door, speaking softly. ¡°Sir. The elf is here to see you.¡± Jason waved a hand. ¡°Let him in.¡± ¡°Mage, stay.¡± Jason ordered the mage, it came naturally to him. ¡°Plans might have changed.¡± Arione frowned but leaned against the wall next to the door, just in case he had to make a quick escape. A glasses-wearing elf walked in and gave a stiff bow to the Scion. He looked at the mage then at Jason, waiting for permission. ¡°Continue.¡± Jason waved a hand lazily. ¡°There are¡­ issues.¡± The elf took a knee, keeping his head facing the floor. ¡°Not the best opening but sure, to each their own.¡± Arione quipped, just quiet enough for the elf to hear. Jason must have heard it as well. ¡°Do not worry Mage, this is only a small part of our plans.¡± ¡°It better be.¡± Arione muttered. ¡°Some of the monsters have been¡­ rendered incapable of being useful to our plan.¡± Arione snorted through his nose. As long as the Scion had a use for him, he was determined to try and annoy them at every turn. Evidently, it was working because Jason shot a glare at the mage. ¡°Snow White?¡± Jason asked. ¡°That one is still good.¡± The elf gulped. Jason nodded, satisfied. His House went through great lengths to capture the Named Monster. They even went as far as to ask the Kojisas for help. That was how badly they wanted to monopolize the slave trade in the Samak Desert. His patriarch was counting on them and Jason would not fail. Yulrien took a deep breath. ¡°The waypoint has been damaged.¡± ¡°What?¡± Jason stood from his chair. ¡°But sir, I have my men working on a fix right now. They are heading down to find the source of the disruption. I believe there might be rats down-¡± Jason¡¯s feet stopped at the edge of Yulrien¡¯s vision. ¡°The Core is supposed to keep everyone distracted while we release the monsters. My men are in place right now and my sister will be acting soon. Without Snow White wrecking havoc throughout the city, their warchief will be free to move, meaning that someone will have to keep him occupied.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s just do it now.¡± Arione offered. The two slowly looked at him. ¡°You have no distraction and you have no firepower. Right now is the perfect time isn¡¯t it?¡± Arione picked his ear with a pinky finger then blew on it. ¡°Just do it now and ambush them. Waiting won¡¯t make it any better. The faster your sister can call the monster, the faster it will get here.¡± Jason met Arione¡¯s gaze. ¡°For once, mage¡­ you speak the truth.¡± ¡°Alert my sister. By this time tomorrow, the Samak Horde will be no more.¡± Arione briefly considered running, the plan be damned. He could just take Clover, L''teya and make a run for it. He could wait outside the city, testing how far the Mana Vow would allow him to stretch the confines of their contract... Jason''s instincts -honed by years of backstabbing and plotting- picked up on the shift in Arione''s mood immediately. "If you are having second thoughts mage, I''d reconsider them." Jason''s voice, though still quiet, turned flat like an insect''s buzzing. "When I personally beget a grudge... I don''t easily forget them." Arione grunted. He was referring to how easy it would be to sway the church''s opinion. He could also have been referring to Arione''s lackluster response towards the Church and the Monsters. Arione left the room, pondering how to break the news to Clover and Scarlet.
¡°She¡¯s not responding.¡± Clover sat on the floor with L¡¯teya¡¯s head in her lap. ¡°It¡¯s sleeping gas.¡± Scarlet explained. ¡°They used it to keep us asleep¡­ she will wake up soon.¡± L¡¯teya¡¯s eyes were dazed, staring straight ahead but not registering anything. Clover tried shaking her and even pinching her. Nothing worked. Atleast they were free now. ¡°Is there anything you can do to wake her?¡± ¡°It¡¯s better not to¡­¡± Scarlet trailed off, frowning. ¡°Master is coming here. And he¡¯s rushing. He never rushes like that.¡± Their door slammed open and Arione strode into the room. He had taken his hood off, revealing his pointed ears and light blue hair. His gold-flecked eyes were on full view. And his robe was stained with blood. ¡°Change of plans.¡± He smiled at the two. ¡°We¡¯re going to get out of here tonight.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Clover hugged L¡¯teya¡¯s body. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°I made a deal with the Akka Xaluds. They¡¯re attacking this city tonight.¡± ¡°What the hell are you talking about?!¡± ¡°Master? But you hate them.¡± ¡°I had no choice.¡± Arione shook his head, shrugging. ¡°If we want to escape this city alive, we need to follow along. They have men and resources that we have no hope of matching.¡± ¡°But you said you¡¯re a great mage.¡± Clover hissed. ¡°I still don¡¯t understand-¡± ¡°You want the gist of it? Fine.¡± The mage began. ¡°The Akka Xaluds are going to kill every single man, woman and child orc in this city tonight. Anyone who gets in the crossfire will die. The only people they¡¯re going to not target are the big names like the Zimmskar representative and the Jayu State emissaries. They¡¯ve already warned those guys and they¡¯re hightailing it out of here. Last minute courtesy.¡± ¡°Meanwhile everyone else who gets caught in the crosshair? They¡¯re free game.¡± Arione growled. ¡°Remember how I said Scions are brutal? Well there you have it. They¡¯re going to raze a whole fucking city and anyone left inside of it will die.¡± ¡°So what? We just turn tail and run?¡± ¡°No.¡± Arione muttered. ¡°We cooperate.¡± ¡°...WHAT?!¡± Clover practically screamed. ¡°We¡¯re going to kill these filthy orcs as one of the Akka Xaluds. Speaking of which, put these on.¡± Arione took out a mess of fabric from his Dimension Ring and threw them at the three. Clover picked up one of the fabric and it was a dark green robe, with a huge orange centipede embroidered on the back. She looked at Arione. He didn¡¯t give her a chance to argue. ¡°Either we join them, or we¡¯re being hunted. I had a choice and I made it, one to keep us safe. What about you?¡± ¡°...What about the slaves, master?¡± Scarlet was looking at the cloak. ¡°I told you, Scarlet-kun.¡± Arione didn¡¯t want to go too tough on them. ¡°No. survivors.¡± He had to strike a delicate balance here. Arione couldn¡¯t seem too cruel, they¡¯d think less of him. No, he had to make them believe that he made the choice for them. That the great mage, Arione had been forced into a corner where he could have either escaped by himself or chosen to fight another day with them, even if it meant dirtying his hands. This was what MSS was like; you were placed in a scenario with no way out except one. Then you just escaped through that hole. ¡°I had to make a choice that had the best chances of keeping us alive. I can¡¯t protect all of us.¡± Arione looked at each one. ¡°Your friend is still unconscious. Scarlet hasn¡¯t even learned any offensive spells yet. Clover, you are still too green; you haven¡¯t even tapped into half of your potential.¡± ¡°Guys, please. It¡¯s the best chance we got.¡± Just a little more, Arione could sense them coming around. ¡°These orcs are slavers and worse. You all know that.¡± ¡°But not all the slaves are criminals. Some were innocent-¡± ¡°Not anymore they¡¯re not.¡± Aroine pushed here; looking Clover straight in the eyes. ¡°Isn¡¯t what we¡¯re doing now any different than what you were doing before? To survive? I know how the orc¡¯s slave selection process goes. Don¡¯t fool yourself.¡± Careful, he had to step carefully. ¡°Get off your high horse Clover. How many people¡¯s death are you already responsible for? Or better yet¡­ how many people did your friends kill to keep you alive?¡± He said the last party very softly. Clover rocked back like she got slapped. She remembered the Dokkaebi tunnels, how they had to leave behind a whole score of men to get out themselves. She knew what L¡¯teya and Lock did. They used the other group as a distraction so that they could escape themselves. To live another day. Then there was the Mak¡¯gorah. Lety scalped two people because Clover couldn¡¯t fight. Lock bit someone¡¯s ear off. Back then, all she could do was tremble in fear, watching them fight and get hurt. When it came down to it¡­ Lety and Lock had always been willing to do what it took to survive. To keep all of them alive and together. L¡¯teya was unconscious and Lock was only Oung knows where, without an inkling of an idea of what was really happening. With Arione¡¯s one announcement about the Akka Xalud¡¯s plans, she knew things that her friends didn¡¯t. She could look at the big picture and her friends had no idea. It was all up to her. It was like Arione could read her mind. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to save your friends?¡± ¡°...What about Lock?¡± Arione smirked. ¡°That¡¯s the best part!¡± He cheered. ¡°Instead of focusing on escaping, we can blend in with the Akka Xaluds and look for him! Isn¡¯t that a much better plan than just running away and hoping that he survives?¡± Scarlet donned the cloak. ¡°I¡­ Let¡¯s look for your friend.¡± Scarlet wanting to help someone look for a stranger was a strange happenstance but it didn¡¯t matter. Arione just had to convince Clover. ¡°It¡¯s up to you Clover. Just know this¡­ I¡¯ll do everything in my power to protect you and your friends. But I can¡¯t do it if you¡¯re not helping me in turn. We have to make the Akka Xaluds believe we¡¯re on their side.¡± Arione couldn''t help it. He just had to say it. "Join... the dark side." Clover picked up the Akka Xalud cloak¡­ And tied it around her neck.
Chapter 40: Blood, Fire & Shadow (1)
World: MSS - Loading....
A war was being waged in Samak City, the home of the Samak Horde. A symphony, made from the choking death cries of men and the silent footsteps of assassins. A deadly concert showed the stars men in green armor, locked in a dance of blades with orcs dressed in black. The men in green used strange abilities, spitting acid and encasing their weapons in venom. Some of them summoned insects from beneath their skin, covering the skies with swarms of man-eating mites, flies and dragonflies. The orcs displayed a fighting style unique to the berserkers. Their warpaints glowed, reflecting the moon¡¯s iridescent glow. Spirits of wolves and owls emerged from the backs of their owners, lending their powers for a short while to the berserkers. The battle ensued, moving from the rooftops and spreading to the streets. The once empty roads were now stained with scarlet life-water, cries of the innocent contribution to the increasing number of death cries. ¡°FOR THE HORDE!¡± ¡°RAHHHH!¡± ¡°DEATHHH! HONOR!!! GLORY!!!¡± The orcs cried out the age-old songs of war, relishing the fight ahead of them. It wasn¡¯t that they had no fear of death. They were like all mortals, fearing the inevitable cold embrace of eternal sleep. But they treasured this moment, for what they would be remembered as. A warrior of the Samak Horde, proudly giving his life for family, friends and home. The Akka Xalud¡¯s soldiers fought silently. Most of the Cores they absorbed centered around summoning and maintaining insectoid monsters; created through mana and sustained through mana. It took great focus to control their parasitic children, directing them towards the green-skinned warriors. The Akka Xalud mages took to the skies, levitating into the cold night air and attempting to control the spies. Lightning crackled and fire rained on the city. The maneuver was met by their counterparts: orc shamans and witch doctors. Shamans took to the skies, controlling wind and lightning to break the mage¡¯s rhythm. Witcher doctors remained on the ground, healing their falling warriors and weakening foes with a cackle of delight. Then the orcs brought in their heavy hitters. Berserkers who had spirits of tigers, bears and lions clinging to their backs filed out of the temple. The honor guard of Warchief Thoktur himself. Their roar contained everything ranging from anger at their city and grief for their fallen brothers. The Tiger Berserkers leapt into the air, striking down mages and swarms of insects with weapons of fire and ice. The bear and lion berserkers crashed into the formation of the Akka Xaluds, stomping their centipedes and beetles underfoot. On the rooftop of the temple, the door burst open. Maria Biva Akka Xalud strode in, her hands encased in a green metal greave ending in spiked claws. Even in the dark of night, Warchief Thoktur could see that they were slick with blood. His old friend, Arrosh Bloodedge, sniffed and grimaced. No doubt he had smelled the life-blood of their kin on the woman. Dozens of Akka Xalud soldiers filed in after her, surrounding the two orcs. They lined themselves among the parapet, various weapons pointed at the Warchief and his friend. ¡°You were right.¡± Thoktur rumbled. He stood an imposing eight and a half-feet tall, even for an orc. In one hand he carried a greataxe. No decoration, no elaborate design. Just a long hilt made of cold iron and a double-sided blade, sharp enough to cut stone. In the other, he held a great shield big enough to cover two men. Sitting next to him was a sliver of an orc, almost covered in filthy rags. He didn¡¯t hold a weapon, just a walking stick. ¡°If only my disciple-¡± ¡°I tire of hearing about your disciple.¡± Arrosh ignored him and continued. ¡°If only my disciple was as wise as you, Warchief Thoktur.¡± Thoktur scoffed. Ever since Arrosh followed that human around near 100 years ago, he never spoke like an orc anymore. Always in cryptic riddles and what he said just now was as simple as it could get. ¡°Enough words. They come.¡± He hefted his greataxe which was as tall as him with one hand, putting it over his shoulder. ¡°...She holds the Flute.¡± ¡°Then this will end quick.¡± Thoktur muttered. ¡°Ugh. I should¡¯ve known you animals would be here.¡± Maria made a motion of holding her nose. ¡°Yuck. Shoo, get away. I¡¯ll let you live a few hours yet. Perhaps you can perish along with this filthy pigsky of a city you all love so much.¡± ¡°Hand over the flute, girl and I may let you live.¡± Thoktur got straight to the point, no need to play games. Her dimension ring gleamed and Maria took out a small rectangular box. She opened it and took out an ornate flute. The flute was dark green like their armor but smooth like glass. Thoktur had seen a part of the item before, before it became a Singularity item. Rumor had it that the patriarch of the Akka Xaluds managed to complete the pieces in his youth but it had never been confirmed. ¡°It truly is a Singularity. The clouds grow darker, our city will not avoid the hands of our enemies. Old friend, I beseech you-¡± ¡°You swore an oath, Arrosh. We will die with this city or die protecting it.¡± Thoktur snapped. Maria looked at the two orcs before her. ¡°Grade-3 and¡­ unknown.¡± She hadn¡¯t expected obstacles on the rooftop. Jason allowed in right after the last of the soldiers followed in. ¡°Gentlemen.¡± He gave them a nod. In full-armor, Jason was an impressive sight to behold. During the auction Jason only wore a part of his armor, leaving his hands and head bare. Now he had on metallic greaves ending in insectoid claws, the tips made of black metal. He walked in front of Maria, giving her a full view of his helmet. His helmet was a living centipede about the width of her leg, emerging from Jason¡¯s neck by breaking through the skin. It wrapped around his neck and around his face, creating a pseudo-visor. The orange-brown insect moved slowly, crawling over his face and resting its head on top of his orange-hair. Its antennae and legs flailed, every movement completely alien and otherworldly. Its claws clacked together. ¡°It¡¯s so cute!¡± Maria wished she had been given the same Core, [Hive Mother] on her birthday. Jason had won it fair and square by slaughtering nine of their half-siblings in a battle royale. Normally, Cores that belonged to the family were awarded by rank and need. But this Core was so rare and useful that multiple Scions had laid claim to it. The Core held a certain amount of prestige; it was the same Core that the Akka Xalud Patriarch used. Creating a helmet out of a living centipede wasn¡¯t its only ability. Just the cutest by far. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Move aside and your death will be swift.¡± As he spoke, the centipede shifted, revealing his mouth amidst a cesspool of leg and carapace. The opening closed up right as he finished speaking; the disgusting creature acted as a living helmet synchronized with Jason''s very thoughts. Then the Scion bent low and touched his palm to the ground. Jason''s shoulder swelled up to an abnormal size and his shoulder plates parted. It revealed a ball of flesh, full of wriggling insects who legs stuck out at odd angles from the skin. The two orcs saw Jason grunt with exertion and the skin on his shoulder ripped apart, giving birth to four centipedes that moved to each corner of the rooftop. ?Jason Carid Akka Xalud casts [Magic Devouring Centipede] ? ?You have entered a Special Field: Magic Devouring Centipede ? ? Field Effect - Magic Devouring Centipede is now active ? ? Field Effect - Magic Devouring Centipede: [Spatial Magic] has been selected ? ? Field Effect - Magic Devouring Centipede: [Spatial Magic] is Disabled ? Click Clack Clack The chitinous armor returned to its original shape with the sounds of plates locking into place. Jason sighed, sounding relieved like he had just managed to pop a zit. "That''s much better. Now, no interruptions." He pointed his dagger at the Warchief, a hint of laughter lingering at the back of his throat. "Are you ready, Warchief Thoktur? Didn''t you wish to meet me on the battlefield?" Warchief Thoktur didn¡¯t want to waste his breath. Instead, the Warchief charged with his axe and shield, aiming at Maria. But Jason was a step faster, he drew his daggers and slammed into the Warchief from the side. He twisted, ducking dnderneath the Warchief¡¯s axe and stretched his body unaturally long. His elongated body imitated the centipede protruding from his neck, the daggers serving as its fangs. The Warchief received the blow on his shield, grunting from the unexpected weight behind it. Some of the soldiers closest to them lost their footing, stumbling backwards as a small shockwave was released from the two. The back of Jason''s chitinous armor opened up and a dozen centipedes crawled out of his body. Their fangs dripped with dark green venom. Thoktur¡¯s body turned gray and his skin transformed into stone. Jason¡¯s centipedes leaped on the orc but were unable to bite through the hard exterior and hissed in frustration dissolving into greenish mana. ?Thoktur Hornbluff casts [Stone Skin] ? ?Jason Carid Akka Xalud casts [Hive Mother] ? The two backed up after the initial exchange, eyeing each other. A bit of blood leaked from the corner of Jason¡¯s lips and he tasted it with his tongue. All they had done was trade a single blow but he had suffered internal injuries. Yet... he had expected more from the older warrior. ¡°Doable.¡± Jason was quick to make a decision. ¡°Maria¡­ play the flute.¡± Maria obeyed, lifting the jade instrument to her lips and began to channel mana through it. A song that sounded like skittering legs and chittering calls, combined with the emotionless appetite of a carnivorous insect began to haung the rooftop of the Orc¡¯s sacred temple. Maria¡¯s hair began to lift as her mana circulated faster throughout her body, feeding the instrument¡¯s voracious appetite. Up in the sky, hundreds of feet above them, the clouds began to gather and swirl. Lightning crackled and distant thunder cracked like a whip. ¡°Arrosh, fulfill your duty and kill the girl. Take the Singularity.¡± Thoktur prepared to face Jason again. ¡°I will join you after I kill the Scion.¡± Jason didn¡¯t need to give separate orders to his soldiers. They inched in closer towards the elderly blind orc with a walking stick. Some of them had smiles underneath their helmets, happy that they lucked out into this mission. Jason would take care of the warchief while all they had to do was take care of this wrinkled orc. Arrosh Bloodedge, the Third Disciple of Nearnigh, the [Sword Saint] held his walking stick like a sword. He had sworn a Mana Vow to his people, to never again hold a sword and even now it bound him. But who knew, the night was still young and there was plenty more blood to be spilled.
¡°Whatsss wrong?¡± I was walking up the stairs with Kyrian and Skaris behind me when the blonde mage hissed and grabbed his temples. Skaris was the first to turn around, making sure Kyrian was ok. Like I thought, Skaris had a softside to him and it showed in how he treated us. I wasn¡¯t sure if it was a beastman thing, a reptilian beastman thing or a Deepeater Clan thing or a Skaris thing, but once he decided you were a comrade, you were in. I wasn''t an expert at people but Skaris'' shift in attitude was so overt that there was no room for doubt. I liked that. There were bigger worries though, because whatever Kyrian had felt; I felt the same thing. However what I felt wasn¡¯t as bad, kind of like someone just poked me with a needle. But the young mage groaned like he got punched in the stomach and turned upside down. His face was pale and he bunched over like he was about to empty his stomach. ¡°Something just happened¡­ I¡¯m not sure what.¡± I took the steps down to where Skaris and Kyrian were. ¡°I did not sssenssse anything.¡± ¡°That was definitely a mana reaction though¡­ could it be that my Mana Sense is more advanced than Skaris?¡± Seeing someone with a worse Mana Sense than me was a first. ¡°What isss that look of pity, Sssslaveborn?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± I mumbled, trying to get Kyrian to talk. ¡°Kyrian. What was that?¡± He groaned but I caught the last of the words. ¡°...ularity.¡± ¡°What?¡± Did he just say what I think he said? ¡°Singularity.¡± He shook his head and stopped leaning on the wall. ¡°Jason¡¯s activated the Singularity.¡± ¡°Shit.¡± Singularities were basically end-game items in MSS. In MSS, it was really difficult to determine what was a good item and a bad item. That¡¯s because they¡¯re the same as Cores; in the right build anything could work. Looking at my Beckoning Cat Core for example, it¡¯s ability [Coin Toss] was downright trash. But by using it in conjunction with [Arcane Masochism], it turned from a sixty-second 50% chance of buff or debuff, into a Attack, Defense or Speed buff until end of combat. With the added bonus feature that I could cast it again every sixty seconds. Same could be said for items. But Singularity items were a different story altogether. You had to gather its piece items, known as Plurality and combine them together. Then you could choose which form the Singularity would take, weapon, armor or charm. Higher stat bonuses were a given; Singularities were bound to the user until they died. It wasn¡¯t like I could go about and pick up random pluralities by hunting monsters. They only dropped from Bosses in secret dungeons and Fractures. Add in the fact that there are hundreds of Singularities and multiple Pluralities for each one¡­ you could spend months searching for the right combination. ¡°Do you have any idea what this singularity does?¡± ¡°I do not know.¡± Kyrian admitted. ¡°All I know is that the Akka Xaluds gave him this relic for this specific use. Rumor has it that it is an artifact from the Sundering, belonging to the Akka Xalud Patriarch himself.¡± ¡°Shit. That means the attack started.¡± I wanted to punch the wall but stopped. I saw Skaris¡¯ confusion and could only guess at how information about Singularities would be treated in this world if even Core knowledge was kept secret. Kyrian was staring at me, looking lost as well. They both knew what this indicated: we¡¯d run out of time. The two were looking to me for direction on what to do next. I couldn¡¯t let them see me panic. ¡°Nothing¡¯s changed. The first thing to do is leave this place and gather information.¡± I kept my voice calm and even. ¡°Then¡­ then we can decide what to do.¡± We climbed the stairs in silence, each of us exploring our own thoughts. For Kyrian, it was obvious: fear. He was afraid of facing this Jason guy. From what little Kyrian told me, I could surmise that he was a grade-5 adventurer who used insects. These ¡®Scions¡¯ or Great Houses didn¡¯t exist in the game when I played but using insects? ¡°[Hive Mother], [Carapace Skin], [Exoskeleton], [Hive Mind], [Metamorphosis], [Water Gliding], [Creepy Crawlies]...¡± I began to list the Core abilities that I knew of, trying to think how to counter them. Deep inside though, I doubted we¡¯d even see Jason. The whole city was under attack and we were just two slaves and an abandoned mage. Chances were high that we wouldn¡¯t be anywhere near the fighting between the strongest individuals. Hopefully, during the chaos we could find L¡¯teya and Clover then escape without anyone paying us any attention. I was growing impatient. I looked back to check on Skaris and Kyrian. Skaris had been the least wounded out of all three of us, probably the most fatigued. I had been trapped in the cage for about two days and was starving. He had been trapped longer than I have; it was a wonder the grim-faced beastman could walk without complaining. He saw me looking and gestured with his chin, telling me to keep leading. Resuming the grueling climb up the stairs, I assessed Kyrian. The mage had been disemboweled by one of the berserkers. It was one thing for an adventurer whose bodies were reinforced with all sorts of Cores to get wounded like that but a mage who had nothing but his own Mana Heart and Mana Core? Plus he was having the toughest time climbing these stairs. He was sweating buckets and I wasn¡¯t going to force us to go faster. Health Potions could only do so much. ¡°You can speed up, Lock.¡± ¡°...¡± Instead of answering, I chose to climb the stairs. One foot in front of the other. ¡°It is obviousss that you are impatient, Ssslaveborn.¡± Skaris chimed in. ¡°If the mage sssaysss it isss ok, then I can go faster.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to be the one to hold you back.¡± Kyrian lifted his chin and I saw a hint of pride in his eyes. ¡°I will watch your back even if I have to crawl. You don¡¯t have to slow down on my watch.¡± I felt my molars grind. Hard. They were right. I wanted to push us to go faster but I didn¡¯t want to. I was sure that if I had said it first, they would have followed me; all decisions had been left to me since the Berserker Battle. But if I pushed these guys harder and they were too tired to protect themselves when the time came to fight¡­ wasn¡¯t that just using them for my own gain again? ¡°Not if they¡¯re offering and they know what the cost is.¡± Slowing down would be disrespecting them as well. I had to strike a careful balance here, walking on a tightrope between a decision that was best for the party while still keeping their well-being in mind. Maybe this was how my mom and dad felt, every time they had to make a decision for their employees. ¡°Every ten minutes, we break. If I judge that you two can¡¯t keep up,¡± I didn¡¯t point at Kyrian specifically. ¡°We¡¯ll slow to a walk. Now let¡¯s move.¡± Turning on my heel, I sprinted up the stairs.
Screams filled the air as the slaughter began in earnest. Between the alleyways and the homes of the orc civilians, people of all races ran in the streets with manacles around their necks. Flashes of fire were followed by the stench of burnt hair and the metallic taste of blood, all carried by the wind. That same wind howled, spinning in on itself and turning into countless blades, cutting down any who dared to flee from the fire. Beastman. Orc. Human. Merchant. None of those things mattered. The only thing that mattered was whether they wore the deep green of House Akka Xalud or not. ?Arione Popwindale casts [Razor Winds] ? ?Arione Popwindale casts [Razor Winds] ? ?Arione Popwindale casts [Flame Tornado] ? Arione Popwindale levitated in the air, dark green robe billowing out behind him. Orbs made of wind circled around him and wherever he pointed with his staff, blades of wind pierced lung, heart, leg and brain with abandon. The staff was made of pure gold, matching the color of his eyes, and had a clear-blue crystal sculpted in the shape of a dragon hoisted at its head. With his free hand, Arione Popwindale made hand seals and the arcane flames obeyed his commands. They rose up like a great tidal wave, greedily devouring buildings and the inhabitants within. Slaves were burnt alive by the droves, their screams decorating the sound of battle. Minor nobles who had been left behind, merchants who didn¡¯t get out in time. Orc civilians who were nothing more than peddlers, street rats and the like were all equal before Arione¡¯s magic. He left nothing in his wake, just burnt skeletons and men lying in pieces; eye sockets burnt ash-black or lifeless eyes reflecting the red glow of fire. Arione Popwindale descended upon the burning city like a God of Flame and Death.
Chapter 41: Blood, Fire & Shadow (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
Arione had summoned an oblong shaped disc, large enough to fit them all. Clover, Scarlet and L¡¯teya were on the disc which levitated in the air right behind Arione. They patrolled through the city, Arione searching for Lock while killing groups of people as soon as Scarlet confirmed that the black-haired slave wasn¡¯t among them. ¡°Over there?¡± Scarlet asked. Clover shook her head then closed her eyes. Just as expected a second later, Arione¡¯s Flame Tornado rose in the spot that Scarlet had pointed to. ¡°HELP!¡± ¡°FUCK! I¡¯M BUR-¡± ¡°PLEASE!¡± ¡°DAD!¡± ¡°FOR HONOR!¡± Clover wanted to block her ears and keep her eyes closed forever. But deep within, she knew without an ounce of doubt that she¡¯d remember this for years. She opened them again, looking through the streets. Her heart lurched, looking at the burnt skeletons. Could any of them be Lock? Even if they weren¡¯t, was it a slave she had trained with? Someone she had sat with at the mess hall? Arione¡¯s merciless spells were starting to weigh down on Clover¡¯s conscience. The smaller skeletons were the worst. ¡°Keep your eyes peeled for your friend.¡± Arione ordered. As soon as they began this whole ordeal, his manner had shifted. More focused, intense. Cold. Scarlet layered the four of them with Blessings and Clover felt her mana circulate faster and with more intensity. She saw a group of Akka Xaluds fighting a small group of Berserkers. The Akka Xaluds were outnumbered two to one. Holding out her hands she concentrated deep within her, where she knew the gift that Oung had given her lay. Arione had informed her about the berserkers and the soldiers¡¯ need for Clover¡¯s aid when facing them in combat. ?Clover Weinport casts [Sharpened Senses] ? ?Clover Weinport casts [Enhanced Regeneration] ? Small pieces of her mana floated through the air and touched the armor of the Akka Xalud soldiers. Beneath the gaps in their armor, she saw their wounds mend, turning into raw pink skin. Their movement became sharper, more controlled and the same could be said for the insects they controlled. An Akka Xalud soldier riding a giant beetle the size of a small house took to the air, raining the streets with arrow after arrow. The Berserkers fell quickly. Clover looked away from the scenes of carnage and turned her attention to those of the living. The pink-haired woman looked towards pockets of resistance that fought back against Arione and the Akka Xalud soldiers in particular. Lock wasn¡¯t the type to run away with his tail tucked between his legs. He¡¯d stand his ground and fight, continuing to search for herself and L¡¯teya. ¡°I need to find him and let him know we¡¯re ok¡­ that we can get us out of here.¡± Clover wanted nothing more than to see the black-haired slave. Everytime Clover saw a human man with shoulder length black hair and a manacle around his neck, she thought it was Lock. But none shared his wiry frame or the scar running from his eye all the way to his chin. The slave was nowhere to be seen, however, and that meant one more body for Arione to burn. One more innocent for the Akka Xaluds to cut down. Clover banished the fear, guilt and shame; hiding them in the corner of her heart where she could forget about them. Where she didn¡¯t have to face herself. ¡°It¡¯s ok.¡± The Priestess convinced herself as more bodies were lacerated by Arione¡¯s winds. ¡°Lock and L¡¯teya would have done the same.¡±
After picking up the pace, we quickly passed by the cages where I had met Scarlet. ¡°This is it.¡± I stopped in the middle of the stairwell to check on my companions. Skaris was breathing hard but no worse than I. Briefly I wondered what kind of training Skaris went through in his home village to take all this without batting an eye. He even had less Cores than me, only two. On the other hand, Kyrian looked worse than ever. His lips were blue and eyes had lost focus. The man was completely exhausted. ¡°Do you hear that?¡± The sounds of battle came flowing down. Screams of men and women alike, accented by the scent of blood. Skaris nodded. ¡°I am ready.¡± Kyrian didn¡¯t give me a verbal answer but his eyes did the speaking for him. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door finally leading us out of the darkness of the subterranean cave and into the first floor of the cavern. Into Pandemonium. The first thing I noticed was the orange glow of fire and the smell of smoke that punctuated throughout the place. The first temple I remembered was gone, it was a sea of fire filled to the brim with corpses. I saw a body that was burnt from the waist down, blackened ash the only sign that the beastman had been once whole. Another that was pinned to the wall by a spear through her stomach, one eye hanging out of its sockets. Still more signs of slaughter assaulted my senses. I do not know how but the stone building was burning. Angry red flames licked at the floor and continued to climb higher, threatening to leave the whole building covered in it. The statue of the Autarch was made of bronze and it glowed red with heat, the side of its head started to slough into liquid metal before my eyes. But I didn¡¯t have time to keep on watching because we hadn¡¯t entered the aftermath of the killings; we were in the midst of it. ¡°Kyrian! Cover me!¡± I saw a fighter in dark green chitinous armor, reminding me of a cross between a reptile and insect. He held curved blades in both hands ¨C called a scimitar if I was remembering correctly ¨C and was using them with deadly efficiency, cutting down manacled slaves in front of him. He wasn¡¯t the only warrior with that armor, there were others flying about on flying-insect mounts and still more. But scimitar -wielder was the closest. I charged straight at him, activating [Coin Toss] and praying for a debuff. My prayers were answered. Immediately I felt the sensation of being pressed down from all sides, my skin condensing in on itself. A defense buff from [Arcane Masochism]. Not as useful as an attack or speed, but better than a useless buff from Coin Toss. The warrior turned my way, my footsteps and verbal command towards Kyrian alerting him of my presence. He brandished his weapons and met me head on. Before I could even try anything, he slashed me across both shoulders and kicked me in the stomach. He followed up with a stab towards my throat that would have killed me if Skaris didn¡¯t knock away the dual-thrust with his halberd. ¡°Beware Ssslaveborn! They are ssstrong!¡± Skaris warned me. I got to my feet, wishing badly that I had a shield. The insectoid warrior was faster than any other warrior I¡¯ve ever seen, even the Tiger-totem berserkers. Both of my offensive abilities, Hateful Wound and Sadistic Mimicry ¨C if it was still called that for the Named Monster¡¯s Core ¨C were dependent on the fact that I could wound the enemy. Plus, my current fighting style depended on receiving numerous debuffs to activate Arcane Masochism, bringing up my Attack, Defense and Speed to its fullest potential. All in all, I was a slow starter and against a fighter like this who outclassed me from the get-go, I needed stall tactics. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. The fighter was pressing his attack, trying to close the distance between himself and Skaris. I saw the red-scaled fighter knock the soldier off of his feet with a tail-sweep and try to finish him off with a stab to the chest. But we¡¯d taken too long and the other chitinous warriors were starting to pay us attention; Skaris and I were the only ones who had weapons among the dozens of manacled slaves in this entire building. ¡°Lock! They¡¯re the Akka Xaluds Soldiers!¡± ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Reduce Sight]? I heard Kyrian call my name and felt the same sensation while we had been dueling the berserkers: he was casting a curse-type spell. I made a split second decision and ran towards the group of warriors who were approaching us. I was taking a risk by getting into their range. I should have stayed back; letting my enemies get debuffed first but I wanted to catch them by surprise. The armored warrior stopped and some of them even took off their helmet; those must be the ones with a particularly low [Sight] stat. Interestingly, every single one of them were human. That made sense, Kyrian told me that the Akka Xaluds were a Great House of the Turina Empire, the country of mainly humans. ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]? I felt my feet practically slide across the floor as I reached the first warrior in front of me. The only weapon he held in his hand was a shield, made of the same exoskeleton material as his armor. Even with my speed buff, he matched me move for move; blocking my sword maneuvers. I felt the gap between our experience with the first two moves. The other guy had been faster than me and this guy with the shield was more skilled than me. I feinted left, pretending to aim for his non-shield holding arm but soon realized he had been the one feinting me all along. The greaves on his hand parted into separate interlocking plates as his hand grew in size, transforming into what looked like a giant crab claw. He didn¡¯t need to block my strike with the shield anymore; he grabbed it with the newly formed pincer and broke the sword clean off. Seeing the broken sword made me miss the jagged katana. But my sword had never been meant to wound it, simply to distract. Just because I feinted with my sword didn¡¯t mean I needed it for the next move; I threw the broken sword at his face; purposefully aiming towards a spot that was closer to his claw rather than the shield. Then as expected, he knocked it away with his claw. [Sadistic Mimicry] (or whatever it was called now) would only work if I hit my opponent. He¡¯d been blocking my attacks with his shield, what if he blocked with the claw which was considered his body part? Would it still count as being blocked or as a successful attack? I already knew the answer to that. I felt his ability flow into me and the claw appendage disappeared, leaving his hand exposed. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out what the ability from Prince Charming¡¯s Core did. The witch doctor screaming at me had been enough of a clue; my new ability worked the same as [Sadistic Mimicry] did, except it would disable my opponent from using what I mimicked. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Crab Claw]? ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Crab Claw]? The best thing about this [Crab Claw] I stole? It did extra damage to equipment; both weapons and armor. Hence, why my sword broke so easily. I wondered if he knew that I knew about the skill just as much as him, if not more. Ducking low, I sliced across his knees first; he must have been in shock because he didn''t react until after both his kneecaps were shredded. I had to give him credit though, he put his shield between us and tried to backpedal out of reach. I glanced behind him; the other soldiers were close enough to help now. But blood had been drawn; that meant another toy for me to play with. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Acid Tentacle]? Want to know something nice about Sadistic Mimicry? If I use an ability I stole, I can mimic another ability immediately. But that doesn¡¯t mean I lose the effects of the initial cast. That ability will remain until I cancel it or the timer runs out. This little tidbit was especially useful for transformation abilities like this one which ran on a cooldown. I transformed my other hand into a bluish-green tentacle dripping with acid, grabbing the fighter¡¯s neck and pulling him towards me. The Acid Tentacle melted through his armor like hot knife through butter, his muffled scream grew louder right as the part of his helmet protecting his chin was corroded off. He desperately tried to push me away with the shield but with his legs destroyed, there was no strength behind the shove. I finished him off quickly, releasing his neck with the tentacle and decapitating it with my claw. I saw the other fighters stop their advance. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Arachno Physiology (Lesser)]? This ability was from the monster, Lesser Tsuchigomo (??ÍÁÖ©Öë). It brought me back to the time that L¡¯teya and I had been forced to fight that adventurer before entering Oung¡¯s dungeon, right outside the door. But the dying man knew what he was doing with his Cores, unlike the assassin who used a combination of Wind Barrier and this ability. An itching sensation overcame me and I felt two limbs sprout from my back, right behind my armpits. The feeling of having two extra hands overloaded my brain momentarily and I knew that it would take practice for me to control them with the same dexterity as my original hands. But my two new limbs didn¡¯t end in hands; one ended in a Crab Claw and the other in an octopus tentacle. ?[Arachno Physiology] reduces [Handicraft]? ?[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Arachno Physiology (Lesser)]? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack]? Now that¡¯s what I call Core Synergy. The fighters had hesitated after I killed one of them, but they flinched as a group once more right as I sprouted the extra limbs. They stopped again. They must¡¯ve been confused, a slave with a manacle still around his neck just killed one of their own in single combat; not to mention using the very abilities that their friend was using. I instinctively knew from their demeanor that none of the slaves had put up a fight like this. I waded in and grabbed the one closest to me with the tentacles. He tried to cut them off using the daggers but I blocked them with my claw and wrapped the tentacles around both his wrists. His helmet muffled his scream as my Crab Claw cleanly decapitated him with the precision of a surgical knife, aided by the new attack buff. I immediately activated the Core ability I copied from him. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Wind Barrier]? The other fighters had recovered by now and were rushing me, all of them using either a dagger or sword. Unlike the berserkers, it seemed that the Akka Xaluds favored outfitting their soldiers with similar weapons. It could also have been the fact that these guys possessed similar Cores. Regardless, the soldiers who had been rushing me were buffeted away by the sphere of wind I created around myself. My tentacles grabbed the ankles of another soldier that was flying by and before he could react, my Crab Claws stabbed into his chest half a dozen times. The man died without a sound. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Charlotte¡¯s Web]? I moved both my claws in an arc and they shot out strands of strengthened silk. The warriors had just started to get themselves together, deciding that the best course of action was to keep me from touching them in the first place. I saw two of them grow wings out of their backs and take towards the ceiling, flying out of reach. Another chose to use his ability to create an exoskeleton around his body, using the sword to cut webbing that was falling around him. Crackle-Crackle Crack Lightning flashed and fried him to a crisp within his armor, filling my nose with the scent of burning flesh. Kyrian was finally joining the battle. Looking back I saw that Skaris had slain the dual-scimitar wielding soldier, using the Bool Dokkaebi¡¯s [Playing with Fire] ability to burn away the armor. He finally used Inmyun Ho¡¯s Core ability: [Hand in Hand]. It created a translucent clone of which mimicked his every movement. The clone could not move separately but it would mimic Skaris¡¯ Core usage as well; every one of its halberd strikes that found its mark left the wound burning. There must have been two to three dozen of those soldiers. But we were pushing them back. The ground sizzled as my tentacles dripped acid; the clacking of my claws breaking up the monotonous sound of fire burning all around us. ¡°M-monster. The orcs brought out a monster!¡± One of the soldiers started screaming. ¡°FUCK! HE¡¯S NOT HUMAN! MAGE!! MAGEE!!!¡± He must have been praising Skaris; with the Inmyunho Clone fighting alongside him Skaris looked like an otherworldly being; perhaps even an enlightened martial artist from those xianxia novels I enjoyed. His scales seemed to be glowing with iridescent light, smoldering with languid liquidity. More people filed in from the openings to the temple, effectively surrounding us. They wore a dark-green cloak, same color as the armor of the Akka Xalud warriors; they must be the Akka Xalud mages. I saw one of them take a look at me and step back involuntarily. ¡°KILL IT! IT¡¯S A MONSTER!¡± The mages began chanting, some of them lifting up their staffs and the others burning paper talismans. Though the methods were different, their end-result was the same: roaring flames came to life and rippled the air in the temple with scorching heat. As one, the mages sent dozens of flame-streams flying right at me. I slipped underneath the shadow of an archway right as the flames reached me. The flames went right over me. Normally getting immunity to magical damage came with a downside, the defense debuff from Gloomy Disposition. With Arcane Masochism, the debuff was automatically canceled out. If I had absorbed a normal Shadow Mimic Wolf¡¯s Core, that¡¯d be the end of it. But I knew that this Gloomy Disposition had a twist thanks to the Shadow Mimic Wolf ¨C that the Core dropped from ¨C being a Named Boss. Bits of shadow began to leak from my boots, indicating that I could use [Shadow Blink], a side-effect of the passive which rendered me immune to magical damage. It had taken a bit of guesswork and Kyrian¡¯s help but I managed to figure it out. ¡°M-monster¡­¡± I heard one of them praise Skaris again. No. I could see it now. They were afraid of me. I wanted to kill them. I knew I could. And the Spirit Cores within me cried for it, the Ujo in particular. I wanted to lean in and obey the call for blood, satiating the need for violence. Monsters saw bloodlust as the same thing as hunger; when they wanted to eat, they¡¯d eat. When they wanted to kill, they¡¯d kill. There was no wrong or right about it, just fulfilling a need. But I wasn¡¯t a monster despite what these guys were calling me. Even if they were enemies, they were still people. ¡°Leave.¡± I was surprised by my own voice; it came out deeper than before and was a throaty snarl. "And you can keep your lives." The Akka Xalud soldiers looked at each other, hesitating. The mages were already edging towards the archways; after having seen me survive a concentrated fire-spell and walk out without singing a single strand of hair, they were nervous. The Ujo and the Shadow Mimic Wolf¡¯s senses dominated my own; I could smell their fear. They were already broken. It started with one single person, a boy no older than eighteen wearing dark green robes. His face broke into a sob and turning around, he ran out of the temple. Everyone had been looking at each other wondering who would be the first to leave. Every mage and soldier wearing the dark green of the Akka Xalud left the temple. Looking around, I saw Skaris with a fierce smile, looking at me with obvious respect. He tilted his head just a bit and I returned the gesture. Kyrian looked horrified but that was replaced by awe. One by one, the survivors of the massacre started to come out. They had been hiding behind the rubble and fallen statues. Orcs and humans. Elves and dwarves. Slaves with manacles and others with fancy clothing. All came out as one. The slaves saw the manacle on my neck and I saw the majority of their eyes shine with something I hadn¡¯t seen in a long, long time. Hope. *** ?You have unlocked a hidden quest!? ?Quest: Slave King? ?+1 Fame? ?+1 Fame? ?+1 Fame? ?+1 Fame? ?+1 Fame? ¡­ ?Character is rapidly gaining Fame!? ?Increased Probability of Special Scenarios!?
Guide to using the Shadow Mimic Wolf Core -by RebornAsAChocolateFlavoredDungeon Hello, If you''re reading this you have picked up the Shadow Mimic Wolf Core on one of your characters. You might also be wondering why certain damage types seemed to be going through. Well to begin with, the Shadow Mimic Wolf Core''s passive: Gloomy Disposition only negates magical damage.That means that not all magic will be blocked. Only damage. The main ways that spell pierce the Core''s passive despite being spells are: Spells which deal Physical Damage (Lot of Earth & Ice Type spells do this) Spells which deal True Damage (Starting from Grade-3 and above, you can be assured that almost all bosses will have at least one ability that inflicts true damage) Spells which deal Environmental Damage (Special Fields, which I''m sure you already know about) Spells which deal types of Tick Damage (I just grouped all damage from status effects into this one bracket: [Poisoned], [Burning], [Frostbite] etc). Tick Damage is annoying because you could be walking through fireballs like there''s no tomorrow, feeling like a god-tank but eventually, your status gauge (dependent on your elemental resistance stat) will fill up. These can technically be grouped under Environmental Damage but will eventually fall off after inflicting enough damage (The threshold is usually X% of your damage) or running out of time; whichever comes first. To counter this you could raise Physical Defense (There''s Cores out there that nullify Physical Damage!), HP, Not go into Special Fields and I don''t know, actually not get hit by spells you could dodge. I hope this helps! I myself will be tackling the last boss tmrrw! Wish me luck MSS Players!
Chapter 42: Blood, Fire & Shadow (3)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Y-You¡¯re a slave! Just like us!¡± An elf man approached me; I saw immediately that he wasn¡¯t anyone I recognized. One of Madame Damur¡¯s then. ¡°You have to help us! Please! They¡¯re slaughtering us without-¡± I raised my palm to him, silencing his pleas. It wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t want to save them anymore; I still did. But L¡¯teya¡¯s words had taken deep root in my heart long ago and held strong. My faith did not waver nor did my conviction that what I was about to say was the right thing. Some might think me cruel or that my definition of ¡®saving people¡¯ wasn¡¯t any different than leading them to death. But I¡¯d imagine that the only ones who could accuse me of those things were those who¡¯d taken the same steps I had. ¡°I cannot stop you from following me. But I can¡¯t protect each and everyone of you.¡± Despite how strongly I felt about what I was saying, I couldn¡¯t stop my voice from shaking. ¡°Pick up a weapon. Fight.¡± ¡°What do you mean you can¡¯t protect us?!¡± A well-dressed noble. ¡°...No¡­ all is lost then¡­¡± A beastwoman slave. ¡°He¡¯s just looking after his own skin then. C¡¯mon, we¡¯ll fight our own way through.¡± Some questioned my decision. Others wallowed in sadness. Still others sought to forge their own path. More than most blamed me. I had expected all this but it still made me flinch inside; with each word that they threw my way, I felt my resolve grow weaker. ¡°I¡¯m behind you.¡± Kyrian. ¡°Ssslaveborn. You ssspeak well.¡± Skaris. And more. ¡°The lad¡¯s right! Pick up anything you can swing ya sods! He said we can follow behind him! Watch his backs!¡± A dwarf who was double the width of his peers yelled, lifting his fist into the air. It was met with a thunderous cry from the small group; I wondered how such a voice could come from people known for being small. ¡°Are you of the Deepeater clan?¡± A black-haired beastman with black dog-ears on his head approached us. ¡°I am. Skarisss of Clan Deepeater.¡± ¡°Kellin of the Black Dogs.¡± He gestured towards me with his chin. ¡°Do you vouch for this man?¡± Skaris smiled. ¡°I owe him a lifedebt and hisss pricssee was to listen to a story. Never have I heard a worssee ssstoryteller; I almosst wissssh he¡¯d left me to my fate.¡± ¡°But I vouch for him on the name of my Clan, Deepeater. Hisss blade isss true and hisss heart is clean. I will follow Ssslaveborn, wherever hiss path leadsss.¡± Kellin finally addressed me. ¡°If you will have my blade, we would fight by your side.¡± ¡°Your blades are yours to wield.¡± I answered back in Arrosh¡¯s fashion. ¡°The wind cannot stop where the storm chooses to go.¡± That satisfied the man and he gestured to the others. I counted six of them, all with the same black hair and dog-ears on the top of their head. Looking closely, they had all been wounded. These six hadn¡¯t gone into hiding out of fear, but only out of necessity. ¡°Black Dogs. We move.¡± Then with practiced movements, they looted the fallen Akka Xalud warriors. ¡°We¡¯ll pay you!¡± I turned to see the newcomer. There was no doubt about it, these were the nobles. ¡°I saw you fight! You were like a devil- er, I mean- Just please! Take us with you! We can pay as soon as we¡¯re out of the city!¡± I ignored them and turned to the final group. Orcs. Some of them were warriors ¨Cthe warpaint on some of them identifying them as berserkers¨C and had continued fighting while my party and I fought. They had been at the perimeter of the battle, until the mages came; then they¡¯d hid. I didn¡¯t blame them; they had hid with civilians. I saw orcs, both the elderly and children among them. Still, more orcs were dressed in plain cloth with no warpaint to speak of. Children as well, holding the hands of their parents. One of them approached me and I sensed everyone hold their breath. Click Click Click The Black Dogs had finished looting the bodies and each of them held a crossbow, bow or handbow gun aimed at the orcs. They tossed the Dimension Rings over to the dwarves who failed to find a weapon of their liking. I saw more weapons start to make an appearance. ¡°Will you stop us?¡± I asked him. The orc in front of me looked like every other, tusks jutting out from his bottom lip and head shaved all around except a ponytail on the back of his head. I could tell from his warpaint that he wasn¡¯t a lower-ranking berserker. ¡°Four? I¡¯m seeing five patterns of the Totemic Possession. Bear totem.¡± He held my gaze evenly. ¡°...-ith you.¡± I didn¡¯t hear him. He must have realized because he repeated it. ¡°Take my people with you.¡± He pointed at the non-combatant orcs. I thought I heard him wrong because this went against everything I believed in. Orcs were supposed to be warriors, unrelenting and welcoming of adversaries. They weren¡¯t supposed to care about civilians. Bloodthirsty and hungering for battle, they weren¡¯t supposed to care for innocent people. ¡°They¡¯re what? Monsters? Demons? Wake up.¡± I looked at my own hand, stained with the blood of the Akka Xaluds. I think deep inside, I had been demonizing the orcs. They were my captors and the ones at fault for this whole city burning down. They had been involved in the slave trade and done all sorts of unspeakable deeds. The orcs were the ones who forced L¡¯teya, Clover and I into all those situations. ¡°Not the ones in front of you.¡± My conscience told me. This¡­ was hard. It was really really hard. I had been meaning to save the innocent orcs anyways, weren¡¯t I? So why was this so difficult? It¡¯s always easy to talk a big game but when the moment comes to choose, that¡¯s when you realize what kind of man you are. I looked at the orc child, holding hands with whom I assumed was his grandmother. I think I came to a realization while seeing the two. What bothered me wasn¡¯t the fact that the orcs were not the evil slavemasters I was making them out to be; it bothered me that they had the capacity to care. It bothered me that they saw the rest of us as less than people, while taking care of there own. Just like how I used to see these people as NPCs. The silence dragged on for two long and the orc grew desperate. ¡°My warriors and I will be on the outermost perimeter. We will not retreat, until-¡± Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°I will not harm your people.¡± I told him. I heard Kyrian take in a sharp breath. ¡°Whether you follow me out of the city or not¡­ do as you will.¡± I turned on my heel and saw that those who would follow had armed them selves. I rummaged around the scene, picking up a sword and shield. I had to pry it out of the already cold hands of a fallen Akka Xalud warrior. His helmet had fallen off during the fighting and I saw his face. He was barely older than me and way younger if I was counting how old I was mentally. I reminded myself that he wasn¡¯t just a mindless evil monster I had to kill. He was a man who once had a family. That he too must have had friends. Recognizing this about him wouldn¡¯t slow my blade. But perhaps it would keep me from turning into a monster. ¡°Lock.¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice brought me out of my musings. ¡°I¡¯m sensing a lot of mana above us¡­ I think it¡¯s the Singularity.¡± Damn it, I was running out of time. I grabbed Kellin, he seemed to have his head on his shoulders. Considering that his weapon of choice was a bow, I had to assume that he atleast had one Core that enhanced his eyesight. Perhaps he saw something that could help me. ¡°I¡¯m looking for an elf barbarian. Tall, tanned skin and wavy red hair. Pretty. And a pink-haired beastwoman. She has horns like a ram that frames her face. Average height. They should both have been here tonight, on auction.¡± I saw the blackhaired man frown. ¡°I have seen these individuals you speak of. But the pink-haired beastwoman was not a slave, she was a merchant. She bought the elf-barbarian matching your description.¡± My heart did a skip. ¡°Really? You saw them? They were here?¡± I grabbed him by the shoulders. ¡°Yes. They left the temple right as the fighting started. But Slaveborn, you should know there was a mage with them. And they were-¡± The sky rumbled. ¡°Lock!¡± Kyrian grabbed my wrist, taking my hand off of the beastman. ¡°We need to move!¡± With Skaris and Kyrian next to me, we exited the temple with the survivors right behind us. The city was still in the midst of war. The orcs and Akka Xaluds fought for dominance on the rooftops, the sound of clashing blades registering in my enhanced hearing. I saw groups of Akka Xalud mages, patrolling the skies and skirmishing with Shamans; their orc counterpart. As narrow as the alleyways were, entire buildings had been blasted away creating haphazard roadways. But the smoke and debris made it hard to make out more than ten to twenty paces at a time. Skaris quickly caught up to me and Kyrian trailed behind. They didn¡¯t bother asking why I was running; they probably assumed that I wanted to get away from the temple. It didn¡¯t matter what direction we ran in, as long as we ran straight we could escape Samak City. As long as L¡¯teya and Clover were outside of the temple, their chances of survival were high. I could meet them outside the city walls and- ¡°Magesss! Above!¡± As soon as Skaris shouted the warning, the Black dogs reacted with immediate violence. The twang of bowstrings and sound of crossbolts cutting the air filled the alleyway. I heard men grunting and bodies fall; clad in green robes. Still, more mages were present in the air and I saw them prepare spells. One of the mages landed on a rooftop nearby, his shadow growing longer. I used [Shadow Blink], using the spell that earned Shadow Mimic Wolf it¡¯s nickname. Mage Killer. I visualized myself emerging from the mage¡¯s shadow, behind him. Simultaneously I channeled mana into the shadows flitting around my feet and had the sensation of free fall. Everything turned black, like I had just been relaxing in a brightly lit room and there was a power outage. But it didn¡¯t last long, I felt myself rise from the shadow seeing the mage¡¯s cloak in front of me. I stabbed him in the back with my sword, receving the spell [Flame Wave] for my trouble. Before the mage could react, I shoved him off the rooftop with my shield. Whether he died from the fall or not, he wasn¡¯t one for this world much longer. I waved my sword at the group of mages whom were flying towards me and rewarded their bravery with a wave of fire. The spell took a moment to charge and then sputtered out, barely hitting the mages. Most of them created a Mana Shield in front of them; avoiding damage. The black dogs shot them down. ¡°Let¡¯s move!¡± I yelled at the people still on the ground and began to run across the rooftops in parallel to their path. These mages were all using [Levitate], probably all rank 7 or above. Any spell could wipe us out. But as long as I kept their attention on me, the Black Dogs could shoot them down. Akka Xalud soldiers on the ground could be taken care of by Skaris, dwarves and the berserkers. Worst case scenario, I could duck into a shadow and tell Kyrian to hit me with a spell. That¡¯d allow me to [Shadow Jump] down there. Kiiiiiiiaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh The world stopped moving. Sounds stopped, except the soft crumbling of embers. Mages stopped mid-flight and berserkers locked in death duels with Akka Xalud soldiers stopped their fighting to look towards the sky. The sky was covered in clouds green and orange clouds, all swirling above the temple like they were being stirred in one giant pot. They extended all the way outside the city, gathering momentum and bringing in more and more clouds. I saw muted lightning run through the atmosphere; followed by the distant rumbling of thunder. At the center of the clouds, a monster descended. At first, my brain couldn¡¯t understand the sheer complexity of this creature that I¡¯d never seen before. My bones shook and muscles tensed, seeing the closest thing to a god I¡¯d ever had the honor of seeing. The divine creature resembled the shape of a centipede, but I knew it wasn¡¯t an insect in the same way that I knew that falling off of a cliff was dangerous. It was large enough to swallow houses whole and I wasn¡¯t even seeing its whole body; half of its body still nested in the clouds above. ¡°Fucking here? NOW?!¡± Thousands of its legs flailed in the air and centipedes-type monsters began to fall from the clouds into the ruined Samak City. I saw a Grade-9 Greater Centipede land on a rooftop not too far from me; explode in a shower of green hemolymphs. More followed, ending up as nothing more than a stain. Still others were alive. Grade-8; Winged Centipedes which flew out from the clouds and swooped down to wrap themselves around unsuspecting victims and carry them upwards. Grade-7, Centipede Soldiers; landing on legs twice as long as I was tall and walking around with half their bodies upright. They looted the fallen soldiers and berserkers immediately, arming their dozens of legs with daggers, axes and anything sharp. Grade-4, Giant Centipede King that dropped on the opposite side of the city, crushing an building underneath it as it landed. I felt something running down my face and dabbed at my eyes, looking at my wrist to see what it was. Tears. And Blood. I looked again at the living cataclysm. Kkkiiiiiiiiaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh Every one of its legs were covered in protrusions; they were eggs. Even as I watched, more eggs exploded open and gave birth to more; they¡¯d fall on the city and die or kill the survivors. My brain was able to undertand more of this creature this time. It¡¯s carapace were covered with eyes, all different sizes and different colors. I knew this monster. [Mother Centipede]. Boss-Class. ...Grade 1. ¡°How many years would it take to get strong enough to kill that thing? Is it even possible?¡± ¡°LOCK!¡± ¡°SSLAVEBORN!¡± I woke out of my stupor and saw the group in the alleyways, fighting the centipede monsters. I saw men fall from venom and acid, others turning into victims of paralyzing fangs. Some of them were only grade-9 or grade-8 monsters but there were hundreds of them falling from the sky. I flung myself over the parapet and leaped off of the walls of the opposite building. I didn¡¯t think about doing it, I just did. It was like seeing the Grade-1 monster had awakened a part of myself that I¡¯d been suppressing. As much as this world was real, it was also MSS and I had the body with three Cores. I could do things I¡¯d never even dreamed of. Right on landing, I sliced a Greater Centipede in half; before it could finish squirming on the ground I threw the sword into the Winged Centipede that had been approaching us from the skies. Before it could do so much as screech, it was riddled with holes from arrows and crossbow bolts. The berserkers roared in hatred; fighting the Akka Xaluds had given them more than enough hatred of insects to last a life time. The berserker who had spoken to me wielded a huge Maul, almost comically large even for his orc physique. He crushed one monster then moved onto another, without checking to see if its was dead. ¡°MOVE! WE NEED TO MOVE! COME!¡± I took the lead once more. ¡°Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.¡± ¡°Lock, t-that¡¯s a-¡± ¡°I know what it is.¡± I muttered. ¡°We need to move before more monsters show up.¡± A grade-1 boss-class monster¡¯s presence would attract other monsters like flies to a honey. If I had never landed in this world, I had thought of it as a game mechanic but now that I saw the thing with my own two eyes; I could understand why. The monster was a beacon of Mana so pure and dense, you were either cowed into submission or awakened into unquenchable desire. I could only guess at what kind of horrors it would attract.
Arione saw [Mother Centipede] show up but didn¡¯t let it bother him. Jason had assured him that he had it under control; the Singularity item had been passed down from the Patriarch and was attuned to his bloodline. For a short time, Jason or Maria should be able to control it. The only worry in Arione¡¯s mind was the potential of a Monster Wave. Whenever a Grade-3 or higher monster made its presence known, there was the possibility of lesser monsters swarming the scene. He could feel the mana from the Mother Centipede pulsating out for miles. Suri, Enla Enla and the Deathworm would be drawn here; like shoppers at a black friday sale. The elven mage felt his mouth crease into a grimace. ¡°We did enough. Let¡¯s get out of here.¡± Even for him, the strongest monster he raided with a full party was grade-2 ¡ª that had been after months of preparation ¨C and he had nowhere near a party strong enough for that. At the end of the day, MSS was a world where you hunted monsters in parties. Hence, why he wanted to take Clover so badly with him and Scarlet. ¡°Clover¡­ that¡¯s a grade-1 monster. We need to get out of here. Lock is probably-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t. You. Dare. Say it.¡± Clover snarled. Blood streamed down her eyes and ears, evidence of the damage that she had suffered from even being near the grade-1 monster. The lower your level, the more severe the sideeffects would be. For Clover who probably wasn¡¯t even 20 yet, Arione could only imagine the pain she had experienced. ¡°Got to give the girl credit though. She¡¯s still sticking it out for that Lock guy.¡± Arione just wished the loyalty was towards him. They were close to escaping the city. While Arione had been aiding the Akka Xaluds, he made sure to massacre survivors who were heading towards the city walls. So bit by bit, inch by inch, he led his party to closer to escaping without them even realizing it. The Akka Xaluds wouldn¡¯t say anything; there was too much going on. Arione burned a Winged Centipede that was flying towards them and watched absently as another Greater Centipede disemboweled an Akka Xalud soldier. Such was the way of the Akka Xaluds. Just like insects, all lives were expendable when carrying out the will of their Queen; Patriarch in this case. ¡°I¡¯m all for taking one for the team. But you have to admit that cloudy with a chance of centipedes aren¡¯t really the time for-¡± ¡°...I see him.¡± Scarlet¡¯s voice cut the argument short. Clover¡¯s head whipped towards the direction where Scarlet was pointing. Near the city walls, running on a wide open road was an assortment of slaves, all armed to the teeth. Dwarves and orcs fought side by side, cutting down monsters and Akka Xalud soldiers. Arione saw beastman with ranged weaponry providing support fire and sniping down any flying monster that came near them. He even saw a mage, probably second-rate, call down lightning time and time again. The grade-2 mage could tell that the blonde mage was nearing the end of his mana pool, yet he showed no signs of slowing. Next to the mage was a tall beastman of red-scaled-lizard lineage. He swung the halberd in wide arcs, dismembering insects and mages who dared to venture too close. Then he saw Lock, in the center of it all. The man darted like an animal, his sword flashing and cutting down everything in his way. He was a fucking demon; wading in towards a group of Akka Xalud soldiers and using half a dozen abilities in a span of thirty seconds or less. Arione saw him get hit by a lightning spell but disappear; only to appear behind the mage and decapitate him. Then the slave used the same lightning spell to fry up more centipedes. He left nothing alive in his awake. The duality between his wish to protect the people who followed him and the merciless nature with which he executed his enemies was as opposite as white and black. ¡°...Clover. How long did you say you guys were slaves again?¡± ¡°A litle over a month. We need to get over there!¡± Scarlet frowned at the tone in his master¡¯s voice. Something about it unnerved him. A month. Maybe two. Just from Arione¡¯s 10 years of experience; Lock would be around grade 6. Maybe 5. Was it possible for a denizen of this world to grow that powerful in that timeframe? Maybe. Was it possible for someone to be a slave and named Lock Slaveborn? Not likely. What was the chance that someone managed to find the right Cores, recognized the synergy between them and absorbed only the ones that would get him more powerful Almost impossible. No one who was in a position to become a slave should have that kind of knowledge about Cores... at least if they were from this world. Arione was sure of it now. Lock Slaveborn was a [Player]. Arione stepped off of the disc and took to the skies. ¡°...Arione?¡± ¡°Master?¡± ?Arione Popwindale has cast [Fire Ball]?
Chapter 43: Blood, Fire & Shadow (4)
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A calculated gesture. Arione¡¯s Mana Vow to Clover still bound him; if he attacked Lock outright the Vow would sap away at his Mana. He¡¯d recover but the backlash would not only reduce his Max MP but leave him magically crippled for a while. So the mage chose not to aim the spell at Lock. Burning the black-haired slave to a crisp wasn¡¯t something he could explain to the pink-haired beastwoman without looking like he went back on his word. Still, he needed to do something. Lock Slaveborn was obviously a player. Plus, Clover¡¯s loyalty towards her friends ¨C L¡¯teya and Lock ¨C was unnaturally high. He wondered if it was because they had gone through the orc¡¯s slave selection process together. Regardless, if he brought all three of them together into his party, it wouldn¡¯t be his party anymore. It¡¯d be our party or their party. Worse still, it might become his party. Yeah, that was no good. What Arione needed to do was manipulate all of them into a position where Clover and Lock would turn on each other while still maintaining plausible deniability for himself. The answer was simple enough. ?Arione Popwindale has cast [Fire Ball]? He just needed to kill everyone but the man himself: Lock.
Time slowed. The fireball came from nowhere. Kyrian was the first one to sense it but was too late to warn us, his yell was cut off by the noise of the explosion from the spell¡¯s impact. I could barely distinguish the explosion from everything else that was going on. The sound of men dying, centipedes hissing, blades clashing and spells flying overhead. But the damage was different. We hadn¡¯t been walking in any formal formation; Skaris and I were in the front. Behind us were the Black Dogs then the dwarves and the orcs bringing up the rear with their civilians and other ragtag individuals. It happened naturally, walking in the front was more dangerous and no one else had been willing except those confident in their own strengths, or with the belief that. Kyrian walked in the middle of our group, as our only mage he was needed on all sides. That¡¯s where the fireball was aimed at. By the time rest of us saw the fireball, it was too late. I couldn¡¯t get in front of it and even if I had, the fireball veered all shadows away from its trajectory. The angle made it impossible for me to stand in front of something and still be in shadow to proc my magical damage immunity. Maybe my subconscious knew that, and I just wasn¡¯t willing to take the risk. Maybe I was just thinking of excuses of why I shouldn¡¯t instead of why I should. The berserkers didn¡¯t; they jumped in between the group and the roar of flames using their bodies as shields. Their bodies weren¡¯t enough. The resulting explosion knocked most of us off of our feet and blew us away. The shockwave alone probably broke bones and wounded these people. If the shockwave alone did that much¡­ ¡°FUCK!¡± I escaped my thoughts as time began to flow naturally again. ¡°KYRIAN!¡± Kyrian had been at the center of the group, if he got wounded our chances of getting out of this place just got that much lower. He was a pivotal part of our party right now, we couldn¡¯t afford to lose him. I ran towards the wreckage; the smell of sulfur and smoke assaulted my senses, stronger than before. The fireball had created molten rock and a literally mushroom cloud in its wake. ¡°Ssslaveborn!¡± I saw Skaris running towards me, the Black Dogs and dwarves in tow. ¡°Skaris!¡± Their eyes were wide and dazed. None of them even knew what hit us. Confused and scared, they were looking for direction. So I made them do what I did when facing fear of the unknown: do what you could do first. ¡°Skaris get these guys out of here. Luckily that Fireball burnt all nearby centipedes to nothing but ash. Keep heading east and you¡¯ll find the wall. If I don¡¯t show up soon, just leave. Zimmskar, Jayu, I don¡¯t care. Anywhere.¡± If it was just this small group, they might be able to make it. I couldn¡¯t let them stay behind just because I wanted to find Kyrian and other survivors. There was also the chance that L''teya and Clover were still here. ¡°If you find L¡¯teya and Clover, the women I told you about outside of the walls, tell them I''ll be heading east. ¡± Skaris frowned. ¡°And you, Ssslaveborn?¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°I¡¯m going to find Kyrian and whoever else I can along the way. I¡¯ll meet you in the east.¡± ¡°You disshonor me.¡± Skaris narrowed his eyes. ¡°I ssswore to aid you out of this csssity.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± I didn¡¯t have time to argue. ¡°Kellin, get yourself and-¡± ¡°We will help.¡± Kellin didn¡¯t miss a beat. ¡°Aye, and us as well lad.¡± The dwarf, Tomuraud, hoisted his warhammer higher. ¡°We won¡¯t be holding you back.¡± ¡°Goddamit why is everyone so freaking- AGH.¡± Internal screaming aside, we had a job to do. We moved quickly, searching through the wreckage and looking for Kyrian and other survivors. Luckily for us they were all huddled together in one spot. Kyrian was fighting off a centipede soldier but it was too much. He was a grade-8 mage holding off a grade-7 monster alone. Skaris and I flanked the monster from behind and made quick work of it. Skaris¡¯ flaming halberd lit the creature on fire as soon as I cut off its legs. Without its legs, the creature stumbled around awkwardly off balance. A moment later, its body was full of arrows. ¡°Lock. Skaris.¡± Kyrian breathed hard. ¡°W-We¡¯re fine. But the berserkers, they, they protected us.¡± ¡°I know. I saw.¡± I looked behind Kyrian. It wasn''t just the orc civilians that they had protected, they had saved everyone else as well. The nobles, the slaves who were too weak to hold a weapon... everyone. The berserker who had spoken for his people lay on the ground, missing a huge chunk of his torso. I didn¡¯t want to look too hard¡­ but anyone who¡¯s ever seen a burn victim would recognize the wounds. Warped flesh that just looked wrong, smooth to the touch and mangled beyond repair. Everything below his waist was a mixture of red and black, whites of his bone showing through the skin. Half his face had been melted off and I could count his molars if I wanted to. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. I forced myself to look. ¡°He wishes to speak with you. I¡¯ve managed to keep him alive by pouring healing potions on him but it¡¯s not the type of wound that could be healed. If I wasn¡¯t a mage and was a priest or if we could even hunt down more Akka Xalud soldiers--¡± ¡°Kyrian.¡± I could tell Kyrian was babbling. He was in shock. He looked at me. ¡°He protected us, Lock¡­ why? Aren¡¯t we¡­ enemies? They''re... orc and you guys are slaves and I''m a human and the rest are nobles and... and slaves and... why would they?...¡± I cannot claim to know what Kyrian went through at the hands of the Akka Xaluds while serving them, except what he told me. I could tell in his eyes that this moment broke everything he knew about the world. But now wasn''t the time; there would be plenty of time later once we got out of this city. I put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I answered honestly. ¡°Get everyone ready to move. I¡¯ll talk to the orcs.¡± I walked past Kyrian and parted the circle of orcs that surrounded the fallen warrior. He was still breathing, rasping and sounding wet. With each breath, blood poured down the burn wounds on his face. I could tell he was in agony.. ¡°Slaeborn.¡± He couldn¡¯t even say my name correctly anymore. I kneeled next to him. ¡°Kept¡­ Promissse.¡± Was he talking about the promise about me allowing his people to follow me? That why he jumped in front of the Fire Ball? To give the civilians a chance? That thing he said before about how he and his warriors would be at the perimeter to be our shield? But I''d never agreed to that. So why''d he protect the rest of us? ¡°I¡­¡± It should have been impossible for a man on his last breath, but he raised his arm and grabbed my arm. He pulled me in close, his burnt eyes glaring holes into me. ¡°Promi.. Promise¡­ me¡­ my¡­ people¡­¡± ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t¡­¡± ¡°PROMISE ME!¡± He roared. Spittle, blood, mucus and pus splatted over my face and neck. This orc had just gambled his life on the hopes that it would give his people a chance. That his death would mean something to me. That... That I''d care. ¡°I.. promise.¡± What the hell was I doing? Why was I promising a dying orc, part of the slavers who locked me up in chains that I¡¯d protect his people? Not just the civilians but even the berserkers? What was going on in my head? I shouldn¡¯t have done more than just let them follow along. I wasn¡¯t responsible for them. Thump. I felt my heart beat loud. I wasn¡¯t this type of person. Loner. Loser. No friends. Nothing. Thump Thump But this dying orc was stirring something within me, something hot and cold. Was this anger? Why should I be the one who was angry? I wasn''t a hero or a person who had a heart big enough to forgive the orcs for their wrongdoings. So why was it that I wanted to answer this orc in kind? Why did I want to honor his death? ¡°Thank¡­ you¡­ Slaveborn¡­¡± He breathed his last, a hideous smile on his face from the burns. Clap Clap Clap ¡°Wow. Such a touching scene. You should be thanking me.¡± A single voice. A man¡¯s. I slowly turned around, my tears flowing freely now. ¡°If I didn¡¯t blow that orc to bits, you¡¯d never have gotten to experi- eh? Are you crying? Are you seriously crying?¡± A man in a dark green cloak. Akka Xalud. But not human. Elf. ¡°AHAHAHA! You fucking loser! You¡¯re actually crying?! He was one of the guys who kept you guys as slaves!¡± He actually doubled over in laughter, holding his stomach. I studied him. Light blue hair, slightly curly. Eyes that looked gold and bluish-green. Tall, maybe almost 7 feet. No weapons, most likely a mage. ¡°Can¡¯t believe you actually cried over an orc.¡± He pretended to wipe a tear out of one eye. ¡°Oh man. That¡¯s rich.¡± He wiped the tear with his left hand. Left handed. I should attack him from my left side. No weapons plus his earlier claim; he was definitely a mage. ¡°Why¡¯re you glaring at me like that?¡± His smile never left his face. ¡°Skaris.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°Take the orcs with you guys. Kellin and the dwarves too.¡± ¡°Lock, that¡¯s a mage.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°I should stay here and support you.¡± ¡°No. They need you more than me.¡± Shiiiing My sword and shield cried as I drew them simultaneously from my back. ¡°What will you do Slaveborn?¡± Kellin was the one who spoke. ¡°I¡¯ll catch up soon enough.¡± I took a step forward. "Ssslaveborn... let the mage and I assist you." "You saw what I''m capable of." It was true. I had grown strong in the last month. Maybe I was overconfident but my heart told me if I didn''t do something right now, I''d wonder what if for the rest of my life. Always looking over my shoulder, always questioning who I was and who I would be. I had a choice. Was I Han, the loner who played video games in his room all day? Or was I Lock, a Warrior who had people depending on him? The mage smirked at me, flourishing his hand and bowing. ¡°Arione Popwindale at your service. Directed by yours truly, Stockholm Syndrome: Orc and Human edition.¡± I felt Kyrian stiffen. ¡°Lock¡­ that¡¯s-¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter.¡± The tears had stopped now. But my heart still pounded. I don¡¯t know why but it hurt. I felt sad. I felt regret. I felt pain. I felt a thousand different thoughts that cut my heart in a dozen different ways. And I wanted to make this guy feel the same thing I did. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill him.¡±
¡°Arione, that fucking bastard! I¡¯m going to kill him!¡± Clover screamed and tried to jump off of the disc to follow after the mage. Scarlet held her back. ¡°Wait¡­¡± Clover slammed the back of her head into Scarlet¡¯s face, feeling something crunch under the blow. ¡°OW!¡± Perhaps the strongest reaction the soft-spoken mage had given yet. She spun around and grabbed Lety. ¡°Get away from me, both you and your master are liars and I¡¯m going to-¡± ¡°You have to calm down¡­ I wasn¡¯t in on it¡­ and the Master might do weird things sometimes¡­ but he wouldn¡¯t betray us.¡± Scarlet tried to stem the blood pouring from his nose. ¡°He literally just tried to kill-¡± ¡°Stop¡­ please¡­ it wasn¡¯t aimed at him¡­ I saw the spell. It was aimed at the people behind him.¡± Clover took a deep breath. ¡°That makes no sense, why the hell would he-¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just go ask him¡­ if your friend Lock is alive, then they¡¯re probably fighting¡­ we should be going over to stop them¡­¡± Clover wanted to scream and kick the mage off of this disc. But she had to remember that she wasn¡¯t alone: she still had L¡¯teya with her. Someone needed to take care of her. Luckily for them, the disc was slowly starting to float in the direction that Arione had flown off to. Scarlet cast a spell to hide them from the centipede monsters. ?Scarlet has cast [Shimmer Weave]? ¡°Don¡¯t move¡­ please¡­ The spell is difficult to concentrate when there¡¯s multiple people¡­.¡± Clover cursed. If Lock wasn¡¯t hurt¡­ as long as he wasn¡¯t hurt, she was still willing to work with Arione. The giant monster in the sky, the centipedes raining all around them; there was guarantee they could get out of this by themselves. She also wondered why Lock was in a group that big. She couldn¡¯t see the anti-social human getting along with everyone there. Had it been a cooperation out of survival? ¡°Yeah¡­ he was always do anything as long as we got to survive.¡± She would have to convince Lock to let go of his grudge and work with Arione. Lock would be more than willing to work with Arione, as long as it meant they had a greater chance of living through this.
I knew he was a [Player], just like me. The way he talked made it too obvious. Skaris, Kyrian and the others had cleared out. Now it was just me and Arione. He casually burned a centipede before it touched the ground. I immediately dashed towards my left, his right side. With a single outward-slash I could- Arione leaped into the air, casting [Levitate]. I cast [Coin Toss]. On my way here, I had been casting [Coin Toss] constantly. If I was counting correctly, I currently had four [Attack] buffs and two [Defense] buffs lined up. And roughly ten [Speed] buffs. The moment his feet left the ground, I accelerated. I had been fighting battles constantly but the brief respite and the anger that I felt fueled me beyond what I thought was capable. I leaped off of the ground and swung my sword; my slash was aimed towards separating his shoulder from the rest of his body. But the mage was more slippery than I expected, he lurched to the side and levitated away. I saw him form a few hand seals which looked strangely familiar. No staff, no nothing. Just his hands. And that goddamned voice of his. ¡°Whoa! Already aiming for my weak side?! Damn you¡¯re practically one of them already!¡± Dark tendrils sprouted from the ground, entangling my arms and legs. I struggled against them but they stretched with the elasticity of rubber and the more I struggled the harder they wrapped around me. The mage landed just outside of my reach ¨C not that it mattered, I was constrained by these tentacles ¨C and began to talk. ¡°Now, let¡¯s talk. Are you a pla-¡± I used [Shadow Blink], I¡¯d saved up quite a bit of stacks on the way here, and appeared right in front of him. I thrust forward with my sword aiming at his forehead. The mage flicked his hand and slipped out like an eel, slowing me down with a [Mana Barrier]. I cut through the mana barrier and immediately gave chase, trying to stick to him like I was his shadow. ¡°Goddamit! Let me talk!¡± I had no intention of slowing down. No intention of stopping. I didn¡¯t give a shit that he was a player. I was going to kill this guy. But he must have cast buffs on himself to match my speed, or his mana control was off the charts. He stayed just out of the reach of my sword. ¡°This guy¡¯s way too used to close combat.¡± All the Akka Xalud mages I¡¯d fought so far had been extremely weak in close quarters. It was impressive the rate at which his hands moved while running but instead of using spells to attack me, he stacked a series of debuffs on me. A huge mistake. ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack]? ?[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]? I couldn¡¯t tell what clued him in to the fact that his curse-type spells were only making me stronger, but he stopped casting curse-type spells on me. However, it was too late and I wasn''t going let this chance go to waste. My legs propelled me forward and the scenery became a blur as I cut him on the knee, trying to take the leg from him. If I could take away his mobility, the battle was as good as mine. He grunted and lurched, the knee starting to bleed freely. I saw him wince in pain and try to take to the skies again. I didn¡¯t let him, following up with a [Hateful Wound]. Normally, I¡¯d only use the ability as a finishing maneuver but I¡¯d found a neat side-effect besides causing additional damage based on the wounds I inflicted. The ability hurt like hell. He hissed in pain and took a knee. I took the opening. My eyes were focused on his neck, imagining myself cutting through it. Just a little bit more, I could just- Suddenly my legs slowed and I fell flat on my face. I had been moving at a speed which was humanly impossible, I felt something go crack and knew that I had broken my ribs from the fall. It hurt. A lot. Instinctively, I tucked my arms and legs into a ball; they were the life of a swordsman. I couldn¡¯t break a wrist or gods forbid, my leg. I rolled out of the ball and my sword was nowhere to be seen, I probably dropped it. But I still had the shield in my hand. Arione was sauntering towards me, muttering something but I¡¯d hit my face on the floor and the adrenaline made it impossible to make out what he was saying. I lunged towards him to try and punch him in the side of the face with the shield''s edge. But I was I moving so slow? I felt weak. It was like someone had just taken all the strength out of my limbs with a straw, leaving me drained like a wet noodle. What the hell had just happened? ¡°LOCK!¡± I turned around, blood dripping down my chin. Standing on a round disc, I saw the one I¡¯d been looking for all this time. Clover. And standing behind her, Scarlet. His hands were outstretched, an unmistakable evidence of him having just cast a spell and my head put the two and two together. The fucker had taken away my buffs. ?Scarlet has cast [Back to Square One]?
Chapter 44: Blood, Fire & Shadow (5)
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¡°Shit.¡± I wasn¡¯t stupid enough to be clueless about the situation I was in. It was painfully obvious what was happening. This man, Arione, must have been the master that Scarlet talked about. I was up against a Grade-2 mage and his apprentice, Scarlet, had stepped in to help. I had no idea how Scarlet had found out that I was doped up on stacks of buffs, but there were few spells available to a grade-8 mage like Scarlet which could take them away. He had probably used [Back to Square One]. ¡°Don¡¯t panic. It¡¯s not all of them. There¡¯s no way a grade-8 mage has enough mana to get rid of that many buffs at once. I still have some of them, just that the majority of them are gone.¡± More importantly than that though, I finally saw her. Her pink hair rustled in the wind, framing her heart-shaped face. She stood on the disc and the dark-green robes she had around her shoulders billowed out behind her, a stark contrast between the bright pink of her hair. Her mismatching eyes were looking right at me, reflecting the flames all around us. They weren''t filled with blame, nor confusion. Just worry. ¡°Lock¡­ your fingers.¡± She was talking about the fingers that had been cut off by the berserker. Without a priestess, it was impossible to hear lost limbs. ¡°Clover.¡± I choked out. ¡°L¡¯teya is she...¡± She moved aside on the floating disc and I breathed a sigh of relief. L¡¯teya had her eyes closed, unconscious, but her chest was still rising and falling. Lety was alive. All the weight I¡¯d been carrying, all the what-ifs and all the guilt of not being with them disappeared from my heart. I hadn¡¯t betrayed them just to save my own skin. I hadn¡¯t left them behind in Samak City. I hadn¡¯t chosen to believe in a farfetched dream of all three of us surviving to meet another day which could never be reality. They were alive. Clover must have felt the same. ¡°Lock, your fingers let me-¡± ¡°Stop.¡± Arione¡¯s voice cracked like a whip and I was startled at the authority that had been behind the voice. The man''s demeanor had done a complete turnaround. The handsome elf mage¡¯s face was scrunched up into a scowl, like he had just tasted something bitter. Gone was the flippant attitude with which he¡¯d been approaching our fight. He lifted into the air as mana answered his call, flying above my head and landing on the disc with Clover and Scarlet. He faced the pink-haired priestess. ¡°Clover. You have some explaining to do.¡± Clover didn¡¯t back cower before the mage, as a sheep might do when faced with a wolf. Instead she stood up straight ¨Cthough almost two heads shorter than him¨C and matched his anger without flinching. ¡°What explaining? I think you¡¯re the one who has to explain to me why you attacked Lock after I specifically said-¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t attack him.¡± Arione snarled. ¡°I attacked the slaves, nobles and orcs that were trailing behind him. You know what our agreement is with Akka Xaluds. If we don¡¯t-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t try that on me.¡± Clover snapped right back. ¡°This-¡± A greater centipede lurched out of one of the alleyways, revealing itself in the light of the fire. Without batting an eye, Arione waved his hand towards it. Multiple blades of greenish-wind cleaved the creature into pieces, killing it instantly. ¡°He was protecting orcs. We are NOT allowed to leave any orcs alive. That was the deal we made.¡± ¡°We also made a deal to get my friends out alive. What were you doing-¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t lay a finger on him. If I wanted to, he¡¯d be dead.¡± Arione narrowed his eyes. ¡°And you know it, Ms. Weinport.¡± This time, Clover did flinch. So she believed that I was weaker than Arione. But if he really was grade-2... ¡°So you need to convince your friend, Lock Slaveborn, to help us track down and kill the remaining orcs. Including the group he just let slip from my fingers.¡± Only the quiet crackling of embers and the distant screaming of the [Mother Centipede] could be heard. ¡°...What?¡± I couldn¡¯t believe what I was hearing. This guy wanted me to kill those innocent people? Orc or not, slave or noble, I was not going to dirty my hands. If anything he was the one who had to pay for attacking us and taking the live of that orc warrior. I waited for Clover to say something. I knew that she wouldn¡¯t allow- ¡°Lock?¡± The tone in her voice made me flinch. It scared me much more than the anger in Arione''s. Doubt. ¡°Were you¡­ protecting those orcs?¡± I gritted my teeth; even if I wanted to lie there was no meaning in it. ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°...Why?¡± Why was I protecting them? How could I possibly explain to her everything that had happened since I''d been locked away? That I was a loser back in my world and suddenly felt like playing Hero? That I got attached to Skaris and Kyrian? That the dying berserker who I made a promise to meant something in this once meaningless life of mine? That the last few hours I¡¯d spent fighting side by side with Kellin and the other slaves created a bond between us that I couldn¡¯t put into words? This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Why was it that whenever Clover asked me to answer something, it was never simple. It was always complicated and my fucking ineptitude made me unable to put my feelings into the right words. Talking should be simple. I opened my mouth and the words that came out should reflect what I wanted to say. But no matter what I tried to say, I couldn¡¯t even think of what I wanted to say. Why did I become so stupid in front of Clover? Every single fucking time? It was like the steps I took forward to improve myself all become nothing when it was time for them to count. But I had to say something. ¡°I made a promise.¡± The moment the words left my mouth, I knew it was the wrong thing to say. ¡°To protect the orcs?¡± Her voice rose. "Do you hear what you''re saying, Lock?!" ¡°Yes, but-¡± ¡°Do you know what they did to L¡¯teya?¡± I saw that Clover was on the verge of crying. ¡°They took away her armor. They took away her weapons. They put her in a dress and gave her make-up. Like¡­ Like she was some kind of whore or pretty toy that some noble should buy and play with. She hasn¡¯t even woken up yet Lock. What if they did stuff to her? What if they did things... like... like...¡± Clover couldn''t even finish the sentence. "Do you not remember what they did to us?" I knew in my heart without a doubt that the orcs were not the type of people to hurt L''teya in that way. Orcs and beastman would never do that. If they meant to hurt L''teya it would have been in battle. As a warrior. But that was just my opinion and thoughts. I had no proof. Saying those words... It would do nothing to make the situation better. ¡°Clover, the people I protected had nothing to do with-¡± I wanted to explain to her that the ones I had been protecting had been civilians. ¡°I saw you with them, Lock. They were orc warriors. High ranking ones.¡± ¡°Berserkers. Pretty much the centerpiece of the orc military strength.¡± Arione chimed in, and I wanted to slit that damned throat of his. ¡°Lock¡­ what happened in the last three days?¡± Clover''s voice was cold. "You... how can you be with those monsters?" This was not how it should be going. I wanted to explain. "Clover please just listen to me for a second, just-" "Just answer me! Why are you protecting them? Do you know the things I had to do to get away from those monsters? What we all suffered at their hands? They enslaved us Lock. How can you stick up for those things after they-" God, why was this so fucking frustrating?! Why was she being so frustrating? Why the hell was I so stupid? ¡°You don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about!¡± I snapped at her. ¡°They¡¯re not all bad people, some of them are honorable warriors who are trying to do the best for their people. The ones I am with aren¡¯t even warriors-¡± ¡°Ha! He¡¯s sticking up for them!¡± Arione exclaimed. ¡°One more word I will slit your throat, elf.¡± I had enough of him. Clover¡¯s eyes widened at my outburst. I could¡¯ve sworn I saw the elf-mage smile. Kiiiiiiiiyyyaaaaaaahhhhhhhh We were far away enough from the temple that most of the centipede-type monsters falling from [Mother centipede] weren¡¯t near. But we weren¡¯t far enough; the monsters that survived the deadly fall had wiped out most of the survivors and were starting to look for more food. They were crawling over in this direction. One centipede soldier peaked its head from the corner behind them on top of a rooftop. I saw it gather its legs to jump. Before anyone else could react, I picked up my fallen sword and bounded on top of a falling pillar in front of me, running across the length of it. I jumped and bounced off of the opposite wall, landing on the rooftop behind the disc. I saw Arione gather his hands to cast a spell but I was faster, much faster. My legs pumped into a full-out sprint towards the Centipede Soldier. At the last second, I broke my sprint and slid on my knees; the steel greaves protecting my skin from the stone. I used my shield to deflect the soldier¡¯s downward blow and cut its legs off on one side. These monsters were heavy with thick exoskeleton and weaponry in their arms; without both legs balancing them they were nothing. As it was falling over, I stabbed it repeatedly in the now exposed leg joints, green hemolymph splashing out each time. Arione''s wind blade left a deep diagonal gash across its trunk; but there was no need. In one smooth movement, I got up from my knee-slide and spun once, beheading the creature with my sword. Now I was on the burning roof, nearly eye-level with Clover, Arione and Scarlet. I saw what I looked like in the reflection of Scarlet¡¯s eyes. Flames burned behind me, shrouding most of my features in shadow. My eyes¡­ weren¡¯t just black-brown anymore. They were nearly black all the way through; no doubt a side-effect of the Shadow Wolf Mimic¡¯s Core. Some Core¡¯s caused superficial changes which became more pronounced in battle when you used the Core¡¯s abilities. My hair looked more unkempt than ever and it had grown longer, almost reaching my back. I looked like some kind of demon in hell. ¡°Clover¡­ do you remember my story about [Players]?¡± Arione started. ¡°I never explained what they were, did I? They¡¯re people from another world. They are given a body; just like our own. Some people hear that and think, ¡®what¡¯s the harm in that? They¡¯re not hurting anyone!¡¯¡± ¡°But that¡¯s where they¡¯re wrong.¡± Arione began to rise into the air from the disc. ¡°They don¡¯t see us as people. They see us as just toys for their use. I put that clause in our vow for a reason, Clover. I had a suspicion that your friend might be a player. The name Slaveborn? It¡¯s obviously fake. Your stories about how he led you and L¡¯teya in the dungeon? Who got out of it with the best Core? He did. Who gets stronger each time you guys risk your life? He does.¡± He continued and every word he said hammered into Clover. I had to stop him but the look in Clover¡¯s eyes... Fear. Of me. ¡°Been here barely a month and he can kill a grade-7 Centipede Soldier single handedly. There¡¯s no adventurer who can grow so fast. They¡¯re demons, Clover. They come into our world knowing all the secrets and they just take and take and take. Look, he already sided with the orcs who were just taking things from us.¡± ¡°Ask him Clover.¡± He finished. "Ask him... if he''s a [Player] or not. Look him in the eye and ask him." She hesitated but Arione had picked on the long insecurity that Clover had ever since the day we met. She was always wary of my motives. She never liked the fact that I gave them a ''fake'' name. She never liked how L¡¯teya defended me from her; when all she wanted to do was make sure that I was indeed on their side. She never liked that I could never give her a straight answer. Ever. Even now. ¡°Lock?¡± Her voice trembled and my heart stopped beating. I knew what was coming and what would happen, but I was powerless to stop it. No matter how much strength I got in MSS... even if I was a grade-1 adventurer with the best Cores in the world, in this I could do nothing. ¡°Is it¡­ true? Are you¡­ a ¡± She sounded scared like a little girl asking if her parents were still there. "A [Player]?" ¡°I am.¡± I didn''t want to lie anymore. But this would be the last time I tell the truth. Never again will I make the mistake I did on that night. Never again, will I tell people my true identity. Never again, will I betray the trust of someone who risked their life for me. Never again will I let myself fall victim to the scheming and plotting of others. And I knew¡­ I just knew. Never again, will Clover and I be the same ever again. ¡°Get to safety.¡± Arione said and he glided down from the platform landing in front of me. ¡°Master¡­ are you going to?...¡± Scarlet¡¯s eyes met mine; I saw confusion, pain and regret. ¡°Yes.¡± He stretched side to side. ¡°It¡¯s been awhile since I¡¯ve killed a [Player].¡± I wasn¡¯t dumb enough to think he was as flippant as he acted. All the jokes, all the humor and the easy-going manner that I had picked up from him during the battle; it was all an act. Anyone who believed otherwise was an idiot falling for his ruse. The disc holding Scarlet and Clover disappeared from view, most likely an obscuring spell. Clover was safe. L¡¯teya was safe with her. Skaris and Kyrian should have led everyone out of here. I should run from him. Did I have a chance against this mage? From what Scarlet told me, he was grade-2. A grade-2 mage would be hunting exclusively bosses and running secret dungeons, not to mention that his level could be anywhere between the 70s-80s. Since I had just hit 20; common sense told me that I couldn¡¯t kill him, much less defeat him. But I also had the Core of a named Shadow Mimic Wolf and it was currently night. Then there was Ujo¡¯s [Arcane Masochism]. I remembered the words that flashed on my computer screen, like a distant memory.
? You are the 1st [Player] from Earth to finish the [TUTORIAL] on [ORIGINAL DIFFICULTY] ?
If this guy was a [Player]... well, he certainly wasn¡¯t better than me. At least¡­ at the very least, I wanted to punch him in the face and wipe that smug expression off of his face. ¡°How many Cores did you get by risking the life of others?¡± He asked casually, finishing his stretches. ¡°Two? Three? Did it feel good coming into this world and thinking that you could use your knowledge to become better than everyone else?¡± He was revealing his true colors once again. With his mana sense, he could probably tell Clover and Scarlet were gone. There was no way a snake like him would say such information in front of them. They probably had no idea that he was a [Player] himself. ¡°Meh. I guess it doesn¡¯t matter. So¡­ any last words?¡± ¡°There are two ways to annoy people. Do you know what they are?¡± I began. ¡°Oh a riddle?! A story? Rhetoric?¡± He clapped like a little girl but I knew it was just to bring his hands closer, ready to form handseals at a moment''s notice. I wonder how many times he used tactics like that to bring his hands closer to each other; playing the clown when in reality, it was just to give himself a split second edge in battles like this. My finger stumps closed around the shied strap while the binding around the sword¡¯s hilt creaked as I tightened my grip. ¡°The first¡­ is to leave something unsaid.¡± His eyes twinkled. ¡°The second?¡± ¡°The second is-¡± I rushed towards him; our surroundings becoming a blur. Just like I thought, his claps turned midmotion into handseals. He was using magic and I already knew which one; no [Player] was better than me at this game. Even without my buffs, there was no way a Mage¡¯s body could catch up to the [Physical] stats of a pure-bred adventurer who relied only on Cores. I might not have any equipment yet, but I had Cores that were multiple grades higher than anything I should have had at my level. His smug expression turned into panic; his spell wasn¡¯t working. ¡°What the, my spell it¡¯s-¡± Everything was decided the moment I cut his knee earlier and the name of the spell I stole lit up in my brain. He had used [Fire Ball] and [Razor Winds] meaning that most of his Mana Cores were of the Fire and Wind attributes. But when trying to slow me down, he used [Dark Tendrils]. Not the best disabling spell a grade-2 mage could cast¡­ but considering his offensive power, probably the best among his arsenal. Now he wanted to cast it again, except that I stole it. I knew it¡¯d come down to this. I didn¡¯t have to kill that Soldier Centipede. But I did, so I could be in range to cast the stolen spell. I kept him talking and excited so that he wouldn¡¯t realize it. Him stepping down from the disc was a boon; I¡¯d hate to have cast the spell on all four of them but I had been ready to do it. So thank you Arione. Thank you for the spell. Thank you for coming this close to me. Thank you for being dumb enough to fall for my tricks, so confident in your superiority. I pointed with my sword at his feet and the ground beneath it turned into a cesspit of black tentacles, writhing and latching onto the startled mage. ? Lock Slaveborn has cast [Dark Tendrils] ? Everything had been calculated.
Chapter 45: Blood, Fire & Shadow (6)
World: MSS - Loading...
In his 10 years of living as a denizen of MSS, Arione had seen it all. Grade-10 monsters that he used to avoid out of fear ¨Csweat pouring down his brow and trying to quiet his breathing¨C and Grade-1 monsters who slumbered in their hidden lairs, ignoring all but the strongest of prey. He had also seen his own fair share of adventurers. Those still green behind the ears, not knowing that the best place to hunt was Ragnia Mountain for beginners, to seasoned adventurers hidden throughout the continent. In Arione¡¯s opinion, the biggest difference betwee them was the willingness to kill. Many adventurers had a habit of hesitating when delivering the killing blow. The natural tendency of man was to shy away from violence. That¡¯s why there were weapons, it decreased the amount of stress people¡¯s psyche experienced. Beating someone to death with your bare fists was a completely different experience than shooting someone with a gun after all. That¡¯s why most players never made it out of their starting zones. A human being from the modern era just couldn¡¯t overcome the barrier fast enough. That split second between life and death, that moment was when everything was decided; those would continue to live and those who would fade into nothingness. Lock moved like he¡¯d been born and raised in this world of monsters. Arione saw Lock¡¯s sword aimed straight towards his neck. The elven mage had all of .5 seconds before the blade decapitated him and he avoided death by the hair of his teeth; activating a mana barrier to block the slash and ducking. Steel whistles behind his head and the mage knew that his mana barrier was broken. He saw the metal greaves on Lock¡¯s knee heading upwards towards his face, trying to smash his nose in. Unfortunately for the slave-swordsman, this wasn¡¯t Arione¡¯s first time at the rodeo. Arione created around [Mana Barrier] but instead of creating it perpendicular to Lock¡¯s kick, he angled it slightly upwards. Lock¡¯s foot hit the barrier then slipped off of it, continuing its trajectory upwards. ¡°Now it''s time to get rid of this spell.¡± He had no idea how Lock had cast [Dark Tendrils], the other player wasn¡¯t a mage. He was definitely a Core user. Arione had a few suspects in mind and now was his time to test it out; as a Fire and Wind focused mage, there were plenty of spells at his disposal which could free him and test out how theory at the same time. Arione gathered Mana deep within his heart, stacking circles upon circles and moved his hands in familiar rhythm. He expelled the mana in an explosive wave and they caught fire the moment it came into contact with oxygen. ?Arione Popwindale has cast [Mana Ignition] ? The fire cleansed away the dark tendrils that were wrapped around him and Arione tried to step back; but his knees buckled. He had forgotten about the wound that Lock had left him right before Clover arrived. The fire washed over Lock and¡­ did nothing. It didn¡¯t slow him down at all.. He just charged straight through the wall of flames and lifted his sword, trying to get at Arione again. The elven-mage needed to gain distance. And fast. Without the dark tendrils getting in his way, Arione¡¯s hands were free to move at their full speed; they blurred as he went through the necessary hand seals. This time he gathered the mana in front of him like a wall; imagining that he was creating sheets of wind and then pressing them into one another ¨Clayer after layer¨C then sent it flying towards Lock. Lock did something Arione had never seen before. The slave took a knee, set his shield at an angle and pushed his body against it. Then the instant before the wind hit him the slave cut the wind wave with his sword; the dregs of the spell were directed away by the angle of Lock¡¯s shield. He had just cut wind. Lock¡¯s black eyes peered out from behind the shield and slowly, he got to his feet. Arione suppressed a shiver. First, when Arione had sent a series of debuff spells at Lock, nothing had worked. He had actually sensed Lock¡¯s mana circulate faster throughout his body, in the patterns of buffs related to attack, speed and defense. It was only when Scarlet used [Back to Square One], that Lock had lost some of those mana qualities. Arione could safely surmise that Lock had a passive that reversed buffs. Second, Lock was immune to magic damage¡­ under some certain conditions. Third, he¡¯d use [Hateful Wound] or something like it. Fourth, he¡¯d stolen Arione¡¯s spell and somehow disabled him from using it. ¡°Ujo for sure¡­ the combination of reversing debuffs and [Hateful Wound] is a dead giveaway. As for the other¡­ What the hell could it be? Magic immunity? There¡¯s about a dozen monsters that give you [Magic Immunity] but nothing that disables someone¡¯s spell. I have to figure out a way to get through his [Magic Damage Immunity]. Hmm... how should I play this.¡± Lock rushed Arione again and the elf took to the air, bombarding Lock with blades of wind. They hit Lock dead on and did nothing. Arione smiled. ¡°Ok then. How about this?¡± Arione¡¯s mana spun around him and descended towards Lock like a hurricane. Lock frowned and tried to get out of the way but something was wrong. The wind wasn¡¯t just moving, it was sucking him in towards the center. The slave planted his feet and then stabbed his sword on the ground but Arione continued feeding more mana into his spell ¨Ccreating full blown hurricane speed winds¨C and Lock felt his grip on the sword slip. Lock made a split second decision: if he tried to fight against the spell, he¡¯d lose his sword and be sent flying anyways. The answer was simple, he stopped struggling against the wind¡¯s momentum. Lock withdrew the blade from the stone and felt his body get launched towards the sky. At first, his body floated like a feather than as Arione activated the spell; he shot up like there were rocket boosters attached to his ribs. ?Arione Popwindale has cast [Updraft] ? Arione wasn¡¯t trying to damage Lock directly anymore. He was trying to kill Lock through fall damage. Arione¡¯s grade of 2 wasn¡¯t just for show, the damage was devastating to the landscape. As Lock¡¯s body was launched into the air he saw that he wasn¡¯t alone in the air; pieces of broken houses, corpses, monsters and even winged centipedes were caught in the updraft. Lock tried to twist his body, he had to regain control over his footing. Even if it was him, a fall from this height would kill him. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. 100 feet. 200 feet. 300 feet. 400 feet. Lock felt queasy. He¡¯d never been afraid of heights before, having spent most of his childhood years on the top floor of the highest skyscrapers of New York City. But he quickly found out that it was one thing to be protected inside a structure rooted to the ground; another entirely to be in freefall with the wind roaring in his ears. Then the wind stopped. His body flipped in the air and he saw a glimpse of the moon, shining bright above him. In the horizon he saw the [Mother Centipede], her gaze fixed on the roof of the temple. There were tiny figures on top of the rooftops, and dozens of corpses. There were four figures in all, too small for him to make out who they were. He was too far and too high up. But for one blissful moment, everything was still and he was flying. Then Lock fell. The wind shrieked as he began to pick up speed and the sense of zero gravity disappeared as the gut-wrenching grip of free fall took root in his stomach. Lock realized that his mouth was open; he had started to scream without realizing it. Arione saw the slave start to fall, headfirst. A death sentence for anyone without flight abilities. But despite the scream of terror the Slaveborn¡¯s eyes stayed calm. He looked to and fro, looking for anything that he could use. ¡°Stay calm. Stay calm. Stay CALM. There IS a way out.¡± Lock told himself. ¡°He messed up. Capitalize on his mistakes. Just like in the game, a single mistake is deadly. Calm down and THINK. Do NOT let fear overcome your senses.¡± If Arione had used a more focused spell that sent Lock and only Lock into the sky, perhaps the battle would be over. But whether it was due to impatience or hubris, the spell had been messy. Arione had powered the spell with too much mana. There were hundreds of debris in free fall with him.for Boulders, broken off parts of buildings and corpses; Lock was willing to use anything. But he couldn''t move. There was nothing for his hand to grab ahold of or his feet to step off of. For force to be applied, he needed to apply it on something. Until he spotted the Winged Centipede homing in on him like a bird of prey. Arione¡¯s eyes widened in shock. There was no way that he could- In an awe-inspiring display of bodily control, Lock bent his back so far his forehead almost touched his foot. But the maneuver allowed him to dodge the Winged Centipede and grab ahold of its antennae. Then, Slaveborn stabbed it in the side of its head with his sword Screeching, the centipede bucked and turned, trying to throw Lock off. Starting with the sword embedded in the monster, Lock slowly regained control by wrapping his limbs around the creature. First with one hand then hooking both knees over his makeshift mount. With brutal efficiency Lock cut off its limbs which were lacerating his arms and legs. The legs that he couldn¡¯t reach with his sword, he ripped them out one by one. Then he grabbed a space between its carapace right around the back of its neck and pulled hard, steering it towards Arione. The elf-mage saw Lock¡¯s expression and it wasn¡¯t one of fear or excitement: just grim determination. Arione burned the creature out of the air, hoping to incinerate Lock along with it. Lock¡¯s body burst out of the explosion and landed on a piece of falling debris, holding onto it with his shield arm and one leg. Then he bounced off of it and grabbed another, using his sword as a spike. He repeated the maneuver again and scraped his shield edge on the new base for traction. Arione shot out a blade of wind, cutting the slab of stone in two. But he was too late, Lock had already jumped off of it and found another foothold. Then again. Then again. And finally Lock¡¯s two feet were on the ground again. He was bleeding from a dozen different cuts on his arms and legs. Still, he remained standing. Throughout it all, Lock¡¯s eyes never left Arione. Slaveborn took a step towards Arione. Arione unconsciously took a step back. Then he began to laugh. A month. This guy was in MSS for only a month? This monster? This guy was a [Player]??? ¡°A fucking month and you¡¯re what? Grade 6? 5?!¡± Arione laughed then stopped abruptly, bringing his hands together. ¡°What were you before coming to this world? An olympian? A fucking gymnast? Are you really a player from Earth?!¡± ¡°Must be nice having everything handed to you on a platter.¡± Arione taunted. ¡°And you didn¡¯t?¡± ¡°I fucking worked for my magic!¡± Arione snarled. ¡°I¡¯ve been in this world for 10 fucking years, protecting this world from people like you. Coming in and acting like your gods. I love this world. People like you just want to use it.¡± Lock narrowed his eyes then smiled. ¡°10 years¡­ and you¡¯re still stuck at Grade-2.¡± He promised. ¡°Give me two more and I¡¯ll have caught up to you.¡± Lock wasn¡¯t bluffing. He truly believed it. Just two years and he would catch up to the mage. Arione¡¯s eyes turned flat. ¡°You¡¯re going to regret that.¡± He looked back at the [Mother Centipede]. She was still shrieking and dropping her children. But she hadn¡¯t fully descended, nor had she ascended into the clouds. Half her body remained inside the portal and half outside of it. Arione wondered how long it would take to get out of her range if he used his magic. Arione had been holding back. If a grade-2 Mage went all out here, it would only exacerbate the situation. But this Lock character was starting to grate on his nerves. He already didn¡¯t like him, the man had somehow gotten his hands on Cores that made him extremely difficult to kill as a mage. Plus the way he moved¡­ he¡¯d never seen players move like that. He''d seen humans move like that. Just what kind of Cores had he absorbed? His movements during the free fall... it was more beast than human. It was like he wasn¡¯t someone from the real world, he moved like he knew how to fight. All the players he¡¯d seen had been people who relied on their overwhelming stat, Core synergy and at times, spells to force their opponents to submission. But Lock¡­ he fought like an actual swordsman. He knew how to attack someone¡¯s weak side, maneuver his body and use techniques outside of just abilities. Arione had to admit it. Lock Slaveborn was strong. Like he¡¯d said before, Lock had come this far in only a month. He could let loose here¡­ But to do so would be to gain attention. Already, his mana sense warned him that Enla Enla and Suri were on their way here. So far they were attracted to the [Mother Centipede] only; lured here by the overflowing amount of mana. But if the elven mage were to use any of his spells of grade-3 or higher, it was possible that they¡¯d notice him too. That was something he wanted to avoid at all costs, even if it meant having to let Lock go free. Yet, the mage wanted to teach Lock a lesson. While Arione contemplated, Lock was also thinking of countermeasures. It was painfully clear that the mage was holding back and Lock knew why. Arione was afraid of attracting monsters towards him. To be frank, Lock was starting to think this might not be the best idea. Arione had an arsenal of spells at his disposal and Lock had a measly three Core ability. In terms of versatility, Lock was at a complete disadvantage. For any of his offensive abilities to work, he had to land a blow on the Mage. Yet, the Mage hadn¡¯t even shown half his hand yet; Lock was sure of it. Whereas the Mage could sit back and continue to throw spells at Lock to see what worked and what didn¡¯t, Lock was risking life and limb to make sure they didn¡¯t work. One mistake. One mistake was all it would take for Lock to lose. Arione had already made several. But the best Lock could do with those was survive. Taunts not withstanding, Lock was losing. Not only that, he was on a time limit. If monsters were gathering here, it was in Lock¡¯s best interests to escape. Unlike Arione who had [Levitate] and a transport item ¨Cthe flying disc that Clover, Scarlet and L¡¯teya were on¨C Lock only had [Shadow Blink]. They both reached the same conclusion at the same time. Arione moved first. His fingers blurred, faster than before. But Lock was a gamer at heart and was starting to see through Arione¡¯s seal patterns. The elven-mage wasn¡¯t casting [Updraft] like he feared, the spell was something else altogether. In fact, it was a completely new combination of seals. ¡°Fire and Wind Mana Cores as a Grade-2 Mage. So his build¡­ it definitely has to be that.¡± Mages advanced by absorbing Mana Cores, similar to adventurers. Depending on the type of Mana Core that a mage absorbed, they could cast spells of the appropriate grade and element. For example, as a Grade-8 mage, Kyrian absorbed three Mana Cores in total: Light, Earth and Water. By using a combination of the three, he was able to cast lightning spells. His ¡®blind¡¯ debuff was a sub-class of his Light Mana Core. Then by absorbing Mana Cores of the same element and higher grade, Mages could cast more powerful spells. By looking at a Mage¡¯s spell kit, one could roughly deduce what their Core makeup was like¡­ and reverse engineer the spells they were hiding. Like Lock was doing now. ¡°He¡¯s a Temperature Mage.¡± Just as Lock finished figuring out what Arione was, the temperature around them rose by at least twenty degrees. The surrounding area already had an elevated temperature due to the raging fire all around them; it had kept most of the centipede-type monsters from straying into their battle. But now, the searing neighborhood had reached its boiling point; Lock saw droplets of sweat hit the rock and sizzle. The Winged-Centipedes that had begun circling the area plummeted towards the ground; their insectoid wings wilting. As soon as they splattered against the ground, they began to smoke. The monsters were being roasted inside their own exoskeleton. ?Arione Popwindale casts [Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo] ? ?You have entered a Special Field: Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo ? ? Field Effect - Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo is now active ? ? Field Effect - Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo: You take constant fire damage? ? Field Effect - Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo: -15% Flame Resistance? ? Field Effect - Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo: A Random Ability, Skill or Spell is Sealed ? ? Field Effect - Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo: [Coin Toss] has been Sealed! ? Lock felt it when [Coin Toss] disappeared. It was a mental awareness, a feeling akin to something in his backpack falling out. The metaphysical weight of the ability was no longer there; meaning that the skill had been sealed. ¡°So this is what it feels like.¡± Rather than panicking, Lock stayed attuned to his body. He could feel his health being sapped away, as if the constant stinging sensation on his skin wasn¡¯t enough. [Arcane Masochism] and [Gloomy Disposition] wouldn¡¯t work here. What Arione was doing was far beyond just casting a simple low level spell. He had created a [Special Field]. In MSS, [Special Field] effects didn¡¯t count as magical, physical or even debuffs. They were a separate category: environmental. The only way to reduce environmental damage was to have immunity to the corresponding element: in this case, fire resistance or fire immunity. There was a downside to [Special Fields]. Everyone inside the field was affected, no exceptions. Meaning that the caster would be affected as well. Normally, you¡¯d only create a Special Field for which you held the advantage. But by the look on Arione¡¯s face, Lock could tell that something very precious had been sealed. This spell was always used in conjunction with another spell; [Virgil¡¯s Guidance]. It negated all the negative effects of [Memories of Hell: First Circle] and added fire-type environmental damage to all your attack, spells and abilities. Yet he wasn¡¯t casting it. Arione¡¯s one ace in the hole to overcome Lock¡¯s magic damage immunity had been locked away by his own hands. Today, the gods had chosen to frown upon the elven mage. ? Field Effect - Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo: [Virgil¡¯s Guidance] has been Sealed! ?
Chapter 46: Blood, Fire & Shadow (7)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°That¡¯s why you always cast [Virgil¡¯s Guidance] and then follow it up with [Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo].¡± Lock clicked his teeth at the amateur mistake. But it was too early to say that the situation was in his favor. Being a mage and higher leveled, Arione would naturally have higher fire resistance than Lock. Arione¡¯s strategy had been sound; had he succeeded in bringing it to life, he could have defeated Lock without tapping into deeper resources. With [Virgil¡¯s Guidance] sealed, he had crippled himself even further. Now he was stuck feeding Mana into a spell that was hurting both of them. He had to deactivate the spell and then cast [Virgil''s Guidance], and react it. Precious seconds were lost as Arione mentally berated himself and his stupefied brain put together a plan to recover. The slave-swordsman wasn¡¯t nice enough to wait for Arione to recover. Lock darted in so fast that Arione hissed in surprise, summoning the mana shield out of reflex more than an actual planned counter-move. Before the elven-mage could recover from the surprise attack, Lock¡¯s arms blurred in a combination of shield blows and cuts. The relentless fury of the attack chipped at Arione¡¯s shield; slowly breaking it down. With each strike, Lock aimed for a fatal blow. Forehead. Neck. Eye. Nose. Lungs. Heart. More times than Arione could count, Lock¡¯s blade or shield stopped only an inch away from killing him. Without thinking, Arione created a blade of wind and fired it in close range toward Lock. Even as the blade left his hands, the elven-mage cursed. The blade couldn¡¯t hurt Lock and he knew it, it had been a reflex. Yet that reflex cost him dearly, he had to drop the mana shield, if only for a moment. Lock¡¯s chain of savage attacks doubled in intensity and Arione found himself creating layers of shields. The strength behind the slave¡¯s strikes increased and he saw large cracks forming on the translucent frame, straining under the metallic onslaught. Lock chained a simple thrust into a downward slash, pivoting with his front foot and stepping forward with the other. The movement gave birth to an uppercut with his shield that slammed into the mana shield, pushing it back. The elven-mage tried to gain distance but Lock didn¡¯t give him the opportunity. The wound from earlier, the one to his knee continued to hurt and he couldn¡¯t get proper footing. Whenever he tried to put his hands together for [Levitate] or [Uplift], Lock would attempt to get around his shield. From the side, below and even leaping over his shield and threatening to skewer Arione¡¯s head like a meat on a stick with the sword. He felt his concentration waver, almost slipping on a puddle of sweat. During the exchange the two continued the deadly dance, except now Lock was on the offensive and Arione was on the defensive. Meanwhile the ground gave off so much heat that the air bent, turning the environment around them into a warped landscape. To their eyes the wreckage and buildings were turning in on themselves, the heathaze from Arione¡¯s [Memories of Hell: First Circle - Limbo] continuing to raise the temperature. Arione hadn¡¯t meant for this to happen. The spell should have gone off without a hitch and he could have defeated Lock easily. With [Virgil¡¯s Guidance], the basic spells that Arione had been relying on so far would finally hurt the slave. Yet he had made the fatal mistake of mixing up the spell order. It wasn¡¯t like him to make a basic mistake. Could it be that he was panicking? He had never fought someone weaker who fought with such tenacity. Most opponents chose to run away once they learned that he was a grade-2 mage. Handicapped or not, how long had it been since Arione had been in a real fight with another adventurer? Lock on the other hand had only fought opponents as strong if not stronger than him. The slave-swordsman¡¯s combat instincts could sense Arione¡¯s panic. The elven-mage had exuded a sense of arrogance and calm until now. But Lock felt it just then ¨Ca flicker of emotion, a sense of worry and fear all rolled into one. The time was now. Lock suddenly disappeared from Arione¡¯s sight, sinking into shadow. He had been purposefully hiding [Shadow Blink] after the initial use, taking the elven-mage¡¯s attention off of the ability. Even when he was in free-fall, Lock could have easily sank into his own shadow once getting ahold of debris. But he had held on, all for this one moment. And it worked. Arione¡¯s blunder plus Lock¡¯s planning had given birth to this moment. He jumped out of the shadow behind Arione and swung with all his might. Lock¡¯s vision zoomed into the edge of his blade as it parted the mage¡¯s pale unmarred skin. A certain death-blow. Lock had forgotten that they weren¡¯t alone. Just as Arione had been distracted by the battle, forced to think of a way to defeat Lock without the use of higher-grade spells, Lock had been distracted with trying to defeat Arione with the limited numbers of moves available to him. Scarlet made hand seals similar to his master and cast one of the most basic moves that a mage can learn. A simple manipulation of mana, as hard as he could into one direction. ? Scarlet has cast [Shove] ? It wasn¡¯t a strong spell at all. But just enough to push Lock¡¯s body back and cause the sword strike to stop just short of cutting through Arione¡¯s jugular. Lock fell back, his face in a snarl. He couldn¡¯t believe that he had forgotten about Scarlet. He should have known that the fight would devolve to a two-on-one. He readied to jump towards Arione, who was clutching his neck trying to stem the bleeding and swaying. It was obvious the mage hadn¡¯t been wounded like this in a very long while. Scarlet landed in front of Lock, his arms spread wide. ¡°Please¡­ stop¡­ both of you¡­ you don¡¯t have to do this.¡± Lock hesitated. Not because of Scarlet, he could have simply used [Shadow Blink] to get through the mage without hurting him. He hesitated because he saw Clover jump down from the disc and heal Arione. All the rage inside of him disappeared. Where it went, Lock didn¡¯t know. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Lock tightened his grip over his sword. That mage was going to be dangerous in the future, his instincts warned him that leaving Arione alive was going to come back and bite him. But could he get through Scarlet? What if... What if Clover fought against Lock? Could he hurt her? Kill her? No. He couldn''t. No matter how disappointed he was in her, no matter how big the wound in his heart was, Lock still felt a semblance of something resembling friendship with Clover. He also didn''t want L''teya to wake up in a world where her closest friends had murdered one another. Not for Clover. Not for Scarlet and definitely not for Arione. For L''teya. He lowered his weapons. Calmly, he watched as Clover placed her hands near Arione¡¯s neck and started to heal. The wound was deeper than it looked, it took awhile for her to close it completely. Even after she had, it left an angry red welt of fresh skin afterwards. Arione stood still, meeting Lock¡¯s gaze without looking away. ¡°We should get out of this place together¡­¡± Scarlet trailed off awkwardly. Arione had stopped maintaining his Field Spell. The temperature was starting to die down. Clover turned and faced Lock. ¡°Lock¡­¡± She took a deep breath, steadying herself. ¡°Come with us Lock. Arione has promised to get us all out of here. You, me and Lety. We can be together again. Safe¡­ Arione can take that manacle off of your neck.¡± Clover had watched the battle, her body turned to ice. Within her mind, she had been screaming but the sound never left her mouth. Clover had locked herself inside a cage of her own making, the padlock made of guilt and the bars of shame. She felt that she had let everyone down. Especially Lock. Kiiiiiyyyyyyyaaaaahhhhhhhhhh [Mother Centipede] screeched once more and another fresh wave of her children spawned in droves, blotting out the moon and filling the streets. They had to leave. ¡°Lock?¡± Clover insisted once again. ¡°Come with me?¡± Lock stared at Scarlet in front of him, then at Arione who was being supported by Clover. ¡°No.¡± He answered simply. Some of the fire inside of Arione¡¯s eyes died out, replaced by what Lock recognized as relief. Clover bit her lip. Lock¡¯s rejection had hurt her more than she expected, though deep down she knew. She knew the moment they started speaking that the chasm between them couldn¡¯t be overcome with something as simple as a gesture of good-will. Somehow, somewhere along the way their paths had split so far apart that it couldn¡¯t come together anymore. Lock had chosen to pick up and protect. Clover had chosen to let go and abandon. Still, she had to try. ¡°Lock¡­ please?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Clover closed her eyes. She would not cry. She would not show tears. ¡°Do you think we¡¯ll meet each other again?¡± ¡°...I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°What should I tell Lety when she wakes up?¡± Lock had no answer to that. ¡°The truth.¡± He answered at last. Clover let out a little laugh. ¡°That¡¯s just like you.¡± She reached towards the Dimension Ring on her finger, the one that Lock had taken from the assassin. As the beastwoman grabbed it, memories came to her unbidden. Of the short but long time they all spent together. She forced them away, lest it weaken her resolve. Taking it off of her finger, she threw it towards Lock. It clanged on the floor, stopping right at his feet. ¡°Good bye, Lock.¡± Clover her back to Lock and walked towards the disc. Lock did not reply. Scarlet lowered his arms, his expression unreadable and followed after the pink-haired beastwoman. Only Arione and Lock remained. But the battle was over, both felt it. Their muscles had grown cold and so had their desires for blood. Slowly, Arione took a step backwards and turned to get on the disc with his companions. But not before mouthing just two words to Lock with a smirk. ¡®I win.¡¯ Lock closed his eyes in defeat. He had wanted to kill Arione, make the elven-mage suffer but he couldn¡¯t even land one good blow. All he did was waste his own time and strength. No. This fight wasn¡¯t over yet. Lock refused to let it end like this. There were other ways to cut a man. Arione¡¯s whole flippant attitude, the arrogance typical of mages and his status as a [Player]. The way he had treated the lives of the orcs as things just to get at the slave. It screamed of the type of man that Arione was. A man starved for control, a man who had felt threatened by a slave who still had a manacle around his neck. The mage had tried to kill Lock¡­ for what? To walk away with Clover? Was that it? Was that his motive? He killed people for something so petty? ¡°How pathetic.¡± Lock whispered. Arione stopped walking away. ¡°How does it feel to lose? To someone who¡¯s been in this world for less than a month?¡± Something happened just then. Lock could hear Arione¡¯s breath quickening, he could smell Arione¡¯s fear. He felt the hair on his arms rise in response to Arione¡¯s signals. Lock didn¡¯t need his sword to hurt Arione. The man was afraid of him. He could hurt him with a breath. ¡°I¡¯m going to come for you, you know.¡± He sensed Arione¡¯s disturbed emotions spill out in a wave. Fear permeated the air and Lock could see Arione fighting the urge to flee. ¡°Oh, not right way. But I¡¯ll take years biding my time. Perhaps you won¡¯t have Scarlet or Clover around by then. Perhaps you¡¯ll have different comrades, perhaps you¡¯ll be alone.¡± Lock lowered his voice, speaking softly. ¡°It must be both humiliating and terrifying. Losing to me I mean. How will you explain it to them? To anyone? You said you loved this world?¡± ¡°Why? It¡¯s full of monsters, misery and death. Was your old life in the real world not to your liking? Was beating this world your ticket to being normal? To start over?¡± Lock felt it when Arione¡¯s stomach twisted itself into knots at the words ¡®old life.¡¯ Lock gave a harsh laugh. Explaining his decision to Clover had been beyond difficult. But this? The pain that Arione was feeling? Lock had lived with it for his entire life. ¡°Did you think your life in this world would be different? Filled with people who loved you? Those who would trust you and depend on you? Is that why you love this world? Because you know a couple of cheats to become powerful and can buy friends?¡± Lock touched upon his own doubt and pain, adding weight to his words and crushing Arione underneath them. ¡°Nothing¡¯s changed for you.¡± He said nonchalantly. ¡°I saw the way they looked at you. She hates you, you know¡­ I can tell. And your apprentice? He¡¯ll never trust you ever again. In the end¡­ it¡¯ll be the same as before. Them whispering behind your back¡­ while you spent the rest of your life looking over your shoulder.¡± ¡°Because don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t let you be alone for too long. And when we meet next time¡­ ¡± Lock delivered the final blow with a breath. ¡°Next time¡­ I¡¯m going to kill you.¡± Arione couldn¡¯t help it. He shuddered. The mage felt it in his bones. Lock was right. They¡¯d never trust him ever again. He¡¯d be alone. Just like before in the real world. And Lock Slaveborn¡­ If left alone¡­ if he didn¡¯t do something about Lock Slaveborn right now, the time would come when he could use every spell he knew, every item in his possession, call in every favor, and still be unable to stop the man. His 10 years of surviving in this world told him that Lock Slaveborn was dangerous and that the slave needed to die here and now. But as ashamed as he was to admit, Arione was afraid of the man. He didn¡¯t want to turn around. Instead, Arione condensed his Mana Cores, for just a second and transmuted them to a higher purity; a requirement for casting Grade 1 Spells. He couldn¡¯t cast it even if he wanted to ¨Che did not possess enough mana or mastery¨C but just preparing the mana was enough. The mage sensed three different beings shift their attention in this direction. Lock¡¯s mana sense wasn¡¯t refined enough to catch what Arione did. ¡°Lock Slaveborn.¡± Arione¡¯s voice trembled. ¡°You won¡¯t.¡± Arione got on the disc with the others. The magical construct blurred as Scarlet cast [Shimmer Weave] and soon Lock couldn¡¯t feel their presence any longer. They were gone. And he was alone. He picked up the Dimension Ring and put it on his hand. Lock Slaveborn would have to find another Priestess to heal his wounds. He began to run towards the eastern side of the city, where his other companions were waiting for him. Unbeknownst to him, he had lingered too long in the spot where Arione had resorted to his underhanded measure. A single monster flying towards Samak City, drawn by the [Mother Centipede], grew curious and decided to investigate. And a more sinister pair of eyes, glowing white like the moon itself, stalked Lock from the shadows.
Jason thrust his dagger into the cold body of the Orc Chieftain. The centipedes attached to his body were greedily feeding on the corpse ¨Cmandibles ripping off pieces of meat with reckless abandon¨C and the man himself continued to stab it long after the soul had left the body. Contrary to what people might have expected from the Akka Xalud Scion, his eyes were flat and calm. He repeated the stabbing motion with eyes like that of someone licking envelopes again and again ¨Cdeadened emotions and muscle memory. Finally satisfied, Jason stood up. Maria had stopped playing the [Centipede Flute], a Singularity Item from their father¡¯s vault. As a result, [Mother Centipede] couldn¡¯t do more than simply make an appearance. Her appearance itself had been deadly enough, bringing a swarm of lower-grade monsters that had devastated the city. Their forces had taken some losses too but it was worth it. Samak City was theirs. Using this as the base of operations, the Akka Xaluds would revive the slave trade; albeit under the control of the Turina Empire and their Great House. The family could also take control of the nearby dungeons and monster zones, another ground to farm precious monster materials and Cores. Soon, the Zimmskar Kingdom would hear of what transpired here and demand retribution but it¡¯d be too late. By this time next year, Jason planned to have this city fortified enough to defend it from a full-scale attack. Only then would the Turina Empire start enslaving the beastman once more. Bit by bit, they would fan the flames of war. The Akka Xaluds wasn¡¯t the only family working on that front. The Vetilius to the south-east, placed near the Jayu States and its treasures behind their borders; Delirious Jungle, Babel Towers and many more self-ruling lands without a greater power to guide them onto the proper path. Once the Empire could gain control of that region, they could raise an army of barbarians, mages and many others. ¡°Brother.¡± Maria¡¯s voice brought Jason out of his musings. Now wasn¡¯t the time for him to ponder about his role in the upcoming war. He had claimed Samak City and would likely be placed as its warden. It was a time to celebrate. ¡°Maria, call back the [Mother Centipede]. We no longer have any need of it.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± She answered, then bit her lip hesitating. ¡°We lost the other one.¡± Jason frowned and two of his centipedes hissed at once another, venom dripping off of their forcipules. They didn¡¯t have eyes per se, but faced each other. The two tugged at his skin and he felt the odd sensation of bits of his skin ripping. ¡°It is of no consequence. He is too weak to do anything and fleeing from this battle speaks to his courage.¡± The orc that Maria was referring to had been the one next to Warchief Thoktur when he arrived. He had been strong enough to hold the men at bay but not enough to get through them and stop Maria from playing the [Centipede Flute]. However, because his men were occupied Jason was forced to face the warchief alone. Not that it mattered, the Scion knew that defeating the warchief past his prime was a given. He had his sights set higher than that. ¡°And what of the mage? Will you truly let him go? People will talk and if the church finds out-¡± ¡°The Church has other matters to deal with.¡± Jason glanced at her. ¡°And the only other person other than me who knows about the mage is you, dear sister.¡± Maria¡¯s breath caught in her throat at Jason¡¯s hidden threat. She bowed her head. ¡°Understood brother.¡± ¡°I will keep my word to the mage.¡± Jason would have to deposit the funds at the nearest adventurer¡¯s guild into Arione¡¯s account under a fake name. Easy enough to do. He waited as Maria picked up the flute, ready to dismiss the [Mother Centipede]. Afterwards she¡¯d be spent, unable to do anything else while recovering her strength. That was the price of using such a powerful Singularity. Maria had been all but useless in battle, keeping the monster from awakening fully. But it was worth it. Without the centipede swarm, they could never have taken the city so fast. Maria put the flute to her lips and began to play the song. Above them, [Mother Centipede] slowly retreated into the clouds and many of her winged children went with her. The city was theirs.
Chapter 47: Blood, Fire & Shadow (End of Book 1)
World: MSS - Loading...
I was tired. So very tired. But I had to continue on. Most of my wounds were closed ¨Cwith ugly, red and black scabs¨C but the major one¡¯s hadn¡¯t yet. They continued to weep with fat red droplets that left a trail which anyone could follow, both monsters and people alike. Now that the adrenaline from my battle with Arione had worn off, everything had started to hurt with interest; paying back all the pain I owed my body was a tiresome affair. Yet, I couldn¡¯t let it stop me. The stumps left on my shield hand hurt like hell, the fingers long gone due to a berserker cutting them off along with a good portion of shield which had been meant to protect them. My arms and legs had been lacerated by my little trick with the Winged Centipede when Arione tried to drop me to death from five hundred feet in the air. There was a stab wound from a mage''s dagger when I shadow blinked in front of him. With every step I took, a new wound screamed with pain for attention; adding onto the fatigue. The sound of leather boots hitting the ground at a full run was all the warning I had before Yulrien burst from the shadows and tried to put me out of my misery. As much as I welcomed his efforts, I fought back. Before I knew what was happening, my arms moved preemptively, parrying Yulrien¡¯s dagger strike and countering with a thrust towards his belly. Yulrien skipped out of reach, waited for me to reach the full length of my maneuver and surged forward, accompanying my sword¡¯s return. Luckily, I had kept my shield at the ready and blocked his dual-dagger thrust. Why the hell was it that everyone was out to get me? With practiced ease that betrayed his skill, the glasses-wearing elf skidded his dagger along my shield, bright sparks banishing the shadows around us. He shifted his daggers upwards and the angry sparks flew towards my eyes; with my enhanced sight vulnerable to changes in brightness, I felt them close without any input from me. As soon as my eyes closed, the back of my head tingled with fear; I would die if I did nothing. Stepping forward, I raised my shield and stabbed in one quick motion; opening my eyes a second later. The move saved my life. As I thrusted forward, Yulrien was forced to step back a step; He had been inches away from gifting me two new holes on my chest to breathe through. Yulrien pirouetted on his toe and leaped off of a nearby wall like a martial artist stunt double, pouncing on me with both daggers held in a reverse grip. Mana expelled from his body and waved together to create a silhouette of a snake''s head. My shield-arm screamed as Yulrien bore into it from above; his daggers were encircled by reddish-mana rotating at ridiculous speed. I recognized the ability combination: [Snake Bite] x [Drill Fangs]. The former kept your opponent fixed in place as long as you were attacking from above and the latter was an armor piercing skill. Even now, I heard the metallic shriek of his blades grating into my shield; they''d pierce through sooner or later. I sank into my shadow and appeared a few feet behind him using [Shadow Blink]. He stumbled forward from my sudden disappearance and as all his weight shifted forward. Running forward, I sent half a dozen slashes at him but the man rolled through it, coming to his feet and facing me. ¡°Slave.¡± He sneered, lowering his daggers slightly. I saw the surprise on his face; he hadn''t entirely known it was me. Or maybe he was acting. Either way, I wasn''t about to give him the benefit of the doubt. Too many things happened tonight for that. I carefully placed my shield into position, the tip of my shortsword pointed towards him. I had no illusions about my fight with Arione. I had bested him but only because he didn¡¯t want to attract attention from the surrounding monsters and due to his underestimation of my abilities. But Yulrien? From the clash just now, I had a good understanding of his skill. He was above me in terms of pure skill but in terms of Core Synergy, he had nothing on me. I could take him. But I was beyond tired. I was weary. Of people dying around me and me being responsible for it. ¡°We don¡¯t have to do this.¡± My voice was a harsh whisper. Then to my surprise, Yulrien lowered his daggers, sheathing them. He smirked at me, cocking his head. The wind changed direction, shifting the flames to illuminate his features. ¡°Go then, Slave. No need for us to cross blades.¡± ¡°Is he being serious?¡± Now I was even more wary of the man. ¡°Go.¡± He turned around and began to walk towards the temple. A shot of good faith. I didn¡¯t dare lower my shield, keeping my sword pointed at his back. Instead, I divided my attention into two. My eyes set on Yulrien and my ears to the winds to see if anything was sneaking up on me from behind. ¡°Ah, before you go, I have to ask.¡± He half-turned. ¡°What happened to those two women you were with?¡± Although I didn¡¯t answer, something must have shown on my face. He just nodded. ¡°I see.¡± The smirk returned and he turned around, waving a hand over his shoulder. In front of him were the walls of two separate houses; leaning against each other and creating an archway. He strode into the shadows, disappearing. ¡°If you ever want a job, look for me in the Under Guild.¡± I remained there a moment longer, far longer than necessary. Then I turned tail and ran. It didn¡¯t take me long to reach the huge gates that led into the narrow canyon pass. In the darkness of night, the divide was as inviting as a serial killer¡¯s basement. My enhanced eyesight couldn¡¯t pierce the veil of shadow; the light from the burning city now behind me failed to illuminate more than the rock cropping around the entrance. I wished I hadn¡¯t sent Kyrian and Skaris so far ahead; or the Black Dogs for that matter. Their [Dark Vision] would be loads better at scouting the path than my own ever could. I placed one aching knee in front of the other and headed into the pass. Once I was inside, it wasn¡¯t as bad; I could see a few feet ahead. But it was like the darkness had mass and density; it rolled and shifted like fog. Was there a monster here? Still I could look up between the two colossal cliffs that hugged the pass from each side, making sure that the moon was visible. I continued my trek, grim and determined. This was the last hurdle before I was out of this godforsaken place. The first thing I¡¯d do was find a way to get this goddamned manacle off of my neck. Then I¡¯d find an actual bed and- The moon disappeared. At first I thought a stray cloud had drifted across the sky, covering the moon¡¯s iridescent light. But there were bits of light streaking through the shadows; shadows that were too sharp, too defined and linear for a cloud¡¯s overcast. As my heart hammered in my chest, I looked to see how far I had left until the exit. Too far for me to make a run for it. I looked up, my senses focused on the bead of sweat that dripped down from my brow to my chin. The creature dwarfed any other monster I had seen, except for [Mother centipede]. But I had only seen [Mother Centipede] at a distance, not up close like this. It looked like someone took a bird skeleton and ripped off the head of a vulture and stuck it on. Maybe the opposite, stripping away the feather and flesh from the neck-down. Either way, the black orbs that served as its eyes looked straight down at me. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. As birds often do, it leaned its head to one side while studying me. It reminded me of the pigeons I saw on the new york subway, perching on the rafters and watching the pedestrians below. If it wasn¡¯t for the aura of fear emanating from the creature, I¡¯d have felt at home. The creature shifted from its position and the moon shone again. I inched closer to the exit; sweat pouring freely from my neck down my chest and back. This monster was [Skeletal Vulture], a grade-6 monster. But were they supposed to be this big? I hadn¡¯t seen one in real life before and it''s sprite version had been no bigger than three times the size of a person. But this particular variant was so large that it could pick up houses with its talons. The sheer size of the creature awed me and drove a spike of instinctual fear. ¡°Is it a named Variant? Is it going to attack?¡± Skeletal Vulture was one of those monsters who had a low defense stat but more than made up for it with ranged attack abilities. [Destruction Beam], [Cloverfield] and [Hear my Who!]... any of those abilities had the potential to fill the valley completely. With the walls hugging me from either side combined with the sheer size of the creature, I¡¯d have no way to get out of its range. The duration for [Shadow Blink] had run out awhile ago when I felt the danger of battle pass as Arione left. Minutes ago, I had been thinking everything was possible and MSS decided now was the time to crush those thoughts of mine. The bird-behemoth shoved its head down into the pass, beak coming close. I pressed myself under a small outcropping of rock. I did not want to touch it. I breathed out and its beak was so close that my breath fogged up the surface in front of it, its eerie black shell-like bone becoming murky. Then almost languidly, its head shuffled closer to me, dislodging pieces of rock that fell and splintered into pieces. One stray piece hit my shin and I stifled the reflexive hiss of pain. Then the beak rose out, granting me a view of the other side of the wall. There was a woman there. I smelled something insidiously sweet like flowers, chocolate and wine rolled into one. I felt my footsteps move towards her against my will and she smiled like I had never seen before; inviting and playful, shy and coy. I couldn¡¯t tell what her face looked like but all I could see was that her skin was white like snow, smooth as ice and free of any imperfections. The contrast between the suffocating sensation of her sticky syrupy scent and the liquid-silver complexion of her skin was intoxicating. Like I could drown in one but swim in the other. She slowly parted her cloak, her bare skin beckoning me near and my floppy brain was all too happy to oblige. Her hands gently tugged at my hands, asking me to let go of my weapons. The woman tilted her head down just so, biting the lower part of her lips and slowly looked up at me. My desire for her grew. Her eyes were blood-red. No pupils. No nothing. Up close, I could see her face. There was no pale skin, just white fur with a canine snout already stained with blood like a brush dipped in red paint. Her mouth parted and rows of curved fangs greeted me, along with a whiff of rot and decay. Then before I could react the Shadow Mimic Wolf, Snow White, plunged her claws into my left eye socket and plucked it clean. ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH.¡± Distinctly I realized that someone was screaming in the background. But there were more pressing concerns that flashed bright red against the part of my brain for pain and hurt. Half my vision was gone, it was replaced by a lightless vista of the black abyss that only happened in the deepest depths of sleep. Out of my remaining eye I saw a thin red stringy¡­ thing hanging off of the opposite side of my face. And by the gods, it hurt. It wasn¡¯t the physical pain as much as the mental shock of having something as intimate as a body part taken whole out of me. I fell to my knees, scrabbling for my weapons. When the hell did I drop my sword and shield? A swordsman should never drop his swords. ¡°Ughhh¡­. Ghk¡­..¡± I heard myself making animalistic growling noises, trying to stifle the scream. I dared a glance at the monster in front of me. It was Snow White. Now that I wasn¡¯t [Charmed], I could see the creature in more detail. There was something disturbingly feminine about the monster, both familiar and alien. From the slight curve of its animal body that seemed all too human and its hands ending in fingers. My eyeball was skewered on the dagger it held. Slowly, almost deliberately like the monster had an ego capable of understanding exactly what it was doing, she brought it to muzzle and tore off a piece. My wandering fingers finally closed around what I assumed was the hilt of my sword. Shadow Mimic Wolves were not supposed to have any abilities related to [Charm] unless they copied it off of someone. Could it be that this wolf mimicked the ability and waited in this canyon opening waiting for someone to walk by? How many others fell victim to this monster? It was smart enough to lay traps? How? My legs shook. My damage done to my body was over the limit and the psyche assault launched by Snow White had broken something inside. I couldn¡¯t grip my sword hard enough nor think clearly. She had done something to my mind and the after effects continued to linger. Goddamn it all to hell, this was [Mental Fatigue]. It wasn¡¯t just a status bar in the game, it was an indicator that your character literally couldn¡¯t fight anymore. I used to make fun of it on the forums saying that these characters lacked discipline but now that I experienced in the flesh it was another thing altogether. My mind was broken. Was I going to die? ¡°Lock!¡± ¡°Thisss way.¡± Familiar voices roused me out of my stupor like someone poured cold water on me. The mounting tension and the invisible threat of death was gone. Whatever magic the creature had cast on me and in this area, the spell was broken. The monster turned its head to one side, like a confused puppy then smiled with its tongue hanging out of its mouth. It was horrifying. Slowly, it sank into the shadows using the ability I knew all too well. [Shadow Blink]. My brain ran through what just happened, processing each scene step by step. A detached part of my brain went back to the cutscenes that MSS often provided after finishing the prologue of a preset. Whether you succeeded in becoming an adventurer from a farmer or the son of a knight, MSS put in a cutscene that showed you the sheer size of the game. Raging oceans with no end in sight, skies so blue that you could sink in it and the occasional dragon that flew by. This had felt exactly like one of those, where the game was telling you: ''Welcome to MSS! Suffering awaits!''. But I''d never heard of one where the character became blinded in one eye. I gritted through the pain, sucking in deep breaths. Already the pain was subsiding though I was drooling a good amount, keeping my teeth clenched. ¡°Here!¡± Out of my one good eye, I saw Kyrian, Skaris and Kellin break out into a run towards me from the other side of the canyon¡¯s divide. They were well and alive, looking no worse for wear than when I had left them. My heart swelled. At least I had done something right tonight. Picking up my shield, I joined them. *** 87 people, most of them slaves. That¡¯s how many people survived. After I joined the others we made camp next to the canyons, waiting for any other survivors. I say the word ¡®camp¡¯ but define it loosely. Mostly we just sat in the shade that the red rocks offered, rummaging around dimension rings we looted off of bodies on the way here. Sure enough, there were other poor souls that joined us. Slaves, merchants and even Akka Xalud soldiers. A fight almost broke out but Skaris and I quickly put a stop to it. If we executed these guys for once being Akka Xalud soldiers, that might put Kyrian in a tough position later. Besides, like I had said, I had enough blood on my hands. I reckon that we all did. We waited for three days beneath those cliffs but reached a consensus that we needed to move. The desert heat wasn¡¯t getting any colder and we¡¯d run out of food sooner or later. The number of mouths to feed was increasing and there was no food in sight. So we decided to head east, towards the Jayu States which was the closest semblance of civilization. We walked for seven days. Along the way we¡¯d picked up more stragglers. Now our group numbered near 200. The Samak Desert was hauntingly beautiful. The scorching sand during the daylight reflected off of the countless grains of sand, creating a myriad of colors that I never tired of looking at. Standing on a sand dune big enough to be the mast of a battleship and overlooking the entirety of the desert, seeing mountains in the distance with clouds covering its peak, words couldn''t describe how small I felt. The freedom to walk, eat, sleep and talk without a manacle around my neck was life-changing; I''d never take anything for granted ever again. But not all was well. We marched endlessly, the orcs and the Black Dogs looking for tracks and landmarks. There were complaints but none dared stray too far from the group, there were too many monsters for that. We met dozens of monsters heading towards the temple, finally making their trek towards [Mother Centipede], who was long gone by the way. These were the dregs, the weaklings who couldn¡¯t keep up with the speed of their stronger counterparts. If it weren¡¯t for the strong few, we would have suffered more casualties. Luckily when we met the merchant caravan, most of us were alive. ¡°Yousef.¡± He introduced himself. Looking over the dwarf, I could tell he was the boss immediately. He stood a little bit taller than his two brothers and had the longest beard. Also he wore the most gold jewelry. ¡°Lock.¡± I kept my name short as well. I carefully walked so that he was withinin my field of vision. Then slowly, I clasped his forearm, exchanging grips with the man; I took special care not to miss. I was still getting used to seeing out of only eye after all. Fortunately, there had been an elven priestess who almost became a slave and she had managed to heal up my fingers. Finally, I had ten fingers again. But the eye¡­ She managed to grow it back but¡­ I couldn¡¯t see out of it anymore. I¡¯m sure you can guess what that means for a swordsman or adventurer. Still, I wasn¡¯t one to be dismayed. There was more than one method of restoring sight and I intended to test out all of them. Yousef looked me up and down, peering out of one eye. Was this guy mocking me? ¡°Fucker¡­¡± I bit back the curse. There were camels hitched to wagons and guards all around his caravan. He had room to spare. It was obvious he came to buy slaves but was leaving without much to show for it. I wanted to get on this guy¡¯s good side; I¡¯d never hitchhiked before but it seemed easy enough. He had something I wanted and I had something he wanted. An arrangement could be made. So I smiled. Yousef stepped back, alarm evident on his face. "Ah, fecking shit." He cursed. "By the forge, I''ve never seen-" ¡°Ssstop that, Sslaveborn.¡± ¡°Lock, please.¡± I dropped the smile. Kyrian had told me that I had a scar over one eye that extended past the corner of my lips and down by chin. Plus, I was blind in one eye. So I was always squinting. Combined with the scars on my face, neck and on my body¡­ Well, I could forgive Yousef for being intimidated by appearances alone. ¡°So¡­ you all are looking for a ride to the Jayu States?¡± He continued and gestured at the caravan. ¡°I¡¯m sure you can see, I have room to spare. But not for free my man! Not for free! T¡¯is the nature of a merchant to find a need and fulfill it! For a price of course!¡± I had expected it and was ready to pay. ¡°Whatever your price is, we¡¯re good for it.¡± I jerked my chin towards the group of refugees behind me, most of them slaves with no combat skills. ¡°We¡¯ll work for our keep. I¡¯m not looking for a handout here. We can protect you from monsters, bandits and even other adventurers.¡± By other adventurers I was referring to possible remnants of the Akka Xalud army, or bounty hunters looking for easy pickings. He got my meaning. ¡°Well I have guards-¡± I cut him off. I had never seen my parents negotiate but being in this world had proven time and time again that overwhelming strength was an undeniable resource in times like this. ¡°Not strong enough to kill Akka Xalud soldiers¡­ or their deserters.¡± I tilted my head and looked at him, my tone turning flat. ¡°I assure you, we¡¯ve proven ourselves more than capable.¡± I expected Yousef to respond in fear but the dwarf¡¯s eye lit up like diamonds. He stepped closer to me, taking my hand in his and began to look them over. He began to mutter to himself. ¡°Thick calluses¡­ not ugly looking either¡­ though a bit scary...¡± He peered at my face. ¡°Could use a hair cut¡­ hmm, the scar adds character. Attitude could use work¡­¡± His brother, Olopo was his name if I remembered correctly, butted in, studying me up and down. ¡°Nope. Leave him as is brother. He has that wild look about him. All the fighters these days are too well kempt, they care more for their looks rather than their blade.¡± "I like this one." The third brother, Tomahud chimed in. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m seeing it now.¡± Yousef nodded, satisfied. ¡°I¡¯ll give you and your people a ride on one condition.¡± ¡°Name your price.¡± Just until the Jayu States. That¡¯s where I would take these people. Until then¡­ I wanted to watch over them just a little longer. ¡°Young master Lock, have you ever heard of the Colosseum?¡±
Chapter 48: Kyrian
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Guhkk¡­. Ghhuukk¡­ uuuuooooooggg¡­¡­¡± I leaned over the bulwark of the galleon, emptying the contents of my stomach. However, the fact was that I had nothing left to empty; I had not had any food except stale bread for the last two nights and even those had been hurtled overboard by my seasickness. The smell of brine assaulted my senses, mixed with the rancid taste of vomit on the back of my tongue. True to his word, Yousef took responsibility for the recently freed slaves. He took us across the desert with his caravan and granted us passage on a boat that he had arranged for ahead of time. Of course, it wasn¡¯t for free. Some of us were to fight in the Colosseum, namely me. Most of our ragtag group were non-combatants: sex-slaves, minor nobles and merchants. The ones who could fight were wary; they didn¡¯t trust Yousef who was an active buyer in the slave trade. Most of the free men refused to show their strength or even take off their armor in their presence. As a result the people who stepped up to protect the caravan from the occasional monster attacks were far and few in between. Again, namely me. As a result, Yousef had taken a liking to me. He offered me free lodging and a stack of gold to get a fresh start in Miltus, one of the Jayu States where the Colosseum was located. Of course, I accepted. There were things I needed to do. After I said my farewell to Clover, I thought long and hard. Time was something I had plenty of, especially with my seasickness leaving me crippled for the majority of this trip. Honestly, it kind of hurt, the way it ended. I never got to say farewell to L¡¯teya and definitely did not part on what I¡¯d call good terms with Clover. More than once I wished I could go back in time and do it over. But we had been fated to part ways. The only thing keeping us together had been our shared goal of survival and eventual escape. Now that we were all free, L¡¯teya would no doubt go and look for her brother. Clover would look for her parents and explore her role as a Priestess of Oung. For me¡­ well, I wasn¡¯t sure. Before I had been 100% sure of escaping this world. But the more I saw of this world, the less I became sure of the possibility of finding a way out. Seeing [Mother Centipede] and the gargantuan Skeletal Vulture had been a humbling experience; I simply couldn¡¯t imagine myself hunting those monsters. So my goal for now was simple. Getting stronger. First, I had to make a party. An actual party of DPS, Tank, Mage, Support and Healer. That would be my first goal. Second, I had to fix my eye. Being blind in one eye was jarring and if my sparring sessions with Skaris were anything to judge by, it was a problem that needed to be fixed. Fast. Luckily, there were a couple of items in MSS that could substitute it, the issue would be getting gold. Which was the third goal: gold. Seeing Samak City get destroyed like that, as a conflict between the emprie of Turina, the Great Houses and other powers¡­ there were still so many things out there that could hurt me. Kill me. Take people away from me. Eventually I came to accept the fact that Arione, that backstabbing snake-tongued son of a bitch, could do things for Clover and L¡¯teya that I couldn¡¯t. He could lead Clover to places that could unlock her powers and help L¡¯teya find her brother. All my knowledge of the game was useless if I didn¡¯t have the strength to protect myself while traveling the world. Admitting that to myself didn¡¯t quell the pain in my heart at all however. It still hurt. A lot. Every night I tossed and turned, thinking about Clover and L¡¯teya. Would we be enemies next time? Strangers? Was the experiences that we shared so short that a lone mage turning us against each other was enough to break those bonds? I had questions. And the next time I met them, I wanted to be strong enough to put Arione in his place and talk to my former comrades with privacy. But for now, I had to focus on the goals right in front of me: surviving this boat ride. As it was, our group had gotten considerably smaller. Realistically, it was the orc-refugees and the berserkers, Kellin and the Black Dogs, along with my party: Skaris and Kyrian. Among them, I was the only one to succumb to seasickness; surviving off of rock hard bread called tack and small sips of water. Even now, while everyone took shelter in the cabins below from the scorching sun, I was forced by to remain above. ¡°Get a droplet of that vomit on my ship and I¡¯ll have you lapping it up like a dog.¡± A sharp voice cracked like a whip from behind me. I turned, half kneeling and half hanging on the bulwark by one arm, to face the speaker ¨CCaptain Max Leck, Captain Max for short. She wasn¡¯t dressed like a captain, more like one of her own crewmates. The top of her head was covered by a black bandana with a skull design, curly black hair running in waves down to her shoulders. Despite being the captain of a ship, her skin was pale ¨Calmost ghostly so¨C and freckles adorned her face right beneath her yellow-green eyes. Her pointed ears betrayed her elven heritage. ¡°Captain.¡± I managed to greet. She gave me a crooked smile, somehow charming and predatory at the same time. ¡°No sparring with the lizard today? You cost me good coin the other day.¡± Once Skaris and I had started sparring, it was inevitable. Coins started exchanging hands and the deck became a gambling hall. If I wasn¡¯t wrong, I saw Yousef actually managing the gambling ring, kind of like a mini-colosseum. The spars were held with no abilities and no armor; just a spear versus a sword till first blood. So far, Skaris was beating me 4-2. ¡°That¡¯s, -umph.¡± I leaned over the railing and emptied my stomach of digestive juices. Once I came to and leaned my back against the wooden bars, Leck threw a flask of water at me. I caught it out of the air and squirted it into my mouth; passing it back to her with a nod of thanks. ¡°So, I heard you and your party are going to be fighting in the Colosseum. Is it true?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I managed, closing my eyes. God, the sun was so bright. ¡°I don¡¯t really see what Yousef sees in you. The most impressive thing I¡¯ve seen you do is keep your breakfast down for a total of two hours.¡± She continued. ¡°It¡¯s not a joke you know. If you¡¯re under some contract with Yousef, you should find some other way to pay it back.¡± I opened one eye to peer at the woman. ¡°You¡¯ve seen the Colosseum?¡± She nodded. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°Tell me about it.¡± I leaned my head back again; anything to distract me from this rolling and bobbing. ¡°Monsters against adventurers. Adventurers against adventurers. Occasional prisoners. What else is there to say? It¡¯s a barbaric sport that spills blood for coins.¡± ¡°Sounds like you don¡¯t care for Yousef or his Colosseum much¡± ¡°The man¡¯s true to his word and his coin is as heavy as the next one. Just a pity that people like you have to die to line his purse.¡± I opened my eyes and saw her studying me. She shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ve watched you. Those beastman? The ones with the Black Ears? They follow you and listen to you. Same for the orcs, both their civvies and the berserkers. The mage extends his trust to no one except you and the lizard.¡± ¡°It¡¯s rare to see someone command that much respect in this corner of the world.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a captain of a ship.¡± I scoffed. I wasn¡¯t quite sure what she was getting at. ¡°It¡¯s very humbling to hear that from you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s different. My men are sailors. They might have a Core or two to defend themselves with but nothing like a real adventurer has. Your men on the other hand¡­ those Berserkers and the Black Dogs are trouble by themselves. I¡¯m not even sure how Yousef plans to bring them into Miltus.¡± ¡°What are you planning to do? Just bring them into Miltus and set them loose? You¡¯ll just be creating vagabonds and criminals.¡± She¡­ had a point. Growing up in New York City, I knew all too well about the rampant homelessness and crime rates that could be caused by a sudden influx of people without a plan in place. Hell, it wasn¡¯t even limited to New York. It was true everywhere and the issue had been a point of debate on news channels for months on end. But at the same time, I didn¡¯t have a responsibility towards these people beyond getting them into Miltus. Didn¡¯t I? The berserker who sacrificed himself to Arione¡¯s fireball, clinging onto the hope that I¡¯d honor a promise which I specifically avoided, came to me. He literally gave his life away on a gamble that I¡¯d keep his promise. I shook my head. On the outside I was Lock, who was a newly freed slave aspiring to be an officially registered adventurer. That¡¯s the people that the people following me respected and obeyed. But on the inside? I was still Han, a 30-year-old programmer whose former-millionaire parents were divorced, with no friends to speak of. This issue of vagabonds, criminals and homelessness wasn¡¯t something I was equipped to deal with. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to Kyrian about it later.¡± I wanted to change the topic. ¡°The mage is smart but the one they follow is you.¡± The elf insisted. I felt the footsteps of annoyance thud into the center of my heart but reigned it in; no point in pissing off the captain of this ship. ¡°You¡¯re very interested in this topic.¡± I pointed out. ¡°I grew up in Miltus. In the Slums. Trust me, it¡¯s not pretty.¡± She looked towards the sky, seeing something in the clouds that only someone who had spent their entire life on the sea could. ¡°Let¡¯s say I have sentimental interest in people who¡¯re no doubt going to end up there.¡± ¡°You think we¡¯re going to end up there?¡± ¡°Yousef promised you lodging? For the lot of you?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Did you think he¡¯d set you and your people up in his manor? With servants at your beck and call? Perhaps you, Lock. But the others, there¡¯s no doubt where they¡¯re going to end up.¡± ¡°What are you suggesting?¡± ¡°A free ride out of here. Out of Miltus. I¡¯ll take you to anywhere else in the world; there are places where they¡¯d pay good money for a mercenary work.¡± ¡°You¡¯re offering to sell us off as mercs?¡± I laughed, all thoughts about trying spare her feelings shriveling up like a rose in the desert sun. ¡°It¡¯s better than the alternative.¡± ¡°You expect me to believe that you¡¯re offering us, a group of former slaves, the chance to work as mercenaries? Where? In the Zimmskar-Turina conflict that¡¯s happening between their borders? Or in the Barbarian Invasion that¡¯s happening in the Feverthorn jungle?¡± I pointed a finger at her. ¡°Surely the captain of a ship that Yousef frequents isn¡¯t doing this out of sentimental value for the slums where she grew up in. Do you get a cut if you drop us off in a warzone? Where we¡¯re surrounded by soldiers as soon as we depart?¡± ¡°Do not cross the line, human.¡± She spat the word like a curse. ¡°The slave-trade was invented by your kind; the world did not know what slaves were until your people shackled the beastman in cold steel. I offered you a way out in case you were having second thoughts about the Colosseum. You have no idea what Miltus is like. It¡¯s a gilded city-¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take my chances.¡± I interrupted her before more of her spit got on me. Her eyes widened and I saw her fingers twitch towards the rapier she wore on her waist. ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± My voice came out colder than I meant, flatter. ¡°Even if you¡¯re drawing your blade to just make a statement¡­ just don¡¯t.¡± Not a moment too soon, the sailor in the crow¡¯s nest began yelling. ¡°Land ho! Land! Miltus!¡± Leck and I glared at each other a moment longer. ¡°You¡¯re well-versed in current happenings despite being a slave.¡± ¡°He¡¯s had a good tutor.¡± The air shimmered a few feet away from us and Kyrian revealed himself. ¡°And please do not threaten him¡­ I reckon the others won¡¯t take it kindly.¡± Leck¡¯s pale complexion showed every vein with perfect clarity, especially the one right on the corner of her forehead which seemed to grow in line with her anger. ¡°I have to prepare for docking. Please, excuse me.¡± She turned stiffly and walked towards the bridge, barking orders. ¡°How long were you there for?¡± I closed my eyes again, the mounting tension escaping out of me. ¡°Long enough to hear what she meant.¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice was wistful. ¡°I think she likes you.¡± I cackled like a witch from a 90s kid¡¯s movie. ¡°What gave you that idea?¡± I looked to the mage to see if he suddenly caught sea-sickness and it was messing with his brain. ¡°A mage¡¯s instinct.¡± He took a seat next to me. ¡°I saw more than one maiden in my lifetime whose life was full of hardship, absent of a single loving touch. So when it came time to express love¡­ they¡¯re awkward. Unskilled as a newborn deer.¡± ¡°You speak like Arrosh.¡± ¡°...Do you miss him?¡± I had told Kyrian and Skaris about Arrosh, my blind-orc master. Skaris had been more interested in the fact that the orc had taught me to fight; especially given my martial prowess in such a short amount of time. Kyrian on the other hand, he had focused more on the emotional aspect between us. The relationship between Master and Student. ¡°It¡¯s less of missing him and more of just wishing I knew what happened to him.¡± I fidgeted with the dimension ring on my hand. ¡°I haven¡¯t even begun to pay him back for everything he¡¯s done for me. With Clover and L¡¯teya gone¡­¡± ¡°You feel like you let down everyone in your life who did something for you. Ever.¡± Kyrian nailed the uneasy feeling I had. He was right; I felt like I let everyone down. ¡°Y-yeah.¡± I admitted, heat flushing to my cheeks. I only had Clover and L¡¯teya before but they had been girls, so genuine moments like this had always been interrupted by random out-of-pocket moments where I wondered if they were interested in me. Carnally. But just now, as I was speaking with Kyrian it felt different than when I had been speaking with them. Was this what it was like to have a friend? Like, a guy friend? ¡°I know the feeling all too well.¡± Kyrian hugged his knees a little closer to himself and I was reminded of how young the mage was. He was barely old enough to have graduated college. ¡°My¡­ mother. I let her down as well.¡± I hesitated. Was it rude to ask? Was it a sensitive topic? What if he didn¡¯t consider me a friend? ¡°Just freaking ask. You can¡¯t always wait for the other person to open up first.¡± It took a lot of courage and guts. More so than when I had been facing down monsters. ¡°You never told me about your mother. Were you two¡­ close?¡± I saw Kyrian mull over the question. ¡°Yes.¡± He said finally. ¡°Are you familiar with the ¡®an¡¯ suffix?¡± I shook my head. ¡°My name, Kyrian Tricilan. It means I am a bastard of the House Tricilo. Any human whose name contains the double ¡®an¡¯ suffix betrays their illegitimacy.¡± ¡°The story of my mother and I is not anything special, quite common actually. My mother was a housemaid and she caught the attention of my father: Kabian Tricilo. Soon after, I was born. Of course¡­ the family was in an uproar. My father was a powerful mage you see¡­ and there was no guarantee than a child born between a powerful mage and a common maid would bear fruit with talents befitting of Tricilo line.¡± ¡°He took a wife and had another son; my younger half-brother Kristof Tricilo. He is the current patriarch of the family. As a result, my mother and I were ousted to a small cabin near the manor: beneath their notice at all times except the times that they wanted to seek us out.¡± ¡°I lived in that small cabin with my mother for all of fifteen years before I manifested my talent. Fearing that I¡¯d become a threat to the family, I was sent away to a Magic Tower to study. To find my own path. As you well know, I eventually became an adventurer; the Akka Xaluds promises of wealth and fortune were too tempting for me to pass up.¡± I remained silent. ¡°I still think about her¡­ of her dying alone. In that cabin, where she used to tell me bedtime stories. I regret telling myself that I¡¯d make a fortune, buy a manor bigger than the Tricilo house and live in that place with my mother.¡± Kyrian had a bitter-sweet smile on his face. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen her since I left.¡± ¡°I¡¯d give anything to be in that cabin again, listening to her bedtime stories.¡± Kyrian finished by closing his eyes. ¡°So yes, I was close to my mother.¡± I didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°That¡¯s part of the reason why I follow you, Lock Slaveborn. Because my life was full of people who made decisions for me, not caring about bastards, maids or slaves. That I couldn¡¯t create a path for myself; I lacked the courage to forge a path to seeing my mother again because I was scared of the Tricilo name. But you¡­ I saw you fight for people who enslaved you Lock. When I saw you stand up and protect me, a former enemy¡­ I made a decision.¡± ¡°I might not be able to be as brave as you and create a path for others to walk¡­ but the least I could do is watch your back. He put his hands on his knees and stood up. ¡°Lock, do not take what Captain Leck said to heart. But remember that depending on what you choose, lives are in the balance. Perhaps it is the life of a mage who lives while thinking of what to tell his mother when he meets her again or the life of an orc child who had nothing to do with this war.¡± ¡°Remember that inaction is a choice, to stand still and allow the world to take its course without your say.¡± He began to walk away. ¡°So keep walking, Lock. Make a path. I will make sure that no one stabs you from the back. You can count on it.¡± The young blonde mage left, the sea-breeze stirring the edges of his robe. I¡¯d never seen such a lonely person. With Kyrian¡¯s words echoing in my mind, I wiped my mouth. I had to prepare myself for Miltus. To forge a new path.
Chapter 49: Arriving in Miltus
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From afar, Miltus was beautiful. The city¡¯s borders extended from the bottom of the cliffs all the way to the top; buildings made of white and blue marble adorned rocky crevices like mountain flowers. I wasn¡¯t sure if it was my imagination but amidst the smell of fish and brine in the docks, I could scent the fragrance of flowers coming from deeper within the city. Sailors moved back and forth, swearing and laughing, sharing in on a joke that only they knew. Compared to Samak City, this place was alive and it was full of different races. I saw elves, beastman and thought I saw orcs without warpaint, meaning they weren¡¯t warriors belonging to a particular horde, just living their lives and running about their daily tasks. The galleon I had just been on, the Sea Liver, wasn¡¯t the only ship at port nor the largest by far. Carracks, that were double the size of the galleon, were anchored like behemoths resting at their nesting place; dwarfing even the galleon. Needless to say, I was impressed. Not just as an MSS adventurer but as a human being; even in the real world I¡¯d never seen ships this big and things so alive. I was near the bow of the ship, admiring the sights. I felt it when the ship stopped, held in place by the anchor and soon, Captain Leck and her men began moving cargo down to the ship. They wasted no time in getting to work. Next to me, I felt Skaris stir. The huge beastman wore a cloak that covered him from head to toe, the heat on his red scales had been too much. ¡°I should look into getting Skaris his racial-trait unlocked soon¡­ if the Colosseum is as big as they say, there¡¯s bound to be race-specific quests.¡± It was time to start getting serious about gaining strength, not just for myself but my party members as well. For Kyrian, a mage, that meant putting in requests for Mana Cores to a Mage Tower. I¡¯d first need to confer with Kyrian about what elements he planned to specialize in. As for Skaris, we¡¯d need to find a witch doctor or shaman of the beastman tribe. Absently, I wondered if there was a large enough beastman population here to warrant such a thing. ¡°Young master! You were here!¡± Yousef and his two brothers, Olopo and Tomahud, came towards us with their guards in tow. ¡°I believe we have a lot to talk about. But first, please. Let me invite you and yours to my manor. We can talk all we want on the way there.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± I had some things I needed to ask Yousef as well. He wasted no time in making sure we walked down the planks towards a carriage that was waiting for us. I saw that there were other planks leading down from the boat and the orc refugees and former slaves were walking down. Kellin, the leader of the Black Dogs, saw me and bounded over to me. ¡°Slaveborn.¡± He greeted. No matter how many times I spoke to Kellin and his hunters, I¡¯d never get used to the half-canine, half-human deep throated growl-like voice that they used. ¡°Kellin.¡± ¡°Glad to see you back on your feet.¡± He remarked and I heard Skaris snort. ¡°Barely. Hisss eye ails him sssstill.¡± Skaris had been rather vocal about the pressing need for me to regain my eyesight. Until we did so, he was not willing to risk us fighting in the Colosseum. Our sparring sessions were helping, somewhat, but I knew that I was still prone to making mistakes. I¡¯d learned from Arione¡¯s example how deadly those could be. ¡°We¡¯ll fix that soon enough.¡± I tried calming Skaris down, ¡°But we need gold. A place to live. Food. Reliable income. Without those, we can¡¯t make a place for ourselves.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I wished to speak to you about.¡± Kellin leaned in. ¡°They are bent on leading us to the slums.¡± I grimaced. It was happening much faster than I thought, I was under the impression that there would be some time and wiggle room for me to negotiate with Yousef. But the man was shrewd, he knew how I felt about the refugees, no doubt a tactic to pressure me into the Colosseum sooner than later. I didn¡¯t hate him for it, but I was still annoyed. ¡°Coordinate with Jak¡¯tur and Ellin. Just keep the non-combatants safe.¡± Jak¡¯tur was a Wolf-Totem Berserker who took over after their leader¡¯s death. Ellin was the elven priestess who had almost become a slave; she was the one who healed my eye and fingers. Superficially atleast. Kellin nodded. ¡°What about those who wish to leave?¡± ¡°Let them.¡± I waved a hand dismissively. ¡°We¡¯re not slavers. They¡¯re free.¡± ¡°We provided them with weaponssss.¡± Skaris hissed. I hesitated then shook my head. ¡°They earned their keep. It took everyone¡¯s help to get through the desert until we met Yousef. They can take whatever they earned but make sure there¡¯s no stealing... both covert and forceful.¡± The Black Dog leader gave me an affirmative grunt and turned back. It was strange to see a grown man listen to my orders and come report to me on what I wanted them to do. The beastman in particular had become fiercely loyal to me. Skaris for example, seldom left my side. But with Skaris it felt more like a dragon that protected its treasure hoard. With Kellin and the Black Dogs, it felt more like a loyal dog. ¡°That¡¯s insulting. Let¡¯s not think like that.¡± I shook my head, bringing myself back to the moment. ¡°Lock, Yousef is waiting.¡± Kyrian pointed. The mage had once again put his cowl over his head, leaving his head shrouded beneath its shade. Only his golden locks peeked out at the fringes of the hood¡¯s shadow. Skaris in the meantime had changed into his armor without me noticing. He favored light armor, a mixture of brown leather with iron. I also knew that in his Dimension Ring, he had half a dozen spears which he could take out at a moment¡¯s notice with deadly prejudice. Entering the carriage, I saw Yousef sitting along with his brother, Tomahud. Yousef, in his typical fashion, was covered in gold. The tips of his mustache were swirled into a point that was tied with a golden braid and all ten of his grubby fingers had multiple rings on them; gold, silver and precious jewels. His beady eyes twinkled as I took my seat, opposite of him. Tomahud dressed humbly, wearing only rings and a necklace compared to Yousef¡¯s extravagant fashion sense. Clop Clop The carriage began to move and I put my good eye towards the window, seeing the city from within. Soon the wooden boards and sailors of the dock changed to paved stones and shopkeepers, colorful houses and regular people going about their business. It was peaceful. It was a bit jarring, coming from the war-like culture of the orcs to a city where people walked around without weapons, without Cores and certainly without the fear of monster attacks. I did spy a few slaves; marked by the manacles around their necks. I absently touched my own neck as well, tracing the scars that it had left. More than once, the manacle dug into my neck, furrowing deeper. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. But no one here was fighting for their lives on a daily basis. Now combined with the scar that ran down by bad-eye and past the corner of my lips, my neck had one as well. Still, it was better than being dead. During the ride, Yousef began to talk about the different types of wine that Miltus exported. Hearing Kyrian exchange pleasantries with the wealthy dwarf, I tuned them out and turned my attention to the change in scenery. The whole of Miltus was one big giant hill and I could see how the class segregation had taken root here in this city. As the carriage went uphill, the houses got larger and the space between them increasingly grew in size. At first, we passed by multifloor apartments or inns, with a balcony or two. I saw taverns and other shopkeeps, marking down stores. Then we passed by houses with gardens, until finally we were at the top of the cliffs. These weren¡¯t homes, they were Estates with a capital E. Gardens here could be seen as miniature forests with their own ecosystem of birds, plants and small mammalian creatures. The streets near the bottom of Miltus had been packed with crowds but now, people walking on the path was sparse and few. Most of the people walking were in uniform or obviously dressed as one of the working class, a messenger or housemaid. The residents here traveled in carriages, much like we were doing. I felt out of place and rightfully so. The carriage led us to a gated manor, with a vineyard instead of the regular garden. The change in plant-life was drastic between the manors, some of them deeply wooded with dirt; which seemed out of place on the rocky peninsula. No doubt, the work of a mage. The others had chosen to embrace the natural beauty of the coastal cliffs. Yousef was of the latter. Soon, the surroundings became a blur. We got off at Yousef¡¯s manor and his servants led us upstairs into Yousefs study. A wide open room with sofas, a large work desk with not a scrap of paperwork to be found and paintings of dwarves that all looked similar to each other; down to the golden signet ring. ¡°Feels good to be home.¡± Yousef smiled at me, taking a seat opposite of myself. ¡°Refreshments will be up soon.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Kyrian sat on my right and Skaris on my left. I saw the lizardman¡¯s eyes dart left and right, searching for hidden guards. ¡°So how do you like Miltus so far? Beautiful, eh?¡± ¡°It is.¡± I leaned back, folding my arms. ¡°But I¡¯m more interested in these slums people have been talking about.¡± Kyrian took a sharp intake of breath. He¡¯d been trying to teach me proper decorum on how to speak to nobles and high-ranking members of the Miltus society. But in my eyes they were all thugs. Yousef included. I was thankful to the man, but that didn¡¯t mean I was going to treat him as something he wasn¡¯t. ¡°Haha! Getting straight to the point eh?¡± He steepled his fingers in front of his chest, leaning towards me. ¡°Yes, young master Lock. The lodging I promised, it¡¯s in the Slums. The orc refugees, the beastman and the former slaves; they are being led there as we speak. But I¡¯m sure you already knew that.¡± I gave no response; no need to confirm something he already knew. ¡°The Slums lie beneath the shadow of the cliffs. Whereas the rest of Miltus basks in the sunlight everyday, the slums alone are hidden by the cliff shadow.¡± He smiled at me, golden fillings reflecting the sunlight shining through his double hung windows. ¡°Even if I had the funds to situate your people elsewhere, I could not. There is no space for them; unless we are willing to expand Miltus¡¯ borders. That is something outside of my control, I regret to say.¡± Yousef¡¯s words had taken a more serious tone. During our trip he had spoken to me like I was a client, someone he needed to bait in. Kind of like a car salesman. But now that I was in Miltus¡­ ¡°He thinks he has me. And he¡¯s not wrong.¡± Yousef had me where he wanted me. But I also had him where I wanted as well. ¡°I don¡¯t care about the slums, none of us expected carpets lined with gold when coming to Miltus. What I want to talk about is an opportunity for these people to grow.¡± ¡°Oh what did you have in mind?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to turn them into adventurers.¡± This time, it was Yousef¡¯s turn to take in a sharp intake of breath. I had already told Skaris and Kyrian my plan but even they flinched. It seemed like Yousef was about to repeat the things that Kyrian had tried explaining to me. ¡°You mean¡­ a Clan?¡± ¡°No.¡± I waved his theories away before he could start. ¡°Just so that the talented few could support the untalented, until the untalented could find a place for themselves in this city.¡± ¡°What you are suggesting makes sense but the problem lies in their loyalty with you.¡± Yousef narrowed his eyes at me. ¡°Someone will find out; word travels fast in the slums. Nearly seven scores of men followed you here, elite Orc warriors and Beastman. People will find out that you freed these slaves and that you¡¯re behind them¡­ The Jayu States may not be as strict as the Turina Empire but even we won¡¯t stand by and watch you build up a military force.¡± ¡°They won¡¯t be military forces. They¡¯ll be properly registered adventurers-¡± ¡°Like I said¡­ the problem lies in their loyalty to you.¡± Yousef interrupted.. I gritted my teeth. ¡°Now if you are willing to start a Clan, that¡¯s something I could help you with.¡± ¡°No. No Clan.¡± I wasn¡¯t ready for the responsibilities of leading a Clan yet. Whoa. Why did I assume I¡¯d lead the Clan? Regardless, a Clan meant farming Cores, distributing loot and staking out the best hunting grounds. For that to happen, we needed a main party that could stand against the strongest parties of other Clans. Clan Wars over hunting grounds and best dungeons were a frequent thing and until I had a good grasp of my own strength in the current MSS world, I didn¡¯t want to draw attention to myself. Now was a time to grow personally with a small elite group, not expand my reaches everywhere. ¡°Then there¡¯s nothing we can talk about-¡± ¡°There is.¡± Kyrian cut in. He glanced at me sideways and I nodded for him to continue. ¡°We¡¯re not the only group that is not aligned with a clan with loosely interconnected relations that point to a single figurehead¡­ isn¡¯t there another one? Right underneath our noses?¡± ¡°Ah master mage¡­ I¡¯m not sure-¡± ¡°I was employed by the Akka Xaluds and worked closely with Jason Carid, a Scion. I don¡¯t believe my information is wrong.¡± Kyrian slowly took off his hood, revealing his blonde hair. ¡°There¡¯s another force in the Miltus. Someone powerful enough that you can¡¯t touch.¡± ¡°...Ahahaha!! AHAHA!¡± Yousef laughed then slapped his thighs. ¡°I knew you three were special the moment I laid eyes on you!¡± He feigned wiping a tear. ¡°Yes. There¡¯s already an organization in place with registered adventurers loyal to one person, yet not in a clan. They call him the Slum Lord.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s why you¡¯re sending us there.¡± I finished for him. ¡°You were hoping to see if we could do anything about him.¡± Yousef grimaced. ¡°I must confess, the thought did cross my mind. But it would be a far-fetched hope¡­¡± ¡°Who¡¯ssss thissss Sssslum Lord? How ssstrong is he?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the problem, master Skaris.¡± Yousef shook his head. ¡°No one knows who he is.¡± ¡°All we know is that he is in charge of the underbelly of Miltus and a few other states. Gambling. Brothels. Taverns. Information Brokers¡­ He¡¯s grown too strong for us to act against him directly so we have left him be.¡± ¡°And if I can sniff out who he is and replace him; then you¡¯d simply be trading an unknown enemy for an individual who¡¯s indebted to you. Or thinks they¡¯re indebted to you anyways.¡± I surmised and Yousef agreed with a grunt. He shrugged. ¡°I was planning to offer you and yours, Master Skaris and Kyrian, lodging in my own home. I was hoping that either the Black Dogs or the Berserkers would be able to weaken the Slum Lord long enough for us to do something about him at a later time.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the issue with having him?¡± I was genuinely curious. ¡°All cities need a Black Market.¡± It was true. Every city like Miltus might look spotless at first glance, but civilization as a rule was like a living breathing organism. Intake and outtake. There needed to be an outlet for all the waste and the unwanted things; and in MSS the Black Markets were it. They could make bodies disappear and you could obtain illegal items there. To attract adventurers, Black Markets were a must. ¡°The issue is that he¡¯s growing too powerful. Too fast.¡± Yousef sighed. ¡°You are very sharp young master, but you underestimate the nature of greed. The Slum Lord¡¯s reaches are beginning to encroach upon our own power. Fixing matches in the Colosseum, illegal gambling rings and kidnappings of our fighters. He has also started to kidnap ordinary civilians; he has started to touch upon the slave trade as well.¡± I felt myself stiffen. I knew slavery was widespread and rampant but why the hell were people so eager to start a business around it? ¡°...I reckon he was waiting for the right moment.¡± Kyrian put his hand on his chin, a habit of his when he was in deep thought. ¡°Those with the right information channels would already have known that something was going to happen to the Samak Horde. But now, there¡¯s a power vacuum. It will take the Akka Xaluds years to set up something similar to what the Horde had; personnel, connections, routes and supply. But if this figure has been preparing all along¡­¡± ¡°He issss poissssed to sssstrike.¡± I nodded. ¡°But you shouldn¡¯t get involved in this, as I said I want to open up my house to you and yours, young master.¡± ¡°No.¡± I wanted to make my stance clear to Yousef. ¡°I will be with the people that I brought here.¡± He frowned. ¡°The Slum Lord has ears everywhere. You¡¯re basically bringing another huge faction into his doorstep and he will act. Mark my words, it won¡¯t end with just you. He¡¯ll aim at your people, your friends and all you hold dear.¡± ¡°They¡¯re already in his sights.¡± I peered at Yousef. ¡°Isn¡¯t that why you sent them there? To delay him and try to get him to act?¡± Yousef coughed and looked away. ¡°What¡¯s done is done. I will be staying in the Slums.¡± I smiled at him. I needed to draw a line here or Yousef would think I was doing this for him. To be honest, I wasn¡¯t sure about this whole talk about the Slum Lord and the political warfare that was going on. All these games and cat¡¯s paws tactics were beyond me. But if there was one thing I was sure of, it was that I had a responsibility to make sure those people had a safe place to live. Kellin and the orcs followed me here because they believed that I could lead them to safety. The least I could do was stay with them. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about us. Work your plans as you will, and we will do what we need to do on our own.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Let¡¯s talk of other matters now.¡± Yousef stared at me a moment longer, then nodded. He waved his hand and a stack of papers appeared in his hand; those golden rings must be Dimension Rings. ¡°As per our agreement, you will fight in the Colosseum as a new fighter. The debt you owe me for the entire trip is 10,000 gold.¡± ¡°1 Copper is roughly one dollar and 100 coppers is one gold so¡­ I owe this guy $1 million dollars?!¡± I stopped myself from lunging at this fucking two-faced snake-dwarf. Had I been scammed? ¡°Ah do not worry. Fight money at the Colosseum start at 50 gold. And with your skills young master, I am sure that you could reach thousands of gold in fight money.¡± ¡°What else is there besides gold?¡± I was more interested in the prizes. Items in MSS¡­ so far I¡¯d only been using Common items. But items could be graded into Common, Uncommon, Rare, Unique then into two different branches: Artifacts for [Mental] aligned items and Legendfor [Physical] aligned items. Then above those two were the Pluralities. I wanted to start outfitting myself. ¡°My Jagged Katana is a Rare but compared to other Rares, it lacks in the stat department.¡± ¡°Invitations to auctions, closed-curtain markets and renown blacksmiths are always looking for a promising young fighter to show off their wares.¡± Yousef said proudly. ¡°When¡¯s my first fight?¡± ¡°Patience young master! Though I love the energy! Hahahaha!¡± Yousef clapped his hands; the golden dwarf always got excited at the Colosseum. He might be a scummy businessman but at the end of the day, none could doubt his love for the sport. ¡°I can¡¯t have you fight against nobody! I will pick out the proper match and send you a messenger. I can assure you, I will do my utmost best.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting then.¡± I stood up to leave. ¡°Is there anything else I could do for you?¡± I hesitated. What did I need right now? In order for me to create a party and grow stronger what was the thing I was missing? Items? Equipment? No¡­ MSS was a game centered around farming monster materials and Cores. ¡°I need a list of the dungeons in and around Miltus.¡± ¡°A list? Of how many?¡± Yousef looked puzzled. I smiled; showing him my teeth. ¡°All of them.¡± It was time to go hunt some monsters.
Chapter 50: Into the Slums
World: MSS - Loading...
Yousef was kind enough to lend us his carriage all the way to the slums. Once again, I was content to look out the window. This time, the images played the opposite away. We escaped the large estates and were quickly greeted by houses with small gardens, then the apartments and inns. ¡°Lock, what are our plans?¡± Kyrian was the first to break the silence. ¡°Do you truly mean to replace the Slum Lord?¡± I thought carefully before answering. ¡°No. All that stuff about the Slum Lord and politics, I don¡¯t really understand it. What I do know is that until everything comes together, we do need a place to stay. If that¡¯s the slums, then so it is.¡± Kyrian sniffed. ¡°This Slum Lord sounds like a dictator. A poor leader. You would do a much better job.¡± I ignored Kyrian¡¯s musings. ¡°Skaris, what about you?¡± He shrugged. ¡°One doessss not lay their eggssss insssside a beast¡¯ssss lair. Whether you want to or not, you and the Sssslum Lord cannot exssssisssst together.¡± ¡°Maybe we can coexist.¡± I offered. They both ignored me. ¡°Regardless, our first step is to grow stronger. That means we need to start hunting monsters.¡± ¡°We will need to register with the Adventurer¡¯s Guild then.¡± Kyrian explained. ¡°If I understand correctly, most of the dungeons around here are managed by the Guild. We will need to be registered adventurers to make use of them.¡± Once we got to the main part of the city, where the market was along with various buildings; I knocked on the wall separating the inside of the coach and the driver¡¯s seat. ¡°Yassuh?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll get off here.¡± Promptly, we got off the coach. Skaris and I immediately began stretching; for us warrior-types, that coach had been stuffy. If Kyrian felt the same he didn¡¯t show it. I saw Skaris lift his nose to the air and sniff; we had gotten off at the busiest intersection and there were more than enough stalls with delectables on display. I saw his eyes drift over to a stall selling a long flat piece of meat wrapped in what looked like a tortilla. ¡°Come on.¡± I muttered to Skaris and Kyrian, forcing myself to walk away from the tantalizing smells. We were penniless as of yet. Technically I had 2000 gold that Yousef had generously lent us with no interest, but I wanted to use that to buy new equipment for us three. With the 12,000 gold debt looming over our heads, we¡¯d have to strap our belts tight for a while. Atl least until we figured out a way to earn income. For adventurers that meant hunting monsters. I found that there was a spring in my steps. Since coming to MSS, I¡¯d killed more than enough monsters to last a lifetime but this was different. I wasn¡¯t going to be hunting monsters as a slave; desperately clawing my way to survival with the limited tools at my disposal. Now I could register as a real adventurer and form a real party. My footsteps led us to the Adventurer¡¯s Guild building; I¡¯d already marked where it was on the carriage ride to Yousef¡¯s estate. It was a large building with marbled white pillars surrounding it on all sides. I saw the various inhabitants of this world, dressed in armor and holding weapons. A female orc holding a bow and arrow, an unusual combination, speaking with animated hand gestures at a beastwoman who had her arms crossed in front of her and looked frustrated. I saw a group of dwarves walking by, each of them holding a colossal weapon nearly three times their size except the last; he was dressed in the robes of a priest. The building¡¯s entrance was a pair of double-sided doors made entirely out of rock. It had been sculpted with elaborate swirling designs and even my meager mana sense picked up hints of enchantments. I made a careful show not to touch it and strode into the building, Kyrian and Skaris in tow. The inside reminded me of a nicer DMV, the first half was a hybrid between a cafe and a tavern. Further in were the counters managed by guild employees; marked by a blue and white cap on top of their head. Adventurers sat sporadically; either alone or in small groups. Then as one, they all turned to look at us. Every single face. I felt my fingers curl, missing the familiar weight of my sword and shield; they were in my Dimension Ring. My heart began to hammer from my chest, the echoes reaching my head and turning into a migraine. I tried to look everywhere and nowhere; trying to imagine the room as a photograph so that the instant that someone moved I could react. The closest enemy was human; he had rows of dagger attached to his waist and no doubt more hidden on his person. I could take him first; he might end up stabbing me but I could draw his dagger thigh. If I could just leave a cut, I could- I shook my head. God, I was so broken. There was no need to imagine myself being attacked by adventurer in the Adventurer¡¯s Guild building, in a civilized City. This wasn¡¯t the Samak Horde and I wasn¡¯t a slave anymore. I was overreacting. I took a step towards the counter and heard someone whisper. ¡°Tch. Slaves. Disgusting.¡± Then he spat at my feet. I froze and felt Skaris stiffen up beside me. Slowly, I turned my head to look at him; trembling. The human rogue looked back at me with defiance; his beady eyes glittering with playful countenance. Now that I took a closer look at him, his nose was crooked like it had been broken multiple times and never set right. He had a sharp chin and more calluses on his right hand then left; right handed then. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. He must have mistaken my trembling for fear. ¡°What are you looking at, slave?¡± I absently touched the scar on my neck; signs that I had worn manacles for a time. That was how he knew. The rogue stood up and stepped up to me. We were eye-level with one another. ¡°You got a problem?¡± He muttered, inches from my face. I felt Kyrian¡¯s hand on my arm. ¡°Lock.¡± He warned. My eyes never leaving his, I took deep breaths, forcing myself to calm down. I tried to smile at the man. ¡°Nothing.¡± I managed to say. Then I brushed past him, the sound of blood rushing in my ears. As soon as the three of us brushed past him, the tavern of adventurers broke out into raucous laughter, slapping thighs and making more jokes at our expense. The laughter followed us all the way to the counter. ¡°We ssssshould have cut of his tongue and put it on a sssspit.¡± Skaris growled softly. ¡°Insssults like that are-¡± ¡°We are not in Zimmskar. We are in a new place, new people with many things to do. Making more enemies when we already have a confirmed one would be¡­ unwise.¡± Kyrian sounded worried. ¡°The prejudice against slaves here is worse than I expected. I thought Jayu might be better than Turina but it seems it still prevails here.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t change what we have to do.¡± I answered back. ¡°Let¡¯s just get it done and get out of here.¡± At the counter was a woman ¨Chuman woman¨C with neatly combed black hair. She nodded towards us, a slight smile on her face. ¡°How may I help you?¡± ¡°We¡¯re here to register.¡± My earlier excitement soiled by the initial experience; I was cold and distant. ¡°Will all three of you be registering?¡± ¡°No. Just us two.¡± I motioned to Skaris who stood next to me. Kyrian was already a registered adventurer. The Adventurer¡¯s Guild belonged to no country; though its loyalties depended on where it was located. In MSS, the guild could be used a bank, registrar office and even a place to sell your goods; provided that the lower end of the market value was good enough. A one-stop shop for adventurers. She took out an orb I''d seen before in Samak City. A grading orb. ¡°Please put your hand on the orb and tell me your name.¡± ¡°I ssshall go firsssst.¡± Skaris put his palm on the orb. ¡°Sssskarisss of the Deepeater Clan.¡± An array of colors played out and illegible characters were displayed. The woman raised her eyebrows; obviously surprised. ¡°Congratulations Mr. Deepeater, you¡¯re now a Grade 7 adventurer.¡± It was slight but I caught it. She frowned while looking at Skaris¡¯ neck. ¡°She¡¯s worried about sometihng and it has to do with the fact that we¡¯re slaves.¡± I filed the information away for later; it could be useful. Next was my turn. Putting my hands on the orb, I pulsed a little of my mana into it. ¡°Lock.¡± If there was one thing that Arione taught me, it was that the name ¡®Slaveborn¡¯ was akin to me holding a placard screaming to the world that I was a player. Combined with the manacle-scars on my neck, it was a dead giveaway. Right now wasn¡¯t the time to draw the wrong type of attention. I needed to lay low and blend in, gathering information and resources for the future. She froze like an ice statue and it was a full ten second before she spoke. ¡°Grade 6¡­¡± She swallowed before speaking. ¡°Congratulations Mr. Lock.¡± The woman fidgeted like she wanted to say more. ¡°Is there anything else I could help you with?¡± She finished lamely. ¡°I know that there¡¯s a dungeon raid being planned two days from now¡± I repeated the information that Yousef had given me. ¡°A Fracture if I¡¯m not mistaken.¡± Just like that, the woman schooled her expression immediately. All signs of being flustered, nervous and skeptical disappeared; a slight smile that didn¡¯t quite reach her eyes being the entirety of her demeanor. ¡°I¡¯m not quite sure what you are talking about.¡± I smiled back at her. ¡°A Fracture dungeon is scheduled to open two days from now in the outskirts of the city. You are creating a party of 15 people to raid it. If I¡¯m not mistaken there are exactly three places open.¡± ¡°Sir, as I said-¡± ¡°Yousef told me.¡± There was silence. ¡°If the dungeon raid is planned two days from now and the guild has yet to fill all the seats; the guild must be pretty desperate.¡± ¡°If Mr. Yousef told you¡­¡± She nodded. ¡°Please come back tomorrow. I will have to confer with the Guild Master. I will have your identification cards ready by then as well.¡± That was a hint for us to leave her if I ever heard one but there were more things I wanted to ask. Such as the average grade of the adventurers in that raid, how long the raid was planned for and etc. In the end, I decided it wouldn¡¯t matter if I knew it ahead of time; the guild master would know if he decided to meet with us. ¡°We¡¯ll be back at noon tomorrow.¡± I finally said. As we were walking away, Skaris asked Kyrian and I what a Fracture dungeon was. ¡°They¡¯re a type of Portal Dungeon. But they only open up frequently. No one really know when one is designed to open; nor why. However what we do know is when one is about to open. There are mages who specialize in detecting new portal dungeons and fracture dungeons.¡± Kyrian explained. ¡°They make a living off of it.¡± That piqued my curiosity, predicting Fractures wasn¡¯t a feature in the game. ¡°What kind of magic do you have to specialize in to predict a Fracture?¡± ¡°Spatial Magic. But it¡¯s extremely expensive; not a lot of monsters have the Spirit Cores that has a strong enough Spatial-magic alignment. Only the wealthiest can afford to fund the creation of a Spatial Mage. Normally, these mages are scouted out from a young age and sponsored by a noble house. Some of the Great Houses have schools full of them.¡± That was an interesting tidbit; albeit useless to someone like me who knew the location of every single Fracture and the knowhow on how to force them to open. ¡°What isss a portal dungeon?¡± I kept my mouth shut; Kyrian seemed more than happy to explain. No need to show off my knowledge like I used to do for L¡¯teya and Clover. I had already been burned once because of the suspicion that brought on. In that way, Kyrian was an extremely welcome addition to the team. I only needed to nudge him in the right direction if he was wrong about something. ¡°They are exactly what they sound like; dungeons that are connected to portals instead of being within our world. You could enter a Portal Dungeon in the Delirious Jungle or the Samak Desert and come out in a dungeon that is filled with Ice or underwater.¡± Kyrian sounded excited. ¡°Many stories of the First Adventurers finding powerful artifacts and Cores within Portal Dungeons exist and are not without examples. For example; Favron the First Wayfinder found his Seeking Cube inside a Portal Dungeon.¡± Hmm. I didn¡¯t know this about Kyrian. He seemed to be quite the nerd for things like this. On the flip side, Skaris listened with rapt attention. I half-expected the lizardman warrior to not care where we went as long as he got to stab things. ¡°Unlike Fractures, Portals are constantly open and can be left at any time. You can think of them as an entirely separate Ecosystem. Fractures however, open rarely and cannot be left until a certain type of monster is defeated. Usually the strongest monster in the dungeon.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn. What issss our purposssee for entering this Fracture? Would not a regular dungeon do?¡± ¡°We¡¯re scouting.¡± ¡°Scouting?¡± I nodded. ¡°We¡¯re scouting for talent. Keep your eyes open for any defender, priest or wayfinder.¡± The people of MSS didn¡¯t use terms like Tank, DPS or Support, especially since the concept of ¡®Class¡¯ didn¡¯t exist for them. They used the term defender for those who protected the backline and weapon-users interchangeably with DPS. Skaris for example should describe himself as a Spear wielder. I on the other hand should be describing myself as a swordsman¡­ though the shield might confuse people. The concept of a support-class didn¡¯t exist at all, because depending on your party make-up you needed dramatically different types of support. For our purposes we needed a ¡®wayfinder¡¯; someone who could detect traps, monsters and act as a general scout for the party. Someone like Kellin for example. ¡°Why not ask Kellin?¡± ¡°He sssaid no.¡± Skaris answered for me. ¡°Ssslaveborn assssked.¡± ¡°It looks like the Black Dogs are an organization unto themselves. I think they have a base here and he¡¯ll be making contact with them; most likely he¡¯ll be going dungeoneering with them. If I¡¯m not wrong, they might actually be a registered clan with a pretty large network.¡± I couldn¡¯t hide the disappointment; I had been counting on the Black Dog leader to be out wayfider and ranged damage support. ¡°Hmmm. I do believe I might have heard of a Clan of Beastman with branches everywhere.¡± Kyrian accepted my explanation rather easily. I ignored the mocking jeers of the rogue and the people at his table, much easier than I had the first time. Perhaps because signing up for the adventuer¡¯s guild reminded me of the list of things I had to do. ¡°Ok. There¡¯s no point in worrying about the Fracture Dungeon until tomorrow. We might be able to take care of potential Party Members by seeing who stands out in the dungeon. Now we should get some new equipment for ourselves and then head to the Slums¡­¡± No. The equipment could wait. Recognizing that I was stalling, I looked at the huge cliff head which oversaw a cast majority of Miltus situated on the sea level. It cast a shadow over part of the city, hiding it from view. Coming into this town by boat, my eyes had been naturally drawn to the glitter, like it had been planned all along. No one wanted us to see the filth that was produced to make this place what it was: beautiful. The delineation between the sunlight and the shadow was as clear as the class distinction that I had experienced between slave and non-slave. My footsteps led me to the Miltus Slums. The road became empty of houses, becoming flat with no outcroppings of buildings or stalls. We encountered less and less travelers, starting to see more and more signs of garbage. Discarded wrappers, scrap metal and leftover food littered the ground; growing in number until there were mounds of them, large enough to be buildings. Walking into the under-side of the cliff; we found one of Kellin¡¯s men waiting for us. ¡°This way.¡± He sniffed and led us deeper into the dump. The buildings here weren¡¯t made of marble or brick, they were made of clay and garbage, mashed together into misshapen building blocks stacked on top of each other, forming a frankenstein structure. Yet, there were some leftover signs of civilization; normal houses ¨Cthough none as pretty as the ones in the main part of Miltus¨C dotted the scenery here and there. But just like Samak City, the windows were boarded up and my sharp senses caused the presence of living beings spying on us from within. We were so close to the main part of the city that I could see it from here; it was bright and sunny with the color of flowers drawing my eyes like bees to a flower. But here, everything was covered in shadow and the air was cool to the touch. We could walk there in less than an hour but somehow it felt like we had entered a portal dungeon: two different worlds in the same place. I passed by a group of people, covered in head to toe in cloaks. They were huddled around a cauldron and my nose picked up the scent of something sickeningly sweet. One of them grabbed a piece of something yellowish-red from the ground, tossing it into the boiling pot and I recognized it as what it was: coagulated blood and fat. It was lard. Then another grabbed a paper bag full of white powder and started pouring it in. Sugar. As they started to stir, the hint of something metallic, bland and sharp cut through the scent of fat and sugar. "What is that smell?" Kyrian had smelled it too. The black dog guiding us wrinkled his nose. ¡°Sweet Leaf.¡± ¡°What''s a sweet leaf?¡± I whispered. ¡°Drugs.¡± He sniffed, smelling the same thing I had. ¡°This whole place is a giant drug factory, Slaveborn.¡±
Chapter 51: Guild
World: MSS - Loading...
I saw more inhabitants of the Slums and not all of them bothered to cover themselves up like the ones closer to the city. None of them were what I¡¯d call healthy. The ''healthiest'' among them had scars or contusions. The worst among them? Mangled pieces of flesh with missings limbs or large black-purple-and-blue tumors growing all over their body. A deer beastman child with open sores all over her face watched us from afar, sucking on her thumb. I felt sick. ¡°What is this place?¡± I had been expecting something like this but.. Seeing it and imagining it were two different things. ¡°The Slums.¡± Kyrian whispered. ¡°The descendants of slaves, the losers of the Jayu Civil War¡­ and loose ends that needed to be cut off in order for the wealthy to become wealthier.¡± Skaris made an angry growl. ¡°I have been outssside of Zimmsssskar for lesss than a year and never have I sssseen ssssuchho rrible thingsss. I believed that the prejudicssse of the humansss, the elvesss and the dwarvesss exssstended only to our kind but it exssstends to their own. How can you let your own kind live like thissss?¡± ¡°There are beastman living in Jayu too.¡± Kyrian answered quietly, his voice subdued. ¡°I¡¯d bet they¡¯re quite influential. How do you think they got their gold, Skaris? What business ideas could a race of former slaves have to quickly raise capital? Where do you think the beastman in the slums came from?¡± ¡°Becausseee your racssseee ensssslaved ussss!¡± He roared. The crowd around us turned and fled at the red-scaled beastman¡¯s anger. ¡°If I can pay for the sins of my forefathers, I would have.¡± Krian continued. ¡°But I cannot be faulted for the choices of yours.¡± Skaris stopped in his tracks, glaring at Kyrian. ¡°You are a noble. Jussst like them.¡± He spat. ¡°How many ssslaves have you owned, mage? How many of my kin? How many of your own?¡± ¡°You do not know my past, Skaris.¡± Kyrian answered, facing him. ¡°It is not fair for you to presume I am the same as other nobles.¡± Holy shit we were in the Slums for less than a day and already there was infighting, not even among others but among my most trusted friends. ¡°Both of you, stop.¡± I stepped in between the two, addressing Skaris first. ¡°Skaris¡­ look around you. Look.¡± Skaris¡¯s face was scrunched up into a scowl but he slowly turned his gaze. Next to the little girl was an elf boy, holding her hand. He had a huge tumor on his neck like an ugly leech and the weight of it caused him to hold his head at an angle. One shoulder was higher than the other and the arm on the side of the tumor was black with flesh-rot. Behind them was a dwarf woman, pock marks all over her face. Seeing Skaris glaring at them, she quickly put her arms around the two children¡¯s shoulders and led them away. His expression softened. ¡°You¡¯re scaring them.¡± Something caught in my throat. ¡°So please. Calm down.¡± ¡°They are not too far off.¡± The guide cut in. Without a word, we began to follow. ¡°I apologize, Kyrian.¡± Skaris spoke, all signs of anger gone. His red scales were dimmed here, no sunlight for them to reflect. The beastman looked deflated¡­ and defeated. ¡°It is nothing. Perhaps I spoke too harshly as well. This place¡­ it brings dark thoughts.¡± I knew what Kyrian was thinking about or could guess where his thoughts were. Growing up as the bastard child who had basically been kicked out of the household and his mother murdered to make a point¡­ I was sure he could sympathize with the downtrodden and the weak. Or perhaps he was thinking about how good he had it compared to these people. I made a mental note to find out more about Skaris¡¯ past once the opportunity presented itself. It only got worse. The smell of rotting corpses, feces overwhelmed the air and I saw the black dog take out a handkerchief and cover it around his mouth. Grimacing, I ripped a piece of my shirt sleeves and did the same; for my advanced sense of smell it was almost unbearable. I could only imagine what the Black Dogs were experiencing. Bedridden individuals just lying on mounds of garbage, piled atop one another like some sick monument in a constant near-death state. Deformities on hands, faces and legs were the norm; there were no more of those occasional houses. Just individuals living in small groups of three to four, scrounging and boiling bones of things I didn¡¯t want to know about. ¡°Lock¡­ this place.¡± ¡°I know.¡± It was worse, much worse than I thought. Also the existence of drugs was worrying. If the people that depended on me started to use drugs, we¡¯d never get out of this place. I knew what drugs did, they trapped you in a never ending spiral of need and fulfillment; one leading to the other. I¡¯d seen it more than once. I wasn¡¯t a socio economist; I couldn¡¯t exactly mathematically calculate how it would damage us. But my instincts screamed that the introduction of a foreign substance like this, was like a virus; it¡¯d kill the group from within. Finally the black dog scout led us to a huge crowd of people, our people. They were clearing away the garbage and trying to create a relatively flat ground. I saw them spread out cooking utensils but not bringing out food. Already, I saw some semblance of shelters being put up. But seeing 150 people huddled in the hull of a boat and seeing them out here trying to create a home for themselves¡­ Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. We needed so much more space than what was here. ¡°Slaveborn.¡± Kellin gave me a barely perceptible nod. Jak¡¯tur said nothing, his blue eyes just looking at me with neither blame nor resentment. ¡°This is the most open place we could find; we are working on shelter. But the most pressing thing is food and water.¡± Kellin spoke without preamble. ¡°Thank you for your help Kellin.¡± I saw him hesitate, on the verge of saying something. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I will be taking my people and leaving here.¡± He gestured with his hand. ¡°This place, it is not a place for anyone to live.¡± I had expected it but hearing him say it finalized it for me. I probably failed to hide the look of disappointment from my face because Kellin turned away, refusing to meet my gaze. ¡°I understand. Do what¡¯s best for your people.¡± ¡°For what it¡¯s worth Slaveborn¡­ I will always be thankful.¡± He took a black leather bracelet from his pocket and handed it over to me. ¡°This is the mark of my people. Call upon us and we will aid you. No questions asked.¡± I smiled as I took it from him. This was like a quest item. But with all the time I spent in MSS, it was hard to just identify it as a ¡®quest item¡¯. It was more appropriate to think of it as a mark of friendship. ¡°Thank you.¡± Kellin took his Black Dogs and left, a large chunk of the beastmen leaving with him. ¡°Yes Jak¡¯tur?¡± I noticed him still standing there while looking at the retreating backs of the Black Dogs. ¡°You have held up your end of the promise. Go and be free, Lock Slaveborn.¡± Jak¡¯tur rumbled. ¡°My people will find a way to survive. We always do.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure they will.¡± I turned, seeing the remaining refugees working quickly. ¡°But I think I¡¯ll stay for a little while yet.¡± The giant orc warrior shrugged and walked back to his people, helping them. Rolling up my sleeves, I got to work. My shelter made of garbage wasn¡¯t going to build itself. Skaris and I were moving pieces of garbage towards the stock; trying to create the area where we would build our shelter. Subconsciously, I noticed that Kyrian had taken off his mage¡¯s robes and were doing the same. Due to his background as a noble and mage I thought he¡¯d turn his nose up at this work. But the young man was determined and worked twice as hard as anyone else. ¡°Ssslaveborn?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Thisss placsse mussst change.¡± Skaris wasn¡¯t moving things any longer, staring off into the road. A crowd of people, the people from the Slums not our own, had gathered and were watching us. Many of them were kids. ¡°What did you have in mind, Skaris?¡± ¡°...I do not know. But it issss painful. My heart achesss. Sssseeing children like thisss. It issss wrong, Ssslaveborn.¡± The red-scaled warrior shook his head. ¡°Thisss csssity. It isss all glitter and gold but it is sssick. Jusst that no one knowssss it or wantsss to talk about it.¡± ¡°No one sssshould live like this.¡± He finished. I didn¡¯t have an inkling of idea what kind of life Skaris led and the past me wouldn¡¯t have wondered. It was only because of L¡¯teya, Clover, Arrosh and Kyrian that I stopped what I was doing and gave my friend my full attention. The pain in his voice alarmed me, it was the first time Skaris was behaving this way. ¡°When you appeared Ssslaveborn, you sssaved me.¡± Droplets of rain began to fall. ¡°Are you planning to do the ssssame here?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know yet.¡± I answered lamely. He stayed silent. ¡°We dont even know what we can do about this. I was just a slave, Skaris.¡± Truthfully, I was overwhelmed. What was I doing here? Was I really going to make life better for a 100 people? And then what? Could I solve the problem in the slums? I had no qualifications for doing any of this. How could I be expected to lead? To find water source, food and solve a housing crisis that even an entire city couldn¡¯t solve? I wasn''t a humanitarian worker or some kind of great billionaire who could throw coin to make problems go away. I was just me. I was overwhelmed inside and Skaris was touching upon every insecurity I had been suppressing. ¡°I don¡¯t even know where to begin to be honest. These people don¡¯t need me. They need healing. They need gold. They need-¡± I gestured at everything around us. ¡°-help.¡± I shook my head. ¡°And I need more information.¡± Suddenly Skaris smiled. ¡°I noticssed not oncssse did you sssay it isss not your problem, Ssslaveborn. Not oncsse did you sssay that you wouldn¡¯t do sssomething. Only about thingssss they need and thingsss you need to do.¡± He was right. I hadn¡¯t. Had I made up my mind that easily? To try and do something about this place? The clouds had opened up and the pitter-patter of rain turned fierce, each impact actually stinging like someone flicked me. Kyrian ran over to us, holding a wooden crate over his head. ¡°What are you two doing! Come on! Get a move on! Why am I the only one building a house all three of us will live in?!¡± Skaris and I shared a look then at Kyrian, the usually dignified blonde mage, whose clothes stuck to his lanky limbs betraying his age. Then the three of us got to work. *** I was in a bad mood. Building a house out of garbage was not what I¡¯d call enjoyable; to the point where I compared it to my time as a slave under the orcs. I had found out the hard way that I had no talent with building things, especially since I was effectively blind in one eye and couldn''t measure distance very well. At least when I was a slave under the orcs they pointed me in a direction and all I had to do kill whatever was in my way. Building something from scratch was an entirely different manner. Skaris and Kyrian got used to it pretty fast. Skaris said he used to build nests as a hobby for his friends and family; and Kyrian played in the woods a lot as a kid. Raindrops fell all night and brought forth smells that I wouldn¡¯t wish on my worst enemies, the Black Dogs and other beastman whose [Smell] stat was on the high end groaned and moaned throughout the entire night. Next day, we entered the guild building with all of us smelling like garbage. Immediately, the other adventurers reacted the same way that the pedestrians had. First with a look of outrage like they were going to tell us to get off the street then with shock as our odor overwhelmed their olfactory senses. They backed away from us, holding their noses. It was kind of like the New York Subway, where if a homeless person stank enough everyone gave them a wide berth. I walked to the counter and the same woman from yesterday was waiting there. Her face was red from holding her breath but she didn¡¯t try to hold her nose. Professionalism at its best. Skaris handed her a handkerchief stained with¡­ with stuff. She refused. ¡°Any news about the Fracture?¡± I didn¡¯t bother wasting time with a greeting or small talk, I wanted to spare her by spending as little time in her presence as possible. ¡°The Guild Master is waiting for you upstairs.¡± She gestured with her hand towards a set of stairs. Kyrian, Skaris and I ascended the stairs towards the Guild Master¡¯s office immediately, no point in making her suffer no matter how petty I felt. On the way up, I admired the wooden stairwell and the simple but tasteful decor. Red carpetry on the floors and the walls were spotless; the door to his office was plain and simple. Even his nametag on the door was bland: Marc Pointell. ¡°Let¡¯s see who the master of this branch is.¡± I knocked on the door. ¡°Come in.¡± Marc Pointell was just like his decor; unremarkable in every way. He was average height with a face that could be easily forgotten; brown eyes and black hair peppered with gray. He wore a gray shirt with a brown overshirt over it; a simple pen tucked in the pocket. Even when our odor of garbage filled the room, he made no remark on it whether verbal or physical. He simply gestured at the couch in front of him. We sat. ¡°Marc Pointell, guild master of the Miltus branch.¡± He held out a hand. ¡°Lock.¡± I said simply. ¡°Kyrian Tricilan.¡± Ssskarisss of Clan Deepeater.¡± ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you all.¡± He crossed his legs and leaned back; studying each of us. ¡°I have heard that you wish to be part of the raid that¡¯s entering the Fracture tomorrow. Is that true?¡± I nodded. ¡°And Mr. Yousef was the one to tell you?¡± I nodded once again. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± He tapped one finger on his thigh, in the meantime I studied him to see if there were any hidden weapons on him. He didn¡¯t give off the sense of danger but no bureaucrat could rise to become the branch master of an Adventurer''s Guild. There would be no way to keep order if your clientele were the rowdy bunch and stronger than you to boot. So reason dictated that this guy had to be powerful but I couldn¡¯t sense anything off of him. With a startling realization; I sniffed. No scent. This guy had no scent. That was only possible by absorbing Cores with very specific properties. Namely, Cores that dropped from Spirit-type monsters with ephemeral bodies. ¡°Is he a necromancer? No¡­ that there should be a faint smell. He might be the type who turns incorporeal.¡± ¡°Normally, we wouldn¡¯t thrust any new adventurer into a raid no matter how much they asked. But Mr. Yousef has vouched for you.¡± He waited for us to interrupt. ¡°I am also curious as to how Mr. Yousef¡¯s newest adventurers perform. He seldom lets go of his new colosseum fighters.¡± Then he paused like he was waiting for something. I looked Marc Pointell over one more time. ¡°You don¡¯t like Mr. Yousef.¡± I finally ventured. It was hard to put a finger on why I said it; but it was the way the man¡¯s voice said the name ¡®Yousef¡¯ or perhaps the mild mannered man¡¯s general attitude. But my instincts screamed that this was the right choice when the ghost of a smile graced his lips. ¡°It is hard to like your business rivals¡­ especially if they recruit all your talent.¡± I understood what he was getting at. The adventurer¡¯s guild was the training grounds for these adventurers and once they got strong enough; Yousef would invite them to the colosseum. If the fight money was as lucrative as the dwarf merchant claimed; adventurers would be drawn to the colosseum like moths to a flame. You wouldn¡¯t have to go dungeoneering for days or months on end; you only had to show up at the allotted time and risk your life. If you were risking your life in the dungeons anyways, why not risk it at the colosseum for more money and less trouble? From the guild¡¯s perspective, it was rightfully so that someone like Yousef would be a poacher. ¡°That¡¯s why he¡¯s letting us enter the Fracture in the first place. The guild doesn¡¯t have the personnel necessary for send into Fractures¡­ wait does that mean?¡± I had a sinking feeling. ¡°How many adventurers in this raid were chosen by you and how many from other guilds?¡± Marc Pointell blinked slowly then held up two fingers. ¡°Two from other guilds?¡± ¡°Two from ours.¡± He corrected. ¡°What?¡± I nearly cursed. ¡°I think I heard you wrong, Mr. Pointell.¡± He nodded. ¡°No, you heard me correct. Two are from this guild. Including your party that¡¯s five. Ten members of this raid are from a different guild.¡± This time I did curse.
Chapter 52: Introductions (1)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Out of fifteen, ten are from a different guild?!¡± I found myself yelling, getting up from my seat. Pointell just blinked. ¡°FUCK!¡± I sat back down, thinking. This changed things. Guild branches by nature weren¡¯t necessarily friendly; just business partners much like Yousef and Marc had. But that didn¡¯t mean they were above murder. Especially where a Fracture Dungeon was involved. Let me put it this way; I got more Game Overs from NPCs backstabbing me in dungeons than dying to monsters. If NPCs in my own party could backstab me, what was to stop adventurers from a different guild from doing so? ¡°This is dangerous.¡± Kyrian whispered. He had reached the same conclusion I had. ¡°Mr. Lock. Mr. Tricilo. Mr. Deepeater. I am at the end of my ropes. Hearing that you are Grade 6 and 7, I was surprised. It¡¯s rare to see such talent end up at my doorsteps.¡± Pointell spread his hands. ¡°I called you here to make sure you weren¡¯t spies nor working for Yousef. But from the rumors it seems that you are on your own.¡± ¡°Get to the point.¡± My sour mood was growing worse by the second. ¡°I¡¯d like to start a working relationship with you. As equals. If you can fulfill this request for me, you can be assured that the Guild will back you in any future endeavors you take on as Adventurers.¡± ¡°He¡¯s making sure I can¡¯t bring in the Slum issue to him by adding in that clause about Adventurers¡­ it¡¯s still an attractive offer though.¡± ¡°Mr. Pointell, let us hear your offer first.¡± Kyrian spoke while I was deep in thought. ¡°My task for you is this: survive the Fracture along with the other two adventurers from my guild. If you can get the other adventurers to acknowledge 50%, not even, 40% of the loot to bring back from the Fracture, then I will consider it a success.¡± ¡°Just tell it to me straight. Core, Plurality or Splinter. Which one is more important to you?¡± I glared at him. I didn¡¯t mind revealing my knowledge about the Core, Plurality or Splinter at this point: Kyrian had already gone over it. ¡°And don¡¯t give me bullshit numbers like 40% or 50%. It¡¯s five against ten and you think adventurers are stingy old shopkeepers who are willing to haggle? Our haggling is done with blades and I won¡¯t bet money on five adventurers winning against ten.¡± ¡°...The guild doesn¡¯t care about the Core nor Plurality. We have four Fracture Splinters in place. If you can bring back a Fracture Splinter, then we will give you and your party rights to that Fracture, provided that the guild gets a share.¡± Fracture Splinters only dropped from the Fracture Boss and if you could gather five of them; it opened up another Fracture of a higher level. ¡°...How many fracture splinters does the other Guild have?¡± Kyrian asked quietly. ¡°Four.¡± ¡°FUCK!¡± I cursed inwardly again. They were going to be just as desperate as us. I didn¡¯t even want to know what the other guild master promised those ten fuckers. ¡°2000 gold. Upfront, to cover your equipment. If you can bring back a Fracture Splinter, you won¡¯t have to pay me back. Plus any other loot that you find can be split amongst the five of you.¡± This was dangerous. Really dangerous. The chance of being backstabbed was almost 99%. At the same time¡­ It was a chance to go into a Fracture. Possibly twice. Fractures had higher Core drops and rarer monsters. For Kyrian who needed to gather Spirit Cores and melt them down into Mana Cores to advance, it was crucial and the same went for Skaris who only had two Cores. I wasn¡¯t near level 30 yet for sure ¨Cso no new Cores for me¨C but equipment dropped in Fracture Dungeons as well. I had to take the risk. We all had to. ¡°You¡­¡± I met Kyrian¡¯s worried eyes and Skaris¡¯ defiance. ¡°You have a deal.¡± He brought out a coin bag which I made disappear into my Dimension Ring. ¡°At the northern entrance of the city, there will be a carriage waiting for you. You can meet your other two teammates then.¡± We left Marc Pointell¡¯s office immediately and out of frustration, I purposefully stepped loudly on his perfect wooden stairs, stomping my presence. ¡°Lock, I¡¯ve never seen you so agitated.¡± ¡°This was a trap. The whole thing.¡± I muttered darkly. ¡°There¡¯s no way Yousef didn¡¯t know about the Guild¡¯s circumstances. They¡¯re in cahoots with each other. Yousef is testing us to see if we¡¯re worth bringing to the Colosseum, despite his claims that he wants us there. Marc Pointell wants to use us as a third party player; if we die no loss on his part but if we succeed? He gets all the glory.¡± ¡°But we ssstill get a cut of the sssspoils.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the issue. They both knew that the offer was too good to pass up for people like us, new to this town and without a single coin to our name.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°We¡¯re being thrust into the tiger¡¯s den and helping them do it.¡± ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you say no?¡± Kyrian looked confused. ¡°We could have simply walked away.¡± This was one part where I felt more experienced than the two of them. It wasn¡¯t the first time I¡¯d been roped into a questline involving politics. This sense of helplessness, being forced into a corner was typical of MSS questlines. ¡°We could have¡­ but we¡¯re new in Miltus, where we don¡¯t know anyone. If we turn down Yousef and Marc Pointell, who can we even go to next?¡± Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Kyrian¡¯s eyes narrowed in realization. ¡°The Slum Lord.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­ one option I haven¡¯t thought of.¡± I felt myself grimace at the very thought of reaching out a hand for help towards the man who ruled over the Slums. ¡°Marc Pointell is key to this. If the guild truly owns rights to the dungeons around here, then we can¡¯t get strong. Without Cores, without equipment; we¡¯re just waiting for a slow death.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather go out fighting, Ssslaveborn.¡± With that, I could agree. ¡°Come on¡­ at least we have some gold now. Let¡¯s go buy us some proper equipment.¡±
Shopping for new equipment and walking back to the Slums took most of our day. Thankfully, I had made some progress with the refugees. I managed to send off most of them to the Adventurer¡¯s Guild to be registered; hopefully they¡¯d start learning how to dungeoneer and farm monsters. I gave them some basic guidance, telling them which monsters would be appropriate to hunt for them. Most seemed to take my lessons to heart; though I was sure just as many fell on deaf ears. Finally, after another night at the slums we arrived at the promised meeting spot north of Miltus. We found the other twelve members of this Fracture Raid waiting for us. ¡°Finally, they arrive.¡± A red-haired human adventurer with piercings on his ears, lips and forehead glared at us. He had a shield and sword leaning against the rock he was sitting on; same as me then. ¡°Apologies.¡± I muttered; it had taken longer than I thought for us to get outfitted in new armor. The human adventurer wrinkled his nose and narrowed his eyes. Kyrian, Skaris and I had silently agreed to keep our new equipment in our Dimension Rings so as to not get the smell on them. But we had not realized just how powerful the stench really was; it was embedded in our bodies now and I doubted one bath would be enough to get it out. We still smelled like garbage, excrement and food waste. For all the smell we reeked of; our armors were squeaky clean and shiny. Skaris had opted for a metal breastplate with red leather sleeves. His waist armor was red as well; matching the scales on his temples. He had finally parted with the halberd he had looted off of a dead Akka Xalud soldier from Samak City; he had a spear made of reddish metal and with a dark mahogany shaft. It wasn¡¯t active yet but his spear would light up with magical runes when forcing mana into it. He wasn¡¯t wearing it yet but had a helmet which he called a ¡®bolzano¡¯. The cost of his armor and spear had been 2500 gold. Yes; the fucker took more than half our budget himself. It was understandable though; Kyrian and I already had weapons that we could use in this dungeon, Kyrian had kept his oak staff with the yellow crystal. He had opted to change out his mage robe instead; the beige robe had been replaced by a light blue robe with white-yellow accents that complimented his blonde hair, which was tied in a long ponytail that barely reached his shoulders. With his pale skin, sharp features and baby blue eyes, the mage made a very striking figure. His blue robes contained golden runes inscribed inside the robe. It would work to dissipate any physical force that struck him. It cost 800 gold. I wore a plain scale mail which came a little past my waist. On my arms I wore the dark-green chitinous armguard and matching greaves on my legs. On my left hand; I held the Akka Xalud kite shield and my jagged katana from the Lucky Beckoning Cat. The only thing that was new was the neck protection piece Skaris recommended: a bevor. I had opted to put the rest of my budget into getting my armor painted into a tinge of black; hopefully it would help me camoflauge myself better than standing in shadow. Also it was to make sure no one would recognize the Akka Xalud pieces; they were more black than green now. They had thrown in the color customization and my bevor for only a 100 gold; since we had spent so much money on Skaris¡¯ armor. With the rest of the 600 gold; we bought 6 high grade healing potions, each of us holding onto 2 of them. Then we gathered what silver and coppers we had to buy jerky, stonecrackers and water for the Fracture. If it was a 15 party Fracture; I was expecting us to stay around a week at the least. Instead of drooling over our armors ¨Cespecially over Skaris¡¯ new equipment set¨C I finally turned my attention back to the ten people who were supposed to be our party for this dungeon. I could tell who belonged to Marc Pointell¡¯s branch and who belonged to the branch from different cities immediately. Two women were sitting apart from the others, one with a mild smile and the other with nothing at all. The smiling elf woman wore a black dress, cinched at the waist with a silver belt. From the head covering she wore, a veil, I could tell she belonged to some kind of Church. A healer then. Most elves had disparate hair colors than humans, hers was a dark purple and hung low to her hips. I studied her dress, noticing that the neckline was a bit too low and the dress tight around her curves just enough for it to toe the line between fashionable and improper. Her eyes were a shade of lavender in the same hue as her hair. I looked away from her, feeling the urge to wretch. Since I had that run-in with Snow White who had cast [Charm] on me, I felt uncomfortable around women who were beautiful. It wasn¡¯t that I couldn¡¯t appreciate their beauty, quite the opposite. I¡¯d had a girlfriend before and knew what it was like to want someone. But when I found myself feeling attracted to a woman because of their looks¡­ Well, let¡¯s just say my blind eye started to ache. She must have felt my eyes on her and came over to introduce herself. ¡°You must be Marc¡¯s latest recruits. My name is Eltis.¡± She bowed her head respectfully. ¡°The Church of the Nine sends their regards.¡± ¡°Lock.¡± I kept my introduction short. ¡°Skaris of Clan Deepeater.¡± ¡°Kyrian Tricilan.¡± The red-haired pierced fighter introduced himself, his face still sour. ¡°Pyret Sunt. I am the leader of this group; we are your reinforcements from Eretia.¡± He didn¡¯t bother giving us his hand for a handshake. ¡°Since we¡¯re here, why don¡¯t we do some basic introductions.¡± The rest of the Eretians introduced themselves but since there were nine of them, the introductions took awhile. Baran was an elven archer, evidenced by the bow on his back and the feathered cap. He had come along with his twin sister, Sarai ¨Can elven mage with orange hair which matched her brothers, introduced herself. ¡°What magic do you specialize in?¡± I blurted out. She frowned then cast a nervous look at Pyret, the sword-and-board fighter. It was already starting. This Fracture was a miniature sized war between the two cities. Some might call it a competition but once we entered the Fracture, no matter how low, there was the chance that the Eretians could turn on the Miltus adventurers. In my point of view, that was war. Me asking for her specialization could be taken as a means to gain information ahead of time. And yes, I was doing exactly that. But it was also a Fracture. Teamwork could only happen if we had a rough understanding of what the other individuals were capable of. Pyret seemed to come to the same realization I had, he answered on her behalf. ¡°She specializes in Curses.¡± I gritted my teeth at the MSS word for ¡®debuff mage¡¯. There were dozens of different types of curses. From curses that focused on slowing down the enemy, lowering their defense, taking away their sight all the way to sealing abilities or skills. He wasn¡¯t giving me much to work with. So the game of cat¡¯s paws had already started. Neither side would be willing to give up too much information to the other. ¡°I see that Kyrian is a mage as well, perhaps we could hear what he specializes in.¡± I saw the mange in question give a handsome smile and Sarai actually blushed. ¡°I specialize in offensive spells.¡± I could almost forgive him for being popular with women; he gave them the same answer they had. He didn¡¯t give them any element he specialized in. The rest of the Eretians introduced themselves and I took notes in my head. Hurgrin, a cloaked dwarf with the lower part of his face hidden and three daggers strapped to each of his thigh; the attire was sufficient explanation for what he was. Forma Nurg. The plain-faced brunette archer was the one of the three humans in the Eretian party along with Pyret and Trulia. Forma had a striking scar running across the bridge of her nose, other than that she was pretty unassuming. Trevor was the priest on their team; a large blonde man with the silver pendant in the shape of the sun. A member of the Church of Light, Flame and Shield from Turina. ¡°Trevor, Hurgrin, Sarai, Forma and Baran are part of my original party.¡± Pyret explained and somehow managed to make it sound cocky. Of course. His team had Trevor as the Healer; Sarai as the mage with Hurgrin, Froma and Baran as the damage dealers. Judging by Pyret¡¯s shield, a upside-down tear-shaped hunk of metal many times bigger than my own, he was definitely the tank in his party. While I was analyzing his team composition and trying to think of what Cores they might be holding; Pyret pissed me off. ¡°Heh.¡± He gave a condescending chuckle while looking over my own party. He was looking down on us. ¡°These four have worked with us in the past.¡± Trevor explained with a deep baritone. ¡°Track.¡± A cat-eared beastman with blue hair introduced himself. Like Pyret he had numerous piercings, though his were confined to the blue-furred cat ears on top of his head. His weapon of choise were two shortswords. Unlike Pyret he traded grips with us. ¡°Nice to see another Beastman in this raid.¡± Track commented while trading grips with Skaris. ¡°New to Jayu?¡± Skaris nodded silently, sizing up the feline warrior. Even from a glance I could tell Track was well trained, his footsteps were light and his movements were sure. He wasn¡¯t as tall as me, just shy of six-feet, but made up for it with an air of confidence. I wouldn¡¯t claim to be at Skaris¡¯ level yet but I could tell; Track was probably the most skilled warrior in the Eltrian party. I¡¯d have to kill him first. When he and I traded grips, I saw him look up and down; sizing me up in return. He looked back and forth between Skaris and me. He finally smiled, flashing his fangs and pierced tongue. ¡°Fun.¡± He said simply. ¡°Name¡¯s Dibo Letum. If we are sharing what we specialize in, suffice to say I¡¯m an Earth-mage.¡± Probably the oldest looking member of this party; an elf with pure white hair and a matching beard. Unlike his reed-like frame, his voice was strong. Then he waved his staff at the two next to him. ¡°Us three have been a party since our youth.¡± ¡°Krag, Church of Hammer and Anvil.¡± A bald dwarf with long robes that folded over at his feet and an equally long gray beard. ¡°Hammer bless your path, young¡¯ins.¡± ¡°Ramhof. Knight of the Church of Hammer and Anvil.¡± A dwarf equally as old as Dibo and Krag introduced himself, but unlike the two he wore heavy armor with a maul larger than himself slung over one shoulder. Like Krag, he was bald but kept his beard shaved to a stubble of black and gray. ¡°I am with Krag and Dibo.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a Knight?¡± I asked. ¡°Aye.¡± Ramhof answered. Much like Hurgrin and Baran, he gave off the heavy aura of a man who wasn¡¯t much for speaking. Ramhof being a knight was a problem. That meant he had unlocked his Dwarven racial trait and being a Knight of a Church meant he had abilities that only Holy Knights could use¡­ The odds were really stacked against us. Pyret¡¯s six-man party. Dibo and his two dwarven priest and holy knight. Then Track who seemed to be the Wild Card in all this¡­ Finally the fifteenth member of this raid, and the last person from Miltus join in the conversation. She had clear skin, free of any marrings or imperfections. If I had to nitpick, it was that her features were too fine, too beautiful that was an imperfection in and of itself; too otherworldly. The gray-haired woman was heavily armored; decked out in full plate armor made of Cold Silver, evidenced by the slight blue sheen her armor reflected as she moved. Her hair was done up in a neat bun with two sticks stabbed through which only sharpened her feminine facial features, naturally drawing my gaze to her emerald eyes. She had a huge tower shield made of the same Cold Silver with a large red-crystal embedded in the center. Definitely a magical-item, at least Rare Grade. It made my chipped katana, which was probably a Rare as well, look like damaged goods in comparison. On her back was a colossal lance, longer than she was tall. ¡°Aurora.¡± She introduced herself. ¡°Aurora Candrian Vetilian. Pleased to make your acquaintance.¡±
Chapter 53: Introductions (2)
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¡°Aurora.¡± She introduced herself. ¡°Aurora Candrian Vetilian. Pleased to make your acquaintance.¡± I heard Kyrian take in a sharp breath. ¡°House Vetilius?¡± He muttered, more to himself rather than asking a question but everyone heard him in the ensuing nonetheless. ¡°Here? In Jayu?¡± Even Dibo, who had struck me as more even-tempered of the group, had an expression of open disapproval towards Aurora. He stroked his beard while speaking, ¡°Had I known that a Scion of one of the Great Houses would be here¡­¡± I saw him trade a look with Pyret. So those two were in cahoots with each other. ¡°This was not part of the agreement.¡± Pyret strode forward, bristling with anger. I saw that Baran and Sarai ¨Cthe elven archer and mage siblings¨C had gotten into some kind of formation without anyone noticing. Baran was kneeling on the dirt, his bow not quite drawn but ready to be aimed. Sarai, his sister, stood behind him pretending not to be doing anything but I saw her fingers twitching. Meanwhile, Forma and Trevor were in a similar stance as the elven siblings, with the large priest all the way in the back behind his entire party. Hurgrin was gone. Holy crap, in the blink of a second the six Eretians were in formation. Pyret at the front with his shield, the archers protecting the mage and priest, and finally Hurgrin had somehow escaped my senses. I could tell that these guys were used to fighting against other adventurers and were fast. But instead of being scared, I could only marvel at their synchronized movements. ¡°So this is the level of their party.¡± ¡°What are you suggesting?¡± Eltis¡¯ husky voice floated over to Pyret. I saw the man glance at her and visibly struggle to tear his eye off of her. She wasn¡¯t just a regular Priestess, but a priestess from the church of Nine. Nine the elven goddess had nine faces. Gluttony. Greed. Lust. Wrath Despair. Apathy. Envy. Hubris. Arrogance. I didn¡¯t need to guess to know which sect the elven priestess belonged to. ¡°We kick her off and go into the Fracture ourselves.¡± Pyret suggested. ¡°Now that¡¯d be fun.¡± Track, the feline swordsman, commented. ¡°Out of the question.¡± I slashed the air with my hand for emphasis. ¡°The Fracture is meant to have fifteen adventurers; going in with fourteen is suicide.¡± I wasn¡¯t just bluffing, I was being serious. Though if I was in charge, we could probably manage it with ten. However, the chances of me ending up in charge of this crew was slim to none. If my guess was correct, Pyret and Dibo already had an agreement on who¡¯d end up calling the shots for this raid. My money was on Pyret, he had the best balanced party out of everyone here. Tank, two DPS, Mage and Healer. ¡°Then I¡¯ll call in a friend.¡± He shrugged. ¡°There¡¯s plenty-¡± ¡°No.¡± I answered back. I hadn¡¯t expected them to be aggressive so soon; I thought they¡¯d wait until we were inside the fracture. But they were already trying to kick out someone from Miltus and trying to replace it with one of their own. No matter how much I thought about it, it was way too convenient that Pyret came prepared to replace one of our own members like this. That led me to one conclusion. They knew about us from the get-go. They knew about Aurora and came prepared to pick a fight with us over her name. But us from Miltus couldn¡¯t lose her. Then it¡¯d be eleven against four in the Fracture, impossible odds. That wasn¡¯t a risk, it was jumping into the ocean in handcuffs with a cinderblock tied around my waist. Either way, they threw the first metaphorical punch. Unless we could punch back they¡¯d push us around inside the fracture the entire time. I looked at Eltis expectedly. I knew myself, I wasn¡¯t the most gifted talker. Perhaps she could- The priestess smiled back and winked. Then rolled her eyes towards Pyret. The fuck? I quickly realized that she wasn¡¯t going to offer any help. Instead I look at Aurora, the gray-haired beauty. ¡°Do you have anything to say?¡± Aurora¡¯s mannerisms ran parallel with her statuesque looks; flawless, unchanging and inflexible. ¡°If that is how they feel, I apologize but I¡¯m afraid there¡¯s nothing I could do about my name. You are all correct in assuming that I am a bastard of House Vetilius, one of the Great Houses of the Turina Empire. Your fears are not unfounded, all Scions, legitimate or illegitimate, have been used as tools for Turina Expansion in the past and in the present. I presume that it will continue into the future.¡± Then she turned her green eyes on me. ¡­The FUCK? I took a breath and stayed calm. ¡°I will not go into the Fracture with a Scion of one of the Great Houses, especially after what happened to the Samak Horde. We all know how that ended.¡± Pyret muttered and Forma nodded, glaring daggers at us. Track just looked amused, watching from afar. Pyret was the main opposition here, I had to either press him hard enough to relent or force Dibo to take my side using reason. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Thisss isss ridiculous, you bark like dogssss afraid of one warrior when there are ten of you.¡± Skaris hissed, looking at Pyret then Dibo. ¡°If you are afraid, then sssstay out. We will enter the Fracture oursssselves.¡± Track¡¯s eyes narrowed and Pyret actually took a step forward, like he was about to lunge at him. Calling adventurers a coward to their face was enough to have blood drawn in some circles. Besides, Skaris didn¡¯t know what he was talking about. If those ten didn¡¯t enter with us then- ¡°Skaris you genius bastard.¡± I had to change my tactics. ¡°Maybe we will.¡± I said out loud. Kyrian caught on. ¡°We¡¯re wasting time here Lock. We should move.¡± Pyret looked dumbfounded. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You heard me.¡± I took a step out to meet Pyret in the middle. ¡°You and your party can stay here. Us, the adventurers from Miltus, will take on the Fracture. Alone.¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t dare.¡± He hissed, his red hair and piercings making him look more menacing than he actually was. ¡°It¡¯d be suicide.¡± ¡°Mister Lock-¡± Aurora¡¯s perfectly poised voice began. I pointed at the manacle scars on my neck, cutting her off and looking Pyret straight in the eyes. ¡°Been through worse.¡± I was taking a risk here. They could all just turn back and call my bluff. There was no way that the five of us from Miltus could take on the Fracture ourselves and everyone knew it. If the ten of them turned away, then I couldn¡¯t be sure that Eltis or Aurora would stay either. But it was a Fracture. And these Eretians were adventurers. I knew Fractures. I knew adventurers. Fractures presented opportunities for growth and wealth; a call more irresistible than a siren¡¯s for adventurers. I saw Pyret lick his lips. He was weighing the pros and cons. He could call my bluff, but if it wasn¡¯t; we¡¯d enter the Fracture and it¡¯d soon close after. There was a time limit on how long the Fracture Dungeon would stay open after the first participant entered. Then it would stay closed; regardless of whether we completed the Dungeon or not, until then next time when it would open randomly. Even if we all died, they¡¯d lose a precious opportunity. Pyret was greedy. All adventurers were. But Pyret wasn¡¯t the only adventurer here, was he? ¡°What say you, Dibo? Track?¡± I addressed the two. ¡°I¡¯m willing to get in there without Pyret¡¯s party. Less heads, better odds for drawing lots for a Core or Plurality.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Who knows, maybe a Splinter.¡± Track¡¯s eerie cat-eyes stared at me. Then he broke into a smile. ¡°Could be fun. Challenging even. Never been inside a Fracture with less people than it allowed.¡± One down. ¡°Dibo?¡± I faced the elderly elven wizard. Ramhof and Krag remained silent. I assumed they weren¡¯t here for wealth but for the same reason Eltis was; the Guildmaster had called in a favor with the local church. Except for Ramhof and Krag, it seemed to be based more on friendship with Dibo than anything else. Dibo stroked his beard a moment longer, glancing sideways at Pyret who was glaring too hard at Track to catch it. I stifled a smile. I never bought Trevor¡¯s story that Dibo and Track were tagalongs to their party. Ten adventurers? Working together and sharing loot like they were old-time friends? If that happened, Skaris could grow wings and I¡¯d call him a dragon. Things like that could only happen with absolute trust in each other or under one individual with absolute strength over the others. Pyret and Dibo treated each other with the awkwardness of two partnering business CEOs, unsure who was going to take the lead and when. I¡¯d seen it often enough when I was a kid. No, the Eretian Guildmaster had screwed up. Too many cooks in the kitchen wasn¡¯t a good thing. If I were the guildmaster in Eretia, I¡¯d have stuck Pyret with some nobodies. But most likely there were some more politics at play which got Track and Dibo into the raid. Track and Dibo and Pyret. Aggravating the three, causing internal stride and turning them against each other was the key to getting out of this Fracture alive. Dibo was taking too long for my liking, I didn¡¯t want anyone else getting their two cents in. ¡°Beware an old man in a profession where men die young.¡± I quoted, I¡¯d seen it used in webnovels more than once so I had it memorized. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you got to that age without risking your neck once.¡± The wizard sighed. ¡°You play your cards well, sir Lock. Indeed, this is an opportunity that we cannot turn down.¡± He gave a meaningful look at Pyret. The swordsman scowled. ¡°Fine.¡± He jabbed a finger into my chest, in my blindspot. ¡°But we¡¯re keeping an eye on her. One wrong move and she gets an arrow through her back.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I whispered. Then before anyone could react, I reached behind me and grabbed the Hurgrin¡¯s wrist; twisting his shoulder and forcing him to the ground in front of me. I placed a foot on the middle of his back and jerked. Much to my chagrin, the dwarf rogue didn¡¯t let out a single yelp of pain. My mother, the greedy and driven woman that she was, often told me if money didn¡¯t buy you happiness; it meant you didn¡¯t have enough of it. So I twisted harder and leaned into his back, feeling a satisfying crack. Cra-cra-crack. He groaned in pain. I stopped just short of breaking it. He definitely had some kind of stealth based Core ability, but it was a cheap one or I¡¯d never have been able to smell him. I resisted the urge to smile as his ability flow into me. ? [Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Gnome¡¯s Blessing] ? The dwarf had remained invisible the entire time I was twisting his arm. But now that his ability was stolen, his form became visible sections at a time. ¡°What are you-?!¡± Pyret hissed in surprise when Hurgrin appeared, seemingly out of thin air. ¡°And tell your rogue to stop sneaking around behind my back.¡± I could smell the metal coming off of Hurgrin¡¯s many daggers. ¡°Or I¡¯m taking an arm next time.¡± I noticed Track was grinning ear to ear and his eyes were glued to me. Then I released the dwarf and he rolled forward, rubbing the shoulder that I had twisted. ¡°Oh my,¡± My enhanced hearing picked up Eltis¡¯ voice, slightly deeper than before, ¡°I think I¡¯m in love.¡± ¡°Saw him first.¡± Track muttered and I doubted anyone who had a [Hearing] stat lower than mine heard it. Besides the two, I saw all the other adventurers staring at me with varying degrees of reactions. Their comments scared me, though for completely different reasons. I turned around before I changed my mind about this whole raid, towards the road leading away from Miltus. ¡°If we are all in agreement, let¡¯s go. We¡¯re not too far from the Fracture.¡± ¡°Oh-ho¡­¡± I heard Dibo gasp from behind me. I felt Kyrian and Skaris naturally fall in line with me. I resisted the urge to look back but could imagine that Track walked by himself, while Dibo and Pyret should have some distance between each other now. ¡°Finally, sssso much work to enter the dungeon.¡± Skaris muttered, just between himself, Kyrian and I. ¡°Isss it alwayssss like thisss?¡± Kyrian shook his head. ¡°Turina was a bit¡­ different. More organized. Less anarchy. But I believe you did well there, Lock.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± I kept my voice low, keeping my ears open. ¡°But keep an eye out. This won¡¯t be the last time they try something.¡± ¡°Who? The Vetilius? The Priestess of the Nine?¡± ¡°What can you tell me about the Priestess? She¡¯s¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t find the right word. I had told them my experience with Snow White but it had been so surreal, so fast that I couldn¡¯t convey the weight of how traumatizing it was for me. ¡°Ssstay away.¡± Skaris warned. ¡°Rumorsss of the Nine, the elven Goddesssss issss not a kind one, Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°Rumors and only rumors. But suppsoedly, kidnapping. Brainwashing. Human Sacrificing. Removing your Cores against your will.¡± Kyrian shrugged. ¡°The usual cult.¡± I gave Kyrian the side-eye. ¡°Are you¡­ religious?¡± ¡°No.¡± He admitted. ¡°But wise enough to recognize a dangerous organization when I see one. The Church in Turina isn¡¯t the beacon of shining hope it once was, but at least it protects the citizens. As for the Chruch of the Nine¡­ like I said, rumors and rumors only. But I imagine there must be some basis to them.¡± I wanted to ask more about the Churches but that wasn¡¯t necessary information right now; there were too many things I needed to pick the mage¡¯s brain on. ¡°What do you guys think about Aurora?¡± ¡°Ssstrong.¡± Skaris actually turned his head back and I presumed he looked at Aurora. The man was a fighter worth his weight in gold but he had 0 social tact to speak of. ¡°Perhapsssss asss ssstrong assss you and me.¡± Skaris tilted his head to the side. ¡°The beassstman too. Among the warriorssss, us four are the strongesssst.¡± ¡°Not Pyret?¡± I knew it was a waste of time to even ask, but I wanted to hear Skaris rip into the man. ¡°Not bad, but lacking.¡± He shrugged. ¡°He wassssn¡¯t bad when he tessssted your eyesssight. You did a good job not flinching, he issss sssstill unsure.¡± ¡°Conniving bastard.¡± Kyrian brought us back to the topic. ¡°The Great Houses don¡¯t have bastards. Not officially, no. But there are few that run about Turina, claiming they are. Few are seldom found to be speaking the truth. Usually there is no relation or the blood is so diluted they can¡¯t even be admitted into the Branch Houses.¡± I kept my mouth shut during his talk about the bastards. I was still new to this ¡®friend¡¯ thing and didn¡¯t trust myself not to say the wrong thing. Skaris just listened as well. ¡°But¡­ There is no reason for her to lie. This is far from Turina where the name of the Great Houses bring you power. But as we all just saw, it only brings danger.¡± Kyrian finished by saying, ¡°She doesn¡¯t strike me as a liar.¡± ¡°I thought the same. Tell me about the Vetilius house a little. Fighting style?¡± ¡°Defenders and Shielders. The whole family are Knights. Every single one of their Scions know how to use Aura, at least the ones old enough.¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice gained a hint of respect and envy. ¡°They are the proud shields of Turina.¡± ¡°...Did you want to be a Knight as a kid?¡± ¡°It is every kid¡¯s dream to be a Knight.¡± Kyrian answered back. ¡°But alas, magecraft always suited me better.¡± Any race that took on the class of Mage or Priest couldn¡¯t unlock their racial traits. That meant Kyrian would never be able to use [Aura], one of the defining traits of a human adventurer. Then again, that meant Arione would never be able to use the elven racial trait either. I used to think of it as a simple balancing issue put in place by the developers. But now that I can use [Mana Sense] to a degree¡­ there was only so much resource that the body could contain before it broke down. I instinctively knew that Kyrian could use [Aura] for a short time, but the price would be death or at the best case scenario; ending up as a cripple. I knew it in my head and heart the same way I knew the sun was up and the ground was down. ¡°Lock, we need to get a moment to convene with Sister Eltis and Lady Aurora.¡± ¡°I know but I can¡¯t just be so blatant about it, Pyret and Bido willl try something. I just know it.¡± ¡°They will try ssssomething anywaysss. They already have tried ssssomething.¡± ¡°Yes but¡­ no one¡¯s really openly sided against Miltus or against Eretia yet.¡± I explained. ¡°The spat from before can be attributed to just different party¡¯s negotiating against each other¡­ but if we openly side with Eltis and Aurora, it could be taken as us purposefully splitting up the members of this raid who are all supposed to be working together.¡± As I was talking, I was reminded of how Eltis had just winked and smiled at me instead of helping. Had the elven priestess seen this far ahead? Even me, I had only realized it in the midst of talking with Kyrian and Skaris. If that priestess truly foresaw this far ahead, she could be a powerful ally. ¡°It needs to be subtle. Of course they¡¯ll see it, but we have to do it in a way where they can¡¯t try to voice their opinions about it.¡± I finished. ¡°I do not enjoy thesssse gamesss.¡± Before I could answer, Forma¡¯s flat voice alerted us. ¡°Ahead of us.¡± The archer said to all of us. ¡°The Fracture.¡±
Chapter 54: Fracture - Twilight Maze (1)
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Ahead of us was an outcropping made entirely of rock, jutting out from the landscape like a horn. It looked just like every other piece of landscape in Miltus, rocky and dry. But this particular rock formation was different, it looked like the mast of a ship,leading up into a narrow space where we were standing, from here we could look down the vista of the road we walked on plus Miltus in the distance. I could even see the deep blue of the ocean beyond. In front of us was a stone pillar and it was surrounded by unstable purple mana that jumped to and fro like a wild current. There was an impulse to get away from the area and nervous tension piled in the air; I saw the three priests ¨CTrevor, Eltis and Krag¨C each pray. ¡°It¡¯s opening.¡± Dibo muttered, a hint of awe in his voice. There was the crack of stone splitting followed by the rumbling of rock. Then the space in front of the rock began to rip open like a piece of paper being torn in half, splitting apart and forming a portal. Everyone stood back, speechless and the ensuing silence added gravity to the moment; swirling lavender energy formed the body of the portal while white mana crackled like electricity around its outline. Like the eye of a giant waking from his slumber, the portal opened. Fractures were named as such because they were exactly that; a Fracture between worlds that you could enter. I fought against my natural instinct to rush in as fast as possible. Normally, a Fracture opened multiple portals all over the world; those portals staying open until a specific number was met. But Marc Pointell had told us that this particular Fracture opened every six months and the portal in front of us was its only entrance. It would be just us fifteen in there. I slowly studied my companions. Skaris licked his lips, both excitement and nervousness going through his eyes in equal amounts. Kyrian held his staff with nothing but determination. I had no idea what would happen once we stepped in the Fracture. Each Fracture Dungeon was an instance Dungeon, randomly generated from a pool of dozen different combinations. It wasn¡¯t always a cookie cutter method to get out alive from these, it required quick-thinking and a deep intricate understanding of monsters as well as your party¡¯s strength. I had known it subconsciously but it hit me again, we were risking our lives. Skaris looked at me. ¡°We are ready, Ssslaveborn.¡± While I had been mentally preparing myself, Pyret and his party entered first. Dibo, Krag and Ramhof were entering now. Following the others, I stepped through the portal.
?You have entered a Special Field: Spirit Maze ? ? Field Effect - Spirit Maze is now active ? ? Field Effect - Spirit Maze: -20% Ice Resistance ? ? Field Effect - Spirit Maze: -50% Healing ? ? Field Effect - Spirit Maze: -80% Mana Regeneration ? ? Field Effect - Spirit Maze: Starting points randomly generated ?
Stepping through the portal, I was submerged in darkness; the vast emptiness pressing all around me and expanding my senses till it felt like I was being stuffed by cotton. The sensation didn¡¯t last, everything started to turn bright until the only thing I could see was light all around me. Then the light abruptly disappeared; leaving me in an entire scenery. The first thing I noticed was that I was cold; frosty wind blew around me hard enough to sting the tip of my nose and ears. I sniffed and it felt like I had just inhaled ice; the familiar dull headache of a brain freeze coming on from just breathing. It was snowing. Fat snowflakes as big as my open hand fell in droves, sometimes swaying in one direction, carried by the wind. I took a step forward and felt the snow compact under my greaves, hearing the crunch as I created a small path with my footsteps. Then there were the walls around me. They were huge and continued on as far as my eye could see; they were tall enough so that I had a sense of vertigo when trying to gauge their exact height. It reminded me of the sheer cliff walls that Samak City had been surrounded by, substantially larger and smoother in comparison: they were made entirely of ice. Thick black ice that reflected no light; staring at it too long felt like I was looking into an endless chasm or into the void of the deep sea. The sky was a vast expanse of twilight; made of the same black ice as the walls. An enclosed maze made entirely of ice. We were in the Spirit Maze. The frigid temperature numbed my nose and my sense of smell in turn. My hearing was disabled by the howling of wind, caused by the walls throwing it back and forth. Bits of frost were already starting to form on my armor. ¡°W-where are we?¡± I turned around and cursed softly. Skaris and Kyrian weren¡¯t with me. One of the things I hated about Fractures was that there was no guarantee that your entire party could enter together. Two people could step through the portal then it could close, already having met the number of participants met by portals open in other places. But the Spirit Maze elevated that sense of randomness; it shuffled everyone¡¯s spawn points. I was with four others. Aurora shook her head, her gray hair throwing snowflakes everywhere. Her green eyes were startlingly bright; her ethereal beauty emphasized by the snowy landscape. ¡°Hello, Mr. Lock. Mr. Krag, Ms. Sarai.¡± She greeted me formally. As Aurora had pointed out, there were two others with us. ¡°Bless my hammer and anvil, my arse is freezing.¡± Krag murmured. He wrapped his midnight-blue robes tighter around himself. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°W-Where are the others?¡± Sarai¡¯s long orange hair stuck out like a sore thumb in the landscape of black and white. ¡°Inside the Fracture. It split everyone up.¡± I tried not to let my voice grow too dark. Skaris and Kyrian were with some other people, in a place where I couldn¡¯t see. My heart was beating frantically out of nervousness; somehow it felt like my fault that they ended up in this mess. If there was any consolation, it was that I had insisted on spending most of our money on their equipments. Hopefully, it¡¯d make the difference between life or death. Because if the Eretians wanted to make a move, now was the time. ¡°What about Pyret? My brother?¡± Sarai looked around, her eyes widening in panic and voice rising in pitch. I stepped towards her and the girl flinched. I bent down and grabbed the hems of her cloak, which had parted. Already snow was beginning to pile inside of her clothes. Closing the cloak, I looked at her orange eyes, trying to get her attention. I had seen it more than once as a slave; people who allowed panic to set in and cloud their judgements. Most of them died, their mind causing them to make mistakes which caused them to spiral down a path of mistakes and poor decisions. Skaris and Kyrian aside, I could end up dead as well. I needed her to focus. ¡°Focus, Magus Sarai.¡± I used the formal title of respect, something the elven mage was probably familiar with. ¡°What?¡± She asked, dumbfounded. I frowned and grabbed her hands, putting them on her cloak. ¡°We¡¯re in the Fracture and it split everyone up. If you want to stay alive long enough to reunite with your party; I suggest keeping the snow out of your clothes.¡± She blushed and tightened the cloak around her. ¡°I know that.¡± She snapped and slapped my hand away in embarrassment. Promptly getting to her feet, she began to walk around, studying the ice walls. ¡°Nicely done, lad.¡± I hadn¡¯t noticed Krag until he spoke from right behind me. I stood up and turned around slowly, careful not to show him that he succeeded in startling me. Now that I looked closely, his face was etched with light blue tattoos. Lines that reminded me of sedimentary rocks, perfectly straight and sharp. I wouldn¡¯t have noticed them if I wasn¡¯t this close to him. ¡°Lass was panicking. You did a good job bringing her back to her senses. Seen it before, have you?¡± It was more of a statement than a question, but I nodded. He nodded solemnly. ¡°By the forge, I hope that you find better fortune than you did in the past.¡± His eyes lingered on my manacle. Aurora stepped closer to us. ¡°Mr. Krag. Mr. Lock. I have scouted our immediate surroundings and there are no footsteps leading to us or out of us. I am not a scout by any means, but no signs of monsters either. It is safe to assume that us four are the only ones here.¡± I didn¡¯t bother correcting her about the monsters. Monsters in the Spirit Maze didn¡¯t leave tracks. Seeing the three of us talking, Sarai joined the circle. ¡°The first thing to do is stay warm. All of you, if you have any clothing to keep warm, I suggest you put it on now.¡± Then I promptly sat down and began to take out clothing out of my Dimension Ring. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Sarai said haughtily. Sarai had all the arrogance of a mage plus the haughtiness of her race ¨Cthe elves. It made the girl annoying and insufferable. So instead of answering, I continued my task. I stripped off my armor and heard Krag and Sarai take a audible breath. Even Aurora¡¯s eyes widened. I knew why; my scars. I had amassed an impressive array of scars during my time in the Samak Desert. Fighting for life and death without a healer nearby did that to you. A network of crisscrosses from claws, teeth and being half crushed decorated my body, telling the story of my time as a slave. ¡°By the forge¡­¡± I ignored them all and changed myself into warmer clothing, then put the armor back on. It had been agony to expose my naked skin to the elements but if I was right, there wouldn¡¯t be time to do this later. I raised an eyebrow at them. The others took out thicker clothing as well; Sarai taking out a fur cloak and Krag opting to double layer his own. Aurora took out a red velvety cloak and put it around her armor. They all cut a striking figure, the cloaks making them look like proper adventurers, the kind I had seen in the opening cinematic and cutscenes. I wished I had bought a cloak as well. ¡°Now, let me cast a-¡± I stopped Krag from finishing his sentence. ¡°No. Conserve your mana.¡± The dwarf priest frowned at me. ¡°Lad, it¡¯s freezing. I can cast a blessing that will keep us all warm.¡± I didn¡¯t want to explain to Krag that mana would regenerate at the pace of a snail. That was one of the first traps that this dungeon threw at you: using mana to stave off Frostbite only to find out you didn¡¯t have enough mana to cast a spell when you needed it. ¡°We don¡¯t know what¡¯s waiting for us and what might happen. We can save our mana for later.¡± ¡°Who put you in charge?¡± Sarai asked, while frowning. I sighed. ¡°No one. But it would be the smart thing to do.¡± Krag studied me. ¡°...We¡¯ll do it your way for now, lad. But if you catch frostbite, I¡¯ll charge an arm and a leg for healing that.¡± ¡°Fine with me.¡± ¡°We should choose a leader.¡± Sarai said, after Krag and I had both ignored her. She turned up her nose at us. ¡°It should be me. Krag has been retired for too long and you two will be too busy fighting on the front. I¡¯m the only one who¡¯ll have the whole vision of the battle and have clarity of thought to give terse but clear commands.¡± Krag stroked his beard, reminding me that Dibo and he were friends. He studied Sarai then me. ¡°I don¡¯t know lass¡­ perhaps it would be better to discuss this further.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a Grade 7.¡± Sarai argued. ¡°Surely you don¡¯t think these two are-¡± ¡°Can¡¯t hurt to talk about it.¡± Krag turned to Aurora. ¡°Young miss, what¡¯s your grade?¡± ¡°My grade won¡¯t matter in this conversation as I have no plans to lead; nor do I believe myself apt for it.¡± She turned to me. ¡°I believe it should be Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°...Aye, truth be told I was thinking the same thing.¡± Krag admitted then spoke softly to Sarai. ¡°You¡¯re much too green still, lass.¡± Sarai fumed and I took a step back. ¡°Grade?¡± ¡°6.¡± I said easily. ¡°Fine.¡± I sighed in relief. If Sarai had kept insisting I was going to suggest Krag. I did not want to leave my life in the hands of someone whose first reaction was to panic. Luckily she wasn¡¯t going to press the issue. I considered the three for a moment, thinking what the appropriate formation would be. A typical formation wouldn¡¯t do here. I had to take into account the characteristics of the monsters from the Twilight Maze. ¡°Ok. Aurora in the front, Krag right behind her. Sarai will be right behind him then me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to put yourself in the back?!¡± The mage shrilled. I had expected the pushback. ¡°Yes.¡± Even Krag looked disappointed but true to his word, he obeyed. ¡°Lead on then, young miss.¡± With Aurora leading the way, we began to walk. Soon, the wind died down and only the occasional breeze remained. Still, the ceiling above us howled relentlessly and I saw flurries of snowflakes forming miniature storms before floating down peacefully. Each step we took was accompanied by the sound of crunching snow. Other than those two noises; we were completely silent. There was no knowing what monster lay in wait here; the smallest noise might attract them to us. But the silence wore on our psyche. All our senses stood on end, waiting for an attack every second. For me, it was nerve-wracking. I knew that my [Hearing] and [Smell] stat, even dampened by the cold, was the best among them. That was why I had put myself in the back. Monsters in the Twilight Maze tended to attack from the back. When Aurora had said that she didn¡¯t see any tracks earlier, I didn¡¯t bother correcting her. Monsters here didn¡¯t leave tracks. I felt Sarai''s anxiety permeate from the girl like an aura. Her head swiveled every second, startled at the slightest nose or new turn. Meanwhile, Aurora was the opposite. True to her role as the tank, she walked on without hesitation and surety in her steps. Krag, being a veteran, absorbed the tension with ease. Soon we fell into a familiar rhythm. After an hour of walking, we stopped to break. We were wading through knee-deep snow now; Aurora was visibly starting to struggle. The weight of her armor, weapon plus having to clear the snow away had been wearing down on her. I reckoned she had maybe two more marches like this before I had to take her spot. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to pry lad,¡± Krag was the first to break the silence, ¡°But those scars¡­ were you a slave?¡± I saw Sarai¡¯s pointed ears perk up. Even Aurora¡¯s head stood a bit straighter, listening in. There was no point in hiding it and I felt no shame in sharing it. ¡°Yes.¡± I answered simply. ¡°You won¡¯t happen to be one of those survivors from the Samak War?¡± Krag asked. ¡°I am.¡± I took out a piece of jerky and bit into it. It was cold and dry, but feeling hunger later on meant I was already running low on energy. Krag ate these weird jelly cubes, popping it into his mouth. Some of them had begun to freeze the moment he took them out; and they crunched like ice in his mouth. ¡°Truly? You escaped from that hellhole?¡± I saw Sarai give a knowing look to Aurora then back to me. ¡°I heard that it was one of the Great Houses, Akka Xaluds, who orchestrated the attack. Was it true?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Her words brought me back to the burning city, back to the screams that haunted my dreams at night. ¡°No wonder you had a look about you.¡± Krag finished the last of his cubes. ¡°I could tell that you weren¡¯t just a regular slave; slightly different from the usual slaves.¡± ¡°How so?¡± I was genuinely curious. ¡°They¡¯re usually more¡­ relaxed. Calm. Satisfied because they bought their freedom.¡± I saw Krag struggle to find the right words. ¡°They usually hunt weak monsters, just enough to make a living.¡± ¡°Ah. You¡¯re saying they wouldn¡¯t risk their life in a Fracture just for a chance at wealth.¡± I smirked as Krag winced. ¡°Aye. That too. No offense to you, lad.¡± ¡°None taken.¡± Aurora had been listening carefully, her hands folded in her lap. ¡°Did you fight them, Mr. Lock? The Akka Xalud soldiers?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± I took a moment to answer. ¡°I see.¡± Her green eyes stared into mine and I saw guilt. ¡°It must have been difficult. I¡¯d like to apologize on behalf of my-¡± ¡°No need.¡± I waved her apologies away. ¡°There¡¯s no need for you to apologize to me. I personally didn¡¯t like what happened to you back then either.¡± Sarai looked away and Krag coughed. ¡°You¡¯re not responsible for the actions of your country. You¡¯re just like us, an adventurer on their own path. Don¡¯t apologize for something you had nothing to do with.¡± I continued, ¡°I¡¯m done judging people because they¡¯re human or orc, elf or dwarf. To me¡­ it¡¯s your will that matters. Nothing more and nothing less¡± As I spoke, I was reminded of L¡¯teya and a cloud of nostalgia swept over me. I wondered how she was doing and a part of me wished I could see her again. Aurora looked down into her hands. ¡°You¡¯re a good man, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Young miss, I¡¯d like to apologize for what happened back there too.¡± Krag seized the moment to clear the air. ¡°Aye, I¡¯ll admit. The name of the Great House brings out something fierce and I wasn¡¯t thinking clearly. I¡¯m sure Ramhof and Dibo would say the same.¡± Then, very pointedly, the dwarf looked at Sarai. Sarai turned bright red, gripping her cloak so hard that her fingernails turned red. The scent of something familiar touched my numbed nose. ¡°I¡¯m not going to apologize to a human,¡± She spat the word like a curse. ¡°Whose country murdered countless innocents.¡± ¡°Sarai, quiet.¡± I muttered. ¡°No!¡± She stood up and snow fell off of her. ¡°The Turina Empire has killed in the name of racial supremacy for generations and the Great Houses were their tools! If you think I¡¯m going to just forget-¡± ¡°Quiet!¡± I hissed. ¡°You¡¯re human too! You-¡± I closed the distance between us and clamped my hand over the elven mage¡¯s mouth. Her eyes stared at me in defiance then fear as she heard my words. ¡°We¡¯re being watched.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s not human.¡± I smelled blood.
Chapter 55: Fracture - Twilight Maze (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
I slowly released Sarai, holding a finger up to my lips. Contrary to my fear, she didn''t scream her head off at me. Aurora was already standing right next to me, her shield at the ready. Krag¡¯s eyes glowed an eerie blue; his hands spread out and floating traces of mana up into the snowing sky. I drew my jagged katana, the one I had kept since the time in Oung¡¯s dungeon. Speaking of which, I was only on my second dungeon and already I was tackling a Fracture. ¡°Focus.¡± I sniffed, trying to catch scent of our stalker. But whoever ¨Cor what¨C our stalker was, either they had noticed our movements and hid themselves or I had made a mistake; there was no trace of the earlier signal. Regardless, we let a few moments pass by in silence. I heard Sarai¡¯s heart beating rapidly, much faster than Aurora¡¯s or Krag¡¯s. A minute passed then another. We maintained silence, each of our eyes searching for the slightest disturbance in snow or any sound other than the warbled howl of wind that came down the maze¡¯s corridors. Still nothing. I heard Krag gulp before he spoke, albeit in a whisper. ¡°You sure about this, lad? I wasn¡¯t aware you were a scout.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not.¡± I answered, then knelt low to the snow. I knew the monster was here. My instincts screamed danger constantly. But it wasn¡¯t just any monster, it must be intelligent enough to know that we had noticed its presence. Combined with the fact that we were in the Twilight Maze, there were a few suspects on the mental list which I was combing through. ¡°Invisibility. Intelligent. Ambush-like behavior. There¡¯s only one monster it could be¡­ and if we gained its attention it might be best to get rid of it here.¡± Any other monsters could be waiting for us deeper in the maze. Worst case scenario, we¡¯d be surrounded. I made my decision. ¡°We have to draw it out.¡± I spoke to Sarai and Krag without turning towards them. ¡°The monster must have an ability to turn invisible during snowfall. Do you guys have any Detection spells?¡± Krag shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m a Priest of the Forge, lad. Trickery isn¡¯t my thing, better luck with that elven priestess of yours.¡± I didn¡¯t bother correcting the dwarf priest that I had met with Eltis for the first time today as well. ¡°Magus?¡± She sniffed. ¡°How do you know that something¡¯s here? You said it yourself, you¡¯re not even a scout.¡± ¡°Do you have one or do you not have one?¡± ¡°...I do not.¡± I sighed. ¡°Mr. Lock. I believe I might have a method.¡± Aurora spoke up, in her polite and quiet tone. ¡°However, are you certain the monster is still here? We cannot discount the possibility that we startled it by coming to arms and it has already left the area. I¡¯d prefer to save resources, including mana and any items, since we are unaware of what lies further in the mage.¡± I listened to Aurora¡¯s explanation all the way to the end, though Sarai huffed out her cheeks with impatience. I had to agree with the elven mage, Aurora tended to be long winded ¨Cbut that was only because she covered every base. In that single sentence she had conveyed her worry, why she was worried as well as warning the rest of us that this was only a single monster. I was starting to understand what type of role she played in a party, usually the one that was the most important yet annoyed everyone: The Voice of Reason. Still, she was right. This monster was only one monster, we had to conserve our resources. Especially our mana. But I knew the monster was still here, it was just as sinister as its intelligence. One of the few monsters that actually employed tactics when choosing its victims. The monster would wait until we were tired and worn out from the cold, or in the midst of battle with another creature. By then it might be too late for us to do anything about it. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± I allowed and saw Aurora stop staring at the falling snow and at me instead. She looked a bit surprised. ¡°I¡¯ll lure it out. But once I do, I¡¯m going to need a spell or two to keep it in place. It might try to run.¡± ¡°How do you know, lad? You know what creature it is?¡± I didn¡¯t want to reveal too much about my [Smell] stat nor my knowledge too much, instead I tapped my forehead. ¡°Instinct.¡± Krag sniffed. ¡°Make it quick then, this snow ain¡¯t good for my knees and it''s piling into something mighty fierce.¡± In just a few minutes, a considerable amount of snow had piled on and around us. Sarai, physically weakest of us four, was visibly struggling to keep upright. I saved my breath and shuffled out from the safety of Aurora¡¯s shield. I had been in a party with her ¨Ca proper tank¨C for a total of less than a day and already felt a sense of security with her standing in front of me. The snow fell relentlessly, and it was reaching my waist now. I waded and tried to step on top of the snow but it buckled underneath my weight. I knew for a fact that a certain amount of [Footwork] stat and [Weight] was required for a character to be able to walk on top of the powdery landscape. I knew that I fulfilled neither requirement because I sank right in. I bent my knees so that the snow was chest level then started half-walking, half-swimming in a circle around them. They watched carefully and I felt the atmosphere go taut like a bowstring about to snap. Whatever I was doing, it was gathering the attention of something and their instincts were picking it up. Sarai shuddered; either from the cold or from the eerie agitation that filled her mind. We all heard a growl. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. The scent of blood filled my nostrils, warning me that I was about to die. ¡°NOW!¡± I screamed out and bounded out of the snow, my hand bleeding profusely and splashed it all over the air behind me. While wading in the snow around them, I cut my hand on my katana. With the [Bleed] proc, I left a trail of scarlet behind me, staining the innocent snow with steaming red liquid that was quickly turning to ice. With that, I had agitated the monster enough to follow me. My blood stopped midair, like it had splashed on something and forced our visitor to reveal itself. [Namahage] - Grade 8. The Namahage was like us in many ways; bipedal, two arms with a distinctly humanoid body but that¡¯s where the similarities ended. Its limbs were thick and strong, covered with long black hair that combined with dried out straw which made its raincoat. My mind automatically filled in the blank, the raincoat was called a Mino. The creature wore a red mask resembling the face of an Oni ¨Ca grade 5 monster. Large eyes with thick eyelashes and fangs that protruded from its mouth, finished off with two curved horns on top of its forehead. Behind the mask, I saw brown-black wrinkled skin like a fruit that had been left out too long. Even hunched over, the creature was ten feet tall and right now it was swinging its cooking cleaver towards my neck. I had my shield at the ready but had no time to cast [Coin Toss] and no buffs; I had to take this one as I was. The cleaver tore into the Akka Xalud shield like it was a can of soda. The chitinous material cracked and crumpled, the sound of the exoskeleton being crunched due to the force of the blow. For one second I thought I¡¯d have my new fingers sliced off again, but the shield held; mostly because I was midair and absorbed its momentum. The world turned into a blur as I shot into the snow, getting buried three feet under. There was no time to delay; in a frozen landscape like this one the Namahage would make no footsteps: it could step on top of the powdery ice like it was hard packed dirt. Just as I expected, a flash of straws and hair knotted together came in the corner of my one good eye. I swiveled my head automatically with practiced ease and jumped out of the makeshift snow hovel like a cat on all fours. But I had overestimated my natural speed without any buffs and underestimated the Namahage¡¯s reaction time; it cleaved downwards, determined to cut me in half. Aurora dashed through the snowfield like a tank, creating a curtain of sleet on either side of her. She slammed into the Namahage¡¯s leg, which was almost as big as her, and toppled it off balance. The cleaver missed me by an inch and the snowfield eased my landing. Sarai and Krag had begun to act. There was another reason why I wanted to fight the Namahage besides for safety reasons; it was the best monster for us to test out our teamwork. Even if it was for a short while, we would have to all work together. There was no better time than now to observe what this party was capable of. Sarai took out a wooden staff, a black orb on one end. She swung it towards the Namahage and I saw familiar tendrils of black rise out of the ground, grabbing onto the creature¡¯s arms, legs and neck. ?Sarai Benepir has cast [Dark Tendrils] ? The creature pulled at it, testing the spell¡¯s elasticity. But it was no use, the tendrils acted like rubber bands, stretching then contracting in rhythm with the Namahage¡¯s movements. If anything, it was getting more tangled up. Sarai was skilled, as she should be. I sprinted towards the creature, my usual speed dampened by the piles of snow, and left three criss-crossing slashes on the creature¡¯s all too human-like thigh; the cuts began to ooze big fat drops of dark blue blood. As the Namahage struggled, they began to flow freely; turning the ground into the color of a blueberry slushie. We had managed to immobilize the creature but there was a problem. Not only was it ten-feet tall ¨Cmore like twelve as it stretched to its full-height and tried to escape from the spell¨C but it could stand on top of the snow, which added three to four additional feet to its already impressive height. I would have to leap fifteen feet into the air to even reach its head; not to mention the ground was slick with slush. Krag came forward and put his hands out like he was warming them in front of a fire. His eyes glowed blue and whenever he moved, they left long trails of mana in their wake. The Priest¡¯s hands began to glow with orange light and he touched them to the snow. ?Krag Mason has cast [Heat] ? The snow underneath the Namahage¡¯s feet abruptly melted and it fell to the ground, the tendrils lashing themselves onto its body. I didn¡¯t waste this chance. Activating [Coin Toss], I felt [Arcane Masochism] activate in conjunction; the [Coin Toss] had been a debuff. My feet began to nearly glide over the ground; a [Speed] buff then. I launched myself over the fallen Namahage¡¯s body and attempted to stab it in the throat. But the creature lowered its chin and blocked my strike with the wooden mask. In the meanwhile, my depth perception had been messed up. I landed right next to the creature¡¯s face. It lashed out vehemently, raising its mask to reveal ape-like fangs that extended long past the midpoint of its open maw and snapped at me. I raised the shield in defense but the monster bit through it like it was a piece of twig and I felt loose splinters fly by me; a stinging sensation on my cheek told me that I was cut. I backpedaled out of reach, nearly falling backwards as the snow caught on my knees. It wasn¡¯t a moment too soon; the Namahage¡¯s fur and straw merged together and turned into icicle blades, cutting through the [Dark Tendrils] spell. The monster got to its feet, a nightmare ice sculpture resembling a fusion of a porcupine and ape, then lumbered towards me. Aurora was at its feet in a moment and hefted her silvery lance with grunt, threatening to pierce the creature¡¯s face. But the icicles got in the way, knocking her weapon off point. Then she planted her shield on the ground, channeling mana into it. As the icicles on Namahage¡¯s feet came into contact with her shield, I saw the female warrior angle the shield upwards then shove it into the monster¡¯s stomach, breaking the icicles apart. Her shield discharged silvery mana which coalesced into the same shape as the weapon and punched the ape-monster. The maneuver carried the creature upwards a few inches then toppled it backwards. The Namahage fell on its back. ?Aurora Candrian Vetilian has cast [Capsize] ? I recognized the move, the heavier your opponent the higher the chances of flipping them over. The Namahage, despite its light footwork in this environment, was more than heavy enough for a 100% chance. Not wanting to lose this chance, my legs burst into movement; I was already behind the creature. As it was falling, I held the katana overhead like an executioner then beheaded the creature in one stroke as soon as it fell to the ground with a loud thud, sinking through the slurry left behind in our battle. Snow continued to fall. ¡°Aye, not bad for a first fight.¡± Krag looked at all of us. ¡°Nice job, young miss.¡± Krag had praised Aurora in particular and I saw why. Not only did she pull her own weight, she had done more than her fair share of work. If I was playing the game, Aurora would be the MVP of this battle. Krag and Sarai had fulfilled their responsibility: utility support and immobilization. Since no one had gotten hurt, the priest didn¡¯t really have his chance to shine. To be fair, a priest¡¯s true value lay in healing so by casting [Heat] he¡¯d done more than he needed to. On the other hand¡­ I needed to be harsh on myself. Against a grade-8 creature, I had two mistakes. Aurora had saved me both times. My depth perception was off and it was leading to lethal mistakes. ¡°Instead of looking down on Sarai, I should be focusing on pulling my own weight.¡± I sniffed. ¡°Thank you, Aurora.¡± I thanked her while wiping the Namahage¡¯s blood off of my katana. ¡°It was nothing Mr. Lock.¡± As usual, the gray-haired beauty did not smile. In the frozen landscape, it was only fitting. ¡°This was only possible because you were able to find the monster. I must admit, I was half in disbelief that a fighter such as yourself could detect such miniscule clues. I am curious as to what method you used.¡± I smiled in her stead. ¡°Trade secret.¡± At least by being the one to alert the party to the presence of this Namahage, I contributed to this battle outside of fighting itself. ¡°Don¡¯t compliment him too much. We all saw the mistakes he made.¡± I fought back a scowl at Sarai¡¯s comment. Since the elf was in a party with Pyret, another sword and shield fighter, plus Baran her brother the archer, it was only natural that she¡¯d catch the mistake of a martial fighter like me. She was used to seeing my type run around the battlefield. ¡°True. But his value lies in more than just fighting; initially I was worried about how well we would fare due to the lack of a scout or wayfinder. But it seems Mr. Lock can fulfill the role of a scout adequately, or at least from this one instance alert us to the presence of nearby monsters. For example-¡± ¡°Er- lad, your shield. It¡¯s gone, aye?¡± Krag wisely cut Aurora¡¯s explanation short. While I appreciate the lance-user coming to my defense, I saw the sparks between the elven-mage and her come to life once more. The less they conversed, the better. I took the shield off of my arm to take a better look. It was the Akka Xalud shield that I had looted back in Samak City. The top half of it was missing now, bitten off by the Namahage¡¯s bite. The lower half was caved in towards the missing piece, from when I had used it to try and block the cleaver. ¡°I should have angled the shield to drift the strike; not take it head on. If only I had my full vision¡­¡± I found myself finding excuses again. ¡°No. I just wasn¡¯t good enough. That¡¯s it. Move on and focus on the Fracture.¡± Still, I¡¯d miss the shield. Without the shield, I could swing the katana with both hands. More power behind my strikes meant heavier blows. But I liked having the shield. My fighting style relied on fast combinations, aimed at weak points for a single lethal blow. Having the shield meant I had room for mistakes and could protect myself, and it could be used offensively in a pinch. More versatile. More ways to kill. ¡°It¡¯s gone.¡± I roused myself out of my internal musings, answering Krag. I unclasped the shield from my forearm and threw it to the ground. ¡°Did the Namahage drop anything?¡± Aurora and Sarai, who were near the Namahage¡¯s corpse ¨Cwhich was turning to ashes made of light and dissipating while floating upwards¨C shook their head. ¡°Just a few coins.¡± Sarai sounded disappointed. ¡°Speaking of, we never discussed how to split what we find.¡± ¡°Split four ways evenly until we find the rest. Then we can go from there.¡± Bartering with other adventurers had been one of the first skills I learned while playing MSS. Gold was a must when trying to get stronger, ¡°If there¡¯s an equipment drop and someone wants it, they pay its market value to the other three upon our return to Miltus. If two people want the same drop, we draw lots.¡± ¡°Aye, that¡¯s the proper way to go about it.¡± ¡°Those are acceptable terms.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll hold these in my ring.¡± Sarai didn¡¯t wait for anyone to object, making the few silvers disappear. I saw the elven woman frown then look down at her hands. She opened and closed them multiple times, looking up at Krag. He had the same expression, one of confusion then of sudden realization. ¡°By the forge, my mana isn¡¯t coming back.¡± Aurora closed her eyes and when she opened them, I saw disappointment and worry. ¡°That seems to be true for me as well.¡± ¡°One spell or ability each.¡± I spoke and they turned to me as one. Krag¡¯s eyes widened in shock as he understood what I was saying. Aurora¡¯s lips thinned, the only hint of concern. Sarai was a bit slower on the uptake. ¡°One from each of us?¡± I shook my head in a negative. ¡°Now that we know what we¡¯re capable of¡­ one spell or ability. Per monster kill.¡± Krag swore under his breath. ¡°Hammer and forge, what have I gotten myself into.¡±
Chapter 56: Fracture - Twilight Maze (3)
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The Twilight Maze had three phases. The first phase is what we were experiencing right now; the whole party being split up and starting from different places. To get to the second phase, you have to defeat the monsters that are stalking you, like the Namahage, as well as the ones that guard certain important gateways. But this was difficult due to the whole of Twilight Maze being a [Special Field] with a load of debilitating effects, especially the part where your Mana Regeneration was reduced. As a result, Sarai and Krag held back on their spells and as a result of that, Aurora and I did most of the heavy lifting. ¡°Another one behind us.¡± I muttered. I had gotten used to picking up the scent of the Namahage¡¯s that stalked us. The faint metallic odor of blood stood out like a sore thumb against the frigid air. Sarai cursed. ¡°My mana is not regenerating fast enough. This is the fourth one and we haven¡¯t even seen a hint of the others.¡± Of course we hadn¡¯t. We hadn¡¯t even defeated the Gatekeeper yet. In the Twilight Maze, instead of a sub-boss ¨Cwhich most Fracture Dungeons had¨C there was the Gatekeeper who guarded the advancement into phase two for each different starting point. Phase two was an entirely different story though, almost enough to make me wish that we had a sub-boss instead. ¡°Focus.¡± I ordered, bringing my hand to my sword. ¡°Be ready.¡± I met eyes with each of them and with a short nod, broke away from them running backwards. A Namahage might be intelligent, but it couldn¡¯t ignore its baser instincts, the thirst for blood. My hand began to drip blood freely and I waved my hand in an arc in front of me, throwing them to the wind. With a silence that was a different type of fear than the roar of an animalistic monster, the Namahage appeared. It wore a blue mask. Just the one I was looking for. By this time, we had gotten into a rhythm. A single spell ¨Cor none at all¨C if the situation was right, was all we needed to slay these monsters. The Namahage stabbed its eba knife downwards but I¡¯d already back stepped through the route I made in the snow. Aurora came in from the side like a rhinoceros, skewering the monster through the bottom of its chin. The monster ripped its own face away from the lance, half its chin dangling underneath the blue mask. But Aurora had done her job, she had kept it in place for Sarai to cast her spell. ?Sarai Benepir has cast [Parasitic Mask] ? Sarai waved her staff and shot a small missile towards the Namahage. It unfurled in mid air and landed on the monster¡¯s face, beginning to hug the face by wrapping its tentacles around. The spell moved like it had a mind of its own, determined to suffocate the Namahage like a fictional alien creature I had seen in a movie once. Regardless, the Namahage was effectively blinded. The Namahage jumped up and down and tried to tear the spell off through sheer force, but the tentacles held tight. I saw the Namahage¡¯s skin turning red, long bloody grooves being created as the spell-creature stretched like a rubber band from the pull. Aurora stepped in front, shoving her shield into the straw dressed monster¡¯s stomach and keeping it from getting too far. I circled around, running as fast as my legs would carry me and sliced through its ankles; again, no scream. After the [Blind] and [Crippled] status, Aurora and I wore it down with a series of frontal and postal attacks. Finally I finished the job by stabbing it through the heart from behind as soon as the creature fell to its knees. The creature disappeared into ashes made of light, floating upwards contrary to the snowflakes that fell around us. It left three drops behind. The first was its eba knife, miniaturized for human use. The second were some coins, we¡¯d seen enough of these. The third was a gourd with a blue string wrapped around it. Krag, much too greedy for a priest and for my liking, came and picked up the Gourd. Since he was a priest he had no personal interest in the eba knife except that it got split fairly once it got sold. ¡°What¡¯s this then?¡± I debated telling them outright. If I was with Kyrian and Skaris, I would have explained it immediately. But I didn¡¯t want to garner too much attention. ¡°Try checking it with Mana Sense.¡± I gave the hint at last, seeing Sarai and Krag frown over the gourd. ¡°Perhaps it''s a magical item.¡± Sarai closed her eyes in concentration while holding the gourd, when she opened them her orange eyes were delighted. ¡°It¡¯s a mana potion!¡± One of the few ways that one could regain mana without relying on mana potions brought in from the outside; the mana gourd dropped by the blue-masked Namahage. ¡°We should save it for when we need it.¡± I said immediately. ¡°Why don¡¯t you hold onto it since you¡¯ve been holding onto all the drops?¡± She stared at me then got that defiant look in her eyes again. ¡°Don¡¯t order me around; I was going to do so. It wasn¡¯t like I was going to drink it.¡± Ah, so she had been thinking about drinking it. ¡°...I apologize.¡± I didn¡¯t want to get into an argument with her so I let it be. Sarai stowed the Mana Gourd into her Dimension Ring, turning to all of us. ¡°I have something I want to propose.¡± ¡°What is it, lass?¡± She turned to Krag. ¡°You. I want to talk about you, Mr. Krag.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t been doing anything in the last few fights. Even he-¡± She pointed at me, ¡°-has been pulling more than you. I don¡¯t think you should receive a share for the last few monsters we killed.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a priest.¡± I cut in, coming to Krag¡¯s defense. ¡°We need to conserve his strength for healing, when we really need it. We all agreed on that.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m saying killing these monsters is harder than you think.¡± She sniffed. ¡°I¡¯m running low on mana, growing tired while Mr. Krag is staying in the back and just watching.¡± The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling a headache coming on. Sarai was miffed about the Mana Gourd and this was her way of complaining, saying that she wanted to try it. Krag looked like a bird ruffling its feathers to look bigger, his robes practically flying. ¡°Lass, I¡¯m going to ignore what you said and pretend it¡¯s due to your own inexperience.¡± ¡°Ms. Benepir, a priest is typically treated as- '''' Aurora began. ¡°I know that!¡± Sarai blew up; I had known she would the moment Aurora tried to convince her. ¡°I¡¯m just saying I¡¯m tired while Mr. Krag, who¡¯s in a similar role to mine, get to reap all the rewards while just standing there.¡± ¡°You two are not in a similar role.¡± I said darkly. ¡°He¡¯s a priest. He needs to conserve his strength until-¡± ¡°Fine then. Maybe I¡¯ll conserve mine.¡± I saw red at the edge of my vision. ¡°Magus Sarai-¡± ¡°Lad, it¡¯s fine.¡± Krag sniffed. ¡°The lass is obviously out of her mind. Fine then, keep my share of the loot. Not like we found anything worth sharing anyways.¡± I sighed. Krag was right, Sarai was picking a fight over her pride but the amount of gold we¡¯d gained was so little that it really wasn¡¯t worth it. More than that, I hated that the party was falling apart. In the grand scheme of things, it was good for me; the Eretians¡¯ relationship deteriorating before my eyes. But it still left a bitter taste in my mouth. ¡°Brother Krag, you really don¡¯t have to do this. I don¡¯t think Magus Sarai is thinking clearly.¡± ¡°And I said I understood.¡± He crossed his arms and turned away like a teenage girl in highschool upset at her parents. ¡°But just know that I¡¯ll be charging a fee for each healing that I do.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll start charging a fee for each spell I cast.¡± Aurora looked at me, neither smiling nor frowning. Then she nodded. ¡°If that is what everyone wishes. Mr. Lock? Do you wish to charge for your services?¡± ¡°No.¡± I said. ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± ¡°That won''t get me to change my mind.¡± Sarai declared. For a short second I debated tripping her and shoving her face full of snow. I shook my head, we were already experiencing enough division without me adding onto it. Someone had to be an adult around here. Atleast Aurora seemed to have a good head on her shoulders. We walked in silence and I idly wondered which was colder: the snow or the party¡¯s entire mood. Sarai and Krag weren¡¯t even looking at each other, nor at the rest of us. For Sarai, this had been her behavior the entire expedition. But Krag had been rather amicable towards me and Aurora, even Sarai to an extent. Yet, with Sarai¡¯s one complaint the dwarf priest was surlier than Clover after I told her my fake name. At least Clover and L¡¯teya never fought like that. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora stopped the march. ¡°There are two paths.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the point of asking him?¡± Sarai whispered, just loud enough for me to hear. ¡°Well, he is the closest member to being a scout in this temporary party. Without a proper wayfinder or pioneer, I believe we need to employ every tool and skill we have at our disposal to find the right path. This place seems like a maze but there should be clues about where the exit is; or perhaps Mr. Lock can find traces of the others. In which case, I do not believe your skills are best suited to the task. But if you are willing to try, I am willing to pay the appropriate fee for you finding the way.¡± Sarai stared at the gray-haired human warrior, her mouth agape. Then she closed it. ¡°Do what you guys want.¡± I wondered if that had been Aurora¡¯s way of venting out her frustrations at Sarai¡¯s attitude. There was no way to tell, the woman¡¯s expression never changed. Walking past the group, I sniffed the air. Nothing but cold air. Next I tried walking up to the walls and looking for any signs about where we should be going. Again, nothing. I was acting though, I knew where to go. The hint was in the name, Twilight Maze. If one looked closely at the ceilings, there were faint shining lights that imitated stars. Those stars actually made up a map of the maze. In the game, the wall of the ceiling was pasted into the background so it had taken a few days for me to figure it out. Here in the game world, it was plain as day where we were and how to get to our destination. As luck would have it, we were near the Gatekeeper. ¡°This way.¡± I said, after judging that I had acted long enough. ¡°...Never a more unreliable scout but aye, he¡¯s the best we got.¡± I ignored Krag¡¯s comments; at least they were still following me. Along the way, we encountered three more Namahages, only one of them masked with blue. Aurora and I managed to fell two of them, much to Sarai¡¯s chagrin. On the third though, I ordered her to cast [Dark Tendrils]. Aurora had slipped on the ice and the creature had been running towards her. Even if Aurora was a fully armored tank, there were limits to how much punishment she could take while flat on her back. ¡°That¡¯ll be 1 gold.¡± I helped Aurora up while Sarai told us her price delightedly. ¡°You little-¡± Aurora gripped my arm and when I looked back at her, she shook her head. ¡°Since it was my mistake, I shall be paying the price myself. You may take 1 gold out of my share of the loot, Ms. Benepir. Thank you for your help.¡± ¡°My pleasure.¡± Sarai said with the widest smile I¡¯d seen from her yet. We continued that way. Killing Namahages, being charged for a spell from Sarai. I quickly realized that if Sarai cast her spell, the chances of one of us being hurt was drastically reduced. Krag had nothing to do. Still, it was better that he conserve his mana rather than the mage. But the loot dropping from Namahages weren¡¯t worth the cost of her healing. Soon, Aurora and I would have to start dipping into our own savings to pay for the spells. I didn¡¯t know about Aurora but I didn¡¯t want to shoulder any more debt. On the positive note, as we killed the last Namahage my body was briefly surrounded by a white light. I had leveled up to 21. ¡°Right¡­ I should be making room for another Core by now. And once I hit 25, I should be able to start unlocking [Aura].¡± Unlike the orcs who could receive totems as soon as they had the gold and materials, humans had a level cap for unlocking [Aura]. One had to be at least [25] and reach Stat capstones.. I¡¯d need a hefty amount of [Handicraft] as well as [Physical]. Since I wasn¡¯t playing behind a computer screen, this body wasn¡¯t min-maxed for [Aura]. By my estimation it might take me until level 30 to unlock it. ¡°If I can even use it.¡± I shoved that worry aside for later. Judging by the maps on the ceiling, we were near the gatekeeper. ¡°Congratulations, lad.¡± Krag said, goodnaturedly. He smiled behind his beard and I saw something genuine there. ¡°Takes a lot of work to get one¡¯s Soul sanctified.¡± Hearing the word ¡®Soul¡¯ and ¡®Sanctified¡¯ from a Priest who served one of the gods of this world got my thoughts racing in a direction that didn¡¯t pertain to task at hand. I didn¡¯t need distractions, I needed focus and direction. After the next turn, we¡¯d face the gatekeepers. ¡°There¡¯s monsters around the next turn.¡± I kept my voice even. ¡°I¡¯m sick of those Namahage.¡± Sarai took out some dried nuts from her Dimension Ring and began to eat them. The party had taken my level up and statement to mean that we¡¯ll be taking a break here. I piled up some snow and made sure they were tight before sitting on them. It wouldn¡¯t matter, in a few minutes I¡¯d have to move or I¡¯d become another pile of snow myself; there was no sign of the snow letting up. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. These feel different.¡± I wanted to give these guys a tip about the Gatekeepers. As long as we were prepared, it wouldn¡¯t be a difficult fight. ¡°Stronger than the Namahage. Perhaps it will be a good idea to go over our capabilities one more time.¡± ¡°What¡¯s there to go over?¡± Sarai interfered yet again. ¡°We all know what each other¡¯s good at. Besides, my mana sense is starting to pick up the others. I bet they¡¯re already waiting for us.¡± I felt something fierce come up but bit my tongue, stopping myself from shooting back at Sarai. ¡°Still, in case of emergencies-¡± ¡°I agree with the Lass.¡± Even Krag had been affected by her behavior, his initial gruff but somewhat affable manner all but gone. ¡°We haven¡¯t had trouble so far. Why, you and the Young Miss have been enough this whole time! Wasting my time, you all are.¡± Watching Krag go back to fiddling with his robes without a care in the world, while Sarai continued to nibble on her rations made me realize I had been extremely lucky so far. All the people I met so far, at least in terms of dungeon delving, had been more than happy to let me take the lead. But already, we weren¡¯t even at Phase Two yet and these guys were breaking apart. ¡°It¡¯s because they¡¯re adventurers¡­ not slaves. The people I dealt with before had been looking for someone to lead them. These guys aren¡¯t.¡± I came to the realization and knew that any more words would be futile. ¡°Mr. Lock. I¡¯d be open to discussing more possibilities.¡± I stared at Aurora, thinking. At this point, there was no use. If she and I shared our capabilities out in the open, Sarai and Krag would hear and could report it back to the other adventurers from Eretia. It wasn¡¯t like we could step away and discuss it amongst ourselves either, that¡¯d just deepen the cracks already in this makeshift party. The best thing to do would be to get this over with. ¡°No. You don¡¯t have to.¡± The armored warrior seemed to understand why. I gave them a few more minutes to gather themselves. The Gatekeepers would be a fight of the mind as much as it was for the body. I needed them to be focused and alert. Just as the stress was about to lessen, I picked up my katana. If I let them relax anymore, they¡¯d be too careless for the upcoming fight ¡°I can¡¯t wait to be back with my party again. Unlike someone here, they know how to dungeoneer properly.¡± I ignored her. When we rounded the next corner, the path showed us where we would face the gatekeepers. The maze paths all led to the center chamber, it was just a matter of whether you got there quicker and later or whether you fought less monsters or more. Regardless, this was the final destination of our trek through the maze. There was a huge hill, the base covered in snow but dark dirt starting to show itself at the top like the head of a balding man. At the center of the hill was a gate, blocked off on either side by walls connected to the maze itself. It would prevent us from going around. The gate was only a little shorter than the walls themselves and of the same coloration, giving the impression that it was just another wall. But there was an unmistakable crevice splitting it down the middle; just small enough that a child might be able to squeeze through. ¡°Be ready.¡± I brandished my katana while the others marveled at the gate. ¡°What do you mean be ready, Lad? I don¡¯t sense anything.¡± Krag made a motion to walk up the hill, taking his first step in the snow. We were lucky because instead of four, only three figures rose from the snow like they had been submerged in the layer of ice, waiting for us to come along. They were humanoid in shape but made entirely out of ice. At just the right angle, the light from above reflected off of them and I knew that I¡¯d have to watch out; my enhanced [Sight] was a weakness in fights where there were rapid changes in lightning. There were no features, their heads shaped like a doll that hadn¡¯t had their eyes, nose and mouth sewn in yet. Instead the ice dolls had their arms end in weapons that resembled what we were carrying. Staff. Shield and Lance. Katana and shield. [Ice Golem] - Grade 7 We were going to fight golems of ourselves.
Chapter 57: Fracture - Twilight Maze (4)
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¡°Spread out!¡± Aurora pivoted away from me as soon as I barked the order, but the caster classes, Sarai and Krag, were too slow in moving their feet. ?Ice Golem [Sarai Benepir] has cast [Dark Tendrils] ? ¡°What¡¯s this?!¡± ¡°Shite! It¡¯s got me!¡± The staple CC spell for all mages, [Dark Tendrils] sprouted out of the ground. The Ice-Sarai waved hers staff again and I saw it getting ready to cast another spell. ¡°Krag! Sarai! We have to-¡± I managed to yell out right as my own clone slammed into me. I saw the [Coin Toss] effect activate right above its forehead, an almost translucent image of a coin flipping end over end, then saw the dark blue outline of a debuff. But it disappeared moments later, canceled out by its own version of [Arcane Masochism]. My Ice-Lock swung its katana at me and I met it with my own, immediately being forced back. ¡°It received the Attack buff.¡± With that knowledge in hand, I activated my own [Coin Toss]. A faint yellow outline covered me. My own [Coin Toss] had ended in a buff, my [Arcane Masochism] wouldn¡¯t activate. Cursing under my breath I backpedaled. My clone fought with all my intensity and skill, showering me with a dazzling display of sword and shield combinations. I backed away just as its ice jagged katana threatened to skewer me in the throat only to find that the Ice-Clone had baited me into stepping back, its shield slammed into me from below. My vision filled with stars as my brain rattled inside of my skull, the stars evolving to red and black spots in my one good eye. The shield was going to be a problem. These [Ice Golems] were made in our imagery, a gimmick in the Twilight Maze. Usually [Ice golems] were grade 7 monsters holding various weapons; but at times golem type monsters like these appeared in certain dungeons. They weren¡¯t boss-class, but just as difficult to defeat. They retained all our spells, Core Abilities and in some cases, skills. Just like it was doing now. I saw Ice-Lock glow a brief red before my jaw exploded in pain, the sensation almost overwhelming the needle-like focus I had managed to attain. It made me remember how difficult the battle with the [Unjo] had been and how devastatingly painful its [Hateful Wound] ability was. My Ice Golem counterpart gave me no quarter, it rushed me again in a whirling fury of blade and shield. Holy shit, was I this relentless? It was all I could do to stay on my two feet, slowly backing away and then trying to parry its katana with my own. But the shield was making all the difference, every slash and thrust was followed up by a shield slam or strike, which I had to receive on my person. The shield slammed into my stomach, then my ribs and I received it on the shoulder one last time before my clone whirled, disappearing from my view. Something tangled into my knees and I felt myself fall over into the snow; the fucking ice-golem had bent down and spun in place, entangling its legs into mine. It¡¯s Jagged Katana, made entirely of ice, pierced through my shoulder and I could tell from the sensation that it had run me through. But now it¡¯s shoulder was exposed. ¡°Perhaps I could-¡± Even before I could finish the thought, Ice-Lock wrenched the katana out of my shoulder and kicked me in the head, then stomach. I felt my body rolling through the snow and turned it into a panic roll. There was no way I could get up before my clone. Was I outmatched by my own clone? I saw Ice-Lock running towards me. ¡°Mr. Lock!¡± Just in time, Aurora¡¯s armored frame came into view and slammed her giant Tower Shield into Ice-Lock, sending it tumbling end over end. I saw the clone move like a cat, bounding backwards and then landing on its feet. Aurora¡¯s strike had definitely damaged it ¨Cbits of ice had been chipped off¨C but it showed no sign of pain. It slowly stood up again, and began to walk towards us. Slowly. Steadily. Inevitably. I swallowed. ¡°Where¡¯s yours?¡± I gasped out and the moment the words left my mouth, Ice-Aurora came charging at us like an angry elephant, its Shield an ice-replica of Aurora¡¯s own. Aurora didn¡¯t answer, instead meeting the shield charge with her own. The sound of ice and metal clanging against each other rang out like a chime, a note so clear and crystalline that it could¡¯ve been from an instrument. The result was less dramatic, the two were locked in a stalemate. I should have expected it, a battle between tanks could last for hours. ¡°Mr. Lock! Now!¡± I didn¡¯t need to see what Aurora meant, her clone¡¯s back was exposed. My shoulder was mostly numb but thankfully, I wasn¡¯t carrying a shield. I quickly moved behind Ice-Aurora, attempting to behead it with one clean stroke. Ice-Lock appeared like a ghost and knocked me away. As I was flying through the air ¨Chow the hell was it so strong?-- Ice-Lock promptly turned and used Ice-Aurora¡¯s shield as cover, darting out and in against the real Aurora. It couldn''t gather enough momentum to do any real damage, but each of its strike were aimed at the gaps in her armor. Armpit, knees, neck and any joint that had a flex-point or opening. Aurora did her best to turn and angle her body, deflecting the blows each time. But Ice-Aurora doubled its efforts, jabbing with an occasional lance thrust and shoving her shield into Aurora¡¯s own; the move kept the female warrior locked in one place while my clone kept looking for weakness. ¡°Goddammit! Lad! Some help over here!¡± If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Krag had gotten rid of the Dark Tendrils but now was struggling against a cloud of smoke that seemed to cling to his body. Sarai ignored the smoke and mirrored Ice-Sarai¡¯s spell, bogging it down as well. Did she really not have a single offensive spell? In that case, Pyret might as well get rid of her and replace her with a Shaman or Witch Doctor. Mages were so powerful because of their versatility; buffs, debuffs, spells that did damage and changed the environment. Mages were the only outliers that gained a variety of spells for different situations, albeit specializing in one or two elements. We were going nowhere facing our own clones. This was why I had wanted us to share a little bit more about our capabilities, to come up with the best strategy. Yet everyone had refused. It was four-on-three and we, the four, were losing. Something clicked. The adventurers of this world, caught up in their petty squabbles and feelings were weak. They didn¡¯t understand the importance of working together outside of their own party or personal feelings. Krag and Sarai were examples; they were children stuck in the body of adults. Screw their attitudes. I would have to take charge. Even if they didn¡¯t want to obey, I¡¯d have to force it. As soon as that clicked, our next steps became clear. ¡°Aurora! Leave them! Charge Sarai¡¯s clone!¡± The warrior didn¡¯t even hesitate. I saw her shield glitter with silvery mana as she channeled [Capsize] and moments later, Ice-Aurora flipped onto her back. ¡°Sarai! Dark Tendrils on those two! Now!¡± ¡°I¡¯m busy over-¡± ¡°I SAID NOW!¡± All the frustration, annoyance and anger I had been holding in towards the elven mage came out like a firework into those three words. I saw Sarai flinch and immediately turn her attention to the two clones chasing after Aurora, using Dark Tendrils to stall them. ¡°Krag! Heal!¡± I saw Aurora get awashed in light-blue mana and felt my own wounds disappear. The hole in my shoulder was gone. ¡°Keep them busy!¡± I ran past Sarai, who was stumbling towards Ice-Lock and Ice-Aurora while maintaining concentration on her spell. ¡°They¡¯re strong! I have to re-cast and I¡¯m running low on mana!¡± ¡°Then drink the fucking mana potion!¡± I screamed out, frustrated that I had to give an order for every little thing. The mage¡¯s earlier attitude could have been forgiven if she was as half as competent as her insubordination. Aurora and I flanked Ice-Sarai, both of us taking position without speaking. It was to prevent the use of [Dark Tendrils] hitting us all at once. The Ice Golem tried to back away from us but it was too slow, Aurora reached it first and thrust her lance into it. The mage¡¯s copy tried to cast another spell, but I followed up Aurora¡¯s maneuver with one of my own, knocking its staff away with my katana. ?Ice Golem [Sarai Benepir] has cast [Shadow¡¯s Sting] ? Ice-Sarai waved its arms and a curtain of darkness enveloped both Aurora and I. I felt it sting my skin then dissipate, right as a familiar inky black sticky mana coalesced near my feet. But there was no need to use it, Aurora crushed the Ice Golem¡¯s head with her lance, her face changing expression for the first time since I¡¯ve met her. Extreme anger. Then satisfaction. On the other side of the battle, trouble was brewing. Ice-Aurora was still stuck in the Dark Tendrils, the large weapons were already heavy enough without the spell dragging them down, but my own clone had cut himself free. I saw Krag and Sarai prepare spells together. Sarai was a mage who specialized in debuffs. Krag was a priest, a role solely dedicated toward support. ¡°NO!¡± I said it too late. They both stacked debuffs on debuffs on Ice-Lock. I saw as my clone got noticeably faster, multiple folds. Aurora reacted much faster than I did, as soon as I screamed out the word, she was already splitting the snow with her running and managed to block the first of Ice-Lock¡¯s strikes. [Jackpot!] I knew it was a Jackpot as soon as it hit her shield. Aurora¡¯s shield crumbled like a piece of loose leaf paper and the woman was thrown across the hill, slammed into the door and fell to the ground like a rag doll ¨Cher chest slowly rising and falling. But she was awake, I saw a glint of determination beneath the locks of gray hair that had fallen over her face. There was no way to tell if she would be able to get up, that strike could¡¯ve caused any number of broken bones. ¡°Legs! Stop it from moving!¡± I ordered as I ran over. Sarai took a moment too long in responding, her composure rattled by my clone¡¯s strength, and it was a crucial mistake. As soon as Ice-Lock¡¯s feet touched the floor he blurred from my sight and was already in range to kill Sarai, the first of his strikes aimed right at her heart. ?Krag Mason has cast [Light of the Hearth]? Krag¡¯s spell saved her. The katana sunk in about two inches then was yanked out as Sarai¡¯s body burst into brilliant light; since the Ice Golems received our stats accordingly, it must have received my weakness too. The change in light was too much and it bounded away, shaking its head like a startled animal. I knew I couldn¡¯t let it recover, it had received too many buffs. Luckily, Krag¡¯s spell had been one of the brightest lights I¡¯d ever seen ¨Cit pierced through my hands even through my own eye¨C but I recovered before my Ice-Twin. I struck sideways, cleaving its head right off. Except I didn''t. I didn''t even scratch it. ¡°What?¡± It was my turn to be stupefied, my brain churning and coming to the conclusion that [Arcane Masochism] must have raised its defense to abnormal levels. The lifeless ice doll recovered and slammed the shield into the side of my head. Soon after I felt cold snow melt under my hands, my vision spinning. ¡°Mr. Lock!¡± Krag must¡¯ve been pumping his heals into Aurora and Sarai because the two were back up. Sarai grimacing ¨Cbut she hadn¡¯t lost concentration on the Dark Tendrils spell which kept Ice-Aurora in place¨C and casting [Parasitic Mask] to no avail; Ice-Lock batted it out of the air with cat-like reflexes. Aurora tried to keep it in place, positioning it towards the Dark Tendrils with her superior reach but my clone was too fast, it slipped past her and ran towards Krag and Sarai. Right as it slipped past me, I snatched at its heel. I felt my shoulder pop out of its socket; that was my sword arm goddamit. But the sheer speed of the monster plus its weight as a veritable frozen sculpture ¨Cand the ice-typing¡¯s weakness to blunt damage¨C worked against it. its momentum transferred straight over while crashing into ground, chipping and grating against hard rock while skidding towards the Sarai and Krag. Aurora jumped onto its back with a punitive strike, her lance landing on its back. Still, it¡¯s defense was too tough; even her colossal lance combined with her armored weight couldn¡¯t pierce through more than a few inches. I grabbed my jagged katana with my left hand, determined to do something. ¡°Krag! Heat Spell!¡± Krag obeyed without question; the dwarf priest was dripping with sweat and blood; a deep wound on his armpit. I hadn¡¯t seen him get it but now wasn¡¯t the time to focus on it; he put his hands out like before and started using [Heat] on the Ice Clone. These Ice Golems might have received our stats and abilities but they were still weak to anything related to Fire. Normally, [Heat] was a support spell that did minimal damage not to mention my Shadow Wolf Mimic Core should have canceled it out. However, for an Ice Golem it did almost double damage. Plus, Krag¡¯s spell was still in the process of fading; Ice-Lock wasn¡¯t covered in shadow. As it melted, Aurora¡¯s Lance sank in deeper and deeper until it finally skewered my clone through the stomach. My Ice Golem struggled till the end until it was nothing more than a puddle on the floor. With Ice-Aurora being the last one left, it didn¡¯t take long to take care of it using the combination of [Dark Tednrils] x [Heat] x Aurora and my weapons. One of them dropped a Core. An Ice Golem Core, Grade 7. As soon as the Core dropped, a clear Orb with a Ice Crystal contained within, I saw greed come to life in the Sarai and Krag¡¯s tired eyes. I saw them assess the mood and open their mouths. ¡°Not a word.¡± I said, gasping for breath. ¡°Not a word.¡± The two shut up. We took time to rest, gathering the loot from the three ice golems near the Core. The four of us set together, each dealing with the physical and psychological stress in different ways. I saw that Aurora¡¯s shield was back to normal and she caught me staring at it. Unlike her usual self, she kept the explanation short. ¡°It has a [Self Repair] feature.¡± ¡°Damn, that means it¡¯s at least a [Unique]-class item. I wonder how much it cost¡­ definitely 10,000 gold at the very least.¡± The more I thought about it, the more attractive Aurora was becoming as a potential party member. She was cool-headed, knowledgeable and most of all, skilled. I could see Kyrian and Skaris getting along with her no nonsense attitude. But how would I go about recruiting her? Her equipment showed that she had no need for money; the dungeons we¡¯d be tackling would be pocket change for her. What else drove adventurers besides money and loot? ¡°Tch¡­ something else to think about.¡± ¡°Lad.¡± I looked up at Krag. He had healed his own wounds and was resting. I knew from playing MSS that healing was one of the most mana extensive actions in the game. Hence, why I had kept Krag from using up too much of his mana. ¡°You said you¡¯ve been an adventurer for what? A month? Two?¡± ¡°More or less.¡± I wondered if my time as a slave in the Samak Desert counted. If it didn¡¯t and only counted from the day I registered¡­ It was less than a week. Krag studied me and I was reminded of Yousef. ¡°You¡¯re truly only Grade 6?¡± I spread my hands in a half shrug. ¡°I saw that your party only had three members. You recruiting?¡± I barked out a harsh laugh and but Krag¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. I thought he was joking. ¡°No disrespect intended.¡± I coughed into my hand. ¡°But¡­ would your Church let you join us?¡± Priests couldn¡¯t be recruited by simple means like mages or adventurers. They were always connected with a series of quests linked to the Church they belonged to. ¡°Not me.¡± Krag spat blood on the white snow, staining it. ¡°Just¡­ asking for a friend. Never you mind.¡± Silence reigned again. ¡°Mr. Lock. The Core.¡± Right. The Core would only last a few more minutes. ¡°Magus Sarai. Please put the Core inside of an incubator. You do have one yes?¡± ¡°Hm?! Oh! Y-Yes! I will.¡± I saw her take out the metallic tube and use her mana to move the Core into an incubator. The rest of the drops were nothing to look at. An ice dagger, some ice crystals and plates and a few more coins. All we had to do now was enter the gate. I hoped that Kyrian and Skaris got through Phase One without too much trouble. ¡°If no one wants the Core, we can split the money from it four ways. Of course, Magus Sarai will be compensated for her Incubator.¡± ¡°T-Thank you sir!¡± What the fuck was up with her?
Chapter 58: Fracture - Twilight Maze (5)
World: MSS - Loading...
Once we had defeated our clones of ice, the gates had opened for us promptly. I should have been celebrating, we had gotten to Phase 2 without anyone dying. But I was too preoccupied with other things. Namely, I was worried because in Phase 2 all the raid participants ¨Call fifteen of us and ten of them belonging to Eretia¨C would gather again. There was a mixture of feelings all shadowed by the fact that although we were here to beat the Fracture together, that meant different things to the adventurers from Miltus and the adventurers from Eretia. My understanding of the Jayu States was that it was a fractured country, all gathered loosely under the term ¡®alliance¡¯ just to form a united front to larger powers, like the Turina Empire. Another advantage was bargaining power, bringing in precious goods from their trade partners like the Zimmskar Kingdom of beastman or the Mage Towers of Babel. Yet, it was the same here as anywhere else. Men with wealth playing their petty games to eke out one advantage over each other, to gain a marginal amount of power at the expense of the people beneath them. In this case, those ¡®people beneath them¡¯ that were serving as their cat¡¯s paws were Kyrian, Skaris and I. That brought me to my current worry. Who did Skaris and Kyrian end up with? Ending up with a party made only of Eretians boded ill. Their goal was to bring the Fracture Splinter, if it dropped at all, back to the Eretia branch adventurer¡¯s guild. If the people that my party members ended up with were impatient or stupid, they¡¯d kill Kyrian or Skaris preemptively. Why preemptive? The best place to betray us was during the Boss battle, when it was near death, or right after it. Therefore they could either claim that it was an accident ¨Ca lethal stray arrow or spell could be as good an excuse as any other¨C or wipe us all out when we were weakened. So the chances of Skaris or Kyrian being killed was low. Still¡­ the possibility was there. My second worry was less pressing but nonetheless important: I too had to betray the Eretians at one point. I had to make sure the Fracture Splinter would get back to the Miltus Adventurer¡¯s guild¡­ or I¡¯d be in debt. Then I¡¯d lose out on a precious opportunity to enter another Fracture. Getting on Marc Pointell¡¯s good side would open up many possibilities for me¡­ Quests (if they existed), achievements and access to wealth. For me, burdened with the Core of a Beckoning Cat which I had to get rid of and severely lacking in the equipment department, gold was a necessity. Yet, I¡¯d lost precious opportunity to weaken their side by saving Sarai and Krag from moments of danger. There were so many moments when I could¡¯ve let them die or bury a dagger ¨Cor in my case, a chipped katana¨C in their back. Through that I learned one thing about myself. I couldn¡¯t kill in cold blood for the sake of getting stronger. It was different from when I was a slave under the orcs. Everything I had done, all the lives I had taken, were in the name of survival. But now¡­ if I killed these guys, I¡¯d be doing it for no one but myself. Not to be set free or to keep head on my shoulders, but just for a chance at getting stronger. Strangely, knowing this about myself bothered me. While I was stuck in my thoughts, we walked through the door and I saw the survivors. ¡°Lock!¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn!¡± I saw the seven-foot tall beastman from the lizard tribe walk over and we traded grips. Skaris was smiling, a rare occasion, and I was as well. A rare occasion indeed. Next I traded grips with Kyrian, the mage of our party. Except for his blonde locks being tousled and his magical robe holding stains of blood, he looked nonetheless for wear. ¡°Glad to see you two alive.¡± I said to them. Skaris snorted. ¡°Not assss much assss I worried for your life, Sssslaveborn. I had begun to bet on the posssssibility of you being in a monsssster¡¯s gullet.¡± ¡°I took him on that bet.¡± Kyrian said good naturedly, reaching up and clapping a hand on Skaris¡¯ shooulder. ¡°You owe me five gold coins.¡± I felt a slight twinge of annoyance at the mention of gold, that these two were throwing coins to each other despite the fact that our party was penniless. But between the two there was a sense of camaraderie, something that had been there but grown tense after their argument in the Slums. I knew that although Skaris always treated Kyrian no different than the others, there was still the fact that Kyrian had once been a soldier of the Akka Xaluds and a Noble from the Turina empire to boot. Kyrian on the other hand, had always been uncomfortable by Skaris¡¯ impatience and sometimes boorish nature. But the tension between them was gone. For that I was glad though I didn¡¯t voice it for fear of bringing the topic up again. ¡°No thanks to me for keeping them all nice and safe for you?¡± Eltis, the purple-haired elven priestess approached us. The low-cut dress from before was gone; replaced by a black-and-purple cloak. Unlike ours which were thin, hers was made of thick suede and the hood opening was adorned with fur. I felt much safer from my trauma, now that her overtly sexual demeanor was muted due to the cloak. I met her gaze and gave her a small bow of my head. ¡°Thank you.¡± I meant them too, I truly was thankful to her. ¡°You three were together? Just you three?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Kyrian nodded. ¡°Sister Eltis was with us. We were surprised to find out that the whole party had ended up being split up. But thanks to Sister Eltis we arrived here without much trouble.¡± ¡°Please, I told you to call me Eltis.¡± Kyrian paled and didn¡¯t reply. I could¡¯ve sworn Skaris took a step behind me, furthering himself from the priestess. ¡°What about you, Lock? Is this all of you guys?¡± If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Yes.¡± I gestured at Aurora, Krag and Sarai who exchanged greetings. I looked past Kyrian and saw the others waiting for us. Skaris and Kyrian shared a look. ¡°There ssseems to be a problem.¡± Skaris faced Sarai and spoke without preamble. ¡°Two of your party membersss are dead.¡± ¡°Skaris.¡± Kyrian hissed then added for Sarai¡¯s benefit no doubt. ¡°They have not arrived yet.¡± Sarai¡¯s orange eyes widened. ¡°Which ones?¡± But she didn¡¯t wait for an answer, pushing past them. ¡°Baran?! Baran!¡± Sarai ran towards the center of the room, searching for her brother, the silent archer if I wasn¡¯t mistaken. Krag excused himself and went towards the Eretians gathering in the center. That left my party with Aurora and Eltis. ¡°Thank you for taking care of Lock.¡± Kyrian said and Skaris mumbled his thanks as well. ¡°It was my pleasure.¡± Aurora met their gaze evenly. I saw Skaris look at Aurora¡¯s armor, stained with blood and wear, then to her shield which looked perfectly clean in comparison. He quirked an eyebrow at me. ¡°Later.¡± I mouthed not wanting to lose this rare chance of talking amongst us without the Eretians listening in. The clearing that we entered was surrounded on all sides by a dozen gates, all made of the same rock as the rest of this maze. But the only thing that was different about this room was that the walls stretched to form a ceiling, making this place look more like the inside of a building in the shape of a dome. It was large enough to easily fit more than a hundred people. At the center of the dome was a huge stone tablet, easily the size of the Namahage that we had fought in our way here. The Eretians were arguing near the stone tablet and if I wasn¡¯t mistaken, soon they¡¯d turn their attention to us. ¡°Marc Pointell has told you two what he needed from this?¡± I said to Aurora and Eltis. Eltis smiled and nodded. Aurora frowned but did not deny it. ¡°If the Eretians do want to stab us in the back for it, they¡¯ll do it after we defeat the boss of this Fracture. Keep your wits about you. Skaris, I¡¯d prefer it if you stayed near the Priestess at all times from now on. If anyone gets hurt, she¡¯s the only person who can heal.¡± ¡°Oh my, my personal guard.¡± Skaris grimaced but didn¡¯t object. ¡°Done, Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°Lady Aurora-¡± ¡°Please, Mr. Lock. Call me Aurora.¡± ¡°Ok. Aurora then. Please, stay near Kyrian. As long as you stick near Kyrian and Skaris sticks near Eltis our backline should be taken care of.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock. I¡¯m a Shielder. It would be strange to seem like I¡¯m staying near the back-¡± ¡°From what I¡¯ve seen, there¡¯s only two real shielders in this group. You and Ramhof. I¡¯ll try to steer the conversation so you can stick near the backline. Sarai and Krag have seen your capability; being a mage and priest themselves no doubt that they¡¯ll be more than relieved to have you protecting the rear.¡± ¡°Two problems with that.¡± Kyrian interjected. ¡°You will be the only one near the fighting then. With all of us in the backline, you will be the first one to be targeted.¡± ¡°Only if they plan to betray us in the first place.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Chances are that we could still draw lots for a Fracture Splinter, if it drops at all.¡± ¡°Yet you are placing everyone near the back where they¡¯re safe. How gallant.¡± Eltis whispered with a smile. I didn¡¯t have an answer for that because she was right. If I truly believed they¡¯d want to draw lots in the case of a Fracture Splinter drop, I wouldn¡¯t be doing this much in the first place. ¡°What¡¯s the second problem?¡± I wanted to address their concerns before going ahead with this plan. Instead of them just hopping in, it was always better to be on the same page working towards the same goal. At least, that¡¯s the party that I always dreamed of when playing MSS. I had always wanted to treat my party members like humans, wanting to do more than just clicking on dialogue boxes. It had always been a desire of mine to hear their thoughts about the plan and take their feedback; now I had that chance. With a party in a Fracture, tangled by intrigue¡­ I knew that we were in a dire situation but I was just as excited as I was nervous. I felt like we were adventuring. ¡°They won¡¯t listen no matter what you say.¡± Kyrian pointed out, gesturing at the Eretians still convening among themselves. ¡°That adventurer named Pyret, he¡¯s working up a storm.¡± ¡°Tell me more about that.¡± ¡°When we entered, the sword usssser was sssspeaking to the otherssss, that hissss people were misssssing. Until you entered, we had hoped that they were with you. But if you are the lasssst ones to arrive¡­ then it isssss ssssafe to assume that two of their own issss dead.¡± ¡°Mr. Skaris. Do you happen to remember the names of those who have not yet arrived or are presumed deceased as of now?¡± ¡°Forma, the human archer, and Trevor the priest.¡± Kyrian grimaced and even Eltis gave a pained smile. ¡°Losing a priest in the Fracture¡­ it doesn¡¯t look good, Lock. He¡¯s no doubt trying to make it out like it was us. Skaris, Priestess Eltis and I landed by ourselves; they suspect us of killing them.¡± ¡°Do you know who landed with who?¡± ¡°Pyret with the elven mage, Dibo, and the cat beastman.¡± Eltis answered for the others. ¡°Then Ramhof, Baran and Furgrin. Those are the two groups.¡± ¡°Is there a possibility that those two landed in their own starting point and have not made it yet?¡± Aurora voiced her own concern. ¡°We had Sarai and Krag with us. But it seems that you three not having any of the Eretians in your party is working against you; you have no third-party witness.¡± ¡°Now that we have arrived as well, they will no doubt point the finger at you.¡± She finished. The elven priestess gave a bitter laugh, which she managed to make it sultry. ¡°We know.¡± Kyrian met my gaze. ¡°Hence, if you dispatch two of the Miltus warriors near the back, they will no doubt raise their concerns. We have to be able to prove our innocence.¡± I wracked my head thinking. There were things I knew about the Twilight Maze that no one else here did, presuming that it was their first time inside the maze or that none of them were players. For example, the fact that the minimum number of people that the Twilight Maze put in a starting party in Phase 1 was three. That meant Forma and Trevor couldn¡¯t have landed just by themselves. That being the case¡­ they couldn¡¯t have died to monsters. No, they landed with at least three others. And were killed by other adventurers. There was always the possibility that Kyrian, Skaris and Eltis were lying to me. Well, maybe not Kyrian and Skaris; the three of us went through too much together for that. Or perhaps that¡¯s why it¡¯s called a betrayal, because you never expected it. Still, I wanted to believe them. That lead me to other possibilities. One (or both) of the two Eretian parties killed them, then were blaming us for it. Why? There were many reasons. Perhaps Forma and Trevor got into a disagreement with the others. Perhaps about the political intrigue that they were being used for, or even for something typical like arguing over a monster drop. Either way, it would be more than convenient for the Eretian party if they killed the two then blamed it on us. My other theory was that it wasn¡¯t the entire party who killed them, but a select few or even an individual. Right after entering Phase 1, the killer could have killed Forma or Trevor in a single blow. It would¡¯ve been easy too, both were backline classes. I knew for sure that someone like Skaris or I could easily kill those types of adventurers within a second. Then they¡¯d use an ability to make the body disappear before the rest of the party realized it. The prime candidates were Furgrin, Pyret, Baran, Track, Dibo¡­ basically more than half their number. Without insight into what Cores or spells they had at their arsenal, it was too many suspects for me to narrow it down. But one thing was for sure: the killer was in this room with us. I suppressed a shiver. I once played a game called Mafia when I was in elementary school. It was at the house of another kid, before my parents lost their corporation. This feeling brought me back to that scene. Although the game was make-believe, it had been real enough to me. The accusations flying in the air, the killer hidden among us and the frustration about not knowing who to believe. Except we were playing for keeps now with real blood on the line. ¡°Well, when it gets to that, we¡¯ll deal with it. But for now, I think we¡¯ll have to see what the Eretians say first.¡± More than Skaris and Kyrian, I looked to Aurora and Eltis. Aurora nodded grimly and Eltis followed suit. ¡°As you say.¡± It wasn¡¯t a moment too soon because Pyret called us over. As we walked over, Aurora spoke to me while we were lagging behind the others. ¡°Your party members¡­ Mr. Skaris and Mr. Kyrian. They worry about you.¡± ¡°Of course. I¡¯m always in their care.¡± I said with an easy smile. Aurora seemed to study me while walking next to me. ¡°Do you trust them?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I didn¡¯t hesitate. ¡°Would you bet your life on it, Mr. Lock?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said once more. ¡°I¡¯ve already done so. More than once. They¡¯ve saved me more times than I can count.¡± They¡¯d never admit it. They always thought I was the one who rescued them from Samak City. But to me¡­ They were the ones who believed in me and stayed next to me, watching my back. ¡°There are people who have spent their entire lives together, only to be betrayed at the last second.¡± Aurora continued. ¡°I have known such people, Mr. Lock. Trust is a fickle thing and hard to come by. From what I know, it seems you have not known your party mates for that long. Where does your trust come from?¡± The way she asked her question, the way she framed it, I knew there was something more behind them. Something unsaid, something that she had been looking for. Not just from me, but from everywhere. I thought carefully before answering. ¡°The length of time I spent with them doesn¡¯t matter. We fought together, risking life and death.¡± I shook my head. ¡°They¡¯re my comrades. Nothing will change that.¡± Aurora stayed silent for a bit. ¡°I envy you.¡± I thought I heard her wrong. ¡°Excuse me?¡± Before she could answer, Pyret yelled out towards us, unsatisfied by our leisurely speed. ¡°Get over here! Now!¡± Joining the circle of adventurers next to the slab of stone, we were met with hostile stares. ¡°I assume you¡¯ve already been briefed.¡± Pyret aimed his question at Aurora and me. ¡°Anything you have to say for yourselves?¡± I asked a question I already knew the answer to. ¡°Are you accusing Eltis, Skaris and Kyrian of murdering your party mates?¡± ¡°Who else could have done it?!¡± I saw the veins bulging from Pyret¡¯s forehead. The man was furious. Any second now, he could draw his sword and shield. I wished I was one of those characters in the manga that I often read, blessed with wit and a silver tongue. But I wasn¡¯t one of those. I was just¡­ me. So I stuck to the logic that I knew, trying to put holes in his argument. ¡°It could''ve been a party that wasn¡¯t theirs. Why are you so sure it was them?¡± ¡°The only other party that could¡¯ve done it was yours. But Sarai and Krag were in there.¡± Pyret glowered then pointed at Dibo. ¡°I was with Dibo and Track. Baran and Furgrin were with Ramhof. Why would Baran stand by and watch Forma and Trevor be killed?¡± ¡°Perhaps you killed them.¡± I muttered, just loud enough for Pyret to hear. I thought of a theory that might be true in a soap opera. ¡°Maybe you confessed to Forma but she loved Trevor. So you killed them both out of love.¡± ¡°SHE WAS MY WIFE! MOTHER FUCKER¡± Ah shit.
Chapter 59: Fracture - Twilight Maze (6)
World: MSS - Loading...
Pyret actually lunged at me and if Furgrin and Baran didn¡¯t hold him back, I would¡¯ve been forced to draw my blade too. The moment that the swordsman lost his sense of reason, I saw Skaris take a step forward and unexpectedly, Aurora. I hadn¡¯t known she was fond of me enough to come to my defense like that. Sure, we were both working for the same side but she reacted without hesitation. Either way, at the rate Pyret was going, this was bound to devolve into bloodshed. ¡°I¡¯ll fucking kill him!!¡± I watched as Baran held Pyret back by hooking his arms underneath the sword-and-board fighter. Meanwhile, Furgrin, the dwarf rogue, held onto the much bigger man¡¯s legs. ¡°Inssssulting a man who jusssst losssst hissss mate¡­. Ssssavagery indeed¡­¡± Skaris trailed off. ¡°Pyret, I didn¡¯t mean to-¡± I tried to apologize. ¡°SHUT YOUR MOUTH!¡± ¡°Calm.¡± Baran rumbled. Hearing the reserved archer¡¯s voice brought Pyret back to his senses. His red hair was disheveled and wild, his many face piercings reflecting the eerie glow in this place. Not too dark but not too bright, stuck in a perpetual state of dusk. ¡°Someone will answer for the death of my wife.¡± Pyret swallowed and I saw hot red tears start to form; streaking down the red-haired man¡¯s face. They steamed and froze midair before ever hitting the ground. ¡°And right now the most likely culprit is them.¡± He jerked his head towards the three suspects: Eltis, Kyrian and Skaris. I understood where Pyret was coming from. In MSS, there were times when NPCs would inform you that they got married. It often happened when they reached a certain level of affinity. But it led to a lot of poor outcomes. If one of them died, the other would be inconsolable. Or if one of them got in danger, the AI would no longer listen to your commands and leave your party; looking for their spouse. But it wasn¡¯t all bad; there were certain items that could only be used by characters with a maxed out affinity between the opposite sex. Whether Pyret got out of this place alive or not, this would be Pyret¡¯s last dungeon. ¡°I¡¯ve said it before but I¡¯ll say it again. They could have landed by themselves.¡± Kyrian¡¯s words brought me to the present. ¡°While everyone else is split up into groups of three or four?!¡± Pyret roared, his hair resembling flames in tempo with his rising anger. Damn. So much for convincing him that Forma and Trevor landed by themselves. But it seemed that particular boat had sailed. Pyret¡¯s instincts were spot on: the chances of Forma and Trevor ending up just by themselves was outside the realm of possibility. I decided to try a different angle. Dibo, Krag and Ramhof were standing together, watching the proceedings with cold interest. ¡°Ramhof. You were with Baran and Furgrin. Did you not come across any tracks on the way here?¡± I already knew the answer to my question; of course they¡¯d say no. ¡°No, we have not.¡± Ramhof answered, his voice both deep and raspy. The elderly dwarf¡¯s bald head shone. ¡°Furgrin and Baran would have seen something.¡± Typical of a warrior-class to deflect it to the scout-classes. I didn¡¯t even need to ask Furgrin and Baran, they would have said something. ¡°I know exactly what you are all thinking, that us from Eretia are plotting to stab a dagger in your back.¡± Pyret spat, voicing what everyone was thinking. ¡°So you must have struck first. Attacking Forma and Trevor to even the playing field. We never had any intention of backstabbing you-¡± ¡°Pyret, I believe that¡¯s enough.¡± Dibo finally stepped in. The combination of his age, beard and mage-class lent weight to his next words. ¡°There is no point in accusing one another of murder without solid proof. Unless anyone happens to have the Artifact, Truth or Dare?¡± I flinched. Artifacts and Legendaries were items ranked right beneath Pluralities and Singularities; though at times the distinction was blurry at best. Artifacts tended to lean towards items with magical abilities, staves, robes, pendants and charms. Legendaries usually bestowed physical blessings, reserved for those who fought on the frontlines. The artifact, Truth or Dare was a charm-type item in the shape of a small ring. It worked just like the game in real life ¨Cyou asked someone Truth or Dare. Then they¡¯d choose; the caveat that if they failed to tell the truth you¡¯d know right away. The Dares were limited to things within the realm of possibility and something reasonable: you couldn¡¯t dare someone to kill themselves or dare someone to fly off of a cliff. It wasn¡¯t a powerful Artifact against monsters by any means, quite useless. But in situations like this¡­ Well, it was one of two items in the entire game that let you know if someone was lying or not. ¡°If we had the money lying around to afford something like that, none of us would be in here.¡± Sarai answered her fellow elven mage. Dibo stroked his beard. ¡°Then we must put this matter to rest.¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± Pyret had murder in his eyes. ¡°Ah, that is not to say we won¡¯t find the killer.¡± Dibo placated Pyret, holding his gaze. Then he looked at the rest of us. ¡°I¡¯m sure there will be plenty of opportunities to find the killer. After all, no one is leaving this dungeon until we all do.¡± ¡°A long time for the real killer to slip.¡± Track, who had been silent until now, nodded in understanding. ¡°I will lend you my aid of course.¡± ¡°I, as well.¡± Dibo chimed in. ¡°I swear it.¡± Maybe it was because Track and Dibo had been with Pyret during Phase 1, but that seemed to calm Pyret down another notch. He still glared at us; it seemed that the scope of his anger had grown to include Aurora and I as well. But I wasn¡¯t concerned with that anymore. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. The way Dibo played Pyret¡­ it worried me. ¡°Well then, I think the next step is obvious.¡± Dibo took the lead naturally. Once again, the dynamics of this party was shifting. Before, it had been between Pyret and me. But now, with Dibo managing to calm Pyret down and Pyret¡¯s party¡¯s ill will towards the Miltus adventurers; it fell to Dibo to lead. He gestured at the slab of stone next to us. Up close, it was even bigger than I had originally estimated. Perhaps around the height of three men. It was just as wide as well, dwarfing the group with its mass. Dibo, Kyrian and Sarai walked up to it. Usually, structures like this were left for the mages to figure out. Of course, I knew how to activate it already. But I kept my mouth shut, keeping my eyes on Dibo. Something about him struck me as suspicious. Why would he bring up Truth and Dare? At this time? ¡°It looks like a simple mana mechanism. It should activate with sufficient mana input.¡± Kyrian was the first to offer his opinion, studying the stone. ¡°Ah, yes. I agree. Which tower did you study at, Magus Kyrian?¡± Dibo asked. ¡°I studied at the Baraqis Tower in Babel.¡± ¡°You studied at Babel? I had no idea we had such an elite among us. I, too, studied at Babel in my earlier years. Although I was at the Yarokeron Tower. Tell me, was one of your instructors named Vahn Verkeer?¡± ¡°Yes. He is in charge of teaching advanced lightning theory to Grade-9 mages.¡± ¡°He was a good friend of mine when we were students. Huhuhuhu¡­ next time you see him please send him my regards.¡± ¡°I will do so.¡± ¡°I can sense that you don¡¯t have a 4th Core yet¡­ if you¡¯re interested there¡¯s a Tower in the Jayu States that I am closely related with. Although it may not be a Babel Tower¡­ I vouch for the tower head¡¯s competence.¡± ¡°I¡¯d appreciate the introduction, Magus Dibo.¡± I rolled my eyes at the casual display of nepotism. It seemed that Kyrian might be able to take care of his 4th Mana Core even without my help. Though I doubted it¡¯d be for free; but making a good impression on Dibo might help with that. But it wasn¡¯t without consequence; Pyret had an expression of betrayal on his face due to how close Dibo was acting with Kyrian. It seemed that Pyret didn¡¯t have a good grasp of Mage Culture. After plenty of obligatory networking between the two, Dibo activated the stone. The stone hummed as lettering came to life in a language unknown to me. It was true for the others. We would need the mages to translate for us. Except me I guess. ¡°What does it say?¡± Track inquired. The three mages studied the rock, muttering to one another. Sarai let out a soft gasp. ¡°This rock is a Truth of Dare artifact.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Pyret stomped over to the stone, tense as a cat about to pounce. ¡°Magus Sarai speaks true.¡± Dibo explained. ¡°This stone will act similarly to the Artifact, Truth or Dare. However it says¡­ hmmm¡­ ¡®With each act of mistrust, shall the Guardian grow stronger¡¯. If I am not mistaken, each use of the stone makes the boss of this dungeon stronger. Plus¡­ ¡®Whoever mistrusts their own will the heavens curse¡¯.¡± He leaned back and stroked his beard. ¡°Let me get straight to the point. Pyret, do you aim to use this Rock?¡± Pyret hesitated. ¡°What does it mean by ¡®curse¡¯?¡± ¡°Exactly what it says.¡± Kyrian stepped around the rock, seeing that the back of the stone slab was marked with identical words. ¡°Probably a curse that will weaken whoever uses the stone. It works against us twofold, empowering the guardian of this place while weakening us in turn.¡± The red-haired swordsman remained silent. I could only guess at the pain in his heart and the turmoil that raged within him. He wanted to find his wife¡¯s killer but that would mean leaving him weak and jeopardizing all our lives. Pyret was a husband, adventurer and leader of his party. There was no right answer here, only choice that would leave the least amount of regrets. But it wasn¡¯t just Pyret that the stone was attractive to. I saw Krag looking at the stone with something akin to longing and even Track seeming to be deep in thought. Eltis was muttering to herself, either locked in prayer or inane self-talk. Sarai was talking with Furgrin, shooting glances our way. The only people that seemed disinterested in the rock were Dibo, Skaris and Kyrian. ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± Baran warned, his deep baritone voice cutting through everyone¡¯s muttering. ¡°It is a foolish choice.¡± My head snapped to Baran. ¡°...but we could use it as well, brother.¡± Sarai interjected. ¡°If Forma truly died at their hands, we¡¯d know for sure. Don¡¯t you want revenge?¡± Baran grunted but said no more. As for me, I was torn as well. This was obviously a mechanism placed in the dungeon to split the party apart, weaken them and make the boss more difficult to defeat. The entirety of Phase 1 had been a set-up for this. Splitting up a party of 15 randomly, having Namahage stalk us, sowing discord and now giving us an outlet to attack each other without really drawing swords. The overall difficulty of this Fracture was dependent on how much we trusted each other and that trust was running empty. ¡°I¡¯m going to use the stone.¡± Pyret said and walked up to it. ¡°How do I use it?¡± ¡°...Don¡¯t, Pyret.¡± It was the first time I heard Furgrin¡¯s voice. It was more high-pitched than I would have expected from a dwarf. ¡°We¡¯re already two down. If you are weakened as well, who knows what they might do.¡± He finished by pointing at us. Skaris snarled. ¡°Or perhapsssss you are afraid of finding out that it wassssn¡¯t ussss.¡± He faced Pyret. ¡°Do it. Find out who took your mate away from you. I am hiding nothing.¡± ¡°...You can only use it once Pyret.¡± Sarai told her party-leader. ¡°Simply put your hand on the stone and activate it as you would any other item.¡± Pyret nodded and did as Sarai told him. The sigils dimmed. ¡°If it works like the actual Artifact, they must accept it first.¡± Dibo explained. ¡°Who do you wish to ask your question to?¡± ¡°You.¡± Pyret pointed at Kyrian. ¡°Do you accept?¡± ¡°I accept.¡± ¡°Then tell me, Truth or Dare.¡± ¡°Truth.¡± Kyrian answered Pyret each time without missing a beat. Chains made of pure mana shot out from the stone and wrapped themselves around Kyrian. It happened so fast that no one had any chance to respond. They shimmered with white light, reminiscent of the snow all around us. ¡°If he lies, you will know as the chains will glow red before disappearing. If he tells the truth, it will glow blue.¡± Sarai explained. Pyret¡¯s face took on a maddened look; pupils dilating and the streaks of tears on his face standing out more. I wasn¡¯t sure if it was the lighting or an effect of the Truth and Dare¡­ but right now, in this moment, Pyret was Judge, Jury and Executioner. ¡°Tell me then, Mage.¡± Pyret spat. ¡°Did you kill any of them? Forma or Trevor?¡± Pyret hadn¡¯t lost his senses to anger it seemed. If Kyrian killed forma but Pyret asked about Trevor, Kyrian could have slipped his way out and vice versa. But by asking about Forma or Trevor, he¡¯d left no way out for Kyrian¡­ though it still had loopholes. Kyrian didn¡¯t necessarily have to be the killer; it could¡¯ve been Eltis or Skaris as well. Pyret must¡¯ve reached the same conclusion I had because as soon as Kyrian answered he started screaming. ¡°No.¡± ¡°No! That doesn¡¯t count! He might not have-, AGH!¡± Pyret clutched his heart as the chains wrapped around him instead. The real Truth or Dare wouldn¡¯t do this; but this was a makeshift Truth or Dare put in place by the dungeon. Of course there was a price. I saw Pyret¡¯s mana ride up the chains and flow into the rock. The tablet flashed with more letters. ?Seal has be undone! (1/6)? ¡°Pyret, are you alright?¡± Sarai looked over at Pyret. ¡°Hmm¡­ it seems that he lost roughly half his mana. In a place were Mana is as precious as gold, a heavy price to pay.¡± Dibo commented. Pyret looked up at us, his eyes bloodshot. ¡°That doesn¡¯t count. You might have just stood by and-¡± ¡°Face reality.¡± I stepped in front of Eltis, whom he was glaring at. ¡°You had your chance but you couldn¡¯t find anything. Any more and you¡¯re playing with everyone¡¯s lives. Kyrian, what does the rock say?¡± ¡°It says¡­ that the seal has been undone. And there¡¯s a ticker next to it, marking it as the sixth seal. I¡¯m assuming that was the weakest seal, which means five more seals remain.¡± ¡°So is it safe to assume that there¡¯s five more uses of the rock left?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He answered. I turned back to Pyret. ¡°Are you really going to gamble with all our lives? I think you know in your heart by now. The only people you could ask your question to are Eltis and Skaris¡­ or you could accept the fact that it wasn¡¯t them.¡± ¡°You¡¯re in it with them.¡± He growled, slapping Sarai¡¯s hand away from him. Pyret stepped closer to me until we were face to face. ¡°You¡¯re all fucking in it. I fuckign know it! All I have to do is ask one more question. Just one!¡± ¡°Lad, I understand your pain. I really do.¡± Krag stepped in. ¡°But that Lock Lad is right. We let you use the rock once to ease your pain but ya gotta come back to your senses now. Is this really what your wife would¡¯ve wanted?¡± ¡°You understand nothing!¡± Pyret roared, taking a step towards Krag. Ramhof got in between them. ¡°Fine then. Use it. But know that no one will be there to protect you.¡± Pyret snarled and tore his gaze away from the stoic holy knight. He looked to me once more. ¡°Are you going to stop me?¡± ¡°...No.¡± I stepped aside. Pyret put his hands on the stone once more and this time, he aimed his question at Eltis. The ghostly chains wrapped around her waist. Eltis¡¯ expression was chilly, giving nothing away. Not even a smile. ¡°Priestess, choose. Truth or Dare.¡± ¡°Truth of course. The Nine would punish me if I chose anything else.¡± Eltis answered. ¡°...Of the three of you, the Lizard, Mage and yourself. Have any of you seen Forma or Trevor since entering this dungeon?¡± I almost wanted to clap. He really used his brain on this one. Just like all things in MMS, Truth and Dare had loopholes. Pyret had finally formed his question in a way so that if they really were part of the plot to get Forma or Trevor killed in anyway at all, he would know. ¡°No. None of us have seen them.¡± Eltis answered easily. I saw Pyret¡¯s eyes go wide in shock right before the Stone sucked up his remaining mana. He writhed on the floor, the sudden transference of mana from his body causing him physical pain. Pyret salivated over the snow, his fingers leaving deep grooves. ¡°No¡­ that¡¯s not possible¡­ Then did they really land just by themselves? What cruel twist of fate is this?!¡± He was fucking gone. I could tell by his eyes, he thought he had lost everything. But he didn¡¯t lose everything yet. Before anyone could react, I stepped up to the stone and put my hand on it. All eyes were on me. I had a feeling I knew who the killer was. ¡°If it¡¯s not them, there¡¯s only one other culprit isn¡¯t there?¡± I said out loud my eyes fixed on whom I had been suspicious of since the beginning. Pyret must¡¯ve gotten what I meant because he stared at them too. ¡°No¡­¡± I felt bad for Pyret at what I was about to do. He was about to hit rock-bottom but I had to go through with this. Because I think I just found a way to weaken the Eretians once and for all. And I wanted Pyret to at least know who it was that killed his wife. ¡°Baran, Furgrin and Ramhof.¡± I spoke and I saw everyone hold their breath as they understood what was going on. ¡°Which one of you would like to play Truth or Dare?¡±
Chapter 60: Fracture - Twilight Maze (7)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Will it be you, Baran?¡± I pointed at the elven archer then to the dwarven rogue. ¡°Or, Furgrin, perhaps you¡¯d like to talk.¡± Finally my gaze rested on Ramhof. ¡°Or the holy knight who is supposed to uphold justice.¡± All three of them were silent. ¡°Any takers?¡± ¡°I do not have to play along with this.¡± Furgrin wheezed out. Baran just turned his head away and Ramhof didn¡¯t respond. The Truth and Dare stone must have taken their responses as a denial because the light dimmed. As the stone didn¡¯t truly activate, it didn¡¯t take half my mana either. ¡°Baran, Furgrin.¡± Pyret looked between the two. ¡°What is he talking about?¡± ¡°Nonsense.¡± Furgrin answered. ¡°He¡¯s trying to split us apart.¡± ¡°But it makes sense doesn¡¯t it?¡± I insisted, pressing the issue. ¡°Kyrian, Skaris and Eltis had their innocence proven. If my party was the culprit, why would we leave Sarai alive? I certainly don¡¯t think it was you either Pyret. That leaves¡­ only one other party of three. Baran, Furgrin, and Ramhof.¡± I saw the gears in Pyret¡¯s head turning. The man wasn¡¯t stupid, he saw my point of view. ¡°Baran¡­ Furgrin. Would you be willing to prove your innocence?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a ruse.¡± Baran met Pyret¡¯s woeful gaze. ¡°He could ask us any other question and we¡¯d be forced to answer. He could ask about our Cores or plans. Make guesses.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Furgrin wasn¡¯t half as good at acting as Baran was. Pyret turned to Ramhof. ¡°You are a knight, sworn to uphold order and justice. Tell me, were you involved in the murder of my wife?¡± Pyret¡¯s voice began wavering again while speaking to Ramhof. Ramhof remained silent. ¡°Pleading the fourth I see.¡± I decided to prod him a bit. ¡°Is your mind as empty as your head?¡± I said, gesturing at his baldness. That got a rise out of Ramhof. ¡°You slimy little-¡± ¡°Answer the lad, Ramhof.¡± Krag folded his arms, standing between us. Ramhof glared at his friend. ¡°He¡¯s trying to-¡± ¡°We wore a focking oath Ramhof!¡± Krag¡¯s yell thundered throughout the clearing. ¡°Look me in my pigshite eyes and tell me with your focking mouth that you had nothing to do with the murder of two innocent people!¡± ¡°Krag, I-¡± ¡°That¡¯s Bishop Krag to you.¡± Krag snarled, taking a step towards his old friend. ¡°Tell me. Right now before I put my hand on that godforsaken stone myself. By the forge and fire, tell me the focking truth!¡± Ramhof paled. ¡°You dare question my honor?¡± Then he looked at me. Most likely because I was easier to deal with than the screaming dwarven priest. ¡°Be ready to have your tongue cut out.¡± I lifted my chin just a bit. Skaris, Kyrian, Eltis and Aurora were watching. I couldn¡¯t back down here. ¡°Do you accept then, Knight Ramhof?¡± I saw him grip the handle of his maul. ¡°I swear on the forge-¡± ¡°What use is the sworn oath of a knight who may have murdered innocents?¡± I pointed at him, showing my teeth. ¡°Accept the Truth or Dare, Ramhof.¡± Even his bald head was red from anger. Or perhaps from the pressure. ¡°I won¡¯t play into this farce.¡± He released his hand from the maul, then turned to Krag. ¡°Suspect me all you want Bishop Krag. But the moment we play into his games, we have already lost our true goal.¡± Krag didn¡¯t buy it. ¡°By the forge¡­ you dun it haven¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Think what you wish. I was a fool to think of you as a friend.¡± Was this what was waiting for me in this world of MSS? A life of adventuring side by side with my comrades, just to have our trust broken over some words? It was a reminder once more of the cruelty of this game. Ramhof stepped away from Krag and the rest of the group. I saw him take a place near one of the gates and sit down, still fuming. That was one down. ¡°Tell me it wasn¡¯t you.¡± Pyret turned to his comrades. ¡°It wasn¡¯t.¡± Baran said decisively. By the gods, the archer didn¡¯t even bat an eye. Baran stuck to his guns but the damage had been done. Pyret had noticeably distanced himself from his remaining party members. In this dungeon, Pyret had lost his wife, his friends and any trust he had left. The life of an adventurer was fraught with peril and danger; there were plenty of opportunities for one to die at any moment¡¯s notice. As a result, the other adventurers that you traveled with, that you left your backs too, the bonds were thicker than blood. Yet, the doubt was there now; that those people had turned on him. Taken everything away. Someone once told me that loneliness isn¡¯t something you feel when you¡¯re by yourself. It¡¯s when you¡¯re with other people, the feeling of circling around the group but never being a part of it. That insecure feeling which whispered that you were just an accessory, that you could leave and no one would bat an eye. You were expendable¡­ and that you didn¡¯t matter. But I knew that Pyret wouldn¡¯t leave them. He¡¯d stick with them. Call it survival instinct. But people need others, especially in situations where working together might mean the difference between life or death. Even if it meant working with your wife¡¯s killers. No¡­ I doubted Pyret would see it that way. He¡¯d tell himself that there was no way they were the killers. If he didn¡¯t lie to himself, he couldn¡¯t live with himself. At least that¡¯s the type of man I think I saw beneath his red hair and all those piercings. All those things about him ¨Cthe bluster, the outlandish piercings and the aggressive attitude¨C shouting ¡®look at me, but don¡¯t come close¡¯; weren¡¯t they just cries for someone to talk to him? To look at him? This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. I could only imagine what Pyret was feeling right now. He huddled close to Baran and Furgrin. ¡°I trust you.¡± Then he turned to us. ¡°I swear that before we leave this dungeon, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± It was supposed to come out as a threat but it didn¡¯t sound anything close to dangerous. Just¡­ Just sad. Right there, I didn¡¯t hate Pyret. I didn¡¯t despise him or mock him for falling for their ruse. The only thing I felt was pity. He knew. We all did. But this was the only thing he could do. ¡°I feel pity for you..¡± I said out loud, without meaning to. Pyret¡¯s motions froze and he turned his head towards me, one inch at a time like a machine with a programming error. His lips trembled like he was about to say something but nothing came. His pupils shook visibly but all the tears had been emptied; I was sure his heart wouldn¡¯t give him the mercy of crying after abandoning his wife¡¯s memory. Something inside of him had broken in this dungeon. The light inside of his bright red eyes had gone out and so had the smoldering embers of ambition and revenge. He¡­ He was done. Even if Pyret left this dungeon alive, he¡¯d never adventure again. I took my hand off of the stone and it seemed like the world started moving again; I heard people take in audible breaths like they¡¯d been holding it the entire time. No one needed to say it explicitly, now was the time to break camp. As my party members went about setting up, I saw Dibo and Krag approach Track. Of course, with Ramhof out of the picture they¡¯d need a frontliner. ¡°Lock.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°We still haven¡¯t discussed how we will be splitting the loot with the others.¡± ¡°Because these aren''t the final participating members yet.¡± I replied, my eyes glued to Baran''s party. Pyret had become subdued. Furgrin and Sarai spoke lively with Baran cracking the occasional chuckle, Pyret staring into the fire with a smile that didn¡¯t quite reach his eyes. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°No point in talking about Loot Distribution when everyone knows that there¡¯s going to be some kind of backstabbing going on at the end.¡± I turned back to our fire, satisfied that nothing would change between the adventurers as of now. I sat down next to Skaris, warming my hands by blowing on them. ¡°Ssslaveborn. I tire of all thisssss sssscheming.¡± Skaris complained as soon as my butt touched the floor. He was poking around the logs, getting the fire bigger. ¡°When will we hunt?¡± ¡°Speak for yourself. I could watch Mr. Lock do this all day.¡± Eltis shot me a sly smile. ¡°The way you played that man¡­ you¡¯d do well as a Priest of Despair.¡± ¡°Your last name is Slaveborn?¡± It was Aurora who asked the question. Kyrian and I shared a look then at Skaris. ¡°Sssorry.¡± Skaris said apologetically. ¡°But I do not ssssee the point of hiding it, your sssscars tell the story. Everyone knowssss already.¡± My hands absently touched the Bevor, my neck protection piece. ¡°Yeah¡­ It isn¡¯t anything to be ashamed of anyways.¡± Without any ceremony I unclasped it and took it off. Eltis winced in sympathy at my scars. Aurora had already seen it so she made no other reaction. Instead she rolled my name, pronouncing it. ¡°Slaveborn¡­¡± It looked like she was more interested in the name. I cleared my throat. ¡°Let¡¯s just say I have history with the Samak Horde. We¡¯ll leave it at that. How is everyone¡¯s condition?¡± ¡°This place interferes with gathering mana. I¡¯ve been conserving my spells but I¡¯m afraid that without mana potions, I will soon be of no help.¡± Kyrian pointed out. Eltis nodded in agreement with him. Kyrian and Eltis were the two who used mana the most. Prolonged exposure to this dungeon would gradually drain them of mana, throwing monsters just strong enough for them to cast a spell here and there. Then they¡¯d be forced to resort to Mana Potions, which we should be saving for the boss fight. The only way to replenish our mana from this point on forward was to hunt monsters and hope that mana replenishing items would drop, like from the Blue masked Namahage. Well it wouldn¡¯t matter. Because starting tomorrow, Phase 2 would provide us with more than enough monsters to kill. ¡°Ssslaveborn. How did you know that it was the elf and the dwarf who killed Pyret¡¯ssssss mate?¡± ¡°Process of elimination.¡± I explained. ¡°It wasn¡¯t us or you guys. Nor was it Pyret¡¯s party¡­ that left Baran, Furgrin and Ramhof.¡± ¡°Smart too.¡± Eltis commented. Kyrian nodded along. ¡°I had come to that conclusion as well. But the only thing I cannot think of is why? Why kill amongst their own kind? Weren¡¯t they in a party together?¡± I saw Skaris and Eltis trade a look with one another and understood immediately. ¡°My my¡­ it seems our Mage is a little slow on the uptake.¡± At Eltis¡¯ words, Aurora spoke up. ¡°Ms. Eltis¡­ are you implying that the murder was racially motivated?¡± ¡°Sweetheart, I¡¯m not implying it. I know it.¡± She wrapped the cloak a little tighter around herself, lowering her voice. ¡°The elves and dwarves have always hated the humans, almost as much as the beastman do.¡± Her words reminded me of the time that Skaris and Kyrian had argued. I¡¯d never seen Skaris attack Kyrian or anyone with such vehement hatred before. It wasn¡¯t a hatred towards Kyrian but more towards what he represented. ¡°The Turina Empire is a machine, a machine that neither sleeps nor eats. It desires land, people and gold. Are you familiar with history, Scion of the Vetilius House?¡± Aurora¡¯s voice was flat when she answered Eltis. ¡°Yes I am. But I am not sure what you are referring to.¡± I answered for her. ¡°There are only two ways to get resources. Marriage¡­ or War.¡± ¡°Precisely.¡± Eltis beamed at me and I had to fight not to let my eyes roam over her. ¡°As Lock as said, all the dungeons in the world have pretty much been conquered. It has been decades since we¡¯ve last seen the raid of a Grade 2 Monster. A century, maybe even longer, since the world has felled a Grade 1 Monster.¡± ¡°Rumor has it that the Turina Empire seeks to raise a group of adventurers¡­ to start hunting. To finish what the Great Adventurer Alexander did long ago; to rid this world of the Grade 1 Monsters. Care to guess what they are?¡± I didn¡¯t need to guess. I¡¯d knew enough about geography now to know what type of Grade 1 Monsters resided in the Turina empire. ¡°Dragons.¡± I whispered and saw Skaris shudder. Eltis¡¯ eyes were glued to me, like how a cat might watch a mouse before pouncing. ¡°Yes¡­ they wish to start hunting Dragons. Or so the rumor is anyways.¡± She stretched with her eyes above her head and I tore my eyes away from her. I saw Aurora glaring at me. ¡°Even I did not know this.¡± Kyrian said, more to himself than anyone else. ¡°Is that why the Turina empire has been so aggressive?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ and since the empire is mostly human, you can guess where the sentiments of us regular folks are going.¡± Eltis stroked her long and pointed ears. ¡°Any other questions? If not, I was hoping to tuck in for the night.¡± ¡°Go ahead. We¡¯ll stand watch. You and Kyrian should sleep as much as possible, try to recover some mana. Aurora, Skaris and I can stand watch in turns.¡± I told the two and they nodded their thanks. Soon after, their breathing evened out. ¡°I sssshall sssstand first watch.¡± Skaris declared. ¡°Keep a careful eye on Baran¡¯s party and Ramhof.¡± I warned him. Skaris waved a hand dismissively at me, taking out his spear and starting to wipe it down. Then thinking back to how we¡¯d spend the next week in this dungeon, I closed my eyes. Darkness engulfed me for but just one blissful moment, a mere tick on the second hand on a clock before someone shook me awake. I growled and tried to swat the hand away but my assailant grabbed my wrist with a surprising snake, their fingers wrapping around my arm like a snake closing in on its prey. Reluctantly I opened my eyes and saw the red-scales on either side of Skaris¡¯ temples. His eyes were tired. ¡°Sssslaveborn. Your turn.¡± ¡°How long was I out?¡± ¡°Not ssssure.¡± He settled into his bedroll. ¡°Alssssso, Ssslaveborn?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Sssssstop ogling the Priestessssss.¡± I scowled at his back, mentally reminding myself to buy a dungeon watch once we were out of the Fracture. Unlike other games, MSS didn¡¯t provide players with how much time had passed in game. Not until they got their hands on items which filled that function. While I was tossing more logs into the firepit, footsteps approached. The sound of snow being crumpled like paper accompanied by the faint scent of wood and old cloth. I recognized the scent as belonging to Dibo. ¡°Can I help you?¡± I said without turning around. ¡°I was hoping to speak to you alone.¡± Turning to see the elderly elf, I replied. ¡°...I¡¯d like to talk to you as well.¡± Baran had led his group to a gate on the opposite side of Ramhof. Right now, my party and Dibo¡¯s party were the only ones near the stone. He and I ducked to the other side of the stone slab which had stopped shining. I knew that tomorrow it would shine once more, signaling the continuation of Phase 2. Once we were behind the stone, Dibo cast a spell and I had the sensation of my ears being blocked by wind, something I would feel at high altitudes. ¡°Now, we can speak freely.¡± Dibo¡¯s eyes twinkled. Slowly, ever so slowly, I crossed my arms in front of my chest. That way, they were closer to my shoulder if I needed to draw my sword. A trick I learned from Arione. ¡°What is it you wanted to discuss?¡± I didn¡¯t want to reveal my hand first. ¡°You¡¯re a [Player], aren¡¯t you?¡± No verbal fencing. No playing around. He simply asked the question like he was asking me for directions or asking about the weather. The nonchalance with which he asked the question which revealed one of my deepest secrets caught me off guard and I knew that the ensuing silence was more than answer enough. ¡°Ahh¡­ I thought as much.¡± I felt my face turn into a scowl. ¡°I did not answer you, Magus.¡± ¡°Your face was full of answers. Though I¡¯d suspected it from before.¡± My brain was blanking out so I kept my mouth shut. ¡°When we revealed the stone to be a Truth or Dare artifact¡­ Everyone''s face had an expression of awe, because we¡¯d received exactly what Pyret wanted at that moment. But you¡­ your expression never changed.¡± He leaned back and stroked his beard. ¡°From then on, I knew that you were a [Player].¡± Should I kill him? My mind worked through the logic with cold precision. I couldn¡¯t let my emotions get in the way, not again. I had Kyrian, Skaris, Aurora and even Eltis depending on me. Even if the latter two weren¡¯t part of my party, they were under my protection until this Fracture was finished. No¡­ if he was hostile, he would have attacked me already. If he meant to backstab me later for being a [Player], he wouldn¡¯t have revealed that he knew who or what I was. There was no rationale to him revealing his knowledge of me¡­ unless he was another [Player]. ¡°I mean to help you.¡± He said, noticing my silence. There was no other choice. I touched the stone and it hummed to life. His eyes shone with delight. This would rob me of half my mana. This would unlock another seal. But I had to know. I had to. ¡°Truth or dare.¡± I whispered. ¡°Truth.¡± ¡°...What are you?¡± I left it open ended on purpose. If he used the loophole to answer in some bullshit way, answering ¡®elf¡¯ or ¡®mage¡¯ or ¡®an old man¡¯, I¡¯d walk away and never turn my back on him. Ever. Actually I was ready to kill him. But his next words stopped all thoughts. ¡°My name is Dibolot Garcia Aedusaus and my father was a [Player] named Frank Garcia.¡± His eyes shone beneath the long white eyebrows. The chain took my mana even before he finished speaking. But his next words were what really shook me to the core. ¡°And I wish to use you to enter the [Player¡¯s Guild].¡±
Chapter 61: Fracture - Twilight Maze (8)
World: MSS - Loading...
It was only when the silence had stretched on for too long that I realized it had stretched on for too long. At that point it was too late to hide my expression and initial reaction; nothing had been filtered. I knew from Dibo¡¯s pensive look that he wasn¡¯t going to listen to my excuses or denials, his mind was already made up about who I was and what I was. Rather than try and fix this ¨Cwas there anything to fix?¨C I immediately deemed that it was more advantageous to roll with it. Right now, Dibo was dangling two pieces of information in front of me as bait. One. He was the son of a player¡­ which implied that his father was a [Player] and that Dibo had known about it. But it also meant that Dibo wasn¡¯t a [Player], simply an offspring of someone who remained in this world. I had often played with the notion of what would happen to those people who failed to go home. I never thought of that as a possibility for me¡­ but the result of someone else¡¯s failure was staring at me right in the face. ¡°Your father, is he-¡± ¡°Ah, no more questions.¡± The man wagged his finger in front of me. ¡°Not until you can show me that you are indeed the one I have been looking for.¡± ¡°Or would you prefer to use the stone again?¡± He knew I didn¡¯t. He was just dangling that information in front of me after confirming that he was indeed somehow related to [Players]. ¡°I don¡¯t even know what you want from me.¡± I said at last. ¡°You will¡­ in due time. But how about a bet then?¡± The way that he spoke reminded me a bit of Arione, who had also been an elven mage. Maybe it was an elf thing. ¡°Of what?¡± ¡°You do know what tomorrow will be like?¡± I gulped. Tomorrow would be the real start of Phase 2. A pure survivalist phase where the maze was filled with swarms of monsters. An opportunity for some, but deadly for others. ¡°I know that there will be three special monsters hidden inside the maze. Shall we make a bet on whoever hunts more than the other will win?¡± ¡°If you win?¡± ¡°If I win¡­ you will obey me for the duration of one year. No questions.¡± His beard curved up into a smile. ¡°Why would I take that bet?¡± ¡°Because if you win¡­ I¡¯ll let you have the Fracture Splinter.¡± Mother fucker. He had me. ¡°Fine. Do it. Whoever hunts more than the other wins the bet. But if I win, on top of the Fracture Splinter you tell me all the information you have about [Players] and the [Players Guild].¡± Dibo didn¡¯t miss a beat, he waved his hand and a strand of mana connected our hearts. I felt the mana strand settle around my mind, or my soul as Kyrian would say. It felt like a slight headache that nestled around the back of my head, writhing whenever I thought about breaking the Mana Vow. It was the first time that I had been caught in one, barring Kyrian¡¯s one-sided vow. ¡°I¡¯m surprised that you didn¡¯t include silence into the Vow.¡± Dibo muttered, lowering the wind barrier that had been locking the sound out. Just on time, a mournful cry went up somewhere in the maze; somewhere deep and away from us. The cry was half bestial and half human, sending chills up my spine. It wasn¡¯t a hunting call but almost like a man crying; that scared me more than any animal cry. ¡°I don¡¯t need to.¡± I promised Dibo. When I spoke, my voice rang with the clarity of truth; of decisive fact that couldn¡¯t be denied. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be the first Magus I cut for having a long tongue.¡± He stared at me a moment longer, flashing me a wolfish grin. ¡°Careful, young man.¡± ¡°Good hunting, old man.¡± There was something I didn¡¯t tell Dibo though. The monsters he mentioned¡­ there weren¡¯t three of them. It was five. <> The wind was quiet when my party mates woke up. But I knew that just outside of the gates, wind still screeched and monsters lurked. It wouldn¡¯t be just Namahages this time around. Lesser Ice Drakes, Grade 8. Ice Dokkaebi, Grade 7. Frozen Agwi, Grade 8. Frozen Skeleton, Grade 9. The list went on and on. The rest of the night had been uneventful. I had woken up Aurora for her watch and forced myself to sleep. I knew that this would be a grueling phase, one that would push the whole party¡¯s ability to the limit. We needed all the rest we could get. Currently, my eyes were on the gates. ¡°Lock, you¡¯ve been staring at that Gate for hours.¡± ¡°Well there¡¯s no other way to progress the dungeon isn¡¯t there? Mark my words Kyrian, those gates are going to open up.¡± I made up a likely excuse for why I was looking at the gates. The Truth and Dare stone no longer responded to anyone¡¯s touch, mana or vocal commands. That reminded me to look at Dibo¡¯s party. They had successfully recruited Track. Now it was Dibo, Krag and Track. Dibo must be pretty confident in himself if he thought he could win in a hunting bet against a five man party with a team of three. Then again, Track was pretty skilled and I was sure that Krag hadn¡¯t shown all his hand either. If they played their cards right, they should be able to hunt at least two. Three if they were lucky. Pyret stayed nearby Baran, Furgrin and Sarai. Pyret¡¯s social status had dropped noticeably compared to the night before; he was the one cooking and cleaning everyone¡¯s campsites. Folding the sleeping bags and stowing them away in his own Dimension Ring. I couldn¡¯t imagine Baran and Furgrin had done anything on purpsoe to make Pyret like this. My guess? Snide remarks that pushed the line just enough to make Pyret think that it¡¯s ok. If Pyret overreacted, they¡¯d just say they were joking. Then Pyret would be forced to laugh along¡­ because he was part of the group. Pyret would think that if he just laughed it off¡­ everything would be ok. It didn¡¯t take much to make a man pathetic. Just the threat of death, whether physical or social. Combine that with the safety provided in numbers and they¡¯d do anything. It was only in the face of death that I truly saw Pyret for what he was. A coward. It was easy to recognize. I¡¯d been in Pyret¡¯s shoes often enough. But now wasn¡¯t the time for that. I had to keep my eyes peeled on the Gates. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora walked up to us, followed by Skaris and Eltis. ¡°I¡¯d like to go over the formation one more time. Yesterday, we only discussed the possibility of Mr. Skaris and I staying in the backline; protecting Ms. Eltis and Mr. Kyrian. However, that was only on the off-chance that we were fighting a boss. What about this occasion?¡± ¡°Skaris will protect Kyrian and Eltis. You and I will open the way.¡± I said absently. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°I see. That is acceptable.¡± Aurora hefted her shield and it slammed against the ground with a thud. ¡°I thank you for the worry, dear. But I can take care of myself.¡± Eltis commented. ¡°So can I. It might be better if Skaris is near the front.¡± Kyrian added on. I thought about it for a second, weighing it against what I already knew was about to happen. ¡°No. Too dangerous. If it seems like you guys can handle it, then we can open it up for discussion again.¡± With the note of finality in my voice, there was a brief moment of silence. My whole body was on edge and I desperately wished that I still had two functioning eyes instead of one. My heart beat with a familiar rhythm but instead of blood, it felt like the organ was pumping my blood vessels with jolts of electricity. Every howl of wind set my teeth on edge, my heels ready to dash towards the door. The tension I felt was infectious, my party members began to make small talk hoping to rid themselves of it. To them, I probably looked crazy. It had started snowing. ¡°I cannot believe it¡¯s the second day already.¡± Kyrian broke the silence, trying to lighten the mood. ¡°I hope that no one gets hurt.¡± ¡°...As long as we stay away from that Baran fellow, I imagine we will.¡± There was a slight note of disdain in Eltis¡¯ voice. The priestess hardly showed any negative emotions. Kyrian said as much. ¡°It¡¯s rare to see you speak ill of someone. Though we¡¯ve only known each other for one day. I had though the Priestesses of the Nine were accepting of all Sinners.¡± ¡°You are correct, dear.¡± Eltis replied. ¡°But even we have standards. Do you know what the Faces of the Nine stand for?¡± ¡°Greed, Gluttony, Lust, Wrath, Despair, Apathy, Envy, Hubris and Arrogance.¡± I answered. ¡°A well learnt man is always attractive. But yes, we follow the Nine who are accepting of all people. But amidst all those things, there is one thing that we do not condone. That is the Desecration of Love.¡± ¡°Please, do explain.¡± Aurora asked. She didn¡¯t seem the type to be interested in such things but I was wrong. ¡°Is Lust not one of your main teachings?¡± ¡°Dear, all things come from Love. Greed is love of what you have, so much so that you want more of it. Lust is love of bodily pleasures. Gluttony is love of appetite. Wrath is love of retribution, justice and vengeance. Envy is love of what you cannot have. Hubris and Arrogance, love of one¡¯s self.¡± ¡°What about Apathy?¡± I found myself asking; the Priestess was a good preacher. ¡°Love of Stillness, of the Void and Nothingness. Many people believe our goddess to be a vengeful one, but that is not the case. She is, much more than others, the goddess of Love.¡± Strangely¡­ that made sense. But still, I hoped that I would never meet the Goddess in question. ¡°That is interesting.¡± Kyrian commented. ¡°Though back in the Turina Empire, all churches aside from the Church of Light, Flame and Shield have been proclaimed as blasphemy.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s why you humans can never know true love.¡± Eltis shook her head, mocking sadness. ¡°And Baran has committed the unforgiveable; three fold. By killing Norma, he killed both a comrade and the wife of his comrade. I imagine our Goddess has a special place in mind for him.¡± ¡°But why now?¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°Why do it inside a Fracture?¡± ¡°Sssssimple.¡± Skaris joined in. ¡°None ssshall be the wisssser insssside a Fracture.¡± ¡°Precisely.¡± Eltis brushed off some of the snow piling on her velvety robe. ¡°All he has to do is-¡± ¡°Quiet.¡± I hissed, abruptly interrupting their conversation. ¡°Focus.¡± All the brevity in the air disappeared, killed by the urgency in my voice. I felt myself lean forward. My ears had picked up something. From the corner of my eye, I saw Track hold up a hand to Dibo and Krag. Everyone in the clearing froze and subconsciously slid into their formations. I saw more than one adventurer take out their weapons. All of us who had exceptionally high [Hearing] or [Smell] stats were beginning to pick up signs that something was about to happen. Awooooooooooooooooooooooo Crack Crack Crack Thump Thump Footsteps. Howling. Snarls. The sound of ice splitting from each other, pitched so low that I felt the ground shake beneath me. A cacophony of various Then the stone burst into light. ¡°Lock?¡± Kyrian took out his staff, holding it in front of him. There was a trace of fear in his voice. He was the yougnest out of all of us. ¡°Monsters.¡± I answered, holding my own katana out. Gods, I wish I still had my shield. I gave more specific instructions. ¡°Eltis, conserve your mana as much as possible. Kyrian, only use your spells where it would hit more than one monster.¡± I didn¡¯t wait for them to answer. ¡°Skaris, keep your Core ability to a minimum; only when it¡¯s necessary to keep Kyrian and Eltis safe. Aurora, be ready to take the front with me.¡± A tank. Two DPS. Healer. Mage. Almost a complete Party. As soon as I finished giving my order, the maze became silent. Then everything exploded into a frenzy of color, noise; followed by a tornado of whirling fangs, claws and fur. All twelve gates broke apart into splinters as monsters swarmed through the door. Ramhof, whom no party had accepted throughout the entire night and had camped near one of the gates, was ripped to shreds instantly. The poor Holy Knight didn¡¯t even have a chance to do anything; such was the speed with which the gates broke apart, parting like a defenseless island in the onslaught of tsunami-like monsters. I saw two Ice Dokkaebis, cruel fangs jutting out from their lower jaw and blue-skin covered in rime, pick up the remains and start pulling on an arm and a leg, fighting over who got the bigger piece. Ramhof was still screaming. Now wasn¡¯t the time to worry about others. The monsters rushed in, stampeding towards the center and broke off into several groups; heading for Dibo¡¯s party and the other for Baran¡¯s party. And another stream heading straight for us. This was why I hadn¡¯t bothered forming an alliance with Dibo; it wouldn¡¯t have increased our chances of survival. A single unified group during Phase 2 would only attract all the monsters towards that group. Instead, it was better to split up into small agile parties, able to navigate through the miniscule cracks in the swarm. If we didn¡¯t get ripped apart in the process. ¡°STICK CLOSE BEHIND ME!¡± I took the lead and saw two [Frozen Agwi] ¨CGrade 8¨C lumbering towards me. The middle of their heads were balding and like their Dokkaebi Counterparts, had light blue skin covered in frost to reflect their elemental nature. The 8 feet tall monsters grinned, showing only gums, and swung their ice clubs. Ducking underneath the first one, I activated [Coin Toss] immediately, seeing a flash of yellow near my forehead. ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Coin Toss] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack] ? Using my sword like an ice pick, I ran up the side of the Agwi¡¯s body, dodging its swings. It¡¯s partner tried to bite me but missed and ended up biting into the stomach of the one I was riding; it¡¯s eyes immediately rolled up as visible shivers of pleasure began to pulse through its face. Sickening, but it¡¯d do. I reached the Agwi¡¯s head and slashed it across the eyes, the only part of its body not covered by frost. It shrieked out, too dumb throw me off, and brought its arms to its eyes. I leaped off, using the second Agwi¡¯s head as a foothold, and landed on the ground. Looking behind me, I saw that some of the monsters had already reached my party mates. ¡°DON¡¯T HOLD YOUR GROUND! GET TO ME!¡± My voice could barely be heard under the raucous screeching of the different monsters, but Aurora saw me motioning and started to take one painstaking step after another. Behind her huge shield were Kyrian and Eltis, in the center where they were protected. Right behind them, Skaris was waving his spear in huge arcs; leaving trails of flame wherever it made contact. I saw another monster approach me, low to the ground ¨CI didn¡¯t have time to make out what it was. My reflex took over as I grabbed the top of its head and slammed it to the floor. The creature let out a shrill cry, its numerous legs twitching and clicking against my greaves and gauntlets uselessly; a [Winter Centipede], Grade 10 monster. ¡°LOCK! THEY¡¯RE BREAKING THROUGH!¡± Kyrian warned. The temporary wall I had created the Agwi¡¯s weren¡¯t enough. The monsters were streaming in through the side. An Ice-Dokkaebi walked around and saw us. Its eyes glistened with pure malice as it raised its club and slammed it on the ground in our direction. ¡°AURORA! THE FLOOR!¡± I barely had time to dodge out of the way as a wave of icicles spurted out of the ground towards my party. ? [Ice Dokkaebi] casts [Impaling Rime] ? Aurora grunted and slammed her shield into the floor; the rows of icicles threatening to lift her off of her feet. But with a loud cry Aurora forced it back down and stopped the shockwave right in its tracks; her armor covered in rime and a stray shard leaving a long cut across her cheek. ¡°Kyrian! Open the way! The gate in front of us!¡± ? [Kyrian Tricilan casts [Chain Lightning] ? Kyrian waved his staff and his eyes glowed an eerie yellow, leaving trails of mana. With a short incantation; his staff crackled with bluish-white lightning; charging up then releasing it in a flash. I closed my eyes from the sudden brightness, the spell leaving white streaks burnt into my optic nerves like a tree trunk with dozens of branches arcing out of it. When I opened my eyes ¨CI had closed them for a second at most¨C the lesser monsters of Grade 9 and 10 had been fried to the crisp. Anything grade 8 and above were crippled, limping towards us with hatred evident in their eyes. ¡°Now! Towards the gate!¡± I slammed my foot through the[Winter Centipede¡¯s head, hearing and feeling a satisfying brunch. As our party made a run for the gates, I looked back to see how the other parties were doing. Sarai had cast one of the biggest examples of [Dark Tendrils] I had ever seen, blocking off a gate and a half. She had caused literal traffic in the endless tide of monsters, stemming their flow. But it wasn¡¯t without cost, even as I watched her cheeks become sunken and eye hollow. Pyret stood at the front, his sword and shield streaked with blood; teeth bared in a ferocious snarl. Baran and Furgrin followed behind, guarding Sarai in the middle. I caught the last edges of Dibo¡¯s party disappearing through the gates. ¡°Ssslaveborn! Look!¡± There was a small orb, seemingly made of ice floating next to us. A Core. I debated for maybe half a second. ¡°Leave it! Just go!¡± I knew Skaris would want to absorb it, he was ready for a 3rd Core and was having difficulty keeping up with monsters of grade 8 and higher. I could imagine him staring longingly at it even without turning around. But no, I had Skaris¡¯ build planned out in my mind; down to the Core and what path his Racial Trait would take. So we would have to skip this one, and we certainly didn¡¯t have time to take out an Incubator and store it. ¡°But Ssssslaveborn-¡± ¡°Move!¡± Bad lizard tribe beastman. Bad! We passed through the gates I had passed by with Aurora, Krag and Sarai just yesterday. As quick as the monsters had been to slam through the gates, they weren¡¯t good at turning around. They were getting tangled in each other¡¯s limbs and were starting to tear into each other. For a split second, I saw the walls of the maze again, free of monsters and had a blissful moment where I met the eyes of one of the most horrendous creatures I had ever seen. Our eyes met. [Neung-uh (??)]. Grade 7. Or the name I was more familiar with: Mermaid. It was the monster that Dibo and I had bet over. The gods were smiling upon me. ¡°KRUUAHHHHHH¡± It screeched and turned to run. ¡°GET THAT MONSTER! DON¡¯T LET IT GET AWAY!¡±
Chapter 62: Fracture - Twilight Maze (9)
World: MSS - Loading...
Comparing the Neung-uh to a mermaid was doing a disservice to mermaids everywhere, especially the movie where a certain red-haired girl gives up her voice to be with her prince charming. Because the Neung-uh was one ugly piece of shit. Unlike the other monsters in MSS which came straight out of the nightmares born of folklore and myths, the Neung-uh was rather plain. It had a waxy complexion; gray and blue with greenish slime covering it from head to toe. The face was humanoid, two double-lidded eyes, thick lips and two holes that served as its nose. It had gills too of course, but due to the nature of this dungeon it was covered in frost and icicles. Just like a human, it had two arms and legs, same color as the rest of its body which looked like a fish ¨Ccomplete with scales and fins. Finally to top it off, it stood inside of a bubble like a kid who belonged to germaphobe chopper parents; staring at us stupidly until it opened its mouth to scream. ¡°KRUUUAHHHHH¡± It was almost comical, turning on its stubby little legs within its bubble and running in place. But it stupid-looking or not, the monster was a Grade 7. The moment the Neung-uh turned around and began running, the bubble began spinning and started producing more iridiscent bubbles which started flowing over to us. Before I could react, we were surrounded by them. ¡°Don¡¯t touch them!¡± I snapped, seeing Kyrian reach out a finger in wonder. ? [Neung-uh (??)] casts [Bubble Trouble] ? ¡°What do thessssse do?¡± Skaris veered away from one. ¡°The bubbles explode on contact; it can hurt or curse you.¡± I explained. Luckily, the bubbles were slow and floated lazily through the space in front of us. Meanwhile, the Neung-uh was starting to make more progress, it was further down the corridor than before. ¡°Shit, I have to kill it.¡± I debated whether Kyrian could shoot it down with his lightning spell without disturbing any of the bubbles. ¡°We have to move!¡± Eltis cried out. Just as she finished talking a monster came running out of the gates and skidded along the ground on its two feet, falling over and then standing up. It shook itself like a wet dog, sending bits of snow and feathers everywhere, finally fixing its cold, inhuman eyes upon us. [Inuho-oh (È®øP»Ë)]. Grade 6. A bipedal bird-monster standing twelve to fifteen feet tall; looking like a cross between a rooster and a terror bird from ancient history books. It¡¯s eyes were rings of yellow; crusted over with some kind of yellowish gel with a black pupil in the center. It¡¯s beak was curved and ended in a wicked hook, meant to rip apart flesh for swallowing. The talons gleamed like kitchen knives, leaving long thin cuts in the ice. The creature didn¡¯t rush. It didn¡¯t scream. It didn¡¯t spread its thirty feet wing span to look bigger. Instead, it continued to stare at us and started walking sideways, approaching us from an angle. It took each step with purpose and deliberation, as if hunting rabbits that would spook too easily. It''s feathered flattened down to its skin, trying to appear smaller and harmless. Our eyes met and it narrowed them, smiling like only a predator could. I saw Eltis and Kyrian shiver. There were only two paths; one through the Bubbles left behind by the Neung-uh. The other, we¡¯d have to fight Inuho-oh, close to the gate where other monsters could pop through any second. It was an easy choice to make. ¡°Through the bubbles, quick.¡± Skaris waded through the bubbles first, careful not to let them touch him. As hurriedly as we could, Kyrian and Eltis followed; Aurora bringing up the rear. Aurora had wisely stored her lance into her dimension ring and held the shield between her and the giant avian monster. It tilted its head to the side, seeing us approach the wall of bubbles and enter it. I remained outside. ¡°Mr. Lock, what are you-¡± ¡°Go. I know what I¡¯m doing.¡± I never took my eyes off of the bird. I had to be the last one through the bubbles and only when my party had gone through. If all of us went through the bubble all at once, Inuho-oh''s prey drive would activate. My instinct told me that as long as I kept its attention on me, it wouldn¡¯t go chasing after the others into [Bubble Trouble]. I mirrored the bird¡¯s pathing, sweating dripping down my face. If it came down to it, I had a snowball¡¯s chance in hell of beating this thing in a one on one fight; a particularly apt metaphor in this situation. Damn. This was the crucial weakness of my Core Synergy at the moment. It required too much time to set up. ¡°We¡¯re through!¡± Kyrian cried out. It was just in time because the Inuho-oh was next to the gates. ¡°RUN!¡± I cried out and activated the stolen ability from the [Frozen Centipede], turning my head up and shrieking. I felt the walls of my throat swell up then undulate; the unnatural sensation traveling down my chest and into my stomach. ? Lock casts [Centipede Call] ? A thick writhing mass of [Winter Centipedes] so tangled with one another that it looked like a blob of legs and clacking mandibles came rolling out of the Gates like a boulder and slammed into the Inuho-oh. The Inuho-oh opened its wings and half leapt into the air, beating the air with its wings once and then twice. The limbs of light sparkled and sent out small flecks of ember, like flint and tinder, and a moment later set the air aflame with a whirling tornado made of fire. The centipedes naturally shied away from fire; their winter constitution plus the native biology of insects making them especially vulnerable to it. The wriggling mass of centipedes split into two different paths, both heading for the Inuho-oh. Letting the fight with the other, I slipped into the obstacle course made of [Bubble Trouble]. While I had been distracting the apex predator of this Fracture ¨Cbarring the Fracture Boss Monster¨C the gaps between the bubble, both large and small, had decreased noticeably. Even with the natural feline grace that my Cores lent me, I had difficulty navigating through it. After moments, I saw my party mates waiting for me on the other side. Only a few feet more. ¡°Mr. Lock! Behind you!¡± I chanced a look behind and saw Inuho-oh''s eyes glittering with spite, the corpse of a [Winter Centipede] in its beaks. The terror bird reared back like a pitcher about to throw. I jumped through the last few bubbles remaining in my way, taking the risk. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Boom Crack Shhhhhhhh The first one exploded into fire, the other into a web of electricity and the third into smoke that wrapped around me. The bubbles were giving off too much light; I wasn¡¯t covered in shadow and took the full brunt of their effects. The moment I made contact with the bubbles, I ducked and bowed low to the ground trying to lessen the damage. I grunted in pain as fire flashed across my back and lightning lashed it soon after; the cold soothing smoke tried to tangle itself around my feet but [Arcane Masochism] canceled it out immediately. I felt [Arcane Masochism] redirect most of my blood flow into my legs; a [Speed] buff then. I came stumbling out of [Bubble Trouble] and Skaris caught me. ¡°Let me heal your back-¡± Eltis began. ¡°Go!¡± I pushed Skaris towards the Neung-uh which was rounding the corner up ahead. Boom Crack Shhhh Boom The Inuho-oh was throwing Winter Centipede corpses through the bubbles, clearing the path. Each time a corpse was thrown, it flew through dozens of bubbles, creating explosions which shot out shards of rock, ice, fire, electricity and even more curses. The Winter Centipedes in question ¨Cnot always corpses¨C were thrown about and blown to pieces. But the effects of [Bubble Trouble] didn¡¯t reach the Inuho-oh; and with each throw the corpses were landing closer to us. Dammit, why were the monsters so smart? A piece of a still twitching centipede leg landed near me, bringing all of us back to our senses. We ran after Neung-uh, which was still running within its levitating bubble; making slow progress. Luckily [Bubble Trouble]¡¯s activation time had reset, now the skill was on cooldown. But right as we rounded the corner, we came upon half a dozen monsters that had been lagging behind the main group; heading towards the gate. Aurora and I didn¡¯t hesitate, trudging into the monster group. Everytime my katana flashed, I left one of two things; a corpse or a crippled monster not long for this world. Aurora followed behind me, her shield slamming the corpses out of the way for the rest of our party to follow and her long lance finishing off the trembling still warm bodies of monsters. Meanwhile, the Neung-uh increased the distance between us again. ¡°Ignore the loot!¡± We all gave chase. Dammit, at this rate we¡¯d end up losing him. I couldn¡¯t speed ahead by myself either; I needed to be here to take care of the party. Aurora was breathing fast, her shield dented but quickly starting to repair itself. Eltis and Kyrian looked ok, but I knew that Kyrian would be running low on mana. Skaris looked the worst out of everyone, bleeding from a dozen cuts all over his body. If I hadn¡¯t invested in his new armor, I doubted the beastman would still be standing. Damn. I¡¯d been so caught up in my own personal bet with Dibo that I¡¯d been running my own party into the ground. The wounds on their bodies and tiredness weren¡¯t represented by numbers, but by blood, sweat and ragged breaths We needed to rest.. Looking towards the ceiling, I realigned where we were in the maze. Quickly I changed our directions, away from the fleeing Neung-uh. ¡°This way.¡± ¡°Lock? I thought we were going to hunt the Neung-uh?¡± Kyrian asked, as we took a path that took us away from the Neung-uh. ¡°Yes, but the first thing to do is rest. We have to wait out until the monsters calm down again, they¡¯re in a frenzy because of the Monster Wave.¡± Aurora nodded. ¡°A smart choice, Mr. Lock. It seems that the monsters were not only frenzied, but stronger than normal during this time. Not to mention the Inuho-oh, which seemed to be hunting us in particular. With its long reach and superior tracking skills, there is no doubt that it will catch up to us soon enough. I advise moving with haste.¡± ¡°Is the big bird that intelligent?¡± Eltis joined in. Unlike Aurora and Skaris who had been brought up to be adventurers or Kyrian who actuall studied at a Mage¡¯s tower, Priests and Priestesses weren¡¯t trained to kill monsters. They were trained to heal and save lives; spreading word of the deity whom they served. Additionally, they were usually loaned out from their Church for a hefty fee. It made sense that Eltis didn¡¯t know a lot about monsters. It also told me that Eltis wasn¡¯t as experienced in adventuring as the others. ¡°It has a hunterssss eyesssss.¡± Skaris spoke with instinct. ¡°...Yes. From what I saw of the monsters when the Gates all broke down, it¡¯s likely the strongest monster as of now.¡± I answered, seeing Eltis¡¯ confused look at Skaris¡¯ answer. ¡°Also the way it didn¡¯t charge straight towards us through the [Bubble Trouble]... it¡¯s smart. Too much to risk fighting with it while you guys are tired.¡± Though it wasn''t worth comparing it to the Boss monster we¡¯d have to face at the end of this Fracture. The inuho-oh was a grade 6 monster and though I was confident of this party¡¯s ability to slay it; we¡¯d be too tired after. Right now, it wasn¡¯t worth getting into a fight with the flame-spitting monster and that wasn¡¯t even accounting for all the monsters prowling around the maze right now. Too many different factors were here. We walked for a few more minutes, slaying stray monsters. These ranged only from grade 10 all the way to 8, nothing we couldn¡¯t handle. Skaris took the skull off of a [Frozen skeleton], a grade 9 monster. It dissipated into light and since there were no other monsters around we were able to loot the items that it dropped. Lucky for me, it dropped a [Frost Covered Shield]. A Common grade shield in the shape of a small round shield. Still, it was better than nothing. I led our party for about half an hour more. I even leveled up. Then I found what I was looking for. An Igloo nestled in a corner, part of the walls themselves. It was one of the features of Phase 2. While we were running from the Monster Waves, special shelters like these would pop up. In it, not only would we be safe from monster detection; we¡¯d all get some of our Mana Regeneration back. If I remembered correctly, the number would change from -80% to -50%; not a life changing factor but definitely better than nothing. Each of these shelters accomodated differing numbers of people, and lucky for us the igloo held 6. But there was a catch: each one would be guarded by a monster. The igloo was guarded by a measly group of five Frozen Skeleton. ¡°Tch¡­ why are we getting so lucky? We saw the Neung-uh first thing out of the Gate. Then we got away from the Inuho-oh with relative ease¡­ and now only thing we have to do to get access to the igloo is beat these guys?¡± Still, I stifled the growing unease and quickly slayed them. ¡°Oh it¡¯s nice and warm here.¡± Eltis stretched and remembering Skaris¡¯ words from last night, I turned my eyes away. The inside was a plain spherical dome made of ice blocks, large enough for us to lie down and sleep side by side if we wanted to. The shelter was even tall enough for Skaris to stand up without hunching over. ¡°My mana is moving faster here. Though not as fast as outside but still¡­¡± Kyrian promptly sat down cross legged against a wall and began to cycle his mana with his eyes closed. ¡°We should be safe here for the time being. Let¡¯s rest here for an hour before heading back out again.¡± I told them. ¡°We can¡¯t just wait out the Monster Wave in here?¡± Eltis began to cycle her mana as well. ¡°No. Staying in one place isn¡¯t too good. Monsters will catch our scent.¡± If we stayed in one shelter for two long, we¡¯d attract more and more monsters. Eventually, a miniature monster wave would come this way, demolishing the shelter and us with it. The best thing to do was stay, catch our breath and leave once more to look for a different shelter. Besides, now was the time to farm EXP, Items and Consumables to prepare for the Boss fight that would happen after this. I was also itching to go after the Neung-uh. ¡°I just have to kill one. Then even if Dibo kill the other two wandering monsters, I can come out ahead by finding the hidden two,¡± The reason why Dibo had been mistaken was because the Neung-uh was a wandering monster, but only three of them wandered inside of the maze. The other two could only be accessed through Shelters like these. ¡°Mr. Lock. I would like to ask a question.¡± I was in the middle of cleaning my katana and just nodded for Aurora to continue. ¡°Why are you so intent on killing the Neung-uh?¡± I gave her my full attention, noticing that the others were listening in too. ¡°It seemed uncharacteristic of you. So far, up until now, all your choices have been made in the name of progress and survival; two conditions for clearing this Fracture. However upon seeing the Neung-uh, you insisted on hunting it. You have not ordered this party to hunt a particular monster yet, only those that were in our way.¡± Aurora¡¯s eyes bore into mine. ¡°In the result of your decisions, we took on more risk than necessary. I¡¯d like you to explain why.¡± ¡°It issss of no conssssequence.¡± Skaris interjected on my behalf. ¡°For you maybe, Mr. Skaris.¡± Aurora continued. ¡°But for Ms. Eltis and I, whom are not official members of your party, we took a big risk in letting Mr. Lock, an unknown individual, take charge. I was comfortable having Mr. Lock in charge because of the leadership skills he displayed during the First Phase of this dungeon. But now I am beginning to have doubts and would like you to put them to rest.¡± ¡°Ms. Aurora, Lock would never-¡± I waved aside Kyrian¡¯s defense. ¡°Is that how you feel as well, Eltis?¡± ¡°It was very uncharacteristic of what I¡¯ve seen so far of you dear and your two friends did talk you up quite a lot.¡± I nodded. It was only fair. Perhaps I couldn¡¯t reveal that I was a [Player] but¡­ I could tell them a part of the truth. ¡°I made a bet with Dibo last night. Whoever kills more of the Neung-uh will get the Fracture Splinter. I¡¯m sure you both know how crucial it is for us to get that monster drop at the end of this Fracture.¡± Aurora shared a look with Eltis. ¡°Why did you not tell us?¡± Aurora asked. I shrugged. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to keep it a secret. Just wrong timing.¡± It was the truth, I was still learning how to be a party leader and separate what I could tell them and what I needed to keep close to my chest. ¡°That is¡­ acceptable.¡± Aurora relented, cleaning the inside of her greaves. ¡°Next time, I¡¯d appreciate it if you gave us a heads up.¡± ¡°Ussss assss well, Sssslaveborn.¡± Skaris punched me on the shoulder. ¡°You can rely on ussss.¡± ¡°I agree, Lock. You¡¯re good at a lot of things but I wish you¡¯d trust us a bit more.¡± I brushed them off, getting back to cleaning my katana. ¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡± ¡°Awww what a heartwarming scene. Sweeheart, are you blushing?¡± ¡°Ahahaha, Skaris look, he¡¯s embarrassed.¡± <> L¡¯teya threw the teapot so hard that it slammed against the wall and shattered into shards of glass that decorated the floor with the style of an avant-garde artists. 2000 gold. Gone just like that. ¡°Now come on, Lety-¡± ¡°Only my friends call me Lety.¡± L¡¯teya took a step towards Arione. ¡°Get. The. Fuck. Out. Of. My. Sight.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s my house?¡± Lety didn¡¯t do anything childish like reaching towards her axes. It would be moot-point, she couldn¡¯t kill the mage. ¡°I only came to see how you were doing. After our last dungeon raid, you¡¯ve been cooped up in your room. The others are worried.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you in my room.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want me to call you Lety, you don¡¯t want me to check up on you, you won¡¯t tell me anything about your missing brother. What can I ever do for you at this point?¡± The elven mage swept his arm and picked up the shards of the tea set without touching them, his mana carried them to the table and set them down gently. ¡°Do you not get it? I want nothing to do with you, Magus.¡± Arione stared at her for a moment, his eyes narrowed. Then broke into a grin. ¡°Then leave.¡± L¡¯teya didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Oh you can¡¯t, because Clover is with me. And our kind little-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t finish that sentence.¡± L¡¯teya growled. She growled because that was all she could do. Arione shrugged. ¡°Dinner¡¯s at 6PM today. Scarlet and Clover made beef stew.¡± He waved a hand over his shoulder, closing the door with his mana behind him. ¡°I passed on the message! Make sure to tell Clover! Don¡¯t blame me later!¡± L¡¯teya screamed in fury and threw a cup at the door, shattering it. Once again, that was all she could do.
Chapter 63: Fracture - Twilight Maze (10)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Kyrian, how¡¯s your mana?¡± ¡°Just a few minutes more until I can cast again.¡± ¡°Just drink a potion. And you, Eltis?¡± ¡°Same, honey.¡± ¡°Skaris? Aurora? Weapons? Armor?¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn. Ssstop being a pest.¡± I tried not to let the worry show on my face but it was starting to come out in other ways, namely by bothering my party mates. ¡°Sweetie, the more you bother us the slower we¡¯ll be in getting ready.¡± ¡°I concur with Ms. Eltis.¡± I nodded, sulking against the wall of the igloo. There was no way to tell the time but I was growing impatient; we should be chasing against the Neung-uh now. Also, if I was being completely honest I wanted to get some farming done. Yes, the monster wave was dangerous but as I previously stated it was also an opportunity. Rare monster drops such as Ice-attuned metals which could create Uncommon or even Rare items. There was also the chance that a weapon or armor could drop as well. Still, I waited a few more minutes. ¡°I am ready, Lock.¡± Kyrian finally stirred from his meditative stance; getting up on his feet. ¡°But I¡¯d like to go over our plan one more time.¡± True to his adventurer background, Kyrian laid out the plan once more that I had set previously. ¡°Our primary goal is the Neung-uh.¡± He drew a small stick figure with a fish head on the ice with his finger. ¡°Secondary goal is the Inuho-oh.¡± He drew a small bird. Skaris snickered at the art which earned him a glare from Aurora. Just like Kyrian, the female warrior took these briefings seriously. ¡°If we¡¯re forced to fight, we fight the Inuho-oh. But I¡¯d prefer to avoid it if possible.¡± I commented, looking each of them in the eye. ¡°The Inuho-oh has three active abilities; [Flaming Winds], [Shriek] and [Fire Cloak], which are all dispersion type attacks, meaning it covers a lot of ground. Having a Tank cover our back isn¡¯t the best option against this type of monster, it¡¯s best to have someone mobile who could attract its attention and get it off our track to take the rear. Which would be me.¡± Usually, buying time for the party would be the job of the Tank; which would be Aurora in this case. But Aurora didn¡¯t have an ability which would let her defend us from AOEs yet; nor did I expect it of her. It was best if I took this job. ¡°Mr. Lock. You are¡­ unexpectedly well versed in the ability of monsters. Considering your background¡­ I must say I am surprised, to say the least.¡± Shit. I said too much. ¡°It¡¯s a monster that¡¯s common in a lot of regions. It¡¯s present in the Samak Desert as well. We were told to watch out for it.¡± I lied, easily. Since most of my time as a slave had been spent training apart from Skaris, he wouldn¡¯t know either. Also it wasn¡¯t a lie that the Inuho-oh was present in the Samak Desert too. Just very very very rare. Aurora nodded in acceptance. ¡°Right. Our protocol if we face other parties?¡± Kyrian looked me in the eye. I had purposefully left this part out of our plan. Hiding things had not been a problem when I was with L¡¯teya and Clover, both of them too inexperienced to ask me about the parts about my plan that I had glossed over. Kyrian forced honesty out of me. Damn, he was my friend but he could be annoying sometimes. ¡°I¡­ am not sure yet.¡± I sighed. ¡°Baran¡¯s party might be hostile, but we don¡¯t want to start the fight. We¡¯d have to play it by ear. Dibo¡­ and Krag, Track too, didn¡¯t strike me as the type to start meaningless fights. We can play it safe with them.¡± Skaris said nothing but his eyes told me all I needed to know. He didn¡¯t trust the other adventurers to play fair. ¡°But just in case, we stay in formation. We don¡¯t go within striking distance.¡± I amended. ¡°I must point out, Mr. Lock, that both parties have a mage. In addition, Baran is an archer. If it comes to a ranged fight, we are at a disadvantage. I advise closing the distance first chance we get.¡± Damn. Aurora was right. She was just as bad as Kyrian when it came to poking holes in my plan. ¡°That could be construed as an attack." I tried to keep the frustration out of my voice but failed. They looked at each other, worried We want to prevent infighting as much as possible¡­ we still have the guardian of this Fracture left to deal with. But just in case, Kyrian be ready to respond in kind; Aurora, be ready to shield us all.¡± I looked around. ¡°Anyone else?¡± Kyrian and Aurora had said everything they wanted. Skaris and Eltis didn¡¯t care much in the first place. ¡°Sssslaveborn. I tire of all this talking. Let usssss leave now.¡± ¡°Ok. Let¡¯s go.¡± Still I couldn''t help but be nervous. Had I truly prepared all that I could? Were we ready? Regardless, I had to put those thoughts aside. We had work to do. Taking the lead, I finally brought us out of the Igloo. As soon as the our rearguard, Skaris, came through the entrance, the shelter collapsed immediately. Within seconds, it dissolved into the snow. ¡°So that¡¯s what happens to temporary shelters.¡± Kyrian noted. ¡°I must admit, it¡¯s my first time observing a temporary shelter within a dungeon, or staying in one as a matter of fact.¡± Aurora chimed in. ¡°Come on.¡± I brought their focus back. "Let''s go." Our initial plan was simple; look for th Neung-uh by following the swarms of monsters. As long as we could avoid the Inuho-oh, I was fairly confident in our ability to slay the rest of the monsters in this dungeon with relative ease, as long as they were Grade 8 and below. To prove my point, a pair of Lesser Ice Drakes ¨CGrade 8¨C lumbered into our view. Quadraped creatures that resembled Komodo Dragons, except there were icicles growing our of their backs like a stegosaurus. Their mouths constantly leaked white mist; a sure-sign that they had a breath weapon in their arsenal. One was large enough to rival the Inuho-oh in height if it had been standing on its hindlegs. But as it was, the monster was roughly twenty feet long including the tail. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Kyrian, Eltis, conserve your mana. Skaris, stay near them.¡± Aurora and I rushed the smaller of the two, we had fought together enough times to know how to take care of this. I immediately ducked underneath the Drake¡¯s snapping jaw and left a long cut on its chest, inflicting a [Bleed] status. I continued the incision and left its stomach open as well, though not deep enough to disembowel it completely. The drake tried to snap at me between its legs but I was already gone and attacking its friend. Using the first drake¡¯s leg as cover, I utilized a hit and run tactic with the larger of the two. I slammed my new [Frost Covered Shield] into its nose. The shield nearly cracked with the blow, straining under the force of the blow. Following up with my katana, I sent three neat strikes, two at its eyes and one meant to skewer its tongue. But I was a touch too slow and it opened its mouth while rearing back ¨Cbleeding from both eyes¨C and let out a breath of fine mist that enveloped me. But I was underneath the body of the first drake, covered in shadow. I felt the passive from the Shadow Mimic Wolf come into play and the mist passed around me, harmless. Instead, the passive played with Arcane Masochism to give me a much needed kick-start, an attack boost. Darting forward, I ran up the overgrown lizard¡¯s leg and started slashing into its neck. With its ice breath on cooldown and the lack of flexibility in reaching its own neck, the Lesser Ice Drake fell for the last time. A resounding thud nearby told me that Aurora had finished off the smaller one as well. Making sure to loot all the drops, we continued on our way. Encountering a more monsters, I knew we were on the right track. ? Lock has slain [Lesser Ice Drake] ? ? Aurora Candrian Vetilian has slain [Frozen Agwi] ? ? Aurora Candrian Vetilian has slain [Frozen Skeleton] ? ? Lock has slain [Winter Centipede] ? ¡­ ? +6 EXP ? ? +4 EXP ? ? +4 EXP ? ? +0 EXP ? ¡­ ¡°Ssslaveborn! When issss it my turn?¡± Skaris whined as Aurora and I finished off another group of monster ourselves. So far, Kyrian and Eltis hadn¡¯t had to step in at all. The plan was going smoothly. To be frank, I wanted to avoid putting Skaris in the front. He had the elemental advantage, yes. But he was the weakest member of the party as of right now. But the way Skaris stuck his chin out, the tilt of his chest and the restless swaying of his spear told me that he was ready to fight. "He''s not your kid. It''s not your job to protect him, but to help him grow." I told myself. And in this world, there was more to Strength than simply Cores. ¡°...The next pair of monsters, you and Aurora can take care of them. I¡¯ll stick with Eltis and Kyrian. We¡¯ll just rotate in the same formation.¡± ¡°Is it really necessary to keep guarding us?¡± Eltis sighed, starting to grow lax. ¡°Perhaps this Neung-uh have all been hunted already by the other two parties.¡± I shook my head. I knew the Neung-uh hadn''t been hunted yet. Because killing all five Neung-Uh in this Maze would signal the start of Phase 3. That was one of the good things about killing the Neung-uh, we could skip the survivalist phase which was meant to wear us down. I understood Eltis'' sentiments though, she felt like she and Kyrian were dragging us down and wanted to help out by freeing up a party member from guard duty. ¡°You and Kyrian are pivotal. I can¡¯t have you two spending mana unless in the direst of situations.¡± I stayed near the two backliners as Skaris took the lead with Aurora. The red-scaled warrior fought with deadly efficiency and though he only had two Cores, he was just as effective as me. Everytime his burning spear cut across a monster, it left a trail of fire that burnt flesh. Despite my warning about conserving mana, Skaris activated [Hand in Hand], creating a translucent clone of himself. ¡°Shhaaaa!¡± Skaris hissed the strange battle cry he often did, his clone mirror his movements. The true power of the Inmyunho¡¯s Core ability, [Hand in Hand], lay in the fact that the clone also mirrored its user¡¯s other Core Abilities at no additional cost. Plus, it received the user¡¯s equipment bonuses as well. The Inmyunho¡¯s spear also burned with bright red flame, melting the hard hides of the Frozen Agwis. ¡°Hmm¡­ if Skaris continues on the Flame Spear build, I need to get him [Everburn], [Burn! Burn! Burn!] and maybe a passive related to [Pierce] or [Double Stab]. I¡¯d also like to get his racial trait unlocked¡­ Maybe if I win the bet, Dibo could help with that; he could put in a good word with Track.¡± With no connections to the beastman community in Jayu, I was at a standstill on how to unlock Skaris¡¯ racial trait. Unlike humans who unlocked [Aura] at level 25, beastman¡¯s racial traits worked a lot like the orcs. They could receive the a trait of their choosing from a specialist; choosing from one of the five elements; Fire, Wind, Water, Earth and Lightning. Though I was leaning towards Fire for Skaris, it also depended on his opinion too. ¡°Burnnn!¡± Skaris hissed. ¡°I think he¡¯d be fine with fire.¡± A soft glow enveloped me. ¡°Lock, your soul has grown.¡± Kyrian congratulated me. ¡°Sssso have I.¡± A familiar glow was also covering Skaris. Dam. At this rate he was going to hit level 30 and have two open Core slots. I really needed to get him a Core. We continued along. Aurora, Skaris and I switching off and defeating the monsters in front of us. Finally, I saw a familiar bubble floating in the distance and a creature walking within like it was on a treadmill. Skaris made a motion to rush towards it. ¡°Don¡¯t!¡± I hissed and thankfully, the lizard beastman halted. ¡°We¡¯re going to spook it. Let me try and get on the other side. Aurora, It¡¯ll try to run this way; block it off. Kyrian, come with me.¡± Kyrian and I crept along slowly, sticking on either side of the walls. Twenty feet. Fifteen feet. Ten feet. We were so close that I could smell the strange scent of salt-water coming from the beast, mixed with a hint of the fish-market during closing time with tones of frigid snow stinging the tip of my nose. I glanced ahead to make sure no other monster was present. Then just like we discussed, I signaled to Kyrian and simultaneously, broke out into a run towards the beast. ? Kyrian Tricilan has cast [Lightning Strike] ? Lightning landed on the ground right in front of the Neung-uh¡¯s path and blackened it, instantly evaporating snow to steam. The Neung-uh spun around as I ducked underneath the bubble and blocked off its escape route. I saw the others join the fray, Skaris¡¯ spear tip alright lit with flame, accompanied by the silver sheen of Aurora¡¯s lance. The two weapons pierced through the bubble and stabbed into the monster¡¯s stomach. ¡°Kuuuurrraaahhh!¡± His fingers scrabbled at the weapons, Skaris¡¯ fire filling our part of the maze with the scent of burnt fish. I saw it gather its breath for a loud cry. ¡°Shit! Kill it! Quick!¡± I jumped up as well and stabbing the Neung-uh in the neck. I used [Hateful Wound] and the laceration opened up, blood spurting out in a fountain from its throat. Aurora and Skaris stabbed it a few more times and the monster fell to its snowy grave, [Monster Call] becoming a choking gurgle in its last attempt to screw us over. If we had let it activate [Monster Call], it would have been trouble. ¡°What¡¯ssss thissss?¡± The Neung-uh was often referred to as a bonus monster in the Twilight Maze. First, you could kill all five of them to gain access to the boss room early; meaning you could skip Pahse 2 which was supposed to last a week. Secondly, it dropped some nice stuff. Gold coins and pearls decorated the floor. Finally, it always, always dropped a specific Metal. Smithing Materials in MSS weren¡¯t rare, almost every monster dropped them. But like all things, the drop rate depended on the rarity. The Neung-uh dropped Moon Steel, which could be used to create Unique items. Until I found Artifacts, Legendaries and Pluralities for end-game gear, Uniques would have to do. ¡°That¡¯s Moon Steel.¡± Aurora gasped. ¡°It could fetch a small fortune.¡± Eltis muttered. Of course, she wouldn¡¯t know about monsters but knew the market price of drops. Typical member of a Church in MSS. ¡°At the very minimum it creates Unique items.¡± I explained. ¡°In the right hands, it could even create Artifacts.¡± Of course, the chances of that were low. We¡¯d have to find a Grade-3 Smith and above for that. ¡°So how should we split it?¡± Kyrian asked the really important question. It was really for the benefit of the Aurora and Eltis; between Skaris, Kyrian and I we all knew who needed it the most. Me. Aurora cleared her throat. ¡°The traditional method of adventuring as a party dictates that we check to see if anyone wants the item first. Then we will proceed accordingly. If no one wants it, we simply sell it to the Guild and split the profits. If only one person desires it, they take the item and pay the rest of the party members their part of the market price.¡± ¡°We can dessssscide later.¡± ¡°Afraid not, Mr. Skaris. Matters like these are important to the longevity of a party; I¡¯ve seen more than one internal squabble among adventurers concerning loot. I advise that we proceed here and now while we have a moment¡¯s respite.¡± ¡°So¡­ does anyone want it?¡± I asked. ¡°I could use a new staff.¡± Kyrian spoke up. ¡°I¡¯ll throw my lot in.¡± What was this guy saying? I was the most under-equipped here. ¡°Ssssso will I.¡± Skaris joined in. I felt my mouth hang open. But I just bought both of them brand new equipment¡­ ¡°Naturally, I shall be joining in as well.¡± Aurora stated, then looked pointedly at me. ¡°Mr. Lock? Are you opting for the gold instead?¡± ¡°No, of course I¡¯ll join in.¡± I growled. ¡°Then as the only uninterested member, I¡¯ll be doing the drawing.¡± Eltis winked at us. ¡°Dice or Lots?¡± ¡°Lots.¡± We all said at once. Eltis took out a bundle of sticks and marked them with our initials. She shook them in a can and drew it. ...I¡¯m ashamed to admit I caved and prayed to the Nine. What? I really needed a new shield. ¡°Hmm¡­ seems like Kyrian wins. Congratulations, sweetheart.¡± Eltis handed the Moon Steel ore to the mage. Tch. I could¡¯ve really used it. If anything I might have been able to trade it in for a Unique Item that could have replaced the sight in my other eye¡­ ¡°Lock. This is yours.¡± Kyrian handed it over to me. ¡°...Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes. Didn¡¯t you spend most of the money we got from Marc and Yousef on our equipment instead of your own? Once we get back to Miltus, we should look for a smith.¡± ¡°...Yesss, I wassss about to sssssay the sssame.¡± Skaris was less convincing. Still, I was touched by Kyrian¡¯s sentiment. Damn, it really was nice having a friend looking out for you. We continued transversing the Maze. Though they didn¡¯t know it, I was constantly reading the map above us. I knew the patrolling paths of the Neung-uh by heart and led us closer to it. Slaying more monsters along the way, Kyrian leveled up as well. ¡°Is it time for another Mana Core?¡± I asked. ¡°Not yet, but soon. I can feel the room in my soul start to grow.¡± Damn. I really hoped that my bet with Dibo would work out. Without Mana Cores, Kyrian¡¯s growth was stalled. The only way to get Mana Cores would be through a Mage Tower¡­ or the Black Market. Though the latter had its own dangers. Our growth was bottlenecked by the lack of Cores and funds to afford them; a common problem in MSS. Did it make sense that to kill a Grade 6 monster it was advised you absorb Grade 5 Cores? What kind of game made the monsters so strong that you needed equipment and Cores one grade higher to kill monsters your own level? ¡°Mr. Lock, ahead.¡± Another Neung-uh. ¡°Ok. Let¡¯s use the same tactics.¡± Kyrian and I crept along the same as before, sneaking up on the unsuspecting Neung-uh. Behind us trailed Aurora, ready to block off its escape route with her shield. Skaris stood at the ready. ¡°Now!¡± Kyrian¡¯s lightning spell flashed and the Neung-uh stopped. It gurgled like a fish out of water and turned around, facing us. It slapped the surrounding bubble, creating countless more which formed a wall around itself. But I had successfully surrounded it on the other side. ¡°Now!¡± Just as we were about to kill the creature we trapped and surrounded, there was a bright flash of light. ? Sarai Benepir casts [Dark Tendrils] ? ? Sarai Benepir casts [Lower Defense] ? ? Baran Benepir casts [Chained Arrow] ? A swamp made entirely of darkness formed beneath our feet and tentacles reached out, entangling all of us except Eltis who stood a ways back. I fell to the ground as it pulled on me, Skaris and Aurora realizing what was happening and trying to use their extra reach to strike the creature. But an arrow came from behind me and stuck itself inside the creature, which wailed in pain. The chain pulled taut and the creature was whisked away. Looking behind me, I saw Furgrin deliver the final blow by stabbing his daggers into the creature¡¯s head. I changed my opinion of Baran. This guy wasn''t just a murderer. He was a KSer.
Chapter 64: Fracture - Twilight Maze (11)
World: MSS - Loading...
Sarai dispelled [Dark Tendrils] as soon as the Neung-uh died, dropping loot. I stared at the silent archer, sizing him up. Baran was definitely the one who cast [Chained Arrow]. ¡°If he has [Chained Arrow]... then he must have killed [Agwi Archer]. Elf archer with [Chained Arrow]... Surmising he¡¯s unlocked the elf-racial trait; Aurora would be the best opponent for him. I can kill Sarai first and-¡± ¡°Mr. Lock. What are you going to do?¡± Aurora¡¯s voice brought me back to the present. ¡°What¡¯s there to do? We¡¯ll kill-¡± ¡°It would be best to avoid unnecessary hostility.¡± She continued. ¡°Perhaps we can talk to them first.¡± I paused. She¡­ was right. Dammit, she was right. Technically they hadn¡¯t done anything wrong; just rude and obnoxious. We hadn¡¯t touched the monster, yet here I was, calmly thinking of a way to murder them. If my first reaction to people wronging me in a dungeon was to kill them, there was something wrong with me. What¡¯s the difference between a monster and people? The ability to reason. Yeah, I should talk to them. But still¡­ I knew how most situations like this in games ended. The only difference was that we¡¯d need their help when fighting the dungeon boss. We had unlocked three seals which meant at the very minimum, we''d see a Grade 8 Boss. Which didn''t sound too bad except that our casters were scraping the bottom of the barrel in terms of their Mana Pool. These guys would provide valuable damage and even some additional mana potions. That was as far as I needed them for. One chance. I¡¯d give them one chance. That was it. Luckily for us, Baran must¡¯ve realized what he had done. His party wasn¡¯t touching the Neung-uh loot. Instead, they were waiting for us to make the first move. ¡°I take it, you know what you did wrong?¡± I called out, taking a few steps closer. Against Baran and Sarai, I wanted to be ready to close the distance as fast as possible. Baran took a few steps back while Pyret took a step forward. Typical response and I had expected it; the DPS moved back and the Tank came forward. They were experienced enough to realize what I was doing. The fact that they took a few steps back at all meant they weren¡¯t going to make this easy for us and that they were ready to fight. ¡°It was an honest mistake. We did not see you there,¡± the elven archer offered, ¡°We¡¯re willing to split the loot.¡± ¡°Ssssplit?!¡± Skaris seemed outraged. ¡°The prey was oursss-¡± ¡°Skaris, let¡¯s let Lock talk.¡± Kyrian calmed the beastman. ¡°Skaris is right. We had that beast surrounded.¡± I agreed with Skaris and the red-scaled warrior nodded vehemently. The tip of his spear glowed an angry red with heat and even Aurora was glaring at the other party. Another Moon Steel; gold coins, some Neung-uh scales and¡­ ¡°Shit.¡± The fucking Neung-uh chose now of all times to drop a Unique Item: [Neung-Uh¡¯s Ocarina]. ¡°That¡­ could be really useful.¡± ¡°Leave the Moon Steel and the Ocarina. You can have the rest.¡± I offered. The slight frown in Baran¡¯s expression and a soft glance towards Sarai told me he was unhappy. ¡°How about we split the Moon Steel and Ocarina? Of course, we can give you priority since we were in the wrong.¡± Sarai spoke in her brother¡¯s stead. I clicked my tongue, audibly. From the look of things they had no idea what [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] was. Which meant... ¡°Let¡¯s take their deal, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll take the Ocarina, gold coins and the scales.¡± I said finally. It pained me to see the Moon Steel go but I already had one in my pocket, so to speak. ¡°...We¡¯re fine with that.¡± Snow continued to fall in the ensuing silence as we each picked up the drops. I studied them. Sarai had a haggard look about her and all of them looked tired. They all obviously hadn¡¯t been able to find a temporary shelter; Furgrin and Pyret were both bleeding from a few cuts. They¡¯d survived the Monsters but at this rate, they wouldn¡¯t have much left. In this team, Baran was the only ranged DPS barring the mages; who¡¯d run out of mana pretty fast. Damn. They didn''t look so good. ¡°Hmmm¡­ if they¡¯re in this state for the Boss Fight, it might be troublesome for us.¡± ¡°If you go down this way and take a right, there will be a small shelter. You should be able to rest there.¡± ¡°Truly?¡± Sarai looked excited them sullen as Baran shot her a glare. ¡°Why are you telling us that information?¡± ¡°We already rested.¡± I explained. ¡°And that shelter is too small for all of us anyways; it should fit all four of you.¡± ¡°...if what you are saying is true, I won¡¯t forget this debt.¡± ¡°Make sure you don¡¯t.¡± I said, putting emphasis on my words. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Baran¡¯s eyes met mine, he knew what I was insinuating ¨Cthe Fracture Splinter. None of us had forgotten the true reason why we came into this dungeon. We might be distracted by Phase 1 and Phase 2 but in the end, our true goal was the Fracture Splinter. ¡°I¡¯ll remember it.¡± He relented. At the very least now, we won¡¯t be stabbed in the back. Or made it unlikely in any case. Of course, I¡¯d still be watching him. No point in being a fool. But every little bit would help; just like how I survived until now. Every choice and decision piled into making a big difference that gave me the edge needed during moments of life or death. ¡°Let¡¯s go, brother.¡± After Baran¡¯s party had gone, we continued our own journey into the maze. ¡°Mr. Lock. That was nice of you.¡± I didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Most party leaders would have turned that into a fight to the death.¡± ¡°Only because we¡¯re in the fracture. Anywhere else and I would have reacted the same as anyone.¡± ¡°Still, you avoided needless bloodshed.¡± Then Aurora smiled for the first time since I met her. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°...It was nothing.¡± I didn¡¯t feel much about Aurora¡¯s ¡®thank you¡¯. It wasn¡¯t me that kept it from devolving to bloodshed. Really, it had been Aurora¡¯s advice. My immediate instinct had been to kill them and I knew for a fact that it had been the same for Skaris. Being a slave under the Samak Horde¡­ it had turned us something far and away from the definition of what was considered a ¡®normal¡¯ adventurer. Far too quick to fight. Far too willing to kill. Too starved to protect what was theirs. What Baran had done could be construed as testing us. By letting them get away with it, I felt like I was showing weakness. But what else could I do? Until the dungeon boss was defeated, I had to try and keep everyone alive¡­ just not united enough to stab us in the back at the last second. It helped that the other party now owed me a favor. All I had to do now was win the bet with Dibo. But I learned something new about Aurora. She didn¡¯t like conflict with other adventurers, I hadn''t seen her do anything to antagonize another person yet. She did know about the fact that we were in a race to see who could take the Fracture Splinter home, yet she still kept up the talk about ¡®cooperation¡¯. Could it be that despite being a noble, she wasn¡¯t as stuck up or blood-hungry as other Scions? It was the type of information that could come in handy later while trying to recruit her. ¡°I guess she doesn¡¯t care about the rewards as much.¡± I wondered if Aurora still had some backing of the Vetilius family, even if she was an illegitimate child. That made me wonder what she was getting as a reward for entering this Fracture. ¡°Is fighting between adventurers so common?¡± Eltis asked. ¡°Adventurer¡¯s code also dictates that they should not have touched the monster we were hunting.¡± Kyrian defended me. ¡°I doubt their story about not seeing us. The Akka Xaluds often claimed entire hunting grounds for their own use, and even killed other adventurer parties over Cores and lesser loot. It¡¯s even worse in dungeons. What happens in a dungeon, stays in the dungeon.¡± ¡°He isss lucky Ssslaveborn has become sssssoft.¡± Skaris shook his head. ¡°If it wassss before, Sssslaevborn would have bitten off hissssss ear then- ¡°Enough of that.¡± I put an end to the matter. ¡°I smell something around here.¡± Yet, something about what Skaris said bothered me. Had I really become soft? I led the party for a few more hours, making sure to kill any monsters that were Grade-8 or below. We even got to see Aurora level up. Even the stoic wariorress smiled softly as we congratulated her; she informed us that her Soul had finally grown enough to house another Core. If we leveled up using Grade-8 monsters¡­ ¡°Hm¡­ so she wasn¡¯t level 30 yet.¡± Soon we reached the place I was looking for. ¡°Thisssss issss a deadend.¡± I began stumbling around the wall, trying to push it in. ¡°I can smell a monster from the other side.¡± I was growing impatient. I had killed one Neung-uh and Baran had killed another. It was safe to assume that Dibo had killed one by now as well. That meant all three Neung-uh traveling around the maze was accounted for. That left only two left; both of them hidden in secret corridors. If Dibo knew about the hidden ones but had been tricking me by saying there¡¯s only three¡­ At best this could end as a draw. At worst, I might lose. Finally I found the pressure plate as a hidden passageway opened up; into another deadend. But unlike the previous one, there was an inhabitant in here. A Neung-uh ¨Cwithout its bubble¨C dozing peacefully on the ground. Skaris and Aurora showed no remorse as they plunged spear and lance into the monster¡¯s soft head. ¡°Kuruk!¡± It cried out right before fading. ¡°Honey, somehow it feels wrong to kill a sleeping monster.¡± Eltis whispered. I ignored them, continuing my previous train of thought about the bet with Dibo. Would I lose? Really? No¡­ I didn¡¯t believe it. Not really. Deep in my heart, I didn¡¯t think I could lose the bet. And even if I did? So what? I¡¯d just become a slave for- I reeled back like someone slapped me. Holy shit. What the fuck was I thinking? Was I letting my emotions dictate my actions? Not my thoughts? My brain knew that I could lose and become a slave again. Why the hell didn¡¯t my heart believe it? What had changed? When I was a slave for the orcs, I made each decision carefully and took calculated risks. But instead, I was taking risks with a calm demeanor, relying on the feeling that ¡®everything was going to be alright¡¯ like a gambler who didn¡¯t care whether he won or not. But I wasn¡¯t a millionaire or billionaire, far from it. I was in debt. I was in a Fracture with 8, possibly 10 people ¨Cif I considered the fact that Aurora and Eltis might be a double agent¨C who were out to kill me. They¡¯d do it without blinking too. ¡°Wake up. This is MSS.¡± Most people don¡¯t die in special life or death situations. A car accident while driving to work. A plane crash on a routine business trip overseas. Getting hit by a drunk driver while walking to school¡­ People were at their most vulnerable when they thought they were safe. Skaris was right. I had become soft. I¡¯d become weak. ¡­Because I had people I trusted now. I trusted Skaris and Kyrian. And to a certain extent, Aurora and Eltis too. They seemed like decent people. Also I wasn¡¯t a Slave anymore. Getting comrades hadn¡¯t made me stronger, it had made me safer. As a result, I lost my own edge in trying to survive in this world. I started to believe in a ¡®happily ever after¡¯ ending. By the gods¡­ I wasn¡¯t even thinking about getting out of this world. What the hell was I doing here? I should be doing everything possible to take advantage of phase 2, grow stronger and win the bet against Dibo. ¡­If Arrosh saw me now, he¡¯d be disgusted. My master had been willing to shove his hand inside my fucking shoulder stab wound to wake me up. I needed to wake up. This wasn¡¯t just a routine Fracture Dungeon. This was life or death. The first step¡­ was admitting that I wasn¡¯t above Aurora and Eltis. I¡¯d been looking at them like people to be coddled. But the truth of the matter was, on a party level they could fulfill their roles much better than I could as a DPS. I shouldn¡¯t be taking care of them, it should be the other way around. ¡°Aurora, Eltis.¡± I turned to the two. ¡°I have a proposition.¡± Aurora noticed something was different immediately. ¡°What is it, Mr. Lock?¡± ¡°You both can have the Moon Steel. Even the one in the possession in my party, one to each of you.¡± ¡°Lock?¡± Kyrian sounded worried. But Skaris¡¯ simply narrowed his eyes. Ever the hunter, he knew what I wanted immediately. ¡°I want to get stronger in this dungeon. Not just hunt the Neung-uh. I want to hunt stronger monsters¡­ So in exchange for Moon Steel, help us.¡± ¡°Honey, isn¡¯t that what we¡¯re doing?¡± Aurora shook her head. ¡°What he¡¯s proposing is different all together. So far, we¡¯ve been working towards the goal of the Fracture Splinter, together. However now he¡¯s asking for our help in his party¡¯s goals; not the same as the mission we took on behalf of the guild.¡± Eltis smiled seductively. ¡°Ah¡­ well, I don¡¯t come cheap you know. This little piece of metal is expensive but Marc Pointell paid a pretty penny to get me here. I¡¯m going to have to charge you as well.¡± Eltis¡¯ ¡®come hither¡¯ look didn¡¯t bother me anymore. I hadn¡¯t been in the right state of mind; but now I was calm. Calculating and cold; enough to remember the fact that Priestesses of the Lust for the Nine took a vow of chastity. Everything Eltis did was a front; an act that the Priestesses of the Nine Church employed to put people off of their balance. ¡°We can split the loot three ways. One-third for my party, and one-third for each of you.¡± I offered. ¡°Too little.¡± Eltis replied immediately. Aurora was of the same mindset. ¡°Even from my view, I can tell that none of you have reached your Third Sanctification.¡± ¡°...You just reached yours not too long ago, Ms. Aurora.¡± Kyrian commented dryly. ¡°Yes. But there is a big difference between an adventurer who has achieved it, versus one who hasn¡¯t.¡± She lifted her chin. ¡°40%.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t be so shameless.¡± Eltis put a finger to her lips, pretending to think. Then playfully slammed her fist into her palm. ¡°35%.¡± I agreed without hesitation. A small price to pay for getting stronger. Also I¡¯d gained another useful piece of info: Eltis had also reached level 30 ¨Cher Third Sanctification. Else she wouldn¡¯t be asking for 35%. ¡°...Are we ssssso weak?¡± Skaris asked himself more than me. Sorry Skaris. With only 2 Cores and 1 Slot open and no racial trait¡­ you¡¯re the weakest here. Barring your own expertise with the spear of course. ¡°Hm¡­¡± Eltis continued.. ¡°I¡¯m assuming the monsters we¡¯re going to hunt are going to be different from the rest?¡± I nodded. So far we¡¯d been avoiding the Grade 7 and above monsters. Now we¡¯d be actively looking for them. ¡°One problem honey, unless we find more of those Temporary Shelters, I doubt we¡¯d hunt more than one or two.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine with me.¡± It really was. I knew the location of every single temporary shelter. ¡°...Then you¡¯re fine with not hunting the Neung-uh, Mr. Lock? That seemed like a safe-way to gain the Fracture Splinter. I¡¯d like you to ask you to reconsider.¡± ¡°I already thought it through. If Baran and Dibo decide to stab us in the back, you can¡¯t protect all of us, Aurora. We all have to get stronger.¡± ¡°Ok then.¡± Aurora agreed and traded grips with me, Skaris and Kyrian. Eltis did the same. The problem was this. Now there was only one Neung-uh left. If Dibo killed it, the bet would be a draw. But if I killed it ¨Cor Baran happened to stumble upon it¨C the boss would descend upon the center of the maze and most of the monsters would clear out. I didn¡¯t want to take the assume that Dibo was ignorant of the hidden room containing the last Neung-uh. So I¡¯d have to make sure we hunted around that area. It was only possible because of the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina]. Reorienting the party towards the last remaining secret room, I quickly led the way after leaving the secret room. Only half an hour passed before my nose picked up the scent of monsters I¡¯d been avoiding. [Ice Dokkaebi], Grade 7. Three of them too. We saw them before they managed to see us. ¡°Aurora, let¡¯s go.¡± This time, I didn¡¯t lead the way. I let Aurora fulfill her role as the shielder; and she rushed headlong into the group of them. These monsters weren¡¯t as tall as the other monsters of this dungeon. Only about 8 feet tall or so, but size wasn¡¯t everything; a group of them could kill the Inuho-oh just by beating it to death. Built with powerful muscular arms and a round stomach, each of them held a large weapon in one hand and a gourd of alcohol in the other. They also sported horns around their forehead, ranging from one to five. It was a indicator of their power levels. Two of them only had one horn, while one held five. ¡°Aurora! Take care of the big one!¡± I exclaimed while Skaris and I split off from either side of her, engaging the Dokkaebis. It was time to see just how good of a tank Aurora really was.
Chapter 65: Fracture - Twilight Maze (12)
World: MSS - Loading...
Kyrian was the first to strike, chaining two [Lightning Strike] spells to stun the one-horned Ice Dokkaebis. I veered off from the one I had been attacking, aiding Skaris. Skaris whirled his spear like a martial artist from a action movie film and then stabbed forward in what looked like a single motion but in actuality were multiple thrusts. ¡°Damn, when did he pick up that Skill.¡± ? Skaris Deepeater uses [Double Thrust] ? ? Skaris Deepeater uses [Double Thrust] ? Skaris must have realized it himself that he was starting to fall behind and practiced this skill behind our backs. Skills, unlike Core Abilities, remained with the user and had to be mastered. The skill was paying off, combined with the [Bool Dokkaebi]¡¯s core, a weaker cousin to the [Ice Dokkaebi], he left half a dozen flaming wounds on the creature. Even if the monster was weaker, it had the elemental advantage. ¡°Grahhh!¡± As the Dokkaebi opened its mouth to roar, I slammed my shield into its nose, hearing a satisfying crunch. Stunned, it reeled back and that gave Skaris room to perform [Double Thrust], this time piercing the creature¡¯s heart and turning it to dust. ? [Ice Dokkaebi] casts [Impaling Rime] ? The sound of cracking ice was all the warning Skaris and I had as the other Dokkaebi slammed its club into the ground; causing spikes of ice to jut out in a straight line towards us. Skaris and I dodged to either side and I glanced to make sure Aurora was ok. She had used [Topple] on the five-horned Dokkaebi and was keeping it in place with her lance thrusts. But I recognized the light in the monster''s eye, cruel menace lurking beneath while feigning to be hurt. "Auro-" I tried to warn but it wasn''t her I needed to be worried about. It was Skaris and me. ? [Ice Dokkaebi] casts [Ice Wine] ? The Dokkaebi in front of us drank from its gourd and ice formed in the air inches above its skin. Soon it had an armor made of ice, reminiscent of a samurai from the edo period. ¡°Skaris! I¡¯ll get it¡¯s attention!¡± My sword wouldn''t make a dent in that armor and neither could I proc [Bleed]. That meant I couldn''t hurt the thing without exceptional control on my part... but it was worth a try. I dodged its home run strike and closed the distance, feeling the wind blowing past by face. A single strike could rip my face off and- Best not to think about that. I found the gaps in its armor, right at the armpits and thrusted with my katana as hard as I could, being rewarded with a feeble splatter of blood. It roared and went mad; a stray stomp caught me in the thigh and sending me rolling on the floor. I hissed in pain; its ice armor had grown spikes and left a long open wound on the length of my thigh. ? Eltis Nacea casts [Heal] ? The cut disappeared and I stood up, watching Skaris¡¯ spear melt the creature''s armor wherever he stabbed. Kyrian cast another lightning spell and it streaked in the air like a living wall of light, flying from the ceiling and electrifying the Dokkaebi within its armor. Then it turned its eyes to the two backliners and slammed its club into the ground, sending a line of ice towards them. I rushed in front of Kyrian and Eltis, blocking the spikes from rising from the ground with my [Frost Covered Shield]. Aurora had done it back at the scene of the first monster wave, surely I could- The shield groaned and the metal shrieked in my ear as the spikes stabbed through it, and through my shoulders. Good news? I¡¯d protected the back liners. Bad news? I was impaled like Skaris was while the Dokkaebi was running this way like a hummer with a tricked out engine. But I¡¯d underestimated our backliners too much; they had a few tricks up their sleeves. So when the young blonde mage waved his staff, muttered under his breath and the robes he wore lit with the sigils inscribed within, I stared in awe. The robe I bought for Kyrian had a [Spell Enhance] feature; he could apply it to any of his spells to give it a 20% boost. Wind came to lift, stirring around the mage like a whisper at first, working up into a roar. ? Kyrian Tricilan casts [Tornado] ? A twenty-feet tall tornado came to life, bombarding the Ice Dokkaebi. But the creature was made of all muscle and fat; simply too heavy for the tornado to lift it off of its feet. But the spell was powerful enough to force it to hunker down; suppressing it for the time being. The Ice Dokkaebi wouldn¡¯t take any damage; but there was a lot of snow and it would blind him. I took a deep breath and forced the ice spike out of my shoulder. Gods, it hurt. ? Eltis Nacea casts [Heal] ? ? Eltis Nacea casts [Pain, Pain, Go Away] ? I knew that Eltis was attempting to rid me of pain¡­ but her spell, [Masochism] was a debuff. It decreased the [Pain] stat¡­ meaning my passive, [Arcane Masochism] would cancel it out. Instead of the pain disappearing, it remained and the fact that it could have disappeared haunted me. But at least, I was back in the fight. Looking around, I saw that Skaris had recovered as well, trying to finish off one of the monsters. ¡°Unf!¡± Aurora grunted in pain, around thirty paces away from the rest of us. She¡¯d been keeping the strongest one at bay. The monster had used the [Ice Wine] ability to create two scimitars, one in each hand.. The monster roared and spun like a top, sparks flying off of Aurora¡¯s shield as she met the assault head on. ¡°Aurora!¡± Running over, I called out to alert her. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. She saw me coming and used [Topple]. The Dokkaebi, 8 feet tall and weighing roughly 500 pounds, fell over like a baby that suddenly forgot how to walk. I sped over, slashing the monster half a dozen times as it fell and half a dozen more after it fell. I spun to the side, leaving a long gash along its side. The Dokkaebi roared and its white pupils shone with rage, the frozen horns on its head began to glow. That¡­ wasn¡¯t supposed to happen. Was this guy a variant? The Dokkaebi swiveled its head and a clear white line shot out from between its horns, razing the ground and heading straight towards me. ? [Ice Dokkaebi] (Variant) casts [Destruction Beam] ? Snow evaporated on contact, steam rising up like a cloud and enveloping us. The last thing I saw was Aurora get between me and the beam and grunt with effort, crashing her shield into the floor. My meager Mana Sense tingled as I felt her reveal another ability; her shield giving off silver light. ? Aurora Vetilian casts [Perfect Guard] ? [Perfect Guard], a Core ability that dropped from [Revenant Knight], a Grade 5 monster. It was notoriously difficult to use because the skill was only about .1 seconds long. But if you got in the guard position ¨Crooting yourself to the ground like Aurora did¨C you could increase the skill duration to .2 seconds. The beam crashed into her shield and disappeared, supercharging her shield. As the last of the beam was sucked into her shield, Aurora shoved it to the side like backhanding someone with it. The true value of [Perfect Guard] lay in the fact that it was a 2-part ability. Once the user pulled off [Perfect Guard]... ? Aurora Vetilian casts [Perfect Retaliation] ? Aurora brought her shield back in front of her and held it with both hands, bracing herself. Her shield fired off a beam twice the size of the Ice Dokkaebi and hit it dead center, incinerating its stomach with sheer concentrated mana. Aurora stood in the snow, her cloak billowing and the shield giving off steam; watching as the Ice Dokkaebi fell and became nothing more than dust. The others joined us after finishing off the last remaining one. The five-horned variant dropped a Core. ¡°It¡¯ssss a Core.¡± Skaris noted, still looking to see if it was something he could take. It contained [Ice Wine]. This... would clash with Skaris¡¯ current element of choice; Fire. I shook my head at him trying to ignore the paid look he gave me. It wasn¡¯t anything he could use. As a beastman, his racial trait involved diving deep into the natural elements. If he didn''t synergies his Core and his racial trait right, it would take him years to recover. The racial trait for the beastman weren''t something you could take back. So once more, Skaris had to skip this Core. Sometimes it was like that. You killed a rare monster and it dropped a Core, but it wasn''t for oyu. ¡°Feh. Fine.¡± Since no one wanted the Core, we stored it in one of Aurora¡¯s Incubators and continued on.
For the rest of the day, we exclusively hunted Grade 8 or Grade 7 monsters. As a result, Skaris and Kyrian finally hit their Third Sanctification¡­ level 30. ¡°ONCSSSEEE MORE I GROW SSSTRONGER!¡± In the typical beastman warrior fashion, he roared into the air; his scales glowing red. ¡°Skaris, you¡¯re attracting all the monsters.¡± Kyrian was much calmer. On the other hand, I hit 25¡­ the level to finally unlock [Aura]. Except there was a problem: there was no one to teach me. Usually in game, you could learn [Aura] by hitting stat requirements, the level cap and then speaking to a Knight who had already unlocked [Aura]. Then through dialogue and quests, you could unlock the ability to use it. Just like how other racial traits had stages ¨COrcs could deepen their connection with their totems and Beastman could delve deeper into their elemental arts¨C [Aura] also had 5 stages. I was brought out of my musings by Aurora. ¡°Mr. Lock, I¡¯d like to talk to you.¡± Aurora pulled me aside. ¡°Mr. Skaris is growing tired. I believe Mr. Kyrian and Ms. Eltis are running dangerously low on mana. I advise we rest.¡± She was right. Skaris, our only DPS who had Fire Damage that could pierce through the tougher monsters, had holes in his armor that had to be repaired back in town. I winced, seeing all the dried blood on him. The blood stains were crusted over, blending parts of his skin that had scales. He was sitting on the snow; leaning on his spear and breathing hard. ¡°Ok. Let¡¯s go rest.¡± ¡°Finally, I can get out of these clothes.¡± Eltis complained, staring down at her bloodsoaked robes. Most of them were ours, not monster¡¯s. It didn¡¯t take long until I found another temporary shelter near the last remaining Neung-uh¡¯s room. I made sure we hunted near it; keeping an eye out. But from the look of things, it looked like Dibo didn¡¯t know about the room. This temporary shelter was a large stone cube, built into the walls of the maze itself. We settled down and it wasn¡¯t long before Skaris had a fire going. ¡°Try to sleep. I¡¯ll keep a lookout.¡± I settled myself near the heavy stone door, peeping it open just a bit. Murmuring thanks, they rolled out their bedding and laid down. Within seconds, their breathing turned rhythmic and calm; Aurora even snored. I continued to stand vigil, holding my sword in my arms and peeping out of the crack. ¡°It¡¯s too quiet.¡± Like the calm before a storm¡­ Something was happening in the dungeon. Baran was nowhere to be seen and neither was Dibo. Our hunting was going smoothly as well. This was exactly the reason why I was lulled into that sense of false security in the first place. ¡°Arrosh would never let me relax like that.¡± I thought of Arrosh again. Damn. I wished I knew where he was. He could even teach me to use [Aura]- Wait a minute. Arrosh couldn¡¯t use [Aura]. He was an orc and [Aura] was a skill exclusive to humans. Orcs became Berserkers, not Knights. So then why did Arrosh take me on? How could he even pass on the [Sword Saint]¡¯s skills to me if he couldn¡¯t teach me how to wield aura? Damn it¡­ most Knights belonged to Turina. I doubted there were adventurers at Grade 5 or 6 walking around with Aura under their belts. The reason was simple: even if the stat and level cap requirements were met, you had to gather money to pay off a knight or a school. If memory served me correctly¡­ ¡°Damn¡­ 7,000 gold in debt and I¡¯m already thinking about spending 50,000 gold.¡± With 50,000 gold I could buy some lower grade Pluralities. I sighed. ¡°Are you unable to sleep?¡± Aurora¡¯s green eyes stared at me from her bedroll, the dying embers of our firepit reflected within them. ¡°Yeah.¡± I tore my eyes away from her and stared out the door. ¡°You should rest.¡± There was the rustle of cloth and metal, indicating that Aurora had gotten up. She walked to the other side of the fireplace; leaning against the wall with her hands on her knees. ¡°Mr. Lock, I¡¯d like to know more about you.¡± I coughed. If this was back in the Real World, I would have killed for a girl who looked like Aurora to say that to me. But here in MSS¡­ I could only think one thought: what did she want from me? ¡°I¡¯m not good at talking about myself.¡± She shrugged. ¡°Neither am I.¡± An awkward silence ensued. ¡°Perhaps I-¡± ¡°I can-¡± We both began talking at once then stopped, staring at each other. I shrugged and gestured at her to continue. ¡°Perhaps I can ask you questions.¡± The silver warrior continued. ¡°Where are you from initially?¡± ¡°Samak Desert. I was a slave under the Samak Horde.¡± ¡°No. I meant your hometown. Before you were a slave.¡± Damn. How was I supposed to answer that? ¡°...I don¡¯t remember.¡± I didn¡¯t meet her eyes. ¡°It¡¯s the truth.¡± She didn¡¯t say anything to that. Damn. Way to go me, you¡¯re just a master at small talk. I cleared my throat, glancing her way. ¡°Why are you in Jayu?¡± Say what you will about Aurora, she was smart. She knew what I was getting at immediately. ¡°I am not affiliated with the Vetilius House in anyway¡­. Despite what people might assume.¡± She stared into the fire and managed to look sad despite her eyes and lips not moving an inch. ¡°I¡¯m running.¡± ¡°From your family?¡± ¡°From everything.¡± The corner of her lip curled up, a smile but not really. ¡°Bastards of Great Houses are not treated very well, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°My turn. How did you meet Mr. Kyrian and Mr. Skaris?¡± ¡°Skaris was a slave¡­ though we were in different groups. Kyrian was working for the Akka Xaluds for the time. You should ask him for his story later.¡± ¡°Who were your first comrades?¡± Thinking of Lety and Clover brought the familiar frustration; summoning the laughing face of Arione. ¡°A girl¡­ from Zimmskar. She¡­ We decided to go our separate ways. Another girl, an elf barbarian from the Delirious Jungle. From Jayu.¡± I thought of Lety, seeing a little bit of her in Aurora. Both were beautiful beyond common sense but carried themselves with casual power. The beauty they exhibited wasn¡¯t sexual, though there was that too. It was like watching a storm, a hurricane or wild horses running up a hill. The beauty of a warrior. ¡°You two are alike.¡± I finally finished. It was her turn to cough. ¡°Perhaps we should talk of less¡­. Personal things, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± I cleared my throat. ¡°Who taught you how to fight?¡± Maybe she had a Knight she knew in Jayu. Who knew, if I couldn¡¯t get her to join the party later I could goad her into getting her Knight to teach me [Aura]. ¡°Back in the Vetilius House, we all undergo basic training once we are of age. The best among us are granted gifts, in the form of Cores and Items.¡± She played with the Dimension Ring around her finger. ¡°I received my first Core that way.¡± It had to be [Perfect Guard]. A rare Core like that¡­ Aurora was strong but not that strong. There was no way she could be part of a party that raided a Revenant Knight Dungeon. ¡°And you, Mr. Lock?¡± I smirked, thinking of the man who taught me how to walk; his teachings upon which everything else was based on. ¡°An orc taught me.¡± That caught her interest. ¡°Truly?¡± ¡°Truly.¡± I frowned. ¡°But now¡­ he¡¯s missing. I¡¯ll have to look for him sooner or later.¡± ¡°Show me.¡± She said. ¡°Show you¡­ what exactly?" I wanted to be specific, that command of hers had been misconstrued in too many movies, books and comics for me to just assume. She shrugged. ¡°The swordsmanship of an Orc. In Turina, we are taught that they are savages, knowing nothing of the Arts of War. But I¡¯ve seen your swordsmanship. It¡¯s¡­. Rough. But there was a certain grace to it. I wish to see how a student of an Orc Swordsman might wield the sword. A warrior¡¯s curiosity.¡± Aurora made a good point even without knowing everything. The first [Sword Saint], Nearnigh, was a self-taught Human Swordsman. Then he taught Arrosh who was no doubt a Berserker at one point in his life¡­ and in turn, he taught me, a [Player] in a human¡¯s body. If there ever was a Sword Style with a messed up family history, mine was it. ¡°I¡¯ll make it quick.¡± I got to my feet. ¡°What should I show her?...¡± ¡°He¡­ didn¡¯t teach me anything in particular I realize.¡± I told her, hoping to back out. I couldn''t really show her how to ''stand still'' now, could I? Her eyes showed me she wasn¡¯t having it. I sighed. "Let''s just show her something simple. A simple slash. In return, I''ll give it my all." Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes. I once again summoned the Mind¡¯s Sword that Arrosh had taught me. Holding my katana perpendicular to my body, I opened my eyes while holding the image crystal clear in my mind. The swords had to be in sync, they weren¡¯t two separate entities; they were one. Then I dove in, become one with the sword themselves. The sensation came easy to me; I¡¯d been practicing. I concentrated, focused and strained; relaxing at the last second as I began the Movement. My senses went into overdrive. The dying embers of the fireplace crackled; the sound of heavy snowfall outside accompaneid my swing. The Katana, chipped and jagged, became enshrouded in Gray Mana, wavering like the current of a river or the tides of an ocean. I finished the cut and the moment was gone. Aurora took in a sharp breath, between a gasp of surprise and one of fear. She met my eyes, half in awe and the other half in disbelief. ? Locked used [Cut](Aura) ? What¡­ the fuck? Did I just use [Aura]?
Chapter 66: Fracture - Twilight Maze (13)
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¡°Mr. Lock. W-Was that, was that what I think it was?¡± Aurora hissed, waking the others. Then she scrambled to her feet, green eyes wide with disbelief. I stared at my katana which had been surrounded by a black and gray hue moments before, equally as shocked. That was¡­ That was [Aura] wasn¡¯t it? There were two requirements to unlocking Aura. One was the level and stat requirements which ¨Cas long as you didn¡¯t play a Mage¨C reached pretty easily. Mages were naturally locked out of their racial traits. The second requirement¡­ was having someone teach you. It was almost impossible for your character to learn it on your own. Only those with either the [Savant] or [Genius] preset had a chance of learning it on their own. That was part of the reason why the order of Knights existed in the first place. Only those who were inducted into Knighthood would be taught the secret or you had to pay an exorbitant amount of gold. Even then you were sworn to never teach it to anyone else. That¡¯s why [Aura] users were so rare, even among the higher grade adventurers. I had been prepared to wait until level 30, then planning to find a Knight or someone to teach it to me. Yet¡­ now I didn¡¯t need to. I already had [Aura]. To see if it was a fluke, I kept my eyes open this time. Swinging the blade, I effortlessly went through the mental exercise Arrosh had taught me. Once again, a flickering hue of [Aura] surrounded my sword; rounded at the edges and dissipating like smoke. The closer it was to the sword, the whiter it was and darkened the further it got; white to gray then flecks of black. Most [Aura] tended to be a representation of what school of swordsmanship you belonged to; but Black [Aura]... as far as I knew, only one character in the entire world of MSS had ever used it. Nearnigh the [Sword Saint]. Arrosh Bloodedge. He¡¯d taught it to me. Finally, I noticed Aurora staring, her mouth agape. ¡°Mr. Lock, you¡­ you can use [Aura]?¡± She said, like she had just received a holy revelation. ¡°I¡­ guess I can.¡± A multitude of emotions went through her face. Disbelief. Disappointment. Envy. Jealousy. Greedm then finally settling on a mixture of distrust and awe. ¡°Are you lying to me?¡± She whispered. ¡°What? No.¡± I stowed my katana away. I wanted to test it out some more but the look in Aurora¡¯s eyes was starting to freak me out. I thought she was accusing me of lying that it was [Aura], but it was something else entirely. ¡°You told me that an orc taught you your swordsmanship. But an orc cannot teach how to wield [Aura]... how is it that you can? Have you always been able to use [Aura]? Can your master use [Aura]?¡± She didn¡¯t doubt my use of [Aura]. She doubted my origins. ¡°Aurora¡­ calm down.¡± She was firing off questions much too fast for me to follow. She cleared her throat and composed herself. Aurora was a noble through and through, I was sure she had some training or other regarding social protocol. ¡°Mr. Lock, I simply ask because you told me you were a Slave and don¡¯t remember anything about your life before that. But could it be that you were a member of a family of Knights?¡± Her eyes no longer wavered, deep and green like the color of evergreen leaves. Unmoving. Unshaken. ¡°Or¡­ perhaps you are a Scion.¡± Of course. Aurora had no idea of knowing my circumstances; neither what I went through or who Arrosh was; a disciple of the [Sword Saint]. It was right for her to be suspicious. But that didn¡¯t mean I had to reveal the identity of my Master whom I had yet to find. ¡°I am not¡­ as far as I know.¡± I deflected her questions by asking her one of my own. ¡°I¡¯m surprised at your reaction¡­ I thought you¡¯d have been plenty of [Aura] users.¡± ¡°I have. But never one as young as you. Never. Not even among my own household and the Vetilius are known for producing Knights.¡± Aurora shook her head then stared at her hands. ¡°Many would kill to be able to use [Aura], Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°...You haven¡¯t received such training?¡± She didn¡¯t answer. But the silence was answer enough, her usually stoic expression holding the pain of memories that I couldn¡¯t fathom. Whatever Aurora¡¯s story was, it must¡¯ve been a painful one. Of course¡­ the bastard of a Great House wouldn¡¯t be allowed to learn [Aura]. If I were them, I¡¯d only train her just enough to make her useful. Not enough to make her a threat to the actual descendants. ¡°He hasssss not.¡± Skaris was awake, his reptilian eyes open from his bedroll. For that matter, so were Eltis and Kyrian. ¡°Skaris-¡± I began, then decided to address everyone. ¡°You all should be resting.¡± ¡°Honey, you should have thought of that before working up poor Aurora into a snit.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t-¡± A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Ms. Eltis, I was not in a, as you called it, ¡®snit¡¯.¡± Aurora gave her full attention to Skaris. ¡°But I¡¯d like to hear Mr. Skaris¡¯ opinion on this.¡± Even Kyrian seemed interested. I had forgotten because I tended to wrap up my slave experience into one, but Kyrian wasn¡¯t there most of the time. Skaris shrugged. ¡°Not much to sssay. There are few like Sssslaveborn, born with natural insstinct and a tassste for battle. Asss ssssoon assss I ssssaw him, he wassss like a beassst. All rage. Instinct. Sightlessss anger. No focusss.¡± His attention sharped on me like a knife and I could¡¯ve sworn the temperature in the little room rose a few degrees higher. ¡°Dangeroussss. Deadly. He was inexperiencsssed back then but now¡­ he hassss awakened.¡± ¡°You could tell?¡± Aurora asked. ¡°A cub may be young but cannot hide their nature. It was plain for all to ssssee.¡± Skaris got up and began to fold his bedroll. ¡°It wassss the sssame with Ssslaveborn. In the beginning he wassss unpolished. Young. Yet it was there. The markings of a hunter. A warrior.¡± He met my gaze. ¡°That wassss one of the many reassssons why I gave you my life debt. Your sssstrength was undeniable.¡± ¡°Are you saying you knew that he would be able to wield [Aura], Mr. Skaris?¡± Aurora was still stuck on the [Aura] aspect. ¡°If that is true, are you able to look at m-¡± ¡°No¡­ not [Aura].¡± Skaris shook his head. ¡°Jusssst that he would awaken into hissss strength. That he¡¯d be sssstrong one day. Excsssseptional.¡± ¡°Either way,¡± Kyrian interrupted before Aurora could launch another question. ¡°Congratulations are in order Lock. I can count on one hand the number of non-scions that could awaken [Aura] and be elevated to knighthood.¡± He frowned, thinking. ¡°In Turina, you¡¯d be getting a lot of attention for it once word got out; not sure what would happen here in Jayu.¡± ¡°Oh, there''ll be a stir alright.¡± Eltis confirmed. ¡°I imagine old Yousef and dearie Marc will want to sink their claws into you even deeper than they already have. If the other guilds, Eretia, Hemter or Grigios hear of this I imagine they¡¯ll get in touch with you too. That¡¯s not to mention the various clans, parties and even what passes for nobility in Jayu trying to be a friend with you.¡± ¡°There are plenty of others who use [Aura].¡± I countered. Yes, [Aura] was special and hard to unlock. But it certainly wasn¡¯t a trait exclusive to just me. Hell, it was just a racial trait. When it came down to it, and all the races had their own and none were better than the other. Orcs could enhance their [Physical] stats and gain skills ¨Cboth passive and active¨C through [Totems], becoming Berserkers. Beastman gained mastery over a chosen element through [Evolution], one of the least versatile racial traits but extremely potent in elemental builds. The Dwarves had [Transmutation] and their counterparts, the elves, had [Core Dominion]. The sixth and hidden race; Ne- ¡°But you might be the only adventurer not loyal to the Empire that could use [Aura], Mr. Lock.¡± What? ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Honey¡­ you really have no idea about what¡¯s going on in the world do you?¡± ¡°Lock. The Turina Empire is a country of humans. They wouldn¡¯t let other countries possess a weapon that should belong to only themselves.¡± Kyrian explained. ¡°They forbid the passing of [Aura] knowledge to anyone who¡¯s not a Turina Citizen, and [Aura] is limited to the Great Houses and Knights. To be honest, I¡¯ve never heard of an adventurer not affiliated with Turina in some way using [Aura]...¡± ¡°There are rumors.¡± Eltis side-eyed Aurora whose expression was downcast. ¡°That the Turina Empire hunts down people who awaken [Aura]. Nothing but rumors of course. But everything that dearie Kyrian said is true. The Church of Light, Flame and Shield would never let a human not loyal to the Turina Empire use [Aura].¡± ¡°But there must be others who use [Aura]. There¡¯s no way.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure there are. But far too few of them in the world to make a difference. Hence, why rumors like that pop up in the first place, dear.¡± Eltis got to her feet and took out a waterskin from her Dimension Ring, taking a short drink. That explained a lot more about Aurora¡¯s reaction. If those not loyal to Turina were truly banned from using [Aura]... then she had no connections that could teach her Aura. Except me now. Hell¡­ could I become rich teaching people how to use [Aura]? Even thinking of the possibility sicked me to the Core. Because to me, using [Aura] was what Arrosh had left me; his inheritance. It wasn¡¯t just the fact that I wanted to keep his teachings to myself; but abusing what he taught me in confidence hoping that I could succeed the memory of his own master to get rich? Not even becoming more powerful but for gold coins? No. I couldn¡¯t do that to Arrosh. ¡°It doessss not matter Ssslaveborn. Turina thissss, humanssss that. We are in Jayu; the sssstatessss of freedom.¡± Skaris was waiting by the door. ¡°Do you not wissssh to test out your new abilitiesss?¡± That was all Skaris said. Following his lead, everyone else had packed up their belongings as well. They stared at me expectedly. In this way; gamers and adventurers were of one mind and one body. If you got a new toy; naturally the next step was to test it out on monsters. *** At my behest, they allowed me to sleep for two hours; just enough to push their patience and get me rested at the same time. On the dot, we left the Temporary Shelter; we shouldn¡¯t stay in one spot too long anyways. We were in luck because just around the corner was a lone Ice Dokkaebi ; three horns on his head. Unlike the others the monster was completely naked, barring the giant hammer in his one hand and the gourd for [Ice Wine] in the other. ¡°Mr. Lock; how do you want to do this?¡± ¡°You and me. After I test out my [Aura], Skaris can join in and help us finish him off.¡± No one talked after that. [Ice Dokkaebi], grade 7. I was going to tackle with just Aurora, no buffs, no anything. Just [Aura]. A jittery sensation traveled down my spine; traveling through my arms. My heart was caught in my throat as my head began to spin; my vision narrowing and the thumps of my heartbeat roaring like thunder in my ears. This wasn¡¯t a regular fight; this was a test. A test to see if my [Aura] was real. I had seen it, I had felt it, my heart knew that it was real. But my head cast doubts. I wasn¡¯t one of them. I wasn¡¯t born here; my soul came from somewhere else. What if what Arrosh had taught me wasn¡¯t [Aura]? What if it was something else altogether? What if I was getting my hopes up for nothing? ¡°Idiot. Just do it.¡± Before I knew it, I sprinting across the snow; my sword in my hand. The jagged katana was familiar to me as a body part by now; I knew the worn handle like the palm of my hand; my fingers easing into the grooves and instinctively knowing how to angle the blade so that it was close to my body yet not so close that it¡¯d cut into me while I ran. My legs moved at a familiar rhythm, bunching themselves into a preceding movement to jump towards the giant monster. Aurora got there first and it was only then that I realized that she had been using a skill all along, [Dash]. A simple enough skill to learn; but infinitely useful. No wonder she could move faster me even while dragging all that armor. Aurora slammed into the creature¡¯s fat belly; churning it like the creature did a belly flop against 200 pounds of armor and woman. The Tower Shield that Aurora carried dug into its belly folds and pushed it back and the Ice Dokkaebi roared, slamming its maul into the ground and casting its signature ability. ? [Ice Dokkaebi] casts [Impaling Rime] ? The warrior did not move aside; that wasn¡¯t how tanks reacted to abilities. She dug her shield into the ground and held as knife sharp columns of ice rose all around her, trying to stab into her armor. But most of them broke upon contact. Aurora didn¡¯t lose a moment of time; she saw the delay between the ability and the Dokkaebi¡¯s recovery time, jabbing her lance at its face. I stopped less than five paces away as the Dokkaebi went into its standard pattern, drinking from the groud in its left hand. Ice crystallized an inch above the Dokkaebi. The Ice Dokkaebi was already a hulking demon made from the nightmare of asian folklore but with its ice armor; it looked outright otherworldly. The Ice-Dokkaebi was a creature from Korean Folklore, that much I knew from my research about the game online, and the armor drew its influence from that history. Interlocking scales that formed around the body and shoulder; drawing influence from japanese Samurai armor. A rounded helmet that had strands of fur at the top; the Ice Dokkaebi wore a [Chalgap] made of ice. Activating [Aura], I thrust forward. Before, I hadn¡¯t even been able to make a dent in its ice armor; chipping against it. Gray-black aura came to life; and my sword stabbed through the ice like needle through a balloon. I didn¡¯t even feel the initial breaking point. It was so smooth. The creature roared in pain as my katana sank deep into its thigh, only stopping once its hilt was caught by the ice armor. Hell, this wasn¡¯t even its final form. This was only Stage 1. Instead of taking the sword out, I swiped sideways and my sword cleaved through the ice like butter; opening up its thigh like a piece of ham on christmas day. The meat opened up and showed me its bone; a clean cut through it. I didn¡¯t feel any resistance at all. The nervousness was banished. The Ice Dokkaebi continued to roar and brought its maul down, trying to crush me in two. I stepped neatly to the side and watched the wound begin to freeze over; one of its passives, [Put Ice on it!]. One of the few abilites that could counteract a [Bleed] status effect. But I didn¡¯t need a [Bleed] to kill this guy, I had [Aura]. Before it could lift its hand again I slashed downward with both hands, putting my entire weight into it. Again, the katana went through through both the armor, flesh and bone as easily as the other and cut its hand off. ¡°KUUUUURRRAAAAAAHHHH!!!¡± The creature roared once more; holding its wrist while its maul fell to the ground. It would dissipate into light as soon as I slayed the creature. Lunging forward I ran behind the creature, leaving long gashes along both its ankles where I approximated the achilles tendon would be if the creature were human. The anatomy must have been similar because it fell to the floor on its knees, trying to bring the ice wine to its mouth. From what I could see, the neck was shielded by ice armor several inches thick; thicker than any other part of the armor. My katana stopped halfway in. Ok, so ignoring 50% of defense wasn¡¯t enough to pierce through the thickest parts of the armor. But it was plenty enough for everywhere else. Aurora joined in with her shield, knocking the creature¡¯s face and giving it the [Groggy] state. I continued my work by hacking away at where the armor was thinnest; blood flowing freely and being frozen over as soon as I cut into them. But the important thing was that whenever I did damage; 2% of my damage was true damage. The monster had the vitality of that of an insect with its head cut off, especially since it didn¡¯t bleed. But eventually, Aurora and I succeeded. I stared at the drops it had left behind. A gourd which was the same as a mana potion and its horns which could be used as materials. ¡°Lock, what¡¯s next?¡± Kyrian asked. The [Aura] had changed everything. Our party¡¯s offensive power had just gone through the roof. I could se the realization in Kyrian¡¯s eyes as well as Aurora¡¯s. Me unlocking [Aura] had just changed the playing field entirely. Skaris had been doing the work of two DPS roles in this party against these ice-based monsters. But now¡­ ¡°We¡¯re going to hunt the Inuho-oh.¡±
[Aura] (Stage 1) - Ignore 50% of Defense. 2% BONUS True Damage. Example: 100 Damage Done = 100 Damage + 2 True Damage = 102 Damage Total Chapter 67: Fracture - Twilight Maze (14)
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[Inuho-oh], a Grade-6 monster resembling a Terror Bird wearing the skin of a chicken. There had been no benefit to actively looking for it until now. It was bad-tempered and powerful; considering the fact that none of its abilities were a good match for us ¨Ceven if it dropped a Core, a big if¨C I was more than content to let it be. Simply put, the payoff hadn¡¯t been worth the potential trouble. But now I wanted to risk it. This party was more than powerful enough to raid a Grade-6 monster. ¡°Ready?¡± I asked. We had backed ourselves into a deadend; a wall which opened up into the last Neung-uh¡¯s hiding spot. An emergency escape plan if it didn¡¯t work out. Aurora guarded the entrance with her shield. If the Inuho-oh really wanted to, it could step right over her but that was the responsibility of a tank; keeping the monster where we wanted it to. About ten paces behind her, I was waiting. Then against the wall itself were Skaris, Kyrian and Eltis. Skaris argued to be in the front with us but he¡¯d do nearly no damage to the bird. ¡°I¡¯m ready, Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora confirmed. If the tank was ready, the next person I had to check was- ¡°All good over here too, hon.¡± Good. The priestess was ready too. It was time. Taking out the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina], I put it to my lips. The Inuho-oh wasn¡¯t a boss-class monster but it was different from the others we¡¯d fought. For me, where the highest grade of monster I¡¯d killed had only been 7 so far, it was a wall I had to overcome. Normally, I¡¯d want to wait to get a full-party of six members; with the minimum requirement being that everyone was Grade 7 at the least. But this party wasn¡¯t just any regular party. It had me, a Grade-6 adventurer who could use [Aura] ¨Cthe biggest factor in my decision to perform this raid. Aurora, whose grade was unknown, but she had a Grade 5 Core. Not only that, I knew that she was just as skilled as Skaris when it came to pure martial prowess. Kyrian and Eltis might only be Grade 8, but with our frontliners being so stacked our chances of eking out a victory over the grade 6 monster was pretty good. We¡¯d chosen the best possible playing field, enclosed on all sides so that its mobility would be limited. I was immune to most of its magic attacks and Aurora could take care of its physical attacks, which was pretty weak compared to other Grade 6 monsters. A risk but one completely within margins of victory. I blew on the Ocarina and a shrill cry rang through the maze. [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] would summon the strongest monster in the dungeon. As the echoing call died out, we waited with patience. No words passed between us; now wasn¡¯t the time. One minute. Two minutes. Five minutes. Still nothing. Aurora, ever the professional, kept her eyes glued to the opening. If she missed her timing our entire plan would fall apart. Still, it had been nearly fifteen minutes now. The Inuho-oh wasn¡¯t a slow monster. It should have been here by- Inuho-oh¡¯s head bobbed around the corner, spiked tongue lolling out in between its beaks. I saw Aurora tighten her stance, holding her shield close. She would have to block the initial strike. It was time for the raid of the second toughest monster in this entire Fracture. ¡°...Why is it just staring at us?¡± Kyrian whispered and those words acted as the trigger, loosening all the increasing rigidity in the air like a taut bowstring firing an arrow. Inuho-oh screeched and I saw Aurora go stiff, not of her own choosing from its cry. Shit. It¡¯s passive, [Predator¡¯s Cry] had a 40% chance of causing a temporary [Fear] status. Aurora wouldn¡¯t be able to move any closer to the beast which meant- ¡°KUUUUUAHHH!¡± ¡°I have to stop it.¡± ¡°KYRIAN!¡± I cried out, reaching forward and grabbing Aurora by back of her armor and pulling her as hard as I could. Gods, she was heavy. The Inuho-oh¡¯s beak missed her by inches. Throwing her behind me ¨CI heard her take a deep shaking breath, composing herself¨C I threw myself at the monster. Tap Tap Tap The monster was over twice my height, reaching fifteen feet tall. I jumped on the maze walls, crouching like a feline for one second before expelling all the gathered power through my legs. Bounding through the air I saw the Inuho-oh open its break and its barbed spiked tongue snake towards me. The first thing I needed to do was cut off that tongue and- If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ? Lock uses [Cut] - [Aura] ? [Jackpot!] The gray [Aura] surrounding my katana grew in size, overlapping my katana in the shape of a fifteen feet long curved blade and sliced the creature in half. Blood fell like rain. ? You have witnessed a Reflection of the [Sword Saint] ? ? Achievement:[Sword Saint Candidate] progressed to [Sword Saint in Training] ? ? You gain +1 [Physical] ? ? You are currently the 3rd [Sword Saint in Training] ? ¡°...What just happened?¡± I was swinging my katana down. All I had been trying to do was cut off its tongue¡­ ¡°Did I just single shot a Grade 6 Monster?¡± Before I could finish my thoughts, Eltis broke in. ¡°Oh my¡­ looks like Yusef recruited a monster¡­¡± I could understand her sentiments. What kind of Grade 6 adventurer one-shots a Grade 6 monster? I had been prepared for a full on party raid. ¡°Did I hit a jackpot? Maybe the Jackpot synergized with my [Aura]...¡± As the remains of the Inuho-oh scattered to the winds; I felt reality sink in. I was strong. ¡°Sssslaveborn, have you been holding back on me?¡± ¡°Lock, that was¡­ I¡¯d never seen anything like it.¡± Aurora was strangely silent. I cleared my throat. ¡°That¡¯s enough of that. Let¡¯s look at the drops.¡± We weren¡¯t disappointed. There were a handful of its plume which could be used as smithing material and its price would be on par with the Moon Steel. A red Tower Shield slightly smaller than Aurora¡¯s, holding fire resistance and Vitality boost effects. But most importantly of all, another Core. The increased drop rates were paying dividends for us. If we took all this- ¡°Sssslaveborn?¡± Skaris peered at me. I shook my head at him. Sorry, Skaris. This one¡¯s not going to go well with you. Skaris sighed and sulked. For a guy with a Grade 5 Core, he¡¯d just be downgrading if he took this. ¡°What now?¡± Kyrian asked, looking around. ¡°I had assumed we would rest for the whole day after this raid. But now¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s hunt some more.¡± I put the Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina to my lips. Since the Inuho-oh was dead, there was nothing else to fear. Using the Ocarina, I¡¯d summon the monsters in this maze one by one, from strongest to weakest. I was going to wipe this map clean of its monsters.
By the fifth day, no matter how many times I blew on the Ocarina; no monster came running to us. After much discussion, we killed the final Neung-uh. With the last Neung-uh slain, the entire maze rumbled; signaling the end of Phase 2. It ended a little faster than I wanted, but we squeezed Phase 2 for all it was worth. I was level 29 now if I counted correctly and killing the boss would bump me to 30... hopefully. Opening another Core Slot... another jump in strength. It was time to kill the boss and be rid of this maze. Right now, we were back in the room with the Truth and Dare Stone, waiting for the other parties to arrive. ¡°Since we killed all the monsters, they should¡¯ve have any problems.¡± We didn¡¯t have to wait long before Dibo, Krag and Track appeared. As soon as Dibo appeared, I felt the Mana Vow that had been weighing on my heart tighten like a rope. Dibo¡¯s eyes widened when he saw me and I could¡¯ve sworn that our heart thumped in unison and I could feel the Mana Vow force his mind into submission. Instinctively, I knew that the Mana Vow would enforce our bet even without insistence on my part. Dibo approached me while I sat waiting. Kyrian, who had been studying the stone behind me, held his breath. Everyone knew about the bet between him and me by now, about the Fracture Splinter at the very least. ¡°You¡¯ve won.¡± Dibo didn¡¯t say anything fancy. He didn¡¯t spin excuses. He didn¡¯t even try to strike another deal. There was a note of finality to his voice. Yet his eyes¡­ his eyes the color of faded green didn¡¯t hold disappointment in the very least. I thought there was a flash of amusement held within them, a hint of mirth. But they were gone just as fast, so fast that I thought I¡¯d imagined them. ¡°You will uphold your end of the deal?¡± Carefully, I got to my feet. Who knew what these guys would try? ¡°I will. Krag and Track have already agreed.¡± ¡°...and Baran?¡± ¡°Speak of the devil. That way.¡± Kyrian answered instead, then paused for a slight second. ¡°What in the light has happened to them?¡± Baran¡¯s party walked through one of the gates¡­ Minus Pyret. The remaining three members of the once six-man party reached the center. They were covered in wounds. ¡°Pyret is dead.¡± Baran said without preamble. My voice caught in my throat as a wild theory ran in my head. There was no way¡­ Right? No way that what I was thinking of could be true? ¡°How¡¯d he die, elf?¡± Skaris hissed. ¡°Monsters.¡± Baran shrugged. This fucking lying murderer. There was no way that Pyret died to monsters; my party had been combing the maze clean for the last few days. We¡¯d killed the Inuho-oh, slain countless Ice Dokkaebis and Lesser Ice Drakes. Unless Baran and his party were fucking stupid, there was no way that they¡¯d have run into a monster strong enough to be an actual threat. This elf was lying through his teeth. ¡°...Lad.¡± Krag stepped close to Baran. The dwarf was half the elf¡¯s height but had twice as much courage. He said the words no one had been willing to say. ¡°Did ye kill him?¡± ¡°No.¡± Baran answered. Krag turned to Furgrin, the only other dwarf left in this expedition. ¡°Does he speak the truth, lad?¡± Adventurers in MSS were the superstitious sort and took Divinity seriously. In a profession like this where you were risking your life with every job¡­ you wanted to make peace with your death through any means possible. Krag asking Furgrin, man to man and dwarf to dwarf was significant. Furgrin might look down on the rest of us but Krag? A Priest who was a senior adventurer to boot? Furgrin turned away. He might as well have confessed right there and then. Krag shook his head and turned to Baran. He spat at the elf¡¯s feet. Baran sneered. ¡°Ye should be ashamed.¡± Krag¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t harsh. Nor was it stern. Just¡­ just sad. ¡°Killing the wife of yer own friend, killing a priest. Then killing your leader. What kind of adventurers are you?¡± ¡°Like I said.¡± Baran answered. ¡°It wasn¡¯t us, dwarf. It was monsters.¡± ¡°...Aye, monsters.¡± Krag looked straight into Baran¡¯s eyes. ¡°Monsters indeed¡­¡± It seemed I¡¯d judged Krag wrong. He¡¯d struck me as a surly, selfish dwarf; acting childish despite his age. Actually in my opinion, the older people get the more childish they act. Still, he was a Priest and more than three times Baran¡¯s age. Hunched over, stooped and pockmarks lining his bald head. Yet¡­ he was standing up to him. While everyone had been willing to just keep silent about it ¨Ceven me¨C just to get out of this Fracture. The Priest of the Forge had chosen to take a stand and make a statement; to bring to light what everyone wanted to keep in the shadows. He wanted everyone to know that what Baran did was wrong. I revised my opinion of the elderly dwarf. When push came to shove... he was a good man. I could respect that. ¡°Is that all?¡± Baran asked. ¡°Aye. That¡¯s all from me.¡± Krag turned to leave. ¡°Then get the fuck out of my sight.¡± Baran turned away as well. ¡°We¡¯ll be taking the Fracture Splinter, if it drops. Dibo and I have already talked it over.¡± I grabbed Baran by his elbow before he could leave. The elven archer shrugged his arm out of my grip. ¡°Do as you will.¡± There was a hint of disgust in his face when I touched him. Interesting. If he truly cared about the Fracture Splinter; there should have been annoyance or anger; an outburst at how Dibo and I were backstabbing him. But his reaction was too mild, too calm. So Baran didn¡¯t give a shit about the Splinter. Either they got something really good or¡­ it had never been about the Fracture Splinter for him. This whole time, I¡¯d been paranoid about receiving a dagger in my back; thinking of ways to outsmart the Eretians. But little did I know, that there were people with ulterior motives that didn¡¯t give a crap about my goals or this Fracture. Smokescreens and mirrors, that¡¯s all it was. If I was right¡­ the only reason Baran came in this Fracture was to kill off half his party. Damn. Why though? ¡°Thissss leavesss a bitter tasssste in my mouth.¡± Skaris muttered, staring at the three outcasts. ¡°Ignore it.¡± I advised. It wasn¡¯t the first time MSS gave me a side-quest that I ignored. Often these type of quests had shitty rewards and no experience. But¡­ the stories were interesting. Still, now wasn¡¯t the time to go off on a side-quest figuring out why Baran wanted to kill off his party. Like Skaris and Eltis had advised way back, it could have been racially motivated. Perhaps he had been holding back this entire time and something Pyret did had set him off. I watched the three remnants of the biggest party when we were entering this dungeon; Sarai looking like she lost the world, Baran looking bored and Furgrin holding his head in between his hands on his knees. It wasn¡¯t just monsters adventurers should be scared of. Monsters gave you simple death. Adventurers were the ones who made you suffer. Whatever they had been, they were not a party anymore; nor were they comrades. They were just¡­ business partners. Like the ones my parents had in the old world. I shook my head to clear my thoughts. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with.¡± With the Fracture Splinter agreed upon, I didn¡¯t want to spend another single moment in this Fracture any longer. Kyrian nodded making sure everyone else was ready, he put his hands on the Stone Slab. A swirl of energy appeared like storm clouds in the ceiling of the maze, gathering together and forming a portal, much like the one I had seen in Samak. That fateful day when I laid my eyes upon the Grade-1 Monster, an experience that had shifted my understanding of this world. You could predict the difficulty of the Fracture by the location of the portal. This portal was surrounded by hunting grounds of monsters that ranged from grade 9 to 7. In my experience, a Fracture usually didn¡¯t spawn monsters more than 2 grades above that. Hence if we were lucky, we¡¯d face a boss monster that could be Grade 9. If we were unlucky however¡­ with 11 members, we should come out ahead of a Grade 5 monster. It¡¯d be a tight-rope act for sure. Nevertheless, I had to factor in the fact that we had taken apart three Seals in total. ¡°It should still be doable¡­ we just have to be strategic and keep our head on our shoulders.¡± As long as the boss wasn¡¯t some kind of variant we had a good chance at getting out of this without anyone dying. The final boss of this dungeon leaped out of the dungeon and landed in front of us, throwing up a veil of snow so fine that it was more like silvery mist than ice crystals. The creature bent its only leg and I saw how close the light blue skin stuck to its bones, almost painfully so. It let out a sound from in between its lips; somewhere between a sheep¡¯s call and a cow¡¯s. It¡¯s fur was frozen over and continued to give off that silvery mist; reflecting what light there was in the dungeon in various angles. Finally, the creature unfurled its wings; which were attached to its head like ears; flapping them and taking flight into the air. [Gi (Ùç)]. We¡¯d lucked out. Because Gi was the Grade-8 monster that I was waiting for. And it was a guaranteed Fracture Splinter drop.
Chapter 68: Fracture - Twilight Maze (15)
World: MSS - Loading...
There are roughly 4 types of monsters. Regular monsters are the typical mobs, swarming the field and are commonplace throughout the world. Though some argue that we should have a separate category for those that appear only in select dungeons, I personally think most monsters belong here. Boss-class monsters. Regardless of Grade, these always had strength that defied all reason, usually stronger or bigger than their counterparts. Then the Variants. Imagine the [Ujo], one of the infamous keyboard breakers, who already had [Arcane Masochism] and immunity to physical damage. But now, imagine it as a Variant that also had the [Regeneration] ability of a troll or by RNG, ended up with a Core ability that made it immune to Magic Damage as well. Then there were the Field Bosses. Named-Variants of boss-class monsters so powerful that they often ruled over vast amounts of territory; away from the reaches of civilizations. To claim lands like these, literal wars had to be waged. A quick way to level up for sure, but extremely deadly. This [Gi] was neither a named nor field-boss material. Still, it was bouncing around the air like the sky was an invisible trampoline and its mobility was worrying; if it got into our backline it could ruin what was supposed to be an easy raid into hell. I woke everyone else out of their stupor. ¡°Pull it down!¡± They¡¯d been watching the majestic creature gallop in the air like it was on the ground, it¡¯s wings spreading fine snow-dust all around us without a care in the world. ¡°As long as we don¡¯t let it set up, we¡¯re fine.¡± ? Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Strike] ? ? Dibolot Aedusaus casts [Fire Chain] ? ? Baran Benepir casts [Chained Arrow] ? Lightning flashed from above the half-goat-cow creature, crashing down into its back and bringing it back to the ground. Dibo waved his staff and mana circles forged themselves in midair, tying the creature down before it could resist. Baran¡¯s arrow found its mark, piercing skin. The ethereal chains went taut as the muscular elf pulled downwards, holding down one of its wings. Then our DPS¡¯ went to work; Track and Fulgrin. I stayed back half a step; waiting for the right moment. Every swing of Track¡¯s Scimitar summoned another blade of wind which mirrored the swing and left a second cut in the same spot. It wasn¡¯t a Core effect; but the beastman¡¯s racial trait: [Evolution]. It seemed to me that Track had chosen the [Wind Evolution] path. If he was already creating physical manifestations of wind then he was definitely at stage 2 of his [Evolution]. If he was at stage three, his weapons would be surrounded by miniature cyclones and leave dozens of lacerations along Gi''s skin. His cuts didn¡¯t go deep but made up for it with sheer number and tenacity. Kyrian¡¯s Lightning couldn¡¯t burn through its fur; a Grade-8 mage¡¯s firepower simply wasn¡¯t enough. It was the same for Furgrin whose daggers glowed with green acid. The only people who could realistically damage this guy were Dibo and Skaris, both wielders of fire, along with Track and I who had unlocked our racial traits. Being in a snowy field, the monster¡¯s hide might as well be a permanent sheet of ice similar to the Ice Dokkaebi¡¯s [Ice Wine] armor. The Gi bucked like a rodeo machine, trying to break out of its bindings ¡°Furgrin! It¡¯s breaking!¡± Baran called out a second before his chains snapped in two and the Gi opened up to its full wingspan. A telltale sign that it was casting its widespread ranged ability. Damn, it had been going so well too. I didn¡¯t want to pull Aurora away from protecting our backlines, the [Gi] was way too mobile to risk that. But I also didn¡¯t want to waste this chance to deal a huge chunk of damage. I just had to do both. ¡°Get back!¡± I yelled out loud and did the exact opposite of what I said. Track and Furgrin obeyed, an instinctive reaction of adventurers when working a raid: when someone said a warning you listened. I leapt into the fray as Track and Furgrin backpedaled out, charging the monster which was flapping its wings and sending spikes of ice towards our backliners. One icicle the size of a small car whooshed past me, leaving me dealing with the afterwind. Even just one icicle could lethally wound me. I heard it crash into the ground a few feet behind me, a sound large enough to deafen my ears but I was already past it. Clang! From the corner of my eye I saw Aurora put her Tower Shield on the ground, Eltis and Kyrian huddling behind her. The icicles slammed into her shield twice more but the female warrior held firm. Meanwhile I knew that Krag and Dibo would be fine; Dibo looked like a fire mage and should have a countermeasure in place. ¡°Kyrian! The head!¡± Krian¡¯s next lightning strike slammed the Gi¡¯s head to the floor and my sword stabbed through one of its eyes. I didn¡¯t hesitate to admire my handiwork; I pirrouted on one foot and slashed through its other eye. A flicker of movement above my head was all the warning I got before an icicle weighing hundreds of pounds crashed in the place where I had been like a meteor. It started forming more. ? [Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Summon Icicle] ? The moment I stole its ability, the Gi¡¯s own icicles stalled; replaced by a trio of my own. All three of them found their way through the Gi¡¯s ears, holding his head down. I moved in, Aura illuminating my way as I dove in for the kill straight towards its forehead. ? [Gi] casts [Blizzard] ? Wind whipped to a fury as hail the size of my fist appeared all around the creature. The Gi didn¡¯t just summon a blizzard, it summoned a literal storm filling the entire room with icy winds that started to shred into my skin, scraping off every bit of exposed skin. I felt the liquid in my eyes literally freeze in response to the ice-damage. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ? Field Effect - Spirit Maze: -20% Ice Resistance ? ? [Blizzard] reacts with Field Effect - Spirit Maze ? ? Now prone to [Frostbite]! ? ? Now prone to [Frozen]! ? ¡°AAAAAGGGGHHHHH!¡± I heard Furgrin scream somewhere next to me. He put his hands in front of his face, still clutching his daggers. As I watched the snow began to pile around his feet and bits of blue-white frost began to cling to him. Icicles started clinging to his arms and within seconds Furgrin was a statue made entirely of ice. Track fared much better. The 1st stage of [Evolution] for beastman gave a basic 15% elemental resistance to all elements and an additional 15% to your chosen path. Aurora hunkered down and I saw Dibo, Krag, Eltis and Kyrian all huddling behind her. Krag pushed his hands out and cast [Heat], lessening the worst of the effects. The rest weren¡¯t so lucky. Baran and Sarai were much further back than Furgrin but still, I saw the archer¡¯s fingers turn black with [Frost Bite] as he shielded his sister from the worst of it. Skaris who had been running towards me had everything from the waist-down frozen, stuck in place. My [All Mages must Die!] passive was blocking the magic damage portion of the ability. But I wasn¡¯t immune to the frost damage; my own fingers began to grow black with [Frostbite]. But if I had blocked any magic damage at all¡­ I shadow-blinked next to the creature¡¯s head, cutting off one of its ears and stopping the channel. ¡°Bloody hells! The lad¡¯s using [Aura]!¡± Having copied another instance of the icicle ability, I summoned three of them again. It felt like someone took my heart in their hand and squeezed it. You see, one of the side effects of the cold is that you grow numb. Numb in your fingers, numb in your feet and combine that with [Frost Bite], well; you feel numb pretty much everywhere at once. Now I wasn¡¯t a mage but I knew enough about Mages to know where the Mana came from: the Heart. That¡¯s where Mages stacked their Mana Cores after all. This whole time, my heart had been numb and I¡¯d been unaware of how much Mana I used. One instance of [Shadow Blink]. One instance of the Icicle ability. Constant use of [Aura]. ....And I had never gotten to recover my Mana after using the [Truth or Dare] with Dibo,. Then what did that mean for the mages who had been casting spells left and right during this entire week and during this raid? ¡°Dibo! Get up!¡± Krag¡¯s voice cracked midway. The momentum was shifting. ¡°I¡¯m pulling back! Mr. Kyrian just collapsed!¡± Chugging a mana potion wasn¡¯t enough in real life. Their hearts were strained. Everyone¡¯s hearts were strained, under constant pressure to pump out more mana while this maze had been pressing up against it like an arcane tumor. I imagined taking my heart into my own hands and wringing it, hoping something would come out. My heart answered with agony but a few precious droplets of Aura managed to travel down my arms and into my Katana as gray aura flickered to life. A streak of blue hair ran past me. Track. Wind came to life as he distracted the Gi. His scimitars clanged uselessly against the thick ice-fur of the Gi but the wind blades that followed up drew blood. Track wasn¡¯t dealing enough damage to stumble the Gi, it started to get up onto its feet, one wing flapping and icicles beginning to gather above. Dozens filled the air, aimed at Track, Me, Skaris and Furgrin¡¯s frozen statue. I turned off the [Aura] and cast [Hateful Wound] instead. Blood gushed out of the Gi¡¯s eye sockets and it fell to the side, one mournful cry. Track doubled his efforts and became a living cyclone of steel and wind; cutting into the Gi''s neck. Good. At least no one died. ...Wasn''t this too easy? Yes, I''d run out of Mana. Yes, the others were collapsing. Why did this raid feel so easy? ...And how was it that we opened three Seals from the boss and it spat out a single Grade 8? How did that make sense? The cold hand of Death itself playing the introduction of our Requiem, using my spine instead of a piano. Chikk-chiiiikk-chiiiiik-chhhhhh-chik A second portal opened up in the sky and the second [Gi] descended. Right into our backline. ¡°What in the forge!¡± ¡°Mr. Kyrian! Ms. Eltis, get behind me!¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn! Behind ussss!¡± ¡°Sarai! To me!¡± ¡°But Furgrin-¡± ¡°Leave him!!¡± The second Gi landed smack dab in between the three different parties and unfurled its wings with the sound of a thunderclap. Ice spikes flew out in all directions as the one-legged bovine-monster roared. Aurora took one particularly nasty hit on her shield and flew backwards, crashing into Kyrian and Eltis who had been right behind her. The three rolled on the ground ending up in a tangle of limbs but Aurora covered all three of them with her tower shield, saving their lives. Four more times the spikes slammed into her shield, denting it. Krag was hit by the initial unfurling of the wings and ended up at my feet, unconscious. Baran grabbed Dibo by the back of his cloak and disappeared along with Sarai, no doubt using some kind of invisibility-inspired Core ability. Furgrin died instantly as an ice spike slammed into him and he shattered to bits. [Instant Death] from being frozen and taking damage above the threshold. Skaris got hit by an ice-spike straight through his stomach and the moment carried him forward, his legs still frozen to the ground. His legs got ripped off. ¡°SSSSHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAA!¡± I ran forward without thinking, grabbing Krag¡¯s limp body and then Skaris. Two choices. Get to Aurora, regroup with the unwounded and restart the raid. Or¡­ drag Krag and Skaris out of here, back into the maze. Lives were hanging in the balance. The correct choice was clear. The best choice now was to regroup with Aurora, Kyrian and Eltis; get to Dibo, Baran and Sarai. With three mages, we could pool our mana potions and restart the raid. We¡¯d put Aurora in the front and with Baran and I as the DPS, we could take down a Grade-8 boss. The raid would be a success and we¡¯d all go home; having killed two bosses we¡¯d end up with two sets of boss drops. Skaris and Krag might die though. No. Not might. They would die. But that was bound to happen sooner or later. The stronger you got, the more frequently your companions changed. They died in dungeons, Fractures and even in unlucky encounters in the overworld. Monsters, Players, Environmental traps and sometimes even Morale. But as long as your main character survived, the game went on. You recruited new teammates and trained them from scratch again. I¡¯d done it thousands upon thousands of times. Yeah. This was that kind of shitty game. I¡¯d just forgotten, that was all. ¡°Ssslaveborn.¡± With a hiss of pain, I looked down at the dying warrior who clutched my arm so hard that it was bleeding. Skaris¡¯ eyes should have been fading, growing full. Instead¡­ Like the nameless orc warrior, his eyes were bright and sharp. Focused. Determined. ¡°Go.¡± He hissed. See? Skaris knew too. Yeah¡­ he knew. Just what type of shitty life we¡¯d been living. I said it before, I¡¯ll say it again. I knew I¡¯d die a dog¡¯s death in this world. So I made my choice and hauled Skaris on top of my shoulders; grabbing Krag by the back of his collar. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn-¡± ¡°Shut your mouth, Skaris or I swear I¡¯m going to cut off your arms and your tongue too.¡± He stopped talking. Good. I needed to act fast. ¡°AURORA! BARAN! GET INTO THE MAZE! REGROUP! REGROUP IN THE MAZE!¡± I didn¡¯t wait to see if they heard, I ran straight towards Track. Say what you will about the feline beastman, he was a warrior. He¡¯d been soloing the monster with no back-up and no mana and it showed. His armor was all but gone, the metal nearly torn off of him from the momentum of the icicles weighing hundreds of pounds. One eye was closed and both his feline ears were reduced to stumps. Still, his eyes showed nothing but grim mirth facing the first Gi. The Gi moo-ed at him, lashing out at the cat-swordsman with its remaining ear and launched him towards me. I stopped in my tracks cold, and caught Track with my chest and knee, trapping him like a soccer ball. His scimitar came dangerously close to stabbing my eye out but left a cut across my lips instead. He scrabbled like a cat that just came into contact with water. ¡°It¡¯s me you dumbfuck!¡± ¡°Slaveborn?!¡± Without preamble, I dumped Skaris and Krag on him. Skaris was unconscious with his eyes open. There was no time. ¡°Give me a mana-potion.¡± Track growled. ¡°I only have one left. I¡¯m going to slay that-¡± I whirled my katana, eking out mana and activated [Aura]. Goddamit, I almost blacked out from that showmanship but it was necessary. People like Track wouldn¡¯t listen to words, only actions. ¡°Give. it.¡± His eyes narrowed but the one-eared Gi was slowly gathering itself. I saw its ear-wing beginning to glow with white sparkles; trying to cast [Blizzard]. ¡°NOW!¡± Track tossed me a blue bottle which I took and downed in one shot. ¡°I¡¯ll open the way. Stick close to me.¡± 5 seconds to channel but it only had one ear, so maybe 7. ¡°What do you-¡± I didn¡¯t answer and rushed the Gi. It was standing between us and the closest gate. It would have to die for us to get through. Plus if we left it, it would recover and we¡¯d have to raid two Grade-8 bosses at once in this forsaken field. I wasn¡¯t going to waste our efforts. Pumping mana all throughout my body, I became conscious of just how much I¡¯d been using without realizing it. Without a visual mana bar, I¡¯d been completely ignorant of the fact that this wouldn¡¯t work like a game. My mental state wasn¡¯t a frowny face next to the status bar that said: Morale. It was sadness, grief, panic and anxiousness all keeping me from making rational decisions. The Gi saw me coming and switched tactics, instead of channeling [Blizzard] it fired off another Icicle. I cut it in half with [Aura] surrounding my katana. The smart choice would¡¯ve been to dodge it but Track¡¯s footsteps sounded behind me, heavier than normal. He was carrying Krag and Skaris. Yeah, smart choices went out the window the moment I decided to take those two with me. I cut down another icicle then another. Seeing the break in the icicle barrage, I did a 360 spin with my katana and nicked the top of Skaris¡¯ head. Barely more than a papercut if not less. ?[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Let there be Fire!]? Skaris¡¯ [Bool Dokkaebi] ability flowed into me and lit my katana with fire. The flames flowed through my aura and the two fed each other, growing larger. I encouraged it by adding more of my mana, adding fuel to the fire. The [Aura] finally devoured the flames and turned an orange-red, giving off steam. Also, it no longer wavered like smoke without form but formed a solid rounded form around the Katana. A telltale sign that I¡¯d reached Stage 2. The Gi raised its head, wing starting to grow spikes of ice. Like a swordsman preparing for an overhead strike. ¡°Slaveborn! It¡¯s going to slam down with its wings! Stop!¡± Track¡¯s voice grew smaller as he slowed and I sped up. It¡¯s wing crashed down like the hammer of a god, throwing up snow. Never ever back up in a boss fight. Always, always roll forward. Getting up from my roll, I spun to the side so that I was perpendicular to its neck. My katana beheaded it like jello. As it disintegrated into dust, I saw both Track and Krag staring at me from twenty paces away. Their expressions were sheer disbelief. Shoving all the drops into my Dimension Ring, I motioned them towards the Gate. Krag stumbled forward, still dizzy and Track came through with Skaris on his shoulder. I had to admit it now. This raid¡­ was a failure.
Chapter 69: Fracture - Twilight Maze (16) World: MSS - Loading...
We set out into the maze again, leaving the carnage behind us. ¡°I hope everyone else got out fine.¡± I wondered if feeling remorse justified my actions. The truth was that I risked everyone¡¯s life, choosing a path that was narrower and riskier for my own selfish reasons. Emotions over logic. If I was sitting between a screen I¡¯d never have made this decision. ¡°Slow down, lad.¡± Krag was behind me to the right. ¡°The wounds are not getting any worse.¡± Krag had just enough mana left over to heal Skaris¡¯ legs, closing the wounds shut. The scaled lizard wasn¡¯t in any danger of bleeding out. His breathing was still shallow and his eyelids trembled in the fitful sleep Krag had placed him in. Everything below his thighs were gone. 24 Hours. That was how long we had to get Skaris the treatment he needed. After 24 hours¡­ not even the most powerful of healers could regrow his legs. ¡°There could still be monsters about.¡± I answered Krag, shifting Skaris¡¯ weight on my shoulder. It was hard to balance him, without his legs the center of his weight was slightly off. ¡°I didn¡¯t see any.¡± ¡°I smell them.¡± I lied. There would be monsters in the maze sooner or later¡­ they were only absent because my party had slain so many of them. They¡¯d respawn and in our current state, I didn¡¯t want to face our chances. ¡°I don¡¯t smell anything.¡± Track quipped. ¡°Didn¡¯t know a human¡¯s nose was better than mine.¡± Freaking beastman, always ruining everything. ¡°You must have a shitty sense of smell then.¡± I shot right back. I imagined the blue-furred feline warrior glaring at the back of my head. ¡°Then we should find one of those temporary shelters. After regaining our strength we should regroup with the others-¡± ¡°If we find one, we should.¡± I lied again. There were no more Temporary Shelters spawned by the Twilight Maze once Phase 2 was over. Which meant no more method to regenerate mana faster. We were trapped with monsters, no way to regain our strengths, out of mana and most of all, trapped in this dungeon until we figured out how to deal with the Gi (Ùç). The only bright side to all this was the fact that we¡¯d manage to kill the first one. Speaking of which, I had been able to stow both of its drops into my Dimension Ring. Which meant that- ¡°Then we should check our supplies. Go over potions, especially the mana ones.¡± Track suggested. ¡°Fine.¡± We found a quiet little spot. Seeing me put my nose to the air and sniffing, trying to see if any monsters were tailing us, Track did the same. Though he seemed to rely on his hearing a bit more. ¡°We¡¯re saf-¡± I began. ¡°No monste-¡± Track interrupted. Why was it that I got the sense that Track was watching me and competing with me? Krag must¡¯ve picked up on it. ¡°Set him down here lad. I can look him over while you two look over the potions.¡± Setting Skaris down next to Krag, I opened up my dimension ring bringing out two whole health potions I had scavenged throughout this whole ordeal. No mana potions. Track brought out three health potions but he too, was out. He shrugged when I looked at him. ¡°I told you, Slaveborn. That was my last one.¡± I looked at Krag. ¡°I shoved my last one down Dibo¡¯s throat when that second monster got the drop on us, I did.¡± Krag examined Skaris, opening his eyes one at a time and checking on the leg-stumps. ¡°Your friend won¡¯t be dying on us anytime soon. You know the time limit for limbs, lad?¡± ¡°24 Hours.¡± 24 hours felt so long when we had been hunting; just farming for EXP and picking up drops. But now that number was a timer on when Skaris¡¯ life as a warrior would be over. My goal was clear: get out of this dungeon in 24 hours. To do that, I needed to find the other party right away. Packing up my potions, I made a motion to stand up when Track did the opposite. He lay down on the floor and folded his arms behind his head like he was underneath the shade of a tall tree on a hot summer¡¯s day. ¡°...what do you think you are doing?¡± ¡°Resting.¡± He answered easily, opening one eye lazily. ¡°Or were you just going to drag us around the maze with no clear goal?¡± ¡°We need to regroup with the others-¡± ¡°You said there might be monsters; wouldn¡¯t wandering around be dangerous?¡± ¡°So you¡¯d rather sleep here and be a sitting duck?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯d rather not. But sitting here and getting our only Priest the rest he needs to recover what little mana he can, even if it¡¯s a pathetic amount in this shithole of a dungeon, sounds smarter than whatever you had planned.¡± Track closed his eyes again. ¡°Or did you have a plan in mind to magically find the others?¡± He finished. ¡°Lad, I understand your worried about your friend. But your judgment is impaired right now. Yer scared.¡± Krag spoke slow, like he was trying to soothe me. ¡°Track is right. We need rest. Time to sort out our thoughts. Time to recover.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have time!¡± I didn¡¯t say this out aloud however. Because¡­ they were right. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it I was being rash. Irrational and illogical. Precisely the line of thinking that got us in this mess in the first place. But that line of thinking had saved Skaris in the end and even Krag. There was no way Krag didn¡¯t know that, so I glared at him. Krag flinched. ¡°1 hour.¡± I finally allowed. ¡°6 hours.¡± Track countered. My teeth gritted audibly. ¡°...4. I¡¯ll stand watch for 2 hours. You two can split up the 1 hour watches.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fair I¡¯d say.¡± Krag peered at Track then back at me. ¡°Lad¡­ did you get a chance to pick up what the boss dropped?¡± I found myself smiling. ¡°Yes.¡± Things had been crazy but never too crazy for loot. Opening my Dimension Ring, I brought out the items. ¡°!!!!!¡± ¡°That¡¯s-!¡± ¡°Aye! We hit the jackpot!¡± A small blue crystal, elongated in shape that fit into the palm of my hand. A Fracture Splinter. And the other item¡­ a Plurality. ¡°This dropped here?! From a Grade 8 boss?!¡± Pluralities could range anywhere from accessories like earrings and bracelets to a two-handed sword. Many of these items, which could be considered ¡®graduation¡¯ items ¨Cmeaning the end-game set you¡¯d wear¨C were extremely difficult to match. Because you could be farming for a helmet but just as easily end up with a pair of boots. Then there was the fact that there were thousands of them¡­ well; I had better luck swinging my sword and hoping for a [Jackpot] than hoping for a build-specific [Plurality] to drop from a random boss. The saving grace? Bosses Grade 5 and higher had a drop pool of Pluralities of about a 100 or so each. 1% chance to get what you wanted. Better than nothing. Once again, a mechanism put in place by MSS to keep you from being too overpowered during the early-game stages. A Snowball Prevention if you will. But I had lucked out on this one. [Lunar Shield - Crescent] (Plurality). A beautiful white sheen ran across the otherworldly metal shaped like a waning crescent moon. It was a little smaller than the size of my torso, which was considered a ¡®medium shield¡¯ in this game. Because the shield was shaped like a crescent moon with two wicked edges on either side, it was hard to call this a ''shield'' per se. There was precious little area to defend yourself with. But that was the whole point of this [Lunar Shield] (Plurality). [Lunar Shield - Crescent Moon] (Plurality) ? [Lunar Shield] raises [Attack] with every instance of [Lunar Gauge] fill up due to damage taken ? ? [Lunar Shield] raises [Defense] with every instance of [Lunar Gauge] fill up due to damage dealt ? ? [Lunar Gauge] fills up when certain amount of damage is taken or dealt ? ? Once [Lunar Gauge] is full, transform to [Lunar Shield - Full Moon] ? This was one of the shields I¡¯d been considering as a candidate. An attack buff when I took a certain amount of damage and a defense buff when dealing a certain amount. Then there was the fact that once its gauge was full, I could transform it into its Full Moon form which came with its active abilities, [Tidal Force] and [High Tide]. You see, I¡¯d been thinking long about the type of Cores I¡¯d absorbed and what kind of Knight I wanted to build my body into. I hadn¡¯t decided on the details yet but one thing was for sure. [Ujo] with its [Arcane Masochism] would be the foundation for which I built everything around. [Hateful Wound] wasn¡¯t the greatest of abilities but [Arcane Masochism] more than made up for it. Because the essence of a Knight build lay in the fact that they could be on the frontlines, soaking up damage and dishing it out. The [Lunar Shield] could rectify a lot of the weaknesses in my current build, namely the slow start. It gave me an [Attack] and [Defense] boost the moment I started trading hits. Plus, with a shield, I could abuse chip damage to control how much damage I took. Not only that¡­ [Tidal Force] and [High Tide] worked beautifully with [Arcane Masochism]. I needed this. Slowly, I looked around to see what Krag and Track were thinking. Krag¡¯s eyes were clouded over with greed. Fuck. But I knew the dwarf. He either wanted to bring back the shield to his Forge ¨Cwhat they called their temple¨C or sell it. If he wanted to sell it, it was simple. I¡¯d simply just owe him money. If he wanted to bring it back to his temple for his god, Smith, for the sake of following their beliefs of offering rare items to the smith god¡­ Well, it didn¡¯t have to be this exact shield. So I wasn¡¯t worried about Krag. It was Track whom I was worried about. Track¡¯s eyes were harder to read. But from what I¡¯d experienced so far with the swordsman¡­ if I said I wanted it, it felt like he would want it simply because I wanted it. Like a mischievous cat who just wanted to annoy you. I saw Krag and Track study each other more than me, the same way I had just done. Another battle was about to go off. It was only different from the previous battle because this one would be done against each other and with words, in contrast to blades being drawn against a monster. ¡°So¡­ I see you got the Fracture Splinter you wanted after all, lad.¡± Krag stroked is beard, an infuriating habit that both he and Dibo shared. ¡°Why don¡¯t you put it away in your Dimension Ring before a monster wanders by or something? Mmm?¡± Of course. Dibo must¡¯ve told Track and Krag about the bet. Damn it. Krag was going to use the fact that I already had the Fracture Splinter as a bargaining chip to get me to relinquish the shield. Still, I stowed the Fracture Splinter into my Dimension Ring. What¡¯s fair was fair, it was the boon that I had won fair and square. So now, that left three of us with the shield. Well, there was no point in wasting time. Skaris was on a time limit. I cleared my throat, signaling the start of our negotiations. ¡°I¡¯d like the Shield. As you can see,¡± I gestured at my empty shield arm. ¡°I¡¯ve lost mine and the other loots in this dungeon broke down just as quickly.¡± ¡°You can use it for the duration of the expedition, aye, I don¡¯t mind at all. But I would like to throw my lot in there as well.¡± The dwarf priest mentioned. "Besides, we still have other members to consider." ¡°I can talk to the others. I''m talking to you two right now. If you want it simply for the gold, I can pay you.¡± ¡°...Aren¡¯t ye a former slave, lad?¡± Krag raised an eyebrow. ¡°I know yer penniless.¡± ¡°I¡¯m good for it.¡± I stared straight at him. ¡°You know I am.¡± Krag sniffed. ¡°Aye¡­ I¡¯ve never seen anyone use [Aura] at your age. By the forge, I¡¯ve never seen someone outside of Turina use [Aura] at all. But still, I know that yer an adventurer and fighting in the colosseum to boot. You got twice as much chance of dying than anyone else I know. How will I know you can pay me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m good for it.¡± ¡°...How?¡± Damn, he was like a stubborn old dog that got ahold of his favorite toy and refused to let go. Were all dwarfs this greedy? Just Priests probably. ¡°I have friends if all else fails.¡± I finally muttered. ¡°Aye¡­ that you do.¡± Krag nodded in understanding. We both knew who I was talking about: Yousef. ¡°Would paying you your portion of the market price suffice, Brother Krag?¡± ¡°Aye. You and I are good then.¡± Krag slipped out of the conversation, leaning on one of the maze walls and sitting down. Like he was readying to watch a movie. Of course. He probably knew Track better than I did. He knew what was coming. Before I could mentally prepare myself, Track spoke. ¡°I want the shield as well, Slaveborn.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t even use a shield!¡± I shouldn¡¯t have yelled but something about Track just rubbed me the wrong way. I¡¯d never been a cat guy¡­ though that¡¯s probably offensive to him. He shrugged. ¡°Looks shiny. I like shiny things.¡± Even Krag scoffed at that one. ¡°That¡¯s bullshit.¡± I snarled. ¡°Just name what you want Track.¡± Track slanted his head, pretending to think. ¡°I think I want the shield. It¡¯s a Plurality. Right, Krag?¡± ¡°Aye. [Lunar Shield]. Saw it in the [Compendium] back in the temple.¡± Of course the Forge would have a [Compendium]. [Compendium] was a series of encyclopedias for items existing in this world. One for each item of each rarity. Well, at least I got one piece of information. If I ever wanted to take a look at the [Compendium] for Plurality Shields, the Forge was where I should go. ¡°Track, don¡¯t be difficult.¡± ¡°How come you call Krag, Brother Krag but me just Track? Call me Sir.¡± ¡°...Sir Track.¡± ¡°How about Lord-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t push it.¡± I growled. He cocked his head at me and I finished lamely. ¡°...Sir.¡± I really wanted this shield. If I could just get the [Lunar Shield] and erase the [Lucky Beckoning Cat] Core to swap it out for my next planned Core¡­ it wouldn¡¯t be a lie to say that my build was 30% complete. I was approaching this wrong. I was trying to trade for the shield but Track didn¡¯t want a trade. He was exactly what he looked like, a Cat. What I needed wasn¡¯t something that he wanted equally as much, but something he wanted more. Something to distract him with¡­ something flashy. Now what could a battle maniac like Track want¡­ Better yet. What could a beastman who used dual swords and was on the Wind Evolution path want the most? ¡°I can tell you a Twin Sword Plurality with wind attributes¡­ plus the best place to farm for it¡± Track froze like I just dangled catnip in front of his nose. ¡°Got him.¡± ¡°...How would I know you¡¯re telling the truth?¡± ¡°We can have Krag go back to his temple and check to see if I¡¯m telling the truth. Confirm it with him. If I¡¯m lying¡­ you know where I am. Come to Miltus and we can settle the ownership of the Shield some other way. Naturally, you''ll get your share of the gold for the [Plurality] of course.¡± ¡°And how would a former slave come by this information?¡± I smiled and shrugged, knowing that the shield was mine. ¡°I wasn¡¯t born a slave, Track. Maybe I was born in a family of Knights. Maybe I¡¯d been adventuring since I was a child. Or maybe the Orcs had a [Compendium] of their own.¡± ¡°What¡¯s important is whether you believe me or not.¡± His pupils were dilated. Breath was quickened. ¡°What is it?¡± I smirked, stringing him along. ¡°Do we have a deal?¡± He yowled and I almost jumped out my skin. Krag actually did jump. Ever hear cats fighting in the middle of night? It doesn¡¯t sound like animals. It sounds like some otherworldly ghost, screaming and dying; something high pitched and just alien that sets our hairs on end. ¡°By the forge, I never want to hear that sound again.¡± ¡°...Add that into the deal.¡± I muttered. I was with the Priest on this one. ¡°You¡­ are infuriating, Slaveborn.¡± He let out a breath, somewhere between a sigh and a laugh. ¡°One more condition and you have a deal.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I know you are bringing the Fracture Splinter to Marc Pointell. That he has promised you entry into the next Fracture.¡± He flashed his canines. ¡°Make room for me.¡± I¡¯d expected something along these lines. Unlike Krag, Track was young and had a sense of adventure in his eyes. He was ambitious. ¡°I¡¯ll try my best.¡± ¡°Then you have a deal.¡± We quickly traded grips. Finally, I bent over and picked up the Shield. I felt like a kid who¡¯d been pining after a Gacha figurine for months, spending all his pocket money just to finally get the ultra super rare limited time figurine at the last second at the most unexpected moment. Flipping it over, making sure it wouldn¡¯t touch the ground or get scratched ¨Cwhich was impossible, all Pluralities came with the [Indestructible] option¨C I slipped my hand through the loop. I felt my body grow stronger, faster. My mind becomes sharper and my senses seeming to work just a bit better, though not to the extent as the body. Of course, it didn¡¯t just come with its passive abilities. It provided a minor boost to my [Physical] and [Mental] as well. ¡°...Once Kyrian gets his 4th Mana Core, he can learn [Bind] and bind this item to me.¡± I had the shield for all of 5 seconds and already I was as possessive with it as a boy with his first girlfriend. ¡°If I¡¯d been even half as possessive with my ex as I am with this shield¡­¡± ¡°If you¡¯re done with admiring yourself, tell me.¡± Track pushed. ¡°You¡¯re looking for a boss-class monster by the name of [Usacheop (Óꎟæª)].¡± I didn¡¯t even bother looking at him. Too busy admiring my shield, how its silvery surface reflected the light in all sorts of ways. Was it glowing? ¡°You can find her in a dungeon near the Delirious Jungle.¡± ¡°...That¡¯s a grade-5 boss class monster.¡± ¡°I never said it¡¯ll be easy.¡± I shrugged. The swordsman scoffed, turning over on his side. Within seconds he entered this strange dozing state in which his eyes were half open, ears twitching every once in a while. Krag leaned up against a wall and began to sleep, snoring sporadically. I turned my senses to Skaris. Labored breathing. Body feverishly hot. After 4 hours¡­ 20 hours. 20 hours or Skaris would never wield his spear ever again.
Chapter 70: Fracture - Twilight Maze (End)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Damn it!¡± Kyrian slammed his fist on the wall. Everyone else remained silent, dealing with the situation in their own ways. Krag sat straight across from me, looking after the wounded Dibo. Dibo¡¯s face wasn¡¯t¡­ pretty. He had cuts all over his face, swollen nearly beyond recognition. Eyelids were black and blue, closed shut. His breathing was even shallower than Skaris¡¯ own, who was supposed to be the worst out of all of us. Dibo¡¯s leather boots and mage gloves had been taken away, revealing fingertips with skin hanging loose and the end, mirroring the wounds on his feet. I¡¯d seen enough in this world to know what they represented: torture wounds. It hadn¡¯t taken us long to meet up with Aurora, Eltis and Kyrian. Even shorter until we found Dibo¡­ or what was left of him. Baran¡¯s handiwork. ¡°His Dimension Ring has been emptied out. No mana potions at all, lad.¡± Krag shook his head. ¡°By the forge, Dibo was holding all the gourds from the monsters too.¡± We could piece together what happened easily enough. Baran in his series of impulsive actions had taken the Mana Potions from Dibo, tortured him for it even. Dibo probably had a Dimension Ring that was bound to his own mana signature or blood. Not only were we out of mana and mana potions, we were crippled. Dibo was wounded beyond recovery and without mana potions, Krag and Eltis were doing all they could to just stabilize the two wounded. ¡°Why would he do this?...¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice was edged with equal parts anger and disgust. ¡°...habit.¡± Eltis¡¯ voice was soft, but I heard her nonetheless. I stopped pacing, attention focusing down on her like a laser. Her eyes were covered by a black veil-like head covering that covered the entirety of her face. A formal head dressing that all believers of the Nine wore for special occasions. Eltis was preparing for a funeral. But I had no patience for catering to her culture, no matter how disrespectful it was. I knelt down next to her, my eyes trying to pierce through the veil and meet hers. She shied away, completely unlike her previous seductive manner, but I persisted. Krag growled next to me. ¡°That¡¯s rude, lad. If a priestess wears-¡± I ignored him. ¡°Tell me what you know.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve told you before.¡± Eltis muttered, wiping sweat off of Dibo. ¡°...You¡¯re talking about the race thing. About how he hates humans.¡± I glanced at Krag and he nodded stiffly. ¡°The same way that Sarai spoke.¡± ¡°You begin to understand.¡± ¡°Then explain to me why Baran signed his own death sentence. Leaving Dibo in this state-¡± ¡°Lad, you really think a man who came into a Fracture with the intention to kill his own party didn¡¯t consider the possibility of failure?¡± ¡°He must¡¯ve had some kind of escape mechanism. A [Escape Scroll] or a [Dungeon Worm].¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°So he escapes with our Mana potions, cripples our mage when we are already out of mana.¡± Track laughed, a sound that grated against my brain. ¡°He has left us for dead.¡± No one answered that. I assessed the situation¡­ and Track was right. Our healers were both out of mana and so was Kyrian. He had enough left for maybe a single [Lightning Strike], and after that he might even pass out. The weather was getting to everyone, many of our cloaks had been ripped to shreds during the last fight. What we needed was rest, food and to get out of this dungeon. But we could have none of those things. ¡°That¡¯s enough of the gloom talk.¡± I spoke into the silence, managing to clear it a bit but not completely dispel it. It was already too late to dispel it¡­ us adventurers, we live close to death. Dancing with it. Once our dance partner Death crosses a certain line and takes a step towards us¡­ well, we were already too close to him to begin with. I knew it¡¯d end up like this the moment the raid failed. Baran had just given Death the last push, speeding it up a little. ¡°Rest. Try to recover what mana you can. We¡¯ll talk again in a few hours.¡± I finally surmised. I expected everyone to argue back. After all, it was me who got us into this mess in the first place. But surprisingly¡­ no one argued. So we rested. But it wasn¡¯t all that useful. Kyrian was the first to start shivering as the snow began to fall down lazily within the maze once more. Aurora took off her armor, wrapping herself around what was left around her velvet cloak and sleeping underneath her shield. The warrior was beyond tired, having protected Eltis and Kyrian for the entirety of this raid. Track nestled against a corner, dozing. Eltis and Krag continued to look after Dibo. Neither of the two healers gave Skaris a glance. I knew why. They thought we¡¯d die here. Why look after a dying man when everyone was going to the same place? An air of gloom and impending death descended on the party, inch by inch and grew thicker by the minute. I could scarcely breath ¨Cit was too cold, I was gasping for breath but it felt like all I could suck in were airs laden with tiny ice spikes. My lungs were starting to hurt and I heard Kyrian and Eltis cough a few times. Being a mage and priestess, the weaker members were starting to get sick. Kyrian and I have taken off our own cloaks and covered the lizard warrior, even when I insisted the mage shouldn''t, he insisted. Still, Skaris shivered in his sleeps, mumbling incoherently. He didn¡¯t have long. Eltis continued to pray next to Dibo, praying to the Nine, the elven Goddess for them both. Krag did the same, though he prayed mostly for himself. Even the gods in this universe were racist. I¡¯m ashamed to admit that I succumbed. Memories came and went, unbidden. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°Ah shit¡­ Ok let¡¯s just the priest behind and use him as bait. It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll just get a new one.¡± ¡°...Damn is this TPK? Tch. Whew, at least my character lived. Fuck¡­ do I have to raise new party members? Should I just do a new game?¡± ¡°Damn this archer¡¯s useless now. His basic stats just can¡¯t keep up. Figures, never should have raised a human archer that can¡¯t use [Aura]. Fuck this guy, I¡¯ll sell all his items and dismiss him.¡± ¡°Again?! Ok, I¡¯m going to take this guy into the dungeon and murder him. Maybe I can recoup my losses.¡± The temptation was still there. As long as I lived¡­ as long as I survived¡­ it¡¯d be ok¡­ right? This feeling of despair, that the spark of fear that always lay within me spread like wildfire, feeding on all the worries that had been gnawing at me. All the times I¡¯d ignored Skaris asking for a Core, those memories fed my guilt like kindling. How I should¡¯ve prepared better, how I should¡¯ve been more careful, how I¡¯d suspected the other adventurers of betrayal but lost sight of the bigger goal: the safety of my companions. Ironically, this experience made me think of my time killing the [Ujo]. Only a single trash Core to my name and I still faced that nightmare fuel with nothing but a katana in my hand. Yet now I had 2 powerful cores, the [Unjo] and [Prince Charming] and had managed to screw up worse than ever before. My body had grown stronger¡­ but my mind had grown weak. Weighed down by thoughts of debt, gold, wealth and future plans¡­ I¡¯d been stronger as a slave that focused only on survival. I never killed [Ujo]. Not really. I¡¯d inflicted it with [Bleed] cuts until I could pit it against the other boss-monster that was in the room. Still¡­ I¡¯d defeated it. ¡­What was to say I couldn¡¯t defeat a Grade-8 boss monster? That was crazy though. Solo-ing boss monsters were near suicide. MSS was a party game. To solo a monster, I¡¯d have to be near completing my build. Even then the only builds that could solo monsters like that were DPS who would never get hit, or a Tank who could outlast the monster, trading hits for days. Or¡­ or Knights like me. Yeah. It was insane. So I waited. I waited and waited. Each agonizing hour, each unconscious cough Skaris gave in this feverish dreams¡­ I endured it all. Finally, everyone fell asleep. I left no tracks, getting further and further away from the safety of numbers, leaving my friends behind. Maybe I was insane after all.
The [Gi (Ùç)] was munching on something. When I got closer, I found what it was eating. The frozen pieces of Furgrin. It turned its head towards me, well-balanced despite having only one leg. Cocking it¡¯s head to the side, the Gi studied me. I raised my Katana, tucking my shield close to my body and directly in front of me. Could I do it? Was I strong enough? Did I know enough of its patterns? Were my equipments enough? I slowly erased the doubts one by one. ¡­Why was I doing this? It didn¡¯t matter why. I didn¡¯t want to be burdened by thoughts of gold, comrades and guilt. I erased that too. If the why didn¡¯t matter and either did my doubts, only one thing was left to ask myself. What should I do? Simple. Kill it. I dashed across the snow, not bothering to waste my mana on preliminarily activating [Aura] or even [Coin Toss]. I even erased the hope that was breathing in my heart, the hope that I might hit a [JAckpot]. I suffocated it till it died. No more RNG, no lucky encounters, nothing except my sword and shield existed. The Gi roared, blasting me with a facefull of wind and spittle; charging straight towards me in rabbit-like hops using its single leg. Fifty paces. Twenty paces. Before I could prepare myself the Gi swung its head side to side and unfurled its ear-wings at the same time. I skipped past the first swing, ducking underneath it and executing a dodge-roll so perfect that I felt its fur brush against my neck, almost tickling. The giant-stag monster stopped its swing and bayed, creating icicles above me and behind me while blocking me from the front, effectively surrounding me. The smart thing would have been to dodge to the side, in the space where the monster had left room open. A trap designed to bring me straight into its swinging head attacks. I backpedaled into the icicles and the moment one touched my back, I sprinted forward before it could pierce me. To an onlooker, it might have looked like I had been the one to summon the icicles but I knew better. One wrong step and I¡¯d be skewered; lung, stomach, shoulder, head¡­ any one of them could be lethal. But I¡¯d abandoned reason long ago; abandoning myself to the momentum of the fight I slammed my [Lunar Shield] into the Gi¡¯s forehead. The shield, shaped like a Crescent Moon, was wicked sharp, reminiscent of a talwar and left a long gash on the creature¡¯s forehead. Pirouetting, I slashed sideways, forwards and diagonally, gray aura fixed on my Katana. Blood began to fall, creating spots of ice where they fell. ¡°MUUUOOOOOOOOWWWUUUUH!¡± ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (1 / 8) ? ? [Lunar Shield] increases [Defense] ? The Gi stumbled back and I did the same, none of the icicles had pierced me but they didn¡¯t hurt the monster either. A natural defense to its own element, [Ice]. I readied myself for its next pattern, holding the [Lunar Shield] out in front of me. ¡°Come on.¡± 14 years. 14 fucking years of playing this game. I could solo it. I had to. The Gi¡¯s bull-charge slammed straight into the shield and I felt my ribs snap from the impact. ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (2 / 8) ? ? [Lunar Shield] increases [Attack] ? ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (3 / 8) ? ? [Lunar Shield] increases [Attack] ? If I hadn¡¯t angled my shield into the downwards into the ground; I would have been sent flying. However, distance was a weakness in my build. Apart from [Hateful Wound], I had nothing else that could hurt the monster if it chose to keep away. So I baited it into this charge and the moment we made contact, angled my shield downwards and slammed its face into the frozen battlefield. It had worked because the Gi lay on the floor, dazed. As my attack buffs flowed into me, my gray [Aura] sharpened even more; turning more like my jagged katana. I was cheating, using my [Attack] buffs to imitate later stages of [Aura] which I hadn¡¯t mastered yet. But I was a Player, and words like cheating held no meaning for someone whose friend was dying because of a poor choise he¡¯d made. For a split second, the Gi¡¯s eyes looked up at me. Innocent, full of life and something forever sensitive about them¡­ the look an animal gives you right before its slaughtered. A deer. A cow. A pig. I ignored it and plunged my sword into its eye. It screamed in pain and sent out a pulse of ice-elemental Aura so dense that the liquid in my eye instantly froze. I echoed the monster¡¯s scream as it felt like my eye was being stabbed all the way through by a needle so long that it was reaching the back and it continued to drill into the back of my head. Absently, I saw bits of frost beginning to cling to my boots and armor. From my blind-side, its wing slammed into me and sent me flying. The moment I landed, I sunk into the shadows and used [Shadow Blink], appearing immediately next to the monster¡¯s head. Stick close. Hit hard. Hit fast. Kill it with certainty. I slammed into it with my shield which was less of a crescent and more of a half-moon now, leaving three neat bleeding lines down its side with my katana. The Gi danced around; trying to stomp on me. My ears pounded and I tasted blood, dripping down my eye and into my lips. I blocked out the noise and taste, focusing on the feel of my Katana and my shield instead. ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (4 / 8) ? ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (5 / 8) ? ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (5 / 8) ? ? [Lunar Shield] increases [Defense] ? ? [Lunar Shield] increases [Defense] ? ? [Lunar Shield] increases [Defense] ? Each time the buffs stacked on me, I felt stronger. Sturdier. Immoveable. Finally, the shield was in the shape of a Full Moon. ? [Lunar Gauge] Threshold Met (8 / 8) ? The Gi cried out and stomped on me. The hit should¡¯ve flattened me to the ground and broken bones, leaving my lower half into nothing more than mulch. Fresh food for the monster to feast on. Instead, I lifted my shield and took the stomp straight on. Yes, I strained. Yes, I bent my legs and felt my bones creaking in protest. All that power had to go somewhere. But it failed to wound me. Nor did it hurt. My [Defense] was too high for that. You see, the Knight build is good because even if you build 100% tank, you still manage to do damage with [Aura]. Quite possibly, it might be the only build that you can take until late-game while playing Solo without a party. Except that I didn¡¯t build a Tank¡­ I¡¯d built a DPS character. The only reason I could take this attack head on were all the [Defense] buffs stacked on top of me plus the fact that the Gi was more of a Caster boss, who used its environment to its advantage. But like all caster-types, it had a critical weakness. Close-ranged combat. So I didn¡¯t dodge the strike, risking it all to block it just so I could stay close to it. Finally I activated the ability of the end-game gear on my arm. ?Lock casts [Tidal Force] ? I brought my shield arm down like yanking on the reins of an animal. The mana in [Lunar Shield] reacted to my target like a magnet, using the Moon¡¯s gravitational force to bright the Gi¡¯s head ¨Changing more than 10 feet above me¨C crashing down to the floor, snout first and bending roughly 90 degrees. Bone snapped and sharp teeth mixed with molars tumbled out of its mouth. [Tidal Force] was a pulling ability; with all the momentum of a 8-ton truck behind it. Now the real value of [Lunar Shield] was showing. Once the user used one of the Full-Moon abilities, either [Tidal Force] or [High Tide], the shield returned to its Crescent form. In the process the user lost all the buffs he had stacked¡­ in the form of debuffs to cancel them out. 8 debuffs stacked in a row as my [Arcane Masochism] exploded in an array of buffs. ? [Lunar Shield] decreases [Defense] ? ? [Lunar Shield] decreases [Defense] ? ? [Lunar Shield] decreases [Attack] ? ¡­ ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Lunar Shield] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack] ? ¡­ ? [Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed] ? [Attack], [Defense] and [Speed] came to me in equal amounts; the [Aura] on my sword growing larger and sharper ¨Calmost as big as me¨C losing its gray-ish color to turn true black; a black so dense that it seemed to absorb what little light remained in this maze. [Dazed], the Gi struggled to stand up. Shk! Shk! Two neat slices and its ears were amputated with surgical precision. Then staring straight into its eyes, I stabbed it through the chest; where I knew its heart beat from the rush of blood I could hear. Blood flowed like water. As its eyes went wide with pain, the monster gave a long moan. Another moment passed by, our eyes staring at one another, one full of fading life and the other with the ecstasy that came from the feeling of survival. The [Gi] turned to dust, leaving behind its Core and a Plurality. Chkkkkk Chkkk chik chik chii-chikkkk The Exit Portal opened up next to me and I knew it was finally over. The exit portal should¡¯ve opened up for the others as well. Stepping through the portal, I finally escaped this dungeon with the knowledge that I was leaving this Fracture with more power than I could have hoped for in my wildest dreams. But that knowledge was soon stifled by my eagerness to check on Skaris and Kyrian. I just hoped they''d believe me when I told them I had no idea how we got out of the Fracture.
Track had stalked Lock the moment the swordsman decided to leave. He could only guess where Lock was going. The man was soft and his eyes were full of nothing but sorrow for his companions. Self-blame, guilt and shame radiated in equal parts. Yes¡­ a weakling. Yet, there was something about the swordsman¡­ So Track decided to follow Lock, to help him kill the boss of this dungeon. If the [Aura] that Lock showed before wasn¡¯t a fluke¡­ then there was a chance that the two of them could kill it. Turned out that Lock didn¡¯t need help at all. The man fought like a pure block of swordsmanship. Flawless technique. Perfect execution and 0 hesitation in his movements, his step and each stroke of the sword like a master painter drawing on a clean canvas. If there ever was a textbook for how one should kill a monster¡­ Lock Slaveborn would fit the bill. So when the Exit Portal opened up next to him, Track didn¡¯t bother hesitating to hop in. Tracks Fade with Time, the best swordsman of his clan. Disciple of Brilliant Stones in River, the first disciple of Nearnigh the [Sword Saint]. Tracks Fade with Time¡­ the 2nd [Sword Saint in Training] exited the Fracture, eager to share with his master what he saw. Without a doubt, Lock Slaveborn was another Sword Saint candidate.
Chapter 71: Debt
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Lock sat in the Forge ¨Cthe dwarven word for their temple¨C of Smith, the dwarven god. Contrary to what one might expect, the temple itself wasn¡¯t a heat-filled building, filled with screeching metal and screaming hammers. The building Lock was in looked like a typical church, much like what one might find on earth. Pews arranged in neat lines, the building made out of large solid brick and an empty altar save for a podium where their Head Priest would hold service every ten days. The Real Forge belonged next door. After leaving the exit portal, Lock came face to face with his companions who were befuddled, confused by their lack of sleep plus the disorienting effects of traveling through the Fracture Portal. Trees and real dirt greeted them, not the cold embrace of the Twilight Maze. No one had any idea what happened to the boss or how they¡¯d escaped but those questions were tucked away for later. Lock took charge quickly, asking Eltis and Krag where their temples were. The dwarven temple that sat a little ways outside of Eretia was closer. So in the middle of the night, the eight survivors of the Fracture stumbled into the temple, seeking treatment for their wounded: Dibo and Skaris. Lock closed his eyes, leaning back against the pew and recalling the conversation. ¡°...5000 gold.¡± ¡°You just charged the elven mage 2000.¡± ¡°Yes¡­ but your friend is a beastman.¡± ¡°...What?!¡± ¡°Also the scars on his neck indicate that he was once a slave. If we find out-¡± Aurora and Kyrian held Lock back as he attempted to punch the racist-bigoted priest right there and then. In the end, Krag took care of the situation. He calmed Lock down and explained to him that it wasn¡¯t up to them. Depending on which race they healed inside the temple, it was either more difficult or less difficult. Lock had no idea but apparently the beastman and the dwarves had a war in the past called the [Singularity War]. They had fought over the remaining artifacts of [Mushin] and the [Blacksmith]. The artifact in question was a gift to [Mushin], the beastman hero, from the [Blacksmith]. But those tales were long lost to legends and no one had any idea what the exact deal was. The dwarves claimed that it was a loan to [Mushin], that they had rightful ownership of it since the hero was long dead. The beastman claimed otherwise. Lock could care less. All he cared about was Skaris recovering. ¡°...the frost has reached his brain. It will be more difficult-¡± ¡°If you¡¯re trying to shake me down for gold, don¡¯t bother. I¡¯ll pay whatever gold you ask for. So just heal. My. friend.¡± Lock opened his eyes as the last bits of their conversation from three hours ago passed through his mind like an old photograph. Sighing, Lock spun the Dimension Ring around his finger, the Lunar Shield safely tucked away. He did not want to give the dwarves any reason to set their beady little eyes on the Plurality. Lock was sure they¡¯d try their best to get their grubby mitts on it. Footsteps followed by a creak from the wood as someone sat behind him alerted Lock. Lock sniffed, getting a faint hint of the person¡¯s scent. Sandalwood, medicinal alcohol and blood, mixed with the faint smell of intoxicating mana. Dibo. ¡°You¡¯re all healed.¡± Lock didn¡¯t bother turning around to check. He trusted his nose. ¡°Yes. Thanks to you.¡± Dibo¡¯s voice was raspy, a byproduct of torture at Baran¡¯s hands. ¡°I hear that your friend is still being healed.¡± Lock nodded without answering. ¡°Even an hour later and he would be dead. Or live as a cripple his entire life.¡± Dibo paused, then continued. ¡°Whoever killed the boss¡­ saved him.¡± ¡°Was it you?¡± ¡°No. It wasn¡¯t me.¡± Lock lied. He had no intention of telling the others that he had solo-killed the boss. Oh sure, some might suspect¡­ but without definitive proof ¨Cand Lock was sure that no one had seen him¨C no one could be 100% sure. Lock¡¯s reasoning was simple. Through this Fracture he had learned first hand just how dangerous it was to be an adventurer. Monsters notwithstanding, betrayal by other adventurers and sheer incompetence of it all had forced the entire raid party into life-or-death situations too many times. Looking back, those situations could have all been avoided with careful planning or simple trust. Being identified as strong would attract the wrong type of people. People who¡¯d just use him and then leave him at the first sign of danger. Or worse yet, leave a dagger in his back. This raid ended without a direct form of betrayal but Lock still considered what Baran did a traitorous act. The elven archer and his sister ¨CSarai¨C had left them for dead. Lock¡¯s had a load of things to do now that he was free and surrounding himself with people that he could trust was first on the list. So that brought up the question: Could Lock trust Dibo? Lock¡¯s instincts answered yes. As long as the relationship remained mutually beneficial that was. ¡°I hope you remember our deal.¡± Lock stated. ¡°Of course I do. That¡¯s why I¡¯m here.¡± Dibo patted Lock on the shoulder. ¡°I wanted to make sure you remember and that you are still who I believed you are.¡± ¡°And who am I supposed to be?¡± Lock glanced over his shoulder at the elderly mage. ¡°My Dream.¡± Dibo smiled, showing teeth. Lock casually ignored his remark. ¡°When will you answer my questions?¡± Stolen story; please report. ¡°Come look for me at the Mage Tower in Eretia after you are done with everything. I will answer all your questions then.¡± He paused on his way out, leaving me with one final word. ¡°Feel free to bring your mage friend.¡± Lock smiled as Dibo¡¯s footsteps faded. If Dibo wanted him to bring Kyrian¡­ he was going to help the younger mage get his 4th Mana Core. It wasn''t a part of their deal nor was it something that Lock bothered to mention. Dibo already knew that Kyrian needed one. The fact that Dibo was willing to help meant that he wanted to develop the relationship beyond their bet. Into something resembling- ¡°Business Partners.¡± Lock surmised. ¡°Lock!¡± ¡°Speak of the Devil.¡± Lock turned around to face the mage in question. Kyrian was sweating through the patient¡¯s robes which the priests had donned him in. He must have sprinted all the way here. ¡°Skaris is awake.¡± Kyrian led Lock through the Church¡¯s worship area and to the patient room. ¡°Have you spoken to him yet?¡± ¡°No. One of the other priests just informed me.¡± Kyrian answered. The mage navigated the church corridors without hesitation. Lock on the other hand, hesitated. Kyrian turned around. ¡°Lock?¡± Lock opened his mouth to talk but no words came out at first. Why did he stop? He couldn¡¯t put a finger on what he was feeling. Before it had been just worry but now¡­ Now he was afraid. ¡°Kyrian.¡± Lock leaned against a wall. ¡°Maybe¡­ maybe you should see him first.¡± Kyrian understood why immediately. Perhaps it was because Kyrian had grown up in a home where he had to be good at reading people, figuring out whether they were his friend or enemy. Or perhaps it could be attributed to his time with the Akka Xaluds, learning the moods of the Scions before they lashed out at someone. Or it could even be his time spent as an adventurer, as short as it was, he was still more experienced than Lock or even Skaris. Or perhaps¡­ perhaps it was because Kyrian was their friend and knew them better than they knew each other. ¡°He doesn¡¯t blame you, Lock.¡± Kyrian whispered. ¡°I almost got him killed.¡± Lock muttered. ¡°Not just that Kyrian¡­ I¡­ I didn¡¯t make the right decision.¡± ¡°A right decision that would have left Skaris for dead.¡± Kyrian argued. ¡°That¡¯s the problem. I disrespected him. His people¡­ Skaris himself. He came into this Fracture willingly, knowing that it might end in death. Yet I just¡­ I just trampled all over that.¡± Kyrian waited a moment. ¡°Do you regret it?¡± ¡°No. I¡¯d do it again.¡± He answered without hesitation. ¡°Just tell him sorry then. You know how he is. He won¡¯t hold a grudge.¡± Kyrian shook his head. ¡°I am not familiar with Beastman Culture as well as you, Lock. But most people are thankful when someone saves their life.¡± Lock sighed. ¡°I hope you''re right." Continuing on their way, they reached the healing wing. A dwarven priest was coming out of Skaris¡¯ room, cleaning his hands on a wet cloth. Without greeting them the dwarven priest pushed past them, trying to leave. ¡°Wait!¡± The priest stopped. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°...Are you the one who healed our friend?¡± Lock asked. The dwarf grimaced. ¡°If yer asking if I¡¯m the one who had to soil his hands stitching together a beastm-¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Lock interrupted before the dwarf could finish. The priest eyed him. ¡°Hmph. He¡¯s awake and well but needs a good night¡¯s sleep. Getting your nether regions frozen off ain¡¯t something the mind forgets.¡± Without waiting for a reply, the dwarf left. ¡°Pay him no mind, Lock.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°The clergy seems to attract¡­ a certain type.¡± ¡°Either hungry for gold or full of hate for other races.¡± Lock finished. ¡°I know. Still¡­ I wanted to thank him nonetheless. He saved Skaris¡¯ life.¡± ¡°That he did.¡± Without further ado, the two entered Skaris room. The room was a plain block of stone, reminiscent of orcish design. But there was a difference that was clear as night and day: the craftsmanship. True to their reputation as master craftsman, every surface had been carved down smooth and the room had an immaculate quality about. Not a single speck of dust, not a corner out of place and not a single angle too big or too small. Skaris was lying in bed. ¡°Skaris. How are you feeling.¡± Lock sat down in a chair next to the bed. ¡°Alive.¡± The red-scaled warrior responded. The sound of Skaris¡¯ voice dropped all the weight, guilt and shame that Lock had been carrying. The burden that came with being responsible for the death of a comrade had been hanging over him, like a rock tied to his ankles, drowning him in an ocean of self-blame and hatred. But hearing Skaris talk, seeing him move and seeing the lizard warrior well again was enough to drop everything. ¡°Oh. Good.¡± ¡°Do you need anything? Soup? Water? Anything at all?¡± ¡°Sssssake. And a woman.¡± Skaris leaned back, closing his eyes. ¡°Glad to see you''re back to your usual self.¡± Kyrian commented dryly. Lock cleared his throat. ¡°Skaris, I wanted to say-¡± ¡°Twicssse now.¡± ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°I owe you my life twicsssse now, Ssslaveborn.¡¯ Skaris finished, opening one eye slyly. ¡°You are determined to keep me in debt.¡± It was just as Kyrian had said. It was a strange feeling. Lock, ¨Cno, Han¨C had never been a social person. He had too much trauma for that. The betrayal his parents experienced from their business partners had left wounds in the young boy¡¯s heart. His father¡¯s insistence on continuing to send him to private school full of other wealthy kids looked good for Han¡¯s academics, but there is nothing as cruel as children when it came down to it. Name calling, ostracization, whispers behind his back and the inevitable letdowns¡­ Han was used to it. So he spent the years, never opening his heart to anyone. Perhaps that was the reason why his one chance at love ended in heart break. But here and now, in this moment when his friend who almost died played it off as a joke¡­ Something broke inside of Han today. Something big. Something solid. Something that had been a part of him for a long time. The word comrade didn¡¯t do justice for what Lock felt. But he didn¡¯t dare admit it to himself. He couldn¡¯t. The word [Player] echoed in his mind. That he wasn¡¯t one of them. That he didn¡¯t belong here. That¡­ Eventually he¡¯d have to go home. So Lock schooled his face and his heart before it could become something more than just comrades. Before he could admit to Kyrian and Skaris, that they were more than comrades, that they were brothers that he¡¯d risk his life for ¨Ccontrary to his actions in the Fracture¨C Lock stuffed it into his mind where all his happy and precious memories were and kept it there. What he had learned about himself in the Fracture was still true. He was weaker now than he was before. When he had no comrades he had been stronger, mentally, willing to do everything to survive. Sharper. Leaner. Meaner. Stronger. More Powerful. And he had to be strong. With monsters. With deceitful adventurers. With businessmen and merchants trying to sell them off. With Scions of the Turina Empire running amok. Lock had to be stronger than anyone if he wanted to protect his comrades. It was ironic¡­ that in order to protect his comrades whom he held more dear than most, he had to keep them at a distance. He could not let them get too close. The loneliness would make him stronger. So that when it came time when his comrades were in danger once more¡­ he¡¯d be ready. ¡°Good.¡± Lock smirked, playing along with Skaris¡¯ humor; both of them too uncomfortable with admitting the silent friendship that had been tested. ¡°Since you worked hard¡­ I¡¯m sure we can scrounge up a Core or two for you.¡± ¡°Finally. It issss about time.¡± Skaris closed his eyes again, pulling the blanket over himself. Without another word, the warrior fell asleep. Lock found Kyrian staring at him. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You two are impossible.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°The others are waiting.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Lock stood up and the two changed locations again, walking down the hallways. They were careful not to bump into any of the candles or steel ornaments. Just from a glance, they could tell that everything here was the work of a master smith. One wrong step and they¡¯d lose their winnings from the Fracture. The two found themselves inside a large room. There was a couch on one end, Track was lounging on it. Next to the couch was a coffee table and settled around it were the participants of the raid. Dibo. Krag. Aurora. Eltis. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora greeted. ¡°We were waiting for you.¡± ¡°We had to visit Skaris.¡± Lock took a seat around the coffee table, a bit cramped for the seven of them. Kyrian sat down on the other end of the couch; Track didn¡¯t bother correcting his posture. ¡°Has he recovered?¡± Eltis asked. ¡°Yes. We¡¯ll take him home tomorrow.¡± Lock briefly wondered if taking Skaris back to the slums would cause him to get an infection or something ¡°One thing at a time.¡± Track cleared his throat. ¡°Let¡¯s get on with this. At this point, it¡¯s just formalities anyways.¡± He eyed Krag. ¡°Our dear dwarven priest over there got chewed out for bringing so many animals into their sacred Forge.¡± Krag turned red. ¡°Lad, I tried my-¡± ¡°Krag.¡± Lock¡¯s voice halted the argument before it began. He tilted his head in a deep bow. ¡°Thank you. Truly.¡± ¡°I know it couldn¡¯t have been easy for you to let Skaris into your temple. I know how much you stand to lose here just by bringing us here. But a life was at stake and you saved it. So truly¡­ I thank you.¡± Lock meant it too. Except for Krag¡¯s surly attitude or his greed¡­ he was alright. Krag turned redder, though for a different reason. ¡°I didn¡¯t do it for- ah by the forge! Let¡¯s just get on with it!¡± Then one by one, they brought out their loot from the Dungeon. ¡°If everyone does not mind, I¡¯d like to take a closer look at everything.¡± Aurora started inspecting the items and Cores one by one. After a while she looked at me. ¡°Mr. Lock. Your shield and the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] as well.¡± ¡°Damn. I was hoping she¡¯d forget about that.¡± Sighing, Lock brought out the [Lunar Shield] and [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina]. After looking everything over, Aurora nodded. ¡°The total cost for everything should come out to about 239,000 gold.¡± There was a small gasp from Krag, looking like he was about to keel over and die. ¡°That¡¯s not counting the Fracture Splinter, since that has been agreed to be given to Mr. Lock to be transferred to Mr. Pointell.¡± ¡°He¡¯s also laying claim to the Shield, a Plurality, and the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°I did not account for the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] since it should be split five ways, between Ms. Eltis, Mr. Lock, Mr. Skaris, Mr. Kyrian-¡± ¡°Yeah yeah.¡± Track muttered. ¡°So we easy roughly get what? 30,000 gold?¡± ¡°29,875 gold to be exact.¡± Aurora surmised. ¡°Except for Mr. Lock who will have to pay us for our share of the shield.¡± ¡°...How much is that?¡± Lock whispered. He already owed 15,000 to Yousef. He wasn¡¯t counting the debt to Marc Pointell anymore, since he brought the Fracture Splinter back, the debt would be waved. ¡°Your [Lunar Shield] is approximately 176,000 gold¡­ though I¡¯m estimating it based on another Shield-type Plurality I¡¯ve seen come up in the auction place. You will have to pay each of us 22,000 gold.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± ¡°154,000 gold.¡± ¡°Wait, wait, wait.¡± Lock shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to accuse you Aurora¡­ but how do I know what you¡¯re saying is true? You¡¯re not a merchant-¡± ¡°I have an Authenticator license. Validated by both the Guild and the Merchant¡¯s Association.¡± She answered smartly. Lock chewed on his lips. That meant¡­ Instead of entering the Fracture and coming out debt free, Lock was now 169,000 gold in debt. Deeper than ever before. To Yousef, to Aurora, to Krag and even to his own friends. ¡°29,875 gold, huh¡­ I¡¯ve been eyeing a new staff.¡± Kyrian said absently, staring off into space. ¡°You¡¯re going to make me pay?!¡± Lock snapped. Kyrian shrugged, smiling mischievously. ¡°I could use a nice new staff and robe.¡± If Lock didn''t catch the playful glint in the Mage''s eye, he would have thought Kyrian was being serious. Still, less than an hour after having made his oath to keep his friendship with Kyrian and Skaris at a distance, Lock wondered if it was worth calling them friends to get a ¡®friendship¡¯ discount.
Chapter 72: Errands (1)
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After everyone left, Aurora remained behind having asked Kyrian and I if the three of us could talk in private. ¡°If you need help selling off the loot to the guild or other merchants for a better price, I¡¯d be more than happy to go with you.¡± Kyrian offered. Aurora ¨Cwith her Auctioneer¡¯s license¨C had volunteered to go sell off the loot. Normally, two members would go together to make sure no one was skimming off the top. But Aurora¡¯s personality was such that no one dare doubted her. ¡°No. That will be unnecessary. I will make sure to sell off the items then deposit them into your Guild Accounts.¡± ¡°Rather than that, I have two propositions for you.¡± She stopped for a second, taking a deep breath like she was composing herself. ¡°I¡¯d like to be a part of your next raid. And the next one after that.¡± I perked up immediately. Recruiting Aurora was a goal and something I had wanted to bring up. If she brought it up herself that meant- She held up her hand as if she could read my mind. ¡°Not on a permanent basis. But¡­ a trial of sorts.¡± Huh. Not what I wanted but better than nothing. ¡°What were you thinking?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to accompany your party for a total of three raids. One of them being a field raid.¡± ¡°And afterwards?...¡± ¡°Afterwards¡­¡± She trailed off. ¡°We¡¯ll talk.¡± Hmm. Interesting. The way Aurora was speaking, it didn¡¯t sound like she was giving our party a trial run, to see if we were a good match. Rather, it looked like she was testing our abilities. The only reason why she would do that was- ¡°...Are you trying to hire us for a raid down the line?¡± I asked, though I already knew the answer. She paused, stared at me for a few seconds then nodded slowly. ¡°Yes.¡± That made sense. I wasn¡¯t being too full of myself in saying this but from this Fracture I saw clearly that Kyrian, Skaris and I¡­ we were a cut above the rest. My party was strong. ¡°What is the second thing you wished to speak of?¡± Kyrian asked. ¡°The second matter is more personal.¡± She looked straight at me. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Will you teach me [Aura]?¡± "...I-"
Three days passed since we left the Fracture. With Skaris making a full recovery, we were back in the Slums. The smell of garbage, muffled coughs and distant screams greeted us home. If there was a bright side to coming back to this dump, it was seeing how much progress the former slaves and the orcs had made in building shelters. I saw shoddily shacks made from thin metal sheets, much better than the den made of random garbage assortments. Some orcs were bringing in hulking logs of lumber, carrying it on one shoulder, paid for through their own adventures. Somehow, I felt melancholy seeing all this. Back in the real world, I always skipped cutscenes. Wanting to get to the next raid, find the next Core or equip the better Plurality. But seeing this¡­ it was strange. These people had lost everything and here they were, building something new. They didn¡¯t know what would happen tomorrow or the day after, yet they struggled and built. They fought and laughed, they danced and ate. For the first time, I became interested in the story of these orcs beyond the fact that they were refugees. I watched a few orcs training, shirtless in the few hours of sunlight we had under the humongous cliff that overcast the Slums. In particular, I saw two orcs sparring though not in any style that I had ever seen. They took turns making moves, each move composed of a single step and an arm movement. Once one orc finished his turn, the other took his turn in response. Compared to the blood rushing rhythm of battle I had grown accustomed to, this was new¡­ and reminded me a bit of Arrosh¡¯s first exercise: standing perfectly still for hours on end. This new sparring method was similar, if you finished your move by preparing an overhead slash, you were stuck in that position until your opponent made their next move. Arms over your head, carrying a hunk of metal ¨Cno matter how light it might be to an orc¨C keeping perfectly still. ¡°Fun?¡± I turned around, seeing Jak¡¯tur. He was the new defacto leader of the orcs and strangely had adopted an attitude of deference towards me. Nodding, I pointed at their feet. ¡°The steps. It¡¯s in the steps. You win when you catch your opponent out of position with more than two to three possible ways to land a lethal blow. The challenge is in trying to keep your opponent from catching you unaware while staying ahead of him enough to get him to expose his.¡± I frowned. ¡°It looks hard.¡± Noticing that he wasn¡¯t replying, I turned to see what the orc was doing. He was just staring at me. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I begin to understand.¡± Jak¡¯tur muttered. ¡°Many takes years to learn the way of Sah¡¯goaii¡¯. The Slow Dance. Yet you learn it with just a glance.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been watching for awhile. They do it everyday.¡± ¡°Perhaps you should join us.¡± Jak¡¯tur offered. I lifted an eyebrow. ¡°You¡¯d let a human join in on Berserker Training?¡± Jak¡¯tur nodded slowly. I lifted a hand to brush him off, then stopped. Didn¡¯t I tell myself just minutes ago that I was curious about their story? Their lives? Their culture? Well, shyness wasn¡¯t going to help me here. ¡°Why?¡± I asked. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Why not.¡± Jak¡¯tur shrugged his massive shoulders. ¡°You are our savior.¡± At his answer, I felt something dark emerge that had been following me since the Samak Desert. Guilt. It was something that needed to be addressed, for my own sanity and to correct the orc''s misguided faith in me. Yes, I was helping them; no one could doubt that or take that away from me. But Savior? Leader? That was something else altogether. ¡°Jak¡¯tur.¡± I felt my lips stretch thin. ¡°I am not your people¡¯s savior.¡± ¡°You chased the mage away. Avenged my Sire.¡± Sire? That meant... "He was your dad?" ¡°Yes.¡± Jak¡¯tur took a seat on the floor and sensing that our talk was going to be prolonged, I took a seat as well. ¡°The one who shielded the rest from the Mage. He was my father.¡± ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Why you sorry?¡± ¡°What¡¯re you two talking about?¡± Kyrian came over, carrying a bunch of scrolls under one arm. Ever since I had told him that he would be receiving his fourth mana core soon, he had begun to study. ¡°Welcome Mage.¡± Jak¡¯tur greeted. ¡°Jak¡¯tur.¡± Kyrian replied. ¡°Am I intruding?¡± ¡°I tell story of my Sire. How he died and Lock Slaveborn avenged him.¡± Kyrian¡¯s eyes widened in surprise as well, then sorrow immediately after. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m sorry.¡± The mage said solemnly. No doubt that Kyrian was thinking of his own loss. I felt extremely uncomfortable here. ¡°Why sorry? Slaveborn say the same thing.¡± ¡°Because, Jak¡¯tur¡­ the death of a loved one is a sad thing.¡± Kyrian¡¯s eyes were soft, even softer than when he spoke of his own mother. You see, when we get hurt¡­ it leaves something inside of us. We all have something that hurts, no matter how much time passes. For me, it was Clover and L¡¯teya. For Kyrian, it was his mother, though I was sure his pain overshadowed mine. Often times, we bury it; we bury it so deep that it doesn¡¯t hinder our everyday lives. That we can go on living without hurting. But once in awhile, someone comes along with the same hurt. With the same pain. And we are once again, reminded of our loss. Kyrian was in pain while speaking to Jak¡¯tur. Yet, the orc showed no sign of it. ¡°But I do not feel sad.¡± ¡°What? What do you mean you don¡¯t feel sad?¡± I saw the young mage frown, not understanding. ¡°It is true. I do not feel sad when I think of my Sire.¡± ¡°How?...?¡± Kyrian didn¡¯t finish his sentence. ¡°Is it because¡­ he died protecting your people?¡± I ventured a guess, speaking carefully. Perhaps the orcs concept of honor made Jak¡¯tur¡¯s father¡¯s death more bearable. ¡°No. Because when I think of my Sire, I only remember good memories.¡± Jak¡¯tur smiled and his blue eyes twinkled in such a way that he looked like a kid again. ¡°When I think of my Sire, I think of the time he taught me to hold a sword for the first time. I think of the time he carried me around on his shoulders when I got my first [Totem] paint, despite me being a grown man. I remember that he loved my mother, more than earth, sky and stars.¡± ¡°So I do not feel sad when I think of my Sire. I feel happy, knowing that he loved me. That he wanted whats best for me. That he would be proud of me. That he would be proud of this.¡± He gestured at the small village that the orcs were building for themselves in the Slums. Jak¡¯tur¡­ was right. Kids were running around, smiling. Tired warriors after training shared stories and laughed, slapping each other on their backs. Proper buildings were being built. He would have been proud of Jak¡¯tur. But now wasn¡¯t the time for me to speak. This was Kyrian and Jak''tur''s story. So I watched... and listened. ¡°So when you think of your father¡­ you don¡¯t feel sad? Or angry? But you just thanked Lock for getting revenge.¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice was¡­ darker. Rougher. ¡°So what will you do when you see that Mage again? Will you just let him be?¡± ¡°No. I will avenge my Sire, as is my Right.¡± Jak¡¯tur shook his head. ¡°But I cannot live only for revenge¡­ my Sire would not want that. If I live for revenge¡­ I worry I ruin my happy memories with my Sire.¡± ¡°Revenge would not be for my Sire¡­ it would be for myself. Selfish.¡± Jak¡¯tur finished. ¡°I want my Sire to continue to be proud of me. So I must be happy¡­ because I loved my Sire.¡± Kyrian rocked back like he got slapped. ¡°I¡­ I need to finish this, this thing. Excuse me.¡± Kyrian walked past us. I stared after the Mage¡¯s back and for the first time, I saw how Kyrian had been managed to be hired by the Akka Xaluds. That ''something'' which had once made Kyrian a mage who hunted slaves, and that ''something'' which had been festering this entire time after his mother''s death. I''m ashamed to say I looked away, unwilling to think deeper. ¡°I say something wrong?¡± Jak¡¯tur asked. ¡°No¡­ you didn¡¯t say anything wrong at all.¡± I answered honestly, my voice taking on a wistful tone at the end. ¡°If anything¡­ I think you said all the right things.¡±
A few hours later, Skaris and I left for the Guild Hall to talk with Marc Pointell. The guildmaster had sent a messenger boy into the Slums ¨Cbless the poor boy¡¯s nose, it might never be the same ever again¨C to arrange a meeting with us. Technically, the letter said we were to talk with him tomorrow but there was no point in pushing it off. I needed cash¡­ and I needed cash fast. Which meant that the second plurality in my Dimension Ring had to be sold off, which I had picked up after killing the boss. Hopefully, it would be enough to pay off my debts to the others. With the leftover money, I¡¯d be able to level up Skaris and Kyrian a bit. ¡°If Skaris can get a Core and hit Stage 2 in [Evolution], while Kyrian gets his 4th Mana Core¡­ should we try tackling a dungeon with a Grade-5 boss? Aurora said she wanted to come with us too.¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn.¡± Skaris stopped in his tracks, his eyes fixed on a cart selling small pieces of meat wrapped in a bun. We didn¡¯t need to talk further, immediately we changed directions to the cart and bought us two servings each. ¡°Why did Kyrian not come with ussss?¡± Skaris asked between mouthfuls of food. ¡°He¡¯s busy. Getting ready for his Mana Core. He¡¯s probably studying which Mana Core is best for him.¡± I peered at Skaris. ¡°Speaking of¡­ We should stop by the Beastman Village. I was thinking you should spend your share of the loot on getting [Evolution]. What do you think?¡± Skaris stared at me. Damn. Maybe I crossed a line. Racial Traits were supposed to be a very private affair. For the orcs and beastman, unlocking their racial traits was almost a religious process rather than a battle-oriented process. It signaled a coming of age, a recognition of one¡¯s abilities. ¡°It¡¯s just a suggestion of course, you don¡¯t have to-¡± ¡°I will get the [Evolution].¡± Skaris answered, popping the last piece into his mouth and chewing thoughtfully. ¡°I would assssk ssssomething of you, Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Did you sssslay the sssecond Gi?¡± The lizard warrior stopped in his tracks, turning to face me. ¡°Did you kill it by yourssself?¡± When I didn¡¯t answer immediately, Skaris waited. ¡°Yes.¡± I said finally. ¡°Why did you lie to the otherssss?¡± ¡°I was going to tell you and Kyrian¡­ eventually.¡± I sighed, starting to walk again. Skaris synced his steps to mine. ¡°But I couldn¡¯t find a moment. Too many ears listening.¡± Skaris grunted. ¡°I do not understand.¡± ¡°Skaris¡­ Our experience in the Fracture was unnatural. A six-man party basically imploded, killing each other. Only Baran and his sister got out alive. I did some asking around and Ramhof wasn¡¯t a pushover either, yet he died without even being able to do a thing. Then there was a second [Gi]... which split us up even more. Then Baran went ahead and stripped Dibo of all his mana potions leaving the rest of us for dead.¡± I spoke fast and quiet, though if there was anywhere to have a conversation like this, a crowded market square might not be the worst. ¡°What does that tell you?¡± ¡°Sssabotage.¡± Skaris was a warrior, always straight-forward and direct in his manners. However that caused a lot of people to underestimate him. Aurora almost never spoke to Skaris about anything strategic and Eltis never really spoke to Skaris at all. It could be due to the fact that he was a Lizard Beastman¡­ a tribe of beastman that was considered almost as savage as the orcs. But it was probably a combination of both, Skaris¡¯ natural personality feeding into the stereotype that lizard beastmen were uncouth and dumb, not knowing how to do anything except fight. But I knew better. Skaris wasn¡¯t dumb, if anything he was smart because he got straight to the point. An uncanny ability to observe, cut out anything unnecessary and get straight to the heart of the matter. ¡°Sssomeone wanted usss to fail.¡± ¡°Yes. Exactly. The fact that Baran had an item to get him out of the Fracture is proof of that.¡± ¡°Why did you not ssshare with the othersss?¡± I stared at him. ¡°You do not know who to trussst.¡± He said faintly then sighed. ¡°I wasss hoping that all the nonsssense would be gone after we essscaped the Fracture.¡± ¡°It could be. It could have been something aimed towards Marc Pointell or Baran could have been acting on his own.¡± I tapped my nose, seeing the Guild Hall in the distance. ¡°But with our luck? I think someone was out to get us. I think someone wanted to leave us for dead in that Dungeon.¡± I kicked a stray pebble. "They might be traitors themselves... or leaking information to someone without even knowing." ¡°It musssst be Baran.¡± ¡°Of course... And someone else. Maybe two more.¡± ¡°Two more?¡± Skaris hissed. ¡°Think about it, Skaris. Why would Baran leave when he could have waited for us all to die while trying to challenge the boss one more time and take all our stuff? We were carrying a fortune.¡± ¡°Then he would have no way to leave.¡± ¡°Exactly. That¡¯s why I think he stayed¡­ and had at least one other traitor planted in our midst. Someone to keep an eye on us. Someone to encourage us to challenge the boss when we were at our weakest. Someone who could help Baran finish us off and still kill the boss after.¡± Skaris and I ducked into an alleyway. The conversation sent feelings up and down in my stomach, both nervousness and fear. ¡°Was it Dibo?¡± ¡°...Maybe. I doubt it.¡± ¡°But Baran killed all excssssept for him.¡± ¡°Point taken.¡± I folded my arms, leaning on the building. ¡°He could have tortured Dibo but left him alive, to ward off suspicion. We also never got to check inside his Dimension Ring so he could have been hiding Mana potions. I also find it hard to believe Baran and Sarai could cripple Dibo.¡± ¡°But the others are all suspicious too. Krag, Track, Eltis. Krag¡¯s interaction with Baran¡­ I had thought it was out of some kind of priestly quality. Some kind of virtue but maybe it was an act.¡± ¡°That priesssst only ssseesss gold.¡± Skaris commented dryly. ¡°The Elven Priessstesss¡­ I did not like her.¡± ¡°Eltis? Neither did I.¡± ¡°You kept trying to look down her sssshirt.¡± Heat rose to my cheeks. ¡°She isn¡¯t completely off the list.¡± Skaris snorted. ¡°What about Track?¡± ¡°Neither is he.¡± Skaris threw his hands in the air, exasperated. ¡°Sssso we ssusspect everyone and trussst no one?¡± ¡°We can trust Aurora.¡± ¡°You ssssay that becaussse she isssss pretty.¡± Skaris narrowed his eyes at me. ¡°Sssslaveborn. You have few weaknessesssss but women are one of them. We need to get you a proper mate and then-¡± ¡°She could have let Kyrian die multiple times. But she protected him and Eltis too. If she was working with Baran, it would have been too easy for her to let someone die and blame it on incompetence or just bad luck.¡± One of the reasons why Tanks were so important in MSS: They were responsible for the lives of their party members. In Fractures, I¡¯d say DPS was the most important class. After all, if you can¡¯t do enough damage, you can¡¯t escape the Fracture. However out in the field? A tank could protect the party when they were attacking as well as during a retreat. I¡¯d personally say 4 times out of 5, a tank was the most important class to fulfill in a party. ¡°Fine.¡± Skaris relented. ¡°What do you sssuggesst we do?¡± ¡°Well, there is one other person who had something to do with us entering the Fracture but we didn¡¯t name.¡± The scaled warrior¡¯s eyes went across the street to the Guild Hall. ¡°The Necromancssser.¡± I wasn''t completely sold on the fact that Marc Pointell was a Necromancer just yet but didn''t bother correcting the warrior. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s go ask him some questions.¡±
Chapter 73: Errands (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
When we entered the bar-like room that served as the Guild¡¯s reception area, all the talking died out. Elves froze in the midst of raising a glass of wine to their lips and beastman around us actually let out a few growls; somewhere between appreciation, respect and wariness. Others had the same reaction; the room beginning to fill up with whispers as Skaris and I walked past them and us trying our best to ignore it. ¡°Is that him? The one who was part of the Fracture Raid?¡± ¡°3-man party¡­ that must be the Deepeater next to the human. I''ve heard of him.¡± One of the beastman said in a low growl, my hearing picking up what was meant only for his companion. ¡°Is it true he lives in the Slums?¡± ¡°Heard that Vetilian might join his party.¡± ¡°The bastard? Aurora Candrian Vetilian?¡± ¡°Really? Then perhaps the other rumor is true.¡± A dwarf whispered to his human companion. ¡°Heard he uses [Aura].¡± A few people¡¯s breath stopped in their throats and all their gazes were fixed on me, like I was a zebra walking through lion territory. From that reaction alone, I could tell which adventurers here had a [Hearing] stat high enough to hear the last remark. ¡°Damn it. I wanted to keep the news about [Aura] a secret a little bit longer.¡± I had known it would be wishful thinking though. There were no such things as a well-kept secret among adventurers. ¡°Eltis could have told some of her Clergy as was her responsibility¡­ Then they told the others. Not like Track or Krag has any obligation to keep it a secret either¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯re famoussss.¡± Skaris remarked, his eyes exciting. ¡°Didn¡¯t think you were the type to enjoy attention.¡± ¡°Usssually not.¡± He turned to me, his eyes surging with pride. ¡°But it isss better than being looked down upon.¡± He was talking about the time we first walked into this building, smelling like the Slums. Now, no one cared about the smell. Skaris must¡¯ve been holding a grudge¡­ and the change in attitude towards us was something I could grow used to if it meant random mob characters weren¡¯t going to pick fights with me based on appearances alone. I remembered the human woman waiting for us at the counter, the one with the black hair neatly combed over. She gave a small bow, her hands gathered in front of us. ¡°Guild Master Pointell is waiting for you upstairs.¡± This time, she didn¡¯t leave us to climb the stairs alone. She led us, asking us if we needed anything to drink or eat. Of course, we denied both. We didn¡¯t have any intention to stay here a long time. It wasn¡¯t like we had any negative feelings towards Marc Pointell. Sure, he sent us into a 15-man Fracture where 10 members were from a different city, all to fight over an item that a boss might or might not drop. It also wasn¡¯t like he warned us ahead of time that someone might be deliberately working against us besides the politics that were already involved; namely my suspicions about Baran belonging to a third player all together. Lastly, it wasn¡¯t like he gave us only 2000 gold to equip ourselves. None of those mattered. What mattered was whether he would keep his word about giving us the reward or not. If he tried to talk himself out of it in anyway¡­ well¡­ I had two Pluralities hanging out in my Dimension Ring plus the Fracture Splinter he asked for. I could walk away anytime and pawn these off in the Black Market. It was about time I started making connections down there anyways. ¡°By the way, I never got to introduce myself.¡± The woman told us as we reached the door. ¡°My name is Lee Thurward.¡± Skaris scoffed at her. I raised an eyebrow. She had her chance to introduce herself to us before¡­ and chose not to. Now that we were back safely from a Fracture having completed a mission no one else had wanted to pick up or been competent enough to do so¡­ well, I guess you could never have too much friends, especially if you were working for the Adventurer¡¯s Guild. I gestured to the door. ¡°I don¡¯t want to keep the Guildmaster waiting.¡± If me ignoring her annoyed her in any way, she didn¡¯t show it on her face. Figures that working a customer service job would give her thick skin. The woman ¨CLee, a common-enough name in MSS¨C opened the door for us and we marched in. Marc Pointell was sitting on the couch, same as before. Plain in every way, blending with his room seamlessly. His dull brown eyes looked at us when the door opened, gesturing to the couch in front of him. I sat down, crossing my legs. Skaris sat on the other end of the same couch. I sniffed out of habit, picking up nothing from him except a roiling-cold feeling; like I was someplace underground. For a few minutes, no one spoke. Marc continued to pour tea, the only sound in this drab room. Finally, once he finished pouring everyone¡¯s cups, he leaned back and crossed his legs, smiling. ¡°You¡¯re alive, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°I am.¡± My voice was flat, without any intonation. ¡°Tell me what you know about Baran Benepir and his sister, Sarai Benepir. Elven Archer and Elven Mage.¡± Call me master of subterfuge and politeness¡­ Arrosh never really taught me the finer arts of talking with people. He was too busy teaching me how to survive. There was no poker in MSS, but Marc would have been good at it; his expression didn¡¯t change one millimeter. ¡°I have heard what happened in the Fracture. Rest assured, I am looking into it. So is the guild in Eretia. The Fracture Splinter?¡± Stolen novel; please report. I looked at his outstretched hand, wanting to argue more or haggle for more information. ¡°Tch. Whatever. A deal¡¯s a deal.¡± Telling myself it was the right thing to do, I took out the small crystal and handed it over. Marc held it up to the light and looking through it. Then he grasped it in his palm and closed his eyes, the faintest stirring of mana tickling my pathetic Mana Sense. He was making sure that it was real, which was fine with me. I had nothing to hide. He stored the Fracture Splinter into his Dimension Ring once he was satisfied. ¡°I promised you the Guild¡¯s full backing as well as first rights to this Fracture we will open. You have it.¡± Skaris looked at me, surprised. I was surprised too. I was sure that Marc would haggle or try to weasel his way out of this deal we made. Maybe he really didn''t know anything about Baran or Sarai. ¡°I can see you are confused. I will reveal my hand then,¡± Marc¡¯s voice flowed over us and out of reflex, I swept my Mana Sense, thinking he was using an ability over us. There were more than few Cores that worked with people¡¯s voices. ¡°I have decided to invest in your party, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°More so than the Guild¡¯s backing you promised us?¡± I wasn¡¯t buying it. ¡°Why? You get nothing out of this.¡± ¡°Quite the opposite. I get an extremely competent party led by a Grade-6 adventurer, who could probably fight on par with Grade-5 adventurers if the intelligence about your [Aura] and Plurality holds to be true. Not to talk poorly about Mr. Skaris and Mr. Kyrian, they are both skilled as well, but Mr. Lock; you seem to be¡­ quite exceptional.¡± ¡°...You mean you have more dungeons you want us to dive into.¡± I muttered, my thoughts tracing his. ¡°This whole thing wasn¡¯t just a test¡­ it was an interview. A job advertisement to speak. You were seeing which Party would bite¡­ and actually come out to succeed.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Marc steepled his fingers. ¡°I have mentioned in our prior conversation. Due to the Colosseum, the Adventurer Guild¡¯s influence in Jayu is not quite as strong as it should be. Look at Turina or Jayu, the Adventurer¡¯s Guild is a government almost unto themselves. Here in Jayu¡­ nothing more than a job market for adventurers.¡± ¡°There must be better prospects.¡± I shot back. ¡°We are hardly the ssstrongest in this area. I can name five otherssss who could rival Sssslaveborn.¡± ¡°Five?!¡± I feigned being mocked. ¡°Maybe ssssixss.¡± Skaris amended. ¡°No. What I¡¯m looking for isn¡¯t just strength.¡± Marc¡¯s eyes shifted then, his dull brown eyes changing to something fierce. Like a possessive child that was looking at his new favorite toy, determined not to let go no matter what. ¡°Loyalty. Character. You proved the first when you didn¡¯t bother haggling, you stayed loyal to your word and to your promise. Character¡­ I tested you by saying the loot would be split five ways between your party as well as Aurora and Ms. Eltis. Most adventurers might have let them die and blame it to an accident, more for your own. Yet, you kept them alive. You brought all of them back.¡± Interesting. He called Eltis, ¡®Ms¡¯, yet with Aurora he called her by her name. Something worth looking into at a later time. ¡°...And if I say no?¡± Was Marc Pointell the type to threaten us? Or was he also a man of loyalty and character? I needed to know. ¡°Nothing. I will still give you the rights to the Fracture which we will open as well as the Guild¡¯s backing. Better prices, priority on quests and others of the sort. However¡­ you won¡¯t be part of the Dungeon or Field Raids I have in mind.¡± My eyes widened at that. Exclusive Dungeons apart¡­ he was talking about Field Raids. A Guild Manager talking about a Field Raid? He couldn¡¯t be talking about a Field Boss Monster that was terrorizing a bunch of farmers. That was beneath his pay grade. That meant¡­ ¡°You¡­ want to tackle a Field Boss that holds Territory?¡± Marc smiled at me, the first genuine smile I¡¯ve seen from him yet. ¡°Do I have your interest now?¡± A Field Boss who held their own Territory. At least Grade-5 with Variant abilities. Participating in a raid of that caliber was¡¯t an easy feat, too many people would be involved. You had to have a reputation, to make sure people would respect you and if you were a leader, that people would listen to you. You had to have proven your competence, so that you wouldn¡¯t hold others back. Not just that, you needed connections. Multiple questlines, branching over dozens of people¡­ ¡°I can see that you¡¯re excited.¡± Marc held up a hand, the fire in his eyes gone like it had been a lie. ¡°It seems you are not swayed by wealth, but let me say this anyways. If you partner with me, I will always give your party first rights to purchase the Plurality or Cores that comes through this guild as well as other items that you specify.¡± Damn it. Marc drove a hard bargain. ¡°What do you want from us in exchange?¡± ¡°For now, nothing. There is a Dungeon that is a headache but I have commissioned another party to take care of it. They are interviewing with the clients right now.¡± I frowned. ¡°Who are the clients?¡± ¡°The Church of Fire, Light and Shield.¡± He tapped his fingers on the table. ¡°I cannot say more than that.¡± The Church of Fire, Light and Shield¡­ the Church of Turina. Marc wouldn¡¯t be talking about the Main Church, that was in the capital of Turina Empire; way up north. He was most likely talking about a branch nearby, somewhere in Jayu. But why would a Church request a dungeon raid to a party? They could have had their own Paladins and Priests do it¡­ ¡°Because they failed at doing it themselves.¡± I answered myself. If they went so far as to ask the Guild for help¡­ that might mean the Dungeon had something within. ¡°If that party fails the interview or fails the dungeon expedition, I want rights to it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid the dungeon belongs to the chur-¡± ¡°Can you do it or not?¡± Mard froze. ¡°You¡­ have a nose for danger, Mr. Lock. I will let you know.¡± He went back to the topic, spreading his arms in a placating gesture. ¡°Can I take that to assume we are¡­ shall we say, friends?¡± ¡°Business partners.¡± I answered. ¡°Glad to hear it. It will take me a month or so to make preparations for the Fracture. Once it is ready, I will let you head the expedition.¡± If I headed the expedition¡­ it meant I got to choose whom I took into the Fracture. Minimizing the chances of backstabbing and maximizing the chances of loot. Speaking of loot¡­ ¡°Is that all?¡± Seeing Marc¡¯s nod, I took an item out of my Dimension Ring. ¡°I need you to sell this for me.¡± Marc froze, staring at the item in my hand. ¡°I don¡¯t know who your informant is,¡± I actually had a good idea, ¡°but they told you that there were two Fracture Bosses, yes?¡± He nodded slowly. ¡°Well¡­ I found this. The others do not know about it. Except for Kyrian and Skaris, of course.¡± Marc looked at Skaris who dumped the tea into his mouth. Skaris smirked. I continued. ¡°It¡¯s a Plurality. I believe it¡¯s called-¡± ¡°[Prolonged Suffering].¡± Marc finished for me, whispering. ¡°It keeps its user in a death-like state for an extended amount of time. But during this time, they are effectively immortal.¡± Contrary to the grim name, [Prolonged Suffering] was actually an item used for survival. It kept the character at 1HP for 24 hours. During that time, you couldn''t be mained, decapitated or wounded in anyway, impervious to all damage. The downside was that the said character would be in pain and feel everything being done to him while being in stasis. Aware of everything but unable to move. Kind of like a waking coma. Usually, if an NPC in the game used it, they ended up leaving the party from the trauma. Most of the time, it was an extremely situational item. Being left alive for 24 hours in the dungeon with 1hp didn¡¯t bode well; intelligent monsters could still drag you into their lair and wait out the time limit. Other times, you could simply fall down a cliff and use it, just to survive for those 24 hours hoping that someone would rescue you. I didn¡¯t really understand it before but living so close to death now¡­ I could see why someone would quit adventuring after that. But it was definitely a rare item that if used right, could save someone¡¯s life. A one-time use Plurality that would disintegrate after. ¡°Well? Can you auction this off for me? Or can the Guild buy it outright?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a one-time use Plurality item.¡± Marc muttered in that detached tone of his. ¡°A lower-grade one. The guild is willing to pay 60,000 gold.¡± That wasn¡¯t anywhere near enough. ¡°Can you put it up for Auction in the Guild Marketplace?¡± Rather than a specific event, the Guild ran their Auction like a running market; goods continuously being introduced and sold. You could find all sorts of things on there. ¡°Hm. I could¡­ but I doubt that you could find a buyer here. It would be better to-¡± ¡°Wait. In the Guild Auction¡­ how many Cores are there right now?¡± ¡°We are hosting a total of 13 Cores.¡± Marc answered. Skaris leaned forward, becoming interested in the conversation again. ¡°Ssslaveborn.¡± He looked at me expectedly. His tone was clear. With two empty slots, Skaris was more than due for an upgrade. Well, Kyrian and Skaris did agree to waive their share of the [Lunar Shield]... ¡°Show me.¡±
In the end, Marc handed over a Grade-7 Core for Skaris. Though the Core was worth more, the Guild Master handed it over without much fuss on the basis that it had been on Auction for awhile. It was better to take the loss and introduce a fresh item ¨Ca Plurality no less¨C to the market rather than hold onto a Core that wasn¡¯t selling. Truthfully, I wanted a Core too but it wasn''t on the list. ¡°That means we¡¯re going to have to go farm for it¡­¡± We were walking back to the Slums, having finished our talk with Marc Pointell. Kyrian should have finished up his research by now. ¡°Tomorrow, Aurora should be done with selling off her loot. I still have to come up with a way to pay back Aurora, Eltis, Dibo and Krag.¡± I should never have been allowed to walk out with the Lunar Shield. Most adventurers would never have agreed to let me take it on a layaway plan. For adventurers it was cash upfront or else. I think they gave me some leeway on the basis that I had been instrumental in getting us out alive when ambushed by the second [Gi]. ¡°Hmm¡­ if Skaris and Kyrian gets their gold tomorrow, they should spend it on [Evolution] and the Fourth Mana Core. Then I can go and see about setting up my schedule for the Colosseum¡­¡± I had been so preoccupied with my thoughts that I didn¡¯t notice that Skaris had stopped in his tracks. I bumped into him. ¡°Why¡¯d you stop?¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn. Do you not smell it?¡± The sun was starting to set over the horizon, the dredges of its meager sunlight touching upon the Slums. We were still at the border, where the distinction between city and garbage dump was murky; though I was starting to see the denizens of the Slums with their skin disease and crippled dispositions finding shelter for the night. Listening to Skaris, I put my nose to the wind. That was weird, I had a much better [Smell] stat than he did. I should have- I smelt it. Smoke. Not smoke from the soups or mystery meat that people cooked in here, where food was scarce. The smell was wild, out of control and I saw that the sun wasn¡¯t actually that close to setting; the whole sky was an orange hue covered by smoke. Red light flickered, lapping up the garbage from within and racing towards us from the edge of my vision; devouring the garbage to further grow itself. If it was coming from within¡­ I instinctively knew where it was coming from. The Orc Settlement.
Chapter 74: Errands (3)
World: MSS - Loading...
The fire spread like a virus. In this place, the Slums, everything was built out of scrap metal, driftwood and unwanted. The weather in Miltus was sunny and warm with the occasional rain. A weather perfect for those who didn¡¯t have much in the way of shelter, even in the Slums the few hours of sunlight kept people warm. However, that very fact proved to be deadly. The fire spread wild, uncontrolled, devouring the dozens of huts that the orcs had built and began to spread throughout the Slums all the way towards the other denizens. I saw a family of dwarves rush out from a huge pile of scrap metal which began to glow red, superheated from the rising temperatures. Beastmen with skin disease began coughing, taking off their cloaks to reveal scars and lesions; trying to snuff the fire out through sheer will. ¡°Put it out!¡± ¡°Over here!¡± ¡°Water! Water!¡± In the Slums¡­ there wasn¡¯t much in the way of water. We drew water from a nearby well, never stockpiling enough to last more than a few days. There was no way to slow the fire down as it jumped from place to place. The residents of Miltus must¡¯ve seen the fire, it dyed the entire west side of town orange, blotting out the sky with a pillar of smoke so tall that it covered the sun. They came over to watch¡­ though none of them carried a pail or bucket to help. The burning garbage stung our noses, most of us with enhanced [Smell] stats being forced to double layer our masks lest we pass out from the smell alone. None of us could do anything as everything burned to ash. As I watched the fire, Kyrian walked up next to me. ¡°Did you find out what happened?¡± I already knew the answer to my question. This fucking game was toying with me. Toying with the lives of my people. Creating events- No. Not the game. Someone was responsible for this. ¡°Two men. No one got a good look at them. A dwarf and maybe an elf or human. They came into the village and began lighting everything on fire. Jak¡¯tur and his warriors couldn¡¯t catch them, even the Wolf Berserkers.¡± Kyrian explained. ¡°Probably hired adventurers.¡± The Slum Lord. That was my theory anyway. This was a warning of sorts. To leave his territory. If he hired adventurers, that meant he could have inflicted more damage than simply burning down the shoddy buildings. He could have left wounded behind, or worse ¨Ctaken lives. ¡°We¡¯ve been here barely a month and he¡¯s already-¡± My words got caught in my throat. A group of orc kids began to wail at the same time as the orc woman began to cry. Their cry was horrible. Loud and high-pitched, it carried all the emotions that words couldn¡¯t convey alone. Hopelessness, loneliness and the sense that they were asking a question: Will we ever have a home again? Because in the short month we¡¯d been here. That¡¯s what it had become. Home. I looked around, it wasn¡¯t just the orcs who were affected. The original residents of the Slums were homeless as well, staring off into space. It wasn¡¯t like they could start rebuilding. There was nothing to rebuild with. Everything had been wiped clean. ¡°...Lock?¡± Kyrian asked. ¡°What do you want to do?¡± I turned, seeing Kyrian looking at me; his eyes boring into mine. A billion questions and temptations surged to the thoughts, barreling their way through all other thoughts about how I should be helping and making a plan. Instead, self-preservation came to the front; screaming and thumping on its chest. Aurora was going to pay Skaris and Kyrian tomorrow, we should use that money to book an inn. As adventurers we could make a ludicrous living. I could just forget about these orc people ¨Cas Jak¡¯tur had said, I¡¯d done enough by just bringing them here¨C and focus on my own goals. Becoming stronger, gathering Cores and Items, farming monsters and getting involved with more quests. Figuring out a way back home. Instead, I took a deep breath and calmed myself. Once you made a decision, you had to see it through to the end. ¡°Today, let¡¯s salvage what we can. I¡¯m leaving towards Yousef tomorrow to talk to him about the Colosseum fight. I¡¯ll see if he can do anything to help. You and Skaris¡­¡± I chewed on my lip, thinking. ¡°Find out more about the Black Market in the Jayu States. This Slumlord, he¡¯s definitely involved somehow. But we need proof. Ask around the residents, don¡¯t spook anyone.¡± We had to get more information about this guy. ¡°Also Aurora should have deposited your payments into the Guild Accounts. Pick that up from the Guild and bring over some supplies, food, water, medicine.¡± ¡°Do you want us to hire a Priest?¡± I spat to the side. ¡°If they were truly Priests or Priestesses, they¡¯d have been down here already.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Kyrian agreed and the mage looked down at the crying orc children. They were joined by the children of the original Slum residents. They cried together as one, mournful cries of children broken up by the sobbing of women. Some of the older Slum Folk were moving through the burnt wreckage with the orc warriors, trying to see what was left. Teenagers patted the babies on the back, trying to get them to stop coughing from the smoke while their mothers joined the men on their search. I watched as a group of orcs heaved together as one, moving a particularly large sheet of metal ¨Cburning their hands in the process¨C to get at a group of dwarves and humans trapped underneath. They ran out like rats, coughing and collapsing. One of them was clutching a bundle of clothes at her chest. The dwarven woman, a mother, scrabbled at it desperately, her fingers trembling. She had burn marks all over her back, no doubt gained from protecting the small mass. I turned away as they unwrapped the bundle of cloth and the cry of the mother ¨Cthe most horrible sound I¡¯d ever heard¨C echoed in this desolate place.
¡°It¡¯s been awhile, young master.¡± Yousef¡¯s office was the same as before. Extravagant and golden, an excessive display of wealth decorated every corner of his room. Golden statues of dwarves, paintings that looked well-made even to my untrained eye and staff that waited on him hand and foot. The dwarf was wearing a shirt adorned with golden hoops, mirrored by the gold rings on his fingers. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. It was a strange feeling, having just come from sleeping underneath the stars with the glowing embers that had reduced our meager homes to dust. Coming from a Slave background, seeing how Samak City was; how the homeless people of Miltus in the Slums lived, I couldn''t help but feel a twinge of disgust for Yousef. Normally, I didn¡¯t detest him; frankly I quite liked his honest greed. He was a businessman through and through. But today, his opulence seemed just a bit too much, just a little bit dull and outlandish when I¡¯d just come having buried the bodies of children who never lived to see a birthday cake. It was like the Han who lived in skyscrapers and had millionaire parents had been overwritten by Lock. Like my brain had become that of a Slave, not just stuck in a videogame. I sighed. I needed Yousef. I needed his gold, I needed his connections. ¡°Likewise.¡± I breathed, sinking into the couch. ¡°I came to talk.¡± ¡°Oh yes, we have many things to talk about.¡± Yousef¡¯s eyes twinkled, like he was in a candy shop. ¡°But first, I¡¯d like to talk about your Colosseum Match.¡± He held up a finger. ¡°One week. I have scheduled your match for one week from now.¡± ¡°So barely enough time to get Skaris his [Evolution] started and get Kyrian his Mana Core. There¡¯s also time to go farm my fourth Core as well which shouldnt be hard. It¡¯ll belong to a grade-8 monster anyways.¡± I nodded. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll provide the transportation, the lodging, the food and even equipment should you need-¡± ¡°No.¡± I glanced down at my Dimension Ring. ¡°I don¡¯t need any equipment. I¡¯ll fight with what I have. More than that, I want to talk about my opponent.¡± Yousef clapped, delighted. ¡°Oh yes! I had to pull a few strings to make it happen! But you arriving back from the Fracture successfully plus the rumors floating about you helped! I got you an experienced fighter. Not one of those green, fresh-out-of-the-dungeon newbies.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Dorocian Kojisan.¡± Yousef handed me a picture. ¡°We call her Dorothy.¡± A girl with pale skin looked out at me from the photo. She had turquoise eyes, a shade somewhere between light blue and teal with neatly braided black hair running down her back. Her hair had a single streak of blue intertwined into the braid, drawing my eyes. As if the name wasn¡¯t enough, her sharp and almost too perfect features alerted me to her noble heritage. I felt my lips curl in distaste; the name was hint alone. A Bastard from the Turina Empire of one of the Three Great Houses. ¡°Tell me about her.¡± ¡°She¡¯s part of the faction at the Colosseum that belongs to Turina, composed only of Bastards from the Great Houses and lesser Nobility.¡± ¡°There are factions at the Colosseum?¡± I was not aware of that, but it made sense. ¡°Of course. Turina has two groups by themselves, the Parthenon, made of bastard Scions as well as a sponsored team by the Adventurer¡¯s Guild from Turina. Jayu does not have any official sponsored groups, though we do have individual merchants with their own fighters and teams. Zimmskar, the Delirious Barbarians and even the pale-skinned Orc tribes had their own group.¡± He pointed at me, beaming. ¡°Young Master, you¡¯d be representing my own merchant company: Leaf and Metal.¡± He slid over a small pin. Just like the namesake which it represented, it was a small leaf made of metal. ¡°The two strongest groups right now are the Parthenon and the Zimmskar¡¯s group, Zoo.¡± Yousef continued his explanation. ¡°You actually met a man from Zoo, he goes by the name of Track.¡± Damn, either nothing was a secret in this town or I was involved with people who had access to information as soon as it was available. Probably the latter. ¡°Dorocian Kojisan is actually ranked 4th or 5th most powerful in the Parthenon. In the Colosseum Rankings, she¡¯d rank around the mid-teens. She made it all the way towards 11th place though.¡± He handed me another piece of paper, this time with words. I stumbled through the words since I was next best to illiterate in this world. Man, screw the MSS education system. Worse than America, I swear. ¡°Just tell me about her. What you saw, what she¡¯s like.¡± ¡°She summons various beasts and stays back.¡± Yousef shrugged. ¡°I apologize, young master. I am not well-versed enough to explain her fighting style to you.¡± I folded the paper, tucking it away to ask Kyrian about it later. ¡°Personality? Anything is fine, even if it¡¯s a rumor.¡± ¡°Hmmm. They say she¡¯s very¡­ vindictive. One, Turina sent over a group of fighters and one of them was an actual Scion; not a bastard with the -an name.¡± The dwarf sighed. ¡°As you can guess, we were keeping an eye on him. An actual Scion joining the Colosseum is rare. Word is that Dorothy cut off both his arms and sent him back to Turina because he¡¯d insulted her.¡± I scoffed remembering Kyrian¡¯s tales about Scions. ¡°That sounds very typical of Scions.¡± He shrugged. ¡°The Parthenon keeps to themselves. I¡¯ll say this though, they are all extremely devoted and loyal to each other; their bonds forged by something beyond mere friendship.¡± I grimaced. Of course, people with similar pains, similar background and similar experiences fighting for their lives in a Colosseum? Of course they¡¯d be close; they¡¯d be more than just a group held together by a common goal and strength. There¡¯d be lovers, genuine friendship and a trust that transcended what a mere mercenary group might have. In his own way, Yousef was warning me. If I beat Dorothy in a bad way, I¡¯d be painting a target on my back. Which was fine. Because my goal for the Colosseum wasn¡¯t just to fulfill my promise to Yousef and pay him back; it was to rise to the top and reap the rewards. It was just one step among many to becoming strong. The number of my enemies were growing which meant I needed more opportunies for growth. Becoming strong enough to protect myself¡­ and my comrades. ¡°What do I get?¡± ¡°2000 gold just for participating and 10,000 if you win.¡± Yousef answered easily. His stumpy fingers passed over a stack of coins towards me. ¡°Most of the money went towards getting her to accept.¡± 12,000 gold¡­ not enough to pay back everyone but I could pay back Yousef for getting the Orcs to Jayu from Samak Desert. It was too bad I needed things other than gold. ¡°I don¡¯t need 2000 gold. What I need are supplies for the people in the Slums. Food. Temporary Shelter. Those kinds of things.¡± I slid the coins across the table, back towards Yousef. He crossed his arms, guarded. ¡°Young Master. I heard what happened. I believe it would be smart for you to-¡± I shook my head before he could finish his sentence. ¡°No. I won¡¯t leave them.¡± I stared at Yousef, measuring him. ¡°Food. Temporary Shelter. Supplies. Plus information about the Slum Lord.¡± ¡°You drive a hard bargain.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who chose me.¡± I leaned forward. ¡°Trust me. I won¡¯t lose.¡± What Yousef told me about Dorothy rang a few bells about what build she could be using. She was most likely using a summoner build, in which you focused your build into a hybrid ¨Csummoning monsters to fight alongside you while retaining some basic Cores to fight alongside them. It was used when you didn¡¯t want ot travel with a party. The upside was that it was extremely efficient. The downside? The higher you got, the higher rarity and value of Cores you needed. The initial growth was fast then it started to taper off, most of your time spent grinding for Cores and equipment. A Knight against a Summoner¡­ as long as she couldn¡¯t use [Aura], I¡¯d be fine. If Aurora wasn¡¯t taught [Aura] because she was a bastard, I was sure that this Dorocian Kojisan wouldn¡¯t have been taught any [Aura] either. ¡°I can provide you with all those things after you win.¡± ¡°Food, shelter and supplies today.¡± I pushed, seeing Yousef¡¯s body language relenting. ¡°Information about the Slum Lord can come after.¡± He¡¯d just burned down our homes. He¡¯d lay low for a while. Yousef was quiet. ¡°Why do you care for them?¡± I cocked my head to the side, thinking I¡¯d misheard him. ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°There are many reasons for you to not care for them. They were your slavers. They enslaved you and your family, you wouldn¡¯t be in this life if it weren¡¯t for them. Then there¡¯s the fact that you are human and that they are orcs.¡± Yousef was deathly still, his voice suddenly serious. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen a human care for orcs or any other race for that matter. I¡¯m promising you wealth, prestige and comfort inside of my own home. Why are you insisting on taking the hard route?¡± ¡°Yes. The orc warrior who made you promise to take care of his people. But it¡¯s been months since his death. Surely you don¡¯t feel a sense of obligation towards a man who you barely knew.¡± Yousef¡¯s eyes peered at me then spoke in an almost whisper. ¡°They are not your responsibility, Young Master. You do not have to chain yourself to them.¡± ¡°Yousef¡­¡± I could tell from Yousef¡¯s voice that this conversation was something different. He wasn¡¯t just looking for my answer and asking questions about motives, but something else was there. Something¡­ something more that the Dwarf was looking for. ¡°Are you not tempted? At all, Young Master?¡± I smiled at him, as soft as I could manage. ¡°Of course I am.¡± ¡°Then take my offer. Stay in my house. Your people are welcome too; be my official fighters in the colosseum, not just this temporary contract.¡± I mulled over it for an entirety of one second. ¡°No. I have no intention of going under someone else.¡± The dwarf nodded, slowly. ¡°Aye, you don¡¯t seem like the type.¡± He reverted to dwarf-speech for just a second before speaking like his merchant-self. ¡°You have not answered my question.¡± ¡°Because¡­¡± I opened my fingers and closed them, repeatedly. ¡°Because it¡¯s right.¡± I gestured at the room around us. ¡°Yousef, yesterday those people lost everything. Not just the orcs, but even the Slum Dwellers. Yet today when I walked in here¡­¡± I struggled to come up with the right words. ¡°I saw houses. Mansions. Wealth beyond what I ever saw as a Slave; even the Warchief of the Samak Horde. Yet¡­ yet no one was helping us.¡± ¡°Beastman didn¡¯t help beastman, and humans didn¡¯t help humans. So why can¡¯t a human help an orc?¡± I sighed, shaking my head. ¡°It was never about race. And to be frank, it¡¯s not about the promise anymore. I made a decision to help them, I must see it to the end.¡± ¡°All of you ask me how a human can help an orc or a dwarf. How I should be treating others based on the shape of their ears, the color of their skin or their heights.¡± I thought of the numerous conversations I had in the Fracture, of Skaris and Kyrian¡¯s outburst in the Slums and even my conversation with Yosuef just now. My heart grew hot and spittle flew out of my mouth. ¡°We treat each other like dirt based on our race. Yet, we don¡¯t lift a finger to help our own when it really matters. We only help others when they can do something for us. The downtrodden, the filthy, the poor and the hungry. Who¡¯s going to help them?¡± ¡°I buried a baby yesterday, Yousef. A baby.¡± I closed my eyes. ¡°It wasn¡¯t the first time.¡± ¡°Before we met you, I learned something about the orcs.¡± I remembered us making the trek in the desert. Hungry. Thirsty. Desperate. ¡°The elderly went first, being left behind because they couldn¡¯t keep up. Then the babies. Then the adults. Then the children for last. To conserve food, to give those with us now the best chance for survival.¡± I took a deep breath, finishing by gesturing at the room around us and at Yousef¡¯s attire. My voice had become increasingly heated as I spoke. ¡°If I covered myself in gold and watched people starve to death, I could never live with myself.¡± ¡°People lie. People cheat. People kill each other for a scrap of bread in the Slums. They do all sorts of unspeakable things to each other. Yet¡­¡± I picked up a piece of gold coin from the pile, turning it over in my hand. With this¡­ with this I could feed three or four families for a day. Not a feast but¡­ but something. Something was better than nothing. Yousef had stayed silent throughout my small speech, head starting to tilt downwards more and more. ¡°You could do things, Yousef. You could change lives. By the gods man, you could help people.¡± I got up to leave. ¡°More so than I ever could.¡± It was true. I was just an adventurer who spoke with his sword and that worked in Dungeons. But out here? In a city? The Coin was mightier than the Sword. I cleared my throat, slightly embarrassed at my fervor. After all, I was just an adventurer without any real power yet. Yousef on the other hand... well, he was an important person to this Country. Damn, it was like a office worker giving a moral lecture to a millionaire governor. ¡°I¡¯d appreciate the supplies today. And if you have any information about the orc I asked you about last time, Arrosh, I¡¯d appreciate it.¡± I had asked Marc Pointell about Arrosh as well, though no luck as of yet. For now, this was all I could do. ¡°I will let my people know, Young Master.¡± While leaving his office, I though to myself: Did I believe the Dwarf could change? Hell no. But maybe¡­ maybe somewhere down the line, he would be less of what he was. Less of a dwarf obsessed by fame, money and politics. Maybe one day, he¡¯d set aside funds for helping people. Maybe one day, he¡¯d decide to open up a small school or scholarship. Maybe¡­ just maybe, he¡¯d do more good than he was doing now. At least, I wanted to believe that a dwarf with a big heart could make great things happen. Leaving the selfish dwarf behind to think, I left the gold and jewel-laden manor; back to the Slums. To home.
Chapter 75: Solo (1)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Technically speaking it¡¯s not a dungeon. It¡¯s a field.¡± ¡°Sssso while I am getting my [Evolution], you will be hunting?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the idea.¡± I replied. The morning after speaking with Yousef, two days after the fire, Skaris and I headed towards the Beastman Settlement. Despite their best efforts, Kyrian and Skaris came up with nothing; no one was willing to tell them anything about the Slum Lord or the Black Market. It figured. Neither of them had the necessary skills or background. Kyrian was a mage who trained in the prestigious magic towers of Babel, having been born as a noble. He worked with the Akka Xaluds for a while but that gave me the sense that it was more political and high-society, rather than crawling in sewers and sneaking up on people. On first look, Skaris might fit the bill. A skilled fighter, callous of rules and societal grace; but I found out that it was the opposite. Bound by honor and battlelust, he was a warrior through and through. If anything, he was even more removed from the seedy streets of cities than Kyrian was. Skaris kind of screamed ¡®soldier¡¯ or ¡®cop¡¯ ¨Cif I wanted to be modern about it. Neither of the two really fit the bill as those suave, roguish, clad-in-black and slinking-in-the-shadows vibe. Regardless, this morning we had to go our separate ways. Skaris had to go towards the beastman village while Kyrian headed for the Mage Tower that Dibo introduced him to. I was going to accompany Kyrian when he got his Mana Core ¨Cas I was supposed to meet with Dibo anyways¨C but the young mage assured me that he wasn¡¯t going to get his Core. He was simply going to check out the Tower to see if their Mana Core would be up to standard. As powerful as mages were, they had a lot of things to deal with. First, Mana Cores didn¡¯t drop from monsters. They could only be purchased from a Mage Tower. Then there was the grading. All Mana Cores were graded on craftsmanship; which equated to the quality of spells you cast. One of the reasons I didn¡¯t like playing as a Mage in the real world was precisely because of the maneuvering and sucking-up I had to do to the older mage NPCs just to get a decent Mana Core. ¡°One day I guess I¡¯ll have to ask Kyrian about the grade of his Mana Cores¡­ though he did come from Babel. So he should be good on that account.¡± Skaris and I moved quickly, leaving Miltus and getting on the road towards Eretia. There were other adventurers on the road, some fully armed and prepared for a hunt while others were dressed lightly; sticking to the paved paths. To my understanding, each city was required to invest a certain amount of money into keeping the paths clean of monsters, making sure they wouldn¡¯t stray in from their spawning areas. The jobs usually fell to retired adventurers; they had more than enough skill to drive away a stray monster or two. Of course, we always kept a wide berth between ourselves and other adventurers. There was no telling who would try and pick a fight with us and the further away from civilization we got; the greater the chance of that happening. The demographic of the adventurers around us changed from a diverse array to something more homogenic: beastman. We walked about an hour before the Beastman Settlement of Jayu came into view. I don¡¯t know what I had been expecting; Mud huts and straw houses? A village square with cows, chickens and pigs running amok? The village was neither of those things and to be frank, the word ¡®village¡¯ didn¡¯t really do it justice. Unlike the other rocky parts of Jayu that were reminiscent of the mediterranean, the Beastman had chosen to settle on what looked like a vast plain of greenery; something I¡¯d expect from the steppes of Eastern Europe or the plains of Mongolia. The sky stretched as far as the eye could see and the Beastmen didn¡¯t build hulking skyscrapers and multi-floored buildings as we humans did. Their houses were long and flat, like log-houses and I wondered how they were set up inside. There were a good number of houses and buildings for sure, but no way to tell if it was a proper indicator of the beastman population in Jayu. The last thing I wanted to do was get into an altercation with a beastman who was important to their people, end up banished and earn the ire of countless adventurers. But on second thought, that didn¡¯t make sense. The Beastman race were fragmented, made up of dozens of tribes and I had a hard time imagining them living here together. For example; Skaris was from the Deepeater Tribe but not all lizard beastman belonged to that specific tribe. ''Yeah it makes more sense that the adventurers live outside of this village, staying in inns or their own houses only coming to visit when they need an [Evolution] or something specific.'' ¡°Ssslaveborn,¡± Skaris said, once we were only a few minutes away from the village, ¡°Will you be accompanying me?¡± I debated with myself. On one hand I was curious; another chance to explore a part of the world I had never seen. Then again, what I was curious about was the Zimmskar Kingdom. I had a feeling that things would be more ¡®authentic¡¯ there. This village was probably made by immigrant beastmen who had settled here, a potpourri of culture from Jayu States combined with their traditional styles. That was Jayu in a nutshell, a mixture of different races coming together and learning to live with each other, learning from one another. ¡°Not right now. I¡¯m going to stretch my legs, hunt a little bit.¡± I had seen a few potential hunting spots on the way here. A good place to farm for my 4th Core. My 4th Core shouldn¡¯t be tough to find, as it belonged to a relatively weak monster. ¡°You remember what [Evolution] I recommended?¡± ¡°My people have always took the path of fire. It is a good suggestion. Good Hunting, Sslaveborn." Skaris turned and started towards the Beastman Settlement. I watched him go, seeing the guards allowing him to pass him easily. ¡°Shit, maybe I should have told him to let them know he¡¯d be expecting a guest.¡± Turning on my heel, I ran the opposite way, getting off of the roads and looking for my hunting grounds. Weeks ago, Yousef had given me a map with information on the surrounding dungeons and field monsters. I compared it to the map I had received from Marc Pointell, piecing it together with my own knowledge of MSS to create a perfect mental picture that overlapped the map I knew and their map. Luckily, the monsters I wanted to farm weren''t too far from this place. The hunting ground I was looking for was at the bottom of two cliffs, a gradual slope in the crevice. Once I started walking downhill with a drop on one side and the cliff on the other, I knew I was here. At the bottom of the canyon, I saw my target. It floated a few feet above the ground, covered by a black cloth which made it look like a reaper. Instead of the typical two-handed scythe, the creature held a long chain in one arm and a wave patterned dagger in the other. The creature moaned, most of its gray-blue body hidden beneath the cloth, and continued to float aimlessly. [Tortured Spirit] - Grade 8 Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. The monster had a Grade of 8 ¨Cmeaning I would not receive any experience from it since I hit level 30 recently¨C but by my estimation, its real grading should be around 9 or even 10. It had very little HP to speak of, dying from most spells in one hit. It could evade through physical damage by using [Ethereal Body] but my [Aura] could take care of that. ¡°Ok, let¡¯s start this.¡± I leapt down from the ledge, scraping my [Lunar Shield] on the wall to slow my descent. At the last second, my [Aura] covered katana slashed through the creature once. Thanks to [Aura] and it''s true damage feature, I no longer had to worry about any monsters that were impervious to certain types of damage. Plus the fact that [Tortured Spirit] practically had 0 defense stat to speak of, it wasn¡¯t hard to slay the monster. It dropped a few coins, one of them even being silver, and a cloth. A smithing item particularly coveted by caster types to make their armor. Picking up the loot, I continued on my way. The canyon was a long stretch of white rock outcroppings and sparse plant-life. Even more sparse were the number of monsters in here. But that was strange¡­ this place wasn¡¯t exactly the best place to farm for EXP, but it should have more monsters than this. I was only encountering monsters once every 10 to twenty minutes. Regardless, I buckled down and continued to grind. It was¡­ kind of relaxing. The [Tortured Spirits] were slow, clumsy and too slow in reacting to my movements. As soon as I saw one, I darted in close without hesitation. Sometimes, I leaped off the walls coming from above, and other times I snuck up on them from behind. Most of them went down without a chance to fight, some of them managing to use their daggers and chains to hold off death for a few seconds longer than most. The act of hunting these monsters was easy, finding them was the hard part. But precisely for that reason, I fell into a rhythm; a lull of sorts where I went about my own way and forgot about all the worries for a little bit. ¡°Maybe I should hunt solo sometimes.¡± The only downside about all this was the lack of EXP. Being level 30 meant I wouldn''t be receiving EXP from anything lower than a Grade 7 monster. Still, I gathered quite a bit of cloth which could be sold for a nice little pocket change. Which reminded me of all the debt I had¡­ Shaking my head, I continued to farm. Noticing that the monsters were all marching in one single direction, I simply started to ambush them, staying in the same spot until one wandered mindlessly. ''[Tortured Spirit] has a Core drop rate of about 3%... on the pretty good side. But there¡¯s no guarantee it¡¯s going to drop the color I need¡­'' ? [Tortured Spirit] casts [Share the Load] ? One of the spirits snapped its wrist and the chain snapped out at me, the manacle at one end snapping around my wrist. There was no point in trying to dodge this, it had an unavoidable ability. Before the spirit could try anything, I ignored the chains and stabbed it where its head was supposed to be, slashing it straight down and then upwards. The creature wailed silently as it disappeared into dust. Chances were that I wouldn¡¯t find a Core today, I should just go and wait for Skaris in the beastman vill- ¡°Oh what the¡­¡± A Green Spirit Core floated in the air. "Damn." I needed the red one. The Green one had [Ethereal Body], an active ability which I had no use for. ¡°What a waste.¡± Bending down ¨Ccareful not to touch the orb lest I absorb it¨C I picked up the rest of the loot. ¡°Do not move, adventurer.¡± Hearing the voice vanquished all the peace I had been feeling like someone just splashed cold water on me. Slowly, I turned around. I was surrounded. How the hell did these guys sneak up on me? Numbering roughly a dozen, my mind quickly scanned their equipment and broke down their party make-up methodically without even trying. After years of playing this game and fighting for my life the last few months, it was second nature by now. ¡°Two mages. Two¡­ no Three Tanks. One Priestess. Two Rogues, one archer and two support-type classes.¡± One person in particular drew my eye. Her blue-eyes were fixed on me, her lips curled in a slight smile like looking at a particularly tasty looking slice of cake. Her hair was braided down her back with a streak of bright blue mixed into it. More startling than that were the animals that surrounded her, my instinct telling me to take a step back. She rode on a huge gray wolf, almost seven or eight feet tall on all fours. A pair of wolves split up to stand on either side of her, one white and one black. Dorocian Kojisan. ¡°Thank you, adventurer.¡± I recognized the man¡¯s voice as the one who stopped me. He was tall, even taller than me and almost twice my width. Wide shoulders, narrow waist with thick powerful legs; with long blonde hair that was cropped close to his head in a military fashion. His armor was a type of black steel decorated with streaks of gold; a sigil resembling a crown was etched on his heart with a single line running diagonally through it. Sharp jawline and even sharper eyes¡­ even I had to admit, the guy was good-looking. The spitting image of a cover art for any RPG game. So I stood my ground, not stepping away from the Core. ¡°I killed this monster.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, you did.¡± The man took a step closer. As he did, a sense of dread filled me; starting from the bottom of my heart and spiking towards my brain like a streak of lightning. Immediately without hesitation, I lashed out with my katana; the tip stopping right in front of the man¡¯s throat. A dozen different spells and abilities from his comrades came roiling up to the surface, surrounding us. ¡°Gurran-¡± ¡°How dare you-¡± ¡°...¡± The man in question raised his hands in a placating gesture. No weapons but I didn¡¯t need to see his weapons to know that he was a melee fighter, most likely a tank or a colossal-weapon wielder. ¡°Take a step back.¡± My voice was low and quiet. ¡°I simply want to-¡± I leaned in, drawing a trickle of blood... [Aura] flickering at the edge of my blade. His ¨CI was assuming his named was Gurran something or other¨C eyes widened in shock. To his credit, he didn¡¯t get angry or flustered; his expression turned from one of surprise to one of quiet calm in a span of one second, assessing the situation and deciding what he needed to do without any emotion whatsoever. He took a step back. He didn''t lash out in anger. He didn''t scream in fear. He simply took a step back, the most logical decision in this circumstances. My instincts screamed that this guy was dangerous. ¡°My name is Gurran Turian, leader of the Parthenon Clan. We have been staking out this field for the last few days, hunting the [Tortured Spirits].¡± Translation: Why are you hunting in our territory? We called dibs. I lowered my katana, seeing that the man decided to talk. There was no point in resorting to violence¡­ especially since I was surrounded by adventurers of unknown strength. Unconsciously, my eyes darted to Dorothy, who watched the interaction with amusement. ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware that a clan bought the permits for this hunting grounds. Didn¡¯t see it on the bulletin board.¡± Usually when a Clan wanted to monopolize a hunting ground, they had to get a permit from the Guild. ¡°Ah¡­ let¡¯s just say we didn¡¯t think anyone would be down here hunting [Tortured Spirits]. They are not a popular monster.¡± I frowned. ¡°That¡¯s not my problem then.¡± ¡°This little-¡± An archer took a step towards me, raising his bow. Gurran held up a hand, silencing the human archer who kept speaking up behind him. My eyes wandered over to the archer, memorizing his face. If this came to a fight, I¡¯d kill him first. As if reading my thoughts, Gurran leaned to the side, blocking the archer from my view. ''So he''s a tank then.'' The fact that he could read my intentions alone from body language was proof of that. ¡°We have poured considerable resources into drawing the monsters into one side of the canyon. We were wondering why the numbers have started to dwindle down.¡± His eyes wandered over to me. ¡°It seems that you have not killed... an insignificant amount.¡± He took a deep breath. ¡°I wish to propose a trade.¡± ¡°A trade? We should just take his Core for-¡± Again, the archer. ¡°No. He is right. We were in the wrong, claiming this canyon without a permit. For that, I apologize.¡± I ignored his apology. ¡°What trade?¡± ¡°We have been looking for a Core¡­ the one that lies behind you in fact. Would you be willing to trade it for another Core?¡± Gurran¡¯s Dimension Ring flashed and he took out an Incubator with a Red Spirit Core. ¡°This is the Red Core of the [Tortured Spirit]. I saw you didn¡¯t absorb the Green Core right away, was this what you were looking for?¡± ¡°How do I know that its the Red Core of a Tortured Spirit?¡± Of course, I knew that it belonged to the Spirit just by looking at it. But most adventurers wouldn¡¯t know. ¡°I swear on my family¡¯s name.¡± He crossed his hand over his heart. ¡°I do as well.¡± Dorothy finally spoke up, her wolf padding up to where we were. ¡°I trust you know who I am?¡± I didn¡¯t answer, looking up at the huntress. Her wolf¡¯s yellow eyes ran over me, then seemed to cure into a smile. ¡°And if I do not want to?¡± ¡°You¡­ are a very distrusting man.¡± Dorothy let out an exasperated breath. ¡°I will pay you if that¡¯s what you prefer. I¡¯m the one who wants to absorb this Core and I¡¯m telling you this as a show of good faith.¡± ¡°And if you still do not want to, feel free to leave.¡± Gurran stated and the rest of the Parthenon members lowered their weapons. Huh. Interesting. She knew we were going to face off in the colosseum yet she was telling me which Core she planned to absorb. In a word, she was looking down on me. Yet she was willing to either trade or buy the Core off of me instead of murdering me outright. Ok, maybe I was being too hard on them. Of course, they could tell I wasn¡¯t a Mage so I couldn''t take the Core out of here either... ¡°Fine. A trade it is then.¡± I stepped aside as Dorothy leapt down from her wolf¡¯s back while Gurran handed the Incubator over to me. At the same time, we both absorbed our respective Cores. ¡°We will be hunting in this canyon for a bit longer. I hope you will be understanding.¡± Gurran finished. Again, Translation: Fuck off now. Of course, the Tortured Spirits had another drop that was pretty useful. It made sense that they were farming for days, that item had a drop rate lower than 1%. I scoffed. ¡°I¡¯m leaving. But if a monster attacks me, I¡¯m going to kill it.¡± On cue, a [Tortured Spirit] came into view, wailing silently. My legs were already moving and I rushed past the circle of adventurers surrounding me, slashing into the [Tortured Spirit], killing it instantly. I didn¡¯t need to but I wanted to make a point that I wasn¡¯t scared of them. Clang! Something dropped. You see, Tortured Spirits don¡¯t just drop their Cores¡­ they also drop a [Legendary] item once in awhile. The [Tortured Kris]. Most likely the item that this Parthenon Clan was looking for¡­ I picked up the Kris and looked back, seeing Gurran and Dorothy¡¯s shocked eyes. Well, shit. It picked the perfect time to drop. The ugly archer''s eyes bulged out of his face. ¡°GET HIM!¡±
Chapter 76: Solo (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
I was so going to die. The archer with the ugly mug from before fired without warning, the twang of his bow reaching my ears at the same time I ducked my head, feeling the arrow whistle above my head. ¡°Stop!¡± Gurran ordered, obviously their leader. To their credit, most of the party seemed to listen, with Dorothy helping Gurran try and retain order. But sometimes, us human beings don¡¯t react well to orders. We don¡¯t have just one sense that our brain relays orders from, hearing, but a myriad of other senses. Among them, we react extremely well to sight and it¡¯s always always easier to fire first and feign ignorance after. Before Gurran had even ordered ¡®stop¡¯, the earth rumbled and rusted chains exploded out of the ground, trying to find purchase on me. A huge block of ice supernaturally condensed then froze in the air above me, hammering down on me like an anvil. In combination with the two spells, I saw two melee fighters dash in towards me; one of them wielding a two-handed axe and another fighter wielding a sword and small scythe. Taking out my Lunar Shield, I raised it up. Instead of trying to take the [Ice Cube] spell straight on, I took it at an angle and the shield slipped it to the side; five hundred pounds of ice slamming into the ground with a resounding thud and throwing up dust. The Ice Cube served to block the chains rising from the earth, most of them bouncing off harmlessly off of the slippery surface. I wasn¡¯t safe yet, there was still the matter of two fighters dashing towards me, splitting off to surround me. Trying to run, my knee almost buckled; I might have successfully mitigated most of the damage from the [Ice Cube] spell, but my body didn¡¯t have the type of Cores to take that kind of impact and be ok right after. But damage was damage, even if it was joint pain. My feet surged with shadow and I felt the world succumb to black. After a moment, I was more than thirty paces away, underneath the shadow of branch jutting out from a cliff. ¡°What! How¡¯d he-¡± ¡°Forget how! T-That¡¯s a [Plurality]! I saw it in a book once! It¡¯s [Lunar Shield]!¡± ¡°Who cares about that? He has the [Tortured Kris] you fool!¡± ¡°All of you! I said stop!¡± Gurran started to step forward, taking out a Figure of Eight shield. I saw him block a wayward spell that was fired towards me. Something was weird. The way Yousef spoke about the Parthenon made it seem like a powerful Clan with some of their adventurers being recognized as powerful fighters in the Colosseum. Yet, Gurran was having difficulty controlling this wayward lot. Sure, they were powerful ¨CI could tell from their equipment¨C but this lack of discipline wasn¡¯t something I would have expected from a Clan with a name like theirs. From what I saw, Gurran and Dorocian were trying to instill order with futility. Could it be because they were all Scions? With their own ways of thinking of and ideologies? As curious as I was to see the drama, there was no reason to stick around and watch; waiting for them to turn their attentions back to me. I had no interest in fighting against twelve adventurers, especially if they were all Scions ¨Cbastards or not¨C that were decked out with powerful Cores and equipment. I managed to get the Core of the [Tortured Spirit] as well as a drop I had no expectations for; [Tortured Kris]. There was literally no reason for me to stay here, I turned to leave; hoping to give them some time to sort it out in privacy. It also sounded like a god idea for me to be as far away from them as possible, so I turned around to leave. ¡°Move, Gurran! He¡¯s getting away!¡± Before the archer could fire another arrow, I was already sprinting away. Boom An explosion and another curtain of smoke. Figures popped out of the smoke like assassins in the mid of night, their eyes fixed on me. Damn it, I had dragged my feet too long; now it was going to turn into an actual chase. On the bright side, this was good for me. Without a coordinated effort, there was no way that they could catch up to me. My build was built for speed and extreme bursts of damage; a guerilla warfare tactic was the best situation I could ask for. Then again, I didn¡¯t want to spill blood here. If I killed even one of them, Gurran and Dorothy, the two strongest among them, might change their minds. It also wasn¡¯t like I could bring this fight to the doorsteps of the Beastman Village either. Never mind the distance, if a human brought a literal gang war into their midst, I could throw away any chances of forging good relations with them. I needed them for Skaris¡¯ [Evolution] and who knew, maybe I¡¯d even end up recruiting a couple of them. And¡­ it was a village, not a war camp. People lived there. Just because I myself grew used to violence and death did not mean it was an everyday occurence for others. Plenty of people in this world went about their lives without ever seeing a monster or walking close to death. No, I wouldn¡¯t be responsible for traumatizing a passing by kid or worse yet, the death of someone who was minding their own business. I¡¯d be no better than the Akka Xaluds if I did that. So that left one option. A Dungeon. Somewhere along the Canyon, I knew that there was a dungeon opening. Dungeons usually had a myriad of routes and paths, plenty for someone like me to sneak around and give them the slip. It was definitely a risk though¡­ the monsters in dungeons would be stronger. Around grade 7 or so, maybe even higher. In a one on one, I was confident of being able to slay even a grade 6 monster. But it was the aftermath I was worried about. Even if I somehow pulled off another miraculous solo-kill off a boss monster, I¡¯d be spent; easy pickings for monsters. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. A risk for sure¡­ but possible. It would take extreme effort on my part to pull this off. I leaped to the side as more chains exploded out of the ground, trying to tangle up my legs. The air grew cold as the ice mage from before likely cast [Ice Mist], trying to hinder my movements. Since it wasn¡¯t a debuff but an environmental change, the frost began to cling to me and slowed my legs. Redoubling my efforts, I ran faster. They were¡­ annoying. ¡°Should I just start killing them off one by one?¡± I muttered under my breath. I definitely could. I knew that without a doubt. Maybe not Gurran but the archers and mages? At this point in my build, most of them were fodder; I knew it the same way that the sky was up and the earth was down. But I couldn¡¯t treat this like a game, killing someone just because it was the easier alternative. If I started weighing someone¡¯s life versus the amount of effort I had to put in¡­ Again, I was no better than someone like¡­ like Arione. But at the end of it all, people¡¯s lives mattered¡­ especially if they weren¡¯t trying to kill me but incapacitate me instead. I know, my standards have grown real low after being a slave. My mind made up, I ran towards the dungeon. *** If I remembered correctly, the dungeon in this area was named [Burial Mound]. The moment I entered through the unassuming double doors hidden behind some large rocks, carved into the walls of the cliff like they belonged there, I could feel why with every inch of my skin. ?You have entered a Special Field: Burial Mound ? ? Field Effect - Burial Mound is now active ? ? Field Effect - Burial Mound: -30% to [Mental] Stat] ? ? Field Effect - Burial Mound: Monsters are harder to Detect! ? The dungeon wasn¡¯t made of solid rock like the environment outside. As I delved deeper into the dungeon, the floor turned to mushy, fertile soil; the type that you¡¯d find on a mountain. Despite being underground, the ceiling was way up high, giving me the illusion that I was actually inside a mound; not the side of a mountain. I sniffed, smelling wet soil and the faint smell of alcohol ¨Csome kind of preservative, maybe an embalming fluid of something¨C and saw that the soil had spots of sparse grass growing among them. The whole place was covered in this dim bluish-green hue, though there was no light to see with. I thought it was just my good eye adjusting to the dark but it wasn¡¯t. Even when I got used to the dark, I could¡¯ve sworn I saw shadows leap about, weird goo-like apparitions staring at me that seemed to be a trick of the mind as soon as I turned my head. No matter how I angled my sight, the corner of my eye always seemed to be catching something. The hem of a skirt, the fingertips of an outstretched hand and maybe even the shuffling of feet rushing towards me. The laughter of a man and not quite a man echoed in the distance, carried over by nonexistent winds and sent a shiver up my spine. It felt like I was being watched and stalked, not to become prey but for some other purpose that sent a primal fear in me. That I shouldn¡¯t be here and that this place was just wrong. I never liked horror movies as a kid. I told myself that this was just an effect of the dungeon, that it was playing tricks on me. There shouldn¡¯t be many monsters here that posed a threat to me; unless a stray Grade 6 happened to wander around. Even still, with my abilities, evading monsters should be as easy as breathing. The deeper I went, the stronger the foreboding feeling grew. ¡°They¡¯re just monsters.¡± I spoke out loud, talking to myself. Hearing my voice calmed my nerves; lessened the sense that things were spiritual and rooted here and the now, the physical realm. The physical realm where I could cut things with my sword and smash them to bits with my shield. I felt my body react to the fear like a scared animal, crouching and lowering myself to the floor. A cold detached part of myself noted that I was a smaller target now, harder to see, harder to hear and harder to hunt. My muscles were taut like a coiled spring, ready to explode into action. It didn¡¯t help at all when the monster¡¯s tail coiled around my feet and pulled, slamming my face into the ground. ?[Nure-onna (å¦Å®)] casts [Shriek] ? The Nure-onna opened her mouth and expelled a high-pitched sound with so much force that the very air quivered; the space between us shaking in turn like a pile of dominoes being knocked over in slow motion. I felt my mouth open to scream but nothing came out. The ability had already reached me and I felt my eyes almost roll over in my head, giving over to the status [Fear]. All the previous experience I had with monsters went out the window. The part of my mind that was still logical and not screaming in fear at the jump scare tried to convince me that this was just a status effect, that I wasn¡¯t actual scared. But Fear wasn¡¯t just a psychological symptom; my muscles seized and I couldn¡¯t take in enough air. Looking into the Nuri-onna¡¯s face ¨Cthe face of an unkempt woman with make-up too heavy and wet hair draped around her snake body¨C made things worse. The sheer inhuman nature of this creature, the genuine joy in her eyes and the fact that something supernatural, something otherworldly had grabbed ahold of me and wanted to do things to me, made my mind turn into a lizard that wanted to do nothing else but cut off my leg and scramble away. She smiled at me, her teeth neither fangs nor sharpened. Just plain¡­ teeth. ¡°Four¡­ three¡­ two¡­ one.¡± It wasn¡¯t the calm part of my brain that was counting down until the [Fear] status wore off, it was the animal-brained scared rabbit part. That same scared rabbit decided to bite. I flipped my katana easily, it had been with me long enough to be a third arm by now, and with a reverse grip, I stabbed it into the Nure-onna¡¯s tail. The creature shrieked in pain, not the Ability, but a scream of pain that sounded just like the voice of two woman screaming together, underlain by the hissing of a snake. But now that the [Fear] status had worn off, I only had plain old regular fear to deal with and those were usually accompanied by anger. The Nure-onna tried to slither away, but I jumped on my heels and dug into them. She screamed again as her momentum carried my sword through her tail like I was fileting an eel. She snapped at me, her jaws coming dangerously close to my face and my reflexes kicked in; slapping her away with the flat side of my shield. The monster recovered, much too fast, and sunk her teeth into my shoulder. ¡°FUCK!¡± The Nure-onna was a Grade 7 monster; neither boss class nor anything special. But I had made two mistakes in this fight; I had failed to sense her approach and failed to keep my feet moving after striking her away with my shield. I had overestimated my strike and underestimated the monster¡¯s [Physical] stat. Two crucial mistakes that I should never have made. ?[Nure-onna (å¦Å®)] casts [Rot Bite] ? She wrenched her teeth from my shoulder and I saw stringy flesh trailing from her chin. Her eyes rolled up, curving like crescent moons in sheer exhilaration. This time, I was the one to create distance between us. Her tail lashed out, already starting to regenerate from her passive [Your Pain, My Pleasure]. The tip almost slammed into me but I leaned back at the last time, settling for a cut to the forehead which started to drip with blood. Right into my good eye. It would¡¯ve been better if I had taken the slam instead. Three mistakes now. I was being dumb, letting the fear get to me. I¡¯d fought stronger monstrosities, living nightmares. But the effect on my [Mental] stat wasn¡¯t just getting me more susceptible to [Fear]. It was affecting my decisions, making my legs feel like jelly and causing me to lash out like a scared animal; not the calm swordsman I was trained to be. Luckily, I had a string of new tricks up my sleeve. ?Lock casts [Share the Load] ? The [Tortured Spirit] Core, that I traded with Gurran for, had an ability that was going to be my opening move for a very long time. A manacle appeared around my wrist and the chain attached to it shot out towards the Nure-onna, another manacle clasping around her neck. Share the Load was a horrible ability. It bound the user and opponent together by an indestructible chain. Then as the battle went on, the Chain started to place debuffs at various times. Share the Load placed a debuff every five minutes: [Footwork], [Handicraft], [Smell], [Hearing], [Sight] and finally started reducing [Physical] and [Mental] in alternating order. ?[Share the Load] decreases [Footwork] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Share the Load] ? ?[Arcane Masochism] increases [Attack] ? The longer we battled, the weaker we both got... except for me. I chose this Core to replace [Coin Toss] which had been my opening move, which only had a 50% chance to hit [Arcane Masochism]. I also hadn¡¯t forgotten to keep an eye on my Lunar Shield, which had a full stack now. Clenching my fist, I opened my eyes ignoring the stinging sensation. The longer this battle went on, the harder it would be to see. As much as I wanted to prolong the battle and see how strong I could get through the combination of [Arcane Masochism] x [Share the Load] and [Lunar Shield], I wanted to end this. Fixing my eyes on the Nure-onna¡¯s head, I pulled with [Tidal Force] and the monster¡¯s head came flying towards me, it¡¯s snake body stretching so fast that it started tearing at the scales. All eight debuffs from the Lunar Shield transformed into a combination of [Attack] and [Defense] stats. My katana covered in gray Aura, I cleaved the creature in two and I really did filet her in half like an eel this time. I fell to my knees, ignoring the loot that dropped from her corpse. My lungs were heaving and I was gasping for breath, the adrenaline starting to wear off and my shoulder starting to ache. My fingers trembled as I took out a health potion ¨Cdammit, I was so much stronger than everyone else but not good enough¨C and almost dropped it. Uncorking it, I poured it into the shoulder wound and over my forehead. ¡°GGggghhhhhhkk.¡± I shook with pain, muffling my scream into animal grunts as the potion reknit skin and destroyed some of the infected cells. I was infected with [Rot Bite]. I had to get out of this dungeon and find a Priest. The nearest place was the Beastman Village. I just had to pray that Parthenon did not follow me- ¡°Find them!¡± I recognized that voice. The Archer. But¡­ ¡®Them¡¯? Who was Them? Regardless, I needed to make myself scarce. But where? ¡°I could help you.¡± A kid¡¯s voice with extra emphasis on the word ¡®I¡¯. I turned to see two¡­ two fucking kids in the middle of this dungeon. ¡°So¡­ what¡¯s it going to be, Mister?¡± *** Chapter 77: Escort (1)
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A kid with a dog¡­ wolf? ¨Csome kind of canine ears sat with her legs crossed. A crossbow ¨Ccalled an Arbalest¨C that was longer than she was tall lay within easy reach though I had no idea how she¡¯d hoist it in time. Her eyes were pitch black with amber pupils, the same color as her spiky hair which was shaved at the sides but left long at the top and back; a few strands covering her face.. Young enough to have a twinkle in her eyes but old enough to make it look sly, a lean lanky look about her. She smirked, flashing me with a fang. Her partner was the opposite in every way. Where as the previous kid¡¯s theme was all black and leather, this girl was all expensive white and expensive cloth. She had long straight white hair, not silver, not gray, pure white that looked like snow, styled in the traditional Miko, priestesses (or maiden) of the Shinto Religion, fashion. She wore a matching dress-robe of white and black. The only thing they had in common were their pale complexion. But the Miko girl¡¯s eyes, they were light blue like a husky''s. She had them half-closed, like she was trying not to see too much but I couldn''t help but notice that her pupils shone with otherworldly light. The girl with the Arbalest ¨Cby the gods, she was way too young to be in a dungeon¨C spoke up and I recognized her voice as the one who offered help. ¡°So? What¡¯s it going to be, Mister?¡± I tried to answer but stopped, my brain not sure not exactly programmed to function in a situation so far outside of my expectations. It wasn¡¯t the fact that I encountered other adventurers in a dungeon, it was the fact that these girls were kids. All governments in MSS had rules about kids entering dungeons; you couldn¡¯t even get an adventurer¡¯s license until you were 20. ...Christ, these girls were just teenagers. Young enough to go out on Friday night but old enough to make their parents worry. The girl dressed in leather sighed, getting to her feet and grabbing her arbalest with surprising ease. I saw her ears twitch, a small hint that she had picked up something. ¡°Welp, we tried our best. Let¡¯s go, Sis.¡± She turned on her heel, putting a hand on her counterpart and pushing. ¡°Stole,¡± The Miko-looking husky-girl didn¡¯t budge, her eyes were so narrow that they looked almost closed. But I could see the flashes of ice-blue as she shook her head. ¡°We must help him.¡± Stole rolled her eyes. ¡°But Sis, he looks so fucking stupid, there¡¯s no way he¡¯s the one-¡± The other girl fixed Stole with a look. Watching the two girls bicker kicked my brain into working again. ¡°I need help.¡± I cut in, using my katana as a cane to hold my weight. Stole eyed my weapons, first the katana and then the Plurality, her eyes widening at the latter, followed by a wicked smile. The two shared a look. I saw Stole¡¯s ears twitch again which was both surprising and worrisome. It was surprising because I didn¡¯t hear anything and my [Hearing] stat was pretty good. I wasn¡¯t a real scout, not quite skilled enough nor possessing the stats necessary to be a Pioneer or even a Wayfinder. Still, my experience so far has taught me I was decent and the fact that this girl could hear things I couldn¡¯t surprised me. It was also worrisome because she was hearing one of two things: Monsters¡­ or the Adventurers who followed me here. ¡°I guess that Gurran guy and Dorothy couldn¡¯t hold their party back.¡± If the so called Parthenon was this lacking in discipline, I wondered what that meant for other parties. So far, I wasn¡¯t impressed by the parties I¡¯ve seen here. Always scheming and a noticeable absence of trust. I wanted to build something different. While I was lost in my thoughts, the robed girl kneeled in front of me. ¡°Let me heal you, Mister.¡± She put a hand on me and white light enveloped me for a brief moment, not just healing me of my wounds that the potion couldn¡¯t fully heal but cleansing me of Rot Bite. As I surmised, this girl was a Healer. ¡°Thank you.¡± I breathed. ¡°Well, we don¡¯t have all day. C¡¯mon then.¡± The girl, Stole, turned around and started leading us deeper into the dungeon. Her ears started to swivel like satellites, twitching every now and then, and put her nose to the air couple of times. For a while, we walked on in silence. Five minutes, ten minutes and half an hour. Throughout it all, I studied Stole carefully. She sometimes forced us to double back, using her sense of smell, hearing and sight to study the path before us. Sometimes when there was a fork in the road, she didn¡¯t hesitate to point out which one we should take. I was sure of it now, this girl was both a [Wayfinder] and a [PioneInter]. A highly skilled one at that. [Pioneer] fulfilled the role of the party¡¯s scout, with a caveat: they didn¡¯t need to rely on their senses to know where to go. [Wayfinder] on the other hand, used their senses to figure out where to go. There were pros and cons to both. [Pioneer] could find their way out of a maze while blindfolded and their hands tied behind their back; the combination of their Cores and natural gifts coalescing into a talent; kind of like how birds that migrate seasonally have an internal compass. As long as the [Pioneer] had a clear idea of what to look for, the Boss Monster or the exit of a dungeon ¨Ceven a fellow Party Member¨C they would always, always know which way to go. The downside was that they had no idea what lay in waiting en route. They could bump into monsters, traps and the like. Kind of like a Compass. [Wayfinder] on the other hand, could be compared to a radar. With a variety of Cores that enhanced stats like [Smell], [Hearing], and [Sight]; they led the way, alerting the party of any danger. Stole finally led us into a tiny crack in the wall, barely wide enough to fit me. She slipped inside, her slim figure disappearing with fluid grace. Her sister, the Priestess smiled at me and followed suit. I had to turn sideways to do it but upon entering, realized that it was a small shelter. Not roomy at all, it might barely fit Skaris and I together but with two small girls in here, it was barely enough. ¡°We¡¯ll be safe here for a while yet.¡± Stole put a hand on her knee, sitting on the floor like a 40 year old man with a beer can on the floor. I noted her equipment while she did so, well-oiled leather and signs of use. While I was staring, I realized she put her hand in front of my face. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. I traded grips with her. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m Lock.¡± ¡°Stole.¡± She jerked a thumb at herself then at her sister. ¡°That¡¯s my sister. Her name is-¡± ¡°I can introduce myself, Stole.¡± Her eyes were half lidded, hiding her pupils from me. ¡°My name is Shared Stars fall Silently. You may call me Shara.¡± ¡°You¡¯re lucky we found you when we did. There were a bunch of adventurers fighting near the entrance. Was drawing all kinds of the wrong attention, they were.¡± Stole reached into her knapsack, taking out some bread and munching on it. Food got everywhere over her mouth, chin and in the surrounding area. Damn. This girl had zero grace and table manners. But I did note that despite her equipment looking expensive, she had no Dimension Ring. Something to remember. Nodding, I faced both of them. I got straight to the point. ¡°Were you two looking for me?¡± The two shared a look, Stole shrugging and Shara giving a disapproving glare. ¡°No point in lying, Shara.¡± Stole stretched; reminding me of a cat rather than a dog. ¡°My sister is the next Kagura of our Village. During her daily praying she got a-¡± ¡°I will explain to him, Stole.¡± Stole pouted but did not argue. ¡°How familiar are you with our ways, Sir?¡± Shara asked me, turning her attention fully upon me. When Shara turned her attention to me, it wasn¡¯t¡­ well, I wouldn¡¯t say it was pleasant. It was unsettling. Despite her half-closed eyes, it was like she staring through me and I could¡¯ve sworn there was another set of eyes in here on me. I thought it might have been Stole but she was looking at the ceiling, pretending to not listen. This feeling that Shara gave off was nostalgic. I¡¯d felt it once. I kicked myself when I put it together. Oung. This girl was a Priestess of Oung¡­ and not just any old Priestess. She was Chosen just like Clover had been. I shook my head, trying to organize my thoughts. ¡°I know that the title Kagura is reserved for those chosen by your goddess, Oung.¡± I chose my next words carefully, reminding myself that I was talking to kids. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be a representative of Oung; sort of a stand-in for her. Set aside and pure.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not supposed to be out here.¡± I finished lamely. The beastman of her village, and all beastman who were even somewhat remotely religious would know the importance to her. She was a symbol to them, a symbol that showed the people that their Goddess still cared about them. Shara was definitely not someone who should be trapezing around Dungeons with an underaged adventurer as a bodyguard, sisters or not. If they sent out a search party and found me with her, I wasn¡¯t sure they¡¯d ask questions first. ¡°You are familiar with our ways.¡± She smiled at me, and the scent of dirt, flowers and pleasant breezes reached my nose. It wasn¡¯t Shara, was it¡­ Oung? ¡°That saves me some time then. Oung has commanded me to wait here for you. That you will help us clear this dungeon.¡± I didn¡¯t want to believe her. I¡¯d been in a Fracture literally just the other day. Plus, the Nure-onna had nearly handed my ass to me. This dungeon with its [Mental] debuff was annoying and the monsters here gave a dismal amount of experience. I also had no need of a Core that any of them dropped. Maybe I could sell some of the rare items- ¡°She said that you owe her.¡± I froze. ¡°Owe her?!¡± I said incredulously. Even while I said it, it was true. Oung¡¯s dungeon, the first one I entered in MSS, had made my build into what I am. Getting the Core drop of [Unjo] had sent me years ahead. As tough as the dungeon had been, it made me who I am today: Strong. Still, it didn¡¯t change the fact that I almost died. ¡°Did she mention me by name?¡± ¡°No,¡± Stole scoffed. ¡°She said look for the ugliest looking guy stumbling around in the dark, breathing so loud that every monster in the dungeon was drawn near.¡± I sincerely wished there was a Core for wittiness or quips because the lack of comeback at Stole¡¯s words physically hurt me. Stole looked at me with a knowing smile. ¡°Sister.¡± Shara scolded. ¡°As for your question, I knew it was you as soon as we saw you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Not the Oung part¡­ I¡¯ve had a run-in with your goddess, so I know she¡¯s real.¡± ¡°Another nutjob.¡± Stole quipped. ¡°She¡¯s just a kid. Be the adult here.¡± I told myself and held my tongue. ¡°If a human¡¯s faith outshines your own, Sister, what does that say to the future of our tribe?¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you Shara, all those weird things they fed you is making you hear things. This is a fool¡¯s errand.¡± Stole spat to the side. Shara¡¯s eyes opened slightly; the unnatural glow within them standing out against the dark. ¡°Yet you chose to follow me here.¡± Stole said nothing. I cleared my throat. ¡°We can¡¯t beat the dungeon boss here. It¡¯ll be a Grade 6 Boss-class. With just three of us, without a skilled tank or a mage ¨Ceven a supporter would do¨C it¡¯ll be impossible.¡± ¡°The goddess will provide.¡± Shara replied. It¡¯s really hard to argue with religious people when A. you know that their god is real and B. they reply to logic with faith. I sighed, rubbing a hand through my hair. ¡°If I leave, what will you two do?¡± ¡°The goddess¡¯ command was clear. With or without help, I must clear this dungeon.¡± Shara¡¯s expression was stoic and I knew that there was no changing the girls¡¯ mind. ¡°Are you going to help us or not?¡± Stole was the one who asked me directly, peering at me. ¡°Of course I will.¡± I snapped, surprising myself as I said it. Shara smiled. I had to help. Shara was right. I owed Oung and though I wasn¡¯t clear about my stance on this whole goddess thing, I knew she was real and way more powerful than I was. If the divinities of this world could manipulate dungeons in such a way to create Cores and produce monsters; it would be best to err on the side of caution. And after everything was said and done, even if I took divine intervention out of the picture, the two of them had helped me. I couldn¡¯t leave two teenage girls to clear a Dungeon alone. If Skaris found out about this I¡¯d never hear the end of it. Not to mention Kyrian giving me an earful about adventurer and dungeoneering protocol¡­ It really would¡¯ve been nice to have them here now. ¡°I¡¯m assuming Oung gave you a plan?¡± ¡°The goddess,¡± Shara replied, putting emphasis on the word, ¡°Has provided us with everything we need. Even as we speak, they approach.¡± She shot a look at her sister. Stole got up, dusting herself off. ¡°They¡¯re here. Come on then, I hope you¡¯re friendlier than you look.¡± ¡°They?¡± I asked, standing up besides them. ¡°The Goddess has provided us with friends to stand with us in the face of adversary.¡± Shara explained, and promptly followed after Stole. What the hell were they talking about? I followed them outside and immediately saw what the two crazy sisters had been talking about. Dorothy was there, fighting alongside her white wolf against three Nure-onna. She used a combination of throwing knives and needles; which returned to her hand moments later through teleportation. The gray wolf and black wolf were nowhere to be seen and her wounds were any indication; they¡¯d probably been killed. Summons never truly died though; they were probably on a cooldown timer. Gurran looked a lot better than her. He used his medium-sized shield with pinpoint accuracy; knocking away the trio of Nure-onna¡¯s tails and bites. If Aurora was a tank who used her huge shield to cover herself and her teammates; Gurran was the type to wade into the melee and draw attention to himself. Whenever his shield made contact with an attack, sparks of electricity flew out. Those sparks lingered in the air until Gurran stabbed a Nure-onna with a vicious strike of his axe. Lightning spewed from the cleave and all the lingering electric sparks in the air surged in harmony; creating an instantaneous web of electricity that shocked the Nure-onna for another instance of damage. A tank who used a passive to set up the field with electricity, activating them with a strike imbued with lightning. One of the best Tank Builds in the game that could take him well into hunting higher-grade monsters. Like I had felt from before, Gurran was different from all the other adventurers I¡¯d met. He was strong. His build¡­ I¡¯d give him a 5.5, maybe even 6 out of 10. Stole kneeled, raising her arbalest to her shoulder like a sniper rifle. She closed one eye. ¡°This is taking too long.¡± I watched as she took aim; then fired. The bolt made contact with a Nure-onna that had been about to bite into Dorothy¡¯s white wolf. It left a puncture wound about the width of my thumb and then curved with supernatural ability, leaving similar puncture wounds on the other two Nure-onnas. ?Stolen Stars Fall Silently casts [Concentrated Aim] ? ?Stolen Stars Fall Silently casts [Bounce Shot] ? Damn, if I wasn¡¯t wrong that was a [Bounce Shot] and [Careful Aim] combination. Careful Aim would increase the strength of her shots the longer she aimed; couple that with Bounce Shot, she could do some decent damage even with a slow Arbalest. Perhaps enough to make up for the lack of usual rapid-fire coverage by ranged builds with sheer firepower. Even if she was a teenager she had a nice Core Ability that complimented each other. Stole¡­ maybe a solid 7 out of ten. Mostly because someone like her was useful even without a lot of combat abilities. ? [Static Electricity]: The field is filled with electricity ? ? Gurran Turian casts [Electric Cleave] ? ? [Static Electricity] reacts! ? Gurran and Dorothy made quick work of the injured Nure-onnas with Stole covering them. The two turned to face us and I noticed that the nodes of electricity were slowly starting to drift towards us. ¡°She¡¯s a Kagura.¡± I said hurriedly. Goddamit, I really didn¡¯t want to become an enemy of the whole Beastman Tribes in the Jayu States. I hoped that Gurran, being a bastard of a Great House, knew enough about the ramifications of getting this girl hurt. Gurran¡¯s eyes widened and the electricity faded away. He nodded towards me, a gesture of thanks though his eyes were still uneasy. Yeah, I understood. He blamed me for the falling out with his Clan¡­ though I wondered if that even was a Clan. What kind of Clan falls apart so easily? It made no sense, there had to be a story in there somewhere. ¡°What is this?¡± Dorothy measured up Stole and Shara at once, walking up towards them. If the title of [Kagura] bothered her, she didn¡¯t show it. ¡°A thanks would be nice.¡± Stole muttered. Maybe it was a girl thing but Stole seemed much more subdued towards Dorothy, the older woman, than towards me. ¡°Bitch.¡± Stole finished with a whisper. I was wrong. This girl just didn¡¯t give a shit. Period.
Chapter 78: Escort (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°You brat, what did you say to me?¡± Dorothy took a step forward and the wolf behind her growled; its eyes glowering with red light. Simultaneously, Dorothy¡¯s own cerulean eyes seemed to glow. ¡°So she has a Core that shares certain abilities with her Summons. Battle-oriented support summoner?¡± Thinking back to the throwing weapons she deployed earlier, I changed my assessment of her. ¡°DPS oriented support; mobile enough to drag allies to safety or distract the monster.¡± ¡°I called you a-¡± Stole didn¡¯t back away from the older woman, a crooked grin making her look wolfish and daring. Shara stepped in between the two. ¡°Please. Excuse my sister¡¯s words.¡± When Dorothy glared at Shara too, Gurran grabbed the blue-black haired woman¡¯s arm, dragging her half a step towards him and away from the Kagura Candidate. He shook his head when Dorothy growled at him. When Dorothy looked confused, he stepped up to Shara and gave her a curt nod and another one to Stole. ¡°My name is Gurran Turian. I thank you both for your help.¡± Gurran looked back and forth between the two beastman girls and then at me. ¡°This dungeon is no place for someone of your stature. If you will let me escort you back to the-¡± Damn, not even a full minute had gone by since they met and he was already trying to get in her good graces, trying to have the beastman owe him a favor. ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you, Gurran Turian,¡± Shara interjected, not giving Gurran a chance to finish his sentence. ¡°But I was led here by the goddess¡¯ grace, much like yourselves.¡± Dorothy scoffed at the mention of ¡®goddess¡¯. Shara ignored her and continued. ¡°The goddess has ordered me to clear this dungeon. As I am still yet lacking, she told me she would provide the necessary comrades to do so. It seems you three are it.¡± ¡°Us three?¡± Dorothy kicked a stray rock while talking. Rather than a lady of a Great House ¨Cbastard or not¨C Dorocian Kojisan spoke like a thug. ¡°Listen kid. I¡¯m thankful, I really am. But if you¡¯re going to use the name goddess-¡± Gurran hissed, silencing the woman. She glared daggers at him. ¡°It¡¯s fishy isn¡¯t it? Our initiates just happen to be psychotic little killers who go off the hinge when that bloke over there,¡± She obviously meant me, ¡°push them a little? [Tortured Kris] is a good weapon, but who doesn¡¯t get something like that eventually? Then we run for our lives following that ugly face over there,¡± Again¡­ she meant me, ¡°And we just happen to run into a Kagura who wants our help to clear this dungeon? On a divine mission nonetheless?¡± She jabbed a finger at Shara. ¡°A goddess of the beastman asking three humans for help?¡± Her wolf padded up to her and Dorothy patted the car-sized beast absently. ¡°This whole thing sounds like a trap. Let¡¯s go back, get our clan members and decapitate those little buggers. We can get out before things get messier and we¡¯re deep up to our necks in trouble.¡± Rude manners aside, Dorothy had cut to the heart of the matter. From her point of view, it really was weird. My appearance caused their new initiates ¨Cwhich explained why they failed to keep order¨C to lose all reason and turn on them, trying to hunt me. Actually, if that was to be believed, Dorothy and Gurran had chosen to just lose these new initiates by defending me. It would have been way easier for them to continue attacking me, join in, and bring them into their clan, Parthenon. ¡°We don¡¯t need comrades like that.¡± Gurran said darkly. Huh. Maybe these two weren¡¯t as bad as I thought. But back to the original point, Dorothy had a point about Shara asking us for help, or rather Oung sending us to her. A beastman goddess should use beastman adventurers, not humans. As the Six Gods and Goddesses of MSS were not heavily dealt with, I had no clue of what explanation there could be. So I looked at Shara too, naturally curious. ¡°I am not privy to the Goddess¡¯ thoughts. Simply a messenger.¡± She turned to each of us in turn. ¡°But I will tell you this. Has there really not been a single time in your life that the goddess Oung has shown you grace?¡± That didn¡¯t really answer the fundamental question of why not get her own people to clear this dungeon, especially considering how close it was to their village anyways. But if someone says ¡®I want you to do this because you owe me¡¯, that¡¯s often reason enough. It seemed that Gurran and Dorothy, despite her unbelief in the goddess, also had some run-ins with Oung which made me feel less special. It stood to reason that they did, else they wouldn¡¯t be here. In the first place, it wasn¡¯t like I was the main character in some kind of story. I was just¡­ I just had the luck of knowing the general setting of MSS. Then again, MSS must contain thousands of storylines that I was unaware of; even if I¡¯d played the game for 14 years. That was life. You think the world revolves around you, because your own story is the only one you know. But in the first story, most stories never even get a chance to be told. Of course I wasn¡¯t the only one Oung had taken an interest in; Shara being a Kagura was proof of that and Gurran and Dorothy were further proof. ¡°Best not to get a big head.¡± I told myself. ¡°Tch,¡± Stole clicked her tongue, ¡°You two talked a lot of shit just to end up being our stooges anyways.¡± Gurran easily ignored her. Of course, people like Stole were best dealt with by ignoring their offhanded comments. ¡°As an adventurer, I must ask you how you plan to split the loot from this raid.¡± Stole frowned. ¡°What do you mean split? We just split it five ways even-¡± I stopped her with a hand, earning a glare and a growl. Judging by Stole¡¯s equipment, attitude and most importantly of all, age, I could tell she wasn¡¯t a seasoned adventurer. Sure, she might be a seasoned fighter but an adventurer couldn¡¯t just be good at fighting. They needed to be good at reading the room, negotiating over loot and having a sense of how to deal with other adventurers. I could tell Stole was lacking in this department. ¡°You had something in mind?¡± I asked, knowing Gurran wouldn¡¯t have mentioned pay if he didn¡¯t have something in mind. ¡°From the look of things, the two ladies are not too skilled. You are skilled but alone. Dorothy and I have been adventuring for years together.¡± Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°Get to the point already.¡± Stole growled. ¡°60 for Dorothy and I. 25 for the two ladies and 15 for you.¡± Gurran offered, speaking directly to me. ¡°Any Cores or Pluralities will be subject to the same; or we can draw lots for it. Dorothy and I will receive 3 lots, 2 lots for the ladies and 1 for you.¡± I barked out a laugh, harsh and sharp. Stole and Shara both frowned and I saw their ears twitch one, no doubt displeased by the sound I made. ¡°40 for you two. 35 for the two and 25 for me. 2 lots for you and the ladies; 1 for me.¡± In the case that the party found a Core and were a party made on the spot like this one, it was hard to trust that the other members would come through on payments. Therefore, on things like equipment and Cores, it was customary for the participating members to draw lots or roll dice for it, one person taking ownership of the object in question instead of splitting it and creating a logistical headache. A great method for the superstitious adventurers and more than a fair method for those who wanted to leave it up to chance. In an instant, some would be sent into the pits of despair while others would be set for life. Gurran looked at me, studying me before speaking. ¡°You believe¡­ you are worth more than Dorothy? Or even I?¡± He was talking about the fact that the two of them were 20 each according to my suggestion. Way less than my own estimation of 25 for myself. Of course. I saw their abilities and their fighting styles. They were strong, perhaps even stronger than Skaris or Aurora, especially Gurran. But me¡­ My build at this point wouldn¡¯t be out of place in a party of Grade 3 or 4 even without having more Cores. [Unjo] x [Prince Charming (Shadow Mimic Wolf)] x [Tortured Spirit]? With [Aura] on top? I could wipe the floor with these guys. But¡­ perhaps it wasn¡¯t time to reveal that just yet. ¡°50 for Dorothy and I. 30 for the ladies and 20 for you. But we will each get 1 lot per person, as you suggested.¡± So when Gurran made his next offer, I just nodded my head and accepted. ¡°I do this for the goddess. We do not need-¡± ¡°Shut up, Sis.¡± Stole shushed Shara, nudging her. It was obvious the two had no idea what was going on with the loot distribution; but Stole had enough sense to know that they were getting a better share than ¡®nothing¡¯. Gurran continued on, nominating himself as the leader. Again, I didn¡¯t bother countering his suggestion nor the ones that came after. Formations, emergency situation maneuvers and the like. It wasn¡¯t that Gurran was a bad party leader and that his suggestions were invalid. On the contrary, I was impressed. Gurran was a good leader, on the surface that is. He failed to notice Stole¡¯s eyes glaze over. The type of things he talked about were too advanced and detailed for a teenage adventurer who was used to dungeoneering by herself and illegally at that. Shara seemed to be paying attention but I knew that she wasn¡¯t listening to him one bit. She was too full of faith in the goddess, Gurran¡¯s orders were nonexistent. The Kagura candidate believed that we¡¯d 100% succeed, strategy or no strategy. It was predetermined. Even Dorothy, his own clan member, ignored him. She probably heard his words hundreds of times before. I waited for Gurran to finish and then said, ¡°Let¡¯s move then.¡± Words wouldn¡¯t get through to this crowd, they had to learn by doing not by listening. Gurran stood at the front, as was his job. Followed by Stole, then Shara and Dorothy. I remained in the back, watching our rear. ¡°Let¡¯s start then.¡± Gurran muttered, his voice nervous. Being the last one in the formation, I could see how everyone reacted differently to the atmosphere of this dungeon. The aura of death and the chance of something supernatural, something other than the monsters we adventurers were so used to could appear haunted us like a gas. Gurran walked with stiff steps, showing me that even he was somewhat fearful of what lay deeper in the dungeon. Me on the other hand felt more at ease. Being alone before had unleashed something primal in me, a fear that was etched deep in people¡¯s genetic makeup; that being by myself was dangerous. It didn¡¯t help that this dungeon was designed to be the inside of a burial mound; filled with sounds that monsters usually didn¡¯t make. Sounds too human, tinged with something bestial and subhuman at the same time echoed all around us as we continued to delve deep inside the dungeon. ¡°Two Nure-onnas at the front.¡± Stole muttered, taking a knee and holding up her arbalest. When the two woman-headed snakes lunged out of the darkness, their mouths unhinged to use [Rot Bite], Gurran stepped forward and took both of them on his shield. Electricity crackled and the space around was filled with tiny nodes of lightning, snapping and cracking; looking like tiny faeries. Dorothy started throwing her knives and stars, the sound of cutting wind accompanied by the deep thrum of Stole¡¯s arbalest. Gurran¡¯s repeated [Lightning Cleave] set off the chain reactions, electrical nodes being attracted to his strikes and frying the weakened Nure-onnas. It was quick and efficient. So efficient in fact that I hadn¡¯t had a chance to lift a finger. We continued that way, the three of them killing monsters that came at us out of the darkness. ¡°Damn. These monsters are so creepy.¡± Stole dragged her leather-bound boots out of the pool of blood. One of the Nure-Onnas had their head ripped off by Dorothy¡¯s wolf. She peered at the wolf in question. ¡°Can you make him, I don¡¯t know, kill them neater?¡± Dorothy¡¯s tone was annoyed. ¡°I¡¯m following along because of your sister over there. Don¡¯t presume that we¡¯re all friends now. You¡¯re mistaken if doing one raid together is what it takes to form a party.¡± Stole glowered. ¡°Who stuck a shoe up your ass?¡± The summoner looked at Gurran. No words. Just looked, and the silent exchange ended with her getting what she wanted. Gurran shrugged. ¡°She¡¯s not part of our Clan. Do not break anything.¡± Dorothy rushed towards Stole, knives appearing in her hands. To the young Pioneer¡¯s credit, she didn¡¯t flinch or hesitate to fight back. Stole threw her arbalest away and drew a kukri from behind her back. But I could see that the girl was outmatched. Stole was good but not that good. Dorothy was older, more experienced and definitely possessed more Cores. Not to mention Dorothy was a descendant of one of the Great Houses and had been trained since birth for moments like this. The summoner disarmed Stole with two neat cures to her forearm, who dropped the kukri with a loud cry of pain. Dorothy then spun and threw Stole to the ground in a throw that could put most judo practitioners to shame. Stole landed on her back with Dorothy straddling her shoulders. In another flash of movement, Dorothy hadpinned Stole¡¯s arms with her legs and held two knives to the girl¡¯s neck, arms crossed over one another. ¡°Stole-¡± I stepped in front of Shara, shaking my head at her. ¡°They¡¯re hurting her.¡± Shara looked stunned, her brain trying to play catch up with the rapid action sequence. ¡°I¡¯ll step in.¡± I assured her. Sometimes, things like this were necessary. I was impressed with Stole but her social skills could use a little bit of touching up. She continued to aggravate Dorothy with no reason and if it continued, it could turn into something big and ugly. It could be Stole¡¯s natural personality or it could be a dislike of Dorothy for whatever reason. But the girl needed to learn to get along with other adventurers. I kept a close eye on Dorothy¡¯s hands, ready to move at the slightest twitch. Shara looked worried but nodded. ¡°You¡¯re good, I¡¯ll give you that.¡± Dorothy wasn¡¯t even panting, while Stole wheezed on the floor; eyes still defiant. ¡°But nowhere near good enough to talk to me like that. Scratch that, talk to anyone here like that.¡± ¡°Right now, we¡¯re in a dungeon crawling with monsters with other adventurers behind us. You¡¯re a [Pioneer] so yes, you¡¯re role is important.¡± She leaned down, staring into Stole¡¯s eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t think for a moment that¡¯ll stop me from slitting your throat the moment I deem you¡¯re a threat to my life.¡± ¡°Dorocian.¡± Gurran hissed. Dorothy¡¯s lips curled and she got up, releasing Stole. ¡°I need a break.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t go too far.¡± Gurran muttered, but the blue-haired huntress made no notion that she heard. She stomped off about twenty paces away from us, her wolf whining and following her. The shielder rolled his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to her. Don¡¯t go anywhere.¡± That left me alone with the sisters. Shara knelt, trying to heal Stole but the girl pushed past her twin. ¡°I¡¯m fine, Sis. That bitch, I¡¯m going to-¡± ¡°You won¡¯t be doing anything like that.¡± I folded my arms. ¡°Yeah? And who made you boss? You didn¡¯t say shit when they were cutting you out of your share.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t care about the share from this dungeon. But I do care about clearing it.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it to you?¡± Apparently, Stole¡¯s anger had been redirected at me. I should have just kept my mouth shut. ¡°Like your sister said, I owe your goddess. I think.¡± I still wasn¡¯t too comfortable saying out loud that I believed Oung interfered directly in my life. It felt somewhat snobby. ¡°Also, I gave you my word that I¡¯ll help you guys through this. And from what I could see, Gurran and Dorothy are doing their best too. The only one who¡¯s causing problems is you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too young to be adventuring so you adventured alone. You¡¯re talented and probably had some successes but my guess is that you¡¯ve never been in a dungeon like this before. Probably stuck to fields, never having killed a boss monster. Is that true?¡± I asked. Stole was silent and I took that for a yes. ¡°You¡¯re scared.¡± I finally said. ¡°The hell I am.¡± Stole growled, trying to stand but Shara stopped her. ¡°It¡¯s my first time being in a dungeon as well.¡± Shara said quietly, her eyes downcast. She touched the ground with her hand. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that it felt so¡­ dark. So grim. So.. so full of ugly things.¡± ¡°So are they.¡± I replied. ¡°Stole, you¡¯re a [Pioneer] and [Wayfinder]. Do you know what their role is in a party?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious?¡± She scoffed. ¡°We lead our party to the destination.¡± ¡°Yes but that¡¯s only half of it.¡± I sat down next to the two girls. ¡°A [Pioneer]¡¯s job isn¡¯t just to lead the party physically but to make them feel safe.¡± Both of them frowned. ¡°In a dungeon, a hundred different things could happen. Dorothy said it herself. Monsters could jump out at us and other adventurers could ambush us. The fear of the unknown, that something outside of our control could happen, that fear haunts all of us.¡± ¡°But a [Pioneer] can get rid of that. In the darkness of dungeons, [Pioneers] and [Wayfinders] are the torch bearers for their party, lightning their path. So that the party can move forward with surety, confident that wherever they are being led, that they¡¯ll all be ok. The trust between a party and a scout and their party is supposed to be something sacred. As one, everyone puts their lives in the hands of a single person and that single person, in turn, trusts the party to be at their side at the first moment of danger.¡± ¡°A Pioneer is supposed to smile in the dark, so that their party can walk undeterred. You did the opposite. Instead of taking on everyone¡¯s fears and reassuring them, you pushed your own fears onto us. Onto Dorothy in particular.¡± I turned from Stole to Shara then back again to Stole. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to lead us, Stole. Not make us more afraid.¡± She was silent. Shara reached out and grabbed her sister¡¯s hand and Stole finally looked up. ¡°I believe in you, Sister.¡± Shara muttered, so quiet that I thought Stole didn¡¯t hear it. But Stole¡¯s ears perked up. Stole took a deep breath. ¡°I¡¯m not scared of the dungeon.¡± She said, shaking her head. ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯re here, you stupid- agh.¡± Stole growled, looking away. ¡°I¡¯m not good with this mushy stuff. It makes me want to gag and cringe. I just don¡¯t like having your life hanging in the balance.¡± Shara smiled at her sister. ¡°The goddess will protect me.¡± Then suddenly. ¡°And I¡¯m sure Mister over here will protect me.¡± I nodded in agreement. Stole snorted. ¡°Whatever. But I¡¯ll try this¡­ this [Pioneer] thing.. Not like I got anything better to do. Dragged in this stupid dungeon by my stupid sister.¡± Just as the three of us finished talking, Dorothy and Gurran joined us. ¡°About time.¡± The teenage beastman-Pioneer muttered and all of us held our breath, expecting another insult at the end. But none came. ¡°C¡¯mon then, a lot of you. I¡¯ll get us out of here in one piece.¡± Stole growled. ¡°Just leave it to me.¡±
Chapter 79: Escort (3)
World: MSS - Loading...
? +7 EXP ? ? +3 EXP ? ? +8 EXP ? The expedition was going smoothly. Almost too smoothly. Since I gave Stole that peptalk, she fulfilled her job as a [Pioneer] with renewed gusto. The girl took the role very seriously and we could all see that she was taking more care than before. Beads of sweat dropped from her chin whenever she swirled her head, ears listening for nearby monsters and her 6th sense, so to speak, fixed on the Boss Monster of this dungeon. If she could get the Passive Ability, [Monsterdex], she¡¯d become very formidable. It was an ability that allowed you to get an estimate of the monster¡¯s strength plus knowledge about one of its random abilities. While I was locked in my own thoughts about how to recruit an underaged beastman who was sister to the Kagura into my party without repercussions (I didn¡¯t know which was worse, the fact that she was underaged or was related to one of the most important person in the beastman village), Dorothy lagged behind to talk to me. ¡°What¡¯d you tell the little brat?¡± I didn¡¯t break my stride nor did I wince as Dorothy¡¯s Giant Wolf padded next to me. Fighting the urge to comment that it smelled like wet dog near her, I answered her. ¡°I told her how heavy the responsibility she bears is. As a [Pioneer].¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Dorothy¡¯s blue eyes studied the back of Stole, who pointed in another direction and began to lead us further in. ¡°Well, it worked. Good job.¡± For a few minutes we walked on in silence. But in my head, I was counting the seconds till Dorothy started talking again, she didn¡¯t seem like the type to enjoy it. I wasn¡¯t disappointed either. ¡°So¡­ we¡¯re going to be fighting in the Colosseum.¡± Dorothy said offhandedly, like she was commenting on the weather. ¡°Any thoughts?¡± I frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s appropriate to talk about right now.¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t like beating around the bush or avoiding the pink elephant in the room. We both know what¡¯s going to happen and this little expedition ain¡¯t going to change shit.¡± I could understand why Dorothy and Stole didn¡¯t get along. They were simply too similar to each other. The candid speech, the rough demeanor. Just two thugs who happened to be on different sides of the fence. ¡°Let¡¯s concentrate on this dungeon.¡± ¡°Psh.¡± Dorothy snorted, completely unladylike. ¡°Fuck that noise. This dungeon is filled with Grade-7 monsters. The boss-monster will be Grade-7. Maybe-6 if we¡¯re unlucky, but even then I¡¯m pretty sure with you, Gurran and me; we could clear this dungeon easily.¡± Were all Scions like this? No¡­ Aurora wasn¡¯t like this and neither was Gurran. He seemed normal enough. It was just Dorothy. ¡°Hey, tell me about how you got mixed up with Oung.¡± She finally said, when it was clear that I wasn¡¯t willing to talk about our Colosseum fight. ¡°I too, am curious, Mister.¡± Shara chimed in. ¡°...I thought you didn¡¯t believe in Oung.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re not going to talk about the Colosseum aren¡¯t you? And what¡¯s it to you what I believe or not believe? Call her Oung or a highly-intelligent boss-monster, makes no difference to me.¡± Shara frowned but didn¡¯t comment. I didn¡¯t want to talk about the Colosseum fight because I was afraid I¡¯d let slip something valuable and affect the fight in any way. With my new [Tortured Spirit] Core, I was pretty sure I could beat Dorothy 9 times out of 10. But on the off-chance that I said something unnecessary, it could easily turn into a fifty-fifty fight. That was how fights worked in MSS, especially if your levels were relatively close. If Dorothy had been fighting in the Colosseum for a while, she definitely had the connections necessary to swap out Cores before a fight. Which also meant she was probably loaded. Thinking back to Dorothy¡¯s question, I found no fault in speaking about Oung. Besides, I wanted to hear their experience with the goddess as well. ¡°I was a Slave for the Samak Horde. Running from Slave Hunters, I entered a dungeon. There, I found a hidden shrine dedicated to Oung. That¡¯s where I met her for the first time.¡± ¡°That¡¯s your fucking story?¡± Dorothy whined. ¡°Bud, don¡¯t quit your day job. Worst storyteller I¡¯ve ever met.¡± I wanted to roll my eyes but held myself back. And Kyrian tells me I have no tact. ¡°It was my first time hearing the voice of a goddess. It was¡­ well, it was horrifying.¡± My mind brought me back to the subterranean dungeon. The stature of stone with eyes made of flesh, watching my every movement. The voice that commanded me, overpowering my Will and taking away the freedom of choice simply because I was too weak. The way the statue moved like it was something that just did not belong in this world. Both my old one and this one. I shuddered. Dorothy had been watching me and nodded. ¡°Yeah. I understand that feeling.¡± ¡°You and Gurran?¡± ¡°We met her at separate times, so you¡¯re going to have to get Gurran¡¯s story from him.¡± Dorothy began, her eyes narrowing and pressing her lips together. Her wolf whined as she began her story. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°I did a stint for the Church for a couple of years. Hunting [Artifacts], [Legendary] items and the occasional [Plurality] if we could get our hands on it. A lot of the indirect descendants, bastards and weaker Scions who were cast out by the main family end up getting in with the Church.¡± She shrugged. ¡°The Church offers a way out of all that nonsense.¡± ¡°Anyways, we got news about a Dungeon near the border of Zimmskar holding a relic. Of course, Zimmskar sent out their own party to investigate.¡± We took another turn. The frequency of monster encounters was decreasing. Perhaps this Boss Monster was one of those that drove mob monsters away from it. ¡°We get to the dungeon, days after seeing beastman tracks. We go in expecting a fight but no one was there.¡± ¡°Did they already clear the Dungeon?¡± Shara asked. It seemed to be that after years of being Stole¡¯s sister, Shara knew how to make Dorothy¡¯s story more interesting too, asking just the right questions at just the right time. ¡°No.¡± Dorocian Kojisa¡¯s eyes fixed on Shara with sudden intensity. ¡°They were killed by a Beastman.¡± Shara frowned. ¡°But Zimmskar is-¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know where he was from. Maybe he was from Zimmskar. Maybe he was a runaway slave from Turina. Maybe he¡¯s one of those nomads who doesn¡¯t call his home anywhere.¡± Dorothy muttered. ¡°But he¡­ looked old. Really really old. Ancient.¡± She shook her head. ¡°We thought we were preparing to fight a party of beastman, not a fucking monster that looked like a beastman.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± I asked. ¡°Nothing. That¡¯s it. We knew we were no match for him so we all hid. I was hiding underneath some rubble, knowing that the bastard was trying to sniff us all out. My party back then was used to being hunted, because half the time we were hunting down heretics of the Church. But we all knew, he¡¯d find us eventually.¡± Dorothy reached out and patted the side of her wolf. ¡°What about your encounter with Oung?¡± ¡°She¡¯s the one who let us get out. A huge portal opened up and, poof, he was gone. Just like that.¡± There were a number of things fishy with Dorothy¡¯s story. First, who was this old beastman? Besides the fact that he turned on his own kind, it was almost unbelievable that he could eliminate a party sent by a nation. They¡¯d have to be several grades apart for that to happen and I was willing to bet gold that the adventurers chosen by Zimmskar weren¡¯t newbies. Which meant that the old beastman was even stronger than that. Second, Oung wouldn¡¯t let them slip out of the dungeon for free. In my personal experience, the goddess made me earn everything I had with every scrap of my being with the risk of death walking hand in hand with reward. No, Dorothy was omitting some things. She had to do something to get out of there and it was either personal or- ¡°Shame.¡± I answered my own question. I could only guess at what could possibly cause the woman to feel shame at what she did. Perhaps Oung made her kill her party mates. Perhaps she was forced to give up one of her summons forever. Or maybe I was just throwing darts in the air and nowhere close to the mark. I skipped the parts about me dueling the Lucky Beckoning Cat and the double boss fight near the end and it wasn¡¯t like I was ashamed of those happenings. It simply hadn¡¯t been necessary to mention minor details that, in the grand scheme of things, didn¡¯t change the fact that we had become entangled with Oung somehow. ¡°Storytime¡¯s over.¡± Gurran¡¯s voice brought us out of our musings. ¡°Over there. It must be the Guardian of this place.¡± Bare feet plopped on the fresh wet grave soil, leaving large prints. Its limbs were long and sinuous, slick with sweat and blood with pieces of dirt marring the tanned skin. The creature wore a loincloth, which was just as well because everything below the neck was anatomically human, if a human was seven feet tall with limbs reaching a better part of six. Above the neck was the head of a bird without all the unnecessary things like flesh. A boss-class monster called Th?n Tr¨´ng with a grading of 7. ¡°Th?n Tr¨´ng. Haven¡¯t killed one of these in a while.¡± Dorothy muttered. I almost quipped ¡®Me too¡¯. Well, Han killed a lot of these. For Lock ¨Cstill me¨C it was the first time killing one. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen one of these.¡± Stole muttered, giving me a quizzical glance. Well, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to explain to a newbie what she was in for. The words came naturally, giving the main points of the monster and how to defeat it. Gods knew, I did it often enough in the forums back in my previous world. ¡°It¡¯s called a Th?n Tr¨´ng, a caster-summoner type monster. It¡¯ll try to stay at range, weaken us with various curses and its summons. But it has big wind-up movements, so you can tell when it¡¯s getting ready for a big spell. Stay back, keep your eyes peeled. As someone who¡¯ll be fighting in the back, you might have a better inkling of when the monster is about to do something big. Make sure to let us know when.¡± Giving Stole this advice reminded me of the times when I used to play a Beastman Pioneer build, though I often went the double crossbow gun route instead of the heavy arbalest. ¡°...What?¡± I said after a moment of heavy silence. ¡°Nothing.¡± Stole muttered, turning away the moment our eyes made contact. ¡°So how do we kill it?¡± ¡°Hard and fast. Caster-type monsters like these are usually squishy.¡± Dorothy suggested, searching for Gurran¡¯s eyes. Silently, I agreed but didn¡¯t want to stand out too much. Stole¡¯s reaction had been less than ideal, her eyes had looked at me in a different light than when we first met. Gurran said nothing for a minute, studying the monster that paced back and forth, thinking. His personality was a good counter to Dorothy¡¯s brashness. The Th?n Tr¨´ng occasionally put its beaked skull in its hands and shook its head like trying to get rid of fleas or shaking off a bad headache. ¡°I go in first, draw its attention. Then you and Stole can wear it down. He-¡± Gurran nodded to me, ¡°can finish it off.¡± ¡°Right. [Aura].¡± Dorothy muttered, almost to herself. I frowned. ¡°There¡¯s no need to draw its attention by yourself. We should do what Dorothy said, hitting it with all we got. If we hit it all at once, it might only take two or three moves to take it down.¡± ¡°I appreciate the input, from both of you.¡± Gurran didn¡¯t even bother looking at us. ¡°But that¡¯s too risky.¡± ¡°Your plan is the risky one.¡± I growled. ¡°It¡¯s much better to kill it before it can start summoning its skeletons.¡± He fixed me with a look. ¡°I did a background check on you. You haven¡¯t been an adventurer very long, but from what the rumors tell me, very talented. We looked into you, you know; it¡¯s not everyday we see a regular adventurer using [Aura].¡± ¡°I¡¯m not being stubborn or trying to get into a spitting match with you, Lock. I¡¯m simply taking my place as the leader of this expedition, doing the right thing and choosing the safe strategy to kill this monster with. I could care less what you say, you will see that I was right.¡± Damn it. Gurran¡­ he believed everything he said. He truly thought his way was right and there wasn¡¯t an ounce of doubt in his eyes. The worst thing was he wasn¡¯t being malicious, he was trying to help me. In history the most dangerous people are those who believed, from the bottom of their heart, that they were doing the right thing. One might think that those people should be limited to politicians or war generals, those who shaped the course of history of our world. But that wasn¡¯t true. People like these were everywhere. Our friends, teachers, neighbors and coworkers. All living life, without doubt, that they were doing the right thing. In MSS, that was deadly. ¡­Of course, I was the same. But can you blame me? I played this game for 14 years. Taking my silence as agreement, Gurran started the raid with a roar, charging the monster by himself. ¡°Ooooooorrrraaaaaaahhhhh!¡± Click Click Clack Click The monster had no voice. Instead it snapped its beak, clattering the entire skeletal-structure of its head like false teeth. The monster spread its arms, moving them about and waves of green and purple mana followed the path. ? [Th?n Tr¨´ng] casts [Wave of Pain] ? Mana surged forward with viscosity so thick that I almost mistook it for mud. Gurran strode forward without fear, the top of his shield glowing with blue and the bottom part of his shield glowing red. He was using [Magnet Shield] and absorbed all the [Wave of Pain], acting like a drain in a tub full of water. Stole took her knee and began her Arbalest started to thump every few seconds, easing into rhythm. Dorothy rode on her wolf, acting using her throwing weapons to harry the beast. With our heavy artillery and mobile light-infantry, it wasn¡¯t long before the monster was bleeding from a dozen different wounds. Gurran was doing a good job of keeping the beast still, occasionally hitting it with [Lightning Cleave]. Darting in, I drew my sword. I had to kill this thing, fast. ? Lock casts [Share the Load] ? The combination of Share the Load and Arcane Masochism went to work immediately, raising my Speed stat. It really was nice not to rely on [Coin Toss] to land on a debuff for my opening move. Right as my chain-and-manacle snapped around my wrist and the monster¡¯s neck, Th?n Tr¨´ng clacked its beaks together. Then it began waving its arms up and down simultaneously while doing a series of steps similar to a jig. The freshly turned soil heaved, skeletal hands reaching up from the ground with black mana drifting off of them like noxious gas. Within seconds, we were surrounded by a dozen skeleton soldiers. ? [Th?n Tr¨´ng] casts [Rise!] ? These monsters were technically not real, they wouldn¡¯t even give EXP. As one, they posed no problem. But the real problem¡­ ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ? ¡­was the fact that they had only one skill and was programmed to use it immediately. The one nearest Gurran ¨Cthankfully the tank¨C exploded. Most people think that when something explodes, it¡¯s like in the movies. Nice and controlled, a slow mushroom cloud of fire rising up slowly and blowing everyone away to safety from the initial shockwave. What really happens is different, especially if there¡¯s magic involved. The Skeleton grew in size, its bones swelling up and bending, straining with so much tension that a painful creak at a decibel way too high caused me to wince in pain. That was the first warning I got before the whole thing snapped, a horrible sound bone breaking and twisting, and tiny splinter pellets flew in all directions at roughly forty miles per hour. Gurran put his shield in front and cast [Magnet Shield], absorbing the lion¡¯s share of the explosion. But he took too many of those bone fragments in a concentrated area, flying backwards like he got shot by a shotgun blast. ¡°Shara! Get to Gurran!¡± Shara was already at Gurran¡¯s side before I had snapped my order, white and green motes of light circling the two. Even from where I was, she wasn¡¯t too skilled; definitely not as talented as Clover had been. She was struggling to heal him from a simple concussion or broken ribs or whatever he had. The fucker couldn¡¯t even take more than one [Bone Explosion] and stupidly took it all to himself. At this moment, I missed Aurora dearly. She could have covered us all behind her shield and only taken a fragment of the blast. At least there were only eleven Skeletons. ¡°Stole! Shoot them down! Dorothy, with me!¡± With Stole¡¯s [Bounce Shot], she could- ? [Th?n Tr¨´ng] casts [Rise!] ? ¡­Twenty three Skeletons left to deal with. ? [Th?n Tr¨´ng] casts [Rise!] ? Then Thirty five. ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ? ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ? ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ? ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ? ¡­ ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ? ? [Skeleton] casts [Bone Explosion] ?
Chapter 80: Escort (4)
World: MSS - Loading...
Stole watched as Gurran, the proud lightning shielder, got blasted away from the Skeleton that exploded. Used to adventuring alone, ambushing monsters under the cover of darkness, her first instinct was to run. Even the girl¡¯s Core makeup was centered around this fact. Having experienced Soul Sanctification twice, she had three Cores. The Core of the Six-footed White Hare, with the passive [Peaceful Encounter] ensured that no monster would recognize her as an enemy, until she did something to aggravate the monster first. Plus its boost to her [Hearing] and [Footwork] stat allowed her to run away at the first sign of trouble. Her [Concentrated Aim] allowed her to snipe targets from afar without ever needing to get close. [Bounce Shot] allowed her to do the same to smaller groups of enemies in conjunction with [Concentrated Aim]. All these Cores gave significant boost to her senses, built for assassinations and running away at the first sign of trouble. Hence when their tank got blown away, her first instinct was to run away. But she couldn¡¯t. Stole¡¯s foolish sister ran over to help the incompetent fool, putting herself at risk. Then there was the fact that they were surrounded by a swarm of living skeletons, each gathering mana to explode. Stole didn¡¯t know the ins and outs of being in a party but from what the human ¨CLock¨C told her, she knew that having even one person down was bad. Really bad. So when the little voice inside of her told her to run while her emotional side told her to stay with her sister, Stole did what any teenager would do. She froze. Her thoughts ground to a halt, panic setting in and her limbs turning to lead. If it wasn¡¯t for the training that her father who was also a [Pioneer] had drilled into her at a young age, she would have dropped the Arbalest, which coincidentally was also a family heirloom. The voices inside of Stole screamed, blocking out her thoughts and suspending the signals that her brain sent to her limbs so that even when she recovered from the mental paralysis, all she did was shake with inaction. Like being frozen in time by herself while the rest of the world continued moving, her enhanced eyesight saw everything. Dorothy summoned two more wolves, one white and one black. Great hulking beasts that towered over their master and the Gray-wolf loped towards her in large strides, leaping over the glowing skeletons. He circled behind her, bit the back of her collar and ran towards Gurran; giving Stole a stage view of the battlefield. Dorothy leapt on the back of her white wolf and leaped towards Gurran as well. The Black Wolf was already near the fallen Shielder and Shara, circling around them like a mother wolf and smothering them. Dorothy was creating a living shield using her wolves to block the worst of the explosions. ¡°Get in here!¡± Dorothy, her eyes filled with alarm, screamed at the lone warrior who stood by himself. Lock stood alone against the skeletons. The man turned his head backwards a fraction of an inch and Stole saw his face. Eyes filled with absolute confidence. And Grim Determination. And then Lock¡­ did Battle. There was no other way to describe it. The man strode into the swarm of skeletons, gray aura covering his ugly jagged katana that gleamed with repulsive light. He stepped forward in between three skeletons and then spun, decapitating them at their waist and in the follow-up movement smashed one to pieces with his shield, sliced another one in half vertically and kicked the skull off of the vertebra for the remaining skeleton in a spinning kick. Lock never stopped moving even while one of the skeletons nearest to him lunged forward in a bear-hug motion, exploding midway. He took a knee on the ground, condensing his body, tightening his elbows to his ribs and ducking behind the half-moon shield as deadly pellets pelted into the shield. They bounced off of the shield though not all of them, some of them left long bleeding cuts. His ankle, the top of his head, thighs and numerous other cuts opened up, pouring life-water freely. But the wounds didn¡¯t stop his charge, if anything they spurred him on. When Lock blocked the explosion and suffered wounds, his shield which was in the shape of a Half-moon gleamed with iridescent light and began to fill out the empty space, becoming a perfect circle. A Full Moon. He swung wide with the shield, slamming it into another skeleton and disintegrating it to dust. With that same movement a translucent wave of mana looking like a miniature tsunami swept up the dozen skeletons nearest to him and carried them away, crashing down on the ground and obliterating them. ? Lock casts [High Tide] ? Immediately after, Lock¡¯s body shone with white light and Stole could tell that the man just became multiple folds stronger. The [Aura] surrounding his sword became larger, sharper. The pseudo-mana-energy grew darker in color around the edges while those nearest to the blade turned painfully bright white. Lock moved forward, running parallel to the ground against the wall and throwing a flurry of stabs and cuts. Within a span of ten seconds, even less perhaps, his Kanata ripped through the remaining skeletons that still stood. When all the skeletons were gone, he tugged on the chain attached to the manacle on his wrist, the other end of the chain attached to an identical manacle to the Th?n Tr¨´ng and pulled. Unbeknownst to the others, the Th?n Tr¨´ng had been about to repeat the dance to summon another wave of suicide bombing skeletons. It stumbled from the force of the pull, falling on its bird-skull face and burying the ground with its beak. It attempted to stand, using its freakishly long limbs but Lock tightened the chain and pulled again, keeping the monster on the ground. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°Stop staring! Get him!¡± *** A growl escaped my lips as I tugged on the chain, refusing to let the monster gain enough leverage to stand on its own two feet. It¡¯s beak continued to clatter and the emptiness of its orbit where its eyes were supposed to be seemed to convey rage and frustration. As I heaved, my weight settled on my heels, my thighs, hamstrings and back burning as I played tug of war with Th?n Tr¨´ng using the [Share the Load] chain. Each heave worsened the cuts on my thighs and arms and I strained with so much effort that my head felt tight, about to explode and the cuts on my face spurted blood from the building pressure. Luckily Stole and Dorothy came to their senses soon enough. I felt the familiar clack of her Arbalest being loaded, a steady presence of mana building up for [Concentrated Aim]. Dorothy¡¯s attention on Th?n Tr¨´ng was much more drastic. Her three wolves, Gray, Black and White, bounded over. Their snouts wrinkling in a display of aggressiveness and loud barks resounding in the Burial Mound. The beasts circled the beasts and nipping and bit Th?n Tr¨´ng, who was struggling to get up. In something I¡¯d only seen in nature-based documentaries, the wolves worked in coordination with each other. When the monster tried to stand, one of them rushed to tear apart its achilles tendon or the back of its knees. The monster turned around to swing its gangly arms at the beast but it was already gone, one of its counterparts darting in from the opposite side. Dorothy¡¯s form was a blur, weaving in and out between her wolves, her body practically hidden behind the massive bulk of her summons. She threw knives and throwing stars, dealing a steady amount of damage to the creature. ? Stole casts [Concentrated Aim] ? Boom The Arbalest thrummed like a deep throated dinosaur and the wind twisted in the wake of its bolt which pierced through Th?n Tr¨´ng¡¯s ribs. Gurran rejoined the battle with a [Lightning Cleave]. But since he had been momentarily unconscious, their were no sparks of electricity floating around. That was the problem with a lot of the lightning-builds. Without the proper set-up, there would be no real damage. The battle dragged on for a few more minutes but Th?n Tr¨´ng was incapacitated and we gave the caster-type monster no time to prepare spells, chaining our attacks with precision. Finally, Stole killed the monster with another instance of [Concentrated Aim]. Our reward? Nothing. Sometimes, it was like that. You kill a Boss monster but your only reward was the experience. It was only in Fractures that you were guaranteed something; once again emphasizing how precious Fractures were, even if you weren¡¯t accounting for their rarity and difficulty in opening one. We gathered ourselves in silence and Gurran was silent throughout. Good. He should be reflecting on his mistakes. Shara was the one who addressed us. ¡°Thank you. The goddess is pleased.¡± As she said it, her words were infused with a little bit of mana. Mana, energy, ki or something; something that tingled my senses and told me with absolute certainty that Shara was telling the truth. That Oung, for that split second, had looked upon us and was pleased. Shara¡¯s half-lidded eyes smiled at me. It freaked me out so I didn¡¯t bother responding. Dorothy didn¡¯t seem to be bothered by the moment of mysterious presence at all. ¡°So we¡¯re even then?¡± Shara pointed behind the area that Th?n Tr¨´ng had been pacing. There were three freshly dug graves. Sticking halfway out of the graves were sarcophagus made of gray stone. I fought the urge to reach out with my pathetic Mana Sense because the last time I sensed something made by Oung, it had been both painful and mentally straining. Just seeing it with my eyes was enough for me to recognize them. Usually when you wanted to erase a Core, you had to visit one of the six places of Worship. There you¡¯d pay an extravagant fee. It was a necessity to move up in this world and those greedy priests knew it. Sometimes I wondered if they worshiped their gods or worshiped coins. I knew that back on earth, the difference could be thin. But that wasn¡¯t the only way to erase a Core. There were various [Relics] hidden throughout MSS that could get rid of a Core for you and in some cases, even upgrade it. There was always the risk associated with it but then what didn¡¯t? It¡¯d be too much of a cheat to be able to erase your Core for free. The Sarcophagus was one of those [Relics] which fulfilled various functions in the game and I could tell that it had the ability to erase a Core¡­ and possibly replace it for a better one. I had to erase a Core ¨Cthe Lucky Beckoning Cat¨C and replace it. The time had finally come. ¡°These are [Relics]. I¡¯ve only seen them in books and heard of them from tales from other adventurers.¡± Gurran looked longingly at them. He walked over to one and tried to move it. It wouldn¡¯t budge. Ah, he had wanted to sell it. Of course, Oung wouldn¡¯t allow it but I have to give him props for trying. ¡°These are the goddesses¡¯ gifts. I will wait here with Stole while you three use it. It will only be a moment.¡± Dorothy poked at one. ¡°Is this safe?¡± Shara nodded while Stole looked less than convinced. Shara quickly turned to look at Stole, but the Pioneer began to nod enthusiastically. ¡°If my sister says so, I believe her.¡± ¡°Easy for you to say¡­ you won¡¯t be entering it.¡± Dorothy muttered and one of her wolves whined. She nodded to the wolf, making up her mind. ¡°I won¡¯t be going in either. I¡¯m happy with the Cores I have.¡± Gurran eyed the Sarcophogus longingly. ¡°I¡¯ll be entering.¡± I finally announced and hopped in without further ado. Stole came over, grabbing the lid and starting to place it over the top. Right before the lid fell into place, I saw Shara¡¯s face through the rapidly closing gap. She was smiling. ¡°I¡¯ll see you soon, Mister.¡±
The pitter-patter of water droplets trickling into a puddle. The immediate wetness that enveloped my sense of touch, feeling cool on my exposed skin. Sweat that was beading on my forehead and my neck began to feel cold; losing heat rapidly. Beyond the darkness, I saw four silhouettes come into view. A feline-creature stood upright, vertical slits eyeing me. In one hand it held a ragged pouch, dragging it on the floor. In the other, it held a katana whose edges were chipped and jagged, a mirror to the one I held in my own hand. [Lucky Beckoning Cat]. My first Core. Another creature; a hybrid between a rodent and a bird. It groomed the fur on its head with its bat-like wings, long tongue flicking out and cleaning its face. The [Ujo] glanced at me and let out a scream, the air vibrating visibly before it went back to grooming itself. A werewolf-like creature that stood on its hind legs. The creature resembled a giant pile of fur, except for one pallid arm jutting out from the fur with a wicked curved dagger in its grasp and its snout which continued to snarl at me. Unlike other Shadow Mimic Wolves, which were covered in black from head to toe, it had a ring of white fur where its head was supposed to be, like a king. The [Shadow Mimic Wolf] Core of a Named Vairiant: [Prince Charming]. Then lastly the [Tortured Spirit]. All four of my Cores lay before me. And between us lay the Statue of Oung. Unlike the giant statue I saw before, this statue was much more life-sized. Kneeling on the floor of the cave ¨Cwhich I now knew was within my mind due to the physical manifestations of my Spirit Cores- Oung¡¯s vessel stared at me with eyes made of flesh and blood, while the rest of her was made with stone. Unnatural. Divine. Supernatural. Unholy. Outside of my understanding. If our last meeting was any indication, her words would affect my soul as much as my body. Any second now, she would open those stony lips and the command ¡®Kneel¡¯ would- The statue smiled with all the charm of a haunted japanese doll and gestured to the Cores behind her. Huh. She didn¡¯t command. She didn¡¯t force me. She didn¡¯t glare at me. Oung was¡­ playing nice. It was more unsettling than if she had told me she wanted to kill me, blot my existence out of this world like the intruder that I was. I hadn¡¯t expected to meet Oung here, even if she wasn¡¯t the no-nonsense version of herself I saw last time. A part of me wanted to turn around and leave but a part of me wanted to get this over with. So I tiptoed past her, giving her a wide berth. Her eyes tracked me the entire way and the smile never changed. Eventually deciding that she wasn¡¯t going to jump-scare me, I walked over to the four Monsters. The Sarcophagus could work in one of two ways and it was impossible to know which one it was until after I chose the Core to get rid of. One, it could eliminate a Core. Period. The other, you chose to ¡®sacrifice¡¯ a Core and depending on the rarity of the Core, you were offered a selection of other Cores. A trade of sorts. This trade had a few interesting tidbits. If I sacrificed the Core of a Named-Variant for example, I¡¯d always receive the Core of a Name-Variant except all my options would be a Grade Higher. So if I gave up the [Prince Charming] Core, which I suspected was grade 4 at the least, I¡¯d be presented with options of Grade 3¡­ or even higher. But higher grade Cores weren¡¯t always the best¡­ though at this stage, I could certainly use them for the stat boost alone. So I had two realistic choices. Giving up [Prince Charming] or [Lucky Beckoning Cat]. [Ujo] and [Tortured Spirit] were out of the question, they would stay with me for a long, long time. The former might actually stay with me forever. But it wasn¡¯t a hard decision to make, I¡¯d been meaning to give up this Core for a long while. It simply wasn¡¯t providing enough value for me to carry it around. Stepping forward, I touched the forehead of the Monster whose Spirit Core I wanted to eliminate. With a bright flash of light, it disappeared. And with it a sense of longing filled me. Like losing an old friend, there was a gaping hole in my heart. A sense that I lost a valuable piece of who I was, that the choice I made could never be taken back. Aking to missing a loved one who was now lost forever, a pang of emptiness went through me. Taking a deep breath, I waited to see if this Sarcophogus was simply an elimination of my Core or an upgrade. The rest of the Monsters faded away while I wasn¡¯t looking. And then three orbs appeared before me. ¡°YES!¡± I pumped a fist, despite myself. Momentarily, I forgot about the statue watching me. Now I just had to figure out- Something heavy and unmistakably solid slid over my stomach and up towards my chest. I felt something cold touch the back of my neck and a voice that sent fractures in my already frayed [Mental] stat. ¡°You owe me.¡± *** Chapter 81: Oungs Double Play
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The statue¡¯s arms were rock tight (no pun intended), one wrapped around my neck in a rear naked choke. Her other hand roamed freely over my stomach and occasionally dipped below it, in places that should never be touched by anything made of stone. In any other situation, I would¡¯ve tried to break free. But Oung¡¯s voice, coupled with the strength of her limbs cowed me into submission. Plain and simple, I was afraid. Since I¡¯ve come to MSS I¡¯ve been afraid of many things. Coming face to face with the supernatural creatures in this world aroused a primal fear in me. Fear that was programmed deeper than my genome, fear that was programmed into my soul, ingrained in me by the millenia that my ancestors had spent running from things that go bump in the night. But often enough, this fear was followed by anger; righteous anger that came from survival instinct. The knowledge that I couldn¡¯t run gave birth to anger and this anger had fueld many of my battles in the beginning of my journey. I¡¯d been here roughly half a year now. Instead of anger, I stilled my fear. Strangled it, choked it and tamed it. And just as Arrosh had taught me, I settled into a deadly stillness. As soon as she showed me the slightest of openings¡­ I would be ready. So for now, I let her be. The statue didn¡¯t breathe but I felt its lips curl in a smile. ¡°I owe you nothing.¡± I whispered. She said nothing for a moment. ¡°I said I owe you-¡± YOU KNEW. Just two words. From one of the six divine beings that created this world, just two words were enough to get their meaning through. She was referring to the Sarcophagus that I had entered. And she was right. I entered because I knew that it was a reward by Oung. That the Sarcophagus would be manipulated by her, that this [Relic] would work in favor. But I hadn¡¯t known that it¡¯d be a debt. I thought it was free. ¡°Then take it back-¡± My words started out as a throaty snarl which turned into a hiss of pain as the Statue squeezed my ribs. I heard them creak. This wasn¡¯t real. This was in my head. I¡¯d seen my characters go through cutscenes which were just in their imagination. I wasn¡¯t physically here, she couldn''t hurt me or kill me. The best she could do was- I COULD BREAK YOU. ¡°....¡± OR YOUR FRIENDS. I slipped out of her hold, shifting my hips and flipped the statue over my head. Oung spun in the air like a cat and landed on all fours, its stone-features, flesh eyes and just everything about the statue making it look wrong. But I didn¡¯t care. This bitch had just threatened my friends and stillness was gone. Anger, hot and raw, came welling up from the bottom of my stomach. ¡°You threaten my friends again and I¡¯ll-¡± KNEEL. My knees slammed against the ground. ¡°You-¡± YOU WILL OBEY. I ground my teeth. A hundred questions popped up in my head but I knew better than to ask them. Oung wouldn¡¯t answer them, that was a fact. She¡¯d say what she wanted, tell me to do what she wanted and then disappear. And if I didn¡¯t do them¡­ she¡¯d go after my friends. I wasn¡¯t sure about how the Divine Beings in MSS worked, the Lore around them had never been clear. But I had a feeling that there should be some kind of universal law of causality, punishing divine-level beings from hurting mortals. So I kept my mouth shut. I DID NOT FREE YOU TO STAND AGAINST ME. YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE MAGNITUDE OF THE POWERS I SET IN MOTION TO KEEP YOU ALIVE. ¡­The first dungeon I entered in this world, where I gained the power to do everything I needed to get away from the Samak Horde. To escape that hellhole when the Akka Xalud and Arione were slaughtering without remorse. When I found this goddess¡¯ hidden shrine and became beholden to her¡­ sure, I did it of my own strength. But she had given me the chance to do those things in the first place. ¡°Great timing to grow a conscience and a code of honor, Lock.¡± I told myself. But before I had been Lock, I had been Han. And Han¡­ Han had beaten this game. Lock may be helpless before Oung, but Han used to think of Oung as nothing but a game gimmick. She twisted me around her finger before without me getting anything out of it, but perhaps I could turn it to my advantage. Now¡­ I couldn¡¯t ask her questions. But she had been more than willing to give me things before. ¡°Bad idea, Han. You start getting quests from a goddess and you¡¯ll be knee-deep in a quest filled with Boss-class monsters that are years too early for you to handle.¡± Yup. Perfect way to get myself killed. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. While I was having my internal dialogue, Oung spoke again with that bloodcurdling voice. YOU WILL DO A JOB FOR ME. I felt my chin tilt towards her, defiant and proud. ¡°NO.¡± The statue¡¯s eyes narrowed. Inside my mind, the part that wasn¡¯t overwhelmed by the absurdity of this situation, I noted that this wasn¡¯t her real body or even a mental projection of one. I had a feeling that the laws of MSS wouldn¡¯t allow my mind to handle her full form, so she¡¯d chosen a form familiar to me. A form that I first saw her when I had stumbled into that shrine. But that didn¡¯t mean she couldn¡¯t break my mind to little pieces so that small logical part noted that perhaps I shouldn¡¯t goad her into anger. But I hated bullies. When my parents lost their money, lost their marriage, I lost everything else. I¡¯d lost the chance to ever see my parents together during the holidays or cuddling on the couch. I¡¯d lost the social status and prestige I once enjoyed and though I wasn¡¯t a social butterfly, people had left me alone. But after everything, people began to pick on me. Talking behind my back, a snide remark here and there; people laughing whenever I walked by their table. One thing I learned back then? If you don¡¯t fight back, they push and push and push until they start to take and take and take. I recognized a bully when I saw one. If I let Oung push me around now, I was never going to get free. I¡¯d just be a slave to her whims. YOU WILL OBE- ¡°A deal.¡± I had warned myself before to beware of trying to make a deal with her but there was no choice left. Yes, I was being coerced. But it was better than being dead right now. By making a deal with her, I could buy myself some time. Time to grow, time to fulfill her requests and try to outsmart her. Look for a way out. Grow strong enough to protect the people next to me. Oung¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°I do this for you¡­ and we¡¯re done. One task and reward or not, we¡¯re finished.¡± Her eyes narrowed on me like a tiger watching a baby deer make its last stand and in that moment, I understood more about Oung than I had before. She wasn¡¯t just a goddess of the Beastman, she was the epitome of what made them¡­ them. She was the ferociousness of beasts impersonified, the manifestation of the strongest in the jungle. The laws that made this world so hard to live in; survival of the fittest. And right now, I¡¯d just proven to her that I wanted to survive. Whether I was fit to do so or not¡­ well, I guess her request would determine that. I wasn¡¯t wrong because her next words gave me an idea of what to do. FIND THE ORC WHO INHERITED THE SWORD SAINT¡¯S ART That woke me right up. ¡°Arrosh? Arrosh Bloodedge? You know where he is? Where is-¡± She continued like she didn¡¯t hear me. HEAD EAST. THEN KILL [MUSHIN]... And with those last words the life flickered out of the eyes of the statue, turning to stone once more. My head whirled. ¡°You can¡¯t just-, Where¡¯s Arrosh? Tell me! And what do you mean kill the [Mushin]?¡± The words spilled out of me. I stepped towards the statue which kneeled like a doll with the power cut. Which was an apt description, that was exactly what had happened. ¡°Arrosh¡­ she told me to find Arrosh. But she didn¡¯t say where¡­ yet, to kill the [Mushin], she told me to head east.¡± I found myself muttering and hearing the theories aloud helped me think. ¡°She didn¡¯t give me directions on where to find Arrosh¡­ could he be nearby? But no one could find him¡­¡± I¡¯d asked Marc Pointell and Yousef to look for Arrosh. A willowy orc with milky eyes who spoke in poems. But neither of them had given me any sort of lead. That left me two options now on how to search for Arrosh. ¡°The Black Market and [Player¡¯s Guild]...¡± The only two places I hadn¡¯t been able to scour yet. Which brought me full circle to the second part of her request. How the hell was I supposed to find [Mushin] and even if I did, kill him? [MUSHIN] was a S-grade Boss. At that point in the game, 1v1s were practically impossible and at times, not worth it. Hell, to even raid a Grade-1 Monster, you needed two to three parties of grade 1 adventurers. If not that, at least grade 2 adventurers to swarm the damn thing. Sure, I was strong, but only comparatively to the adventurers that I¡¯d seen so far. Against end-game content¡­ I was still a far way off. Oung gave me one hell of a quest to earn my freedom. What was her angle here? Why kill [Mushin]? Sometimes, MSS had storylines that made no sense but it had gotten better once I got transmigrated here. I understood people¡¯s intentions and their goals but Oung¡¯s Quest left me baffled. What backstory could explain why Oung wanted to hire a hitman (et la, Me) to off her own [Hero]? The fact that [Mushin] was alive at all bothered me. But then again¡­ maybe it wasn¡¯t the [Mushin] I knew. I was starting to delve into the Rabbit Hole and it wasn¡¯t doing my head any good. The interaction with Oung¡¯s presence, even if she did downsize herself metaphysically so my feeble mind wouldn¡¯t crumble, left me drained with a headache coming on. Right now, there was no point in trying to theorize about what would happen. What I had to do was clear. So I drooled over the Cores in front of me. With the [Lucky Beckoning Cat] gone, I could absorb one of these. Stepping over, I took a cursory look; identifying them immediately. I dismissed the first Core immediately. It was the Grade-8 monster, [Unlucky Beckoning Cat]. The abilities were slightly more useful than the [Lucky Beckoning Cat] but there was a critical weakness. It came with a flat -15 to [Luck]. Besides, it wasn¡¯t a good composition for my build. The other two were literal treasures. ¡°This¡­ isn¡¯t this too early to meet these guys?¡± A purple and black colored Core that floated before me. [Royal Oni (¤ª¤Ë)] - Grade 4. The [Royal Oni] possessed a plethora of [Physical] stat boosts. Speed, Strength, Handicraft, Footwork and a decent Elemental Resistance. A typical bruiser type Core with a twist: all its abilities were non-physical. If I had to put a class on the [Royal Oni], I¡¯d call it a Magic Swordsman or Arcane Samurai if I wanted it to be culturally appropriate. [Biyu (??)] - Grade 5, boss class monster. If the Royal Oni was a mixture of Physical Stats and Magical Abilities, [Biyu] was the opposite. It only possessed supernatural abilities, marked by its signature ability: [Close the Skies]... One of the few ways in the game to get rid of a [Special Field]. Just for that, it was on the list of multiple guides for Supporter-Class builds. The color of a White Core covered with sporadic green scales indicated that the active ability was [Close the Skies]. Neither of them had a debuff that would synergize with [Arcane Masochism]. Between [Tortured Spirit] and my [Lunar Shield], I had more than enough synergy for [Arcane Masochism]. The question now was about diversifying my fighting style so that I could handle situations in the future. Up till now, I only fought monsters that I could brute-force my way through. In the battle with Arione, he had activated a [Special Field]. Luckily for me, it had backfired because he screwed the set-up. But soon the [Special Field] effects in this world would only grow harsher with more devastating effects. There were even dungeons that had [Instant Death] effects¡­ like the monster I had seen in Samak Desert, the Death Worm. I needed new tricks. I mulled it over a few minutes, looking at the still statue. Of how my life was getting increasingly more dangerous. How this world of MSS wasn¡¯t something I was used to, that there were factors at play that I wasn¡¯t 100% equipped to deal with. I was stumbling through, groping blindly at certain parts. For someone who played this game for 14 years and tried everything, I was still discovering new things. About myself and about this life. Reaching out, I touched the Core. ? Lock has absorbed the¡­ ?
¡°All right! Pack up girls! We got our next job!¡± Arione slammed the door open, bursting into the house and stomping into the kitchen. His light-blue eyes ¨Cflecked with gold¨C gleamed with mischief. He stopped at the kitchen entryway, looking at his party members and spread his arms in a ta-da gesture. ¡°Master¡­ the door¡­ I told you not to slam it¡­¡± Scarlet muttered in his usual quiet voice. The red-haired elven youth was wearing a white shirt with dark blue slacks, a beige apron tied around his front. He seemed to be carrying a plate full of food in each hand but if one looked carefully, they¡¯d see that the plates didn¡¯t touch his hands. They floated just an inch above the mage¡¯s palms. Levitation through Mana Manipulation. No spells. Just Mana. Only possible due to the elf¡¯s high aptitude for Mana. Around the homely kitchen table sat four others. One was a woman from the beastman tribe. Her pink locks fell well past her shoulders, reaching the middle of her back. She had let her hair grow out since leaving the Samak Desert behind. Clover Weinport had grown out her bangs as well and they fell over her eyes, covering her mismatching eyes: one human and the other bovidae. The woman who sat next to her was an elven beauty even by elven standards. Unlike Arione and Scarlet who were pale and lanky, the suresign tell that the two were Mages, L¡¯teya was tanned and muscular. She wore a shirt that left her midriff bare and a sleeveless leather jerkin over that. As soon as Arione walked in the house, she let go of her fork and got up to leave. ¡°Ah, ah, ah!¡± Arione took big steps towards her, wagging his finger. ¡°You haven¡¯t listened to where we¡¯re going yet!¡± The tension between Lety and Arione was a sore spot for the party and no one could predict which way things would go. Last time, they had burned down the house and only stopped after Clover had stepped in. This table was the only thing they had left. One of the newcomers enjoyed the feud between the two with vindictive joy. Maria Biva Akka Xalud cupped her chin in both hands, leaning forward and looking up at L¡¯teya. ¡°Why not hear him out, Barbarian?¡± L¡¯teya snarled, grabbing the fork that she set aside in a reverse grip. Maria¡¯s eyes lit up and the younger woman licked her lips eagerly, leaning forward. ¡°Please, both of you. Stop.¡± Clover muttered, her voice cutting through the tension like a knife. Clover¡­ had changed in the last few months. She¡¯d grown cold. Withdrawn. No longer the merchant¡¯s daughter desperate to survive and naive about the amount of blood that needed to be spilt in order to fulfill Oung¡¯s Will, Clover had become something like the leader of this party. She made the decisions that kept people in line¡­ or let them lose. Who to let live. Who to kill. Even Arione didn¡¯t defy Clover without reason now. ¡°You¡¯re bothering our guest.¡± Clover finished, calmly pushing a piece of pancake into her mouth. She chewed slowly and no one made a sound while she did so. L¡¯teya looked at the ¡®guest¡¯ that Clover mentioned. A giant elven man gagged and blindfolded, his feet and wrists in manacles that were connected by a single piece of chain. [Ryker¡¯s Manacles], a Plurality that cut off all Core ability and Skills, returning someone to just being a mere mortal while it was on. A man for hire who had been sent to spy on an old friend at Clover¡¯s request. Well, it had been his entire party who had been sent. They had fallen out, killing each other over the gold and items that Arione had given them as a down payment. Then the Elf Archer escaped the Fracture alone, leaving the target as good as dead. But Lock was much more resourceful than they could ever have expected and had come out alive, much to L¡¯teya¡¯s relief. Clover¡­ had not bat an eyelash. She ordered Arione to hunt down Baran and bring him back. And here he was. Bound. Tied up and helpless. ¡°So¡­ Can I tell them now?¡± Arione waved his fingers like a magician. Clover nodded silently. ¡°We¡¯re in Jayu already, so! Clover has decided to give us a field trip!¡± Arione clapped like a child. ¡°We¡¯re going to the Colosseum! All expenses paid for by Oung! Woohoo!¡± Maria clapped like a student who had been just told that they¡¯d be going on a field trip. ¡°Will we finally get to meet your lover?¡± She tilted her head, an eerie movement akin to a praying mantis. L¡¯teya growled in warning. Clover shook her head. ¡°No, not lover.¡± She whispered. ¡°Just an old friend.¡±
Chapter 82: Colosseum (1)
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One of the time old arguments on the forums. Build Design¡­ AKA: Which Items to use for endgame content and most importantly, which Cores to take. In MSS, there were thousands of Cores with drop rates that made me tear my hair out after 50 hours or punch my screen after 500 hours. So it gave birth to the question: Are the Cores in a build a must? Can¡¯t they be replaced by something else? This gave birth to my theory of ¡®Non-negotiable Cores¡¯, those Cores which made up the quintessence ¨Cor the identity¨C of the Build or Class, versus those that were not as important. For example, when I made the Corpse Archer build, there were six Cores that were non-negotiables ¨CSeven if you were playing as an Elf. The rest of the slots, you fill it with whatever best fits your playstyle or whatever would strengthen your party the most. Each playthrough was different and you couldn¡¯t expect the same dungeons, same NPC companions or even the same quests. So what do you do? In MSS, the ability to be flexible was just as important as being able to plan ahead. Both required deep intimate knowledge of this game. So when I came upon the [Royal Oni (¤ª¤Ë)] Core, I took it without hesitation. I had been planning to take the [Kamaitachi (æ`÷ø)] Core, a Grade 5 later on. ¡°But I only chose Kamaitachi because it¡¯s a monster that¡¯s easier to farm; they¡¯re all over Ragnia Mountain near the entryway to the peak. Whereas Royal Oni, I¡¯d have to go dungeoneering all over the continent.¡± In the time that I took to farm a [Royal Oni] Core, it was better to farm the [Kamaitachi] and invest in another party member with the time left over. But since the [Royal Oni] popped up here¡­ I¡¯d be crazy to pass it up. In terms of functionality, the [Royal Oni] was much, much better. ¡°Why¡¯re you smiling like that? It¡¯s creepy.¡± I peered at Stole, feeling around my mouth to see if I really was smiling. Perhaps I had been. After I came out of the Sarcophagus, Dorocian Kojisan and Gurran Turian were gone. Judging by the expressions on Stole¡¯s face, it hadn¡¯t been a friendly farewell. Shara¡¯s expression had been serene though. My guess? Oung used Shara to say something to Dorothy and Gurran. Of course, I didn¡¯t need to know what the words were, simply that it had been unpleasant enough to piss off the two. Stole and Shara offered me lodging in the Beastman Village for the night but I declined. But I did mention that I was waiting for a friend who had business in the village and was waiting for him. The three of us had decided to head to the village together. After walking for another hour or so, the village came into view. ¡°Lady Shara! Stole! Where have you been?!¡± One of the guards at the gate, dressed from head to toe in steel armor, came out to meet her. Judging by his looks, a canine-type beastman. He looked back and forth between the two sisters and me. ¡°We were-¡± ¡°Out on a stroll.¡± Stole finished for her sister. ¡°This man helped us. We¡¯ll vouch for him.¡± The guard¡¯s lip half-curled to growl at me but the man caught himself. He cleared his throat. ¡°The chief ordered-¡± ¡°He saved our lives.¡± Stole muttered, peering at me from the corner of her eyes. ¡­I did? In my opinion, she and Shara were the ones who did all the saving. But I decided to keep my mouth shut. ¡°...Ok then. Please make sure to visit the Elders first. They had the guards searching the entire Village.¡± Stole rolled her eyes. ¡°Gosh, ok,¡± She gestured towards me to follow, ¡°Come on then, Mister. I¡¯ll make sure to keep you safe until we meet your friend.¡± The beastman village was¡­ pretty normal. In MSS, the Beastman¡¯s Culture seemed to be modeled after a combination of the Middle-East and East-Asia. And by Culture, I mean things like Architecture, Food and even the strange Warrior Code that most of them followed. The buildings were a mish-mash of rectangular brick-made buildings combined with wooden pillars and tile-roofs reminiscent of pavilions. Other small houses that I¡¯d seen in the distance surrounded me on either sides and from the look of things, these housed younger adventurers. The larger mansion-looking houses didn¡¯t have their doors closed, on the contrary the estates were open. I got the distinct feeling that anyone could walk in and out and indeed, I saw numerous Beastman of different tribes doing so. I asked Stole and Shara if this was true. ¡°The houses belong to the bigwigs. The ¡®heads¡¯ of each of the Tribes in Jayu.¡± She made quotation marks with her fingers. It was nice to see a gesture from Earth make its appearance in MSS. ¡°The door is open to show that the Tribe is still doing business. Accepting requests, sending out requests. Hiring adventurers from other Tribes depending on the need.¡± Shara explained. Hm. Interesting. ¡°Are these guys the Elders that the guard at the front mentioned before?¡± I asked. Shara nodded wordlessly. ¡°No doubt, you will meet some of them. Word has already spread of our arrival I imagine.¡± ¡°Your arrival, you mean.¡± Stole whispered. ¡°Lady Shara! Stole!¡± A group of guards came walking towards us and I studied them out of reflex, gauging their strengths. Ultimately, I decided that none of them were worth my time except the one in the front. He was from the dog-tribe, evidenced by the half-folded ears on top of his head. He had short green hair, reminding me of someone from the military. The guard was dressed in armor, a combination of leather and metal. No weapons that I could see but his steps were quick and confident; someone used to violence and always ready for it. His alert blue-eyes studied me up and down. ¡°Captain Lace.¡± Shara greeted. ¡°The Elders require your presence, Lady Shara.¡± He said without preamble, stopping in front of the young shrine maiden. ¡°I see. Can it wait? I wanted to make sure to take this man to his destination. He¡¯s looking for his friend.¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Damn. Just the look of this guy told me he was bad news. One of those characters that was the typical type-A student. Adhering to the letter of the law, wary of outsiders and simply hard to negotiate anything with. The type who was either 100% Good or 100% bad, no middle ground. For me, that all translated to not wanting to get involved with him. So I spoke up quickly. ¡°Shara, I can find my way from here.¡± ¡°You will call her ¡®Lady¡¯ Shara, Adventurer.¡± No growl. No threat. Just a simple order. I hated how my instincts were right. Mixing more words with him meant getting dragged into his rhythm so I ignored him. ¡°I thank you for everything.¡± ¡°But-¡± ¡°Relax, Sis. I¡¯ll take him around.¡± Stole looked at me as if saying ¡®Got a problem with that?¡¯ I smiled at her, shaking my head at her. ¡°If that¡¯s solved, Lady Shara. You will need to come with me.¡± Shara gave me a deep bow. ¡°May the goddess light your path.¡± ¡°I hope not.¡± But I didn¡¯t voice my opinion. Right before they left, Lace looked once at Stole, rather pointedly at her armor. ¡°...We will talk of this later.¡± As soon as the captain and Shara disappeared into the distance, Stole clicked her tongue and spat. ¡°Fucker.¡± She whispered, then turning to me, said, ¡°Come on, Mister. I¡¯ll lead you to your friend.¡± We walked for a bit. The Beastman Village of Jayu had alleyways though none of them were shadowed or unoccupied. There were magical lamps flickering to life at every corner as soon as the Sun started to stretch the already long shadows and I saw the white moon ¨Cnot shining just yet¨C in the sky. People hurried their steps, eager to get their jobs done before the sun completely set and evening came. Seeing as how it seemed that we would be walking for awhile, I decided to make some conversation. ¡°No love lost between you and Captain Lace?¡± ¡°With that fucker?¡± She scoffed. ¡°I hate that guy.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because he doesn''t like me adventuring.¡± Stole spat. ¡°He thinks I should be like my Sister, doing my best to serve the village in my own way. A couple of the Elders think that too.¡± ¡°Is that why you¡¯re adventuring while underage?¡± She flinched. Stole stopped walking and turned to face me. ¡°You knew?¡± I nodded. ¡°It was obvious.¡± She narrowed her eyes and I continued. ¡°Your armor. There¡¯s signs of wear and tear, beyond what you¡¯d see from a Sniper like you. With your skills, you really shouldn¡¯t fight monsters up close and even if you did, I¡¯d see wounds near the back because you¡¯d be running away.¡± I explained, keeping eye contact. ¡°But I see wounds on the forearms, shoulders and even the chest piece. That kind of wear can only be explained by an adventurer who fights up close. Your gear is second-hand.¡± She said nothing for a bit. ¡°That¡¯s it? You think I¡¯m underage because my gear is second hand?¡± ¡°No. You also look young.¡± I pointed out. ¡°And your inexperience in traveling with a party is evident. If you were a registered adventurer who was of age, even if you hunt monsters alone, you should have enough connections to have had someone else with you in that dungeon. But you didn¡¯t.¡± The number of people passing us by dwindled until it was just us two and the sun set; lightning the village in a glow of bluish-white magic. ¡°You¡¯re playing with fire, kid.¡± Stole was silent for a moment. ¡°Well, it won¡¯t matter.¡± She turned and began to walk again. I jogged a little to catch up to her. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Exactly what that means. They won¡¯t let me become an adventurer.¡± Stole declared. ¡°Why?¡± She snarled at me. ¡°You¡­ are asking too many questions, Misters. Don¡¯t make me rethink my opinion of you.¡± Damn. There was a reason why I was pestering her with questions. Maybe if I could get to the bottom of her problem, why she was adventuring alone while underaged and her position in the village, I thought I could help her somehow. Help her now, get her to owe me a favor and then a year or two later: Bam, I have a super talented Pioneer in my party. But it seemed I was pushing it too much. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I said. ¡°I just wanted to see if there was any way I could help. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Just drop it, alright?¡± ¡°Done.¡± I said. Then we walked in total silence. She broke it first. ¡°Is that it? That¡¯s all? You¡¯re not curious about me at all besides why I¡¯m an adventurer? How about what being the sister of the single most important person in the village is like?¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± I hadn¡¯t thought that far. Yeah, I know. I¡¯m awkward and have people issues. I also realize that I promised to treat people like people. But Stole literally told me to drop the issue that I was interested in and there had been a tone of finality to it. Like she didn¡¯t want to talk anymore. Yet, she was complaining that I had stopped talking. Wondering if it was a teenage thing or a girl thing (probably both), I did my best to make conversation. ¡°What¡­ is it like being the sister of the single most important person in the village?¡± ¡°It sucks.¡± She said, rolling her eyes and sighing at the same time. ¡°Is the most important thing in your life adventuring?¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s my Comrades.¡± She tilted her head back in mild surprise and I did too. The answer came out automatically, like a reflex and it was true. Right now, the most important things in my life were Kyrian and Skaris; making sure those two grew strong enough to continue adventuring with me. I knew better than anything how strong I was getting. Growing my leaps and bounds, I was no longer the helpless Slave who was being punched around by Orcs back in Samak, nor was I even the same person who came to the Jayu States. I¡¯d taken risks and come face to face with situations, all of which I had come out on top for the better. As a result, Skaris and Kyrian were now falling behind. The right choice¡­ was to replace them. But I couldn¡¯t even imagine doing that. No, I didn¡¯t even want to think about it. Hence, I needed to spend time getting them stronger. So that they could continue traveling with me. So that all the things I got myself involved in, rebuilding the Orc Village for the refugees, finding Arrosh, Becoming a Stronger Adventurer, hunting down Bosses, the Colosseum Fight and even the [Player¡¯s Guild] at one point, I could leave my back to them. It had to be them. I didn¡¯t want to entrust it with anyone else. Coming out of my thoughts, I saw Stole studying me. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked, clearing my throat. ¡°Nothing. Just that¡­¡± She trailed off, mumbling. Without the [Lucky Beckoning Cat], my [Sight], [Hearing] and [Smell] stat had been lowered. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°I said it¡¯s nothing! Look, we arrived at the place where you wanted. I¡¯m heading off. See you, Mister!¡± Stole waved her hands and ran off before I could even say anything. Tch. I really wanted to recruit her. I was about to knock on the door of the unassuming house when it opened and Skaris stumbled out. ¡°Ssslaveborn?¡± Skaris¡¯ accent made me smile. Adventuring with the other temporary party had been fun but I had missed my friends. ¡°Skaris.¡± I clasped his forearm and he returned the gesture. ¡°Did you get everything done?¡± ¡°Yes. I am now on the Path of Fire. I have already taken two steps as a Walker.¡± Meaning Skaris was at Stage Two of [Evolution]. ¡°Congratulations.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn. You¡­ did you enter a Dungeon? Your armor¡­¡± ¡°Long story. I¡¯ll explain as we head home.¡± Skaris and I turned, leaving towards the Slums.
¡°Are you sure you¡¯re ready, Young Master?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Anything you need? Could I get you anything to drink, Sir?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Stop bothering the Young Master! Out with you! Out!¡± Yousef practically chased the server away like a mother hen, waving his arms about and his jewelry. Today was the day of my fight with Dorocian Kojisan. After returning to the Slums, I had put up the [Tortured Kris] for sale and had the proceeds split evenly for the people that I owed money for, except Kyrian and Skaris. Still, I had a bit more to go until I could pay everyone back but the initial payment should help in laying their fears to rest about me never paying them back. Then Skaris, Kyrian and I took a few days to rest and now¡­ Now I was at the Colosseum. It reminded me of the Colosseum back on Earth. An enormous display of architectural prowess, the amphitheater pierced the skies; surrounded by mountains on all four sides. Just getting here had been an ordeal and luckily, Yousef had covered the travel fees. There were no real words I could use to describe the sheer size of this event; I¡¯d never been part of something like this. The crowd outside of the Colosseum, surging like a living tide and filtering in through the entrances. Coins exchanging hands and disappearing in people¡¯s palms, only to appear moments later to press bets. The ever-present chatter that rose in volume, ebbing to build up tension and exploding in a roar as blood spilled out on the sands. The thousands, tens of thousands of people seated around the whole stadium, jeering, booin, cheering, crying, laughing. Gods, it was enough to give me anxiety. As a first-time fighter, I shouldn¡¯t have had my own room but Yousef had pulled some strings. He had gotten me a mid-sized room and currently, I was in here with the Merchant Dwarf and my two comrades: Kyrian and Skaris. Skaris looked out the window, his eyes alight with interest. He was wearing his usual armor, his spear stowed behind him. He hissed and chuckled, watching the fights happen below. ¡°Master Skaris, anytime you become interested in fighting in the Colosseum, please be sure to let me know.¡± Skaris nodded. Compared to the scaled warrior¡¯s easygoing attitude, Kyrian was worried, fussing over me. ¡°She¡¯s a Kojisa¡­ I don¡¯t understand how you could allow this.¡± He shot a glare at Yousef, who stuck out his chest in pride. ¡°I trust in the young master.¡± ¡°I trust in Lock too. But a Kojisa¡­ Bastard or not, she has the Blood of the Great Houses flowing through her.¡± Kyrian shook his head. ¡°Lock, I¡¯m still not sure about this.¡± I didn¡¯t answer, keeping silent as the mage and merchant continued to bicker. I was focused. Dorocian Kojisan. A summoner who used three wolves and possibly more, but from what I saw, she was the type who fought along her summons. Summoners could be separated into two broad archetypes: Those who stayed back and buffed their summons and those who fought alongside their summons. Dorothy seemed to be the latter, except she preferred to use ranged weapons. I hadn¡¯t seen much of her Core abilities except her summoning the wolves and returning the weapons to her hand. But Kyrian was right, she was a Kojisa. A member of one of the Great Houses and I was sure that she had a few tricks up her sleeve. So I delved deep into my mind, reaching the place where no one could reach me. Within my mind, I concentrated. I remained calm. And I waited. Because I¡¯d been thinking about how to find Arrosh. I needed to get into the Black Market or into parts of society closed off to regular adventurers. I needed to get more involved into the deep inner workings of Adventuring, those reserved for the truly powerful. Then I could access information, people with unusual abilities that could find the my master. And to do that¡­ I needed to make a statement of Strength. Of Power. So that those who wanted to use me would be come to me. Attracted to me like flies to a jar of honey. And I would need to use them in return. Within the walls of my mind, I went over Arrosh¡¯s teachings. My Sword. My Cores. My Strengths and my weaknesses. Someone shook me and I came to. It was Kyrian¡¯s worried face. ¡°Lock. You¡¯re up next.¡± Standing up, I left the double-sided doors, leaving my comrades and Yousef behind. ¡°Good hunting, Ssslaveborn¡± ¡°I believe in you, Young Master!¡± I walked through the corridors, heading down the stairs. This floor was reserved for the fighters and I saw messengers, servers and general staff members walking to and fro. I paid them no mind as I headed towards the entryways for fighters. As I rounded a corner and started down the stairs, a group of five people all dressed in cloaks passed by me. Their faces were obscured by a spell of some kind so I couldn¡¯t see them. But¡­ A flash of pink. Tanned skin with pointed ears. Blue-eyes flecked with Gold. I whirled in a fury, my heart threatening to thump straight out of my chest. But the group was gone. No, It couldn''t have been. I must be mistaken, my nerves getting the best of me. Shaking my head, I descended the stairs. I shoved all thoughts of Clover, L¡¯teya and even Arione out of my mind. I had a job to do. Dead or alive, I was going to find Arrosh and this was going to be the first step. Just wait, Master. I¡¯m coming.
Chapter 83: The Colosseum (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
The burning sands that shifted beneath my feet with each step. Half-buried weapons, bones, fistful of hair that lay strewn around the field. The acidic stench of blood, piss and shit that stung my nose. People that chanted, screamed and roared meaningless, incoherent words. As I stepped out into the arena, my senses were forcibly awakened like someone had splashed cold water on me. I was alert and painfully too aware of how bright the Sun shone in the sky, almost failing to step aside in time as they carried the body out on the stretcher. The previous contestant. I hadn¡¯t been watching so I didn¡¯t know whether he (or she) was alive or dead. Neither of that mattered. ¡°-Dorocian Kojisan! Of the Turina Empire!¡± I¡¯d missed my own introduction but heard Dorothy¡¯s clearly. She padded into the arena, a confident smile on her face. The athletic woman waved, dressed in light leather armor tinted with hues of black and blue, the same color as her hair. I saw rows of six sheathed daggers lining each of her thighs and no doubt more weapons lay concealed beneath the armor. Her blue eyes finally met mine, a friendly tilt to her head. I had no ill-will towards her. This was just business. Nothing personal. Something in the way I held myself, perhaps because I refused to smile, made Dorothy reconsider her own stance. I saw her eyes go flat and her entire demeanor changed. Her legs bent slightly at the knee, almost imperceptibly but the Royal Oni¡¯s battle instincts started to come to life. The angle of her hands, the distance from fingers to daggers were all potential dangers. So I did the same. My legs bending beneath me and slowly, ever so slowly, I drew my Jagged Katana. I thought the crowd would be going livid, the way we were drawing out our battle. But they weren¡¯t. Strangely, they were silent. As if they were holding their breath. The battle began without warning, without signal and without an official beginning. One moment we were just circling each other, drawing lines in the sand and the next we both exploded into a fury of motion. Dorothy immediately summoned her Three Wolves, they split off on either side with the gray one heading straight towards me. Taking out my [Lunar Shield], I threw it in the air where it promptly levitated right above my head and then swung downwards, blocking the first of the bites. ? Lock Slaveborn casts [King¡¯s Guard] ? [King¡¯s Guard], an ability compatible only with shields, I could make my Shield protect any designated target, even myself. An Auto-Guard of sorts. The speed of the shield as well as the probability of a successful block depended on my [Physical] stat. There were pros and cons to wielding a sword and shield. Yes, my strikes were weaker but it was simply so versatile. I could defend and attack at the same time, I could slam into things with my shield and knock them out. More ways to attack. More ways to defend. Sure, a two-handed strike might carry more weight but in my opinion, the pros of the shield and sword far outweighed the cons. But I didn¡¯t have to choose between the two anymore, thanks to the [Royal Oni] Core. I could simply do both. Even more ways to attack and even more ways to defend. More ways to kill. ? Dorocian Kojisan casts [Pack Hunter] ? The wolves were blindingly fast, almost impossible to follow with my eyes. I saw a streak of black emerge from my right side and the [Lunar Shield] moved automatically. The Black Wolf¡¯s claws would have shredded me but they simply grated against the shield and the wolf darted away before I could punish the mistake. Before I could fully process what happened, my arms reacted on reflex, moving the katana towards my left and behind. I didn¡¯t have time to think about what I was doing, but I followed through regardless, trusting in my training. The gray-aura-covered Kanata sliced through the White Wolf¡¯s forelegs. The Wolf¡¯s snarl turned into a yelp of pain, dozens of whining sounds accompanying its fall. The monster had too much momentum, it fell face forward into the ground in front of me and tumbled, trying to get back up. But without its forelimbs it was impossible. The creature didn¡¯t bleed, it was a summon. Instead, the stumps where its legs had been attached to were covered in a sinuous black ink, like a painter had taken an ink brush and splattered all over it. The Royal Oni¡¯s passive, [Artisan of Battle]. All those that I wounded were marked by the Oni¡¯s Ink, giving me additional damage. Moving forward, intending to behead the creature, I brought my sword down with dispassionate certainty. As soon as my Katana touched the White Wolf¡¯s neck, however, it turned ethereal. But the ink wasn¡¯t just for show. My katana moved through the creature¡¯s neck harmlessly, ¨Cthe [Aura] making the smallest of cuts¨C but the ink stains on its front limbs rearranged themselves into the shape of tree branches with wicked pointed ends. Then the ink branches skewered the creature, coming out through the other side. [Artisan of Battle], a passive of the Royal Oni that marked the target with Ink on the first strike and triggered an instance of magic damage on the second. Physical Damage from my Sword. Magic Damage from the [Artisan of Battle] and True Damage from my [Aura]. With every slash of my katana, three-types of damage hit the wolf at once. The White Wolf faded into nothingness. Ting Ting Ting Ting Meanwhile, Dorothy was throwing her weapons at me but the [Lunar Shield] continued to rotate, spinning like a top and blocking everything. Either she didn¡¯t know about the [Lunar Shield]¡¯s buffing properties or she didn¡¯t care; I felt the [Attack] buffs from the shield continue to flow into me as the Scion charged up my shield. The remaining wolves, Black and Gray, lunged from either side. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. I slashed sideways, wide and slow, and the two wolves skipped out of reach; wary of meeting the same fate as their deceased sibling. ? Dorocian Kojisan casts [Pack Hunter] ? ? Dorocian Kojisan casts [Alpha Mutation] ? The gray wolf grew larger and fiercer before my eyes, its fur falling off in droves like it was diseased. In its place grew a chitinous shell covering the entire beast like some shelled canine, sleek from head to toe. Even its eyes disappeared, covered by the carapace. It let out a sharp bark, high-pitched and multilayered vibrating sounds grating against one another. Perfect. What I needed wasn¡¯t mob monsters that were weak. I had needed Dorothy to pull out an ace card, something that would impress the audience. The wolf looked the part; it had grown larger and its hunched shoulders reached around ten feet high, even more when it straightened its legs. The Black Wolf now looked like a puppy, growling at me and prowling underneath its alien sibling¡¯s paws. The alien-wolf darted at me, jaws filled with fangs the size of my forearm and serrated to boot. The Black Wolf curled around it, acting like a familiar and nipping at my arms. But it didn''t matter how strong the summon was. Discharging the [Lunar Shield] of all its charges, I cast [Tidal Force]; pulling Dorothy in between me and the Wolves. Acting quickly, I cast [Share the Load], a manacle clasping around my wrist and an identical one wrapping around Dorthy¡¯s. Before, the Lunar Shield had been charging up stack by stack, the buffs flowing into me slowly. It was like shifting gears on a makeshift car, my body getting steadily stronger. But this time, I had stacked the debuffs into one moment and my [Arcane Masochism] went wild. ? Lock Slaveborn casts [Lunar Shield: Tidal Force] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Lunar Shield] ? x8! ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Share the Load] ? ¡­ ? [Arcane Masochism] increases [Attack] ? The nine buffs came into me so fast that I had no sense of what stats increased; all I knew was that it felt like a rush of blood. I could hear the blood whooshing from my heart to my fingers, toes and even the top of my head. Time slowed as Dorothy¡¯s eyes met mine, sheer panic as she used [Ethereal Body] on herself. But her summons had tried to avoid her too, leaping up to try and avoid her. Ducking low and raising my katana straight up, I lacerated all three of them. Dorothy¡¯s last second decision making saved her, she only suffered wounds from the [Aura]. But the Black Wolf had been positively gutted and it tumbled over and over on the ground. I heard it yelp, blue light leaking out of its stomach, its entire body faded to nothingness. The Alien-Wolf landed with significant weight, throwing up a curtain of sand. But before it took cover under the dust, I saw that the carapace on its underbelly was cut. Both Dorothy and the Alpha had ink markings swirling around their stomachs. ? Lock casts [Hateful Wound] ? One of my skills that almost never got to see use, simply because there had been almost no chance for me to chain it with anything else. It also had no Synergy with any of my other abilities¡­ until now. Dorothy was no longer ethereal and my ability tore into her like an invisible scythe, the small cut on her stomach widening and starting to leak blood onto the sands. The damage triggered [Artisan of Battle] and the ink coiled like needles, stabbing into her stomach. The Alien Wolf, which had suffered a much larger wound, screamed. A horrible sound, long and mournful as its carapaces fell to the floor and the Ink Tree bore into its stomach. Jumping off of the ground, I reached her and kneed her in the stomach. She didn¡¯t make a sound as the breath was knocked out of her but I saw panic on her face. She couldn¡¯t cast [Ethereal Body]. Of course not. My [Shadow Mimic Wolf] Core had stolen it with [Sadistic Kleptomaniac]. I watched as she controlled her roll, gaining distance from me. Her monster nightmare wolf loped over, getting in between us and snarling at me, green ichor flowing from its snout instead of white foam. The woman was gasping for breath, trying to stop the bleeding in her stomach. ¡°I¡­ I can¡¯t use my ability. What the hell did you do?¡± She glared at me, getting to her feet. ¡°You should yield.¡± I whispered. Dorothy didn¡¯t reply. ¡°There¡¯s nothing for you in this fight. For me, I already knew coming in that this wouldn¡¯t be an entertaining fight. It wouldn¡¯t be close. I saw you fight in the Dungeon and even if you had something hidden up your sleeve, I knew that you¡¯d be no match for me.¡± She could have been a match for me. If she had chosen different Cores. Instead she¡¯d spread out her precious Core slots on something like [Pack Tactic] and [Alpha Mutation]. Both were abilities that you could build around, but they shouldn¡¯t coexist. Even [Ethereal Body] wasn¡¯t a good match for her fighting style, it would¡¯ve been better if she was a close-ranged fighter. Then there was the fact that she had no items that could rival mine. The most precious thing she had were those daggers that returned to her hands after being thrown. Gear. Core. Skill. ¡­And I was just better. As my words reached her, I saw the tilt of her head. The way her eyes gleamed with embarrassment, humiliation and white, hot anger. Her mouth opened to speak but even before her voice reached the air, her Alien-Wolf ¨Csynchronized with the summoner¡¯s emotions¨C sped towards me; jaws threatening to swallow me whole. Using [Ethereal Body], I slipped past its body and stopped in front of Dorothy. Like I said, a summon means nothing if the summoner herself was weak. Her eyes were wide with shock, no doubt trying to work out how I¡¯d used [Ethereal Body]. It was impossible for someone to absorb a Core from a monster twice, even if they were the different color. She¡¯d seen me absorb the Red Core of the [Tortured Spirit] and the manacle connecting both of us was too blatant to consider it had been a trick. [Aura] covering my Katana, I let it rest on the base of her throat. ¡°Yield.¡± I whispered. Silence reigned.
Arione leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, watching the fight. ¡°Scarlet?¡± He asked his apprentice, their faces hidden underneath their cowls. ¡°...I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°What do you mean you don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°Too many things are going on, Master. He¡­ there¡¯s a lot of magic surging in and out of him, being twisted. I can¡¯t tell how many Blessings and Curses are being exchanged.¡± ¡°He definitely has the [Ujo] Core.¡± Arione bit into his thumb, chewing it. ¡°[Shadow Mimic Wolf]... maybe. Some kind of variant of it. It has to be. That last one was the [Tortured Spirit]... then I think that was the [Royal Oni].¡± He peered at L¡¯teya who was smiling. Arione suddenly wanted to wipe that smile off of her face. ¡°Maybe I should grab some poor guy, down on his luck and start taking him around, yeah? Feed him all the same Cores that Lock has?¡± His smile was crooked, eyes wide with sick joy. ¡°Then when we finally face him-¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just the Cores. It¡¯s the [Aura].¡± Clover whispered. ¡°I thought he had nothing going for him except for his desire to survive¡­ so I thought he¡¯d slow down after becoming free. But he¡¯s become even more...¡± Clover met the eyes of her only friend in this party. ¡°You were right, Lety. He¡¯s become stronger.¡± ¡°Ha! That¡¯s Slaveborn. I was right.¡± Lety said, a trace of her old self coming back. But Arione¡¯s ¡®humph¡¯ reminded her of where she was and who she was currently with. Her eyes looked strange, too bright to be hidden by shadow, as she studied her old friend. She wondered what would happen once they met. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t dawdle.¡± Baran advised. He was the only one who hadn¡¯t paid attention to the fight, keeping his attention around them. ¡°Shut your mouth.¡± Arione snapped. ¡°I say when we move.¡± Baran opened his mouth to argue, then shrugged. L¡¯teya ignored the two as Lock spared the Scion, sheathing his sword. The levitating shield stopped rotating around him and the former-slave snapped it out of the air and put it on his back. His armor was a mixture of black and gray, well-cared for and equally well-used. The Lock she knew had been similar to Baran, always wary and on guard. A rogue rather than a warrior. But now, he looked like one of those Human Knights of the Turina Empire. It was partly the Cores that Arione had mentioned, Lock¡¯s abilities no longer something that L¡¯teya herself understood. But it was more than that. The Lock as of now looked like he had purpose, purpose other than just making sure he himself was alive. She was unsure when it happened, but Lock Slaveborn had changed. His wildness lurked beneath the surface, focused with unsettling intensity. Maybe he¡¯d already changed when they escaped Samak City. L¡¯teya had just not been awake to see it. Old bitterness that she¡¯d buried deep within threatened to emerge and her fingers wrapped around the battle axes hanging on her waist. If those orcs hadn¡¯t- ¡°Are you ok, Lety?¡± Clover put a hand on L¡¯teya¡¯s forearms. L¡¯teya looked down at her friend. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± She whispered, not unkindly, and let go of the axes. ¡°Come on then.¡± Arione muttered. ¡°Let¡¯s go look for that Orc guy. What¡¯d you say his name was, Clover?¡± Clover¡¯s bovine eyes shone from underneath her hood. ¡°Arrosh.¡± She began. ¡°Arrosh Bloodedge. The Goddess orders us to find him.¡±
¡°What build is that?¡± A human dressed in rags, wearing the head of a Horse. Not a helmet made in the likeness of one, he wore the Horse like a second skin over his own head. ¡°...Can you take that off?¡± A dwarf woman with orange pigtails; a large shield next to her. She snapped in annoyance at the goblin man. ¡°That¡¯s only cool when you¡¯re playing the game, not when you¡¯re living in it.¡± ¡°Some kind of Knight build. [Ujo], [Shadow Mimic Wolf]... I think. [Tortured Spirit] and [Royal Oni] for sure.¡± A balding elf answered the first question. His head was swirling with purple and blue ink; stretching and moving, forming different shapes. ¡°You think?¡± Another voice said sarcastically. Another elf, but this time, a familiar face. Elrien. ¡°He¡¯s changed a lot since I last saw him.¡± Elrien muttered. ¡°Didn¡¯t think it was possible for us [Players] to unlock [Aura]. I think he might be the first one.¡± ¡°Well I¡¯ll be the next then.¡± The horse-head man stopped lounging on the couch and sat up, twiddling his thumbs. ¡°Now we know that it doesn¡¯t matter if you¡¯re a [Player] or not. You can still use [Aura].¡± ¡°We knew that was possible from the first place, idiot. No one else has any trouble using their own Racial Traits. It¡¯s just that [Aura] was stupid; it requires you to actually learn it.¡± The dwarf woman grabbed a cup of wine and downed it. She faced the back of another person in the room with them. ¡°We have to recruit him. If he goes over to those fucking-¡± ¡°He won¡¯t go over to them¡­ and I doubt they even know about him. Yet.¡± Elrien muttered, most of his body hidden in shadow. ¡°I met him. He wants to get stronger and that¡¯s his number one goal.¡± A beastman roused from the floor that he had been sleeping on. He was huge, nearly twice the width of any man there. He had antlers on his head, thicker than most men''s biceps. He yawned and stretched, fixing his Cervidae eyes on the last person in the room. ¡°Well? What do you want to do?¡± The last person in the room, the only known [Player], in their organization at least, to have been born as the hidden secret 6th race: Nephilim. With bronze skin and golden eyes, wings that looked like someone had taken clouds and molded them in the fashion of a dove sprouted from the man¡¯s back. His eyes were glued to the retreating figure: Lock Slaveborn. ¡°Nothing.¡± He whispered. ¡°Nothing?!¡± The horse-man got to his feet. ¡°He¡¯s a fucking [Aura] user, and the only [Player]-¡± ¡°Surely he¡¯s not the only one. Just the first that we know of.¡± The dwarf muttered drly. ¡°Well that has value in and of itself! We should go down there and-¡± ¡°Too impatient.¡± Elrien interjected. ¡°Just let Nathan speak.¡± With Elrien¡¯s words, everyone looked to Nathan ¨Cthe Nephilim¨C again. ¡°...Elrien. What happened to that orc you kidnapped?¡± ¡°The Sword Saint¡¯s Apprentice? He¡¯s locked up, like you ordered.¡± Elrien frowned. ¡°You don¡¯t think-¡± ¡°A [Player] who started as a slave in the Samak Desert awakened [Aura]. The same time that an orc who was the Sword Saint¡¯s apprentice finally makes his appearance. Not only that¡­ the said human is good. Much too good for someone who¡¯s been here less than a year.¡± Nathan grinned. ¡°I was that good when I first got here too.¡± The horse-man said petulantly, lips sticking out in false hurt. ¡°Bring the orc here.¡± Nathan finished. ¡°I have some questions for him.¡±
Chapter 84: Mage Tower
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°So¡­ this is the magic tower.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve never seen one before?¡± Out of reflex, I nodded my head. ¡°I have seen them before.¡± Technically, it wasn¡¯t a lie. I had seen them before on the computer screen. Just not in real life. The mage tower stood in the middle of a field, Kyrian and I having had to kill a few stray monsters on our way here. However, it wasn¡¯t a huge issue; I assumed that Kyrian could have made it to this place by himself if he really needed to. The Tower took care not to let the surrounding monsters grow too big in number nor strength. They had to keep the roads nice and clean. In the Jayu States, there were multiple towers but this was the ¡®best among the best¡¯ according to Dibo. It went by the name of Morlus Tower. When I saw this thing as a bunch of grouped up pixels on the screen, it had failed to convey the sheer scale of how big this Tower was. Rather than a singular building, the tower looked like someone mushed together spires, slammed on it once with his fist and then wrapped the whole thing around with multiple ribbons with stairs attached to them. I could understand why it was called a tower though, the thing was tall if not pretty. Made of orange bricks that had been faded by the passage of time, it looked like a living breathing organism. I saw little figures ¨Cno doubt people¨C going up and down the stairs. People in robes, regular clothing. It looked more like a town that had converted itself into one giant misshapen apartment complex. ¡°Are you done staring?¡± Kyrian had a smirk on his face, betraying his youth. The blonde mage had gone all out for today, having laundered his robes and even wore jewelry. His hair was nice and curled. If it wasn¡¯t for the Slum Stench piercing through the borrowed perfume and the bits of dirt still clogged underneath his fingernails, as well as the stains on the edge of his robes near his feet, he could have passed off as a real genuine mage. Fitting in with high society and all that. I told him as much. ¡°Well, if it wasn¡¯t for the debt that Skaris and I had to pay on your behalf¡­¡± Kyrian answered, an easy smile on his face. ¡°I hope they still let us in. We smell like garbage. You smell like garbage¡­ except just better looking.¡± ¡°I aim to please.¡± The mage bit his lip, looking at the tower with something like longing in his face. Even after I told the [Tortured Kris], I still had some debt left over to Krag, Dibo, Track and Eltis. Finally, Kyrian had gotten fed up with me moaning about how everything was so expensive. Without Skaris¡¯ consent, he took the scaled warrior¡¯s gold and combined it to his own, paying off the rest of the debt. Finally, I was debt free. For now. If it wasn¡¯t for me, Skaris and Kyrian wouldn''t have to stay with me in the Slums. Actually, Skaris would¡¯ve probably stayed; I knew for a fact that the Deepeater Clan lived in a marsh-like village, their homes half-submerged in mud. Kyrian on the other hand¡­ he had grown up in a Noble¡¯s House, even if it was separated from the rest of the manor. He was also a Mage, who had no doubt been influenced by his peers¡¯ taste for the finer things in life. I can¡¯t claim to know if Kyrian felt embarrassed by the situation. But I assume it wasn¡¯t too different from when I had my own riches to rags episode back home. How my uniform was no longer crisply ironed every morning, how I couldn¡¯t afford the latest tie clip or bracelet. I didn¡¯t take any limo to get to school either, I took the bus with people going to public schools and work. I realized that Kyrian was trying his best and I was just making fun of him. I could put it off to inexperience, but in the end I was being a crappy friend. I cleared my throat. ¡°Sorry. You look great.¡± He grimaced. ¡°No¡­ you¡¯re right. They might turn us away.¡± ¡°Dibo¡¯s letter told me he informed them of our arrival.¡± Some of the tension left the mage¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Well, Magus Dibo has his own office here. No doubt he¡¯s of some rank in one form or another. I¡¯m sure they won¡¯t mistreat us. Especially not if they recognize who you are.¡± ¡°Right.¡± I answered back and started to follow behind Kyrian¡¯s steps. ¡°I somehow doubt that mages are the prime candidates for Colosseum watchers.¡± Since I¡¯d fought against Dorothy, I¡¯d fought in two more Colosseum matches. Both of them against no importance according to Yousef. But it was important to solidify my strength so that even higher ranking fighters would pay attention to me. Right now, everyone was waiting to see if my victory against Dorocian Kojisan was just a bad match-up for her, or I was truly just stronger than her. As a result, Yousef hadn¡¯t been able to get any more matches with renowned fighters. Which was fine for me, I needed more time to do some housekeeping stuff. Like what I was doing now, accompanying Kyrian to the Mage Tower and meeting Dibo. ¡°You¡¯d be surprised how being stuck in a research lab all day studying about the monster habitat could lead to strange hobbies.¡± We walked the rest of the way in silence, mostly because it was uphill and because I could sense Kyrian growing nervous. ¡°I thought you came here last time.¡± I commented as we neared the tower. Soon we¡¯d be at the gates. ¡°I did¡­ though only on the first floor. Getting a Mana Core from them is an entirely different matter.¡± He replied. ¡°Not everyone can get a Mana Core.¡± ¡°I thought the whole point of the Babel Towers was to give everyone a chance? Isn¡¯t that why the Mages broke off from Turina and Jayu in the first place?¡± ¡°Yes. But it¡¯s been a long time since then and¡­ you still have to pass the aptitude test.¡± I put a hand on the young mage¡¯s shoulder. Since when did Kyrian¡¯s shoulder feel so small and brittle? As I absorbed more Cores, the difference in our physiques was growing. Meanwhile, Kyrian¡¯s magical prowess was nowhere near what I could even dream of. It was the way of MSS, the differences between classes were like night and day. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Specializing was the only way to survive in this place. ¡°Kyrian Tricilan.¡± ¡°Lock Slaveborn.¡± At the gate was a pair of young mages, even younger than Kyrian. They both were brown robes with the cowl over their heads and I was sure that the color was indicative of their rank. Judging by their ages and the fact that they were guarding the gates, I assumed that these were trainees or fresh apprentices. No true Mage would let themselves be demoted to a guard or worse yet, talking to us mere mortals. ¡°Ah, yes. Magus Dibo has been expecting you.¡± With a small mutter, one of the apprentices waved his staff and the gate swung wide open revealing a courtyard filled with waypoints. ¡°You¡¯ll want to take this one here..¡± Walking onto the waypoint, I sensed a brief burst of Mana from the aprentice mage before my vision was covered by bright light. In an instant, I was in Dibo¡¯s office. Perhaps, office wasn¡¯t an adequate explanation. I was in Dibo¡¯s floor. The whole place was the size of a large condo, with multiple doors leading to different areas. But the immediate room we were in looking like where Dibo spent most of his time. The place had been partitioned off into two different areas, one filled with vials nad flasks ¨Cno doubt a laboratory¨C and the other with a couch and dining table. So this was where Dibo lived. Interesting. ¡°Welcome.¡± The man in question got up from the couch, greeting us. ¡°I was waiting for you two.¡± ¡°Magus Dibo. It¡¯s good to see you again.¡± My tone wasn¡¯t anywhere near as formal as Kyrians. ¡°Dibo.¡± If it bothered him any, the elderly elven mage didn¡¯t show it. He welcomed us in with a smile and soon, we were all seated around the coffee table with a steaming mug of tea in front of us. Soon, Kyrian and Dibo engaged in the mundane conversation about the weather, how our hunting has been and whatnot. I remember playing as a Mage and whenever I came to the Tower, I had to suck-up to the high-ranking mages to try and get a higher affinity rating with them. The better your affinity rating with them, the cheaper they sold you the Mana Cores for. Since Mana Cores could only be obtained through the Towers¡­ well, this had been a necessary part of the game. So I waited. ¡°Since we already spoke last time, I won¡¯t keep you long.¡± Dibo said finally. ¡°Magus Kyrian, which Core will you be taking?¡± ¡°I believe I¡¯ll be taking another Lightning Core, Magus Dibo.¡± ¡°Ah, a great choice.¡± I sniffed. Unlike the Cores of adventurers, it wasn¡¯t like Mages could keep their Cores secret. You could simply deduce it by seeing what spells they used. It honestly didn¡¯t matter, Mages made up for the lack of secrecy of their build with a variety of spells and sheer firepower. ¡°Best of luck on your exam, Magus Kyrian.¡± Kyrian took the waypoint out, heading to the higher floors. With all the impatience of a gamer, I spoke first. ¡°I have some questions to ask you.¡± Dibo raised a glass to his lips, arching an eyebrow. ¡°Not a single word when we were talking about the weather. And now, the first words to escape your lips are a demand.¡± ¡°Tell me everything you know.¡± I forged ahead, ignoring his statement. All wit and tact. Kyrian would be proud. The elven mage sighed, leaning back into the couch and studying me. After a second, he smiled. ¡°My father was the same way.¡± ¡°I grew up like every other elf. My father was a relatively successful adventurer, making it all the way to Grade 4. Thanks to him, my mother and I was not left wanting. Despite it, we lived a simple life. We were all happy.¡± He sipped at the tea again, eyes looking far away, no longer paying attention to me. ¡°Well, my mother and I assumed we were all happy.¡± ¡°Your father wasn¡¯t.¡± I whispered. ¡°He couldn¡¯t have been. He was a [Player] from another world.¡± He nodded, peering at me for a second then looking far away again, trapped in his own thoughts. ¡°Yes. Once I started showing talents in the Arcane, he immediately enrolled me into the Towers. With his connections and my own aptitude, it wasn¡¯t hard for me to rise through the ranks. Powerful Mana Cores, rare monster ingredients¡­ Once again, thanks to my father.¡± ¡°Was he using Magic to look for a way back?¡± It had been something I¡¯d considered. Magic was real in this world. It must have been through magical means that I was transmigrated to MSS. Then it stood to reason that using the same Magic, I could return back to my world. I didn¡¯t know how magic worked, but in theory it seemed sound. Of course that brought its own load of troubles I had to think about, such as my original body. But I just wanted to know if it was possible. Dibo¡¯s bitter smile halted that train of thought like a steel wall. ¡°No. I know what you are thinking but it is not possible. And I¡¯ve done my own research through the years. I am reasonably sure that it was not through normal magical means that [Players] were summoned to this world. My father knew this as well.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°Your father¡­ I assume he was researching about [Players]. How they got here. Why they got here. Is that why he sent you to the Mage Tower? To help him?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°No?¡± I frowned. ¡°Then why would he send you to the Tower? He had no reason to-¡± ¡°My father loved my mother, Lock Slaveborn.¡± Dibo whispered. ¡°He loved me. Of those two things, there was never any doubt. And he kept us in the dark about his personal research.¡± I stopped at the look on Dibo¡¯s face. There was something fierce in his eyes, daring me to contest what he said. Damn. I¡¯d basically inadvertently told him that [Players] wouldn¡¯t care about the life they made in this world¡­ that his father would have left him and his mother in a heartbeat. Tilting my head in a half-apology, I nodded for him to continue. ¡°What he researched, he researched why, not how. Why you [Players] are summoned to this world.¡± Dibo shook his head. He took out a small notebook, worn with time and frayed at the edges. It was bound by a leather cover, filled with yellowed pages. Dibo held it delicately and passed it over like it was a newborn infant. ¡°This came into my possession when I was sitll a young man. After my father died.¡± I carefully took the page and opened it. It wasn¡¯t this world¡¯s language. It was my world¡¯s language. It was Spanish. ¡°This is¡­¡± ¡°His diary.¡± Dibo smiled. I passed the notebook back to him. Then simply asked, ¡°How?¡± ¡°In a dungeon. By monsters.¡± He said, just as direct. I looked into his eyes. Anger. ¡°You don¡¯t buy it.¡± ¡°His party was full of Grade 4 adventurers, my father was a professional Field Boss hunter. They were found dead in a regular dungeon not fifty miles from where this tower stands. He died in a dungeon full of Grade 7 monsters.¡± Dibo¡¯s eyes flashed with bitterness. ¡°So yes, Lock Slaveborn. I do not buy it that my father was killed by monsters.¡± ¡°You suspect other [Players].¡± ¡°Indeed. I do.¡± I leaned back on the couch. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for your loss Dibo. But I don¡¯t see how this pertains to the information you promised me. You promised me to tell me everything you know about Players and their Guild. If this is everything you had to tell me¡­¡± I hated to sound cold but I wasn¡¯t in this to avenge Dibo¡¯s father¡¯s death. I was in this for myself. To find a way back home. If there was even a small chance I could go back home without beating the game¡­ I would take it. Wouldn¡¯t I? Whoa. Why wouldn¡¯t I? ¡°Ok, not the best time to go down that route.¡± I told myself before self-reflection could truly set in. ¡°No. I have more for you.¡± Dibo went over to one of his desks and brought out small notepad, kind of like a folder. Taking it from his hands, I saw that there were a few sheets of paper in there. Taking a cursory look, I saw that they were written in MSS language. Something I could kind of read. ¡°Burn it after you read it.¡± ¡°Ok.¡± Making the folder disappear into my Dimension Ring, I looked at Dibo expectedly. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t call me here just to tell me your life¡¯s story and hand me a stack of paper. You want to talk about something else, about working together.¡± ¡°The [Player¡¯s Guild].¡± I finished. Dibo looked at the cup of tea in his hand. ¡°My own goal is to find out what happened to my father. The truth behind the incident.¡± His faded green eyes met mine. ¡°You wish to gather information on other Players. I believe we could work together.¡± ¡°In three day¡¯s time, the Church of Light, Flame and Shield will send out a general call for adventurers. They need help recovering a [Relic] from a Dungeon, in an island near the Jayu and Turina Border. Jayu adventurers will be required to work with Turina adventurers. A way to strengthen relations between the two countries.¡± ¡°A way to weaken the other and strengthen themselves.¡± I muttered. ¡°Good. You understand.¡± Dibo leaned forward, almost glaring into my soul. ¡°I have gotten a hold of information that the [Player¡¯s Guild] will be participating.¡± ¡°You want me to participate¡­ get close to them.¡± I frowned. ¡°How will I know they¡¯re [Players]?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t need to. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll approach you. After all, you¡¯ve made quite a name for yourself and there¡¯s plenty of information in the Black Market about your identity as a [Player].¡± I did not know that. I also didn¡¯t know my mouth was hanging open. ¡°Do this for me, Lock Slaveborn. And I will be forever in your debt.¡± I stared at Dibo then opened my mouth to speak, choosing my words carefully. ¡°Why me? If you truly know as much as you claim and have experience with [Players]... You could¡¯ve found someone else. You could¡¯ve¡­ done this with other people who were wronged by them. Searched for comrades.¡± I searched for the right words, ¡°We were strangers. I don¡¯t understand why you chose me.¡± It was Dibo¡¯s turn to stare. ¡°Because of the look on your face when your comrades, Magus Kyrian and Warrior Skaris were safe.¡± Dibo smiled sadly. ¡°I could see that you cared for them, not just for your own well-being, but for theirs. That you truly treated them like comrades, not just tools to be used and thrown away.¡± ¡°As for being Strangers¡­ I¡¯ve shared my life story with you, Lock Slaveborn. I shared the deepest gear within me, that keeps this old body ticking. That keeps me alive. My goal, my reason for existence. I have no family. The only thing that remains is the memories of my mother and father. You know these things about me¡­ whether we were strangers in the past or not, are we strangers still?¡± Wasn¡¯t that how Kyrian, Skaris and I started? Hadn¡¯t we been strangers until we met in Samak City? Regardless of what had happened in the past, Dibo and I were no longer strangers. I sighed. ¡°We¡¯re not.¡± I answered. ¡°We¡¯re¡­ we¡¯re not strangers any longer.¡± Satisfied, Dibo took another sip of tea. Wondering if Dibo counted as a ¡®friend¡¯, I decided to ask him something that had been weighing on me. Elves lived a long time, around 300 years if I wasn¡¯t mistaken. And considering how Dibo looked¡­ with the beard, the pockmarks and trembling hands, there was no way he was a young man. If Dibo had been a young man when his father died¡­ it must¡¯ve been at least 200 years ago, likely longer. I can¡¯t claim to have lost something as important as my parents and even just the thought of it squeezed my heart painfully. But could someone¡¯s pain last that long? ¡°What do you want to do, if they are responsible for your father¡¯s death? Some of them might¡¯ve been human. They would all be dead.¡± Dibo stared at his wrinkled hands. "I don''t wish for revenge, Lock Slaveborn. I am far too old and no longer in my prime. What I want is something much, much simpler." ¡°I simply wish to know,¡± Dibo whispered, more to himself than me, ¡°What happened to my Dad.¡± How Dibo looked in that moment¡­ the tilt of his face, the stoop of his shoulders and the eyes that contained all the sadness of a boy who had lost his father¡­ I could never forget it. I was wrong. 300 years was too short. Some wounds could never heal.
Chapter 85: Party (1)
World: MSS - Loading...
Leaving the Mage Tower after speaking with Dibo left me with plenty of questions and tasks to think about. In a nutshell, Dibo had gotten information that the [Player¡¯s Guild] will be participating in a raid that the Church was planning. Using this raid, he was hoping that we could make contact with the [Player¡¯s Guild]. Just two problems. First, the Church. Any organization in MSS that was dedicated to serving one of the six deities was powerful. You had to be. The only source of healing in this world were either health potions, very rare Core abilities and most reliably of all, Priests and Priestesses AKA Healers. Hell, until you were starting to look at adventurers of grade 5 or above, you probably won¡¯t even get anywhere near a Healer that wasn¡¯t affiliated with a church, not to mention that their healing would never measure up to the full holy countenance of the clergy. And of course, as powerful as they were, they were just as rigid. Archaic remnants of a bygone era when racism was one of the driving factors for history and a veritable cause to wage war. I should know. The history of my own world was much of the same. They clung to their ways and I¡¯d seen it first hand in Krag¡¯s Temple, the Dwarves clergy''s blatant price gouging for healing Skaris who was a Beastman. Funnily enough, racism was a systematic institution in the religion here, built into their foundation. Which was fair I suppose, considering that the gods you served also cared about the color of your skin, eyes and what racial trait you could unlock. It looked like it was better in the current era of MSS, especially if the Church was hiring non-human adventurers at all... still, I doubted the degree of freedom we''d have. It also didn¡¯t help that MSS didn¡¯t have any half-races. Unlike other fantasy genres, MSS didn¡¯t allow the mixing of races in the genetic sense. Sure, people could get together but your babies would either be one or the other. If a human woman got together with an orc man, the chances were that your baby would be 75% human and 25% orc. No matter what race you put together, the baby had a ? chance of inheriting the mother¡¯s race and only ? chance of inheriting the dad¡¯s. Nothing about the father would be visible and in an era where the idea of genetic testing hadn¡¯t been born yet (no pun intended of course), I was sure that paranoia would be rampant. Except it was not. In MSS, I¡¯d never seen someone accuse their spouse of cheating. Perhaps it was because of the lack of getting proof for whether your spouse was cheating or not but the married couples of this world had immense amounts of trust in each other. Or maybe the only people I''d spoken to got together with someone that you trusted with your life, I.E adventurers. Could be different among the regular civilians. Either way, the Church was a slow, rigid, bureaucratic organization whose job would be to scrutinize our every move and be very meticulous about the way they handed out their orders. To my knowledge, they were also the main voice behind doing away with [Players] as a whole. Which brought me to my second problem. How the hell was I supposed to make contact with other [Players] while being watched by the Church who had enough resources to destroy everything I¡¯d worked to build? And how the hell would I know they were players? Without realizing it, I sighed. ¡°Lock?¡± Kyrian, Skaris and I sat around our little campfire in the Slums. Lately, the food had been getting better and proof of that was sitting right in front of us. Skaris had his face half-buried into a bowl, swallowing bits of meat like¡­ like ever seen that video of a Komodo Dragon swallowing an octopus whole? That¡¯s what this reminded me of. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the features of the Beastmen were completely human except for the occasional furry ears or scales, I was sure actions like this would have further divided the gap between the races. As it were, Skaris just looked like an eccentric human. Setting Skaris¡¯ table manners aside, the Orc Adventurers had finally started to make more money. More meat decorated our tables and instead of the strange watery mystery broth were used to having, the soup was hearty, rich, thick and creamy. Even I had downed my first bowl and asked for seconds. As I watched, the line of people waiting for food grew to include other Slum residents and the orcs gave them generous servings as well, without question. ¡°Lock? Are you alright?¡± ¡°Oh right.¡± I shook my head, feeling tired. ¡°Just thinking, that¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Are you thinking about the Church¡¯s Call that Dibo told you about?¡± Kyrian asked, his tone low so as to not be overheard. I nodded. ¡°It will be the sssssame assss the Fracture. We musssst keep our witssss about.¡± Skaris chimed in, his eyes glued to the bowl. I saw the inner struggle within him as he kept glancing at the line, wondering if there would be enough for him to have thirds. Kyrian passed him what was left in his bowl. The young mage had hardly touched it, saying that with his new Mana Core, he was feeling a bit queasy. Understandable, Mana Cores didn¡¯t act like Spirit Cores which were embedded within our Soul. Mana Cores were actual physical manifestations of Elemental Mana which had to be digested by the mage. Skaris took the bowl with a nod of thanks and dug in with bravado. ¡°It won¡¯t be.¡± I tapped my finger on the ground. ¡°Think about it. This is the Church and they¡¯re calling adventurers because they failed to finish the dungeon or defeat the dungeon boss. In addition, they¡¯re sending out a general call to adventurers which means-¡± ¡°That they failed on their own.¡± Kyrian finished, following my train of thought. ¡°You fear that this dungeon will be of a higher difficulty than the ones we¡¯ve faced so far.¡± ¡°Yes¡­ and no.¡± I answered, ¡°Think about it. If it was a matter of monster strength, the Church wouldn''t have need of us. They can just request for aid from a sister church or reinforcements from Turina. But instead, they¡¯re making a general call out to adventurers here in Jayu. Which could only mean one thing.¡± I saw Kyrian shift uncomfortably at the direction of my thoughts, a habit ingrained into him from his upbringing. Of course, the Church of Light, Flame and Shield was the de-facto religion of Turina. Anyone who grew up there was taught to revere it and respect it, even if you didn¡¯t believe in it. So my theory that the Church wasn¡¯t all power sat uncomfortably with him, even if he wasn''t a believer. That''s how powerful the Church was in Turina. ¡°It¡¯s not about strength. To conquer the dungeon, it requires a versatility of abilities and the Church doesn¡¯t know what it is. If they knew the requirements, they would have hired someone who fit the bill. The fact that they¡¯re trying to recruit adventurers at all means that they can¡¯t figure out how to defeat the dungeon and want to rely on the adventurer¡¯s expertise.¡± I finished. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. As strong as the Holy Knights and Clergy were, they were no substitutes for adventurers. How could they measure up to professional adventurers who went dungeon diving for a living? ¡°Ssso what isss the isssue?¡± ¡°The issue,¡± I took Skaris¡¯ empty plate and piled it on top of mine, ¡°is that their standards for adventurers will be high. As of now, our party has two bladers, you and me, and a mage, Kyrian. At the very least, we¡¯re going to need a Shielder to balance out our party. Even better if we can bring a Pioneer or Wayfinder.¡± Naturally, I left out the role of a Healer. I was sure they¡¯d attach someone to us to watch over us and most likely, that person would be a Healer. A Priest or Holy Knight for sure. ¡°Bah.¡± Skaris leaned back, his stomach noticeably full. ¡°We already know a Ssshielder.¡± ¡°Vetilian. Sssshe wassss the mossst sssskilled sssshielder we¡¯ve ever sssseen.¡± I saw Kyrian peering at me, checking for my reaction. Without even realizing it, I rubbed my face over my hands while recalling the memory.
¡°Will you teach me [Aura]?¡± Silence. ¡°No.¡± I met her emerald-colored eyes squarely, not wanting to look away. Another bout of silence and Kyrian trying his best to look like a piece of furniture, anything to escape this awkward tension. ¡°I see.¡±
And that was that. I had turned down Aurora Candrian Vetilian¡¯s request for [Aura]. We hadn¡¯t seen her since nor received any word from her. No mention of those three raids that she wanted to accompany us on either. ¡°Sssslaveborn.¡± Skaris stared right at me. ¡°It mussst be her.¡± It wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t want her with us. I was just unsure of how she would react after my blatant refusal to her request. Party dynamics were a fragile thing and I was looking for people I could trust. People that I could trust to have my back. After that awkward exchange, wouldn¡¯t it be natural for our relationship to be strained? I¡¯d seen it before. Feelings like inadequacy, jealousy and a superiority-inferiority complex could turn someone to betrayal as easily as coins or Cores. Was that a risk I should take? ¡°For what it¡¯s worth Lock,¡± Kyrian ventured, ¡°She did not strike me as the type to resent you for refusing her. She knew better than to ask you to teach her [Aura] in the first place.¡± ¡°That just shows how desperate she was.¡± I muttered. ¡°Which is understandable.¡± Kyrian agreed. ¡°Bastard Scions of the Great Houses have always been differentiated from the legitimate heirs through usage of [Aura]. Even if she learns [Aura] from someone else, it won¡¯t be the same as the [Aura] method from the Vetilius household.¡± ¡°It mattersss not. Ssslaveborn, we mussst asssk, at the very leassst.¡± Skaris said with a tone of finality in his voice. ¡°Only thossse who ssseek can find.¡± I sighed. ¡°Skaris is right. We¡¯ll ask Aurora.¡± ¡°Which still leaves us with room for one more person.¡± Kyrian shrugged. ¡°We could always leave a general post with the Guild. We will have to do interviews but it will be a start.¡± ¡°No. No strangers. Not after¡­¡± My lips pressed into a frown. ¡°Not after what happened last time.¡± ¡°The elf sssiblingsss.¡± Skaris growled. Baran¡¯s betrayal had left us all for dead. I needed someone we could trust. Who I knew didn¡¯t have an ulterior motive. Someone relatively new to the scene but still skilled enough to hold their own. Someone¡­ someone just like- I picked up our dirty bowls, getting to my feet to wash them near the shore. ¡°I think I might have someone.¡±
It took a day to get the messages sent out through the Guild and in-person. Then another day for us to meet up in a nearby tavern. If only I had a nickel for everytime MSS imposed an RPG cliche on me. Kyrian Tricilan sat next to me, dressed in his standard mage-robes. His blonde hair was tied in a ponytail, accentuating his sharp features and I was sure that more than one passerby looked over with a blush. Skaris tore a tunic, foregoing his armor and spear. Of course, they were stowed safely in his Dimension Ring. Still, being seven-feet tall probably gathered a lot of looks though of a different kind than the ones Kyrian received. Then there were our guests. Aurora Candrian Vetilian. She wore a simple loose tunic, tied with leather braids near the collar with just enough exposure to be fashionable. Her gray hair was tied into a braid, for function rather than style but even that looked good on her. Her green eyes were half-closed as she sipped from the cup of tea in front of her. Next to her was Stolen Stars fall Silents, otherwise known as Stole. The skilled [Pioneer] I had met during my brief stint almost a month ago. Gods, had it been that long already? She had skipped the black leather today, instead dressed in something more unassuming. Her black hair was still unruly though and if I wasn¡¯t mistaken, the earring on one of her ears was new. As soon as Stole sat down, she put her boots on the table and leaned back, studying all of us. Kyrian and Aurora raised an eyebrow at her blatant display of hostility. The most difficult part about making a party in MSS was gathering all the different personalities together and bringing their affection levels at a high-enough threshold to ensure there would be no backstabbing or betrayals. In the game, it was easy. In real life? It meant that somehow I had to earn the trust of Aurora and Stole but the relationship couldn¡¯t end there. I needed Kyrian to have his own relationship with Aurora and Stole the same way he did with Skaris. At the very least, this party needed to have a minimum level of respect for each other, an unspoken agreed-upon rule which everyone would follow. What I wanted were comrades who cared about not just me, but about each other as well. Someone needed to make that happen. Right now, that overwhelming responsibility fell to me. ''Focus on what you can do. Not what needs to happen.'' Right. Pushing my feelings of inadequacy aside, I began. ¡°Stole, you haven¡¯t met these two before. They¡¯re my companions-¡± ¡°Skaris of Clan Deepeater. Kyrian Tricilan. I know.¡± Stole said before I could finish, then continued. ¡°Mage who used to belong to the Akka Xaluds. Skaris came with you from the Samak Desert.¡± Skaris let out a harsh bark of laughter. ¡°Who isss thisss whelp, Ssslaveborn?¡± Kyrian furrowed his brows and shot me a look. ¡°Ms¡­ Stole, was it?¡± Kyrian began, ¡°How is it that you know-¡± ¡°Grease the right palms and you¡¯d be surprised how many people would be willing to let a few things slip.¡± Stole shrugged. Aurora narrowed her eyes at Stole then promptly turned her head away from the young beastman girl. A clear sign of dislike or disapproval. Probably both. ¡°Mr. Lock, what is the purpose of this meeting here today? It is nice to hear from you all after such a long time but I do have personal matters to attend to.¡± There was no other way to do this but to say it. ¡°I want you both to join my party.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not, Mr. Lock.¡± The two looked at each other and this time, a slow deliberate smile crept up the corner of Stole¡¯s mouth. ¡°Fine with me.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock. My condition from our last conversation still stands. Three expeditions.¡± Aurora crossed her arms, a hint of annoyance in her tone. ¡°Have you forgotten?¡± I did forget. ¡°No, I did not.¡± ¡°Lock, perhaps it¡¯s better if you give them a bit more detail.¡± So I told them about the Church and the request it would send out. Of course, I left the [Player] part out of it completely. ¡°A dungeon that even the Church could not clear¡­¡± Aurora muttered. ¡°I accept your offer, on the basis that it is temporary.¡± ¡°I meant what I said, Mister.¡± Stole hooked a thumb at Aurora. ¡°I don¡¯t mean temporarily either. I want to join your party. Permanently.¡± Kyrian was continuing to frown and I knew that he noticed that something was off about Stole. She was acting too eager, too¡­ ambitious. Definitely not the sign of a seasoned adventurer. I knew how Kyrian and Aurora would react if they found out Stole was underaged. They¡¯d never agree to take her with us. Skaris on the other hand¡­ When I glanced at Skaris, he snorted out of one nostril with a knowing gleam in his eye. He had called her ¡®Whelp¡¯. ''Damn. He knows.'' I shook my head, pushing the thought aside for later. ¡°Then why don¡¯t we do introduce ourselves?¡± Flagging down a server, I ordered a round of drinks for everyone then at the last second, switched it to food. ¡°No drinkssss?¡± Skaris muttered. Damn. He freaking knew Stole was underaged and all he could think about was quenching his own thirst. Stupid Skaris. ¡°It¡¯s still daytime and we all have things to do. We can drink together next time.¡± I answered. ¡°Traditionally, the first drink should be shared after a successful expedition.¡± Kyrian provided, ¡°Though we never got to get together after the Fracture.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure no one wanted to think about what happened in that Fracture. Best to treat it like it never happened.¡± I started handing out the plates. ¡°As you all know, I¡¯m Lock. You¡¯ve all been on an expedition with me so I won¡¯t get into too much detail.¡± "Kyrian Tricilan at your service. I specialize in lightning-oriented offensive magic, though I''m handy with control spells as well." "Control spells?" Stole asked and Aurora shot me a look like ''Really?'' "Spells that change the battlefield or affect monster''s physical or supernatural ability." I answered quietly, trying my best not to make eye contact with Aurora. And so it went, trading details on what weapons we used, what kind of role we fulfilled in an expedition. ¡°You¡¯re a [Pioneer]?¡± Aurora sounded incredulous. ¡°Damn right.¡± Stole looked smug. ¡°[Wayfinder] too. Lock said I¡¯m the best he¡¯s ever seen.¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± Kyrian asked. ¡°¡­I never-¡± ¡°A [Wayfinder] and [Pioneer]... I see why you wanted to recruit her, Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora muttered, then rather pointedly asked, ¡°How old are you? And what grade have you achieved?¡± ¡°I¡¯m-¡± ¡°Stole,¡± I cut her off before she said something we¡¯d all regret, ¡°How¡¯s Shara doing?¡± And so our conversation went with me defending Stole from potentially awkward situations. ¡°Well, I¡¯m afraid I must leave now.¡± Aurora got up first. ¡°I will see you all tomorrow.¡± Kyrian left right after, having to pick up a few things necessary for our expedition. That left Skaris and Stole. ¡°Hey Mister, are you free now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I replied. This was good, I wanted to talk to Skaris and Stole in private. ¡°Then why don¡¯t we-¡± ¡°Whelp.¡± Skaris put his fork down for the first time since the food arrived. Everything had already been picked clean though. ¡°...Stop calling me-¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn hassss been ssseeking the Underground.¡± The Underground? That was what Skaris called the Black Market. ¡°Ssshe knew too much of usssss.¡± Skaris explained to me. ¡°Ssshe mussst have a connection with the Underground, Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°If you know of it, we would hear of it.¡± Skaris said to her. ¡°That must be where she¡¯s been getting her gear. They wouldn¡¯t care about her age, the only thing they¡¯d care about was whether her gold was good or not.¡± Stole looked between me and Skaris. ¡°...Fine. Just stop calling me whelp, alright?¡± ¡°I call a Whelp a Whelp.¡± ¡°Skaris, if Kyrian or Aurora finds out it will be trouble. You know what Kyrian will say.¡± ¡°But it wassssn¡¯t me who-¡± ¡°But now you know. And you¡¯re not going to tell him, are you?¡± Skaris murmured a curse in a language I didn¡¯t understand and I took it as agreement. Stole got up and started walking away. When Skaris and I didn¡¯t follow, she looked over her shoulder. ¡°Well? What are you two geezers waiting for?¡± She called. Then in a much lower tone so that only we could hear, ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to visit the Black Market?¡± Finally, I was unlocking the Black Market area.
Chapter 86: Party (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
Stole led us to the central marketplace. ¡°Stick next to me like hair on a monster¡¯s ass.¡± She muttered then slipped into the crowd. Skaris and I followed her, bumbling like an awkward teenage boy at his first dance recital about to ask for his crush¡¯s hand. Whever I looked, I saw traces of Stole. Turning a corner, slipping behind a particularly large orc and sometimes even blending in with the crowd by staring at a shopstall. Skaris and I followed her through this living, changing maze. The Marketplace was a living, breathing beehive made up of stalls, yelling shopkeepers and the intoxicating scent of various meats and sweets. A cacophony of colors decorated the square to a dizzying effect, each shop trying to outdo the other in terms of flashiness. There was no order that I could see, except for guards patrolling the outskirts. Not even they dared to step foot into the crowd lest they be split up and be the target of unsavory sorts. Eventually, we managed to catch up to Stole who was descending the stairs into an unassuming alley. Her form quickly disapeared, swallowed by the shadows. I looked down and had no idea of how far down the stairs descended. ¡°Ssshe¡¯s toying with usss.¡± Skaris growled. ¡°Because you kept calling her on the way here.¡± Silently wishing I had the boost to my Sight from the Lucky Beckoning Cat, I descended the stairs first only to bump into Stole. ¡°Took you long enough.¡± She murmured. ¡°We thought you¡¯d gone ahead.¡± ¡°Nah. I know you two can¡¯t see as well as me. Come on then.¡± Stole took the lead and I could faintly make out her outline in the dark. The stairs stretched on and with each step, I could feel the air growing colder. I could feel the dampness on my skill and the slight shift in scent as fresh air disappeared, replaced by the moldy smell of cave moss and basements. Being careful not to misstep on the stairs, we followed behind our guide. 5 minutes. 10 minutes. Finally after about twenty minutes, we reached the bottom of the stairs which opened up into a small room lit by a single torch hung on the wall. There was a door on the other end which Stole knocked on. ¡°Password.¡± ¡°The slum lord slumbers still.¡± Stole said with a grin. With a creak, the door opened up. ¡°Be careful not to get lost.¡± Stole waved us on and we followed her in. Into the Black Market. Finally, I¡¯d been waiting for this. Immediately, the first thing I noticed was the yelling. Even before we reached the end of the small corridor, distant raucous voices, no doubt stirring trouble, reached my ears. The cadence and rhythm of it was similar to the marketplace above ground, but here it was much more harsh. More authoritative and challenging, a hint of aggressiveness that hadn¡¯t been present under the sun. I felt my steps pause for a beat, and resumed walking only to find that I was walking much slower. It was an impulse, the ¡®Han¡¯ side of me that still remained. If it was a monster screaming that I¡¯d heard from the other side, I might have felt fear but grim determination. But a different type of violence reigned here, one of cloaks, daggers and belligerent attitudes. For me, it reminded me of school, bullies and cliques. A sort of trauma that still lingered under my skin that had nothing to do with MSS and everything to do with the memories of my real world. Skaris shoved me, not unkindly. ¡°Sssslaveborn. I wisssh to ssee this placsse.¡± Right. It was different now. I wasn¡¯t alone. Hurrying my steps, Skaris and I exited the corridor and into the Black Market underneath the grounds of Jayu State. I had been expecting a network of underground tunnels but what greeted me was a huge cavern system, large enough to fit a castle. The entire place was in the shape of a dome, lined with staircases and ropes on the edges. I saw people using the stairs and ropes to climb up and down, reaching one of the many holes embedded in the walls. The said walls had a variety of light sources which gave the place the afterglow of the setting sun or a lone torch in the rain. Placed strategically among the walls were large holes, some big enough for a man to slip through and others much, much larger. Upon a closer look, these holes were openings into passages and I realized that the Black Market was modeled after an ant¡¯s nest. This place we were in must¡¯ve been the central room, with passages to every corner of the Black Market. Speaking of the market, this place was filled with stalls, even more so than the one above. If I had to pick out a difference it was that the yelling was even louder and I saw a few fights breaking out between customers, vendors and passersby with no law enforcement nearby to keep order. By the gods, this place was large enough to play football and loud enough to believe that it was the NFL playoffs and every inch of it was filled with people. Beastman, Orcs, Elves, Humans, Dwarves, every race was represented here. And all of them stank of blood and sweat. ¡°Are you two done gawking?¡± I turned to find that Stole had changed out of her clothes and into roguish armor she had on when I first met her. She started walking down the path that had strings of shops on either side. Still staring wide-eyed, I followed. ¡°This here is where they usually sell weapons. I wouldn¡¯t trust it though, that geezer dwarf gouges for every last copper coin you have in your purse. Has a better nose for coins than a beastman I swear.¡± Stole took us around the stores, giving us a brisque tour of the stores within the Black Market. ¡°And this place here-, hey, keep up!¡± Skaris paused at an armor shop, eyeing a pair of greaves. Behind him a pair of two elven children began to creep towards him. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°Oh, the fucking little buggering pickpockets. Stay put, Mister!¡± Stole rushed off to help Skaris. Leaving the two to their devices, I looked around the Black Market. Weapons. Armor. Rare Alchemic Ingredients and Monster Parts; not to mention the actual monsters themselves (though nothing higher than grade-10). Looking around like this, I realized that the place was crowded but not particularly impressive. The awe I had felt when first entering this place faded as I realized the stalls were little more than trinket stores, selling things that were a little socially unacceptable. Nothing of real value and definitely nothing really illegal was here. It was like this in the game too. You had to make it a habit to visit the Black Market, else you¡¯d never realize its true value. As you got stronger, you garnered more reputation and that made it easier to make relationships with the shopkeepers and vendors whose exotic goods were outright illegal and impossible to obtain elsewhere. It was entirely possible I was just too weak to be invited to any of the closed-curtain events, such as the Black Auction and other esoteric markets. I shouldn¡¯t have gotten my hopes up. I turned to go and find Skaris and Stole. ¡°Hey, you there.¡± I froze and turned around, trying my damndest not to get my hopes up. A dwarf so hairy that I mistook him for a beastman sat in front of a stall. Unlike others, his stall was attached to an actual building ¨Ca small forge, barely large enough to fit him. He sat on a rocking chair, smoking a pipe as long as his torso and blew out a ring of smoke. I saw through the haziness that he wore a pair of goggles on his forehead. He stroked his red beard. ¡°I know you from somewhere, sonny.¡± Ignoring my beating heart, I strode forward. With a quick glance, I looked at his wares. Gems. Jewelries and accessories. Trinkets that were no bigger than my hand. No weapons or armors that I could see. ¡°You¡¯re an Alchemist.¡± I said. The man¡¯s bushy red brows climbed half an inch, touching the bottom rim of his goggles. ¡°Aye¡­ of a sort. And yer?¡± ¡°Lock.¡± The dwarf grunted. ¡°Bilgrun Blazecopper at your service.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a Blazecopper?¡± I blurted without thinking. He sniffed and said bitterly. ¡°One of many.¡± Nothing could beat a Dwarf at smithing. The weapons they sharpened, the armors they made, it wasn¡¯t a stretch to say that many of the Artifacts and Legendaries they forged could rival Pluralities. Actually, if it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Pluralities could only be dropped from monsters, I was of the mind that dwarven weapons could be classified as such. The reason why I was shocked was because the Blazecoppers were one such Clan from Drake Fortress ¨Cthe homeland of the dwarves. They were renown for their craftmanship, especially when it came to creating weapons with the Fire element imbued into it. Any weapon shop that prided themselves on having ¡®quality¡¯ goods used Dwarven Arms, and I¡¯d bet a good coin that I didn¡¯t have that more than half had the Blazecopper brand on it. So what the hell was a Blazecopper doing here? In the Black Market? In Jayu nonetheless? Not to mention none of his goods were weapons¡­ ¡°Garbage.¡± I told myself immediately. A trap set my MSS to waste my hard-earned coin. I turned to leave. ¡°How¡¯s yer eye?¡± The dwarf called out. ¡°...!!¡± ¡°Aye. Saw your fight in the Colosseum. Was a good fight too. But everytime, you favor your blindeside. You take an extra step when turning which gives it away that yer completely blind in that eye, not just hard of seeing.¡± He took a drag on his pipe. ¡°Must be difficult, adventuring and what not with only one eye.¡± ¡°I thought you said you didn¡¯t know me.¡± ¡°Yer gait gave it away.¡± He had a smirk on his face and patted his belly. ¡°I remember ye cause I thought to myself ¡®what a pity. If not for the eye, he could give those Scions a run for their coin. Put them in their rightful place, he could.¡¯¡± ¡°I already defeated a Scion. My first opponent was-¡± ¡°Aye, I know that sonny. But because I worked you up and got your panties in a bunch, ye forgot to deny being blind, didn¡¯t ya?¡± Shit. Instead of saying something back, I just glared at him. ¡°Bah, don¡¯t tangle yer panties up further. I¡¯m not the type to say a word to anyone.¡± He got up from his chair, standing to his rather impressive height of four feet and then some. With a shocking realization, I realized that what I thought was a mixture of smoke and fire was actually his hair. His hair shot straight up into the air in a sort of wavy pattern ending in a singular point, defying gravity and adding an entire foot to his height. ¡°Stay right there for a moment, sonny.¡± He went into his tent-sized forge. ¡°I left it here somewhere¡­ now, where¡¯d I live that damned thing¡­ can¡¯t remember for the life of me¡­¡± Sound of things falling over and small scrap metal being throwing out of his forge accompanied his muttering. ¡°Am I getting scammed?¡± Briefly, I wondered if I was being scammed but decided against it. Even if he charged an arm and a leg for something, I couldn¡¯t afford it because I had no money. ¡°But this is the Black Market¡­ he could always ask for something else in exchange.¡± As I debated just walking away, the orange-haired dwarf emerged holding a small flat gem. ¡°Come here.¡± He motioned. I hesitated. ¡°I¡¯m not grifting you sonny.¡± When I still didn¡¯t move, he just chucked the gem towards me. Catching it out of reflex, I studied it. It was a flat octagon with the edges sharpened to look like a gem. It was a little smaller than the palm of my hand with a dark blue-purple sheen to it. Yet depending on the angle, it refracted the light into an array of different colors; mostly light blue, white and yellow. A stark contract with the actual material itself. I wasn¡¯t well versed in Inorganic Chemistry or study of Optics, but was pretty sure it wasn''t supposed to do that.\ ¡°Hold it up to yer blind eye.¡± While I had been pondering the dwarf had approached silently. He stood waiting in front of me, his face impatient. My face must have been incredulous. ¡°Humor me, sonny.¡± ¡°...Fine.¡± Then I proceeded to put the gem to my face. And my blind eye could see again. ¡°...!!¡± I was surprised for the second time today. ¡°Heheheheh.¡± Bilgrun Blazecopper held out a hand and I placed the gem into it. He started flipping it end over end, showing me the different angles. I closed my good eye and saw that my bad eye could see through the gem. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± I finally asked. ¡°This,¡± He walked over to his table of trinkets and put the gem down, ¡°is one of my creations. I took a Seeing Crystal and added my own additions to it.¡± He finished proudly. ¡°Not only can you see through it, it gives sight in darkness and ye won¡¯t be hindered by things like blinking when blood or water gets into yer eyes.¡± Seeing Crystal, the item I had been searching for to replace my eye. And this guy took it and modified it? I reached out a hesitant hand towards the gem and Bilgrun put his palm over it, smiling as a shark would when it found a school of fish. Fuck. This was a Scam. Albeit, a legitimate one. How could a blind man not want to see again after having seen what it¡¯s like to¡­ to see? When I had held up the gem to my blind eye, I saw how much I¡¯d been missing. My peripheral vision nearly doubled and had the sensation of a fog being lifted from my brain. It was a wonder how much we humans depended on sight to make sense of information. The yelling I¡¯d been hearing but unable to pinpoint immediately became apparent, an orc shopkeep was in an argument with an elf. The scent of manure that had been assaulting my nose was coming from behind me; a stall with potted herbs. Bilgrun held out a hand. ¡°Give me yer headpiece, sonny.¡± ¡°This is the only thing I have.¡± I handed him the Bevor from my Dimension Ring. ¡°Hmmm¡­ this won¡¯t do. Go and get a helmet from a nearby stall. Any cheap one would do. Best if it¡¯s a visor sonny.¡± I swallowed. Bilgrun was treating this like a done sale but I couldn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t have any coin. ¡°Well? What¡¯re you waiting for? Get a move on then.¡± He cackled. I should have told him the truth that I didn¡¯t have any money on me. But Bilgrun¡¯s hands were moving so fast and I knew that whatever helmet I chose would be combined with the gem rather quickly. Perhaps it wouldn¡¯t be too late to let him know of my coin situation after he had finished making it¡­ My conscience pricking me the entire time, I turned around and started looking at the nearby stalls trying to find a helmet to my liking.
Arrosh Bloodedge held his breath. As the seed must bide its time through the cold breath of Mother Winter, as the Mother Bear must stay in Hibernation to stave off the freezing winds of Father North. Arrosh Bloodedge waited. Sometimes his consciousness surfaced from the pain. So much pain. They flayed his skin in strips until he knew that his arms and chest were nothing more than hanging sacks of meat. They brought angry, hot, white iron and burned him over and over and over. When that didn¡¯t work, they resorted to his hands; always starting by pulling his nails out first. Then they moved onto his feet, leaving his toes hanging on his foot by a flap of skin. So much pain. And so much yelling. ¡°How do you know Lock Slaveborn?¡± ¡°What is the secret to Aura?¡± ¡°We know you¡¯re the Sword Saint¡¯s Disciple. Where are the other Disciples?¡± ¡°What did you teach Lock Slaveborn?" ¡°Tell me everything you know about Lock Slaveborn.¡± Arrosh remained silent. Never a word. He¡¯d not give his disciple away. They¡¯d hardly known each other, less than a season. Perhaps to Lock, his disciple ¨Cyoung twig, wingless bird, cub-but-not-so-weak-cub¨C he was but a strange, deranged psychotic orc who babbled nonsense. But to Arrosh, Lock was the one person who¡¯d listened to his age-old story. The one person who¡¯d believed in a time immemorial, a time that lived on in the memories of Arrosh Bloodedge, when he was a young orc on a journey with Nearnigh, his dear Master and the Sword Saint in one. And just as Nearnigh protected Arrosh with his life, Arrosh would protect Lock. No matter cost. So when they flayed his skin, when they plucked his sightless eyeballs and when they left him without arms or legs he said nothing. When they bore holes into his ribs and inserted slithering hateful little things, he fought not to scream. He still said nothing when they healed him and repeated the process. His guts ran through their hands like like the strings of fate, splitting his stomach open like a bloody butcher. But Arrosh did not dream of vengeance. He was sated. He had never protected anyone before. Even having failed to protect his people. He knew what he was called by the other orcs: Failed Protector, one who failed to do his duty. But this time... this time. Lock had protected his people in his stead. So Arrosh dreamed of himself, fulfilling his duties as the master, and hoping that Lock and his people, though not of his tribe, were safe. ¡°Do you think he even remembers you?" ¡°Tell us what you need and we¡¯ll let you go. Heal you up. A bed. A meal. No more sleepless torture, hanging on a hook by your wrists. If not¡­ I¡¯ll string you up upside down starting tomorrow.¡± Arrosh Bloodedge smiled. It mattered not if Lock remembered him or not. It wasn¡¯t the disciple¡¯s duty to remember the Master. Arrosh remembered him just fine.
Chapter 87: Party (3)
World: MSS - Loading...
I was going to church. Well, the Church. One of it''s branches anyways. It stood on top of a hill that stood behind Miltus, overlooking both the City and the Slums which stood next to it. The entire building was painted with gray-white walls and mounted with elaborate structural decorations incorporating shapes such as circles and pointed arches. It stood anywhere between three or five stories high. I saw signs that this area might once have been inhabited by trees, but those were long gone. Being separated from the rest of civilization, I got the feeling of going away on a religious experience getaway. ¡°Empty yourself of darkness and sin. Only the Light will remain.¡± Kyrian muttered softly as we climbed the hill. ¡°A versssse from your beliefssss?¡± Kyrian nodded but it was Aurora who answered. ¡°All those born in Turina undergo mandatory education regarding Church of Light, Flame and Shield.¡± She explained. ¡°Most Churches are built like this. Separated from all other¡­ clutter, to serve as a message. That they are the only true faith and set apart from the rest of the world.¡± ¡°What? They don¡¯t eat, shit and sleep?¡± Aurora shot a disdainful look at Stole and continued on her way. Entering past the gates, we saw a member of the clergy who came out to meet us. ¡°Are you the Miltus Party?¡± ¡°Yes, we are.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°This is our identification papers, along with Marc Pointell¡¯s signature.¡± If Marc Pointell hadn¡¯t been willing to pull the strings for us, we would never have gotten this gig. The Guild¡¯s support was starting to come in handy already. The priest-in-training checked all our identification then nodded, satisfied. ¡°You are the last ones here. This way please¡± Stole leaned towards me, whispering. ¡°That¡¯s our party¡¯s name? Miltus Party? That¡¯s a lameass name.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t have time.¡± I murmured, seeing Skaris shoot me a look as well. Aurora on the other hand didn¡¯t show emotion. ¡°Sorry.¡± The priest-in-training checked all our identification. ¡°This way please.¡± ¡°So¡­ are we going to make a name for our party?¡± Stole began, her voice in a faux whisper. ¡°Because I have a couple of ideas.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure that should be something we discuss right now.¡± I answered. ¡°No, Lock. A party¡¯s name is important. I¡¯ve been meaning to discuss it with you but we¡¯ve all been too busy.¡± Kyrian shared a look with Stole, who beamed at him. ¡°It should be something everyone decides upon together.¡± ¡°Permanent members only.¡± Stole said, shooting a look at Aurora. ¡°Is this something we need to do right now?¡± I didn¡¯t want us to walk into a quiet room and be caught out talking about party names. First impressions were important and we were dealing with the Church. Aurora and Kyrian might have an idea, but for the rest of us this dealign with the Church was a new experience. We needed to be on our toes. ¡°Oh come off it.¡± Stole said. ¡°I¡¯ll go first. How about Shadow Walkers? Eh? Eh? Isn¡¯t that fucking rad?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Sssscarlet Sssspear.¡± ¡°That literally describes only you, Skaris.¡± Stole pointed out. ¡°...then how about Ssspear Sssscarlet?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It should really reflect the party as a whole.¡± Kyrian reminded everyone. Aurora chimed in. ¡°The Last Pioneers. To mean that whereever we go, there would be no need to explore further, for we¡¯ve uncovered all that is to be uncovered.¡± ¡°Permanent members only.¡± Stole said again, shooting a look at Aurora. Aurora ignored the younger beastman girl and continued. ¡°Perhaps the First Flagbearers, to mean the opposite, the first ones to step foot in a place. Or the Everwanderers. Or perhaps-¡± All the names that Aurora were suggesting were inspired by adventurer parties from the Lore that I read. Could it be that she had a particular interest in the history of adventuring? Quite possibly, this could be her version of geeking out. ¡°Ms. Aurora, I had no idea you had an interest in¡­ in naming parties.¡± Kyrian commented. Even Skaris and Stole were looking at the usually stone faced Aurora in a new light. Aurora coughed and I thought I detected a faint blush on her cheeks. ¡°Simply suggestions.¡± ¡°Well, I suggest the Dark Knife.¡± Stole cut in. ¡°Err¡­¡± Kyrian looked to me for help. ¡°Can we please talk about this later?¡± I growled. ¡°But misterrrrr-¡± ¡°...We are here. Please open this door and enter. I¡¯ll be on my way then.¡± Thankfully the priest didn¡¯t open the door and have all the people in the room hear what we were discussing. Here we were, about to take on a mission for the Church, which they failed by the way, and entering a life-or-death dungeon. Yet, all these four could talk about were what name the party should have. Or maybe it was good that they weren¡¯t too nervous. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°Just because they¡¯re not nervous doesn¡¯t mean you should relax. They can goof around because someone has their head screwed on straight and it¡¯s you, dolt.¡± I thought to myself. I entered the room with my party members behind me. We entered from the back of a church fellowship hall, a long elongated room with an altar at one end and pews set up in a semi-circle around the room. Upon a secondary inspection, there was a second floor with balcony seats looking down at the altar. There was no one on the second floor, not that I could see anyways. On the altar were a row of people, most of them escaping my notice except two figures who were obviously in charge. One was a medium-height woman with jet black hair that hung down past her waist and a veil covering the top half of her face. She had on a black and white dress cinched at the waist with a silver metallic ring, complete with frills and laces with knee-high boots. The man next to her was blonde and tall with broad shoulders. He was dressed in ornamental armor with a humongous bastard sword in his hands. Hair kept short and swept to the side with that stiff posture, definitely a Holy Knight of the church. If there ever was a posterboy for ¡®good-looking-hero-knight¡¯, this guy was it. And he was sneering at us. ¡°You are late.¡± His voice was deep, words clipped with precision. I waited for him to say something else but nothing came. ¡°Well?¡± He finally asked. Oh, he wanted an excuse. Or submission. Did I mention I hated bullies? I should have apologized. A simple sorry could have placated him, instead I doubled down and stared into his baby-blue eyes, feeling my own eyes narrow in turn. ¡°Kyrian, are we late?¡± Kyrian looked at his pocket watch. ¡°We are 2 minutes early.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not late. We¡¯re-¡± I began. ¡°Keeping everyone waiting. Perhaps you weren¡¯t aware due to your upbringing as a slave,¡± The knight¡¯s words dripped with venom. ¡°But for Adventurers, you are late the moment you are the last one to arrive.¡± I frowned. How the hell did he know I used to be a Slave and why the hell would he bring it up now? ¡°What did you-¡± Someone tugged on my elbow; it was Aurora. She shook her head. ¡°...I apologize.¡± I managed to say through gritted teeth, quickly finding an empty pew to sit in. My party joined me. The priestess on the stand next to the knight cleared her throat. ¡°Thank you, Sir Zenom.¡± ¡°Lady Cecilia.¡± He gave her a slight bow and took a step back. ¡°As I was saying, you have all been brought here, recommended by your representative Branch Guild Masters.¡± She smiled, turning her head to greet each of us. ¡°Welcome.¡± ¡°My name is Cecilia Lightridge, Head Priestess of this Church. I would like to thank you all for attending.¡± Cecilia began to talk about the history of the Church and its esteemed members of this branch who would be participating in this raid. Nothing about the dungeon or the Relic that we would be looking for just yet. So I took the time to look around. There were three other parties besides ours, too many for my liking. We had passed one group on the way in because they sat way in the back. All of them wore hoods and had used some obfuscation spell to conceal their faces within the cowl. There were a total of five of them, just like us. No weapons that I could see out in the open for now. Ok, no information to be had there. ¡®I¡¯ll call them the Cowl Party.¡¯ I told myself. ¡°Lock, that group¡­ they¡¯re all Scions.¡± Kyrian whispered to me. Looking at the people that Kyrian referred to, I was surprised to find that a familiar face stood out to me. Dorocian. After my fight in the arena with her, I hadn¡¯t heard from her again, nor any news of Parthenon. She didn¡¯t seem the type to hold a grudge but it wasn¡¯t like we were friends either. Still, it wasn¡¯t the best feeling to see her here and knowing that moving forward, I¡¯d be forced to work together with someone that I¡¯d humiliated on the public stage. I could only hope that there wasn¡¯t a situation coming up where my back could be used for target practice. She sat on a pew with Gurran and four others, all of them human, that I¡¯d never met before. She and Gurran looked straight ahead, their backs straight and expression grim. Probably paying attention to the Priestess. I promptly named them the Scion Party in my mind. The last group looked like the typical adventurer¡¯s party you could meet anywhere. A plain human who was obviously not listening, fiddling with his daggers, two elves, a dwarf and a beastman. Every one of them was unremarkable in every way. The only one who stood out to me was the beastman, a massive man from the deer-tribe with antlers the size of a small child. Whenever he shifted in his seat, the wooden pew creaked and groaned. Huh. I thought the Church wouldn¡¯t allow non-humans to participate or atleast actively oppose Beastman and Orcs. I guess they could be called ¡®Party A¡¯. ¡°And that¡¯s all from me. Sir Zenom will explain the rest.¡± Cecilia stepped aside, giving the stage to Zenom, the knight who harassed me for being ¡®late¡¯. ¡°My name is Zenom Saintred.¡± He passed his glare around to each of us, making sure all of us were more than uncomfortable. ¡°Friendly guy.¡± Stole whispered. ¡°Your job will be to aid the church in recovering a [Relic].¡± He continued, his red cloak draping over his broad shoulders and flowing down. The man was a natural public speaker and cut an imposing figure. ¡°The Dungeon is in the form of a temple on an island, sixty miles off of the Shore of the Jayu States. On the way, we will be passing through the Wild Straits.¡± I hissed. Much louder than I wanted to. Zenom just looked at me. ¡°Is that a problem?¡± Damn it. I might as well try. ¡°The Wild Straits are also home to one of the largest orc hordes on the continent, the Bada Horde.¡± I stated, trying to ignore the butterflies fluttering around in my stomach. Public speaking? Not my strong suit. ¡°Get to the point.¡± ¡°Did the Church send an emissary for permission to cross their territories?¡± ¡°We do not negotiate with pirates.¡± Zenom¡¯s face was blank, but he couldn¡¯t quite hide the disdain from his voice. Of course they didn¡¯t. The Turina Empire looked down on everyone that wasn¡¯t humans. I bet it was humiliating for the Church to even hire adventurers at all. ¡°But if you don¡¯t have permission, the Horde will take it as an attack. It¡¯s their land. And the orcs aren¡¯t just pirates. It¡¯s their culture, if you would just send an emissary-¡± ¡°Silence.¡± Zenom slashed the air with his hand. ¡°The Light does not need permission to shine upon the land. Neither does the Flame to burn, nor the Shield to defend the innocent.¡± Once again, he was waiting for my answer. And I realized suddenly that every single adventurer¡¯s eyes were fixed on me. I suddenly felt very small in this room. But I couldn¡¯t be small. I had Aurora, Stole, Kyrian and Skaris who entrusted me with their lives. The whole reason they could goof off about Party Names in the first place was because they trusted me, they trusted me to get us through this alive. I had no idea what made Aurora and Stole place their faith in me, but they did. Yeah, the life of an adventurer was fraught with peril and the mortality rate was something we walked with. But it didn¡¯t mean we had to be negligent with it. Even just careful planning or sending a messenger like I suggested could prevent useless fighting, savings lives. Both ours and the Orcs. It didn¡¯t matter how much I wanted to know about the [Player¡¯s Guild] and Dibo¡¯s dad. The people next to me came first. There were plenty of other dungeons we could go into and conquer. No matter what this Relic was, it wasn¡¯t worth walking into a death trap led by a man who was too caught up in his religion to bother thinking about the lives he was responsible for. Zenom Saintred was one of those types. The typical hero of the story who left nothing but collateral damage and corpses in his wake. Who believed that he was doing the ¡®right thing¡¯. There is nothing more dangerous than an incompetent man who believes he is doing the ¡®right thing¡¯. I had to pull us out of this. ¡°Then-¡± ¡°Do not worry, Adventurer.¡± Ceilia chimed in. ¡°We won¡¯t be going directly across the Straits. The ships we chartered will skirt the edges of Horde Territory. We haven¡¯t experienced any danger either.¡± I swallowed the words that had been on the tip of my tongue. ¡°Does that satisfy you?¡± Her voice, mellow and high-pitched, something I¡¯d hear from a Saintess ¨Cwhich wasn¡¯t too far off from Priestess I guess¨C then addressed everyone else in the room. ¡°You all came highly recommended. I¡¯d hate to have¡­¡± She paused, thinking of the right word. ¡°Trouble,¡± she finally decided on the word and pointedly looked at me, ¡°in the first meeting.¡± Welp, so much for first impressions. ¡°This is the cream of the crop?¡± Stole looked around, her ears perked up. ¡°They don¡¯t look too¡­¡± ¡°Balance.¡± Kyrian answered the young Pioneer, his voice equally low. ¡°The Church needs a mixture of Strength and Stealth. If they gathered all the strongest adventurers they could find, it might garner unwanted attention.¡± Kyrian was right but forgot to mention one thing. The Church needed us to be strong, but not too strong as to run off with the relic. ¡°It¡¯s good with me.¡± I sat down, rubbing my sweaty palms together. ¡°You did well.¡± Aurora greeted. ¡°I¡¯m sure the other Adventurers were wondering the same thing but did not have the guts to ask.¡± ¡°They are rissssking their livesss.¡± Skaris muttered. ¡°A foolissssh decision, we are lucky to have Sssslaveborn.¡± ¡°They did not ask, because it¡¯s Zenom Saintred.¡± She answered. I picked up a note of respect in Aurora¡¯s voice, something rare. ¡°Is he famous?¡± ¡°Even I know him.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°He was elevated to Knighthood by the Bishop himself, after saving his village from a Monster Wave at the young age of sixteen. He has been trained by the church since then and if public records are to be believed, he¡¯s never failed a mission. Ever.¡± ¡°Isss he the sssstrongessst?¡± Skaris was eyeing the young knight who was explaining the logistics. ¡°...No. But probably one of the strongest of his generation and definitely most influential.¡± Aurora allowed. ¡°Many of these people are taking the risk, knowing that with Zenom it will be a success.¡± ¡°Lock could beat him, I bet.¡± Stole sniffed. ¡°...I''ll take that bet against you, Stole.¡± I whispered. I could tell. Because when Zenom Saintred used his hands, it was full of fat red welts, calluses on top of calluses. Plus, his armor and sword weren¡¯t just decoration. I could see age-old scratches, dents and other damages accumulated throughout the years. No matter how good a smith was, they couldn¡¯t get rid of every little sign of battle. The fact that this Zenom Saintred was using these in the first place meant he was used to them, a sign of an active warrior. Plus¡­ if he was a Holy Knight¡­ He¡¯d be able to use [Aura]. ¡°Now,¡± Zenom said, his gaze fixed pointedly at me. ¡°I will take questions.¡± Immediately, the human from ¡®Party A¡¯ lifted his hand. Zenom nodded to him. ¡°Delas Ender.¡± He began by introducing himself, ¡°What is this [Relic]? Whatever this thing is, we have to recognize it when we see it? Yeah?¡± Zenom shared a look with Cecilia and the priestess walked up to the podium once more. ¡°It is a necklace with an amulet in the shape of a maple leaf. The amulet itself is a mixture of metal and stone, tinged red. We will go over more once we are at the Island itself.¡± I jolted like someone shocked me. ¡°Ssslaveborn?¡± There was no way. This couldn¡¯t be. I raised my hand. ¡°...Yes?¡± Zenom had seemed reluctant to allow me to speak. ¡°What is the name of the island?¡± I rushed out. ¡°There is no official name for the island.¡± Unlike how I was feeling, Cecilia was calm. Too calm. ¡°But we have started to call it the Claw Nest. On account of all the beast-type Monsters that inhabits the area.¡± I sat down as something went ¡®click¡¯ in my brain, like the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle I was finishing just got completed. It all made sense now. The Turina Empire taking over the Samak Desert, using the Slave Trade as an excuse. If they really wanted to trade slaves, they could¡¯ve done it without massacring the Samak Horde and their people. What they really needed was the location and freedom in that area without anyone asking questions. Because the necklace they were talking about, it wasn¡¯t a normal [Relic]. It was one of many Keys. One of the keys to open the tomb of one of the [Six Heroes]. ¡­Key to waking the [Autarch], buried beneath the Samak Desert. ¡­The Turina Empire was readying itself for War. And I was going to be a part of it.
Chapter 88: Party (4)
World: MSS - Loading...
We would meet at the docks in one week. So I sat in my quarters (nothing more than one corner of the tent really) while Skaris and Kyrian slept. Ignoring the lizard beastman¡¯s snoring, I scribbled on the floor with a piece of soot I found. Strangely, the moment made me laugh. I had been the son of millionaires and then when my parents lost their business, I lived in a one-bedroom apartment with my dad. I used to think that was rock bottom. But no, living in this world¡¯s equivalent of a garbage dump was rock bottom. Smiling, I continued to scribble. Aurora - Tank. Kyrian - 4 Core Mage. Stole - ??? Skaris - DPS Me - DPS / Bruiser As I looked at the list in front of me, I started to imagine formations and scenarios. What if Aurora was injured? Who¡¯d take point? If Kyrian was injured, who could take over for his versatility? Our party was extremely focused on combat which was all you needed in the beginning level dungeons. But as you got deeper into the game, you needed more utility. Ropes to scale cliff faces, swimming ability to get past bodies of water, Darkvision and even telepathic communication spells to keep everyone in the party informed. Then there were items to counter monster abilities, Special Fields¡­ The list of supplies and abilities needed to defeat the game was endless. Back when I had been behind a computer screen, I rotated members as needed. Here, I couldn¡¯t do that. First, I didn¡¯t know enough people and two, there was no guarantee I could trust so many people. Right there and then, I realized that I hadn¡¯t just written down the party composition but the list of names that I trusted. Maybe someday the list would grow and maybe it wouldn¡¯t. But for now, these four were whom I was taking with me into the Dungeon with the Church of Light, Flame and Shield. By my estimation, the Dungeon would have monsters of grading 7 or 6. ¡°And if we came upon a Grade 5 monster, who¡¯d be the most likely to die?¡± The answer came to me immediately: Skaris. I erased the names with the palm of my hand and began scribbling down a rough sketch of Skaris¡¯ character sheet. Beastman (Lizard tribe) Evolution - Fire Path (Stage 2) Core: [Bool Dokkaebi] - Grade 8 [Inmyunho] - Grade 5 [Ifreet] - Grade 7. In my opinion, when building a melee-based fighter in MSS, you needed to take into account a few things. An ability to enhance your basic attack, which would be the skill you use the most. Survivability was another and then a nuking skill, something to finish your opponent off in a pinch. The Bool Dokkaebi gave Skaris the active ability [Playing with Fire], which was Skaris¡¯ bread and butter till now, coating the tip of his spear with fire. ¡°The Imyunho gives him [Hand in Hand], a utility skill to basically double damage output. Now he has [Burn! Burn! Burn!], from the Ifreet Core too.¡± The Ifreet was a non-negotiable for Skaris, which is why we snatched it up in exchange for theTortured Kris. It¡¯s passive, Burn! Burn! Burn!, doubled the time of all burn status effects. Plus, he had [Evolution] now. Damage wasn¡¯t the problem. Survivability was. We had a week. ¡°A week to whip the party into shape and maybe even get enough gold to get some new items¡­¡± Sighing, I erased all my notes and went to bed.
¡°I can¡¯t believe the Church is letting him participate. I thought they wanted to get rid of him?!¡± Delas compained, walking down the small cavern. They were in one of the bases managed by the [Player¡¯s Guild]. Technically, it was a safehouse for the Scavenger Clan, which was a large clan headed by one of their own, a [Player]. The safehouse was built into the walls of the cliff and to even reach it, you had to get through the mob of monsters that crowded around the bottom. You couldn¡¯t scale the walls either, not unless your build was specialized for aerial combat. Huge flying beasts circled the base like reapers, waiting for someone foolish enough to try and climb up the cliff face. No, the only way you could enter the safehouse was by coming in through the entrance and traversing the network of maze-like tunnels, while avoiding the members of the Scavengers. Having been here before, Delas had no trouble finding his way. His partner was Astelion ¡®James¡¯ Giantler, a beastman from the Giantler Clan. Like the Clan name implied, they were hulking beastman no doubt designed after a moose, standing over seven feet tall and twice the width of any normal close-ranged fighter. His hair was long and black, hiding his cervidae eyes which unnerved people enough even without the giant proportions. ¡°Rumor is that the Akka Xaluds took care of it. And as a favor, he is participating.¡± ¡°Bah.¡± Delas spat to the side, palming a dagger and spinning it. ¡°I hate that guy. You know boss invited him before? It was before my time.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Delas made quotation marks in the air. ¡°¡®First Grade-2 Mage among [Players]¡¯ he said. Chances are he¡¯s going to hit Grade-1 too.¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°Even Coum is only Grade 5.¡± Astelion murmured, his voice reminiscent of the deep throated bellow of a large herbivore animal. His voice seemed to ripple throughout the air and Delas fought not to squint in displeasure, lest he hurt his friends feelings. ¡°Well, glad I wasn¡¯t stuck in the body of a mage. It¡¯s not just about Cores you know. You have to understand the whole thing. Or you go nowhere. In the games it was just answering multiple-choice questions in dialogue¡­ Coum told me that he actually has to study.¡± ¡°Hence why he spends most of his time in that Tower of his.¡± Astelion shook his head, his mane-like hair moving with him. Delas crinkled his nose as the strong scent of musk filled the corridor. ¡°Apologies.¡± ¡°Bah, not your fault.¡± Delas muttered. ¡°You got a good look at the other participants?¡± ¡°Turina Scions. Most likely requested by the Church.¡± said Astelion, continuing, ¡°Most likely bastards.¡± ¡°Nah. Only two of them are bastards. Gurran Turian and Dorocian Kojisan, the one who got her ass handed to her by Lock. The other three are legitimate Scions.¡± Astelion was silent. ¡°The orc isn¡¯t going to say anything.¡± He finally muttered. Delas crinkled his nose. ¡°Yeah. But no way about it, Nathan wants answers.¡± ¡°This is cruel.¡± ¡°Has to be done.¡± Delas sighed. ¡°How long you say you¡¯ve been in this world again? 3 years?¡± ¡°2 and a half.¡± said Astelion. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been here for 8 years. 8.¡± Delas answered, shaking his head. ¡°8 years and only a Grade 5 adventurer. You have no idea how much shit I went through. All the Cores are different from the modded version and the percentage drops are different too. That¡¯s why so many [Players] never make it. I think this world is the original version of the game.¡± ¡°...I noticed that.¡± Astelion agreed. ¡°What¡¯s your point?¡± ¡°You think torturing that orc swordsman is bad? Think about it James.¡± Delas used Astelion¡¯s human name, garnering his full attention. ¡°I lived here 8 years¡­ in this godforsaken place. How many people do you think I killed? How many people do you think tried to stab me in the back? How many do you think I had to stab in the back myself?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what this world does to you. Someone annoys you, you kill them. Someone has something you want, you kill them. Someone looks at you funny, you kill them. You think that¡¯s the behavior of a normal human being?¡± Delas shook his head, continuing. ¡°You know, I used to watch a guy stream. I¡¯d comment shit like ¡®Why would you let that NPC live!¡¯ or ¡®Kill, Kill, Kill!.¡¯¡± ¡°But it¡¯s different here. These NPCs¡­ they¡¯re living breathing beings. People can type ¡®kill that guy!¡¯ easily because they¡¯re just staring at a screen. But once you¡¯re in here¡­ it¡¯s different.¡± ¡°Get to your point.¡± Astelion sighed. Delas had a penchant for droning on and on. ¡°I¡¯m saying¡­ you can¡¯t see these NPCs as people. Just¡­ pretend they¡¯re animals or better yet, just data. That this is all pretend. We¡¯re stuck here and if we want to survive and have the chance of getting out one day, you gotta see them as loot.¡± Delas put a hand on Astelion¡¯s shoulder, though he had to reach up considerably. ¡°Man. I miss the days when I used to think of death as something not real you know. As something¡­ fake. This world fucks you up if you get in the morality of things.¡± Astelion didn¡¯t answer the rest of the way. At the end of their tunnel, there was a door and a dwarven woman standing in front of it. She had her arms crossed mimed looking at a watch when the two came into view. She stomped in front of them and looked at the two, scowling. ¡°Tanya.¡± Astelion greeted. ¡°Heya Tanya.¡± ¡°You¡¯re late.¡± She growled. Tanya had short auburn hair framing her round oval face with long lashes and full red lips. If she wasn¡¯t a dwarf, Delas was pretty sure she¡¯d get a lot of looks. As it was, she was only popular with dwarves. Mounted over her head was a visor, a welding helmet. ¡°Relax. We were at the Church.¡± She calmed down a bit, though only for Astelion. Her tone was still curt as she addressed Delas. ¡°How¡¯d it go?¡± ¡°It was fine. We saw that Mage guy¡­ what¡¯s his face¡­ Arion.¡± ¡°Arione.¡± Astelion amended. ¡°Right. Him. You remember him? Nathan talks about him once in awhile.¡± The dwarven woman uncrossed her arms. ¡°Arione Popwindale? The guy who writes those monster books?¡± ¡°Yeah! Him!¡± ¡°...What¡¯s he doing here?¡± Tanya put a hand on her hips. ¡°He was just there? Without his face hidden or anything?¡± ¡°His face was hidden.¡± Delas tapped on his eyelid, winking at her. ¡°But yours truly saw right through him.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Tanya brought out a piece of paper and pencil. ¡°Sketch his party members for me. With your [Handicraft] stat, it should be pretty accurate right?¡± Delas made his dagger disappear and began to scribble. It didn¡¯t take him long. ¡°A pink-haired Beastwoman¡­ a red-haired Barbarian. An red-haired elf, and an Akka Xalud?¡± ¡°Maria Biva Akka Xalud. Jason¡¯s younger sister. You remember him, right?¡± Out of habit, Delas made the pencil disappear into his pockets. ¡°We met him at that party in Turina.¡± ¡°I remember that asshole.¡± Tanya didn¡¯t notice the petty theft. ¡°Lock was also there.¡± Astelion interjected. Tanya sighed. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m going to go have to talk to Nathan about this.¡± ¡°What? Why?!¡± Delas cried out. ¡°Because now there are two Parties being led by [Players], One of them is Arione who openly despises us. And the other is Lock, someone whom we¡¯re investigating right now. It¡¯s too unpredictable.¡± ¡°Oh come on! Tanya please! I thought we were going to recruit Lock anyways!¡± ¡°...Not until we figure out what his relationship is with that Orc NPC. Worst case scenario, he¡¯s one of those NPC sympathizers. We need to figure out the relationship and have a story ready.¡± Tanya¡¯s tone booked no room for argument. ¡°Remember Delas, he¡¯s your best shot of learning [Aura].¡± ¡°And until the orc talks, we have time!¡± Delas begged. ¡°C¡¯mon! Don¡¯t tell Nathan! He¡¯s going to call the whole thing off!¡± Astelion watched the two, sighing. Tanya finally relented. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll hold off, give you time to get that Orc NPC to talk. If he doesn¡¯t talk before you guys leave on the mission, I¡¯m going to tell Nathan. Understand?¡± ¡°Got it!¡± Delas held Tanya¡¯s hand in both of his, shaking it up and down. ¡°Thanks, Tanya.¡± ¡°...We¡¯ve been here 8 years now, Delas. Stop acting like we¡¯re 18.¡± Ignoring her, Delas strode towards the door. He took out an item from his Dimension Ring: a perfect replica of a horse head. He tugged it over his head then opened the door. There, inside the room was Arrosh. He hung from the ceiling by a meathook, pierced through both of his wrist. ¡°Oh¡­ I know I¡¯m not 18 anymore.¡± At Delas¡¯ voice, Arrosh stirred, turning his milky eyes in the direction of the door. The scent of rot, feces and wrongness washed over the corridor. ¡°Alright, I¡¯m going to go check on my guys.¡± Tanya, the Clan Master of the scavengers turned to walk away. ¡°Astelion, make sure Delas doesn¡¯t kill him? Just in case, I stocked the room with fresh healing potions.¡± Astelion turned to the room and saw that Delas had already started. ¡°I will.¡±
Stole sniffed the air. ¡°Lots of monsters here.¡± I nodded. ¡°Good place to train.¡± I turned, watching my party members getting ready. Aurora strapped her huge tower shield and readied her colossal lance. Kyrian spoke with Skaris softly, the red-scaled warrior strapping on his armor and listening intently. ¡°Is there a particular monster you want me to look for?¡± Stole was dressed in her usual black-leather ensemble, plus a hood made of cloth. Despite the scorching sun, she kept it over her head. The Field was called the Skeleton Cliffs, a long stretch that reminded Lock of the Samak Desert. On one side was a humongous cliff that stood out against the yellow-white sand. Its reddish hues were layered with yellow and white sediment deposits, telling its history that was generations long. Reptilian monsters patrolled the lower part of the cliffs and large avian monsters circled the air, so high up in the sky that their shadows were practically non-existent. I stood on a vista, overlooking the field below. Damn. She was right. There really were a lot of monsters. It was a wonder they didn¡¯t mass themselves into a Wave. Still, the gamer part of me saw all this as EXP. ¡°I heard that the cliff is Clan territory. As long as we don¡¯t go near it, we should be fine.¡± ¡°So what monster?¡± Stole urged. I head Aurora¡¯s metal greaves clanging on the rock behind me. ¡°I shared Mr. Lock¡¯s expedition outline while he was inside the Guild Building, registering us as an official party. You were there, Ms. Stole.¡± I flinched at Aurora¡¯s voice. I had gone alone into the Guild Building to register our party because¡­ I left Stole¡¯s name out. She knew of course and probably Skaris too if he bothered himself with such things. I did it alone because I didn¡¯t want Kyrian and Aurora to find out that Stole was underage. ¡°1 more year. 1 more year and it¡¯ll be all ok.¡± ¡°Outline?¡± ¡°...A list of objectives that we are attempting to achieve on this expedition.¡± Aurora said calmly but as someone who¡¯s spoken to Aurora multipel times before, I could sense the underlying tension beginning to grow. ¡°I obviously wasn¡¯t listening.¡± Stole rolled her eyes. Aurora turned to me, her eyes saying ¡®Are you really going to let this happen?¡¯ I cleared my throat. ¡°Stole, as a Pioneer one of your primary responsibilities is to lead us to the right place and find the right monsters. It¡¯d be wise to listen next time.¡± ¡°Will do! But for now, would you mind repeating it?¡± The armor-clad Vetilian didn¡¯t bat an eye. ¡°We are primarily hunting ¡®Hwachas¡¯, a Grade-7 monster. In specific we are looking for their Brown Core; which Mr. Skaris has proclaimed interest in buying should it drop. The rest of the monsters in this field are also Grade-7 and we will be hunting them from time to time. But should we encounter a Grade-6 or higher, we will not be engaging.¡± Stole nodded, her expression focused. While the two spoke, I walked over to Kyrian and Skaris. ¡°Everything ok?¡± ¡°I am ready to test out my new Core and Evolution.¡± Skaris was itching to go. Even Kyrian had an excited look about him, ready to test his new spells. Aurora and Stole walked over. ¡°She is ready.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s go.¡± I muttered. Our formation was simple. Aurora in the front and Stole right behind, ready to duck behind Aurora¡¯s shield as needed. Then Kyrian so he could do the same. Skaris and I brought up the rear. From the vantage point, I leaped down onto the downsloping sand, sliding down on two feet. The sound of metal scraping sand and Stole¡¯s loud whoop of excitement told me that my team was following. Despite the fact that we were willingly walking into danger, I smiled. This was the first expedition where it was just us. No other parties, no missions. It felt like an adventure. ¡°There! I see one!¡± As soon as we got to the bottom, Stole pointed her finger at a humanoid figure running in the distance. [Hwacha] - Grade 7 Seeing the monster, I took out the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] to my lips and played a melody. Abruptly, the figure changed directions like a greyhound and began running towards us. The monster, Hwacha, had a beak-shaped snout lined with sharp fangs. Even from this distance, I could see its chest heaving from its endless sprint. The creature looked like a hairless cat running on two feet ¨Cpointed ears, pink-flaps of skin and reverse jointed legs that ended in huge paws with claws, striding across the dirt and sand. The Hwacha didn¡¯t have fur, instead as it moved sparks of flame popped in the air, sizzling with heat as they touched the sand. Where its arms were supposed to be were stumps, attached to wooden shafts that ended in a long coffin with wheels, being dragged along by the creature. It was time to see how well this party really fought.
Chapter 89: Party (5)
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¡°I-It¡¯s coming!¡± Stole sounded both excited and nervous. I could understand why, I was excited too. Skaris trembled, barely able to contain his eagerness. ¡°Sssssha! Sssslaveborn! Let me have thisssss one!¡± ¡°I could shoot it down from here.¡± Kyrian commented. ¡°...¡± Even Aurora looked to me, as if asking for permission, Of course, I couldn¡¯t let them. The point of this wasn¡¯t just to kill the monster, but to work together. Besides, I chose this monster specifically for this task. There was no way they could kill it so easily, especially by themselves. ¡°It¡¯s a Grade-7 monster. Why don¡¯t you guys try tackling it by yourselves first? I¡¯ll step in if there¡¯s difficulty.¡± ¡°Sssssshhhaaaaaa!¡± Skaris cried out and sprinted ahead of the others, his spear held out behind him. ¡°Mr. Skaris, wait!¡± ¡°Wait for me!¡± Stole ran after him. But none of them could match a caster¡¯s speed. Kyrian swept his staff out in front of him, deceptively slow. A web made of electricity followed, the sparks snapping and hissing like a living being; at the end of the movement a bolt made of concentrated lightning, white and hot, zipped across the field like a racecar. ? Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Arrow] ? It slammed across the Hwacha''s chest, sending it stumbling back and stopping its momentum cold. The monster looked confused and even with its basic elemental resistance stats, I saw a ring of blackened flesh across its chest. Before it could even move, Kyrian cast two more. The twin bolts of lightning weren¡¯t accompanied by the sound of thunderous explosions; they were launched with a sound effect akin to a gunshot. I saw the elemental projectiles find their mark once more, more rings of scorched flesh across the Hwacha¡¯s chest appeared and the monster screamed horribly. Still, the monster remained standing and began to move, the coffin-chariot behind it starting to pick up momentum. I saw Kyrian frown in confusion. ¡°Why is my spell so weak?...¡± Finally, we were getting to the difficulty in the game where people gave up. Level 30. Grade 7. Where monsters like [Ujo], lovingly nicknamed things like [Keyboard Breaker] by the community. It wasn¡¯t the first time Kyrian faced a Grade 7; but it was the first time he was trying to kill one with an elemental resistance to lightning. In the Spirit Maze, they had all been weak to Skaris¡¯ fire affinity, so he was underestimating them. I couldn¡¯t have that. Kyrian needed a wake-up call. ¡°Mr. Kyrian! It must have elemental resistance!¡± Aurora was the only one who remained behind and she took up position in front of the baffled mage. ¡°Ms. Stole! Get back here!¡± ? Stolen Stars Fall Silently casts [Concentrated Aim] ? Stole ignored Aurora¡¯s cry. There was no way our main scout didn¡¯t hear Aurora¡¯s warning from thirty paces away. But instead of listening to the tank ¨Cwhose whole job was protecting our backliners¨C Stole placed herself in front of the charging Hwacha, taking a knee and aiming with her arbalest. The arbalest thrummed with power, vibrating from the recoil. Of course, the Hwacha took a sharp turn and dodged; resuming its flaming charge straight towards her. Kyrian''s damage had only activated its passive, [Fiery Road]. Depending on how much HP the monster was missing, it got a huge boost to its [Speed] stat. To be honest, I wasn¡¯t surprised that Stole missed. Adventuring alone, she was probably used to ambushing monsters while hidden, meaning her prey had no chance to react. Then when we worked in conjunction with the two members of Parthenon, she had frontliners who kept the monster in place. Aurora whipped her head, glaring at me. ¡°You chose this monster on purpose.¡± I shrugged. Finally, Skaris reached the monster, standing in its path. ¡°Ssssshhaaa!! Come, come, COME!¡± I watched as Skaris¡¯ Core passive, [Playing with Fire] synergized with stage 2 his [Evolution], both of them worked on coating the wielder¡¯s attack in fire. So what happened if you combined fire and fire? Hotter fire. His spear tip glowed orange, then red then blueish-white as the temperature continued to rise. The weapon was lit with a small body of flame like a torch ¨Cexcept blue. It was so hot that it bent the air around it, blurring my vision. In fact, it was so hot that Skaris¡¯ [Rare] weapon couldn¡¯t handle it and I saw the shaft beginning to smoke. Skaris howled with laughter and stabbed forward with his spear, leaving smoking holes in the Hwacha¡¯s body. Skaris¡¯ fire was hot enough to inflict a Burn status on most monsters, but the Hwacha didn¡¯t burn. It¡¯s fire resistance was too high. The monster continued its charge and slammed into Skaris, sending the red-scaled warrior flying towards the side where he landed on the soft sand. ¡°Skaris!¡± Kyrian yelled out. ¡°He¡¯s fine.¡± I answered and I was right; a moment later Skaris got to his feet. And except for the small dent in his armor, there was no apparent damage on him. Racial Traits were just as important as Cores in a build and Skaris¡¯ [Evolution] path would pay dividends. The first stage gave him 15% resistance to all elements and a 30% resistance to Fire, his chosen path. The 2nd stage boosted his fire elemental damage by 50%. The Hwacha, with its own fire elemental resistance, was the worst enemy for Skaris to kill; but at the same time it couldn¡¯t do much damage to him either. Stolen novel; please report. For someone of Skaris¡¯ personality, it would be the most frustrating fight. He hissed and stabbed again and again, leaving tiny smoking craters on the monster¡¯s body but no significant fire damage. The monster began to speed up, growing faster and faster until it outpaced Skaris completely and headed towards Stole who was trying to trudge up the sandy hill towards Aurora. But her feet kept sinking into the path uphill was a grueling one. She¡¯d get hit by the monster. Aurora slid down, her metal boots working like skates and placed herself in front of Stole just in time. Right before slamming into Aurora¡¯s shield, the Hwacha¡¯s entire body lit on fire and exploded on impact. ? Hwacha casts [Explosive Charge] ? BOOOOOM The explosion was deafening; and the flames sprouted everywhere like rain. Aurora had actually held her ground, leaving deep grooves in the dirt with her shield. I heard her yell out a fierce battle cry and slam forward with her shield, which was glowing red and it exploded into a huge burst of red and blue flames. Damn. She managed to cast [Perfect Guard] and [Perfect Retaliation] in that instant? So far she had the best judgment out of all of them. ¡­But the Hwacha had taken too much damage; a tank like her could never land a telegraphed hit like that. The Hwacha ran in a circle around her veering off course and heading straight for Kyrian. ? Lock Slaveborn casts [King¡¯s Guard] ? My [Lunar Shield] bulleted towards the frail mage, reaching him before the Hwacha could and blocking the rampaging chariot-like monster. BOOOOOOOOOOM Kyrian fell to the ground, rocked by the shockwaved from the resulting explosion. But I had bought him precious seconds, the Hwacha was circling and looking for a different target. Speed against Aurora. Elemental Resistance against Skaris and Kyrian. Overall difficulty curve for Stole.. A monster that required a multi-faceted strategy; a monster that none of them could overcome alone except by relying on each other. Plus, it dropped a Core for Skaris and had a high item drop rate. I¡¯d thought of everything when I chose this monster as a target. ¡°Come on. Put your back into it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s too fast! I can¡¯t aim!¡± ¡°Hold it ssssstill, Vetilian!!¡± Skaris yelled out. The Hwacha sprinted around the battlefield, causing havoc. Explosions littered the field and it was all Aurora could do to keep Stole and Kyrian safe. Skaris ran back and forth but the monster avoided the beastman, continuing to ram itself into Aurora again and again after gaining momentum. Damn. I hadn¡¯t expected teamwork off the bat but this was worse off than I thought. Personally, I thought Aurora would have taken charge. But she was unable to reign in the stronger personalities; namely Skaris and Stole, the two beastmen. Meanwhile, the Hwacha began using its other abilities. It used [Trail of Fire], leaving Aurora, Stole and Kyrian stranded amidst a sea of flames which followed wherever the Hwacha went. ? Hwacha casts [Rolling Coal] ? Skaris almost caught it while it was starting to change directions, but the monster spun in the circle; sewing black flames from the coffin like a pickup truck on the highway. The red-scaled warrior came out coughing and sputtering while the monster ran off again. Finally, having had enough; I gave them a hint. ¡°Kyrian. Control the area.¡± Kyrian looked at me and an understanding passed between us. Good. Being around Skaris so much, I was afraid he was picking up some bad habits. Besides, Mages made the best shotcallers due to positioning and their versatile abilities which could change the battlefield entirely. Just like he was doing now. ? Kyrian Trcilan casts [Electric Web] ? Small patches of electricity, resembling a spider¡¯s web, began to appear around the battlefield. They tangled in the Hwacha¡¯s legs and body, slowing it. It wouldn¡¯t go so far as to inflict [Shocked] due to the Hwacha¡¯s elemental resistance but the monster was noticeably slower. With the monster slowed, Aurora was finally able to engage the monster. Unlike Skaris, she was able to use the combination of her tower shield and colossal lance to keep the Hwacha in place. She stuck to it like glue with well-placed thrusts and shield slams, herding it in toward Skaris. Seeing the effectiveness of Kyrian¡¯s strategy plus the lack of his own damage, Skaris changed strategies as well. ? Skaris casts [Hand in Hand] ? ? Skaris casts [Sticky Flames] ? ? Skaris uses [Double Stab] ? Skaris stabbed forward twice in quick succession and the blue flames stuck to the Hwacha. His clone did the same and more blue flames stuck, mostly at its foot and the ground. The creature wailed in rage and spun in a circle, using its coffin to create distance. But Aurora and Skaris had managed to keep it in place. Stole had been charging up [Concentrated Aim] ever since the Kyrian changed the tide of battle. She fired and the arbalest bolt pierced through the monster¡¯s forehead, finally bringing it down. All four of them breathed heavily, looking around the scorched battlefield. ¡°W,we-¡± Stole wheezed. ¡°We¡¯ll be hunting those?! Are you fucking mad?¡± She cried out to me. Skaris looked at his spear. ¡°I do not like thissss monsssster.¡± Even Kyrian nodded. ¡°I know. I purposefully chose the worst possible match up for you guys but I didn¡¯t think it¡¯d this bad.¡± ¡°Why?!¡± Stole protested, simply lying down with her arms spread on the floor. As young as she was, she was also the lowest level in our party with only two Cores from what I could see. ¡°First. To see how well you guys worked together. You guys failed that part by the way. You guys all did your own stuff without checking the ability of your party members.¡± I strode in among them, all of them sitting and lying down. I started passing out health potions and bandaging up minor wounds while talking. ¡°Second, to see how fast you changed tactics. Skaris and Kyrian, I understand you guys want to test out yourselves out, especially now. But after the first few attempts, you should have pivoted.¡± Once everyone got a drink of water, I really began to lay it on them. ¡°Stole, you should never have been in the front at all, always sticking near Kyrian or out of sight. You¡¯re a Pioneer¡­ if you become incapacitated, who¡¯s going to lead us out of the dungeon? The island we¡¯re going to will be filled with Grade 6 and Grade 7 monsters like this. Many times, you won¡¯t be able to participate in battle and be useful.¡± For the first time, Stole gave me a defiant look in her eye. ¡°I make my own choices.¡± She growled. I shook my head, speaking softly. ¡°No. You can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Remember what I said about the role of a [Pioneer]. Your job isn¡¯t to snipe the monster from afar or contribute in battle. Your job is to lead us, getting us to our destination safely. We don¡¯t expect you to contribute in battle and definitely not to lead the charge.¡± Stole¡¯s eyes widened in indignant anger and her mouth opened to argue. ¡°The moment you exposed yourself, you failed as a Pioneer, just to waste a few arbalest bolts.¡± The young girl''s eyes filled with tears and her lower lip trembled. She quickly looked away, pointing her face away from me. I turned to Kyrian. ¡°You¡¯re a mage, you¡¯re the most versatile out of all of us. Damage and Support. You were too excited about dealing damage and so far, when you were hunting slaves in Samak that was all you needed. Kyrian, I need you to start thinking outside the box; different ways to turn the battlefield to our advantage. Not just firing lightning and hoping the burn everything to a crisp.¡± The panting wizard looked at me with shame in his eyes. ¡°Skaris.¡± I took a deep breath. If I went on a long-winded speech, he¡¯d zone out. Lecturing someone who was impervious to the mood of others was tough, but something I needed to do. ¡°Until you get your next Core, I want you to stick next to the Shielder; whether its Aurora or whoever else.¡± His eyes flashed with hot anger. ¡°I am a warrior, not helplesssss. I do not need protecsssssion.¡± I rounded on him, my voice soft. ¡°Prove it.¡± Skaris got up, a snarl on his face. Slowly, I put a hand on my sword. I was gambling here. I¡¯d just insulted him and outright said that I was stronger than him. Which was true. It was a fact. Our relationship so far had been based on an unspoken soft deference from Skaris to me while I treated Skaris with the respect due a warrior of his culture. But the man almost died once, and this mission in front of us was even more dangerous than the last. He needed to rein in his battlelust. So if I had to kick his ass to prove a point, I would. Skaris stared at me for a few moments more and I sensed everyone holding their breath. Tears forgotten, Stole looked back and forth between us while Kyrian looked ready to jump in with his frail body. Skaris looked away first. ¡°Feh. It won¡¯t be long, Ssslaveborn.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be.¡± I agreed. ¡°But you know I¡¯m right.¡± Finally, I turned to Aurora. ¡°You tell me, Ms. Aurora.¡± Truthfully, Aurora had done the best. But she¡¯d made one crucial mistake. A mistake that anyone could make, but all the more important because of it. It¡¯s those small things that separate the 1% from the rest after all. ¡°I left Mr. Kyrian behind in my effort to get to Ms. Stole, leaving him defenseless.¡± Satisfied, I nodded. Damn. They all looked crushed and disheartened. ¡°I know I¡¯m being harsh.¡± ¡°But where we¡¯re going, it¡¯s going to be dangerous. The monsters are going to be on a different level and we literally have one week to be on par with the other parties or they¡¯re going to walk all over us. If we¡¯re not skilled, we¡¯re not valuable. If we¡¯re not valuable, we¡¯re expendable. And the three of you should know what it means to be expendable.¡± Skaris, the former slave. Kyrian the former Akka Xalud soldier. And Aurora, the bastard of a Great House. They all winced like I stabbed them. ¡°Stole, are you feeling better?¡± ¡°...Yes?¡± ¡°Then find us the next Hwacha.¡± I looked to the horizon, there was still plenty of sunlight left. ¡°You guys are going to do it again.¡±
Tanya was finishing paperwork when one of the Scavengers came into her office. ¡°Boss!¡± Technically, he should refer to her as ¡®Clan Head¡¯ but old habits died hard. The riffraff she gathered throughout the years as spent too much time as bandits and outlaw adventurers. When she first took over, they were little better than a gang of adventurers. Now, they were a Clan with rights and everything¡­ except the official titles. ¡°One of these days, I¡¯m going to have to drill them on proper etiquette.¡± Already dreading the sideproject, the dwarf looked up, her pen hovering. ¡°Yes?¡± She answered. ¡°There¡¯s an adventuring party hunting on our turf. The field with the Hwachas.¡± Leaning back, Tanya frowned. Technically it wasn¡¯t their ¡®turf¡¯, not legally anyways. They never got around to getting the proper permits from the Adventurer¡¯s Guild because owning a field meant paying taxes and getting involved in loads of other politics. Resentment from other clans, showing up at Clan Head meetings hosted by the Adventurer¡¯s Guild in Jayu as well as being responsible for upkeep. No, it had been much simpler to keep adventurers away with a simple show of force. Other clans did it all the time. ¡°You said it was just one party? Hunting the Hwachas?¡± ¡°Yea, boss.¡± ¡°Then leave them be.¡± She waved a hand, dismissing him. ¡°Those Hwachas are annoying and a pain to deal with. And none of you guys want to deal with it. Let them hunt the Hwachas for a few days.¡± She thought for a moment then added, ¡°Just keep an eye on them¡­ and if something valuable drops, you know the drill.¡± The man saluted. ¡°Got it, boss!¡± What could go wrong?
Chapter 90: Party (6)
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¡°Aurora! Skaris! You¡¯re losing the formation! Tighter!¡± Aurora took a powerful step in the direction of the Hwacha, lunging forward with her lance in a calvary charge. The monster screamed, trying to escape but Skaris¡¯ spear weaved and lashed out, keeping the creature in place with precise, focused strikes. The armor-clad woman¡¯s lance tip skewered the creature in its thigh which caused it to go ballistic. It started turning to and fro, struggling to escape the clutches of the two warriors. The coffin behind the monster swung in the air like a big club, threatening to knock Skaris unconscious. Skaris danced out of the way, too graceful for a seven-foot tall lizard beastman, and his spear whirled in large flaming arcs; leaving sticky blue flames on the Hwacha¡¯s back. Finally, Stole¡¯s arbalest hummed with power and then belched out a bolt ¨Cone of the dozens she¡¯d fired¨C and it hit the Hwacha squarely in the head. The Hwacha turned glassy-eyed, its movements slowing down as if it was confused then disintegrated into a combination of light and dust. Stole breathed hard, lowering her arbalest and looked to me, her eyes asking for approval. I gave a curt nod, walking towards the two frontliners. Aurora was breathing heavily but her eyes were anything but tired. If anything, I¡¯d say she was heaving fun. Skaris on the other hand looked frustrated; stabbing his spear into the soft ground and muttering curses under his breath. ¡°-ssssstupid sssssshite-eating monsssssster.¡± He rummaged through the drops, a few coins and armor that was no doubt useless to any of us. ¡°How many wassss thissss one, Sssslaveborn?¡± ¡°Seven.¡± I answered. ¡°Sssseven. And not a sssssingle usssseful thing.¡± He complained. I was almost tempted to tell him that the Core drop rate for the Hwacha was dismally low, around 1% or so. Plus, the Hwacha had five different types of Core colors; the chances of us getting the right Core on the first try was low. If it ever dropped at all. But there would be no use in discouraging the lizard beastman, he was already frustrated enough. Kyrian walked up next to me. ¡°Lock. We should leave soon. It will soon be nightfall.¡± The young mage was right. The sun was setting in the distance, stretching the shadows into long slowering spots of black. During Nightfall, not only would the monsters present here become stronger but it would cause the ecosystem to change and nocturnal monsters would start to roam. ¡°But I feel like we could squeeze in one or two more¡­¡± I thought to myself, debating. ¡°Let¡¯s hunt one more.¡± I finally decided, ¡°Then we¡¯ll call it a day.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock, I don¡¯t believe there¡¯s enough time.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll join in this time.¡± Stole almost jumped then with words dripping with sarcasm, ¡°Really? You won¡¯t just stand in the back, telling us what to do? You¡¯ll actually join in and get your hands dirty? Wow. That¡¯s so¡­ gracious of you.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯ll be quick.¡± Kyrian agreed. ¡°We should hurry. Stole?¡± She sniffed in response. ¡°Don¡¯t even need to look for another one. Look over there.¡± Following the line of her finger, we saw another Hwacha running this way; dragging the coffin and followed by the dust cloud it was kicking up. The monster bucked when it saw us, beginning to pick up speed and flames flickering along its body. ¡°Same as before.¡± I ordered. Stole groaned but hoisted her Arbalest. Kyrian acted first, calling forth [Electric Webs] to slow down the monster, followed by one of the few curses he knew [Reduce Sight]. Kyrian had done a complete turnaround after my advice; he started employing even his weaker spells and I could see the effects that this had in battle. He might not be throwing around lightning and frying things to a crisp but was like a conductor, controlling the pace and flow of our battle. Aurora and Skaris dashed forward next to each other. Few seconds before they collided with the monster, Skaris split off and began to harass it with spear strikes, though careful not to wound it just yet. Right before impact, Aurora braced herself by planting her Tower Shield into the rocky ground, her face showing no fear as the Hwacha used [Explosive Charge]. The explosion was pathetically small. Skaris had held back on purpose. If he hurt the creature [Fiery Road] would cause the creature to go faster and faster; meaning [Explosive Charge] would be strengthened as a result. Then, Aurora would have trouble keeping the monster engaged and our backliners would be in danger, not to mention their projectiles would be less likely to hit. He wasn¡¯t just trying to hurt monsters without thinking anymore, Skaris was thinking ahead and thinking about the effect on the team as a whole. Like I said, people dismiss Skaris due to his racial heritage and general manners. But the warrior had good instincts and a sense for battle. He was finally acting like a proper party member. They all were. Stole used [Concentrated Aim] and fired the first of her shots, which pierced the creature¡¯s chest. I saw her grimace, ready for this battle of attrition. With Kyrian and Skaris doing almost no damage to the Hwacha, Stole had been acting as the sole DPS for the party for today. She was running low on mana and arbalest bolts, and I could tell that hunting as a group for so long was weighing on her. So I entered the fray, putting on my helm. My new helm ¨Cthat I affectionately referred to as the Seeing Helm¨C resembled a mask more than a helm. A rounded cloth covering the top of my head and the mask sliding down like a visor. The mask was just a white slate with two holes for eyes, the [Seeing Crystal] embedded in one of the sockets. With it, I could see. The distance between me and the creature, the paces that I had to take, Skaris and Aurora¡¯s arm movements at the edge of my peripheral vision. Everything that I had taken for granted before [Snow White] plucked out my eye came back and a rush of exhilaration traveled from my spine, settling at the bottom of my stomach. Nervous butterflies floated around and I heard myself laughing as grayish Aura covered my katana. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Then I activated my Cores. [King¡¯s Guard] which took the Lunar Shield from my hand and lifted it high above my head, rotating around lazily¡­ ¡­[Share the Load] put my wrist in a manacle and chains, which was attached to another manacle that wrapped around Hwacha''s throat¡­ ¡­Followed immediately by [Arcane Masochism] which offset the debuff from [Share the Load] and strengthened my arms Legs and core muscles. Then I slashed the creature in front of me. Once. Twice. Twice more. With each laceration, my sword left a mark, the [Artisan of Battle], a black inky oily thing that writhed as if alive. With every other hit the markings solidified like paintbrush artwork, sometimes into tree branches, sometimes into daggers and at other times clawed hands. But no matter what form it took, it cut the creature from the inside out. I ducked and spun away with ease, having seen the coffin swinging towards me from a mile away. Normally, I¡¯d have stayed and allowed the Lunar Shield to block it. But with my recovered vision¡­ ¡­I saw Aurora step into my place, heaving with her shield and driving the creature off-balance. Skaris capitalized on it immediately, his spear flicking out half a dozen times in a span of seconds. Lightning flashed and the Arbalest sung. After another minute, the creature let out a woeful cry in its death throes, standing upright and still before its life faded away. I wasn¡¯t even breathing hard. ¡°You know, if you¡¯d join in earlier we could have killed twice as many.¡± Stole growled, approaching us. ¡°No¡­ we couldn¡¯t have.¡± Kyrian followed right behind her. ¡°We only worked together so well because we took the time to hunt this monster, learning its behavior and abilities. Isn¡¯t that right, Lock?¡± I nodded. ¡°We¡¯re going to be hunting these exclusively until we leave with the Church.¡± I left out the part about how they¡¯d started moving as a party together, lest they become over-cognizant of it. It was a fine line we were walking on. Yes, you had to learn how to work as a team but at the same time, that didn¡¯t mean suppressing your own abilities to match the others. If we paid too much attention to the actions of others, it would have the opposite effect; we¡¯d be weakening ourselves. To work together meant that we had to make decisions on where my abilities were best spent while simultaneously not holding anyone else back. And often times, that became a poison in and of itself, trying to match up with your teammates while suppressing your own potential. ¡°Sssshhhaa!¡± Skaris¡¯ cry brought me back to the moment. ¡°At lasssst!¡± ¡°W-What? What dropped! Let me see!¡± Stole struggled to get through Aurora and Skaris who crowded around the drop. The Hwacha had finally dropped something worthwhile; a small lock of bristly red hair that was tied together with a leather braid. ¡°What is it?¡± Stole¡¯s eyes were wide. ¡°It¡¯s a [Charm] called [Hwacha¡¯s Hair].¡± I explained. ¡°If you hold it on your person, it bestows you with a special blessing.¡± ¡°So which blessing does this one provide?¡± Kyrian took the hair from Skaris, closing his eyes and running his hand over it. I felt his mana move through the item. Since the world of MSS didn¡¯t have any way of identifying item effects, the only way for the denizens of this world to learn more was through mages. They were both adventurers and researchers, the latter being instrumental to furthering the knowledge of this world. So I kept my mouth shut about its effects, waiting for Kyrian to do his thing. ¡°It seems to provide a certain level of elemental resistance, mostly to fire.¡± The mage handed the hair to stole, who had been waiting for it. She turned it this way and that. ¡°Without research equipment, it is hard to determine how much. It would be easier to consult the Guild and see if they have a record of this charm.¡± To add on to what Kyrian said, the Hwacha¡¯s Hair provided a flat 10% elemental resistance to water and lightning, and 25% to fire. ¡°Then let¡¯s have Aurora hold on to it during our hunts.¡± I suggested. Aurora nodded gratefully, then added. ¡°We have never discussed the distribution of this party or a Shared Account.¡± Right. I had forgotten it. Once forming a permanent party, the party usually collected gold from everyone ¨Cor rather, set aside coins to be used for the party as a whole. This extended to items as well, Charms, Weapons, Equipment and in rare cases; Cores. Depending on the party, it could range from anything that resembled capitalism to outright communism. Of course, as a player who played the videogame, I leaned towards Communism. But the real world wasn¡¯t like that. Everyone wanted a little bit more and be rewarded for their hard work accordingly. As the de-facto party leader right now, it was up to me to strike a fair solution. And for me, that meant pushing it off. ¡°We can talk about it tomorrow.¡± I shook my head as Stole finally passed the lock of hair over to Aurora. ¡°We should start heading back.¡± The five of us began to walk back and idle chatter began to pick up. I was amazed at how much difference having Stole in this party made. Everyone else had been rather of the serious kind, but the young beastgirl brought a little flair to this bleary party made up of adults who¡¯d been hurt by the world too much. ¡°So what¡¯s to stop someone from stuffing their pockets full of these Charms? Couldn¡¯t they be super invincible then?¡± ¡°Charms have a unique mana signature and if you have too much, they begin to interfere with each other.¡± Kyrian explained calmly. ¡°Plus, many of them have strict requirements. For example, when I checked the [Hwacha¡¯s Hair] earlier, the mana signature was very faint and only activated when exposed to the outside air while it was in contact with my skin. I imagine that the charm would not work if it¡¯s not touched directly.¡± ¡°Oh that sucks.¡± Stole pouted. ¡°So I can¡¯t have too many charms?¡± ¡°Depends.¡± Kyrian was more than happy to explain and it was one of those rare moments where I was reminded that Kyrian was a real bona fide mage, something considered a nerd in this world. ¡°I¡¯ve heard Ring-type charms have a higher capacity for interference and multiple of them can be worn. In fact, most jewelry type Charms, often referred to as Accessories, can be worn without fear of them losing too much of their effect. Though the rarity among them is the issue¡­¡± As Kyrian trailed off, I thought back to Bilgrun Blazecopper. He¡¯d been furious when I turned my pockets inside out to prove I didn¡¯t possess a single gold coin. The dwarf had only agreed to let me go after I told him about my current dealings with the church¡­ plus, I promised to visit his store more frequently. If the dwarf was skilled enough to modify a Seeing Crystal¡­ ¡°I should see if he could make other things for my party.¡± It was a common enough theme in RPGs. You meet a merchant or a skilled smith, do some quests for them and you get access to exclusive wares or a discount. Plus, there was the fact that he literally let me walk away with the Seeing Helm with nothing more than a verbal promise to pay him back. ¡°Feels like he might be one of those pushovers¡­¡± Contemplating how morally wrong it was to push Bilgrun into giving me a higher line of credit, I almost missed it when Stole stopped talking and froze on the spot. Aurora bumped into the young girl. ¡°...Ms. Stole?¡± Stole wrinkled her nose, like she smelled something unpleasant. ¡°We¡¯re not alone.¡± They appeared out of nowhere. Some of them had been hiding behind rocks, some behind trees. Others had used some kind of stealth-based ability to hide themselves and others. But that didn¡¯t matter. What mattered was that there were a lot of them. At first glance, they looked like normal adventurers. But the mismatching armor, the rusted weapons next to shiny new ones told me a different story. You see, no self-respecting adventurer would go around with mismatching armor like that; nor have a mixture of weapons that was rusted in one hand and well-oiled in the other. These guys were thieves, plain and simple, and I¡¯d be a fool to think they left their victims alive. Their eyes were hard and flat, and instead of looking at our faces they were checking out our equipment. A few of them were leering at Aurora and Stole, their gazes sweeping up and down. Shit. ¡°Mr. Lock, I¡¯ve heard of them.¡± Aurora whispered urgently, ushering Stole behind her. The poor girl¡¯s eyes were wide with fear, looking around while clutching her Arbalest like a teddy bear. ¡°They¡¯re a Clan called the Scavengers.¡± ¡°These guys are a registered Clan?¡± My voice sounded incredulous to my own ears. ¡°Yup we are.¡± One of them took a step towards us, wearing heavy armor from head to toe. His face was hidden behind the helm and speak of which, all of them had their faces hidden in one way or another. Skaris hissed, hefting a spear. ¡°Whoa, easy there big feller.¡± The man chuckled, raising his hands. ¡°See? I¡¯m not holding a weapon.¡± I took a few steps forward, meeting him. ¡°Move.¡± I said simply. The man cocked his head to the side, ¡°Now now, let me get my piece out first. Er-, what was it again? Ah, here it is.¡± The guy took out a piece of paper and began to read from it. ¡°Hear Adventurers, The Cliff has been deemed Scavenger Territory. To hunt in Scavenger Territory, all Adventurers are subject to a fee of 20% of their earnings.¡± ¡°Can these waste buckets do that?¡± Stole whispered. She probably got over the initial shock of seeing so many adventurers in front of us and her natural belligerence was returning. ¡°Clans can charge a fee. But to my knowledge, they did not register the field we were in, only the Cliff.¡± Aurora was right. But I didn¡¯t want to give them an excuse to start a fight. There were too many of them and I had no idea just how strong they could be. Plus¡­ I wasn¡¯t by myself. If it was just me, I could probably have escaped. But with Aurora and Kyrian, the two slowest members of the party behind us? No. The smart thing here was to give a few coins and go our way. ¡°We found a few coins and scrap armor. You¡¯re welcome to it.¡± To make a point, I took said drops from my Dimension Ring, dropping it at my feet. ¡°Ah¡­ of course.¡± The helmeted man looked behind him for support, then cleared his throat. ¡°But you see-¡± ¡°Ah, thank you! Thank you!¡± A skinnier man came to the front, rubbing his hands like a third-rate villain from a kid¡¯s movie. He nudged the armored man aside, picking up the coins and scraps I dropped on the ground. ¡°That¡¯ll be all then!¡± I glared at him. Something was fishy. But again, now wasn¡¯t the time to delve into this issue. I needed to get us out of here. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The men parted before us. I let my party walk ahead of me and brought up the rear. I saw Aurora walk in front of the party despite Skaris trying to take point. It was because all the men were whispering, making catcalls and eyeing her, Skaris trying to use his significant height to somewhat shield the two females of our party. Stole ¨Cunused to such sexual aggression¨C kind of cowered. Adventurer you might be, but if you¡¯re a teenage girl and all these big men are making overt suggestions at you, I¡¯m sure I would get scared too. But Aurora held her head high and fulfilled her job as the tank of our party, leading the front. I saw Kyrian¡¯s staff smoldering with smoke, even the usual calm mage was barely containing his anger. The entire way, I walked five paces behind my party; daring anyone to make a move. It seemed like forever¡­ but we were out. And by the time we were out, Stole¡¯s eyes were wet with tears and Aurora¡¯s face was flush with both humiliation and rage.
¡°Why¡¯d you let them go?!¡± ¡°Well¡­ they were hunting Hwachas, didn¡¯t they?¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°The ones who hunt Hwachas come back. Always.¡± The skinny man looked at the retreating feigures, eyes clouded with greed. ¡°Let¡¯s wait¡­ give it a few.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll hit it big. I¡¯m sure the boss will be happy too.¡±
Chapter 91: Party (7)
World: MSS - Loading...
Three days, we spent hunting the Hwachas. Skaris and Aurora¡¯s teamwork had noticeably improved, they were able to ping-pong off of each other much easier than before. Keeping the monsters distracted meant that Stole got plenty of aiming practice as well. If I had to nitpick, the only ones who didn¡¯t improve in leaps and bounds were Kyrian and I. But then again, in teams of teamwork we were already better than the others. Stole, being the lowest level out of all of us, was close to level 20. I already had her next Core planned out, but the problem was getting our hands on it. Speaking of which, Aurora and Skaris had an empty Core slot as well. Which all equated to us needing gold. Gold, gold gold. Damn this capitalistic game. ¡°Aurora! Wait for me!¡± ¡°Ms. Stole, in times like this you want to keep your Arbalest at the ready.¡± Aurora didn¡¯t say anything but I saw her slow her steps. ¡°Ugh! Always with the nagging!¡± But Stole brought out the Arbalest nonetheless. Ever since that day when Aurora took to protecting Stole from the Scavengers, the young girl followed the older warrior like a duckling to... to a mother duck I guess. I¡¯m pretty sure Aurora didn¡¯t mind either. If anything, Aurora seemed to be teaching Stole a lot of little tips and tricks that could come useful. Their relationship had evolved to something resembling¡­ Well, maybe not as good as mentor-student, but older sister to younger sister would be pretty close. Stole wans¡¯t the only one who leveled up. Aurora, Skaris, Kyrian and I had all leveled up as well. We were all in the low 30s now, getting used to our new abilities. Yup. A great three days. ¡­And for those three days the Scavengers levied taxes on us. Once again, we were heading towards the field next to the cliffs. ¡°Lock, I did some digging. Technically, those fields do not belong to the Scavengers and neither does the cliff.¡± Kyrian walked alongside me, explaining. Skaris lumbered behind us, steps quickening to keep up and listen in on the conversation. ¡°Leave it.¡± I said, ¡°There¡¯s no reason for us to get into a fight with them.¡± ''Not yet anyways'' But I didn''t say that out loud. ¡°We could tell Marc Pointell.¡± Kyrian suggested. ¡°We could.¡± I agreed. ¡°But I think it¡¯d put him in a bad position.¡± ¡°How sssso?¡± ¡°He¡¯d be outright taking our side against a Clan. Sure, they¡¯re breaking the Guild Laws; but what Clan doesn¡¯t? It¡¯s not the only Clan that keeps a field for their private use and extorts adventurers.¡± ¡°Sssso the law is on our ssssside. I do not ssssee the problem.¡± ¡°The problem is the number of Clans that does the same thing.¡± I shook my head. ¡°The moment Marc Pointell acts, the other Clans will see it as a threat to their own power. They¡¯ll step in. Then people will start paying attention to us¡­ worst case scenario, we won¡¯t enjoy the support of the Guild like we have been now.¡± Skaris glowered. ¡°I tire of their anticsssss.¡± ¡°Well their antics are to bring fifty or so of their own members.¡± I put a hand over my head, blocking out the sun and looking at the huge cliff in the distance. ¡°Kyrian, how many official members did you say there were?¡± ¡°400.¡± Kyrian answered easily. I grunted. ¡°A mid-sized guild then¡­ on paper at least. Who knows how many other unregistered members or criminals with bounties on their heads they¡¯re hiding in that Ant¡¯s nest over there?¡± ¡°Could be anywhere between 500 to a thousand.¡± Kyrian was looking at the cliff as well. ¡°No way to tell for sure.¡± ¡°Sssso we jusssst lie down and lossse our sssspoils?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the thing. Isn¡¯t it strange? They haven¡¯t taken anything valuable. They only take the few coins and scraps we throw them each time.¡± I bit my lip, trying to think. ¡°Also, we¡¯ve had Stole basically sweep the area whenever we hunt. They have no scout spying on us either. Maybe it¡¯s just an annoyance.¡± Even as I said it, I didn¡¯t believe it. The look of Skaris¡¯ face was incredulous at best. ¡°Mr. Lock, how much longer will we be resting here?¡± Aurora walked up to us, sweating. Lately, she¡¯d been helping Stole with hand-to-hand combat. Over Aurora¡¯s shoulder, I saw Stole stretched out on the ground, her chest heaving. ¡°Easssssy on the whelp, Vetilian.¡± Aurora glanced over her shoulder. ¡°She is talented. I am not teaching her anything that is above her capabilities.¡± Damn. If Aurora, someone who¡¯d been trained by the Great House Vetilius was saying Stole was talented, then she really was talented. Maybe I really do have an eye for people after all. ¡°Let¡¯s get a move on then.¡± So we continued on, hunting Hwachas and hoping for a Core or item drop. But nothing compared to [Hwacha¡¯s Hair] from the first day, which Aurora had made into a small bracelet. ¡°This is too easy now!¡± Stole complained as we rested. ¡°Is there another monster we could hunt in this place? How about you come up with another challenge for us, Mister?¡± Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°No.¡± I sharpened my katana. The jagged bits which gave it a serrated edge had become dull. I couldn¡¯t afford a proper repair so I resorted to doing it myself. Sighing, I ran the whetstone over it the way I did after every hunt. ¡°We¡¯re ready. I want us to spend the time honing the skills we already have.¡± ¡°Speaking of, isn¡¯t it time for them to appear?¡± Kyrian was referring to the scavengers. ¡°They appeared like clockwork until now¡­¡± ¡°No complaintsssss.¡± Aurora was strangely silent. ¡°...Aurora?¡± I called. She didn¡¯t answer. Instead she pointed a finger in the distance. ¡°Ms. Stole. What is that?¡± Stole immediately leaped up to take a look. The rest of us joined them, squinting our eyes and trying our best to see what Aurora was pointing at. At first glance, I thought it was a dust cloud. But there was movement in the clouds. Flashes of yellow-white and hollow eyes; empty beaks and skeletal wings. A creature that should have belonged on a display at the History Museum for animals that went extinct long ago, or what should be used to teach the name of different bones in a college Anatomy course. It was completely white, except for the odd patches of dust here and there. It had a wingspan that stretched well-over twenty feet and bordering on thirty. Despite the lack of leathers or any flesh on it at all, the creature hardly flapped. It flew straight towards us. [Skeletal Vulture] - Grade 6. ¡°It¡¯s a bird that¡¯s a skeleton.¡± Aurora turned to me immediately. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± Her voice was urgent, panicked even. I nodded. ¡°We won¡¯t face it.¡± ¡°W-wait! It¡¯s being chased by something! Look! Look you dolts!¡± Right behind the [Skeletal Vulture] was another creature. Imagine a dog with a long curved tail, where the hair near the tip coalesced into a wicked looking scythe. Now take that dog and imagine its body covered in snow white fur, that stood up straight like a porcupine and looks as fragile as glass. Then give that dog black fur all around its neck and head; like you dipped the animal in an oil spill. No distinction between the eyes, ears or anything; a True Black that absorbs all light. Now enlarge that dog so that it¡¯s the size of a mini van and give it wings on its shoulders like a pegasus. That¡¯s what was chasing the [Skeletal Vulture]. [Cheonma (??ÌìñR)] - Grade 5 ¡°We¡¯re getting out of here.¡± I ordered, turning to leave. ¡°They¡¯re hurt! The monsters are hurt!¡± Stole was right. The monsters were injured. The Cheonma especially, it had cuts and bruises and if I wasn¡¯t mistaken, the creature was limping. Whatever had hurt it, it had hurt the creature bad. Still¡­ a Grade 5 was in a different class. I wasn¡¯t even sure I wanted to face the [Skeletal Vulture] in an open field like this one, where it could fly circles around us. ¡°No.¡± I said finally, realizing that everyone was waiting for my answer. ¡°But it¡¯s hurt! Can¡¯t we¡­ I don¡¯t know, hunt it?¡± Stole tried again. Kyrian joined in this time. ¡°Lock¡­ most likely, the Scavengers were hunting it and lost track of the monster. And now, it got into an altercation with the [Skeletal Vulture].¡± That got Skaris¡¯ attention. ¡°Sssslaveborn?¡± I knew what they wanted. They wanted to get back at the Scavenger¡¯s Guild by finishing this monster off. Yeah, it was an attractive deal but I wasn¡¯t fond of kill stealing¡­ and I wasn¡¯t sure if we could anyways. Even if we did, we¡¯d be wounded after. Too weakened to put up any fight. Helpless. I gritted my teeth. ¡°Too dangerous.¡± As much as I wanted revenge, it was another thing to throw our lives away. ¡°Mr. Lock¡¯s right.¡± Aurora came to my defense. ¡°Besides, look behind them.¡± Stole, too preoccupied to keep her eyes on the double calamities heading our way, had missed the crowd of scavengers that were chasing after the monster. I counted them from the distance. Five¡­ ten¡­ twenty. ¡°Twenty adventurers. So they¡¯re what? Grade 8? I guess twenty grade 8s could do it¡­ though it¡¯d be close. Their teamwork would have to be near perfect too.¡± I grabbed Stole by the shoulder, turning the girl around. Everyone else followed suit, calling our farming off early today. But as we left, I couldn¡¯t help but think how sweet it would have been to see their faces as we stole that monster from right under their noses. ¡­Day 4¡­ The next day we came back to the field, but found the scavengers waiting for us. I eyed them carefully. They were hurt. Badly. I licked my lips. ¡°...as I was saying, to keep the area safe we suffered a lot of damages. So from today, we¡¯ll be collecting taxes upon entry.¡± A few of the other adventurers scoffed. Word had gotten out in town about how my party was hunting the Hwachas. I can¡¯t speak for their motives. Maybe they wanted to get a glimpse of me using [Aura]. Maybe word had gotten out about Aurora and Stole¡¯s beauty, attracting those single adventurers wanting to show off their thews. Or perhaps it¡¯s because it was the chosen hunting ground of the up-and-coming party: Us. Either way, it wasn¡¯t just us hunting here anymore. There were other adventurers. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to collect it upon entry, aren¡¯t ye?¡± ¡°Bah. Who cares. Just give it to them. Those big clans, we all know their hearts are black.¡± ¡°Fucking scavengers¡­¡± Ah, the last part was said by Stole. If the insults hurt, it didn¡¯t show. The wounded Scavengers collected the ¡®donations¡¯ and smiled. ¡°Thank you for your generous donations! Please! Feel free to hunt!¡± We hunted for hours but once again, our hunt was cut short. Why you ask? ¡°Those fucking scavengers!¡± Stole cursed, throwing a piece of a rock at them as we left. ¡°To think they still hadn¡¯t hunted that monster¡­ and had the audacity to collect an entry fee¡­ then collect another tax¡­¡± Yes. They¡¯d charged us the entry fee plus another ¡®donation¡¯ as we left. Not to mention our hunt got cut short by the Grade-5 Cheonma that was running wild throughout the area. Even Aurora looked miffed by the turn of today¡¯s events. ¡°Mr. Lock, perhaps it¡¯d be best to look for a different hunting ground for the remaining days. There are three days left until we leave with the Church. This might not be the best use of our time.¡± I didn¡¯t answer, deep in thought. Those Scavengers looked very, very very tired. And the Cheonma looked ready to keel over¡­ ¡°Sssslaveborn. You are ssssalivating.¡± ¡°Huh? Oh.¡± I swiped at my mouth, my thoughts still transfixed on the situation. Skaris looked at me with knowing eyes and then smirked. ¡°...No we¡¯re not.¡± I answered. He shrugged. ¡°Sssaid nothing.¡± ¡°I said we¡¯re not.¡± I shook my head. ¡°And I¡¯m not thinking what you think I¡¯m thinking.¡± ¡°Again¡­ ssssaid nothing.¡± ¡°Leave him alone, Skaris. Lock has a lot to think about.¡± ¡°Wait! What are you guys talking about?! What¡¯s Mister thinking about?¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn is hungry.¡± Skaris laughed. ¡°He was sssalivating.¡± Stole snorted. ¡°Ugh. Disgusting. But I am pretty hungry too¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t join in the conversation. Because all I could think about was ¡®What If¡¯. What if¡­ they were even more wounded tomorrow? What if¡­ the Cheonma was still running amok? ¡­Day 5¡­ ¡°Entry fee again?!¡± One of the adventurers cried out. ¡°It¡¯s our field.¡± The Scavenger member picked his nose, blowing on it. ¡°Don¡¯t blame me.¡± ¡°Your field?! Your field! That Cheonma was running around the whole field yesterday! We couldn¡¯t even get a decent hunt in!¡± ¡°Also ye taxed us again after?¡± A particularly dwarfy-looking dwarf waddled up and spat at the Scavenger¡¯s feet. ¡°Scum! The lot of ye! Scum! I¡¯m done with this!¡± Then turning on his heel, the dwarf and his party left. That started the exodus, all the adventurers leaving until only we remained. ¡°You guys leaving too?¡± ¡°No.¡± I sighed and brought out the gold coins, passing them along. At this point in time, Skaris¡¯ Core was a necessity. Also the party was so good at hunting the Hwacha that I couldn¡¯t imagine us getting better EXP elsewhere. Yeah yeah, and it¡¯ll rain cats and dogs. The truth is that I was being stubborn. I was frustrated that we hadn¡¯t encountered a Core yet, percentages be damned. I was angry at the Scavengers who were using the situation to scalp us, while scaring us with their numbers. Really at the end of the day, the Scavengers reminded me of my old bullies and I was determined to ¡®win¡¯. Whatever winning may be. But the rest of the day was uneventful. Hunting Hwachas ¨Ctheir numbers having dwindled noticeably since the Cheonma appeared¨C and picking up the pathetic drops that we saw. On the bright side, Stole had just hit her third sanctification, hitting level 20 at last. With the lack of monsters, we were wasting time and decided to call it a day. Then we saw it. ¡°Is that¡­ the Cheonma? From the first day?¡± Kyrian asked in disbelief. It sat, lying down on all fours and dozing. Blood stained its forepaws and if its head wasn¡¯t void of light, I¡¯d bet that its jaws were bloodied too. Its wings had been ripped apart and more than one weapon was still embedded in it. The grizzled monster snored, revealing a flash of pearly white fangs, serrated in a way that no normal beast¡¯s dentures could be. ¡­I¡¯m not a KSer. I¡¯m not. Gamer¡¯s have their pride. Yet, my identity wasn¡¯t limited to just Han the Gamer, my innerself whispered. At the same time, I was Lock the Adventurer whose patience had just reached the limit. If the Scavengers had left the monster alone long enough for it to fall asleep, they were asking for it. Skaris was cackling behind me. I glared at him then immediately turned to Stole. ¡°Stole. Is there anyone around us?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Mr. Lock!¡± Aurora was aghast. ¡°We can¡¯t-¡± ¡°I¡¯ve had enough of this.¡± I answered. ¡°That monster¡¯s been running around and bothering our hunt for the last two days and it¡¯s obvious that the Scavenger Clan doesn¡¯t have the manpower to deal with it. Either that or they don¡¯t want to invest in their more seasoned adventurers. Either way the monster is sleeping. That means they gave up in my book.¡± I waited for Aurora to argue but nothing came. My eyes were glued to the Cheonma¡¯s porcelain hide. ¡°I think it¡¯s time we take care of this issue.¡± ¡°None of those bastards around us.¡± Stole answered. ¡°...Aurora.¡± I asked. She took a deep breath. ¡°You are right. They have forfeited the rights to this monster.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s go.¡± I nodded at the others. ¡°Standard formation. Stole and Kyrian, strike it first. There¡¯s no chance of sneaking up on this thing.¡± As I said the words, the air changed; shifting like a tangible thing. Stole¡¯s eyes gained a hint of fear, realizing that we were about to hunt a Grade 5 monster. Kyrian and Aurora, as seasoned as they were, simply put their game faces on, focused and alert. Skaris gripped his spear so tight that his knuckles turned white. A Grade 5 monster. Another step above Grade 7. Even I was nervous. ¡°Get rid of its feet first, it¡¯s a speed-type monster. We don¡¯t want to let it start using [Air Walk]. Don¡¯t even think about flanking it, this thing¡¯s sense of smell is off the charts. Stay away from its jaws and tail; the only one who could take a hit from that thing is Aurora.¡± Then to Aurora specifically, I added, ¡°And I advise not taking a direct hit from that scythe, Aurora.¡± Then the hunt was on. Chapter 92: Party (8)
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My heart was pounding. Grade 5 monsters, the monsters somewhere between myth and reality, a wall that we had to overcome someday. The right choice was to run for the hills. But too many factors were at play for me to pass this change up. The Cheonma¡¯s (??ÌìñR) wings were torn off, meaning that it had lost at least 50% of its HP. It was sleeping too, meaning that the Scavengers had managed to lower its HP to 30% at some point. So we ran towards the black-and-white mythical canine, greaves and boots beating the sand. Thirty paces away, the Cheonma lifted its nose to the air and sniffed. Then the battle began. The monster leaped on all fours, suddenly alert and let out a deafening, high-pitched, mournful howl that echoed through the field. ?Cheonma(??ÌìñR) casts [Horrible Howl] ? [Horrible Howl], a widespread AOE ability that caused damage based on the target¡¯s [Hearing] stat. The effect was immediate and debilitating to our party. Something akin to a needle passed through my ears, penetrating my ear canal and causing me to stumble. Barely managing to keep myself upright, I realized that something hot was running down my ears. Blood. I saw Kyrian and Aurora stumble but hold their ground while Skaris took a knee, holding a hand to his ear. Stole¡­ Blood exploded out of Stole¡¯s ears as she fell, her eyes unfocused. Without delay, the monster ran straight towards us, its shadowy jaws opening up and an orb made of black mana beginning to solidify. ¡°Aurora!¡± I wasn¡¯t sure if she heard me or she instinctively knew what was coming, but the tank planted her shield on the ground regardless. I grabbed Stole by the back of her neck, absently realizing that there was a loud pinging sound in my ear and I hadn¡¯t heard myself yell at all, and piled in behind Aurora¡¯s shield along with the others. Kyrian waved his staff, summoning a tornado between us and the Cheonma to lessen the momentum of its projectiles. Our practice had paid off. And it was all useless. I dared not peak out of our hiding spot because I could only guess at how much firepower this thing had. Pppppppnnnnnnnnngggggg A single sound effect that you hear in those spaceship movies when they fire lasers, except infinitely higher in frequency echoed through the air and the moment I registered what had happened, I was eating dirt. ?Cheonma(??ÌìñR) casts [Gravity Laser] ? I didn¡¯t see what exactly happened but I could guess. The Cheonma¡¯s abilities revolved around controlling gravity and light. It must have fired [Gravity Laser] a single burst of focused energy that bent light and space itself. I looked around to find everyone on the floor, Kyrian and Skaris managing to get to their feet. But I couldn¡¯t find Aurora, just Stole who lay on the ground next to me, her fingers clutched around the arbalest. ¡°Lock! Over there!¡± Aurora was exactly where she had been except now there was a gaping hole in her shield and a matching one through her thigh. She had withstood the gravitational pull of the laser thanks to her ability [Hold your Ground] which gave its user a 500% defense boost and an immovable status. But the defense boost hadn¡¯t been enough to keep her from being wounded. The Cheonma barked; loud and startling, loping towards Aurora with a limp in its legs. 20 seconds. That was how long we had before it could use [Gravity Laser] again. I dragged Stole up by the shoulders, who was absently chugging a health potion. ¡°Go get Aurora out of there. We¡¯ll cover you. Now! Go!¡± Kyrian heard what I said to Stole and immediately began to cast spells. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Electric Web] ? ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Tornado] ? The tornado that Kyrian summoned up sizzled with lightning-imbued mana, sputtering as its summoner slammed it into the Cheonma. The mythical canine snarled and pounced on the tornado, using its claws to snuff it out of existence. Then it took one step towards Aurora, who was growing paler by the second. Skaris and I made our move. Skaris didn¡¯t pull back any punches, he immediately summoned his clone and flanked the creature from either side. The speartip was smoking, glowing with blue fire and forced the Cheonma back. The monster howled in pain as Skaris¡¯ strikes left fist-sized embers that hissed and spat; inflicting seconds of [Burn] status on the thing. I joined in from behind, locking the creature up in my manacle and leaving a glancing blow with my katana. My katana snapped in half. I was supposed to do a hit-and-run because if I stayed in one place for too long behind the creature- Its tail with the scythe lashed out and I saw black.
When I woke up, I was in Stole¡¯s arms and she was pouring a healing potion on my neck. ¡°Ugh¡­. ghkk¡­¡­ Ahkk¡­..hakh¡­¡± Trying to speak brought a sharp pain to my throat and Stole slapped my hand away. ¡°He¡¯s awake! He¡¯s alive!¡± Stole uncorked another healing potion and started pouring it over my neck again, the agonizing burn returning my throat. I felt the skin on my neck mend together. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Holy shit. The monster had slit my throat and I had blacked out. ¡°Mr. Skaris!¡± Skaris screamed and leaped up on top of the creature, stabbing his spear down into its fur and staying there. Mounting the Cheonma right behind its neck, Skaris drove down again and again, the flames scorching flesh and blood. It bucked and howled, turning its head to try and nip at the lizard warrior but there was no use; Skaris had his legs wrapped around its neck, continuing his assault. Stole took a knee next to me, taking aim. As my consciousness emerged from the calm of near-death, I noticed Kyrian had been chanting behind me. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Rain] ? The world brightened in a glow of blue and white as countless balls of lightning streaked into the sky. They swirled like fireworks, leaving long meteor-like tails and at the height of their flight each of them split off into dozen more V-shaped electric missiles. Instead of falling immediately, they paused. I realized that Kyrian had never stopped chanting. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Rod] ? Pointing his staff at the monster, Kyrian cried out, ¡°Skaris! Now!¡± Skaris flipped off of the creature, and quickly hid behind Aurora who covered them both with her shield. At the same time, Kyrian¡¯s staff released small strands of electricity that hit the Cheonma on its ribcage. It must have only tickled the creature because it snapped its jaws at Aurora and Skaris; batting a paw at the shield. But the [Lightning Rod] spell isn''t meant to hurt in any case. Krrr-Krrr-Crack-CRACk-CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-CRACKKK As Kyrian¡¯s [Lightning Rain] spell fell, they hit the Cheonma. All of them. It yelped in pain, its fur singed with black scorches and danced away. Skaris¡¯ flames were still burning on the creature and the lightning only exacerbated the burns. I had forgotten about Stole until her Arbalest thumped next to me, accentuated by the creature stumbling sideways ¨Cwhich it turned into a 360 spin and slammed its tail-scythe into Aurora¡¯s shield, cutting it in half. Behind the shield, Aurora fell backwards, bleeding freely from her chest. I put out a hand towards her, using [King¡¯s Guard]. The Plurality which lay on the ground next to me after failing to block the initial scythe strike ¨Cwhich proved that its [Physical] stat was much, much higher than mine¨C flew over to Aurora, protecting her from harm. The Cheonma¡¯s next claw strike struck against my [Lunar Shield], creating sparks. Then as if knowing that I was responsible for the shield, it spun towards me; head sniffing in my direction. ¡°Mister! Take this!¡± Taking a plain sword that Stole passed over to me, I recast [Share the Load] between myself and the monster. ¡°Stay leashed this time.¡± I snarled, fear and panic in equal amounts summoning up a false bravado that I didn¡¯t have. Had I made a mistake in us fighting this monster? It didn¡¯t matter. The Cheonma wouldn¡¯t let us run, not right now. As if proving that we weren¡¯t allowed to run, the creature¡¯s spike-like fur bristled. Its body shivered once, then twice in a strange undulating rhythm and tiny spheres of black and white came surging out of the monster¡¯s body. Then they all moved off in different directions, forming a dome around the battlefield. Oh shit. ?Cheonma(??ÌìñR) casts [Diamond & Newton] ? ?You have entered Special Field: Diamond & Newton ? ?Field Effect: Diamond & Newton is now active ? ?Field Effect - Diamond & Newton: Characters with low [Physical] stat will be prone ? ?Field Effect - Diamond & Newton: 30% Chance of [Physical] based abilities and skills failing ? ?Field Effect - Diamond & Newton: All [Physical] based abilities and skills directed up-to-down are 200% more effective ? Inside the dome, everything was gray. No red of Skaris¡¯ fire or the white of Aurora¡¯s shield. None even the black of Stole¡¯s hair. Just varying shades of gray, except the Cheonma. A single source of black and white so bright, like carving out its existence in bold letters. The Cheonma leaped up into the air, heading straight towards us. A chance. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Tidal Force] ? The Cheonma crashed down on the ground and I heard its bones snap. One bloody piece of its femur, looking like a sharpened bamboo shoot, stuck out from where a dog¡¯s armpit was supposed to be. The Cheonma howled, its jaws no longer lining up. The bottom half hung loose, dislocated from the crash. Immediately, the special field began to clear; color returning to the world. The Cheonma slammed both its paws on the ground. Dogs do that often when frustrated or when about to play. A tell. ¡°EVERYONE GRAB ONTO SOMETHING!¡± Then it barked, a pulse of purple-black energy emanating from the creature. ?Cheonma(??ÌìñR) casts [Mass Fetch] ? I stabbed the sword that Stole gave me into the ground, fighting against the pull towards the creature. Skaris did the same with his spear, holding onto Aurora. Kyrian and Stole were sucked into the vortex. ¡°Fuck! Kyrian! Stole!¡± Moving fast, I took the sword out of the ground and called my shield back with [King¡¯s Guard]. Immediately, gravity pulled me towards the Cheonma and I didn¡¯t resist, suppressing every single instinct screaming inside of me not to approach the creature. Instead, I used the momentum to sprint forward. The combination of my speed buffs and gravity made it easy to reach Kyrian and Stole who were flying midair at this point. Grabbing them by their ankles I slammed them against the ground, ducking my head at the same time. The Cheonma did another 360 spin, it''s scythe nothing but a streak in my own eyes. If I didn¡¯t have both eyes, anything could¡¯ve gone wrong. I could¡¯ve misjudged the distance to duck, I could¡¯ve caught one but not the other or worse, lost both of them. I fought to keep the bile in my throat, my mind showing me a picture of Kyrian and Stole on the ground, their bodies separated into halves; intestines spilling out. I felt more than heard the Cheonma open its jaws ¨Cor what was left of it¨C trying to fire off another another [Gravity Laser]. ¡°Get away from me!¡± I didn¡¯t need to have yelled because Kyrian and Stole had scrambled out of the way already. Striding forward, I stabbed the creature in the foot and used it immediately. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Gravity Laser] ? I had to give it to the canine-monster, it was fast and smart. As soon as its own [Gravity Laser] dissipated, it reacted with violence and struck with its scythe tail again. The creature blurred as I fired its own move against it, the beam missing its head by inches and piercing through its one remaining wing. Having completed its spin, the scythe came straight down towards me but my [Lunar Shield] snapped up to meet it. Finally, I had enough buffs to compete with the creature face to face. But that feeling didn¡¯t last for long, I was nearly out of mana; even if I stole another ability I wouldn¡¯t have enough to use it. The Cheonma didn¡¯t let me dwell nor was it understanding of my circumstances, it continued to whirl and dance, snapping with its jaws, claws and tail. Feeling the wind from its moves cut into me, I danced closer with the sword. Each cut leaving long bleeding wounds on its forelegs and with each consecutive maneuver along with markings of ink that came to life and skewered the creature. ?Cheonma(??ÌìñR) casts [Mutual Attraction] ? A ring of purple settled around my hips and an identical one around the Cheonma¡¯s neck. It growled at me. Now I couldn¡¯t escape even if I wanted to. So I fought, barely managing the trickle of mana. Casting a grade-5 ability isn''t cheap. I ducked, weaved and rolled; Skaris joined me sometime after, inflicting blue flame that lingered on the creature¡¯s body. Kyrian began to cast spells again with the occasional thumping of Stole¡¯s [Concentrated Aim] shots. Time continued to pass as we all bested our previous selves. Today though, the show belonged to Aurora. ?Aurora Candrian Vetilian casts [Perfect Guard] ? ?Success ? ?Aurora Candrian Vetilian casts [Perfect Retaliation] ? The Cheonma had overstretched with a gravity laser. The creature had grown panicked, Skaris and I were starting to figure out its patterns. Our hit-and-run approaches were only getting better and like a pack of wolves, when one darted in, the other darted out. Aurora had chosen the perfect spot to lay in waiting. Almost half an hour. Half an hour of dancing on a tightrope between life and death. I screamed, the pure joy of victory, the happiness and the inexplicable pleasure rolling through my body. I hadn¡¯t felt this since I had killed the Dokkaebi back in the tunnels. Killing a grade 5, even if it was wounded, was a milestone. We had stepped foot into the frontier, into what was considered mid-game. Finally, finally, finally, I could say that the things I did weren''t in vain. I wasn¡¯t the only one screaming. ¡°M-Mister! Look! Shut up and look!¡± A Core. Perfectly white in one half and perfectly black in the other with the pattern of two wings embedded into it. ¡°STOP! PLEASE STOP!¡± The Scavengers. They scurried out of hiding. ¡°Of courssse.¡± ¡°Fuck¡­ cockroaches¡­¡± Stole looked around wide-eyed. ¡°Wake up. It¡¯s not over yet.¡± I told myself, growling. ¡°Kyrian, put the Core in a-¡± ¡°I said stop!¡± Two of the scavengers approached us. ¡°Surely, there¡¯s a way to talk about this.¡± ¡°Lock¡­ there¡¯s a lot of them.¡± Kyrian warned. ¡°You must stay calm.¡± Realizing that I was gripping the sword tight enough to hurt my hand, I relaxed my grip. Sending a silent nod of thanks towards Kyrian I stepped forward a little bit from my party. ¡°What do you want?¡± The man cleared his throat. It was that armored fucker again. ¡°We¡¯ve been hunting the Cheonma for three days now. It was nearly defeated and we simply went back to our Clan to restock up. What you did can be construed as kill-stealing.¡± I let him finish his bullshit excuses. ¡°We¡¯ve poured considerable resources into hunting this beast and have taken a lot of losses keeping the hunting fields safe from it. What you did just now can be considered an open declaration of war against our Clan, hunting something we¡¯ve been working on for days.¡± I sighed. ¡°Get to the point.¡± The man¡¯s eyes sharpened beneath his helmet. ¡°Give us the Core.¡± I sneered. ¡°And if I don¡¯t?¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s war.¡± Silence. I stared at the man. He didn¡¯t bat an eye. Of course he wouldn¡¯t. He had nearly fifty of his cronies surrounding us while we were beat to hell and back. Absently I touched my throat, noticing that on top of the manacle scars, fresh patch of skin was growing there. It was tender to the touch and thin, I could feel the rush of blood below it. It stretched all the way through my throat. The man was looking at my scar. He saw me looking and smirked, hand thumbing the mace on his hip. I saw red. They expected me to attack. They were asking for it. I¡¯m ashamed to say I lost control of my temper. Just not in the way they expected. Before anyone could say anything or react, my hand snaked out and grabbed onto the back of Aurora''s armor. I pivoted, hard, and threw all my weight into the throw, sending the armored Vetilian Shielder into the air, limbs flailing in confusion. People stared, mouths open. Aurora sailed through the air and when she made contact contact with the [Cheonma (??ÌìñR)]¡¯s Soul Core, it split into strands of energy that entered her body. The armored warrior landed with a thud, her eyes wide and trying to speak. Actually, it was probably the first time since I met her that I saw Aurora so completely at a loss for words. ¡°M-M-M-Mister L-Lock?¡± Ah. I felt much better. ¡°G-Get them! GET THEM!¡±
93: Party (9)
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I had about 2 seconds to make a decision. The logical part of mind politely noted that what I did to Aurora was rude.. Beyond rude even. As an 21st century earthling, the whole idea of throwing Aurora to into a Core without consent had been unsettling. But she had been the best choice for this Core and without it, I knew we had a slim chance of getting out of this thing alive. The conscience pleaded for me to beg for forgiveness later. My caveman mind, more concerned with things like food, sleep, sex and oh, I don¡¯t know, Survival? Screamed at my 21st century gentlemanly mind to shut up and ordered my limbs to move. I hooked two fingers under the fat warrior¡¯s helm, dragging him close and sucker punching him in the throat with my other hand. And then kicked him in the balls. Right as that happened, all hell broke loose. ¡°G-Get them! GET THEM!¡± All the fifty or so scavengers took out their weapons, activating various abilities and screaming bloody murder. ¡°Kyrian! Cover!¡± I needn¡¯t have bothered because Kyrian¡¯s staff flared with power as he slammed it onto the ground. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Tornado] ? A wall of wind rose up around us, fast and furious, and I took that moment to kick the armored man in the stomach. I hadn''t put any mana into my strike but I¡¯d struck him in the throat pretty hard. I don¡¯t care how tough you are or how high your defense stat is, kick someone in the balls and they¡¯ll be helpless for a good while. He stumbled through right as the tornado reached max speed, separating us from the crowd of furious scavengers. A few of them tried to get through but Kyrian waved his staff, sending streams of lightning into the wind. Now the gale acted as an electric fence, frying those who wanted to get to us. ¡°I can¡¯t hold this for long.¡± The mage¡¯s voice was strained. ¡°And-¡± ¡°I know. No spells anymore.¡± I took a deep breath, facing the others. I hadn¡¯t really thought past my own rage and in hindsight, I could have handled this better. But all the humiliation and jibes had unknowingly piled on. Not to beat a dead horse, but I¡¯d been bullied before. Nothing serious like this but the old wounds were still there. Maybe deep inside, I had just been waiting for a situation like this; a chance to piss them off and leave with the last laugh. The last straw broke the proverbial camel¡¯s back long ago, this was just the camel finding a good time to take revenge. ¡®Focus, Lock.¡¯ Right. No time for introspections. Just act. ¡°We¡¯ll need to fight our way through.¡± The words spilled out of me and my brain belatedly and begrudgingly recognized that it was a good idea. Skaris nodded. ¡°Agreed.¡± ¡°Split up?¡± Stole¡¯s voice was hoarse, weighed with fear. The girl¡¯s eyes were wide and I could see why. She hadn¡¯t expected things to devolve to violence so fast and truthfully, it hadn¡¯t needed to. No matter how good a [Pioneer] she was, Stole didn¡¯t have the experience that the rest of us had. ¡°First time for everything.¡± I muttered to myself. ¡°Aurora, you need to open the way.¡± Aurora nodded, having recovered from the shock of absorbing the Core. ¡°I will.¡± ¡°The Core you just absorbed, it has the ability [Mass Fetch]... use it how you will. Kryian, you go right behind Aurora. Stole and Skaris will be right after you, I¡¯ll bring up the rear.¡± I checked everyone¡¯s reaction. I¡¯d just casually spat out information about a Core, without any explanation But the situation being what it was, if any of them found it suspicious they didn¡¯t voice it. Still, I felt a habitual nervousness as I said it and silently prayed that it wouldn¡¯t come back to bite me in the ass later. ¡°T-That¡¯s it? That¡¯s a lousy fucking plan! They¡¯ll kill us!¡± Stole cried out. ¡°There¡¯s something else. Isn¡¯t there, Mr. Lock?¡± Nodding, I took out the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina]. Kyrian took in a breath and it wasn¡¯t from the strain of holding his spell. ¡°Lock¡­¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s dangerous. But it¡¯s the only way.¡± Skaris and Aurora looked a lot less sure about the plan now. ¡°What is that thing?¡± Stole had never seen it before. ¡°A summoning item.¡± Aurora explained. ¡°To summon the strongest monster in the vicinity.¡± Just as Aurora said, the Ocarina was used to summon the strongest monster nearby. An extremely useful item in a dungeon where you had an idea of how strong the monsters were. Like in the Twilight Maze. An extremely dangerous item in a field like this one where we had no idea what type of predators lurked in the area. If we were lucky, the Grade 6 Skeletal Vulture would be what we got. If we were unlucky, another [Cheonma (??ÌìñR)], or something worse; a Grade 4 monsters or above. In MSS, power levels worked on an exponential system. The power gap from a grade 6 monster to a grade 5 monster was huge, and nowhere near the difference between a grade 10 or 9. Plus, there was the fact that monsters were exponentially stronger than adventurers. To hunt a grade 5 safely without risk, you needed a party of Grade 4 adventurers or above. Maybe you could pull it off if you had a good match up against the monsters, I.E Skaris¡¯ Fire element in the Twilight Maze. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. That¡¯s why this game was so infuriating; how the hell were you supposed to kill Grade 5 monsters when you needed Grade-4 Cores to hunt it without risk? That¡¯s where the bread and butter of MSS came into play. You had to rely on Core Synergy, using your build to maximize your potential and minimize the risk of your party experiencing a total wipe. Oftentimes, you¡¯d hit Grade 1 only to realize you screwed up your build and would need to invest hundreds of hours to replace the Cores you had. We could only hope. All of us prepared ourselves, drinking potions and checking our armor. ¡°Lock!¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice was pained. Taking a deep breath, I blew on the Ocarina as he lowered the [Tornado] spell. Piiiiiiiiiiiii The Scavengers were a big group, crawling around the field like worker ants. But it seemed that the standards for their recruits weren¡¯t that high. Instead of keeping us surrounded, they¡¯d gathered around the tornado grouping up all nice and tidy like for me. I imagined them as pins being knocked down and rolled my metaphorical bowling ball at them. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [High Tide] ? They all scattered, blown away by the ability. I thought I¡¯d be ok. I¡¯d been knocked out for a duration of the Cheonma fight and had just drank a portion to boot. Yet, I still felt the drain on my resources through a noticeable weight settling in behind my eyes. It was part headache and drowsiness. No matter how many potions I guzzled, I wouldn¡¯t be able to get rid of this fatigue easily. Thankfully I wasn¡¯t alone. Aurora let out a battlecry and a few of the Scavengers who had resisted [High Tide] froze. That moment was all she needed to become a wrecking ball, speeding through bodies ¨Cboth fallen, sitting and standing¨C with her shield and opening the way for us. Kyrian followed closely behind, huddling and uncorking another mana potion, chugging it down straight. Stole had replaced her huge Arbalest with a small crossbow gun. She was the freshest out of all of us, having spent most of her time running around and pouring healing potions down our throats. She shot the Scavengers with precision, bolts appeared in their thighs, calves and feet, meant to slow them down. Even when we had an open shot, she never shot with the intention to kill. Skaris and I didn¡¯t spare such effort. The two of us ran and each of our movements were controlled; using the least amount of energy to inflict the greatest damage. Skaris¡¯ flame was red now, no doubt conserving his mana. He gutted a man from chest to stomach, cauterizing the wound and leaving the man screaming. I used [Aura] sparingly, only using it the moment before my blood made contact. But this was us squeezing out what little strength we had. Sooner or later, we¡¯d make a mistake. Which was why Skaris and I didn¡¯t bother wounding them; we needed to reduce their numbers as much as possible. ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Chain Lightning] ? Lightning flashed and more bodies fell, fried to a crisp. It figured they had never succeeded in subjugating the Cheonma even with their numbers. They were weak to begin with, probably grade 9 or 8 at the most. Then there was the fact that we caught them in surprise. A small candleflame¡¯s worth of hope flared in my chest. Maybe we had a chance to get- Kyrian stumbled at the front. ¡°Skaris! Get to the front!¡± The lizard beastman strided ahead, his legs considerably longer than mine. He grabbed Kyrian¡¯s cloak and tried to right him. But the mage must¡¯ve been unconscious or too tired to walk; Skaris resorted to carrying him like a sack of rice, wielding the spear with the remaining arm. How long has it been since we started running? 10 seconds? 15? ¡°You idiot! Fire at them!¡± Rocks, arrows and missiles began to fly towards us. ¡°Aurora! Pivot! With me!¡± Aurora spun around and Skaris continued, so that he was at the front. She took up the rear with me, and planted her shield. I stood next to her, my [King¡¯s Guard] active as the barrage of death landed all around us. Stepping foot into the shadow of Aurora¡¯s shield, I soaked up all the stray magical projectiles. My shield and Aurora¡¯s blocking the rest. I heard her grunt as one of her legs buckled under the strain. Not even a minute and we were reaching the limit. Then I saw her. A small figure in the distance. A dwarf woman? She threw something. I saw Aurora¡¯s form duck and then bounce, shielding the young beastman. There was a horrible shriek of steel as the Harpoon tip pierced through Aurora¡¯s shield and cut into her arm. Holy shit. Luckily, the cut wasn¡¯t even an inch deep but the fact that it pierced through her shield from that distance¡­ The Harpoon went taut and ripped through the shield once more, returning to its owner. Before it did, I saw that it had a chain attached to the end. She was going to throw it again. ¡°Aurora! Go with the others!¡± I shoved Aurora to the front. She opened her mouth to argue but saw my [Lunar Shield] floating in the air above me. She nodded grimly, understanding that right now, it wasn¡¯t about her skill with blocking we needed; but the indestructible nature of my shield. She took her space next to Skaris. We were almost out. I just needed to trust in [King¡¯s Guard] and- KLANG! The Lunar Shield flew out of its orbit as the Harpoon struck it; landing on the ground a few feet away from me. But the harpoon landed right in between my legs with a heavy thud. If it had gone even an inch further¡­ I gulped. Once more, the Harpoon¡¯s chains went taut and it flew back to the dwarf woman. If I wasn¡¯t mistaken, she was walking towards us. The fact that my Lunar Shield went flying from the collision meant that my [Physical] stat was too low to block it fully, if I had been holding the shield in my hand it would¡¯ve no doubt broken every bone in my hand and possibly arm. Ignoring the fact that my mana reserves were running dangerously low, I recast [King¡¯s Guard] and my Lunar Shield came flying towards me again. KLANG! Again, my shield went flying. ¡®One more time.¡¯ I recalled my shield just in time to block the Harpoon. But this time, my shield [King¡¯s Guard] didn¡¯t deactivate. Instead, the Harpoon stuck to the shield¡¯s surface, a sticky greenish substance on the tip. [Glue], an active still used to coat your weapon in¡­ well, glue. Reaching out, I grabbed my Lunar Shield moments before the chain went taut and felt my feet leave the ground. ¡°Mr. Lock!¡± ¡°Mister!¡± Sailing in the air, I clearly saw the battlefield. My party members had broken through the Scavengers and were on their way out. That was why the dwarf kept firing; we had basically succeeded in escaping. ¡®But with her range, she would get one of us. I¡¯m going to run out of mana and she¡¯s going to gun us down, one by one like a pod of baby orcas.¡¯ I set my mouth in a line. I had to distract her. There were enough [Shadow Blink] charges saved up from the earlier exchange. As soon as my feet hit solid ground, I could slink away. Maybe 1 or 2 jumps was all I could manage, but it¡¯d be enough. Out of everyone in my party, I had the best balance between speed and defense. I also had another charge of [Lunar Shield] in my pocket. I could just- The ground exploded, throwing up trees, shrubs, rocks and dust. In the movies, you often see explosions. Giant robots, Kaiju, grenades, nuclear weapons; no matter what the topic, there¡¯s always a mushroom cloud or something similar that obscures people¡¯s vision. They scream and run away as fast as their human legs could carry them, trying to escape the oncoming rush of danger. In real life, it¡¯s not like that. There was no warning, no sound. One moment I was sailing through the air and the nest I got tangled in a tree and my vision was blocked by dust. There was no sense of up or down, no train of logical thought; just sheer terrible naked terror that took root of my heart and brain in one grip, shaking it up and down. This wasn¡¯t fear, this was just confusion and horror at the notion that something big was happening without the clearest inclination of what. Tiny pebbles and grains of sand pelted into me, the air so dense with these particles that there would no doubt be bloody scratches on my face and hands. My ears faintly noted the sound of these things pelting my armor with each note of ¡®ting ting ting ting ting¡¯. I realized that someone was screaming and it was me. I closed my mouth before I got drowned to death in dust. Still, I kept my eyes open. The harpoon was abruptly gone and the dust finally cleared, I was able to see where I was. For a brief moment in time, I noted everything. First, I could see now because I had fallen below the aerial debris. The Scavengers pointing and turning tail to run. A very pretty dwarf woman holding the colossal harpoon, a snarl on her face and readying to throw the harpoon. And behind me was a monster from the nightmares of a Lovecraftian Horror Novelist It was a worm, of that I was sure. But it was so big that I wasn¡¯t sure where it began and where it ended; the creature let out a horrible cry, a bass so deep that I felt my body vibrate in sync. The sound rippled through my body as I fell and my eyes noted that the thing was covered in sparse hair, and that its hair was rooted in thick bulbous carapace that made up the segments of its body. The densely packed supersonic wave from its roar actually blasted me away from the thing. And I saw how big it was. It was a [Gargantuan Death Worm] - Grade 4. God, it just kept coming up and up and up out of the ground. How the hell do you even hunt something so big? What does it eat? Then the worm moved forward. It didn¡¯t move so much as a volcano erupted or a hurricane propagated. This monster was a force of nature in and of itself, surging forward and instantly creating giant chasms in the earth, filled with darkness and no clue as to how deep it was. The monster''s shift in position changed the landscape, felling Scavengers into the bottom snake-pit it was creating. One Consolation? It was opposite of the directions my party had been running in. In that single moment of clarity, everyone''s face came surging into my mind like a dew drop falling from a leaf onto my face, cold and clear ¨Cwaking me from the disbelief that this creature embedded in my mind. I had to live. I had to survive. My party was waiting for me. We were supposed to go on the quest for the church, have harrowing adventures and- My god. I enjoyed being around them. Right there and then, I wasn¡¯t a salaryman nor an adventurer. I was a teenager again, without friends, without family and the one thing I looked forward to everyday was MSS. Seeing the lifelike NPCs talk to me, laugh and fall in love with each other. Imagining myself in the world. Beneath the hurt, beneath the worries about gold and constant threat of death; I loved this world. And I cared about my party. Skaris. Kyrian. Aurora. Stole. My first party¡­ I can¡¯t describe it in any logical sense or explain it in rational terms. It wasn¡¯t like that. It was like how you can instantly fall in love with someone, imagining a life together. On the first day of kindergarten, you can meet your best friend for life. A basic human need for companionship, of having people who understood you and wanted your presence. People who became tighter than a co-worker or occasional acquaintance, people that you know had your back. They were- I promised myself I¡¯d never admit it to them or myself. But the fear made me soft. They were my friends. Most people would be filled with despair hurtling towards a bottomless pit next to a monster who made godzilla look like a baby gecko. But as I fell into the deep dark chasm-void that the Gargantuan Death Worm left behind, without anything else in sight, I could only think of one thing. How the hell was I going to get out of this one?
Chapter 94: Party (10)
World: MSS - Loading...
Ever went skydiving? A coworker described it to me once. He said it felt like he was flying and said I should try it sometime. It did not feel like flying. I hurtled in complete darkness, accompanied by the screams of the Scavengers. Despite the lack of light,, I could feel tiny stinging sensations cutting into my cheek and my eyes. It felt like I was in outer space, the deep bellow of the Gargantuan Death Worm lending a space-opera-esque feel to the whole experience. Hurtling towards the ground at 120 miles per hour, tears fell out of my eyes and not all of them were due to the pain. The inevitability of death and the fact that I didn¡¯t know when it was forced my mind to huddle in a corner and pray that it¡¯d all be over. How wide was this hole?... and How deep was it? How long did I had to think of something? Then there was the first of the splats. Not very long, it seemed. It was less of a splat and more of a thud, a woomf followed by a rippling crack. Definitely the sound of something (someone) hitting the ground. How could something sound so far away yet so near? Another splat. It felt like those splats were kicking my already cowering mind into submission. But I¡¯d been through this before. When Arione sent me into the sky, hundreds of feet in the air ¨Cthat¡¯s what it felt like at the time anyways¨C I¡¯d faced the same fear. Provided, at the time I¡¯d felt more rage than fear due to the whole circumstances, but it was the same. I was in the air in freefall and had to figure a way down without splattering myself like an egg dropped from the third floor for a science project. ¡®Remember. Think. This isn¡¯t Earth. This is MSS.¡¯ A way out. I had to grab a hold of something. A tree branch. Or an outcropping rock. Something. Another splat, woomf and crack. I screamed and then laughed, scared shitless. Momentum. I had to slow my momentum. I already knew that. Was I going to die? How fast was I traveling? How far away was I from the ground? Another woomf and the sound of steel striking the ground, probably falling from the Scavenger¡¯s hand upon instant death. Whatever weapon it had been, it was heavy enough to clang once and twice, throwing sparks into the air. For just a second, a split second, I saw how close the ground was, how fast I was hurtling towards it and all the other corpses that had been ripped apart due to their abrupt landing. And I saw how I¡¯d survive. Adrenaline took, filling my heart and sending out a pulse of mana so pure and so strong that I saw strands of bright blue flow from the [Lunar Shield] still clutched to my chest. ¡°TIDAL FORCE!¡± I don¡¯t know why I screamed the technique''s name, but in that moment of intense focus; all my attention was fixed on not dying and making sure that everything was perfect. One of the bodies on the ground came to life, shooting towards me like I yanked on it with a string. The body collided with me about twenty feet before I hit the ground. I couldn¡¯t even yell out in pain as something definitely went pop and crack in my body. No matter how much softer a human body was than the ground, it was still solid matter and my momentum had been no joke. Plus, the guy had been wearing armor. Before I could register whether I had slowed or not, a secondary blow hit me. But instead of hitting me in the ribs, this one hit my entire body at once and I gurgled, tumbling in the ground in a tangle of limbs and dirt. Subconsciously I tucked my limbs into a ball, praying to all the six gods of MSS that there wasn¡¯t a dagger or sword that was rolling with me. Just my shield which had actually protected my ribs from the initial impact from the corpse. My ribs were ok. I think. My shoulder on the other hand was dislocated, probably because I used it to hold the shield. And those were all the thoughts I had, lying on the ground and face down in the dirt. Starting from my coworker telling me about skydiving all the way to the shield¡­ just memories I was reminiscing while lying there at the bottom of this newly created canyon. It felt like all the thoughts and my last minute maneuver were just memories or a dream. So surreal that I kept repeating the thoughts over and over again, stuck in some cycle. Eventually, the bodies stopped falling. I took in a shuddering breath and released it, continuing the shudder. I repeated it couple of times until my breathing was smooth again, though I had to start over a lot. I was alive. I was alive. I was¡­ alive. I rolled over and almost screamed as fiery pain went through my shoulder, traveling down my elbow and all the way to my hands in the mental imagery of spider webs forming on an expensive china tea set. This was good. Pain meant I was alive. The pain grounded me. It told me that the thoughts replaying in my brain had no use anymore. I fell. I flew. I survived. That was that. For now, I was on the ground and there would be no skydiving in the foreseeable future. The pain also gave me something to do, I took a healing potion from my Dimension Ring, uncorking it drinking it straight. It tasted metallic and grimy, like motor oil mixed with blood. Anything but pleasant. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. But right now, discomfort was a friend and the only thing keeping me from falling to the floor, shuddering and muttering to myself. Locked in my own thoughts due to the sheer fear from- Oh. I already did that. The pain started up again as the Healing Potion went to work. It mended broken bones, set them right ¨Cas long as the injury wasn¡¯t too bad, I wouldn¡¯t have to set it before drinking the potion¨C and made my bones, muscles and skin sizzle from the process. I gritted my teeth and screamed just for the hell of it, definitely not because I was afraid, in pain and still in shock. One mistake. One mistake and I would¡¯ve died. If that weapon had fallen even a second later, or I hadn¡¯t seen the body- ¡®Think about those later. Later. Or never. Assess the situation. Figure out what¡¯s happening.¡¯ ¡°And do what you have to do.¡± I closed my eyes, centering myself. Slowly, I went through the exercise Arrosh had taught me. I focused on the pain, imagining it like a white ball. A lot of people think that fear and pain are the same thing, but Arrosh taught me differently. When he shoved his hand into my shoulder wound ¨CI was never going to let him live that down¨C he had used the pain as a motivator. To wake me up from my stupor. I was doing the same, amplifying my pain so that my mind had no room for emotions like panic. Hard reality set in and only absolute truths remained. When I took a breath and released it, it came out calm and smooth. I checked my body systematically, like checking the buffs of a character before heading into a boss room. Arms were fine. Ribs were good. Legs were fine. So I got up and moved. ¡®Assess.¡¯ That was the first step. I was in a giant chasm created by a Gargantuan Death Worm. I was so deep underground that the light didn¡¯t reach here and my [Sight] stat certainly wasn¡¯t enough to grant me Darkvision. That meant to ¡®assess¡¯, I needed light. Where could I find light down here? My foot kicked against something soft and I jumped away six feet, hand reaching for a sword that was no longer there. Right, my katana had broken and Stole lent me a spare sword. I¡¯d broken that too. Whatever I kicked hadn¡¯t moved because it wasn¡¯t alive. With determination, I got down on all fours and stumbled around, my hands spread out and trying to find the thing again. I wished that the [Seeing Crystal] had come with Dark Vision. Maybe I could ask Bilgrun about it next time. I found the body within seconds. With practiced hands, I found the adventurer¡¯s hands, stripping him of his Dimension Ring. Then his pockets, then looked at his weapons. ¡®Tch. No sword.¡¯ I clicked my tongue and quickly checked the adventurer¡¯s Dimension Ring, putting it on and sorting through the contents with my mind. It was like putting your hand into a drawer or a bag and rummaging around, using nothing but the sense of touch to figure out what it is you were trying to take out. If it was your own Dimension Ring, it was easier, simply because it was your own stuff. Someone else¡¯s? Takes a bit of time. Kyrian had been much better at this than me. Thinking of the young mage made me redouble my efforts and soon I found what I was looking for. A torch. ¡°Reminder to self.¡± My voice was rough and I coughed immediately, saying the next part in broken staccato between coughs. ¡°Buy torches.¡± Something as simple as hearing my own voice, reminding myself to buy torches, that there was a future transformed my efforts. From desperate need to survive, a distraction to the hopelessness situation I was in to a full-on mission with a goal and clear steps; something doable and completely within the realm of possibility. This might be the craziest and most outlandish thing that¡¯d happened to me so far, but I knew that I would be fighting literal forces of nature in the far, far future. ¡°One step at a time.¡± I told myself. I spent the next half hour or so, hauling bodies and scavenging the scavengers. I chuckled to myself at that little joke, just to keep the silence at bay. The canyon was cold, so cold and damp that it felt more like a cave than a canyon. There was no wind, a small mercy, but I was starting to grow cold and tired nonetheless. The mind could only do so much, and I¡¯d been hunting for days. Combine that with the last ditch effort to escape the Scavengers, the sheer mental shock of being near a Grade 4 monster, then the whole thing with the fall¡­ There are some things that no health or mana potions could take care of. I needed rest. Sleep. Food. ¡°I know it¡¯s in here somewhere.¡± I growled, anger unlying the words. Frustration was building up. What if I couldn¡¯t find shelter? Food? What if there were monsters- ¡°Less than an hour and already panicking.¡± I forced myself to take another deep breath and then another, until I was no longer shaking. I focused on the pain again, counting to ten. Then I searched. The Scavengers were a clan of hundreds of adventurers, most of them outlaws. Chances were that most of them didn¡¯t have a home. Didn¡¯t have their own beds. And in that case- After an hour or two of searching dozens, maybe a hundred, Dimension Rings ¨CI think; I¡¯d lost track of time¨C I found it.. A small cube that fit in the palm of my hand. [Portable Temporary Shelter]. I found a nice corner and put the cube down on the floor. Then touching it to with a finger, I leaked a little mana into it. The cube whirled internally, like a computer booting up. Then shot out a superimposed cube, made of translucent blue light. An item that provided temporary shelter. Of course, there was no way all those Scavengers slept on the ground like savages. It wouldn¡¯t keep monsters out, but it would conceal me to anything lower than¡­ than whatever Grade of monster this cube was designed to keep out. Since the monsters around this field were mostly grade 7, I could safely assume anything 7 and lower wouldn¡¯t notice the cube. Plus, like all temporary shelters, it changed the environment within. Warm air quickly filled the small space and I lay down, my eyelids heavy. The downside was that it was a portable temporary shelter. Nothing was solid, I would still sleep on the rocky floor and lie amongst the corpses that littered this place. Better than nothing. I went to sleep.
Skaris stomped. No. He did not stomp. Stomping was for humans, for elves. For those whose anger was loud yells and screaming. Petulant children. Skaris advanced. And his anger burned. ¡°Skaris, wait-¡± Kyrian Tricilan, the human mage, grabbed a hold of his shoulders and spun him around. Or tried to. Once Skaris made the human aware that he was turning only because he chose to, Skaris turned and looked down at his comrade in arms, the Magus of their hunting party. One of those he claimed as a brother in arms long ago when they were locked in chains, under the rule of green-skinned orcs. ¡°Going back there in suicide.¡± Tricilan¡¯s voice was low. ¡°Look. LOOK.¡± Reluctantly, Skaris forced himself to open his eyes. Not the flesh eyes, but the eyes of understanding, for his mind to comprehend the battle before him. Men screamed. Men died. They sniveled their pathetic cries. The Death Worm raged and fed on their blood. ¡­Slaveborn, his brother, was there. What more was there to be said? ¡°Sslaveborn would come for usssss.¡± Skaris muttered and turned to look at the others. The whelp wilted under his gaze and she rightfully should. She had been giving off fear like a rat ever since they got to safety. The moment he had mentioned returning for Slaveborn, her fear grew and grew and grew, until it showed in her face, her body and everything she did. Tainting the group from within. Fear was an infectious thing, a disease. Still¡­ Skaris could see the silent and steady rock in her. Yes. She¡¯d go. She would not move first, but she¡¯d go to find Lock. Still, she was afraid. All of them were. It made them so weak. Oh, Skaris knew very well what it was like to give in to fear. ¡°He would.¡± Tricilan agreed. ¡°But we¡¯re not him.¡± Skaris felt his eyes widen in righteous fury. ¡°Tricssssilan, you dare sssssuggesssst-¡± The three of them had escaped the scorching sands of the Desert. They had walked arm in arm, back to back against the Soldiers of the Human Empire. They had leapt in the way of arrows and claws, thrown by Orcs and Monsters alike. And Tricilan dared to suggest- ¡°I¡¯m suggesting we rest.¡± Tricilan shook his head. ¡°When I was with the Akka Xaluds, before we went to the Samak Desert, we were all given a report on the regional Field Bosses. That¡­ worm-thing, was one of them. Or the same species as one. It¡¯s a grade 4 field boss, we can¡¯t go up against it right now.¡± Skaris saw the look that Tricilan shot to the Vetilian, for support. ¡°Mr. Kyrian is right.¡± Vetilian gritted her teeth, frustration on her face. She, too, had the blood of a warrior flowing in her veins; ancient blood that passed down the art of the fight. ¡°I, too, want to get to Mr. Lock¡­ but there is nothing to offer him in our current state.¡± That calmed Skaris¡¯ anger. But in place of the anger, came something else. Impatience. ¡°We do not posssssesssss the time.¡± ¡°And neither do we possess the strength.¡± Tricilan shook his head. ¡°We need rest. Time to recover. But other than that¡­ we need help. There¡¯s simply no way we can find Lock in there right now.¡± Skaris turned to look at the scene. They were standing on top of a hill, the beginning of this field. The point where the Scavengers scalped them, day after day after day. It was a good position, able to see most of the field. But right now, the only thing they could see was the Gargantuan Death Worm in the distance. Skaris growled softly, frustrated. ¡°No doubt, Marc Pointell will organize a subjugation party. Tomorrow at the latest. We can be a part of it, he won¡¯t deny us. Not when we¡¯re so pivotal to his plans.¡± Tricilan muttered, almost to himself. ¡°Even if we cannot be part of the main subjugation party, we can be part of the support crew. And if we can get close enough¡­¡± ¡°And if they do not?¡± Skaris asked. ¡°They will. They must. A Field Boss this close to the city and attacking a registered Clan.. Mr. Pointell will need to work fast.¡± Vetilian was staring at the damage wrought by the monster. ¡°The problem would be finding him amidst all this.¡± The whelp took a deep breath. ¡°I can. I can find him.¡± Of course. The whelp was a [Pioneer], possessing the sixth sense to find anything she put her mind to. ¡°Then we will rendezvous with the subjugation party tomorrow and look for an opportunity to search for Lock.¡± Then Tricilan told him in a whisper. ¡°Skaris, you¡¯re acting out of fear right now. We can¡¯t have that. Lock¡­ Lock would be calm.¡± Skaris opened his mouth to shoot something back, hot and fierce but stopped himself. A warrior who acted in fear was no warrior at all. He had been thinking about the weakness of others but had missed the fact that his own fear had infected his own judgement. He saw the human mage, trying his best to keep the party together. The party that Slaveborn created. He saw in the mage¡¯s eyes the desperation, the worry and the nervousness and beneath it all, a reflection of his own impatience. Tricilan was being patient and doing what needed to be done, even if it went against their instincts. Just like how Slaveborn often did. Skaris¡¯ fingers gripped his spear then ungripped it, keeping his breathing even and level. ¡°I will keep the first watch.¡± So the party camped, next to the visage of dying men and their screams.
Chapter 95: Choices
World: MSS - Loading...
There was a sound. Scuttling? Skittling? Crunching? Rubbing my eyes, I awoke and immediately wished that I hadn¡¯t. Thousands upon thousands of insects had filled the bottom of the canyon. They were scurrying all over the corpses of the Scavengers, feeding. These insects weren¡¯t just the creepy-crawlies from earth either, they were monsters. Man-sized critters tore into the corpses, their mandibles ripping soft flesh with abandon. Some of them hissed at each other, fighting over a bodyless head; the brain already nothing more than gray stringy gristle on the floor. I saw two monsters play tug-of-war with a man¡¯s corpse, ripping it in half and the innards splashing out on the ground with a wet splash. More than that, others simply feasted where they were; inhuman eyes staring at nothing with no thought behind them. Only endless hunger and a predatory impulse to feed on the rare buffet laid out before them. I¡¯d seen a lot of things since I¡¯d come to this world. But nothing like this. I turned and lost the contents of yesterday¡¯s meal. Something hissed. An insect monster, [Giant Beetle] of grade 10 was clawing at my temporary shelter, trying to bypass the translucent blue walls. No, I was just panicking. The [Giant Beetle] climbed over the cube and continued on its way while carrying someone¡¯s arm. It left streaks of blood, muscle and cartilage on the cube; also giving me a full view of its body underneath the shell. I retched again. When was the last time I¡¯d been in a situation like this? No companions, no idea where I was and surrounded by strange monsters? I hadn¡¯t chosen to come here, I was forced. And that scared me. It scared me because I was in a part of MSS that I had no idea about and that¡¯s when bad things happened. Yet one thing was different. I touched a hand to my pocket, feeling the dozens of Dimension Rings jingle around. They were the results of looting all the corpses yesterday. I had lost count after the 102nd corpse. Slowly, I took out the rings; putting them on one by one. Eventually, I found what I was looking for; a sword. A simple falchion. It wasn¡¯t what I was used to, but it¡¯d do. I couldn¡¯t stay here. I had to keep moving. There was the danger that the Gargantuan Death Worm presented, if it returned it would be death. Not because the monster would bother to pay attention to me, but because by just moving through the earth, it could bury me. Then there was the fact that there were other insectoid monsters present, who know what else could pop up. With this many unknowns, I had to get out of here while I could. Slowly, I touched my hand to the small cube of the Portable Temporary Shelter, noting that it had the number three on it. Before I had activated it yesterday, it had said four. So three more uses. I took a breath to ready myself, then pressed down on it; turning it off. The translucent blue walls came down. Slowly, I began to walk through the feasting bugs. Some of them moved aside as I came near them, gorging on the cold bodies. Some of them hissed, covering their meal protectively. As I walked, I saw some of the beetle-monsters burrow deep underground; bringing the corpses with them. Then there were monsters that I saw, laying slimy slick-coated eggs right next to the corpses and ¨CI wanted to throw up again¨C in them. Eye sockets and mouths ¨Cany open orifice, really¨C served as nests for clusters of eggs. Furthermore, there were other monsters that were mating right in front of me. Shuddering, I continued walking. I walked for miles. Each pocket canyon was the same scenery, full of corpses being fed upon by insect monsters. I ignored the sounds, the otherworldly chittering sounds as they called to one another. Even when I came face to face with an insect monster, I stayed still; doing my best not to aggravate it. My fight or flight response screamed in agony; trying to get away from the monsters or cut it up into quivering pieces of chitin. But I resisted. There were so so many of them. Not only that¡­ some of the eggs were hatching, feeding on the corpse and each other. So I walked trying not to look too hard at anything. To keep myself busy, I counted each step. Whenever I lost count, I started over again. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever forget that walk. ¡°10,982¡­ 10,983¡­ 10,984¡­¡± I whispered and stopped, finally seeing something in the distance that wasn¡¯t an insect or a corpse. A door. Looking around, I saw that the insects were gone and so were the corpses. In fact, no longer was I in the makeshift canyon created by the Gargantuan Death Worm. I was in an entirely different place, a basement of sorts. I looked back and saw that about a hundred paces back, there was an opening. A break in the wall, barely big enough to be called an entrance, no doubt due to the rampaging worm. I found a corner and sat in it, breathing hard. There was a sense of relief in being someplace that was man made. It didn¡¯t matter that unconsciously, I knew that this must be the Scavenger¡¯s Clan Building in the Cliffs. Nor did it matter that anyone could come in through that basement and this place could be crawling with a hundred different types of creatures ¨Cthe Scavengers. What mattered was the sense of familiarity, of being near civilization and other people. The empty eyes of the corpses still lingered in my vision like fresh carcasses, so did the alien eyes of the insectoid monsters. The sound of tearing meat, the silent screams of horror¡­ Did I hear some of the corpses grunt? Fingers outstretched for help? Or was I just imagining it? This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. I tucked my knees in closer, trying to control my breathing. I¡¯d seen scarier things. Yes. But there was so much death¡­ and the raw reality of life. Not limited to MSS, but life in general; away from the rules of society, what happens to the weak. What had almost happened to me. If I wasn¡¯t still holding onto the concentration technique which Arrosh taught me, I would have broken down long ago. But now, I was safe. The door next to me rattled, then opened. ¡°-always making me check the, ¨Cwhut?¡± He was a burly, unkempt bear of a man. Human. He had a bald spot on his head and was covered by thin strands of hair from the side. In that instant, my eyes absorbed all the details about him; his vanity in trying to hide his balding head with hair. His gut, which told me the life of pleasure filled with food, alcohol and most likely women. His eyes were beady and he had a somewhat pinched expression. His arms were huge, the fat hanging loose. Dirt underneath his fingernails. The wave of musk and sweat that accompanied him into the room. The way those dirty fingers scrabbled for the dagger at his waist and the panicked gleam in his eyes at seeing me huddle in the corner. Reflected in his pupils; I saw the mirrored version of my own movements from his point of view. My own form blurred, hands moving an infinite time faster than his. I slapped his hand away and drew his dagger; lunging upwards straight towards him. His mouth opened to scream ¨Cperhaps to try and talk to me, or yell for help¨C but no words escaped his throat; only a gurgle of blood. I rode him down to the ground, keeping the dagger fixed in his neck and shoved one fist in his mouth. All the while, I stared into his eyes at the reflection of my own face. Not the steady calm that I had come to expect of myself. My eyes were just as fearful and shocked. I stayed on top of him until the light in his eyes disappeared and his finger stopped twitching. All that remained was my own breathing; tiny panicked wheezes. I rolled off of him ¨Cno, it now¨C leaving the dagger stuck. This wasn¡¯t the first time I¡¯d killed. Not by a longshot. But it was the first I¡¯d killed as a free man, as an adventurer. I had killed dozens of orcs and the Akka Xalud soldiers on the way here. I had felt guilt and sorrow; but had soldiered on telling myself that it was necessary. But this man just now wasn¡¯t something like that. He wasn¡¯t an orc slave master and we certainly weren¡¯t at war. He was¡­ just checking the basement of his Clan building. It was just pure chance that we met. I could tell immediately that he was weaker than me; definitely a lower grade adventurer. I could¡¯ve disabled him instead of killing him. I could¡¯ve knocked him out. But my hands moved on their own, choosing the fastest and most efficient course of action: lethality. You know, I thought I was ready when I became an adventurer to face death. After all, I saw my own friend, Skaris, almost die right in front of me. I was fighting monsters daily, risking my life. I had told myself time and time again, that eventually I¡¯d kill adventurers. It was a part of MSS. Sooner or later, someone would pick a fight with me and it would lead to bloodshed ¨Cand if enough wealth was involved, it certainly would not end with first blood. It never did. I thought I was ready. But I wasn¡¯t. But this killing combined with the insects broke something inside of me; it hardly mattered whether I was ready or not. Because my body had killed, without any input from my own head. I should be happy. This body that I had honed and trained had become what I wanted it to become: a weapon. A weapon that could stand against the mythical creatures in this world as well as its mortal inhabitants. I didn¡¯t think twice about it, by the gods, I hadn¡¯t needed to think at all. I felt sick. But you know what the worst thing of it all was? I was ready to do it again. Like I said, I killed before. I had similar feelings back then to what I was feeling now. ¡®Don¡¯t try to justify it. Don¡¯t tell yourself it was necessary or needed. There¡¯s no need for guilt or pleasure. The moment you try to justify this killing with reasons will only turn it into excuses ¨Csomething for you to use in the future to keep yourself from killing or the opposite, killing without discrimination. It is what it is; you¡¯re a murderer. There¡¯s no right or wrong about it, just a plain and simple fact.¡± It took me a while to control my breathing. I looked at the body again. I wanted to look away. But I forced myself to look. Absorbing everything from the dirty boots to the food stains in his beard. He would never laugh again, talk again. If he had a family, those families would never see him again. They¡¯d just live on old memories of him, telling themselves that was sufficient enough. I¡¯d taken a loved one away from someone, a friend, a husband, a father, a son. I had snuffed out someone¡¯s light in this world and there was no getting around it. I just had to accept that. Yeah. Don¡¯t dig yourself into the rabbit hole; that¡¯s how you¡¯re gonna go on a crusade for your own sense of justice or become a serial killer. I kept looking at the body, distancing myself from the morals of the murder while getting closer to the factual consequences of it. I¡¯m not sure if that makes sense to you, and it sure as hell didn¡¯t make sense to me. All I know is that it made me feel better; that I didn¡¯t feel like a monster or a good guy. In retrospect, I actually didn¡¯t need anyone to understand me; because then I felt that I was trying to shift a part of the consequences of my actions into the gray area we call right or wrong. I just wanted to feel¡­ ok with what happened. And eventually, I did. Slowly, I got up and went over to the body. I dragged it to a corner of the storage, taking his Dimension Ring. I looked at the blood on the floor, rubbed it with my boots and saw that the storage room was dusty enough so that no one would notice. Then I opened the door of the Storage Room and headed into the Scavenger Clan¡¯s hideout.
The subjugation party led by Marc Pointell arrived at dawn. He had brought roughly 20 adventurers, all of them either Grade 4 or 5. Upon seeing Aurora and the others, he walked over. The plain-faced man was dressed for battle; a brown robe with iron and leather buckles criss crossing across his chest. He greeted them with a simple wave. ¡°I had been looking for you. You¡¯re one of the few independent parties in this region of Jayu.¡± Marc said without particular intonation. Aurora understood what Marc was getting at immediately. Basically, the Guild Master saw this Field Boss as a chance. Slaying a Field Boss was no simple feat and the wealth resulting from it would surely attract attention; even without a Core drop. If they chose to, they could use a [Stasis] spell on the monster; forcing the monster to retain its corpse even after death. With the corpse, there would be plenty of materials to be sold plus there was always the chance that the Core was still there inside the monster. The only downside of a [Stasis] spell was the fact that there would be no chance of items or coins. Marc Pointell no doubt tried to recruit some other Clans for this, but they most likely refused. Back in Turina, such a thing would be unthinkable. But in the Jayu States, the positions were reversed; the Clans held all the power while the Guild was powerless, all because of the lack of manpower. Those Clans probably asked for something in return, something prospesterous like all rights to Cores and Item drops, or 90% claims to the monster materials. So the sad reality was that Marc Pointell had come here with Grade 4s and 5s, hoping that they¡¯d be enough to defeat the field boss. ¡°We were waiting for you, Mr. Pointell.¡± Aurora walked up, acting as the de-facto leader of their party in Lock¡¯s absence. She saw Kyrian frown at her but the kind-hearted mage did not interject. Marc¡¯s even gaze swept the party. ¡°...Where is Lock Slaveborn?¡± Aurora didn¡¯t answer which was an answer unto itself. Marc¡¯s eyes turned sympathetic, though to those who didn¡¯t know him they wouldn¡¯t notice. ¡°Body?¡± ¡°Not found. We wish to join the subjugation party and search for him after,¡± then Aurora ventured, ¡°Your skills would be a great help.¡± Marc blinked at her, speaking in a whisper. ¡°You¡¯re asking me for help?¡± Aurora nodded. He narrowed his eyes. ¡°Child¡­ I thought we agreed that you are not to-¡± ¡°You can be rest assured, I am aware of my dealings with you; Mr. Pointell. Now will you help us or not?¡± ¡°...If we still have all our limbs intact, yes. I can help you search for Lock, Ms. Vetilian.¡± She winced as he said her bastard name. After working out the logistics, Marc returned to the subjugation party to get places ready for them. When Aurora turned around, everyone was sporting a different expression. Skaris was the same as yesterday, impatient and ready to explode. Kyrian was too good-mannered to ask her openly about her short conversation with Marc, but no doubt that the mage had an inkling about what the ¡®deal¡¯ they mentioned was. After all, he was a Turinan himself and no doubt familiar with her situation. Stole on the other hand was visibly struggling not to burst into questions. Aurora sighed, wondering if this was worth the risk. Both politically and physically. Chances were high that Lock was already dead. Still, a small voice inside of Aurora continued to whisper to her that he was alive; that through impossible odds, Lock Slaveborn would come out of that canyon. Bloodied and wounded, yes. But alive. When she first met the man, he had been nothing more than a former slave turned adventurer, a common enough person in Jayu; the country of freedom. It was simple curiosity at first. Even before he showed signs of [Aura], he set himself apart from the others with his open-mind, clear-head and exceptional judgment making skills within the Fracture. Aurora was convinced that if it was not for Pyret¡¯s party, Lock could have led them out of the Fracture with no casualties. But if that was it, he would not have grabbed Aurora¡¯s attention. She had grown up around Scions of the Great Houses ¨Cbastard child she may be, her talented granted her access to all the training that others had. No, what he showed her was more than just adventuring skills. She remembered the scene between him and Skaris in the Twilight Maze. Aurora had seen the visible turmoil in his face; he had known what the right choice was. She had seen him make other choices; he was highly efficient. Aurora had already prepared herself mentally for the beastman¡¯s death, they hadn¡¯t been close but had fought side by side together. She could lift up a prayer to the Flame on his behalf. So she was shocked when Lock purposefully made the wrong decision, almost costing everyone their lives. It went against everything that she had seen so far, no adventurer should make such a choice. And by all rights, they should all have been punished for his choice, left to die in that frozen Fracture. But they were still alive. Since then, she replayed that moment many times, wondering what she would do. And the answer was simple; she didn¡¯t know. Everyone she cared about had died long ago and the gods had never given her the choice that they gave to Lock. Whether that was a blessing or a curse, she didn¡¯t know. She used [Aura] as an excuse to stick close to him, but truthfully she just had to know what kind of choice she would make. What would Aurora Candrian Vetilian do when it came time for her to choose between what was right and what was wrong? When the lives of the people she cared about was at stake? Would she do the right thing? Or would she break under pressure? Never before had she had to answer this question, nor been exposed to the pains of weighing the lives of one against those of others. So Aurora, the bastard who had been touted as the Genius of the Great House of Vetilius, wanted to see more of what Lock Slaveborn would do. What struggles would come his way and how he would deal with them. How his choices would affect the people around him. Choices¡­ were something that she had been robbed of, long time ago.
Chapter 96: Choices (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
From what I could tell, the Scavenger Clan¡¯s base was built into the cliff itself. Long winding tunnels plus the lack of sun, wind and cleanliness made me think of an ant colony. Though I did see one a documentary long ago that ants were actually very tidy and their passageways were free of clutter. If that was the case, then the scavengers were definitely on the opposite end of the spectrum. Broken furniture, bones ¨Cof all races and species, really¨C and even common loot was strewn about everywhere. No matter where I looked, I could not find a single semblance of how this place was supposed to be a Clan house. No matter. My goal was to get out of here and meet my party. The problem was that the more I walked, the less idea I had of where I was. I doubted I could find my way back to the storage room way down below. There were so many turns and not a single dead-end, the whole place was a death trap. Luckily, I had the numerous dimension rings and the supplies contained within. But still, even with that knowledge in my pocket, I couldn¡¯t help but feel helpless when navigating these tunnels. What I needed was a guide, a [Pioneer]. Damn. Stole would have been really helpful at a time like this. As I idly wondered about my party and hoped for their well-being, I heard voices coming from around the corner. It was accompanied by the glow of a torch. Crouching, I immediately hid myself behind a corner. ¡°-is the monster subjugation going to take?¡± ¡°Well, that fancy guildmaster brought some heavy hitters, looks like. Won¡¯t be long now.¡± The first man clicked his tongue. ¡°By the way, were you there yesterday?¡± ¡°Nope. Glad I wasn¡¯t there either, I heard a lot of people died.¡± There was a slight pause. ¡°Why? You hoping that I¡¯d kick the bucket?¡± The other man scoffed. ¡°If I wanted you dead, you¡¯d be dead.¡± ¡°Why you little-¡± There was a brief scuffle. A normal person might have rolled their eyes at the exchange. But I was too nervous, my nerves on edge. I stayed crouched, willing them to pass by me faster. The last thing I wanted was for them to brawl right here, gathering attention. The Scavenger¡¯s baes seemed big, but I knew for a fact that was only because there were so many of their members. I didn¡¯t have to wait long, the grunting was soon replaced by long winded breathing, both men out of breath. ¡°I was-¡± he took a wheezing breath, ¡°going to ask if you saw the-¡± another one, and then finally said, ¡°-clan master in action yesterday.¡± Finally, a piece of information I could use. This was only the day after the Gargantuan Death Worm¡¯s attack. ¡°No¡­¡± the other man answered, also gasping for breath, ¡°But I heard it was quite a sight to see. Why was she out there anyways?¡± ¡°Rumor is that one of her friends visited and warned her of intruders. A whole party of them.¡± The man continued talking this time, having gathered his breathing. ¡°You know the prisoner up above? The orc?¡± ¡°You mean the blind one?¡± My mind froze. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s the one. Well, clan head Tanya¡¯s friend, you know the one, the bald elf with the curly blue tattoos, you know who I¡¯m talking about?¡± He asked, then without waiting for an answer, ¡°Well, he came to clan master Tanya and warned her that he saw in the future. That we, the Scavengers Clan will come under attack. Now, I¡¯m not one of those thinking types up above, but you know how I¡¯m friends with Old Man Tom, the guard right outside her office?¡± ¡°Aye.¡± ¡°So he tells me, this blind orc has something to do with that¡­ that guild you know. The guild that visits our clan master every now and then.¡± ¡°You mean the one that¡¯s rumored to be¡­¡± The man fell silent for dramatic effect, then spoke the next words in a whisper. ¡°All Players?¡± ¡°Shhhh!¡± ¡°....sorry.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re right. Old Man Tom told me that we¡¯re keeping the blind orc as a favor for that guild and they¡¯re paying us a heap of money to do it.¡± ¡°So¡­ what¡¯s this got to do with Clan Head Tanya?¡± ¡°Well, think about it! She never takes advice from anyone! Never! But one word from that bald elf mage and she goes out herself to hunt down a party! Believing in his bullshit prophecy nonsense! She¡¯s not the superstitious type! You know that!¡± ¡°Get to the point, Lud.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that strange? I always thought it was weird how our Clan Head was so close with that guild and now, we¡¯re keeping prisoner for them. Not to mention that she showed herself yesterday, just because of those nobodies.¡± He continued. ¡°I think our clan head might be a-¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been drinking again, Lud.¡± The other man cut him off. ¡°No! I swear! Even Old Man Tom is suspicious!¡± I remained frozen as they passed by, their conversation turning to murmurs than whispers and then silence. My mind was spinning, I had to sit down. I had to think through this. Ok. First, the most concerning thing was this ¡®prisoner¡¯ who was a blind orc. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. It could be Arrosh. It could be my Master. I¡¯d been searching for him for months, ever since I left the Samak Desert. Arrosh Bloodedge was my sword master, having taught me everything I knew, despite having only been with me for less than a year. His teachings saved my life on more than one occasion, so much so that I couldn¡¯t keep track. I hadn¡¯t seen him after the Samak Horde was destroyed by the Akka Xalud family without an inkling of where he could be. Then again¡­ it didn¡¯t necessarily have to be him. The world of MSS was huge, and I doubted that Arrosh was the only blind orc who was worth keeping as a prisoner. It could be a rich merchant orc who was blinded as he was captured. I could just be wanting to think that it was Arrosh because it would work out for me if it was him. But how many orcs were out there that was blind and worth keeping prisoner? Could it be that he was here in Jayu? I wished Oung had answered me when I asked her where I could find Arrosh. Speaking of Oung, she always pulled the strings using monsters, guiding events towards her will. Could it possibly be that the Gargantuan Death Worm was her handiwork? That I¡¯d been manipulated to come here? It was entirely possible that this whole thing was Oung¡¯s way of pushing me towards finding Arrosh Bloodedge. Which brought me to the next question. What did Oung want with my Master? ¡­All questions that could easily be answered by checking on this Orc¡¯s identity. But to be honest, I¡¯d decided to check for myself the moment they said the words ¡®Blind¡¯ and ¡®Orc¡¯ in the same sentence. Before, Arrosh had been nothing more than a convenient quest giver for me; as one of three apprentices of Nearnigh, the Sword Saint, I thought of him as someone I could use for an easy power-up. But Arrosh went above and beyond for me multiple times. I hadn¡¯t even begun to pay him back for everything he gave me or done for me. I tried to find him everywhere, the Black Market, Yousef¡¯s connections and Marc¡¯s channels. Nothing. And finally, there was a clue. Which brought me to the other issue. Was this whole thing orchestrated by [Players]? If it truly was Arrosh, I could only think that this ¡®guild¡¯ that the two men mentioned was the [Player Guild]. Players would be the only ones knowledgeable enough about what Arrosh represented to keep him prisoner like that, hoping to squeeze out some value. I was sure of it, the Scavenger Clan was a cat¡¯s paw for the Player Guild, a cover up. Since Players were being hunted in this world, of course they¡¯d need someone to be their hands and feet. Who better to fill that role than former bandits and adventurers on the run? ¡­If I didn¡¯t know any better, I¡¯d say that Oung was using me to foil their plans. Then there was the fact I was in the Scavenger¡¯s Clan Building all alone, plotting to check on a prisoner who was no doubt being guarded by their officers. I had no knowledge of this house, the enemy¡¯s abilities nor what lay in store for me. Plus, I¡¯d seen that woman¡¯s ¨CTanya was her name¨C abilities first hand yesterday. She was some kind of long-ranged sniper using a harpoon. ¡­And she was stronger than me. Of that, I was sure. I had a good idea of what Cores she had to use to make that build work; at the minimum she was around level 60, a grade 4 adventurer at the very least. With the advantage of stats and number of abilities on her side, she could easily crush me as I was. Better stats and just more Cores, which meant more abilities to use. More options and better output in one. ¡­And she was just one person. There could be other players in here, I just didn¡¯t know it yet. Which were all good reasons not to do this. ¡°So what, you¡¯re just going to abandon him?¡± I slowly stood up, resting my forehead on the wall. ¡°Just going to turn around and run? Forgetting about Arrosh?¡± ¡°No,¡± I answered myself, ¡°Just¡­ just a temporary retreat. Until I¡¯m stronger. Until my build is more stable.¡± ¡°And I bet that¡¯s going to be your excuse when you let someone else die.¡± I kept talking, hating the words as they escaped from my mind. ¡°Skaris. Kyrian. Aurora. Stole. Maybe even Dibo and the Orcs, Yousef. So many people to protect, so many people you could abandon. Didn¡¯t you think so in the dungeon yourself? That it¡¯s ok as long as the main character survives? As long as you, Han, lives, isn¡¯t it ok?¡± I didn¡¯t answer. ¡°You have to go.¡± I told myself. ¡°I know.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll regret it.¡± ¡°I know that too.¡± ¡°You could never live with yourself.¡± I clenched my fist so hard that something wet began to drip from it. Blood. ¡°I said I fucking know.¡± ¡°Arrosh would do the same for you.¡± ¡°...Would he?¡± I wasn¡¯t sure. ¡°He would.¡± ¡°What about Kyrian? Aurora? Stole? Skaris? Do you think they¡¯re looking for me right now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How do you know?¡± I was doubtful. ¡°Because you would do the same for them.¡± ¡°...¡± To that, I had no answer. I didn¡¯t want to stay here, wasting more time. I wanted to make a decision. A choice. Closing my eyes and swallowing hard, I chose my path.
¡°Delas, I¡¯d speak with you.¡± ¡°Jesus Christ, Coum! Don¡¯t sneak up on me like that!¡± Coum stared at Delas, his tone flat and eyes void of any emotion. ¡°We both know that it is quite impossible for me to sneak up on you Delas. As a Mage-¡± ¡°Oh quit it. I was just doing a bit.¡± At Coum¡¯s dead-fish eyes, Delas said once more, ¡°A bit! A bit, OK?!¡± Coum slowly nodded. Coum was a rare case among the Player Guild. No one really knew how long Coum had been here, but he¡¯d been here at least as long as Nathan. But the thing was that Coum didn¡¯t quite seem like the rest of them. Whenever Delas asked him where he used to live before being transmigrated to MSS, the elven mage never answered. Then there was the fact that Coum had this weird, emotionless, flat expression on his face all the time. Like one of those reptilian monsters or birds of prey. No feelings. Just a bunch of nerve endings resulting in input and output, like a program. The creepiness was intensified by his looks. Most elves in MSS looked like fashion models. Tall, slim with beautiful hair in exotic hues of blue, purple, green and everything else in between. But Coum¡­ Coum had no hair. He had these weird writhing tattoos made of ¡®living ink¡¯. Then there were the permanent dark-circles underneath his eyes, dry skin and the general pallid complexion of a mage. Still, Coum was part of the crew and Delas didn¡¯t want to be a poor sport about it. So he was always careful to make Coum feel included; hence the bit. Too bad that it had backfired. ¡°So what¡¯d you want to talk about?¡± ¡°Do you remember the prophecy I intercepted and gave Tanya?¡± Delas nodded. ¡°Yes.¡± Coum might not be the most powerful mage out there but he had some strange talents. He claimed to be able to see the power of ¡®Fate¡¯ around a person. And at times, he said he could tell when the gods were moving. As a rule, [Players] couldn¡¯t be priests or priestesses in this world. Atleast, none that Delas knew of anyways. But Nathan often commented that if anyone could have been one, it would have been Coum. And Coum lately had been ¡®sifting through the weave of fate¡¯ to find all mention of Arrosh Bloodedge. ¡°And thanks to you warning Tanya, she chased them off. Remember? Lock? His party? Cheoma Core? Big giant Carnivorous Worm?¡± Coum didn¡¯t even blink. ¡°Prophecies are absolute in this world.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The Prophecy was that ¡®A party of adventurers will enter the den of thieves.¡¯¡± ¡°Pretty short for a prophecy.¡± Delas grumbled. ¡°My skills are not perfect, the whole prophecy is longer. It will take time that we do not have for me to-¡± ¡°I get it, I get it. So what about the ¡®prophecies are absolute¡¯ part did you want to talk about?¡± ¡°If Lock Slaveborn¡¯s party failed to enter the Scavenger Clan¡¯s base, which we are assuming is the ¡®den of thieves¡¯, then Lock Slaveborn¡¯s party was not the one referred to in the prophecy.¡± Delas frowned. ¡°What are you trying to say, man?¡± ¡°Tanya has lost contact with the guards posted outside. She found out quarter of an hour ago.¡± ¡°Those Scavs go off on their own all the time. Probably out drinking. I have no idea why she insists on staying Clan Head of this-¡± ¡°Tanya has gone to search for them.¡± Delas¡¯ mouth opened for a quick quip then stopped. ¡°She did?¡± ¡°Yes. She told me not to tell you, but I fear that the prophecy is already being fulfilled as we speak.¡± Delas brought out a dagger and began to flip it, catching the sheath then the handle. ¡°Fifteen minutes ago. Could be nothing¡­ but you wouldn¡¯t come to me if you thought it was nothing.¡± Delas leaned back on Tanya¡¯s desk, studying Coum. Coum did nothing except breath. Delas abruptly stood up straight than began to undress, taking off all his leather armor and even stowing the daggers in his Dimension Ring until he only wore his undergarments and a belt for weapons. Then he brought out a mask ¨Cmore of a mask-helm¨C in the shape of a horse¡¯s neck and face. He quickly put it on, seeing through two small holes embedded in the ¡®neck¡¯. Instead of his usual daggers, he brought out two scimitars; strapping them to the belt. ¡°What?¡± Delas shrugged. ¡°Unlike Tanya, I¡¯m still an active adventurer. I can¡¯t be seen in this dump. If there really is a party in here and something¡¯s up, I have to keep my identity hidden.¡± ¡°I did not say anything.¡± ¡°I know but your eyes were-, you know what? Never mind.¡± Delas gestured at the door. ¡°You coming with?¡± ¡°No.¡± Delas waited for an explanation. He might as well have waited for himself to be miraculously sent back home. Well, without Tanya it wouldn¡¯t mean much though. ¡°Bah, fine. I¡¯ll go look for her. Probably isn¡¯t anything though¡­¡±
The first thing I did was take everything that was useful in the other Dimension Rings and transfer them to my own. Finally, I stuffed said rings into a small pouch and tied them to my waist. I began to head up. I kept myself hidden but not for the same reasons as before. Before, I wanted to be unnoticed so that I could leave without getting myself entangled in trouble. It was different now. I stalked in the shadows, eyes searching for the faintest light or slightest whisper. I had been so nervous before because I was afraid of being hunted. I wasn¡¯t afraid anymore. Complicated as the tunnel layouts were, the silver lining was that only a few of them sloped upwards. I followed those few paths, making sure to leave a small cut so I could tell where I was. Slowly but surely, I built out a mental map of the place only to realize it was much, much larger than I could¡¯ve imagined. I walked and marked, walked some more and rested; reserving my strength for whatever may happen. I avoided groups; not confident that I could silence them fast enough. I was confident in my strength but I wasn¡¯t a fool; I wasn¡¯t at the level where I could kill a man fast enough to keep his partner from calling out for help. All the Scavengers I saw traveled in groups of two; patrol units. So I stuck to the shadows, looking for the perfect timing. I was glad I did. ¡°Gotta take a leak.¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°Idiot, obviously it¡¯s not just a leak. I gotta take a shit, you stupid dwarf. Do they not teach you manners in those dirt tubs you dwarves crawl out of? By the flame you¡¯re fucking crass.¡± The dwarf punched the human on the shoulder. ¡°Git, you miserable son of a bitch!¡± Laughing wickedly, the man walked away from his dwarven partner, finding a nice secluded spot. He was still laughing and shaking his head as he lowered his pants. Thank the gods, he wasn¡¯t squatting down for a number two. I waited until there was the sound of liquid hitting rock. Emerging from my hiding place, I sidled up right behind him and grabbed the back of his neck. I spoke quickly and quietly, already having rehearsed what I was going to say before even walking up to him. ¡°Do not turn around. Do not call for help.¡± I whispered in his ear, careful not to let my voice carry. ¡°And If you even so much as make a peep without my permission, I¡¯ll make sure you never know the embrace of a woman ever again.¡± He froze, which was expected. After all, I had a dagger resting on top of his genitals.
Chapter 97: Choices (3)
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¡°Nod if you understand me.¡± He nodded. ¡°Good.¡± I had to make this quick. "There¡¯s a blind orc being held prisoner here. How can I get to him?¡± ¡°Above.¡± The man answered. ¡°At the uppermost floors; w-where the Clan Head is.¡± Shit. So if I was unlucky, I¡¯d come face to face with this ¡®Tanya¡¯ person. ¡°Tell me the quickest route to get up there.¡± ¡°T-There is no direct route. T-This entire place was built like a maze.¡± I pressed down on the dagger, drawing a bit of blood. [Artisan of Battle] activated regardless of what I wanted, his nether regions covered in thick oily ink. He spoke quicker. Much quicker. ¡°Please! I don¡¯t know! Please! They never told me anything!¡± The fact that he was freaking out this much even after I was threatening to wipe out his future offsprings probably meant he was telling the truth. I nodded curtly, though he couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°Start counting to one hundred.¡± ¡°One¡­ Two¡­ Three¡­ Four¡­¡± I saw this scene in a movie once. Satisfied that he wouldn¡¯t give chase, I turned around to leave. And the shield slammed straight into my face. I had underestimated these guys. In my head, they¡¯d been these third-rate villains from a kid¡¯s cartoon show, obviously the bad guys and lucky to share a brain cell between all of them combined. Just because they hadn¡¯t been successful with the Cheonma hunt, somewhere in the back of my mind, I had labeled them with words like ¡®weak¡¯ and ¡®useless¡¯. Except they weren¡¯t. These guys might not be the best at hunting monsters but that was because their talents elsewhere; I.E hunting other adventurers. An entire clan centered around banditry, tricks and running cons. Cartoons had a way of making us misinterpret the bad guys. For example, imagine a cartoon devil running around with pointy horns and a cute little pitchfork. Adorable. But watch a horror movie and you¡¯ll realize that demons don¡¯t even need to show themselves to scare us. It was all in the presentation. The Scavs had made me underestimate them and I¡¯d fallen for it. In the end, these guys were professional killers. They had their hands in all sorts of illegal things that in the real world, we would associate with places like the Cartel, Mafia, Gangs and Terrorists. Trafficking, Rape, Drugs¡­ and those things are real. We often ignore the reality of such things because it¡¯s uncomfortable that the rules of society, which keeps us acting civil and nice, can be broken so easily. The Scavengers were a Clan of thugs and criminals that lived outside the law; I should''ve known they¡¯d be experienced in situations like this. But I had also cut my teeth on survival by being a slave. I wasn¡¯t going to be out-done at suckerpunching just yet. I rolled with the blow, avoiding an outright concussion. In a flash, my Lunar Shield was in my hand and I immediately bent my legs and ducked low; spinning in a neat circle. Grayish aura flickered to life on my crescent-moon-shaped shield and it sliced through the dwarf¡¯s knee and the back of the man¡¯s knees. And considering that this was my second hit on the man¡­ He screamed as the ink turned to sharp points, cutting into his nether regions. I winced as I heard something plop behind me. But there was no time to dawdle. He¡¯d screamed which meant that every other scavenger in the near vicinity would come running. How long would that take? Five minutes? ¡®Remember that these guys aren¡¯t olympian sprinters. They¡¯re more than that, they¡¯re adventurers doped out on Cores that makes them the next best thing to superheroes.¡¯ Thirty seconds, a minute if I was lucky. I didn¡¯t bother finishing off the man behind me. Time was precious and he was definitely out of the fight; and I somehow doubted whether he¡¯d continue his adventuring days after this experience. The dwarf on the other hand, was still on me. He advanced on me with an overhead strike, his warhammer glittering with light. My falchion screeched as I slapped the head of the hammer away, stepping off to the side for good measure. But I¡¯d made a poor choice in my impatience, stepping towards his shield-arm. He took the opportunity to barrel into me with his shield; using the Dwarven Racial Trait, [Transmutation]. Specifically, he used the first stage: [Gigantification]. The dwarf before me swelled in size, not just in height but width as well. Most dwarves were a little over four feet tall, reaching almost five feet if they were particularly tall for their race. This dwarf in front of me wasn¡¯t the particularly tall type, though he had inherited the stockiness of everyone else. [Gigantification] nearly tripled his size, so that he was thirteen feet tall but still built like a brickhouse. And as Einstein once said, Mass times Acceleration equals Force. He had a lot of Mass. When he slammed into me, it was all power and physics. I could¡¯ve put up the best defensive stance, tried to skip away with all my speed. But as the shield approached me at breakneck speed, I knew that none of those things would work. The shield slammed into me with the force of a minivan and I felt the world shift, my brain unable to comprehend the transition from standing to airborne due to the shock of the charge. My shield hadn¡¯t done shit to lessen the blow. I groaned, trying to remember why I had been in such a hurry to get away. The floor shook and I looked up, seeing the thirteen foot tall Dwarven Shielder trying to smash my head in with his warhammer which looked like a toothpick in his arms. ? Lock Slaveborn casts [King¡¯s Guard] ? My shield snapped above me, seemingly by telekinesis. Thank god that he hadn¡¯t learned [Arms Race] yet, the second part of [Transmutation]. If he had, his warhammer and equipment would have grown in size with him. As it was, he couldn¡¯t transfer his weight to the warhammer too well, it was just too small in comparison. He would have had better luck using his fist. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. So my shield held. During his growth, he had stripped off his armor with a single flick of a switch built into the shoulder and waist. Most dwarves had specially made armor that could be stripped off just for this purpose; until they could use [Arms Race]. So right now, as big as he was, the dwarf was virtually naked. Using Aura, I slashed in front of me, taking his ankle off at the heels. ¡°AAAAAGGGHHHH!¡± The dwarf roared, his voice rumbling like a rockslide. It echoed and echoed down the tunnels, if someone hadn¡¯t heard the mutilated man¡¯s scream before, someone definitely heard this. I leapt to my feet, shaking off the grogginess with growing panic. As I stood, I lunged forward with a simple stab towards the stumbling dwarf, scoring a neat cut across his thighs. He screamed again as black ink around his ankles drilled into him. There was a split second where I was torn between finishing off the dwarf or running down the hall as fast as my legs could carry me. ¡°Over here! This way!¡± Those voices forced me into a decision. ? Lock Slaveborn casts [Hateful Wound] ? Turning to run, I heard the two men scream once more. I sped down the tunnels. ¡®Down¡¯ being a deceptive word, I was running uphill. I might have been pumped full of adrenaline from the battle that didn¡¯t mean my thighs and hamstrings enjoyed sprinting uphill. Still, there would be no stopping. I was going to leave this place with Arrosh, no matter what stood in my way. I tightened my grip on the falchion, running into a small room. There were more Scavengers here, some of them playing cards, some drinking and others just seemingly having a good time. I felt the weight of their attention as half a dozens stares snapped towards me. Once again, the Scavengers proved my initial impression of them wrong. Not a single one of them hesitated before leaping out of their chairs and drawing their weapons. The key word being ¡®leaped¡¯. Newton¡¯s law of motion took over when I used [High Tide] as soon as they were airborne. They slammed into the walls, landing in a tangle of limbs, table, food, beer and only god knows what else. They cursed and spat, trying to get up. But I had never stopped moving and sped past them while they struggled. Their curses faded into silence as I entered another pathway, heading upwards. I was breathing hard now and each step was another effort. Still, if the angry yelling coming from the tunnels behind me were any indication, I couldn¡¯t afford to stop. The place was a beehive and was literally swarming with the Scavengers. Whenever I tried to take a turn or find an abandoned room to rest, I encountered more of them. I was forced to dip into my Dimension Ring, using the items that I had looted. Smoke bombs, Flash Bangs and one time a large curtain that blocked their vision just long enough for me to pass by. I was forced to drink a health potion on the fly, slowing for a bit as the pain of my ribs being mended made it hard to breath. Eventually, I realized that the only sound I heard was my own breathing and footsteps. As I gathered myself, I looked around me. I thought that running upwards would lead to better construction. Actual walls, flat flooring and decor. But I was wrong, this section was the same as below. It was the same tunnel walls, except a bit larger. Maybe big enough to be considered a hotel lobby. As I wheezed, I checked what was left in my Dimension Ring; running through my mental list and crossing things off. The number of Scavengers I had outrun wasn¡¯t small and the lack of items showed. I had over a dozen encounters and each time, dipped into the dwindling supply of items to make my mistake. As a result, I was relatively in good condition. I took in one final breath and looked at the wall on the other end, which I¡¯d been purposefully avoiding. A single door, built into the walls of the rock itself. And standing in front of it, a [Player]. There was no way he wasn¡¯t a [Player]. He wore a loincloth and little else, the exact spitting copy of a gamer who got famous for soloing a difficult boss with only a helmet. The only difference was the helmet in question. The [Player] in front of me didn¡¯t have a helmet resembling a clay pot, instead he was wearing a horse head, the sort of thing that they sell on the internet. There was no way a natural inhabitant of this world would dress like that. He stood there, waiting for me. Then he pushed off of the wall, picking up a scimitar in each hand. I heard tiny little cracks as he tilted his head left and right, the movement made comical by the horse head mask. I heard myself swallow. He took a step towards me. And my world exploded in color, sound and blood as we lunged towards each other. There had been no banter, no exchange of wits. Not a single word had been uttered by either of us, no build up to make each other angry or off-balance. This would be a battle of wits, swordplay and Cores; no outside factors to change the tides of battle. It was him versus me and I brought everything I had to bare. It nearly wasn¡¯t enough. I immediately cast [King¡¯s Guard] and followed it up with [Share the Load]. He hesitated as the manacle flew towards him. An adventurer might try and dodge it but as a [Player], he must¡¯ve already known that it was unavoidable. He bobbed up and down, pretending to be surprised and rushed me in a flurry of steel; one hand feinting towards my neck and the other slicing down towards my knee. He leaned more weight into the feint and my Lunar Shield immediately floated down. That told me two things about him. One, that he knew a little bit about my Core abilities. He didn¡¯t bother trying to dodge [Share the Load] and knew enough about [King¡¯s Guard] to trick the ability with a feint. Not only that, he knew how I moved. He knew my patterns, habits and had a rough idea of my swordplay style. Two, he was fast. I almost met him mid rush, the temporary sword trying to meet his scimitar and deflect it. But his arm fucking twisted and stretched like a rubber snake, avoiding my parry entirely and left a long gash along the top of my thigh. I hissed, more in surprise than pain, and countered with a two-handed strike. He was already gone, dancing away to my left and then doing that strange bobbing and weaving again. He was in the corner of my vision then disappeared. If my Lunar Shield didn¡¯t automatically block his scimitars, he would have taken my legs off at the knee. He was bent low to the ground, almost parallel to it. I panicked, trying to gain distance and he pressed the charge. Each time his scimitar flashed, my shield blocked it in a spray of sparks. But his off-hand was never still, constantly testing my defenses and succeeding in leaving small nicks and cuts. I tried to fend him off with futility. I was too used to having the shield in my off-arm and not nearly as skilled in defense with the blade. He pressed his advantage with brutal efficiency, the slow death of a thousand cuts. I leaned to one side, purposefully showing an opening but he didn¡¯t dart in. Instead he kicked me in the knee, forcing me to return to my stance. He was patient, only taking noncommittal strikes and leaving me riddled with cuts no bigger than a paper cut. And I still hadn¡¯t touched him. I don¡¯t know why but that fact made me angrier than anything else he could have done. He had been silent, waiting for me. He was obviously a [Player] who was involved with Arrosh¡¯s capture and imprisonment. Yet, the fact that a [Player], someone who wasn¡¯t born in this world was better than me at swordsmanship touched on an insecurity that ran so deep, that I didn¡¯t even know it existed. Deep inside, I thought I was talented at swordplay. Sure, I had all this knowledge about the game but I had surprised myself at how fast I had improved. I wasn¡¯t a mage, staying behind the safety of of my tanks and nuking my enemies from afar with spells. I was a Knight who could use [Aura]. Not only that, Skaris and Aurora had complimented me on my fighting style more than once. More than that, I was Arrosh Bloodedge¡¯s Disciple. My art was handed down to me from Nearnigh the [Sword Saint] and I had begun to believe that the title would be mine. Quest or not, I had taken that identity and made it a central ideology of who I was. Lock Slaveborn was not just an adventurer, but a swordsman and I had taken pride in that fact. So when this [Player] showed up, prepared for an ambush armed with the knowledge of my Cores and Style, it lit a spark in my heart. A smoldering ember that made me feel hate and rage. And fear. Since when the hell had people started watching me? How long had I been marked as someone to be careful of? ? Lock Slaveborn casts [Tidal Force] ? ¡°Get the fuck over here.¡± I was surprised by the snarl in my voice but took sick pleasure as an invisible hand yanked him towards me. His form flickered, like a lightbulb that was close to going out then simply disappeared, appearing in the same place but having lost all the momentum from [Tidal Force]. [Flicker Step], an ability which allowed the user to ignore the effect of a displacement ability or a single instance of damage. So I threw sand in his face. ¡°Ghh!¡± I saw as some of the sand went through the eye holes in his horse mask and saw the light behind them go out. The man had closed his eyes only for a split second. But that was enough for me, I pushed through as he thrust out with his swords ¨Cone high and the other low¨C spinning around them tackling him in the chest with my shoulder. He was shorter than me and smaller than me, the body structure of a speed-based character. I¡¯d put on a lot of muscle while sparring with Skaris. My shoulder tackle knocked the wind out of him and I thought I heard the crunch of bone. Thanks to the [Lunar Shield], buffs had flown into me at once and he definitely hadn¡¯t accounted for the sudden increase in my speed or attack. He recovered faster than I thought, swinging his scimitars in wide arcs to keep me away. I glided in under one swing as my shield blocked the other, slicing him across the top of his knee the way he did to me. [Flicker Step] flowed into me. I''d keep it as long as I could, to prevent him from using it. Not only that but my shoulder tackle earlier had left a ring of black ink on his chest. The ink mark painted itself into thorny branches and his chest began to bleed. Squeezing my fist, I cast [Hateful Wound]. I had to give him credit, he didn¡¯t even grunt as the holes on his chest opened up to the size of my fingers. He simply rode through the pain, leaping backwards in a surprising feat of agility and athleticism. He bounded nearly ten feet in the air, landing more than twenty paces away from me. I saw the eyes behind the mask blink rapidly, trying to get the sand out of them. Holding the sword in a two handed grip, I returned to my stance. The eyes underneath his horse head helmet narrowed. The stillness of battle stretched on. His eyes shone from under the mask. The bastard was scheming. I had no intention of letting him do that. When he was near enough, I kicked up some pebbles near my feet towards his head but he didn¡¯t even flinch. He knocked them out of the air with the flat edge of his blade. But he had shown me the opening I wanted. I surged forward, [Aura] coming to life, bending low to the ground I thrust upwards and- -stopped right before cutting into his throat. My sword tip was wavering. It wasn¡¯t an active choice, it was something else entirely. Was it a Core ability? A mental blockage? Perhaps some part of me- The horse-headed warrior flew into movement, leading with a flying knee strike which was easily blocked by the shield. I watched as he moved with fluid grace, a languid quality about him as the shock of my hesitation just now turned everything into a slow dreamlike state. He spun past my shield, completely on the inside of my guard and¡­ ¡­plunged his swords into my stomach. The whole exchange had taken less than three seconds. I staggered. He left the swords in my stomach and kicked me away. I felt my back hit the ground. I didn¡¯t even feel pain. I felt nothing. What the hell had I done? No. I could still move. I could still- Something kicked me in the stomach and suddenly, I was struggling to breath, much less think. There was so much red- ¡°Fucking noob.¡± That was the last thing I heard.
Chapter 98: Choices (4)
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When I came to, the first thing I noticed was that it was cold. I was still within the Scavenger¡¯s Base, or someplace like it. There was a quality about the air that made me believe I was surrounded by rock. There was no stinging warmth of sunlight nor the soft winds brushing against my cheek. Slowly, I opened my eyes one at a time and indeed, I was still in the fortress made of stone. This time, I wasn¡¯t in one of those rooms that were part of the passageways with an entryway and exit. This was an enclosed space, only one way out and one way in. A steel door lay about twenty paces away. In the corner, I saw my equipment. Armor. Dimension Ring. Coin Pouch with the Dimension Rings. My visor helmet with the Seeing Crystal embedded into it. Even my [Lunar Shield] and the falchion I had taken on temporarily. There was no guard. If I wanted to, I could just grab my things and get out of here. But I was hanging from the ceilings with my wrists bound together in cold iron. Connected to the manacles was a long chain that continued downwards, binding my ankles together in an identical manacle. I recognized these items, despite having only seen them in item icon boxes before. [Ryker¡¯s Manacles]. My limbs felt weak and there was a slight trembling in my muscles. It wasn¡¯t due to the growing unease; it was the Manacles. They had been made specifically to keep adventurers as prisoners, cutting them off from Cores, Abilities and Mana in general. As long as I had these on, I was no better than a regular human. When I tried, I shivered as the manacle grew tighter and rubbed against my wrist and ankles. They didn¡¯t feel like steel, but some kind of slime-covered flesh. They moved as if alive, shivering in conjunction with me. I began to test the manacle, testing the looseness. But the living contraption allowed no room for error, it adjusted to my movements. Time passed and I became increasingly aware of the pain in my stomach. I chanced a look down, seeing two stab wounds; they were scabbed over. The fuckers had poured just enough healing potion for me to be alive but not to be healed. Another scar to add to the collection. With each passing second, I got scared. There was a quiet disbelief underlying my thoughts, words like ¡®they would never¡¯ and ¡®would they really hurt another fellow player?¡¯ came to mind. And I told myself to wake the fuck up. These guys were killers, pure and simple. There was no doubt about that. Even if they didn¡¯t get their own hands dirty, the Scavengers were proof that these Players were not the sort to enjoy that slice of life action. Call them whatever you want, they were out to hurt me. So why had I hesitated? ¡°Because you¡¯re an idiot, I told myself.¡± I whispered. I couldn¡¯t sort out why I had hesitated and trying to sort through the conflux of emotions to find out why was like finding a needle in a haystack. Was it the way he presented himself? Only a bona fide human from the 21st century could possibly dress in that outfit. Had I some unresolved feelings towards people from my world? I thought I got rid of that with Arione. Maybe it wasn¡¯t a Player thing at all. It could be because I was shocked by the way he had been so willing to put his life on the line. I never had an opponent do that. Yeah, I could chalk it up to inexperience. Or maybe I hadn''t hesitated at all. I shuddered as it got colder, cutting off my thoughts. My limbs were screaming and the stomach ache evolved from a dull ache to a pounding wound that started to send out pulses of anguish in rolling waves. They faded to numbness, my senses dulled by the frigid air in the room. But each fresh movement brought another set of agony. I gritted my teeth, trying to ignore it. Gods, I had fucked this up. I had no one to blame but myself. I snarled in frustration, squirming. It didn¡¯t take long until I stopped. There was nothing more I wanted than to curl up into a ball on the ground; one of the scabs on my stomach had torn open and was bleeding freely. It couldn''t get worse than this. I was wrong. I was there for hours. I must¡¯ve passed out at one point because I was awoken when the door opened. Three people entered. The orange-amber haired dwarf who threw the harpoons at us. She must be the one named ¡®Tanya¡¯, whom the Scavengers referred to as their leader. Horse Mask followed closeby, waving a hand at me in greeting. The third member of their entourage was the most eerie, creepy looking elf I had ever seen; blue-black tentacle tattoos crawling on his head. His eyes were flat and empty. ¡°A dwarf, an elf and a horse walk into a bar.¡± I panted out. The three of them stopped. Tanya smiled, looking back and up at the other two. She nudged the horse mask with her elbow. ¡°Told you he knows. That¡¯s a joke from back home.¡± The horse mask shrugged. When they walked closer, I got a faint whiff of perfume. The three of them were freshly bathed. Even their armor looked squeaky clean. Then as I watched, two Scavengers came into a room, carrying a table, chairs. A third entered when everything was set up and laid out breakfast on the table. Tiny bits of tantalizing sausages with a plate of sunny-side up eggs. There was a clear jar of orange juice and another of milk. A basket of toast sat to the side, sending curls of steam in the empty air. Fat round pancakes sat in the middle, one of which Tanya took and nibbled on with her hands. She walked over and stood right in front of me, just out of reach. ¡°Mmmmm, pancakes. Mmmph! So fucking good! Oh, fluffy. Mmmmmm!¡± She closed her eyes, exaggerating each bite. You know that spazzing out things that girls do when food is good, their eyes widening and sitting up taller? Yeah, she did all that and more. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°I just love Diner food.¡± She muttered, voice low. ¡°Reminds me of home, you know.¡± I stared at her. ¡°What? No witty joke this time? Come on. I know you have something. You must be dying to talk about home.¡± She shrugged. ¡°It was like that for me at first too. Could trust no one except Horse Head over there. We were always the silent ones in our parties, afraid of letting something slip. Isn¡¯t it the same for you?¡± I swallowed as she took another bite of the pancake. Then I bit back a laugh. She frowned, ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± ¡°Really? Isolation? Hunger?¡± I shook my head. ¡°This is some amateur shit. You know I started in this world as a slave, right? If you¡¯re going to torture me, get on with it.¡± Tanya stared and for just a second, I thought I saw surprise on her face. I saw her eye me, scanning the scars. She schooled it pretty quick and beamed up at me. ¡°Wow. Been here less than a year and think you¡¯re hot shit?¡± Then she punched me in the stomach. A quick jab and a straight, the classic one-two. She punched like a girl. And by girl, I mean a dwarf girl with [Physical] stats that practically made her a supernatural being, throwing harpoons better than a certain quarterback could toss footballs. Her punches could crush rock and they slammed into my stomach one after another. She even made those huffing noises like a boxer as she did it, her face acting like she was in a boxing match. I threw up all over myself. Tanya laughed wickedly, dancing out of reach. ¡°Hey, clean this up.¡± One of the Scavengers came over and the contents of my meal, from however long ago, was promptly gone. Finally, the three Scavengers left, leaving me alone with Tanya, Horse Head and the Mage. ¡°Tanya, that was unwise.¡± The Mage said in exactly the same tone one would say ¡®good morning¡¯ if they were a robot. ¡°Meh. He¡¯ll get over it.¡± Then she clapped her hands. ¡°First, breakfast!¡± The three of them sat down and began to eat. Forks clattered against knife and sausages were cut. Horse Head sat with his back to me, lifting the mask to eat and putting it down between each bite. The bastard was careful if anything. They didn¡¯t talk to me. They didn¡¯t look at me. They didn¡¯t acknowledge me. They just sat there in silence, butchers fueling their body for the gruesome work ahead. And I was the cow. Finally, they finished eating, leaving one plate in the center. I saw two sunny-side up eggs, smothered in some kind of gravy. There were home fries on the side, mixed with green pepper and onion. Three tiny links of sausages were still giving off steam and at the corner of the plate was a single piece of toast. A small beacon of hope, blindingly intense, flashed to life. As if on cue, my stomach growled. I stared at the plate and didn¡¯t even notice that it was right in front of me, Tanya holding it up. ¡°You have to eat.¡± She sounded worried. ¡°Just because you can kill monsters doesn¡¯t mean hunger isn¡¯t a thing.¡± I was hungry. I wanted to be let down, to walk and feel my hands again. I almost said yes. And self-loathing and disgust for the weakness within me hammered into my head. I pictured Arrosh given the same treatment as me; my lips curled in anger and spittle flew out as I forced out the word. ¡°No.¡± Then slowly, almost deliberately, I turned my head away from her. ¡°He hates us.¡± The mage muttered. ¡°I can see it.¡± ¡°Shut up, Coum.¡± Tanya shot back. ¡°Lock Slaveborn. You have to eat. You can eat this, no strings attached.¡± I refused to open my eyes. She made a frustrated sound and I heard her walk over to the table. ¡°The food is here. If you change your mind, just let us know at any time.¡± Then she started talking. ¡°You probably know what we are and if you know what we are, then you know that we¡¯re the same as you. Real life people stuck in this world,¡± said Tanya, explaining everything that I already knew, ¡°Long story short, there¡¯s a guild. And we¡¯re all working together to find a way off of this world. We want you to join us.¡± The Horse Head neighed. ¡°So come down, sit. Eat with us. We can introduce ourselves. Not Lock Slaveborn, but with your real name and real self. Tell us where you grew up, what your family was like.¡± I didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Don¡¯t be stubborn,¡± She snapped. ¡°You¡¯re not doing anyone any good by doing this to yourself. You have a family back in the real world, waiting for you. Friends. If we pool our resources together, there¡¯s a way.¡± Memories came and went, unbidden. My dad, embracing me in a hug when I graduated college. My mother, ever the workaholic, never sparing a minute for me but still securing me an internship when I needed. The ex-girlfriend, the coworkers. The first sip of coke, followed by some salty crispy fries and a bite of cheeseburger. Going to the movies even if it was myself and fresh warm beds. It was like Tanya could read my mind. ¡°You could go home.¡± God. That word. Home. I wanted nothing more than to be Home right now. Next to the people I loved. Eating. Smiling. With family. ¡°I have a question.¡± I whispered and turned to look at them. Tanya perked up. ¡°Yeah! Ask away!¡± ¡°...How did Horse Head know that I wasn¡¯t going to kill him?¡± Slowly, Coum and Horse Head turned to look at me. Their mood shifted, from pleasantly tolerating to borderline hate and alarm. Tanya didn¡¯t catch it. ¡°Everyone hesitates the first time when killing a player. It¡¯s inevitable, think about it.¡± Tanya explained, ¡°You finally meet someone who could understand you, who¡¯s from the same world as you. Of course, your subconscious is screaming that they¡¯re a real person.¡± ¡°Tanya, stop.¡± The Horse Head finally spoke, but it came out filtered, warbled somehow. She ignored him. ¡°But it¡¯s more than that. If you¡¯ve killed those NPCs people, you¡¯ll know they feel and act like real people too.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s the same reason that people have petty arguments over politics, whether you¡¯re red or blue. You are American right?¡± The dwarf didn¡¯t wait for an answer. ¡°It¡¯s easy to kill NPCs, mentally I mean. After all, they¡¯re people of a different culture and upbringing. It¡¯s infinitely harder to kill someone who¡¯s gone through the same things as you, who you can understand. The whole point of being a racist or xenophobe is based on the fact that there are people different from you and there are people that understand you.¡± Tanya shook her head, ¡°Never underestimate the power of Empathy. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s hate that causes wars¡­ it¡¯s empathy.¡± She looked somewhat proud. ¡°I was a history and anthropology major.¡± I nodded understanding. What she said struck a chord in me. And my choice was made. ¡°So, want me to-¡± ¡°Tanya, he¡¯s not going to join us.¡± Horse Head muttered. Tanya stopped then for the first time, looked me in the eyes. I mean really looked me in the eyes. My jaws were set and I was looking at her. ¡°...Jesus Christ. You¡¯ve been fucking turned. That look, you look just like that fucking orc-¡± ¡°Tanya, shut up!¡± Horse Head roared. Tanya closed her mouth. ¡°...You have my Master.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not your Master! He¡¯s a fucking video game character! And if that wasn¡¯t bad enough, he¡¯s a stinking orc and-¡± ¡°You sound like a dwarf.¡± Tanya snarled and threw the plate against the wall, splattering food everywhere. ¡°Kids in ethiopia are starving, you know. You shouldn¡¯t waste food like that.¡± She screamed in frustration and marched up to me. ¡°You¡¯re so stupid. You know how many people like you we killed? You think you can make a living here in this world? You think they give a shit about you? Look around! You¡¯re alone!¡± My anger matched her explosion with the steadiness of granite. ¡°Here¡¯s what I think.¡± ¡°I think you know that Arrosh is the [Sword Saint]¡¯s disciple. I think you know that I¡¯m his disciple. I think you three fucking tortured him and he didn¡¯t give you shit.¡± My stomach started bleeding as my voice rose to a roar. ¡°My master stood against your torture so now you try me, thinking I¡¯m fucking weak. You know how I know we¡¯ll never work together? Because you three are fucking cold-blooded murderers. The fact that horse head knows players hesitate when killing others means he¡¯s killed other players, more than enough to know that for a fact.¡± I cackled. ¡°How many did you kill to find that out, Horse Head? Ten? Two dozen? Hundreds? And for what? For the sake of experimenting? For the sake of quests and items?¡± I spat in his direction. ¡°You fucking scum are not worth the stain on my master¡¯s shoes and I sure as hell won¡¯t be abandoning my friends to join your little second-rate Guild of fucking losers.¡± ¡°So you three evil genius fucking stooges can either get on with the torturing or kill me, because I¡¯m not going to open my mouth for shit.¡± There was silence. ¡°There are no friends in this world.¡± Tanya muttered. I looked sharply at her. She took out a health potion, uncorking it and pouring over my wound. It sizzled and I tried my best to muffle the scream, out of spite. ¡°No one¡¯s coming. You¡¯re never going to get home. We¡¯re going to torture you, bit by bit. Thanks to the health potion in this world, it means we can keep you alive for years, though I can¡¯t vouch for what¡¯s left of your mind after.¡± Tanya¡¯s anger had shimmered down to something cold and barren, and the emptiness in her eyes spoke volumes to the things she had done. ¡°Last chance. Tell us everything you know about the [Sword Saint] and [Aura] and we¡¯ll let you live.¡± ¡°Nag, nag nag.¡± I answered, breathing hard. ¡°Blah blah blah.¡± She nodded, curt and businesslike. ¡°I have some business to attend to. Horse Head, come with me. Coum, will you do the honors?¡± Coum nodded. The two left the room. Coum walked over to a table and began to lay out his tools, bringing them forth from his dimension ring. Chains. Wicked curved blades and what looked like a very thin giant fish hook, plus more. Then he took his time choosing one, lifting them up and seeing the gleam on them. He then took the fish hook and walked towards me, taking his time. For all my bravado, I was scared. ¡°Do not worry, I will heat the tool before applying it on you. Prevent infection.¡± Then he waved a hand over the hook and it glowed bright red then white. ¡°This is a tool I made from the stories that our Leader told me. He was a soldier in your world and in his time in the jungle, he told me they used this.¡± It was the way he said it, like reading from a computer manual, that broke me. Involuntary animal noises escaped my mouth, like a frightened rabbit. I tried my best to get my body as far away from him as I could. He bent low towards my feet. ¡°I will start with your feet.¡± Then like everything he did, he squeezed the thin fish hook under my toenail, slowly and deliberately, with purpose. Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. I tried to detach myself from the pain. It was no use. Oh God. I thought of home. It hurt. Someone help me. Home¡­ Family¡­ In the Slums with Skaris and Kyrian. And now, Stole and Aurora too. Please, it hurts so much. Oh God. Arrosh, I¡¯m so sorry. Please¡­ it hurts¡­ Clover¡­ Lety¡­ Please. Oh God, make it stop.
Chapter 99: Skaris Deepeater
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°What are those big spikes on the ground?¡± I ignored Whelp''s question. Too busy looking at Vetilian¡¯s group in the distance. The sun was too bright, hurting my eyes. But I had to look. For information, for the flow of blood-scent. Yes, we were about to enter death-dance with the Worm. A dreaded beast that was more Mother Earth¡¯s anger than monster. I still remembered how it sprouted out of the ground, splitting the earth like mud. Hundreds of years ago, my ancestors would have worshiped it as a god. The sky shook, stopping me with heart-fear. Covered in scale-chitin-armor made of rock and soil; it was a horrid, wretched, glorious foe. And, we would kill it. ¡°Hey, man. I asked you a question.¡± The Whelp¡¯s voice broke my focus. There was a time, long ago, when I would have snapped at her. Whelps such as her in my village did not speak with such¡­ ''ease'' when addressing their betters. But I had to remind myself that she was not one of my own. She was not of the Deepeater Clan. She was not even of Zimmskar, my home-country. She was a wanderer, born in a place far from Zimmskar. A beastman-but-not-a-beastman. Besides, Slaveborn had high hopes for this girl. And I agreed, the whelp was gifted. I could impart knowledge while we waited. The first gift of knowledge, patience. ¡°Be sssstill, Whelp.¡± I saw her roll her eyes but did not punish her for it. And the others think me impatient. Pathetic. After I was satisfied with her silence, I motioned to her to approach. Then I pointed. ¡°What do you sssee, Whelp?¡± ¡°Uhhh, Sis Aurora?¡± Then she quickly added. ¡°And the other shielders of course.¡± I allowed her a grunt of approval. Then I pointed behind us. ¡°Kyrian and the mages.¡± Finally, I pointed to us. ¡°The Bladers. And Marc Pointell.¡± I nodded, satisfied. Then I pointed at Vetilian¡¯s group, ¡°Hook and Bait,¡± then at myself and her, ¡°Line,¡± finally behind us, at the mages who were far off and getting further still, ¡°Reel.¡± The Whelp frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± I fought off a sigh, a habit I picked up from Slaveborn. He praised this Whelp for her observation skills, and touted her as the much needed Scout of our battle-party. But from what I could see, she was just a Whelp. She could not even tell the basics of every hunt, the Bait, Hook, Line and Reel. Then again, it was not the Whelp¡¯s fault. She was born away from our people. ¡°The ssshielders,¡± I explained, then asked. ¡°They are the bait and hook. What issss the purposssse of the bait and hook?¡± ¡°So that the fish bites on it. And the hook is to keep it there.¡± She smiled at me, somewhat smugly. ¡°Duh.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°Yesss. Now replacsseee fissssh with monssster.¡± ¡°Oooohhh, I get it.¡± Her eyes widened with understanding. ¡°Shielders are specialized in interrupting monster movements plus protection. They¡¯ll draw the worm out and then keep it in engagement.¡± These terms, ¡®specialized¡¯, ¡®monster movement¡¯ and ¡®engagement¡¯ bothered me. It is not of our people. So much so that I ended up rolling my eyes. ¡°You sssspeak like Vetilian. Fancsssy words.¡± ¡°Sis Aurora¡¯s been telling me loads of things over the last few days.¡± The sod-begotten Whelp took my reprimand as a compliment. So be it. ¡°Attached to the hook is the line. Tell me itssss purpossse.¡± ¡°By the way, have you ever thought about fixing your accent?¡± I glared at her. ¡°What. Isssss. The Purpossse. Of. The. Line.¡± ¡°To pull.¡± ¡°Not sssimply to pull. It bringssss the monssster where we want it and leavessss it breathlessss The line issss a dancssee, knowing when to pull and when to releassse.¡± ¡°Then what about the reel?¡± Usually, a Whelp should wait until spoken to. But she not only asked the first question but interrupted my teachings. But as the older, far more experienced hunter-fighter, I decided to let it slide. For I was a patient mentor and at times, it was best to let Whelps seize the first move. ¡°The reel decsssidesss the direction; choosing where to wage battle. Placsses unseen. Placsses with advantage. Plasscess familiar. It decsssides the ssstrength and tempo of the war.¡± ¡°Mages. Controlling the battlefield with their spells, turning the tides. The wildcards of the party.¡± She muttered. ¡°...Vetillian?¡± ¡°No.¡± She answered with a smug grin. ¡°It was actually Mister.¡± I did not deign to comment. For her statement brought another worry. I did not know where Slveborn was. But I did know this. Without him, this party would break. The people here had gathered because of Slaveborn. Not because of each other. Perhaps Tricilan and I will travel together. But the Whelp and Vetilian, especially Vetilian, would go their separate ways. With Slaveborn gone, I had seen Vetilian¡¯s determination waver. She could say what she wants, but I speak truth. I saw it in her eyes. She joined us on this journey because of Slaveborn. Because of his talent; his ability to use [Aura]. His leadership. Decisiveness. His prowess. With him gone, she had no reason to stay. Stolen story; please report. My eyes tracked the shielders, walking along the mouth of the canyon created by the worm-god. They looked like ants from this distance. I looked back. The mages had set up their own position. We probably looked like ants to them. ¡°Skaris?¡± ¡°...What isss it?¡± ¡°This hook, line and reel thing you told me about. Is it general knowledge?¡± ¡°It goesss by many different namesss. But we, the Beast-people, call it Fishing.¡± I did not bother telling her that only those of us who kept the Old Paths alive still called it fishing. ¡°Oh. Our people invented it?¡± I scoffed. ¡°No. We ssstole it from the Humans, back when our ancssestors were sssslaves. Sssslaves ussssed to hunt monsssters and fight for entertainment. It wassss originally their creatssion.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± There was a confused look about her. I understood. Even in the home-country, Whelps did not know the history of our people. Out here, in the Free States, even less so. Only those who kept the Old Paths alive still cared to repeat the story of our people. My family included. My village had been full of people whose ways were ancient, even older than the swamp surrounding us. Our traditions were like steel. Unbending. Unbroken. Eternal. Even if we had to stain it with blood. The sun rose to its peak. This place was turning into a Fire-Basin. With my chosen Path, I was fine. But the Whelp next to me fretted and squirmed, wiping the sweat out of her eyes. I saw others doing the same. I could only imagine what Vetilian and the other shielders must feel like. Their usual cold iron must be burning with the Sun. Yet, they had to keep moving. As the bait, they had to fulfill their duty of bringing the worm out of hiding. ¡°It¡¯s so hot.¡± Seeing the Whelp reminded me of my brothers back home. They should be undergoing their trials by now. Going out on their own in search of their own journey. Some would return to the Swamp after a day, the others after months. As for me¡­ My own Journey was still going. Only after my Journey was complete could I become a Swamp-walker. As the Humans had their Knights, the Dwarves their Hammers, the Orcs their Berserkers and the Elves their Sicari, my people had the Walkers. Those who set themselves on the [Evolution] path. Spending hard earned coin and hunting exotic monsters for their body parts; all to trade it in to grow as a Warrior. In my village, we called them Swamp-Walkers, to signify that the Swamp, our home, was a part of our path. One day, I¡¯d return back home and take the title of Swamp-Walker. But enough of that. I had to remain in the present. I brought my spear to my knees, taking my whetstone. I would sharpen my steel while waiting. ¡°You already sharpened your spear?¡± ¡°Then it will be sharper when we battle with the worm.¡± I saw her mouth open to argue but it never came. ¡°Sign!¡± Screamed out the man. He had a small orb in his hand and was listening to it, in charge of relaying messages with the shielders. Abruptly the mood changed. I sensed the shift among the other three bladers. It went from faint annoyance and patient waiting to tense, fever-rapid, heart-beating bloodlust. Even my heart began to rage out, thrumming in rhythm with the others. The hunt was on and my blood raced, eager to be spilt. Humans and orcs they be, but they were like me. Ready to fight. The Whelp didn¡¯t. She reeked of fear and nervousness. And neither did the scentless spirit-using-necromancer, Pointell. I could not sense anything off of him. ¡°Sign!¡± A second warning. The ground began to shake. Cups fell down. Men caught their balance. ¡°Sign!¡± I stood up, my spear-grip hard. ¡°Whelp, can you ssensse it?¡± She nodded. She was hiding her fear and nervousness from her face. Good. ¡°It¡¯s fast. How do we know they¡¯ll go to the shielders and not beneath our feet?¡± ¡°One of the ssshieldersss musssst be able to attract monsssssterss.¡± Stiff shoulder. I rolled it. Loose shoulders. ¡°How clossse?¡± ¡°Very close!¡± ¡°SIGN!!!¡± The man¡¯s cry rang like a bell. The Whelp¡¯s eyes was wide. I¡¯d seen the look before. On my younger brothers, on their first hunt. It was the look of uncertainty. Fear of the unknown. That the first step you take might be the last. This monster was big. Bigger than any she had faced. I knew what she was thinking. Asking questions. Wondering why she was here. Why she should not turn back and run. And by all rights, I would not blame her if she did. ¡°If you lossse sssight of yourssself during the hunt, flee towards Tricsssilan.¡± ¡°W-What?¡± She would understand. Besides, I had no time to elaborate. The god-mountain-worm was here. ¡°Spotted! Over there! With the Shielders!¡± The messenger remained faithful to his duty. It burst out of the ground, blotting out the sky and sun. Even from a distance, I could feel the rumble of its throat-roar. Its sheer size and strength stirred long-lost feelings, of facing an insurmountable task. Like looking at a mountain too tall to climb, a peak hidden behind clouds. Boulders fell like rain and men screamed, the ones near me. I kept my eyes on the shielders who stood right beneath the worm and prayed to my ancestors for their success. In the shadow of the great-worm-creature, the shielders shrugged off boulder sizes of carts. They used their shield with skill. None tried to block the boulders head on. It would be death. They slipped it instead, like a skilled warrior. But the worm-mountain had not even begun yet. I saw it fix its no-eyes on a more tasty prize. The Mages. Beast-people cannot become mages. The magic is not in our blood and if it were, my country would not be. For monsters are drawn to the magic, like crows to a battlefield. Monsters roam every inch of my country. If we had Mages amongst us, our cities could never have been built after winning our freedom from the Humans. We call these Mages ¨Cboth human and elven¨C Freaks. Freaks of nature, for the World¡¯s blot-stain, the monsters, will always be drawn to them. They tell us stories as children, how monsters are servants of Mother Nature and have been tasked with killing all Freaks. Not true¡­ but¡­ Folktales teach a valuable lesson. Do not be near a Mage when Monsters are near. I saw the worm-dragon fall. Another earthquake. Then it began to slither towards us, towards the mages behind us. But Pointell was no fool. Slaveborn and Tricilan made an ally of him for a reason. ¡°Leashing!¡± The shielders summoned weapons from their rings. Colossal hooks, twice the size of a large man. I saw them up-close when he gave them. Hooked and barbed; coated with poison and enchanted by the Freaks. They were attached to giant chains. The shielders spun them, throwing them onto the monster. The hooks caught easily; for the monster was one giant target. Only a fool would miss. But there were precious few chains. To the worm, they were nothing more than thin strings. Then the shielders summoned more hooks. They threw them again, tying the chains around the giant spikes that the Whelp was curious about. Then again. And again. And again. Then the mages got to work. ? Kyrian Tricilan casts [Electric Web] ? ? Kait Turante casts [Slow] ? ? Ymir Ghard casts [Minimize] ? ¡­ Lightning flashed. Fire came to life and the earth rumbled. The Freak Arts of the humans and elves both lighted up the clear sky ¨Cpainfully bright-white. At first, I saw no difference. But I knew better than to dismiss the might of the Freaks. They were powerful and results would show. Steadily, like a stream of water beating down on a rock. Bits of the worm''s armor began to be worn down. Chipped and broken; large plates of chitin falling down. Deceptively slow, like an avalanche or iceberg. A warship crashing onto the rocks, straining to move. The great worm stopped cold. Then it began to shiver. From the gaps of its armor slithered out hundreds and hundreds of insect monster. I thought my eyes were speaking lies. Black-slithering-squirming-leg-things squeezed out of every gap. Every crevice of the worm was a home for its whelps. Like a tide of the ocean, they broke through. Leaping through the air like arms and legs of the worm-god; hundreds upon hundreds of them marched, an endless tide. ¡°Guild Master! The mages! They¡¯re heading for the mages!¡± One warrior cried out. ¡°We should help.¡± Another offered. The few of the mages had detached from the main group. They threw spell after spell into the incoming monster wave. They killed them in droves. But it was no use. Too many of them came. A battle of attrition was not what the Freaks wanted. The Mages were powerful in their own way. But fragile. Brittle bones and even softer flesh. Easy pickings for the insects. But we were the bladers. What the mages could not finish, we would have to kill. Soon, the mages would run out of use. We could not strain ourselves. Too many spells. Too little Mana. They would not be useful any longer. What would Slaveborn do in this battle? I already knew what Slaveborn would have done. I looked to see what Pointell would do, doubtful of the existence of so-called human compassion. His face was unreadable. Never trust a man who does not lead from the front. Slaveborn would not have made this mistake. He would always leave the weak flesh of mages protected. And if he didn¡¯t¡­ And Tricilan, one of our own was there. A Freak, yet a friend. A human, but a brother. That was reason enough for my decision. ¡°I ssshall go.¡± ¡°Skaris.¡± The Whelp hissed in warning. I saw the others look upon me. Some with shock. Some with admiration. It mattered not. The necromancer gave me a sharp nod. Of course, I gave him the easy out. Sacrifice me and save the mages. Cold. Calculating. The definition of a Human War Leader. As it should be. ¡°Turak, Moirut. Go with him.¡± He said. But I did not wait for the others. My feet already pounded against the dry soil. Reaching deep within my Soul-Heart I called upon the spirit of this world¡¯s darkness. The darkness that we, the people of this world, hated. Yet to kill these abominations, we have to take in these spirits. A necessary evil, a duty of a warrior. They roared. The [Bool Dokkaebi]. The [Inmyunho]. The [Ifreet]. They pounded their chest and jumped up and down. Fire came to life. Hot, getting hotter, searing and turning blue, enough to make me, its wielder, feel the danger of being too close to the primordial element. Two hundred paces. I summoned my clone, myself but not myself, my form but not my form, the [Inmyunho] but not the [Inmhyunho]. Seven feet tall. Lanky. Eyes sharp and bits of red scales; a trait among my family. The spitting image of my father and his fathers before him. Hundred fifty paces. The monsters saw me but they did not veer. Driven into a mad frenzy by the concentration of mana. The air hummed with the power of the Freaks, the longtime enemy of my people. But now, I ran to protect them. Hundred paces. Why did I fight? A useless question that needed no answer. Less than fifty paces. The insects screeched as I bore into them, my spear alight with flame. I calmed my heart ¨Cslowing my breathing and slowing the heart-rhythm. My spear whipped out, flames licking across an insect leg. It toppled to the side and I stabbed it in the face. It thrashed, green liquid vaporizing into gas and I stumbled back. No doubt, each insect carried poison-acid-blood. I could not stay near for too long. My spear rose over my head. Streng surged through my legs and I felt myself leap. Higher than before; my spear blazing bright-blue with the force of a thousand suns. I landed among their midst. ? Skaris Deepeater casts [Blooming Conflagration] ? I slammed the spear and gave birth to blue-flames all around me. It burnt away the insects. It burnt away their life-blood and strange limbs. It even burned away their fading screams. A perfect ring of battle, where I shall bleed and they shall burn. Nothing remained. Purified. They chittered, raising their fangs and claws in anger. Poison dripped. Gas expelled. A year ago, I would never have dreamed I would become so powerful. Yet. Slaveborn was faster than this. Better than this. More brutal. More efficient. Just better. Slaveborn did not care about appearances, only what worked. For him, for us who were slaves, Victory meant Survival. He was the embodiment of my people, even more than my people. For they had lost their way long ago. He made me curious about where his path led. He was someone who made me want to follow. To watch where he went. But¡­ Slaveborn was gone. Without him this party would dissolve to nothing. I had a good enough journey. I should return home. Greet my younger brothers. Greet the Great Mother. Become a Swamp-Walker. Teach. Find a Mate. Guide my offspring. Tell them my stories. Protect the village. If he was dead, I could go home again. Become a swamp-walker and spend the rest of my day in peace. It¡¯d be peaceful. I hoped he was alive. ¡°Sssshhhhaaa! Come at me, Inssssects!¡±
Chapter 100: Aurora Candrian Vetilian
World: MSS - Loading...
Rocks fell like rain and I wrestled with death. My mother always used to tell me I had no talent for sewing. The Light, Fire and Shield bless her soul. If only she could see me now. She would laugh and say that I still had no talent for sewing. Instead of weaving through the falling rocks like a needle, I raised my shield above my head and ran through the field. Oh, please excuse me. It seems I left out some background information. That is my fault. Right now, I was running through a field of falling rocks, trying my best not to get knocked out while wielding colossal weapons of magical nature trying to ensnare a Grade-4 Beast, boss-class. Oh, did I mention that this beast started birthing hundreds of insects that poured over the battlefield? And that the mother-insect itself was the size of a large town? I believe that the explanation should suffice. You might be wondering how I¡¯m managing to stay so calm. Rest assured, I am quite panicked. Scared, even. But those emotional responses would do no one any good, least of all, me. We, the Vetilius, never wavered; we were the shield of the empire. We all heard it while growing up. I made another mistake. I¡¯m not a Vetilius. I¡¯m a Vetilian. A bastard child. I guess it doesn¡¯t apply to me. How silly of me. No one appreciates my humor these days. I sprinted through the falling rocks which were now the size of small houses. People underestimate how hard it is to sprint in heavy armor. ¡°Left side! LEFT SIDE!¡± A grizzled veteran adventurer, also a shielder like me, screamed orders and we all moved to obey. Right now was not the time to split sides (oh dear, another sewing joke), we had to act as one. My training kicked in and I grouped with the other Shielders, all eight of them. Luckily, most of them were Turinans, meaning that they knew the basic shield maneuvers. As one, we raised our shield towards the left side and braced ourselves. KAAAAAAAANG The rock fell like a meteor but crumbled against our unified shield. There was a surge of satisfaction, of being part of a team and pulling off a maneuver. But it wasn¡¯t without cost. ¡°Shit! Karin is down!¡± ¡°Pour a healing potion on her! Quick! The rest of you! Hooks! Hooks!¡± I did not know this Karin woman, but she seemed nice enough. I hoped she would survive. Taking out another Colossal Hook from my Dimension Ring, I whirled it over my head. Just in time, the Worm was beginning to tire and less movement meant less rocks. I heaved and pulled; the sound of chain cutting wind making a deep long-winded whoosh with every spin. My arm burned but most of all, my leg and hips. ¡°THROW!¡± I threw the Hook with all my might but didn¡¯t pause to admire my handiwork. The battlefield was moving, constantly changing. Once the hook left my hands, there was no need to see. I didn¡¯t have the skills, techniques nor training necessary to change an object mid-trajectory. I simply had to trust in what Mr. Pointell gave to us. Besides, it had been working so far. The chain became taut. The hook had caught. As one, we moved towards the black spikes we had set up on the ground. Pulling with all our might, we wrapped the chains around it with plenty of slack. Six new hooks were embedded in the creature''s scales. ¡°Shit! It¡¯s moving again! Go, go, go!¡± I didn¡¯t hesitate in obeying. In the battlefield, each advice was worth lending an ear to. And the veteran was proving to be an effective commander in this situation. No sooner than he finished the command then the earth rumbled. I stomped, hard, digging my armored foot into the ground and using it as a spike to keep my balance. Some of the other shielders were not so lucky. They fell down. A dozen insects skittered out from above, landing with absolute silence amongst us. A chill went down my spine. Wordplay has never been my strong suit. I actually tend to drive people away when I talk too much. I think it might be because I spent too many years of my youth in the Vetilius Training Compound. Military Drills and Training had taken up most of my life. A lot of people laughed at me for this particular speech and I did not mind it. What I did mind however was that once people found out who I was, or more specifically, what my heritage was, they started treating me differently. This time was no different. Three of the shielders nearest to me formed up next to me and I knew why. To use me. You see, even if I was a bastard I was still a child of the Vetilius Bloodline. Plus, the training I received was evident. I also had to factor in the years I spent here in the Jayu States, building up my reputation as an adventurer. I apologize if this comes off as bragging, but the truth of the matter is, I have a reputation as a competent warrior. A seasoned adventurer who could hold her own in the heat of battle. So when these shielders formed up near me, I could only suspect them of doing so because they hoped that being near me would increase their chances of survival. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Perhaps one might accuse me of being a cynic. But if you lived a life like mine, I hardly think one could blame me. Besides, my conjectures were not based on unobservable traits like emotions. It was their body language, the way they held themselves. For us human adventurers who had all gone through training at one time or another, our stance is as uniform as our race yet uniquely personal as our personality. You can tell a lot of things from a human¡¯s stance, especially if they are from Turina. The tilt of their shoulders. The direction of their gaze. The way their feet were pointed towards me, not away from me. Like they were ready to run towards me, under my shield. Yes. They were not protecting me. They wanted to be protected by me. I could not blame them. No one wanted to die. Besides, I was used to being utilized for the good of others. Us bastards are expendable and Father made sure we knew it. The whole house made sure we knew it. We lived for the Empire and died for the Family. However, it does make me sad when everyone else thinks they can treat us the same. My shield slammed into an oncoming insect monster and green ichor flew everywhere. I just knew this would be a pain to wash it out of my hair later, though I would never ever admit that. The shielder next to me lunged half a step too far, exposing his neck for a Grade-8 monster, [Red Praying Mantis]. Before I could even think about the consequences, my lance thrust out and parried the creature¡¯s claw. This was the result of my training. Whether it¡¯s an adventurer trying to take advantage of you or the next heir of the Vetilius family; my lance and shield reacted the same way. No input. No choice. Just reaction on reflex. The three of us fought tooth and nail. I personally skewered three different insects and received half a dozen small wounds. Half of those wounds were from covering the adventurers. ¡°Move! Move!¡± I looked around. All eight of us were alive. Good. We sprinted once more; two of the members holding giant black spikes. We would have to repeat this a few more times, entangling the worm from multiple locations. The basics of Colossal Monster raids were entrapment. If we could keep the monster from moving, we could minimize the casualties. There was a groan like gravel rumbling. ¡°Oh shit.¡± cursed the veteran. Above, an absolute giant rock-plate fell of the worm. First, all slow and liquid movements ¨Clike how a giant ship begins to pick up speed. Then it snapped like a rubber band that had been stretched too tight and fell apart at the edges from the Gargantuan Death Worm. It fell towards us. ¡°Form up! Form up!¡± ¡°No! Move! Move!¡± I pushed the veteran with my shield and forced him to move. At times like this, the curse of being a Vetilian was a blessing. I¡¯d save more lives. In that short time, I¡¯d estimated the size of the rock and how heavy it would be. The only ability I had in my repertoire that could block such a thing was [Perfect Guard] but that would only save me. If we had formed up as the veteran wanted, we would have all died. A short woman with brunette hair stumbled in front of me. Her shield went flying as she tripped over a rock, splaying forward. Everyone ran past her. Of course, I did not hesitate to grab her by the back of her armor and start running as fast as my legs could move. Yes. I fully recognize and admit to the fact that I am not entirely happy with the way people see me as a tool to preserve their own lives. However, that is no reason to let another human being die. Regardless of my feelings, all lives matter. She had no choice in the matter in tripping over the rock. Some would argue she did. Well, she had as much a choice in it as I had a choice in being a Vetilian. ¡°AAAAHHHHHHHHH!¡± The woman screamed as I dragged her. Whether in frustration or fear, I didn¡¯t care. The ground became dark with the boulder¡¯s shadow. I threw her in front of me and dove into a slide, using the smooth front of my armor to try and escape the ensuing dust-storm. Of course, except for the veteran, none of the adventurers in front of me had thought what to do after dodging the rock. I got to my feet and pivoted ¨Cthe movement coming as easy to me as walking. Pivot, one of the first foot techniques they taught us shielders; a crucial part of the art of positioning. But this was not the time to reminisce, the veteran already had his shield up. I raised my shield and slammed it onto the floor, squeezing my body tight and channeling mana into it. The rock crashed into the earth with the force of a colossal roar and hurled splintered pieces of stone with enough speed to stab through steel shields. I gritted my teeth and put a knee on the ground, angling my shield upwards to lessen the impact. Another small technique that we learned: never take something head on unless you have to. The rocks whooshed like arrows, except they were the size of my leg and I strained to not be lifted off of my feet. Then the dust came. A sandcloud that covered everything. ¡°Ms. Karin!¡± I snapped. The woman was still behind me and she heard me clearly. She might have lost her weapons but she still had her abilities, one of which she used earlier. ? Karin Dowhaiwa casts [ Personal Dome ] ? Mana, clear as mountain air, formed a perfect dome around us and filtered out the debris storm. Ten paces in each direction. It gave us sight, one of the most important senses for us humans when hunting monsters. Unlike the beastmen, we did not have a good sense of smell or hearing. The last thing we needed was for an insect monster to come attack us from the sand. ¡°Thank you for-¡± ¡°Thank me later, Ms. Karin.¡± We stayed a moment as the air cleared. As soon as the sandcloud cleared the dirt in front of us turned in on itself, opening up into six neat little holes. I observed one spindly leg climb out and then another. They were monsters I was familiar with, having studied up on them during my training. A grade-9 monster, [Giant Ant]. Six of them to be exact. Alone, they posed no particular threat. But they had an ability called [Hive Mind] which increased their ferocity and communication in battle. They climbed towards us. I took a glance back. Most of the shielders were down, the only person who was running towards me was the Veteran and one other. ¡°Ms. Karin. It might be best if you go and help the injured.¡± I said, as politely as possible. I needn¡¯t have bothered because the moment she saw the injured, she had already turned her back on me. Like I said, just using me. I took the age-old pain and loneliness, and walled it off. Emotions had no place on the battlefield. I was supposed to be a shielder, no, a Shield. A Shield did not have feelings, a shield did not have an opinion. The shield simply defended its owner from danger, wherever it was pointed. The Shield did not fear being broken, pierced or being discarded. The Shield did not fear pain. Right now, I was not Aurora Candrian Vetilian. I was a Shield. The ants split off, heading for the injured. I stomped my foot, bringing my Lance out of the Dimension Ring. I concentrated, reaching deep inside my Soul for the well of power that was recently forced upon me. The [Cheonma] Core reacted and purple mana surged through my body. I had to hold the Mana as long as I could, holding my breath. ? Aurora Candrian Vetilian casts [ Mass Fetch ] ? A violent storm of gravity pulsed out from me in a perfect semi sphere then grabbed the ants and brought them right to me. The first ant to reach me lost its balance and landed on its back, legs lashing out. It hissed and spat a greenish stream at me. I caught it on my shield and with the same movement, crushed its head. Then shoving another ant with my lance, I leapt backwards. Ah, it seems the word ¡®leapt¡¯ might not convey the exact details of how it happened. I flew back fifteen paces in one leap towards the shielders behind me. Upon experimenting with the [Cheonma] Core, which Mr. Lock was so kind to force upon me without my permission (not that I''m complaining, that would be petty, and I am anything but petty), I found that it had a very useful physical talent attached. Once I used any of my magical abilities, it empowered my leap with strength beyond my own. Hence, the leap backwards took me fifteen paces with hardly any effort. The ants had been confused by my maneuver and we fell upon them. This was just one of the many dangers of our raid. I cannot claim to know how long we were caught between life and death. We fought. We moved. We ensnared. We moved again. Until the horn rang. ¡°That¡¯s the retreat signal!¡± One of the shielders cried out. We finally escaped the mournful shadow of the Great Worm and I chanced a look back, getting a good look at it. It was nearly scorched black, the great hulking worm looking rather naked and cooked. It was half its original size, its physical talent [Earthen Armor], having been stripped off. The worm continued to try and burrow its way back underground but our hooks held. The chains went taut, the enchanted weapons drawing its strength from the creature, like a parasitic weapon. ¡°Good job, Vetilian.¡± The grizzled man whose name I never learned said to me. He was bleeding from his head, his helm missing. His arm was also broken. But he was alive. I frowned. ¡°Where is Ms. Karin?¡± He did not answer me. Just shook his head sharply to one side. ¡°Oh¡­" She was dead, it seemed. Now that I bothered to count, there were only five of us. A pang of hollow pain went through my chest. No matter how good a shield is, someone always dies. And now that I was away from the battle, all the thoughts that had been in my mind, held apart by the mental dam came rushing back, flooding me with regret. If I was a better Shielder, Mr. Lock would not have been taken. When we were being harassed by that Dwarven Woman, it should have been me that had taken most of her blows. Yet, because I was lacking, he had to step in and help me. Mr. Lock was not the type of fighter I was, he shouldn¡¯t have been the one shielding us. Against that dwarven woman¡¯s long-ranged attacks, I should have been the one to cover our retreat. Yet, he did. He risked his life to protect us. I still remembered how he had stepped in front of me. His back filling up my vision and blotting out the blood, violence and drowning out the sounds of war. He had protected me. Why didn¡¯t he use me? I was a Shield. A Shield that cannot defend is useless. I should have been the one to sacrifice myself. Not him. ¡­Then why did I lean behind him when the Dwarven Woman attacked? I stayed behind him. Behind that armored back, I didn¡¯t hesitate to turn around and run towards Mr. Kyrian, Mr. Skaris and Ms. Stole. When that harpoon pierced my shield, I was scared. When Mr. Lock was in front of me, I felt safe. And that wasn¡¯t the first time I felt that way around him. He expected me to protect the others, but in turn, when I was in danger he would protect me. Someone who didn¡¯t hide behind me. Who didn¡¯t want to use me. Who treated me like every other adventurer and following his lead, everyone else treated me the same. Not as a bastard. Not as a Vetilius or Vetilian. Not a Shield to be used and discarded. Just¡­ Aurora. Mr. Lock, I hope you¡¯re alive. Because a shield is useless without something to protect.
Chapter 101: Stolen Stars fall Silently
World: MSS - Loading...
Sis Aurora¡¯s group was retreating while being chased by disgusting little insects. God, I really really fucking hated bugs with a passion. ¡°Fire! Fire! Cover them!¡± The little bald guy who¡¯s been giving out orders while Marc Pointell, the pompous big wig, was just standing there doing nothing was yelling at the top of his lungs. His whole face was turning red and even his head. If he yelled any louder, he¡¯d look like a crunchy grape skewer from Uncle Gallant¡¯s store. He saw me staring at him and did, in fact, turn completely purple and started screaming his head off at me. ¡°WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU JUST STARING AT ME FOR NOOBIE? FIRE! COVER THE SHIELDERS!¡± ¡°Shit!¡± I answered, not at all panicked of course. Since I¡¯m the greatest [Pioneer] to set foot upon this world since Magellen, the first [Pioneer], not to mention blessed with killer looks and style, I graciously forgave him. Turning, I hefted the familiar weight of my Arbalest to my shoulders, laying down on my stomach and began to concentrate. I used the mystical boon from one of my two Cores (Yeah, yeah, paltry compared to the other rich selection of Fancy Cores that the other guys have. Give a girl some slack, will ya? I¡¯m new at this). I actually never saw the monster myself, all I knew was that it belonged to a pretty tough monster of Grade 6 named [Redcap]. I got it as a gift. They just didn¡¯t know that they¡¯d be gifting it¡­ and that it was a gift to me. Thievery, schmievery. It was a strange sensation. I don¡¯t think a lot of people understand just how difficult it is to be as good as I am with an Arbalest. Did you know that lots of beastmen think that a bow is a woman¡¯s weapon? I¡¯m talking about old farts like Skaris, who comes from the backwater countryside without paved roads and running water. I don¡¯t mean to bash on Zimmskar but gosh, the things I hear. It¡¯s fucking hard to aim at a moving target. You gotta try and estimate how far you are, you gotta know the speed of your weapon projectile inside and out. Then you have to account for shit like the wind and how fast the target is moving. But [Rep Cap] helped with a lot of that headachy shit. It didn¡¯t hurt that I¡¯m a pretty damn good fucking shot in the first place. Damn, I ran a tangent. Back to what it feels like to use mystical boon from the [Rep Cap] Core. It was like looking through a magnifying glass. At the same time, there was pressure now. A little bit of heaviness I guess? That pressed into my brain from the space in between my skull. The closer I tried to look, the heavier this pressure got. I knew from experience that the more this pressure built up, the stronger my arrow would be. The arbalest bucked and I imbued the flying bolt with the mystical boon from my second Core, [Six-Footed White Hare]. As my vision zoomed out, I saw the bolt pierce through a shell of this disgusting bug and then it changed angles; almost ninety degrees. After piercing through the fangs of a centipede, it swerved left and hit another monster then bounced a final time, decapitating the leg of a giant ant. If I just used the [Six-Footed White Hare] boon by itself, the arrow would only bounce once, hitting two monsters. I found out early that using the two Cores at the same time would double the number of bounces. If I really pushed it, I could hit six. My bolt wasn¡¯t the only one that was flying through the air. The other adventurers were firing a bunch of things. Some threw little tiny glass jars that flew a hundred yards and exploded into tiny glass chips that tore into the insects. Most of them had bows, each firing while using the boon of a different Monster. I was the only one using an Arbalest. Like I said, I got killer style. But the shielders were moving too slow and for some reason, Sis Aurora was standing in the back. She kept turning around to fend off the monsters while the others kept running. ¡°Stole, was it?¡± Marc Pointell snuck up behind me and that was saying a lot. Creepy as shit, I tell ya. He didn¡¯t smell like anything. Like anything. Everyone carried a little bit of smell on them and it told me a lot about who they were. Skaris smelled like steel and smoke, all jumbled together. Sis Aurora had this quality of cleanliness to her scent, the layers of iron and dirt from the training grounds (Don¡¯t ask me how I know it¡¯s the dirt from the training grounds) neatly separated. Kyrian smelled a lot like dusty clothes and at times, the sharp scent of burnt air. Completely different from Skaris. Mister smelt like¡­ Well, he smelled like pain and danger. Yeah. Weird. Maybe that¡¯s why Shara doesn¡¯t really like him. She told me to stay away from him. She¡¯d kill me if she found out that I officially joined his party and was planning to go on a raid with them, accompanying the Human Church. ¡°Stole?¡± Crap. My thoughts ran away again. ¡°Yeah?¡± My answer came out a little rude and hostile. I don¡¯t think it bothered him much. He didn¡¯t even bat an eye. ¡°You¡¯re one of the few adventurers who have an AOE ability. Once the shielders reach the three bladers, I will weaken the monsters. Fire at the monsters after I¡¯ve weakened them.¡± Humans called the boon from Monsters, ¡®ability¡¯. Actually, now that I think of it, Skaris called it ¡®ability¡¯ too. And he mocks me for not being a real beastman. Whatever. I nodded. ¡°How will I know when?¡± ¡°You will know.¡± So I turned to the shielders that were running for their lives, away from the horde of insects and waited. Sure enough, Skaris and the other two guys whose names I didn¡¯t even bother listening to, leapt forward and started wreaking literal havoc on the second horde of insects. They¡¯d be holding back the first stream of monsters from reaching the Mages, so I thought they¡¯d be out of gas. But Skaris wasn¡¯t even winded. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. My personal feelings for Skaris aside, I had to give it to him. The man knew how to fight and I had a lot to learn from him. Compared to me, a teenager who stole her first Core from her village and bought her second off the Black Market, he was a full warrior. I¡¯d never admit it and I¡¯ll die before I say it, but it was pretty cool seeing a real Walker of the Path from Zimmskar. He wielded his fire with deadly efficiency and his spear moved faster than I could see. Blue flames drew faint little lights in the air and by the gods, his fighting style was stylish. The man was almost seven feet tall and used the additional reach from his limbs and spear with deadliness. Corpses of monsters were on the ground, burnt black to a crisp like Kyrian¡¯s bacon ¨Ccompletely inedible by the way. I¡¯m talking about bacon, not insects. Skaris reminded me of one of those fire dancers during festivals. Sis Aurora reached him and I saw the two talk to each other. Then they nodded and turned as one to face the oncoming mob of insects while everyone else turned tail and ran. The fucking cowards. ¡°What are they doing?¡± Marc muttered, probably to himself and definitely not towards me. So I definitely did not tell Marc Pointell to ¡®shut up and watch¡¯ and he definitely did not give me a meaningful look that¡¯s going to bite this party back in the ass later. No matter what anyone says, I¡¯m denying it. Nope. Never happened. Sis Aurora and Skaris got into position with practiced movements. She set up her shield and planted it on the ground while the long-lanky man stood behind her. ¡°That foolish girl, she¡¯s going to get herself killed,¡± said Marc. This time, I really did stay silent. Cross my heart. Because what happened next took my breath away. The stream of insect monsters kind of split up, looking like wriggly little fingers. They were far enough so that the individual monsters looked like figures and I could clearly see what Sis Aurora and Skaris did next. For one horrible moment, the fingers slammed into the two and threatened to overwhelm them. Aurora slammed forward with her shield and I saw it glow red; an instant later it fired off these shards made of red energy. The shards ripped through the crowd of monsters like a hot knife through butter. But the monsters encircled around and came from the sides. Skaris started slamming his spear on the ground, creating blue bonfires on either sides. The monsters screeched ¨CI could hear it thanks to my superior hearing of course¨C and refused to challenge the heat. Yet, there were so many of the things and they slammed into each other, insects stumbling into the flames over and over. They crawled over one another trying to escape the scorching heat. ¡°They can¡¯t hold it for long.¡± Man, this guy talked a lot. But I agreed. There were too much. Sis Aurora and Skaris held the line for another minute and I saw Skaris look back. The Shielders and other bladers were at a safe enough distance. They reached the mages. I saw them set up a shield wall, getting into formation around the mages. Then the two began to attack ferociously. Skaris¡¯ spear stabbing out so fast that I couldn¡¯t see it. Almost. Sis Aurora¡¯s lance and shield did deadly work, causing monsters to stumble and hiss and bite at one another. Then Sis Aurora used her newest boon from [Cheonma], that monster we just killed scarcely a day ago. Purple electricity came to life around her, surrounding her and spinning. She must¡¯ve yelled or something because I imagine she did so. You know the pose. Arms held out to each side, heading screaming to the skies in victory. Well, maybe not. She was holding her lance and shield and she doesn¡¯t seem the the type for theatrics. But the boon was flashy enough. The wave of electricity spread out around her and I swear the whole area kind of¡­ bent? Warped? I don¡¯t fucking know how to describe it. It was like when it¡¯s too hot and you see the air bend. That¡¯s what happened. The space around her bent and nearly three dozen monsters near her got sucked in towards her. When they did, they fell over backwards. Setting her shield in front of her, Sis Aurora turned around and ran. Leaving Skaris alone. But it was part of their teamwork. How¡¯d I know? I just knew. I knew it the same way Shara would never leave me behind and the way I¡¯d never leave her behind. I knew it the way my dad told me he¡¯d keep me safe and never came back, because he probably died protecting me. Not because he ran for his life. No. This was the sort of thing I had a sense about. Skaris leapt up into the air, his whole body surrounded by blue flames. He must¡¯ve leapt up like, twelve or fifteen feet high at the least. Then his spear leaving streaks of blue flame behind him in a single line he slammed into the ground and bloomed into blue fire ¨Clike a campfire so bright that it almost hurt my eyes to look at it. The fire blossomed into the shape of a flower: pretty girly for such a manly-manly warrior. But it wasn¡¯t any less deadly for it. Each petal kind of flapped out and fell upon the monsters, those that weren¡¯t burnt to ash by the initial explosion anyways. His boon left the ground wet with invisible blue flames and the monsters that had been rushing towards them had to stop, the first few among them simply collapsing where they were. Then Skaris turned and started running right after Sis Aurora. They¡¯d stopped the insect monsters cold. Maybe cold isn¡¯t the best word here. ¡°My god¡­ That¡¯s Vetilian¡¯s party?¡± I heard one of the other archers mutter. ¡°...I heard he¡¯s a Grade 7¡­¡± ¡°They¡¯re fucking monsters¡­¡± I know I¡¯ve only been with them a couple of days. But I felt a surge of fierce pride in my heart. Kind of like how I feel when someone compliments Shara. I was so proud of these two and so proud to be part of the same party. They were so strong and just so freaking epic. I knew it the moment I saw Mister knock those skeletons away that he was something special. And the people that gathered around him were just as special. Man. What a freaking thrill. But there¡¯s always someone stronger. ¡°All of you, begin firing at the horde.¡± Marc Pointell ordered. I don¡¯t know why but I hated being ordered around by this guy. He was just so¡­. I don¡¯t know, pompous? Ass-like? A jerk? He could¡¯ve let me bask in the glory of Brother Skaris and Sis Aurora for a moment longer. But nooooo, he just had to steal the thunder. Man, he kind of sucked. So me and the other archers turned and began firing at the hundreds of insects that still littered the valley below us. Then Marc Pointell did his thing. He kind of like¡­ raised his hands and became deathly quiet. Deathly still. I use the word deathly because whatever he did, it was the opposite of life. I knew he wasn¡¯t a mage because I¡¯d heard bits and pieces there. That he was a plain old adventurer who hunted Monsters, absorbed their Spirit Cores and boons. But there¡¯s a saying that the more boons you absorb, the more like them you become. Because Spirit Cores are the essence of these monsters and if you absorb too much of one kind, you become like it. Mister liked to call these things Synergy. Well, whatever Marc Pointell did, the Synergy must¡¯ve been death. He raised his hands and hundreds and hundreds of insects began to ride from the ground. Not their body, but their spirits. It freaked the fuck out of me, seeing these pale white things with a dozen legs or more rising from the ground. When I used my Redcap Boon, I got a close look at a centipede that just rose from the ground and screamed ¨Cexcept no sound came out. Two others rose in place besides it and as one, they all began to glide through the air. Oh sure, their legs moved and slithered and wriggled. But none of them were touching the ground. They ran a few inches off of the ground and flew towards the Gargantuan Death Worm that was still tied down by the hooks, thanks to the Shielders. The insects swarmed over the Gargantuan Death Worm, no bigger than a tick next to it. But what they lacked in size, they made up in numbers. I thought they were completely spiritual but there must have been something that they could do to the physical world. They used their fangs and claws to rip apart the soft skin. Tearing flesh and trying to eat it but the meat fell right through their empty stomachs. The worm went mad with pain and began to squirm. The ground began to rumble again. I chanced a look back at Marc and he had his eyes closed in concentration. He was mumbling under his breath and sweat beaded on his forehead, dripping down. Then he closed his fist and every single spirit on the Gargantuan Death Worm exploded in a shower of white sparks. There were entire chunks missing from the Gargantuan Death Worm, like someone took a bite out of it. Then the fireworks really began. Fire. Lightning. Spears made of Earth and Ice. Every element imaginable came flying from the mages. They must¡¯ve been gathering their mana for one final rush and every spell hit its mark. The monster went mad with pain a second time and thrashed. The hooks ripped through its flesh, whatever was left of it, and chains went taut and snapped. For about two minutes, the mages beat the shit out of this thing. And then¡­ it went still. It died. The raid¡­ was over. And with it, an invisible weight just disappeared. That whole ordeal was nerve wracking. I have this¡­ really really bad imagination. Even before we began I kind of imagined Sis Aurora or Skaris or Kyrian getting hurt. Or going missing. Like Mister Lock. I really liked this last week, it was the best week of my life. I don¡¯t want it to be over yet. You know, technically I¡¯m not allowed to be an adventurer and I¡¯m not talking about my age (that¡¯s stupid too, by the way). I actually have a different duty. Because my twin-sister, Shara, is the next Kagura, the first Kagura in like a bajillion years, I¡¯m supposed to be her Shadow. Someone who lives her entire life in the Kagura¡¯s shadow, guarding them from danger. It¡¯s supposed to be this really cool gig where you have honor and all that. But it wasn¡¯t what I wanted. So when Mister Lock asked me if I was interested in being a part of his party and kind of training under them¡­. I said yeah. The thing he said in the Grave Mound really stuck with me, that whole spiel with the [Pioneer] stuff. Honestly, I didn¡¯t get half of what he said. But¡­ I do remember he said that a Pioneer is supposed to make their party feel safe. To keep them out of danger. A bond of trust. Seeing Mister Lock made me feel like it¡¯s real. When that Gurran guy got blown away, I felt scared. Everyone always told me that a tank is real, real important. But when Lock stepped in¡­ I wasn¡¯t scared anymore. I was OK, he made me feel safe. Same with Skaris. When that worm started birthing those monsters by the loads¡­ he volunteered to go protect the Mages. That made me feel safe too, that the raid was going to be ok. Plus seeing Sis Aurora and Skaris fight together like that, leaving their backs to each other¡­ I don¡¯t want my journey to end here. So I really really didn¡¯t like it that when I fixed my [Pioneer] senses on finding Mister Lock¡­ It kept coming from that cliff, where the Scav Base was. He was in there. Alone. But he¡¯s probably OK. He¡¯s not the type to lose. Yeah. Don¡¯t worry Mister Lock. I¡¯ll lead your party all nice and safe to your doorsteps. So you better keep your promise of making me the best [Pioneer] in the world. Please be ok.
Chapter 102: Kyrian Tricilan
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After the raid, Marc Pointell worked quickly. I was impressed with his foresight in preparing all of this beforehand. First of all, he made sure that the mages, myself included, cast a [Preserve] spell on the Gargantuan Death Worm. A monster of this size was worth a fortune, even without a Core. The shell, the magic stones and possibly other insect monster eggs within it. With a [Preserve] spell, the monster¡¯s blackened body remained. Pointell had people waiting on standby and they came in as soon as the monster was felled. Not adventurers, but professionals whose entire job revolved around sites like this ¨Cbreaking down monster parts and determining what was valuable and what was not. We walked through the makeshift camp, which had been raised in a matter of hours. People swore, pulled carts and tied down harness ropes around the great beast. Like a wake of vultures, they picked at the fallen monster. I walked through the temporary camp, fighting down the roiling disgust that threatened to show on my face. We did not wait to mourn the dead. We did not pay respect to those who gave their life fighting. As soon as the moment of danger had passed, we, the adventurers, carried on like before. Possessed by greed, we set out to claim our riches and rewards. The only people who had bothered were the Shielders, who gave a moment of silence for the fallen. It was to be expected, since they were the only group to experience casualties. The others¡­ simply carried on. How could death be so simple? How could people not realize that death was just a step away and that it mattered? Once someone was gone, that was it. You would never hear their voice again, never see their face again. Never again, could you make new memories. That was someone¡¯s mother, someone¡¯s son or someone¡¯s best friend. Sighing, I lifted the curtain flap and entered the Medical Tent. ¡°Mr. Kyrian.¡± Aurora sat in front of me. She had her breastplate off to the side and would¡¯ve been naked, except for the bandages slung around her chest, stomach and arm. Stole, the newest addition to our group, sat off to the side; sitting backwards on a chair with her arms hanging off the seatrest. The girl smiled upon seeing me, perking up considerably. Off to the side, Skaris sat on a bed. He was being attended by a priestess. Similar to Aurora, he was shirtless. Numerous cuts and lacerations were being healed before me, glowing with a faint greenish light. He gave me an even nod which I returned. ¡°Ms. Aurora.¡± I bowed my head a fraction of an inch below hers, as was the custom in Turina. The difference in our social standing was clear: Bastard we both might be, but she was from a Great House. I was from minor nobility. There was a strain in her smile, as she always did when I greeted her in such a way. She didn¡¯t comment on it though, the lady was much too well-mannered for that. Much too kind to bring up such a minor inconvenience. I briefly wondered if the two beastmen in the tent could detect the subtleness in our exchange. ¡°How is he?¡± I asked the priestess. She was covered from head to toe in clothes. A small slot in the veil over her face showed her eyes. ¡°He will be fine, Magus Kyrian.¡± I sighed in relief. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Simply my duty.¡± Her eyes curved, smiling. ¡°Though if you are truly thankful, the Temple of the Nine is always open for alms.¡± So she was an elf priestess. I nodded accordingly, careful not to smile too much or too little. ¡°I will be sure to pay a visit, Priestess.¡± After giving Stole another once over, the priestess left, leaving the four of us alone in the tent. ¡°Are you sure you do not need to be checked over, Mr. Kyrian?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Ha! Don¡¯t complain later.¡± Stole smirked, hooking a thumb at herself. ¡°I¡¯ll be taking us straight to Mister. No breaks allowed! I¡¯ll get us there in one piece, safe and sound.¡± Skaris scoffed. ¡°Actually, that¡¯s what I wanted to talk about.¡± I fought the urge to fiddle with the hem of my robes. A childish habit from my younger years. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone forgot. But the ship with the Church leaves the day after tomorrow. At dawn.¡± Skaris scoffed once more. ¡°We all know that, Kyrian. The ansssswer is ssssimple. We resssscue Sssslaveborn today. Resssst tomorrow, then we can make it on time for the Human Church¡¯s exsssspedition.¡± ¡°I want to suggest dropping out of the Church¡¯s request.¡± I held my tongue in the ensuing silence. ¡°Mr. Kyrian,¡± Aurora said after a moment, careful as always in deliberating what it is that she exactly wanted to say. ¡°I cannot claim to have known Mr. Lock as long as you and Mr. Skaris, but that does not seem to be Mr. Lock¡¯s¡­ modus operandi, to say the least.¡± ¡°It¡¯ssss not.¡± Skaris confirmed, openly glaring at me. ¡°Ssslaveborn would do what I ssssugessssted.¡± ¡°Yes, he would.¡± I answered. ¡°But we are not Lock.¡± They all frowned at me. I dreaded saying the next words but they had to be said. It¡¯s what Lock would want. ¡°If we leave now, we will be endangering ourselves. Look at yourselves. Skaris, Ms. Aurora. You two are the most heavily injured. This battlefield is still crawling with monsters and now that the Gargantuan Death Worm has fallen, the Hwachas and Skeleton Vultures are starting to come out in full force.¡± They looked at themselves, knowing that I was right. Me, a mage, lecturing the two warriors on the severity of their injuries. Normally, a situation like this should never have happened. But that was how bad it was. Skaris had bandages over his legs and all over his torso. Aurora was the same, albeit centered around her arms and head. There were numerous studies published on the effect of Cores and people¡¯s personalities, especially in adventurers. Cores that strengthened the body were likely to be associated with things like pain tolerance, inclination for risk and danger. Us mages, we like to study things, trying to make sense of what does not. What we did understand was the high death rate of adventurers which could have been prevented with sufficient rest. The two were running on heightened emotion from the battle and ignoring their own injuries. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°You two are heavily injured.¡± I said into the silence. ¡°The priessstesss healed ussssss.¡± But Aurora did not answer. ¡°There are things that healing magic cannot heal, Skaris. Mental Fatigue. Mana, the life energy which fuels the abilities from our Spirit Cores. You two worked together to stop the horde for the fire¡¯s sake. You two stopped it cold and it¡¯s not farfetched to say that you shaved hours off of the raid.¡± I spoke quickly, before Skaris could interrupt. ¡°You earned a few hours. We should rest and then head for Lock.¡± Skaris growled. ¡°Tricsssilan.¡± I flinched. He usually called me Kyrian, unless in the most direst of circumstances. ¡°Why are you sssaying thissss?¡± He said. ¡°Thissss issss unlike you.¡± ¡°Wait a minute. Hold on.¡± Stole interrupted. She was young and probably younger than she seemed. I doubted the legitimacy of her Adventurer License but respected Lock¡¯s decision far too much to question him on it. Right now though, with the way things were going, I wondered if it was the right decision to bring her along with us. ¡°Isn¡¯t it ok? That, what¡¯s his face again? Marc guy.¡± She clapped her hands together. ¡°He said he¡¯d help us. He¡¯s going to lend us some muscle. We can ask for some really strong guys to help us, no?¡± ¡°I believe,¡± I drew out, refusing to meet Aurora¡¯s eyes. ¡°We should rest up and then leave by ourselves. Without the other adventurers.¡± She stiffened. Usually, I would not have picked up body language like this. Aurora was too well trained to show things like surprise or shock, even anger at times. But mayhaps because my attention was fixed on her entirely. Or perhaps it was a show of just how much she had been affected by my statement. I doubted the other two understood. Aurora and I were playing a game, masked within the veil of this conversation. Because I¡¯d just openly told her that I didn¡¯t trust Marc Pointell. I figured out his identity when I saw the two talk right before the Gargantuan Death Worm Raid. ¡°...Why?¡± Stole asked. ¡°...I believe that¡¯s what Lock would want.¡± Skaris slammed his fist on the bed, bending the metallic joint underneath the mattress. No one spoke. He snarled, standing up. ¡°That issss not what Sssslaveborn would do. You know it, Trissscilan. He would rissssk hissss life, no matter how bloodied he was, to come and ressscue ussss. He¡¯ssss done it in the past. In the Dessssssert, when we were nothing more than sssslaves. When you were jussst a losssst mage, sssseeking revenge.¡± ¡°He would rissssk everything to enssssure our livessss.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s exactly why we must rest.¡± I said, meeting Skaris¡¯ eyes of anger. I never stood up to anyone like this before. Not in such a direct way. Always with the quiet voice but unmoving, stating my own opinions. But if other people wanted to go in one direction, who was I to stop them? But today, I had to. Skaris was making a mistake. He didn¡¯t know what was at stake here. ¡°He would risk his life, Skaris.¡± I continued. ¡°But not ours.¡± His eyes widened. ¡°...You¡¯d do that to him?¡± He whispered. ¡°It¡¯s not about what I want, dammit.¡± A bit of my frustration leaked out. I closed my eyes, calming myself. Growing angry here would do no good. It would only show Aurora how nervous I was. I had to remind myself that this was for Lock and all our own good. Even if they hated me after¡­ as long as I honored Lock¡¯s wishes, it would be fine. ¡°Lock would never accept us walking willingly into danger.¡± ¡°And I did not come here to be protected by Ssslaveborn.¡± He snarled. ¡°You dissshonor hisss memory.¡± ¡°And if we died because we failed to rest sufficiently, I¡¯d be dishonoring everything that he tried to do.¡± I shot right back. The two of us stared at one another. It was Aurora who broke the silence for us. ¡°Mr. Skaris. Ms. Stole. Would you mind if I spoke to Mr. Kyrian? Alone?¡± Skaris held his end of the glare longer than I thought necessary. I turned my head to the side first, unused to such blatant warlike behavior. I was a mage. A bookworm. These kinds of things¡­ I wasn¡¯t good at it. Not in the least. My fights belonged on the negotiating table, where the blade was words. Fighting from a distance with my magic, even on the battlefield. It was hypocritical of me. Me, a mage, who fought safely behind our own lines ordering the two about. Me, who¡¯d never had to see the roaring maw of monsters, staring right at me in the face; speaking about the dangers that could be waiting for us. How funny it must seem to Skaris, who fought by Lock¡¯s side, day in and day out. Skaris breathed out slowly. ¡°I will take a walk. Come along, Whelp.¡± Then he strode out of the tent, Stole giving us one mournful look before following after him. Then it was just Aurora and I in the tent. ¡°Mr. Kyrian, I know what you are trying to avoid.¡± I held my tongue. ¡°You do not trust, Mr. Pointell. Is that true?¡± I didn¡¯t answer. ¡°You do not need to answer. Of course not. That is not how the game is played.¡± She smiled faintly at me, a rare expression on her face. ¡°But you will have to indulge me. I was never good at the game.¡± ¡°The lady is too kind.¡± I said flatly. ¡°You hold me in much too high esteem.¡± She nodded. ¡°I see. Mr. Kyrian, do you believe that I want to rescue Mr. Lock alongside you? Alongside this party?¡± I hesitated. Again, I thought I saw her stiffen. In surprise and¡­ and hurt. Did she allow me to see it? Or was she truly not as good at playing the Game as she claimed? No. It did not matter what she said. My goal was clear and I¡¯d hardened my will awhile ago. ¡°Mr. Lock is in a unique position.¡± She said. ¡°He is suspected of being the leader of a lost tribe of orcs, the remnants of the Samak Horde. Though hardly hundred strong, rumors have a tendency to gather momentum of their own. Then there is the deal with [Aura], a closely guarded secret within the Turina Empire.¡± Aurora stood up from the bed and I saw her wince. ¡°Right now, he is under a great deal of scrutiny, though Mr. Lock himself seems to be unaware of it.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°Did Pointell set up Lock in the Fracture? Was he behind Baran¡¯s betrayal?¡± ¡°No.¡± Aurora shook her head. ¡°I was Mr. Pointell¡¯s hands and eyes during the raid. I was the one who reported his movements back to the guild.¡± ¡°...You and he belong to Turina.¡± I thought she looked sad for a moment. ¡°All humans in a high enough position belong to Turina and the Church, Mr. Kyrian. You of all people, should know that. With your time in the Akka Xalud Corps.¡± ¡°But I never reported Lock¡¯s movements.¡± I answered. ¡°I have no ties to Turina anymore. You on the other hand¡­¡± She nodded. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m afraid I still have ties to House Vetilius. Regardless of my wishes.¡± ¡°He¡¯s your handler.¡± I was referring to Marc Pointell. ¡°Not just mine, but handler for all the Bastards in Miltus at the moment.¡± The bastard scion continued, ¡°And we all report to him. I have been tasked with watching Mr. Lock and his movements.¡± ¡°And you will continue to do so.¡± ¡°...Perhaps. Perhaps not.¡± She frowned as she said it. While we were talking, I realized that she had stepped closer to me. One step and she could reach me. My body wasn¡¯t like the body of adventurers. I couldn¡¯t run as fast as them nor could I ever be a match for them with the blade. Adventurers could kill mages with their bare hands in the right circumstances. And just now, I realized that during our talk, the self-proclaimed agent of Turina, bastard scion of Great House of Vetilius, on par with the cruel Akka Xaluds for which I spent most of my life serving, was within reach. So when she spoke, it was with great relief that I continued the conversation. ¡°I have not reported to Mr. Pointell for quite awhile. I suspect that he already knows.¡± ¡°He already knows what?¡± ¡°That I am being honest with my intentions about this.¡± She gestured at the tent, to me and the flap leading outside where Skaris and Stole were no doubt eavesdropping. ¡°That I plan to join Mr. Lock and you, Mr. Skaris and Ms. Stole with the best of intentions.¡± ¡°You cannot be serious.¡± It made no sense. ¡°Lock is impressive but not that impressive. If Pointell wanted, he could crush us. He has the Church and the support of the Great Houses at his side, if he truly is an agent of Turina. You are risking your life to join us?¡± ¡°My life is at risk either way, Mr. Kyrian. The answer is, who do I want to be next to when danger comes?¡± ¡°Then Lock is the wrong answer.¡± I shook my head, remembering the Akka Xaluds. ¡°We do not have the resources to protect you from¡­ from the fallout of this. If you are looking for a way out of your situation with the Vetilius House, there are better options. People who could protect you. With power. With resources.¡± ¡°Protect me¡­¡± She said wistfully. ¡°You¡¯d be surprised, Mr. Kyrian, who could protect me and who couldn¡¯t.¡± I stared at her. She took a deep breath. ¡°We should leave now, Mr. Kyrian. Ms. Stole informed us that she sensed him during the battle, in the Scavenger¡¯s stronghold. Best case scenario, he is holed up. Worst case scenario, he is being held captive or in the middle of battle as we speak. We do not have time for you to test my loyalties, trying to shake off the agents of Turina to keep Mr. Lock safe.¡± Stole had sensed Lock? ¡°When?¡± ¡°Right before the monster fell.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°We¡¯d be walking out at night. The monsters will be-¡± ¡°Stronger due to the nighttime. Yes.¡± ¡°Even if I trust you, I cannot trust Marc Pointell¡¯s men.¡± ¡°And neither can I.¡± She lifted her chin, something proud in her gaze. ¡°I am with you, Mr. Kyrian. We should go, just the four of us.¡± I tried to meet her eyes, trying to read her and failed. But if Lock was truly in the Scavenger¡¯s Stronghold¡­ he needed us. Now. Aurora spoke, a note of exasperation in her tone. ¡°Mr. Kyrian. I have been at the front of every battle, risking my life alongside Mr. Locks and yours. I believe it is a bit too late to start suspecting me of my intentions.¡± She was right. Logically. But bastard¡¯s are a suspicious sort and paranoid by nature. The last person I trusted sent my mother¡¯s head stuck on a pike to my former employers. I¡¯d been so powerless back then. I had no choice. ¡°...Ms. Aurora, I¡¯ll be watching you.¡± I felt my hand close into a fist over my staff. She smiled at me. ¡°I must say, I¡¯m jealous of Mr. Lock. You and Mr. Skaris¡­ are quite fond of him.¡± ¡°I will be right out. Please go ahead, Ms. Aurora.¡± The warrior of gray hair strode past me, leaving a fragrance of steel and blood in her wake. And the fear I¡¯d been suppressing flooded into me. My palms were sweating, knees weak and I leaned on my staff, arms feeling heavy. Splotches of sweat began to spread, stains spreading all over my robes already. Facing down Skaris and Aurora had taken all I had. Skaris never would, but for a moment, I believed that Aurora might have. Perhaps she¡¯s different from the Akka Xaluds¡­ but one never knew with Scions. She could have broken my neck with a single blow. I¡¯m not delusional. I know that I am starting to fall behind Skaris and had fallen behind Lock long ago. I¡¯m not like Lock. I don¡¯t have the immunity to fear and the well of endless courage he shows. I do not have the decisiveness that he does. I do not want to risk my life. I¡¯m not a hero. I¡¯m just¡­ a mediocre mage, who made mistakes. But when I imagined Turina Empire, closing their hands around Lock and ruining everything that he stood for, everything that we had all done to help people so far and putting an end to this chapter of life I¡¯d been enjoying so much¡­ four words came to mind. Over. My. Dead. Body.
Chapter 103: Fate
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Delas sat on a chair, right outside of the room where Lock and Coum were cooped up in. He was still dressed in light cloth, covering just enough to be considered a loincloth. Both his feet propped up on the table and next to them was his Horse Mask. His hair was slick with sweat as he stared at the ceiling. ¡°How long has it been since he screamed?¡± Delas didn¡¯t look at Tanya. ¡°...He stopped screaming after the first hour.¡± Tanya sat opposite of Delas, her dextrous dwarven hands fiddling with another contraption. She stopped and fixed Delas with a look. ¡°It¡¯s Coum we¡¯re talking about,¡± then she turned back to her fiddling. Delas looked at Tanya and then shuddered. ¡°He¡¯s good.¡± Delas finally muttered. ¡°Of course he¡¯s good.¡± She replied. ¡°Or else Nathan wouldn¡¯t keep him so close.¡± ¡°I meant Lock.¡± She frowned and looked at Delas again. Her old friend was staring at the ceiling again. ¡°You won though. And pretty easily from the looks of it.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ve been here for 8 years.¡± Delas shook his head, closing his eyes. ¡°He¡¯s been in this world for a year at most, I think. Maybe less.¡± ¡°Meh, who cares.¡± Tanya shrugged. ¡°He¡¯ll turn.¡± Delas shifted in his seat, looking at the steel-framed door built into the walls of the tunnels themselves. ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°Everyone turns, Delas. Everyone.¡± ¡°He¡¯s strong.¡± ¡°And you beat him with swords, not even with your daggers.¡± Tanya shot back. ¡°How strong does that make you?¡± ¡°Not like that. And that fight was¡­ well, yes I did win. But I went into the fight knowing exactly what Cores he had and his fighting style. I¡¯m not talking about that.¡± Delas frowned. ¡°He¡¯s¡­ Gah, I don¡¯t know. I feel bad for him, that¡¯s all.¡± Tanya just stared at him, mouth open. She finally managed, ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me. You like the guy?!¡± ¡°...He¡¯s got guts.¡± The rogue shifted position again. ¡°If a little stupid. He could lie and then escape. It¡¯d be pretty easy. He has me figured out too, he could just stall until enough defense buffs stack up. Then speed wouldn¡¯t matter, he¡¯d just bulldoze over everything here. So lying is the best option. Stick with us for even a couple of days you know.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s precisely why he lost. Cause he¡¯s stupid.¡± Tanya growled. ¡°Because he thinks of these NPCs as people. If he bided his time instead of rushing in, he might¡¯ve stood a chance.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m saying he¡¯s got guts.¡± Delas interrupted. ¡°Just saying, T. He¡¯s refusing to bend just out of principle. He¡¯s basically saying a big ¡®fuck you¡¯ to all of us here. You, me, Coum. Everyone who hurt that orc master of his. Out of principle. He knows he¡¯s going to end up dead and still going through with it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll turn.¡± He finished. ¡°Then that¡¯s why he¡¯s going to die. Because he believes in bullshit like loyalty.¡± Tanya muttered, looking at her wristwatch. It was her own creation. ¡°Coum¡¯s had him for almost a day. You know how he is. By this point¡­ it doesn¡¯t matter how many healing potions we stuff down his neck. He¡¯s going to be broken.¡± ¡°I know what Coum¡¯s capable of. He¡¯s the one who taught me how to torture, remember? Just a damned waste is all.¡± ¡°And if Coum overhears what you just said, he¡¯s going to tell Nathan. Then Nathan¡¯s going to throw one of his hissy fits again.¡± She finished. For her, that was the end of the discussion and turned her attention back to the trinket. "And if Nathan throws a hissy fit, then the main branch is going to start looking at us. And no one wants to get involved with them." ¡°So much for [Aura].¡± Delas said wistfully. ¡°We¡¯ll find another way. We always do. If the stupid Emperor didn¡¯t forbid [Aura] outside of Knights and the Great Houses¡­¡± The door creaked open and both of them sat up straighter as Coum stepped out. Coum exited the room, closing the door softly behind him. Taking out a handkerchief, he wiped his hands, leaving long red stains in the soft cloth. There were scarlet splatters on his face, made all the more eerie by his paler-than-snow skin and the blue tattoos that writhed on his bald head. He finally looked at the two, folding the handkerchief into a neat square and putting it somewhere in his robes. ¡°Well?¡± Tanya said crossly. ¡°Yes, Tanya?¡± The mans¡¯ voice was soft. ¡°What happened there?¡± She snapped. ¡°Oh. Well, I began by inserting the hooked needles underneath his toenails. Then I started with the shins, stripping off his skin in inch wide strips, until they were hanging by a flap on the bottom of his feet. Then I-¡± ¡°Stop!¡± Tanya blocked her ears, glaring at the mage. Once she was sure he wasn¡¯t speaking, Tanya lowered her arms. ¡°I wasn¡¯t asking for that, Coum! I¡¯m asking if he said anything.¡± ¡°...He begged.¡± Delas and Tanya looked at each other. ¡°He begged?¡± Delas leaned from the chair, his body all lean and hungry. His words dripped with greed and an emptiness, a longing so intense that Tanya shied away from the man. ¡°Did he say it then? He told you how to use [Aura]?¡± ¡°No.¡± Coum didn¡¯t seem bothered by Delas at all. ¡°He did not beg for me to stop.¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°He begged for me to kill him.¡± He finished, without any particular inflection. "Shit." Tanya hissed in sympathy. ¡°Tch.¡± Delas clicked his tongue and the intensity around him abruptly melted away to nothingness. Getting up from his seat, he said, ¡°That¡¯s my cue to go. I¡¯m heading out to the Church. I¡¯m supposed to be at the docks, bright and early tomorrow.¡± ¡°Take care of Astelion.¡± Tanya muttered, waving a hand in good-bye. Without another word, Delas disappeared down the tunnel. ¡°You going back in there or need a break?¡± ¡°Strange.¡± Coum said, looking down the tunnel. ¡°You know I don¡¯t like it when you do that right?¡± ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°Answer my question with something cryptic. What are you, Jesus?¡± ¡°The prophecy I intercepted,¡± Coum began, much to Tanya¡¯s chagrin, ¡°Stated that we would have to face off against five individuals.¡± ¡°We did. Lock and his party.¡± Tanya humored the mage. Delas was gone and she had nothing better to do. ¡°No. If it was truly him, then the amount of Fate surrounding him would have disappeared.¡± Coum muttered to himself, his gaze distant. Tanya spun her finger on her temple, rolling her eyes. ¡°Always knew you were Cuckoo, Coum. Didn¡¯t think you¡¯d start talking about Fate.¡± ¡°The whole reason why we exist is because we fight against Fate.¡± Coum turned, his words growing more cryptic. ¡°This Lock has a great amount of Fate surrounding him. Yet, none of it has disappeared. Even in this moment where his life hangs in the balance. That means¡­ that the danger has yet to come. His Fate does not recognize this as a significant event where he will have to exert influence. Someone else will use their Fate to save him.¡± ¡°Dude, seriously.¡± Tanya scowled at Coum¡¯s back. ¡°If I were you, I would check on your men. Meanwhile, I must check on something¡­¡± Then Coum opened the doors and re-entered the room where Lock was. Leaving Tanya wondering. Nathan often spoke about the Fates and the Gods of this world. But she always turned a blind-eye to it and never paid it much attention. Still, there was a reason why Nathan valued Coum and kept him around. If nothing else, Coum was smart. Crazy, but smart. Deciding it couldn¡¯t hurt, Tanya walked down the tunnels just to check on the state of her Clan.
CRUNCH THUD THUD The bodies dropped to the floor even before they could scream. L¡¯teya braced one foot against the corpse and wrenched her ax out, one at a time, with a sickening sound. She flicked the axes and blood came off, staining the ground. Spinning them in each hand she tucked them into a loop on her belt. The red¨Cheaded elf barbarian looked around to see everyone else cleaning up. Arione had burnt two men to cinders within the first second of the fight and stood out of the way, allowing the others to work. He kept Scarlet and Clover close, keeping them within arm¡¯s reach. Clover was nothing more than a hooded figure with pink curls flashing whenever she moved. Her eyes reflected the fire around them with an eerie glow. Maria sank her fist into the man''s face and her spiked gauntlets came out the other side of his skull. She smiled, bracing her foot against the corpse much like Lety had done and wrenched her fist out. Turning, the Akka Xalud Scion smiled at L¡¯teya. ¡°Always a pleasure to watch you dance, Elf.¡± L¡¯teya ignored her. ¡°How much longer?¡± Scarlet rummaged in the folds of his robe and brought out a small piece of parchment. [Magellan¡¯s Map]. An enchanted map that was classified as a rare [Artifact Relic]. It was constantly active, self-updating to reflect where the user was. In this case, Magellan¡¯s Map updated itself to match the Scavenger¡¯s Hideout. There was a small blue dot which represented where they were. ¡°Clover¡­ our target¡­ you said he¡¯s at the top?¡± Scarlet asked, in his usual calm, evenly measured style of speech. Oung¡¯s Chosen nodded. ¡°Yes. I can sense him now.¡± ¡°Come on then, we¡¯re in a time crunch. Chop chop, folks!¡± Arione clapped Scarlet and Clover on the shoulder. Scarlet nodded with determination while Clover escaped Arione¡¯s grasp and began leading the way. ¡°Ah, ah ah!¡± Arione wagged a finger. ¡°Formation! Formation!¡± Lety could¡¯ve sworn Clover rolled her eyes. L¡¯teya took point, Scarlet and Clover right behind her. Then Arione followed, with the rear being brought up by Maria. ¡°You all should really consider recruiting a proper shielder.¡± Maria commented while the five of them walked through the tunnels. ¡°The poor elf is growing tired already.¡± ¡°Mind your own business, Scion.¡± L¡¯teya growled. ¡°Um¡­ pretty sure that someone¡¯s going to notice us if you two keep arguing¡­ Master¡­ stop them¡­ that¡¯s how we got into this mess the first time¡­¡± ¡°No no, it¡¯s my fault.¡± Arione mocked in a sobbing tone. ¡°If only I was a better leader, I could¡¯ve changed out all of Lety¡¯s Cores before our big mission tomorrow!¡± ¡°I said don¡¯t call me Lety.¡± ¡°Not to worry though! Where we¡¯re going, we¡¯ll find plenty of Cores to replace your current ones! Not to mention that we¡¯ll be going with the Church! So we can swap Cores right on the spot!¡± Lety chanced a glance back at Clover. The beastwoman seemed lost in thought, gaze unfocused. ¡°Perhaps we shouldn¡¯t go tomorrow.¡± Lety finally said. ¡°Why? Are you scared, Elf?¡± ¡°Because we are running short on time as it is.¡± Lety snapped, just sharp enough to be mean. Maria simply smiled. ¡°Or perhaps it¡¯s because your lover is going to be with us there.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not my-¡± ¡°Oh right, he was Clover¡¯s lover. I forgot.¡± Maria winked at the barbarian. ¡°We must go to the Island. Our next clue is there.¡± Clover interjected before Lety bursted in outrage. ¡°It does not matter if Lock is there or not.¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to matter to him, a lot.¡± Arione pouted. ¡°As a matter of fact, it¡¯s going to matter to me a lot too.¡± He had never forgotten Lock¡¯s promise. One day, the two of them would fight to the death. Even if Arione spoke flippantly about the subject now, he still remembered the chill surrounding Lock¡¯s words and the deathly calm with which they were delivered. Arione had encountered few men like Lock in his time in MSS and every single time, he had to put his life on the line to survive. Yet, Arione was still here. A small solace, but a solace nonetheless. ¡°That¡¯s only if Lock finds out about our identity.¡± Clover said. ¡°And even if he does, it doesn¡¯t matter. We cannot allow the Key to fall into the wrong hands.¡± ¡°Be truthful, sweetheart.¡± Maria drawled. ¡°You¡¯re happy to see your ex-boyfriend.¡± ¡°On the contrary,¡± Clover answered. ¡°I¡¯m scared.¡± At Clover¡¯s admission, no one spoke for a bit. ¡°Do you think¡­ he would hurt you?...¡± Scarlet ventured. ¡°Perhaps. I do not know.¡± Clover sighed. ¡°Back when we were in the Samak Desert, before everything happened, before Oung started speaking to me, he was a friend.¡± ¡°I know what I did to him was unfair. But I also think what he did to me is unfair.¡± Clover continued walking, seemingly uncaring that she had everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°But we knew nothing about this world back then. By Oung¡¯s name, I never thought my life would take a turn in this direction either. None of us are the same people we were.¡± ¡°True, never thought I¡¯d find myself traveling with a bunch of lesser races, doing the dirty works of a goddess.¡± Maria quipped. ¡°What I¡¯m saying is that he¡¯s a different person now. So am I.¡± Clover shook her head, finding it hard to convey what she was feeling. ¡°It is complicated.¡± ¡°Honey, that¡¯s exactly what we call a lover¡¯s trife.¡± Lety didn¡¯t snap at Maria¡¯s comment. Instead she reached out and held Clover¡¯s hand, squeezing gently. The pink-haired beastman squeezed back lightly. Only for a short moment, but it had been there. Lety smiled at her friend. ¡°You never know.¡± Lety assured Clover. ¡°Maybe it won¡¯t be as bad.¡± ¡°I hope you two are not planning on a reunion anytime soon.¡± Arione said dryly. ¡°He promised to kill me, remember?¡± L¡¯teya growled but did not say anything. She hated Arione, yes. But did she want him to die? No. She¡¯d traveled with the slimy scoundrel for a better part of a year. As much as they bickered and as much as she wanted to grab Clover and escape his clutches, that didn¡¯t mean she wanted him dead. No, Arione didn¡¯t deserve that in L¡¯teya¡¯s opinion. Truthfully, she meant a little bit of what she said to Clover to include Arione as well. Naive, yes. Even L¡¯teya knew that. But one can dream. ¡°Yes. And Lock¡¯s the type to keep his promise.¡± Clover muttered. ¡°He might have changed, but I doubt he¡¯s changed that much.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll have to keep our identities hidden.¡± Arione rubbed his chin, pretending to think. ¡°Just be sure to avoid him. Don¡¯t cross paths if you can help it.¡± ¡°We also don¡¯t want Zenom Saintred to find out who we are.¡± Maria said, serious for once. ¡°That¡¯d be less than¡­ ideal.¡± Arione nodded in agreement. Technically, Arione had his bounty called off thanks to Jason ¨CMaria¡¯s brother. But then again, Maria had a slight falling out with her brother which was why she was traveling with Arione¡¯s party in the first place. Jason was the type to keep true to his word, but Arione also didn¡¯t want to test it. There was also the matter of Zenom Saintred being a genuine zealot: his belief was the real thing. If there ever was a Holy Knight that should be the posterboy for MSS¡¯ version of the Crusades, Zenom was it. Zenom Saintred. Lock Slaveborn. Not to mention he had recognized some [Players] from the Player¡¯s Guild at the quest¡­ He had known that the Key would be a coveted item. However, he had no expected so much competition. The Player¡¯s Guild, he could understand. They were also looking for the hidden secret pieces of this world. If people like Clover worked for the gods, the Players Guild worked for themselves. A hidden war for the keys to inherit the quests that could make someone leave their mark in history. Oh, it wasn¡¯t anything dramatic as the apocalypse. Far from it. The only thing that could be compared to the Apocalypse was a war or a Monster Wave of high grade monster. Hell, even a Grade-SS monster might be worse news than someone actually succeeding the title of one of the [Six Heroes]. Then again, the title of the [Six Heroes] wasn¡¯t simply about the martial power that came with it. It was influence. Political power, for the related race would rally under that person¡¯s banner. They could forge relations with different countries: either for the better or worse. They could cause Wars or end them. Actually, now that Arione was thinking about it for the first time, it was pretty bad. Which was why he had to become the [Grand Mage] of the Elves before any of the other Six Heroes could show up. His mission was twofold in nature. Prevent the rise of the other Six Hero candidates while elevating himself to the title of [Grand Mage]. That way, he could protect this world that he so loved. Arione could ease the bad relations between Zimmskar and the Turina Empire. He could get the Turina Empire to take a more peaceful approach instead of their war-like aggressive expansionist policies. He could reach out to the Mages in the Babel Towers, releasing magic machinery that could solve many of the world¡¯s problems. He could get the Jayu States to tame the surrounding areas held by the Monster Territory Lords. Arione could do a lot of good things. He could change this world from what it was now, a place fraught with danger from monsters and people alike, into a Utopia. Him. He could do it. Arione could be the main character of- ¡°Master¡­ what are you thinking about?¡± Arione coughed. ¡°Er, nothing.¡± Clover sighed and Arione had a feeling that she knew exactly what he was talking about. The five member party continued to walk towards their Fate.
Chapter 104: Lock
World: MSS - Loading...
Once, when I was fifteen I went to the emergency room. I had never been in one before. I was used to private doctors, the shiny white floors and clean rooms ¨Call reserved for me. My parents never spared any expenses for me. Never. So when I was wheeled into an emergency room, naturally I was shocked. First it was the smell. Hospitals have this distinctive smell of disinfectant and old paint. Underlying those artificial man made smells was something much more real, much more primal. Smell of the sick and dying. And your body''s naturally repulsed by it. As much as we pretend we are not, we have a lot of hardwiring leftover inside our brains that makes us little better than animals. I remember being frightened about what was happening to me but mostly, being treated like one of them. Nurses had commandeered beds from whoever knows where and they littered the hallways. Angry family members screamed, more from helplessness than rage. I think they all knew they shouldn¡¯t be mad at the nurses and doctors. And they weren¡¯t. They were angry with themselves, at the situation but it¡¯s always easier to blame someone else than yourself. Even if it is the sick person in question whom you are worried for. The sight of an emergency room was something I¡¯d never been exposed to before as a trust fund baby of millionaire parents. I¡¯d seen TV shows but they never prepared me for the real thing. The elderly sat and in their eyes you could see one of two things ¨Cfear or resignation. Father Death was coming and people reacted to it in different ways. Then there were the homeless people. Smells of sewage and rotten garbage, trying to find someplace warm to spend the night. They had a different look about them, hopelessness. This raw view of my society, of which I belonged to but at a different class structure, changed me. If I was nonchalant on the drive over, seeing these people planted a seed, growing into a pit of despair that pulled the bottom of my stomach from under me. There was this empty, hollow fear that made me realize I¡¯m not immortal, I¡¯m not special. That I could die and I have been extremely lucky so far. No one lives forever and when Father Time comes to collect his dues, to hand off our carcasses to Father Death, no one is exempt. No one. They ran blood tests. Pricks. Needle stabs. Nothing like what I had to go through until now. Then they wanted to insert a foley catheter in me. It was this long tube with a urine bag attached to it. Calmly, they explained that they would have to insert the foley catheter up my urethra up to my bladder, to measure how much urine I was producing. They made it sound a lot more complicated than that and I think it¡¯s because they wanted to confuse me, get me to say yes without making too much fuss. You have to understand, I was fifteen at the time and scared out of my life. The crowd, the constant yelling and talking and everything that I¡¯ve talked about until now had set me on full on panic mode. I rejected anything strange and refused to trust anyone. So I said no. But they couldn¡¯t figure out what was wrong with me until they inserted the Foley Catheter. So they waited. One hour. Two hour. Five hours. I didn¡¯t have a room yet, so I was just sitting on a wheelchair outside in the hallway. Apparently you¡¯re not allowed to walk yourself in case you sue. And since they didn¡¯t have enough space¡­ I was waiting on a wheelchair in full view of everyone. Not like anyone cared though, I wasn¡¯t the only one. Finally, a male nurse came to see me. To change my IV drip. He knelt down to change the IV. I turned my head away as he took the needle out and pressed the bandage to it, before switching over to my arm. ¡°You should do the foley catheter man.¡± He said. ¡°I¡¯m, uh, thinking about it.¡± He shook his head. ¡°No one wants to do a foley catheter. But we have to figure out what¡¯s wrong with you. I¡¯m going to give it to you straight, it¡¯s gonna hurt but only for a moment. Pain is just a memory, young man.¡± That kind of struck a chord in me. He was right in a way, that pain is just a memory. Just like how everything else around me would be a memory once they found out what was wrong with me and I was wheeled home. Just like how living in a penthouse suit in a NYC apartment was nothing but a memory. Like how these dying people would be nothing but memories to their loved ones. I don¡¯t think he meant it to be quite deep, but it changed how I looked at my situation ¨Cbecause those words brought together everything I had been feeling. Nothing is permanent. We ourselves are just memories in this transient world. That my life, my insignificant life, wasn¡¯t anything special. People do foley catheters all the time and I wasn¡¯t any more special for having done it. I would become just one of the many nameless faces who could nod and say ¡®Yeah, I have.¡¯ when someone asks ¡®Have you gotten a foley catheter before?¡¯. So thanks to that nurse, I said yes and he assured me, he¡¯ll make it quick. He brought in a young nursing student to do the foley catheter on me. It was her first time. But that wasn¡¯t the worst thing. She was pretty. Pretty much a teenage guy¡¯s worst nightmare. But yeah. I think what I want to share is that, that moment was very impactful to me. I laugh about it sometimes. ¡®Pain is a memory¡¯ and I¡¯d often say it, when I went through High School. College. First Job. First Girlfriend. First Breakup. Whenever something difficult happened to me, I told myself: Pain is a Memory. And I took faith in that saying like a little lucky charm, trusting that it¡¯ll pass. So I tried, I tried really hard to stay tough when Coum tortured me. I cannot put words to the things he did to me. He¡­ he did things to me. And Coum taught me how weak and pathetic that saying really was. The elven mage taught me that pain is not just a fucking memory. Pain is everything. Pain lives inside of us all. Pain is hurt and hate and loathing and depression and burning sensation that envelops us all. Pain could reduce a millionare to nothing more than a whimpering, wet-bloodied fucking animal. Pain could elevate a hardened man into someone screaming in confession, that he¡¯ll do anything to be released. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Coum let me know the power of Pain and when he was in the room, nothing mattered but what he was about to do next. He used pain to blot out Arrosh, Skaris, Kyrian, Aurora and Stole. He used it to make me forget that I was in MSS, that I was Lock Slaveborn, not Han. He made me forget all the Cores I had collected. He reduced me to this bag of flesh whose basic instinct was to whimper and try to edge away from him when he came near. Then it ended when he healed me. My god¡­. There¡¯s no words to describe how that felt. To be brought to the brink of death and then healed by the same person who was about to kill you. It¡¯s like becoming light. It¡¯s like¡­ like an ice cold drink of water on a hot day, intensified a hundred fold so that the crispness lingers in the back of your throat. It¡¯s like sex but better. He did that so many times. I broke. I fucking broke. And I wanted to die. When he was done, he said this. ¡°Now, we will move onto your hands.¡± My God. I begged him to kill me. I begged. God, I¡¯d never begged before.
The crackling of the fire awoke me. My body reacted with immediate adrenaline and screamed for me to run ¨Cto try and get as far as I could. There was a shout and then I whimpered like a rodent, scurrying to the side to try and look for somewhere to hide. His voice stopped me cold. ¡°Hold, child.¡± It wasn¡¯t Coum¡¯s voice. Coum¡¯s voice was a raspy, rattling little thing like a rattlesnake poised to strike. A light thin needled sound that grated on the back of my mind like nails on a chalkboard and just evil. Coum wasn¡¯t evil in the sense that he was a torturer, he was one of those evil guys that was all practicality and efficiency. If Coum wanted to slit my throat, he wouldn¡¯t engage in banter or last minute gloating. He was the type who was fine slitting my windpipe with a knife himself or killing me from a distance with a Fireball. But this voice¡­ This voice was authority. It was power and there was hardened strength beneath it. Some part of me that was buried longer beneath the layers and layers of pain induced haziness told me that this man was a warrior. His voice was deep and held steady like a swordsman holding his sword in the basic stance. Then like a scared puppy in a new place for the first time, I studied my surroundings to see where I was. To see if I was safe. I was in a clearing in the middle of the woods. Tall pine trees surrounded me in every direction and when I looked, they were so densely packed that I realized there was no way out. When I turned my head to look for a path, they shifted so that the direction of my gaze was filled with strong trunks. I put my hand on the ground and soft soil crumbled in my hands. My fingers came away from the ground, splattered with dark ¨Calmost black soil. It was night because the orange glow from the campfire was the only thing illuminating this place. I turned to see who it was that I was trapped here with. There was a man sitting on a log, staring at me. But he wasn¡¯t human. His face was made out of granite, harsh lines and a solidity that didn¡¯t exist in normal flesh. Two fangs jutted out from the bottom of his lips, pressed into the chin but failing to pierce the stony skin. The grayish complexion continued until his neck where his skin suddenly shifted to black and brown. His arms were laden with thick, ropy muscle. One made of labor and training, but they were pale white with violet lines of tattoos running over them. He was bald and in the process of looking at his face, I met his eyes. It was like looking at a being from times gone. Like how I look at the picture of a mammoth and decide that it''s an earlier ancestor of elephants; when I looked at him I was reminded of what orcs were and should be. He oozed physical power and warlike presence, but tempered by years of wisdom and patience; a raging storm tempered by time and a tall peak mountain, eroded by the years. Two molten orange orbs like miniature suns, giving off languid waves of orange-red heat that leaked out of his eye sockets and faded away from his face. Like a big lava lamp. ¡°Sit.¡± He gestured to the log across from him. I didn¡¯t even have time to think. I shied away from him, curling up into this fetal position. He sighed and looked at the sky. ¡°I cannot heal him. His mind is broken.¡± There was a flash of thunder and lightning overhead. The orc sighed once more, staring at the fire. Then he waited. I don¡¯t know how long he waited. But eventually, eventually, I half-crawled near the fire. But I didn¡¯t sit on the log. I made sure it was between us, like a shield. Then I reached out my hands over the wood and felt the warmth of the campfire with my palms. Like I said, no matter how much we pretend we¡¯re not, we¡¯re hardwired to be animals. There was safety in this fire. Warmth. Nostalgia. And as strange as he was, he gave me a sense of companionship. Atleast, someone who wasn¡¯t an immediate source of pain at the time. Long ago, when mankind was still fearful of things that go bump in the night, we took solace in these things. So returning to my baser instincts, I did the same. Still, the man waited. ¡°I know who you are.¡± I blurted, after a time. A faint smile graced his lips and a little bit of the fear disappeared from my heart. ¡°Who am I, child?¡± ¡°Khan.¡± I swallowed, nervous. ¡°Orcish god.¡± His eyes shone. More so than they had been. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± He said very quietly. My mind started to turn. The rusty gears starting to move once more. The logical part of my mind was moving and pushing back against the animalistic side that was only concerned about survival. There was¡­ there was something here. Like a treat? If I got it correct, I¡¯d be rewarded. Yes. Something good. ¡°This isn¡¯t real. It¡¯s my mind. Or a dream. Something.¡± The words spilled out of me. ¡°Also true.¡± His voice was gentle, mirth entered the fringes of his tone. There was pure joy in making someone laugh, of being funny and entertaining. I was never that sort and it happened so rarely, that I didn¡¯t take it for granted. I think I smiled. He smiled back and it should have been horrifying. But it reassured me. ¡°There is hope for you yet.¡± He rumbled. Then he reached into his pack and brought out some fried fruits and meat. He reached out with his hand. And my god, panic flooded my fish brain and I scrambled backwards until I was pressed up against the trees. Eyes wide and breathing heavily, my fingernails scratched against the bark and bled, trying to get away from him. Khan didn¡¯t say anything. He looked at his calloused hand at the food. He snorted and walked over to the log I had been at and placed the food there. Then he returned to his seat and sat back down, staring at the fire again, his movements soft and graceful. It marveled me that someone so big could be so still, frozen in time, reminding me of a glacier that exuded danger and beauty. After a time, I crawled over to the log, hiding behind it. Then I took the food he left and took a nibble. It didn¡¯t take long for me to finish the whole thing. I wanted more, but I was too scared to ask. So I waited behind the log, staring at the fire with him and watching out for any more sudden movements. ¡°You are hurt.¡± He said after a long time. Something stirred in me. ¡°Yes.¡± My voice was wet with¡­ With sadness. ¡°You gave them something of yours.¡± I closed my eyes as the fire became blurry. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Not something they took. You gave them. So that they¡¯d stop hurting you.¡± I had. ¡°You gave them something that made you human. You gave them¡­ your pride and dignity. What separates us from animals.¡± I took my hands back from the fire. More emotions, long forgotten, returned to me. Shame. Disgust. Revulsion. ¡°You begged to be killed, didn¡¯t you?¡± He said softly. Then deep, deep sorrow and humiliation. I started crying. He let me. I didn¡¯t cry quietly, sobbing into my chest. I wailed and yelled out incoherent thoughts, unable to express exactly why I was crying. Memories of Coum returned to me and I screamed in fear while hot tears streaked across my face. I punched the log a few times and at my chest, grabbing where my heart was and trying to tear it out with my bare hands. Long red scratch marks were left there. I just kept crying and crying and crying. ¡°You broke your vow. Even though you never said it, you vowed to be a protector. Protector of your friends. Of your master. Of the remnants of the orcish people whom you brought out of the desert.¡± Absently, I noted there was distant thunder rumbling overhead. ¡°Patience, Oung.¡± Khan snapped, annoyed. ¡°The child has given up what makes him a warrior, a protector. He has given up what makes him, him. It will take time for him to be back to what he was.¡± A crack of thunder and lightning brightened the sky. ¡°Before he is yours, he is a warrior and I am the god of warriors. He is my charge.¡± He snarled. Then he said, ¡°I will protect him from you, the same way he protected my people, if I must.¡± I don¡¯t know when he walked over, but he sat on the log where I was crouching behind. There was a thump and I realized he put down his humongous axe ¨Cabout three times as tall as he was¨C on the ground next to him. Then I saw him cross his arms. ¡°Cry, warrior.¡± Khan said, his voice laden with barely contained anger. ¡°You have protected my people, saved them from certain doom. Cry. And I will stand watch over you. You have done right by my people, fulfilled my duty in my stead. Cry, protector of the orcs. Cry, you who is called the [Slave King]. Cry, legacy of the [Sword Saint]. Cry as much as you need.¡± ¡°I will stand watch, until you can pick up your sword once more.¡± So I did. And for the first time in a long while. For the first time since I was tortured by Coum. For the first time since I was in the Twilight Maze. For the first time since I was in the burning city of Samak. For the first time since I was pushed into the tunnels as a Slave. I felt safe. I wept.
Chapter 105: Lock Slaveborn
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I don¡¯t know how long I cried for. ¡°Warrior,¡± Khan said gently, his voice like the last seconds of a rockslide. ¡°Our time grows short.¡± That broke me out of the stance I¡¯d been in. And for the first time since I¡¯d been captured by the [Player¡¯s Guild] and subjected to torture I didn¡¯t even know the name of, hell, didn¡¯t even know they existed, I stood on my own feet. I walked over to the other log of my own will and sat down ¨Cnot out of fear¨C but to talk face to face with another being. It didn¡¯t matter to me that he wasn¡¯t a mortal being, that he was a literal god of a videogame world made incarnate, nor that he could be a figure of my imagination ¨Cinduced by trauma. No. What mattered was that in my short time with him, he¡¯d dealt with me in good faith. Warrior to warrior. I made a choice of my own. Because I wanted to. Not because I was forced to or threatened into it. ¡°Speak.¡± Khan nodded. ¡°Oung has asked me to heal you. But I cannot, you know that, do you not?¡± Memories came to the forefront of my mind, unbidden and unwelcome. There was that prey-instinct again, telling me that there had to be a way out. For me to crawl on all fours and look for the nearest darkest hole I could hide myself in. I realized that my breath was quickening and the fire in front of me seemed to be shaking. ¡°I¡­¡± I shook my head, wrapping my arms around myself. Was I rocking myself back and forth? Without even realizing it? Was I this broken? I steeled myself, pushing the memories away. I closed my eyes for good measure. ¡°What does she want me to do?¡± "Good." There was a pleased manner in his speech, one that I couldn''t quite put a finger on. "You do not look for excuses on why you cannot, but simply face what you must do. As for what she wants you to do..." ¡°Nothing, beyond what she has already asked of you. She has asked me to heal you, but I could not. Since I could not heal you, how can you owe her?¡± Frowning, I opened my eyes to see Khan staring into the flames. But was that a smile I saw on the corner of his lips? ¡°But you-¡± He held up a hand before I could finish. ¡°I did nothing. All I did, was stand here while you cried, warrior. You are not healed. You are still damaged and broken.¡± What he was true, in a sense of the word. But he had bought me precious time and more importantly, a peace of mind. A space where I could function again, albeit not be back to who I was, but know that it was possible. He let me be, he let me rest and he let me eat by myself. He showed me a possibility that one day I could be healed. The gods of MSS didn¡¯t work like this. It was the law of equivalent exchange, one favor for another. Why would an orcish god help me and claim not to have helped me? ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± I said finally. ¡°Oh? Do you not?¡± He picked up a stick and stirred the flames, causing embers to drift up lazily into the sky. ¡°I have neither touched your mind nor your body. When you return to whence you came from, you will find that your bodies still bear scars, both old and new. I have not blotted out the memories you have of your torture.¡± ¡°Yet, here you are, on the road to healing. Not because of what I did, but because of a choice you made.¡± He sent up more embers drifting into the sky. ¡°We, the gods, have done nothing, Lock Slaveborn. You took the step, albeit a small one. But you took it nonetheless. You were neither pushed nor coerced.¡± I closed my eyes. ¡°What step?¡± I spat bitterly and I was surprised by the hate that filled my voice. ¡°I still remember the touch of the blade on my skin. I still remember the wicked sharp points of the needles. I still remember how it felt as he flayed my skin, inch by inch and strip by strip.¡± ¡°It will take time, child.¡± Khan said soothingly. ¡°Then how can I be healed?¡± I laughed, callous and cold. ¡°I begged for him to kill me. He took everything from me, what made me human. Even now, when I think about¡­ about the things he did to me, I shudder and my fucking brain wants nothing more than to hide in a dark hole in the ground and hope to die peacefully in my sleep.¡± Khan said nothing. ¡°You have to heal me.¡± I said finally, desperation creeping in. ¡°Block out the memories. Anything.¡± ¡°No.¡± He replied. ¡°Why not?!¡± I didn¡¯t scream. Not quite. ¡°Because you are already tied by the strings of Fate. And as impressive is the amount of Fate you wield, a direct touch on your life, you would pay too heavy a price. You would be beholden to me, to Oung.¡± His eyes, two miniature burning suns, turned to me. ¡°That is not healing warrior. That is avoidance.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a price I¡¯ll pay.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± He questioned. ¡°Then I will have to erase everything that reminds you of the torture.¡± I stopped. ¡°Think, warrior.¡± Khan continued, his voice low and dangerous, the ground quaking before an earthquake. ¡°How did you get captured? Who were you trying to meet? Who were you with before? All the events leading up to the day of your captivity, all the comrades who occupied your thoughts for even a sliver of a moment during your suffering, those are all interconnected webs, webs I would have to sever and cut.¡± ¡°You¡¯d have to erase my memories of everyone.¡± I whispered, feeling like someone had just pulled the floor out from beneath me. ¡°Yes.¡± He said simply. What he said made sense. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. I didn¡¯t like it. But it made sense. ¡°Do you still wish for me to block out the pain, young warrior? For me to ease your suffering?¡± God. I wanted to say yes. Coum¡¯s face came to me. Those flat, emotionless reptilian eyes, watching my face and asking the same questions over and over again as the blade sank into my skin. But there were good things too. Thinking of Aurora¡¯s courage as the shielder of our party made me persevere for an hour. In response to her memory, I had gritted my teeth and endured the pain without a word. Remember Skaris, the war-hungry lizard beastman made me scream out in frustration at Coum, vowing to rip off his limbs one by one. Kyrian made me keep silent, lest the pain made me give something away. Stole returned me to a time when I was still on earth, and I insulted Coum with every witty comeback I could think of. But more than that. I remembered that stupid time when Skaris almost set fire to our hut. When Kyrian cooked a bowl of stew, it was the foulest thing I¡¯d ever tasted. The orcs, dancing and singing at night, impossibly lonely and beautiful. The vast sky full of stars and dreams ¨Cthe same sky which was present when I left the Samak Desert and was present here in the Free States of Jayu. The feeling of excitement as I entered a dungeon ¨Cknowing that possible death lurked around the corner. Yes, my memories were tainted by things I¡¯d rather not remember. But was it all that bad? When there were so many other good things I had experienced? ¡°You realize,¡± Khan finally said. ¡°Only a fool would burn down a forest, because of one bad tree.¡± He was right. Coum had me for a day. Only a day. Was I going to let my life be decided by a single day? Or was I going to base it on everything else? We got through a lot of bad things in our lives. A lot of unimaginable bad things. Parents going through a divorce. A fight with a friend. Death of a sibling. Death of a friend. Death of a parent. And sometimes, those bad things affect us physically. Falling off a bicycle. Getting hit by a car, breaking an arm or a leg. And each time something happens to us, it takes a little bit of us away. We lose a little bit of the innocence that makes us young. Because we become familiar with pain, we embrace it as a part of life an inevitable result of trying new things. Then we avoid it. Because like I said, our brains are not hardwired to welcome pain. It wants to avoid it. That¡¯s why we stop trying new things and stop challenging ourselves. Even if the pain is nothing more than unkind words from a stranger or a judgemental look from someone, our minds just want to avoid it. We became hermits, living in our own little bubble. For some, this bubble was the same group of friends year after year. For some, it means the same routine, night after night. Same dinner, same breakfast. And for some, it means never straying from the path set for us by those who walked the painless path before us. School. Job. Marriage. Family. Death. I¡¯m not saying those are bad things, not at all. Those are good things and have meaning. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything more meaningful than spending time with your loved ones. But for me, if I gave into this pain and started to avoid it, it would mean the same thing as if I had gone through with erasing my memories. I wouldn¡¯t be able to travel with Skaris and Kyrian. I wouldn¡¯t be able to teach Stole how to become an adventurer. I¡¯d never enter a dungeon again and I sure as hell would never be able to pick up this sword again. I¡¯d live a drab life, not aiming to explore all the secrets that MSS has to offer, which was the least of my worries. I¡¯d just¡­ exist. In this world. Knowing that I could¡¯ve had home and just kicked it away. Because I based my life upon one day, a single day, and decided to avoid anything that might remind me of it. I¡¯d just stay in a house. In a room. And just¡­ Just be by myself. I did that once before, you know. And I can say with sincerity, that I¡¯d never been so alone in my entire life. The answer was clear. ¡°...Thank you.¡± I whispered. ¡°Again, I have done nothing.¡± Khan said jovially, then his voice turned low again, warning me. ¡°You are on the right path, warrior. But you are still hurt. Broken. It will take time. Time for your to test yourself against the memories, again and again. There is a great chance that once you go back, even the sight of the room will be too much for you.¡± I thought of my comrades. ¡°I¡¯ll do what must be done, to get back to where I need to go.¡± He smiled. ¡°A true warrior.¡± The sky rumbled and then snapped, distant rumblings of thunder filled the sky. The orc deity looked to the sky. ¡°Oung cannot keep you here longer.¡± ¡°Wait, I have questions. A lot of questions.¡± I became desperate. Khan was much more willing to talk than Oung. Perhaps questions that no one could answer except the gods, perhaps he could answer them. ¡°I cannot answer your questions about why you have ended up in our world, nor why your kind, the Travelers, work against us.¡± Khan answered. ¡°That is outside the rules. But there is a wiseman among my people, the seawolves.¡± ¡°The Seawolves?¡± ¡°They have the answers you seek. About us, the gods. You, the travelers.¡± He stood up, walking over to me. And suddenly I grew afraid. I don¡¯t know why but his demeanor changed. From a gentle grandfather just talking to his grandson to that of an orcish commander, a general who had seen a thousand deaths and his eyes screamed bloody violence. His shadow grew longer and I swore the deity grew larger before my eyes. Ten feet. Fifteen feet. Twenty feet. Each step he took, he was someone different. A general soaked in the blood of his enemies. A horrible god-king, revered by his subjects. A proud orc, screaming in fury, mid-battle. But when he stopped in front of me, he was only seven feet tall again. ¡°But suffice it to say, Lock Slaveborn, once named Han, that you are the only one among your kind to have entered our world with as much Fate as you did.¡± Then before I could reply, he reached out and grabbed my hand. ¡°Now, I will repay you for saving my people. And a repayment, which ends my obligation to you and incurs no debt from you to me.¡± He clarified. ¡°One question.¡± The deity continued and the sun in his eyes shone with such intensity that I shied away from the horrifying visage. ¡°And I will answer it.¡± I swallowed. I knew what to ask. ¡°How do I get out of here?¡± I hissed. He smiled. ¡°You truly are a warrior, aren¡¯t you?¡± Then he crushed my hand into mulch. ¡°AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHGGGHHHHH¡± ¡°The opposite of pain, isn¡¯t pleasure, young warrior.¡± He replied. ¡°Like the opposite to anger isn¡¯t love.¡± ¡°The opposite of pain, Lock Slaveborn, is indifference.¡± I screamed.
I woke up screaming. I gasped for breath and tried to look at my hand but just kind of wobbled, hung to the ceiling by [Ryker¡¯s Manacles]. Slowly I realized that I was back in the torture room, the one in the Scavenger¡¯s Safehouse. Panic flooded my senses immediately and I whimpered, scared out of my mind and searching madly for Coum. The elven mage wasn¡¯t here. But Khan was right. Just by being back in this room, I wasn¡¯t myself again. Concept of choice, the power of logic and reasoning went out the window and I struggled like a wild animal, the skin on my wrist tearing. I could¡¯ve sworn that Coum was in front of me, his knife reaching out and drawing a long line down my belly -his hands reaching in- -grey ropy things slithering out of me- I came back to myself, my voice hoarse from all the screaming. I had blacked out. Then I looked around me again, my eyes falling on the blades. My god, panic began to fill my brain and I was going to get fucking hurt and beg for my life and I just wanted to die and- This time, I was swaying back and forth, speaking in gibberish. I saw the torture tools around the room again and- ''The opposite of pain is indifference.'' A voice whispered in my mind. So I closed my eyes. I forced myself to think of nothing. Nothing. No sight. No hearing. No sense of smell. No touch. No pain. No joy. No anger. Just sheer empty darkness. The first thing I let myself have returned, was the sense of speech. I didn¡¯t want to scream. I didn¡¯t want to be a madman, yelling out gibberish. I was going to be a coherent, logical human being. ¡°I¡¯m going to be a coherent, logical human being.¡± My voice was nothing more than a rasp, but it was mine. Then I turned my attention to the smell surrounding me. Smell of blood. Iron. Burnt flesh. And memories returned to me. Of Coum taking a burning needle and stuffing it under my toenails, one by one and threading it like a needle unto my shin and- When I returned to myself this time, I wasn¡¯t screaming. I wasn¡¯t speaking in gibberish either. I was just whimpering. I hit myself with the memory again, losing all sense of self. I was only breathing hard when I returned to consciousness. ¡°Come on, bitch.¡± I heard myself snarl. ¡°Let¡¯s fucking dance.¡± Then I hit myself with the memories again. And again. And again. And again. ¡°Again!¡± I growled. Ang again. ¡°That all you got, you bald-headed freak?¡± And again. ¡°I could do this all fucking night!¡± I yelled, fierce pride welling up in my chest. ¡­And again. And when I opened my eyes again, the sight still hit me. I winced physically, remembering the things that Coum had done to me. But I didn¡¯t black out. I didn¡¯t lose myself in a fit of panic-induced hallucinatory visions. No. I stayed myself and I was all too aware of what was happening around me. I could feel the breath enter through my nose, welling up in my chest and then leaving. I felt the spikes from [Ryker¡¯s Manacles] tearing into my skin, the droplets of blood spilling down my arms from me thrashing around so much. I felt the tender scar tissue over my stomach and legs, all over my arms as well. I finally felt that my mind was mine. What I had done wasn¡¯t as simple as suppressing my fear. I¡¯d done that enough times. But I think back then, I didn¡¯t know what true fear was. That was just fear of death, a one-time thing. Coum had taught me that fear isn¡¯t a one-time thing, it lingers. True fear waits. It stays with you, a dark mass of wiggling-slithering-tentacle like monster that coalesces into jaws with too many teeth to devour you whole. The fear that you, as you know it, aren¡¯t you anymore. Fear dominates. Fear hurts. Fear takes over. Fear just is. I hadn¡¯t mastered fear. Not by a long shot. Because what I was about to do next made me afraid. Even just thinking of doing it sent images of Coum¡¯s torture running down my brain through my nerves, causing unwanted twitching all through the toes and fingertips. You see, Khan gave me a hint on how to escape. [Ryker¡¯s Manacles]. An item used to lock down a person¡¯s stats, Core abilities (both active and passive) and even their mana. It returns you to just being mortal. But they had to be big enough to fit everyone, even orcs who had much thicker bones than humans. They, the Players I mean, had found one just big enough to fit over my wrist. But it was still a loose fit, provided that the tiny teeth-like spikes constantly scraped against my skin. You see, us humans, we can do some pretty amazing things once we master our minds. Because like everyone says, it¡¯s mind over body. I swung, using momentum to lift my feet from one end to another. The teeth kept biting into my wrist and I heard something start to scrape like a saw against wood. Pretty sure that wasn¡¯t a good thing, but I ignored it. I fought through the pain, gritting my teeth and hoping that Khan was the real thing and not a dream. I flung my body upwards and grabbed the chain with my feet, braced myself¡­ ¡­and with a sickening crunch of bone cracking and skin ripping apart, ripped my hands through the [Ryker¡¯s Manacles]. I was fucking free. There was going to be hell to pay.
Chapter 106: Arrosh Bloodedge
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The moment I tore myself out of those manacles, quite literally, what I felt wasn¡¯t the sweet, sweet release from pain or the taste of freedom. What I did wasn¡¯t run around, looking for revenge. No, it wasn¡¯t so simple. Life isn¡¯t so simple. I crouched down and worried. I worried what would happen if Coum walked through that door right now and saw me out of my chains. My mind sorted through the various memories of the torture techniques and how they¡¯d feel and I came this close to passing out on the floor right there and then. But when the memories hit me with the force of a mental psychic sledgehammer, I did nothing more than wince like a wounded animal. I stood firm against it, breathing in and counting to ten, and then breathing out. By all rights, I should have been rushing to get out of there. But it was more important that I stay and put myself in the right frame of mind. And in that moment, I calmly ordered my thoughts like a filing system by priority, casting aside everything that was unreasonable with ruthless efficiency. There were a multitude of things I had to do with the [Player¡¯s Guild]. Dibo¡¯s revenge. My own desire for information about players in this world. As Tanya had pointed out, a painful longing to talk with someone from Home, someone who could empathize with me. But that wasn¡¯t the end of it. There was greed present too, who knows what treasures lay in a Clan headed by [Players]? Even if the Scavengers weren¡¯t players, they were still led by one. Among those, I wanted revenge too. Us humans¡­ when someone hurts us, our first reaction is to lash out. Hurt them back, twofold, fivefold and even a hundredfold. To strike back in anger and rage is a universal emotion. But the ability to do so was not. And the condition I was in meant that option was out. Last but not least, I wanted to find where Arrosh was and get him out of here. I quickly dismissed finding a Player and trying to get revenge. Loathe as I was to admit it, that horse-headed cosplaying freak scared me. It was like he knew my every move and every Core, down to the last detail. Not to mention I was starting to doubt I¡¯d hesitated to cut his neck off of my own accord and wasn¡¯t entirely sure if Tanya¡¯s explanation for why I had done so was forthcoming. No, there were more than one Core in this world that could cancel an attack, some chance based and others having to be activated. Yes. Now that I was thinking more clearly, it was highly likely that the whole thing was a set up. Use a Core to trick someone into thinking they hesitated, then Tanya swoops in to make them think they want to connect with other Players. Preying on the mental confusion of someone who¡¯d gotten so used to killing without hesitation then slamming them with words like ¡®home¡¯ and ¡®friends¡¯. Either that or I just refused to believe that the horse-head was the better swordsman. There was also another possibility: I grossly overestimated my own strength and underestimated that of others. I was placing myself around Grade 3 or 4 before but could it be that I wasn¡¯t? Even with the Royal Oni, could it be that I was actually closer to grade 5? It¡¯s not like the grading system for adventurers was as cut and dry as it was for monsters. Adventurer grade was determined by a small orb which was invented by Mages. From what I remembered, it took into account a variety of factors, mostly the strength of your Cores and your [Physical] and [Mental] stat. This meant that it didn¡¯t take into account any synergy between the Cores at all. Theoretically, it was entirely possible for someone with all his slots full of Grade 10 Cores working seamlessly together to wipe the floor with someone who had a mismatching Core set. Yes, even in the game version of MSS, this had been prominent. Sometimes, the match-up was just bad and you had no way to win. Could it be that I was just a bad matchup with horse-head? ¡°I¡¯ll just have to cross that bridge when I get to it.¡± With the realization that I didn¡¯t want to face any of the Players at all, least of all Horse-Head and Coum, I realized Dibo¡¯s request for information and searching for possible loot was out too. I wanted to minimize my risk of being discovered. More than that, information and loot would be guarded. Guards meant I had to fight someone and I wanted to get out of here without fighting at all (surprise, surprise, I know). I wasn¡¯t in the right state of mind to hold my sword much less fight with it. Against a Player or not, I was damaged. It wasn¡¯t something to be taken lightly. But there was one thing I had to try to do no matter what, and that was finding Arrosh. ¡°Come on.¡± I punched my thighs a couple of times. ¡°Come on, move! You stupid thing.¡± Eventually, my legs stopped shaking and I stumbled over to the table where Coum had laid out his various instruments of torture. They were all shiny and clean, a testament to the man¡¯s nature. I brushed them aside, swallowing my breath nervously. Coum had been healing me after each torture set and there were a bunch of health potions on one side. Uncorking one, I readied myself mentally before pouring them over my wrists one at a time. I managed not to scream. There was a sickening joy in realizing that it felt good to inflict pain on myself, instead of by someone else''s whim. Before, I had dreaded seeing the skin and flesh knit itself together but right now it felt like another huge step towards finally leaving this place behind. After my wrists had healed themselves, I took care of the little nicks and cuts that I had suffered. I quickly found my armor and weapons that were discarded in the corner. ¡°Fuckers.¡± I muttered. They hadn¡¯t bothered taking anything. They had been that confident in their ability to win me over. Or kill me when I didn¡¯t. That told me something about these guys. They were confident in their methods, whether it was downright getting rid of loose ends or keeping a hostage for days on end. Chances were that they wouldn¡¯t even expect me to have escaped my manacles at all. That meant the element of surprise at my side. More than that, it told me something about Coum. He wasn¡¯t one to care about wealth. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Which meant he was different from other Players. Fully armored once more, I stowed the Lunar Shield and ownerless sword on my back. I checked the pockets and the Dimension Rings were all there. Then turning around, I walked back over to the spot where I had been strung up by my wrists, looking at the thorny handcuffs ¨CRyker¡¯s Manacles. I looked at the blood stains on the floor, not all of it mine, which looked more like grease at this point. Grimacing, I carefully unhooked Ryker¡¯s Manacles from the ceiling and put it in my Dimension Ring. Just because I gave up on revenge didn¡¯t completely rule out the chance for poetic justice sometime in the future. Finally I stood beside the door that I had stared at more than a hundred times, hoping that someone would come and rescue me. In the end, no help came. No one had come to rescue me. ¡°Yeah, but you can be that someone for someone else.¡± I said quietly. ¡°You don¡¯t need a reason to be a good person to your friends.¡± Yeah. That sounded good to me. Making sure no sound was coming from the other side, I opened the door, stepping out into the tunnels. It was very anticlimactic. Which was fine with me. I could use boring for awhile longer just yet. I walked in my armor, unsteady and eyes shifting to every corner. Paranoia was steeped in my bones and every shadow, every creak and even the silence was a sign of danger. I wasn¡¯t sure if anything was indeed lurking around, waiting for me and I doubted I could fight it off. So I moved quickly, metal boots striking stone and creating much too noise for my liking. It¡¯s hard to creep in full armor. This place was just a huge dome shaped corridor with a dozen doors on one side and a single opening that led to a passageway on the opposite side. No doubt that was the exit. The temptation was strong to just walk out of here but I pushed it away, becoming better and better at controlling my thoughts once more. I walked by each of the doors, listening in. I couldn¡¯t hear a thing. If I still had the Lucky Beckoning Cat, no doubt I could¡¯ve even picked up the breathing of whoever was inside, if there was someone in there at all. As it was, the metal doors were simply too thick for my meager [Hearing] stat to listen in on. Still, if there was anyone screaming or an active torture session going on, I was sure I would hear it. I pressed my ears against them one by one, before opening it and peeking inside. ¡°Walking in on a torture session,¡± I shook my head after bringing my ears away from the third door, ¡°Only the third most awkward thing I¡¯ve said in my life.¡± God, I had missed making jokes. Even the unfunny ones. Just when I was about to give up and start searching elsewhere, I opened the second to last door and froze. He was there. It was horrible. A needle thin orc hung in the air upside down, ugly meat hooks holding him through the back of his ankles. His greenish skin bulged with ugly red blotches, mostly around his hands, wrists and feet like bee stings but I knew they were from the same curved needle that Coum used on me. One eye was swollen that it looked permanently closed. Numerous scars lined his arms, all the way down to the elbows and I saw soft, thin, almost clear scar tissue lining the entire length of it. But it was slightly different from Coum¡¯s handiwork. There was emotion in the scars, some wounds too deep and too big to be immaculately torture. Multiple stab and burn wounds littered Arrosh¡¯s body and I turned my head away as a finger sized hole wriggled, making me realize that some fucker had put maggots in his wounds. Whoever had tortured Arrosh had done this with anger and passion, heated emotions leaving marks of his emotional state. By the gods, I didn¡¯t want to look at this. I didn¡¯t know what I expected from our reunion and hadn¡¯t really planned out how I would react upon seeing him like this. Actually, I did expect it, deep down in my heart where I could ignore the uncomfortable feeling of facing reality. Truth is, we were both in enemy territory and this was the harsh reality of what happened to those who were captives. Torture. Neglect. Hurt. Pain. Our reunion wasn¡¯t supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be¡­ ¡®Supposed to be like what? All hugs and smiles? Tearful greetings and ¡®I missed you¡¯s? Get real, look at what just happened to you in the last twenty four hours. These guys are fucking animals, plain and simple. You need to stop being so fucking soft just because they¡¯re [Players]. You think they survived this long by being soft?¡¯ My inner voice stepped in. ¡®I didn¡¯t do these sort of things to survive.¡¯ I argued back. ¡®You have the experience of fourteen years beating the original difficulty. You know pretty much every secret dungeon and loot. Not to mention a freaking goddess looking over your shoulder and manipulating Core drop rates for you in the first dungeon you entered. What about the others? If they didn¡¯t have your advantage, how the hell would they fare? What kind of things would they have to resort to? Just a plain student? A salaryman? Gods forbid, a regular schmoe joe dad or a kid?¡¯ ¡®Still, I would never do something like this.¡¯ I hissed back. ¡®Not yet.¡¯ I shook my head and stepped foot inside the room, flooded with the smell of blood, rot and feces all at once. It swarmed me like a physical force and I waded through it as it blanketed my entire being. It felt like walking through sludge, every step a struggle. Eventually, I reached Arrosh. ¡°Arrosh.¡± I muttered, not knowing what to say. Reuniting this way left a bitter feeling in my throat. ¡°I¡¯m here for you.¡± Then Arrosh, whom I thought had been unconscious, opened the eye that wasn¡¯t swollen, the milky clouds within them swirling sluggishly and smiled. ¡°The trout returns upstream at last.¡± It was him. It was Arrosh. It was Arrosh Bloodedge, the one who¡¯d taught me swordsmanship. It was my Master whose teachings had saved my life. ¡°I¡¯m here, Master.¡± I wiped at my eyes as they became blurry and knelt down, speaking in low voices. ¡°Do you know where you are? What¡¯s happened to you?¡± ¡°The clouds of forgetfulness have not claimed me just yet, young tree.¡± He smiled without any sign of pain. ¡°Even a sea of pain could not drown out the bond between master and disciple. I knew you would come to free me from the chains of bondage.¡± ¡°Arrosh¡­¡± I didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°Though there would be better times to satiate our thirst from the nectar of nostalgia and the drink of memories, young tadpole.¡± He was right. There was a time for this later. I quickly stood up and studied the hooks. There was no way I could get him down without hurting him. ¡°Master, I¡¯m going to have to cut through these chains.¡± I muttered. ¡°Brace yourself.¡± ¡°You have learned to cut through Steel?¡± Instead of answering, I drew the sword from my back. My mind was damaged but the potion had returned my body to full capacity ¨Cand [Aura] answered my call. Familiar gray aura surrounded the falchion and in one clean stroke, I cut the chain and caught Arrosh before he could flop to the ground. Arrosh wasn¡¯t invincible. He hissed in pain despite the gentle landing and the remaining chains attached to the hooks clanged against the floor. I acted quickly, grabbing the hooks and ripping them out of his ankles before the elderly orc could say otherwise. Arrosh stiffened like someone does when they¡¯re scared or when they¡¯re holding their breath due to the pain but relaxed a moment after, breathing out in quick bursts. ¡°That was [Aura].¡± Arrosh whispered through the pain. I wasn¡¯t even surprised that the blind orc could tell what it was. He had tricks of his own. Besides, he was my Master. Of course he would know. He¡¯s the one who taught it to me. ¡°Goddamit Arrosh, you''re bleeding. Now¡¯s not the time to talk about swordsmanship.¡± I took out Health Potions and uncorked them with my teeth, basically showering Arrosh with it. ¡°Now is precisely the time to talk about [Aura], for your roots have dug deep into the soil. Finally, the teachings can begin.¡± ¡°We can do that later.¡± I argued, watching his skin regrow and wounds close in on itself. The maggots were pushed out of the holes as the flesh regrew from within. I brushed them off and fought not to gag at the smell. Arrosh didn¡¯t even bat an eye which was impressive as hell. Whenever I used a health potion on myself, I had to fight not to scream. ¡°The sapling must lay down its roots. Then they must grow tall, taller than others and reach for the Sun.¡± ¡°Yeah, Sunlight. That sounds like a good idea to me. Let¡¯s get out of here.¡± The orc swordsman muttered something, and I noticed that a couple of his teeth were missing. I had always known he was skinny, but had his body always been this fragile-feeling? There was hardly any meat on his bones. Arrosh shifted his weight and I let him go, hardly feeling his weight leaving my touch. Turning around, he faced me and I could¡¯ve sworn he could see. There were some damages that healing potions couldn¡¯t heal, malnutrition being one of them. His cheeks were hauntingly gaunt and his belly was naught more than a strip of leather covering his organs. His ribs flared out painfully and the hint of something starting at his shoulders. I¡¯d never wondered what Arrosh¡¯s totem was. I¡¯d never even considered that he was a Berserker. But he was. He had to be. It¡¯s just that for me, his identity as the Sword Sage¡¯s Disciple came first. Slowly, Arrosh traced his fingers over his shoulders and the tribal tattoos over them. Then he shuddered. ¡°The failed protector of his people gets his second chance. For the root takes quicker than imaginable. Could it be possible that the cards of fate are moving? Oh, venerable Khan, let me strike true and shatter the bones of my enemies.¡± He raised his head to the sky, crying out like a howling wolf. ¡°The chains are shattered, Fate moves! The weaver makes her choice and the moment is here! Crossroads of choice!¡± He took a step back and with a loud shriek, his voice undulating in the last few notes and lingering. ¡°Arrosh?¡± There was a sense of vigor around him now, almost enough to make me believe he wasn¡¯t a orc more than a century old having been tortured for only the gods know how long. The air hummed with the threat of¡­ of something. Was it possible that he was using his [Kudan] Core to see the future right now? Because I was in a world where the rules of MSS weren¡¯t bound by 2D pixels or speech bubbles, Cores were only limited by the imagination. [Kudan], a Core that could only be used to predict what move an enemy used in battle, could be used to tell the future in other circumstances. And from what I could see, Arrosh was going through some kind of epiphany right now, seeing the near future. It reminded me of the stories of the oracles of old, men and women driven mad by the possibilities of the future. I knew Arrosh was¡¯t quite sane but seeing it in the flesh made me take a step back away from the man. He turned to me, eyes burning with empty intensity. ¡°Quick. My cane. The enemy approaches!¡±
Chapter 107: Arrosh Bloodedge (2)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Quickly Sparrow! My cane!¡± Arrosh¡¯s command cracked like a whip. He had been awake for all of 5 minutes and already he had a better grasp of the situation than me. Figures. Arrosh¡¯s command did more than just stir me into motion. It stabbed a shot of adrenaline straight into my brain and spine, driving lightning-speed tingling sensations down my neck, back and all the way to the soles of my feet. I pivoted, my mind already beginning to protest against the possibility of getting hurt right after escaping torture, and grabbed Arrosh¡¯s Cane that I had seen leaning against the wall. When I turned around, Arrosh had found large billowy pieces of cloth and wrapped himself in it. He stuck out a hand and I placed the cane. Gripping it tight, he drew it. I¡¯d never seen Arrosh¡¯s sword either. Hell, I hadn¡¯t even known his walking stick was a sword. It was a straight double edged sword with a rounded fuller, the length of the blade gradually narrowing into a sharp tip. The blade¡¯s edge shone with a light blue-and-green sheen and in the dim light of the torture chamber, it played tricks in my eyes, giving off a aurora-colored hue with each movement. Arrosh took the sword and held it up to his eye, tip pointed away from him. Then he took it and did some kind of snappy wrist movement, scissoring the air in front of us and whipping the blade back and forth. He let out a satisfied sound and sheathed the blade, turning towards the door. ¡°We must leave this place at once, young storm. Come!¡± The elderly swordmaster orc dashed out ahead of me, the rags billowing out like a cloak behind him. Grimacing, I quickly gave chase. In an instant we cleared the large chamber outside and stepped into the passageway which was no doubt the exit. And came face to face with two Scavengers. Arrosh killed them before I could blink. He raised the cane to his forehead, gripping the hilt and scabbard, in some kind of strange salute. Then he drew it with a fierce cry, steel ringing and sparks flying from the force of the draw, and beheaded the first Scavenger with a cut so clean it took a second for his head to roll off of the neck. Then in the same breath, he whipped his sword in a return stroke and gutted the second man ¨Cthrough his breastplate¨C and from hip to shoulder. The sword continued past the man and Arrosh sheathed it into the scabbard which was still held against his forehead. ¡­Holy Crap. He had never stopped walking. We practically flew past the two corpses, never bothering to look back. My adrenaline was running full force now and I pumped my legs for whatever they were worth, trying to keep up with Arrosh. But the orc swordsman never leaped too far ahead, staying just a few paces ahead of me. One more Scavenger appeared from around the corner and Arrosh bent his legs and slammed his own hips into the man, flipping him over. The orc kicked him towards me while he was still falling and the man landed in a flop right at my feet. ¡°Take him, young blade! Others approach!¡± I had been wheezing for breath and in a half-daze. The exhaustion plus the disorientation from the sudden rush of battle had gotten to me and as the Scavenger in front of me moved to his feet, his fingers scrambling for his potion my hands acted on reflex. I closed the distance between us in one powerful step and slapped his potion away, opening up his guard. He wasn¡¯t wearing any metal armor ¨Conly leather as far as I could see. I fumbled my visor closed, the Seeing Crystal working as normal. There was no point in letting myself think. If I thought too hard, panic would set in, the trauma turning my hands and feet to jelly. I drew the sword from my back quickly and taking inspiration from Arrosh¡¯s move earlier, used the same move to crush the man¡¯s feeble attempts at a defense with a downward elbow strike. My elbow crushed his fingers and in the same movement, I slammed my shoulder into the man¡¯s chest, sending him stumbling back and creating space. Holding the sword in a high guard I swung downwards. And with a sickening crunch, rendered him from shoulder to hip. Blood poured out of the wound. Oh god, I wanted to throw up. It wasn¡¯t the act of killing so much as what cutting into his torso had reminded me of. Shaking my head, I stumbled back, trying to rub the vision of Coum¡¯s instruments out of my eyes. Somewhere along the torture, he had opened up these holes in my ribs and stuck in disgusting squirming, slithering worm-like blind things with claws and teeth and- I threw up. Over the sound of my retching, I could¡¯ve sworn I heard the chittering of those creatures again. I rubbed my eyes. I hadn¡¯t eaten for two or three days and my vomit was nothing more than clear viscous spit and stomach acid. Still, I coughed violently in horrible wracking movements, trying to purge the memories out of me along with whatever was left in my stomach. My eyes stinging with tears, I felt the aftertaste of vomit as someone patted me on my back. ¡°At times, branches must be cut away before the parasite takes too deep a root within the tree. At times, the mother stork casts out the runt, to raise the strongest young.¡± I looked to see the blind man, patting my back. Behind him lay four more bodies. All headless. A single stroke. I threw up some more. He let me. When I had gathered myself, my hands were trembling and my legs were jelly. Escaping? Sure. I could do that easily, I just had to put one leg in front of the other. But fighting through a whole horde of Scavengers who were out to kill me? With the chance that I would come face to face with Coum again? Wading through gore and body parts? Even just the thought of it made me wretch again. But I found out one thing through this fight. I could still kill. I could still take the weight of a life and not be crushed by guilt, especially if it was a Scavenger who was nothing but a criminal. If it came down to me or them¡­ I still chose myself. My determination to survive hadn¡¯t abandoned me. Which meant¡­ What had happened with Horse-head¡­ I hadn¡¯t hesitated at all. Those fuckers had played me like a fiddle. The whole thing had been a set-up. I was sure of it now. Trying to play off the Core ability like it was some empathy for [Players] who were in the same situation as me, coming in at just the right time with just the right type of food. They had pancakes for god¡¯s sake. I¡¯d never seen pancakes in this world before until they brought it in. They¡¯d orchestrated the whole thing and I¡¯d bought it like a fat kid buying a dollar meal at a fast-food joint. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Yet, realizing their scheme didn¡¯t make it better. If anything it turned the whole experience increasingly sinister, like they¡¯d planned to damage me from the start. They didn¡¯t kill me, not physically. But they¡¯d broken me enough to make sure I could never become a threat again, even if I got out of this hellhole alive. What kind of warrior became disabled at the sight of blood? The advice that Khan had given, the so-called ¡®mind control¡¯ that I had done to myself. It was all just bandages over the wounds. Bandages that had been torn off in the heat of battle and the wound had been torn open. I closed my eyes, trying to still my breathing and push the memories away. And when I finished pushing those memories away, I found rage. Smoldering inexplicable anger that smoldered white hot at the edges, crumbling into a deep dark abyss where there was no return. These fuckers had toyed with me. I held up a hand and saw how much it was trembling. I grabbed onto the wrist to try and make it stop but it just wouldn¡¯t fucking stop. ¡°Fuck. Fuck. Fuck FUCK FUCK!¡± I screamed, uncaring that Arrosh was right in front of me. I found Arrosh staring at me. ¡°Sometimes,¡± He said quietly. ¡°I have bad dreams too, young leaf.¡± My anger disappeared in the face of his sorrow. ¡°When I was but a young twig, I had a younger sister. We had no parents and as far as I could remember, I was all she had and she was all I had to call kin.¡± Arrosh flicked his sword to the side, splattering the ground with droplets of blood. His sword was clean again. He leaned against the wall next to me, staring at the sword despite being blind. ¡°To keep ourselves clothed and fed¡­ I did things. Things I shouldn¡¯t have done.¡± It was one of those rare moments when Arrosh was lucid, speaking in regular speech instead of the strange metaphoric riddles he often employed. His milky eyes were looking at something I couldn¡¯t see and he reached out a hand, like he could touch something. ¡°I had a gift, a gift of quick hands and quicker feet. Once I had set my mind on a particular coin pouch, none could evade my grasp and no one was wiser afterwards. Even if one should catch the whispers of my disappearance, there was no better runner in the horde than I.¡± He continued. ¡°Soon, my sister and I weren¡¯t alone. I had other mouths to feed. Those who worked for me. Those who stole for me and if needed, those who killed for me. Family. Friends. Comrades.¡± ¡°I grew greedy. Shortsighted.¡± He touched a finger to his eyes. ¡°I could see, but I refused to see. What was happening to me. I picked the pockets of powerful men, eager to prove my worth. For in those days, actions spoke and coins louder still.¡± Sighing, ¡°One day, I pickpocketed the son of a Local Warlord. Oh, there were better targets but I had a reason for it. I saw how he looked at my sister, you see. When she went to draw water at the well. So I pickpocketed him, beat him and left him for dead. A petty offense, meant to goad the Warlord into anger, for he had many, many sons. To see his reaction, trying to gauge his power.¡± Arrosh smiled sadly. ¡°I was caught and tortured for days.¡± I listened, breathless. ¡°Eventually I escaped. Upon escaping, I hunted down the Warlord¡¯s sons and daughters, one by one. Consumed by rage, for I believed I had nothing left but revenge for what the man had done to me.¡± I shook my head, feeling a chill go down my spine. ¡°Within a day, they found my people. The warlord burnt them and my sister alive.¡± Arrosh closed his clouded eyes and he looked ages older. The wrinkles in his face seemed more pronounced, the crow¡¯s feet larger than before. ¡°Right before my eyes.¡± ¡°I still hear their screams sometimes.¡± It was a short story. Something that reminded me of a folktale, something to warn me against becoming too greedy. There were plenty of details missing too, leaving me full of questions. Like who was this Warlord? Was he still alive? How was Arrosh still alive if he had been captured a second time? But none of those questions mattered. ¡°How did you get over it?¡± ¡°There is no getting over fear. Fear gives birth to anger. Anger gives birth to selfishness and selfishness to revenge. And from revenge comes despair.¡± He shook his head, a gesture out of place from his usual persona. Arrosh took his hand and placed it on the hilt of his sword. ¡°Do you remember his face, young cloud?¡± I tried not to twitch as I remembered Coum. ¡°I remember.¡± ¡°You must live. You must live until you no longer remember that face, or live long enough to erase it. Whichever path you choose is your choice, my Disciple. So you must live. By living, you make all their efforts for naught.¡± Arrosh hissed and spun on his heel. ¡°And for you to survive the web of fate we find ourselves entangled in, we must leave this place.¡± Then he began to walk. I caught up to him thinking. ¡°Wait, you didn¡¯t mention which path you chose,¡± I asked after awhile, ¡°The Warlord¡­ What happened to him?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not always bad dreams I have,¡± Arrosh shot me a look over his shoulder. ¡°...I hear his screams too.¡± This time, I did twitch and it wasn¡¯t because of Coum. Then he started sprinting down the corridor and I followed, hot on his heels. Arrosh was right. The best way to take revenge on these fuckers was to get out of this hellhole and live to see another day. These [Players] had been here for years, of course I was weaker than them. That was a given. Years to get the right Cores, to find the right items and to bring your character build to completion. I wondered how long it would take for me to surpass them. After a moment, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, no doubt leading into another room. ¡°Master! Ahead!¡± ¡°I sense the presence of evil! Stains upon this world! Ready your blade, disciple!¡± We burst into the room and my absorbed the scene like flash photography before everything descended into chaos. The room was rectangular in shape, similar to the others and had the Scavengers strewn about. What was interesting however was the fact that the Scavengers were injured. Some of them sported cuts and others sported burns. Still others seemed relatively fine except for the damaged armor. They must have been using this place as something like a medical bay. For one crazy second, they looked at us not knowing what to do or what was going on. Arrosh didn¡¯t hesitate to waste that precious time. Arrosh strode in first, drawing his blade. He turned the draw into a horizontal swing and gutted the first Scavenger to react, leaving the man¡¯s entrails spilling down to the floor. Following his lead, I let loose too. ¡°Master!¡± I cried out and he ducked. I grabbed the Lunar Shield from my back, once again taking inspiration from Arrosh¡¯s ruthlessly efficient draw attacks. I drew the Lunar Shield over my head and threw it like a frisbee in one smooth movement. Except I channeled Aura into it. The Lunar Shield, usually around three feet long in width, combined with my Aura to created a lethal weapon of twice that size. The shield spun like a scythe, the Aura lacerating steel and flesh alike. The first man had chose to hold his shield up ¨Ca very cheap looking shield¨C and my aura cleaved straight through the shield and then through the man¡¯s armored helm. The Aura-covered Lunar Shield left behind a standing corpse with the top half of its brain plopping on the floor, the man''s eyes still blinking. But the shield didn¡¯t stop there, it continued on its way and the aerodynamic profile caused it to curve like a boomerang, causing much more mayhem than it would have otherwise. ¡°Fuck! It¡¯s [Aura]!¡± ¡°Grab it! Grab the shield!¡± The shield reached the end of its path and embedded itself into the stone wall, the [Aura] surrounding the weapon rapidly decreasing in size. The Scavengers rushed to grab it, greed lighting up their faces. I waited for them to gather up then used [King¡¯s Guard], snapping the shield back to me. There was only a thin outline of [Aura] left but it was enough ¨Cmore screams followed in the shield¡¯s wake. As soon as the Lunar Shield was within distance, it locked back into orbit. The Scavenger¡¯s looked confused at one another as black ink began to bloom around their injuries. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Hateful Wound] ? Blood was spilled and ink came to life, stabbing into their hosts and maiming them. Only half of them remained. ¡°Fuck! It¡¯s that prisoner!¡± ¡°Someone tell the Clan Master! Get Clan Head Tanya!¡± ¡°MY ARRMMM!¡± ¡°HOW DARE YOU-¡± I moved in like a whirlwind of blade and shield, causing destruction in my wake. And in my wake flowed down the reaper of death, Arrosh Bloodedge and each movement of his blade claimed another life. Whoever I wounded, an instant later Arrosh finished off. A dwarf cried bloody murder and used [Gigantification], growing larger. Before he could grow too large, I ducked underneath him, copying Arrosh¡¯s throwing move, and used my hips to get under the dwarf¡¯s center of gravity to topple him. The orcish swordmaster swooped in, his cloaks stained red with all the blood now, and beheaded the dwarf in one clean move. Then before the dwarf could fall, Arrosh jumped off of the dwarf and fell between two Scavengers, an elf and a human. I ran towards him, my sword in a two handed grasp. Sliding across the ground on my knees, I hamstrung the elf and Arrosh leaped above my head, parallel to the ground, spinning like a top and beheaded the elf. I continued my slide and turned in place, landing on my feet and struck out with a stab, skewering his comrades¡¯ stomach. Arrosh completed his spin and landed behind the skewered Scavenger, cutting off the man¡¯s arm at the shoulder moments before his morning star dug itself into my temple. With a savage cry, I moved my sword sideways, disemboweling him. Now, we were the only ones in the room. I was breathing hard and though unwanted memories resurfaced, I wasn¡¯t shaking. Arrosh nodded at me in approval. ¡°Come, storm of winds. Quickly!¡± We exited that makeshift medical bay and ran down the tunnels again. I was getting sick of being underground. I wanted to see the sun. I wanted to drink water and sleep without dreams. The kind of sleep where you just close your eyes and the darkness envelops you, not the unsettling kind but the type of darkness that comes from warm blankets on a cold winter night. ¡°Ahead!¡± Arrosh yelled out and we entered another doorway. ¡­Into the Arena where I had been defeated by Horse-Head. And in front of us were two people. [Players]. The amber-haired Dwarf with pouty red lips and large eyes. Her pretty face was squinted in anger and scowled openly at her partner. Tanya hefted the colossal Harpoon over her shoulder, which was two to three times her height, and pointed it at us. ¡°You said you broke him. Explain what they¡¯re doing killing my men in my own house?¡± The bald elf¡¯s flat reptilian eyes bore into my own. ¡°It seems I was wrong.¡± His voice was just like him, melodious on the surface but empty of substance beneath it. The blue tentacles tattoos on his scalp writhed under the skin, displeased and upset. ¡°I will give you a chance.¡± He took a step towards me, his robe beginning to drip with dark-blue mana and spooling around the ground like thick paint. ¡°Drop your weapon and join us. You know that you cannot stand against me.¡± Breathing hard, I grabbed my chest. My heart was beating so fast. Could I do this? Really? Then Coum finished his speech, his tone no different than reading the news. ¡°Kill the [Player] besides you, and we shall show you mercy, Disciple of the Sword Saint. You could have a place among the new order, teaching [Aura] to the Chosen.¡± He wasn¡¯t even talking to me. He was talking to Arrosh. Coum caught my stare then said in that same tone, explaining to me, ¡°Nathan has no use for broken toys.¡± I looked at Arrosh. Arrosh looked back at me, smiling that toothless grin. Then he took a step away from me, drawing his sword and holding it sideways across his body towards Coum and Tanya. An unmistakable answer to Coum¡¯s offer. Tanya snarled and took a step in front of Coum, holding another colossal weapon: a shield. ¡°I¡¯m so going to tell Nathan about this.¡± Coum cocked his head to the side. ¡°Disciple, I thought you were smarter than-¡± ¡°Silence.¡± Arrosh¡¯s voice was quieter than either of them but cut through air like a¡­ like a sword and I saw both the Players tense up, Tanya even taking a full step backwards. When Arrosh spoke, it wasn¡¯t the voice of a raving mad man that saw the future. It wasn¡¯t the voice of a blind man, who I had found in rags and was naught more than a homeless person amongst a dying city. No. It was the voice of Arrosh Bloodedge, the Disciple of the Sword Saint, the Forgotten Berserker, the Last Keeper of the Sword Saint¡¯s Legacy, the Failed Protector of the Samak Horde and the Sword Master of Lock Slaveborn. And my heart swelled with pride, dispelling all the doubts and fears. ¡°Do not waste your breath, for I am deaf to the voice of Evil Ones.¡± Then, Arrosh¡¯s Totem ¨Cthe Raven¨C flew out of his back and enveloped the Swordmaster in its wings, ephemeral, beautiful and ominous all at once, a guardian spirit of the Orc People. ¡°Master Nearnigh, give this foolish disciple strength, let me protect my disciple as you have protected me.¡± ¡°COME EVIL ONES! MAY THE CROWS FEAST ON YOUR CORPSES!¡± Then all fucking hell broke loose.
Chapter 108: Arrosh Bloodedge (3)
World: MSS - Loading...
There are three different types of Totems for the orcs: Watcher Totems, Guardian Totems, and Avenger Totems. The actual number of totems themselves are endless. Eagle, Owl, Lion, Wolf, Alligator, Squid, Bison as many as there are animals in the world. You choose one of them. Then, they receive the appropriate stat bonuses and choose a skill from their totem¡¯s skill tree, depending on which type they are. Depending on which Totem you choose, your character fits into the archetype for a party. Naturally, Guardian Totems are suitable for tanks. Avenger totems are best for Bladers or the DPS of the party. Watchers are usually reserved for stealth-oriented characters, rogues who can double as a Scout; I.E a Wayfinder or Pioneer in MSS terminology. If you¡¯re going for a damage-oriented rogue, it¡¯s better to go with an Avenger totem so there is some overlap between the three. To my knowledge, the Crow was a Watcher Totem. This entire time, I thought Arrosh was a Blader ¨Ca DPS just like me. He wasn¡¯t. He was a speed-oriented rogue wayfinder. Of course. The [Kudan] Core could be used to make-up for the Orc¡¯s lack of [Smell] or [Hearing] stats. In this world, Cores weren¡¯t limited to what they could be used for in the pixel RPG game of MSS. They were only limited by my imagination and no doubt that Arrosh had been the Wayfinder for the [Sword Saint] and his party, using the [Kudan] Core to look at the future and decide which path to take. If it weren¡¯t for the battle that was going on, I would have smacked myself on the forehead. The moment Arrosh delivered his warning, he shot out in front of me; the sword reflecting what little light was available in that gargantuan arena. He leapt up into the air and then shot forward like a bullet, bouncing off of invisible platforms in the air and changing directions mid-flight. [Air Jump], a skill from the Crow Totem skill tree that allowed one to double or triple jump depending on how far one took the skill. Arrosh leapt over Tanya and aimed himself straight at Coum, cane-sword gleaming with deadly black lightning. But two [Players] were no slouch. Coum wasn¡¯t one to hold onto pride knowing that he had no chance against Arrosh in close-quarters, he stepped closer to the dwarf who held up the Colossal shield, meeting Arrosh¡¯s charge with a wall of steel. Leaving their back wide open to me. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Share the Load] ? The translucent manacle launched itself out of my wrist and clasped itself around Tanya¡¯s ankle. ¡°Fuck! He¡¯s debuffing me!¡± She cried out, ¡°Coum! Change the field!¡± Coum rose like a specter of dark-blue paint and the tentacle-tattoos on his bald-head went mad with rage, in contrast to its owner¡¯s own emotionless expression. He stared at me, like studying a bug ¨Can ant that tried to bite him but failed to break the skin. ¡°I thought you were broken.¡± He whispered, weaving arcane sigils in the air. Once, I had seen Kyrian do something similar but Kyrian¡¯s had been yellow and blue, all thin stylized lines. But Coum¡¯s dripped wet paint, fat ugly strokes dripping with red and dark blue. ¡°It seems I must teach you fear.¡± ¡°Bring it you bald freak!¡± I snarled, closing the distance in front of us and my heart screaming in protest as we headed straight towards the source of trauma. Coum put his back to Tanya and raised his hands like he just got hit by a big wave then dropped to the floor, touching the ground with both palms. ? Coum Raculum casts [Mire] ? Waves of deep blue ¨Cso dark that it was almost black¨C pulsed out of the man in multiple layers, churning the dry dirt and turning it into a veritable swamp. Immediately, my feet were stuck and I slowed down considerably; thick mud and debris getting caught in the joints of my armor. Snarling, I disengaged [King¡¯s Guard] and grabbed the Lunar Shield. Grabbing it by one of its ¡®horns¡¯, I channeled Aura into the Plurality and threw it like a flat spinning disc straight towards Coum¡¯s head. Coum raised his hands, which were not dripping with mud and looked clean like a baby¡¯s butt, and slammed them into the ground again. A freaking wall made of rock and mud rose out of the ground, hiding them from my view and blocked the shield as well. ¡°Master!¡± I cried out and used [King¡¯s Guard], bringing the shield back. I immediately sidestepped but the wall was bigger than I had thought, it was U-shaped and around eight feet tall. This Coum, he had a better understanding than I did of the spells in MSS and what they were capable of. There were no U-shaped defensive spells in MSS, not that I was aware of anyways. Is this what [Players] could do if they became Mages? Abusing in-game knowledge combined with the laws of this world now that the limitations of a videogame had been lifted? Could he be creating his own spells? In my mind it took forever but it had only been a few seconds. I cleared the wall and saw Tanya using [Gigantification], the dwarve¡¯s racial trait. She grew to be near ten-feet tall and unlike the Scavenger Dwarf, she had [Arms Race] as well, meaning that her colossal shield and harpoon grew with her. The Shield was near fifteen feet tall and when she slammed it into the ground, I was thrown off of my feet from the aftershock. Arrosh pivoted off of the air and then landed on her shield, running up the vertical surface like a freaking gecko, his sword hissing and spitting black lightning from the [Biyu (??)] Core. He cleared the fifteen feet hunk of metal easily and flipped, lashing out with a two-handed side slash towards Tanya¡¯s eyes. But the dwarf was used to having her eyes be a target at that size, she hunched at just the right second and took the blow to her forehead which was covered by a metal circlet. Then she slammed her foot on the ground. Hard. ?Tanya Leukira casts [Wind Barrier] ? It¡¯s been awhile since I saw this Core ability, way back when I was tangling with the adventurers from the Turina Empire. But those guys had been regular sized humans. Tanya was a ten-feet tall avatar of steel and blood, a fierce grin on her face as the wind picked up around her feet. She didn¡¯t just have stage two of her racial trait, she had stage three: [Augmentation]. ?Tanya Leukira has the [Gigantify] Status ? ? [Wind Barrier] receives the [Gigantify] Status ? Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°Holy crap.¡± I spat, trying to get to my feet and out of range of the wind. By wind, I didn¡¯t mean any old summer breeze. It started as a strong gust then worked itself up into a freaking tempest that buffeted everything in the entire arena and I screamed as it tore my boots free out of the mud and threw me into the air. ? [Wind Barrier] reacts with [Mire] ? Everything on the ground began spinning as Tanya summoned a squall of mud, sticks and rocks. One corner of my mind worried for Arrosh, he wasn¡¯t built to take as much punishment as I was. I wiped at my eyes trying to find Arrosh¡¯s form in the distance. There! Arrosh flitted through the storm like a bird, looking calm and determined. Jumping off of the air, he landed on the ground and stabbed his sword into it, holding firm. But there was too much debris flying about, I saw him get pelted with rocks and clods of mud. Holding out a hand I used [King¡¯s Guard], sending my Lunar Shield flying towards Arrosh to guard him. This was good. I had been unable to gain any stacks because of Coum. By defending Arrosh with the Lunar Shield, I could get some stacks while- ¡°Tanya.¡± I heard Coum say. Tanya stopped the ability and the rising winds died down. [Wind Barrier] never came to completion. I landed back on the muddy floor with a thud, never having risen above six feet. My Lunar Shield didn¡¯t block anything which meant no stacks. No stacks, no debuffs. Not only that, Coum wasn''t hitting me with any magic. No stacks for [Shadow Blink] or anything for me to abuse my [Shadow Mimic Wolf] Core. Coum stared out at me, his empty eyes just flat. Tanya¡¯s, on the other hand, looked smug. These fuckers knew what kind of Cores I had and my fighting style. The Colosseum. They must¡¯ve been there. They had been spying on me. Just how far had they planned this? ¡°You slimy-¡± I started. ¡°Calm, sparrow!¡± Arrosh snapped and I held my tongue. I hated this whole situation. In the first place, this was a horrible match up. A blader and a wayfinder against a shielder and mage. We had the damage on our side but they had everything else. The shielder could tank for the mage while he dealt out damage plus any debuffs, changing the terrain to their liking. In MSS, a match-up played a big part. It¡¯s not like there was an official answer for what was the best 2-man party, but if someone asked me what was the best composition, I¡¯d be tempted to say Tank and Mage. Damn it. We needed to split them up. ¡°We need to split them up.¡± I muttered. ¡°Get the shielder away from the mage.¡± ¡°...A parrot only knows how to repeat.¡± The thread of annoyance in Arrosh¡¯s voice almost made me smile. ¡°Do not be a parrot, sparrow.¡± He was basically saying that¡¯s what he¡¯d been trying to do. But of course, I hadn¡¯t been holding my own weight in this fight. ¡°Just because we need to split them up, doesn¡¯t mean we need to split up ourselves, master.¡± I gave him a look, hoping he¡¯d understand. The blind orc smiled. ¡°The Disciple wants to lead the Dance? Then after decades of following, this quick rabbit shall show the slow turtle what it is to truly follow.¡± I stepped in front of him and held out a hand, the [Lunar Shield] snapping back into orbit. I held the falchion sideways, the hilt across my forehead. Arrosh stepped behind me and I knew that the slender swordmaster was ready to burst forward at a moment¡¯s notice. In the corner of my vision I saw his sword gleam in the light. Tanya scoffed and a burst of wind from her gigantic nostril (not an insult, just facts) actually reached the ground. ¡°Coum. That orc isn¡¯t going to turn. Let¡¯s just kill them both.¡± Coum stared at us, making his decision. ¡°Understood.¡± Without a word, Arrosh and I surged forward at the same time, the world becoming a medley of colors and sound. Instead of meeting us mid-stride, Tanya ground herself with her shield while Coum drew more arcane sigils, much faster this time. He held out a palm and slimy tentacles, as thick as my leg and long as my body, burst through the mire. They writhed and attempted to entangle our legs, trying to slow our charge. I bent low, holding the falchion in both hands and mowed down the tentacles. Arrosh stepped off of my back and leaped into the air, throwing his cane sword at me. It wasn¡¯t something we discussed but what I felt was the right thing to do. My fingers wrapped around his cane sword and channeled aura into it. The [Biyu] ability worked like an enchantment, keeping the black lightning coated around the weapon. My stage-3 Aura fused with the primal elemental energy, turning black and forming jagged spiked teeth that broke off at erratic angles around the weapon. Wielding the falchion in one and the cane-sword in the other, I waded through the tentacles. Arrosh jumped through the air, reaching Coum. Coum¡¯s hand weaved more signs while Tanya brought her shield around, laboriously slow. Seeing this, I threw the falchion and cane sword both at Coum, trying to get to him in time. But Tanya¡¯s movements had been a ruse, she suddenly snapped the shield into position and knocked both swords away. Arrosh stepped off of the air and careened to the side, catching his cane-sword before it could fly further. I threw my shield at Arrosh and he leapt into the air, used my shield as a foothold to jump one more time, then gained height twice more using air jump. Right above Tanya¡¯s head. Want to know something about dwarf physiology? They have a short neck, so they can¡¯t look up very well. Arrosh¡¯s momentum took him above Tanya¡¯s head and behind her, outside of my vision. Tanya screamed in pain and the scent of things burning reached my nose. I ran quickly, picking up my sword and calling the shield back to me, seeing what Arrosh did. The orc swordmaster had flipped and then drove his sword straight into the base of Tanya¡¯s neck, coming straight down. The black lightning instantly cauterized what cuts it made. Tanya had dispelled [Gigantification] just in the nick of time and had avoid a fatal injury, the cut barely pierced the skin. I sprinted across the distance between me and Coum, promising myself not to rely on buffs but to train my base stats as well once I got out of this. Coum saw me and tried to cast another spell. I threw my shield at him, covered in Aura and it shot towards him like a shuriken from an anime. I had channeled as much Aura as I could cram into the thing and it became a streaking blade of death, more than six feet long and wide. The Lunar Shield sheared through his spell, leaving a four feet tall wall which I leapt over, finally seeing Coum face to face for the first time since I¡¯d been tortured. Tanya whirled, facing Arrosh in anger and the dwarf woman lost reason, stepping away from Coum. ¡°Tanya.¡± Coum said, and urgency filled his voice. His hands never stopped moving though and he threw this strange squid-like thing towards me, surrounded with teeth and the tentacles ending in tiny little mantis claws. I ducked aside and snapped my sword in a reverse grip out of reflex, feeling something splattering the side of my leg and ribs. The creature thing had landed on the ground and leapt up at me, trying to hug my face like a pop-culture reference. Snarling, I brought my sword around to stab Coum in the neck and- The blade was gone. It was just scrap metal. Coum had counted on me blocking the thing, purposefully using a spell meant to dissolve the weapon. Cursing the low-quality weapon, I reached inside my Dimension Ring mentally looking for a sword. Crap, why hadn¡¯t I organized it before this. Where was a sword? Not this, not this either, goddammit, where was the- huh? Tanya had managed to break away from Arrosh, slamming into me. My Lunar Shield automatically blocked her but her momentum was too great, she broke through the King¡¯s Guard and sent me flying. Coum came along with me, attached to my wrists by [Ryker¡¯s Manacles] that I¡¯d slipped on the both of us. We landed, rolling over each other. Coum took out a wavy dagger from somewhere and got on top of me, putting his weight on the blade. I grabbed his arm by the wrist, face bared in a snarl, and the other directly on the blade itself. Blood dripped down from my hand and I pushed, my triceps burning as I kept him off of me. ¡°Got you now, bitch.¡± I whispered, totally ignoring the fact that he was in the advantageous position, on top of me. ¡°You are an insect. When this is over, I shall dissect you while you are still awake.¡± He muttered, his eyes two bottomless voids. He leaned down, I could smell his breath. ¡°Be afraid Lock Slaveborn, for this time I shall truly leave nothing behind.¡± ¡°Let me ask you something.¡± I growled back. Seeing Coum¡¯s face this close to me awakened something dark, something I¡¯d buried deep within and it wasn¡¯t fear. ¡°Ever heard of a breath mint?¡± Then I kneed him in the balls. Immediately, I tore my hand free of the manacles, skin and flesh. The sound was sickening but I was used to it by now. Coum¡¯s eyes widened in shock, his nose dripping with blood. He fell back, grabbing the manacle and trying to pull it off of him but no luck. I limped towards him, taking my time. ¡°Pull it off. You can do it.¡± I held up my mangled hand to him, free of skin and showing the whites of my bone on the back of my hand. ¡°Come on. It¡¯s pretty much a manicure compared to what you did to me.¡± Something resembling panic entered Coum¡¯s dead fish eyes as he saw my hand. He looked at my face and then the manacle again. He pulled at it harder, actually beginning to grunt and losing his previous composure. I bent down and picked up the wavy dagger he dropped. ¡°Come on, tough guy. You can do it.¡± Out of sheer malice I kicked at his fingers. Coum hissed in pain and tried to scrabble away from me, turning his back and scurrying away like the fucking rat he was. But I was an adventurer and he was nothing but a mage ¨Cwho was clasped to Ryker¡¯s Manacles to boot. The fact that he showed his back to me, something that someone weaker than me would do triggered an instinctual lust for violence and for revenge. I was on him in an instant and started stomping on his fingers. ¡°COME ON YOU BALD FUCK! DO IT! RIP IT OFF ALREADY!¡± I started roaring and kicking him, not painfully but just enough to knock him off balance. Every single time I kicked him, miniature ink-spots bloomed and then stabbed into his body. Even now, the Royal Oni''s passive was working. Coum never let out a sound but now his eyes were completely sunken with pain ¨Cand fear. He kept trying to get away from me but I never let up, kicking him on the back, rear, leg and anywhere I could. Then one lucky kick landed on the side of his head and he fell back, eyes dazed, bleeding from a dozen cuts, punctures and lacerations. ¡°The chased becomes the chaser, rats cornered, bite back. But what they thought was a lion is nothing but another rat, posing in the moonlight and making the shadows larger than itself ¡± I whispered, brandishing the dagger and watching over him. "Is that it? That''s it? This simple?! Say something!" He started drooling at the side of his mouth, twitching like he wanted to say something. ¡°Come on, answer me.¡± I nudged the side of his head with my feet. ¡°I said answer me!¡± Then I stabbed him in the hand. He screamed. I straddled him and looked him in the eyes, hate and rage and all things ugly in my heart baring its way to the surface. Slowly, I placed my hand over his neck. I¡¯d killed before. But not like this. Not so full of¡­ hate. Never so personal. ¡°Keep your eyes open.¡± My voice didn¡¯t sound like my own. "Look at me." I whispered, which grew to a harsh hiss. "I said, Look at me, Coum." He bucked. He fought back. He hit the side of my head with Ryker¡¯s Manacles and desperately tried to claw out my eyes. His eyes weren¡¯t the flat emotionless eyes of a predator anymore. He was scared and kept flopping around like a fish out of water, survival instincts kicking in. I think he shat himself because something sour hit my nose. His eyes were open the entire time. Staring into mine. Then¡­ he stopped struggling. He just stopped. ... Mages are very fragile. Us humans are very fragile. All living things are, in a way. ...I¡¯m not proud of what I did. I¡¯m no hero. I''m no protector. I should have stopped there, to save what was left of my humanity. I just choked harder.
Chapter 109: Arrosh Bloodedge (4)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Coum!¡± Tanya¡¯s voice reached me a moment before a flash of white and blue slammed into me, sending me into a rolling mess of tangled limbs with the former Coum. Even during the mess, I tried to keep my hold on Coum¡¯s neck, leaving long red scratches as my fingers were forced off from the momentum. I rolled and got to my feet, seeing Tanya grab Coum¡¯s body and hold up her shield as Arrosh came blazing in, literally gliding across the ground like it was made of ice and holding his sword parallel to the ground across his body and in line with his shoulder. ?Arrosh Bloodedge casts [Heavenly Strike] ? The dwarf shielder raised her shield to block but screamed as Arrosh¡¯s entire body became clad in black lightning, transforming the Crow Guardian wrapped around him into the same element. His sword sheared straight through her shield, shaving the top clean off and leaving a glowing red edge in its stead. The technique also left a two feet long gash across her shoulders. ? [Heavenly Strike] has dealt more than 10% of the opponent¡¯s HP ? ? [Heavenly Strike] can be cast again at no cost! ? Arrosh spun around in place, his flesh literally being burnt off from the recoil of his technique. His feet glided across the ground again, no doubt a Core ability that got rid of friction ¨Cmost likely [Grease]. But Tanya was a [Player] and she had figured him out. She waved her harpoon over her head in three full circles and in conjunction with her movements, the ground began to churn with her as the focal point. When I said ground, I meant the floor of the entire fucking room. Finally, they were starting to become serious. Everytime the ground churned, curved stone ridges in the shape of shark teeth rose out and remained. The following spin summoned up another ring of stone-shark-teeth as tall as I was, threatening to slice and dice us like a blender. One of the stone-hence knockoffs rose so fast that it left a long gash along my ribs and I began to bleed profusely. Seeing the technique, Arrosh leapt up into the air and I followed suit, my head empty all the while. I reached the walls and ran about ten paces up, then leapt for a small hold and held onto it with one arm. On the other side of the room, I saw that Arrosh had done the same, albeit by stabbing his sword into the wall. Below, I saw the churning stop and tried to see what Tanya was doing. She uncorked a health potion with her teeth and shoved it in the elven¡¯s mage¡¯s corpse. A health potion can¡¯t bring someone back from the dead. I had strangled him to death. Sure, it might cure the broken windpipe but it wouldn¡¯t make his heart beating again. One of the fast rules of MSS, dead people stay dead. Then she began pounding on his chest with one fist. Short small bursts. Yeah, potions can¡¯t bring someone back from cardiac arrest. But CPR could. And if the potion healed his broken windpipe¡­ Anger began rising up in a torrential tide. It felt wrong that I had killed him only to have him stolen at the last moment. I had won that kill, I deserved justice. Coum had wronged me and I had to kill him to- Then with her other hand, Tanya drew out a small item I had seen often enough when I was still on the other side of the screen. A small tube looking item that fits in the palm of one¡¯s hand, looking like a flashlight evenly weighted on both ends. The tips were engraved with gold but the body itself was a bright cobalt blue. The opening of the tube had lines that curved inwards like a turbine opening. [Portal Worm]. Not caring about the consequences, I leapt towards them. I landed on the stone edge and it cut into the center of my foot. But at that moment, I didn¡¯t care about the pain. I didn¡¯t care that her skill had enough [Attack] stat to bust through my armor. Screaming livid fury I began to run on top of the blades, hearing a mixture of metal being torn and the squelching of my feet being cut into pieces. Without thinking, I held out a hand and Arrosh threw his cane-sword into my fingers. Grabbing it and fusing the enchanted shadow electricity with Aura, I charged Tanya while running on top of the maw of a beast. ¡°You fucking monster!¡± She complimented me. Yet, it didn''t matter how determined I was. There are some things that determination cannot overcome. Running on top of knife-thin blades doesn¡¯t make for good footing no matter who tells you differently. Without waiting to check to see if Coum began to breathe again, Tanya opened up a portal and slipped inside. But not before I stabbed her through the lower back, trying to stab through her torso and into Coum¡¯s soft unconscious head. ¡°AAAAAAGGGGHHHH!¡± She screamed and half spun, striking me in the face with an elbow with her short dwarf arms. That¡¯s how deeply I had stabbed her, hoping to reach Coum. I flew backwards into another stone blade, feeling the sickening wet crunch as it sunk through my armor and into my own back. The portal closed. They had gotten away. They had gotten away. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Just when I was about to start screaming in sheer frustration, someone placed a hand on my shoulder. I turned in place, facing said person with a snarl on my face. I stopped in the middle of trying to shake the person off, realizing it was Arrosh. Slowly, I lowered my arm which had been¡­ been about to do something I would regret forever. ¡°It is over, Crow.¡± Arrosh whispered. There was a note of finality to the way Arrosh said it. Like the last breath someone takes on their deathbed and everyone knows they¡¯re in a better place like. Like the epilogue of a good series. Arrosh had that kind of character. Not just as a swordsman but almost a poetic side to him. He was the one who told me that all good swordsmen needed to be artisans. I turned my head away, a hurricane of emotions settling into nothingness. I tried to look at nothing, feeling a strange emptiness inside. ¡°...You gave into your fear, Crow. To your anger.¡± ¡°What gave it away?¡± My voice sounded hollow to my ears. ¡°In the eye of the storm lies the truth. Only in calmness can we see clearly.¡± ¡°I¡¯m¡­¡± I stopped myself, drawing the anger out of myself. Arrosh didn¡¯t deserve that. Arrosh placed his hand on my shoulder again. ¡°Crow. Did the clouds of your heart that holds sway over you like a shaking guillotine, did the skies clear once you saw the life-light fade from your enemy¡¯s eyes?¡± I closed my eyes, searching deep within. I felt bitter in my mouth as I said it. ¡°Yes.¡± It was a lie. I didn¡¯t feel any better than I had before. The way I had killed Coum, I had never killed anyone like that before. Hell, I never wanted to make anyone suffer so badly before. Even Arione, whom I thought I hated with all my being, I realized I didn¡¯t even rank them in the same league. They weren¡¯t in the same ballpark. I wanted to do to Coum what he did to me and make him watch as I did it. ¡°Anger is a weapon.¡± Arrosh whispered, as if he could read my mind. ¡°It¡¯s over.¡± I spat. I didn¡¯t want to talk about this anymore. Even with Arrosh. ¡°I won¡¯t use it again.¡± ¡°Is it?¡± He asked. ¡°They broke you, young Crow. Wingless. Flightless. Without a nest. They broke the heart and chained up your feet so that you could never rest. Has the ending truly descended on this Crow?¡± I gritted my teeth. Why was he doing this? Why was he talking to me like I was a child? I had just been tortured by Coum for a day and- How long had Arrosh been here? Suddenly, I felt very small. Very, very small. So I told him the truth. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do.¡± My voice sounded small too. ¡°All I want to do right now is chase after him. There¡¯s nothing else.¡± The orc lifted his palm from my shoulder, sitting down next to me on a patch of ground where there was no blade. ¡°You do, my disciple Crow and you have. Just as a seed faces towards the sun without knowing, it simply does.¡± What I always do? What do I do besides delving into dungeons and forming a party? For the whole time I¡¯ve been here, I¡¯ve been just working on getting stronger. Getting stronger enough to protect myself. ¡­and somewhere along the way, that goal changed. Strong enough to protect the ones near me. Strong enough to stay near them. Strong enough to help them grow, so that I could keep them with me and help them grow stronger. So that no one could do to them what was done to me. It wasn¡¯t just about me anymore. There was no point in surviving through this alone. That¡¯s why I had saved Skaris back in the Fracture. That¡¯s why I went out on a limb to get Stole into the party and risked having Aurora, the bastard of a Great House in my party. It didn¡¯t matter that Kyrian used to work for the Akka Xaluds. They were my comrades. I missed them. ¡°The clouds lifts.¡± Arrosh said quietly. ¡°The star must return to the sky, leaving the ground to which it fell.¡± I think I smiled. ¡°They¡¯re waiting for me.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...I want to protect them.¡± I said. ¡°You will.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid.¡± He did not reply. I closed my eyes again. ¡°They mustn''t know.¡± ¡°Such is the burden of the Protector.¡± ¡°Will the lie hold? Won¡¯t they find out?¡± ¡°Sometimes, the beginning of truth is a lie, Sword Crow.¡± Arrosh took his hand off of my shoulder, taking his cane-sword from the ground and cleaning the blood off of it in the bend of his arm. He sheathed it. ¡°A coward lies to himself to be brave, and does things that only a brave man can.¡± I scoffed and smiled at the same time. The smile faded. He hadn¡¯t said the words but it was there. This whole time, Arrosh had been telling me the same thing over and over again: to let go of my fear and anger. That it was poison and would rot me from the inside out. And intellectually I agreed. It¡¯s just that my heart roared that this was injustice, that I deserved something in exchange. My Cores cried out for blood and I agreed with them. Yet¡­ What was I going to do, chase the [Player¡¯s Guild] down? Chase Coum halfway across the MSS world which could take years? This battle hadn¡¯t ended with a fanfare. It hadn¡¯t ended with a dramatic beheading. There was no cool one-liner to finish this with. It simply¡­ was the way things were. I had been angry and tried to get back at Coum. I killed him, I think. Tanya took the corpse with her and who knows, maybe she¡¯ll get him to breath again. Briefly, I wondered if priests could heal brain damage in this world. Maybe they can. Maybe they can¡¯t. I think that was the big thing. This wasn¡¯t a cartoon I was watching with a neat nice ending wrapped up in a bow. It was my life and my story. And as much as I want to be all-knowing and be nosy, the fact is that there¡¯re thousands of stories and lives out there. All of them just as self-important and nosy as I was. There are infinitely more stories that go untold than the ones that are shared. That¡¯s the world I live in. I had to be OK with this. OK with the uncertainty and OK with not knowing or being able to control everything. That¡¯s what it meant to let go. It meant moving on with my life and not dwelling on it. Even if I still felt angry just at the thought of Coum. ¡­Therapists would make a killing in this world. ¡°I¡¯d never killed like that before.¡± I blurted out. ¡°With hate?¡± Arrosh ventured. I nodded. ¡°It is poison.¡± Arrosh rasped. ¡°Poison that festers and claws itself from the inside out. A butcher does not hate the livestock he slaughters. Nor the hunter that puts down a maddened beast. Do what must be done, Crow. But do not let them use Anger and Fear and Hate as weapons against you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you meant by weapons. I thought I was the one using them but-¡± ¡°The Evil Ones wield it against you.¡± Arrosh snapped. He sounded pained. ¡°Break you.¡± ¡°Arrosh?¡± I looked at him clearly for the first time. Bits of his skin were flaking off and there was a huge stab wound near his hips, right above his thigh. It looked like something entered and tore itself out, ripping open the wound. Besides which, there were small nicks and cuts. It was the recoil from being clad in lightning for so long. Those without enough Lightning Resistance often suffered from this. That¡¯s why beastmen made the best elemental bladers ¨Cdue to their racial heritage. ¡°We need to get out of here.¡± I hooked my arm beneath Arrosh¡¯s arm and stood up, urgency overtaking contemplation. It only took a couple of steps for me to realize that his foot wasn¡¯t moving right. The nerves must be fried. Bending low, I put him on my back, tucking his cane-sword in my armpit. The stone blades were crumbling now and I ran through them, leaving the arena and soon traveling downwards. ¡°Goddamit.¡± I panted. ¡°Wayfinders should not be using moves with recoil. They don¡¯t absorb enough Cores to strengthen your body or stave off the damage.¡± Arrosh didn¡¯t reply, which was worrying. ¡°Master, I saw that you healed yourself back there.¡± I had to keep him talking. A deep pit began to form in the bottom of my stomach. ¡°You have [Kudan] for Wayfinding. Then you have some form of Healing. Were you really a swordsman? You seem more like a Wayfinder that should stay behind everyone.¡± ¡°Even¡­ a Wayfinder¡­ can walk the sword-path¡­¡± Arrosh grunted. ¡°Yeah, well then I can think of two other Cores for you that¡¯ll help you be a Wayfinder and still be a swordsman.¡± I took big steps, trying my best not to fall. ¡°Master¡­ chose these Cores¡­ memories¡­ of my other disciples, my adventures.¡± I closed my mouth. In this world, Cores weren¡¯t just something that made you stronger. Sometimes, they were the mementos of your friends long gone. Proof that they had once walked this worth. In a world like MSS where gods spoke to their chosen and death by monster was the number one cause of being in a coffin, of course there was sentimental value in everything that had to do with the dead. So I didn¡¯t want to talk about the Cores any longer. ¡°You said I can start the second stage of my training.¡± I muttered. ¡°What¡¯s the second stage?¡± ¡°From Master to Disciple¡­ tradition. Master¡­ passed onto me¡­ his Core¡­¡± ¡°You got a Core from Nearnigh?!¡± I yelled. Of course, in the game Arrosh didn¡¯t use black lightning. That was Nearnigh¡¯s move. Which meant that- ¡°The other disciples. What did they get?¡± I asked. ¡°Master¡¯s¡­ Cloak. His [Aura]...¡± Arrosh¡¯s voice was faint. ¡°But I stole¡­ eavesdropped¡­ stole the¡­ [Aura]... teaching¡­¡± ¡°Once a thief, always a thief? Something like that?¡± I quipped. I wasn¡¯t worried that Arrosh would die. He was too high leveled for that. But I also didn¡¯t know what the hell would happen if he went unconscious while his brain was fried extra crispy either. One of the bad things about being in the reality patch of MSS was that there was no instant healing and everyone¡¯s fine. Permanent damage was permanent. God, I hoped priests could heal brain damage. ¡°So what¡¯re you planning to pass down to me?¡± I said after a while. ¡°...Crow¡­¡± He called me. ¡°I¡¯m here, Master.¡± I answered. ¡°...Crow¡­ -ve you¡­ Crow¡­¡± Why was he repeating that? Regardless, I had to slow down. At the end of this particular tunnel, standing in front of the only entrance were five figures covered in cloaks. Cloaks that I had seen before. One of the cloaked figures stood at the front, waiting for me, a distinct feminine figure lying underneath. But I couldn¡¯t see their faces, it was obscured through some kind of spell. Cloaks that I had seen in the Colosseum. And at the Church. I¡¯m not the brightest light bulb but I¡¯m not that stupid either. Flash enough clues and I begin to catch on. The one at the front showed a flash of pink locks. I stopped. Then deliberately, without ever taking my eyes off of them, I laid Arrosh down on the floor. He was shivering now. ¡°Master, wait here.¡± I took the cane-sword from his grasp. ¡°I¡¯ll be right back.¡± Then I stepped in front of the five figures. ¡°I¡¯m going to say this once. Move.¡±
Chapter 110: Arrosh Bloodedge (5)
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°I¡¯m going to say this once. Move.¡± ¡°He¡¯s cute. Can I kill him?¡± The way this figure held herself told me that she was a warrior, a seasoned one too. I thought I saw the glint of metal ¨Csomething wicked sharp and curved¨C around the hem of her sleeves but couldn¡¯t tell what it was. It could be anything. A short dagger. Just a plain metal greave. Regardless, the presence of armor told me that my suspicion was correct. She was no mage. The tall figure next to her growled and I recognized the voice. Strands of red hair were hanging down out of the hood and there was a definitive strength to her stance. ¡°Cool it, Scion.¡± I fought not to grin, recognizing the voice. ¡°Oh, acting cool now that your lover is here?¡± The other one replied. ¡°I¡¯ll-¡± Slowly, I raised the sword across my body. My stance made them both stop talking. I had missed her, yes. But who knew how she¡¯d changed in the time she traveled with this new party? The banter could just be a distraction. I couldn¡¯t be reminiscing about what could¡¯ve been, I had to focus on what was. Yeah, I was not sure how deep the damages were to my body was, as of yet, and this battle against a known face might be pushing it. But so what? Some things, you just do. Protecting Arrosh was one of them. ¡°Lock, ¡± The one in the front took a step out from the others. ¡°I don¡¯t want there to be any misunderstandings this time.¡± I ground my foot into the dirt. Those skilled with combat should know, I was making sure my footing was stable. The two bickering cloaks stiffened, slowly turning their gazes in my direction again. ¡°Oh, I see why you like him now.¡± The scratchy voice said, still amused, yet in a completely different tone than before. ¡°He really is cute.¡± Lety ¨Cor whom I assumed was Lety¨C stayed quiet and I could see that her eyes were glued to the center of my body. One of her fingers twitched towards her axes. Who knew when the day would come when I would even think about taking on Lety? ¡°Everyone, stop.¡± The cloaked figure finally reached her pale, snow-white hands up and took the cowl off. Revealing a pretty face, much too young for the eyes socketed into them. Her features were sharper than I remembered, her cheekbones stood out sharp against her almost too round eyes. She¡¯d lost weight but was no less beautiful than before. All the cute baby fat of a twenty something year old had disappeared. She reminded me of those confident business women who worked at my parent¡¯s company. Assured of their influence, hungry for power ¨Cbut there was always a hint of tiredness about them. She was the same. Her pink hair was cut short and barely reached the bottom of her chin, framing her face in a pixie cut. Following her cue, my other friend took off her cowl too. She had always been pretty but now, she was breathtaking. Even the loose cloak couldn¡¯t hide the deep lines of her body. ¡°Slaveborn.¡± Lety said easily, grinning. ¡°Hello, Lock. It¡¯s been awhile.¡± Clover said, her voice so soft that it was almost muffled by the sheer presence of the high-leveled adventurers in this cavern. Then she said something that made me believe aliens existed in MSS. Because there¡¯s no way she said that unless she¡¯d been abducted by aliens and replaced. ¡°I¡¯m here to help.¡± How can I describe this feeling? There was definitely longing there. Not the longing of a long-lost lover, neither of them had been that for me, though the possibility had been there in my opinion. It was a longing that existed between friends who had a misunderstanding and a falling out. A longing that exists on a basic level that it could be clarified right above the need for food and sleep. A need to connect, to make things right. Before the Samak Horde¡¯s downfall, both of us had been running on adrenaline. Bodies were burning, I had just battled against the Mage, Arione. People were screaming. Emotions were heightened. Perhaps it¡¯s even fair to say we weren¡¯t really mad at each other, but just lashing out with the hurricane of emotions that boiled up from the events of that night. Maybe, just maybe, it was all just a misunderstanding and things could be made right. We could be something like comrades again. But I remembered. I remembered the burning orcs, the smell of burnt flesh that tickled the tip of my nose and drilled their way into my nostrils and buried themselves in my brain. The acrid scent of smoke and horrible hair follicles catching flame as the Fire Mage burned civilians ¨Cboth women and children¨C alive. I remembered how Clover had stuck up for him. The merciless look in his eyes as he slayed the people of this world, right before he claimed to have loved them. But beneath that, beneath all that, there was hope. Hope that there was a middle ground here. Some consensus we could reach. But first, there were things needed to be said. ¡°The three of them,¡± I whispered, my sword still held high. ¡°Tell them to show their faces too.¡± The tallest one took a step back. ¡°You already know who it is, Lock.¡± Clover said. ¡°There¡¯s no need to aggravate the situation.¡± ¡°The hell there¡¯s no need.¡± I started to growl. ¡°The orc behind you is in pain.¡± Clover said and that made me shut my mouth. ¡°We both know he won¡¯t die. But I also know that burns of that caliber hurt. It hurts more than one knows.¡± "...but you already know all about orcs and burns, don''t you, Lock?" Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. It was like she took a knife and stabbed it right where it hurt. ¡°Are you just going to watch someone burn?¡± She said, twisting the knife one final time. ¡°Again?¡± Ok. Ouch. Maybe Clover had been replaced by aliens. Because this type of sinister sadistic manipulation had not been part of her skillset back when I knew her. Regardless, I could set aside the two mages for now and the mysterious ¡®Scion¡¯. That was more than enough information to prepare for the inevitable. It¡¯s not like I had any chance of getting out of this alive if it came to a fight. Really, they had been showing me mercy. But I didn''t want to seem like a pushover either. Because there was a reason they were here and whatever they wanted, I had no intention of handing it over for free. ¡°Then heal Arrosh first. Then we can talk.¡± I finally said. Surprisingly, Clover nodded. ¡°That¡¯s fine with me.¡± She swayed forward, like she was about to take a step then stopped. ¡°I have to lay hands on him. May I?" I nodded sharply, turning to the side. I made sure I could look at both Arrosh and Clover¡¯s party at once. ¡°Paranoid. I¡¯m liking him more and more.¡± The cloaked Scion commented. While that had been going on, Clover walked across the distance and passed by me. As she passed, there was the scent of Earth and Flowers, something I was beginning to associate with the Oung¡¯s chosen Kaguras. The robe hung loosely on her, more than it should have. Clover had been a rather curvy woman and I assumed she was the same now. But the cloak was hiding just how thin she was. ¡°You look good, Lock.¡± She murmured, softly enough that I could imagine those lips nibbling on my collarbone. Ah, the curse of being a man. Thinking of sex even during moments like this. "You too." ¡°That¡¯s sweet of you. Then again, you always were sweet, in your own way.¡± Then she kneeled next to Arrosh¡¯s body, putting a hand over him. Then green light fell from her hands like dust. First, just a few streams than a second later fistfuls of green healing mana fell from her palms, enveloping Arrosh. Unlike Healing Potions, healing spells did not hurt at all. His wounds began to heal and the raw red skin turned the pale green of his normal skin again. Within seconds, Arrosh¡¯s ragged breathing was evenly spaced and stable. Clover got up, saying, ¡°He will wake soon,¡± then without even waiting for me to say thanks she walked over to her party and faced me and Arrosh. She was right. Arrosh woke up soon after. ¡°Young Storm?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± I dared not take my eyes off of the other Party, but kept Arrosh in the corner of my vision. He turned his head left and right. ¡°The river of blood stops flowing. Young Crow, who are the guests in front of us? Do they hold daggers behind their backs or come bearing gifts with hands open wide in friendship?¡± "Definitely daggers." Clover smiled, just a little. ¡°We come bearing propositions, Elder Arrosh Bloodedge.¡± They knew his name? How? ¡°You know who I am, little sheep?¡± Arrosh answered. ¡°...Is he really blind?¡± L¡¯teya asked, seemingly to me. I shrugged. Clover answered, ¡°Yes, Elder. You were once the last disciple of Nearnigh, the [Sword Saint].¡± Slowly, I turned to Clover. That faint smile was still on her face. ¡°I told you, Lock. I¡¯m here to help.¡± My head began to spin. How the hell did she know about Arrosh and his identity as the Sword Saint¡¯s disciple? The last time I spoke to Clover, she barely believed in Oung. Did the relationship between Oung and Clover advance so much as for Clover to start being involved in the same questlines that I was involved in? Yes, she was a Kagura but Kaguras were supposed to do queslines that helped the Beastman people. That¡¯s how priests and holy knight and witch doctors got their unlocked more abilities. By fulfilling the requests of their deity. ¡­Did Oung set this whole thing up from the beginning? ¡°We serve the same master, Lock.¡± She said, as if that explained everything. ¡°I don¡¯t have masters anymore, Clover.¡± I said, out of reflex. ¡°And neither should you.¡± ¡°Then suffice to say, that for now, we are on the same side.¡± Clover answered cooly ¡°All three of us, in fact. You, Elder Arrosh and us as well.¡± I turned my back on Arrosh, facing them fully. ¡°I don¡¯t even know what side you¡¯re on. Stop talking in riddles and tell me what you want.¡± The belligerent tone turned Clover¡¯s eyes a shade chillier, and her words were clipped out of annoyance. ¡°Fine.¡± ¡°Oung has charged our party with two missions. One, find Elder Arrosh. Two, stop Turina from getting their hands on the relic in Claw¡¯s Nest. Hence, we were at the Church at the same time as your party.¡± I wanted to accuse her of lying. I also wanted to accuse her of beingevil. But my own thoughts had led to the same conclusion, that Oung was involved in this. This was becoming something out of my depth here, in the game version of MSS, the gods had been almost nonexistent. Just background lore. However, in this life, they were so active and I think this was the first time that I started to question just exactly how involved they were. ¡°She speaks the truth.¡± Arrosh whispered, only to me. ¡°Slaveborn, we are not lying to you.¡± Lety chimed in, when I didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°If we were lying, why would we heal the Elder and try to talk to you?¡± ¡°You still haven¡¯t told me what you wanted.¡± I said quietly. ¡°Simple.¡± Clover raised her chin. ¡°A truce. Between my party and yours, for the duration of the Church¡¯s quest.¡± I laughed in her face. ¡°You¡¯ve got to be joking.¡± I pointed at the man behind her, who had surprised me by keeping his mouth shut until now. ¡°He¡¯s agreed to this?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who promised to kill him, Lock, not the other way around.¡± Clover stated. ¡°And how do I know you five won¡¯t backstab us first thing?¡± I started to poke holes in her plan. ¡°And you really think that having a Scion on your team is a good idea? I don¡¯t know what family she¡¯s from, but if Lety calls her a Scion I¡¯m guessing she¡¯s not a Bastard. You¡¯re planning to backstab the Church with a Scion who was raised to be a loyal dog of Turina?¡± The cloaked Scion went deathly still. ¡°Stop talking.¡± The Scions voice was no longer the playful, come-hither sex kitten act from before. It was all ice and frozen rage of unknown depth. She actually took a step toward me. ¡°Right now.¡± ¡°And your Elven Mage,¡± I continued, not caring. ¡°How do I know that when shit goes down, he won¡¯t bail first thing?¡± I narrowed my eyes. ¡°You should know by now, what kind of people I surround myself with. People with principles. Disciple. Honor. He¡¯s not it, Clover.¡± ¡°And your party is full of saints, Lock?¡± Clover argued back. ¡°You have no idea of the things that Kyrian Tricilan did while in service to the Akka Xaluds. There¡¯s a reason why he was selected to be the mage in Jason Akka Xalud¡¯s personal party. Did he ever tell you that?¡± In fact, he did. But she didn¡¯t give me a chance to answer. ¡°What about Aurora Vetilian? I hope you know that Bastards are controlled down to their fingertips. The Turina Empire trains Bastards as their hunting dogs, their spies and their assassins. Why do you think Aurora Vetilian is in Jayu in the first place? To pursue her dream of becoming an adventurer? She¡¯s here because of a mission, Lock. And that mission was getting close to you.¡± I growled, taking a step forward. How dare she accuse my comrades of- ¡°Anger clouds your mind like a fog, red staining everything like the blood of an angry man.¡± Arrosh rumbled quietly next to me. Even back in the Samak Desert, Clover and I hadn¡¯t been on the best of terms. Now we were literally at odds. I bit back my retort, barely managing it. ¡°There¡¯s no deal here Clover. You can forget it. Go your way and pray that we don¡¯t cross swords during the actual mission.¡± I pointed a finger towards the Mage. ¡°I warned you. I fucking warned you. If you showed your face in front of me one more fucking time-¡± Clover strode over and blocked him from my view. I stopped, mouth open. For a moment, we just stared at each other. ¡°Lock. I¡¯ve spent longer with him than I have with you.¡± She said quietly. That was true. But it still hurts. I think some part of me didn¡¯t want to believe that Clover and Lety had their own lives. Having had their own episodes with the Elven Mage, the same way I did. It¡¯s like¡­ yeah, you might hate someone but you spend enough time together, they grow on you. They become a comrade. A friend. Someone you can leave your back to. I just never thought it would happen between Clover, Lety and Arione. ¡°There¡¯s another reason why we can¡¯t work together.¡± I said, just as quietly. ¡°...What¡¯s that?¡± Clover replied. ¡°Can you trust me? After knowing what I truly am?¡± She didn¡¯t say anything to that. ¡°I can.¡± The sheep beastman said finally. Then she added, ¡°Please Lock. This is important. Lives depend on this.¡± Lives. Huh. "Funny you''d say that." I retorted. She looked away. One thing was for sure though, Clover was hiding things from me. She knew more than she was letting on¡­ which meant that she might have information about the political side of this search for the Relic, while I only had knowledge of the dungeon and monsters. ¡°...I want a weregild,¡± were the first words out of my mouth after a long bout of silence. ¡°Blood money?¡± Clover confirmed. ¡°From him.¡± I pointed a finger at Arione, who was still cloaked and hid his face. ¡°To the orcs in the Slums. Pay it before we leave for Claw¡¯s Nest.¡± ¡°Then you¡¯ll work with us?¡± Clover said, hopefully. ¡°...After you pay it,¡± I took a breath. ¡°Afterwards, we can talk one more time. And this time, I don¡¯t want you to hold anything back. After you tell me the whole thing, I¡¯ll decide.¡± ¡°And we¡¯ll have plenty of time to talk on the boat ride.¡± Clover nodded. ¡°Done.¡± I rubbed my hands, feeling like I touched something greasy. ¡°We¡¯re literally leaving in a couple of hours!¡± Arione¡¯s whiny little voice needled out. ¡°Quiet, master!¡± I recognized this voice too, it was that kid-mage, Scarlet. ¡°Clover is talking!¡± Ignoring them, I made to leave. ¡°If that¡¯s all you wanted, I want you guys to move aside. We¡¯re leaving now.¡± ¡°Ah, one more thing.¡± Clover stopped me, suddenly cheerful. ¡°And this one is not for you Lock, it¡¯s for Elder Arrosh since you became open to cooperating at least.¡± I shot her a look. ¡°What¡¯re you-¡± Stepping towards us, Clover Weinport flashed a brilliant smile and took the Sword Saint¡¯s last disciple¡¯s hands. ¡°Your disciple most likely meant to leave you behind in the Slums. But I know that you wish to be close to him, to watch over his growth. After all, you only have his best intentions in mind.¡± ¡°...Clover, he¡¯s injured. He¡¯s been stuck here for only the gods know how long.¡± I wanted to step in between them. It was like watching a granddaughter wrap her grandfather around her little finger, acting all innnocent but knowing exactly what she was doing. ¡°Whatever you¡¯re about to ask of him, save it for next time.¡± ¡°Elder Arrosh, we need a Wayfinder in our party. Would you like to come with us? Just as long as Lock is cooperating with us?¡± She said, ignoring me. Was she crazy? ¡°What? Are you crazy?¡± ¡°This Eldered One is more than honored to accept.¡± Then without anyone seeing, he pinched me. ¡­What? ¡°...What?¡± I, the Master of Wit, said. ¡°Oh take it easy, Lock. It''s temporary.¡± The damned beast woman was smiling, her horns shining. Then turning on her heel, Clover left with her party. "Don''t be late." Without looking back, they left with Lety waving a hand over her shoulder. Leaving me and Arrosh staring after them. ¡°...What?¡± And I realized that damned Clover never even offered to heal my wounds.
Chapter 111: Keep Your Friends Close...
World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Arrosh,¡± I hissed, grabbing his elbow before he could leave, ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this.¡± The thought of Arrosh betraying me never even crossed my mind. Arrosh would never do anything like that. Period and end of discussion. If anything, the reason for why he was joining them ¨Calbeit temporarily¨C was the opposite: to help me. Arrosh looked at me, then winked at me with those murky eyes of his. ¡°That¡¯s where you are wrong, Young Sword, like a bent-sword. As the Crows look for its feast, does it ignore the Vultures in the sky? Nay, the Crow must keep an eye on the circling vultures lest it become their feast in turn.¡± He wanted to be my eyes. No wonder he had been strangely silent during out exchange. He was getting a measure of Clover and the others. ¡°I¡¯m being serious, Arrosh,¡± I jerked my head towards the retreating figures. ¡°They¡¯re bad news.¡± I lowered my voice. ¡°Don¡¯t do this. I¡¯ll lead you to your people. You can stay there until I come back.¡± He placed his hand over mine, firm and strong. ¡°Just as the tree only grows upwards, the mother goat only looks to raise her young safely until the calf is strong enough to stand on its own.¡± He softly removed my hand from his elbow. ¡°My goal has always been the one and same, my disciple. To ensure the legacy of my master¡­ and to do for you, what he had done for me.¡± ¡°Arrosh.¡± My voice sounded pained, even to my own ears. ¡°Do not despair, for this way, I can be the sword that cuts both ways.¡± With those meaningful words, he gave me a single pat on the shoulder and hurried after the other party. ¡°Fuck.¡± I cursed as their retreating forms disappeared around the bend. I snarled in anger and clenched my fist, feeling instant pain. Opening them, I saw strips of blackened flesh, burnt from using Arrosh¡¯s blade which had been enchanted with Biyu¡¯s black lightning. Of course, I didn¡¯t have a single elemental resistance stat. Because of me, Arrosh was taking a risk. A risk he shouldn¡¯t be taking and didn¡¯t need to take. More than that, we had just met. I had just broken him out of this torture castle. We battled through the Scavengers and two Players. We went through all of that together just to launch ourselves into another web of deceit, where I couldn¡¯t even tell if Clover was being sincere or not. Probably not, she might have told the truth but I doubted she told me the whole truth. It was constantly one thing to another where I felt helpless and powerless, feeling like other people were in charge of my fate. I couldn¡¯t control a single thing. Life is like that though. If there ever was a posterboy for ¡®bad luck¡¯, it had to be me. I took a moment to gather my thoughts, making sure the Dimension Rings were still in my pocket. It was worth a veritable fortune and I could think of more than one way of using them. Getting a new sword for one. The adrenaline from the battle and the proverbial fencing match with Clover wore off, allowing my subconscious to surface and finally voice its opinions. Walking into the passageway, my thoughts became more organized. It wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing that Arrosh was with Clover¡¯s party. Like we discussed, he was keeping an eye on them and looking out for me. But more than that, it meant I could keep an eye on him too. The Players were sure to have heard what happened to Arrosh and me by now. I¡¯d be surprised if they didn¡¯t do anything in retaliation. If I left Arrosh behind, all alone, in the orc settlement, he¡¯d have no protection. Atleast this way, they had to go through Clover¡¯s party to get to Arrosh. The second thing was that Clover had ousted her identity to me. Counting her party and mine, that meant I could account for two of the parties in the Church¡¯s mission that weren¡¯t players. Simple process of elimination. Which meant that it was either the Turinan Party or Party ¡®A¡¯. While I was doing simple process of elimination, why not apply Occam¡¯s Razor to it as well? The Church of Light, Flame and Shield hates Players. I know that for a fact. So what were the chances that the Great Houses of Turina would send Player Adventurers to a Church mission? So I could tentatively cross them off of my list of suspects for being Players as well. Which left only one option. Party ''A'' ¡­Or Clover could be lying to me and Arione could be part of the [Player¡¯s Guild]. Oh, the irony with that line of thought. My head began to hurt after going down that rabbit hole. No, for now, the safe thing to do was assume that Party ¡®A¡¯ was the Player in this operation that Dibo mentioned. ¡°It¡¯s just a masquerade.¡± I muttered. No one was who they seemed to be. Perhaps this whole ordeal wasn¡¯t a loss after all. In this game of guesing who¡¯s who and what everyone wanted, I¡¯d gotten my hands on some valuable information. Oh sure, I was tortured and leaving with mental scars that no amount of therapy might be able to heal but atleast I was now on the level playing field. Before, it felt like I had a whole mountain of things to do, starting with figuring out the motives of the different parties. At least now, I knew. Clover¡¯s party and mine would try to steal the Relic from the Church. Most likely, the Players would do the same. The Church and the Turinan Party would try and keep it away from us. A three way fight. In a way, having Clover¡¯s party with us ¨Cat least until they stabbed us in the back¨C meant that I didn¡¯t have to feel outnumbered. Keep on looking at the bright side and the dark things might never catch up. I suddenly realized that I was limping. I laughed. I couldn¡¯t help it. Because I could''ve easily asked Clover to heal me but they thought had never crossed my mind. Hell, I just blamed her for not even offering. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Laughing like a madman, I kept on walking for about half an hour. I stopped laughing along the way, growing sad. Things were really over between me and Clover wasn''t it? Yeah... it really was. They saw me first. ¡°Mister! Mister!¡± Stole came running from around the bend. Before I could greet her, Stole slammed into me, wrapping her arms around me. The leather armor creaked and I caught a glimpse of her black-hair, the style which resembled a horse¡¯s mane, without even a chance to look at her face. She looked up, grinning and I saw the black and amber-colored eyes turn into a smile. She looked back, still grinning. ¡°He¡¯s here! I found him!¡± Then the others came and a weight I¡¯ve been carrying disappeared. Aurora came running from the corner with her heavy armor, caked with dirt and blood. Skaris followed soon after, his spear at the ready but his lips stretched into a sly grin and I felt my expression match his. Kyrian was the last appear, his eyes wide with worry and he too relaxed visibly at my sight. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn. You live.¡± ¡°Lock, you are alright.¡± I swallowed something hot and heavy, fighting back the rush of emotions. The last I had seen them had been only a day ago, maybe half a day longer if I wanted to stretch it. But it wasn¡¯t the time that mattered. It was the combination of my own experience and the situation that I had left them in. They had been left alone with a group of Scavengers and a Grade 4 Field Boss monster to contend with. I never voiced it out loud but I feared the worst. But they were here. All of them. ¡°I¡¯m alive.¡± I said with a half-laugh. They came over and Skaris punched me on the shoulder, hard. Even Kyrian ¨Cnot someone for manly gestures¨C gave me a few pats on the back. Aurora checked me over for wounds and Stole finally let go of me. ¡°On the way here, we saw another party. Did they hurt you in any way?¡± Kyrian asked, noticing the wounds I had. ¡°No.¡± I sighed, dreading having to explain to them exactly what happened in the last day. Skaris sniffed. ¡°They ssssmelled familiar, Sssslaveborn.¡± Of course, the beastman¡¯s superior senses would have recognized them. If anything, Skaris already had his own suspicions likely. ¡°I can explain all that later. What about you guys? None of you guys are hurt?¡± I turned my gaze to Aurora. ¡°Aurora, the new Core. how do you like it?¡± ¡°We thought you were dead and now that we find you, the first thing you ask is about Sis Aurora¡¯s Core?¡± complained Stole. ¡°The Core is fine, Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora answered solemnly. ¡°What has happened to you? Are you ok?¡± ¡°A lot. And I¡­¡± I hesitated, trying to put into words what I was feeling. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to be ok.¡± I said finally. And I meant it. Skaris and Kyrian shared a look but neither of them commented. ¡°The Church. We¡¯re supposed to be at the docks aren¡¯t we?¡± I said, looking around frantically. ¡°Are we going to make it?¡± ¡°Lock, please. You have to rest.¡± Kyrian was frowning in disapproval. ¡°Marc Pointell will stall the church¡¯s departure. We have time. But first, I want to make sure you are alright.¡± ¡°No,¡± I growled. ¡°We have to get on that boat.¡± Kyrian must¡¯ve noticed something was up, figuring that this wasn¡¯t just a regular quest I picked up. He didn¡¯t even know about my deal with Dibo or what I knew about the Relic that lay at the end of this quest. But he had lived his entire adult life serving a Great House and knew when a party leader was being serious about something. ¡°Come on then, you can explain on the way.¡± Kyrian gestured and Skaris saddled up next to me, trying to help me walk. But Skaris was nearly seven feet tall and it was awkward. ¡°Here, let me, Mr. Skaris.¡± Aurora moved in and it was a much better fit. I began to walk, slightly limping. Suddenly, I couldn¡¯t tell if I was walking on my own or being dragged by Aurora. ¡°He¡¯s going into shock.¡± Kyrian whispered. ¡°He¡¯s passing out.¡± ¡°What?! What the fuck are we supposed to do? Should I get my Sister?!¡± ¡°No, just feed him a potion and let him sleep.¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice sounded far away. ¡°I ssssshall carry him.¡± I tried to say something. About how we needed to get to the docks. We had to. So many things were riding on this. Learning more about the Player¡¯s Guild and finding out what their plans were. What would happen to Arrosh if I didn¡¯t show up to this mission ¨Chow he might be used like a dispensable soldier. What the Church was planning to do, how this linked up with the big picture of Turina wanting to wage war on a bigger scale. How things were becoming more dangerous and we needed to grow stronger as a group. I wanted to say all these things. But my mouth mumbled something incomprehensible and darkness began to approach at the edge of my vision. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Lock.¡± It was Kyrian¡¯s voice, but it sounded muffled and warbled, like it was coming from the other side of a wall. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll get to the docks.¡± I stopped fighting. My comrade said he¡¯ll get us there. That was good enough for me. I slept.
I slept without dreams. No Khan. No Oung. No nightmares. Nothing. Just darkness. So when I came to, it was a gradual awakening. I slowly became aware that my body was being rocked, swaying side to side softly with a certain rhythm. The next thing I noticed was the creaking. There was terrible creaking all about and another sound accompanying it; the crashing of waves. The sound of the ocean is something that¡¯s universal, whether on Earth or on MSS. I listened as the cascading of waves crashed against the sides of whatever they were hitting, feeling the rocking of my bed. Even without opening my eyes, I knew that it was dark. There was no light being filtered through my eyelids. In addition to the creaking of wood and the constant ocean waves, I heard a loud crack of thunder and for just the briefest of moments, the back of my eyelids lit up ¨Cleaving after images of lightning¡¯s forked branches etched into my corneas. There was a chill about the air and not because of the darkness or the apparent storm. This was a chill that didn¡¯t just sink skin-deep, but dove into your bones and stayed there. I was covered in a thick wool blanket but my feet were still freezing. I slowly opened my eyes to take stock of my surroundings. Like I had expected, I was on a boat. With any luck, it was one of the boats chartered by the Church. There should be no other reason for me to be on a boat in any other case. Which meant that my party had made it to the meeting place as promised. I reached out with my senses ¨Cmy hearing and sense of smell, combined with the general sensation of knowing whether I was alone in the room or not. People have that almost sixth sense of knowing when they¡¯re being watched by something. Most of the people who didn¡¯t have that probably died out long back when our ancestors were still hunting for food. In this world where monsters were real, I assumed that sensation was very strongly linked to survival. I was alone in a dark room, lying in a hammock. Thunder snapped again and lightning hissed through the sky in the distance, lightning up the room. I saw that the room was a typical wooden cabin of ships and now that I could see, I saw that there was a small round window in the room. There were raindrops bulleting the glass, leaving tiny beads which trailed down and disappeared, replaced by countless others. Behind all the noise, I could hear the pitter-patter of rain now. Looking out the window, I saw harsh waves throwing the ship about. There were other lights in the distance, meaning that this ship wasn¡¯t the only one out here. They looked like toys from this distance and in one gut-wrenching moment, one of the ships simply disappeared behind a wave only to emerge a second later. Of course, the ships weren¡¯t just regular ships. They were either Enchanted by Magic or Blessed by Divinity. Hell, there were Cores that could bond a ship to a captain, since a ship could be categorized as an item technically. Remember what I said about later dungeoneering requiring lots of different things? Ships were one of them. In the game, I had always recruited a Shipmate, just to keep them handy. Kind of like Wayfinders for the ocean, you needed them for the lategame. There were certain dungeons and items that could only be attained by sailing to different places. The Ruins of Atlantis being one of them. Shaking my head, I brought myself back to the surroundings, watching the storm outside and taking note of the room whenever the lightning flashed. My armor and shield were nearly stacked in the corner and next to it was a dressed. I was wearing loose cloth of unknown origin, though they smelled like fresh laundry mixed with cold sweat. Probably my own sweat. I moved my legs and groaned as soreness stabbed into them like a thousand dull needles. Deciding against it, I moved my legs back underneath the blankets. It was kind of nice. After the last few days of endless training with my party, being harassed by the Scavengers, defeating a Grade-5 Monster and then thrown into a dungeon where I was tortured by a mad-elven-mage, I could get used to being on a boat. The blanket was warm ¨Ckind of¨C and I snuggled in, enjoying the crisp air outside and the contrasting heat inside. I looked out the window as the rain, thunder and waves gave me a sense of serenity. Maybe this was why White Noise was so popular back at home. I lay there, thinking of nothing. Inevitably, worries began to creep in. First, I had to find where my party was and find out what was happening. I¡¯d like to know who the captain was, what kind of person they were, plus the important people on this ship that I should be aware of. Since there were multiple ships, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if different parties were in different ships. Figuring out where Zenon was and what our plans were until we reached Claw¡¯s Nest was something on my list too. Not to mention, there were some monsters that I wanted to hunt while we were on the ship. So many things to do. So many interconnected missions. So many big things were happening. And whether I liked it or not, I was knee-deep in this. Me and my party both. Yeah. I should get out of bed and find someone. Maybe get something to eat while I was at it. Then I could persuade the captain to let us hunt some sea monsters once the storm passed. I could find a sword too ¨Cwho knows, maybe one of the monsters will drop a sword. Then there was the matter of scouting out the battle powers of the other parties, making sure Clover was around here somewhere and didn¡¯t steal away with Arrosh¡­ But first, I wrapped the blanket tighter around my torso. Those things could wait. I went through a lot, I told myself. Closing my eyes, I let the stormy sea outside put me to sleep, more than happy that it was someone else¡¯s problem for a change to keep us alive.
112: Voyage (1)
World: MSS - Loading...
I woke up to rays of sunshine sneaking through the closed curtains on my window. It hadn¡¯t been closed when I awoke before. Someone must¡¯ve come in and closed the blinds, realizing that the sun might wake me up prematurely. Silently thanking the person, I swung my legs over the side of the hammock with ease. The pain and soreness had disappeared and my mind was quick and alert now, all traces of sleep disappearing. How long had I slept? By the state of my growling stomach, quite a bit actually. Still, I didn¡¯t rush off out of my hammock. I closed my eyes, replaying the last bits of my memories. Getting out of the Torture Room with Arrosh in tow, battling against Tanya and Coum, then the talk with Clover¡¯s Party and finally meeting mine in return. Out of the people who had been involved in the events in the last few days, almost everyone was on this quest. The members of the [Player¡¯s Guild], whom I continued to assume was Party ¡®A¡¯. Clover¡¯s party who cloaked themselves in shadow. Then my own. ¡®Ok, let¡¯s go find my party first.¡¯ My stomach growled in response. ¡®And maybe something to eat too.¡¯ Finding my gear and getting dressed, I left the small guest cabin, finding myself in the passageways of the ship. Now that I was out of the room and actually paying attention, I could smell the ocean in the air. That faint scent of fish mixed with salt, a hint of something funky and something nice too. Maybe seaweed. The passageways were wide and something about them looked familiar, though I couldn¡¯t put a finger on why. Then again, all ships in this era should look about the same. Wooden planks nailed together to creature a structure that could float on water ¨Cexcept in MSS, many of them would be considered ¡®magical¡¯ items and enchanted with loads of different effects. I walked through the corridor, gathering plenty of looks from the sailors. I smiled softly, trying to mutter hi and mustering up the courage to ask for directions. But their looks weren¡¯t kind ¨Cnot exactly hostile¨C but kind of gruff and it brought out the introvert within me. Wandering aimlessly, noticing that most of the sailors were orcs, beastman and elves. Not the pale elves like Arione, but the tanned muscular elves like L¡¯teya. Speaking of which, I wondered how Clover and Arione ran that party. Were the members allowed to roam free? Or were they like prisoners, kept locked up in their rooms? Hell, who was the boss of that party? Clover or Arione? Evidence suggested Clover but that could be only because she was the one with the direct line to Oung, giving out quests. Arione, as a Player, would recognize the value of a questline involving a goddess and the Six Heroes, so he¡¯d follow along. If Arione followed Clover, Scarlet would follow suit. And of course, L¡¯teya would stick around with Clover. ¡­Didn¡¯t that girl say she was going to look for her older brother? I sighed, pushing the thought of Clover¡¯s party out of my mind. There was no point in being hung up on their social dynamics. That was none of my business. This felt exactly like the time I broke up with my girlfriend and saw her around the campus. I¡¯d always wonder, is she talking about me? Is she seeing someone else? Talking to someone? What is she thinking and how is she living her life? Questions would give birth to more questions. It wasn¡¯t good for the soul. Besides, I had Arrosh spying on them now. Speaking of, he and I had to find time to talk. One, to make sure that he was OK and two, to figure out a way to communicate. No point in having him go through all that, surrounding himself with the bad guys and being miserable, only to never get the chance to pass on information. Poor Arrosh. My footsteps led me to a ladder which would lead me to the deck. I started to climb it. Half way up, I heard voices. Redoubling my efforts, I hurried. Once I got to the top, I looked around. The first thing that greeted me were the great masts of the ship. I¡¯m not an expert on ships, my experience being limited to the board game, BattleShips. But I could see that this thing was big, way larger than the ship I was on when I was heading to Miltus. Way larger than any old normal ship I might see at the dock. The sheer number of riggings criss-crossing each other in the air was dizzying, dozens of them making complicated knots and straining against each other. Then there were the large sails, billowing in the cool sea breeze. Huge, massive pieces of sailcloths that snapped with the wind¡¯s speed and was so loud that it caused the hairs on my arm to stand up in surprise. There was a Crow¡¯s Nest at the top of the tallest mast, though the sun was shining too brightly for me to make out if anyone was on it. Not that I would be able to check even without the sun, the thing was nearly a skyscraper in and unto itself with a little bit of exaggeration. Dozens of sailors ran about, tightening knots, carrying crates and rolling barrels. Next to them were the wooden railings of the ship and I saw Arcane Cannons with wheels being carted around. Whatever this ship was, it was fancy and designed for protection. Finally I was forced to face the people that were staring at me. There was a small podium and stage, two people I had seen before. One was Zenom Saintred. He was dressed in full armor, decorated with the regalia of the Turinan Church ¨Cemblem of Fire, Shield and Light over his left chest. His blonde hair was combed neatly to the side and there was a faint disapproving look in my general direction. He was standing behind the podium, obviously in the middle of giving a speech. Sitting on a stool next to him was Cecilia Lightridge, Head Priestess of the Church that was sponsoring this expedition. In front of the two were rows of chairs, set up like pews of a Church. Sitting on them were the adventurers. There were the familiar faces of my party, Kyrian and Skaris, looking amused. Stole waved energetically, gesturing to a chair next to her. Even Aurora¡¯s stony exterior seemed to melt a fraction of a degree, softening at seeing me. Then there were the Scions from Turina, Dorocian and Gurran among them. Six members sitting in the way back, all of them cloaked from head to toe, though I did spy one of them holding a cane. That must be Arrosh and Clover¡¯s party. Finally, random party ¡®A¡¯. The ones I suspected to be the representatives of the Player¡¯s Guild. But that wasn¡¯t the issue here. I¡¯d come out right next to Zenom and Cecilia, in full view of everyone. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Why the hell would they place the podium right next to the entrance to the deck? Just to embarrass any late comers? Decades of being an introvert came rushing back and I felt my face heat up, regardless of Cores and Stats. This was a human response, something I was conditioned to do when put in the spotlight like this. Before I could mutter a response or duck back under, Zenom spoke first. ¡°It¡¯s nice of you to join us.¡± His voice was the same as I remembered: Deep, commanding, authoritative and clipped like a natural born military commander. His blue eyes scanned me up and down. I readied myself for another round of insults. The last time we had been late, he had thoroughly embarrassed us on the spot. ¡°Take a seat please.¡± He said. He said nothing else. Cecilia smiled at me from her seat and gestured with her head, a small nod. I returned the gesture and quickly ran over to where Stole was, joining my party. ¡°Glad to see you could make it, Lock.¡± Kyrian murmured softly, exchanging grips with me. ¡°Likewise.¡± I did the same with Skaris, quickly taking my seat. ¡°Did I miss anything?¡± ¡°Other than Sis Aurora leaning over the railing and losing yesterday¡¯s dinner in one go? And the small fishes that clamored around to get at it?¡± Stole said before anyone could interject. Aurora hissed and until that moment, I didn¡¯t know it could sound classy and annoyed at the same time. ¡°Ms. Stole.¡± Stole smiled easily. ¡°Glad to see you back, Mister.¡± ¡°Welcome, Slaveborn.¡± ¡°Welcome back, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°The knight glaressss at ussss.¡± Skaris hissed and we cut our greetings short. What was surprising wasn¡¯t the fact that Skaris was the one to quiet us down. But who it had been aimed towards. Usually, when Skaris spoke it was only to Skaris and I, and very rarely Aurora. This time though, he kind of addressed the party as a whole. Huh. That wasn¡¯t the only thing that was new either. There was an easy air about the four of them now that wasn¡¯t there before. A sense of camaraderie existing between party members that went through something tough together. Then again, they were part of a raid of a Grade-4 Field Boss monster. So it was natural that it felt like they were close to one another. Feeling somewhat more relaxed than before, I settled down among my party. It felt good. I had obviously walked in on what was a short briefing. Zenom cleared his throat and before speaking. ¡°I will now begin briefing our schedule for the rest of our trip.¡± He gestured to a board behind him that I hadn¡¯t seen before, a giant map spread out on it. ¡°We have set sail from Miltus.¡± He pointed to a small city outlined in red. Miltus was a peninsula, surrounded on all three sides by water. Towards the north, you would see Eretia, the city that led into the rest of the Jayu States ¨Cthe Delirious Jungle, the Dwarven States and some of the Elven Cities. But they weren¡¯t present on this map, instead the Peninsula was all the way on the left and there were lines leading to the right. Zenon drew a straight line towards the right, where the map denoted the oceans. ¡°We are currently heading East, towards Claw¡¯s Nest.¡± He skipped a couple of smaller landmasses and pointed to a landmass almost the size of Miltus, which was labeled Claw¡¯s Nest. ¡°The voyage is expected to take three months. Along the way, there are three potential obstacles which we need to beware of.¡± Right to the east of Miltus was a cluster of islands. Zenom pointed to it. ¡°Our first stop will be at the Free Trader¡¯s League. Technically, they are part of the Free States of Jayu as well as a member of the Turinan Trade Treaty. We will be stopping at one of the smaller islands where the Church has a presence. There, we will pick up our supplies before sailing straight for Claw¡¯s Nest.¡± He dragged his finger towards the right and dipped it beneath a couple of red boundary lines, drawing a huge curve instead of a straight line. The reason was apparent, there was another huge land mass at the top of the map, smack dab between the Free Trader¡¯s League and the rest of the way. ¡°The red lines demark the territory lines of the Bada Horde. We will be skirting around the edges, making sure that there is no chance of encountering the Horde.¡± Around the midway point, his finger dipped back up again, and this time it was the open blue sea with a small symbol on it. ¡°Due to the Bada Horde¡¯s presence, we will be forced to enter the territory of a Field Boss.¡± The mood changed. ¡°What grade?¡± asked a man. Human. Delas was his name, if I recalled correctly. ¡°...Grade 2.¡± Zenom answered. ¡°Absolutely bonkers.¡± Delas swore. He had ben leaning back in his seat with his legs stretched out, arms crossed. Now he leaned forward, scowling at Zenom and Cecilia as well as all the other priests and priestesses in attendance. ¡°You couldn¡¯t bother to mention that we¡¯ll be crossing the territory of a Grade-2 Field Boss before we set sail? By the light-¡± ¡°Do not use the Divine¡¯s name in vain.¡± Zenom snapped, then explained, ¡°I can perfectly assure you, we have crossed the territory of this monster numerous times. There is a way to pass through its territory without aggravating it.¡± ¡°Yeah? What¡¯s your genius plan then, your holiness?¡± Delas somehow managed to make the word sound insulting. ¡°The monster is known to slumber at most times of day and only becomes active at night.¡± "No shit." Delas swore. "The monster is theorized to be in a deep slumber." A grade-2 monster that emerged only at night, slumbering during the day. Plus, it was powerful enough to be denoted as a Field Boss ¨Ca Variant that was so powerful that it actually owned its own territory. Yet, it stayed stationary in one spot of the ocean in a deep slumber. Deep slumber being the key word here. Before I could stop myself, I hissed out the monster''s name. ¡°Imugi.¡± I felt a dozen stares snap towards me like needles to a magnet. But I continued, all shyness disappearing. ¡°Grade-2 Monster, found in both aquatic and terrestrial environments. It has scales imbued with Elemental Resistance and natural hardness, enough so that unless you¡¯re a Blader who¡¯s received all of your god¡¯s blessings, you won¡¯t even put a scratch on it.¡± God¡¯s blessings, that was how the people of MSS referred to their racial traits. ¡°Rumored to be large enough to make this ship look like a toy.¡± My mouth was moving now and it wasn¡¯t all because I wanted to, I was babbling because I was starting to realize just how stupid the Church was, to even risk going through that territory. ¡°It breathes molten rock and can literally change the weather, summoning tornadoes out of thin air.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s not the worst of it,¡± I finished. ¡°Imugis can transform into a Dragon.¡± Dragons. Grade-S Boss Monsters of MSS. A Monsters so difficult to kill that a single party wasn¡¯t enough. To kill it, you needed to be part of a Clan with adventurers who were at least Grade 1, with end-game gear. No one spoke. Hell, no one moved. ¡°Turn this ship around.¡± Delas muttered. ¡°You¡¯re leading us into suicide.¡± ¡°That,¡± Zenom spoke, his voice hard. ¡°Is impossible.¡± ¡°The fuck it is.¡± Delas stood up, a dagger appearing in his hand with a flick. Slowly, Zenom placed a hand on the hilt of his sword. He didn¡¯t grab it, but he wasn¡¯t far from drawing it either. The silence was so heavy, it could have sunk the ship. ¡°Delas.¡± The giant beastman with antlers next to him placed a hand on Delas¡¯ shoulder. Delas looked back at the beastman, a snarl on his face. ¡°They¡¯re going to get us killed, these Church fanatics.¡± ¡°They said they¡¯ve done the voyage before.¡± The moose beastman rumbled. Delas looked at Zenom, whose face was steel. Zenom cocked his head to the side in a small challenge, staring straight at Delas. ¡°I would advise that you listen to the rest of my briefing. You can ask your questions afterwards,¡± said Zenom. The bald human rogue glared at Zenom then finally sat down, his dagger disappearing up his sleeve. He turned his head away, his arms crossed and pouting. ¡°Thank you for your most apt explanation, Mr. Lock.¡± Zenom nodded towards me and I winced. I had only fed into people¡¯s fear with my description of the monster. ¡°But rest assured, the monster won¡¯t even know we are there.¡± He put his hand back on the map again. ¡°The monster, or as Mr. Lock pointed out, the Imugi, has quite a large territory. The benefit of this is that we can skirt the outskirts of its territory, near the Bada Horde¡¯s territory.¡± ¡°Ah, that isss wisssse.¡± Skaris whispered. Stole gave Skaris a quizzical glance. ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Predatorssss avoid each otherssss territory. The orcssss will avoid the monsssster, and the ssea sssnake will avoid where the orcssss hunt.¡± ¡°The orcs are snacks to an Imugi.¡± I interjected. ¡°If they had the power to kill an Imugi or hurt it in any significant way, they¡¯d have hunted the thing, skinned it and stripped it for parts already.¡± ¡°Do you go looking for mosssquitossss or avoid their nesssting groundsss?¡± Skaris asked. ¡°Huh. Never thought of it that way before.¡± I grudgingly admitted and we focused out attention on Zenom again. ¡°I hope that tightrope act is not your only plan.¡± Another familiar voice, Dorocian. ¡°Or your reputation would be poorly deserved.¡± I could practically hear Zenom grinding his teeth. Dorocian¡¯s jibe had bothered him a lot mroe than Delas¡¯ act of aggression had. Perhaps because she was from Turina, or because she was a Bastard of a Great House. Maybe both. ¡°We have other measures in place.¡± Zenom answered. ¡°Now, these are the list of monsters we are likely to encounter on the way there.¡± He began to point at smaller islands where we¡¯ll be stopping. The other smaller ships sailing behind and ahead of us were logistical teams, more priests and other adventurers who were expected to provide some type of support. But everyone here was the main force and this ship had the most supplies. Therefore, we would have to make several stops along the way to redistribute food and other necessities. As Zenom droned on and on, my mind wandered. Their plan made sense on paper alright, but I knew better. See, a theory was beginning to form in my mind. That the gods were personally involved in this. Not just Oung and Khan. Not just the Light, Fire and Shield. But all the gods. And if all the gods were involved, I knew that nothing would go according to plan. Actually, I bet things were going to go to shit, pretty fast. Like now. Cecila snapped her head up at the same time that Stole did. In fact, a single member from every party looked to the sky, towards the east. ¡°Zenom, I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll have to cut the rest of the briefing short.¡± Cecilia Lightridge rose from her chair, silver mana beginning to coalesce around her hands. ¡°We have company.¡±
Chapter 113: Voyage (2) World: MSS - Loading...
This resulted in all the adventurers getting up from their chairs, prepared to fight. Their reactions were pretty much instantaneous and uniform in nature. After all, the primary job of adventurers was to fight against monsters. People drew swords while some deigned to simply let their hands hang loose. Strangely, it was Cecilia who lowered her arms first, the silver-colored mana dissipating. ¡°Please, settle down.¡± Priestess Cecilia smoothed the hems of her dress, her expression hidden behind the veil. Just as strange was Zenom who had no reacted at all in any shape, way or form. He just stood there behind the podium, his expression rock solid and giving nothing away. ¡®Almost like he had expected something to happen.¡¯ I noted to myself. The adventurers settled down and Skaris sat down next to me gruffly. ¡°Ssslaveborn. Your sssword. You do not have one.¡± Right. I had forgotten. ¡°...I¡¯ll find a replacement one.¡± I whispered to him as the existence of whatever had spooked the adventurers revealed itself. It started out like a dot in the sky until it began to draw closer. When it was near the top of the masts, I saw something vaguely shaped like a bird yet reptilian in nature. Its wingspan had to be at least fifteen feet on each side, impossibly small to support its long scale covered body. The monster didn¡¯t fly so much as it glided in disturbing slithering movements through the air, descending enough for me to make out what it was. ¡°...An Amphiptere.¡± I whispered, just loud enough so that only my party could hear me. ¡°Grade 7, flying monster.¡± ¡°Is it a dragon?¡± Stole asked. I shook my head. ¡°It¡¯s classified as a Wyvern. Still has scales hard enough to repel most weapons below Unique class and various spells.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it doing all the way out here?¡± It was Kyrian who asked. ¡°It has to be a summon. They¡¯re only found in humid environments and the closest thing resembling that is the Delirious Jungle, hundreds of miles away.¡± I thought I had answered them quietly, addressing only the people near me. But I had underestimated the hearing ability of the other parties, or rather, their scouts. I saw one of the Scions from the Turinan Party nudge the others and they were all staring at me. It wasn¡¯t just them either. Delas¡¯ party was doing the same and I had the distinct feeling that Clover¡¯s party was doing the same, even if they were cloaked from head to toe. Dorocian¡¯s eyes glittered and a sly grin stretched over her lips. ¡°No wonder you beat me at the Colosseum. You¡¯re practically a walking monster [Compendium].¡± The rest of the adventurers seemed to agree, some of them looking at me with admiration. Still, more seemed to edge on the side of wariness with a healthy dose of open hostility. In the end, on this quest for the Church, we were all competitors and I¡¯d just revealed one of my hands without meaning to: that I was extremely well-versed in monster knowledge. The Amphiptere descended, revealing its rainbow-like wings which were a little too stubby to belong to a bird. It coiled around itself on the floor next to Zenom, taking up a huge amount of space. The monster was large enough to seat a whole party with no difficulty. Opening its opulent eyes with a dizzying array of colors, it looked around, gauging us as if daring to attack. Most of our attention was taken by the saddle that was affixed behind the creature¡¯s back. A strange contraption built so that the riders were saddled horizontally, avoiding the sharp ridge-plating running the length of the monster¡¯s body. The two people on either side leapt down first, clearing the twenty foot jump with ease. Both were dressed entirely in white armor, definitely not as heavy as Zenom¡¯s or Aurora¡¯s, but something similar to mine; balance between movement and defense. I couldn¡¯t see their faces because just like Cecilia, they were hidden behind these strips of white cloth tied to a band on their forehead. But I did catch the colors of their hair. One was midnight black with strips of orange and the other was the same ¨Cexcept with highlights of bold blue. Signature Hair Colors of Scions. An Akka Xalud and a Kojisa to be exact. The blue-haired one, a woman from the looks of it, looked around then finally nodded. ¡°It is safe, your Excellency.¡± Then the Amphiptere lowered its large head, and the Bishop stepped down. Zenom put a fist over his heart and bowed. ¡°Your Excellency.¡± ¡°Your Excellency.¡± Cecilia repeated the gesture and the dozens of priests and priestesses around us did the same. He was dressed in white (of course) and with a head of hair to match. A needle thin frame with a shrunken face, matched by a set of narrowed beady eyes told me everything I needed to know about this man. His white robe was adorned with a red stole, decorated with stylized drawings of the Sun. A Bishop from the Branch of Light, the same branch that Priestess Cecilia Lightridge belonged to. As a general rule, I hated all the religious leaders of this church. Besides the fact that they were penny-pinching grifters who used the power of healing for something as materialistic as coin, they all had a different agenda. The lot of them were all hypocrites in my opinion, especially those that were affiliate with their church and held an esteemed rank. They were the physical manifestation of avarice and pride, all rolled into one. Stolen novel; please report. Not too different from my world, I guess. I¡¯m not saying I hate all the pastors, monks and rabbis of my world. It¡¯s just that I¡¯ve seen too much, and my opinions have been shaped by hearsay and few experiences that were bad enough to color the lens with which I see the world. MSS in particular was worse; because it was almost impossible to become a healer without being a cleric. The chosen few ¨Clike Clover or Shara I guess¨C were few and rare, too far in between. The Bishop looked around with those calculating eyes and finally waved a hand in a dismissive gesture, at which Zenom, Cecilia and all the other members of the Church of Light, Flame and Shield stood up straight. God, I already hated him. Funny how I hadn¡¯t even spoken a word to him but I hated him already. But sometimes, you didn¡¯t need a reason to hate someone. I had several though. Not good ones, mind you, but that was more than enough for me to feel justified in not liking him. ¡°I wanted to see with my own eyes the adventurers that you have gathered for this undertaking, Sir Zenom Saintred.¡± Zenom inclined his head an inch but not more. ¡°I have gathered the best adventurers available in Jayu.¡± ¡°Have you?¡± The Bishop countered without missing a beat. ¡°Yes.¡± Zenom replied in the same manner. In that short exchange, I saw everything I needed to see. The two weren¡¯t working together. Whatever the details of the relationship might be, they were simply people who served the same Church, nothing more and nothing less. Everything else, such as the details on how to get it done or more importantly, who gets the credits for getting it done, was a point of competition. I watched the interaction, trying to glean more information out of it. ¡°This is an extremely important mission to the Light and there are many eyes watching us. You must uphold the honor of the Church and by extension, those whom you have chosen and cavort with must hold themselves to a standard.¡± He finally turned to us and I saw his eyes roam over us, pausing at particular intervals. Skaris. Stole. The beastman called Astelion. A dwarf next to him. The two elves. The cloaked figures, some of whom could not hide their origin, such as Arrosh whose green-colored hands were visible. With each look, the Bishop¡¯s pale face grew a shade darker, going from pink to red to almost purple. Finally, he took a calming breath and visibly deflated. He struggled to find the right words. ¡°...This is quite a diverse collection of individuals you collected, Sir Saintred.¡± The Bishop finally commented at last. ¡°They are the ones that the Light has sent us.¡± ¡°The Light¡­ I question whether it was truly the Light or your own judgment that brought these people to your feet.¡± The Bishop commented at last. ¡°Afterall, with your questionable upbringing, I wonder if-¡± ¡°Your Excellence,¡± Cecilia cut in. ¡°We were in the middle of briefing the adventurers for the journey ahead. Zenom and I have prepared for a long time and were planning on Rest, secluding ourselves in prayer afterwards. I bid you, will you give us leave to continue?¡± The Bishop sneered but turned around, but not without getting the last word. ¡°I invite you and Sir Saintred to join me for supper every five days, to keep each other accountable for the walks of faith.¡± Just as fast as they had arrived, the three of them departed, flying towards another ship while riding on the Amphiptere. Most of us just stood there awkwardly, not knowing how to react to what just happened. Us adventurers, we¡¯re good at fighting monsters, sure. But another thing we¡¯re really good at? Knowing when someone poses a danger to our loot. And right there and then, the Bishop just became a threat to all our winnings and more ¨Cundermining Zenom like that had faltered our beliefs in him. Zenom cleared his throat. ¡°The rest of you are free to spend the day as you wish. Tomorrow, we will start going over the next steps in more details, namely what steps we will take to prepare ourselves at the Free Trader¡¯s League.¡± He turned on his heel and headed for the captain¡¯s quarters with Cecilia in tow. ¡°Dismissed.¡± Cecilia followed after him.
My party and I were in a small room. Apparently the rooms had been randomly dispatched at the party level. Our party had been given three rooms and Kyrian had been nice enough to give me the only single room, so that I could rest in peace. Otherwise, I¡¯d never hear the end of Skaris¡¯ snoring. Right now, we were in Aurora and Stole¡¯s room. The two girls had barely been in here a day but already, it smelled loads better than Kyrian and Skaris¡¯ room. Something of a mixture between fragrant leather oil and metal. I wasn¡¯t expecting flowery decorations anything but it was much more sparse than I imagined. Stole¡¯s Arbalest lay in the corner, drying in the lazy ocean sun. ¡°I have to clean it every hour or the salt gets in and it starts to creak.¡± Stole complained, taking an oiled rag to the weapon. Aurora sat on a hammock, her knees folded. Stole sat cross legged on the floor. ¡°So Lock,¡± Kyrian asked, standing against a corner with his arms crossed. ¡°Tell us what happened.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a long story.¡± I muttered, wondering how to begin. ¡°We have time.¡± Kyrian said again. He was strangely insistent. I nodded. They at least deserved that much. I started from the beginning after I got separated from them. I didn¡¯t tell them about the specifics, but I did tell them how I survived the fall, ending up in the Scavenger¡¯s Base. From there, I told them how I started to look for a way out and found out that Arrosh had been kept prisoner in their base. Of course, I left out the Player bits out. But this time, I shared something I hadn¡¯t shared with anyone before. ¡°You lossssst?¡± Skaris said in disbelief. I nodded. ¡°Completely. It wasn¡¯t even a contest. He was faster, much faster and skilled to boot.¡± Then glancing at Aurora, I added, ¡°He knew my moves. How I fought, how I¡¯d react. The whole thing, it was like he had already fought me before.¡± ¡°The Colosseum.¡± Aurora explained. ¡°One of the reasons why Adventurers are loath to enter the Colosseum except as a last resort, you become an easy target for those who hunt other adventurers.¡± Who knew that the Colosseum fight would come back to bite me in the ass? I had only thought as far as the fight itself, not the dangers associated with it so long after. Was it possible that only just now, were the consequences of my choices and actions beginning to catch up to me? ¡°Lock.¡± The way Kyrian said my name made me look at him. ¡°You have spoken about this man, Arrosh, for a long time. You call him your master. But I always got the sense that you were leaving things out.¡± Kyrian said. ¡°It also doesn¡¯t make sense that the Scavenger¡¯s Guild would kidnap a plain old orc.¡± He paused to make sure everyone understood the implications of what he was saying. ¡°He¡¯s not just any regular old orc swordsman is he?¡± Kyrian wasn¡¯t asking. I didn¡¯t answer, but still nodded. ¡°Who is he, Lock?¡± Kyrian prodded, coming out from the corner and sitting across from me. ¡°Because it feels like you left out a lot of the parts. Such as how you got out of Ryker¡¯s Manacles. Why was this Arrosh captured in the first place and what they wanted from you, why did they leave you alive.¡± I looked at each of them in turn. Kyrian, a Mage with a kind heart who I was starting to realize was slowly changing. He wasn¡¯t the timid broken mage who had once sought revenge on the Akka Xaluds. Now, there was a level of certainty in his eyes, that belied the strength that lay within. Skaris, the honorable warrior of the Beastman whom I could always trust to have my back. Him and Kyrian had been with me the longest. Aurora the beautiful tank of our party, with a code of steel and the icy exterior that hid the warm heart within. The more I got to know Aurora, the more I began to like her as a comrade. Stole, the latest addition but nonetheless a critical part of our party. Hell, in the short time that I¡¯d been gone, the four of them formed a bond and Stole was part of it. ¡­They deserved the truth. Not parts of the truth that I just glossed over, but the whole truth. Maybe not the Players, but the parts about the gods and the six heroes and everything that pertained to this world. That the fact that there was a war coming, the fact that the gods were sending us on these missions and that even after this, I¡¯d probably be sucked into the plot of these deity masterminds. With that sudden realization, I began to speak. ¡°What you¡¯re asking me to tell you, is more than just who Arrosh is.¡± I explained. ¡°And once I say this, there¡¯s no going back.¡± Skaris scoffed. ¡°Get on with it, Sssslaveborn.¡± Adventurers were the superstitious type and most of them believed in a god. Whether it was Oung, Khan or the Light, they all believed in the existence of it. But from living here, I learned that the particular way that their faith can manifest differed from person to person. One person might believe the gods to be fair and keep a careful eye on their subjects, while another adventurer might believe the gods were more akin to a cosmic vending machine that didn¡¯t care what happened on earth. I could only hope they believed me, because from now, I was going to start telling them things that could be way over their heads. Would they believe me? Even if I sounded crazy? I had to give it a shot. Because the longer they stayed with me without knowing the dangers around me, the higher the chances of one of them dying. I didn¡¯t want that. Taking a deep breath, I began. ¡°How much do you guys know about the gods?¡± Then I shared everything. From the beginning.
Chapter 114: Voyage (3) World: MSS - Loading...
I shared everything. From the beginning. The only part I left out were the parts about the Players. I began with my time as a slave with Clover and Lety. How I met Arrosh and he introduced himself to me, asking me to carry on the Sword Saint¡¯s Name. The way Clover, Lety and I stumbled into Oung¡¯s Dungeon due to Kyrian hunting us, and how Lety and Clover were gravely injured. I shared about descending into Oung¡¯s Shrine, where I had to duel the Lucky Beckoning Cat with nothing but a rusty iron sword. I also shared about the way Oung chose Clover as one of the Kagura, though back then I did not know it. I shared some personal parts too. I shared about my relationship with Clover and L¡¯teya, the betrayal that I felt. Kyrian and Skaris knew this part of the story, but I explained mostly for Aurora and Stole¡¯s benefit. Arione¡¯s massacre of the orc civilians followed by taking the orc civilians and what was left of their Berserkers out of the city, striking a deal with Yousef to get to the Free States of Jayu and settling down in Miltus. Then I moved onto topics that were less believable. I glossed over the parts about the Fracture in Miltus and our travels together. Again, they were there for most of it. But I did tell the story about the gods and how they began to creep into my life. My dream with Khan who gave me advice. My torture sessions with Coum. Meeting Clover and L¡¯teya again, with Arione in tow. I shared everything. And it felt good to get it off my chest, finally telling the comrades closest to me what we were involved in. What we were up against. ¡°...And that¡¯s about it.¡± I finished lamely. I¡¯m not a great storyteller and the way I said things left much to be desired. But at the end of the day, I think that¡¯s me. Not perfect and not great, but everything that needed to be said had been in there. ¡°Ok, first things first.¡± Stole broke the silence. ¡°Where is this fucking Arione guy, so I can stick an arbalest bolt through his head?¡± I smiled at that. ¡°What an asshole!¡± Stole cried out. ¡°Agggh! Fuck! I hate him! Gaaah!¡± She expressed her hatred by trying to tear out her own hair in a comical way. She was trying to get me to laugh. ¡°It seems that for now, we are allied with Arione¡¯s party. Or Clover¡¯s party, whether we like it or not. As long as Lock¡¯s Master is with them, we also have a measure of defense against anything they might try.¡± Kyrian fixed me with a look. ¡°You¡¯re lucky to have a master such as Arrosh, not many would undertake that much risk for someone else.¡± ¡°I¡¯m starting to realize that.¡± As I shared the story, I was just starting to realize what kind of danger Arrosh was putting himself in. ¡°And you should have told us many of these things earlier. Much earlier.¡± Kyrian crossed his arms. ¡°For one thing, while you were dueling Arione, Skaris and I could have rescued your friends. Clover and L¡¯teya.¡± ¡°The elf barbarian doessss not need ressscuing.¡± Skaris said crossly. ¡°But Tricsssssilan sssspeaks truth. You sssshould have confided in ussss about the goddesssss.¡± ¡°You believe me about that? That¡­ that I saw Oung? And Khan?¡± I searched for everyone¡¯s eyes. ¡°That I believe the gods are working together?¡± Too many different forces were at work here. Oung and Khan were just the first to reveal themselves to us, since they were working together. The other gods were in this too. I had a few pieces of evidence to back up this theory. The first one was my meeting with Khan, who mentioned Oung multiple times. He hadn¡¯t needed to mention her name, he could have made it sound like I owed him. Instead, he continued to mention her, like he was trying to drop a hint. Well, hint received: news flash, Oung and Khan were working together. Naturally, that meant the other gods had factions too. That meant that the gods were up to something. They weren¡¯t just slumbering beings of power anymore, they were active and they had purpose. If Oung and Khan wanted to get this relic, I could assume that other gods were out to get it to. That brought me to the second piece of evidence, the Church. The Church served the Light, Fire and Shield so they fulfilled the role of the opposition. ¡°It is¡­ hard to believe.¡± Aurora chimed in, the most cynical of our party when it came to belief in the gods. ¡°I cannot speak to the truth of how involved the gods are in our daily lives, but I do believe that there is a powerful relic out there which may hold some fragment of divinity. It explains why the Church may send Zenom Saintred as well as a Bishop.¡± ¡°More than that, I cannot wrap my head around the fact that the gods are moving. They exist, yes. But the way you describe them¡­ they almost sound like they¡¯re¡­¡± She shook her head without finishing the thought. Then Aurora flashed one of those rare smiles at me. ¡°But I believe you, Mr. Lock. You would not lie to us.¡± They all nodded. ¡°I trust you too, Mister.¡± Oh. Wow. Ouch. That¡­ stabbed me right in the conscience, for obvious reasons. ¡°Well to summarize it all, we¡¯re on a mission for the goddess, Oung, who¡¯s known to be a double-stabbing, lying bitch,¡± Skaris winced when Stole cursed about Oung, but Stole continued, unperturbed. ¡°But we¡¯re not the only ones running her errands like little cronies. So is that A-hole-rione.¡± She must¡¯ve been referring to Arione. ¡°Plus, we have to try and help Clover take the relic before the Church can or another party can?¡± ¡°Does that cover everything?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t forget whom Lock met in the Scavenger¡¯s base.¡± Kyrian chimed in. ¡°He said most likely, that mysterious organization could have sent in their own party, that they could be after the Sword Saint¡¯s Secrets. And if they¡¯re after the Sword Saint¡¯s Secrets, it¡¯s possible that they could want this relic for themselves.¡± ¡°And if they can defeat sssslaveborn,¡± Skaris trailed, ¡°They are ssssstrong.¡± Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Was it just me or did he sound excited? ¡°Now, does that cover everything?¡± Stole tried again. ¡°One more thing,¡± I said. ¡°If we lose the relic, Turina will start the war. And it will start in the Samak Desert, which is right next to Jayu States and the Babel Towers. Then Zimmskar will get involved and then the minor powers.¡± ¡°Pfff.¡± Stole answered. ¡°Doesn¡¯t sound that big deal compared to the part about the gods.¡± ¡°Is it not?¡± Aurora muttered. ¡°We cannot just think short-term.¡± Kyrian theorized, ¡°If we take the Relic, we will have no way home. We will need to fight our way through, against Zenom Saintred along with this Mysterious Organization. Not to mention the Turina Scions might have their own agenda, if this quest is truly nothing but a cover for the inner workings of the gods.¡± ¡°The Church and the Scions are not on good terms?¡± I asked. ¡°But why would they recruit Scions that might turn against them?¡± ¡°They might have had no choice, Mr. Lock. The Great Houses have far reaches and the Church is no exception.¡± Aurora said. Kyrian shot her a look. ¡°Yes. I agree.¡± Aurora nodded grimly. ¡°So there are three things we need to consider. One, Clover¡¯s party and how much we can trust them. Two, how to get the relic in our hands. Three, getting home afterwards.¡± Kyrian organized. Man, he made it sound so easy. Just laying it out like that, it was like someone put bullet points on all the different things that had been going on in my head. Already, I was starting to feel better about my decision to share everything with them. ¡°So what¡¯re we going to do then?¡± Stole asked the obvious that everyone had been avoiding. Everyone looked to me, like they expected me to have a plan. I shrugged. ¡°I spoke enough. Speak freely. I want to hear everyone¡¯s opinions..¡± ¡°Even me?¡± Aurora whispered while looking down. It didn¡¯t sound like the question had been directed at me. But who else could it have been directed to? ¡°Yes, you to Aurora.¡± ¡°This Bishop is a problem.¡± Kyrian interjected. ¡°He¡¯s bad news, isn¡¯t he?¡± I asked. Kyrian nodded. ¡°It means there¡¯s politics at work here, Lock. Church politics. And that the Church might have experienced a Divine Revelation. They would not send someone of Bishop rank otherwise.¡± His eyes were looking out the window. ¡°It¡¯s entirely possible that to undermine Zenom, he would try and use us.¡± ¡°Get us to betray him?¡± Stole asked innocently. ¡°Yes.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°Or get us killed.¡± No one said anything to that. Of course. The things I said, the weight they held, it wasn¡¯t anything light. I basically told them that depending on our success, the world could be at war. Plus, the danger was a lot real now. Yes, adventurers might die but the chances of you dying was limited to monsters. I just exposed them to a whole new possibility ¨Corganizations with drama so heavy it made a highschool reunion look like a picnic. ¡°It issss not new.¡± Skaris muttered. ¡°Do not cower now. Sssslaveborn has been dealing with thissss on our behalf ssssince the beginning.¡± ¡­Did Skaris just encourage them? Just what the hell happened while I was gone? ¡°For now, there is no much we can do.¡± Kyrian spoke again, ¡°However, it woul be good to find out more about the other parties. Even Zenom Saintred if we could. That should be our priority, learning more about them.¡± ¡°Then we shouldn¡¯t have to worry about A-hole-rione¡¯s party right? Since Mister¡¯s awesome Master is already spying on them for us?¡± Stole asked. ¡°That leaves the Turina Party, Zenom Saintred and the party that could belong to this Mysterious Organization.¡± Kyrian finished. ¡°I believe Ms. Aurora and I should work on getting close to the Turina party.¡± Kyrian wanted to work together with Aurora? Was there romance blooming in the air? One part of me was proud. Was this what people meant when they said things like ¡®My boy¡¯s got game¡¯? But another part of me, the rational part, was worried. Romance in a party never really ended well. Still, Kyrian and Aurora both should know. They¡¯d be careful. Atleast, I hoped. ¡°That¡¯s fine with me.¡± ¡°Can I get close to the priests?!¡± Stole volunteered. I raised an eyebrow. ¡°You?¡± ¡°Yeah, I saw some priestesses that looked like they were around my age.¡± Stole replied. Strangely, she sounded excited. ¡°Ok.¡± I said. ¡°No.¡± Kyrian said immediately. ¡°It won¡¯t work.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Stole replied. ¡°...Because you are a beastman.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°Oh.¡± Her answer was much quieter. ¡°Then I¡¯ll do it.¡± I said, before Stole could start thinking too deeply about it. She was a kid. I didn¡¯t want her to learn how deep the roots of racism ran in this world just yet. Adventurers as a rule weren¡¯t too racist ¨Cthough priests could be different. I nodded at Skaris. ¡°Skaris, can you and Stole keep an eye on Clover¡¯s party?¡± If anyone could do reconnaissance on Clover¡¯s party, it was Stole. Skaris could keep her safe if anything happened. ¡°Mr. Lock, that leaves one party unattended.¡± I pursed my lips. ¡°It¡¯s just a suspicion. There¡¯s no concrete proof. If they do anything suspicious, we can start looking at them then.¡± It was true. Now that I was away from the Scavenger¡¯s Base and had told my teammates about this ¡®mysterious¡¯ organization, I was doubtful if the Players were truly here. Sure, a part of mind told me that they were and that Party ¡®A¡¯ was it. But another part doubted it. Did I want them to be here? To exact some kind of justifiable revenge on them? Maybe it was just wishful thinking. That¡¯s the thing about us people. We¡¯re never really sure about anything until its screaming at us right in the face. ¡°This is so exciting.¡± Apparently, it didn¡¯t take much to distract Stole. We spoke for a few moments longer, working out the details. Finally, as Skaris, Kyrian and I were about to leave, I remembered something else. ¡°Aurora, I have a favor to ask of you.¡± I grabbed the little pouch around my waist and passed it to her. ¡°Once you have time, would you mind sorting through these? And try to get an idea of what¡¯s valuable or not?¡± ¡°Mr. Lock¡­ there¡¯s at least a hundred rings in here.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°The Dimension Rings alone must be worth a fortune.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°Sssslaveborn¡­ I¡¯ve been wanting a new sssssspear.¡± Skaris¡¯ comment made me grin. ¡°And if there¡¯s anything in there that you think our party might need, please set them aside. Remember, the money is only there to get us stronger. So if there¡¯s something in there that could do that, it doesn''t matter how much it is. Just set it aside.¡± ¡°Understood, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Can I help?¡± Stole asked. ¡°Of course, Ms. Stole.¡± Last time, I had asked Aurora how to determine the value of things. Since this MSS wasn¡¯t the same as the game, there was a bit of a discrepancy in how I calculated the worth of items and Cores. But Aurora was up to date and I wanted her to teach me here and there. We sat down together for hours, discussing how to evaluate the item based on quality, rarity and actual practical usage. Also there was collectibility too. My grin stretched wider, imagining Stole sitting through all that. ¡°Take your time.¡± With that, the three of us left the girls¡¯ room. The discussion had taken so long that the sun was setting now. It shone through the evenly spaced windows of the ship, casting long stretches of light heating up the floorboards. I stood by one of the windows and looked out at the oceanscape. In the distance, I saw something flapping its wings and flying ¨Cdiving underneath the water and coming up with something squirming in between its beaks. It was too far for me to make out what it was. I watched transfixed as other flying creatures soon joined in, trying to steal the prize of its hunt. It struggled but there were too many of the others. Still, the first bird didn¡¯t give it. It started to fight back, darting through the air. The other monsters finally gave up on stealing from it, instead tearing the first bird-monster to pieces. I shuddered. Was that what was going to happen to us? We¡¯d get the relic just to be torn apart by the others? ¡°Lock.¡± Kyrian and Skaris were waiting for me. ¡°Down below the hulls, the Church set up some kind of market near their storage room. If you want, we can go look for a sword.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll take your there, Sssslaveborn.¡± I followed the two, descending deeper into the ship. This ship was huge, I hadn¡¯t really fully grasped just how big it was. It was a veritable warship. I saw on television sometimes about the Navy Marines living on ships and those ships were basically a village. This ship had a similar air and passing through things like the mess hall and recreation center ¨Cor whatever passed as such in MSS¨C reminded me of that. There was even a training room. ¡°Of course, no magic is allowed in here.¡± Kyrian told me with a sideways glance at Skaris. ¡°Or we¡¯d burn the ship down, most of the ship''s enchantments are concentrated on the outside hulls afterall.¡± Eventually we reached a storage room. Walking in, I saw a a priest and a priestess attending the place. It was set up just like a merchant¡¯s showcase. Glass cases for the accessories and wooden mannequins for weaponry. They saw us come in and gave us a bow, their faces hidden behind white cloth. I looked over the prices and whistled. ¡°Expensive.¡± I muttered, looking to the priest for his reaction. ¡°You will still need a sword.¡± Kyrian urged. ¡°I¡¯m assuming you went through the Dimension Rings already.¡± Skaris nodded. ¡°Until better timesssss.¡± Curious, I asked the priest-shopkeep. ¡°Do you guys buy as well? If we happen to buy loot?¡± ¡°Yes. If you can bring us something, as long as it meets the Church¡¯s standards, we are willing to purchase whatever you brings us.¡± I thought he was smiling underneath the veil. ¡°Of course, the Light bless your heart that you may find generosity.¡± I ignored the obvious jab, telling me to donate instead. I might be human but I wasn¡¯t a believer of this Light, Flame and Shield. Hell, right now the only god I felt favorable about was Khan. ¡°Let me see that.¡± I pointed to a sword and the priest handed it to me. Double-edged and straight with minimal design. Performing a few maneuvers with it, I found that it was nicely balanced. ¡°What¡¯s this called?¡± ¡°A gladius.¡± ¡°Grade?¡± ¡°Rare.¡± Hmm. It was nice but it didn¡¯t quite feel right. ¡°Do you have anything curved?¡± ¡°Would you like to try this one?¡± He brought out another sword. ¡°A falchion.¡± I muttered. Same as the sword I¡¯d wielded in the Scavenger¡¯s Base. But this one was infinitely better cared for. Well oiled and shiny, it caught my eye immediately. Maybe it was because I was used to holding a katana for so long. ¡°I¡¯ll take it.¡± Kyrian paid the man on my behalf and we went back upstairs. By now, it was nightfall and the ship was lit by candles. Even the sailors were few in number, only those poor souls stuck on the nightshift walking around. Looking out the window, I saw nothing but pitch black, the darkness broken up by signal fire from the other ships. And when I went into my room, Kyrian and Skaris followed me in. ¡°...Did you guys have something you wanted to talk about?¡± Skaris leaned against the door and cast a look at Kyrian. ¡°Wassssn¡¯t my idea, Sssslaveborn.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± I asked, growing worried. A million thoughts began to crowd in. "Lock," Kyrian hesitated then forged ahead. "We know you''re a [Player]."
Chapter 115: Voyage (4) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Lock, we know you¡¯re a [Player].¡± Kyrian delivered this news without any warning. There was no note of satisfaction in telling me that he knew my deepest secret. No hint of disdain or disgust. Even more so, he didn¡¯t sound scared. I should know, I¡¯ve heard fear in people¡¯s voice a lot lately, especially my own. There was no raging hatred behind the six words either. There was just hurt. But none of that registered in my brain as a thought, being shoved to the back as nothing more than subliminal details. What my brain focused on was the fact that Skaris had the door closed and that my heart began to race. It was like all the adrenaline that had settled down at last came surging back up. I fell back to my hammock, sitting there. Kyrian remained standing while Skaris guarded the door. I debated jumping out the window. ¡°Lock, stop. I can tell you¡¯re thinking right now.¡± Kyrian said at last. I looked up at them. Yes, there was hurt in Kyrian¡¯s expression. But there was something else there. Something I couldn¡¯t put a finger on. What was that in his eyes? Skaris had the same expression. ¡°We are,¡± Skaris paused. ¡°Worried about you, Sssslaveborn.¡± It took a lot out of Skaris to say that. Oh. That¡¯s what it was. I took a deep breath, fighting through the shaking gasps and calming myself. I wasn¡¯t in danger, I convinced myself. That automatic reaction of being ready for violence wasn¡¯t warranted. Kyrian and Skaris were my comrades. Allies. Yet, this was one my worst fears come true. Wasn¡¯t it? ¡°How¡¯d you find out?¡± I finally managed. ¡°We didn¡¯t. Until just now.¡± Kyrian answered, smiling. Skaris smiled wickedly, fangs gleaming in the candle light. I cursed. ¡°Relax, Lock. We¡¯ve suspected for awhile.¡± Kyrian went over to the dresser and leaned against it. ¡°You did?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°First of all, you¡¯re surname is Slaveborn. That¡¯s a dead giveaway if nothing else, then you tried to hide it for a time. But too many people already knew.¡± ¡°Too knowledgeable with monssssters. Much more than even the elder hunterssss of my home.¡± Skaris chimed in. ¡°Even the items.¡± Kyrian shrugged. ¡°Small things, here and there. Only those who have traveled with you as long as we did would know.¡± ¡°What about Aurora and Stole? Do they suspect it?¡± ¡°No, and I imagine they never would. They joined us too late.¡± Kyrian was frowning though. ¡°You can chalk up your knowledge to experience and being studious at this point.¡± ¡°Vetilian is sssssharp.¡± Skaris disagreed. Kyrian didn¡¯t say anything. He knew Aurora was smart too. I cut through the small talk with a hand, mentally focusing on the issue at hand. What they said had startled me, but the ease with which this conversation devolved into just another casual talk bothered me. This wasn¡¯t something to be just brushed under the table like this. It wasn¡¯t like they said ¡®oh we found out you were eating cookies behind our backs¡¯ ¨Cwhich, albeit true, wasn¡¯t as important. This was a big important topic they brought up. ¡°I want to know what you guys think.¡± ¡°I think there¡¯s no problem in continuing as we¡¯ve been. You¡¯ve already made yourself stand out by being a head above the other adventurers in terms of monster knowledge. The rumors of you being a non-Turina affiliated [Aura] user has already reached everyone¡¯s ears.¡± Kyrian said. ¡°There should be no issue with people suspecting you¡¯re anything remotely close to that.¡± ¡°Not that,¡± I muttered, frustrated. ¡°I want to know what you guys think about me¡­ being a Player.¡± God, I sounded so young and frail even to my own ears. I felt so vulnerable before them right now. I couldn¡¯t tell whether it was a good thing or a bad thing. A side of me was a little scared but another side was a little excited. Maybe it was just like that feeling, a little of good and the bad. ¡°I was surprised to hear you admit it, I admit.¡± Kyrian said. ¡°But I¡¯ve suspected you for so long that it¡¯s not a big deal anymore, Lock.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn isssss Sssslaveborn. I respect your ssswordplay, your decssssisssssivenessss, your honor. That hassss not changed. I do not care where you come from.¡± ¡°I guess Skaris is right. You could be from the north for all I know, from one of those human settlements trapped behind the Uleum Horde¡¯s territory.¡± The one of the three Great Orc Hordes ¨Cone of two, now that the Samak Horde was no more¨C to the North of the Turina Empire and possibly the most powerful. They were the orcs behind the ice wall, constantly harrying the human empire. Rumors were that they were one of the few powers in the world that could rival the Turina Empire¡¯s military might, as long as it was on ice. The Turina Empire tried to conquer them before, to no avail. ¡°There are humans behind the Uleum Horde¡¯s territory?¡± ¡°Rumors. People say there are villages of savage people, warrior born people that have struck a deal with the orcs. But the only way they could do so was to adopt their culture and their ways.¡± Kyrian shrugged. ¡°No one¡¯s seen these people as far as I know.¡± I tucked that information away for later. It could be useful. Perhaps it could be a cover. Kyrian must¡¯ve had the same thought. ¡°I will look more into it. But at first glance, it seems a much more plausible cover than before. Something worth using.¡± If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Thank you.¡± Then I growled, realizing that the conversation was veering again. I narrowed my eyes at them. ¡°You¡¯re changing the topic. You still haven¡¯t asked me things about being a Player that normal people would be curious about. Are you trying to-¡± Skaris snarled in sudden annoyance. ¡°Enough! Ssslaveborn. No one in this room givessss a ssssingle ssssshit about your sssstupid player ssssstory. Go write it in a sssscroll for someone who caresssss.¡± Strangely, that made me feel better than anything else they could have done. Kyrian raised an eyebrow at Skaris¡¯ outburst but did not comment on it. Instead, he turned to me. ¡°I decided to confront you about it today because after what you shared, it feels like things are getting more dangerous. More than that¡­ it feels like you¡¯re holding something back. There¡¯s more, isn¡¯t there?¡± Skaris nodded in agreement. I didn¡¯t even hesitate blurting it out. It was like the words had been just waiting to be said, to be given existence. ¡°Arione is also a player. The other party, the one with the human named Delas, I think they¡¯re players too. Dibo and I have a secret agreement to infiltrate the Player¡¯s Guild, a guild made of just people like me, to find out who killed his father. Probably sometime around 200 years ago.¡± Whew. That was easier than I thought. ¡°Arione is a player? From your world? Truly?¡± Kyrian asked, frowning. ¡°It bothers me that a Player would understand the intricacies of this world¡¯s magic better than its original inhabitants.¡± ¡°Yeah. And don¡¯t worry bout it, he¡¯s an Elf. He lucked out.¡± ¡°Were you two friends?¡± ¡°What the fuck did you say to me?¡± Kyrian smiled. ¡°It was in jest.¡± I smiled mockingly, ¡°Haha.¡± ¡°Are all players friends?¡± ¡°I doubt it. Though the Horsehead and Tanya seemed to be. I don¡¯t know. I know this though. Arione, that weeb, definitely didn¡¯t have a single friend.¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn, you had many othersss like you? Warriorsss? Comradesss?¡± ¡°Er¡­¡± I chose not to answer that. ¡°You seem more natural now that we have this out in the open.¡± Kyrian stated. I re-examined myself. He was right. My mind¡­ it was at ease. My body, which had been tensed up like a coiled spring, was at rest. I felt like I could just lie down there and fall asleep. ¡°I actually have one more question, Lock.¡± I grunted. ¡°Ask.¡± ¡°What is a weeb?¡± This was going to be a long night.
I was out on the deck with everyone. And by everyone, I meant everyone. I think being cooped up below deck in the hulls had started to wear on everyone¡¯s psyche. Patiences were wearing thin and I even saw Aurora and Kyrian look annoyed at each other. Two of the most even tempered members in my party and Aurora actually grew annoyed enough with Kyrian to just walk off. Then again, Kyrian was sticking to Aurora almost 24/7, with the guise of helping her sort all the items from the Dimension Rings. It wasn¡¯t just our party though. The other parties were out here too. Even Clover¡¯s party, a few of them anyways. As far as I could see, the ones who chose to come into the sunlight was the mysterious woman with the metallic greaves, a short cloaked figure that had to be Scarlet and the polar opposite: a tall cloaked woman whose tanned skin showed on her hands. That one had to be L¡¯teya. I saw Delas¡¯ party out here and considered approaching them, trying to bait some information out of them. But I decided against it. The Turina party left a wide berth between themselves and the rest of us, choosing to stay near the helm of the ship. I hadn¡¯t met the Captian yet but he seemed a merry sort. Leaning on the railing, I looked at the other battleships that cut through the waves at our sides and back. Again, I marveled at the size and held out a hand, enjoying the feeling of the wind fill up my hand before escaping through the crevices of my fingers. The sea breeze was nice and cool on my skin and I was growing used to the seasickness. Skaris and Stole were off to the side. Stole was fiddling with her Arbalest while Skaris was watching intently. Aurora stood next to me and Kyrian was nowhere to be seen for once. ¡°How¡¯s the Dimension ring organization coming along?¡± ¡°There are more than a hundred rings. But from what I can see, it might be worth close to half a million gold coins.¡± Aurora answered easily. Holy crap. Half a million? That could easily buy us a grade 3 Core. Maybe not the best one, but a grade-3 nonetheless. I mentally went through the market prices I knew about the Cores that might be suitable for Stole and Skaris. If the Free Trader¡¯s League lived up to their reputation, we could sell off our loot there and still buy some key components. There was bound to be something useful there. ¡°Let¡¯s sell them off at the Free Trader¡¯s League as soon as you land. Take Kyrian with you please.¡± Aurora made a face like she ate a bug. What could I say at a time like this? Was it one-sided love? If it was, I didn¡¯t want the party to implode. Kyrian was young and a mage. Chances were, he was more starved for female attention than an engineering undergrad. But Aurora, I could trust her. No doubt that her social graces were a step above Kyrians in that aspect. ¡°I trust you Aurora.¡± I turned my back to the railing, leaning on it. ¡°You do? Do you know what¡¯s been going on?¡± ¡°Yes, I do.¡± I studied the other adventurers. Some were training, some were talking. ¡°Mr. Lock¡­ You knew?¡± ¡°Kind of hard not to notice. It was pretty obvious from the get go.¡± I turned to face her, my gaze even and steady. ¡°You¡¯re the Shield of this party. If there¡¯s no trust from me to you for something as small as that, I wouldn¡¯t have asked you to become our Shielder in the first place.¡± She looked wistful. ¡°Small?¡± ¡°Small.¡± I agreed. ¡°Those things don¡¯t matter to me. My only worry is that it will affect the party negatively. But those are risks that I knew we¡¯d all have to face one day.¡± Gods, I was the last person to have been giving dating advice. But whatever I said must have struck a chord with Aurora because she looked loads better than before. She inclined her head in a slight bow, acknowledging her thanks. I returned it. It didn¡¯t last long. Stole looked upwards and sniffed once. She closed her eyes, concentrating. When she opened them, there was a slight snarl to her face. ¡°Mister.¡± She said, looking at me. I recognized the look. ¡°A lot of them?¡± ¡°A lot of them.¡± Shit. ¡°Monsters.¡± I said out loud, pushing myself off of the railing. My hand went over to my Dimension Ring, drawing the falchion. The ring of steel rang true and if my words hadn¡¯t reached them, the weapon surely got their attention. At once, the adventurers all looked at me and I realized everyone had stopped what they were doing. ¡°Someone go get Zenom and Cecilia from below deck, as well as any other adventurer who¡¯s there. Gather the battle-ready priests and priestesses and prepare for the wounded.¡± ¡°What¡¯s this guy on about?¡± Delas stood up from where he had been talking with one of the cloaked members of Clover¡¯s party. I really needed a better way to refer to them. I decided to call that particular woman ¡®Ms. Greaves¡¯. ¡°None of us are detecting anything.¡± ¡°Our Scout can detect them.¡± I said easily. None of my party members were dithering. Skaris had drawn his spear, eyes searching the skies with a fierce grin. Stole and Aurora had already stuck together, Stole covered by the Tower Shield and poking out with the head of her arbalest. But the other adventurers were just looking at me like I was the crazy one. Delas quickly shot a look at his elf member. ¡°Jourgan?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± The elf-scout, a very thin man using double crossbow guns answered. ¡°I sense nothing.¡± ¡°See? Nothing.¡± Delas had a smug look on his face. ¡°That¡¯s because Stole is better than him.¡± I answered without missing a beat. I gave up on talking to Delas. He could be a player anyways, if he croaked here, all the better for me. ¡°I¡¯m not lying, monsters are descending.¡± But no one moved. Until the Turinan Scions leaped down from the railing of the Captain¡¯s helm. Dorocian and two others, both of them with Gray hair. One of the gray haired Scions stepped up. He was broad shouldered as was typical of Scions, like all of them were casts of a superhero movie being bred in a secret lab somewhere. His gray hair fell in waves to his shoulders, curling perfectly at the tips. His green eyes shone with what I realized was merriment as he drew a gladius and a shield. ¡°How long?¡± I looked at Stole. ¡°Two minutes.¡± She said, closing her eyes in concentration. ¡°Excellent.¡± He faced me, smiling. ¡°You have an excellent eye for talent, Slaveborn.¡± then his eyes flickered to Aurora and back. Judging by the hair color, this guy was a relative of Aurora. As for their personal relationship, I could ask later. What really worried me now was the fact that monsters were approaching the ship. In the game version, the number one reason ships capsized wasn¡¯t because of pirates or bad weather. It was because of monsters. Monsters were messy. They screamed, they roared and generally were tough as hell to kill. Which meant that in their death throes they struggled like mad. Depending on the size and agility of the monster, a lot of them would throw themselves overboard, hoping to escape the blades of the adventurers. Then like sharks, the scent of blood would draw other monsters. Then more. And more. Until finally, you ended up facing something you couldn¡¯t handle. Moby Dick. Kraken. The ship was nothing but canned food for them. The ocean was deep in MSS, just as deep as it was in our world. The only difference was that the nightmares of the deep here were real without a doubt. And they were the undisputable rulers of the Seas. ¡°One minute, Mister.¡± Stole gritted. ¡°Gurran and Huin will defend the Captain. The rest of us will defend here.¡± The gladius-wielding Vetilius pointed at some nearby priest. ¡°You, go get Sir Zenom Saintred. Tell him that Sir Borealis requests his assistance above in dispatching some minor monsters.¡± Then he pointed at Ms. Greaves. ¡°Not all of your party is up here. Bring them.¡± Ms. Greaves hesitated then rushed to obey. What the hell? She acted like she was this total badass in front of me in the Scavenger¡¯s base and she obeys a Scion? I thought everyone with an attitude hated the Scions. Borealis turned to Dorocian and the other Vetilius. This girl¡¯s short gray hair fell to her neck, cupping her face. She wore a breastplate with a short skirt. The girl drew a rapier and a buckler, looking just as eager as Borealis was. Her eyes searched the skies as Borealis barked his orders. ¡°Dorocian. Dawn. Stay close to the Healers.¡± Borealis hadn¡¯t just organized the fight in a couple of words. He left no room for doubt as to whether my words were a lie or not. The actions he took, the orders he gave, everyone was moving to obey. The seriousness with which he took the situation was infectious. The disbelief that hung in the air was dispelled and every single adventurer drew their own weapons, ready to fight. For a moment, there was silence as tension began to climb. Zenom Saintred and all the adventurers that had been below deck arrived. ¡°Mr. Slaveborn.¡± Borealis said to me suddenly. I looked at him. He smiled. It wasn¡¯t the friendly kind. ¡°I look forward to working with you.¡± Then as the monster dive-bombed out of the sky, their winged bodies coming into view from thin-air, I saw it at the edge of my vision. Borealis¡¯ Gladius and Zenom Saintred¡¯s Greatsword were surrounded by Aura. Borealis had an aura of light blue-green, something close to turquoise. A color of glaciers, reminiscent of unwavering will that remained after all else would fade away. Zenom¡¯s aura blazed with the deep scarlet of fire, reflecting his heart of justice and passion for the Church he served. I felt their gaze on me, almost like a challenge. And I knew what they wanted. They wanted to see if the rumor was true. That a Slave from the middle of nowhere had learned the closely guarded secrets of the Human Empire. In answer, my gray-black aura hummed, singing songs of death. My sword doesn''t exist for the sake of justice, nor does t reflect the colors of a Great House. The Swordsmanship that was passed to me from Arrosh... from Nearnigh... The Sword is a weapon to kill. Nothing more. ¡°Blasphemy.¡± Zenom whispered. I ignored him and leaped to action as more than a dozen adventurers did the same.
Chapter 116: Voyage (5) World: MSS - Loading...
The monsters poured down freely, like a torrential downpour, from the bright blue sky without a single cloud in sight. ¡°They¡¯re [Moonyohuh (ÎÄ÷¥ô~)]! Grade-8!¡± I cried out. Most of them still had their cloaking ability on, but their grotesque number was working against them. They began to pelt the sails and the masts, opalescent light shining for a brief moment before giving way to the greyish-blue scales and the dull slime that coated their skin. The monsters were vaguely fish shaped ¨Cand by fish, I mean the size of a six hundred pound Tuna in the ocean¨C with winds right behind their gills. But those wings weren¡¯t for flapping, rather they were used to glide and change directions. Like they were now. Seeing their brethren make contact with the mast and sails, the fish monsters switched direction. Instead of falling vertically and rubbing against the ship parts, they started to swerve with renewed vigor. They started pelting themselves into the masts and sails. ¡°The masts! They¡¯re after the masts!¡± Even as I cried it out, three other voices joined me at the same time. ¡°Get them before they leave us as fish food in the open ocean!¡± A voice I recognized as Delas. ¡°Do not let them damage the ship!¡± Borealis ordered. But Zenom¡¯s voice wrapped around our own voices like a giant outstretched hand, embracing it and crushing it to nothingness with orders of his own. The man was a natural born leader and he had the voice to match it. ¡°Blader who can hit anything at range! Link up with the Mages! Shielders! Defend them!¡± Zenom cried out, his eyes searching for a way to get up there. I was looking around too, trying to find a way to get to the top of the masts. Downhere, there was nothing I could do. The ropes. I could climb the ropes. A couple of the other adventurers had the same idea I had. They latched themselves onto the ropes or masts, climbing with deceitful speed. But halfway up, the Moonyohuh saw them. Their fish eyes looked devoid of thought, but they must have been capable of some kind of strategy. The a small group of monsters broke off and began to slam into the adventurers that were trying to climb the masts. ¡°Slaveborn!¡± I leaped off of a rope seconds before the sedan-sized fish could break bones, feeling the gut-wrenching sensation of free-fall. Spinning, I saw the person who had yelled out my name ¨CL¡¯teya. She was still covered in her cloak head to toe but there was no mistake about it. The muscled arms and tanned skin, the red hair peeking out, it was L¡¯teya for sure. She took two axes and crossed them over one another, creating a flat surface. I saw the hint of a smile underneath the cowl. I landed squarely on the axes and literally surged into the air like a space rocket, defying gravity with the help of the Barbarian Elf¡¯s supernatural strength. Feeling akin to a whack-a-mole, I reached the peak of the throw, right in the middle of the Moonyohuh¡¯s pack. How did I know? I thought she threw me into a space devoid of them. But what had happened was that they were simply invisible, floating around as if the sky were an aquarium. Freakishly, they turned as one, fixated on me with those dead-fish eyes. But I had been ready for this. Perhaps I was the only one who could do this. I don¡¯t think the other adventurers realized just how many of these monsters were in the air. They probably estimated a few dozen. I had known though, Moonyohuh¡¯s wouldn¡¯t do a frontal assault like this unless their swarm was at least the size of the ship. Which meant that in the sky right now were hundreds of them watching us, ready to pounce. Then they went mad like piranhas, opening their mouths and revealing skin-ripping teeth and all gliding towards me at once. I felt my senses turn sharp, clear and absent of clutter. As the first wave of them reached me, I twisted my body sideways, feeling the tension build up in my spine and then released it all at once. The new falchion in cut through the heads of three Moonyohuhs, and was automatically followed up by my King¡¯s Guard ¨Cthe Lunar Shield snapping to position and blocking the next strike. One Moonyohuh came dangerously close but I was on the descent now, it sailed harmlessly above me. I stabbed out above me in instinct, turning off the Aura and sticking my sword in the fish to catch a ride. The monster went livid and started squirming. It reminded me too much of going to a Omakase and seeing the fish struggle under the sushi chef¡¯s grip. Somewhere between animal and monster, there was life and it too felt a primal sense of pain that didn¡¯t need words to communicate. I shouldered my squeamishness away, seeing another monster come up from below with its jaws wide open. Reactivating Aura, my falchion slid through the belly of the monster and I slipped away ¨Cseeing its innards flow downwards into the belly of its brother that had been trying to eat me. I was in freefall again and there was a definite thump as the Lunar Shield blocked another tackle. But this time, the fish didn¡¯t bounce away, it kept at it. It¡¯s jaws got cut into by the Lunar shield as the Moonyo-uh tried to strain over it and get to me. The smell of rotten fish washed over me as I shoved the Lunar Shield deeper into its jaws, releasing King¡¯s Guard for a moment. The Moonyo-uh swallowed it whole. I activated King¡¯s Guard again. The fish monster had been about to glide away and slammed into another of its kind, its tail thrashing and jaws open in a silent scream. One side of its body bulged as the Lunar Shield attempted to return to orbit, and I used it as a foothold to jump towards a nearby mast. Finally, a foothold. But there was no time to rest. I ducked and weaved, sword flickering out with ease and gutting another Moonyo-uh with Aura. There was no shield anymore, I had to constantly be on the move. I rolled forward, dodging four of them and once and skewering another fish right between the eyes. They swarmed together, tails slamming into each other and making wet slapping sounds, coming towards me as one group. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. There was the sound of flesh being ripped open and my Lunar shield finally returned to me, covered in fish gut. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [High Tide] ? Dozens of Moonyo-uh went tumbling away from me, caught in the Lunar Shield¡¯s psychic blast. At the same time, I felt three different buffs flow into me, a total of eight times. Speed, Attack and Defense, all at once. I stopped trying to keep track of them long ago, it was nearly impossible in the heat of battle. But I could het a general sense of which stat had been raised the most and lucky for me, it was attack. The Moonyo-uhs caught in the blast slammed into the masts or downright fell to the ground, falling prey to hugnry adventurers. The ones that got slammd into something had something in common with the ones that were struck by my sword but had yet to taste death: all of them had ink tree branches branded on their body. I squeezd my fist and cast [Hateful Wound]. As one, the monsters mouths opened in a soundless yell along with the maddened flopping of their tails, the only way these wretched things knew how to convey pain. I wasn¡¯t alone anymore though. While I had kept the flying fish monsters distracted, the other adventurers had managed to bring themselves up. Delas was the first, swinging his daggers and flitting around. Wherever his daggers stabbed, blood poured and the monster seemed to fall into a kind of stupor ¨Cvery slight but noticeable if you studied closely. Zenom didn¡¯t use any Core abilities ¨Che didn¡¯t need to. He leapt from mast to mast, swinging his greatsword and cleaving the giant monsters in two with each stroke. While Zenom, Delas and I moved about with our blades to cause havoc, Borealis was different. He stayed in one spot with his shield and rhythmically banged on it with his Gladius. [Belly Drum], a Core Ability taken from a Grade-6 monster. While it lowered your HP, it gave you two benefits: a raise in defense and Maximum HP. Slowly, red mist made of blood began to dissipate out of the Vetilius Scion and the fish near him went into a frenzy, shooting towards him with hunger in their eyes. The Vetilius Scion got to work, his Gladius flashing out and leaving wounds that seemed to poison the monsters. Not only that, the red mist itself was some kind of poison too. Most likely, had the abilities [Poisonous Blood], [Blood Mist] and [Belly Drum]. Plus if he had some kind of lifesteal property- Yup. I saw the red mist around him disappear as he struck more and more monsters. He was healing through the damage he did. I had thought Borealis was a blader. I was wrong, he was a shielder ¨Ca Knight-build with Vampiric properties. But even with Aura, Borealis lacked the damage necessary to kill the Grade-8 monsters en-masse. Delas and Zenom immediately went to work, running down the number of monsters with impunity. I took the small break in the fighting to look downwards. The other adventurers hadn¡¯t just been watching me work either. There was no way I could fight a Swarm of monsters without some kind of support and they had been the one to provide it. Kyrian was on the deck now and he worked in conjunction with the other mages ¨Cdevastating effects of lightning and fire cooked the groups of fish that revealed themselves, slaying them by the dozens. Stole took place beyond the Shielders, their arrows and crossbow bolts fired with strategic accuracy. A number of adventurers stayed behind, protecting the masts and ropes. I did see Skaris there but he wasn¡¯t using his flames ¨CThank the gods, the last thing I needed was to go into debt for burning down a ship belonging to the church. ¡°They¡¯re breaking!¡± Borealis cried out. We worked together as one group, breaking the tide of monsters and soon the last remaining Moonyo-uhs glided into the sky, turning invisible. No doubt that they were joining the bigger swarm since we proved ourselves to be too trouble. With that, our first battle was over.
¡°Damned things. It¡¯s going to take forever to fix all this!¡± The captain was a strange man, strange for a seaman anyways. When I thought of a ship¡¯s captain, there were two images in my mind. White & blue uniform complete with a double breasted suit with medals pinned on the chest, something you¡¯d expect from a navy admiral. The other imagery I held was on the other end of the spectrum, clad in rags with a pointed black Captain¡¯s hat with seemingly random but stylish tattoos peeking through the cloth. Kind of like those captains you saw in the movies. You know the ones I¡¯m talking about. But the captain of this ship was neither. First off, he was a dwarf. Dwarfs were supposed to hate the ocean, but apparently not him. He wasn¡¯t dressed in rags or a admiral attire either, he was dressed in light leather armor with plates of light metal. But it could be because we had just been attacked by monsters. He was a wrinkled old prune ¨Cway too pale to be considered a sailor. But he was the captain, or so Zenom said. ¡°Captain, how bad are the damages?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll take us a day or two to fix them.¡± The captain spoke with a clipped accent. ¡°I recommend setting sail for one of the nearest islands. We¡¯re going to need a lot of supplies for this one.¡± The rest of us adventurers were strewn around the deck, licking out wounds so to speak. The priests and priestesses walked back and fro, healing us no matter how minor. But no one was really gravely injured, a testament to the overall level of adventurers on this trip. Even when I replayed the battle in my head, there weren¡¯t a lot of close calls. Mostly because of the Mages who basically incinerated the monsters by the dozen. I looked at Zenom¡¯s expression after hearing the Captain¡¯s reply, ignoring the healer who kneeled in front of me, shoving mana into my arms.. Zenom didn¡¯t look too happy. ¡°Is there no other way?¡± ¡°No other way. Sorry about that Zenom.¡± The dwarf captain added at the end. Zenom nodded and I could tell the man wasn¡¯t going to press the issue. He was going to listen to the captain¡¯s advice, which surprised me. Then again, how stupid would you have to be to ignore the advice of a captain whose entire life revolved around ships? He began to relay messages to sailors, who started taking small rowboats towards the other ships to deliver messages. Hardly ten minutes passed by. There was an ear-deafening screech as the Amphiptere descended from the sky, carrying the Bishop, Cecilia and the blue-haired veiled female bodyguard. I had been wondering where Cecilia had been at that battle and her presence reminded me the other ships weren¡¯t like us. The adventurers and the priests there were kind of the auxiliary forces ¨Cdefinitely not up to par with the rest of us here. She must have went over to help. How bad was the damage there? Zenom sighed as the adventurers watched with amused expressions. ¡°Sir Zenom, what is the meaning of this?¡± The Bishop said as soon as he stepped off of the Amphiptere. ¡°I am happy that you are safe, Bishop.¡± Zenom said without an ounce of sarcasm. ¡°Did you not put a measure in place for this contingency?¡± Zenom frowned. ¡°You should have been ready! The other ships have completely broken down.¡± The Bishop gestured wildly. ¡°I have been told we will be making for the closest port.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± Zenom nodded. ¡°Unacceptable! We must forge on! Conditions could change.¡± ¡°He¡¯s such a twat.¡± Stole whispered next to me and I heard Skaris¡¯ growl of agreement. The priest had moved on from my arms to Stole. ¡­So why the hell did my arms still hurt? My attention was stolen by the interaction between Zenom and the Bishop. ¡°It is the Captain¡¯s advice that-¡± ¡°I know that is what Captain Fluporuin said.¡± The Bishop rounded on Zenom, lowering his voice. ¡°Our mission is a holy mission, one that has been ordained to us by the Church and the Light, Flame and Shield. We cannot delay, even now the forces of darkness gather, strengthening themselves.¡± I saw some of the adventurers roll their eyes. But none of my party members dismissed what the Bishop said. It had hit too close to the mark. Because unbeknownst to him, we were the forces of Darkness that he was talking about. ¡°Bishop, I must respectfully disagree. It would be suicide, a death without meaning, if we were to forge ahead. We must make proper repairs, that is what I deem to be the correct action to better serve our Lord.¡± ¡°What you seem to be correct, Sir Zenom.¡± The Bishop narrowed his eyes. ¡°I must question why this decision was made without prayer.¡± Then whispering, ¡°I must question if you have even consulted the Lord at all, because to me it seems like you are not ¨Cjust gallivanting off with ideas of your own withour consulting the betters of your faith!¡± The Holy Knight didn¡¯t immediately respond. He just kind of froze, then slowly, ever so slowly, turned towards the thin priest. Zenom stared down the Bishop. The air around the man changed and I held my breath. You can tell when someone gets mad, because their demeanor changes. Zenom wasn¡¯t the man to explode in anger, but he was like a glacier instead. Always existing beneath the waves and you weren¡¯t really sure just how big it was until you slammed into it. And from the looks of it, the Bishop just did. ¡°Bishop, with all due respect,¡± It was Zenom¡¯s turn to take a step closer to the Bishop. ¡°I must ask you to repeat what you said. For it sounded like you questioned my Faith and Dedication to the Lord.¡± As soon as Zenom took a step, the blue-haired Kojisa bodyguard stepped in between them. For a moment, no one spoke. ¡°The other ships are too damaged to continue at any rate. Without the Auxiliary forces, we won¡¯t have enough supplies for the trip back home. Even if we can make emergency repairs, supplies will be an issue.¡± Cecilia cut in. The tension died down somewhat as Zenom¡¯s shoulder lowered a fraction of an inch. ¡°Once we have decided on our destination, I will be contacting you, Bishop.¡± ¡°Please do so, Sir Zenom.¡± If Zenom had scared the Bishop, it didn¡¯t show. The Bishop sneered as he got on top of the Amphiptere and flew off again. ¡°Heard he has his own private ship.¡± Kyrian said to me. He was being healed by the priest now. And¡­ it wasn¡¯t working. Actually, the guy healed me, then Stole, then Skaris and was working on Kyrian now. But none of our wounds were closed fully. Hell, Skaris¡¯ wound was still dripping blood through the bandage. What the hell? ¡°Hey, priest¡­ uh¡­ priest?¡± I called hesitantly. The priest turned to me. But the hood was raised over his head and I couldn¡¯t see more than the bottom half of his face. He had this double chin and some missing tooth, but smiled and pointed at himself. I noticed that his robe was rounded in the middle ¨Cdefinitely unusual for a priest of the Church of Light, who were supposed to be on a strict diet. ¡°Call me?¡± His voice was deep but the speech was slurred and I reeled back at something unfamiliar in his tone, yet something I¡¯d heard before. The words were slightly mispronounced, like he couldn¡¯t speak very well. ¡°Are you out of Mana?¡± I asked. He smiled brightly and held up his hands, which glowed with bluish-green healing mana. Why were our wounds not being healed? Then he cocked his head to the side and said, ¡°All good! All Good!¡± Atleast, I think that¡¯s what he tried to say. It came out more like ¡°Allwoo! Ahwoo!¡± Before, I could pry further, I heard the sound of boots striking the deck. I turned to see Zenom standing behind me ¡°Slaveborn. I¡¯d like to talk to you. If you would please, join me in the Captain¡¯s Quarters.¡± Then he pivoted on his heel, asking a few other adventerurs to join him. As he walked away, the priest broke out into a happy grin again. ¡°Allwoo! Ahwoo!¡±
Chapter 117: Advance Party (1) World: MSS - Loading...
There was no point in delaying. I would set off after Zenom immediately. But before I could do so, there was a commotion not five feet away from where I was. Currently, the priest was trying to heal Stole again. She was complaining loudly as the hooded priest tried to heal her to no avail. ¡°Hey! Are you even trying? Is this because I¡¯m a Beastman? Does human magic not work on Beastman or something? Kyrian nodded. ¡°Luck, Lock.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who needs luck.¡± I said, eyeing Stole¡¯s tantrum. ¡°I think that Priest is out of mana. Maybe he¡¯s an apprentice or something, I heard that a good number of them are not fully fledged priests yet. Get someone else to take a look at your guys.¡± I looked at Skaris. ¡°I¡¯ll be off then.¡± ¡°Sssscream if you need aid, Sssslaveborn.¡± I scoffed, locking eyes with Aurora. ¡°Aurora, take care of them.¡± Trusting Aurora to hold down the fort, I hurried to follow after Zenom. He had already entered the Captain¡¯s quarters and I saw his cloak disappear behind the door. In that short moment I saw a glimpse of the other adventurers in the Captain¡¯s Quarters but couldn¡¯t make out who. When I entered the Captain¡¯s Quarters, I saw a bare room, despite its size. They could easily have fit a couple of couches here but I guess being on the seas makes you realize just how dangerous having too much furniture could be. Besides, the Captain and Zenom both struck me as the type who¡¯d rather use that extra weight for something with more worth, forgoing luxury for gain. The only thing in here was a desk with quill, inkpot and some paper lying around. I peeked at the papers and saw just journal entries of what was being loaded and unloaded from the ship. Since the room was sparse of decorations, I saw the other adventurers that Zenom had invited to speak with him. The first one with a strong presence that rivaled Zenom¡¯s own heroic frame was Borealis. He stood with his feet wide apart, hands not too far from where he kept his Gladius. His shield was strapped to his thigh, a strange place to keep it. The gray-haired man smiled at me, giving me a slight nod of acknowledgement, which I returned absently. Next I saw Delas, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. I swear that the Rogues of this world always know the best place to lean at. The perfect amount of shadows covered him, but not too much so that I couldn¡¯t see his face. It was like looking at a poster for Rogues, completely at ease with a sleazy smile, complete with leather armor that seemed to blend with the darkness. Delas raised to fingers to his forehead and flicked it away in a gesture. Across from him were two cloaked figures. Their faces were hidden but I knew who they were. One had to be Arione, with that height which towered over the other figure. And of course, the other man held a sheathed cane-sword in both hands, using it to hold himself up with dignity. Arrosh Bloodedge, my master. And suddenly, I realized that Zenom and Borealis were standing together, pretending not to look at me. Closer than necessary. Across from them were Arione and Arrosh, their expressions shrouded but I thought I felt their gaze on me. Delas, the rogue, was a lot less sneaky about it. He was smack-dab in the middle, between Zenom and Borealis, blatantly looking to see where I would stand. Hell, they were all waiting for me to choose where I was standing. Normally, I would have stepped near Arrosh without thinking. But was that really the best choice? Arione¡¯s party no doubt knew of my relationship to Arrosh, but how much did they know about Arrosh¡¯s motivations to join? Was the concept of absolute trust in a companion something that the elf-mage and Clover, the beastman priestess, could grasp? It wasn¡¯t just that. Zenom, Borealis and Delas were measuring me; as the last one to enter, I just put myself in a place I could choose who to stand with. And I had a feeling they¡¯d all be childish about it, they wouldn¡¯t start until I chose a place to stand, at least not until I made it clear that I wasn¡¯t deliberating about it. I think it might have been all those business meetings and dinner parties my parents made me attend, but I read the room within seconds and made my choice in half that time. I closed the door behind me and planted my feet. I didn¡¯t join their little circle. I stood apart from it all. The reactions were varied. Borealis and Delas just smiled, the latter cracking it open with the subtlety of an elephant in the room. It could have been my imagination but Arione seemed to relax, while Arrosh stiffened. When Arrosh stiffened, I prayed that he was acting and wasn¡¯t taking my action as truth ¨CI was trying to solidify our cover here. Man, this was nerve-wracking. Was this why all those thriller spy movies were so interesting? Because you could never know if your actions were being taken for their intent? I¡¯d never make a good spy, my heart couldn¡¯t take much more of this. Lastly, Zenom narrowed his eyes. When it became clear that I wasn¡¯t moving, Zenom gestured to all of us. ¡°Thank you all for joining me here.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we get paid all those shiny gold things.¡± Delas replied. That strangely sounded like an idiom from earth, ¡®That¡¯s why we get paid the big bucks¡¯. I was 90% sure that Delas was a Player and from the Player¡¯s Guild. But the other 10%... like I said, I¡¯m not really spy material. I could be making something out of nothing. Maybe I still harbored some anger towards that Guild, for what Coum did to me. Maybe I¡¯m just looking for my chance at revenge and hoping that Delas was someone I could hate. Stolen novel; please report. It¡¯s easy to hate someone. All you need is a made-up reason. It happens at school, work, anywhere really. ¡°So why¡¯d you gather us here, Sir Zenom?¡± Borealis asked. ¡°First, I¡¯d like to inform you of the unilateral decision to reach the nearest landmass. The Captain of this ship has advised us to do so, especially since the repairs might take awhile. It seems that the damage suffered to the Auxiliary Ships was severe and they will need extensive repairs.¡± ¡°How much time are we talking here?¡± Delas interjected, frowning. ¡°Two weeks,¡± said Zenom simply. ¡°Eh, two weeks added onto a month. As long we get paid during that time, I¡¯m fine with it.¡± Then Delas winked at me. ¡°I assure you, your parties will be compensated for that time.¡± Zenom produced a map, summoning it from his Dimension Ring. ¡°However, the issue is not the timeline of our voyage, but where we will be stopping.¡± Zenom spread the map flat out on the table and the previous tension forgotten, we all huddled together to look at it. He pointed to an island and circled it with his finger. ¡°The Island we will be stopping at does not have any Village or City that we know of, in fact, we believe it is an unclaimed island.¡± There was only one reason why an island would be unclaimed. ¡°Field Boss.¡± I growled. The Holy Knight looked up at me, as well as Borealis and Delas. ¡°You are correct once again, Mr. Slaveborn. It seems you are turning out to be our resident expert on Monsters.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll say.¡± Borealis muttered, his eyes shining. I ignored the two. ¡°Skip this island then. Choose somewhere else.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s impossible. We are now in the middle of the sea and the closest landmass lies back East. We would have to return to Miltus.¡± ¡°What about these islands?¡± I pointed at small islands behind a red-dotted line. ¡°I know it¡¯s behind Bada Horde Territory, but it¡¯s on the fringe. If we act fast, we could hide the ships. The only real danger of the Bada Horde is on the open seas and they are trained as such. They¡¯d be patrolling and looking for ships out on the water, they¡¯d never imagine we¡¯re sitting on an island. If we can claim an island, chances are that they won¡¯t even know we¡¯re there.¡± ¡°Too risky.¡± Zenom dismissed it. ¡°It sounded good to me.¡± Delas agreed. Him agreeing with me didn¡¯t make me feel better at all, by the way. I looked to Borealis for support instead. ¡°It¡¯s madness to stop at an Island that has a Field Boss.¡± ¡°That is not certainty, it is a hypothesis.¡± Borealis shrugged. Despite being from the same household, his manners were much more casual than Aurora. I thought it should be the other way around, Aurora being the more easy going of the two being a Bastard and all. ¡°Even if it¡¯s not a Field Boss, the monsters there are bound to be of some strength.¡± I frowned. ¡°Jayu doesn¡¯t have information about this island? It¡¯s on the map, surely there were adventurers who made notes of this place.¡± Zenom nodded. ¡°The Island is noted to have no natural resources other than trees. The last time this island was visited was over thirty years ago, and since lumber is of no shortage in Jayu¡­¡± He trailed off. Delas sneered. ¡°So they never bothered exploring the whole damn thing.¡± ¡°Too many uncertainties. Too many unknown factors. It could even be a temporary outpost for the Bada Horde for all we know. We could be walking into a fort.¡± I said, slashing the air with my hand. ¡°The decision has been made, Mr. Slaveborn. There is no other avenue left for us.¡± Zenom replied. I glared at him. ¡°There is.¡± I said quietly. He stared back at me evenly. He knew what I was talking about. We could turn back to Miltus. Of course, I knew he wouldn¡¯t. Too many things were at stake here. If we turned back, how many adventurers would actually sign up again, now that the whole internal Church politics involved in this mission had been revealed? How many of us would sign up again with the knowledge that we¡¯d be sailing through an Imugi¡¯s Territory? A whopping Grade-2 monster which could well have evolved into a Grade-S Dragon for all we know. Hell, I wouldn¡¯t sign up for it again. I¡¯d advise Clover not to do it too. As I said, it was too risky. The only reason I signed up was because of Dibo¡¯s request about getting in touch with the Player¡¯s Guild. That¡¯s where it all started. And I was more involved in this because of Oung and Khan. But if I had a chance to dip? I wouldn¡¯t even look back. There was more than one way to make contact with the Player¡¯s Guild. I knew that now. One day, I¡¯d revisit the Scavengers and find out everything that they knew. Not only that, the [Autarch] wasn¡¯t the only Hero. There were other heroes, Six of them to be exact. And I was directly involved with the [Sword Saint] questline. Oung could complain all she wanted, but the goddess wouldn¡¯t want to lose a useful chess piece like me. ¡­Right? But all those things were wishful thinking at any rate. Zenom wouldn¡¯t turn back, not now. Not after the whole ordeal with the Bishop. It¡¯d be admitting failure. And Adventurer¡¯s lips are notoriously light, especially when there¡¯s ale and a good story involved. No one would ever touch this quest. Zenom looked down at the map, without even bothering to dignify me with a response. Delas rolled his eyes and Borealis politely pretended he didn¡¯t notice what had just happened. Stupid Arione stood like a rock underneath his cloak. ¡°If you called us here for our suggestions, I believe I exhausted all our options.¡± I said dryly into the uncomfortable silence. They were just wasting time here now. ¡°You shot down all our suggestions and obviously you have no further information that could help us plan. If that¡¯s all, I¡¯m going to inform my party of our next steps and strategize.¡± ¡°Lock is right,¡± Delas agreed, ¡°Time would be better spent training, resting and fucking.¡± Zenom¡¯s eyebrow twitched at Delas¡¯ crude statement, while Borealis hid his grin. ¡°You are right, Mr. Slaveborn. That is, if I called you five for your suggestions. But I did not call you five for your ideas or input, or rather, I did not call you for input for our destination.¡± Zenom looked up from the map, looking at the five adventurers in front of him. ¡°I have called you five here to create an Advance Party.¡± No one answered for a moment. ¡°Excuse me?¡± Delas said, genuinely surprised. ¡°A what?¡± ¡°An Advance Party.¡± Borealis put his hand to his chin, looking all dignified and intelligent with that cheesy pose. God, why did the nobles in this world have to be so fucking classy at everything they did? Man, I just had to be Isekai¡¯d as a slave. ¡°You mean for us to move ahead of the ships, check out the island to see if it¡¯s suitable for our needs. To check for the presence of a Field Boss or High-leveled monsters. Or even the Bada Horde.¡± There was no point in picking apart holes in the plan. It was a good one. Well, it was a good plan on paper. But Zenom, for all his brilliant strategist mind, didn¡¯t account for one thing. ¡°No.¡± I said immediately, meeting Zenom¡¯s eyes. ¡°Too dangerous.¡± ¡°No?¡± Borealis seemed surprised. ¡°You seemed like a devil out there only moments ago. In fact, you were the first one to reach the swarm of the Moonyo-uhs, of which, mind you, there were hundreds of. I did not think you were the type to back away from danger.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not the monsters I¡¯m worried about.¡± I gestured around us. ¡°You chose people based on their abiltiy didn¡¯t you? You didn¡¯t account for the fact that we all come from different parties.¡± Zenom motioned for me to go on. ¡°If you¡¯re going to create a Advance Party, it¡¯s better to choose people who know each other. I hardly know these guys.¡± I gestured at everyone. ¡°I have no idea what their capable of, or what their fighting style is like. And you¡¯re saying that the first mission together in this patchwork party is at an island with unknown monsters and unknown presence of an enemy nation?¡± ¡°He makes a good point.¡± Borealis peered sideways at Zenom. ¡°Sir Zenom, perhaps it would be better to reconsider the composition of this Advance Party.¡± This time, Zenom didn¡¯t shoot down my idea. Actually, I think some of the words got through that hard head of his. I¡¯m telling you, you don¡¯t know true stubbornness until you come face to face with a Holy Knight who¡¯s been brainwashed by the Church since they were children, raised to be Zealots. On second thought, I guess we have that back in the real world too. But Zenom actually took my advice and seemed to be thinking it over. Then he said, ¡°Then tell me how you would form the teams.¡± I raised an eyebrow. I was so surprised that I looked at Delas and met his eyes for just a second, like that thing you do to make sure someone else heard what you heard and both of you agree that it was a shocker. Ew. Something about Delas just rubbed me the wrong way and I didn¡¯t like that the interaction happened at all. ¡°First of all, one party isn¡¯t enough. You should create two parties, one to explore the island and one to stay behind. That¡¯s so if the first party encounters danger that they can¡¯t handle or are stranded, the second party can extract them.¡± Zenom nodded. ¡°You can¡¯t just put individuals like this. Choose people who know each other. People who can work well.¡± I finished. No one spoke for awhile. My logic had been sound, given the circumstances. More than that¡­ I didn¡¯t want to go on an Advance Party mission with these guys ¨Cminus Arrosh of course. I didn¡¯t trust any of them as far as I could trust them. Hell, even Arione looked good compared to Borealis and Delas. Better the devil you know than the devil you don¡¯t. On general principle, I didn¡¯t trust Scions and Delas¡­ well, I explained why. And those two gave me one more reason to not like them. ¡°I disagree.¡± Delas said. ¡°I do as well.¡± Borealis joined in. I sighed.
Chapter 118: Advance Party (2) World: MSS - Loading...
I sighed even before Delas began. ¡°The back-ups can be friends and all. But the Advance Party? They have to be strong as shit.¡± He began. ¡°Fuck balance, you should choose the strongest adventurers specialized for killing a Field Boss. A single Pathfinder can take on the role of a scout for reconnaissance. But even that single Pathfinder should be a fucking combat specialist. We have no idea what¡¯s waiting for us on that island, if we want to have the chance of surviving, fuck being friends.¡± Delas finished his long-winded speech, stabbing at the island with apparent anger. ¡°It¡¯s not friendship that keeps you alive, but how good the bloke next to you is with his blade.¡± Delas pointed at me with his thumb. ¡°Like this guy here. He¡¯s smart and as we all saw before, he¡¯s strong and handy with a blade. He didn¡¯t work with anyone, he just went in there like a fucking tornado and carved a path for the rest of us. That¡¯s what we need. Someone who¡¯s strong and smart that can get shit done. None of that friendship bullshit.¡± ¡°What Delas says is true,¡± Borealis added in his piece now, much to my growing frustration. ¡°To add on to that, we¡¯re not going on a simple reconnaissance mission. The Advance Party has to be fast enough to get to the island before our small fleet and come back in time so that we can turn back towards Jayu, if that is indeed the best course of action.¡± Borealis ignored Zenom¡¯s sour expression and continued. ¡°But potentially, if there is a Field Boss, what if the Advance Party can slay the Field Boss? We should keep that in mind, that it could be a Grade-6 Field Boss or weaker. If that is so, to maximize the chances of this reconnaissance trip being a fruitfall one, we should load the Advance Party with the strongest adventurers we could muster.¡± I watched, slack-jawed, as Zenom¡¯s gears began to turn. ¡°You five are the strongest members onboard.¡± Zenom finally muttered. ¡°They will take care of the Pathfinding and Mage,¡± Zenom gestured at the two cloaked figures. ¡°Sir Borealis, you are the highest grade Shielder on board as well as the only one who could wield Aura. Mr. Ender and Slaveborn are quite possibly the best bladers I¡¯ve ever seen in Jayu.¡± ¡°Aw thanks,¡± I swear Delas dragged one foot over the ground. It took all of my learned self-control not to roll my eyes. ¡°Mr. Slaveborn, I will take your advice into consideration and form a second advance squad that will perform as a backup to us.¡± I nodded, feeling somewhat slighted by the exchange. Zenom was kind of treating this party like how some people treat Cores, the stronger the better. But like I say all the time, it¡¯s not the Grade of the Core that matters, but the Synergy between them. That¡¯s not to say the three of them didn¡¯t have a point; sometimes the stats and abilities were such a cheat that it was enough to get by. I crossed my fingers, hoping that whatever this island had in store for us, it was something we could crush with strength alone. ¡°Ok, but Sir Zenom, you have not introduced us to the Mage and the Pathfinder here with us.¡± Borealis pointed out. ¡°I can vouch for their skills.¡± Zenom said stiffly. ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering about them too.¡± Delas peered at Arione and Arrosh. ¡°Think it¡¯s only fair that they reveal their faces. With the monsters earlier, I didn¡¯t see them do much.¡± ¡°As I said-¡± ¡°Sir Zenom.¡± This time, it was Borealis who took a firm stance. ¡°I must insist.¡± He stared straight at Zenom. ¡°I am not against putting my life in danger, I knew that the moment this mission was given to me from my House. That is duty. However, that does not mean I will throw my life away meaninglessly. If I am following your command to rush headlong into danger, the least you can offer is the face of those who might be called upon to save me.¡± ¡°Exactly how I would have put it,¡± drawled Delas. ¡°You never know a man until you look at him in the eye, I say.¡± Then he turned to me. ¡°What do you say, Slaveborn? Aren¡¯t you curious about what''s behind those cowls too?¡± I was about to answer ¡®No¡¯, then stopped myself. I had to think carefully here. It was dangerous to talk with Delas without thinking, especially concerning things like this. The more I thought about it, the more it became apparent that I almost shot myself in the foot. See, I¡¯m still suspecting Delas of being a part of the Player¡¯s Guild. So what should I do when interacting with him? The answer was clear. Until I could be 100% sure he wasn¡¯t part of one, I had to act under the assumption that he was a player himself. Acting under that assumption, everything he did around me and said around me could be an act. All part of some elaborate ploy to hurt me someway. How? I didn¡¯t know yet. But it never hurts to be careful. ¡°I¡¯m curious, but if they are as good as the rest of us, I¡¯m ok with it. I agree with Zenom¡¯s assessment, in this room we have the best Shielder and two bladers.¡± I gave a curt nod to the two silent figures. ¡°If so, he wouldn¡¯t have chosen these two. I¡¯ll go with Zenom¡¯s judgment.¡± Good, a neutral answer. Now I just needed to- ¡°Boooooooring,¡± said Delas, rolling his eyes. ¡°Vetilius. Do something about this.¡± Borealis nodded. ¡°Sir Zenom. It¡¯s your call.¡± Zenom glared at the two of them, brooding. Without looking at me, he added, ¡°Thank you for your trust, Mr. Slaveborn. But it seems Sir Borealis and Mr. Ender is right, it would be unfair to call them to duty without revealing the faces of those who they would be working with.¡± The Holy Knight referred to Arione and Arrosh. ¡°If you two would not mind.¡± If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Naturally.¡± God, it had been so long since I heard Arione¡¯s smooth, mellow, young-politician-like voice. It just reminded me of how I thought he was everything I hated, a scheming manipulator. Arione¡¯s slender fingers reached and pushed his cowl back and at the same time, the air in front of his face blurred. Of course, he must have put some kind of Disguise spell to keep his face hidden. The blonde¡¯s light blue hair fell perfectly down to his shoulder in waves and ringlets, his high nose and large eyes making him look like a main character of an anime character. During the Isekai, he hit the jackpot in the looks department. And here I was, covered in scars from my time as a slave, on my face as well as my body. Not to mention the manacle scars that branded me as a former slave. Some people have all the luck. Arrosh was next, revealing calloused green fingers that swept his hood back. His milky eyes looked at nothing but also seemed to watch everything. He had no particular expression on his face. I was better looking at Arrosh atleast. ¡­Right? Oh God, I certainly hoped so. Regardless, Arrosh¡¯s own nonchalant demeanor gave me a lot of confidence in my own actions. For now, we wouldn¡¯t acknowledge each other. Arione bowed slightly while Arrosh remained slightly behind him. ¡°Arione Popwindale, Grade-2 mage at your service.¡± ¡°Well, that raises our chances of surviving somewhat.¡± Delas commented at last. It took me a moment to realize that Borealis had gone deathly white. ¡°...You¡¯re Arione Popwindale?¡± He said at last. ¡°The one and only.¡± Arione said without particular inflection. And Borealis exploded in rage. He threw away the calm demeanor of a nobleman, immediately turning to Zenom, his face reddening in outrage. ¡°This man is a criminal and is a known Player. What are you thinking, Zenom?!¡± ¡°Uh, that was a misunderstanding.¡± Arione said like a dumbass, as if those four words could deny the gravity of the situation. ¡°He had a bounty, for the Light¡¯s sake. He fled the country, he has slain countless of our own-¡± ¡°He said,¡± Zenom said in clipped words, ¡°it was a misunderstanding.¡± Borealis looked stupified in exchange. ¡°Jason Carid Akka Xalud has cleared Arione Popwindale of all charges, and the Turina Empire has officially reinstated his citizenship. The Church has made a public announcement that Arione Popwindale was investigating the Samak Desert on the Church¡¯s behalf, and that allegations of the Grade-2 Mage being a Player was an elaborate plot made by rival nations to weaken our Adventurer¡¯s Guild.¡± Zenom explained. Wow. Even I didn¡¯t believe that. Delas giggled. ¡°Well, this is a pleasant surprise. Revealing his face had the opposite effect, now you trust him even less than before.¡± He elbowed me on the side. ¡°Perhaps we should have listened to good¡¯ol Slaveborn and Sir Zenom there, yeah?¡± I turned away from Delas. God, What the hell was wrong with Players? Was it that hard for normal people to survive in MSS? What the hell did that say about me then? Borealis continued staring at Zenom. ¡°Maybe, you two should talk in private.¡± I said, eager to get out of the room. I had the feeling that the talk between the two was about to turn into something less political, and more personal. There was nothing to be gained by staying around for that. Arione sniffed and put his hood back on. Arrosh did the same. ¡°Then we¡¯ll take our leave as well.¡± The disguising spell immediately activated when he put the hood on. It must have been an enchanted item. ¡°Sir Zenom. Delas.¡± Arione said his farewells. ¡°...Sir Borealis.¡± He saved me for last. ¡°Slaveborn.¡± Then the Mage and Orc Swordsman left the room. Excusing myself, I left the room shortly after. The Captain¡¯s Quarters led into a short hallway which led directly to the deck. When I came out, the sun was setting in the horizon. It cast a neon orange glow on the ocean, its reflected image wavering like a hazy mirage in rhythm with the swaying of the open water. Looking around, I saw that most of the adventurers had chosen to remain on deck. Of course, their leaders had just been in a meeting with the Expedition Leader. They¡¯d be curious about what happened. I saw Arione walk over to a group of cloaked figures, exchanging a few words. Then as one, the entire party headed below deck towards their quarters. Someone bumped into me from behind, pushing past me. ¡°Gosh, move out of the way will you?¡± Of course, it was Delas. He smirked at me. ¡°Just joshing your bones, mate. Argghhh, that rough and tough sailor life. Am I right?¡± Then winking, he went towards his own party. Staring at his retreating back, I doubted once more whether Delas was a Player or not. Would a Player behave like that? That kind of swashbuckling attitude which didn¡¯t fit in with the gloom and doom atmosphere of MSS? I felt like acting the way Delas did was asking for the Inquisition to find out more about him. It could be a facade, decided to throw us off track. A double-trick of sorts, because Players wouldn¡¯t act like that, he acted precisely like that. Or he really wasn¡¯t a player at all. Sighing, I headed towards my party. ¡°Sssslaveborn.¡± Skaris greeted me. ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± I walked into a strange scene. Stole was sitting on the ground, one leg exposed up to the knee. There was a small scrape and crouching in front of Stole was the large priest from earlier. He was hunched over her knee and judging by the glow of mana, he was attempting to heal her. From the side, he looked younger than before ¨Calmost as young as Stole actually. His brows were scrunched up in concentration. ¡°A priest dropped by and healed us all.¡± Kyrian explained. ¡°But Stole seems to have taken a liking to this priest-in-training, which you were right about by the way. About him being someone in training I mean.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I said simply. Kyrian shrugged. ¡°Maybe because they¡¯re similar in age?¡± ¡°I can hear you!¡± Stole said loud enough to catch out attention. ¡°Stole, what are you doing?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m helping Darwin learn how to heal.¡± ¡°Yesshh!¡± Darwin cried out, facing me. And I got a real good look at his face. First, let me say this. My parents were millionaires and it wasn¡¯t until highschool that I got to experience what it meant to struggle for money. Even then, my parents sent me to a private school and a good private college. Combined with the fact that I was practically a shut-in in my twenties and thirties, it¡¯s safe to say I don¡¯t have a lot of experiences with the world. Not MSS, I mean back on Earth. So there are things that make me uncomfortable. Things that startle me, and that¡¯s not saying I hate something or am feeling aversion. Like all people, when I encounter something new, I do feel comfortable. The priest looked different. Well, he was human. But he looked different. And I¡¯m sure if I explained it to you, you would get it right away. But I won¡¯t go into the specifics because to be honest, I feel uncomfortable. I¡¯ll just say this: I didn¡¯t know MSS had people with.... with disabilities. And maybe people will judge me harshly for saying this, but the fact of the matter was that this was MSS. Frankly, I didn¡¯t care that he was a medical developmental disability. In my head, all that was going through my head was how we were going to succeed in this mission and how I was going to keep my party alive. So naturally, I mentally listed him as Priest A. Not someone who¡¯s handicapped, or any different from other people, just another of the priests. ¡°Stole, we need to have a party meeting.¡± I said, ignoring Darwin. ¡°He almost has it!¡± ¡°Stole, he¡¯s a Priest-in-Training. The other priests should be teaching him. And you should get your knee looked at by one of the full-fledged priests. Not someone in training.¡± I had been talking to Stole. But it was the Darwin who reacted. He slowly got up, all quiet. He wasn¡¯t smiling anymore. He slowly picked up the piece of cloth he had been using and just walked away. ¡°Bye, Schtole.¡± He said. ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll get it next time Darwin!¡± She waved energetically, still happy. In that moment, I think I learned more about Stole than any other time. Stole wasn¡¯t just this edgy assassin-wayfinder dressed in black leather. She had a kind heart, and the girl hadn¡¯t taken my words as something meant to get the incapable priest away from her. She saw it as my words and saw the intention behind them, that we were busy. Because Stole herself didn¡¯t discriminate, she didn¡¯t think I was being discriminatory either. Ok, now I felt like a jerk. One of the priests that had been hovering around us, fidgeting with his fingers rushed in and healed Stole¡¯s knee scrape in the blink of an eye. He looked at me apologetically. ¡°I apologize, Mr. Slaveborn. But Ms. Stole insisted that we give Darwin a chance.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I had done nothing wrong. So why¡¯d I feel like I did? But for me, this interaction was so small that I shoved it into the corner of my mind. Most likely, we wouldn¡¯t see Darwin again anyways. I had to keep myself focused on the mission. ¡°Kyrian?¡± I said, once we were downstairs in the girls¡¯ room again. Kyrian closed his eyes, mumbling under his breath and magic came to life around us. It pressed in around my ears like a plane-ride. ¡°No one can hear us now.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and began to explain what happened in the meeting with Zenom. I left nothing out, finishing it up with Borealis outburst at Arione¡¯s identity. ¡°That seems to be in line with what Borealis would do.¡± Aurora said once I finished. I raised an eyebrow at her. ¡°You know him?¡± ¡°He was in the cohort right above mine. Borealis was the top of his Cohort.¡± She explained. ¡°I even sparred with him in an exhibition match.¡± Kyrian frowned. ¡°In an exhibition match? But that should only happen between¡­¡± He opened his mouth in surprise. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. Aurora shrugged. ¡°It is not important.¡± Kyrian explained on her behalf, ¡°That she was the top of her Cohort, recognized enough to hold an exhibition match with a Scion who was also the top of his own Cohort.¡± Kyrian looked like he ate a bug. ¡°It means you had a chance to be a Scion.¡±
Chapter 119: Advance Party (3) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Sis Aurora! You could¡¯ve been a Scion?!¡± Stole exclaimed. Aurora gave an uncharacteristic shrug, looking abashed. ¡°Each year, the Vetilius House has their most promising cadets face off in exhibition matches. I was the top of my Cohort and Borealis was the top of his. So naturally, we put on an exhibition match.¡± ¡°Who emerged victoriousssss?¡± Skaris asked. ¡°If I won, I would have received the Vetilius name in full, as well as all the privileges that came with it.¡± Aurora said, looking at me. I got what she talking about immediately. The knowledge of Aura would have been passed down to her, the racial trait for humans that the Turina Empire kept under wraps, allowing only their knights and nobles to use it. ¡°Regardless, it seems that there are preparations we must make.¡± Aurora said. ¡°Mr. Lock, did Sir Zenom say how many people will be in the second Advance Party?¡± I ignored how quick she was to change the topic. Knowing her personality, the battle could¡¯ve gone either way. Thinking back on it too, Zenom probably had no idea about the latest addition to her Core composition. Considering that a lot none of us had been reassessed by the Adventurer¡¯s Guild since the Fracture, we were likely being underestimated. I wondered how many other parties were using the same tactic, keeping their true abilities under wraps. ¡°No. But since there¡¯s five of us, I¡¯m assuming there will be five.¡± I snapped my fingers. ¡°Scratch that. Six. Zenom willll stick a healer with us. I¡¯m not sure who, there wasn¡¯t a healer in the room with us.¡± Aurora shook her head. ¡°Zenom Saintred is not one to send off his most promising adventurers on a mission by themselves. He will accompany you.¡± Scion or not, I was glad we had at least one person who had the insider look at Turina Society and the related VIPs. She had all this insider information about the personality of the major players. Information like this could be used to get a step ahead of others when planning. ¡°Ok, so six. Six slots open for the second party.¡± I agreed. ¡°We mussst get onto it.¡± ¡°Huh? Why?¡± Stole was fiddling with her dagger again. She kept look at the door, a sure sign that the girl couldn¡¯t focus. I ignored it for now. ¡°Treachery.¡± Skaris stated simply. ¡°If something happens to the advance party, the secondary party is in charge of rescuing them. Imagine the second party is composed of individuals from one party. They might prioritize their own member versus the others.¡± Kyrian explained when Stole looked confused. ¡°I meant backssssstabbing.¡± ¡°That is a distinct possibility as well, Mr. Skaris.¡± I nodded in agreement. ¡°By creating a party of all the leaders from the different parties, he¡¯s practically guaranteed that the second party can¡¯t be composed of a singular party. And now, everyone¡¯s going to try and get on Zenom¡¯s good side, trying to get on the second party.¡± ¡°He mussst have done this on purposssse.¡± Skaris pointed out. ¡°How?¡± Stole was a little confused here. ¡°He¡¯s created a sort of competition. By having us competing with each other, it weakens us. Lessens the chance that we have a chance to try something behind his back.¡± Kyrian answered for her benefit this time. ¡°The Akka Xaluds often employed the same tactics.¡± Kyrian said, looking at Aurora. ¡°...Do you think he knows?¡± I asked Aurora. Aurora held Kyrian¡¯s stare for just a moment before turning to me. ¡°Yes. I believe so. Zenom Saintred couldn¡¯t have reached his level as a Holy Knight using martial prowess alone. I believe this is sufficient evidence to think that Zenom knows that the parties involved in this mission are not entirely what they seem.¡± ¡°But that would have been true for any party he chose. He wouldn¡¯t trust adventurers, that¡¯s not the way of the Chruch.¡± Kyrian added on. ¡°It¡¯s probably just a cautionary measure, more of a safeguard rather than active plans to work against us.¡± I let out a frustrated sigh. ¡°Ok. Then let¡¯s work under the assumption that Zenom knows. Any chance he¡¯s lying about this Advance Party mission?¡± ¡°Zenom Saintred does not lie.¡± Aurora said with certainty. ¡°A Holy Knight would not do that.¡± Kyrian said at the same time. Kyrian almost looked offended that she and he had the same thought. ¡°Zenom Saintred is the type to challenge someone to a duel. I think he¡¯s telling the truth about this side-mission.¡± Kyrian said finally. That didn¡¯t make me feel better in the slightest. Now I had to worry about tip-toeing around Zenom and making sure he wouldn¡¯t challenge me to a duel. ¡°Ok. Someone like him, who do you think will choose as the sub party? It looks to me like he¡¯s looking at sheer ability. If he¡¯s looking at sheer ability¡­¡± ¡°He could pray.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°There issss no way to look in the mindssss of men.¡± Skaris said wisely. ¡°I did tell him something.¡± I told them about my brief conversation with the others, my advice to put people that know each other together. ¡°He won¡¯t do that, Mr. Lock. Not when he could keep us divided.¡± I scratched my head. Nothing seemed to be working out the way I wanted. But perhaps there was some sway here. ¡°Ok then, we need to decide which one of you guys can go on that secondary party.¡± I declared. ¡°At first light, I can go to Zenom and give a recommendation from one of us.¡± Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Of courssse, mysssself.¡± Skaris said smugly. ¡°Not so fast, Skaris.¡± Kyrian said. ¡°We need to think hard about the worst case scenario.¡± Then he turned to me, ¡°Lock, what¡¯s the worst case scenario you could imagine?¡± I didn¡¯t even have to think hard. ¡°The other adventurers stuck an alliance with each other, Arione included-¡± ¡°Ass-hole-rione.¡± Stole mended. ¡°-And they kill off Zenom. And I¡¯m next. Or the island is just one huge monster stampede waiting to happen. Or it¡¯s the home of a minor field boss. Or it¡¯s island itself is some kind of lock-out dungeon, similar to Fracture and I¡¯m stuck inside with them. Or it¡¯s the base of the Bada Horde and their warchief, or one of their generals is there. Or-¡± ¡°Ok,¡± Kyrian pinched the bridge of his nose. ¡°I did not think there were so many¡­ possibilities.¡± Skaris snorted. ¡°Only Sssslaveborn could make ssssomething sssso ssssimple sssssound so deadly.¡± I shrugged. ¡°But judging by the options, it¡¯s clear what you need.¡± Kyrian nodded to Skaris. ¡°Skaris, it should be you.¡± I frowned. ¡°Uh¡­ Skaris?¡± ¡°I accsssept.¡± ¡°Not that, I meant that from the situations that I just listed, I should be bringing a Shielder with me.¡± I said in reply. ¡®Or atleast Stole or you, Kyrian.¡¯ I thought to myself privately. But Stole was too young and Kyrian wouldn¡¯t be able to break me out of a dangerous situation ¨Cnot by himself atleast. I needed someone who could shrug off some damage and get me out of there. ¡°That issss accssseptable.¡± Skaris answered again. I ignored him. ¡°Skaris and I would be two bladers. Variety is key here, the fact that I¡¯m trapped means that what we need isn¡¯t fire power. It¡¯s either the durability of a Shielder or the utility of a Pioneer. But Stole¡¯s not there yet. I think Aurora should be the one coming with me.¡± Kyrian frowned in obvious discontent. I¡¯d never seen him really disagree with me before. The young mage was much too good natured for that, he sometimes gave a pained smile and just nodded along though, which guilt-tripped me pretty bad. But this time, he was frowning and outwardly expressing discontent with my decision making. The blonde mage looked at Aurora with a scowl then turned back to me. Ah, so it was about Aurora. He was worried about her. This was why having romance in the same party wasn¡¯t really a good idea, it swayed our emotions and affected our decision making. Still, now wasn¡¯t the time to address it nor the time to reprimand him for it. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± I said to him, trying to get the meaning across. I put a little strength into the words, making sure he¡¯d understand the message. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡± By that, I meant that I¡¯ll make sure nothing would happen to her. He looked me in the eyes and relaxed somewhat. ¡°Yes. It should be Aurora.¡± Aurora just looked back and forth between us, looking worried. ¡°Ok then. I think that¡¯s it for the meeting.¡± Afterwards, we spoke of silly things. How bad the ship¡¯s food was, what kind of drama was brewing with the other parties Finally, I got up to leave along with Kyrian and Skaris. Stole got up too. ¡°Where are you going?¡± I asked. She shrugged. ¡°I was going to hang out with Darwin for a bit.¡± It wasn¡¯t any of my business who Stole hung out with. But it did seem strange how fixated she seemed on the Priest. Either way, I couldn¡¯t see any wrong coming out of it. I nodded sharply and went to my own room, leaving my party members to their own. I slept lightly and at first light, headed towards Zenom¡¯s room. And someone else had the same thought as me. Arione. I saw his shadow right before I turned the corner, illuminated by the candles in the early morning darkness. He stalked forward with hurried steps and stopped when we met each other at the intersection. The elf wasn¡¯t wearing his cowl today but when he saw me, hurried to put it back on. For a moment, the two of us stayed like that. I grunted and walked past him. I heard his footsteps right behind mine. We walked for a minute in silence. ¡°Did you pay it?¡± I asked. I sensed the surprise in his voice but the elf answered. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Good.¡± There was no need to define what I was talking about. He had that much sense atleast. We climbed up the ladder and turned, heading towards the Captain¡¯s quarters. ¡°...Who are you going to recommend?¡± Arione asked. I turned and couldn¡¯t help but sneer at his voice. I opened my mouth, about to say something harsh at him then stopped myself. The last time I saw Arione, he had been a living engine of fiery death, burning orc civilians by the dozens. He had been a snake-tongued bastard who manipulated Clover into abandoning me. Against Arione, I definitely had the moral grounds and the right to hate him. Or so I thought. He was a murderer and so was I. Those orc civilians, I didn¡¯t know them well-enough to think they were innocent. They were still the remnants of the dying Samak Horde which had resorted to slavery. They had been my captors and masters, and in a corner of my heart I still couldn¡¯t fully explain why I felt the need to do so much for the survivors. Either way, the point was that I couldn¡¯t judge Arione on being a murderer. He simply did what he had to survive. Just like I did, in the Scavenger¡¯s Base. More than that, I could see why Arione hated Players now. He said he had been in this world for roughly ten years, if I remembered correctly. Ten years of dealing with the Player¡¯s Guild? Man¡­ I spent one day in a locked room with Coum and I still shivered at the memory. Just what kind of things had he seen? Also, Clover didn¡¯t abandon me. That makes it sound like I begged her to stay. No, she made her choice. And I made mine. It was as simple as that. I¡¯m not saying that Arione is one of the good guys, but I am saying I¡¯m not sure what a good even is anymore. I sure as hell didn¡¯t feel like a good guy a lot of times. This world was too harsh for that. The concept of justice and what¡¯s right and wrong can be argued over when there¡¯s peace. The delineation between the two becomes a blur in times of war and survival. For adventurers in MSS, what use was good and bad? It didn¡¯t make you coin, nor did it make you stronger. There¡¯s no bad guys in this world that thinks they¡¯re the bad guy. Hell, our own history tells us that enough. The winners write history, and no one wants something negative about them written down. Rule number one of warfare, demonize the enemy and angelicize yourself. As a general rule, it wasn¡¯t good for adventurers to go around making enemies either. As vast as the world was, the more powerful you got, the smaller your circles got. One day, I¡¯d be in the same league as Arione and would have to see him time and time again. It wasn¡¯t a satisfactory ending to my grudge with Arione and I don¡¯t think it¡¯s an ending at all. In my mind, it seemed more like a temporary truce. Again, I¡¯m not saying that I¡¯m going to bring Arione flowers anytime soon. But I could understand him, just a little, I think. I still hated his fucking face though and thanked the gods that he wore his cowl. ¡°I¡¯m going to recommend Aurora. My Shielder. You?¡± I asked. ¡°L¡¯teya.¡± Damn, that she was a good choice. A elf-barbarian that could double as a Shielder with some Cores? She could single handedly bring more than one person out. There was also another advantage to getting this information out of Arione. Now, when we went to Zenom recommending two shielders, we could have an explanation ready. ¡°I could switch to Maria, if-¡± ¡°Oh shut it with the submissive puppy act.¡± I snapped, annoyed already. ¡°Just recommend to Zenom that the back-up party might need two shielders, since their whole role is to bring us out of danger. Besides, L¡¯teya is more of a Bruiser than a shielder anyways.¡± He just nodded. ¡°What the hell have you been doing? She doesn¡¯t even have her main Cores set up yet.¡± I snapped at him some more, walking. ¡°If she was with me-¡± ¡°Clover has been keeping us busy.¡± He said, sounding like a student giving his teacher an excuse for why he was tardy. ¡°Oh shut it. Skaris used to be weaker than her, you know? He lost to her in a spar. I bet he could take her now.¡± For the first time, his cowl turned sideways and looked directly at me, the elf¡¯s body turning deathly still. I stopped as well, staring right back at him. ¡°Lety wouldn¡¯t lose.¡± And for the first time, he actually sounded like the leader of a party. There had been pride behind those words, the pride of a Gamer and a Party Leader who was in charge of keeping his party members strong. But I had my own party too, and I fucking raised Skaris myself. I took care of his Cores from day one. There was no way that a Blader I raised with my own hands was going to lose out to this half-rate mod-user¡¯s build for L¡¯teya. I didn¡¯t care how talented she was in combat, Skaris could match her blade for blade and more. For a few more seconds, the moment simmered between us. ¡°We¡¯ll see about that.¡± I answered and turned on my heel, entering Zenom¡¯s quarters.
By the afternoon, all the parties had been set. Zenom joined us in the advance party as Aurora predicted. The back-up party was a potpourri of people. Aurora Vetilian, the Bastard of the Vetilius house stood next to L¡¯teya, the Elf Barbarian from the Delirious jungle. Next to them stood the most unlikely Pathfinder I¡¯d ever seen; Astelion Giantler. He looked more like a Shielder with the huge bulging muscles, dwarfing some of the orcs I remembered. But apparently he was a Pathfinder. Next to them was a human by the name of Venine Akka Xalan. She had orange hair tied in braided pig-tails, but my eyes were drawn to the black witch¡¯s hat and the black robe. She wore large round-framed glasses and freckles on her face, the typical image of a shy nerdy witch. But she was a Mage, not a Witch. Finally, one of the priests rounded out the party. I watched the boats being loaded. We would be heading out on one of the auxiliary boats used for logistics. First the boat had been emptied of everything, except the food. Now they were loading ropes and potions, things that we might need on this unplanned expedition. ¡°We will be sailing for two days, full speed and no rest. We will be taking watches in groups of two, five shifts in total.¡± I listened, donning my armor and putting my sword on. ¡°Why¡¯re you putting your armor on already, Slaveborn?¡± L¡¯teya walked over, plopping down. As greetings went, it was as nonchalant as it could be. But then again, L¡¯teya wasn¡¯t the type to think too much about relationships and the underlying difficulties. Hell, as far as I knew, she might not think too much about being in Arione¡¯s party in the first place. Maybe our friendship meant less to her than I thought. Clover was the sentimental kind, L¡¯teya I couldn¡¯t imagine saying anything except ¡®oh well¡¯ after our unplanned farewell. ¡°It¡¯s the open seas.¡± I replied. ¡°You saw what happened before. It might look empty, but we¡¯re basically in the middle of a huge dungeon. The water hides all the monsters and a lot of the flying ones have developed cloaking abilities to protect themselves from aquatic monsters that could leap out at them.¡± She just nodded eagerly. As adventures we didn¡¯t really have the luxury of proper decency. A lot of things happened out in the field. It wasn¡¯t weird to see someone naked. Regardless, despite my talk about treating this like a dungeon, I turned around to put on my leggings. I was still from the twenty-first century after all, and that¡¯s the age of decency. I¡¯m a gentleman. ¡°Your briefs have a hole in them.¡± Lety pointed out kindly. ¡­Gentleman my ass and fuck the twenty first century. ¡°Hark!¡± One of the Sailors cried out. As I sailed away on the boat, I looked back seeing my party; Kyrian watching solemnly with his staff. Skaris looking bored and next to him Stole, chatting eagerly with the priest named Darwin. I turned, pushing my thoughts of them aside. In front of me were Zenom the fanatic Holy Knight who would execute me at the slightest wrong. Not to mention both him and Borealis were from Turina, they definitely didn¡¯t like the fact that a Slave like me was running around using Aura. Then there was Arione¡­. And Delas. Gods, what had I gotten myself into? Still, I couldn¡¯t help but be excited. Ahead of me lay an unknown island with unknown monsters. For me, that wasn¡¯t just danger. It was a chance to get stronger.
Chapter 120: Job Offer World: MSS - Loading...
The weather was perfect for sailing. The skies were clear blue without a cloud in sight, and the sea breeze wrapped around my face and whispered beneath my armor like the soft finger caresses of a lover. The boat traveled faster than normal means ¨Cobviously an enchanted piece of technology unique to the world of MSS. I could see why people liked sailing and why rich people back in the world got yachts as wealth piled up. It almost made me want one of my own too. Behind our boat was the other ship, holding the secondary party. We were too far apart for me to see their faces but it wasn¡¯t hard to imagine that their general mood was similar to ours. Bits of excitement that shook through our body like jolts of electricity, spiked with shots of nervousness and anxiety that kept us from sleeping. Still, it didn¡¯t matter what we felt. The small ships skirted through the ocean like stealth ships, skimming the waves with a sense of relentlessness. As Zenom said, we kept watch in shifts. Lucky for me, I drew the lots with Zenom. Actually, no matter who it might have been, it would not have been my first choice. If I was alone with Arione, we might have a murder mystery on our hands and the first culprit would have been me. Delas, I couldn¡¯t stand the man. Borealis might not have been too bad, but I couldn¡¯t help but notice the underlying tension between us. Aurora in my party, my use of [Aura] ¨Cwhich both Zenom and Borealis had not been vocal about but I saw the way they looked at me when they thought I wasn¡¯t looking¨C and the general sense of rivalry that stemmed from him. At night though, it was completely different. It was on the second night that Zenom and I took the last shift together. We would stand watch until morning, when we would finally see the island in view. Ever been to the ocean at night? It¡¯s pitch black. No, I don¡¯t think you understand me. You probably heard ¡®pitch black with varying shades of really dark blue and gray¡¯. When I say pitch black, I mean black so deep that it absorbs light. It brings out a level of paranoia so deep within you that you didn¡¯t know it existed. Hell, I had never been one to be scared of the dark before until I came to MSS. But even back on earth, I imagine the night in the middle of the ocean is scary. Imagine swimming in the dark in the middle of the ocean, infinitely deep and infinitely vast. Then something slithers by you. I cannot explain how such a feeling must register in my brain. Slime and foreign, alien and erotic, something that makes us jerk awake in the middle of the night and brings us out of our calm sheep mind and into the erratic insectoid part of our brain responsible for fight or flight. Run, run, run! Run, run run! I imagine that people would say that my plight is not too bad, since I¡¯m on a boat. It was worse. You have to consider, one of the worst things on earth that could happen to you in the oceans are Storms and Sharks. I think that¡¯s about the extent of people¡¯s imaginations. But the blackness of the ocean makes sailors think, there¡¯s a reason we have folklore about Sirens and Krakens and Typhons. Our brains have to make sense of the unknown that the complete black curtain of the ocean, trying to understand what lies behind it. That helps alleviate the fear. But I wasn¡¯t on earth. Monsters were real. Bloodthirsty mosnters with cold eyes and scales that sends sinister shivers up my spine and into my brain. The storms in MSS weren¡¯t just wind, rain and waves. Don¡¯t get me wrong, I bet it¡¯s plenty horrible on earth. But here, it wasn¡¯t just physics at play: it was magic. Magical storms could leave spots of lightning that activated only when something floated into it, say a stray monster or a speedster ship that had clueless adventurers on it. It would fry us from the bottom up before we could blink. Not only that, monsters in MSS grow sinister at night. The smart monsters reign in the night and lightning a torch might attract them. They wouldn¡¯t even jump us. They¡¯d stay under the water; watching, studying, thinking and preying. Hoping and imagining what our flesh tasted like, trying to think of ways to make us feel pain in new ways. The boat is just the plate which the monster would scrape our meat off of. An ocean where the weather itself was magic and the monsters were thinking creatures who had nothing better to do than toy with us. Now you know what kind of ocean I am in. Now you understand what kind of mission that the people of the advance party accepted. That¡¯s who adventurers are, people who wade into unknown dangers for the sake of figuring out what exactly lay there. Both the sense of fear and excitement flowed through my veins, fighting off sleep effortlessly. So I stared out into the night, trying not to let my mind wander. I didn¡¯t have the Darkvision from the Beckoning Cat Core anymore, but that didn¡¯t mean I was blind. Rather, I''d hear something the moment we capsized, my last moments being filed with terror of the unknown ocean before being swallowed whole by a monster. Cheerful thoughts, I told myself. We didn''t dare light the torches for obvious reasons. So I became a statue, trying to control my fears of the unknown ocean whose known facts already terrified me. My eyes were glued to the horizon, trying to catch the beginning of a sunrise that would signal safety. ¡°Slaveborn.¡± When Zenom started the conversation, I almost screamed. Instead I coughed politely and turned to look at him. Or in the general direction of where he spoke from. The others were below deck. The ship wasn¡¯t that small. It still had sleeping quarters. Only Zenom and I were out on the deck. It took me a few seconds to realize that he was waiting for an answer. Ok, that was one information that I got out of this exchange, Zenom didn¡¯t have a Core that gave him Darkvision. Tucking that information away for later, I spoke quietly, lest I awaken things that were best left sleeping. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I would talk with you.¡± My brows furrowed into a line. What could he possibly want with me? ¡°Why? Did you see something?¡± I squinted harder into the endless night. ¡°No.¡± I could feel his body hold steady, despite the gentle rolling waves that rocked the boat to and from. ¡°You are not from Turina, are you not?¡± It was more of a statement than an actual question. ¡°No, I¡¯m not.¡± ¡°Your name is unfamiliar. I do not think I have ever heard of a Turina Citizen with that surname. Where do you hail from?¡± I silently thanked Kyrian for having that conversation with me before. ¡°I¡¯m from the North.¡± ¡°Truly?¡± He sounded surprise. ¡°I was unaware that Northerners became adventurers.¡± Smirking in the darkness, I answered him. ¡°Most don¡¯t. Too busy trying to make a living.¡± ¡°That explains your penchant for combat.¡± He said, almost explaining to himself. ¡°I had thought your style to be too¡­ rough, to be from a Great House or from Nobility.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not from a Great House or from Nobility. Not even from Turina, as you just heard.¡± ¡°So it seems.¡± He paused for a bit. ¡°I have heard stories of you, when your party was being considered for this mission.¡± I raised an eyebrow out of habit. ¡°Stories?¡± ¡°Stories.¡± Zenom leaned against the railings. His words were clipped and to the point. ¡°Of a former-slave who could use Aura. One who was present at the downfall of the Samak Horde¡¯s City and lived to tell the tale about it. A Slave who leads a group of orcs and his own party, quickly gaining reputation. One who bested a Bastard of a Great House in combat.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I had known I was beginning to gather some attention, but didn¡¯t think they would know the whole story of what happened in the last year. ¡°When I first heard them, I did not know what to make of you. When you applied for this mission, I hesitated.¡± Zenom said. ¡°Your competency were rumors at best, but there must have been some ounce of truth in them for them to reach my ears in the heart of the Turina Empire and the inner circles of the Church.¡± ¡°But when I saw you in action, I saw that the rumors weren¡¯t without seed. You are indeed competent with the blade, as well as any knight-in-training. Perhaps even some of the freshly anointed knights, those who have yet to earn their scars.¡± He continued. ¡°Not just that, but I saw your knowledge. I was surprised to learn that a mere slave ¨Cformer slave¨C,¡± he amended, ¡°would be in possession of such knowledge. Even Borealis admitted later that his knowledge of the monsters such as [Imugi] were limited.¡± There had to be a point to this, so I waited. ¡°You, Lock Slaveborn, are an anomaly.¡± Zenom asked. Of course I would seem that way to him. In a way, I was the opposite of Zenom. From what I could see, he tried to minimize personal connections as much as possible and I could see why. He served the Church and his Country. He didn¡¯t have the concept of the good of one individual, it couldn¡¯t. That¡¯s the underlying power of religion and patriotism, that a person sacrifices their own good for the good of the whole. It¡¯s a beautiful and powerful thing sometimes. That¡¯s why martyrdom is a timeless tragedy that inspires thousands of others to do the same. At the same time, it is poison. Because those same individuals begin to place the same expectations on others. When it¡¯s no longer your own sacrifice but you demand sacrifice from others, it¡¯s no longer something beautiful. It becomes toxic and sinister, and you begin to hold grudges in your heart. Asking questions like ¡®How come I¡¯m the one who has to sacrifice? How come others aren¡¯t doing the same?¡¯ So there was Zenom, with ideologies of the standard Holy Knight, ready to give his life for the Church and the Turina Empire. And he just talked me up a bunch, calling me capable and even comparing me to Scions ¨Cwhich, to Turinans, were the biggest compliment one could give. So it wasn¡¯t a surprise when he asked me the next question. ¡°Have you ever thought about visiting Turina? Or have you already visited it on the way down South?¡± ¡°No, but I have thought about it.¡± ¡°Why have you not? Someone like you would be welcomed with open arms.¡± ¡®Because that country hunts Players.¡¯ But I held my tongue. ¡°No chance to, to be honest. And no reason to either. Between the Samak Horde and the Jayu States, I¡¯ve seen more than one large city, each more beautiful than the last.¡± ¡°The beauty of Turina is different.¡± Zenom stated it like saying the sky is blue. ¡°Tall towers built on ancient magic that still flounder the greatest mage minds of today. The Processions of the Great Houses, their banners flying high. The prayer might of the Church that resounds through the City of Light and blesses us all.¡± His voice was almost reverent. ¡°Consider this an official invitation, Lock Slaveborn. Once this mission is over, you should visit.¡± I smiled awkwardly in response. It wasn¡¯t that I possessed negative feelings towards Turina. Some might think that I hold a grudge against them for bringing down the Samak Horde. But truthfully, the Samak Horde was on its last legs. If it weren¡¯t for the Turina Empire, someone else would have swooped in. It happens in history ¨Ca weaker nation becoming a satellite nation of a larger, much more powerful one. It¡¯s not like I had any particular feelings of attachment towards the Samak Horde as a whole either. It was the underlying reason why Zenom invited me to Turina which bothered me. And I had no reason to pretend it wasn¡¯t otherwise. ¡°Is it because of [Aura]?¡± I asked plainly. He felt his nod. ¡°It is.¡± I nodded back, satisfied that the Holy Knight wasn¡¯t the type to play games with words. ¡°What about Aura? I¡¯ve heard my own stories.¡± ¡°Such as?¡± His voice was eerie in the ocean darkness. ¡°That the Turina Empire sends assassins to kill those who learn Aura. That the knowledge of Aura is a closely guarded secret, even within the Empire itself. Unless you¡¯re a Scion or a Knight of some sort, it¡¯s almost impossible to learn the skill.¡± I grinned bitterly. ¡°A blessing granted to the humans that¡¯s being kept from them by their own people.¡± ¡°The Turina Empire has stood tall, a beacon of shining hope for humanity because of its closely guarded secrets and the military might that results from it.¡± Zenom was talking to me, and at the same time talking to himself. Like he was reciting something he memorized, that someone else told him. A story from long ago. ¡°But the ages have changed, and not all humans are loyal to the Turina Empire. For the Empire to stand as a shield for the innocent, it must keep the secrets of its weapons closed off, lest they fall into the wrong hands.¡± ¡°Funny how Zimmskar doesn¡¯t do that.¡± Zimmskar, the only other nation that was mostly homogenous in race. ¡°Nor the Dwarves. Or the Elves. Neither does the Orcs for that matter.¡± ¡°They are not the same as us.¡± Zenom whispered quietly into the night. ¡°They do not hold the same torch that we do, blazing bright with truth for the rest of the world to see. They do not know the true mission that we of the Church, nor share the same vision for the future.¡± There was hungry fervor to his voice. I knew instinctively that Zenom knew something about the item that we were fetching. Of course, from what Aurora and Kyrian told me, he was practically a hero. He wasn¡¯t stupid either, just brainwashed. He knew what the Empire wanted to do and what its endgame was: War. But unlike me, he knew why the Turina Empire wanted this War. And it made me hungry for it as well. I wanted the answer to this mystery. Why was the human empire so bent on rapid expansion? Did it have something to do with the Players? If the gods were moving, no doubt that the Turina Empire was the chosen chess piece of the Light, Flame and Shield. Just what reason did their god give to his people, to justify genocide and the massacre of entire countries? ¡°What¡¯s the vision?¡± I whispered in the same tone. The answer was so close, it was on the tip of Zenom¡¯s tongue. This was not the direction I had seen this conversation taking. But how could it not? Zenom, for all his smarts and battle prowess was a mushroom ¨Ckept in the dark and fed bullshit. He was brainwashed as they came, the perfect soldier and the perfect Holy Knight. Practically bred to be a zealot. What else could he talk about but the great cause of all this? This reason that forced us to take the chances on a small boat out in the ocean where unseen leviathans lurked? ¡°We,¡± Zenom declared at last, voice dripping with worship. ¡°Are saving the world.¡± When someone says they are saving the world, it sounds corny. When Zenom said it, it wasn¡¯t cheesy at all. It was scary. There was so much seriousness and reverence packed into the words that I almost wondered if he packed it with mana. He believed with all his being that they were saving the world. And just from hearing those five words from him, all my hopes of taking the Autarch¡¯s Key from under his nose went out the window. I knew by the end of this mission, I would have to kill him. I think he knew it too. This wasn¡¯t just a casual invitation to visit the Turina Empire. It was a job offer. Cast aside my ways and join him. Turn sides, so to speak. ¡°One day,¡± I answered back. ¡°I¡¯ll have to see Turina myself. But not right away, no.¡± Zenom didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Just know, Lock Slaveborn, that for someone like you, the invitation is always open.¡± Zenom replied. And just as he finished speaking, sunlight exploded over the horizon. It basked the world in glorious light, fanning out in all directions. It showed me Zenom Saintred in full regalia, his blonde hair swaying slightly. His bastard sword rested on the floor, both his hands on the hilt. His blue eyes stared straight at me as his shadow stretched and stretched and stretched. I stared right back at him and knew that my eyes weren¡¯t the baby-blue of a Hero. I had seen them before in the mirror. They were the pitch black darkness of the open ocean on a night, with horrible things lurking beneath the surface. And that was before I met Coum. Now¡­ Now I don''t like looking in the mirror anymore, because I don¡¯t like the person who stares back. Zenom apparently shared the sentiment because he looked away first. Behind his back, I saw the first signs of the island, rising up slowly from the edge of the world. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived, Zenom.¡± I said to the Holy Knight. ¡°Let¡¯s wake the others.¡±
Chapter 121: Mutiny World: MSS - Loading...
There was no time to waste. The small fleet we left behind would continue to sail towards the island and it was imperative that we gain the intel necessary for the decision, to turn back or not. As such, there was no touching farewell or hugs. Just grim nods of acknowledgement and a simple hand-wave to the backup party on the other ship. Instead of the voice of our party members, we consoled ourselves with the clanging metal of armor and weapons, blades hissing into their sheaths. Then we set off into the Island, leaving the boat behind. My initial thought was that the island was barren, but that wasn¡¯t so. It was teeming with life, I just wasn¡¯t used to the type of life that inhabited this place. Rightfully so, the trees were twisted and warped, their color like black ash and their strange white flowers smelling of sulfur. The whole island was covered in a combination of a glossy black rock that resembled glass, and what looked like ash packed together. There was lava everywhere and I saw Borealis and Zenom ¨Cthe one¡¯s with metallic armor¨C struggling, sweat beading their brows and dripping from their necks. Everywhere I looked, the island¡¯s glass-rocks reflected the red glow of the lava, making everything emanate with an angry otherworldly glow. It wasn¡¯t the best outlook we had, hell, the steam curled and made everything into a hazy fog. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for all the lava, it¡¯d be pretty.¡± Delas sniffed. ¡°Almost.¡± All of us ignored the rogue¡¯s comment. There was no time to banter, we had to keep our eyes peeled and ready for action. We walked for hours ¨Cthe island was bigger than Zenom had indicated. We could walk for over a day and not reach the other side. No one spoke and no one gave orders. Zenom just looked around, his mind dazed from the heat that dissipated within his templar helmet. It wasn¡¯t just the heat either, the fact that we were in an unknown place with unknown monsters that could jump out at us at unknown times; everything was mounting up and I could feel the pressure mounting up to a breaking point. The stress reached a peaking point for Borealis first. ¡°I¡¯ve seen that tree before.¡± Borealis said, pointing to a tree. As one, all of us looked at it. It was gnarled and ashen. Same as every other tree. ¡°Cuckoo~¡± Delas quipped. ¡°Silence, Delas.¡± Zenom snapped. Delas frowned. ¡°What was that?¡± In an instant, the bald rogue¡¯s expression turned from nonchalant to an ugly scowl. He stalked towards the Holy Knight, the contract between them emphasized by the long red glowing lines and shadow cast about the whole place. I looked at the sky. It was nearly black with flakes of ash falling down. At the same time, Borealis marched over to where Arione was. More precisely, he headed towards Arrosh, the Pathfinder of this party. The blind orc had ditched the hooded garb, though he kept the cloak. Now, everyone could see his milky eyes and the wisps of hair that remained. Then there was the fact that Arrosh wasn¡¯t the typical orc, he was neither muscled nor tall. He had the build of a thin youth. Borealis grabbed Arrosh by the edge of his cloak, pulling the orc in close. I saw the the lava reflected in the man¡¯s eyes ¨Can ugly hateful scarlet strain in his pupils. He snarled in front of the orc swordsman¡¯s face. ¡°Are you truly a pathfinder? I found you suspicious the moment you showed up with Arione. How do I know you¡¯re not a fraud just like the elf over there?¡± Arrosh didn¡¯t respond and it took me a moment to see why. The tip of a wickedly curved dagger rested on Boreals¡¯ throat. ¡°Let me go, young human. For I keep the tempest at bay, but once released; the headwind will have no rest.¡± He said calmly. The dagger gave Borealis pause but the Scion snarled pressing his neck in towards the dagger. For a breathtaking second, the dagger pressed in towards the Shielder¡¯s neck, threatening to pierce skin ¨Cbut it held. There was no blood and Borealis¡¯ throat was intact. ¡°Whipping out a blade at the sign of first trouble?¡± Borealis snarled. ¡°Tell me the truth, orc-scum. Are you truly a Pathfinder? If you are, are you truly of a grade high enough to be on this with us?¡± ¡°Calm, Borealis.¡± Zenom muttered but even he was glaring at Arrosh. ¡°Oy, I¡¯m not done with you, pretty boy.¡± Delas grabbed Zenom¡¯s shoulder-plate from behind. Zenom whirled in furious motion, grabbing the Rogue¡¯s wrist and twisting from his ankles, knees, hips and his back. In an impressive display of speed, the large man threw Delas over his back and into an outcropping rock which was glowing red. Delas spun in the air neatly, regaining his balance and bounced off of the boulder. He snarled and flicked his wrists, bringing out curved daggers that pointed towards the opponent instead of inwards. The rogue spun them, their edges gleaming with bloodlust. Meanwhile, the conflict between Borealis and Arrosh had spread to Arione as well. The Grade-2 Mage was subtly gathering mana, and by subtly I meant that the wind had picked up noticeably. Scalding ash began to gather around his feet, a whirlwind of white-blue streaks of mana tainted by rivulets of lava that steamed. Borealis said something which was drowned out by a loud ringing sound in my own ears, Arrosh giving a calm retort. Gods, what was that ringing sound? I hadn¡¯t noticed but it had been building up. Zenom drew his bastard sword and it lit up with bright light. He hefted it with one hand, pointing it towards Delas. The ringing was so loud that it was almost painful now. Borealis drew his shield and ran towards Arione but Arrosh lunged up, holding onto the edge of the shield and freaking drop kicked the Scion. Borealis stumbled backwards but resumed his charge, his face drawn out in a battle cry. I couldn¡¯t hear it though ¨Cwhen I touched my ears, my hands came away slick with blood. This whole expedition would end in failure. Not even a full day had passed and already, these adventurers were bickering like pitiful children. Zenom should have listened to me. A seasoned group of adventurers would have a sense of trust that they could fall back on in times like this. The fear of the unknown would be lessened by having comrades around you, whom had been with you in situations exactly like this. The man only knew how to complete missions, not free-form expeditions like this one. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Then there was Borealis and Delas. Why the hell did they have to be so aggressive? They could have just talked it out but resorted to violence. Stupid Arione, just standing there and not saying anything. Also Arrosh didn¡¯t have to draw his blade. If he just had the sense to tell us- ¡­What the hell was I doing, blaming other people? Blaming Arrosh of all people? Oh God. As soon as I realized it, I saw the condition of my own mind. I was not just being emotional, but irrational and any minor inconvenience became someone¡¯s fault. That annoyance fed on itself turning into full-blown anger and rage. But that wasn¡¯t natural, it should take more than a few hours for someone to turn into that. We were in a Special Field. In fact, this whole island was a special field. ?You have entered Special Field: Quick to Anger! ? ?Field Effect: Quick to Anger! Is now active ? ?Field Effect - Quick to Anger!: [Anger] increased by 50% ? ?Field Effect - Quick to Anger!: Characters are more likely to be aggressive & belligerent! ? ?Field Effect - Quick to Anger!: All [Fire] and [Lightning] based abilities and skills have 30% increase to damage! ? ?Field Effect - Quick to Anger: +50% to all Monster [Attack] ? I had been so focused on the lava that I had completely forgotten about the [Mental] stat. Of course, I had been approaching this from a purely physical perspective, looking for monsters that might be hiding or where there might be bursts of lava from the ground. But MSS wasn¡¯t that one-dimensional, it was directly affecting our psyche. There was another pull of anger, for me to blame myself and start slamming my fists on the floor. I moved before it could grab ahold of me. ¡°Stop! All of you!¡± I yelled out but it was too late, the adventurers were starting to fight for real. I had to stop them, if no one else, I had to stop Arione. A grade-2 mage letting loose here could get everyone killed. Hell, it might level half the island if it weren¡¯t careful. Even with my immunity to magic damage from [All Mages must Die!], there were many other ways to kill me. Suffocation, being buried alive from debris, etc. I flickered into motion, drawing the Lunar Shield. ¡°Arione! Over here!¡± I cried out, drawing the Mage¡¯s attention. Normally, it would be suicide. But this island was full of shadows. Arione¡¯s pale-green-blue eyes were rabid with unseemly rage and with a casual combination of hand seals, sent a blast of fire flying straight at me. I took the blast of superheated air head on. When things get hot enough, all sorts of things happen and not all of them are just burns. There was a clap of thunder as the heat spiked to a peak and packed all the air into a dense wall ¨Ca shockwave. I dug into my heels as the shockwave threatened to throw me back, while an instant later I was engulfed in a raging inferno of fiery fury. My boots became clad in shadowy tendrils and I dipped inside my own shadow, appearing behind Arione. I grabbed the back of his neck and squeezed. Hard. At this point in the game, Mages were nothing to me. Especially in a situation where speed was all that mattered. Now, give Arione some time to prepare with the clarity of mind and he might have a chance, but with the Named Shadow Wolf¡¯s Core beating inside my soul; it wasn¡¯t farfetched to call me a specialized Anti-Mage Knight. Arione choked. Typical of the fragile mage¡¯s body and tried to move his hands into seals. There was a second where I thought about squeezing the life out of him, but it would only be temporary. Who knows how many artifacts and relics the Grade-2 Mage put on his body, even if he was affected by the Special Field, it wouldn¡¯t be easy to kill him. Mages were the ones who knew best about their own body after all. Besides, we still needed him. Atleast, according to Clover. Still, this was a chance to make the mage suffer. I used Arione¡¯s body like a cover, heading towards Borealis and Arrosh. The two had drawn their blades ¨Cthe elderly orc with the cane-sword and Borealis his gladius, matched in a sparring match. Neither of them had used a particularly flashy Core ability yet and I came in the middle just in time. Borealis gladius whistled as if threatened to create a new hole in my lungs but I brought Arione to the front like the shield. The elven mage yelped and created a translucent shield made of blue ¨Ca Mana Shield. The gladius bounced off of it and Borealis doubled down, leaping over the shield and attempting to stab through the slender mage. I threw Arione to the side ¨Cconveniently towards Arrosh¨C and saw Borealis¡¯ surprised expression as I stabbed upwards with my own sword. Thankfully, my sword was still sheathed. Because if it weren¡¯t I wouldn¡¯t have just slammed it into Borealis¡¯ balls, but created a clear dissection between the two. The shielder¡¯s face turned red as he fell to the floor, foaming at the mouth. I don¡¯t care how good of a shielder you are, if you¡¯re a guy, that move should work every time. Too bad it didn¡¯t exist in the game. Subconsciously naming the skill [Egg Breaker], I backpedaled and spun to find Arrosh raining blow after blow on the panicked Elf¡¯s shield. I saw the beginning of black lightning flicker over Arrosh¡¯s sword and moved decisively, sneaking up behind him kicking his ankles out from beneath him. But the orc reacted with the reflex of a cockroach-rodent, using the falling momentum to try and cut my wrist clean off. Grabbing Borealis, I threw the shielder to Arrosh and used the distraction to pin him [Ryker¡¯s Manacles] from my Dimension Ring. Then I spinning in one neat movement, I threw the Lunar Shield, infusing it with Aura It sailed smackdab in between Delas and Zenom, halting their battle for the faintest of an instant. It was enough. ¡°I said stop! All of you!¡± My voice cracked like a whip and sounded especially loud in the ensuing silence. Zenom¡¯s sword had been radiating with white-yellow light and he turned to me, the full might of a Holy Knight brought to bear. ¡°You dare use your Heretic Aura against me? A Holy Knight of the Church? Ordained by the-¡± I quickly stepped forward until our faces were only inches apart. ¡°Shut your mouth, Zenom, and control yourself.¡± I muttered, staring straight into his eyes. ¡°Because right now, this whole situation is your fault.¡± ¡°Or is the so-called Discipline of the Holy Knights nothing but words?¡± In the game, the Holy Knight had been praised for their self-control and discipline. It wasn¡¯t empty praise, they had a whole wardrobe of self-buffs for the [Mental] stat. The taunt worked and Zenom took a step back. He brought a closed fist to his heart, a yellow glow being absorbed into the breastplate. He closed his eyes, murmuring to himself. Or a prayer to his god. ¡°And Delas, if you take another step closer; we¡¯re going to have a problem.¡± I finished. Delas was creeping up behind me. Figures a rogue would do that. Still, it spoke volumes about how badly this place affected our decision-making, he wasn¡¯t even using any active stealth skills. ¡°Oh yeah, what¡¯re you going to-¡± Of course, the Rogue taunted before acting. For me, it was the opposite. My hand whipped behind me and without even looking, I knew that the tip of my sword struck into his lower abdomen, knocking the breath out of him and causing a sharp pain that traveled up to his neck. I could practically see Delas sneering after catching his breath. ¡°Took out the Scion and Mage the same way, did you? You an expert on anatomy or something?¡± I didn¡¯t answer. But I wanted to tell him, that I knew so much only because Coum¡¯s teachings were still fresh in my mind. Sensing Delas had stopped moving, I spoke again. ¡°This whole place is a Special Field.¡± Then I lowered the blade. ¡°No shit,¡± Delas quipped. But when I turned to face him, his daggers were gone. He looked left and right, judging the distance between him and Zenom and Borealis. ¡°It¡¯s full of lava. You think that¡¯s just the decor?¡± ¡°He¡¯s talking about our minds.¡± Borealis whispered, breathless. He was sprawled out on the floor and there was a fist-sized crater near his head. Actually, there were a good number of them. The Scion had slammed his fist to the ground in pain. ¡°It¡¯s not a Special field that affects our body, but is aimed at our minds.¡± Arrosh and Borealis had taken Ryker¡¯s Manacles off of themselves, both of them looking at me wearily. Well, Borealis did anyways. ¡°Anger rains from clouds in this place.¡± Arrosh agreed. ¡°And you were immune from this?¡± Zenom joined us, looking much calmer than before. I shook my head. ¡°No. But seeing you guys helped and realizing that this place might be a Special Field broke me out of it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a strong one.¡± Arione had his eyes closed, his palm on the ground. ¡°At least by a half-fold. It¡¯ll affect decision making, anger; any slight annoyance might turn into full-blown rage.¡± ¡°And you only thought now to look at it?¡± Delas said scornfully, turning to Zenom. ¡°This is the Grade-2 Mage you chose? The Mage in my own party would¡¯ve-¡± Zenom fixed Delas with a look. ¡°Enough! You¡¯re doing it again!¡± I got between the two, and with no light effort, pushed the heavily armored Zenom away. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter that Arione is checking it just now, what matters is that we know about it. Don¡¯t focus on what went wrong, focus on what we can do to fix it moving forward.¡± Zenom shook his head wearily after a moment. ¡°...Slaveborn was right. I should have been wary of this. I apologize.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not your fault, Sir Zenom.¡± Borealis muttered. ¡°No, it is.¡± Delas said at once. Arione nodded too. Borealis frowned but didn¡¯t deny it. You see, the party leader is in a unique position. You call the shots, you make the decisions. You¡¯re the boss. But with that privilege comes a heavy responsibility: Your choices determine the fate of your party members. And as our party leader, Zenom had not only just put us all at risk, but did so even before seeing a single monster. And everyone knew it. I didn¡¯t plan this. But I recognized an opportunity when I saw one. ¡°Zenom, I¡¯ll be taking over now.¡± I said without any preamble. The Holy Knight¡¯s eyes flashed with anger, facing me. ¡°What did you say, Slave?¡± I didn¡¯t flinch. ¡°I know more about monsters. I know more about expeditions. If we meet the Bada Orcs here, I can parlay with them; because barring Arrosh, I¡¯m the one who knows about Orc Cultures best. You¡¯re too used to being given a singular goal. What we need right now isn¡¯t a Knight on a mission, but an Adventurer who can make decisions based on an assortment of things he finds that he wasn¡¯t looking for. Do you get the difference?¡± Zenom didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Call it, Zenom.¡± I said quietly. ¡°Do you truly think you can lead better than me?¡± Zenom growled but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. ¡°You know the answer to that.¡± I turned to the others. ¡°They know it too.¡± I said it on purpose, to grate on people¡¯s nerves. To feed the anger that the Special Field was already fanning into a bonfire ¨Cfor them to recognize that anger. Once again, they¡¯d be reminded that I was the one who cleaned up Zenom¡¯s mess. Delas and Arione agreed first. Borealis looked away instead of answering. But really, it was Zenom¡¯s decision that mattered. ¡°Fine, Slaveborn. I will follow your lead, for now.¡± Good. This was my party now. Chapter 122: Democracy World: MSS - Loading...
¡°First thing we¡¯re going to do is change up the formation.¡± ¡°What was wrong with the previous formation?¡± Delas muttered crossly. I sighed. I didn¡¯t want to dignify it with an answer. ¡°Before, we had Arrosh standing in front. Followed by you and me, then followed by Zenom. Arione and Borealis were at the back.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m asking what¡¯s wrong with that formation?¡± I gritted my teeth. How the hell was I supposed to explain that in MSS, something like a formation was directly related to how a fight might play out? Having a good formation was the first step in any fight and could mean the different between party wipeout and survival. ¡°Borealis will be in the front. Arrosh will be right behind him. Arione and Delas will be next, followed by Zenom. And I¡¯ll bring up the rear.¡± ¡°You¡¯d place me with an orc?¡± Borealis began, but I cut him off. I didn¡¯t have time for his racist bullshit here. Not in this new environment. Because my instincts were screaming that the effects of the special field weren''t the only dangerous thing here. It continued to warn me that we were in danger. That this was serious and was way beyond what Zenom had anticipated when bringing us to this island. ¡°Another rule, obviously the effect of the Special Field gives us short tempers.¡± I gestured at the lava around us. ¡°If you act out in any way that¡¯s indicative of the special field affecting your minds, let us know. Or if you see anyone else succumbing to the effects, inform the others.¡± ¡°You have a way to lessen the effects of a Special Field?¡± Zenom muttered. He looked much calmer now that he had put a [Mental] buff on himself. I kind of wished we had bought a Priest instead. A Priest would have been able to buff everyone. Alas, a Holy Knight was specialized for individual combat. ¡°It¡¯s simple. Two people will hold that person down, and we¡¯ll kick them in the balls.¡± I said, looking straight at Borealis. Borealis winced and turned away. ¡°...That¡¯s barbaric.¡± Zenom hissed, growing angry. ¡°Assaulting a Scion, not to mention jeopardizing the future of a Great House; that is unacceptable. I cannot permit you to damage Borealis¡¯ seeds in such a way.¡± ¡°You have a better idea?¡± ¡°Think of another one. You have claimed ownership over the party. Borealis¡¯ seeds are off limits.¡± ¡°Zenom, you¡¯re the type to find reasons why it cannot be done first huh?¡± I shot back. ¡°Borealis¡¯ seeds are the future of-¡± ¡°What¡¯s up with your love of Borealis¡¯ seeds¡­¡± Delas quipped. ¡°Because they are the treasure of-¡± ¡°Enough about my seeds! I will take the punishment if need be!¡± Borealis snapped. ¡°By the Light, please stop talking about my seeds like it¡¯s some kind of¡­ of thing!¡± ¡°It is a treasure. All Scions have a responsibility to be fruitful, to bear many heirs. For they are the strength of the empire. You are a Scion and therefore, your seeds-¡± Zenom was interrupted for the third time when Borealis growled and actually lunged at him. Shocked, Zenom leaped but but he didn¡¯t need to: Arrosh and Delas caught Borealis by the arms. ¡°Zenom! You fucker! I told you to-¡± I stepped up to the livid Scion, swinging my sword and catching him in the precious Turinan Treasures. Of course, my sword was sheathed. He quieted down. While Borealis breathed heavily in and out, curled up in a fetal position on the ground with his eyes still glaring at me, I looked to the others. ¡°Effective, no?¡± Arione stared, eyes wide with shock. ¡°This cannot be happening. No.¡± Something dark from inside me emerged, the thing that likes to see others in pain. And in fear. "Just give me a reason." I meant to go for humorous but it came out hostile. Arione looked away. It was such a small thing. Such a dismissible interaction that no one should remember. But I knew, and the dark thing inside me knew, that it would matter. Zenom frowned at Arione and then at me. ¡°I said-¡± ¡°Careful there, Sir Zenom.¡± I said quietly. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t want anyone to think you¡¯re getting angry.¡± Delas and Arrosh took position next to Zenom, ready to restrain him. Zenom paled visibly then coughed into his hand. The Holy Knight did not deign to answer. ¡°And you? How come you¡¯re so fine?¡± Delas asked. ¡°Don¡¯t focus on the emotion, wall it off.¡± I said. ¡°You call that advice?¡± Delas complained. ¡°How the hell am I supposed to do something like that?¡± I shrugged. I didn¡¯t want to tell him how much practice I had walling off pain, trying to find some dark corner of my mind where I could whimper in peace when Coum was torturing me. My character had never been tortured before, but I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if it unlocked some sort of achievement. Or maybe it was just mental growth, not something that could be reflected with stats. A technique of sorts. ...How much of it was thanks to Delas? ''Careful... you don''t have concrete evidence yet.'' I told myself. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Regardless, the banter died down and was replaced by gnawing worry. The time for comedy was over and the red-stained gloom flooded the group again, ready to be sparked into genuine rage. I knew that the Special Field was affecting their minds and this wouldn¡¯t be the last time someone lashed out. It would fall on me to keep a close eye on them. Ushering the misfit adventurers and Holy Knight into the formation, we continued the expedition. The lava gave off a constant glow as we went deeper and deeper into the island. The trees became larger and somehow menacing, the branches curving in ways to cast long sinister shadows. The ground popped and gurgled, forcing us to watch where we walked, lest we stray into a bog that could be faster than quicksand, except it¡¯d be a pool made of liquid fire. Arrosh¡¯s steps were sure and quick. He walked in this kind of shuffling gait that splayed out his legs but seemed to find the right footing without tripping over anything. Which was just as well, the ground was beginning to be covered in thorny branches. With the lack of sunlight which was blocked by large ash clouds, visibility was becoming an issue. Twice we had to stop. Once because Delas went mad, smacking at his own legs with his daggers. His eyes were bloodshot and the rogue screamed as he started cutting up the thorny brambles. Screaming in fury, even after the brambles around him were gone, he began to slice into his own skin. Borealis and Zenom quickly restrained him while I did the honors. Arione was next. His was much subtler. He didn¡¯t yell or scream, as much as put a hand towards the sky and sent out a blast of blue fire, so hot that it instantly evaporated the sweat on my skin and singed my eyelashes. He turned towards us, eyes lighting up with red mana. In that moment of hesitation, I moved forward, ignoring his flames and subdued the Mage. ¡°That was weird.¡± I whispered while Arione wheezed on the ground. ¡°What about it?¡± Delas looked at the sky and at the burnt wreckage around us. Then he looked to me, eyes calculating. ¡°He¡¯s a mage.¡± I pointed at Arione. ¡°This Special Field, it¡¯s designed to attack our minds. Yet, Arione was the first to crumble. Doesn¡¯t that strike you as odd?¡± ¡°He wasn¡¯t.¡± Borealis joined in. ¡°We all succumbed to it, remember?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying.¡± I explained. ¡°It¡¯s weird that he got affected at the same rate as everyone.¡± ¡°What¡¯s weird is that you and the blind orc are not falling to it.¡± Delas said. I wanted to point out how much harder it was to contain my anger whenever they talked back to me. But that wouldn¡¯t help the morale. I swallowed it for the umpteenth time, walling off the anger. The fact that Arione, a Mage who probably had the highest [Mental] stat, said something. Was there a connection between Delas and Arione that I was unaware of? We continued walking, each of us keeping an eye on the other. This was bad. It was breeding discontent and mistrust. I could see this place becoming a death trap; this island didn¡¯t need monsters. It could just be a huge pot designed to have the adventurers killing themselves. Parties imploding. It was like this for strangers, how bad could it be for a party that had internal turmoil and drama? ¡®Not the party I made. It didn¡¯t seem like they had points of contention, just yet.¡¯ I consoled myself. ¡°Keep your eyes open.¡± I said. ¡°If there¡¯s anything that looks out of place or strange, let the rest of us know right away.¡± ¡°Does lava count?¡± Delas offered. We walked for another hour before my advice became fruitful. Zenom was the first to find it. ¡°Lock Slaveborn, perhaps were you talking about something like this?¡± Zenom pointed to a tree in the distance. It took me a moment to figure out what he was saying. Hanging on the gnarled tree was a single fruit. It was shaped like a teardrop and bouncy to the touch, like a water balloon. It was contained in a thin clear shell, reflecting the luscious blue liquid within. I touched it and realized that the fruit was ice-cold. ¡°What is that?¡± Borealis said in awe. ¡°It¡¯s a [Fruit of Clear Mind].¡± I said right away. ¡°Truly?¡± Zenom said, surprised. I nodded. ¡°I recognize it. I¡¯ve seen it before.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so special about it?¡± Arione said crossly. Man, this guy must¡¯ve really played on the easy mode or played some mods without Special Fields. The [Fruit of Clear Mind] had a cleansing effect. It reset all debuffs and buffs, but that wasn¡¯t it. Once you ate the fruit, your characters Hunger Level, Tiredness Level and even the need for sleep would reset. MSS isn¡¯t a game without answers or a way out, it was just extremely difficult to find the answer. ¡°Eating it will lessen the burden in your heart.¡± Zenom explained. ¡°It might even quell the anger that we all feel, as well as refresh your body, mind and soul. Sleep, hunter, it will stave off all those things. I heard that it can even be helpful in recovering from wounds and mana exhaustion.¡± To add onto what Zenom said, it provided a 10% boost to health and mana regeneration. Nothing to scoff at in an expedition such as this one. ¡°We ain¡¯t fought a single monster yet. Might as well save it for later.¡± Delas reached out for the fruit. I grabbed his wrist. ¡°Stop.¡± He snarled at me, stopping abruptly as Zenom and Borealis stepped close to him. Delas cleared his throat. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Once you pick the fruit, it cannot be saved into an inventory. Though an Alchemist might be able to preserve it.¡± Zenom explained in my stead again. ¡°It will deteriorate rapidly.¡± ¡°Damn, you been taking lessons from Slaveborn?¡± Delas quipped, taking his hand away from the fruit at once. ¡°So the question remains, who will eat it?¡± Borealis said, eyeing me. Naturally, the decision fell to me. I was the leader of this expedition. It wasn¡¯t a hard decision either, I had my mind made up as soon as I saw the fruit. ¡°Arione, eat the fruit.¡± ¡°Huh? Me?¡± ¡°Hurry up.¡± I said, ignoring Borealis¡¯ and Delas¡¯ wistful looks. I gave it to Arione mainly because of his standing as a Mage, not to mention the highest ranking adventurer out of all of us. If he went on a rampage like before, I might be the only one who remained standing ¨CMaybe Borealis too. Delas and Arrosh, two of the more fragile members of this party, wouldn¡¯t stand a snowball¡¯s chance in hell. Quite literally. Arione picked the fruit and chomped down on it. ¡°Did it work?¡± Zenom asked. Arione nodded. ¡°It did. Wow, I didn¡¯t realize I was so¡­ angry. I hope I don¡¯t have a wrinkle anywhere.¡± ¡°Well? What¡¯s it taste like? Out with it!¡± Delas snapped. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ like¡­¡± Arione peered at me, then cleared his throat. ¡°Tastes like the type of fizzing water that they have in the Desert, but sweet and citrusy. The type that leaves a stinging sensation over your tongue, but clears out your throat. It was also very cold. Very pleasant.¡± Arione had just described soda. Delas groaned. ¡°Tell me the next one¡¯s mine.¡± ¡°The next one¡¯s yours.¡± I said immediately. ¡°Then Borealis, then Arrosh then me. We will rotate in this order whenever we find a fruit. Zenom, you¡¯ll have to sustain yourself on the buffs for now.¡± Then turning to Arrosh, I said, ¡°Arrosh, I know we¡¯ve been avoiding monsters. How close is the nearest monster here?¡± Arrosh held up ten fingers instead of answering. Right, he would try not to talk to me as much as possible. All for the sake of the cover. Arione already knew about our relationship, no need to clue in the others as well. ¡°Ten minutes?¡± He nodded. I thought for a second. A fruit ten minutes away from the den of a monster. Yet, along the way here, we hadn¡¯t seen a single fruit. ¡°Arrosh¡­ is this the nearest we¡¯ve been to a monster since we started?¡± Arrosh nodded in affirmative. I spat a curse. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zenom asked. ¡°These fruits only grow around monster dens.¡± I gestured at the gnarled tree. ¡°Of course, it can¡¯t be that easy.¡± Borealis grimaced. ¡°So to keep our sanity, we are forced to risk monster encounters. If not, we risk infighting. A tough decision.¡± No one spoke for a bit. ¡°Well? What will you do?¡± Zenom asked. ¡°Our goal¡­¡± I said after thinking. ¡°Is to see if this island is suitable for a temporary base, for us to make repairs. Do these trees look usable to you, Zenom?¡± Promptly, Zenom walked over to one of the trees. Drawing his bastard sword, he cut the tree in half. No Aura. Just sheer strength. Holy Knight and Priests work on a completely different magic system than us regular adventurers. They don¡¯t need Cores; they fulfill Quests. Quests that pertain to the church and to their god. By completing these quests, which can sometimes be as boring as completing a 24 hour fast or praying for a hundred days, they unlock abilities and skills. In a way, they work in a completely different skill system than us. It¡¯s not unique to humans either, all religion-based characters, regardless of race, work on this system. Zenom must¡¯ve completed a lot of quests to have a [Physical] stat that high. We gathered to look at the tree that Zenom cut down. Although the outside was ashen black, the inside looked just like any other tree, naked and bare. We took turns knocking on it and kicking it, checking how hard it was. ¡°It will suffice.¡± Zenom said, sheathing his sword. ¡°So the supply isn¡¯t an issue.¡± I gestured around us. ¡°But the Special Field is. We can¡¯t bring a fleet full of adventurers, priests and sailors onto this island and expect nothing to happen.¡± ¡°If a Blader or a Mage loses their temper at the wrong moment¡­¡± Borealis said, his face whitening. ¡°There are two ways to solve this. One is simple: we have a small team go and cut trees and bring it back out to sea.¡± I held up a finger, then another. ¡°The second¡­¡± Delas paled. ¡°Oh, hell no.¡± ¡°We find the strongest monster in this place and hope that its den has enough fruit to last a large enough group of people, just long enough for them to outlast the effects of this Special Field to do the repairs.¡± No one looked happy. ¡°Arrosh,¡± Zenom said, his eyes fixed somewhere far away. ¡°Where is the strongest monster on this island?¡± Wordlessly, Arrosh pointed towards the center of the island. A large mountain ¨Cno, a volcano¨C loomed over the trees, belching angry smoke into the sky. Lava poured freely and I knew that magma lurked just beneath the thin crust, ready to burst at the slightest interruption. It was so tall that the layer of smoke covered the peak, just out of view. There was no wind and no sunlight, everything around it was a twisted version of a mountain. Green trees were nothing but blackened stumps covered in ash, everything except the body reduced to brittle bark. I thought I saw shadowy figures lumber around but they were gone in the next moment, no doubt monsters that had made their homes near the mountain. Instead of giving us a sense of conquest, I knew that it would only fill us with more dread the closer we got to it. ¡°Oh, hell fucking no.¡± Delas swore. ¡°Call it, Zenom. This is a bust.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not up to me.¡± Zenom turned to me. ¡°It¡¯s up to Lock Slaveborn.¡± Zenom was a man of his word. Since he¡¯d given me control of this expedition, he¡¯d obey my choice. ¡°First, I¡¯d like to hear what everyone else would like to say.¡± I began slowly. ¡°You¡¯re all leaders of your own party, if not this entire expedition. I could only guess at how much gold your parties invested into preparing for this quest by the church: new Cores, equipment and training. Choose your words carefully, because if we turn back here, we¡¯re turning back towards Jayu.¡± The words I said had their intended effect. No one spoke right away, each of them struggling with their own thoughts. It as because everything I said had been true and been in the back of their minds, I had just forced them to come to terms with it. They just wanted to get off this strange new dangerous island, at the same time, they didn¡¯t want to admit that it would mean calling off the expedition. I already knew what they would say. Because they were all after the same thing. And Zenom knew too. He knew that these guys were all backstabbing two-faced traitors, wanting to swipe the key from underneath his nose. If not, adventurers were synonymous with greed and risk. This Holy Knight was entirely too familiar with how to handle adventurers for my liking. Dangerous. Zenom Saintred was dangerous. Just as I finished my line of thought, Borealis spoke first. ¡°My party is composed of Offsprings of the Great Houses. Since time immemorial, we have stood at the forefront of danger, protecting the empire and expanding its borders. This quest is no different, I will not turn aside from the duty of my ancestors.¡± Borealis looked at me. ¡°I say we press on.¡± ¡°Lives over coins.¡± Delas cut in. ¡°Head back. Find a different sucker to kiss your ass on this doomed quest.¡± Would a Player say let¡¯s head back? I looked to Arione and Arrosh. ¡°....I say we press on.¡± Arione said and suddenly smirked. ¡°If anything, I can just burn everything to ash, yeah?¡± ¡°Idiot, look around you. All the monsters in this island probably have some kind of fire resistance.¡± Delas muttered angrily. Arione shrugged with that smirk still on his face. Zenom turned to me. ¡°And you Slaveborn? What say you?¡± ¡°...I-¡±
Chapter 123: Hunt (1) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°There, I see another fruit.¡± Borealis pointed. He was right. About a hundred paces ahead, I saw the [Fruit of Clear Mind] on a low hanging branch. The translucent blue glow amidst this hellscape stood out so that even I could make it out from this distance. ¡°It¡¯s my turn! Finally!¡± Delas exclaimed. I held out a hand, holding him back. ¡°Arrosh, distance to the nearest monster?¡± The orc swordsman held up five fingers and with his other hand, pointed towards the east. ¡°Five minutes towards the east.¡± I closed my eyes, carefully feeling the warm breath of the volcano careen across my skin. ¡°Delas, stay downwind.¡± Nodding, the rogue sped off in a light jog, covering the distance with deceptive speed. ¡°Using the Wayfinder to figure out the location of the monster¡¯s lair, then sending out only the minimum number of adventurers necessary to retrieve the fruit,¡± Borealis commented. ¡°It¡¯s unconventional, but efficient nonetheless. This way, you lessen the risk of getting noticed by the monster with backup still close by.¡± I nodded, eyes fixed on Delas. Thankfully, he returned without trouble, having consumed the fruit. We continued on our way, looking for more fruits. Borealis. Arrosh. Then finally, me. We all ate the fruit once. Zenom was using his buff and since we were pressed for time, we skipped his turn. Now our minds were cleared of the effects of this Special Field, at least for the time being. Slowly, I faced the party. Truly, this was a party of strong adventurers. Arione, Delas and Borealis tried to look bored while Zenom retained his regal expression. Arrosh was unreadable. ¡°Ok, I think we¡¯re ready now.¡± I looked at the sky. ¡°Before nightfall comes, we¡¯re going to check out the volcano.¡± At first glance, there was no concept of night and day here due to the angry black smoke that blotted out the sky. But I knew better, one of the core mechanics of MSS was the day and night cycle. Since nothing had changed yet, I had to assume that it was day. Borealis looked at me, his eyes uneven. ¡°That would be the territory of the strongest monster in this place, if not the stronger variants. You¡¯d risk it?¡± ¡°Six adventurers. Tasty, fresh prey just walked onto this island. Yet,¡± I began, ¡°We haven¡¯t encountered a single monster here, why do you think that is?¡± The adventurers looked at each other, confused. It was Arione who answered. ¡°They¡¯re afraid.¡± ¡°They are.¡± I turned towards the volcano, measuring it with my eyes. ¡°Whatever lives in this place, it¡¯s strong enough to turn it into a barren wasteland. It¡¯s turned the volcano into a home and none of the monsters here dare come out. This plan is for naught, if we can¡¯t defeat the boss.¡± ¡°And naturally, if we defeat the boss, chances are that the other monsters might be afraid of us too.¡± Delas muttered. I motioned for Borealis and Arrosh to lead the way. When you¡¯re hiking it¡¯s impossible to tell how big the mountain is. One of the beauties of hiking is that when you reach the peak, your mind is able to comprehend just how massive the world is ¨Cthe view of a vista is not something that people easily forget. But those pleasures are often erased by the muscle aches and uneasy footing when climbing a mountain. MSS had neither park rangers nor government funding to maintain mountains or trails. Even less so for an island in the middle of nowhere. I¡¯ve been on islands like this before with a similar theme ¨Cperhaps not this exact one. There were thousands of islands in MSS and it was impossible to remember them all. But what I did remember was the fact that my character¡¯s had their stamina and morale rapidly drained during the ascent. Smoke got into our lungs, making it hard to breathe. It grew thicker and I could scarcely see the outline of the others against the black soil. The wind twisted this way and that without rhythm, bringing soot down and up into my eyes. Looking down didn¡¯t help at all, it filled the gaps of my visor and my eyelashes were all but caked in black grime. Even worse, we were trudging up and the ash mixed with some kind of underwater reservoir, turning to muck. It clung to our armor, making each step a struggle. It reminded me of Coum¡¯s spell, [Mire]. The ash beat us like a blizzard and Arrosh looked back, his body posture questioning. ¡°Continue.¡± I ordered, wondering if he could hear me. I pointed ahead of us, pointing it up and he nodded, leading the ascent once more. We walked for an unknown time, nearing the peak. And even before Arrosh cried out, I saw it. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. At first, I thought it was part of the volcano but upon a closer inspection, I realized I was wrong. It was big and that is an understatement. Colossal, massive and gigantic are the words that came to mind and at the same time, my brain continued to try and comprehend where the creature began and where it ended. But like walking on a mountain and being unable to comprehend the scope of its size until I climbed the peak, I knew I would never know how big the thing was until I had killed it and laid it out in front of me. Shaped like a snake, it was coiled around the volcano like a nesting constrictor. I could tell because the disgustingly dry scales were heaving with each breath, shooting soot into the air that joined the swirling bodies of smoke that blocked the sun¡¯s rays. I say the scales are disgusting because the creature must have been in the middle of molting ¨Cdry skin was still flaking off and there was a certain wetness of the creature that was just wrong. Like seeing a man who had been skinned alive. A lot of people who love animals like to watch weird things: like the birth of one ¨Cand sometimes those same people are fine with disturbing images like a baby deer being torn to shreds by a pack of baboons. But I¡¯m not one of those people and there was revulsion down in my heart at the rawness of life. I¡¯ve killed monsters and bathed in their blood before, even still my first instinct was to turn away from this thing. Fresh black and red scales writhed into place, and even as I watched they kind of locked into interlocking armor, kind of clicking into place. From the edges, I saw bits of red blood from where its skin had been scraped raw from the rocks. Its belly was fresh white like a egg yolk, both vulnerable and venerable at the same time. My eyes went down its sharp ridges, noting the four wings on its back ¨Chow long was this thing? Hundred fifty feet? Two hundred? There was a flicker of movement and the shuffling of footsteps. The thing had stuck out its tongue ¨Cand at the same time, revealed where its head was¨C and we¡¯d all reacted in surprise, taking a step back and getting into position. The tongue was split into three different ends, colored with a sickly dark jade green, sure sign of poison. ¡°Lock Slaveborn, do you recognize the monster?¡± Zenom whispered and I felt the other¡¯s gaze on me. Even Arione looked confused. ¡°It¡¯s a [Myung-Sa (øQÉß) ].¡± I answered. ¡°A Grade-5 Boss monster.¡± ¡°That thing¡¯s a grade 5?¡± Delas hissed. ¡°It¡¯s massive.¡± ¡°It¡¯s most likely a variant, it¡¯s not supposed to grow that big.¡± I¡¯d never seen such a huge Myung-sa even during the 14 years of playing or maybe I was having difficulty translating how big it was on the screen to real life. Its size was jarring and I couldn¡¯t tell where its head was anymore. ¡°A grade-5 boss monster.¡± Borealis had a slightly disgusted look on his face. He turned to Zenom out of habit then to me. ¡°What do you wish to do?¡± All eyes were on me again. A grade-5 boss monster. How long did I think I¡¯d have to adventure before killing a grade-5 monster like the Cheonma? Two? Maybe three? Yet, in my first year in MSS, I¡¯d killed the Cheonma. I hadn¡¯t gotten anything direct out of it, but I knew that Aurora had grown much stronger. As a result, my party as a whole grew a lot ¨Cand the growth wasn¡¯t limited to just the Core. Teamwork, strategy and battle prowess, those were all things that I¡¯d have to develop as I chased being at the top of this world with my comrades. What about now? These guys weren¡¯t my comrades, so there was no point in killing this boss monster. Yet¡­ A grade-5 boss monster and a variant to boot. What if it dropped a Core? Even split amongst the six of us, the sales proceeds to be considerable. Not to mention one of us could absorb it. Maybe I could pull another Aurora and just take it for myself, by ¡®accident¡¯. Hell, a grade-5 variant Core could be kept by me until something better came along. It was so good that even though it wasn¡¯t part of my build, I was willing to use it for awhile yet. Not to mention the items that could possibly drop. Artifacts and Legendaries that were a step above anything that these guys had as a weapon ¨Csomething on par with my Lunar Shield. I could have Arione cast the spell [Preserve]. It lowered the drops of a Core and Item but the parts from a monster this big¡­ entire sets could be made. Gone was Han. I was Lock, the Adventurer and greed was in my veins. Still, it wasn¡¯t just greed that drove adventurers though. Fighting a grade-5 field boss was sure to create scenes of chaos. Where people were bound to show weaknesses and we¡¯d all be pushed to our limits. What kind of choices would Arione and Delas make in those situations? Would Delas show me something that ousted him as a Player? For me to start actively plotting against him? And Arione? Would he be forced to show me a spell which he¡¯d been saving? But there was another reason. Ujo(Ô¢øB), a grade 7 Boss-class monster. The Named Variant of the Shadow Mimic Wolf, a Grade-7 boss monster. Prince Charming was around Grade 5 if I was being completely honest. The Tortured Spirit, a Grade 8 monster. And my latest Core, the Royal Oni, a Grade 4 monster. Plus my [Aura]. My growth had stalled. I felt it in the Scavenger¡¯s Base. When was the last time I fought a strong monster? Challenged myself and took a risk that wasn¡¯t involved in a questline or the [Player¡¯s Guild]? I wasn¡¯t growing stronger because those ties were holding me back. I was supposed to be hunting with my party, finding Cores and grabbing loot. Instead, here I was playing political subterfuge against Arione, Delas and Zenom. Was I ready for the main questline with the Church, fighting over the Autarch¡¯s Key when I was in this state? No, I needed to get as strong as I could before we got there. If I wanted to keep my party members alive, I needed to take risks. Looking back, my strongest growth spurts came through challenging myself and taking on risks. ¡°See how slick and slimy its scales are?¡± I pointed at the monster. ¡°Yeah?¡± Delas answered crossly. ¡°The creature has just molted.¡± I looked directly at Arione and Delas. They should know what I¡¯m talking about. The [Exhausted] status condition. Molting wasn¡¯t the only way for a monster to receive this condition, but it was one of them. A minus 10% to all stats, including damage. Defense was reduced to 70% of what it originally was. Plus, its abilities would be weakened as well, and there were some monster who had certain abilities deactivated with the Exhausted status. Adventurers will be adventurers. I saw them all perk up and peer at the peak with newly renewed vigor. ¡°Five minutes.¡± I said quietly. ¡°Be ready in five minutes.¡± Then I walked away from the group and began to ready myself. Zenom came with me. ¡°I was sure you would turn back.¡± He said to me, just out of earshot of the others. ¡°You said we need this island.¡± I answered, taking out my sword and taking a whetstone to it. ¡°I did.¡± He didn¡¯t sit down next to me and I avoided his gaze. ¡°But I was unsure if the others would be willing to fight a boss monster who¡¯s also a variant. It¡¯s grade notwithstanding.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look down on the greed of adventurers,¡± I muttered in reply, ¡°The monster is weakened and sleeping. A surprise attack might do half the battle for us. Plus,¡± I turned to him, eyes half covered by ash. ¡°We have the famous Zenom Saintred with us.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think you had such a penchant for flattery.¡± ¡°Neither did I.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not at all who I thought you were, Lock Slaveborn. You are more like a politician. You are more shrewd than I thought.¡± Zenom paused. ¡°Completely unlike the warriors of the North.¡± I froze. Slowly, I turned to look at him. Was he suspecting me right now? Of lying? Because he saw how I dealt with the adventurers? ¡­How far down the path would that suspicion lead him? What kind of theories would he imagine for himself? No. That was ridiculous. No one could suspect me of lying simply because I was a good party leader. Hell, I wasn¡¯t a good party leader at first. Even thinking about my first expedition with Clover and L¡¯teya had me kicking blankets at night sometimes. It wasn¡¯t that. Maybe he was just fishing. Trying to make me uneasy. I met his gaze evenly. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said at last. ¡°If you¡¯re done, I¡¯d like to focus.¡± Nodding, Zenom left my side. I pushed away my interaction with Zenom. I pushed away Arione and Delas, even Borealis and Arrosh. I focused on the blade in front of me, the Lunar Shield and the cold feeling of my armor. I wiped away the soot and ash, until I could move easily again. Then reaching deep inside myself, I went to polish the mind¡¯s blade, ready to dip into the state where I could use Aura. I was surprised by what I found there. Prior, I only found fear when facing a monster. The memories of pain visited me, unbidden. But they weren¡¯t painful, not anymore. Instead, they numbed me. They numbed me to the warmth of my blood, accentuating the sharpness of my sword. They numbed the fear of pain and death, until nothing remained but needle sharp indifference. A numbing pressure that started from the pit of my stomach and reached into my heart, slowing my heartbeat. No more thoughts of loot. No more thoughts of Cores. Just hunger. Hunger for the summit, hunger for dominance. That feeling of being alive after being pitted in a life or death fight. Something primal and raw, something so essential to those who lived on the edge of life. Hunger for the hunt and right now, I wanted to hunt this monster. A hunt where I chased down something strong. Something worthy, something that should be just barely out of my reach. When I opened my eyes, I found the others waiting for me. ¡°We begin."
124: Hunt (2) World: MSS - Loading...
A grade-5 boss-class monster in a Special Field versus a single party of adventurers, all grade-5 or below. Nine times out of ten, I¡¯d put my money on the monster. It¡¯s not that the abilities of the Monsters themselves are super strong. Actually, compared to the difficulty of the monster, the abilities themselves are horrendous. In MSS, abilities show their true worth only after you grab a couple of them which are synergistic in nature. Otherwise, a single ability isn¡¯t very good. The true strength of monsters lay in their stats, size and the superior conditions when in a Special Field. Borealis stepped ahead of us. ¡°Stay behind!¡± As the Vetilius Scion began to slam his gladius on his shield, red mist began to gather around him. A combination between [Belly Drum] and [Blood Mist]. While Belly Drum exchanged his HP for a raise in maximum HP and Defense, Blood Mist would take the loss in HP and cover the surrounding area with it. As long as Borealis was within the mist, % of all damage done in the mist would start restoring his HP. Finally, the [Myung-Sa (øQÉß) ] stirred. The ground shook as its long serpentine body began to move, like the rumblings of the earth before an Earthquake. Immediately, I felt my senses overwhelmed with awe ¨Chow could such a gigantic creature move? What kind of muscles could generate enough force to move a mountain? How much calories did it cost just to maintain its size? This wasn''t even the biggest monster I would encounter. Like the calm before a storm or the wake before a Tsunami, for a single breathtaking instant, everything was still. When the Myung-sa finally struck, it did not lunge towards us with its colossal jaws, nor did it spit the poison-acid that it was so well known for. All it did was unfurl its wings. No magic. No supernatural ability at work here. Just muscles of a creature so large and powerful that in ancient times, it would have been lauded as a dragon-god, worshipped by people in Asia and South America. It unfurled its wings with extreme prejudice. The wings snapped outwards with the crack of something shattering and sent a supersonic wave of densely packed air that clapped like thunder, uprooting entire trees and shaking boulders the size of small cars loose from the mountain side. And instant before he struck, I squeezed out my command before it was lost in the storm, praying to the gods that it would be heard. ¡°Arione! Shield!¡± Arione shoved his hands outwards, summoning a translucent dome made of mana. The wind howled as it struck the shield. For a breathtaking moment, we all saw the creature¡¯s wings begin to move; sending rippling shockwaves through the air. It bombarded the shield over and over again. But it held. This reconfirmed my decision: for now, I needed the mage. Then the creature turned to us and roared. Holy shit. I felt the organs in my stomach actually tremble in resonance with the things. Still, it was nothing compared to the [Mother Centipede]. Hell, it was nothing compared to the eerie pressure of Oung or the fiery will of Khan. The four damage dealers (me included), charged forward. Zenom let out a roar of holy wrath, hoping to match the reptile¡¯s sheer presence but came up short. Arrosh and I glided along like silent wraiths, while Delas shifted forward like a ninja, his steps light upon the earth. The first phase was simple. Getting rid of its wings. Which meant we had to get close. The Myung-sa¡¯s eyes glittered with greenish light as it looked at us. Fuck, already? ¡°Avoid its eyes!¡± I cried out, speeding up. It wasn¡¯t a moment too soon because the creature¡¯s eyes exploded into an array of greenish hues and two lasers fell down like a waterfall towards our location. The beams didn¡¯t explode on contact. Instead, they washed over the ground and left a growing path of spiked jade with deadly edges, steaming with dark greenish poison gas. Whereever the creature looked, it turned spaces the size of a large house into those lethal poisonous jade. It hissed and the air shook again, as its tail began to uncoil from the mountaintop. ¡°For the light!¡± I heard Zenom¡¯s cry and saw the blonde Holy Knight leap onto a moving tail, using his bastard sword to stab into the creature¡¯s scales. His aura stabbed through the scales and drew greenish blood, as the Myung-sa opened its mouth, revealing two curved fangs dripping with purplish liquid. The Holy Knight began to hack at the tail with abandon, all thoughts of our previous conversation about getting rid of the wings leaving his head. This was the famous Zenom Saintred that Aurora and Kyrian kept talking about? In the corner of my eyes, I saw Borealis move towards the Creature¡¯s head. My heart lurched, not because I was afraid for Borealis but because it was instinct. Like seeing a short video about someone being attacked by a Great White. Borealis was hardly taller than the thing¡¯s fangs ¨Che wouldn¡¯t even be a good appetizer. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Go! Leave the head to me!¡± The red mist around Borealis thickened, as he continued the [Belly Drum] ability. The Myung-sa moving revealed deep grooves in the mountain, each of them the size of a large hill. I bounded forward with Arrosh and Delas on either side, finally whipping my sword forward and readying my own techniques. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Share the Load] ? ?Lock Slaveborn casts [King¡¯s Guard] ? My [Share the Load] ability is an undodgeable, auto-targeting ability. Everytime I activated it, the thing summoned a manacle around my wrist and a matching set for the opponent that I designated, so it was no wonder when the ability made a manacle large enough to fit on the Myung-sa¡¯s neck. A manacle that was as big around as a redwood is thick. And then it clasped itself around the Myung-sa¡¯s neck. It went mad with fury. The snake-like monster started spitting disgusting blobs of acid, each bubble large enough to shower one of us from head to toe. Shit. There was no way that the Lunar Shield could block that. But the three of us were already at the soft part of its underbelly and we began to climb. I knew that if someone were to look upon this battle, it¡¯d be like watching ants climb flowers. Laboriously slow displays of grit, fortitude and strength. It was anything but slow. Each movement of the Myung-sa caused my heart to beat faster. It was uncoiling itself from the mountain with faster speed, like a bullwhip beginning to wind up before all the kinetic energy was released at the focal point. To us, there was no time for a wind-up. The creature had just molted and already, its scales were hardening before our very eyes. Knowing that we had no time, we started activating our techniques. ?Arrosh Bloodedge casts [Necro Fulgur] ? Black lightning surrounded Arrosh¡¯s cane sword as he bounded into the air, stepping on the wind. His Crow Spirit wrapped around the elderly orc, seeming to give him wings. He was the first one to reach the base of the wing and began to hack at it, black lightning sizzling with otherworldly energy. ?Delas Ender casts [Naturally Sharp] ? Delas was next to arrive at the wings, running across the Giant Snakes¡¯ body like a ninja. He brought his daggers above his head and scratched them against each other. They gleamed for one blinding instant and the rogue began to stab the base of the wings, hacking away with a cold cruel gaze. I was next. While Arrosh and Delas had both run there, I hadn¡¯t. I cheated. The Lunar Shield was locked into orbit around me, but it didn¡¯t always move with me. There was always a slight delay in following my movement, plus it tended to lock in around my chest. The inspiration came from Arrosh using [Air Jump], except I¡¯d use my shield as the foothold. I jumped and then leaped again by striking my feet against my shield, then when the shield completed its orbit, I jumped against it again. My body was loaded with [Physical] stat based Cores and each jumped threw me at least a dozen feet in the air. Within seconds, I was at the base of the creature¡¯s wing. The Myung-sa¡¯s wings were attached to its body with a tumor-like growth, soft to the touch. It strained, trying to take to the skies. But Arione cast fireball after fireball at the veiny flaps of skin and with each strike, the Myung-sa nearly screamed in pain. Between each cast of Fireball, he added in blades of wind that left long lacerating cuts on the creature¡¯s body. BOOM BOOM BOOM I had to give it to him. He wasn¡¯t a Grade-2 mage for nothing. He was doing loads of damage just by himself. Hell, given enough time, he might be able to solo the creature. But that would require precise movements in this hellhole and Arione had crippled himself by chaining the spells together, losing precious time to reposition himself. He was surrounded by pools of acid and clouds of poison, and even if he could teleport almost the entire mountain had been transformed into poisonous jade. If it wasn¡¯t for Borealis tanking the creature near Arione, the elven mage would have been reduced to a puddle on the ground long ago. ¡°Hurry up!¡± Arione snarled, panting. His voice barely reached us above the sounds of the explosions and the monster¡¯s cries. Even with the [Exhausted] condition on the monster, it¡¯s scales were fucking tough. Or maybe this sword I got from the Church¡¯s makeshift shop was just a piece of junk. Even with Aura, the creature¡¯s scales were simply too much for me to make a cut deeper than a few inches at a time. I snarled in anger, redoubling my efforts as the creature bobbed up and down, forcing me to pay attention to my balance as well. ¡°It¡¯s doing something!¡± Borealis cried out. Right as Borealis said it, I looked at the others. Fucking Zenom was still near the tail end, hacking at it while his own eyes were red. ¡­Did his buff wear off and now his mind had succumbed to the Special Field¡¯s anger effect? How long ago? Delas and Arrosh weren¡¯t making much progress either. ¡°Shit! This isn¡¯t working!¡± Delas cried out. There wasn¡¯t any other way. ¡°To me! To me! Cut together!¡± Delas and Arrosh obeyed immedaitely, both of them dashing over to my side. I took a look at Arrosh¡¯s hands, raw skin starting to surface. Not only that, Delas¡¯ eyes were shifty, looking for an escape route. I knew someone looking for a way out when I saw one. The combination of Arrosh¡¯s physical weakness and Delas¡¯ mental weakness made me nervous in turn. ¡°All together!¡± I cut into the stump holding the sail-sized wings above me twice more. The passive [Artisan of Battle] activated with each cut, but the magic damage wasn¡¯t making much progress either. Myung-sa had a high magic defense stat. ¡°On my mark!¡± Arrosh held his sword sideways, across his forehead. Delas took a few steps back, getting into a runner¡¯s pose. I held the sword high, ready for a diagonal slash. ¡°NOW!¡± I cried out. ?Arrosh Bloodedge casts [Heavenly Strike] ? ?Delas Ender casts [Dead Meat] ? ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Hateful Wound] ? Arrosh¡¯s [Necro Fulgar] reacted with [Heavenly Strike], covering his entire body in black lightning. Clad in electricity, the orc traveled ten paces in a single step, his sword leaving a gash that was two feet deep. Delas pounced forward, his legs acting like unloaded springs. His daggers glowed with sickly light green gaseous liquid and the daggers sunk into the creature¡¯s wing-stump with a stomach-curling squelch. The green gas drilled in on the dagger and spread to the meat around it, making it visually sag. I knew within moments, that area would turn gray and black. Normally, that should be enough to decapitate a monster but this was a grade-5 boss monster. Plus, there was just so much of the meat. ¡°Get off the thing! Now!¡± Borealis cried out again. I didn¡¯t watch to see if Arrosh and Delas would obey Borealis¡¯ warning. In a battle like this, instincts were to listen to warnings like that. Regardless, I had a job to do. I flew across the distance between myself and the creature, slashing down with Aura. Then activated Hateful Wound. So big was Myung-sa''s wing that when it fell, it fell in slow motion. Blood spurted out, splattering the front of my armor. I hissed as it began to melt, my sword beginning to show signs of corrosion. ¡°Disciple!¡± Arrosh cried out. The Myung-sa¡¯s blood covered the front of my armor and I knew that once the adrenaline wore off, I would have a nasty set of acid burns to deal with. But right now, I didn¡¯t care. The others might be chickening out, but I wouldn¡¯t. I wanted to hunt this monster and by the fucking gods of MSS, I wanted to see it through to the end. If we didn¡¯t cut off its wing, it would escape and then come back. If it did that, forget the Exhausted state. It¡¯ll have fed, be angrier and be all the more stronger for it. MSS had some weird mechanic where if you failed to hunt a monster, its stats got a boost. Eventually, those monsters would become Variants and then Named-Variants. Already, this creature was a Variant. If we let it escape here¡­ It could come back as a Named. ¡°Slaveborn! Arrosh!¡± Borealis cried out. I spared a glance and saw Delas duck behind Borealis¡¯ shield. When the hell did he get away from here? Did he think our job was done now that the wing was cut? Absently, I felt a sense of vertigo as the Myung-sa reared up, its wings beginning to move in earnest and great tempests of wind blew at me. Then the Myung-sa''s head whipped forward, jaws open and diving towards Borealis and Mage. I don¡¯t care how good a tank Borealis is, the snake was just too big. It¡¯s jaw was too big, impossibly wide and stretched to the limit. If it landed it would- Arioen threw a fireball so big that it made most of us close our eyes. The impact was followed by a smokescreen that covered almost everyone''s vision. But I saw it. Three needle thing laser-beams stabbed through the Myung-sa, creating smoking holes in its forehead. ?Arione Popwindale casts [Disintegration Ray] ? In the same way that its wing fell, the Myung-sa fell to the ground, lifeless and limp, creating another wall of smoke so thick that it covered the whole area for at least fifty yards out. ...What?
I have to admit, I was expecting a grand finale. Some kind of epic fight and ending. My blood continued to thud against the back of my head, the adrenaline still rushing through my veins. My brain refused to acknowledge that the creature was dead. There had to be more than this but my eyes weren''t mistaken, that had been a lethal blow on the weakened Monster. Like cutting away a bad wound, I mentally cut away the disbelief and focused on the now. How the hell did he cast Disintegration Ray, a spell that belonged to the Grand Mage? A spell that could be cast in any element, whether it be Fire, Earth, Lightning, Water, Ice, Wind; anything. However it was classified as a Grade-S Spell and was an exclusive to the Grand Mage and his disciples during the boss fight. Hell, no matter what Mage I played, I hadn¡¯t found a way to use it. I hated the developers for showing me such a spell, only to lock us out of attaining it. So how hell did Arione get his hands on it? When the smoke cleared, Arione walked towards us while Delas and Borealis calmed Zenom down. None of them had seen the spell. Just me... and Arrosh. Arrosh and I slid down the creature¡¯s body. The elf smirked. ¡°Heh¡­ that was supposed to be a secret.¡± He whispered in front of me and Arrosh. No one else was here except just Arione, Arrosh and me. Everyone had been scattered by the ensuing blast. Arione smirked in that infuriating way that made me want to stick a knife in his face. ¡°This isn''t a game. It takes more than game knowledge to become a powerful mage." As he walked by me, he whispered, "You sure you can reach the top with... what was his name? Kyrian? Didn''t seem too talented to me." Arione Popwindale. He had managed to get his hands on a quest, the same as me. To become the next Grand Mage. "Fuck."
Chapter 125: Hunt (3) World: MSS - Loading...
There were all sorts of questions I wanted to ask. First of all, how the hell was he going to cover this up? Thanks to the fireball¡¯s smoke, he had managed to hide the triple-cast of Disintegration Ray. But the evidence was right there, three neat little holes bored into the creature¡¯s skull, fresh steam still rising out of it. So far, Arione had taken a rather distant manner of approach to this party. No doubt, he was on uneasy terms with Zenom. I¡¯m not an expert on Arione¡¯s situation as a Player and his history with Turina, but given his personality, no doubt that it was on uneasy grounds. Ok, so let¡¯s pretend he can pretend the spell was something other than Disintegration Ray. I¡¯m actually willing to bet that even some mages wouldn¡¯t be able to recognize what Disintegration Ray is, let alone look like. But how¡¯s he going to explain how he killed the monster? Yes, he was a Grade-2 Mage. But one-shotting a Grade-5 Monster? Even if it was [Exhausted]? Taking into account the fact that it was Exhausted plus the fact that Zenom, Delas and I had been hacking at it for a while, it wasn¡¯t a stretch to say that a Grade-2 mage could finish it off. Anti-climatic death of the monster aside, I was willing to bet that Zenom and Borealis were going to take an interest. And if Delas truly was a Player, he would recognize Disintegration Ray at a glance. Just what was Arione¡¯s angle here? I turned to Arrosh, wondering if he had the answers. He had been spying on the Mage, perhaps he had the answer to these questions. But my master didn¡¯t have any answers. In the distance, Zenom had calmed down and was sheathing his huge sword. Borealis was stowing away his shield as well while Delas was trying to pry off a scale for himself. Arione walked towards the monster, about thirty paces from us, while trying to cast [Preserve]. Arrosh wasn¡¯t relaxed. He was faced towards the monster, his head held at an angle. ¡°Master Arrosh?¡± I whispered, careful not to let the others hear me call him that. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I hissed. ¡°Disciple.¡± Arrosh¡¯s sword-tip slowly rose again. ¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s not over.¡± Eyes widening, I turned to the others. I saw Arione stop dead in his tracks. ¡°This is strange.¡± I heard the Elven Mage mutter to himself. ¡°My [Preserve] is not working.¡± Oh shit. Sometimes, what you think is over isn¡¯t over at all. It¡¯s just the beginning. ¡°Everyone get away from the monster now!¡± My warning might have saved our lives. I grabbed Arrosh by the waist, picking up the skinny orc swordsman like a little kid over my shoulders, not even bothering to see if the others had obeyed. I turned tail and ran, even as the earth began to quake. There was the sound of something breaking and the sense that something had just gone terribly wrong. What I heard next almost made me stop and look back. The Myung-sa¡¯s scales were popping off like popcorn and if they weren¡¯t the size of small cars, I would surely have stopped to pick up a couple. As it were, they cut through the air like blades and embedded themselves in the ground, gleaming in the red-glow of this cursed island. Horrified, I continued running as the scale-blades continued to hum in the sky; each of them more than deadly enough to main me for good. Then the ground began to open. It was slow at first as all big things are. It started out small, spider-web cracks splintering through the dried ashen soil and outpacing me. Even pumping all I could into my legs, all I could do was watch as the signs of an earth-shattering power advanced ahead of me. It was followed by a bellow of the earth, as it screamed out in pain and gave birth to a four-sided crevice that originated from the Volcano that the Myung-sa¡¯s corpse was in. Finally, the Myung-sa¡¯s flesh stopped ripping. I knew even without looking because the air was filled with the screech of a thousand horrible cries. ¡°What the hell¡­¡± Delas had caught up to me and he dared to look back. I looked back too and I wish I hadn¡¯t. Thousands of baby Myung-sa¡¯s were crawling out of their mother¡¯s body. Slithering over each other, covered in slick-wet amniotic fluid, the baby monsters snapped at each other. Hissing and spitting, green mucus fell from their mouths, dripping with abandon. As soon as those mucus touched the ground, the ground turned to Jade and leaked poisonous gas. Even still, the baby snakes cried out and began to crawl over the sharp edges of the green-stones, their eyes searching for food. ¡°GO! GO! GO!¡± Horror filled my mind as I was brought back to the bottom of the Canyon, where insects were predators and we mortals were nothing more than a nesting ground. I could see it already, those baby Myung-sa¡¯s were hungry and already some of them were tearing their brood-brothers and brood-sisters apart. They tore one open with unnatural strength and more than a dozen of them swarmed the downed snake like lampreys to a corpse. Sickened, I almost wretched seeing the predator-turned-prey screech in pain, it¡¯s innards spilling out and being ripped into the mouths of the other Myung-sas.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Each Myung-sa was around 8-10 feet long, more than large enough to pose a danger to a regular adventurer. Did I mention that there were thousands of them? Just because a monster in MSS is a baby doesn¡¯t mean it has lower stats. It has the same base stats. A living army of hell had descended on this island and there would be nothing left. I saw Arione set up a barrier with Borealis at his side, while Zenom cleaved into the onslaught of nightmare baby snakes. They were trying to beat a controlled retreat and succeeding. A Grade-2 Mage with a skilled Tank like Borealis could hold the line for hours, especially if a Holy Knight like Zenom was providing buffs, healing and secondary tanking. Plus, with [Aura], both Borealis and Zenom could deal some damage. But this wasn¡¯t the time to worry about others. ¡°Disciple!¡± Arrosh twisted himself out of my grasp. ¡°Come! This way!¡± I didn¡¯t even bother looking to see where Delas had gone off to. I turned and followed Arrosh, trusting that he knew where we were going. Contrary to my expectations, the cracks weren¡¯t opening up and creating large canyons. My images of the sea water rising up through the crevices or worse ¨Cmagma emerging and making us into a nightmarish version of MSS Pompeii victims weren¡¯t going to come true. Instead, the cracks had only opened up to allow the ground to rise. The area around the volcano was being reshaped as cliff-walls rose into existence, entire slabs of stones creating blockades and threatening to create a snake-pit, except the snakes were 10 feet long Grade-5 Monsters who wanted nothing more than to tear into their mother¡¯s killers. Another imaginary scenario went through my mind. How would the other group fare? Arione, Zenom and Borealis? Borealis had outright shown hostility towards Arione in their meeting. How the hell were they going to fight off the Anger-inducing effect of the Special Field when they hated each other to begin with? And just how confident was Borealis that he decided to go off by himself? Unless, he did so because he couldn¡¯t trust us. I never had a lot of friends back in the real world. But as I chased after Arrosh¡¯s small back, I sent up a silent prayer of thanks for having people I could trust now. We ran away from the nightmarish snake-pit as far as we could, outpacing the newborn Myung-sa brood easily. It didn¡¯t matter though, it was only a matter of time until they swarmed over the entire island. Soon, they¡¯d start tearing into each other but not before hunting down all that remained of the adventurers. ¡®Don¡¯t think about that. Think about surviving.¡¯ My survival instincts kicked into full-drive, I turned my senses to listening for anything remotely resembling a hiss, the rustle of scales scraping over the ground or even the presence of greenish-gas. ¡°Over there!¡± I pointed towards a cave opening in the distance. ¡°Quick! The poisonous fangs approach us!¡± Arrosh warned, leaping ahead. I sped up and sure enough, heard the screech of the Myung-sa¡¯s right behind us. I did not want to fight against a Poison-status inducing Grade-5 monster without a Tank or a Mage. None of my Cores were designed to protect me against Status effects. I had items in mind for that and those were far away. Goddamit, screw Best-in-Slot items. I was going to spend all our party¡¯s money on getting us some useful Charms at our next stop. We entered the cave and without a word, searched the place. ¡°Young Storm! This one!¡± Finding a boulder, we grabbed and rolled it over the hole. It was just in time because one of the triple-split tongues actually flickered in through the gap before we slammed the boulder into place, crushing the appendage into nothing more a squirming piece of meat. For a moment, we said nothing, gathering ourselves. ¡°This,¡± I said finally, still gasping for breath. ¡°Is bad.¡± ¡°The clouds of death are gathered all around us.¡± Arrosh agreed. Goddamit, there were so many ways we could die here. The cave could have multiple opening in which case we¡¯d be swarmed by the Grade-5 monsters. I don¡¯t care how anti-climatic Mother Myung-sa died to Arione; Grade-5 monsters aren¡¯t a joke. And there was a whole swarm of them ruling over the island now. I wasn¡¯t even accounting for thirst, hunger or another factor: different monsters. Now that the Field Boss was dead¡­ other monsters would start hunting. They¡¯d prey on the smaller Myung-sa¡¯s which definitely had lower stats than the Variant (which their mother was). This whole island was going to become something like a pot full of insects, and only the strongest would survive. ¡°I don¡¯t like this.¡± I said finally. ¡°We need food. Water. We need-¡± ¡°It is not all that bad, my Disciple.¡± Arrosh said, scratching his chin. ¡°The clouds of death cast long shadows and we are hidden beneath it.¡± I had to think about what he was trying to say. ¡°You¡¯re saying¡­ that this is the perfect opportunity for us to¡­ do what exactly?¡± ¡°Train, young crow.¡± Arrosh¡¯s eyes twinkled. ¡°Train?!¡± I said incredulously. ¡°This is literally the worst time to-¡± I stopped. ¡­Was it? I literally told myself that to prepare for the inevitable fight over the Autarch¡¯s Key, I needed to grow stronger. Not only that, I just saw Arione, one of my biggest rivals, cast [Disintegration Ray], a Grade-S spell. It was evidence that he had a questline involved with the Grand Magus and had progressed it much further than I had with my own Sword Saint questline. I also had to worry about Delas, the slimy little bastard, who definitely hadn¡¯t shown everything yet. Zenom definitely hadn¡¯t shown everything either; if he truly showed everything then he didn¡¯t deserve the fame he had. So I looked around us. A large cave that led deeper, possibly leading to a network of tunnels which could hold monsters. It reminded me of the Dokkaebi Tunnels when I first became a slave, but much, much larger. There as no wind here and our voices bounced off of the walls in hushed whispers. Faint light glowed from the stones, the magma barely contained within them. Arrosh was right. This really was the best time to train. It wasn¡¯t like we could leave this cave anyways. We¡¯d be killed instantly. ¡°Ok.¡± I said finally, settling down. I took a swig from my waterskin. Arrosh sat opposite side of me. ¡°Young Storm, the questions of your lineage and my master surrounds you like fetid clouds of night. Ask, and we shall begin.¡± ¡°Just like that?¡± I said with a slight smile, but I was used to Arrosh¡¯s rhythm by now. And by rhythem I meant that the orc always did things at his own pace, regardless of how others felt. ¡°Ask.¡± ¡°I want to continue the conversation we had in the Scavenger¡¯s Hideout.¡± I said immediately. ¡°About Master Nearnigh¡¯s inheritance.¡± Arrosh nodded. ¡°My Master was like the soft rays of sun, touching out skin. There was no where in our lives where he was not, and naturally there was no where in our lives where the sword was nonexistent. Eating, drinking, hunting. All things became training.¡± Arrosh pointed at himself. ¡°The Master had three young hatchlings he saw potential in, and as such, tasked us with finding the next Sword Saint upon his passing.¡± I sat, listening carefully. ¡°Along with the Master¡¯s task, he gifted us with a blessing each, that the hatchlings may have wings of their own, which they may pass onto their own young seeds, to nurture their growth.¡± Arrosh pointed at himself. ¡°Master Nearnigh saw fit to bless me with a Core of his own.¡± That wasn¡¯t anything new. There were methods to pass down Cores from one character to another, though it cost a fortune in materials alone. ¡°The oldest Hatchlings received Master Nearnigh¡¯s Aura. The ability to sunder the unseen itself.¡± ¡°Which you eavesdropped on and stole, passing it to me.¡± Arrosh frowned in displeasure. ¡°Uh¡­ sorry.¡± I added at the end, ¡°Master.¡± ¡°The second oldest Hatchling received Master Nearnigh¡¯s Cloak.¡± ¡°Not his sword?¡± ¡°Master Nearnigh¡¯s Sword is hidden, and only the next Sword Saint can wield it. None of us three know where it is, only by fully becoming the legacy of the Sword Saint and accepting the Fate of one, can one wield Master Nearnigh¡¯s Sword.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard that word before, Fate.¡± I asked, ¡°What is that?¡± Arrosh didn¡¯t answer for awhile. ¡°It is the power of Will, the clouds that gather before it rains. The more clouds one can gather, the more rain, lightning, wind and thunder there will be. Will is the soil that nurtures the Tree, the better the Soil, the larger and taller the Tree ¨Cunrivaled underneath the Sky.¡± Arrosh narrowed his unseeing eyes. ¡°Will is the hand behind the blade, the foundation of a man, so that he may cut what he wishes to without fear of being cut back.¡± I had no idea what he was saying. ¡°Ok.¡± I turned to the immediate matter at hand. ¡°So what does the second part of my training entail?¡± ¡°The Second Part of your training involves getting ready for the darkness ahead, equipping you with the torch needed to walk where you must walk without stumbling.¡± Arrosh pointed at himself. ¡°It is the last step, before you must slay the other potential Legacies.¡± A chill entered the cave and I wrapped my cloak tighter around myself. ¡°What,¡± I said again. ¡°Is the second training, Master?¡± Arrosh looked away from me. ¡°Master Arrosh.¡± A foreboding feeling began to settle in my chest. "Tell me." ¡°You must take what is rightfully yours.¡± Then Arrosh shed his cloak and turned around. His back was covered in the War Paint of his people, in the shape of a Crow. Blocky lines depicting the wings and its head, a needle thin eye staring out into space. It was painted in black, stubbornly refusing to reflect the ugly scarlet glow of this island, like it knew its existence was special. Almost like it was sentient, hating everything that made Monsters what they were. The Orcs are Warriors and they evolved in the harshest of climates, hunting the toughest of monsters. Their Racial Trait, the Totems, are proof of that. ¡°Take it, Young Crow.¡± Arrosh hissed. And Arrosh just offered his Totem to me, the sign of a Warrior among the Orc Hordes. ¡°Take my totem, and make it yours. Only then, will you be ready to take the next step.¡± Chapter 126: Hunt (4) World: MSS - Loading...
MSS is a simple game. Kill monsters, get stronger and kill stronger monsters. It¡¯s the getting stronger part which is difficult. I¡¯d personally organize MSS as having three separate systems you need to develop in order to have a well-rounded character. Cores. Items. And your Racial Trait. First of all, there¡¯s the Core system. There are thousands of Cores and hundreds of thousands of synergies you could make with them. Which is a good thing. MSS is a game that encourages you to make parties, all fulfilling their own role in different ways. Just because you have a strong build doesn¡¯t mean you can run solo. Each encounter is so different that you¡¯re forced to have a party that can respond to a variety of situations. Then there¡¯s the items, which adds another layer of complexity to your gameplay. Items are what fills in the gap between yours Cores. Perhaps you can cover a wide variety of elemental weaknesses for monsters but lack the damage. There are plenty of items which can help with that; and many more. Mobility, Defense, Speed and sometimes entry into forbidden areas which might otherwise be closed off. Finally, the Racial trait. Perhaps the least flexible of the three; the racial trait is set upon character creation. Humans use [Aura]. Orcs use [Totems] and Beastman use [Evolution]. Elves use [Core Dominion]. You get the gist of it. The moment you choose your race, it gives you a direction of your build. It¡¯s the easiest for humans, whose Aura is just pure damage. You can go tank, DPS or even Wayfinder and still pull your own weight. But the downfall is that you will never be as good an Elemental Swordsman like a Beastman or as good a tank as a Dwarf. You trade versatility for specialty. But I always saw that as a charm of MSS. Infinite replayability thanks to the combination between Cores, Items and the Racial Trait you took. You haven¡¯t really experienced MSS until you created a support-type Wind-Poison Beastman DPS in the same party with a Poison-resistant Human Tank that can use Aura, who¡¯s backed up by a Dwarf Wayfinder who can shoot from a crossbow the size of a small house. That¡¯s why it was fun though. Similar to how Cores can synergize with each other, you built a party that synergized off of each other. A balance, if you will, between the characters, that made one plus one more than two. ¡­I was about to break that rule. Similar to the human racial trait, the Orc¡¯s racial trait made them generalists at first. The Totem System is unique in the fact that each totem type comes with its own skill tree. Depending on how you level this skill tree, you can develop a completely different character than someone who chose the same character. An orc with an Avenger-type totem who chose [Ambush] will be a radically different DPS than another Avenger Berserker who chose [Leap]. What if I could choose the Avenger Totem? I could learn Ambush. Hidden in plain-sight, I could just ambush monsters until enough of my stacks piled up. Or even better, I could take a Guardian Totem; making me a hybrid between a Tank and DPS. I wouldn''t even be giving up any damage. With the boost to my [Defense] stats, I¡¯d be the ultimate frontline DPS. The Ideal Knight. I stared at the Totem Tattoos with open hunger. I could literally solo bosses. The more I thought about it, the more I felt drawn to the Guardian Totem. The Guardian Totem even had skill trees that nullified status changes, my biggest weakness. I could- ¡°Young Storm.¡± Arrosh called me. Broken out of my trance, I saw the orc looking in my general direction. ¡°This will begin the second part of your training.¡± The elderly orc turned his back to me, ignoring the fact that I had yet to accept. I looked at the outline of the Crow on his back, frowning. ¡°Arrosh, I¡¯m not an orc. There¡¯s no way I could take a totem.¡± ¡°Are you not?¡± Arrosh asked. ¡°Of course not. I¡¯m a human.¡± Arrosh turned around, slowly. His clouded eyes were unshaking. ¡°You were brought into the Samak Horde as a tribe. When the sky burned with the cry of the Centipede¡¯s Mother, and my people burned with the Mage¡¯s flames, who was it that fought against the mage? Who was it that stood in front of his own Slavers, a Slave-turned-Savior?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t-¡± ¡°You found a home for your slavers, the wayward orcs. You ate with them. You live in their village, which you founded.¡± Arrosh¡¯s whisper bounced off of the wall, piercing my mind like a dagger, leaving no room for doubt. ¡°You have protected them. That is orc enough.¡± ¡°And the moment I saw you in the torture-chamber where our skins were flayed, I saw the Fate surrounding you. It is not just Oung who has taken an interest in you, My Disciple, but the God of Warriors; Khan. And He is the First Orc, the Orc-Father.¡± Arrosh said. ¡°I see his mark upon you. It will work.¡± ¡°But¡­ you¡¯re not a Witch Doctor.¡± For Orcs and Beastmen, their Racial Traits had to be unlocked through their Witch Doctors. Unlike Humans, Elves and Dwarves that could unlock it naturally.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. ¡°I am not a Witch Doctor of my people. But this totem,¡± Arrosh reached a hand over his shoulder, absently rubbing the war paint on his back. ¡°This Totem, I can pass onto you.¡± I understood now. He wasn¡¯t offering me my choice of Totems. He was going to give me his. The Crow. A Watcher-type Totem. More than the disappointment I felt from not getting a Guardian-type Totem, my worry for Arrosh grew. It overshadowed my previous ambition, so much so that I felt a bit of shame. Arrosh had offered me something of his and even before thinking about the weight of his offer, I had surrounded myself with dreams of glory. ¡°And what will happen to you?¡± ¡°Nothing, young Crow.¡± Arrosh replied. I breathed a sigh of relief. And my decision was made in an instant. It didn¡¯t matter that it wasn¡¯t a Guardian-type totem. Because before I was a Knight and before I was the legacy of the Sword Saint, I was Arrosh¡¯s disciple. If I didn¡¯t receive the Crow, what else would I receive? Besides¡­ This was something new. Something I hadn¡¯t ever encountered in the game before. Something I bet no one else had. Something to give me an edge against the trials to come. ¡°What must I do?¡± I asked. Arrosh took out a dagger. ¡°Lie still, Disciple.¡± ¡°For this will be pain unlike anything you¡¯ve felt before.¡± Then he began to carve into my back. *** Arrosh worked laboriously. Each cut. Each marking. Eking out what mana remained in his frail, old, failing body. With each marking, Arrosh felt his own strength drain away. For the first time, he had lied to his disciple. It would not matter. Arrosh had lived a long time and the torture in the Scavenger¡¯s Cave had broken his body further. This wasn¡¯t a spur of the moment decision either, he had been planning this the moment that he had met Lock. The torture had simply broken his body more than expected, and Arrosh had no illusions that in a few months he would not be able to trust his own hands to do this. Fate had simply pulled things ahead. The change would be gradual. As the Young Storm¡¯s own Totem grew, Arrosh¡¯s own would fade in strength. It was fine. The Young Crow was talented and growing at a frightening speed, this would aid him in the fight to come. Having spent time among the Elven Mage named Arione, Arrosh could understand why his disciple¡¯s former comrades-in-arms stayed with him. The Elven Mage was talented and had an unbelievable aptitude for magic. The Mage¡¯s understanding of the magical rules of this world was profound; having learnt the Grand Magus¡¯ spells from books alone. It was good that Arrosh decided to accept the sheep-priest¡¯s offer and travel alongside them. Because he now realized, no matter how hard his disciple might try, these people could not walk the same path with him. He saw why they traveled with the Elven Mage. It wasn¡¯t a misunderstanding. They feared Lock. Arione was talented and had years to hone his Art. It was something that the others could accept, understand and find comfort in. It was a strength that they had seen and could imagine, something within the confines of their skull-brain-imagination. So they chose to travel with the Elven Mage, who could push the thorns aside for them. His Disciple was the opposite. He pushed and pushed and pushed. Forcing those around him to push with him, or be left behind. For he was someone who forged his own path, his own footsteps ¨Csomeone who believed that a path traveled by others was not worth traveling at all. The others feared him. He could feel Clover¡¯s nervousness whenever she observed the Young Storm. It was not betrayal that drove her away, but fear that she would be abandoned by him. Left behind. For they both started as slaves, yet one took a deadly path, filled with Thorns. And the Young Storm would not stop, those who would not brave the thorns would have no choice but to turn back. In the meanwhile, his Disciple had never stopped walking his own path. In the process, he drew others like him, those hungry for adventure. Those who were curious, those who wanted not to be protected, but to protect the Young Crow in turn. Oh, what a joy it was to see into the Fate of his Disciple¡¯s chosen comrades and find blinding light! Those who wanted to walk alongside him! Desperate to be an equal! Desperate to be acknowledged by the strong! To stand on their own feet and stand shoulder to shoulder! Arrosh worked for hours, each carving wracking his body in pain. But he persevered. For he wanted to do something for his Disciple. So far, he¡¯d done nothing. NOTHING. In the future, people would look at the next Sword Saint in all its glory. And wrapped around the Young Sword¡¯s body, its wings furled protectively around his shoulders, would be the Crow. In the shadows, watching, protecting his back. Watchful. Vigilant. Wary. Now he understood why Master Nearnigh gave everything for his Disciples. Now it was Arrosh¡¯s turn. He would give everything to his Disciple. EVERYTHING. *** It hurt. I¡¯m not ashamed to say I screamed. Things like pride went out a long time ago. Keeping things up for appearance¡¯s sake? There was no need. For this was MSS, and power would speak. ¡°It is done.¡± Arrosh heaved. Something in Arrosh¡¯s voice alerted me and I stood up, wincing at the fresh burning pain in my back. I turned to Arrosh, ¡°Arrosh?¡± ¡°I am fine.¡± He was breathing hard. ¡°After the harvest, the Mother-tree must rest. Regaining her strength for the next season.¡± I rolled my shoulders, flexing. Already, the pain was fading away. As Arrosh rested, I tried channeling mana into the War Totem. There was still doubt ¨Cwould this work correctly? How could a human possibly use another race¡¯s racial trait? The only race that could adopt another race¡¯s trait was the sixth hidden race of MSS, the Nephilim. But even then, they could only pick one. They could not wield two. But my doubts were unfounded, because the Crow Totem answered my call. It wasn¡¯t like using an ability, where the knowledge of how it works just popped into my head. It was akin to waking up from a deep sleep and finding out that my arm had gone asleep. Like how blood slowly fills the limb once more and I became aware of it. In the same vein, I became aware of another thing within me, another consciousness. It was me, but not me ¨Csomething coming into being and becoming conscious of me the same way I became conscious of it. I could¡¯ve swore I heard the cawing of crows echoing down from deeper in the cave. ¡°Disciple¡­¡± Arrosh said. He took a place near the cavern wall, leaning back against it. ¡°You must accept one of the blessings of my, no, your Totem now.¡± Did he mean the Skill Tree? I closed my eyes, trying to ignore my growing worry for Arrosh. He seemed tired. There was no way this was easy. In the game too, even Witch Doctors rested after unlocking Totems. I focused on the sensation, grabbing ahold of that other consciousness. It came as natural as walking. Within that second consciousness, I experienced two different sensation. One was the sensation of flying. No doubt, the [Air Jump] skill, Arrosh¡¯s most used skill. The second sensation was being submerged in murky darkness. The [Darkness] skill, which submerged an area in darkness. A mobility skill versus a utility skill. For me though¡­ Was there a need to think twice? Without hesitation, I focused on the murky sensation, submerging myself within it. Within seconds, the feeling from [Air Jump] disappeared. Of course. Once you chose one skill from the Totem Skill Tree, the other disappeared. Not only that, now I was locked in to the Darkness Tree; I¡¯d never be able to access skills similar to [Air Jump]. Only skills related to Darkness. ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± I said quietly. Arrosh nodded from his position. ¡°Do you know what must be done, Young Crow?¡± I nodded back. What else was there to do? ¡°Stay here and rest, Master.¡± I turned towards the other side of the cave. It led deeper in, the path covered in darkness, lightly illuminated by the magical stones embedded in the walls. But having the Crow Totem ¨CA Watcher-type Totem¨C came with numerous other benefits other than the skill Darkness. A boost to my sight stat that legitimately crossed over into Darkvision. I don¡¯t mean the slightly better than regular sight that the Lucky Beckoning Cat gave me. Bona fide Darkvision, the type that would be listed under my Status if I had a system window. Not only that, a huge boost to my [Hearing] stat. I could hear the scraping of things deeper inside the cave. Soft growls and footsteps that didn¡¯t belong to humanoids. Monsters. The Myung-sa was a Grade-5 monster. What would be the grade of the monsters in this cave? 7? 6? Weaker Grade-5s who weren¡¯t as strong as their Variant counterparts? Normally, this would be a death sentence for someone who just hit the level 30s. But for me? A Knight who could theoretically have infinite buffs? The perfect Training Ground. Of course, the others would be doing the same. Especially Delas and Arione. No wonder Delas had ran off on his own. This was a race within a race, a race to see who could gain the edge over the other when it came time for the real thing. So my goal was simple. Before I left this island, before the main fleet could get here, before Zenom, Arione, Borealis or Delas could find it¡­ I was going to explore every nook and cranny of this Island Dungeon, finding all its secrets and taking them for myself. With one last look at Arrosh to make sure he was ccomfortable, I walked into the tunnels. The race was on. Bring it on. I¡¯ll crush all of you.
Chapter 127: Hunt (5) World: MSS - Loading...
Arrosh would be safe. The entrance was blocked off from the infantile Myung-sas and there was only one way in there. He¡¯d catch up. Right now, it was just me. I stepped softly, enjoying my [Superior Hearing] and [Darkvision]. I hadn¡¯t realized how much I missed it. Darkness had become a friend to me before but with the absence of Lucky Beckoning Cat, I had been little more than helpless. But walking in the lightless cave with only the faint glow of magic stones to light my way, I felt in control. Because being in control also means just knowing more, and us humans know more by seeing, hearing, smelling, touching and tasting. Mainly, the first two. So I walked down the narrow path, walking towards the mysterious sound of monsters. But I didn¡¯t do it normally. Taking a club I had stowed in my Dimension Ring for moments just like this, I began to slam the either side of the walls. Each step I took, I stopped and hit the walls. A technique I call ¡®Hidden Room Finder¡¯. You know what I¡¯m talking about. When playing those RPG games with lots of hidden passageways, it¡¯s natural to move around slamming walls, breaking boxes and strange looking items. So I did just that. Unfortunately though, there was no hidden room in the tunnels. Or if there was, I had yet to find it. I kept walking, the strange scraping sound getting louder and louder. The narrow tunnel opened up into a huge room with a high ceiling, reminiscent of an olympic stadium. Massive stalagmites and stalactites adorned the walls, painting the scenery of a monster''s open maw. It was dark here, darker than the pathways due to the noticeable lack of magic stones. The final thing I noticed about this place was that its massive size was understated by its denizens, the source of the mysterious sound. Recognizing the monsters, I immediately leapt up on top of a stalagmite, balancing on two feet. There¡¯s no easy way to describe them, but if I name them, I¡¯m sure everyone has a version of it in their heads. Most of the time, people think of the monster from a famous 2d pixel MMORPG game. But these guys were anything but cute little green blobs. These were Slimes, and not the Grade-10 Slime. But their Grade-8 counterparts are called [Rot Slimes]. The Slimes in MSS are nightmare fuel. They¡¯re mostly roundish in shape, though they do tend to jiggle like jelly. That¡¯s where the similarity with their adorable cousins ends. They¡¯re translucent and one can clearly see their inner organs. It¡¯s composed of two simple things, a tiny fist-sized brain connected to a beating five-chambered heart by a single nerve. Not only that, due to their see-through skin; you can clearly see what their last meal was. They do not bounce around, rather they slide over the ground like giant slugs. Not only that, they do have a mouth; the problem is that any Slime-type monster in MSS is simply covered in those mouths. Ugly little mouths without lips, resembling a lamprey¡¯s vortex-like sucker with inward-hooking fangs that are placed in a spiral. I watched as one of the Slimes gave out a nerve-wrecking screech and it was joined by the others soon enough. It was too high-pitched for me to hear but I could feel the air reverberate in response. Wincing, I put a hand to my ear. The ground was literally covered with them. They crowded around each other, screeching occasionally and huddling against one another. Gods, there had to be hundreds. It reminded me of being trapped at the bottom of the canyon with those insectoid monsters, except these guys lacked even the limited intelligence of those things. They were all instinct, designed to sense prey through the ground ¨Cany minute vibrations would be picked up by these things. There was a problem here. I was above level 34. These guys were Grade-8. I¡¯d get no experience from killing them. Not only that, these guys never really dropped anything besides their Core. Their experience was really low too. ¡®It¡¯s just a waste of time.¡¯ So I ignored them, trying my best to plan a way out of this place without stepping on the Slimes. Then I heard it. Clink Rattle Drip Scrapeeee Clink Rattle Drip Scrapeeee The sound of chains being dragged across the stony cavern floor. Unmistakable sound of paws padding on the floor, followed by something hard scraping with each step. Liquid falling in a rhythmic staccato on the ground. Lava. Meaning that this island was hot. Not tropical, but it probably was at one point in time; evidenced by the presence of trees. An island in the middle of nowhere, which had an Apex Predator. Food was scarce, meaning competition was fierce. Only the strongest of predator monsters would survive here. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. And now the Apex Predator, the Variant Myung-sa was dead. Things were coming out. The sound of chains dragging across the ground¡­ And if that dripping sound was what I thought it was¡­ A chill went up my spine as the hairs on my arms stood on end. Carefully, without making a sound, I descended the stalagmite. Not all the way, but just enough to hide by body but still look out from the top. I hung from the side, keeping absolutely still and my eyes trying to catch the faintest of movements. It appeared from behind a bend that I swore wasn¡¯t there before. I saw its paws first. Large paws that were the size of my torso that came out from behind the wall. It was colored orange with black stripes. At the end of the paw were barbed claws designed to shred meat. Strong muscular shoulders followed after, in that slow purposeful prowling gait of a feline predator. I saw the mane first, a graying shade of red. Finally it¡¯s head. The face of an old man. I knew this monster. It was a Chu-in, a Grade-7 Boss monster. Not just a regular Boss either. It was a Variant. Normal Chu-in¡¯s are simply tigers with an old man¡¯s smiling face. But this one had all the markings of being a Variant. There were chains wrapped around its wrists, dragging across the ground. At the end of these chains were large meat-hooks, either rusted or coated in dried blood. Not just that, its mane almost reached the ground, originating from its face; so that the face looked like it was framed in long wispy gray hair. All my fear of the Slimes forgotten, I watched, captivated by the monster. Any monster that resembles a human is scary. There¡¯s this thing we call the Uncanny Valley, where something is cool or adorable, until it¡¯s resemblance to us passes a certain point ¨Cthen we begin to fear it. We call that area the Uncanny Valley. Some scientists like to theorize that it¡¯s because way back, our brains had to recognize predators who mimicked us. Who walked like us, talked like us and knew us. So they could lure us away¡­ one by one. Yeah, the Chu-in reminded me of those stories. It lounged a moment longer, seeming to look at the slimes and thinking. Then it opened its mouth and yawned, revealing human teeth. Then it stretched, like a cat. It put its forelegs forward, sending its posterior towards the back. The old-man face squinted, eyes closing and began to shake. And in one fell movement, it leaped over the cluster of Rot Slimes and landed right in front of me. ¡­I froze. It had happened so fast. It was smiling. It leaned forward and sniffed me. My neck. My stomach. My arms. And like a horror-movie come true, it opened its mouth wide, taking my hand and beginning to nibble on it. It stopped, leaning back and tilting its head to the side, like it was confused. But I knew better. This thing was smart. And it was pretending not to know. Pretending that it didn¡¯t think I was food. Pretending to be confused. It must¡¯ve overestimated by strength, thinking this play-acting would catch me off-guard. But I knew. So when it lunged towards me at the speed of light, I was ready. It all happened in a blur as both the Chu-in and I screamed. He slammed into the stalagmite I was on, breaking it like a house of cards and bowling over it straight towards me. The sound was deafening and absently, I knew that the Slimes would start moving. I leapt off of the stalagmite moments before the impact and put out a hand, simultaneously casting all my moves at once. [King¡¯s Guard] activated and the Lunar Shield slipped out from behind me. Klang! Klang! The Chu-in had immediately followed up with two swipes of its paw and the rusted chain-meat-hooks slammed into my shield one after another. I shot out my set of chains which materialized a manacle that wrapped around the Creature¡¯s throat. The buff flowed into me and when I landed, I used the entirety of my newfound speed to duck out of the way ¨Cit saved my life because a second later and its jaw would have crushed my collarbone. ?[Share the Load] decreases [Handicraft] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Share the Load] ? ?[Arcane Masochism] increases [Speed] ? Every five minutes, Share the Load would place a debuff on both of us; [Footwork], [Handicraft], [Smell], [Hearing] then [Sight]. Then after those twenty five minutes, it would start reducing [Physical] and [Mental] in alternating order. It was a rare thing for a battle to last long enough for me to see all the buffs from Share the Load come into play. I had a feeling this was going to be one of those battles. The Chu-in¡¯s missed scraped off a bit of my shoulder, shredding through the steel armor like it was paper. But I¡¯m not the type to focus only on dodging, one thing MSS teaches you is that no amount of dodgings going to win you the fight. I spun in a whirlwind and stuck out with my sword, hearing the squelch of it sinking into flesh. [Aura] might not be the flashiest of the Racial Traits, but it works wonders with damage. The homo-sapien-feline monster roared and jerked away before I could follow up with another slash. It kicked with its rear legs, sending the hooks flying and spinning. It pounced towards me, swiping at the air and I belatedly realized that it wasn¡¯t just a tiger-monster rushing at me. It was a tiger-monster that was surrounded by hooks zipping through the empty air and threatening to rip out a chunk of my body. I ran towards the first one, trusting that the King''s Guard would do its job. There was a huge shriek as my Lunar Shield met the hook head on, both of them bouncing being knocked away in opposite directions. Without waiting for the shield to return to me, I danced through the hooks and barbed chains, weaving and stepping. When I was less than ten paces away from the monster, I used my newest skill. ? Lock uses [Darkness] ? And the world was submerged in shadow. My Darkness Skill tree isn¡¯t that developed yet. If it was, it¡¯d leave the Chu-in completely blind. Not just blind either, it¡¯d be deaf too. As it was, the Chu-in¡¯s passive, [Night Vision] kicked in at once. An inferior version of [Dark Vision]. [Night Vision] only worked if the target was moving. It had taken me a while to figure that one out back on Earth. So I stood still. The Chu-in went mad, jumping up and down the hook-chains slamming into the ground. It left grooves on the ground as it snarled and muttered incoherently in a language unknown to man, eyes shining brightly through my darkness. I even deactivated the King''s Guard, holding the Lunar Shield close to my body. There were some close calls as the hooks sped by only inches from my face, the wind leaving shallow cuts over my hands and feet. But I stood still. And the first of the Rot Slimes arrived at the Chu-in¡¯s feet. The Rot Slimes don¡¯t see, so [Darkness] doesn''t affect them. They move by sensing vibrations. And the Chu-in had been making a whole bunch of them. The Rot Slimes have no muscles, but their body can still tense up. Using locomotion, they sprung up at the twenty-feet tall monster in droves. The Chu-in snarled and opened its mouth to activate its roar, but nothing came out. Of course not. I¡¯d stolen it earlier with that first strike, thanks to the [Shadow Mimic Wolf] Core. ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Sajahoo (ª{×Óºð)] ? My mouth released a roar with me as the focal point, the air shaking once more. It was different from the high-pitched shrieks of the Slimes that were barely audible. The Chu-in actually fell to the ground as its ears erupted with small fountains of blood. But the real point of the Sajahoo lies in its effect to stop monsters in its tracks. Every game has it: the [Stun] mechanic. All the Rot Slimes froze, their gelatinous body quivering. Two seconds. I dashed over, drawing my sword and Aura flickered to life. Then I cut into the Chu-in¡¯s neck, lacerating it and leaving a huge open wound. Blood began to fall. Not droplets, but pour out like a small faucet. The two seconds were up. And it was the Rot Slimes turn to go mad. The ones nearest to the Chu-in had some blood splattered on them. It drove them into the frenzy as they wavered towards the fallen beast, bobbing up and down and their mouths spiraling and twisting and gnashing. In a sickening display of predatory pack instincts, the Rot Slimes moved as a singular unit and swarmed the damn things. The Chu-in screamed, sounding all too human, and began to move its paws. It was a still a Grade-7 boss, the Rot Slimes died in dozens. But there were hundreds more. Wherever the Rot Slimes touched, the wound began to fester and turn gray. Their one and only offensive passive [Decaying Touch]. It slowly withered down the [Physical] stat, which affected everything related to the body. The Chu-in stomped the ground with two feet, puffing up like a porcupine and its fur extended six-feet in all directions. The needle-like hair skewered the Rot Slimes, killing more and more. ? Lock Slaveborn casts [High Tide] ? I used the Lunar Shield ability (which had full charges now) to drive the Slimes away from us. Creating space, I whipped my sword forward, creating an apparition of a meat-hook. Another stolen ability from the Chu-in. Hooking the Chu-in my its forelegs, I continued my run and pulled ¨Cbringing the beast down to the ground with a huge thud. Another vibration for the Slimes to lock in on. The Chu-in looked around, trying to see where I was. But I stood still. Because we were still in [Darkness]. And eight buffs flowed into me as the Lunar Shield expended its charges. And another one, as [Share the Load] told me that five minutes were up. It was really a pity. This was the perfect hunting spot for me, a death trap for monsters. With [Darkness] and the presence of [Rot Slimes], I could just stay here all day. I¡¯d stack buffs, just taking last hits¡­ It was too bad that I¡¯d have to move on. No, I didn¡¯t have to. Taking out the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina], I took it to my mouth slowly and let out a small melody. It was followed by another roar. Another Chu-in came into the cavern from the same opening. This one wasn¡¯t a variant, evidenced by the lack of meat-hooks attached to its legs. Still, it was a Grade-7. Seeing the movement of the Chu-in Variant, it ran right past me, it¡¯s [Night Vision] unable to see me. ¡­Right. The Myung-sa¡­ it had driven all the other monsters underground. And now, they were drawn here by the scent of blood; curious to see if they could scavenge something. Not only that, if the baby Myung-sas were outside, filling up every corner of the island. It didn¡¯t get better with the Field Boss¡¯ death, it got worse. Then the exodus really began. Attracted to the noise, other Grade-7 monsters began to run in ¨Ceven the Inuho-oh which I encountered in the Fracture once upon a time. And every single one of them walked right by me, thanks to [Darkness]. Hallelujah. Chapter 128: Hunt (6) World: MSS - Loading...
? +11 EXP ? ? +9 EXP ? ? +2 EXP ? ? +14 EXP ? The EXP was rolling in. At this point, there were so many monsters that the [Rot Slimes] couldn¡¯t keep up anymore. I was running low on Mana as well, so I recalled the [Darkness] skill, dancing between the stalactites. I stopped blowing on the Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina, stemming the tide of monsters. Then I danced between the last few, making sure to get the last hit in for the experience. My body exploded into light as the last monster died and I felt my body grow stronger ¨CI had just hit level 38. And as it¡¯s corpse drifted away into starlight, I looked around the field that was littered with the spoils of my hunt. Loot. Loot covered the ground. Swords. Helmets. Boots. Rings, Necklaces and Armor. Everything that I could name was here. Perhaps I was exaggerating, it wasn¡¯t a mound of items like a Dragon¡¯s Hoard ¨CWhich actually existed in this world by the way. But there was certainly enough to be worth a small fortune. Drops from Grade-7 monsters aren¡¯t the best, most of them ranking among rare to unique. But they were certainly going to be better than anything I was wearing. I mentioned it before, but as we started entering higher-difficulty dungeons, just being good at combat wasn¡¯t enough. We needed tools like rope, saw, boats and the skills necessary to utilize those things. That¡¯s because the environment we¡¯d be coming up on would change drastically. The Twilight Maze¡¯s ice or this island¡¯s lava, that was nothing. There were some places where we wouldn¡¯t be able to take a single step without a rope to make sure none of us got plucked off by a monster without the others knowing. That same logic extended to equipment as well. Soon, we¡¯d have to start upgrading, and I¡¯m not talking about our weapons. Boots, Rings, Helms¡­ everything. Accessories that we could swap out depending on the monster we were hunting, helms that provided [Darkvision] or even [Nightvision]. Armor that could withstand the stress of different status ailments and monster attacks, the list was endless. ¡®Yeah, it¡¯s definitely time to start saving up gold.¡¯ Once we got this quest done with, I had a dungeon in mind we would enter. Ragnia Mountain. ¡®But that¡¯s for way later.¡¯ Not wanting to get ahead myself, I started rummaging through the items. ¡°This one should be good for Aurora¡­¡± A pair of boots that gave someone the [Immovable Status] once activated. If I had this during my fight with Coum, it could have made a big difference. I picked up a small charm for Kyrian as well. It was a small blue feather from the monster, [Eritategoromo], a grade-7 monster. It was surprising that it lived here, it usually only survived in Ruin-type fields. Regardless, I could fashion an accessory for Kyrian using this feather. Which brought up the question: Who were we going to have become the Crafter of our little party? The Crafting System in MSS is a whole other beast. Usually, a party ends up making a contract with a Blacksmith or an Alchemist. They weren¡¯t always mutually exclusive either. We¡¯d need a Blacksmith to take care of our gear, both to make filler gear while we farmed better equipment, for repairs of our end-game gear and possibly tweak them. That¡¯s because the Crafting System in MSS allows you to slot in monster parts to armor for better effects. That¡¯s right. Sometimes, you had to cast [Preserve]. You had a smaller chance of getting a Core but higher chance of getting the monster part you wanted. One of the frustrating things about farming for monster parts was that even Monster Parts had grades from 10 to 1, with 1 being the best of course. That had been another whole big discussion on the forums ¨Cbest ways to preserve Monster Part Quality while farming them. It was inevitable that monsters would spit out parts that were grade 10 to 9, if you beat the shit out of it. But that wasn¡¯t the end of it. Depending on which monster parts you slotted in together, they showed synergistic and varying effects. Well, that was the Blacksmith¡¯s job. But we also needed an Alchemist, specifically for little trinkets. Like the Eritategoromo feather or the Hwacha¡¯s Hair piece could be fashioned into an accessory. I remembered Kyrian teaching it to Stole before. He said you can¡¯t have too many Charms because their Mana signatures interfere with each other. I hadn¡¯t joined in before because Lock Slaveborn should have no idea how many exactly. But the number of charms you can have varies. 1 for Mages, 2 for Religious Classes (like the Holy Knight, Priests and Witch Doctors) and 3 for Adventurers. The Accessories were much simpler. Two rings, one bracelet and a necklace each. And these trinkets could be fashioned into either Charms or Accessories, and of course, depending on the quality of the trinket (which counted as a super rare monster part) and the Alchemist¡¯s skills¡­ well, it would change the overall stats on the item. That¡¯s right. Another variable. And there are literally thousands of monsters in MSS. Yeah, this game doesn¡¯t get any easier. It just gets harder the closer you get to the end-game. Actually, around level 40 to 60 is when people quit the most. Not only do the monsters get a huge power-spike, you now have to deal with Monster Parts, Armors, Accessories and Charms, as well as recruiting a Blacksmith or Alchemist who can do those things for you. Then the questlines start to get more complicated¡­ If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. And even now, most players probably haven¡¯t finished their Racial Traits yet. Now you understand why I pulled all-nighters on weekends, putting notes together. MSS is a really complex game and there are a million combinations for you to get strong. The problem is the sheer amount of knowledge you have to have and figuring out the best route. The best hunting grounds and the best monsters¡­ as well as the best build. My thoughts idle, I started stowing the things in my Dimension Ring. ¡°Stole might be able to use these gloves¡­ hmmm, Skaris¡¯ gloves are always burning up too fast too. Maybe a pair of greaves for Aurora¡­¡± As I picked through the loot, my enhanced hearing picked up soft footsteps. They were very soft and flitting, almost like the person was running. ¡°Arrosh?¡± I turned to look, trying to see if he needed anything from this pile. It wasn¡¯t Arrosh. There was a blur of white and gray. I thought I could make something out like a little hairball the size of a small child darting to and fro. It darted to one pile of items and small childish arms poked out, pilfering through my loot with practiced ease. Then the hands quickly shoved aside the junk and picked out the most expensive items, stowing them in a tiny knapsack. Then it rushed towards another group of items, doing the same. ¡°Hey, what the-¡± Even as the words were out of my mouth, my legs were already moving. But the figure had started moving even before I could start talking. Its tiny hands reached out and grabbed a steel sword ¨Ca classic longsword with a straight edge, glistening with icy-blue¨C and darted away out of the cavern. Shit. That looked valuable. The figure was fast, but I was quicker. But I wasn¡¯t just Han, the rational gamer. I¡¯d been living as Lock Slaveborn, an adventurer who started out as a slave for the better part of this year. Every couple of steps, I bent down and picked up whatever valuable-looking thing and stowed it in my Dimension Ring. Sometimes I didn¡¯t even look, I slowed down just enough to sweep up everything if they were small enough and do the same. It was like even my brain had turned into a bona-fide adventurer. The small child ¨CI could tell now, it was a child with just really messy long hair¨C sped down the tunnels. Each step they took was sure and well-placed and the speed told me they definitely had a Core. How else would a child be able to outrun an adventurer, even if he was addled by his own greed? But damn, they were quick. It wasn¡¯t just that they were fast, they knew this cave like the back of their hand. They turned the corners without hesitation. A brave choice, considering that there could be a monster lurking around the corner. Or foolish. Or¡­ ¡®Or maybe this island isn¡¯t as abandoned as you thought.¡¯ Redoubling my efforts, I gave chase. Along the way, I realized we stopped turning corners and slipping under rocky outcroppings. My boots slammed against smooth rock, like someone had taken the time and effort to smooth this part out. It was downhill as well and my greater mass lent a burst of speed, the small figure growing bigger and bigger in my sight. For the hundredth time that day, I thanked Arrosh for the Totem; if it wasn¡¯t for the Darkvision I would have lost the thief awhile back. Click The figure¡¯s cloak disappeared between two closing doors at the bottom. ¡°Tch.¡± The double doors were made entirely of stone, almost like marble. Studying the surroundings, I found that everything around this place was made from the same material. They were cool to the touch, meaning we weren¡¯t near the heart of the volcano. I stopped myself from cutting the door open. Because I recognized this door. My heart started hammering in my chest. Clearing my throat, I knocked on the door. Even if I was looking for a thief, I wasn¡¯t sure I wanted to make an enemy out of them right off the bat. Besides¡­ if I was right¡­ A little rectangular peephole slid open, revealing a set of heavyset eyes underneath heavier brows. ¡°Step back, stranger.¡± The voice was deep and gruff, and slightly annoyed. I took a single step back. ¡°Take two more.¡± I narrowed my eyes. ¡°Really?¡± When there was silence, I took two more backwards. ¡°Hands away from your sword.¡± I gritted my teeth. But my senses were tingling, that there was something here. Something that no one else knew. Hidden Villages weren¡¯t exactly rare in MSS, the continent was full of them. But right under the nose of a territorial field boss? I lifted my hands up. Finally the door opened a smidge and a pair of strong arms came out, laden with muscle. I sniffed: the scent of something acrid ¨Clike sulfur? Ash? Definitely something burning, reached my nose. What really caught my attention was the fact that the pair of arms dropped a knapsack on the floor, the exact one my thief had been carrying. ¡°Our business is done now.¡± The voice said and the eyes disappeared as they slid the clasp closed. Well, that was new. I checked the knapsack, making sure everything was there. Well, I had no idea exactly what or how much of my loot the thief took; but honestly besides the sword, I wasn¡¯t interested in anything else. The longsword had a hexagonal blade cross-section, and broad enough to be a palm and a half. The hilt was covered in black leather and fit my grip perfectly. I took it and snapped it back and forth, making whistling sounds in the air. Those arms had belonged to a dwarf. Plus the scent of fire¡­ Realizing what I needed to do, my mind became cold as I held the sword above my head. I pushed out thoughts of the loot, the Myung-sa and even this race against the others. Right now, I was a swordsman and the blade would guide me ¨Cthere was no room for anything else in my heart. Holding the blade in Arrosh¡¯s salute, I went through a basic sequence, slowly working up mana from my heart and sending it into the blade. The blade began to hum as its innate ability began to activate, leaving frosty ice crystals trailing its path. The sword began to greedily suck up more mana and I strained, controlling the flow to something manageable. In a battle, I would shove as much mana as I could in this thing, but what I wanted wasn¡¯t battle right now. What I wanted was art, to show off my form and skills. And it worked. My mana streaked through the blade and the ice crystals disappeared, leaving waves of purple, green, blue and yellow in its wake. A miniature aurora. Not only that, wherever my footwork began to leave little frosty footprints on the ground. Sliiiiide I smirked, hearing the sound of stone scraping on stone. I had an audience now. Then the blade hummed as my dark gray Aura came to life. It fused with the icy energy. My [Aura] was at Stage 4 now, which happened back in the Scavenger¡¯s Hideout. Each stage of mana didn¡¯t just come with an increase in the defense penetration and increase in true damage, but it came with new mechanical advantages. Stage 3 was what allowed me to fuse my Aura with various elemental properties, while Stage 4 allowed me to imbue items with it after throwing it; like I did with the Lunar Shield. At stage 4, my Aura was much stable. The Aura and Ice-type Mana met together in a harmony of snow and truth, innocence and clarity. The sword began to let out tiny little motes of noise while the my aura turned pure white, extending about an inch out from the blade. Then it began to snow. ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± I put [Snow Scream] down, my arms aching. I looked at my free hand, noticing that there were freezeburns all over the skin. Turning, I saw that the door was open. And of course, a Dwarf stood there with his arms crossed over his chest. His gray braided hair reached down to his back, tied in a neat red hairband. His brows were the same color and so was his beard. There were so many rings braiding his beard that I almost couldn¡¯t see his face, but none could mistake the icy-blue eyes that shone from underneath the heavy brows. He wore a simple cloth overall with a leather over it. Behind him was the little thief. She was a tiny little thing, even for a dwarf child. She had bright white hair ¨Creminding me of Kagura. But whereas Kagura¡¯s hair had been supernaturally white, this girl¡¯s white reminded me things that lived in the dark. Things that eventually lost their sight, skin color and the need for communication. Her body was thin ¨Cpainfully so, and the cloth wrapped around her was nothing more than rags. I gave a slight bow to the Dwarf. ¡°Lock Slaveborn.¡± I said with a slight smile. ¡°Doror Stonehammer.¡± He didn¡¯t reach out with a hand for a greeting. He jerked his head to the girl peeking out from behind him. ¡°This one took yer spoils, so I fit to give it back to you. You should have made yourself git afterwards. What¡¯re you doing in front of our village, causing that racket, eh?¡± I ignored his jibe at Arrosh''s Swordsmanship ¡®racket¡¯. I pointed at the door. ¡°I recognize the door, Master Smith.¡± I tried to meet his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ve heard tales of a long lost clan of Dwarves that have hidden villages throughout the continent. Sometimes hidden in mountains, sometimes underneath water. And it seems that sometimes¡­ right beneath a monster¡¯s lair.¡± ¡°They all have the exact same door, without an emblem, without design and without marking. Because a true Master Smith does not believe in a sign for their smith, but believes that fate alone leads the right people to their doorsteps.¡± I continued, ¡°But destiny alone isn¡¯t enough to entice a Master Smith. Because Time and Fate aren¡¯t the same things. I wanted to see if my swordsmanship was enough to lure a Master Smith out from behind this door.¡± He scoffed. ¡°Flowery little words from a human. Who told you this story?¡± ¡°...My master.¡± I lied. ¡°Did he tell ye why we¡¯re in hiding?¡± His brows knit together, glowering at me. ¡°Humans.¡± I answered bitterly, unable to keep the rise of anger out completely. ¡°They destroyed your cities in the past, fearing your weapons.¡± ¡°Aye.¡± The Dwarf answered. Then he muttered, ¡°But yer not one of them from the Empire, are you?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not. I¡¯m from the North.¡± I said. He snorted. ¡°Makes no difference whether ye duel with orcs or dances with humans. Yer still a human, through and through.¡± I smiled. ¡°Then why,¡± I asked innocently, ¡°Did you step out from behind the door, Master Stonehammer?¡± He scowled, having no answer for that. He finally gestured to me. ¡°Might as well drink a cup of tea while yer down here. Get on with it then, I¡¯ll show you around.¡± ¡°Enter and be welcome, Swordsman.¡± He said, walking into the darkness. ¡°Lest yer blade turn on ye.¡±
Chapter 129: Hunt (7) World: MSS - Loading...
Doror Stonehammer led the way, the tiny little hairball of a girl on his heels. She clung the hem of his pants with one hand and gave me the occasional glance, her gaunt cheeks a stark contrast to the dwarf¡¯s stocky build. Her eyes held the gleam of curiosity that only kids her age could have. Could she be his daughter? Deciding it wouldn¡¯t hurt to get some brownie points with the daughter of a Master Dwarven Smith, I smiled and gave a soft wave. ¡°E,e,eep!¡± Immediately, the girl turned around and hugged Doror¡¯s leg with both arms and legs. ¡°What the-¡± He turned and growled at me. ¡°What did you do, Boy?!¡± ¡°N,nothing.¡± I stammered. ¡°I just smiled at her.¡± ¡°...Don¡¯t do it again. I¡¯m warning ye.¡± ¡°Understood, Master Smith.¡± God damn it, screw this world. Why the hell was a criminal like Arione born in the body of a fantasy equivalent of a supermodel and I was stuck in this? The path on the other side of the door took us deeper underground, each step taking me closer to the frigid embrace of Mother Earth. My breath fogged up and I looked back to check how far we¡¯d come, but the way was completely black. It wasn¡¯t that my eyes couldn¡¯t pierce the darkness, it was just the combination of distance traveled and the angle of the slope. Luckily, there was only one way out of here so there was no fear of getting lost. ¡®Perfect place for an ambush.¡¯ A little voice told me inside. ¡®Perfect place for someone like Coum or Horsehead or Tanya to show up, waiting for you with half a dozen other players.¡¯ I shook my head, blocking out the small voice and focused on keeping up with Doror. The small path finally leveled out, leading to a single door. It was more of a thick slab of rock with sharp corners, more akin to a coffin lid than a door that led somewhere. A gruesome thought. Doror reached out and opened the door easily, and contrary to expectations, it opened without creaking or the groan of stone. He held it open, waiting for me. And I entered a whole new world. First, it was another large cavern, just like the one I had seen the [Rot Slimes] in. But every inch of it had been shaved down to a smooth surface, so that the whole place looked like one huge box. Then careful rectangular holes had been carved into the walls and they held magic-stone lanterns, lighting up the place with an iridescent white glow. I saw box-like houses and in the first row alone, more than half a dozen Smithys. I saw dwarves of all shapes, sizes and color hammering away at their latest creation. There were hundreds of them. Perhaps thousands. The sheer scale of the place was enough to make me dizzy. I tried to roughly estimate how big this place was as well as how many people could live here ¨Cbut all I could think of was Times Square in manhattan. This wasn¡¯t a small smithing village beneath the earth, it was a freaking city running on a factory of dwarves fashioning weapons. Swords, Harlberds and Spears; Tower Shields that could cover two men and more ¨Cso lustrous that even I could feel the magical power coming off of it. This place was a treasure trove of weapons and my eyes wandered, mouth open in both amazement and greed. Jackpot. ¡°Welcome to the city of Stonehammer.¡± Doror cleared his throat, a smile hinting at his lips and the corner of his eyes. It could¡¯ve been just my imagination, but he looked a little smug. ¡°Come this way, Boy.¡± He jerked his head and I followed him once more. He led me down a staircase and we entered the city. Luckily, the tallest buildings here were two stories at most. I got a pretty good idea of the city¡¯s layout. Unluckily, it meant that every single dwarf smith, housewife, househusband, kid and their pet dog came out to see the only human in existence this deep in the earth. Some of the dwarven parents covered their children¡¯s eyes, glaring at me and making it a point to walk in the other direction. The smiths eyed me, their gazes cold and calculating. Was this how it felt to be a Beastman among humans? What Skaris and Stole felt walking amongst the Church members during this quest? Forget Beastman, how all other races, save for the elves maybe, in the majority of the Continent? The Turina Empire held the largest territory and most places were led by the Church. Their ideology of super superiority had been bred through generations. Even adventurers from those places tended to be more racist. It¡¯s hard to be treated like that. We all have a little something inside of us that wants to feel welcomed. To have a place we belong, even if we know it¡¯s temporary. It helps us feel safe, and relax. For someone who was used to a warm welcome, this might¡¯ve been a little nerve wracking. Even for adventurers, this was tough. Killing monsters is one thing, being unwanted is another. But this wasn¡¯t anything new to me. I¡¯d been stared at before. I¡¯d been whispered about before.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. And I had already been warned by Doror in the beginning. I had expected this. Besides, I had no intention of becoming stronger without a price. And if this was the price that I had to pay for the strength so that I could protect my comrades, I¡¯d pay it a thousand times and more. I held my head high, refusing to cower. Neither did I glare back at anyone, belligerence wouldn¡¯t help here. I took a couple of long steps, walking closer Doror and no longer far behind him like a prisoner. But next to him, as a potential guest might. Doror noticed this and gave me the side-eye. But he didn¡¯t comment. I thought some of the smiths nod appreciatively. Others simply scoffed and went back to work. But most of them continued to glare. The Master Smith and the little girl took me past the main-block of the city and to the outskirts. He led me to a Smithy, looking identical to the others and gestured me in. There was a bona-fide forge sitting smack-dab in the middle of the place. I could imagine the heat coming off of it in waves, the dwarves singing their songs to the beat of their hammers and the rhythm of the fire. But there was no fire nor were there smoldering coals ready to be lit at a moment¡¯s notice. The whole place was in disarray. Tools lay on the ground, cobwebs had taken over the rafters and the cacophony of disarray, disuse and indifference gave the place an abandoned look. The child finally let go of Doror, running off somewhere in the smithy. Not long after, I began to hear the banging of tools and delighted laughter. Doror calmly walked over to a table and sat down. He rummaged around the floor and brought out a bottle, obviously alcoholic in nature. He rummaged around some more, found two metal tins that could pass off as cups. He gestured at me to sit down in front of him, wiping the metal cups on his beard. Hiding my disgust, I sat down in front of him. He studied the metal cup with a discerning eye before wiping it on his beard again and setting it down in front of me. Doror looked at me. ¡°You old enough to drink, Boy?¡± ¡°Er, yes.¡± I looked at the cup. There was a strand of white hair in it. I reached to pick it out but Doror was faster. He poured the mystery liquid in the cup. Our eyes met. ¡°Drink.¡± ¡­This fucker, he saw the hair. He was doing this on purpose. Was this some sick dominance play that Dwarven Smiths did to a Human Swordsman? Was it a Race thing or a Profession thing? Either way, I had to play along. I hadn¡¯t expected to find a Hidden Village so early on in the game. Usually they existed around level 70 areas. All the ones I knew were in the Turina Empire, Zimmskar and deep within the recesses of dungeons owned by Field Bosses. So hiding my disgust, I took the cup and sniffed at it. ¡°To a Dwarf¡¯s Beard!¡± He cried loudly, slamming his cup against mine and downing it. He was still watching me while drinking. ¡­Shit. ¡®Just¡­ just do it. Think of a new Spear for Skaris, a Shield for Aurora and an Arbalest for Stole. Kyrian can get something too.¡¯ I put the cup on my lips and downed it. Hot liquid fire burned everything from my mouth, to my throat and sat in my stomach, roiling and churning. I coughed and slammed the cup down, wincing at the taste. That thing had tasted like rubbing alcohol except worse. Not only that, when I licked my lips there was something stuck in my molars. I picked it out and found the Doror¡¯s stringy white beard hair, wet and half-chewed. He looked at me. ¡°Huh? Was there a hair in there? Why didn¡¯t ya pick it out before drinking it?¡± This mother fucker, I¡¯m going to kill- ¡°Here, drink another.¡± Doror poured me another cup. This time, he didn¡¯t down his in one gulp. He took a slow drink, taking his time to actually taste the damned thing before it lit his insides on fire. He saw me hesitating and grunted. ¡°It¡¯ll go down better this time, Boy.¡± Whatever. It¡¯s not like anything I tasted in MSS had tasted that good anyways. I took the second drink, imitating Doror and swishing it around my mouth. To my surprise, it burned considerably less. This time, it wasn¡¯t just fire. There was a hint of honey and something citrusy ¨Cmaybe a Tangerine or something similar¨C combined with undertones of fine-aged whiskey. I took another sip and this time, the sweetness was much subdued, allowing my tongue to detect more earthy tones ¨Csome kind of smoked wood? Was that possible? ¡°Be honored, Human.It¡¯s called Dwarf¡¯s Blood.¡± Doror said at last, ¡°And this is the last bottle in this forge-forsaken city of ours.¡± ¡°What is?¡± Then I quickly added, ¡°Master Smith.¡± ¡°Enough of that Master Smith nonesense, Boy,¡± He waved a hand at me, taking another sip. ¡°Call me Stonehammer.¡± ¡°Then you can call me Slaveborn, instead of Boy or Lad. Or human.¡± ¡°No, Boy.¡± Doror put an end to the matter. ¡°This drink is called Dwarf¡¯s blood. It takes more than three dozen Good Dwarven Men to make one barrel. We light the barrel on fire as it ages, you see. Then we take turns keeping watch over the damned thing, making sure the wood burns just enough to give it that smoky flavor but doesn¡¯t come into contact with the alcohol. Takes a good part of a year.¡± I took another sip. Scientifically, what he was saying shouldn¡¯t be possible. Fire and Alcohol? That was an arson case waiting to happen. But then again, I myself could melt into shadows and create magical ink that turned into deadly tree branches on my opponent¡¯s bodies. I shouldn¡¯t be the one to judge. Doror continued. ¡°When the Stonehammer Clan first arrived here, it was infested with monsters. It still is, ain¡¯t it? An ugly volcano? That strange spell over the entire island that slowly drives men mad with anger?¡± I nodded in silent agreement. ¡°We weren¡¯t used to the sounds back then. We were smiths, not adventurers.¡± He said wistfully and looked at the bottle with something akin to longing. ¡°We had loads of these bottles. These were our Clan¡¯s specialty, ya see, before your people pushed us out. Drank this to keep our minds from being driven rage-mad, and to keep the monster¡¯s roars from growing fear-roots in our hearts..¡± He probably hadn¡¯t meant to, but he gave me the answer to the Special Field outside. Alcohol. If I was right, there was a way to stave off the Special Field¡¯s effects even without the [Fruit of Clear Mind]. ¡°What¡¯re you here for Boy? Are you here on behalf of the Empire?¡± In a sense, I was here with the Empire. Internal politics aside, from an outsider¡¯s perspective, the Church of Light, Flame and Shield was synonymous with the Turina Empire, just as how the Great Houses of Turina were synonymous with the will of the Turina Royal Family. But Doror had already shown his dislike of the Empire, and I had a feeling he wouldn¡¯t have brought me here this far if I said I was from Turina. If I wanted any chance at all of having a ¡®Special Event¡¯ happen here, I should have lied. I decided not to. Not because I¡¯m a saint. But because I had a feeling Doror would know if I lied. ¡°In a way, yes.¡± I explained, ¡°I¡¯m an adventurer from the Free States of Jayu. I took on a request for the Church. I¡¯m here with an advance party, checking to see if this island is good enough for us to make repairs.¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± Doror challenged. ¡°I think¡­¡± I took a deep breath. ¡°I think it¡¯ll be tough. But it might be doable.¡± ¡°Even with all those monsters running around?¡± I smiled and shrugged. ¡°We¡¯ve already killed one. What¡¯s another thousand or so?¡± ¡°Bah. So you¡¯re the reason there¡¯s all a ruckus out there.¡± He looked at the ceiling, speech slightly slurring. He poured us another cup before holding it up to me. I met his cup with mine and we both took a swig. ¡°I led you to my village.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said. ¡°...Will you lead the others here?¡± I looked him straight in the eyes. ¡°No.¡± I could not live with myself if I did. But I kept that to myself. He nodded, satisfied. The elderly dwarf rummaged in his back pocket and brought out a tattered scroll. He opened it up, revealing a map of the island. Not just a map. Monster Lairs, location of the fruits. There was also information about the cavern I was just in and the network of tunnels that ran underground. Hell, there was even a freaking Fracture on this island which opened up twice the year, if I was reading it right. Doror¡¯s fingers traveled over the map while I made a mental note of every single place that could be of use to me. He tapped a spot. ¡°Here. There¡¯s a ruin here, should provide cover for your ships to make repairs. Enough wood around and a nice defensive spot if ye be attacked by monsters.¡± I memorized the spot. ¡°Thank you.¡± He nodded, satisfied. ¡°Now leave me, Boy.¡± He took another swig, spilling it over the map. Hesitating, I looked around the smithy. Seeing the rusted tools and the forge covered in dust ¨Cnot ash. The hammer ¨Cthe one tool that a Master Smith could never go without¨C was nowhere in sight. Then I looked at Master Smith, drinking himself into a drunken stupor. I came here with something specific in mind. But not like this. I wasn''t that cruel. Whatever had happened here, Doror wasn¡¯t ready to talk about it. Nor was he ready to face it. No, now wasn¡¯t the time yet. ¡°I¡¯ll be back, Stonehammer.¡± Then I left. Chapter 130: Hunt (End) World: MSS - Loading...
Leaving the underground city of dwarves, I organized my thoughts. One. There was no doubt about it, this was a ¡®Hidden Piece¡¯. To be more specific, an underground City containing a Master Smith. Two. There was a quest here. Three. If I wanted Doror to forge something, I¡¯d have to get to the bottom of that quest. It might seem strange to other people, that I¡¯m so fixated on Doror when this city is literally full of dwarven smiths. But in each Dwarven Community, there can only be one Master Smith: and for the Stonehammer City, Doror was it. And now that I met Doror, I wasn¡¯t going to settle for any less. There''s a difference in quality between a Master Smith¡¯s work and an Expert Smith. Even if they make the same weapon, the damage output as well as the overall magical effect will be better. It might not seem like a noticeable difference at first, but over time, they tended to add up. Also, starting off with a Masterwork Weapons would save my parties a lot of time, perhaps years. Because Master Smiths were the only ones who could create and enhance Legendaries and Artifacts. Locked in my thoughts, I passed by a Gatekeeper ¨Ca groungy old Dwarf who stayed silent as he opened the door for me. I left the halls leading to Stonehammer City, got back into the cave. Then using my sense of hearing and sight, I found the place where I had been hunting. Now that I¡¯d seen all the shiny new equipment at Stonehammer City, most of these things looked dull and rustic. Still, I forced myself to walk by every single one and inspect them, determining how much they would sell for. My Dimension Ring wasn¡¯t limitless and I didn¡¯t want to try and shove everything inside without order. Carefully picking out ones that would be worth the effort to sell, I picked the place clean and went back to where Arrosh had been resting. I found the master orc swordsman fully dressed, waiting for me. He used both hands to support himself on his cane, standing in front of the rock we rolled in front of the entrance. His cloudy eyes could see nothing yet I knew that the elderly orc could see everything that happened around him. Arrosh gave me a short nod. ¡°A short time, the fledgling leaves the nest but already its flight feathers are growing.¡± I gave him a respectful nod, taking the time to tell him what I found below. I trust Arrosh. There¡¯s no secrets to a man who¡¯s literally risking his life to spy on those who might be planning to betray you. ¡°Once we can get the ships to dock and start repairs, I¡¯m going to convince Zenom to allow the parties some free reign. To hunt, possibly gather Cores and even equipment. I¡¯m going to use that time to bring my party down below and try to convince the Master Smith to craft some equipment for us.¡± I finished. ¡°Come with us, Arrosh.¡± He shook his head. ¡°A bat¡¯s role is to sleep during the day and watch during the night. At night, I will be too busy watching the daggers of those who might stab you, Young Crow.¡± I nodded, having expected this. It wouldn¡¯t be easy to whisk Arrosh away from Arione¡¯s party. He came here with a mission in mind: to spy on Arione and get back to me. Not only that, it¡¯d seem weird to the other parties if he started sticking around mine. ¡°Then is there anything I could get for you?¡± Arrosh stared down at his cane-sword with murky eyes. ¡°No. It has been far too long since this dog has slept in a house. Let the puppies worry about how to decorate the house. My time for such things has passed.¡± He wasn¡¯t making it easy for me. I¡¯d have to think of something I could get him. ¡°Let me see the Totem, Disciple.¡± Arrosh ordered. I turned around, revealing my back to him. ¡°Hmmm¡­ the scars have been set properly.¡± His fingers traced over the scars which made the warpaint-like markings on my back. ¡°And¡­ what is this? Another branch already?¡± ¡°Truly?¡± I asked. Orc Totem¡¯s can be initiated by a Witch Doctor, but once you receive it, there¡¯s no need to revisit that witch doctor. Unlike Beastman who have to return to their Witch Doctor everytime they want to upgrade their [Evolution], the Berserker have their totem upgraded automatically. Namely, they work on an experience system. By killing monsters, your totem grows stronger and stronger until it reaches the next level. It might sound easy at first. Of course it does. [Aura] has a proficiency requirement; to reach the next stage, you have to use it more and more. Easy enough. Beastman have to save up gold and gather monster materials, revisiting their Witch Doctor to get it done. Dwarves have theirs unlocked through an achievement system: by encountering rarer materials and items, they can upgrade Gigantification. Compared to those, it might seem that the Orc Totem and Elf¡¯s [Core Dominion] trait seems easy to level up. Orcs only have to kill monsters and Elves can just absorb more and more Cores. But that¡¯s not true. Each stage of the Orc¡¯s Totem requires higher graded monsters to be killed to be unlocked. To unlock the highest tier, you have to kill a grade-2 monster or above. It¡¯s a similar condition for [Core Dominion], to unlock the highest stage, you have to absorb a Core of grade 2 or above. That means that although the racial traits for these two are the easiest to upgrade at first, they quickly reach a bottleneck.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Grade-2 monsters are no joke. At least the elves can buy a Core, but orcs are stuck having to kill the monsters. Either way, killing all those Grade-7 monsters must have raised my Totem by another stage. Ah, for reference¡¯s sake, I can raise my Crow Totem to the Third Stage by killing Grade-7 monsters. ¡®That should be my goal. Hitting stage 3 before we leave this island. Not only that, it¡¯s a real possibility that I can hit level 40, unlocking room for another Core.¡¯ And if we stop by the Free Trader¡¯s League¡­ I could possibly get my hands on that Core. Not only that, there was a Master Smith with a quest, right below this island. I shivered. This was one of those moments in the game that I saw most often. A make-it or break-it moment for a playthrough. Hitting the Third Stage of the Crow Totem would be easy. Way too easy. But what were the consequences of it? What if some of the Turinan¡¯s saw me using Orc abilities as a Human? I had no way of gauging their reactions but it sure wouldn¡¯t be a congratulatory pat on the back. Not only that, the Dwarf¡¯s quest itself would be dangerous. A Master Smith wouldn¡¯t make weapons for weaklings, whatever circumstances it was in, it would take everything I had and more to complete it. Then even if I received the weapon, wouldn¡¯t people ask questions? ¡®One step at a time.¡¯ I told myself. I would get stronger, but that would invite its own set of dangers. But it¡¯s not like I got here by playing it safe. ¡°My ears shall keep watch,¡± Arrosh rumbled, putting his hand on the rock blcoking the entrance. ¡°Take your time, my Disciple.¡± Nodding my appreciation, I closed my eyes and quickly fell into a trance like before when choosing the first skill of the Crow totem. The selection for the second skill wasn¡¯t anything nearly as dramatic as the first one, where I had been presented with [Air Jump] and [Darkness]. I was presented with two choices, both of them passives. The first was a faint tickling sensation on my eyes, nose and ears. [+5] to Vision, Smell and Hearing. Must-have stats for any Wayfinder. These weren¡¯t insignificant boosts either. It would grant me [Far Sight] and the ability to discern monster species just from smell and hearing alone. But that¡¯d be a lame choice if it was the end of it, those bonuses were doubled when in Darkness. Yup. Doubled. A lot of people look down on these stats. But these are crucial stats in any party, avoiding dangerous monsters and traps. Not only that, with these stats, most Core abilities that relied on stealth would be powerless to a Watcher Totem character that rode this skill tree. If I was truly pursuing a Wayfinder build, I¡¯d choose it without hesitation. I used to have a lot of fun playing an Orc Shadow Assassin build back in the day¡­ Then I was given the sensation of murky darkness, clinging to my skin like mud. This option would upgrade my existing [Darkness] skill into [Lingering Darkness]. Enemies would experience a difficulty in movement; namely a slight decrease in their [Physical] stat. ¡®That¡¯s not bad either.¡¯ For someone like me who relied on buffs, any debuff to the opponent was a welcome choice. Finally, the last option. My heart bit a little bit faster and my feet felt a little bit lighter. [+5] to both Health and Mana regeneration when in Darkness. Probably the worst of the three options, I tossed it out immediately. Besides, regeneration wouldn¡¯t be a problem for me once this build was completed. ¡®Ok then¡­ that leaves only one choice.¡¯ I focused on the darkness, until it coalesced. The other two faded into oblivion. From the third stage of this Totem, there would be no more options. I was locked in to the [Lingering Darkness] skill tree. Which was fine with me. This one synergized the best with my build. I got to my feet, just in time to hear Arrosh say to me, ¡°Disciple. It seems that the snakes have gone underground and the grass is free to roam. Just as the birds fly, we must spread our wings.¡± We worked together, rolling the stone away from the entrance. Once again, the angry red glow of the island greeted me. Lazy swirls of smoke filled the air and I spotted spots of green jade leaking poisonous gas, no doubt from the baby Myung-sas. Arrosh and I shared a look (which I¡¯m not entirely sure about, since he¡¯s Blind) and set off together. The first few feet were exactly as I described. But the rest of the island were in complete disarray. Smoking craters were the norm and entire sections of the volcano was now green ¨Ccombining with the natural red-huge of the island to create a purple sheen that hurt my eyes to look at. The ashen sky was dark and I knew that it was nightfall. ¡°Master Arrosh, where do you sense the monsters?¡± I whispered, lest I awaken something best left sleeping. He pointed a finger downwards. Right. There would be nothing to eat for them up on the surface which meant they would be searching for monsters underground. ¡®The Dwarf City.¡¯ For a single horrifying second, images of dwarves being turned to inanimate jade or being torn apart by baby Myung-sas filled my mind. But it was just my imagination. They would know how to protect themselves. But it also meant that the next time I visited them, it would be harder. ¡®Stole¡¯s going to have her work cut out for her.¡¯ Just as I finished the thought, I heard someone call out to us. ¡°Slaveborn. Bloodedge.¡± Arrosh and I spun as one, both our hands leaping towards the hilt of our swords. But it was none other than the back-up party. The 8-foot tall Beastman, Astelion from the Giantler tribe, ducked out a small cluster of trees and rock. Following on his heels was the orange-haired magician from Borealis¡¯ tribe ¨Can Akka Xalud Scion if I was remembering correctly. Her eyes shifted left and right, giving us a nervous smile. Astelion¡¯s eyes were serene, looking completely at ease with this post-apocalyptic forest from Bambi''s nightmares. ¡°We finally found you!¡± The girl managed. ¡°You two are the last remaining members from the original party! We thought you were dead! Oh, Aurora was so worried! She was just beside herself.¡± The glasses-wearing pigtailed magician didn¡¯t so much as speak as vomit out the words. Realizing that Arrosh and I wouldn¡¯t reply, she just smiled nervously, slowing down a notch. ¡°The others are waiting on the boats. Please, this way.¡± Then she looked at Astelion, who turned and began to lead the way. Astelion picked his path carefully, his feet padding along with animalistic grace. Sometimes, he¡¯d raise his ear to the wind and just listen, making us wait before resuming our travels. Whatever Delas¡¯ personality had been, Astelion was just the opposite. Quiet with a certain weight to the air around him, definitely someone who¡¯d be taken serious in a room. There was definitely the aura of a seasoned adventurer who knew his role as a Wayfinder. I made a mental note to be more active about finding out about Delas¡¯ other party members. We moved quickly, reaching the ships in less than an hour. ¡°Slaveborn! Bloodedge!¡± ¡°Mr. Lock!¡± ¡°Elder Arrosh!¡± Arrosh and I boarded the ship, which was feeling rather crowded with both the advance party and back-up party in here. Zenom waded through the crowd, his eyes shining. ¡°Slaveborn, we thought you dead.¡± He said. ¡°Glad to prove you wrong.¡± I quipped, plopping myself down on the deck. Adrenaline was starting to wear-off and I wanted nothing more than to fall into a hammock and sleep. But there was a little bit more work to be done. ¡°That¡¯s new.¡± Delas commented, his eyes on the new sword on my hip. Our eyes met for a brief moment and I turned away, but not before everyone else was staring at it too. Crap, I should have stowed it in my Dimension Ring. But this was nothing but a Unique-drop. Let them think that the best thing I found was a place to farm monsters. Because what I actually found is infinitely more valuable. ¡°You going to share where you got that?¡± Delas said jokingly, but his eyes were anything but. ¡°Didn¡¯t know there was a merchant¡¯s store down here.¡± I changed the topic by talking to Zenom. ¡°Have you made your decision yet?¡± Zenom seemed confused by the sudden shift in topic. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°The repairs. Have you made the decision yet on whether we¡¯ll be making them on this island?¡± I got straight to the point. Zenom waved his hand, his tattered cloak swishing with it. ¡°Impossible. We will turn back to the ship and look for a different course of action. Perhaps if we sail full-mat to the Trader¡¯s League-¡± ¡°Because Arrosh and I found a place that might suit our needs.¡± I interrupted him. Delas must have noticed something was up, because he tried to troll my suggestion. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the Trader¡¯s League be a better choice?¡± There was no doubt about it now. This fucker was a Player. How could I confirm? What adventurer would look at the loot of another adventurer and see danger? A normal adventurer would be thinking ¡®Let¡¯s farm on this island¡¯. Greed is the number one motivator for adventurers. And Delas? It was getting away from danger. He looked around for support, but his words fell on deaf ears. They were all nodding, looking to Zenom to make a decision. Too many things had happened for Zenom to ignore my advice. My knowledge about the monsters was well-known among the others now, so much that I could see others looking for a moment to talk to me. I was sure that the way I cleaned up the Party¡¯s mess when they fell to the effects of the Special Field and gave into their anger was shared ¨Cif not, it would be soon enough. Not only that, I¡¯d just survived on the island crawling with Grade-4 Myung-sas longer than any of the advanced party members here. Slowly but surely, my words had gained weight. Not enough to be blindly followed, but to be considered? Out of basic courtesy and respect due to a capable adventurer? More than enough to sway Zenom Saintred¡¯s opinion. ¡°Contact the other ship,¡± He told Arione and the other orange-haired Mage, ¡°Slaveborn, show us this place before the others arrive.¡± ¡°We will make the repairs here.¡±
Chapter 131: Proof of Strength (1) World: MSS - Loading...
Once the message was sent to the fleet, things moved quickly. I showed them to the place that Doror had marked on the map. Since it was my first time heading there in person, it took awhile. But my memory held true and successfully found the place that Doror was talking about. There was a small spot that resembled a beach where the fleet could make port. Surrounding the beach was a trough valley, a U-shaped formation of rock that surrounded the entire place like the inside of a crescent moon. The slope wasn¡¯t steep and even the sailors could climb it. More than that, it was full of those ash-covered trees that could be used for repairs. A small hill full of them. The Church¡¯s Fleet worked quickly. Temporary wooden shelters were the first to go up, raised by the sailors with the help of adventurers. They brought out these large sheets of tarp, creating temporary roofing. The next thing to go up was a basic lumber station, where they¡¯d cut, process and repair the ship with the help of magic. Without magic, it¡¯d take a lot longer than a simple two weeks to finish these repairs. Of course, my party and I had been reunited. We spent the first three days simply taking care of our own shelter, food and planning out what we¡¯d do on this island. The decision was unanimous. We¡¯d hunt. I could see the hunger in Skaris¡¯ eyes when I told him about the underground tunnels full of monsters. Aurora had told me that since most of the Myung-sa babies had gone underground, she saw other monsters beginning to lurk upwards. With the appearance of monsters, the barren volanic island began to change. Monsters began to pick lairs, hunting each other and marking territories. It was teeming with life, and for me and every other adventurer, that meant training. Except one problem which happened on the fourth day, when all the adventurers were preparing to hunt. ¡°What the hell do you mean we¡¯re not allowed to hunt?¡± Delas snarled. We were all huddled in a small semi-circle around Zenom and Cecilia, sticking close to our own parties. And by we, I mean that every single adventurer that had been hired for this quest that was currently glaring at Zenom. Zenom and Cecilia stood in the center. Cecilia was trying her best to look apologetic but I knew better. The Holy Knight on the other hand, carefully kept his expression neutral. ¡°It is a decree from the Bishop. No matter how much you complain, I do not have the power to change this decision.¡± ¡°The hell you don¡¯t.¡± Delas muttered, turning to the others. ¡°You all going to stand for this bullshit?¡± Then as one, the adventurers began to murmur amongst one another. It grew louder and louder, the complaints growing in volume and intensity. Zenom frowned, obviously annoyed. It wasn¡¯t just Delas complaining either. Boris had joined in, albeit in a calmer manner. Lety and Clover were speaking on behalf of their party too. ¡°This does not bode well,¡± Kyrian whispered to me, beneath the racket. ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. ¡°While the Advance party was gone, the Bishop came to our ship.¡± Kyrian cast a sideways glance at Skaris and Stole. Stole wrinkled her nose like she smelt something rancid. ¡°He¡¯s a jerk.¡± Kyrian nodded. ¡°For once, I¡¯m inclined to agree.¡± ¡°What¡¯d he do?¡± My curiosity was growing. Kyrian sighed, sweeping his blonde hair back. It had grown out a lot. In fact, it was so long that he had tied it into a ponytail and it fell below his shoulders. ¡°Nothing of consequence except annoying us. He systemized how we should stand watch and had us run drills.¡± ¡°He alsssso went on and on about hissss god.¡± Skaris said meaningfully. I understood what Skaris wanted to say immediately. ¡°He gave a sermon?¡± I hissed back. ¡°Everyday.¡± Stole deadpanned. ¡°Every. Single. Fucking. Day. Twice.¡± Provided, the advance party hadn¡¯t been gone for too long. But these guys were adventurers. They didn¡¯t have the patience and discipline of a Priest who had been in training since they were old enough to walk. It required a different type of self-mastery to face monsters. Adventurers with the instincts of a wild animal, sitting in pews and listening to a sermon by the bishop twice a day? Looking around and knowing what had happened to them, I had a better understanding of why everyone was complaining. Regardless of the reasons, I continued to watch. I had plans of my own of course but throwing indiscriminate rabble at Zenom wouldn¡¯t change anything. The others wouldn¡¯t know, but Zenom wasn¡¯t a man who was moved by words alone. For a man like him, only actions spoke louder.. ¡°Lock, we were planning to leave this place too. Weren¡¯t we?¡± Kyrian chimed in. ¡°Are you going to say anything?¡± ¡°No.¡± I answered, ¡°Not yet, atleast.¡± Aurora gave me a quizzical look but nodded, almost to herself. Stole made a frustrated sound.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Mr. Lock has a plan.¡± She reassured Stole. ¡°How the hell are we supposed to stay cooped up here for two weeks?!¡± The Elf from Delas¡¯ party spoke out. The only human in Arione and Clover¡¯s party, a girl with Orange-hair, an Akka Xalud if I wasn¡¯t mistaken, also spoke up. ¡°You are a fool. This island is crawling with monsters. You¡¯d have us just sit here and waste it?¡± A chorus of voices agreeing with the Scion spoke out, descending into an unintelligible mass of voices. Cecilia winced, shying away from the noise. ¡°Is there an issue?¡± The voice carried, each word pronounced perfectly and the pitch a standard tenor, striking through the noise. The Bishop approached us, followed by his two masked guards. Briefly, I fingered my new sword, [Snow Scream], and wondered how strong those two guards were. Because by the end of all this, I¡¯d have to kill them too. It wasn¡¯t anything that I had taken seriously until I got to this island. Perhaps because I knew there was a huge gap between myself, Zenom and these bodyguards as well. It was like running a race ¨Cyou don¡¯t even entertain the possibility of winning until you¡¯re near the finish line with no one running ahead of you. In the same way, I had an inkling, almost like a sixth sense, where I wondered exactly how much ahead these guys were. That told me they weren¡¯t too far ahead. I could catch up. I looked at my Party, each of them calm ¨Cunlike the rest of the crowd. I could sense the trust they had in me. Skaris looked bored while Kyrian buried his nose in his book. Aurora and Stole whispered softly to each other. We would catch up. I turned my attention back to the scene. ¡°It was on my orders that Sir Saintred has ordered the adventurers to remain here.¡± The Bishop¡¯s wrinkled face looked at Delas with disdain, gaze briefly running over the non-humans in his party. ¡°Who will protect the camp if we are attacked?¡± ¡°There is no danger of being attacked, and that¡¯s what the auxilary forces are for.¡± Borealis stepped in, which surprised me. But he was an adventurer just like all of us. He too, didn¡¯t want to waste this chance of getting stronger. ¡°If we are to raise the chances of us succeeding on this mission-¡± ¡°We are not in control of our own Fate! We will succeed because the Light, Flame and Shield wants us to! Not because of the efforts of¡­ of you all!¡± Once again, his eyes rolled over the non-humans in the group. ¡°I get it now.¡± Kyrian muttered. I raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°He wants to keep Zenom¡¯s forces weak.¡± He said, looking at me. ¡°He wants to steal the mission, right from underneath his nose.¡± ¡°Truly?¡± Skaris suddenly looked sharp. ¡°Issss thisss human politicssss?¡± Kyrian sighed. ¡°Actually, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he has already sent word ahead of the fleet, with a group of adventurers ready to replace us at the Trader¡¯s League.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock¡­ did you know this?¡± I finally shrugged. ¡°I suspected.¡± ¡°Then I presume that your plan accounts for this variability?¡± Aurora asked. I grunted. ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡± Then we turned our attention back to the Bishop. ¡°I have heard about the evil curse on this island. That the curse attacks your mind, breeding anger from all the dark things. No doubt, the work of monsters!¡± The Bishop continued. ¡°Surely, with a less disciplined mind, you will all fall prey!¡± He shook his head dramatically. ¡°It is for your own good.¡± ¡°We can fix that easily with the fruit.¡± Clover turned to Arione. ¡°It staves off effects of the Special Field.¡± The Bishop turned to Clover, somehow angry that this was an era where a female Beastman could speak back to him without being whipped. ¡°Do you not have a mind, Beast Child? Think! If we spare fruits for the adventurers, then we won¡¯t have enough for the Sailors! Do you mean to spend this time furthering your own goals when we could use the time to repair the ships quicker?! Do not forget why we are here!¡± His thundering voice quieted the crowd. I watched everyone¡¯s faces. Especially the non-humans. Open disdain was the majority but the others? They had faces full of dejectedness. Rejection and hopelessness. There¡¯s something you have to understand. Beastman were slaves in this world but it doesn¡¯t end there. At one point or another, every single non-human race was subject to either genocide or oppression by the Turinan Empires. This version of MSS might be in the future but it wasn¡¯t necessarily far enough so that those racial memories were forgotten. If anything, I¡¯d say it was stronger because there was something that made them so desperate. Hope. The beastman tasted freedom. The Dwarves felt what it was like to have their home and the Elves experienced what it was like to have a non-aggression treaty with the humans. The orcs formed vast hordes, threatening the Turina Empire with military might ¨Csomething that none of the other races had managed yet. These children of slaves grew up, being fed with dreams of freedom. Of adventurer ¨Cthat they could send golds and riches back to their parents. Their parents who worked in the sewers, cleaning waste and living day to day at the beck and call of humans. Because let¡¯s admit it, what were recently freed slaves going to do? Hit oil? No, instead being slaves through force, they became slaves through economic means. And here were the offsprings of those times, trying to make a different life for themselves. And once more, they were at the mercy of a human. ¡°Fuck this.¡± Delas whispered, kicking at the ground. But there wasn¡¯t any fight left in his voice. The Bishop smiled and turned. ¡°If that¡¯s all-¡± ¡°I have a suggestion.¡± I said quietly. And as one, everyone turned to look at me. I don¡¯t like being the center of attention. I never did. Especially with eyes that seemed to think that I could do something. That if it was me, I¡¯d surely get us out of this trouble. I knew for a fact that Arione¡¯s party didn¡¯t like me, but that orange-haired Scion Girl was staring at me with shining eyes. Lety was smiling faintly too and the list didn¡¯t end there. Borealis¡¯ party had the same expression ¨Cespecially Dorocian and Gurran. Delas¡¯ party too. Every single face, even fucking Zenom and Cecilia, was looking at me like they had been waiting for me to say something. The bishop narrowed his eyes, glancing over my neck where my slave-scars were. ¡°You may speak.¡± He said. Those three words sounded like he was giving me permission to speak. It brought me to a time when I was enslaved by the Orcs and I think I sympathized more with the non-humans than I thought. How did I know? Because I wanted to wring his skinny little neck. But I reigned in my temper. I had a goal and anger was an unnecessary distraction. I think I saw Arrosh nod to himself. ¡°We don¡¯t have enough fruit to last for the whole of the trip. Let us go out and gather more.¡± I gestured to the adventurers. ¡°Unless you¡¯re planning to send out the sailors.¡± ¡°The priests and Holy Knight will take care of it.¡± The Bishop replied without missing a beat. Of course, my suggestion was too easy. ¡°You mean they¡¯ll be giving themselves Blessings to stave off the effects of the curse to search for fruits?¡± I asked. ¡°Sir Saintred has informed me that-¡± I interrupted him with a laugh. He frowned. God, it felt good to annoy him. ¡°Sir Saintred is not a good example for this.¡± I waved in Zenom¡¯s general direction. ¡°He¡¯s strong. The other priests aren¡¯t at his level. But even them, Zenom wasn¡¯t of much help in the fight against the Grade-5 Myung-sa when it came to, because he was channeling his Blessing. It was a distraction. In an island like this, eating the fruit and forgetting about the effect is vastly superior to a Priests¡¯ blessing.¡± ¡°You dare-¡± ¡°I¡¯m simply saying it¡¯s impossible to repair the ships on time because we¡¯re going to run out of fruit.¡± I took a step closer, ignoring one of his bodyguards stiffening and the other loosening up. I walked free of the crowd, so that I was close enough to Zenom, Cecilia and the Bishop. ¡°Then you¡¯re going to order us adventurers to go out and get more fruits anyways. But by then, we¡¯ll have run out of fruits so we¡¯ll be going in there exposed to the Island¡¯s curse.¡± I smiled at him, watching my reflection in his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s better now for the adventurers to go out, take a fruit each, and come back with more fruits. That way, the adventurers can hunt and still replenish our stock of fruits.¡± The Bishop looked at me, then turned to Cecilia. She bowed her head. ¡°His words are correct. We were going to inform you during dinner, there is just enough stock of fruit to last us for the next 5 days. But the repairs will take at least one more week.¡± The Bishop turned to me this time, eyes flat. Then the corner of his lips curled up. ¡°Despite your humble upbringing, you have a penchant for problem-solving. The Light bless you, Child. Still, before I give my blessings on this endeavor of yours, I have but one question.¡± ¡°How do I know that you, the one who speaks for all the adventurers, has the strength necessary to do such a thing? That you won¡¯t fall victim to the dark beasts that haunt this island?¡± He paused for effect before continuing. Show off. ¡°How strong are you, to suggest such things, Child? If you can satisfy me, I will listen to your strategem.¡± There were many things I could¡¯ve said. After all, everyone knew about my knowledge of monsters. Everyone knew how I led the advance party and found the fruit. I could talk about the random attack on the ship in the beginning of this quest, or even the fact that I could use [Aura]. While I was thinking of what to say, my mouth moved first. ¡°How strong?¡± I pointed at his bodyguards. ¡°I think¡­ just strong enough to go through your bodyguards and kill you.¡± He opened his mouth, trying to say something but no words came out. Eyes becoming the size of saucers, his body frozen like a statue, he took a step back involuntarily. It wasn¡¯t just him. Even with my enhanced [Hearing] stat, I didn¡¯t hear a single person breathe. Finally, the two bodyguards leapt into motion, standing in front of the Bishop. They both drew their weapons, aura flickering between their blades. I gave him my best smile, ignoring the guards. ¡°I¡¯ll take that as a yes.¡±
Chapter 132: Proof of Strength (2) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°You¡¯re mad.¡± The bodyguard who spoke to me had bluish hair peeping out from underneath their veils. It was the same bodyguard who had summoned the Amphiptere before. ¡°You are absolutely mad.¡± ¡°Say the word, Bishop. And I¡¯ll take his head off.¡± The other bodyguard whose name I didn¡¯t particularly care to learn, took a step forward. He brandished a sword menacingly, his other hand glowing with black and green light. The Kojisa Bodyguard had taken out her weapon too, a small scythe. They both took a step closer to me, expressions hidden beneath the curtain-like mask they employed. ¡°Ka-hah! Come! Come! COME! AT ME SSSSCIONSS!¡± Skaris laughed as he stepped forward and before I could stop him, his spear flickered out. The tip blazed into brilliant blue light as supernatural flames burned to life. It was so hot in fact that I had to fight not to shy away from it. It wasn¡¯t just him. I don¡¯t know since when but every single one of my companions were standing next to me. Aurora hadn¡¯t drawn her weapon but she was just behind me. Her silver armor gleaming with pride. Stole stood a little behind her, spaced between Aurora and myself. The girl gave me a terrified look and tried to give me a reassuring smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about anything or anyone behind you, Lock.¡± Kyrian said from somewhere behind me. Then Kyrian put his back to mine. I couldn¡¯t see him, but heard him whispering arcane words beneath his breath, his hair starting to stand out at all ends with latent electricity producing static. And I knew without looking at myself that I suddenly stood a little bit straighter. I was holding my chest a little bit higher and my chin was sticking out defiantly. I didn¡¯t dare move my hand towards my sword. Skaris having his weapon out could be explained as self-defense. But if I drew mine? I knew in my heart that Aurora, Stole and Kyrian wouldn¡¯t hesitate to follow suit. And their presence and the undoubtable knowledge of everything that they were risking to stand next to me filled me with pride that I almost wanted to start a fight. I wanted to draw my sword and fight, to show all these hesitating adventurers and the Holy Knights and the Priests and the Bishop and his two Scion Bodyguards that as long as my party stood next to me, nothing could stop me. That I wasn¡¯t afraid of anything, that this party that I created ¨Cno, we made together¨C would jump into the gullet of a beast¡¯s mouth if one of us was in danger. I wanted to show Clover that this was what a comrade was, a party that would walk into certain death if one of their own was threatened. Subconsciously, I glanced over at Clover¡¯s side. Lety and I looked at each other. She looked away in shame. ¡­Damn. ¡°Fucking mad, the lot of them.¡± Delas whispered into the silence. ¡°...They¡¯re insane.¡± Someone else agreed. ¡°You made your point, Slaveborn.¡± Zenom strode in between the two bodyguards and my party. He didn¡¯t flinch away from the weapons, standing between Skaris and the orange-haired bodyguard. ¡°Have your party stand down.¡± ¡°Mister, over there, by the main ship. There¡¯s an archer pointing his bow in this direction.¡± Stole pointed with her Arbalest. ¡°Is that Holy Knight guys trying to lower our guard? So they can shoot us from the back?¡± Ah-ha, so the Bishop had three bodyguards in total. As soon as Stole said the words, I saw the two bodyguards share an almost imperceptible look. Without the [Crow Totem] I might never have caught it, but Darkvision means by Sight is almost maxed out. The two shied away an inch from me. But Stole¡¯s words had more of an effect than just that. Half of the Wayfinder and Pioneer in the group strained their head towards the main ship, eyes searching with shock. The other half simply stared at Stole, equally as surprised. I could understand why. We were more than a thousand yards out. ¡°No, Sir Zenom,¡± I said, putting emphasis on the words ¡®sir¡¯. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t do anything like that.¡± Skaris still hadn¡¯t lowered his spear and Zenom looked at the spear, then glared at me. ¡°Slaveborn, stand. Down.¡± I glared right back at Zenom. Then I chose my words carefully. ¡°Is that your order or the Bishop¡¯s order?¡± And he reeled back like I had slapped him. ¡°I came to this quest, because I trusted you, Zenom Saintred. Because you have a reputation as a Holy Knight, for integrity and honor.¡± I was lying out my teeth, I didn¡¯t even know about Zenom until Kyrian and Aurora had told me about him. ¡°And I¡¯m sure most of the adventurers here can say the same.¡± Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. There was a round of general agreement. ¡°So, I ask you.¡± I put a hand on Skaris¡¯ arm and he gently lowered the flaming spear. ¡°Whose order should I be listening to?¡± Then so quiet that only he could hear, ¡°Is this how the Great Turina treats those who have pledged themselves to its cause?¡± Zenom gritted his teeth, clenching his fist and opening it a few times. ¡°Sir Zenom-¡± The Bishop started. ¡°This is my expedition, and I am the Leader of this Quest.¡± Zenom spoke before the Bishop could finish. He held my gaze evenly. ¡°So listen to me, Slaveborn. Stand down. I won¡¯t say it again.¡± After Skaris¡¯ spear stopped burning, I gestured to the bodyguard¡¯s weapons with my chin. Zenom turned to them. ¡°Put your weapons away.¡± The bodyguards didn¡¯t move. Then Zenom Saintred, the Holy Knight of Light, Flame and Shield whirled in a fury, his ruby-red cloak spreading out to cover my view. There was the sound of a sword being unsheathed. When the cloak had settled down, I saw that the orange-haired bodyguard had fallen a few paces back. He was holding the shortsword with both, forearm muscles twitching. Zenom had his sword out. ¡°I won¡¯t ask again.¡± ¡°Sir Saintred, how dare you!¡± The Bishop found his voice again. ¡°You dare strike at an agent of the Church?¡± ¡°I strike at an agent of the Church who dares to dirty its name!¡± Zenom took a step forward. ¡°Your eminence, with all due respect, this is mission was entrusted to me and these adventurers are here under my command.¡± The Bishop didn¡¯t cower from Zenom like he did from me. I was an adventurer, a former slave. An unpredictable variable. But Zenom was his direct underling from the Church. He stepped up to meet the much taller Holy Knight, looking at him in the eyes without flinching. ¡°This deviant dares to go against the Church¡¯s teachings and you reward him instead of punishing him as is right!¡± Zenom sheathed his sword. He had no intention of escalating the situation until it dissolved its violence either. Yet, when he spoke, his words were steel and just as sharp as a blade. ¡°What Slaveborn suggests is right.¡± Zenom¡¯s face was blank. ¡°There is no point in wasting the time of these Adventurers. Their time would be better spent working for the Church and aiding in the gathering of the Fruits.¡± He looked down at the Bishop. ¡°Or is there a reason why you would want to slow down the repair of the ships? This mission is a Holy Mission, ordained to me. Why would you question my decision on what the best course of action would be, Your Eminence?¡± The Bishop¡¯s mouth opened and closed a few times like a goldfish. He flushed with anger, not knowing what to say. Finally, he pointed a finger to me. ¡°And him? He dared to draw his blade and threaten a member of the church no less.¡± ¡°Fucking tattletale.¡± Stole said and a few adventurers chuckled. But it soon died out, choked out by the Bishop¡¯s menacing look. But now, thanks to Stole, that¡¯s what he looked like. Just a baby, throwing a tantrum, because he didn¡¯t get what he wanted. ¡°Slaveborn,¡± Zenom said, not taking his eyes off the Bishop. ¡°Will you apologize?¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± I said immediately. ¡°I apologize.¡± And I said it, dripping with sarcasm. ¡°Sincerely so. I did not mean to offend you, Your Eminence.¡± At this rate, I was going to need a mop. I didn¡¯t think it was possible but the Bishop turned redder. Then without a single word, he spun away and walked away. ¡°...I believe that was more insulting than you casually threatening to kill him.¡± Aurora said, looking worried. But the moment was over. Zenom spun to face the crowd and all attention was on him once more. My party¡¯s action would come under scrutiny later, but everyone looked to Zenom, eager for what words he would say next. My role in this was over as well, so I tried my best to appear just another face in the crowd. ¡°I will arrange things, so that every party is given a fruit for each member.¡± His gaze sweeped through the crowd. ¡°However, know that this is a privilege, not a right. You will be expected to bring in enough fruits to make up for the ones you use. Whichever party cannot get enough fruit will have this privilege suspended.¡± Keeping it short, Zenom dismissed us. Looking strangely satisfied, Cecilia followed after Zenom. My plan had been rather roundabout. I hadn¡¯t counted on convincing the Bishop. That was a losing game. But making Zenom wake-up from this timid attitude he had adopted? Making him take control of this expedition the way he was supposed to? From the short time I spent with Zenom, he didn¡¯t hate adventurers. He was a man of logic and faith and there was nothing in his faith about being tough to us. Also, Kyrian and Aurora hinted to his political savviness more than us. If I gave him the opportunity to take back power from the Bishop, I knew he would take it. ¡°Well done, Slaveborn.¡± Borealis clapped me on the shoulder, walking by with his party. ¡°Perhaps I was wrong about you.¡± The parties were moving, each of them preparing for the expedition that lay ahead. But as they did, a lot of them came and gave me snarky comments or encouraging ones. Dorocian even winked at me as she walked by, Gurran giving me an approving look. Even Delas and the Maria girl from Arione¡¯s party told me good job. Lety never came by. Kyrian let out a breath he had been holding and when we were away from the crowd. Everyone else began to talk at the same time. ¡°I hate your plans.¡± Kyrian said. ¡°Sssslaveborn, I tire of all this talking. Letssss hunt ssssomething.¡± ¡°I¡¯m hungry, Mister.¡± Aurora smiled at me. ¡°Well, Mr. Lock. You worked so hard to get us this opportunity. I assume you have something in mind?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± I smiled at my comrades. ¡°You guys want to go shopping?¡±
Clover was packing up her things when someone came in the room and locked the door. ¡°What is it?¡± She asked without turning around or even asking who it was. L¡¯teya, Fourth Daughter of Agda, leaned against the door. She kept her eyes carefully fixed on the floor. ¡°Clover.¡± There was something about the way that L¡¯teya said her name that grabbed Clover¡¯s attention. How you can tell when someone wants to tell you something that¡¯s going to change something. Something that mattered, and something that was important. When a lover calls you and says they need to talk. Or when your siblings calls you, telling you not to panic. When a friend says ¡®I want to talk to you.¡¯ Clover refused to turn around. She couldn¡¯t, Her movements became faster, angrily grabbing supplies for the expedition ahead. ¡°Clover.¡± ¡°Lety, shouldn¡¯t you be preparing for the expedition? This is a chance to get you a Core. A real Shielder Core. I¡¯m tired of seeing you get hurt.¡± Even as Clover said it, the words didn¡¯t sound quite right. Something in the tone that Clover couldn¡¯t put a finger on. Something about the tone, the inflection or perhaps the word choice itself. It sounded rushed somehow, pained and a little angry. Unbeknownst to Clover, L¡¯teya smiled; her face still downcast. ¡°I was wondering about something.¡± ¡°I¡¯m really busy here, Lety. Can this wait?¡± Again, Clover said the words but they felt far away. Like they were underwater. And Clover realized she didn¡¯t want Lety to talk. She wanted Lety to just get out of the room and let her prepare in peace. L¡¯teya had no idea what kind of things Clover had to think about. She had to balance Arione¡¯s temper against Lock¡¯s paranoia, all the while keeping up a farce in front of Arrosh¡¯s eyes. Then there was Maria, that venomous snake, always looking for a way to gain an advantage over the others. Did L¡¯teya know what Clover herself was doing to keep themselves safe? Did she understand just how much was at stake here? If they failed, Oung would have no use for them. She knew there were other Kaguras. Arione would have no use for them. And it wasn¡¯t like they could count on Lock either. It¡¯d be just like the Samak Horde. Left alone, powerless without anyone to rely on. It¡¯d be just Clover trying to hold everything together. ¡°...If the Elven Mage,¡± L¡¯teya began and Clover fought not to scream in frustration. ¡°Spoke up against the Bishop like that, would you have done what Lock¡¯s comrades did?¡± Clover gripped her knapsack so hard that she could imagine it tearing open, spilling everything on the floor. ¡°Yes, I would have.¡± Lety didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°Truly?¡± L¡¯teya asked again. Wrong. Just wrong. Everything wrong. Going to be all alone again. Without anyone to help. She was just a merchant¡¯s daughter in the wrong place at the wrong time, trying to keep everyone alive. Why her? Why was L¡¯teya doing this? Didn¡¯t she know everything that happened till now was to keep them alive? But Clover held her tongue. She simply said, ¡°Lety, we are a party. We look out for each other. We trust each other. That¡¯s what we do.¡± She couldn¡¯t see L¡¯teya¡¯s expression because she still had her back to her. After a panic-inducing moment of quiet, Lety laughed. ¡°Ahahaha! That¡¯s true isn¡¯t it? We¡¯re a party. I was just curious! I hate his guts but yes, we should stick up for each other. I¡¯ll go get ready then. Don¡¯t be late, Clover!¡± Clover heard the door close as L¡¯teya left. Wrong. All Wrong. Just... Just wrong.
Chapter 133: Proof of Strength (3) World: MSS - Loading...
Zenom set out some basic rules. One. Every party needed to bring three fruits per member. If you had five members, you had to bring in 15 fruits. If you had six, you had to bring in eighteen and etcetera. If you failed, you had two more chances to leave for the hunt. But the catch was that you still had to make up the quota from the previous day, on top of that day¡¯s quota. Parties who failed to meet the quota would be held back and stuck on guard duty. In my opinion it was more than fair. The Special Field effect of this island, plus the limited number of fruits we had in stock meant that we couldn¡¯t afford to waste precious resources on parties that couldn¡¯t pull their own weight. Of course, there had been complains from the other parties but in the end everyone begrudgingly admitted that it was the most fair way. Zenom had officially made this into a competition. There could only be so many fruits on the island. Every party would have to make judgments on the fly. They¡¯d have to figure out which area had the greatest concentration of fruits, as well as having a monster lair nearby that was worth hunting. We could all aim at the weaker monsters and get fruits, but at this level, people were hunting for two things. Cores and Equipment. Lower grade wouldn¡¯t offer much of a yield. I doubted anyone except me wanted EXP. Why, you ask? Why the hell would I focus on getting equipment like these chumps when the freaking Master Smithlay right underneath our noses? I could just get one made from him. I also doubted this island had a Core we could use. Oh sure, if I happened upon a Core which could prove useful, I¡¯d be more than happy to have one of my party members gobble it up. But it didn¡¯t necessarily have to be here. After all, we would be heading to the island with the Trader¡¯s League right after. With the Dimension Rings I scavenged from the Scavengers, and the sizable loot I had just gotten from my own training spree earlier¡­ ¡®We might be able to enter the Auction.¡¯ The Auction. Similar to how the Samak Horde had done, there would be the same one in the Trader¡¯s League Islands. Of course, without the slaves. Zenom had a second condition. For those parties without a healer, we were being forced to have a priest accompany us. Which brings us to the current situation. We were in my party tent, discussing which of the Priests we could take. I hadn¡¯t spent much time with the Priests or Priestesses so I had been asking Skaris, Kyrian, Aurora and Stole for their thoughts. Stole then left and returned, bringing a young boy in tow ¨Csomeone I recognized from before. Darwin. The priest with the Downs Syndrome. ¡°Stole, this isn¡¯t a good idea.¡± Kyrian looked to me for help, but I was too busy trying to make sense of the situation. Stole and Darwin stood in front of us, Darwin looking down on the ground and shy. He clung to Stole¡¯s cloak with one hand, refusing to meet anyone¡¯s eyes. Stole argued on the boy¡¯s behalf. ¡°Oh come on! Please, Kyrian! He knows how to heal now! Right, Drawin? Show him!¡± Stole then took out a dagger, reaching towards her forearm. ¡°Sssstop it, Whelp.¡± Skaris snapped. ¡°Do not ssssshed uselesssss blood.¡± Surprisingly, Stole actually listened and obeyed. Though it didn¡¯t stop her from scowling at the 7-feet tall Beastman. She stuck out her tongue at him, before appealing to Aurora. ¡°Sis Aurora. You were there! You saw him heal, didn¡¯t you? Tell them!¡± Aurora glanced at Kyrian. ¡°She¡­ Mr. Darwin did manage to learn the most basic spell.¡± When Kyrian glared at her, she added, ¡°Though I do have doubts about his ability in the field.¡± Kyrian shot me an exasperated look. ¡°Lock, stop her.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure what to respond to Kyrian because I was actually weighing the pros and cons of bringing Darwin. ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me.¡± Kyrian rounded on me, changing targets from Stole to me. Yay. ¡°You¡¯re actually considering this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ not the worst idea.¡± I shrugged. Skaris made a face that I didn¡¯t know he could make. On the other hand, Darwin suddenly looked up from the ground at me. His brown eyes shimmered, mouth slightly open in a stupefied expression. He looked at Stole who smirked at him and then continued to look at me. ¡°Mr. Lock? Please?!¡± Stole muttered. It wasn¡¯t the worst idea. It really wasn¡¯t. But I also knew what Kyrian was worried about. All too well. This wasn¡¯t a field trip we were going on. It was a legitimate expedition and I knew that there were more powerful monsters than Grade-7 lurking around the island. Perhaps even stronger than the Grade-4 Myung-sa. ¡°I need to think about it a little more.¡± I sat on a chair, looking at the list of things we needed before heading out. I passed it to Stole. ¡°You know where the Quartermaster is? Go get us these things.¡± Stole narrowed her eyes. ¡°Why?¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. What the heck. Stole never got like that. Yes, the girl had a rebellious streak but since when did she question my orders like that? Well, given the circumstances, I could understand why. It was better to come clean with her. ¡°You¡¯re too emotionally vested.¡± I said truthfully, ¡°I don¡¯t want you in this conversation. But you¡¯re vote will still count.¡± Darwin understood what I was saying because he tugged on Stole¡¯s cloak. ¡°Les¡¯ go, S,Stowle.¡± He said in that slurred, stunted speech of his. ¡°And get some lunch while you¡¯re at it. We won¡¯t be able to eat out there, not unless we want to maximize our time.¡± I managed to get my words out, just as Stole left. And of course, she was glaring at me the entire time. I sighed and gestured to Kyrian. He shrugged and drew sigils in the air with his hands, muttering a spell under his breath. In a second, it felt like my mind was somewhere else though I was still inside the tent. It was accompanied by the sense that I was inside a tightly sealed bottle, air pressing in on my ears and mouth and even nose. Like I was too high up in the mountains. ¡°Now no one else can hear us, except us.¡± Kyrian explained. I had no idea this spell existed until recently, until I overheard some of the other parties talking about it. It basically allowed Kyrian to cast a spell that allows our party to communicate only amongst each other and couldn¡¯t be broken, unless interfered with by another mage. Kyrian told me the spell is called [Secret Speech]. I personally like to call it [Team Chat] or [Party Chat]. Since Kyrian and Skaris know about my Player background already, maybe I could suggest it to them. Not that they¡¯d understand anyways. ¡°I told you guys,¡± I began to explain. ¡°That we need a Priest who can keep his mouth shut. Who won¡¯t sell out information, even if the other party waved a bag of gold in front of them. And in this case¡­¡± I gestured over towards the tent flap through which Darwin and Stole had exited. ¡°It¡¯s not a bad choice.¡± Skaris looked at Darwin. ¡°The boy issss disssabled. He cannot fight.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure how old Darwin was and it was strange to hear Skaris calling him ¡®boy¡¯. Darwin was definitely a teenager. Maybe one of those teenagers who grow up too fast. He was well over six-feet tall with hunched shoulders and a rounded frame. But he still hid behind Stole like a child. ¡°He can¡¯t cast healing spells.¡± Kyrian chimed in. I gestured to Aurora, inviting her to say her piece. Aurora said nothing, her expression strained. ¡°Aurora?¡± I said to her. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to say something.¡± ¡°Must I?¡± she said softly. ¡°Speak freely. No one will hold it against you, no matter the decision. This is our party after all.¡± ¡°Stole¡­¡± Aurora spoke slowly, but picked up speed once she began. ¡°Please correct me if I¡¯m wrong or am out of line, have you three been watching Stole at all? Paying attention to her?¡± Kyrian and Skaris looked at each other, then at me. I frowned. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock. She is young. Even for an adventurer she is young.¡± Aurora looked right at me as she spoke. ¡°She came here, trusting only in your invitation, Mr. Lock. Oh yes, she likes Mr. Kyrian and Mr. Skaris well enough. And I am not saying that you have mistreated her in anyway. And given your position as our Party Leader and the responsibilities you hold on this Expedition, I do not doubt you are busy.¡± ¡°But apart from all that, have you checked in on Stole? A young girl, on her first expedition, away from home for the first time? Surrounded by older adventurers who are all more powerful and more experienced than her?¡± Briefly, I wondered if Aurora somehow knew Stole¡¯s age. In the party, the person that Stole spoke to the most was Aurora. The two shared rooms and as a Tank and Wayfinder, they worked close together even in combat. Besides, Aurora was everything that Stole admired in an adventurer. Beautiful, capable and powerful enough to hold her own against her male counterparts, as well as earn their respect. Stole followed her around a lot. After that came a little bit of guilt. Aurora was right. Stole was here because of me and I couldn¡¯t answer Aurora¡¯s question; that I indeed did check in on Stole from time to time. Because to be honest, I kind of pushed that responsibility off to the rest of them. Yay, me. Yes, I was busy but it wasn¡¯t fair to just expect Kyrian, Skaris and Aurora to take care of her. I had invited Stole, and out of everyone here, I alone knew Stole¡¯s true age and her background. Yet, I¡¯d kind of left her alone, expecting everyone else to fulfill the role that was rightfully mine. ¡°She does not blame you, Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora spoke quickly, ¡°But these are my own observations. Left to her own devices, Stole has tried to make friends with some of the priestesses that are around her in age.¡± ¡°You mean the ones in training?¡± Kyrian asked, shocked. Skaris hissed in sympathy. ¡°Yes. And each time, they reject her. There is no other way to say it.¡± Aurora looked at me. ¡°Those young priestesses, they have not yet had much experience in seeing the world. For some of them, it might be the first time that they are seeing a Beastman not in chains, or an Elf. Many of them¡­ rebuffed Stole¡¯s advances with¡­ well, rudely.¡± ¡°It¡¯s only expected. She¡¯s still¡­ young.¡± Kyrian said. ¡°She¡¯s going to want friends. Companionship. Now she knows better.¡± ¡°You cannot just write this off as a lesson learned, Mr. Kyrian and hope that Stole is all the better for it.¡± Aurora said sternly, snapping at Kyrian. Kyrian opened his mouth to argue, but Aurora spoke over him. ¡°What I mean to say is that this Party has been negligent in our duty. The fact is, we should be the ones teaching her and guiding her. Yet, it seems to me that I was the only one who took this duty seriously.¡± ¡°Whelpssss learn bessst on the field-¡± ¡°Mr. Skaris, with all due respect, Stole is not from Zimmskar. She was born in Jayu. She is different from the rest of your people, who grew up with your people¡¯s Old Ways.¡± Skaris said something guttural, a curse most likely. Then fell silent, thinking. He finally nodded his head a fraction of an inch. One part apology and one part admittance of his wrong. Aurora turned back to me. ¡°Fact is, Mr. Lock that we haven¡¯t treated Stole right. None of us have. So she reached outside the party for companionship and even then, couldn¡¯t find anyone. Now, she finally brings someone who she might have a connection with, that she sees as a Peer. Not a mentor, not a leader, not a respected older adventurer, but an equal.¡± ¡°...As much as I agree with you,¡± Kyrian finally butted in. ¡°It¡¯s not that easy. A priest is crucial in an expedition. Lock told us the monsters here are Grade-7 above and possibly swarming with them. The priest¡¯s skills can be between life and death for us here.¡± Aurora lowered her voice. ¡°Oh really? Is that what this Party has been all this time? Making the correct, logical choice all the time?¡± Kyrian opened his mouth to argue then closed it, thinking better of it. In the ensuing lull, I found all three of them staring at me. ¡°It will be hard.¡± I said finally. ¡°A Priest means you have to work that much harder, Aurora.¡± ¡°I already have been, Mr. Lock.¡± I chewed on my lip. Kyrian saw the look on my face and sighed. Skaris looked like he always did, the space between annoyed, bored and ignoring something beneath his notice. ¡°Fine.¡± Aurora nodded her thanks. Skaris rolled his eyes and Kyrian sighed. ¡°Ok then, now that that¡¯s settled we can all go get some lunch. We¡¯ll head out right after-¡± The flap to our tent opened up and a Priest rushed inside. Kyrian dispelled the Team Chat spell. ¡°Your presence is required.¡± The Priest was sweating, but did his best to sound calm. Sensing that something was wrong, we ran out of the tent, following the Priest. He led us towards the Mess Area. Which was nothing more than a large tent designed to serve food with large tables and chairs set around the entire area. Usually, we¡¯d see a line of people waiting for their turn, twisting around the Mess Tent. But today, there was a crowd. The adventurers in the crowd saw me and let me through. Stole sat on the ground, her arms held behind her back by none other than Lety. ¡°AGGGGHHHH!¡± Stole screamed. Across from her, on the other side of the crowd were two girls ¨Ctwo Priestesses in training. And their faces were bloody. Someone ¨Cand I had zero doubt who¨C had gone and beaten the girls to a bloody pulp. Well, a bloody pulp might be exagerating it. One of them had a bloody nose which was pouring freely and I could tell it was broken. The other girl had a black eye and a lump the size of my fist forming on her jaw ¨CI think Stole knocked her freaking tooth out. And right in front of Stole was Darwin, picking up scraps of food off the ground. He looked at me, eyes welling with tears. ¡°What happened here?¡± I snapped, turning to Stole. Lety released the youngest member of my Party. ¡°Those two, those two!¡± Stole pointed at the two girls who were surrounded by the other young Priests and Priestesses, all around the same age. ¡°They kept on picking on Darwin! I told them to stop! And today, he was walking and they- they just- they stuck their foot out and-¡± Maybe it was the attention. Maybe it was the crowd. Maybe it was just anger. But I¡¯d never seen this before. Stole¡¯s eyes welled up with tears too. And her lip was cut. I¡¯m not stupid. I could guess what happened here. I turned slowly, seeing Darwing crying and making panicked sounds as he picked up scraps of food off the floor. It wasn¡¯t just his tray that he was picking up, he was picking up food for Stole¡¯s tray too. One of the priests reached out, grabbing Darwin¡¯s arm. The large boy yelped in surprise and shock. The priest jerked his arm, pulling Darwin away. ¡°Stop this, you brute.¡± One of the Priests hissed underneath his breath, though everyone heard it. ¡°Get up off the floor. You¡¯re dishoring the church. You¡¯re an embarrassment to our entire Clergy and-¡± Those teenage priests and priestesses, pointing and laughing at Darwin and Stole. The older Priests, clicking their tongue and shaking their heads at them. Every fact made their way into my head like a dizzying storm and I walked over like a man possessed. We¡¯re not actually supposed to touch the Priests. They¡¯re supposed to be Holy and the Healers of this Expedition. We¡¯re supposed to be on their good side, especially for a party like mine who doesn¡¯t have their own. Well, fuck that. Everyone stopped, as I, an adventurer with supernatural strength who can snap him like a twig, grabbed the Priest¡¯s arm. And in this picture frozen still-frame, my voice was the only thing that moved, sweeping through the Mess Area like a lone monster with nothing to lose. ¡°Get your hands off of my healer.¡± Chapter 134: Proof of Strength (4) World: MSS - Loading....
¡°Get your hands off of my healer.¡± The priest whose arm I grabbed froze, eyes wide. For half a second, I could imagine myself losing control. It would be easy. Just a snap of my wrist and it would be done. A clean break, and the message would be clear. And at the same time, I¡¯d probably make an enemy out of this entire camp. Yeah, I could imagine Zenom¡¯s reaction. My party would be banned from leaving the camp premises, our privileges for hunting revoked. The other adventurers might even join in, trying to earn brownie points from the Clergy gathered around. But the temptation was there. ¡°Mr. Lock.¡± Aurora muttered, warning me as much as waking me. With disgust, I shoved the Priest¡¯s hand away from me, releasing him. ¡°Darwin, stop picking that up.¡± I heard Stole¡¯s voice, much calmer than before. The girl was hunched over, dragging Darwin away, the boy twice her size. He had tear marks streaking down his face and refused to meet anyone¡¯s eyes, fixated on the food. He kept muttering something but I couldn¡¯t make out what it was. ¡°What¡¯s going on here.¡± Finally, Zenom made his entrance. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯d like to know.¡± I stepped up to meet him, purposefully taking up space in the middle alongside him. As much as I was an adventurer, Zenom was a Holy Knight. He would react to body language, any signs of backing down or giving an inch could be seen as weakness. As much as this might be a political field, it was a battlefield. So I needed to carve out a space of my own, to make him perceive me as a threat. And right there, the stage was set. Zenom standing in the center with the beaten Priestesses in training standing behind him. They were openly sobbing now; holding onto the other girls. I fought the urge to roll my eyes at the theatrics. Only moments ago, they¡¯d been livid. I saw Zenom¡¯s eyes sweep the clearing, his brain connecting the dots. ¡°Slaveborn, do you know what happened here?¡± ¡®Start strong. Don¡¯t appear confused. Be direct and certain,¡¯ I told myself. ¡°All I know is that I told the my two party members,¡± I gestured at Stole and Darwin who¡¯d settled down now under Aurora and Kyrian¡¯s watch, ¡°to get some lunch before we head out. And I came to find their food on the floor and Stole¡¯s face wounded.¡± Slowly, Zenom looked at Stole¡¯s cut lip. Then he looked at the other two priestesses who had been¡­ well, like I said, beaten to a bloody pulp. It didn¡¯t help that their face was swelling up even more. Then quite pointedly, he looked down at his feet with a grimace, then back at me. ¡­Was that a human tooth that I saw next to his boot? I need to tell Skaris later to teach Stole how to beat people without leaving visible wounds. He cleared his throat. ¡°Are you saying that there was an attack on your party member?¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying,¡± I stood aside for Zenom to get a better look at Darwin. ¡°That Stole did your work for you.¡± I took a step closer, to make a point. Zenom inched away from me. Huh. Interesting. I took another step, quick and certain, getting right up in his space. I spoke quietly, ¡°There¡¯s a bullying problem here and Stole put a quick stop to it. Now, either you knew about it and you can acknowledge it and dole out the appropriate punishments. Or you can pretend you didn¡¯t know and let this go. Whichever you choose, I¡¯m not letting Stole get punished for standing up for what¡¯s right.¡± ¡°It¡¯s apparent that your Pioneer assaulted members of the clergy in broad daylight and you¡¯re expecting me to let this go?¡± Zenom whispered back furiously. ¡°Let it go or open a full-on investigation into this matter.¡± I snarled, ¡°I know the Church¡¯s laws well enough. A certain member of the Clergy being ostracized? Bullied? I¡¯m not sure who Darwin is, but if your Church accepted him regardless of his¡­ disability, I¡¯d say he¡¯s someone important. I¡¯m sure the Bishop would love to hear all about this, and report it to his parents back home.¡± Zenom¡¯s eyes widened. Of course, he probably thought I hated the Bishop. That was true. I did hate him. But as much as I hated him, I hated the idea of something this stupid getting in Stole¡¯s way. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Aurora was right. I¡¯d been negligent in my duties as a Party Leader. It was time to step up. Zenom cleared his throat and I backed off. ¡°Explain what happened.¡± He said in a stern voice. One of the Priestesses ¨Cthe one with the black eye¨C pointed at Stole. ¡°We were just enjoying our meal when that beastman came and attacked us, Sir Saintred.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s bullshit and you know it.¡± Stole snarled. She turned to me, pointing at the two girls and the gaggle of other Priestesses around them. ¡°They¡¯ve been picking on Darwin for days. And today, they finally tripped him and his food fell all around him. And then they kept laughing and¡­ and I got so angry and¡­¡± She started choking up. ¡°Why are you crying for?!¡± The teenage Priestess yelled out, ¡°You¡¯re the one who attacked us!¡± ¡°Because you should pick on someone your own size!¡± Stole yelled back. ¡°That¡¯s definitely not you, you¡¯re at least 50 pounds heavier than me.¡± ¡°Oh no, that bitch just didn¡¯t!¡± Stole made a move to jump towards the girl. I quickly got my arms under her, struggling to keep her away from the much slimmer Priestess. Briefly, I wondered which one was more powerful: The [Strength] boost from Cores or Stole¡¯s anger-induced buff. It was a close call, but I managed to hold her back. Zenom looked back and forth at the exchange, his gaze finally landing on the pair of priestesses-in-training. ¡°Is what this Pioneer is saying true?¡± He asked simply. The Priestesses opened their mouths to answer but he cut them off with a look and they looked away in shame. ¡°It¡­ it was just supposed to be a joke, Sir Saintred.¡± One of them whispered. Seeing them cowed before Saintred revealed them to be exactly what they were. Just a pair of girls who knew enough to show shame, but had lost control over the situation. That¡¯s how most cruelty starts. A jab here, a joke here. Then it goes far enough and¡­ and we hav a situation like this on our hands. Zenom muttered something to another older looking Priestess, which I didn¡¯t catch. His eyes finally landed on me and Stole again. ¡°...I will look into this matter.¡± Then looking to Stole, ¡°But another bout of violence will not be tolerated.¡± Stole growled but Aurora clamped a hand on the girl¡¯s shoulder. She looked up at the older warrior and her eyes filled with tears again. ¡°Lock Slaveborn, a word?¡± Zenom said. I accompanied him as he walked away from the crowd, which was dispersing now that the situation was over. ¡°You cannot take that Priest into your party. He is not fit to serve in battle.¡± Zenom said once we were far enough so that no one could hear us. ¡°I thought you¡¯d stop me because he¡¯s someone important.¡± ¡°Every Priest and Priestess is important, but no more important than another. Once we are anointed into the Church of Light, Flame and Shield, we are all but servants of the Flame.¡± He continued and I matched his stride, ¡°Do not take the boy. He is not ready.¡± ¡°My mind is already made up.¡± I explained, ¡°If I leave him, he¡¯ll be put into the same situation every time we¡¯re gone. At least until we get off this island, I¡¯m going to keep an eye on him.¡± Zenom grimaced. ¡°...If that is your will.¡± Then he walked into the Commander¡¯s Tent. I stood in front of the tent flap, staring after Zenom ¨Cafterimages of his scarlet cloak swishing in the edge of my vision. Zenom had to know why I was taking Darwin. He had to know that I was purposefully taking a Priest who couldn¡¯t inform others about my party¡¯s activities. Of course, I was taking him for Stole too, but for Zenom, that wouldn¡¯t matter. Yet, Zenom wasn¡¯t causing a problem over the issue. Even back there, he could have made a huge stink out of the situation. If he really was against me, he could have just grounded my party. My position in the Camp was pretty solid and I had a lot of respect among the adventurers ¨Ceven among the auxiliary forces whom I saw here and there. But it was no where enough to openly defy Zenom. To do something like that, I¡¯d need an elaborate stage, like I did with the Bishop the other day. So you can understand my confusion about Zenom. I thought he hated me. Yet, he had invited me to the Turina Empire. Not a formal invitation but extended his grace and I was sure that it came with a lot of the benefits ¨Csuch as a free pass through the Jayu Borders into Turina Territory and some weight with the Church. And now, he wasn¡¯t even making my life harder. Rather, he just let me be. Surely, he suspected me of wanting the Autarch¡¯s Key at the end of this journey for myself. ¡­Didn¡¯t he? It bothered me. It bothered me a lot. Since coming to MSS, I saw a lot of things as Black and White. Either they were out to kill me or they weren¡¯t. Or the other way; either I had to kill them or I couldn¡¯t. I think the first outlier among that was Clover ¨Cshe was a former friend, then an estranged acquaintance and now a dangerous enemy that I was allied with. Yes, I said it; Clover was an enemy. But it wasn¡¯t just her anymore. Zenom Saintred; Borealis, Dorocian and Gurran. Too many people were straddling the line between Black and White and it was getting harder and harder to keep track of everything. Do I even have the right to judge someone as Right or Wrong? Hell, I labeled Zenom as brainwashed right off the bat. But he showed surprising flexibility in situations like this, wielding the political sword with fairness. ¡­Did I really have to kill him? ¡®Wake up. Kill or be killed, he¡¯ll kill you without blinking if you so much as touch the Autarch¡¯s Key.¡¯ A little voice whispered to me. ¡®Maybe it doesn¡¯t have to be that way. Maybe¡­ maybe we can talk to him. To all of them. That Turina is trying to open war.¡¯ I thought back. ¡®Yeah, and who do you think will be standing on that battlefield? If that war happens, your enemies are all here. Zenom Saintred, Borealis Vetilius, Dorocian Kojisa. They¡¯re not your friends, don¡¯t get confused.¡¯ As I walked through the camp back to my party, I saw Arione, Scarlet, Clover, Lety, Maria Akka Xalud and Arrosh in the distance. They didn¡¯t see me, too busy talking amongst themselves. Arione had some wild hand gestures, telling a story or a joke of somekind. When he was done, Scarlet and Maria burst out laughing. Clover was blank while Lety¡­ Lety kind of smiled. Situations. There¡¯s no good or evil in this world. Just situations. And the decisions we make in them. I¡¯d think about Zenom when the time came. ¡­And Clover too. Steeling my heart, I readied myself for exploring this island with my Party.
¡°I can¡¯t believe this worked.¡± Kyrian muttered, putting away the canteen of alcohol I swiped from the Mess Tent. We were finally starting the expedition and it began by cheating. Namely, I stowed the six [Fruit of Clear Mind] into my bag: the ones given to us to stave off the effects of the Special Field. ¡°Now instead of gathering eighteen fruits and finding even more if we want to keep our expedition longer, we can rely on this alcohol instead.¡± I said. Aurora made a face as she took a swig from her own canteen. Skaris belched and then washed the taste out with a mouthful of water. ¡°Wassss there no better ale in there, Sssslaveborn?¡± Skaris complained. ¡°It¡¯s not for taste.¡± I took a swig of my own, feeling it burn as it ran down my throat. ¡°It¡¯s to keep us going in the Expedition.¡± There was the sound of retching and I saw Darwin emptying out his stomach. Stole patted him on the back. ¡°Speaking of, Mr. Lock, you never shared with us our goals for this Expedition.¡± I nodded and gestured for everyone to gather around. We were a good few miles out from the Camp. It was strange to be inside the island again, it¡¯s angry-red-glow perpetuating through the air. The smoke curled and twisted around our armor and weapons, almost a living thing. Stole¡¯s eyes were focused, ears pricked up to detect even the faintest hint of a monster that might be nearby. It wasn¡¯t just Stole either. Aurora had polished her armor and it showed. Kyrian had trimmed his hair and Skaris was noticeably in a good mood, despite the poor alcohol. There was an air of excitement around the party and it infected me too. Having being surrounded by the other parties and stuck on that boat for so long, we had all longed to be on land. More than that, I think we all missed just being like this. Just us, on an expedition, hunting monsters and exploring an unknown place. ¡°Our goal is simple.¡± I met everyone¡¯s eyes once, to make sure they were focused. ¡°I want everyone to go through Soul Sanctification on this island, before we reach the Trader¡¯s League.¡± Kyrian took in a sharp breath. Aurora nodded. ¡°I had surmised as much, Mr. Lock. It only makes sense.¡± ¡°If we want to get stronger, we need Cores and Items. And the best chance for that is the Trader¡¯s League. This is probably the last stop we¡¯ll make, so we need to make the most of it. This island is full of Grade-7 monsters and above.¡± I explained, ¡°We can make room for our Core here.¡± ¡°And what of weaponssss and armor?¡± Skaris asked. I could¡¯ve dragged it out or kept them in the dark. But I don¡¯t hide things from my party anymore. They deserve better. ¡°There¡¯s a dwarf city underneath this island.¡± I said slowly, ¡°And I met a Master Smith.¡± ¡°Wha-¡± ¡°Imposssssss-¡± ¡°Wow!¡± I shushed them immediately and they quieted down. Their reaction had been expected though. That¡¯s how rare a Master Smith is in MSS. Unless you know where they are, the chances of stumbling into one accidentally was extremely rare. And even if you stumbled into one, the related quest was so complicated that it might be better to just hunt for an item instead. But at our level¡­ it just might be the shortcut we need to get stronger. Announcements Moving forward, chapter updates will be on Monday & Thursday at 12PM! Please look out for the Launch of my New Webnovel in January! I''m debating which one to Launch, I have about 15 chapters written for each one. The other one will probably stay on patron until it amasses up to 100 chapter or so. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. 1. Cyber Fables Archives: A cyberpunk themed Webnovel about a Mage who gets reincarnated into a Cyberpunk City. He solves mysteries and sells his services to the highest bidder. Lots of blend between Myth, Science, Aliens & Eldritch. 2. Earth is Floor 1: Apocalypse has come to Earth, integrating the entire planet into a Tower-like Game System. MC has to use his wits, skills and background in people-reading & ancient lore to survive. Again, a blend of Myth & Fable. This one will be very similar to Slave Origin Playthrough. Excited for 2025! As always, thank you guys for reading. Chapter 135: Proof of Strength (4) World: MSS - Loading...
I was leading the way with Stole following close behind. ¡°Mister, are you sure you don¡¯t want me to warn you about monsters ahead of time?¡± ¡°Just tell me when we¡¯re getting too close.¡± Aurora was the next in line, with Kyrian and Darwin sticking close to her. Of course, as the Tank, she would have to protect two people. Skaris brought up the rear. ¡°Ok, if you¡¯re sure.¡± Stole said and then stood behind me. A moment later, I could sense that she was focused ¨Ca sort of calming air coming from her general area. So I too, began to focus on my Hearing. This barren island had scarce few things for me to focus on. A perfect training ground for me to hone the new talents afforded by the [Crow Totem]. The slow rumbling of lava boiling; its magma counterparts running underneath the surface of these ashen grounds. The sounds of inconsequential animals humping away in the undergrowth. The sound of our footsteps ¨CAurora¡¯s heavy greaves, Skaris¡¯ softer but more certain boots, the swishing sound of Kyrian¡¯s cloak rubbing against his clothes and Darwin¡¯s heavyset boots. The soft pad of Stole¡¯s boots. The caudal sound of reptilian-type monsters in the distance. I might not be as Stole or any other Scout-oriented builds, but for a DPS character? It wasn¡¯t bad. Not bad at all. Istill felt that I hadn¡¯t seen the full effects of receiving the Crow Totem from Arrosh. Once again, Arrosh¡¯s decision to follow along had only been for my benefit. And there was still the ¡®technique¡¯ of the Sword Saint. ¡®In time, in time.¡¯ I told myself to have patience. No point in rushing that; there were plenty of other things to do right in front of me. ¡°Ssslaveborn? What issss the wait for?¡± Skaris interrupted my thoughts. Nodding, I said, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± My party moved as one and it didn¡¯t take long for us to pick up speed. ¡°Is there a location we¡¯re heading to?¡± Kyrian asked, jogging alongside me. ¡°The cave where Arrosh and I hid from the Myung-sas.¡± I answered. ¡°Mr. Lock. Those monsters, are we planning to hunt them? What is our protocol if we run into a monster of grade-6 or above?¡± Technically, my party had experience in killing a Grade-5 monster before; namely the [Cheonma(??ÌìñR)]. But it had been weakened at the time, exhausted from the days of battle with the Scavenger¡¯s Guild. Even the Myung-sa that the advance party had killed on this very island had [Exhaustion] ticks on it. A Grade-5 Monster¡­ ¡°We¡¯re not ready.¡± I said finally. ¡°Grade-5 and above, we retreat. We can handle up to two Grade-6 monsters. Maybe, depending on our terrain.¡± Then letting my voice carry to the rest of the party, ¡°Not even I¡¯m sure what type of monsters live on this island. Don¡¯t expect everything to go to plan. Listen to my orders and be ready to improvise on the fly.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn.¡± Skaris seemed frustrated. Of course, he was the most impatient individual in the group when it came to pushing our boundaries. Still, I had to put my foot down on this matter. ¡°There¡¯s no need to.¡± I said a little bit more sternly than I meant to. ¡°We¡¯re here to level up. All the loot here can be gotten from the Dwarf City below. That¡¯s an unnecessary risk. Cores can be gotten from the Free Trader¡¯s League.¡± ¡°Tessssting onessss sssstrength is reasssson enough.¡± Skaris shot back. ¡°And the dwarvessss will not part with their ssssteel eassssily. Their greed is famousssss.¡± Aurora gave me a look too. ¡°And that¡¯s why we have to save our strength.¡± I said grimly. ¡°We don¡¯t know what they¡¯re going to ask for in exchange. They have no use for gold here.¡± ¡°Is this Master Smith guy really that great?¡± Skaris scoffed, answering in my stead. ¡°Whelp. Armsss that can piercssse the ssscales of a dragon, and sssshieldsss withssstand itssss breath. Only a Massster Sssmith can make one¡­ and to my knowledge, only dwarvessss can become massster sssmiths.¡± I didn¡¯t want to correct Skaris but technically, there was one other method of becoming a Master Smith. It was through a special questline involving a dungeon called the [Blood Forge]. But as the name indicated, there was a severe price to becoming a Master Smith that way. Yes, becoming a Master Smith would open up a lot of doors for you but¡­ ¡®Sacrificing the other members of your party is just too high of a price.¡¯ Once Darwin began to get tired, Aurora, Skaris and I took turns carrying him. ¡°...Aurora, you alright?¡± She looked like she was struggling. ¡°...He¡¯s heavy,¡± was all she said. It wasn¡¯t that Darwin was particularly heavy. The three of us had enough [Physical] stat to carry him easily. It¡¯s just that he was so big and kept squirming whenever he was uncomfortable. Still, with Stole¡¯s firm instructions, the boy managed to hold still. Overall, it took us a little less than two hours to get to the Cave.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Stole?¡± I asked. She closed her eyes. ¡°No one¡¯s following us. None that I can detect anyways.¡± Finally, we were in the caves. ¡°Sssscent of the ssstrong.¡± Skaris muttered, taking a deep sniff. Kyrian cast a spell that caused two glowing yellow orbs of light to float around us, illuminating the dark cave. ¡°It¡¯s so quiet here.¡± ¡°Hehe¡­ it feels like it¡¯s been awhile since we¡¯ve hunted together, Mister.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock, how big are these tunnels exactly?¡± Kyrian was right. It was quiet here. Way too quiet. I didn¡¯t expect the monsters to come rushing out to meet us, but¡­ well, I don¡¯t know what I expected. There was this sense of unease gnawing at my insides and I continued to worry. I knew myself well enough to know that this wasn¡¯t simple nervousness about task ahead of us. The only real hard part about this were the high-grade monsters running amok the island. Damn, just what exactly was this feeling? ¡°Help me close up the tunnel.¡± I muttered, finding the boulder that Arrosh I had used to plug up the entrance. ¡°What¡¯ssss the usssse in that?¡± I bit my lip. ¡°Just help me.¡± Skaris and I rolled the boulder into place. I turned to Stole. ¡°Stole, you¡¯re sure no one was following us?¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure.¡± She pouted. ¡°What, you don¡¯t trust me, Mister?¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, I do. I wouldn¡¯t ask if I didn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± She backed off. No one was following us. Even if they were, it would be stupid of them to do so. The whole point of this expedition hinged on the fact that there were limited resources on this island: [The Fruit of Clear Mind]. Every Party had to gather at least 18 every trip. If some of their members were more susceptible to the Special Field, they¡¯d have to resort to eating the fruit every few hours; easily racking up the numbers of fruit to 25 or more. Us on the other hand, had the power of Alcohol on our side ¨Ccourtesy of the Master Smith. As far as I knew, the fact that Alcohol would stave off the Special Field Effects were known to me and only me. We could afford to be stingy with our fruit and take our time gathering it. But adventurers didn¡¯t always work through logic. How many people had seen my new sword and been greedy enough to risk it all to find out where I got the item? Yes, it was a Loot item and had nothing to do with the Master Smith. But a monster hunting ground was just as valuable in this business and knowledge of such a thing could be traded easily. Also Zenom gave us three chances in total. ¡°Ssslaveborn, what are you-¡± ¡°Leave him. He¡¯s thinking.¡± Kyrian said sternly. The gears began clicking, lines connecting the dots in my head. Limited resources meant there was a demand and where there was demand, some parties might decide to stock up on supplies. If there was an abundance of supplies, some parties could afford to forego collecting those supplies. Instead, they could capitalize on something else to trade for those supplies ¨Csuch as gathering information about the island. And if they failed on the first day, so what? They could try again two more times. Damn it, I had approached this from the wrong angle. Zenom hadn¡¯t created a limitation by implementing the rule of 18 fruits per party, he had created a Black Market. And who knew the most about the monsters? Who had stood out as being exceptional at leading a party through an expedition? Me. ¡°We¡¯re being followed.¡± I said finally. ¡°What?! You just said you trusted me!¡± Stole whined. ¡°Quiet.¡± I hissed. ¡°They¡¯re following us covertly. Maybe a group of two or three members, small enough to stay hidden but still defend themselves.¡± ¡°Are you sure, Lock?¡± Kyrian asked. I gritted my teeth. ¡°I don¡¯t have any proof but I¡¯m sure.¡± ¡°Then what makes you think we¡¯re being followed, Mister?¡± ¡°Instinct.¡± I answered simply. Skaris shared a look with Aurora. ¡°Tell ussss what the nexsssst ssssteps are.¡± Skaris asked. ¡°Mr. Lock, what should we do?¡± Kyrian was a Mage, he worked through logic and proof. After all, Magic in this world was a science. Being a Pioneer with Wayfinder capabilities, Stole was less likely to believe me; her own immense talent kept her from placing weight in something like instinct. But Skaris and Aurora? Frontline fighters like them knew not to ignore the instinct of someone who fought on the line between life and death. Because sometimes, instinct was all that kept you breathing. ¡°Before you say anything, know that we can¡¯t kill them.¡± Kyrian said hurriedly. Kyrian was right. Whatever I decided to do, killing was out of the option. ¡°We can¡¯t.¡± I answered, taking out a little item we found in the first Fracture that Skaris, Kyrian and I entered. The very Fracture where we met Aurora. The item that has served us well over and over again. ¡°But something else can.¡± The [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina]. ¡°What do you plan to do with that?¡± Kyrian looked worried. I looked to Darwin who was hunched over and kneeling, drawing in the ash-covered mud with his fingers and humming to himself. Sensing that I was staring at him, he looked up with a small grunt meeting my gaze. ¡°How fast do you think we can run while carrying him?¡±
¡°They went in there.¡± Astelion put out a palm, touching the boulder blocking a cave entrance. ¡°No shit.¡± Delas leaped up, sticking to the sheer cliff walls like a gecko. He studied the gaps between the Boulder and the Cave. ¡°What are you doing, Delas?¡± Jourgan, an unusually thin elf, asked. Delas didn¡¯t bother turning to look at the cursed man. Just like Coum, Jourgan had sunken eyes and a hollow quality to his face to make him look almost ethereal. Not quite good looking, but a haunting beauty; which didn''t fit at all with the man''s personality. A pity, all elves in MSS were supposed to be beautiful. Still, the man wasn''t entirely useless. He had absorbed a Core of the [Ghost Chameleon], a grade-7 monster. With it, he could provide a party-wide stealth. The only problem was that it drained him of all his mana in less than an hour. And being out of mana put the elf in a bad mood. A really bad mood. Delas learned that the more disgruntled you are, the more likely you are to succumb to the Special Field¡¯s effects. He learned it the hard way. During the advance party expedition, Delas couldn¡¯t put Tania and Coum out of his mind. Well, not Coum. Mostly Tania. When Lock had shown up at the docks on time, being carried by his party members, Delas hadn¡¯t know what to think. How the hell had Lock Slaveborn escaped from the Scavenger¡¯s Base? Was he rescued by his party members? Did he escape by himself? And the fucking orc swordmaster too. It pissed him off that there was no way to reach out to them. He didn¡¯t dare make contact with the [Player¡¯s Guild] under Zenom and Cecelia¡¯s watch. The more he thought about this situation, the angrier he became. If anything, anything had happened to Tania¡­ ¡°Jourgan, Delas. Here.¡± Their only Dwarf Member, Mamar, tossed them something. Delas caught the [Fruit of Clear Mind] and chomped into it. ¡°How the hell did you know?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re an american.¡± Mamar snorted. ¡°You Americans are always angry.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m sure your dwarven accent is just like your German one too.¡± Delas swallowed the fruit and felt his mind clear once more. ¡°This better be worth it, Delas.¡± Jourgan said to him, his thin brows were furrowed in concentration. Delas nodded. ¡°You saw the swords he brought. He knows a hunting spot.¡± ¡°Stupid, to cause trouble on the Church¡¯s expedition.¡± Mamar kicked at a pebble. ¡°Stop that,¡± Jourgan chided. ¡°It¡¯s hard enough to account for your voice.¡± Mamar scowled but didn¡¯t reply. Delas looked at Mamar and Jourgan. They were technically not part of their branch of the Player¡¯s Guild which was under Nathan¡¯s jurisdiction. From what Delas could gather, Mamar and Jourgan were here as a sort of courtesy ¨Cso that their own branch could take some of the credits scene when they recovered the Church¡¯s Treasure. Whatever that was. Their last member, a female elf who went by the name of Freir, stayed silent. Creepy Bitch. It¡¯d be so much better if Tania was here. If she was here, Delas would have a much easier time- ¡°Delas.¡± Astelion muttered a warning. Delas was growing angrier again. No matter how many fruits he ate, if he couldn¡¯t control his anger, he would succumb to the Special Field¡¯s effect faster and faster. Delas shook his head. He just had to get to the Trader¡¯s League and he could ask the local Player¡¯s Guild Branch to send out a message to his own back in Miltus. Then he would know what happened to Tania. ¡°Open the boulder.¡± Delas whispered. Astelion and Freir moved the boulder out of the way ¨CFreier¡¯s slender frame showing surprising strength. Astelion, even with his Beastman Body built for [Physical] stats was a Wayfinder and Freier ¨Cwith her slender Frame was actually a Tank. Funny that that worked out. They went into the cave and Astelion froze. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Monsters ahead.¡± Astelion rumbled. ¡°Not sure how storng, but a lot.¡± ¡°Like 5?¡± Jourgan asked. ¡°...I cannot be sure.¡± Astelion answered back. ¡°If that Lock Slaveborn guy can do it by himself, we can do it as a party then.¡± Mamar grumbled and before waiting for an answer, started walking into the cave. ¡°Stupid germans and their¡­¡± Jourgan trailed off, still concentrating on holding up the [Advanced Camouflage] on their party and followed in after. They walked some more before Astelion warned the party again. ¡°Something doesn¡¯t feel right.¡± ¡°We can always turn back afterwards.¡± Delas reassured his friend and continued. Tzzzzzzzzzzz The sound of electricity crackling. The party froze. They slowly turned as one. A net made of electricity swung down from the ceiling and rushed towards them, covering the entirety of the cave corridor. It snapped like a living thing, hissing with strands of lightning so hot that it left grooves of angry heated rock on the cavern walls. ¡°FUCK! A TIME DELAY TRAP! RUN!¡± Delas yelled and bolted along with his party. Did Lock Slaveborn know they were coming? How? As far as he knew, there was no way to pierce through the [Ghost Chameleon]¡¯s ability. Was that Beastman bitch-brat really that talented? Could she have seen them together? Or was this just level of new paranoia that Lock Slaveborn was displaying? ¡°That shifty-eyed, OCD piece of-¡± Delas was cut short as something slammed into him from behind, driving him to the ground. The web of lightning sailed harmlessly above them, sputtering out a few seconds later. Delas stood up, realizing that it was Freier who had saved him. Without even thanking her, he looked around the cavern. They were in a large hall-like place with pillars of those¡­ what were those things called? The spiky things that grew on the ceilings of caverns. Mamar cursed in German. ¡°He knew he was being followed, idiot!¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t. It¡¯s guesswork. I told you that he¡¯s a paranoid fuck!¡± Delas swore back. ¡°Enough!¡± Astelion stepped in between them, his 8-foot statue giving the two pause. There was a soft growl. Then another. And another. And dozens more. Delas turned around and saw red and yellow orbs starting to open up in the dark all around them. ¡°We¡¯re surrounded.¡± Jourgan muttered. Freier took out her shield. ¡°Chuu-ins. Grade-7 monsters. A whole pack of them.¡± Mamar cursed again. They were surrounded. And amongst them, Astelion was the only one who heard the faint melody of an Ocarina being played in the distance.
Chapter 136: Proof of Strength (5) World: MSS - Loading...
I waited in [Darkness], watching as the next [Chuu-in] leaped by, its powe?rful legs propelling it forward towards Delas and his party in the distance. For a moment, it paused to sniff on the ground and pointed its nose towards me, the old man''s face leering in my direction. My heart froze for all but a moment and I thumbed my sheathed sword. But there was another scream ¨Cor battle cry¨C from Delas¡¯ direction and the monster turned, losing interest in me and loping towards the battle. The scent of blood filled the tunnels. Finally letting myself breath, I looked out the [Darkness], seeing Delas¡¯ party surrounded by over a dozen Chuu-in that roamed these caves. ¡°Mister-¡± ¡°Shhh.¡± I put a hand on her shoulder. I didn¡¯t want her to make a sound just yet, or we¡¯d all be discovered by the number of Chuu-in walking by. Because my party and I were all covered in my [Lingering Darkness] skill. The [Scent] was enough of a risk factor already. I didn¡¯t want to risk making a sound. Instead, I waited until the last Chuu-in lured with the [Neung-uh¡¯s Ocarina] was engaged in the fight. Of course, the screams of pain, roars of fury and the smell of blood overpowered the Chuu-in¡¯s battle senses and they all rushed past us, not bothering to investigate further. Still, I made us wait another five minutes, in case of lingering Chuu-in that might bring up the rear. It was only when Stole gave me a squeeze on the hand ¨Csignaling that the last of the Chuu-in were past¨C that I dropped the skill. And we all made a dash for it. The Chuu-in had been close enough for us to see their faces. Faces that looked deceptively like a human, their ugly smiles permanently painted on their faces and the repulsive scent of man-beast that wafted in after them. The beasts had been within arms reach and it had been taxing on everyone. It wasn¡¯t until that we could no longer hear the screams that Stole opened her mouth again. ¡°Are we¡­ not going to finish them off?¡± Stole asked. Christ, Stole was barely eighteen years old. And she just asked if we weren¡¯t going to kill Delas and his party. I don''t care about the fact that she hadn''t thought through her actions. If Stole fired, no doubt someone from Delas'' team could pinpoint our location. Worst comes to worst, one of them gets away and accuses us of massacring their entire party, right under the church''s noses. All practical reasons for why we shouldn''t kill Delas'' team aside, I didn''t want Stole to kill them. ¡°No, we¡¯re not.¡± I replied. Stole didn¡¯t reply immediately. ¡°I could.¡± She said simply. ¡°I know.¡± I believed her. ¡°My answer hasn''t changed." Death isn¡¯t like what they make it out on television. It¡¯s not like it¡¯s in the movies. Being close to it, being the one to deliver the final blow¡­ it changes you. There¡¯s a certain weight to death. Yes, I¡¯ve come to terms with it, yes I¡¯m not afraid of doing it again and again. But to impose that weight to Stole, who signed up to be an adventurer? Adventurers live close to death. There¡¯s no doubt about that. But for just a little longer, I wanted Stole to see the Priestesses from the Church as people that she could be friends with. Or just bullies that she hated. Not things that could be killed with a crossbow bolt to the head. ¡°I¡¯m serious.¡± Stole said, breaking my train of thought. ¡°If you want me to-¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t believe you.¡± I said softly. ¡°I don¡¯t think you should have to.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Aurora gave me a grateful look and I nodded towards her. It¡¯s one thing to kill a Monster. Another thing to kill a person. Yeah, Stole could wait just for awhile. ¡°Stole,¡± I called, more to change the topic and set the source for our destination. ¡°Try to focus on the way below. Avoid monsters; try and see if you can lock-in on a dwarf or a cluster of people.¡± ¡°I got it.¡± Stole replied a moment later. We finally stopped running. ¡°Ok, from here on, let¡¯s just follow Stole.¡± I said. This was the reason why a character with the Pioneer trait was such a cheat. They didn¡¯t even need to have visited the place they¡¯re looking for. Just by being able to differentiate between Monsters and People, they could find the way towards a destination through instinct alone. In the game, it showed up as a small arrow pointing in a vague direction. Of course, the downside was that unlike the Wayfinder trait, you¡¯d be oblivious to the monsters and traps that lay in your wait. Except that Stole also had the [Wayfinder] trait in addition to the [Pioneer] trait. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Plus being a Beastman, her [Scent] and [Hearing] stats were already higher than the rest¡­ Some people have all the luck in the world. With complete faith in Stole, Aurora saddled up next to her. We took our positions without discussion. Kyrian dragging Darwin next to Aurora where they¡¯d be the safest. Then Skaris and I right behind them, ready to leap out at a moment¡¯s notice as well as bringing up the rear which was the most vulnerable. Damn, if Darwin was an actual capable healer, this would be an actual Party. Throwing my worries aside, we descended deeper down. Stole sat an easy pace, her wolf-ears swiveling. ¡°I¡¯ve never met a Master Smith Dwarf before.¡± Kyrian whispered. ¡°Well, a Mage wouldn¡¯t really need the services of a smith.¡± I commented absently. During the low-levels, a Mage might be able to get away shopping at the local Armory. But just like Adventurers would need the services of a Smith as they got stronger, a Mage needed the services of an Artificer or Enchanter in the later levels. Technically, a Mage could become an Enchanter themselves, but it¡¯d take up precious time to train in such an art. It wouldn¡¯t add to your combat prowess at all. ¡°Yes, but it¡¯s always been a dream of mine to meet a Master Smith.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°After all, all the tales of the ancient Warriors have them.¡± ¡°Your people have talessss of warriorssss?¡± Kyrian nodded. ¡°Every child grows up with them in the Empire. It is stories of how our empire was founded after all.¡± ¡°I would hear thesssse talessss.¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious too.¡± I admitted. ¡°Oh, truly? I can¡¯t speak to how true they are¡­ but I can try my best. Which tale would you like to hear?¡± ¡°Sssssomething about warriorssss.¡± ¡°Maybe a story concerning the Master Smiths?¡± Perhaps there was a hint in them about the history of the Dwarves. Something that I didn¡¯t know about yet. Maybe something there that could help with the quest ahead of us. ¡°A story about a Master Smith¡­¡± Kyrian trailed, ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± ¡°There is that one tale about the Master Smith, who created the Four Great Weapons.¡± Aurora chimed in. ¡°Ah, yes. There is that.¡± Kyrian cleared his throat and began. ¡°Before the Royal Family was the Royal Family, and before the Great Houses were the Great Houses, there was a time when they were simply four comrades, looking for a place to settle down and plant their roots.¡± Kyrian began, ¡°They traveled the continent, looking for a place that was not only safe from monsters, but was blessed with Fertile Soil. But no matter how long they looked, they could not find such a place. Every square inch of this continent had been claimed by monsters so strong that they could each be considered a King.¡± ¡°Field Bosses.¡± I muttered, being absorbed into the story. ¡°Ah, yes. We call them Field Bosses. But before the rules of adventurers and the terminology for monsters and expeditions were set by the Adventurer¡¯s Guild which had yet to be created, there was no kingdom of men and no one to call King. The land was ruled by monsters; hence the only Kings on this barren wasteland were monsters.¡± Hm. That was interesting. It kind of sounded like all the people in MSS were weak back then, that no one dared to challenge a Field Boss. Either that or¡­ Or the Monsters were stronger. Now that was a thought that would haunt me. The last thing this game needed were more horrifying monsters. Geesh. ¡°Then they were approached by the Light, Flame and Shield.¡± ¡°...in a Dream?¡± I asked. Kyrian shook his head. ¡°No. The tale says that they met the Light, Flame and Shield. In person. In the flesh.¡± Gods? In the Flesh? And here I was, worried about monsters. ¡°The Light, Flame and Shield led them to a land. This land belonged to an Ancient Dragon, an Ancient Dragon by the name of Terronax.¡± ¡°Terronax?!¡± I blurted out. ¡°...Have you heard this story before?¡± Kyrian asked, slightly annoyed. ¡°Would you like to tell it, Lock?¡± Aurora sent me a faintly disproving look. Fuck, I knew the name Terronax. But where? Freaking MSS and their stupid artifacts with one-liner descriptions, leaving me to piece together lore from scratch. They couldn¡¯t build a library in the game or something? Instead of voicing my thoughts, I said instead, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Please continue, I won¡¯t interrupt.¡± Sheesh. I knew Mages were nerds but didn¡¯t expect Kyrian to get so sassy on me during his little presentation. Kyrian cleared his throat again. ¡°But there were already others trying to slay the Dragon. Namely, the Dwarves. However, the Dawrves had been trying to kill Terronax for decades with no luck, for they had no great warrior among them. The humans on the other hands, had great warriors but no Arms strong enough to pierce the Dragon¡¯s scales.¡± ¡°So the Light, Flame and Shield proposed a solution to the Master Smith: to create Arms worth of the warriors that could pierce the Dragon¡¯s scales. And the Master Smith agreed, as long as his people could be avenged ¨Cfor Terronax was responsible for the death of his entire family line.¡± ¡°The Master Smith forged four weapons. A greatsword, a pair of Daggers, a Bow and-¡± ¡°The Lance and Shield.¡± Aurora whispered, ignoring Kyrian¡¯s annoyed look. ¡°And with those four weapons, the four Warriors felled Terronax, finally creating a home for themselves.¡± ¡°A poor sssstory. Not enough blood.¡± Skaris blurted out. Kyrian raised his hands in exasperation. ¡°You asked for it, Skaris.¡± ¡°A poor ssstory nonethelesssss.¡± Skaris shot back. ¡°No, it was good.¡± I said. Aurora gave me a look, as if to say ¡®truly¡¯? Being from Turina herself, it looked like Aurora herself didn¡¯t think much of the story. ¡°Though there are some things the story leaves uncovered. What happened to the Dwarves? And what was the name of this Master Smith? Don¡¯t Dwarves take their family names pretty seriously?¡± ¡°I¡­ I reckon that they went home.¡± Kyrian answered. ¡°And as far as I know, the story does not mention the name of the Great Smith.¡± ¡°It i¡¯s well that it does that mention.¡± Aurora chimed in. ¡°A family like that would have much power, being able to produce arms of that magnitude. Especially if it was strong enough to kill a Named Dragon.¡± ¡°Right. A Named Dragon.¡± I muttered but I didn¡¯t buy it. Four adventurers killing a Named Dragon just because they got some shiny new weapons? That was impossible. The stats of a Dragon, a Grade-S boss-class monster¡­ well, by that point you should have your own clan or have enough of an influence in one to call a Dragon Raid. Even then, every one of them should be decked out in their own Legendary Gear with optimal builds. Add in the fact that it¡¯s named, you¡¯d be dealing with a Grade-SS Monster at that point in all but name. Did Kyrian and Aurora really not see the holes in their little story? Or were they brainwashed by Turina on a level so deep that the thought never occurred to them? In MSS, nothing was ever just a story. They were all clues. Lores. Something to be discovered. This story was either telling me that there were Four Weapons that were so powerful that it was literally game-breaking or¡­ ¡®Or that there¡¯s something hidden about the Founding of the Turina Empire, and that hidden something has to do with Dwarves.¡¯ My gamer sense was tingling. ¡°Uh, if you guys are done with storytelling-time, we¡¯re here. Is this the door, Mister?¡± Promising myself to look into this later, I turned back to the present. The slabs of angular rock fashioned as double-doors. A hallway chiseled into the caves, so clean that it had to have been wiped down everyday. Every inch of it smooth and even, speaking to Dwarven Architecture. This was it. Before I could even walk towards the door, there was the rumbling of rock as they slid open. A homely dwarf stood between them. ¡°Doror¡¯s waiting for ya.¡± The Dwarf said. He was wearing a viking¡¯s hat, the one with horns on either side, and had orange hair and bead that hung to his chest. His overalls and gloves were both made of leather and worn with signs of use near open flame, the sure tell of a black smith. Without another word, he spun and walked into the village. ¡°To think a place like this was underground¡­¡± Aurora commented. We weren¡¯t walking in formation anymore, the sense of being so near civilization giving us that feeling of safety. She slid her hands over the walls, feeling the precise smoothing technique. At her voice, the Dwarf in front of us turned and fixed Aurora with a look. ¡°Keep yer fingers to yerself, ye hear?¡± Aurora didn¡¯t even bat an eye. ¡°I apologize if I offended you, Master Dwarf.¡± The Dwarf just harrumphed and continued walking. He led us to the opening and I watched my comrades take in the sights. It was only a few days ago that I had been here but I felt like I was seeing it for the first time. A whole underground city, burning with forge fire and strewn with magical lights. Dwarves running from one end of the city to another, both the elderly and children alike. It was something straight out of a fairy tail. Contrary to the Dwarf¡¯s harsh demeanor, he let us stay and take in the sights. I chalked it up to Dwarven instinct: they couldn¡¯t help but show off their handiwork. And by all right, they had every reason too. This place was beautiful ¨Ceven for me who thought I saw everything behind the Computer Screen¡­ These Dwarves were something else. ¡°Alright, c¡¯mon then you lot.¡± Soon we reached Doror¡¯s Forge. ¡°This is where my job ends.¡± He turned and spat on the floor in our direction. ¡°Don¡¯t know what Old Man Doror wants with you lot. But I hope you all disappear and never come back.¡± Kyrian frowned. ¡°Have we done something to offend you?¡± The Dwarf looked at Kyrian. ¡°Does ye truly not know? By the forge, ye humans-¡± But it was Aurora who answered. ¡°Thank you for leading us here, Sir Smith. May we know your name, so we know who to thank for leading us here?¡± He swallowed whatever insult he had been about to spit out. Finally, he said, ¡°Futir. Futir of the Stonehammer Clan.¡± He started walking down the hill. Kyrian scowled while Skaris put a hand on the Mage¡¯s shoulder. Skaris shook his head. ¡°He was rude.¡± Kyrian stated. Skaris simply shook his head. ¡°You musssst think of the thingssss that thesse dwarvesss sssssuffered at the handsss of your people.¡± ¡°That was centuries ago.¡± ¡°Dwarvesssss live long livesss.¡± Skaris answered back. Kyrian frowned. But he didn¡¯t answer. Sighing, I turned to Doror¡¯s Worshop. In there, the Master Smith was waiting for us. And only the gods knew what quest he was holding on to. ¡°C¡¯mon then you lot.¡± I said, imitating Futir who just left. ¡°Let¡¯s see exactly how much the Dwarves hate the humans.¡± Chapter 137: Proof of Strength (6) World: MSS - Loading...
When we walked in the workshop-turned forge, Doror was already waiting for us. ¡°Ah, I knew you¡¯d be back. I¡¯ve been waiting for you¡± The Master Smith sat slouched over a wooden table, the last bottle of Dwarf¡¯s Blood before him. There was just a little bit of the drink left at the bottom, just enough for one more drink. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you again, Master Stonehammer.¡± I said in my best polite voice. ¡°Bugger off with that shit,¡± Doror pointed at the table and gestured at the crates all around us. ¡°Grab a seat.¡± Kyrian looked around. ¡°...There aren¡¯t enough crates for all of us.¡± ¡°Then sit on the floor, or be creative and find something to fucking sit on. Worse enough, I¡¯m dealing with your fecking kind again. You want me to wait on you hand and foot too?¡± Doror snapped. Kyrian shot me a look and I shrugged in reply. My meaning was clear; I didn¡¯t care how much of a nasty temperament Doror had. Right now, we needed him. This man right here in front of us was possibly the most valuable thing on this Island. Hell, maybe this entire trip. Kyrian sighed as we split up, each of us looking for a seat. While Aurora and I took some boxes and set them around the table, Kyrian took his time looking for something suitable. Skaris¡­ Skaris grabbed an anvil and began dragging it over. The hunk of metal began to screech something awful and I saw beads of sweat beginning to form on Skaris¡¯ brow as the Beastman struggled to move the thing even with his supernatural strength. He began to snarl and the sound mixed with the screech of the metal, not to mention the huge groove it left on the floor of the workshop. If Doror noticed, he didn¡¯t comment. ¡°Mister, there¡¯s a kid over there.¡± Stole whispered. I looked over to see the white-haired kid from the first day. Getting a better look at her, I could tell she was no older than seven or eight. She still wore that one-piece dress which was nothing more than a dirty rag at this point. At Stole¡¯s comment, I saw Aurora flick her eyes toward the little girl and then frown in disapproval. I could see why, the girl was in the corner playing with some rusty daggers. She was lucky not to get tetanus from even breathing near the things. Noticing Stole and Aurora¡¯s gaze, the girl walked over ¨Call shy. She was even skinner up close. She paused before Stole, looking up at the older girl. Stole looked down at her. And I swear to god, the little girl¡¯s stomach growled as if on cue. ¡°...Hey Old Man,¡± Stole said after a moment. ¡°Eh? What you want, Lass?¡± ¡°This your daughter?¡± Doror didn¡¯t reply. ¡°Nay, she ain¡¯t.¡± Doror finally said after a moment. ¡°She ain¡¯t my kin, if that¡¯s what yer asking.¡± Stole looked at the Dwarf and she opened her mouth ¨Ca fire starting in her eyes. ¡°Stole.¡± I said calmly. ¡°Whelp.¡± Skaris cut in as well. She closed her mouth, teeth bared for a moment before closing her eyes. ¡°Then you won¡¯t mind if I take her out to the city, won¡¯t you, Old Man?¡± Doror¡¯s eye didn¡¯t stray from Stole. ¡°...Aye, you go ahead and do that. Let the grown ups talk.¡± Stole snarled, a string of curses about to escape from her mouth. And right there and then, the little dwarf girl reached out and grabbed Stole¡¯s pinky. That was all it took. Something melted inside of Stole in that instant and I learned more about Stole right there and then than any conversation could. I¡¯m not one for kids. I can¡¯t say I like them even. Still, there¡¯s an innocence about children that brings out something fierce. Strangers will go to great lengths to protect children and parents will do even more. There are a lot of theories out there, one of them saying that it¡¯s an evolutionary prerogative to protect the future generation. That we, as a species, have evolved to want to protect children, to feed them and cloth them. To care for them.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. But looking at Stole¡­ I don¡¯t know a lot about those things. But I can say this. Stole is Kind. Like Capital K kind. I should have seen it earlier. For all her talent and her rough attitude, Stole had a heart big enough for someone like Darwin ¨Ca mentally handicapped Priest whom the rest of the world saw as baggage. It wasn¡¯t just loneliness that drove Stole to befriend the guy. I think Stole has a genuine heart for people like Darwin and the little girl. A heart full of kindness. And suddenly I was ashamed. Because the last time I dropped by, all I had been thinking about was how to get Doror on my side. I hadn¡¯t even bothered giving a glance to this girl barely old enough to be in school. I didn¡¯t bother looking at her too skinny frame nor the dirty rags she wore. I only had eyes for the equipment around here. Isn¡¯t it funny? That I, a human from earth, was acting more like those NPCs on the computer screen, worrying only about loot and the quest; while Stole, a native of MSS ¨Cwho wasn¡¯t even human by the way¨C was infinitely more of a genuine decent human being than I could ever be? Ha. Way to go, me. Stole picked up the girl in her arms, not caring that the girl looked flea bitten at best. She took a hand, brushing a stray hair behind the girl¡¯s ear and walked out without another word. Darwin gave me a silly smile and followed after her, oblivious to what was going on. ¡°So ye came back.¡± Doror produced glasses of varying sizes from god only knows where and began setting them in front of us. Aurora held out a hand. ¡°None for me, Master Smith.¡± ¡°Call me Stonehammer,¡± Doror said and pushed the cup into Aurora¡¯s hands anyways. ¡°You¡¯re in my workshop? You drink.¡± Ugh. I recalled the last time that I drank with Doror and a strand of beard was in my cup. Aurora didn¡¯t deserve that. ¡°...I¡¯ll drink in her stead.¡± I set her cup in front of me. ¡°Suit yerself.¡± Aurora nodded in thanks. ¡°To a Dwarf¡¯s beard.¡± Without waiting for the rest of us, he downed his cup. Skaris followed suit after. Sighing, I downed my glass and Aurora¡¯s. ¡°I thought ye made me a promise, Laddie. Not to lead the others here.¡± Doror began refilling the cups. ¡°I haven¡¯t told anyone else of this city¡¯s existence. But this is my party. I trust them.¡± ¡°...Aye, you do.¡± Doror said, studying me for a minute. He sniffed in Kyrian and Aurora¡¯s direction. ¡°But these two, they¡¯re Nobles, eh? I can see the self-righteousness oozing off of them.¡± Kyrian frowned. ¡°How-¡± ¡°Because I¡¯ve seen more than one of your kind in this lifetime.¡± Doror interrupted. ¡°Self-righteous, proud, hypocritical and-¡± ¡°Stop talking.¡± I whispered. ¡°Right now.¡± He glared at me. ¡°Aye, of course. Can¡¯t stand to see a dwarf-¡± ¡°You¡¯d do the same if I insulted one of your own in the city as well.¡± I answered back. Master Smith or not, I didn¡¯t want him speaking to my comrade like that. Doror continued to glare at me. But he didn¡¯t hold it, his gaze softening. He grunted and gave a nod towards Kyrian. From what I could tell, that was as close to an apology that Kyrian was going to get out of the Master Smith. Kyrian accepted it, raising his glass. The two downed their cups in unison. ¡°So you need my hammer.¡± Doror gestured at the workshop. ¡°It¡¯s been years since I¡¯ve held it, Laddie. You¡¯ll have better luck trying someone else.¡± ¡°I need a Master Smith.¡± I said. While Aurora and Kyrian were careful to pay attention, Skaris kept refilling his cup and downing it. I saw Doror glance at Skaris with a faint frown but didn¡¯t bother stopping the beastman. ¡°You don¡¯t need a Master Smith, Laddie. You want a Master Smith.¡± Doror looked me up and down, then scoffed. ¡°You don¡¯t even know what you need to-¡± ¡°For a Master Smith to forge a legendary or artifact, you need three things. Fire that can melt Grade-1 metals, Grade-1 Metals and the Core of a Monster.¡± I held up my fingers. ¡°Higher the Core, the better. But they should at least be Grade-3.¡± Doror narrowed his eyes. ¡°Who are ye, Laddie? Truly?¡± I shrugged and sipped at the glass, enjoying the warmth as the drink settled in my stomach. Doror grunted and reached over, refilling it. ¡°I¡¯m going to assume this workshop can melt Grade-1 metals. Which means you probably have some Grade-1 metals in stock.¡± I leaned forward. ¡°Name your price, Stonehammer.¡± The Master Smith took a swig from his cup, draining it without breaking eye contact. He held the silence. I recognized this tactic. The Dwarf was testing us, seeing how badly we wanted his services. That way, he could gouge our eyes out while scraping out the bottom of our coin pouch. I held his stare. Doror held up his cup. ¡°Do you remember what this was called, Laddie?¡± ¡°Dwarf¡¯s Blood.¡± I recalled. ¡°Aye, Dwarf¡¯s blood. And yer friend over here,¡± He looked pointedly at Skaris. ¡°Just fished the last bottle in this entire fecking city.¡± Skaris belched in response. ¡°I thought the bottle from last time was the last.¡± ¡°T¡¯is the same bottle.¡± Doror said sadly. ¡°Held it for you, I did. Knowing you¡¯d return.¡± I waited for him to talk. ¡°I know humans. Greedy. Ambitious. Proud. Always wanting more and more and more.¡± He held up a hand. ¡°Ah, no offense to you. But t¡¯is the truth. Especially¡­ especially adventurers.¡± He looked out the window. ¡°This city, we had adventurers once. Those who went out, slaying monsters. Selling out wares across the seas.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see any adventurers on the way here.¡± Aurora remarked. ¡°Of course.¡± Doror replied. ¡°They¡¯re all dead.¡± ¡°The Uleum Horde, those fecking bastards. They were always waiting out there for my people. Sneaking, watching. Trying to take our blades for themselves.¡± Doror shook his head. ¡°Funny, ain¡¯t it? I make weapons for a living; but not once did I think to make weapons for my people to protect themselves with. Only to sell them. And what happened? The fecking orcs or humans or elves or only the Forge knows what took them. Half of them are probably resting in the bottom of the ocean right now.¡± ¡°And the monsters kept getting stronger and stronger. They warned me they did, but nay, I just wanted more gold. Gold to trade with.¡± ¡°Aye, I was crazy for gold back then.¡± Doror muttered. ¡°Crazy for gold. Never once did I see what was important.¡± I looked out the window. I could see why Doror lived up here, on top of the ¡®hill¡¯-like structure. Just outside the window, he had a full view of the city and its marketplace. It was too far to make out any details but I could see movement. Children running around and moms chasing them. Men¡¯s arms strained and I could almost hear the clanging of their hammer on the anvil ¨Csharpening, shaping and creating. More than that, I saw the neat rows of houses. But it was dark outside. There was no rising or setting of the Sun. No warmth of Sunlight on my skin ¨Cnor was there the hint of a breeze that tickled my nose. There was no scent of grass or trees. My sharpened senses from the Crow Totem was perfectly aware of the lack of things around us. This place, for all its beauty and architectural perfection, was devoid of everything that made life¡­ well, life. How long had Doror¡¯s people lived here? Years? Decades? ¡­Centuries? ¡°You needed the gold to trade for food, did you not?¡± Aurora said, trying to be kind. Doror didn¡¯t answer. He turned his head away from the window sharply, as if it pained him to look at it for too long. ¡°Ye want me to name my price?¡± Doror said, reaching over and snatching the bottle from Skaris¡¯ hands. ¡°I want you, a human, to fix what your people did.¡± ¡°What? That¡¯s-¡± I stopped Kyrian with a hand. ¡°Go on.¡± I said quietly, for I had a feeling for what was coming. ¡°If yer people never hunted our people down for their smithing skills, if they didn¡¯t burn down our slums and call us filth in the city we grew up in, if you humans,¡± He spat the word like a curse. ¡°Didn¡¯t take over our city, my clan would never have come here. To this¡­ this fecking prison, with no life. No future. No light.¡± ¡°You want my price? Fine. There¡¯s a monster in this mountain. Ot¡¯s the strongest one on this island. Because of that fucker, we can¡¯t trade worth jackshit.¡± Doror closed his eyes. ¡°The Myung-sa is dead.¡± I said. ¡°Nay, not that one.¡± Doror continued. ¡°This beast isn¡¯t a dumb mindless beast, it¡¯s smart. And Evil. It tasted dwarf blood and wants more. At night, it walks, hunting my people. Looking for us with its bright yellow eyes. It has six arms, with teeth like us¨C eyes just like us and talks in a voice that is neither man nor woman. Aye, it¡¯s hair is tied in a bun on top of its three faces.¡± ¡°You ask me why I haven¡¯t been taking care of that girl? Don¡¯t deny it, I saw the way ye looked at me.¡± His voice grew to a furious snarl. ¡°What right do I have to take care of my own Granddaughter, when tomorrow, I¡¯d be sending her off to keep the monster from murdering the rest of us?¡± Aurora gasped. I lowered my eyes, staring at the table. ¡°Where is it?¡± I asked, knowing full well where it was. If these people had been feeding it, the monster would have developed a habit. Like Pablov¡¯s dog, it would be nearby, waiting. Seeking. Trying to scent the fear in the air, of a little girl who was offered up as a sacrifice so that the monster wouldn¡¯t break it. Doror smiled, his eyes tinged with insanity borne of desperation. ¡°Aye, you already know.¡± Doror sat down on his seat and looked out the window. ¡°It lives in the City with us.¡±
Chapter 138: Proof of Strength (7) World: MSS - Loading...
My head went blank. ¡°Stole.¡± I whispered. She was out there. Alone. With Darwin and the little girl, she wouldn¡¯t escape even if she could. She¡¯d stay behind. Skaris snarled, cursing, and made to get up before Doror stopped him. Even before I had spoken, the others had begun moving. Aurora ,especially, stood up so fast that her chair left grooves on the floor. Kyrian was looking out the window as well. It was just as well because we all had the same thought the moment that Doror had mentioned having a monster living inside the City. ¡°Are ye deaf? I told ye, the beast comes at night. And we won¡¯t be opening the door until tomorrow anyhow.¡± I glared at the Master Smith, the rushing blood in my head slowing down. ¡°Explain what you mean by opening this¡­ door.¡± I said, as the others took their seats. Still, Aurora kept glancing at the door with worry. I had my own theories about what was going on in this City now that I was getting first-hand information. But I needed to hear it from Doror. Doror¡¯s expression was caught somewhere between a smile and regret ¨Cshame and resignation¨C as he explained. ¡°I told you when you first got here Lad¡­ that we hid.¡± He closed his eyes. ¡°Aye, we hid. Being hunted by the humans for so long, that¡¯s all we could do. This strange island, even if we knew how to stave off its magic, the monsters were too strong.¡± He opened them and his eyes were focused in on us. ¡°Do you know how to keep a monster away lad? Without killing it?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± I said, already knowing where this was going. ¡°A Field Boss.¡± ¡°Aye, that¡¯s what you adventurers call it. But we call them Rulers.¡± Doror¡¯s voice was tinged with fear. ¡°In the old tales, we learned that if you build your City around a Ruler¡¯s nest, other monsters tend to stay away. Aye¡­ but not for free.¡± Doror smiled and said, ¡°Luckily for us, the monster lived underground. So we built our city on top of it, building a door around its lair.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re saying you built your City on top of this nest?!¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice was thick with outrage. ¡°And what¡­ you¡­ you offer up a sacrifice every couple of days to keep it in check?¡± ¡°Do not take that tone with me, Boy. If it wasn¡¯t for your people in the first place, my people would never have had to resort to such a thing!¡± Doror snapped. Then much calmer, he said, ¡°It was either that, or take our chances out in the wilds. With the curse of this island and the monsters living above ground¡­ there was no other choice.¡± ¡°You had a choicssseee.¡± Skaris said, his eyes flat. ¡°To die with honor.¡± ¡°Aye, yes. I did.¡± Doror answered. ¡°Then ask your leader over there,¡± He pointed to me. ¡°If he had to choose between having you lot die with honor or live on in shame, which he¡¯d choose.¡± He didn¡¯t wait for me to answer. ¡°Unluckily for me, my decision decides the fate of hundreds. Hundreds of men, women and children, aye all of them families.¡± He growled. ¡°I will not have my people die, ripped to pieces by monsters.¡± When Doror spoke about his people, the emptiness in his voice was invaded by the presence of something hot and intense. It had been only an instant, but it had been present and I wasn¡¯t the only one who detected it. The Dwarf who had seemed all but void of passion spoke hotly, his alcohol breath washing over us. ¡°The weight of a leader is a heavy one.¡± Aurora said at last. ¡°But I fail to understand why¡­ why your people chooses to sacrifice them.¡± She was asking why the Dwarves had chosen to sacrifice young girls. Doror studied his hands before answering. ¡°Because the Monster asked for it.¡± And that sent a shiver down everyone¡¯s spine. It was like the temperature in the room had suddenly dropped by a couple of degrees. Aurora actually wrapped her arms around herself and Kyrian went deathly pale. Skaris muttered a curse, making a strange hand gesture that I recognized as warding off evil. And I felt life drain out of me. In case you forgot¡­ MSS very closely resembles the folklore of my world. Earth. A lot of the monsters here are esoteric forms of myth that one could find on the Internet, or even by visiting a Bookstore. Hell, some of the research I did on MSS had me reading through articles about the creation myths and rumored weakness of Yokai, Demons and Monsters from different cultures. And there were many nights when I went to sleep at night after doing my research, a haunting seed of fear in my heart that a face might be looking at me through my window. But so far, we haven''t encountered Monsters with intelligence. Oh sure, I often describe monsters as having an instinctual intelligence¡¯. But I¡¯m talking about intelligence in the way a Eagle might have, or a Dolphin. Some of them, the rare few, do have the capability of forming strategies, marred by cruelty and spurred by the desire to inflict pain. But so far, we hadn¡¯t encountered the Higher Forms of Monsters. Why? Because those monsters are exceedingly rare.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. First of all, in the game, only Boss-class monsters could gain enough intelligence for NPCs to comment on it. And not all Boss-monsters either. They had to have killed hundreds of NPCs, thousands even. How do I know? Because of item-descriptions that usually litter the dungeon lair of these monsters. Every one of them says similar things: ¡®Weapon left behind by an adventurer who tried to slay a monster in its lair¡¯. Hundreds of those things. If the people of MSS commented on a monster in the way that Doror did¡­ it pointed to one thing. A Boss-class Variant that had the ability to communicate. To talk. To Reason. To express its desires. But in the game, that didn¡¯t mean you could have a full-on conversation with the monster. Every single time, the monster had been limited to a script ¨Crepeating the same lines over and over again. In combat, the AI had been smarter, always knowing just what ability to use and then. But from what Doror was saying, it almost sounded like this monster had Reason on top of intelligence. Not intelligence just used to corner prey and make it suffer. Reason ¨Cleading to Empathy. Not Hunger. Desire. Was it possible? To have such a creature? And what were the chances that we were about to encounter one such creature deep down underground, where it had been kept hidden for centuries, away from prying adventurer eyes? And how many others like it were out there? ¡­Could the Shadow Wolf Mimic that took my eye have something to do with this? If these monsters truly existed¡­ This world wasn¡¯t just creepy. It was Cursed ¨Ccapital C. I shivered once more. ¡°The monster can talk?¡± I finally composed my thoughts enough to form coherent sentences. Doror¡¯s chin shook. ¡°...Aye.¡± ¡°What does it say?¡± ¡°Just enough.¡± The Dwarf replied, ¡°Just enough to get us to do what it wants.¡± He looked away in shame. So the possibility was there, that it wasn¡¯t a Monster with reason but just repeating a few words like a parrot. Intelligent enough to get its thought across, but not enough to have a full-on conversation. Like those dogs that press the pre-recorded buttons with ¡®food¡¯ and ¡®potty¡¯. Except the key words here would be ¡®young¡¯, ¡®girl¡¯ and ¡®hungry¡¯. ¡°Impossible.¡± Kyrian muttered. ¡°A monster cannot talk. It¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s unheard of.¡± ¡°Talesss of monsssstersss that rule vast territoriessss exisssst among my people.¡± Skaris said, the skin of his hands turning white as he gripped his spear. ¡°Talesss that tell of monssstersss that could talk as we do. Walk as we do.¡± ¡°That¡¯s just stories. Stories that they tell children.¡± Kyrian replied. ¡°It¡¯s folklore. A myth. Fiction.¡± I held up a hand to stop Doror before he could comment on Kyrian¡¯s ¡®human-mage hubris¡¯, unable to comprehend the possibility that a monster that he didn¡¯t know about existed. I was just about to talk but it was Aurora who brought an end to the disbelief. ¡°They exist.¡± She muttered. ¡°The Empire does not advertise it as common knowledge, but in the archives of the Great Houses, one can find first-hand accounts of such creatures.¡± Aurora stared out the window at the City. ¡°Creatures with greed, lust, wrath¡­ that act the way we do.¡± Kyrian wrapped his cloak tighter around himself. ¡°That¡­ makes no sense. Why hasn¡¯t anyone talked about it? Why is this not public information?¡± ¡°Ssssurvivability.¡± ¡°What Skaris said. If it¡¯s smart enough to talk, even if a little bit, it can trick people. Add in the fact that these guys are probably strong enough to be classified as a Field Boss¡­¡± I shrugged. ¡°Not enough eyewitness accounts. Even if a whole party survived, would you want to go around sharing this information? When you have information like this about Monsters? Most adventurers would sell it to the highest bidder. I bet you a hundred gold coins that information like this is all over the Black Market. We just never bothered to look.¡± I shook my head, turning to Doror. ¡°You said the monster has three heads? Six Arms?¡± ¡°Aye.¡± ¡°Ssslaveborn, you know thissss monsssster?¡± ¡°...I¡¯ve never seen one able to talk. But I know the base form. This sounds like a variant.¡± I bit my lower lip, trying to recall information about the monster. ¡°...You¡¯re holding back on us.¡± I turned back to Doror. ¡°Are you absolutely sure it wasn¡¯t armed?¡± ¡°I ain¡¯t holding nothing back, Lad. The monster wasn¡¯t holding anything. It ripped apart my¡­ our fighters with its bare hands.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure it had three heads?¡± ¡°...I never got a direct look at it. But more than one, aye. It¡¯s voice¡­¡± Doror shuddered. ¡°More than one voice. By the forge, it¡¯s definitely more than one being in that body.¡± Kyrian looked away, pupils shaking in disbelief. As I said, adventurers are a superstitious sort. And Kyrian who didn¡¯t have information about the monster like Aurora did beforehand was starting to freak out a bit. Fuck. There were more than a dozen humanoid monsters off the top of my head that had two or three heads. The only differentiating factor would be what item it would be holding. ¡°You sure it wasn¡¯t holding a sword? Or mace? A shield even?¡± Certain Boss-class variants held Legendaries or even Artifacts. ¡°I¡¯m a Master Smith,¡± The Dwarf¡¯s brows furrowed together, trying to recall and be annoyed at me at the same time, ¡°I would have recognized what weapon it was holding.¡± ¡°But you said you never got a direct look at it, Mister Stonehammer.¡± Doror shook his head. ¡°Dwarves can smell metal, Lass. The monster had no such arms to speak of.¡± He stared at me for a moment too long, his eyes pensive. ¡°You mean to actually take me up on my offer.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question. I looked at my Party members. ¡°We¡¯re going to talk outside for a bit.¡± ¡°Aye, take your time.¡± Doror went back to the corner and began drinking. As soon as we stepped outside of the workshop, Kyrian began. ¡°We can¡¯t do this on our own, Lock.¡± He glanced back at the workshop door. ¡°If what he says is true¡­ then this one¡¯s out of our depth.¡± ¡°No.¡± Skaris¡¯ licked his lips. ¡°This prey is ourssss.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t just your run of the mill monster out on a field. This¡­¡± Kyrian waved his arm around. ¡°I don¡¯t even know what this is. Even in all my time in the Mage Towers, I never heard about anything like this.¡± Sometimes I forget that Kyrian had only been a Grade-8 Mage when we met. As social structure for Adventurers went, he was still pretty low on the ladder. Realistically, all of us were still pretty low on the ladder. I said as much. ¡°The moment we ask for help, we lose our claim on Doror¡¯s services.¡± I crossed my arms stubbornly. ¡°I hate to say this, but I don¡¯t want to share.¡± Kyrian grimaced. ¡°You want to get ahead of the other parties.¡± ¡°Like I said, this is a race.¡± I answered, ¡°And if we pull in other parties, we¡¯ll be helping them.¡± ¡°Do you have a plan then?¡± I looked to Aurora. ¡°Before I say my plan, I want to hear everyone¡¯s thoughts. You still haven¡¯t spoken, Aurora.¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Aurora seemed torn. ¡°Jussssst sssspeak. Sssslaveborn will be making the decision anywayssss.¡± Skaris gave me a meaningful look. ¡°And whatever happenssss, he will take ressssponsssibility.¡± I nodded. That¡¯s what it meant to be a Party Leader. To take in everyone¡¯s thoughts, making the decision and taking responsibility for it. I never meant to take advantage of this position anyways. Being a Party Leader meant carrying my party on my shoulders, not the other way around. And hearing that Aurora nodded, suddenly sure. ¡°I believe we should do this. Without bringing in the other parties. Mr. Lock is right, we need to get ahead. From my estimation, we are far from where we need to be if we mean to take the Autarch¡¯s key for ourselves.¡± ¡°Aurora, you will be in the most danger.¡± I said. ¡°Are you sure?¡± And suddenly Aurora looked at Kyrian instead of me. ¡°I¡¯m an adventurer and a member of this party. To my last dying breath, I will be the Shield this party needs. There is no other choice for me in the first place, if we are fighting, I will be at the front. Always.¡± Something unspoken was exchanged between Kyrian and Aurora. Kyrian giving her a slight nod while Aurora looked away before the moment was dragged on just a bit too long. Huh. Interesting. I thought the two had something going on between them, as a man and a woman. But I was starting to think different. No matter. Now wasn¡¯t the time. ¡°What about Stole¡¯s opinion?¡± Kyrian quipped. ¡°Moot point. That¡¯s three votes.¡± I answered. Kyrian threw up his hands in the air, exasperated. ¡°Even if three of us said no, you would have overruled us anyways.¡± As I walked back into the workshop, I threw him a sly grin over my shoulder. ¡°Yeah, but you got to complain.¡± The Mage rolled his eyes in response. Back in the workshop, Doror was still drinking. He looked up as I entered. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°It¡¯s done. We¡¯ll take the request.¡± I told him. ¡°But we¡¯re not going in tomorrow when the Monster is all awake and ready. We¡¯re going to hit it tonight.¡± He narrowed his eyes. ¡°You¡¯re going to enter its lair? Are ye mad? How are you going to-¡± ¡°That¡¯s for me to take care of. What I need you to do is something else.¡± I pointed out the window. ¡°There¡¯s a list of items that I¡¯m going to need for this raid. Armor, charms, and certain types of weapons. Your people need to get them ready by tonight.¡± Then I sat down and began writing the list. Doror gave me the side-eye but his curiosity got the best of him. He leaned forward to read what I was writing. ¡°...You write like a child.¡± I didn¡¯t dignify that with an answer. He waited a moment longer and said, ¡°...What is that?¡± ¡°Those,¡± I muttered, flipping the page over so he could see it. ¡°Are the key to this raid.¡± ¡°One question though.¡± I said, still writing. ¡°Once the monster is gone, what will you do? Now that the Field Boss is gone, the other monsters will start to come underground.¡± ¡°...That¡¯s for me to take care of.¡± He said, more than a little prissy. Slowly, I looked up at him. The dwarf was looking down at the paper, scratching his chin. And the words slipped out before I could think about the consequences. ¡°Then come with me.¡± As I said this, the dwarf froze, his body becoming still. ¡°I¡¯ll get you and your people off this island.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll find a Home for you all.¡±
Chapter 139: Proof of Strength (8) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°You did what?!¡± ¡°I offered to bring them with us.¡± ¡°Lock, I don¡¯t mean to offend you, I really don¡¯t.¡± Kyrian¡¯s tone was equal parts chastising and disbelief. ¡°Are you insane?¡± ¡°Sssslaveborn hassss never been ssssane.¡± Skaris said dryly. I did my best to keep the growing frown off my face. Kyrian hadn¡¯t been this upset since¡­ since I met him actually. The Mage had always been behind me every step of the way. The fact that he was actually scolding me spoke volumes about the weight of my decision, and the potential dangers of the path I¡¯d chosen. ¡°What¡¯s done is done.¡± I said instead of sticking my tongue out at him. See? I chose to be mature instead of acting like the child he was treating me as. ¡°Help me figure out a way to make it happen.¡± Currently, Skaris, Kyrian, Aurora and I were walking through the Dwarf town. We were still greeted with glares but Doror had gone ahead of us, talking to the various workshops that had the things that I needed for the hunt. Aurora stopped, rummaging in her pack and handing over some sweets to the local dwarf kids with a smile. Her face dropped as they ran away from her. ¡°Their ssscarsss run deep.¡± Skaris commented, turning to me. ¡°Even if you figure out a way, they might not dessscide to come.¡± ¡°Not me, we.¡± I said, gesturing at all of us. ¡°I like it¡¯s we after you made the decision.¡± Kyrian said dryly. ¡°Lock, there must be another way.¡± ¡°..He hasss that look in hisssss eyessss again. He won¡¯t change his mind.¡± Skaris snoted. ¡°What look?¡± I asked but they ignored me. Kyrian scowled. ¡°Lock, what you¡¯re suggesting is beyond madness. I¡¯ve sworn to help you to the best of my ability, but you want to bring this entire town of Dwarves with us on our voyage. We¡¯ll be killed, and the Dwarves will either be killed along with us by the Church, or be sold as Slaves.¡± He looked at the backs of the children running ahead of us, turning around when they were just far enough to see what we were doing. ¡°...I know what you¡¯re feeling, Lock.¡± Kyrian tried again, softer this time. ¡°But offering to get them out of the Island isn¡¯t a way to help them. It¡¯s a death sentence. For all of us.¡± ¡°They¡¯ll be dead once we kill this monster below us anyways.¡± I turned to Kyrian. ¡°We have to help them, Kyrian. We can¡¯t just leave them here. Besides¡­¡± I trailed off. ¡°It¡¯s our duty. As humans.¡± Kyrian looked away. He knew what I wanted to say. The Dwarves were here because of Humans. Us. It should have nothing to do with me. But it was like living as Lock Slaveborn so long had turned my brain into the human-race from MSS, overwriting my identity as a earth-human. I felt guilty about the Dwarf¡¯s lives here. The way they glanced at us, bitterness evident in every inch of their being. The way these people lived underground in the dark, without ever feeling the sun on their skin ever again. All because of the Empire¡¯s greed. I had to do something. It wasn¡¯t just me who felt this way either. I saw it in the way that Aurora kept trying to hand out sweets to the kids. I saw it in the way that Kyrian refused to meet anyone¡¯s eyes, his eyes glued forward but wincing every time we saw a dwarf girl no older than eight. I sensed their shame and how they dealt with it as Turinans, seeing the result of their Empire¡¯s actions from years ago. Even if it weren¡¯t their own hands that had done the deed, their hearts broke as if it had. A sign of compassion. A sign that they were good people. Borealis was right. I do have an eye for people. Just not in the way that he meant. ¡°I know that.¡± Kyrian said finally, breaking me out of my thoughts. ¡°But¡­¡± He breathed in and out, shoulders losing some of that tension. ¡°I still needed to warn you about this.¡± Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°I appreciate it.¡± ¡°Mr. Lock,¡± Aurora interjected, ¡°All that is moot point, unless we can kill the monster. What is this plan? Does it have something to do with us visiting the Smithies?¡± Instead of answering, I just gave her a sharp nod. We were close to the last Smithy and it would be quicker to show her. We¡¯d visited around half a dozen other Workshops, none of them had what we needed. Luckily, I spotted what we needed as soon as we entered the shop. ¡°That,¡± I said, pointing. ¡°That¡¯s what we need.¡± The dwarven smith sauntered over, grabbing his belt and pulling it higher up on his waist. As he came over, the scent of tabacco arrived first, and I suspected that he was chewing the leaves. When he spoke, the scent grew stronger. ¡°It¡¯s you.¡± He grunted. I gave tilted my head in acknowledgement, recognizing the smith in turn. He was the same dwarf who led us to Doror¡¯s workshop from the door. ¡°Smith Futir.¡± ¡°Call me Futir.¡± True to dwarven fashion, he cut the pleasantries short and got straight to the point. ¡°What you here for, Boy?¡± Why did these Dwarves always call me Boy or Lad? Then again, my party was on the young side. None of us were past the age of 25. In a Dwarf¡¯s eyes ¨Ca race that lived up to 500 years if lucky¨C we were probably no more than babies. ¡°How much for thos?¡± I pointed at the wall. My companions were already leaning over to get a better look. It was Aurora who figured it out first. ¡°These metals, they¡¯d been shaped to fit various different weapons.¡± She said. And then Kyrian held out a hand, closing his eyes and concentrating. ¡°...These aren¡¯t just metals either. There¡¯s mana in them.¡± He froze suddenly, opening his eyes and widening them. ¡°Elemental Mana?¡± I nodded. The things I had been looking for were something that I¡¯d only seen in Dwarven Cities in the game. Never as monster drops. It was natural that Aurora and Kyrian, who seemed like they didn¡¯t have much experience with dwarven smiths, didn''t know about these things. They were tiny slivers of metal, thin and shiny. Each of them looked like a case made of interconnected webs of metal, kind of like a poorly crocheted sheath for different weapons. One was shaped like the tip of a dagger, and another like the tip of a spear. Skaris reached out for the one that looked like the tip of a spear and Futir walked over with surprising speed, slapping the Beastman¡¯s hand away. Skaris shot him a dirty look, but didn¡¯t voice it otherwise. Out of all my party members, Skaris was the closest thing to the classic warrior-class; he knew not to piss off a Dwarven Smith in a Smithy full of weapons that could potentially be ours. Without another word, Futir picked up one of the metallic pieces off the wall. With practiced hands and drew a dagger from his waist, sliding the metallic cover over the dagger. Now the dagger¡¯s blade was in the web-like metal casing. ¡°You know what these are, Human?¡± Futir asked me, eyeing my hands. ¡°A modular blade. It¡¯s designed to fit over the original blade, thin enough to be nearly weightless but sturdy enough to stay on even in battle. Custom-fitted to weapons, it¡¯s designed like a web to leave parts of the original blade¡¯s edge while the covered parts are replaced by the modular blade¡¯s edge.¡± I answered without missing a beat. It was Skaris who understood first. ¡°Enchant the blade, without acsssstually enchanting the blade. Interesssssting.¡± Basically, you were ¡®modding¡¯ your weapon. An option available only to Dwarves who had no Witch Doctor or Mage class. But with this, they could still imbue their weapons with various properties while still retaining the Weapon¡¯s original stats. Modding the weapon was one of the last steps of finishing your build, adding on accessory effects to your equipment. Mostly because Dwarven Smiths who could provide such a service were rare, and you could only find them near the late game. It took time to build up a relationship too. But this isn¡¯t a game. It¡¯s real life. Thanks to the [Crow Totem], I was able to hunt in the cave solo. Thanks to that, I was able to find this place. Through the Sword Saint¡¯s swordsmanship, I was able to gain entry in this city. All those things had led to this outcome: even without Doror the Master Smith, we could purchase services of Smiths who were at a higher-level of expertise than we should be allowed at our current level. ¡­Which was only a clue to the difficulty of this quest. ¡°Aye, they¡¯re called [Weapon Mods].¡± Futir gave me a second look, passing the dagger over to me for me to take a look. ¡°...How does a lad like you know about them?¡± Skaris coughed into his hand, his seven-feet tall body nearly bending in half as the coughs wracked his huge frame. Kyrian glared at Skaris who couldn¡¯t keep a straight face to save his freaking life, much less keep my secret. ¡°Saved a dwarf¡¯s life once. His name was Krag, a Priest in the Temple of the Smith. As thanks, he taught me a couple of things.¡± The lie came easy to me, mixing bits of truth with falsehood. But it wasn¡¯t for Futir¡¯s benefit. It was for Aurora. It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t trust Aurora. I trust her with my life. It¡¯s just¡­ I think I want my comrades to know me as Lock Slaveborn, former Slave and current Adventurer. Not Lock ¡®Han¡¯ Slaveborn, the Player. That ship might have sailed for Skaris and Kyrian, but there was still a selfish desire to keep my relationship with everyone the way it was. I just¡­ I just didn¡¯t want to change anything between us. I thought of Clover. ¡­Is this what they call PTSD? In the present, I was turning the blade over in my hand. ¡°I need [Weapon Mods] for a sword, a spear and a lance. Some arrowheads too, if you have time.¡± I eyed Futir. ¡°I need it in a couple of hours, is that possible?¡± ¡°Depends¡­¡± He rubbed his chin. ¡°The arrowheads are not possible. What metal for the mods are you looking for, Boy?¡± ¡°Water for the Sword and Lance.¡± I replied. ¡°Fire for the Spear. Then you can do the rest?¡± Futir scoffed. ¡°It¡¯s not whether I can do it or not, it¡¯s whether I want to. I may not be a Master Smith, but I have my pride too. I¡¯m a Stonehammer, and I¡¯d rather melt all these down then give them to undeserving hands.¡± ¡°Because we¡¯re human?¡± Kyrian said sadly. Futir¡¯s tone turned cold at Kyrian¡¯s question. ¡°You watch your words, Mage-Boy. I¡¯m a Smith before I¡¯m a Dwarf. Aye, I have no love of your kind. But I love my work, and my work is to provide worthy arms to adventurers.¡± He bared his teeth. ¡°So don¡¯t you dare disrespect me again, Mage.¡± Kyrian opened his mouth then closed it. ¡°I apologize.¡± Damn, he was really getting no love here. But he didn¡¯t know the culture of the dwarves and how hot-headed they could be. He was still learning how to adjust. Futir scoffed. ¡°Aye, a human and a mage. Not yer fault, you simply don¡¯t know.¡± He sideeyed me. ¡°The mods are for you three?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I answered quickly. ¡°Then show me yer weapons.¡± We showed him our weapons, and he took them in his hands, walking over to a worktable and spreading them out. ¡°...This is a good sword.¡± ¡°Temporary.¡± I answered. He raised his eyebrows. ¡°It¡¯s a good sword.¡± He repeated. I felt the wolfish grin stretch over my face. ¡°I¡¯m better.¡± He let out another guffaw. Then taking Skaris¡¯ spear, he measured the edge, looking at it lengthwise. ¡°Yer spear isn¡¯t well taken care of. It¡¯s bent.¡± Skaris shrugged. ¡°It issss not broken. It worksssss.¡± Futir ignored Skaris, pushing him aside and moving over to Aurora¡¯s lance. ¡°Move, you buffoon!¡± He eyed her shield then the lance. ¡°You took good care of your Lance, Lass.¡± Aurora, who almost never smiled, smiled a little. ¡°An adventurer who doesn¡¯t care of their arms is undeserving of them.¡± Skaris gave her a death glare but Aurora ignored him. He looked over our armor as well, leaving a few comments. In the end, he took all our armors for basic repairs plus Skaris¡¯ spear. ¡°Come back in a few hours, and I¡¯ll have them ready.¡± ¡°How much?¡± I asked, reaching for my coin pouch. And Futir¡¯s hand shot out, grabbing my wrist. He was looking down at something on his table, pretending to concentrate but I felt the weight of his undivided attention on me. ¡°...Word is, that you¡¯ve sworn to kill the beast down below. T¡¯is true?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Then he nodded, taking his hand off of my wrist. He walked away from me, reaching for his tools. ¡°Then it¡¯s free of charge, Human.¡± I hesitated, caught between trying to insist or stop. Finally, I settled on a bow. ¡°Then I¡¯ll see you in a few hours.¡± I walked out with my party wondering, what could have pushed Futir into doing such a thing. I think the people in this city have stories that I have not heard yet. Humans. Monsters. Orcs. Pirates. The world hasn¡¯t been kind to them. And yet, Futir was showing me kindness. ¡­If I were in their shoes, could I do the same? ¡°Come on,¡± I said, pushign the thought aside. There would be time to ponder later. ¡°Let¡¯s find Stole, and we can see if Doror has a map of the monster¡¯s lair.¡± Chapter 140: Proof of Strength (9) World: MSS - Loading...
That night, we regathered with Stole, Darwin and Doror in the middle of the city. ¡°Watch yer step.¡± Doror said, leading the way. Skaris and Stole sniffed the air and looked at each other, than at the rest of us humans who didn¡¯t share their sense of smell. They both grimaced like tasting something sour. Well, technically, I probably had a [Smell] stat just as good as them. But this acrid scent wasn¡¯t something I recognized. It was Doror who answered my silent question. ¡°This place is littered with traps. If ye value yer limbs, step where I step and don¡¯t stray.¡± When I think of the middle of the city, there¡¯s a few choice words that comes to mind; especially due to my MSS background. Marketplace, central market, town square and the like. What I want to say is that when I think the center of a city, even in a dying smithy city full of dwarves like this one, I expect the hustle and bustle. The constant stereo chatter of people that serves as background noise, the warmth of human bodies densely packed together. Here¡­ The nearest house was more than a football field away and the distance in between was filled with iron-spiked walls. There was no multiple path, no birds singing and bathing in the fountains, no market vendors yelling out the prices of their wares. Since we were underground the absence of wind was a given and it was an eerie hollow silence that seemed to fill the air. And that wasn¡¯t all. There were trees. And hanging from the branches of these trees were countless [Fruit of Clear Mind]. Hundreds of them. And on this island¡­ the more trees there were around a lair, the stronger the monster was likely to be. Steeling my resolve once more, I followed Doror. Doror¡¯s steps were slow and careful but sure. He stepped around the spike walls, his eyes never leaving the ground. This wasn¡¯t a central square or even a marketplace. It was a prison. ¡°...You don¡¯t trust the monster.¡± I broke the silence with my thoughts. Doror answered without looking back. ¡°What fool would?¡± ¡°You did.¡± I said quietly. ¡°To quietly lap up your sacrifices and never stray. Yet¡­¡± I gestured all around us. ¡°This place is a prison.¡± Doror didn¡¯t answer for a long time. ¡°The monster is nothing more than a defensive measure. A beast kept in a cage meant to keep other beasts away. But¡­¡± He carefully stepped over something that looked like an iron box with a lever, turning back to make sure all of us saw the trap. ¡°Only a fool would believe this could keep the beast at bay if it really meant to get out.¡± It was a seemingly innocent sentence that wasn¡¯t out of place in this situation. But the hidden offer behind his words wasn''t lost on me. He didn¡¯t believe in us. The Dwarf was scared of this monster. And as a result, he was offering us a way out. There was no need to address his concerns. I¡¯d already made my decision. And it wasn¡¯t something that I decided on impulse either. What are the things that I can do? How can I do them? Are there things that I can do differently? How can I change this situation? What makes me special in this particular situation, to be able to help the dwarves? ¡­And why I wanted to help them. Those are the questions that I asked myself before arriving at this decision. ¡°...Just lead us to the lair.¡± I took a breath. ¡°And we¡¯ll take care of the rest.¡± Once more, the absence of sound filled the air. And then we were there. A giant door studded into the ground itself, like one of those metallic doors you see lined up on the ground next to restaurants. Except bigger. It was about twelve feet wide and twelve feet long, a perfect 2-dimensional cube set into the ground. Another defense meant to hinder the monster if it decided to prowl among the city. Even from looking at it, I could tell. This stone wouldn¡¯t really stop a monster. None of these defensive measures really could. Even a grade-7 monster could break through it, if the monster kept at it. Like the traps, like the iron-spike walls, they were just there to buy time. Just detriments, not a real form of defense. A Master Smith wasn¡¯t a master trapper. They made armor and weapons. Not walls and monster cages. Doror walked over to the side and stepped on a pressure plate. And with a hiss, the door began to slide open. Stairs that descended even deeper into the earth greeted us. I peered over the edge but couldn¡¯t see where the stairs ended. They just spiraled down and down, fading away into the darkness deep within. It had nothing to do with my [Darkvision]. My eyes simply couldn¡¯t make out the sheer distance between myself and wherever the spiraling staircase ended.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°There are no monsters besides the Boss-class one we¡¯re hunting,¡± I said. ¡°Now¡¯s the last time to check your gear. Everyone eat a [Fruit of Clear Mind]. We¡¯re descending in ten minutes.¡± As the familiar rustling of equipment being sharpened and cleaned filled the space around me, I heard Stol¡¯e footsteps approaching me. ¡°Mister¡­¡± Stole said, coming up next to me. I saw her eyes dart to the others before she shook her head, like a highschooler shaking off nervousness before Prom night, and standing in front of me at attention. ¡°I think we should leave Darwin here.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t.¡± I said without missing a beat. ¡°He can barely heal.¡± She said in a whisper, almost like she was afraid of letting Darwin hear her. She gazed off to the side. I followed her gaze and saw Darwin standing sheepishly, staring into the staircase. He was shaking his head with wide eyes, backing away from the dark hole in the ground. If the darkness itself wasn¡¯t enough, the sheer height of the staircase and the depth of it was enough to induce acrophobia in him. But I couldn¡¯t grant Stole¡¯s request. ¡°He comes with us.¡± I kept my tone firm. She tried one more time. ¡°He won¡¯t even be able to descend the staircase.¡± Her voice gained a touch of frustration. ¡°He¡¯s of no help.¡± I turned to her slowly. ¡°Stole, we can¡¯t leave him here.¡± I said finally. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°What will happen if we die?¡± I said softly, voicing the answers and questions that she already knew. ¡°The Dwarves won¡¯t take care of him. Even if they do, you don¡¯t think they¡¯ll have a way to track Darwin somehow? Zenom and the Priests? If we die here, then they¡¯ll find this place. And if they do¡­¡± ¡°Sssslavesss for the empire.¡± Skaris said from a distance. ¡°But-¡± My voice became firm. ¡°Stole, I made the final call on whether to bring Darwin with us. Temporary or not, he''s with us now." I had made the choice for the party, yes, but Stole had been a big part of that decision making. ¡°You knew what would happen if he came with us. We''re not on a picnic here, where people can come and go as they please. Darwin is no exception. He comes with the party." I didn¡¯t look until she walked away. ¡°Mr. Lock, that could¡¯ve been handled better.¡± Aurora was the first to approach, having cleaned her armor and readied her weapon. I saw her in armor from head to toe, including the winged helmet which she employed only in the most dangerous of her hunts. Her lance had the water-type [Weapon Mod] clasped to the tip as well. Off to the side, around twenty feet from us was Stole. She was trying to help Darwin get into some light armor over his priestly robes. ¡°She can hear us, you know.¡± I said dryly. Aurora shrugged one shoulder. ¡°Only if she¡¯s not trapped in her own head, regretting her actions.¡± Her eyes trailed my line of sight, seeing Stole. Her voice was low when she spoke, ¡°I know what you¡¯re trying to teach her. I simply think it could¡¯ve been handled better.¡± ¡°And what am I trying to teach her?¡± ¡°...That there are consequences to actions.¡± I smiled bitterly. ¡°Close.¡± I looked down the stairs. ¡°She¡¯s scared.¡± ¡°Explain please.¡± It was my turn to shrug. ¡°We¡¯re going into a Monster¡¯s Lair. Unlike normal, I haven¡¯t told you what the monster is. What specific abilities it might have and all of you guys are nervous because of it. Because now, all of you guys are walking into this blind.¡± I turned to face her. ¡°Just like normal adventurers.¡± ¡°...But we are all used to it.¡± Aurora whispered. ¡°Yes. You¡¯re all used to the nervousness and fear of the unknown. But an adventurer doesn¡¯t stop walking forward because of it. After all, the fact that our lives are on the line doesn¡¯t change whether we know the monster¡¯s identity or not.¡± I pointed to Stole. ¡°For her, it¡¯s the first time that she¡¯s walking into a monster¡¯s lair willingly. Blind. Without me to tell her about the Monster¡¯s identity.¡± ¡°I thought she hunted a few monsters even before meeting us. Wasn¡¯t she a solo adventurer?¡± ¡°A hunter-tracker who relied on ambush and stalking to find out more about her prey.¡± I explained, ¡°It¡¯s completely new territory for her. And she¡¯s choking.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It¡¯s a new experience for her and she needs to face it. Or she¡¯ll never be comfortable leading from the front.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be today.¡± ¡°It does.¡± I argued again. ¡°You already know, I plan to bring the Dwarves back. I can¡¯t have Stole acting like a child any longer. We both know what will happen once Zenom and the other adventurers see the Dwarves.¡± The adventurers would be drawn to the Dwarves like moths to the flame. Zenom too, will only want to use them. Contrary to what everyone thinks, it wouldn¡¯t be difficult to bring the Dwarves onboard. The real issue would be fending off the hyenas and jackals that only want to use them. ¡°They¡¯ll want to manipulate her. Use her to get close to you¡­ or the Dwarves.¡± ¡°Not just her. All of you.¡± And I eyed her. ¡°I finally figured out what was up between you and Kyrian.¡± I initially thought it had been a romantic fling between them. But the more I thought, the less it made sense. The air between them had been more tense than flowery. And there was only one reason that there would be tension between Kyrian and Aurora. Trust. I can¡¯t say to exactly what happened between them. But something must¡¯ve happened where the relationship between the two got strained. And the lack of trust between party members was just as deadly as Stole¡¯s inability to commit due to fear. But much harder to repair. Aurora looked away, refusing to meet my gaze. ¡°It was nothing.¡± It wasn¡¯t nothing. But she didn¡¯t look like she wanted to discuss it. ¡°...I won¡¯t pry.¡± I put a hand on her shoulder, finally seeing the others approach, armed to the teeth. ¡°But just let me know, if you need any help after this, you can always come to me.¡± Because it¡¯s the party leader¡¯s responsibility to bear the weight of their relationship, holding us together until everything was ok again. If only I had learned this earlier. ¡°Mr. Lock, the thought of failing this raid isn¡¯t even on your mind, is it?¡± Aurora asked with her usual straight face. ¡°Of course not.¡± Finally, all of us were ready. Taking a deep breath, I said, ¡°Ok then, let¡¯s descend.¡± Finally, the hunt was on.
Needless to say, it was dark. The whole place was shaped like a silo, spiraling staircase lining the sides. One look off to the side or worse, wrong step at the wrong time and that person would dive off into the nether without a foothold ¨Cfor the walls were paved clean. Briefly I wondered how the dwarves managed to carve all this and realized that would be impossible. The monster had to have done this. And I was able to identify the monster¡¯s identity from that fact alone. But I dared not voice it, because if we fought the monster here on this staircase, it¡¯d be suicide. Second¡­ the scent of blood was overwhelming. Even Kyrian and Aurora could smell it. The situation only got worse. Within the first hour, we found that I was the only one who could see. No one else had the [Darkvision] feature. Even with their superior senses, it required a supernatural ability to see in the dark. In that aspect, Cores trumped racial bonuses in more ways than one. Or in my case, the orc racial trait that I inherited from Arrosh: the Crow totem. But I didn¡¯t even have the time to admire how much of a cheat character I was becoming. Because by the second hour of descending the staircase, we could hear it. A strange scraping sound that bounced off of the walls. It brought memories to me. The scratching sound of insect monster¡¯s carapace that scraped along the cave¡­ the same pitch that my bones made when Coum scratched my shin-bones with a metal razor. Pushing away the memory, I continued to descend. I stood in the front, tied at the waist by a rope. The rope trailed behind me, tied to Stole who wasn¡¯t too far back. Aurora was third, with Kyrian and Darwin behind her. Skaris brought up the rear with a torch, which was barely enough to light up the way. There was no special field here. Just pitch black darkness and the suffocating smell of blood. The scraping of¡­ something. By the fifth four, they were joined by whispers. Those whispers bounced off of the walls, surrounding us. Within them, I could barely make out the words. ¡®Fresh¡¯ ¡®Young¡¯ ¡®Girl¡¯ ¡®Hunger¡¯ ¡®Flesh¡¯ ¡®Bone¡¯ ¡®Hunger¡¯ Over and over and over again. Already, the mental attack was starting. ? [???] casts [Vile Whispers] ? Darwin began to whimper and we took half an hour to keep him silent. In the end, we blocked his ears with earplugs. Even I felt the effects of it. I became more jumpy. Panicked and anxious. There was a definite thumping in my ears and I had to question this decision. I had walked into this blind, both metaphorically and literally. And with the same control that I used to separate myself from the pain, I separated myself from the mental attacks. These didn¡¯t hurt me physically, nor was it a debuff. It was a simple aura-type ability that increased the effects of mental debuffs. But to think that this was what it felt like in real life¡­ Stole¡¯s breathing came faster and faster behind me. At last, she reached out and grabbed ahold of the back of my armor. She tugged twice, a signal to slow down. Looking back, it wasn¡¯t just her but everyone was sweating and it wasn¡¯t from physical exertion. This monster, just by getting into its lair¡­ it¡¯s presence was overwhelming us. A Boss-class that we hadn¡¯t encountered yet. Not like the weakened Cheon-ma which we finished off. Swallowing, I redistributed the [Fruit of Clear Mind]. Emboldened one more, we continued. By the sixth hour, we reached the bottom. And I saw it. Thankfully, it had its back to me. It was a little under ten feet tall, though it was an estimate because the monster was crouched onto its three legs. The skin clung to its muscles and bones like a starving homeless man and I saw the clear pronounced bulbous protrusions sticking out along its back. Six arms adorned its shoulders, each of them hanging loose ¨Call but one. One of them held a sculptor¡¯s chisel and was scraping at the wall. Smoothing it. Making a staircase. Like a maddened artisan, this creature was continuing to dig. And slowly it turned. All three heads looked at us. Eyes that were distinctly asian in nature ¨Cslightly catlike and more narrow than wide. Vertical slits in its pupils. Teeth that looked exactly like ours. Smooth dark-navy blue skin that glistened with sweat. It¡¯s hair neatly braided into a bun on top of its three heads. And to top off the likeness to us humans, it wore something similar to a Sari ¨Cdespite being distinctly male. And with a perfectly normal voice, the monster spoke to us. ¡°You have brought the sacrifice?¡± [Samsoogook (ÈýÊׇø)], a monster closely resembling its counterpart from Chinese Mythology. And a legitimate Grade-5 Boss class. Full HP. No [Exhaustion] tick. Just my party versus the monster. It cocked its head, all three appendages mirroring the gesture. There was a wrongness to the creature that just rubbed against my mind and I fought not to look away. One opening and it would attack. It repeated the line in the same exact tone and the same exact voice ¨Clike it was following a script. ¡°You have brought the sacrifice?¡± And then it blurred into movement. And I was ready. The Raid began. Chapter 141: Proof of Strength (10) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°You have brought the sacrifice?¡± The monster repeated. The Monster¡¯s three heads spoke as one. However, each tongue spoke at a slightly different pitch; adding onto the whole creepiness factor by threefold. Yet, when it spoke there was no emotion behind it. When someone speaks, there¡¯s a hint of emotion and intent. When this monster, it had none of that. Like a recording, being replayed over and over again. Something inhuman disguised as human. It was just enough to make the party hesitate. Just enough. And in that slight instant, the ten-foot tall siamese triple humanoid monster lunged towards us with unbelievable speed for something of its size. Countless adventurers probably fell the same way. Stunned into silence at the bizarre act and then killed in the first few seconds as their puny mortal brains tried to make sense of this spectacle. And if it wasn¡¯t for me, my party would be nothing but another drumstick for the monster to gnaw on. But I had been ready for a trick like this. So I met the monster head on. I surged forward, mana and steel answering my call in equal measure. The exchange probably took seconds, but it felt even quicker somehow ¨Clike my brain¡¯s perception of time could barely contain the overabundant information of the fight. CLANG! ?Lock Slaveborn casts [Share the Load] ? ?Lock Slaveborn casts [King¡¯s Guard] ? My aura-covered sword met the monster¡¯s chisel in an explosion of sparks that lit up the dimly lit space. At the same time, the Lunar Shield snapped into place right above my head as the monster formed a sledgehammer with four arms and crashed into it. One moment, my Lunar Shield had been drifting around lazily and the next, it reverberated from the blow. God, I had felt my bones shake from the recoil of that block. I twisted like an eel, leaping back as its sixth hand tried to stab into me. A second, maybe two. That was all it was. But in that exchange, I¡¯d seen the monster close up. It¡¯s rancid meat-rot breath washed over me like a fine-mist but I dared not shake my head. It¡¯s hands ended in sharply-filed nails, five to six inches long and there was an instinctive knowledge not to get close to the nails, even though my game-knowledge told me there was nothing really special about them. That¡¯s the issue with being a gamer in this world ¨CI know the monster¡¯s weaknesses and strengths but that calm-part of my brain is rarely in charge in moments like this. More than that, I¡¯d seen its eyes. Intelligence. Doror had been right in a way. He was wrong about the speech, the monster couldn¡¯t converse. Well, maybe it could. But from what I could tell? It didn¡¯t give a shit what it was saying. All it felt was the fear drawn over our faces when its spat out our language. And it loved us for it. ¡°Move!¡± I screamed out seeing the Samsoogook¡¯s three faces grin towards me with stained teeth. The Samsoogook whooped out something guttural, like a primate beast and ran towards us. And as it did, all six of its arms spread out in the shape of a jumping spider. Six individual small portals opened up in the space above its head, and when the Samsoogook reached in and out, it was carrying a different weapon in each hand. ?Samsoogook casts [Divine Ornament] ? Each of them gleaming with a deadly edge. And if I wasn¡¯t wrong¡­ Two of them were [Unique] items that I recognized. The Spear and Dagger, to be exact. Before I could appraise the other four, Aurora met the Samsoogook¡¯s charge with her own. CLAAAAAAAAAAAAANG Her Tower Shield met the Samsoogook¡¯s weapons and another blindingly bright display of sparks flew around the opening. Aurora actually yelled out loud, her face set for war, as she pushed against the blow. But the impact drove her back ¨Cone, two, three and five feet. But she held. Barely. ¡°Ssssshit!¡± ¡°Help Sis! I¡¯m loading!¡± ¡°Kyrian! Light!¡± I jumped backwards towards our backliners, rotating with Skaris as he rushed past me. One of the reasons why my party members had been so slow to react was due to the lack of light. This entire place was being lit by a torch, and unlike me, none of them had [Darkvision].Stolen story; please report. ? Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Wisps] ? Tiny motes of electricity, barely larger than my thumbprint came to existence. Nowhere enough to light up this place. Except Kyrian summoned hundreds of them, and the air buzzed with electrical humming as the rest of my party saw what was here at the bottom of the stairs for the first time. Bones. Just bones and bones and bones. Small bones. Too small to be down here. Really small. I had been expecting this since we spoke to Doror. That¡¯s what MSS is about after all, it only gets more depressing and darker. There¡¯s no light at the end of the tunnel. The monsters get increasingly more evil and demonic ¨Cand the ones who look like angels are just that. They only look like angels. After all, the setting of MSS was that it was a grimdark RPG. Playing as an adventurer who went out into the dark to hunt the things that made your bed go bump. So I was ready for this. It¡¯s not like it¡¯s the first time I saw it. Even though it filled me with a sense of revulsion, disgust and anger, I set it aside for this raid. But not my comrades. Unlike Aurora and Kyrian, both Skaris and Stole were relatively new to this scene. Skaris¡¯ body exploded into blue flames as he screamed in anger. ¡°MONSSSSSSSSSTER!¡± Skaris leapt forward, whirling his spear in large arcs. The heat from his body was warning enough for Aurora to back away as the seven-foot tall beastman entered the fray. He slammed his spear down on the ground, causing a large flowery explosion of blue flame that stopped the monster in its tracks. But it was only momentary. All three faces were still smiling. The Samsoogook¡¯s Phase changes could be seen through its facial expressions. Since it had three faces¡­ ¡®Three phases. As long as we can get to Phase Three¡­¡¯ I had to set up the battlefield before he entered Phase Two. ¡°Skaris! Aurora! To the right!¡± As the two frontliners bolted towards their right, I ran the opposite way. Kyrian¡¯s chanting began to fill the cavern and I recognized the spell as [Lightning Arrow]. A powerful single-target spell that he used on the Hwacha before. Pzzzzt Bolts began to whistle through the air, as Stole started to snipe at the monster. I chanced a look back, seeing that Stole had climbed further up the spiraling staircase again. She was lying flat on her belly, tucked snuggly into a corner. And each time her Arbalest bucked against her shoulder, I saw a bolt hit the monster¡¯s thick hide. And they bounced right off. Damn, if only Stole had a few more Cores¡­ As it was, it was up to the three of us to buy time for Kyrian. We circled the monster and it was smart enough not to lunge at the first opportunity. ¡°We need to buy time for Kyrian.¡± I said to Skaris and Aurora. And even as I said it, the one of the head¡¯s looked towards Kyrian. Holy hell, it wasn¡¯t enough that this monster was smart enough to use speech as a scare tactic. Doesn¡¯t that mean it also understands our language? Which, when combined with the fact that it could perfectly imitate our words¡­ ¡°Skaris! It¡¯s legs!¡± The Samsoogook bent its legs to jumped towards Kyrian but Skaris trucked in bulletspeed. He¡¯s spear flickered out with the speed of a snake-strike. The wound on the Samsoogook¡¯s thigh immediately burst into flames and it turned to Skaris, brandishing the six weapons. And became a whirlwind of weapons. There was no form. No art or style. It just swung its weapons randomly¨C and at the last second, the weapons flashed with light. ?Samsoogook casts [Random Swing] ? ?[Random Swing] transforms into [Double Stab - Spear] ? ?Samsoogook casts [Random Swing] ? ?[Random Swing] transforms into [Cut - Sword] ? ?Samsoogook casts [Random Swing] ? ?[Random Swing] transforms into [Bash - Shield] ? Aurora acted decisively. During the lull, she had taken out her lance and used it to keep the monster at bay. But even with Skaris, Aurora and I combined, we only had one weapon each. Meanwhile, the Samsoogook could swing each arm over and over and over again, all six of them. Every single swing turned into a [Weapon Skill], more deadly than the one before. ¡°We need to stop it from attacking!¡± One of the Samsoogook¡¯s Passive, [Press the Attack!] raised its [Attack] stat with every ability cast. And it was raining blow after blow down on Aurora¡¯s shield. Skaris let out a hiss, his eyes widening as he cast [Hand in Hand]. Clone-Skaris came into existence just outside of Aurora¡¯s shield. The Samsoogook saw the clone and before it could even do anything, all six weapons stabbed into it, erasing it from reality. Aurora took advantage of the break, her body twisting as she slammed her lance into the creature¡¯s stomach sideways. Following through, she shield-bashed the monster¡¯s knees. ?Aurora Candrian Vetilian has cast [Capsize] ? A precious opening. A precious opening wasted on a shitty skill. [Capsize] isn¡¯t fixed at a 100% success rate. It starts with 50% and steadily climbs up towards 100% depending on the creature¡¯s weight. At ten-feet tall, the Samsoogook should be more than heavy enough to qualify for a 90% success rate. It was a worthwhile gamble¡­ Except, a gamble is a gamble because it sucks. And once more, I¡¯m reminded why MSS was so difficult. In that crucial moment, Aurora¡¯s ability failed on her. Leaving her wide open. A mistake. A small one, based on the fact that [Capsize] probably never failed her before. A mistake pre situated on the fact that I ordered Skaris and her to stop the monster. A mistake based on the fact that the ability was a crappy one which could fail¡­ at the worst possible moment. ?Samsoogook casts [Random Swing] ? ?[Random Swing] transforms into [Concussion Blow - Mace] ? ?Samsoogook casts [Random Swing] ? ?[Random Swing] transforms into [Hamstring - Sickle] ? ?Samsoogook casts [Random Swing] ? ?[Random Swing] transforms into [Flurry - Dagger] ? Aurora¡¯s body bent forward as the mace landed right on her back. Even in that situation, Aurora had the sense to make use of the [Cheonma] passive. She flew backwards and slammed into Skaris, both of them ending up on a tangle of limbs on the far wall. The weapons glanced against the front of her armor ¨Cthe chest part of her platemail bent inwards. Her face began to turn purple as she struggled to get it off. The monster was smart enough not to chase. One of the faces looked at Kyrian again, readying to jump. One kept an eye on Aurora and Skaris, assessing the situation. And the other faced me. Three faces, all keeping an eye on us. And as it¡¯s weapons plunged down towards me¡­ ¡­I waded right into its range by myself, casting [Lingering Darkness]. Wings of a Crow enveloped me for a millisecond and there was a distant cawing in my head. Then the darkness exploded outwards from my body, creating a thick fog of pure black between me and the monster. The monster was effectively [Blind]. My [Lingering Darkness] skill from the Crow Totem isn¡¯t limited to Magical Attacks¡­ Nor is it limited to sight. This is the real world, and your mind is a weapon just as everything else is. So like all things with thought, when the Samsoogook became [Blind]... it stopped. He was smart, he was cunning and he was cruel. So he knew that he had to leave the [Darkness]. But I¡¯m the Sword Saint¡¯s Disciple, and the monster¡¯s intelligence worked against it. As it stood stupefied, stuck in place like my party had been ¨Cthat one crucial second where his brain chugged along and tried to make a decision, that one crucial second when his six arms stopped moving¡­ Oh, he reacted like all monsters did, and the halt in its movement was barely noticeable to a novice. But I¡¯m not a Novice anymore now, am I? I came a long way from the Dokkaebi Tunnels. I cut into the monster like butter. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight- My new sword, [Snow Scream] sang with blood as the Monster screamed, reaching a crescendo. ¨Cquadriceps, Hamstring, Calves, Ankles¨C [Aura] cleaved into the Monster¡¯s thighs, revealing whites of its bone beneath. The monster tried to back away, out of the darkness where it could see again. ?Lock casts [Tidal Force] ? But my Lunar Shield was already charged up, and the monster flew towards me due to the power of Moon¡¯s gravity. ? [Lunar Shield] decreases [Defense] ? ? [Lunar Shield] decreases [Defense] ? ? [Lunar Shield] decreases [Attack] ? ¡­ ? [Arcane Masochism] cancels [Lunar Shield] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] raises [Attack] ? ? [Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed] ? ¨Cbuffs flowing into me as I cut into the shin, parry the dagger, step aside from the shield¨C [Snow Scream] left patches of ice, which turned the monster¡¯s skin brittle around the edge of every single cut I left. The skin ripped and teared as the monster thrashed in futility. ¨Cthe monster¡¯s skin ripping from the ice, trees of ink growing inside every wound, Aura gliding through muscle and sinew¨C [Artisan of Battle] from the [Royal Oni] summoned up tree branches that gutted the thing from the inside out. ¨Cfinished with a cast of [Hateful Wound]. Physical Damage. Magic Damage. Elemental Damage. True Damage. Yeah, I¡¯d been surrounded by some powerful adventurers on this voyage. I think subconsciously, I had been feelign a little down. But in terms of damage output? DPS alone? There¡¯s nothing better than my Knight Build. ¡°AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!¡± It backpedaled, each face looking around wildly. But I stalked, prowled and scurried around like a cockroach, nipping at his heels and legs with my blade. When the monster seemed to get too far¡­ Well, I dealt enough damage to get another charge of [Lunar Shield]. The Lunar Shield yanked the monster towards me with another cast of [High Tide]. The monster was in complete panic now, it swung its weapons without purpose. The Samsoogook reached too far with its mace and sword, trying to guess where I was. Overeaching the same way that Aurora did¡­ THUD THUD Two pieces of meat ¨Cthe Samsoogook¡¯s Arms¨C fell in the darkness. Only two of its faces were smiling now. We were in Phase Two. Of course, I¡¯d cut off two of its arms. There were countless wounds on its body, holes made from the inky branches, cuts made from Aura and frostbitten pieces of its flesh looking black and rotted. Ah, I should mention. Unlike Skaris, whom I chose the fire-type Weapon mod, I chose the water-type. The Samsoogook was soaking wet. Meaning it¡¯s Lightning and Ice Resistance was in the negatives now. An interaction crucial for stripping away Elemental Resistances in the late-game¡­ ¡°Lock!¡± Kyrian¡¯s voice bounced off of the walls. ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡± Right, he didn¡¯t have [Darkvision]. I dropped the darkness. The room was lit up like Time¡¯s Square. That was because it was filled to the brim with beads of lightning, flashing blue-white so bright that it hurt to keep my eyes open. ¡°Kyrian, fry him.¡± ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Rain] ? Chapter 142: Proof of Strength (11) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°Kyrian, fry him.¡± Tiny marbles made of pure electrical mana filled the room. The air vibrated with latent power, all that potential power waiting to be released. It made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end and static electricity caused the Samsoogook¡¯s hair to stand on end like a porcupine-plush-wig. The monster stood still, its two sets of eyes on two different faces darting back and forth, trying to look for a way out. Kyrian answered with definitive prejudice. He pointed towards the monster with his staff. ¡°Strike.¡± ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Rain] ? ?Kyrian Tricilan casts [Lightning Rod] ? While holding the [Lightning Rain] spell so that the electric missiles were hovering mid-air, Kyrian casted a second spell. A spell that would guide the countless arrows of death straight towards the monster. Holding one hand up in the air, Kyrian waved his staff and a tiny needle-like projectile flitted out and embedded itself into the monster¡¯s chest. And then it rained lightning. Usually, the lightning-infused spells were accompanied by sporadic flashes of light followed by the crack of thunder that sounded like the sky was being torn apart. But this was different. Lightning fell like fine mist. They didn¡¯t streak across the empty space between Kyrian and the Samsoogook like laser beams. They drifted slowly like snowfall, soft-blurry currents lighting up the place with a soft-glow, coloring it with pastel-like quality. The Samsoogook lurched to the side, trying to throw itself away from the spell but there was nowhere to go. In an enclosed space like this, Kyrian had modified his spell so that it was unavoidable¡­ And when the electric beands touched the Samsoogook¡¯s skin, they didn¡¯t just crackle and pop. They seared through its skin. Skin, muscle, sinew, bone and then marrow. They melted straight through it and the Samsoogook screamed in agony. Kyrian never casted spells like this. He usually casts them one after another. Holding one prepared and launching the other was a feat that was a sign of proficiency, coined with the term [Dual Casting]. Only with a high enough [Mental] stat, combined with sub-stats like [Mana] and [Spellcasting] was this possible. When the hell did he have time to practice this? It seems that I wasn¡¯t the only one who came prepared to this hunt with new moves. Kyrian, whom I often thought of as the weakest member of our party, had just single-handedly proven me wrong. I was thoroughly impressed. And tightened the grip around my sword, renewing the [Aura] around it as the monster stood back up. Half of its middle face had been melted off, leaving its jaw exposed to the jaw-hinge, resembling a villain from a certain superhero comic dressed like a bat. But that was the pretty part ¨Cthe two faces on either face had been completely sloughed off like one of those radiation victims. Eyeballs, nose, anything that protruded from the face had been melted into one flat wax candle potpourri on a kindergartener¡¯s make-your-own-crayon night. It began to regenerate. Not just the damage from Kyrian¡¯s spells, the two arms that I had amputated were growing back as well. ¡°It, it¡¯s healing!¡± Stole cried out, her crossbow momentarily stopping. ¡°It¡¯s not healing! It¡¯s a rewind!¡± There was no point in following up with an explanation, I simply hefted my sword and felt the world shift suddenly, surprised by my newly found speed from the recent buffs, as I sped up towards the creature. One of the Samsoogook¡¯s passive abilities, [Karmic Return]. It¡¯s not a regeneration-type ability. It¡¯s a total rewind. If a monster is in its third-phase and it uses a regeneration ability, it¡¯s still stuck in the third phase. You know the patterns and you know how much mana it has left. [Karmic Return] on the other hand¡­ It resets all its HP and MP to how it was, returning back to a state in time. Including its cooldowns. And if we were unlucky, it could possibly recover all its health and mp again. Which meant that we¡¯d have to start this raid all over. ¡°Don¡¯t stop firing, Stole! It¡¯s just you and me!¡± The corner of my eye and subconsciousness picked up the bundle of armor that was Aurora struggling in the corner, Skaris trying to help her somehow. And I immediately pushed away any thought of rushing towards the two and helping. Because if I didn¡¯t stop this, this raid could go downhill real fast.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Stole wasn¡¯t doing any damage really and Kyrian was tapped out from his impressive display. I watched as the Samsoogook, completely recovered, faced me once more. The only consolation was that only two of the faces were smiling. And slowly, the third face¡¯s crying expression began to turn upside down into a smile. Shit. ¡°Stole!¡± I yelled out, throwing myself in front of the monster, my blade already in motion. And the Samsoogook recast its signature ability. ?Samsoogook casts [Divine Ornament] ? Once more, six portals opened up above its head. [Divine Ornament] has a very interesting effect when used by Samsoogook. When it¡¯s used by one of us as a Core ability, it requires us to deposit a weapon for safekeeping. It¡¯s actually a pretty shitty ability as a Core unless you have a build that requires the use of a lot of different weapons. It¡¯s kind of like a Dimensional Pocket that can¡¯t be stolen like the Dimensional Rings. When used by the Samsoogook, however, it pulls out weapons of random rarities. Common, Rare, Unique and then Artifact or Legendary. Of course, the chances are abysmal. 25% for Common, 45% for Rare, 25% for Unique and a 5% for an Artifact or Legendary. And this time the Samsoogook pulled a Spear of [Legendary] class. Not just a normal [Legendary] either, it¡¯s part of a [Plurality] set. I recognized it immediately. The long black wooden handle that shone like well-oiled furniture, a piece of decorative cloth that hung between the blade and the haft, wrapped tight. The spear-tip itself seemed to be made out of polished ivory, with a blade that stuck out at three different angles. Almost like a maple leaf, except smoother and leaner. [Strange Antler]. An item, on the same level as my [Lunar Shield] which is also a [Legendary] and [Plurality]. I threw myself to the side as the monster stabbed out with the [Strange Antler]. The [Strange Antler] stabbed the space where I had been a second ago¡­ ¡­and a pair of wicked antlers made of pure mana exploded with the force of a moose¡¯s charge from the space where the spear head was, inheriting its momentum and strength. The antlers expanded the attack zone from a narrow zone into something that would have skewered my entire body had I not dodged in time. That¡¯s only the inherent active skill. It comes with a load of other passives. The ability to inflict [Bleed] as well as a flat 50% increase against heavy armors. And the passive which makes this end-game gear for most spear builds: 300% boost to all damage against beings of a different race. Not against Dragons. Not against Humanoid Monsters. Not against Boss-class monsters either. Beings of a different race. Meaning that if I wielded it, I¡¯d get a flat 300% boost damage to everything that wasn¡¯t human. And right now, the Samsoogook was wielding it. Desperation urged my feet to move faster and I leapt to the side again, my [Lunar Shield] levitating into place to automatically counter another strike from the Samsoogook. But when the spear tip met my shield I saw how useless it would be, the Magical Antlers were summoned forth and rammed forward, created from the mixture of the Samsoogook¡¯s Mana and the Weapon¡¯s innate ability. The antlers crowded around the edges of my shield, threatening to bloody my arms and legs. ¡°Sssslaveborn! Vetilian! Her armor!¡± There was no chance to look in that direction but my heart sank another inch. An image of Aurora¡¯s armor crumpling near her chest and shoulder flashed before my eyes as I dodged another strike. Her armor must have been crushed and concave into her chest cavity or back. And Skaris wasn¡¯t a healer or skilled in that sort of thing, he had no idea what to do except have the sense not to tear the armor off of her without being careful. For all we knew, she could be bleeding inside. ¡°Mister!¡± Frustrated by my lack of a counterattack, the Samsoogook ducked and weaved, forcing me to dance backwards with another stab of his spear which created another supernatural manifestation of antlers attempting to leave me crucifixed to the wall. One silver lining was that the third face had never quite recovered, [Karmic Return] had only managed to return the thing to Phase Two. I saw the eyes on the sub-face flicker towards Kyrian who was chanting and its legs bent, ready to leap towards our party¡¯s mage. It all comes down to choices. I could see it now, Skaris pouring healing potion after healing potion into the crevice of Aurora¡¯s armor, keeping her barely breathing. But that was just stalling, she needed a healer. Skaris couldn¡¯t keep her alive and rip the armor off, I needed to get there. Fast. But if I left, our backline would be exposed. The Samsoogook would tear into Stole and Kyrian and with [Strange Antler]¡¯s reach and AOE effect, it wouldn¡¯t even be a fight. Only just sixty seconds ago, I had been feeling smug with that stunt of mine. Using Darkness to blind the Samsoogook while I tore into him. But the monster was smart enough that it wouldn¡¯t work again without the support of my party members. Shit, it¡¯s always like this. Always. Thinking I¡¯ve won, only for the monster to get lucky or pull out its trump card. Had I not prepared enough? No, I had. What had happened to Aurora¡­ it could have happened to anyone. Me, Skaris, Kyrian, Stole... we all knew the risks. Even I fall unconscious during battle sometimes. An adventurer¡¯s death isn¡¯t always glorious. Sometimes, it¡¯s just bad luck. A bad slip on the ice. Tripping over a rock. Even blinking at the wrong time. Sometimes¡­ Shit happens and that¡¯s the way it goes. ¡®Enough, make a decision.¡¯ Decision. I had to make a decision. Which path would lead to the best outcome. Which path would lead to the most lives saved. ¡­ At the end of the day, I¡¯m the party leader. I make the shots. I make the calls. And if something bad happens, that¡¯s on me. I¡¯m ready to accept that. I never expected the mantle of Leadership to be all glory and respect. I was ready for others to blame me and point fingers at me from Day 1. So I made my choice. ¡°Skaris! Get the fuck over here right now!¡± For the fraction of a second, I could sense the disbelief hang in the air like a guillotine. Another fraction of a second later, it turned to panic. ¡°Ssslaveborn, what do you-¡± ¡°Lock! I can go to Aurora!¡± ¡°But sis is-¡± ¡°Everyone shut the fuck up!¡± I cried out and a burst of anger sharpened my focus. I saw an opening and maneuvered my body between the antlers and landed a stab, very deep, into the monster¡¯s thigh. Already wary of me, it backpedaled giving me precious few seconds. ¡°Skaris get over here! Right now! Stole! Supressing fire! Kyrian, prepare the spells!¡± ¡°But Aurora-¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take complete responsibility, now fucking do as I say!¡± My feet never stopped moving as I gave my orders, rushing the hateful monster. It was abusing the shield with frustrating cunningness ¨Cit knew that [Strange Antler] was fucking busted. It kept using the Legendary Spear to keep me at bay, knowing that my sword could never reach it. ¡°And Darwin, get the fuck over to Aurora and heal her! Right now!¡± Choices. I made the choice to trust. Not in Darwin, the mentally disabled teenager Priest. No. I chose to trust in Stole, the kindest member of my party. That her heart had touched Darwin somehow, that he could see how much Stole cared for Aurora. And that he would know what to do. And now, I had to focus on the monster. ¡°RAAAAAHHHHH!¡± Skaris rushed in from the side, his spear blazing with white fire. The Samsoogook was still entangled with me and the multitude of its limbs couldn¡¯t keep up with the coordination required to control all of them. Skaris struck again and again, and his last move slammed at the monster¡¯s feet resulting in a huge explosion of blue-white flame that resembled a blooming flower. ?Skaris Deepeater casts [Blooming Conflagration] ? This was a different type of heat than Kyrian¡¯s carefully controlled spell. Skaris¡¯ fire was hot passion and fury, an explosion of rage towards the monster. Skaris¡¯ history hated any type of tyrant, and this monster was just that. A tyrant monster who used his strength to prey on the weak dwarves, specifically singling out helpless innocent children. And the monster went fucking livid. It screamed and began running around the place, blue flame clinging to its body due to Skaris¡¯ passive; [Sticky Flames]. It rolled on the ground, got up to its feet and stomping and banging its head into the walls. A sour scent filled my overly sensitive nose as the monster soiled itself from the pain of being burnt alive. ¡°Shit it¡¯s getting near Aurora! Lock!¡± ¡°Skaris! With me!¡± Lightning flashed as Kyrian cast his spell. Flames exploded as Skaris used his Core ability again and again. And I neared the monster, escaping death by a hair, as I cut into it again and again. ¡°Get her out! Get her out, goddamit!¡± I cried out to Darwin, seeing him hesitate near Aurora, struggling to get his hands to glow green. It was chaos. But as the Grade-5 Boss-class monster rampaged, I saw my shot and took it. Bouncing off of the wall, I finally reached the monster¡¯s goddamned neck at its 10-feet tall height and cut its head clean off. It¡¯s [Defense] stat be damned, I couldn¡¯t even count how many [Attack] buffs I had received. Crunch A sickening crunch. ¡°NO!¡± ¡°Sis!¡± A cry filled with regret. A tearful sob. I turned and looked. Right before it died, in its pain-fueled rampage, the monster had stomped numerous times on two people. The fragile Darwin and the already injured Aurora. Blood pooled the area. Guts squeezed out from openings like toothpaste held too tight. Darwin¡¯s eyes rolled back. Aurora¡¯s body stopped convulsing. Everything in slow motion. My brain stalling as the adrenaline and blood drained out of my face. Choices. Chapter 143: Proof of Strength (12) World: MSS - Loading...
¡°M-mister, Sis Aurora, her back¡­ and Darwin¡­¡± Stole walked towards the two, each step dragging on the floor as if she was being dragged forward by something unseen. ¡°Stole, get back.¡± I pushed past her. My heart was pounding and it made my head hurt. I¡¯d made the right choice, hadn¡¯t I? I did. But sometimes, the right choice leaves you feeling like shit. Walking past Stole, I kneeled next to Aurora. Usually in a situation like this, one would imagine that their heart would be threatening to beat right out of their chest. It was the opposite. My heart grew cold and steady, the beats dying down to the barest minimum in the stillness of my decision. This was bound to happen eventually. There was no way I could keep everyone alive till the end. Even still, I couldn¡¯t help but pray as I leaned down to put my ear on Aurora¡¯s chest to try and listen for her heartbeat. ¡®Please, please, please, please, please, I¡¯ll do anything, please please please.¡¯ Nothing. Nothing but the hollow ring of metal accompanied by something struggling, a rasping sort of sound that was fighting to get out. She was still breathing. Oh god, Aurora was still breathing. ¡°Wake that priest up, now!¡± I thundered and took out my sword, channeling aura into it. ¡°H-he¡¯s unconscious, and all his arms and legs look all weird and-¡± Stole stammered, in shock. ¡°Sssstill yourssself, Whelp! Right now, every ssssecond countssss!¡± I had wanted to turn around and reprimand Stole. She was panicking, allowing despair and the overwhelming weight of the situation to crush her decision making. Luckily, I wasn¡¯t alone. Skaris stepped in to get her back into gear while Kyrian went over to Darwin, rummaging around his bag and bringing out health potions. While they were doing that, I cut into Aurora¡¯s armor. ¡°Come on, come on, FUCK!¡± I struggled a bit and cursed, even my Aura struggling to find a good angle to cut her armor off. It looked like someone took a soda can and crushed it in their palm, and every sharp edge had found themselves into Aurora¡¯s innards, if not crushing them from within. ¡°I ssshall help, Sssslaveborn.¡± Skaris walked over and grabbing the edges of the armor, began to heave. ¡°Stole, pour these health potions on her wounds!¡± ¡°But they¡¯re covered by her armor!¡± ¡°Wherever it¡¯s covered in blood! Now!¡± And began the excruciating battle of keeping Aurora alive while ripping that armor off. With a stomach-churning sound of flesh being torn asunder, it came free. Stole turned away from the scene with a sob. It wasn¡¯t pretty. Her intestines had come free with the momentum and I didn¡¯t bother with things like disinfectant. If bacteria was a real thing in this world, everyone would be dead by now. Either they¡¯re fake or the potions take care of them. I grabbed her intestines and began shoving them back into her stomach, fighting not to look too close at the concave cavity of her chest. ¡°Ssssshe¡¯s not breathing!¡± Skaris hissed alarmingly. ¡°Her heart¡¯s still beating! Keep pouring those health potions, don¡¯t stop moving goddamit!¡± Everything was said in a harsh whisper, as if somehow yelling too loud might affect Aurora somehow. ¡°I¡¯ve heard about this, when someone¡¯s heart is beating but they stop breathing; they end up in this vegetable like state. W-we have to get her to breathe somehow!¡± Stole cried out. Fuck, I wans¡¯t a doctor. I was way too ill-equipped to deal with something like this. Was there an actual difference between not breathing and the heart stopping its beat? How the hell was I supposed to know?Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°Lock, the Priest is awake!¡± ¡°Get him over here!¡± Darwin came over, shivering like a frightened rabbit. I could understand. A boy whose mind was not entirely right, having to face the horrors of this world not to mention coming face to face with it and feeling the brush of Death¡¯s lips upon his own. His eyes were unfocused and I fought not to slap him into focus, with someone like him it might prove to be harmful more than helpful. Instead I grabbed his forearms. He struggled, whimpering but I was stronger than him and I dragged him palms over Aurora¡¯s chest cavity. ¡°Start healing, now.¡± ¡°UH, I- i-i-i-¡± ¡°Heal!¡± I cried out and practically threw him at her. Then putting my lip to hers, I started giving Aurora mouth-to-mouth CPR. I was clutching at straws now. I had seen Tanya do it for Coum back in the Scavenger¡¯s Hideout. Would it work? What if Aurora had brain damage already? Was it too late? Was I even doing it correctly? And with a sudden body-wracking cough, she vomited blood into my mouth. I leaned away from her, spitting out the mess of phlegm and blood that was expunged into my mouth. There was no disgust, there was no time to wipe my mouth clean. I just looked at her chest, rising and falling steadily, with Darwin¡¯s glowing hand hovering over. ¡°Oh thank the gods. Oh thanks the gods.¡± I kept saying. Kyrian knelt down, taking over Stole¡¯s duty and pouring health potions all over the extra scrapes and bruises she had. Skaris put Aurora¡¯s head to the side so that she wouldn¡¯t choke on her own blood. Health potions are worth hundreds of gold. But none of us cared about that right now. All the wounds closed up eventually. The only thing that remained were the crusted remains of blood, sticking to her skin like ugly scars. Still, she continued breathing. It was an eerie look, a combination of Aurora¡¯s naturally marble-complexion, a skin free of any marrings and her statuesque beauty made me afraid that this was how she was going to look for the rest of her life. Just still. ¡°She¡¯s not waking up.¡± Stole whispered. ¡°She will.¡± I said. ¡°She has to.¡± It came out harsher than I wanted it to. Kyrian sat down next to me. ¡°Lock, you saved all of us.¡± ¡°...I know.¡± ¡°If it wassss anyone¡¯ssss, it was mine. I overreached. I¡­ I sssshould not have been in that possssition. Vetilian wassss trying to defend me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not your fault either, Skaris.¡± Kyrian muttered and there was heat in those words. ¡°It¡¯s her job as the tank to defend the rest of us and she was¡­ she risked her life doing fulfilling her responsibilities.¡± Stole remained silent, kneeling next to Aurora. She dabbed at the woman¡¯s face with a piece of wet cloth. Darwin hid behind her, continuing to shoot me furtive glances. Another few minutes passed. ¡°Mister, she¡¯s going to be alright¡­ right?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s wait a bit longer.¡± How long had her breathing stopped for? Before the Samsoogook decided to stomp on her or after? Maybe if I could calculate how long the oxygen supply to her brain had been cut off, there was a Priest out there who could help. Or maybe a doctor from my own world who got isekai¡¯d into MSS, similar to me. We waited in silence, only the ragged breathing of Aurora keeping us company. ¡°It¡¯s my fault.¡± Kyrian said at last. ¡°It¡¯s no one¡¯s fault.¡± I said automatically. ¡°You said it, she was simply fulfilling her role as the party¡¯s Shielder. I don¡¯t want anyone to start playing this blame game.¡± Because in the end, the responsibility for this fell to me. I said it too, that I¡¯d take responsibility for everything. In the heat of the battle, I made the call as the Party Leader. But Kyrian continued. ¡°I¡¯ve been suspecting her of being a Turinan Spy.¡± ¡°...What?¡± I looked away from Aurora, trying to search Kyrian¡¯s expression. Skaris hissed in surprise. Stole and Darwin were the only ones to not react. ¡°I¡¯ve been jabbing at her with my words. Trying to catch her in the act. Trying to see if she was communicating with any of the other Scions of the Bastards of the Great Houses.¡± Kyrian was barely old enough to have graduated college. He brought his knees closer to himself, hugging them together. ¡°She never said a thing about it. She just took it all¡­ like¡­¡± ¡°Like a Sssshielder.¡± Skaris chimed in. Kyrian let out a short laugh, void of mirth. It was one of disbelief, mostly at himself and at the situation before us. ¡°Perhaps she moved in the way to prove me wrong.¡± ¡°Kyrian, don¡¯t be a fool.¡± I said. He stopped talking, his lips pressed together in a thin line. ¡°Don¡¯t disrespect her sacrifice like that. A Shielder takes the hits meant for their party members. End of story.¡± I looked at him. The young mage just stared at Aurora¡¯s body. ¡°Aurora¡¯s not the type to be shaken by things like that. We both know that.¡± Gods, he looked so young. She looked so young, even Skaris. And Stole¡­ don¡¯t even get me started on her. Granted, my body is around the same age but my mind was in its 30s. What could I say here? ¡°I think she understood why you acted the way you did, Kyrian.¡± I said at last. Kyrian looked at me, eyes reddening from his robes. ¡°She understood?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been betrayed by one of the Great Houses. Hell, you were basically thrown aside by your own Noble family.¡± He winced at my words, but I continued. ¡°I wasn¡¯t there, but it doesn¡¯t look like the Akka Xaluds were big on creating a party through things like trust. Only through sheer ability and politics. Bloodlines.¡± I pursed my lips, thinking of what to say next. ¡°You were hurt by them¡­ and our of all of us, don¡¯t you think Aurora would understand that pain the most?¡± A Bastard Mage born to a Maid of a Minor Noble Family. A Mage whose mother¡¯s head was delivered on a platter by his young half-brother who was the legitimate successor of his family. And Aurora, the bastard of a Great House of Turina. Trained from a young age to be nothing but a weapon to be wielded for the House, and then for the Nation. It wasn¡¯t hard to imagine the similarities between the two fates. A younger version of Kyrian, studying in the Mage Towers, sending letters back to his mother. His lineage as a Bastard must have been a sore spot among the other humans, especially those who came from Nobility. He might have found his place among the other bastards, just like him, but Kyrian chose to lend his services to the Akka Xaluds. It wasn¡¯t farfetched to imagine him losing all his friends after that. Aurora, born out of wedlock in an illegitimate relationship. Growing up inside the Great House where Bastards seemed to be common¡­ well, just because there were many of them didn¡¯t mean they were all treated the same as the other legitimate children. There would have been a clear hierarchy between them and the official Heirs. And no matter how talented Aurora was, that social barrier was one she couldn¡¯t overcome. Both of them growing up alone, without a single soul to trust as they trained to become adventurers. Aurora never spoke about her mother, and I doubted that there was a sweet story buried there somewhere. No. These two¡­ were utterly alone. They had no one else left in their lives. Except¡­ ¡°We¡¯re a Party.¡± I said at last. ¡°We stick up for each other. Aurora didn¡¯t stick up for you, to get you to trust you, Kyrian. She stuck up for Skaris because that¡¯s who she is. And I¡¯m sure she would¡¯ve done the same for you, regardless of your feelings towards her.¡± Kyrian buried himself deeper into his robes. ¡°...I¡¯m sorry, Lock.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be sorry to me, be sorry to her.¡± ¡°And if she never wakes?¡± ¡°Perhaps I chose the wrong time to wake then. Should I fall asleep once more?¡± ¡°!!!!¡± ¡°Aurora!¡± ¡°Vetilian!¡± ¡°Sis!!!!!¡± Her voice was weak, barely above the thin thread of a whisper but it had been there. Aurora was awake. ¡°Quiet down,¡± I said to the others and Stole made space for me as I kneeled next to her. ¡°Aurora, how do you feel?¡± ¡°Can you stand?¡± Stole asked. ¡°No, don¡¯t try standing.¡± I gave a disproving at Stole but didn¡¯t keep it up, Stole¡¯s question came from worry tempered by inexperience. Aurora knew better anyways. ¡°Tell me how much you remember.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t my first time waking up after an injury such as this.¡± Aurora looked down at her body and winced while trying to lift her head. I reached out gently, placing a hand under her neck and head. ¡°Though, I must admit that the wounds are usually not as¡­. Bad.¡± There was a huge mess of red-welt flesh that pulsed around her chest. And without her armor, Aurora was dressed only in her undergarmets. Bandages wrapped around her chest which kept them in place during battle had been loosened while Stole cleaned her. Now, they simply draped around the important bits to give her a sense of decency. And Aurora¡¯s face reddened like a tomato in embarassment. ¡°Er¡­ perhaps¡­¡± ¡°If you¡¯re well enough to be embarrassed about this, you¡¯re well enough to get dressed.¡± I said, turning to Skaris and Kyrian. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s give her some decency.¡± No one spoke. There was no need to. We all were experiencing the same thing. Relief that our comrade was alive and well. The adrenaline from our own close brush with death returned in full force now that Aurora¡¯s wounds which overshadowed them were receding. The fact that we had succeeded in our mission for the Dwarves. And last of all¡­ ¡°Lock.¡± ¡°I see it.¡± Loot. Chapter 144: Proof of Strength (13) World: MSS - Loading...
In MSS, monsters have stats. And naturally, if a monster has stats, it means those stats can be buffed or debuffed. Up to this fact, World: MSS doesn¡¯t stray too far from other games. Plenty of games have stat blocks for monsters. HP, MP, Attack, even things like Stagger Meters. But what¡¯s unique about MSS is the fact that monsters have Cores, and those Cores have abilities. On top of all that, there¡¯s a chance that a monster can wield a Item. Not nameless Sword or Mace or Shield. I¡¯m talking items that are considered drops, or loot. Items with a price tag and grading and classifications. Like a [Common] versus a [Legendary] item. In MSS, when a Monster wields an item, they receive all the abilities and buffs that come with equipping that monster. But there¡¯s a bright side to it too, if a monster is wielding an item, there¡¯s a chance that specific item will drop. Abysmally low chances. But it''s there; if a monster wields a weapon, there''s a chance you could grab it for yourself. Whether it''s .001% chance or 1%. It''s never 0%. That¡¯s why certain end-gear can only be farmed from higher-grade monsters. Certain items will only drop if you encounter that specific breed of monster which is carrying that specific item. It¡¯s not like they¡¯re a Variant or anything either, it¡¯s just up to chance. Sometimes the monster is carrying a [Legendary] mace, other times it¡¯s just carrying a [Common] mace. That¡¯s why when I used to see a monster carrying an item of [Unique] or above, I always hunted it. No matter what. And that¡¯s what happened today. The [Samsoogook], through its ability, had equipped itself with the spear [Strange Antler], a [Legendary]-class item. Not just a [Legendary], but a [Plurality]. Just to reiterate, the grading of items in MSS can be split into [Common], [Uncommon], [Rare], [Unique] and then finally [Artifact] and [Legendary] which are on the same rank. [Artifacts] tend to be geared towards casters and backliners ¨Clike Robes, Boots and even Staffs. They often provide a myriad of [Stat] boosts under the [Mental] stat tree. [Legendary] items are their counterparts, providing buffs under the [Physical] stat tree. And a [Plurality] simply refers to a Set Item in that¡¯s of [Legendary] or [Artifact] rank. A lot of them are BIS or Best-in-Slot. My Lunar Shield is a [Legendary Plurality] and I have to say, it¡¯s provided a lot of benefit. Thanks to its synergy with my [Arcane Masochism] from the [Ujo] Core, I¡¯ve snowballed pretty hard. There¡¯s no way I could¡¯ve gotten this strong in such a short amount of time without it. And right now, in front of my party was another one. [Strange Antler]. A Spear. ¡°T-That¡¯s a Legendary-class item. So my eyes weren¡¯t deceiving me.¡± I could hear Kyrian swallow next to me. Out of all of the party members, he and Aurora probably had the most experience with things like this. He was also something like the Accountant of our group, keeping track of expenses and budget. Not the best, but he was what we had. I could practically hear the wheels in his head turning. ¡°Ms. Aurora, how much would that Spear cost? I¡¯ve only seen it in books so I¡¯m unsure.¡± Kyrian trailed off. Now that Kyrian had confessed to having ill-will with Aurora before, I could notice the underlying apologetic tone of remorse there. I remained silent, trying to signal Skaris and Stole to do the same. Replaying previous conversations in my head, there was definitely a softening in Kyrian¡¯s tone towards her. It wasn¡¯t an apology, not quite. But something akin to paving the road for one. Aurora stood up, wincing at the pain. No one tried to stop her, out of respect. She was the Shielder of our party and if she wanted to stand up, we would let her. She walked over to the spear, running her fingers of the haft. ¡°I must confess, I¡¯ve never seen one in real life either, Mr. Kyrian.¡± Aurora had an Auctioneer License and she was the best we had in our party at putting a price on things. ¡°But Mr. Lock¡¯s shield itself costs over 170,000 gold. And that¡¯s a Shield. Spear on the other hand¡­¡± Understandably, things like Shields were the cheapest of the items. How much would this Spear be? 200K, Maybe 250K? ¡°Conservatively, I¡¯d put it around 350,000 gold. Perhaps 400,000 gold if we put it up for auction ourselves instead of bringing in the Guild. Maybe even more.¡± ¡°350,000 gold?! We could live off of that for-¡± ¡°We¡¯re fucking rich! Sis Aurora, let¡¯s sell this thing right away!¡± My eyeballs almost popped out. ¡°What?! But my shield was-¡± Aurora sent me an apologetic look. ¡°Well, since we were letting you claim the Shield, I set the price as 176,000 at the time. But if we brought it to a private auction, I¡¯m sure we could have gotten closer to 250,000 gold for it.¡± That was enough gold to tempt me. But [Legendary] items aren¡¯t valuable because of how much they cost. They¡¯re valuable because even if you have the money, they might not be around. Like I said, the value of my Shield can¡¯t be calculated by coin. It might not be the centerpiece of my fights so far, but it¡¯s done more than enough. Appreciating Aurora¡¯s Auctioneer License, I looked at the spear. ¡°There was no Core drops from this raid. No other items. Just the Spear.¡± Kyrian noted.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. I knew what he was saying. We spent a whole lot of potions and they¡¯re expensive. And knowing Kyrian, he was also keeping in mind the fact that our next stop was a group of island that belonged to Merchants; the Free Trader¡¯s League. My plan was to buy Cores there, and a lot of them. 400,000 gold could go a long way in buying multiple Cores of grade-7. Maybe even two grade-6 Cores. Skaris and Stole had leveled up in this fight with room for more Cores. I looked to Skaris who had been silent throughout this exchange. ¡°Skaris, you¡¯re the only one among us that uses a Spear. What do you think?¡± Skaris didn¡¯t speak for awhile, his eyes fixed on the Spear. He took it from Aurora and brandished it, trying out a few stabs. ¡°...I will lissssten to what you have to sssay, Sssslaveborn.¡± He said at last. I raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°Really?¡± He shrugged. It wasn¡¯t an air of dejectedness he was giving off. Something more like¡­ acceptance? ¡°Even now, I have grown sssstronger than many of the Walkers whom I resssspected from my village.¡± He spread his hand and closed it a few times. ¡°I know that the choicssse you make issss never to make any of ussss weaker. The choicsssses you make might not make sssenssse at the time, and there¡¯ssss alwaysss a sssscent of insssanity about them. But alwayssss, alwayssss, we come out of it stronger for it.¡± ¡°I have already sssseen what it¡¯ssss like to wield sssstrength beyond my imagination.¡± Skaris continued. ¡°Only what the Eldersssss of different Tribessss can claim to do. Thanksss to you, Sssslaveborn, I have been able to protect this wayward group we have put together. I have ssslain monssssters that only the most accomplisssshed of my tribe hunt. I will lissssten to your advice.¡± Then he smirked at me. ¡°Bessssidessss, it would be foolisssh to ignore the advicssse of a human sssshrewd enough to get the Orcssss to Blessss him with their Totem.¡± He was talking about my Crow Totem. Everything he said was true and the weight of his words settled over my shoulders. I always knew that Skaris trusted me, but it was another to hear him say it so nonchalantly. ¡°Mr. Skaris speaks true,¡± Aurora said, nodding, ¡°I trust your decision, Mr. Lock.¡± ¡°Mister, if he doesn¡¯t want it, can I have it?!¡± Stole was already trying to carry the spear. Stole didn¡¯t even meet the Stat Requirements of the spear. I gave her a soft smile, just to let her know I appreciated her antics. I turned to Kyrian. ¡°What say you, Kyrian?¡± He shrugged. ¡°Whether we have the Spear or not, does it matter? If there¡¯s something you see you like at the Free Trader¡¯s League, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll figure out a way for us to take it.¡± [Strange Antler]. Was it the best spear for Skaris? How would it enhance his fighting style, and his abilities? What kind of Synergies did it have with his Fire-abilities? ¡­And now that the Samsoogook was dead, what could Doror Stonehammer, the Master Smith do with it? It wasn¡¯t a hard decision. Besides, Skaris is my comrade. He deserves this. ¡°Skaris, take the spear. It¡¯s yours.¡± ¡°Yessssss! I knew that you would not let me down, Sssslaveborn!¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just say that you wanted it?¡± I said, frowning as Skaris snatched the spear away from Stole. He immediately began practicing his maneuvers with it and poured mana into it. As the spear jutted forward, it created an almost translucent image of a stag¡¯s antlers with wicked pointed ends with every strike. ¡°Becaussse I trusssted in you, Ssslaveborn!¡± ¡°But what if I said-¡± ¡°A trusssst among warriorssss!¡± He ignored me and continued to spin his spear. ¡°Wait, let me try that!¡± ¡°Skaris, that seem dangerous to try it so close to-, could you not point that thing towards me? It¡¯s an extremely dangerous weapon and-¡± I watched them fool around, feeling the post-battle clarity settle in. We had been too close to losing a member, Aurora. It hadn¡¯t even been because the monster killed her outright. It was because we didn¡¯t have a proper healer. If we had any other proper healer, he could have continued to heal Aurora as we tore that armor off of her. But we had to resort to potions and ended up half-disemboweling her. Right now, everyone was laughing and smiling. But I knew better. One wrong move and the [Strange Antler] be damned, no one would be celebrating. God, dying not because of a mistake she made but because she did her job. And although Aurora held up her end of the bargain, there was a no healer to help her. Aurora¡¯s talent as a Shielder was being held back by my lack of ability to recruit a competent healer. ¡®If only all the healers in MSS weren¡¯t gold-hungry crooks or brainwashed zombies of their Churches¡­¡¯ I felt the sigh bubble up from my stomach and leave through my mouth. Watching Darwin stay in the fringe of the others, looking on and smiling in that innocent way¡­ ¡®Let¡¯s deal with this issue later.¡¯ Right now, it was a time to celebrate. ¡°Mr. Lock, I do hope that Skaris will have to pay for the spear.¡± Aurora¡¯s voice broke me out of my thoughts. I turned staring at her, wondering at the uncanny timing. Had she known that I was thinking about her? ¡°...Mr. Lock, why¡¯re you staring at me like that?¡± ¡°Nothing. Just glad that Kyrian¡¯s not the only one keeping an eye on our expenses.¡± I turned back to watch the scene, Stole trying to wrestle the spear away from Skaris and Kyrian telling them to be careful. ¡°Your right, there¡¯s a reason why we have a Party Fund and separate funds. Keep an expense tab and we¡¯ll take out Skaris¡¯ share of the loot until he pays it off to everyone. For now, we can fill people¡¯s pockets with the Dimension Rings that we looted from the Scavenger Clan. Put whatever¡¯s left in the Party Fund.¡± ¡°You are the one that looted those rings. By all rights, every coin from the sale of those items should go to you.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Without you guys, I wouldn¡¯t have come out alive.¡± I thought back to the moment when I had been close to giving up. Just¡­ accepting death. And how wanting to see these guys again had made me want to escape. ¡°Are you sure, Mr. Lock?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± I turned to her again. ¡°You and Kyrian¡­ he said some things when you were out.¡± Aurora stared at me for a bit. ¡°Yes, I imagine he did.¡± She said wistfully, looking away from me. Something about her tone struck me as odd and I felt my eyes narrow. ¡°Were you¡­ were you awake?¡± And Aurora Candrian Vetillian, the best Shielder I knew, Bastard-Scion of the Great House of Vetilius did something I never expected her to do. She turned her head over her shoulder and gave me a wink. I stared, open-mouthed and swallowing all the filthy air in this godforsaken cave as she joined the others, wanting to take a look at the latest [Legendary] item in our party. Did she know what she was doing? How long was she awake for? Hell, she¡¯s a Tank. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if she had been awake the whole time, just gritting her teeth through the pain. If that was true¡­ that was some next level acting. Smiling, I shook my head. Now, Skaris was officially the 2nd member in this party to own a [Legendary] plurality. This wasn¡¯t exactly the BIS spear I had in mind for him, but it would be more than enough to hold onto until we started officially farming for end-game gear. ¡°Come on then,¡± I said, heading for the stairs. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of this place.¡± *** When we emerged from the Samsoogook¡¯s Lair, we found the dwarves waiting for us. There were perhaps about fifty of them, all of them elderly men. There were no young male dwarves or young female dwarves in this city. Only the elderly. But clearly, that didn¡¯t stop them from armoring themselves with the best products available in their smithies. Not only that, they had doubled down on the defenses that pointed towards the lair entrance. Iron spikes and caltrops littered the ground. One of the dwarves began screaming bloody murder and lifted his weapon above his head and the others soon followed. ¡°W-What¡¯s this?!¡± Stole asked. ¡°Lower yer arms! Lower yer arms!¡± The dwarf who yelled at the angry group was non other than Doror Stonehammer. He ran up and down the line, waving his arms and screaming at the top of his lungs. ¡°It¡¯s not the monster, ye blind cooks! It¡¯s them! That lad, Slaveborn! He¡¯s bloody done it! He¡¯s fucking bloody done it ye useless bums!¡± There was a stunned silence which was followed by racuous cheering as the Dwarves began running towards us. ¡°Skaris, lower your spear.¡± I said beneath my breath. ¡°They¡¯re obviously not attacking.¡± Skaris gave me a mournful look and lowered the spear. He barely had the Spear for a few hours and already, he wanted to kill something with it. Some people, I swear. ¡°Lad! Ye done it!¡± Doror ran up to me and grabbed both my hands. ¡°Were you all waiting here the whole night?¡± I asked, seeing the number of dwarves. ¡°Aye¡­ if ye failed¡­¡± Doror shrugged, not bothering to elaborate. ¡°But there¡¯s no need! Ye done it! Ye done it! We¡¯re free!¡± I nodded. ¡°Yes. But you know what that means, yes?¡± Doror¡¯s eye hardened. Not with anger, but with determination. ¡°Aye, lad. You leave that part to me. You held up yer end of the deal, I¡¯ll take care of convincing my people.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I sniffed. ¡°And I want something else.¡± ¡°Aye, what is it?¡± ¡°Skaris, give me [Strange Antler].¡± Skaris looked at Doror then me. Finally he scoffed and passed me the spear. Doror looked at it, his demeanor shifting immediately. ¡°The monster¡­¡± ¡°Yes, it dropped this.¡± Then I leaned down, staring at Doror straight in the eyes. I passed him the two legendary items in my party¡¯s possession. ¡°Time to hold up your end of the Bargain, Master Smith Stonehammer.¡± And I felt chills run down my spine from expectant excitement. ¡°These two Legendary Items, the [Lunar Shield] and [Strange Antler].¡± I saw the dwarf shudder as he touched them. ¡°I want you to [Mod] them.¡± He met my gaze head-on without flinching. ¡°Aye, that I can do. That¡¯s the least I could do. What¡¯ll you do in the meantime?¡± I looked at the number of dwarves that were dancing and singing, running back to the city to tell the moms and grandmothers that from now on, their children would be safe. Safe from the Samsoogook, the Bogeyman that plagued this village for so long. I watched the women and children exit from the doors, crying and hugging each other. And I could sense with my superior [Hearing], the whispers. The worries. Now what would happen to this Village now that the True Field Boss which kept the other monster away was dead? And beneath all that¡­ Hope. Whispered promises that they¡¯ll be getting off this island. That the saviors who hunted the accursed monster would take it one step further, and take them away from this place where there was no Sun, no Wind and no Warmth. A yearning so intense that it hurt. ¡°Me?... I think it¡¯s about time I have a talk with Zenom Saintred.¡±