《Shinda Kokoro》


 Prologue

    Shinda Kokoro


    By


    AvatarPyro


    To AvatarPyro, Wundah, Andrew and Lawa. May your adventures live on throughout the vast flow of time.


    Big Thanks to my Dungeon Design Team:


    Sam (Wundah) Chumpitazi


    Kyo Ly


    Streetdweller Eddy


    Ricky Artmanni


    Young Ghoul


    Steven R


    Andrew


    DD


    TooManyFaces


    <h1>Prologue:


    </h1>


    The three of us eating full course meals around the table, the food is delicious, and although it may be our last meal, we laugh and cheer. We buy Health Pills and Cure-All Pills, Hot and Cold Pills, all of the necessities for battle. No matter how much planning, how hyped we are, nothing could prepare us for the dreaded Elder Dragon, the fucking Fuzzy.


    As we leave the gates of the city it dawns on me, this is not where the story begins. No, it starts years ago, such a long time ago.


    "Yo Andrew wake up! Hurry!" The figure moved around his room, typing different phrases into his monitor, sending them out at lightning speed, "Wundah head over! Hurry!"


    The screen turns blue, "Accept call. Split screen." Two tired faces appear on the screen.


    "Do you know what fucking time it is?" Below the face in white letters it reads Andrew.


    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    "Yoooo! Dude what''s goin on?" Wundah wipes his eyes.


    "I found it! I found it!" Below the figures moving shadow his name reads AvatarPyro in white. He pushes a bunch of buttons and swipes left, a map pops up on the screen.


    Andrew sighs, "This could be anything, how do we know it''s even real?"


    "True." Wundah yawns.


    "I had to bid so much for this! It''s in the antique shop by the pier. Let''s just look and if it isn''t there then oh well. You guys down to go?" AvatarPyro scratches his head.


    After some pondering Andrew lets out a sigh, "Okay fine."


    "And you Wundah?" AvatarPyro looks over to the other side of the screen.


    "Down, let''s do this." Wundah gives a thumbs up.


    "When is it open?" Andrew can be seen walking around his room.


    AvatarPyro looks at his screen, "It opened two minutes ago, let''s meet at the pier in ten."


    "Ugh fine! See you in ten." Andrew exits the chat.


    "Cool man see you soon!" Wundah logs off.


    AvatarPyro is already packed, so he heads out the door and walks to the pier, the air is crisp and he''s full of excitement.


    After time waiting he sees Wundah in the distance, "Yooo!"


    "What''s up dude?" They bump fists.


    "Where''s Andrew?" Wundah chuckles.


    "I''m here, I''m here." Andrew is yawning.


    "Nice, well let''s go in guys." AvatarPyro holds the old cobweb-filled door open.


    "Why hello young travelers, my how early it is. Come on in, come on in." They are greeted by the warm smile of an elderly man.


    Andrew nudges AvatarPyro, "Excuse me sir, I found this map online and it says this place has this game.¡± He shows the old man his phone, ¡°The open world one."


    A slight smirk on the old man''s face, "This place has many games, long forgotten ones, horrible ones that make nightmares come true, and yes, it has the one you seek." The old man makes his way to a small bookshelf and pulls a red book. The secret passage is opened, and a massive room is revealed. He presses his finger to his lips, "Shh, must be quiet or you''ll wake the other players. They must concentrate." He motions towards the many game pods where people could be seen wearing headgear.


    "Woah." Wundah taps AvatarPyro''s arm and points to a game called Generation S., a young boy is running through a hallway of slaughtered soldiers, blood and body parts cover the floor as something grotesque chases after him.


    "Damn." AvatarPyro walks on. He looks back and clenches his fist, "Good luck man." He whispers.


    They see the screen. The theme song is playing softly, "I must warn you before you dive in, There is no exiting the game. No Pausing. No do overs. Once you die, you die in real life. Your character gets erased and you will not exist in this world or that one. Time will not matter as your body will be in a deep, coma-like state. If you would like to back out, now would be the chance to." The old man smiles.


    "I''m all in." AvatarPyro says with no hesitation.


    "Cool, let''s do this." Wundah smirks.


    "Fuck yeah, I''m in." Andrew sighs.


    "Congratulations Adventurers, please get inside and put on the helmet when you''re ready." The old man activates the machine.


    "Thank you sir, what is your name?" AvatarPyro puts on the helmet.


    "My name is J-" His name couldn''t be heard. AvatarPyro gets sucked through a stream of bright lights.


    <h1></h1>

 Chapter One: The Land of Jazuk

    <h1>Chapter One: The Land of Jazuk


    </h1>


    The city is cold, quiet and empty. The three travelers are in awe, the sky is clear and blue. If they didn''t know better, they would think that this is real life. Virtual Reality has made this game so real, and in this underground game, the town full of NPCs is void of other players.


    "Looks like there aren''t any players here." Wundah shrugs his shoulders.


    "Damn, that''s intense." AvatarPyro pats down his tattered pants.


    "Let''s look around, find some weapons and gear." Andrew is focused on the task ahead.


    "What weapon are you aiming for?" Wundah walks towards the shop area, the NPCs are silent.


    "I don''t think they have a dildo hammer for you." AvatarPyro stares at Andrew who laughs hysterically.


    "I''ll make one out of a Gyzex dong!" Andrew wears the same clothes, basic level one gear.


    The weapons merchant has an amazing variety of weapons. Greatswords, Long Swords, Hammers, Dual Blades, Insect Contollers, Switch Axe, Charge Blades, Sword and Shield, Lance, Hunting Horn, Light Bowgun, Heavy Bowgun, and Bows.


    "What weapon you guys getting?" AvatarPyro asks, greeting the shop NPC.


    "Hammer all the way dude." Andrew says, picking up a metal War Hammer.


    "Long Sword." Wundah picks up a metal Katana.


    "Nice, I''ll be getting a Greatsword." AvatarPyro picks up a massive Greatsword. It¡¯s surprisingly light for its size.


    Level one gear being free, and with the NPC not talking, they head over to the Armory. In this game armor plays little to no role in terms of defense, just fashion. The Adventurers are free to wear what they please. Fabric is weatherproof, and as long as they take Cold or Hot Pills, they can venture into the most extreme weather conditions. The NPC is just there, watching as the three look through an assortment of clothes and armor.


    "Ooh lala look at this!" AvatarPyro picks up a long black trench coat, "I''m gonna try this on!"


    AvatarPyro walks into the dressing room while Andrew and Wundah are shuffling through gear.


    "Find anything?" Wundah tosses old leather armor to the side.


    "Ah no not yet, damn. Oh yes, this could work." Andrew chuckles, "Yes! Found it!" He holds up a bright pink loincloth, "Muahaha! I''ll be right back, fuck yeah!" He runs past AvatarPyro and into the dressing room.


    "He seems excited." AvatarPyro looks into the mirror on the wall, his short black hair matches his coat, boots, pants and shirt.


    "Nice man! I really don''t know what to wear, like I want to look cool but be comfortable at the same time." Wundah shuffles through the pile of clothes but can''t find anything he likes.


    "Come and get some boys!" Andrew jumps out of the dressing room with nothing but moccasins, his bulging muscles and the bright-pink loincloth on as he flexes his arms and laughs.


    "Aw shit look at you!" AvatarPyro is laughing so hard.


    "Sexy man! Sexy!" Wundah chuckles and grabs something from the pile and dashes into the dressing room.


    "Wonder what he got?" AvatarPyro grabs his sword that''s leaning against the wall and clips the holster to his back.


    "I have no idea, probably a thong?" Andrew checks himself out in the mirror.


    "I wouldn''t doubt it." AvatarPyro shifts the holster to a comfortable spot.


    "Alright, I''m ready." Wundah walks out with a plain black hoodie, black pants and shoes.


    "You would wear some shit like that." Andrew has his thumb up with a big smile on his face.


    "Noice." AvatarPyro practices taking his Greatsword out. The other two fasten their holsters and equip their weapons, "Next stop is the market for supplies, I wonder if this game has the inventory setup."


    The three walk past the silent NPC and continue down the road to the merchant, who silently stares past them, "I really hope the Health Potions don''t taste bad, honestly." Andrew swipes his finger and pulls up the merchant menu, the NPC hands him twenty small green pills.


    "Health Pills, no way!" AvatarPyro screams with joy.


    "Ah yes! Whoever made the game knew what it needed and customized it!" Wundah buys twenty pills as well.


    AvatarPyro also gets twenty pills and holds one in his hand, the rest disappearing into his inventory pouch, "Well looks like we don''t need to hold items, just looking straight and flipping to the left or right with our finger will pull up the items just like in the game, and everything is in pill form, except the Sharpening Stone, those are just small squares. The Bombs are cool too! Who''s going to taste the Health Pill first?"


    The three play Rock Paper Scissors and Wundah loses, "Dammit!" He hesitates and throws it into his mouth, chewing viciously, "It tastes like sugar, and no arm gesture! Ah this is so awesome!"


    "No arm gesture!" AvatarPyro eats the Health Pill and flexes his arms above his head, "Huh?" He stares blankly at the two for a few seconds, their faces in shock as he puts his arms down, "Ahaha! I''m just messin with you dudes!"


    Andrew chuckles while chewing on his Health Pill, "Fuckin doodoo ass!"


    The three stock up on Small Bombs, Health Pills, Hot and Cold Pills, Stamina Pills, Cure-All Pills, Sharpening Stones, Mining Axes, and Large Bombs. They walk to the Main Hall where an NPC greets them, "You must prove yourself and kill a Great Jazuk before being allowed to travel this world freely, sign up on the quest board." She points to a large board filled with quests. The three sign up.


    "Is everyone ready?" Wundah asks, resting his hands in his big sweater pocket.


    "Yeah let''s do this!" AvatarPyro lets out a deep breath.


    "Fuck yeah finally!" Andrew flexes his muscles.


    The three make their way to the edge of the city, a map shows up in their view out of the way in the corner. They can make it disappear at will, the map is vast, but only a speck can be seen, the rest is black. The part they do see is titled, ¡°The Land of Jazuk, it''s showtime." AvatarPyro bumps fists with his friends and the three each take a deep breath, then take their first step outside of the city walls, their first step into the wilderness.


    The three Adventurers walk onwards, the open fields are replaced by towering trees bigger than redwoods, the sun looking ominous as it crawls its way through the tiny cracks in the canopy above. The air gets colder, they become focused on the fight ahead, "Okay what''s the plan of attack?" AvatarPyro asks, looking toward the small flowing stream to their right.


    "I''ll focus on the head, you on tail and Wundah attacks sides?" Andrew watches their left flank.


    "Sounds good, I''ll take out any smaller ones too and if more than one Great Jazuk come then we work in teams and split up." Wundah practices unsheathing his sword.


    "Cool, and if a bigger beast comes we either run or fight if we can''t get away, just be careful. If we die we don''t get penalties, we just die." AvatarPyro grips the handle of his  Greatsword, the cold steel against his fingertips, the moment too real to be fake. In the distance they hear the short howling calls of the Jazuk, but are unsure what size they are. They duck to the side of the small dirt road and walk slowly and silently along the treeline, stepping carefully over each twig, focused to the fullest extent.


    In the distance they catch sight of it, a towering beast, the Great Jazuk. It walks on two legs fifteen feet high with two massive arms a wide jaw full of giant teeth, like a buff T-Rex. Their breathing gets faster, fast yet focused. The Great Jazuk is surrounded by a few smaller ones that are eight feet tall , "I''ll deal with the smaller ones, let''s go!" Wundah puts his hood on and unsheathes his sword, sprinting towards the beasts ahead.


    "Shit let''s go!" AvatarPyro grabs his Sword with two hands and rushes through the trees.


    "Wooh!" Andrew rushes into battle with his Hammer.


    The Great Jazuk notices them and gives three quick howls, the smaller Jazuk rush towards Wundah, who slashes a quick combo, his face in shock as his katana tears through flesh and bone, blood gushing out of a fallen Jazuk, "Dude this is too real!" He screams, sliding under the Great Jazuk¡¯s legs, rolling and slicing a small Jazuk in half.


    "I know!" Andrew yells, leaping off of a nearby rock and smashing downward with his hammer on the Great Jazuk¡¯s head, letting out a deep grunt, he swiftly follows up with two more devastating strikes, "AvatarPyro he''s stunned!" Andrew holds his hammer by his side, a faint glow around his body. He begins to spin rapidly, hitting the Great Jazuk in the head five times.


    The Great Jazuk lets out a deep wail as AvatarPyro grips his sword with two hands and crashes down on the tail, the metal slides through it as if it were made of butter, the tail falls to the ground with a loud thud, "Hell yeah!" He screams as he rolls on the ground as Wundah does a furious combo on the stomach causing the guts to hang out. Andrew yells and crashes down on the head, the eyeballs caving in, the jaw dislocating, the Great Jazuk lets out one final breath and becomes motionless.


    In their vision items are being put in their storage, apparently there is no need to use its body for parts.


    Wundah flicks his wrist, the blood flying off of his sword in a line on the floor, he pulls out a Sharpening Stone and slowly runs it across the blade five times. The blade is sharp once more, "This isn''t good guys."


    Andrew smoothes a Sharpening Stone over the hammer, "What isn''t?"


    "Damn." AvatarPyro finishes sharpening.


    Wundah glances at AvatarPyro, "Should I tell him or you?"


    "You could?" AvatarPyro puts his hand through his hair.


    Wundah doesn''t sheath his sword, he calmly watches the treeline, "The reason it was so easy to kill that one, the only reason that would make sense is the number of them in one place."


    Andrew scratches his chest, "What do you mean?"


    Wundah draws a Jazuk in the dirt with his finger, "See in the game there was always just one or two at a time." He draws four dots around it, "Four people killing one weak enemy went pretty fast at the lower levels, but since it''s open world, levels don''t matter if you''re fighting twenty of them."


    Andrew looks concerned, "Fuck, so you mean there could be a army of Great Jazuk headed our way?"


    "That and any other beasts they attract." AvatarPyro cuts in, listening to the quiet forest.


    "Should we run or fight?" Wundah quickly turns to the sound of crashing trees in the distance.


    "I say we fight, test our fuckin skills!" Andrew holds his hammer up high.


    "If they''re as easy as the one we killed, we got this. The three of us used to live and breath this game, and now to actually be in it. There''s no way we can back down from a fight!" AvatarPyro clutches his Greatsword, a low rumble in the air.


    "We got this!" Wundah has a determined look on his face, they all do. The mood changes, their faces serious, full of bloodlust.


    A roar in the distance and a numerous amount of shrieks and barks erupt as trees crash down violently. The speed they crash down at gets faster and faster, the three prepare for the worst. A Great Jazuk leaps high into the air and lands in between the three, five more surround them, ten smaller ones are spread out, barking at the sky.


    The three already know what to do, they''ve talked about it before while hiking, many situations and what they would do, how they would attack.


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    "Go!" Wundah sprints through the smaller ones, running behind the big ones at lightning speed, slicing the tendons at the ankle, each one screeching in pain as it falls to the floor.


    Andrew swings his massive hammer, sending five of the small Jazuk flying into the trees, as AvatarPyro chops straight through the other five, their top halves sliding off of the blade and falling to the floor. The Great Jazuk groan as they try to limp away, Andrew crushes the skull of one, blood splashing the rocks below, the eyeball popping out of the socket, hanging by a thin piece of flesh, the jaw broken as it groans a slow croaking as its body goes limp. AvatarPyro yells as he slices through one of their heads. Wundah drives his blade straight through the neck of one, a quick combo and the head falls off. The three of them slice and hit one at the same time, Andrew motions to Wundah and AvatarPyro, "Jump!" He yells, swinging upward. The two leap off of the hammer in different directions, slicing down on the remaining two Jazuk, splitting their faces in half, broken teeth falling to a heap in pools of blood, a split face collapsing. With no monsters in sight and a blood splattered land ahead, AvatarPyro chuckles, "Yo Andrew."


    "Sup?" A curious look on his face.


    "I saw your


    Greatsword when you did that last swing!" AvatarPyro pulls out a Sharpening Stone and starts sharpening.


    "I don''t have a- oh fuck yeah!" Andrew starts laughing.


    "Yeah I saw it too bro!" Wundah laughs, sharpening his sword.


    "Well let''s head back to the Main Hall? I want to look at the full map." AvatarPyro sheathes his Greatsword and begins walking.


    "We kinda left a mess." Andrew chuckles, walking in the middle of the two while scratching his chest, taking one last glance at the carnage they left behind.


    "Dude this felt so good like how long we''ve been waiting for this moment, always talking about scenarios, and the way the blade felt slicing through them, like damn I''m so glad we''re here!" Wundah is smiling, talking with so much passion.


    "Finally!" AvatarPyro chuckles, "I want a necklace of Faza claws, like that''s my goal in this."


    "Dude that would be so fuckin intense!" Wundah exhales, "Just imagine how big it''s gonna be!"


    "True shit." Andrew chews on a Stamina Pill, "I''m thinking of doubling on Stamina Pills, this hammer''s heavy."


    "Yeah I bet, we''ll get used to the weapons though!" AvatarPyro picks a leaf from a nearby tree, crushing it with his fingers.


    "True, agh did we really walk this far on the way here?" Andrew smacks away a small red fly.


    "Yeah, but I think we''re almost out." Wundah looks into the distance, a dim light of the open field poking through the numerous trees.


    "We need to test how long Cold and Hot Pills last, because we could be spending days or who knows how long inside harsh weather conditions." AvatarPyro holds one of each in his hand.


    "We need to look at weapon forging systems, and crafting using monster items." Wundah has his hands in his front pocket.


    "And the map too, since this was based off of the game, then it could be possible that the map is just the same and there could be a main big ass boss or that it''s just vast forests and jungles. Either way we''ll know when we get to the Main Hall." Andrew shrugs.


    "Yeah true." AvatarPyro walks on.


    They make their way back to the Main Hall, "Congratulations! You have cleared the mission and are now free to travel anywhere you''d like. Here are your maps and Adventurer Badges!" The NPC says, a map and dragon symbol appear on their screen.


    "Thank you!" AvatarPyro says, looking over the map, "Holy shit fuck balls." He nervously scratches his head.


    "Fuck me." Wundah says, shaking his head while laughing.


    "Fuuuh!" Andrew clenches his fists, looking over the map.


    The map is vast, with five continent sized lands. The first at the bottom read Village/Main Hall their location marked with three black arrows. The second region, The Land of Jazuk, third region Insect Fields, fourth region Mines, fifth region Snowden, and above that is a massive portion marked Unknown with a skull and bones. The magnitude of the map, the vast amount of monsters they can encounter is daunting, yet they are all so excited, excited for a challenge, for battle. An open world they''ve been waiting their whole lives for.


    "Hmm..." AvatarPyro rubs his chin.


    "What is it?" Wundah is inspecting the map.


    "This has nothing on sword crafting or what monsters are in what area." AvatarPyro grips his map.


    "We just have to be ready for anything then." Andrew rubs his stomach.


    "We''ll be fine." Wundah walks out the door, and with full equipment stocked, our Adventurers head out of the village toward the Land of Jazuk.


    "Was there always this many bugs?" Andrew swats at softball-sized bugs with his hammer, causing them to screech and pop.


    "I have no idea, but it''s getting dark." AvatarPyro says, looking at the dimly lit sky between the canopy of trees overhead.


    "We shouldn''t have left in a hurry, what are we going to do during night time?" Wundah puts his hoodie over his head.


    "We can''t really pitch up a tent and sing Fuckin'' A by the campfire?" Andrew chuckles.


    "We could set up a canopy high in the trees for the night?" AvatarPyro suggests, pointing to a ring of trees up above.


    "That could work, we could use vines and make a net around, kind of like a web, enough layers to make a platform." Wundah picks up a sturdy green vine and tugs on it with force, the vine as thick as a large log.


    "This could work!" Andrew puts his hammer in the holster and walks around picking up vines.


    "Sounds good!" AvatarPyro helps, the trees massive, the trunks sturdy from old age, a pile of vines in the middle and the sun beginning to set, the three rush to create camp.


    "I''ll climb up this tree and we''ll weave the vines back and forth between each tree across." Wundah wraps a bundle of vine around his arm and begins to climb up high into the treetop, right below the top, right where it ends, he can see far into the forest, endless forest and valleys, in the far distance against the setting sun he can see the faint outline of mountains lining the horizon, but it is too far to see any detail.


    "Pass me the vine and I''ll wrap it on this tree." AvatarPyro is balancing on his sword that''s wedged into the tree trunk.


    "Then toss it over here." Andrew is sitting on a branch, holding a vine.


    "We''ll take turns weaving it." Wundah passes his vine to AvatarPyro, who tosses it to Andrew, who throws it to Wundah. This goes on for about ten minutes as they switch trees. They have a large sturdy tarp in the trees, safe from Jazuk and other beasts that prowl the night, they rest easy as the sun goes down and a sky full of stars appear. A cool breeze sweeps through the trees, the leaves making a low hissing noise.


    "This is the life guys." AvatarPyro bumps their fists, he stares at the shining moon in the distance.


    "This is way better than staying in my room all night gaming, like to actually be able to swing my sword, just the feeling of the weight, nothing can beat that." Wundah is filled with excitement as his voice rings in the air.


    "True shit, I just can''t wait for my dildo hammer, just how badass and embarrassing would it be if I killed a Zinzo with a dildo hammer." Andrew laughs with the two.


    "Just if we''re ever in a pinch, let''s say we were surrounded and had one Health Pill left, then you guys split it and run. I''ll distract whatever it is." AvatarPyro has a serious expression on his face.


    "Why so serious?" Wundah punches his arm, "If anything we''ll throw a Flashbang and I slice their heels and we run away."


    "This isn''t a game dude! If we die we die, I won''t stand there and watch you get torn to pieces. I just won''t." AvatarPyro yells in a hushed tone. The barks of Jazuk could be heard in the distance.


    "We''ve been friends for how long now, you really expect us to just leave you? We fight to the death together, no matter what the odds we''ll win okay." Andrew glances off into the distance, "The lands we can see, the beasts we''ll encounter, old ones, new ones, we''ll fight them head on with no fear, like we always have. Yeah when we played on our games it was just a game, but in that world we existed as Adventurers. We walked into lower level halls and were treated as Gods! Our levels and our skill was more than anyone could have wanted in real life. It was both a blessing and a curse, being so good we never died, but being so good that the strongest bosses became too easy to fight we moved on to other games, but here, right where we are, the unknown before us, actually having to stay in trees to avoid enemies, cutting, slicing, smashing, this is real. We can die, but at least we''re living the way we want to!" Andrew is huffing and puffing.


    AvatarPyro and Wundah begin clapping, "Bravo! Bravo!"


    "And the best speech award goes to!" Wundah makes cheering noises.


    "I''m serious, this is on a whole new level!" Andrew raises his eyebrows and his eyes open wide.


    "I know I know! We''re just messing with you." AvatarPyro lays down and stares up at the stars, "I just wouldn''t know what I would do without you goons."


    "Getting all emotional!" Wundah puts his hands behind his head, his katana by his side.


    "So emotional." Andrew lays down, "If only we had a blanket." He chuckles.


    "Hmmm... Hold up." AvatarPyro flips through his inventory and out pops a giant blanket.


    "What is this?" Wundah covers himself.


    "Looks like Jazuk fur?" Andrew has enough for himself.


    "Since there isn''t any carving, we can craft things with items we get from enemies, just like Natives did with the animals they hunted, nothing goes to waste." AvatarPyro curls up in the blanket.


    "This game, is it Utopia?" Andrew says to himself.


    "Goodnight guys!" Wundah rolls over.


    "Night night." AvatarPyro closes his eyes.


    "Night!" Andrew dozes off.


    The stars shine above, the night begins to roll along, and sunrise a few hours away as something climbs through the treetops, the scent of Adventurers luring it. Its hunger urges it to travel across hunting boundaries. This massive ape rushes towards our Adventurers in the dead of night.


    As dawn approaches the stars are still up in the sky, Wundah slowly shakes AvatarPyro awake, "Who-"


    Wundah puts his hand over his mouth, "Shh, Something''s out there, coming fast."


    They listen quietly to the sound of trees crashing in their direction.


    "Battle formations." AvatarPyro grabs his sword as Wundah wakes up Andrew.


    "What the fuck!" Andrew yells.


    "Something¡¯s coming!" Wundah yells, unsheathing his sword.


    Andrew rolls over and grabs his hammer, "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"


    The crashing gets closer and closer.


    "Fucking shit!" The tree next to them gets hit hard and bursts into pieces as Andrew dives to the nearest tree, AvatarPyro and Wundah lunge at the beast, plunging their swords in its back. Andrew crashes down with his hammer on its head as it falls to the floor, brains painting the circle of trees. Items pop up in their inventory as screeches could be heard in the distance, "Hoooly shit!" Andrew stares up above at their tattered nest.


    A worried look on his face as AvatarPyro screams, "We need to go and we need to go now!"


    "Fuck me!" Wundah sheathes his sword and they begin sprinting through the light of the rising sun. The forest seems alive, small Jazuk make their way through the bushes, but are smashed to pieces by Andrew''s hammer.


    They run through a rock-filled dry stream with rows of trees on both sides, "I have a idea!" AvatarPyro uses his Greatsword as a shovel and starts to dig a hole in the ground, "Andrew make a bunch of noise! Wundah hold off the ones that come fast!"


    "Got ya!" Wundah readies his sword and sharpens it with one stroke.


    "What the fuck was that?" AvatarPyro frantically pushes buttons on his inventory.


    "Speed Sharpening, if you practice a lot you gain the skill!" Wundah sprints across the rocks and takes down a Great Jazuk with a lethal strike to the throat.


    "You cock sucking bitches come and get some of this good dick!" Andrew slams his hammer on the floor, making shockwaves of noise.


    "Okay all set!" AvatarPyro screams and they rush to the treeline, looking at AvatarPyro''s awesome trap, the hole filled with Large Bombs and a pile of Uncooked Meat, "Give it a few minutes." Twenty Great Jazuk and almost forty apes rush to the trap, eating the meat and fighting each other. After a few more minutes he chuckles, "Boom baby." He throws a Small Bomb into the pile and the three watch as chunks of flesh and guts fly everywhere.


    "Nice!" Wundah chuckles as numerous items pop up in his inventory.


    "Hell yeah!" Andrew scratches his stomach.


    The forest becomes quiet once more.


    "Well, let''s get walking again before more show up." Wundah sheathes his sword and they run through the rocks then make their way up the riverbed. They stop every now and then to listen and make sure nothing is following them.


    "Hold up." AvatarPyro holds up his hand, the other two stop.


    "What is it?" Wundah whispers, trying to peek over.


    "Whatever it is we''ll fucking destroy it." Andrew chuckles, breathing heavily from the long morning of running.


    "It looks like people, should we keep our distance? I''m sure there''s Player Killing in this game, and from the looks of it they have Razaka armor and weapons." AvatarPyro cautiously walks.


    Wundah peeks over and sees the two sitting in a tree, one female with a Bow, the other a male with a Long Sword. "I want to fight him and see how good I really am." His pride as a swordsman showing.


    "Who knows if they''re friendly or not?" Andrew says a bit too loud.


    "Who''s there!" A arrow flies towards them, but is blocked by AvatarPyro.


    "Hold your fire!" He screams, but Wundah is already rushing to meet the Swordsman.


    They clash in the small clearing in the trees as arrows rain down from the treetop.


    "Who are you!" The Swordsman screams, face to face with Wundah who dashes through the trees, dodging arrows as he jumps out to counter attack. The Swordsman''s skill matches Wundah, they clash and counter attack with lightning speed.


    "Time out!" Wundah screams as a Cozazaza crashes from the treetop next to them. A massive red gorilla with four arms.


    "Okay!" The Swordsman screams, "Arrows!" The girl turns from the tree and fires two quick shots that pierce the Cozazaza''s eyes. It lets out a scream that is quickly silenced by two Long Swords that slice its head off.


    "Woah you guys got skill!" Wundah tells the guy who whistles.


    Another arrow shot and blinding light fills the air. The three Adventurers shield themselves from attack, but as the light fades the two Adventurers are nowhere to be seen. What remains of a Razaka are strewn about on the floor, vines used to pull it up are still swinging in the light breeze. A giant green dragon with rows of thorns on its back, poison dripping from the dead mouth. Items in their inventory and a rising sun, our Adventurers reach the end of the forest. What remains as they step foot into the Insect Fields is courage and skill. Hopeful that they will make it through the perils that lie ahead, they step into these grassy fields, as far as the eye can see are open plains and flying insects.


    <h1>


    </h1>

 Chapter Two: Insect Fields

    <h1>Chapter Two: Insect Fields


    </h1>


    "Fuck these fucking bugs!" Andrew yells, swinging his hammer wildly in the air, splattering bug guts everywhere.


    "Yeah they''re annoying." AvatarPyro swings his sword, fanning away a few. He glances at Wundah who is staring blankly at the floor, "Yo dude you''ve been quiet since that clash with the Swordsman. You alright?"


    A look of silent frustration on his face, "Who the hell was that guy! Dammit he was good!"


    "They probably know more about this world too." Andrew puts his hammer away.


    "True shit, plus they could have been good teammates, like how we took down that Cozazaza so quick." He clenches his fists.


    "Bugs, bugs and more bugs." Andrew scratches his chest, "Hmm what kind of bug monsters were there?"


    He turns to the two that were thinking loudly, "Seza and Giant Seza?" AvatarPyro says.


    "That''s so weird." A troubled look on Andrew''s face.


    "What is?" Wundah''s eyes widen.


    "Lightning in the distance." A ball of electricity flies overhead, in the distance a clash between a pack of Zinzo, giant electric wolf dragons and the two Adventurers is booming.


    Without hesitation, Wundah sprints full speed towards the fight, "Let''s go!"


    The Zinzo are howling, sparks flying everywhere, "What the hell is up with these!" The Swordsman swings his Long Sword but is blocked by three Zinzo in unison, they counter attack right away as a single unit.


    The girl with the bow is occupied by a Zinzo who keeps deflecting her arrows. Wundah jumps and slashes its neck. The Zinzo roars and flails around. Wundah rolls on the floor as sparks go flying. The other two Adventurers are rushing to support the Swordsman who''s surrounded by three Zinzo. Andrew flings AvatarPyro into the air with his hammer, the Swordsman throws a Flashbang and the Zinzo can''t see. AvatarPyro crashes down on one, the head falling to the floor. Andrew bashes the hind leg of one and crushes the face, breaking its horns and jaw. The last Zinzo is cut down by the Swordsman, it begins wailing in agony before falling silent.


    A deep growl returns the scream from the distance, "What the fuck is that!" AvatarPyro screams.


    "Holy shit." Andrew grips his hammer.


    "Oh no." The Swordsman has panic in his eyes, "Lawa get behind us!" He yells at the girl as he rushes ahead.


    "Let''s do this!" Wundah sprints next to him.


    They branch off and spread out, "We hold the line and fight bravely! I got your backs!" Andrew yells.


    "If things get messy then bail!" AvatarPyro runs with his sword.


    "I got your back guys!" Lawa yells from the top of a boulder as she fires arrows into the distance.


    "Our first Elder Dragon, let''s do this!" Wundah clears his mind and steadies his hands.


    In the distance, towering high into the sky is a massive black Zinzo with red sparks flying from its body and hitting the floor next to it. It howls and more howls are returned from the ten fearless Zinzo that march next to their leader. The Adventurers clutch their weapons, ready for battle. The next few minutes are tense, the Zinzo are taking their pick, choosing what Adventurer to fight. Three for Wundah, the Elder and two others for the Swordsman, three for AvatarPyro and two for Andrew. They howl as sparks fill the air. The ten make their way slowly across the field, the moment is tense, the Adventurers slow their breathing, ready for the battle ahead. The ten rush and begin to swarm.


    "We got this!" Wundah screams as the Adventurers charge ahead. They''re spread out, facing their chosen enemies.


    As the two Zinzo approach Wundah he slashes their front legs while sliding, making them fall over. He follows up with a deadly combo of slashes, tearing their necks open. AvatarPyro sprints and slides under the first Zinzo, driving his sword in the underbelly, it''s guts falling to a heap on the floor. The other Zinzo dives at him, but he throws his sword, burrowing deep in the Zinzo¡¯s chest. It falls over with a groan. Andrew is in full rage mode, he sprints as fast as he can and plants his feet on the floor, thrusting upward with all of his strength and upper cutting the Zinzo with his hammer, its head explodes, chunks of meat splatters on the other Zinzo who loses its footing and tries to run away while whimpering, but Andrew throws his hammer and causes it to trip and fall. Andrew jumps on its back and claws his way to the head and shoves his thumbs in the eyes, then starts to punch the Zinzo, hammer fisting it with both hands. It wails in pain as Andrew beats it to death. The Swordsman is rushing towards the Elder and two Zinzo, Lawa is out of arrows, all she has is a small dagger. He must defend her at all costs, he grips his sword as he thinks aloud, "Slice the legs, aim for the big one." He rushes and slices, but the two Zinzo run straight into his move, they throw themselves at him, but it was too easy. He turns around, the Elder is face to face with Lawa, as the two small ones distracted him, the Elder jumped over. The claws as big as Greatswords, it''s about to strike, Lawa closes her eyes, there is nothing she can do, his eyes widen, his body moves on his own, "Nooo!" A thud fills the air.


    The Elder holds the Swordsman up in the air and then throws him at Lawa, who falls to the ground. The Elder slowly walks up to her and strikes, but is blocked by Andrew''s Hammer, "We got this, make sure to heal him!"


    Lawa nods her head and rushes to the Swordsman. The three Adventurers are working together, fending off the Elder. Diving, jumping off each others weapons, attacking, and pushing the Elder away from Lawa and the Swordsman.


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    The Swordsman coughs, blood falling down the side of his mouth, he coughs a few more times, his chest plate torn to pieces, his body oozing blood, "I don''t think I''m going to make it."


    Lawa is crying, "No! You''ll be fine! Here take it! Take it!" She pulls out a Health Pill, her hand shaking as she tries to force it into his mouth, "Don''t go!"


    "I...love..you...goodbye Lawa." His arms go limp, his body stiff as his eyes stare into oblivion.


    Lawa presses the Health Pill to his lips, "Don''t leave, I love you. I love you!" His body shatters into many blue fragments and floats into the air, disappearing. All that is left is his sword. She wipes her tears and picks it up, "You fucking dragon!" She sprints towards the Elder.


    The Elder wants to test her skill, and she hasn''t used the Long Sword in ages, but the feeling, she almost remembers it. She swings, but the weight is different than how she remembers, much more than the Bow. She swings and misses, the Adventurers try to help, "No! This is my fight! Please let me kill it!" She pleads to the Adventurers, who hesitate but back off, and stand there ready to step in if she needs help. The Elder chuckles, taunts her, plays with his prey. It made a huge mistake, she''s gotten used to the blade, way before the Bow, her Long Sword skills were unmatched. A gleam in her eyes, she jumps high into the air, so high that she''s right next to his face, she swings with her right hand and the Elder moves to dodge, but that swing was a bluff, she flings the sword around her head and catches it with her left hand then slashes its eye. Shocked at her level of power, it begins to panic and take things seriously. It leaps backwards and begins to howl, energy glowing red, lightning surging into his body, the fight has just begun.


    It lunges, but she is too quick, three more big leaps, but she is too fast. She deflects his claws with the sword and continues dodging the attacks. It creates a shockwave of energy, shooting into the sky above, she rolls, each bolt of energy missing by inches. She''s smiling, she has him right where she wants him, his foot lands on something sticky, a thick paste, it can''t move. While it was surging she crafted and set it up, she dashes to the leg and slashes hard, cutting it off. The beast howls in pain as it turns over on its belly, she chops its claws off as it groans in pain, she leaps on its head and begins to pry its mouth open with her arm and foot. She pulls out her dagger as the Elder tries to squirm away, but it is too injured to move. She chuckles, "Watch me, look at me and feel every ounce of pain as I do this. You''ve killed the person I hold most dear, oh Lubos, my love." She begins carving out every tooth in the Elder''s mouth, it winces in pain. She sets them in a pile as the three watch.


    "Should we stop her?" Andrew asks.


    "Nah, I would do the same for any of you." Wundah says, taking a seat.


    "True, it deserves this." AvatarPyro sits as well.


    "Oh well, fuck it." Andrew takes a seat.


    She gouges out his eyeballs and shoves her sword down his throat. Items pop up in their inventory. She presses a few things on the small screen in front of her, pitch black armor covers her body, her helmet shows her face, across her chest is a necklace of fangs. She presses some more buttons while holding his sword, the blade becomes black, but the handle stays the same. She sheathes the sword and wipes the tears from her cheek, "Thanks for coming to help us you guys."


    "No worries, I''m sorry about your loss." Andrew bumps her fist.


    "He will always be a great swordsman, forever in my memories." Wundah bumps her fist.


    "I''m sorry, where will you go now? You''re more than welcome to come with us." AvatarPyro bumps her fist.


    "It''s fine, thank you. I am forever in your debt. I''m going to finish what we started." She walks away into the distance, far, far away, until she can not be seen.


    Our Adventurers continue onward, there isn''t much they can do but move forward into the abyss. They cross through a valley, there are trees covering the right side, to the left there is a mountain full of white stones. The path they walk is narrow, the air is stale and quiet.


    "Well, what''s new guys?" AvatarPyro asks, kicking a rock.


    "That move she did against the Elder, I gotta learn it." Wundah mimics the motions with his hands.


    "I killed a Zinzo with my hands, what kind of sorcery is this?" Andrew chuckles while rubbing his chest.


    "That was brutal as fuck, like holy shit dude!" Wundah''s eyes widen.


    They walk over a small stream, "True shit." AvatarPyro looks up at the clear blue sky, the small clouds floating overhead, the long neck of the crawling titan of a dragon, the Tizah staring them down at them from the top of the mountain, "Holy shit fuck balls Tizah!" AvatarPyro screams and the three grab their weapons as the Tizah lets out a vicious roar that sends the massive mountain boulders flying towards them.


    The roar is returned by five more, all of whom are rushing down the mountain with fangs glared. The three rush into the treeline in different directions. AvatarPyro to the far left, Andrew down the middle, and Wundah to the far right. Four Tizah follow AvatarPyro, one follows Andrew and one follows Wundah.


    "Ah shit really!" AvatarPyro screams, sprinting while glancing over his shoulder, puddles of drool falling from the Tizah¡¯s mouth as he runs towards the closest one and slides underneath, deflecting a claw that barely misses his face. He jumps off of its arm and spins while swinging his sword to deflect the second Tizah tail, causing him to fly towards a nearby tree. He pushes off of the tree trunk and slices the first Tizah in the side of the neck. It falls down with a grunt but there is no time to celebrate, Tizah two is rushing at him with Tizah three and four, a single line of destruction, a train of claws and teeth. It''s too late to dodge so he plants his Greatsword into the ground and braces for impact. From both sides Wundah and Andrew jump into view, Wundah slashes the neck of the Tizah, while Andrew smashes the jaw of the other. They crash into the middle Tizah, who begins to roll on the floor. AvatarPyro lifts up his sword, piercing the throat and sticking far out the other side as the Tizah lets out a final croak.


    "Holy shit." AvatarPyro dusts himself off, items appear in their inventory.


    "Dude that was intense!" Wundah is running a Sharpening Stone along his sword.


    "We came just in time! Wooh!" Andrew is poking the Tizahs eye with his finger.


    "Thanks guys. Fuck." AvatarPyro grips his sword with two hands and wiggles it out of the throat.


    "I got used to the neck slash, it feels so natural and I get faster at it each time. Acquired skill by practice maybe?" Wundah sheathes his sword.


    "True shit, the hammer feels heavier and more powerful every time I do the head smash." Andrew scratches his belly.


    "Yeah, I get what you mean, our reaction times are getting better too." AvatarPyro flings the blood off of his sword and begins to sharpen it.


    "Well, looks like the Mines is next on the map." Wundah says, walking through the line of trees. In the side of the hill ahead there is a small opening, a single mine shaft.


    "This looks sketch as fuck." Andrew looks up at the dusty wooden pillars that hold the mine up.


    "Only one way to go through." AvatarPyro presses buttons on his inventory, a torch appears, lighting the pathway. Our Adventurers make their way down the old dusty pathway into the dark and dangerous mine shaft.

 Chapter Three: Mines

    <h1>Chapter Three: Mines


    "Fucking spider webs everywhere!" Andrew screams while taking a web off of his ear.


    </h1>


    "What did you just say?" AvatarPyro looks around.


    "Spider webs!" Andrew yells.


    "Fuck." Wundah pulls out his sword.


    "Great, just fucking great." AvatarPyro draws his sword as they walk into an opening, the walls are filled with webbing, the floor is a huge web. The space is dimly lit, there are Tezara skulls scattered about, a rancid smell fills the air. The walls begin to vibrate with movement, screeching fills the air.


    "Ah this fucking floor keeps getting me stuck!" Andrew yells, swinging his hammer wildly, fending off small spider scorpions called Neza, hundreds of them swarming, trying to get flesh.


    Wundah cuts the webbing loose, slicing wildly, cutting many Neza into shreds, "This fucking sucks!"


    AvatarPyro slices through rows and rows of them with his sword. They begin to retreat back into the crevices and walls of the ceiling, "Oh fuck this can''t be good!" He looks around.


    "What can''t?" Wundah asks, the three stand back to back.


    "Remember in The Lord of the Rings when they were in the mine and all of the small goblins started screeching and ran away?" AvatarPyro stares at the ceiling.


    "Yeah? So what? Oh yeah! Fuck!" Andrew''s eyes widen.


    "That''s when Balrog awakened and fought Gandalf!" Wundah screams.


    Two giant fangs pierce through the floor beneath Andrew''s feet. He jumps and deflects the massive venom-oozing fangs and flies to the wall, jumping off to return with his powerful attack, snapping both fangs.


    The massive Elder Neza screeches as Wundah cuts its legs off and AvatarPyro drives his sword through the monster''s body, cutting it in half, green goo oozing everywhere.


    "That was way too easy." Andrew chuckles, the massive body fills the whole room.


    "I think we''re just really good bro." AvatarPyro chuckles.


    "Let''s take every fight serious though." Wundah sheathes his sword.


    So many items fill the inventory. The three Adventurers walk through the exit to the next cavern.


    Fifteen Tezara corpses are scattered around the room, pieces of meat falling from the ceiling. A complete massacre. Wundah glances at AvatarPyro, "Lawa?"


    AvatarPyro shakes his head, "I don''t think it''s her man, she wouldn''t be this messed up?" He half doubts himself.


    "After what happened? The dude died in her arms man, like I would go insane if that happened to any of you." Wundah clenches his fists, pushing away the thought of how much pain she must be in.


    "True shit, let''s just keep walking." Andrew nudges them, and our Adventurers continue on their journey.


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    Down through dark caverns they walk, it seems endless, mine shaft after mine shaft, a cavern full of slaughtered Gyzex, a cavern of slaughtered Graza.


    After some time they find a small clearing and decide to rest for a bit, a pile of rocks scattered on the ground.


    "How long until we reach the end?" AvatarPyro asks the guys who are throwing rocks at the wall.


    "I have no idea dude." Andrew bounces a rock off of the ceiling.


    "Same." Wundah chucks a rock.


    "I just thought of this super attack!" Andrew stands up and tosses a rock in the air, and hits it with his hammer. The rock flies into the wall making a loud crash.


    "Super Rock Attack!" AvatarPyro screams.


    "This could work!" Wundah yells.


    "Fuuuhh!" Andrew puts his hammer away, "You guys rested?"


    AvatarPyro gets up and dusts off his pants, "Yeah, I feel like the next boss is going to be bad, let''s keep on our toes."


    "It''s starting to get hot too." Andrew scratches his stomach.


    "Let''s use Cold Pills only when we need to, who knows if there will be any merchants along the way." Wundah starts to look at one in his hand.


    "We might be able to combine some items?" AvatarPyro begins to walk.


    "We don''t even know how long they''ll last." Andrew stretches.


    "Well bottoms up." The three Adventurers bump fists as they take a Cold Pill, the heat and flowing lava surrounding them has no effect on their bodies, they continue onwards in search for the exit. There is an opening up ahead, a vast cavern. The ceiling is high, lava flows from the top of a cave wall, a gust of wind hits the wall as the massive alligator dragon Akazo aims at a team of four Dual Blade wielders, who are clad in samurai-type armor. The wind from the Akazo knocks two of them against the wall, the other two rush to heal them, "Let''s go." Wundah says, pulling out his sword and charging into battle.


    "Fuck yeah!" Andrew sprints with his hammer in his hands.


    "Throw a Flashbang!" AvatarPyro yells at Wundah, who searches through his inventory and flings a Flashbang right next to the Akazo¡¯s face.


    "You guys get out of here we got this!" Wundah yells, running up the Akazo''s leg and slicing its eye.


    The four guys scurry through the opening on the other side of the cavern and disappear.


    "Jump!" Andrew yells at AvatarPyro, who dashes off of his hammer and soars high in the air. He crashes down on the Akazos''s forehead, while Wundah shoves his sword in the other eye.


    Andrew holds his hammer by his side for a few seconds, he can feel the energy surging into it, he focuses and pushes off of the ground leaving a crater, releasing all of that energy with his swing. The impact makes a loud thud in the air, the Akazo lets out a scream as it gets sent flying across the cavern into the wall, a hole punched through the body. Items appear in their inventory.


    The four Dual Wielders come screaming into the cavern, "We''re here to help! You guys?" They stand there scratching their heads in confusion.


    "What the fuck are you guys?" One of them asks.


    AvatarPyro bumps fists with his friends, "We''re just gamers man." He says while laughing and sheathing his sword.


    "Glad you guys are okay." Wundah checks his inventory.


    "Charging really works, holy fuck!" Andrew yells.


    One of the four holds out his hand, "Thank you so much, we''re in your debt." They all shake hands.


    "No problem, just be careful out there. This isn''t a game." Wundah says, walking towards the exit.


    "We want to get out before the Cold Pills wear off." AvatarPyro explains.


    "You guys are smart." One of the guys says, "We''re heading back to the Insect Fields, we need to train more. Good luck out there!"


    The three Adventurers give a thumbs up, "Don''t die!"


    They head through the corridor and it leads them to the surface where they see nothing but ice caverns, mountains and snow, endless snow, "Well I hope we have enough Hot Pills." Wundah says, checking his inventory.


    "True shit." Andrew says.


    "Let''s hurry then." AvatarPyro throws a Hot Pill in his mouth and the three begin to jog through the falling snow.

 Chapter Four: Frozen

    <h1>Chapter Four: Frozen


    </h1>


    "Why is there so much fucking snow!" Andrew uses his hammer to shovel a path, "How long has it been?"


    Wundah looks for a time clock but none exists, "About a hour now."


    "Something like that." AvatarPyro says as they reach a ice clearing ahead.


    "Battle formations." Wundah quickly says.


    "What are they?" Andrew whispers.


    "Keza and Zama." AvatarPyro unsheathes his sword.


    "Let''s do this." Andrew sprints out ahead, there''s three Keza giant leech dragons and three heavily armored lightning snow dragons called Zama lounging around.


    Andrew leaps in the air and crashes down on one of the Keza¡¯s heads, blood gushing all over the ice floor.


    AvatarPyro cuts a Keza head off and throws his sword at the Zama next to it, the blade lodges deep within its skull, crushing its eyes.


    Wundah does a vicious combo, killing the two Keza at the same time.


    "Well that was quick." Andrew chuckles.


    "We''ve gotten used to fighting." AvatarPyro struggles to pull his sword out of the dead Zama. The sword is covered with blood, but one mighty swing and it splashes onto the ice floor.


    "I know we can do even better." Wundah sharpens his sword.


    "True shit." Andrew chuckles, sheathing his hammer.


    "Let''s just keep going." AvatarPyro begins to trudge through knee-deep snow once more.


    Time goes on as the Adventurers continue to walk onwards through endless sheets of snow and ice, "Oh fuck!" Andrew quickly swipes through his inventory and throws a Hot Pill into his mouth.


    "What happened?" Wundah chews his pill.


    "Nice! Hehe." AvatarPyro chews his pill.


    "Around sixteen hours." Wundah counts with his fingers.


    "Ah damn, around thirteen days in snow or extreme heat." AvatarPyro counts with his hands.


    "We should pick up the pace." Wundah begins to jog.


    "Yeah fuck that." Andrew jogs with him.


    They jog at a steady pace, "So what''s the plan if we get attacked by PK Adventurers?" AvatarPyro asks, trying to catch his breath.


    "We fuck them up." Andrew says coldly.


    "Yeah that sounds like a plan, oh shit cliff!" Wundah holds his arms out.


    The three Adventurers stop in their tracks, snow falls down below, disappearing into the clouds. Andrew peers over the edge, the cliff is high up, they can''t see the bottom, "Hmm... I wonder if there''s fall damage." Andrew puts a Health Pill in his mouth, "Only one way to find out."


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    Andrew leaps over the edge, Wundah and AvatarPyro right behind him, they soar downward, picking up speed. They get closer and closer to the ground, "Fuck this!" Andrew throws his Hammer at the floor, while Wundah and AvatarPyro shove their swords into the ice wall. They slowly reach the floor as Andrew holds onto AvatarPyro''s feet, "Ah that was close!" He yells, looking for his hammer.


    "No way!" Wundah pulls his broken sword out of the wall and points at Andrew''s broken shattered hammer.


    "Fuck! Ah you too!" Andrew points at AvatarPyro''s broken sword.


    "Dammit!" AvatarPyro picks up bits and throws them back on the floor.


    "Time for crafting?" Wundah suggests.


    "Sounds good." Andrew chuckles as they sit down and go through their inventory.


    AvatarPyro holds his new sword in his hands, it has five vicious spikes along the sword and one massive claw-like blade at the edge. Made out of tough ores, it''s all black, "Dude that looks vicious!" Wundah yells, flipping through his inventory. The sword has fire elemental damage.


    "Thanks!" AvatarPyro runs his finger along the edges.


    "Yes!" Wundah screams, his new sword made from Neza parts, a sleep elemental katana.


    "Hell yeah that''s cool as fuck!" Andrew holds his new hammer high in the air.


    "No way are you serious!" AvatarPyro is holding his stomach, rolling in the snow at the sight of it.


    "Dude no! That''s great!" Wundah has the biggest smile on his face.


    "Behold! A War Hammer created from the massive dong of an Akazo! With fire damage I will smash my enemies with this dildo hammer that is harder than steel!" Andrew chuckles, swinging his hammer around.


    "I feel sorry for the next monster that faces us, honestly." Wundah straps his sword to his back.


    "True shit." Andrew sheathes his hammer.


    "This should be fun." AvatarPyro points to a clearing in the distance.


    "Looks like the next battle is the Uza." Wundah bumps their fists.


    "Same spot as in the game." AvatarPyro exhales.


    "Oh fuck yeah!" Andrew stretches his legs.


    "That''s a good idea." AvatarPyro and Wundah begin to stretch.


    "Well let''s do this!" Andrew bumps their fists.


    "We got this!" Wundah begins walking.


    "I got the tail." AvatarPyro swings his sword around to get used to the weight.


    "Let''s do this!" Andrew rushes into battle with his dildo hammer.


    The area is widespread and full of ice and snow, the massive body of the hammerhead shark dragon Uza towers in the center. Wundah gracefully sprints up the Uza¡¯s leg while tossing a Flashbang near its face. AvatarPyro sprints around and crashes down, cutting off the tail. Andrew is charging, the energy building up, he swings and a hole explodes through the body, sending it flying into an ice wall. Items pop up in their inventory.


    "Let''s hurry." Wundah jogs onward.


    "Fuck yeah!" Andrew puts his hammer away as they run.


    "We are Gods!" AvatarPyro chuckles as he begins to jog ahead, but little do our Adventurers know, that in the animal kingdom, sometimes the Adventurers become the hunted. On a cliff above, watching our Adventurers is an Elder Dragon. The black red eyed demon dragon Kuzaza soars high above. It flaps its wings, creating a blizzard filled with red lightning.


    "Ah fuck!" Wundah screams, drawing his sword.


    "Fuck!" Andrew begins to charge.


    "Duck now!" AvatarPyro digs his blade into the floor as a tornado of ice rushes towards the Adventurers. He blocks as the Kuzaza charges, knocking him back. The Kuzaza blasts balls of red lightning at AvatarPyro and Wundah, who dive away from them. Andrew crashes down from the sky and blows its head into ash. The body falls onto the floor as items pop up in their inventory.


    "Let''s hurry!" Wundah begins to jog again.


    "Fuck yeah!" Andrew jogs as well.


    "We''re too good!" AvatarPyro is right behind them.


    Ice turns into rocks, and the temperature steadily rises.

 Chapter Five: Mt. Doom

    <h1>Chapter Five: Mt. Doom


    </h1>


    "Mt. Doom! Is that fucking Mt. Doom!" AvatarPyro points at a massive volcano in the distance.


    "Looks like we''re in Mordor ma dudes!" Andrew scratches his belly button.


    "Let''s do this!" Wundah begins to walk across the black, charred rocks.


    "It''s so hot I hope we have enough Cold Pills." AvatarPyro stares at a river of lava ahead.


    "We''ll be fine, there''s plenty left." Andrew pops one in his mouth, "Plus it''s hot as balls."


    "What kind of balls are you feeling?" Wundah laughs while eating a Cold Pill.


    "My balls!" Andrew lifts his loincloth up.


    "Agh dude my eyes!" AvatarPyro eats a Cold Pill while Wundah laughs.


    They continue to walk upwards towards the top of the volcano. The vast landscape surrounding them, the sky full of clouds, a crimson color from the warm glow of lava, "This looks way better in person." The words slip from AvatarPyro''s mouth and drift into the night sky.


    AvatarPyro is sitting in his room with his device in his hands, he uses his stylus to type on the chatroom, "Yoooo!"


    He''s sitting down on the floor in the middle of the hall, clad in Red Tizah armor, wielding a Gozo Greatsword. "Yoooo!" Next to Wundah''s name the message pops up.


    "Sup dude!" Andrew appears in the hall wearing Royal armor with a Royal Sword and Shield.


    Wundah is wearing Red Tizah armor with a Neza Long Sword, "What are we hunting?"


    "Fuzzy?" AvatarPyro runs around the hall, checking his inventory.


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    "Sounds good." Wundah sits at the table.


    AvatarPyro and Andrew sit at the table and they eat their meals. They stand up and flex.


    "You guys have any spare Megas?" AvatarPyro chuckles at his screen.


    "You never have any Megas dude!" Andrew types.


    "Upgrade the Farmer?" Wundah hands him Megas.


    "I hate story mode man." AvatarPyro runs in circles around the hall.


    "That''s why you''re always healing with Plants and shiiit!" Andrew sets up the mission.


    "Speed Eating helps, I''ll be fine!" AvatarPyro chuckles at his screen, "I needa pee."


    He walks through his empty house to the kitchen and grabs a soda, then he makes his way to his bathroom in his pajamas. It''s been so many days since he''s been outside. He pees and washes his hands. He dries them and gets back to the game, "Yo let''s do this!" The Adventurers make their way to the departure gate.


    "Dude heads up!" AvatarPyro yells as Wundah throws his Flashbang, the massive red chimera looking dragon Fuzzy lets out a roar as Andrew flings AvatarPyro into the air with his hammer. AvatarPyro shoves his sword down the Fuzzy¡¯s throat, and it falls to the floor with a thud. Items pop up in their inventory.


    "Did we just do that?" Wundah searches around to see if there are any more.


    "We''re too fucking strong!" AvatarPyro yells, putting his sword away, bumping fists with Wundah.


    "Watch out!" Andrew shoves the two of them near the dead Fuzzy as a massive God Level Elder Dragon swoops down and grabs him with its massive claws. Andrew puts his finger to his lips, AvatarPyro and Wundah stare in shock. Andrew nods and gives a thumbs up, a determined look on his face as the dragon roars and flies off into the distance.


    "No! What the fuck just happened!" AvatarPyro screams, sprinting in the direction it flew.


    "He saved us bro, he fucking saved us." Wundah can see the faint glimpse of the glowing red dragon.


    They run on and on, but the sky begins to turn pitch black and they lose sight of the dragon as massive trees bigger than the trees in the Land of Jazuk cover the area, "He''ll be fine man." Wundah looks up into the treetops.


    "Yeah he will." AvatarPyro looks up, the canopy is so dense, the forest is pitch black.


    "Let''s take a Stamina Pill and keep going." Wundah pops one in his mouth.


    "Yeah that''s a good idea." AvatarPyro pops a Stamina Pill and our Adventurers venture into the dark foreboding forest.


    <h1>


    </h1>

 Chapter Six: Lightning Ape Forest

    <h1>Chapter Six: Lightning Ape Forest


    </h1>


    "We have to stay focused, we don''t have as much fighting power now, fuck bro how does that even happen?" Wundah is jogging next to AvatarPyro, making their way deeper into the forest.


    "Why was there a Elder Dragon, and not even a regular one a fucking God Level?" AvatarPyro whispers, the trees becoming more spread out, their cover is harder to keep.


    "Holy shit." Wundah and AvatarPyro duck behind a tree.


    "No fucking way man. Lightning Ape?" AvatarPyro whispers in a panic.


    "That was way bigger than in the game." Wundah pokes his head out quickly and ducks back, "One Elder, fifteen regular ones, but they''re still massive." The Adventurers are so small compared to these beasts, it is like a anime, just the enemies are massive Lightning Apes, enormous towering apes with forearms the size of big rig trucks.


    "Fuck, there''s no way we can outrun them." AvatarPyro clutches his sword, "We have to fight, we can do this."


    "What''s the plan?" Wundah slowly unsheathes his sword.


    "I''ll distract the really really big one, you take out the smallish enormous ones?" AvatarPyro holds his last Flashbang in his hand.


    "Let''s do this." They bump fists and rush around the corner.


    AvatarPyro throws his Flashbang and they rush to attack the Lightning Ape, but they''re nowhere to be seen, "Fuck! Above!" AvatarPyro tries to dodge but the Elder punches him into a tree in the distance. He groans in pain but quickly pops a Health Pill in his mouth. "Wundah!"


    Wundah is being swarmed by the fifteen Lightning Apes as the Elder rushes toward AvatarPyro, who sprints towards the beast. Wundah gets knocked in all directions, but slashes viciously, killing one. At the sight of the fallen, the rest get aggro, they all howl, their roars deafening as their fur turns yellow with lightning. The Elder shoots a beam of lightning at AvatarPyro, who rolls, barely missing it. Wundah jumps off of the trees, dodging balls and beams of lightning, looking for an opening. He can feel the strain on his body from the slight damage he''s taking, so he pops a Health Pill mid jump. His body strong once more, he takes a punch head on as he slices the Lightning Ape''s neck. He jumps off of a tree, popping another Health Pill. AvatarPyro swings viciously, but the Lightning Ape blocks with its massive forearms, each swing returned is blocked by AvatarPyro''s sword, but the damage is too much for his body, the sudden impulse causes him to automatically eat a Health Pill, only two left in his inventory. Wundah jumps down next to him, "Dude I''m out of Health Pills! There''s one small one left!"


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    "Here!" AvatarPyro tosses a Health Pill to Wundah, who puts it in his mouth. The Elder and Lightning Ape are standing ahead of the Adventurers, beating their chests.


    The Lightning Ape rushes forward, AvatarPyro rushes to attack it, "Watch out!"


    A beam of lightning fries the Lightning Ape as Wundah pushes AvatarPyro away, the beam hits Wundah in the back. He grunts while falling to the floor. The Elder gets closer, it beats its chest as it howls. Wundah slowly gets up, AvatarPyro steps ahead as two more Lightning Ape appear next to the Elder. He throws his last Health Pill to Wundah who catches it, "You push ahead, you don''t look back. Find Andrew and keep going. Don''t you fucking die! Don''t worry about me. Hurry! Get the fuck out of here! Go!"


    Wundah eats the pill, wiping the tears from his eyes, "See ya bro." He dashes away into the rock-covered field as AvatarPyro yells while rushing at the Lightning Apes, he doesn''t look back. He runs and runs, he pauses as the sun rises, the clouds in the distance a velvet color. Wundah looks back at the forest, he hears the final battle cry of his friend, the silence that follows is too much for him, he screams at the sky as he falls to his knees. He punches the ground.


    "Stop yelling, they''ll hear you." He looks up to see Lawa clad in her black armor.


    "Lawa, what are you doing here?" She is crying.


    "I''m sorry, your friend saved my life just now. It seems I''m always being saved." She looks at the floor, her body trembles and she sighs, "I was fighting ten Lightning Apes when I saw him fighting the Elder, he managed to cut off his horn and then did the same move I did and cut off its arm. The Elder screamed in agony and the forest seemed to move. I killed one of my ten and the rest went aggro. I got punched through the trees and landed near his feet. I gave him three Health Pills and I tried to help him but reinforcements came, and next thing you know an army of fifty Lightning Apes stood before us, protecting the Elder. We stood no chance. He told me to run and find you, and to save Andrew. Then he um." She blushes and looks at the floor.


    "Then he what?" Wundah begins to stand up again.


    "Then he kissed me and called me his Waifu. He apologized and smiled as he yelled at the top of his lungs, sprinting into battle as I ran. I couldn''t see him when I looked back, just a swarm of Lightning Apes and a floor of dead ones. His final yell just now, he lasted a long time, there''s probably a forest full of dead Lightning Apes. I''m sorry." She stares at the forest.


    "Don''t be sorry, he died like a true Adventurer. I''m headed for the God Level Elder Dragon to get Andrew, you coming with me?" Wundah stands up and takes a deep breath.


    "Yeah, let''s go Wundah." Lawa takes one last look at the forest then they begin walking towards the towering mountains up ahead. Hope in their hearts that they can find a merchant, that Andrew is alive, that this game will not be the end for them.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Seven: Dragon Mountain

    <h1>Chapter Seven: Dragon Mountain


    </h1>


    The narrow dirt path at the edge of the vast field of rocks wind through the mountain side, Wundah looks upward, tracing it with his eyes, "That''s really narrow. If we get ambushed it would be pretty bad." Wundah swipes through his inventory.


    "We''ll manage somehow." Bloodlust in Lawa''s eyes.


    "Hey Lawa?"


    "Yeah?" She kicks a rock.


    "In the Mines, was that you who slaughtered those enemies?" Wundah looks above, flames could be seen in the clouds.


    "Yeah that was me." A stern look on her face, she says it with no hesitation.


    "Why though?" They slowly walk along the trail, the view is beautiful.


    "Lubos was my reason for existing, I just have so much anger towards beasts now. Being weak, fragile, it''s embarrassing. So I must destroy them, but I couldn''t even help your friend. I''m still weak." She shakes her head, "Sorry I''m ranting. I haven''t had anyone to talk to for a while."


    "It''s fine I understand. I really do." The trail slowly gets steeper, they can hear the roars and calls of dragons as they near the top.


    "No way, look who it is!" Lawa chuckles.


    "That''s classic!" Wundah smiles.


    "Why hello there Adventurers! On a hunt I see, well you are about to enter a boss raid zone! Would you like to trade me for some items?" The old man has a cane in his hand and a giant bag full of supplies on his back.


    Wundah trades some items and his Health Pills get filled up, "Damn."


    "Well, looks like we''re in for a hell of a fight." Lawa chuckles, filling up her Health Pills.


    "We got this!" Wundah holds out his fist.


    An anime flashback of AvatarPyro and Andrew crosses his mind as Lawa looks confused, but she bumps his fist, "We''ll be fine." She gives a reassuring smile.


    Wundah scratches his head, "Sorry, we would bump fists before every mission, force of habit."


    "It''s fine! Lubos would always spank my ass and make me call him daddy before a hunt." She winks at Wundah.


    "Um?" Wundah is frozen.


    "I''m just messing with you!" Lawa laughs so hard while Wundah blushes in embarrassment, "Let''s go kill some dragons."


    "Okay! Hang in there Andrew!" Wundah sprints with Lawa to the top, it''s flat, as wide as twenty football fields. Clouds cover the outer rim, there is nowhere left to go.


    "Looks like this is our battlefield." Wundah unsheathes his sword.


    "Just kill like you always do." Lawa fixes her helmet and unsheathes her sword, looking towards the clouds.


    A white titan of a dragon the Saza Maza flies from the clouds and lands on the other side of the field, it''s body towering as it glares at the Adventurers, "Should we rush it?" Wundah grips his sword.


    "No, that''s the King, where are his servants." Lawa searches in the clouds, but all is silent.


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    The Saza Maza lets out a mighty roar, one that is returned by thousands. Out of the clouds a horde of Razaka, Razako, Sazo and Gaza Maza fly down and surround our Adventurers as they flap their wings and growl, glaring their fangs. It''s as if there is an ocean of dragons surrounding the two, yet they are calm, focused. No fear in their eyes as they glance at each other and sprint to the nearest dragon, a blue beast similar to a Razaka, the Razako, slicing it''s neck. The dragons go in a frenzy, the Adventurers dodge whipping tails while slicing more necks, a dragon with five legs of razor sharp spikes, the Sazo crash-dives with his feet, but Wundah jumps on it and stabs its neck while dodging a fireball as Lawa runs on the back of the first evolutionary stage of the Saza Maza, the orange Gaza Maza, cutting it in half. Wundah ignores the roar of three nearby Razaka as he dives and slices their stomachs open as two Sazo throw spikes at him, but the spikes hit the Razaka, causing them to fall limp. Lawa''s sword is glowing with red sparks as she leaves a trail of dead dragons. Wundah slices a Razako¡¯s leg, who closes its eyes and begins to sleep as Lawa follows behind and chops its head off. They continue to slice through the dragons like butter, but each one they kill is replaced by three more. The fight seems endless.


    "This is never going to end!" Wundah yells, deflecting a claw.


    "Go for the King!" Lawa yells, chopping off a Gaza Maza head.


    "Okay!" Wundah screams, cutting the throat of a nearby Razaka as he jumps in the air, landing on the back of a Razako. He shoves the blade into its back, causing it to roar in pain. Wundah presses the blade slowly, causing the Razako to fly towards the Saza Maza, the other dragons shoot fireballs at it, they must protect the King at all costs. Wundah leaps off and continues to fight his way towards the King. Lawa continues to kill dragon after dragon, the bodies scattered about the floor, "How long will we have to keep this up!" Wundah slices three necks at once.


    "As long as it takes!" Lawa deflects a tail and rolls away from a fireball.


    "Fuck!" Wundah barely dodges a tail and rolls away from a Gaza Maza that tries to tackle him. He slashes its arm, causing it to fall over as Lawa quickly slashes its neck, while lunging at a swarm of Razako. The dragons begin to use teamwork, attacking at different times, but our Adventurers can see ahead and dodge their attacks easily. The Razaka and Razako line up and fly into the air, they begin a volley of fireballs that hail down on the two Adventurers. Wundah and Lawa quickly dodge left and right, looking for an opening but there is no end to the fireballs. Wundah dashes forward, trying to break free, but a hail of spikes crashes down in front of him. He skids to a halt as Lawa dashes the other way, but gets stopped by fireballs.


    "Fuck! What do we do?" Lawa screams, running from more fireballs.


    "We have to cut through the spikes and break through!" Wundah screams, a fireball flying past his face.


    "We''ll give it a shot!" Lawa yells, running next to Wundah.


    The Saza are in a row on the ground in front and to the left and right, while the Razaka and Razako shoot from above from all sides, The Gaza Maza behind them in a row, way less than the rest. The Saza shoot a wall of spikes with their tails, Wundah cuts upwards while Lawa dives and spins her sword in a circle, cutting an opening for the two. They jump to the left and dodge a hail of flames. The Razaka and Razako create a wall of fire towards the Adventurers who retreat but the Gaza Maza are charging, "Watch out!" Wundah recognizes the attack and they both jump away towards the wall of flame.


    A wave of light orange explosions blast on the floor towards them, but they dive through the wall of flame while eating a Health Pill. Lawa chuckles, "This is way better than pressing buttons!"


    "It really is! Cover me I have a plan!" Wundah crouches over and presses buttons on his inventory in a hurry as Lawa blocks a hail of spikes. One lands near Wundah¡¯s foot.


    "You okay!?" She screams.


    "Yeah I''m good! Here!" Wundah puts ten Flashbangs in her hand, "We throw all of them at the ones in front, Gaza Maza are behind us but it won''t work on them so focus ahead. Rush the King!" He begins to sprint with her towards the King.


    "Now!" Lawa screams, tossing the Flashbangs ahead, Wundah throws his as well. The Gaza Maza continue to shoot fireballs as the rest of the dragons flail in agony. The King flies towards his challengers.


    "Jump!" Wundah crouches as Lawa jumps off of his back, spinning her sword around, shoving it through the head. The King crashes down from the sky, falling lifeless onto the floor. The army of dragons roar in a panic and scurry away.


    Wundah helps Lawa up, "We did it!" Countless items pop up in their inventory.


    "Yeah that was crazy!" Lawa wiggles her sword out of the head.


    The two of them fling the blood off of their swords and pull out a Sharpening Stone and sharpen, "Looks like that cavern is next." On the other side is an entrance into the side of the mountain.


    "No time to waste." Lawa sheathes her sword and the two Adventurers begin to walk onwards into the cavern. They hurry to help their friend in hopes that he is still alive.


    The massive Elder Dragon towers above him, drooling as it roars. Andrew rushes at it with no hesitation, smashing its claw. The dragon lashes with its tail, Andrew blocks with his hammer and gets

 Chapter Eight: Warhammer

    <h1>Chapter Eight: Warhammer


    </h1>


    "Oh fuck!" Andrew rolls on the molten floor, barely chewing a Cold Pill before he lands.


    The massive Elder Dragon towers above him, drooling as it roars. Andrew rushes at it with no hesitation, smashing its claw. The dragon lashes with its tail, Andrew blocks with his hammer and gets sent crashing into the wall across the massive cavern. He pops a Health Pill and rushes towards the dragon who flaps its wings, sending a wave of heat towards him. He dives, barely dodging. The dragon flies across and shoots a massive beam of fire, Andrew sprints, the flame near his heels. Andrew tosses two Flashbang in the air, the dragon crashes to the floor as he charges his hammer. He feels the energy rushing in, but he needs more time. The dragon is starting to stand up again. Andrew''s hammer is fully charged, he swings as the dragon rushes towards him. A loud crack fills the air. Silence. The horns are broken on the floor, its jaw is snapped, it can only see with one eye. It holds Andrew in the air, its right claw sticking through his stomach, Andrew''s broken hammer in a heap on the floor. He missed by inches. With the little remaining strength he has, he presses buttons on his inventory, dropping Large Bombs on the floor. He holds the combine button, so many of them falling in a pile as Andrew smiles, blood dripping from the side of his mouth, "Fuck you piece of shit! Fuck man, AvatarPyro, Wundah, I hope you guys survive. It was..." He coughs up blood, "It was good while it lasted." With the last of his strength he drops a Small Bomb onto the pile, the cavern explodes, his smiling body becomes enveloped in flame, his body shatters into many blue fragments and slowly drifts into the air.


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 Chapter Nine: The Elders

    <h1>Chapter Nine: The Elders


    </h1>


    "That last battle was intense!" Wundah can hardly see ahead, but glowing insects light the pathway. They''ve been walking for some time, but have yet to encounter any monsters. The cavern is endless.


    "Yeah we had such great teamwork!" Lawa is smiling again, alive on the inside.


    She chuckles as Wundah walks in front of her, she notices her footprint on his back and dusts it off, "Was it still there?" Wundah is laughing.


    "Yeah sorry!" The cavern opens up, the ceiling is really high up, sunlight pokes through cracks above.


    "This place looks really familiar." Wundah notices a towering rock formation, "Oh no." He unsheathes his sword.


    "What is it?" Lawa unsheathes her sword.


    "Daza!" Wundah sprints towards the formation as a giant snake-like chinese dragon with arms climbs to the top of the formation, letting out a loud roar. The two Adventurers climb its body to the head as it charges a blast, but they shove their swords in its eyes. The Daza sways back and forth, roaring in pain as they hack at its neck, slowly cutting the head off. The body crashes down and begins to wiggle as its head falls to the floor.


    "Well that was anticlimactic to say the least." Lawa chuckles while sheathing her sword.


    "We did just fight a boss raid by ourselves, and the monsters can''t do anything if we blind and chop off their heads, plus we''re badasses!" Wundah sheathes his sword as items appear in their inventory.


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    "That''s pretty true, well let''s keep going." Lawa walks through the opening, "Shit."


    "What is it?" Wundah walks out, the moon is shining brightly in the sky. The landscape is in ruin, black tar covers the floor, a red sad smiley face towers up above, "Shit." Wundah unsheathes his sword.


    The two begin to sprint as a beam of fire is shot at them, "Fuck!" They both dive as the molten tar from the beam explodes, sending a shockwave of heat, "A Gorza! A fucking Gorza!"


    "We got this!" Lawa holds out her fist as she unsheathes her sword, staring at the black titan of a dragon that towers high above them.


    "Hell yeah!" Wundah smiles, bumping her fist. They sprint in two different directions.


    The Gorza still recovering from the blast, whips its tail at Lawa, who easily dodges it, the tail sparking the tar on the floor. Wundah slashes its front claw as Lawa runs up the tail towards its back. It flaps its wings and shoots fiery hot tar over the landscape, Wundah is surrounded by glowing hot tar that is about to explode at any second, "Wundah!" She quickly presses buttons on her inventory and as the tar explodes she pops a pill in her mouth. Wundah is covered in dirt by the explosion, the hole he dug protected him from the blast, but he''s confused on how he survived with no damage, "I used the only Healing Pill I could make!" Lawa screams, climbing her way up the Gorza who lands back on the floor, trying to shake her off.


    "I owe you one!" Wundah screams, rushing back into battle.


    "We''re a team! You owe me nothing!" She chuckles as she reaches the back of its neck, she viciously slices at it until she can see bone, then she slices even harder. The Gorza roars in agony until its head falls to the floor and its body goes limp. Items appear in their inventory.


    "Let''s hurry, I''m sure we¡¯re running out of time!" Wundah screams while eating a Stamina Pill.


    "Okay!" Lawa eats a Stamina Pill and they sprint across the tar-filled landscape to the towering lava-filled cavern ahead. They rush through the entrance in hopes that they aren''t too late to save their friend, in hopes that everything will turn out fine, that they could share tales of what it took to get this far.


    <h1>


    </h1>

 Chapter Ten: Broken Hammer

    <h1>Chapter Ten: Broken Hammer


    </h1>


    They rush through the opening of the cavern, piles of rocks are scattered about, wood chips and splinters cover the floor, "Bombs." Wundah whispers, searching around for Andrew.


    "Oh no." Lawa exhales as Wundah quickly glances at her.


    "What is it?" He looks at where she''s pointing with her trembling finger.


    Andrew''s broken Hammer half-buried in rubble, the tip crumbled, "Fuck man I''m sure he went out like a true Adventurer."


    "Look out!" Wundah was too caught up in his mind and didn''t notice the sharp tail flying towards him, Lawa pushes him out of the way.


    "What?" Wundah looks up, the Elder Dragon is lifting Lawa up with its tail sticking through her stomach, blood flowing from her mouth.


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    "AvatarPyro...I kept my promise. My debt is paid in full. Sorry Wundah." She gives a quick, warm-hearted smile before her body shatters into many blue fragments that float into the air.


    Wundah''s eyes are wide, filled with anger and rage, he rushes towards the dragon, who is blindly swinging it¡¯s tail. It''s eyes are gone, "Andrew fucked your ass up!" Wundah chuckles while chopping the right claw off, causing it to fall. Wundah throws his sword down and begins to punch the dragon''s face. His fists become full of blood as the dragon groans in agony. He can feel all of its teeth caving in, breaking off piece by piece. Wundah continues to punch the dragon''s lifeless body as he weeps, filled with anger and sadness. Items have popped up in his inventory but he continues to punch the dragon, this dumbass dragon that caused the death of his friends. This dragon. After time, so much time he stands up, finds his sword and sheathes it. He places it on the floor and puts Lawa''s sword in his inventory, "Someone will find use for it." He walks over to Andrew''s broken Hammer and picks it up. He presses buttons on his inventory, all that remains is the handle, he presses a few buttons to create a Long Sword. It has four deadly fangs, it glows red. Wundah sheathes his weapon and continues to press buttons on his inventory. His hands tremble, tears fall down endlessly, "Fuck!" He smiles, "Since you''re not here, I guess I''ll have to wear it. Don''t be too jealous bro." Wundah hangs the chain of Faza claws around his neck and exhales, he begins to walk out of the cavern, he takes one final look and then walks onwards with his hands in his pockets.


    <h1>


    </h1>

 Chapter Eleven: Bonds

    <h1>Chapter Eleven: Bonds


    </h1>


    He calmly jumps off of a tree, dodging many balls of lightning scattering through the air. Wundah swats three of them with a single swing, they fall like flies. There''s a trail of them, all are trying to protect their crippled King. There''s hundreds of them, but they are no match for our furious Adventurer who is determined to get revenge. The Elder Lightning Ape knows why the Adventurer is here, it''s filled with fear. It knew one day he would come for revenge, and so much time has passed. It is filled with fear, seeing his kin fall to the floor like a heap of dry leaves, it has enough. It roars, telling the rest to scurry away. The Lightning Apes leave slowly, a few refusing to abandon their King charge and face meaningless deaths. The Elder musters courage and rushes at the Adventurer. Wundah jumps in the air, "Fuck you!" He swings his sword so fast the Elder doesn''t know what happened as the teeth lodge in it¡¯s head. It goes limp and twitches on the floor. Items appear in his inventory as Wundah sheathes his sword and stares at the dead Elder, "Piece of shit." He exhales again, "Well what now?" Wundah kicks the Elder''s face and then walks off into the distance with his hands in his pockets.


    It''s been six years since the Adventurer first logged on with his friends. His journey has been a long one, a lonely one. The massive body of the Elder Mammoth Dragon falls with a crash onto the sand below. Wundah pulls his sword from the brain, flings the blood off, runs a Sharpening Stone over it once and sheathes his sword. Items pop up in his inventory, but he couldn''t care less. It''s been so long since he''s even used a Health Pill.


    He sees flames in the distance and jumps down to get a closer look. Three young Adventurers are being chased by a massive God Level Elder Fuzzy. Their faces are full of panic as they run towards Wundah, "Help us please!" One of them yells, they all have Long Swords. One stops to fight the Elder as his friends run away.


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    In his mind Wundah has flashbacks, memories that haven''t crossed his mind in years, his whole adventure in this game. He remembers his friends who have long passed, he looks down at his necklace full of Faza claws and rubs it, remembering the meaning behind it. As if he''s forgotten he looks at it once more, he''s been wearing it every day, he must have gotten so used to it that he forgot why he wore it.


    He grips his sword and rushes toward the Elder. As he passes the frightened Adventurers he smiles and gives them his Health Pills. He blocks the claw that is about to hit their friend and pushes the Elder back with a vicious swing. Wundah knows what is next, he knows what he has to do. He tosses the sword at the friend who was fighting the Elder, Wundah takes off his necklace and grips it in his hand, "Run! Take my sword and protect your friends! Live on and be brave!" Wundah shoots a smile and rushes towards the Elder as the Adventurer runs toward his friends, slowly dragging the sword. Wundah dodges its claws as he sprints with lightning speed. The three Adventurers stop and look back, "Who is he?" One asks the friend who sets the sword down.


    He gently runs his hand over the blade, "An Elder."


    Wundah jumps in the air as the Elder flies up. Wundah shoves the necklace of claws in its throat as the Elder unleashes its Supernova attack. They both fall to the floor, the Elder goes limp. Wundah''s consciousness goes dark as the three Adventurers try to give him a Health Pill. His vision goes black, the words ''GAME OVER'' are all he can see. It''s the end of his story.


    Footsteps could be heard next to him, ¡°Seems I made it in time. Heal.¡±


    End Prologue...

 Chapter One: Island

    <h1>Chapter One: Island</h1>


    I picture her in my mind, and my heart feels a deep pain, one that will never heal. I miss her but there is nothing to do, no way to fix it. She is gone and I must accept that. The memories of her linger in my soul, her lips tasted like cinnamon, the smell of her hair like dead roses. I miss everything about her, I am so empty inside. What else could I do but brood, It never crossed my mind that she would be gone, after all of that time. After all of that time.


    ¡°My love, the stars are so beautiful tonight.¡± Her arm around mine as she stares out into the endless sea, into the star filled sky, her long black hair gently flowing in the wind, the enormous wooden boat calmly bobbing up and down with the flow of the waves, the wisping of the water against the side of the boat creates a melodic rhythm that seems to float through the wind, singing in our ears, she kisses my hand with such delicacy, so softly as if not to break them, tender and with such passion, the universe surrounds us.


    ¡°I cherish these moments, for in these moments is when I feel truly alive, and although our lives are but a small portion of the whole, I am grateful to have a woman like you by my side.¡± My finger against her cold cheek, she stares at me with eyes of grief, because our lifespans are short, because one day we will perish, and it will most likely be at different times, all this, I know how she feels, for I feel the same way. And so our search for the ancient artifact continues, although every great thing comes with a price.


    Up ahead we see an island, dark and foreboding, massive jagged rocks fill the bay, we drop anchor and prep our small wooden canoe, small satchels with supplies and our swords on our backs, the cold steel against my fingertips, the dim rays of light peeking through the clouds, our armor dented and lathered in scratch marks, we lower our canoe and begin to paddle, maneuvering through the massive boulders, we are thankful the ocean is calm, she silently sings as we glide across the water, the massive volcano in the distance, a vast world yet to be explored.


    I gaze at my beautiful wife in the light of the rising sun, pure beauty amongst the dark foreboding rocks, ¡°We must tread carefully, for we do not know what type of beasts lurk ahead.¡± I look into the distance at the top of the volcano, massive birds fly near the edge.


    ¡°Aye, but our love will vanquish even the mightiest of beasts, and if not our love, then our swords.¡± She exhales, her breath like that of a dragon, her hair in two long braids, I continue to row, my body waking up, land getting closer and closer.


    ¡°Vanquish with our love? Will they die of envy? Of a broken heart that the most beautiful creature belongs to another? Whatever we face please be careful, leave me behind if you must.¡± I quickly turn my head lest her stern look rip a hole through my armor.


    The canoe digs into the sand below, she jumps out and pulls it onto the shore as I set the oar down. The chirping of birds and howling of apes fill the air. The beasts that lurk in the shadows of the forest will crumble at our swords, we will prevail.


    All this, I remember as if it were yesterday, the calm wind, the stale feeling of something going horribly awry, I can feel it all in my chest, everything before me sinking down, down to the core of my body.


    I clenched my sword, the cold steel which has taken and guided me across vast lands, countless battles and rivers of blood drunk from my enemies, this sword, my best friend and ally, hungry for more blood that is to come, for the screeching of goblins could be heard throughout the vast jungle, growing nearer and nearer.


    ¡°Hurry my love, prepare yourself for battle!¡± I quickly balance myself, prepare my mind for a long battle, and although our voyage was long and my body weary, there is no time for weakness, not now in front of the shieldmaiden I hold most dear to my heart.


    ¡°I am ready to fight, to die by your side, my world, I am ready to face whatever beasts emerge from that dark foreboding jungle, I would conquer massive woodland trolls for you with no fear in my body, for it is you that gives me strength.¡± She takes a deep breath and raises her red dragon engraved dragon scale shield.


    Five small goblins no taller than four feet rush out of the forest holding small axes, I kick sand at the nearest one, causing it to hold its eyes in agony, the pain is quickly ended with the swift swing of my blade. She bashes another with the fangs at the end of her shield, they plunge deep into the throat of it, her blade slashing through the chest of another as I quickly slice open the bellies of the other two. It seems as though they have little battle experience, which means this is new land, the new land we have been searching endless months for, a journey close to fruition.


    ¡°They are unskilled, which means they have not experienced much battle. This is unmarked land, our goal is near.¡± I say, wiping my blade off on the dirty tunic of a dead goblin, ¡°One Copper each is all they dropped.¡± I pick up the small coins that appeared next to the corpses.


    ¡°Low level grunts my love, possibly new scouts.¡± The smell of dead goblins is putrid, we put the Copper in our satchels and continue. The sand smooth and black like a fine powder, I laugh heartily, ¡°What is it my love?¡± She says, her warpaint flawless, but then I remember she got them permanently engraved with ink and dragon blood, the markings of a true warrior.


    ¡°We slay dragons and these low level goblins dare face us. The sheer weight of our power should send their knees to crumble and their spirits to drain from their bodies.¡± A huge grins appears on her face.


    ¡°Aye and we have yet to use our sword skills.¡± She attaches her shield onto her back as we walk with weapons drawn into the treeline. The sunlight not strong enough to break through the dense foliage above, we pull out our Everglow Stones and like magnets they cling to our hips, they look small and rectangular but light up the area twenty feet in all directions, usually Glow Stones are small and give off dim light two feet in all directions, but these are rare items obtained from a legendary raid.


    ¡°Watch by your left foot, a Tangle Root.¡± She quickly stabs it, a monster that uses vines to trap prey. The rest of the vine retreats deep into the jungle.


    ¡°Sneaky little creatures aren¡¯t they?¡± Her smile is my entire world, those shining red eyes.


    ¡°It will return, hopefully it has some intelligence in it and picks the wiser option.¡± I calmly chop the head off of a snake that was resting on a branch above, the thick vines becoming tiresome, ¡°Pardon me love, let me clear the way.¡±


    She takes two steps backwards, ¡°Yes of course my love.¡±


    I grip my sword, ¡°Demonic Slice.¡± My black blade glows red for an instant as I slice through the air, leveling everything ahead of us for a mile, ¡°Maybe I used too much power.¡± The bodies of plant monsters lay strewn about the ground as we calmly walk through the chopped down jungle. The path up ahead looks void of all life, a massive crevice which is the pathway, ¡°Underground passages, could be old dwarf mines?¡±


    ¡°Or human colonies who mined for gold.¡±  The valley reaches the skies above, but the pathway curves downward, far below into the abyss. We are prepared for the numerous beasts of the underground. The claws and fangs that will only be seen through the light of our Everglow Stones, we will prevail.


    The walls smell of earth and stone, soot and metal, the small mine-like entrance widens to reveal a grand hall with massive pillars of iron as a lasting foundation, our footsteps echo along with each shift of our armor plates, ¡°Ah this reminds me of that one time we fought that mansion full of Minotaur.¡± I tell her, memories flashing through my mind.


    ¡°You took them all down along with the whole mansion!¡± Her laughter is music to my ears.


    ¡°I should work on self control, but then again we would''ve been cleaning minotaur guts off of our armor all night and that sounds very unpleasing.¡±


    ¡°Minotaur guts is the most foul stench in the realm!¡± I chuckle and point ahead of me.


    ¡°And of course the first enemy we see are-¡±


    ¡°Stinky minotaur!¡± Her roars wake a pack of six sleeping minotaur who panic and reach for their battle axes but she is already pouncing on them like an untamed lioness, stabbing furiously with her sword. Two wail in agony at the sight of this ferocious beast and begin to run, she slices both of their legs off and chops their heads off as they fall towards the ground. The smell of minotaur guts permeate through the massive hall. We plug our noses and continue walking.


    ¡°My wild woman! Agh how I love watching you battle. It makes my knees go weak and my body hard.¡± Even under those tattoos I can see her face blush.


    ¡°Stop you flatter me too much!¡± She hits my arm with her palm.


    ¡°Ow you''re going to shatter my armor!¡± I chuckle but glance at the four spikes where her knuckles are. The Dragonslayer Fists is what they call her, legends live on in this world. And I the Dragonslayer Sword, not to boast.


    ¡°Oh hush my love, I do hope we face more enemies, I have yet to fulfill my bloodlust.¡± How many rivers of blood have we fed the land, how many more will we spill?


    ¡°We will soon I am sure of it.¡± I can smell blood up ahead, massive amounts of blood and the stench of death.


    ¡°Agh yes a worthy opponent!¡± She looks at two massive iron doors with the skeletons of many creatures imbedded into it, she punches both of them and they go flying through the massive room, into the wall, ¡°Here you can have your sword back, it''s not really for me. Thanks love!¡± She kisses my cheek and rushes into the room.


    ¡°Have fun! I''ll find a seat somewhere with a nice view.¡± I wave as she runs into the middle of the room, the system doesn''t even warn us for boss rooms anymore. I leap up above to a broken column and sit, a soft green glow lights the room, mountains of bones pile near the edges but the Everglow Stone lights up what she needs.


    ¡°Come out and play!¡± She cracks her neck and her knuckles, ¡°Agh yes that''s good!¡± She becomes wild, bloodthirsty. Twenty minotaur emerge from an opening, seven look at me and growl.


    ¡°Nah ugh! Pay attention to her, You¡¯re going to need all of your warriors, all of them.¡± I point at her and their eyes widen.


    ¡°Ta!¡± Instant Skill: accelerates body five feet any direction at light speed, she moves quickly, punching holes through the minotaur, uppercutting one, half of its head turning into paste. The rest panic and blow their horn. The ground begins to tremble as an army of minotaur fill the room, and out of the massive hall comes a giant minotaur the size of a mountain, ¡°You kill the small ones please!¡±


    ¡°Whatever you want me to do my love.¡± I leap down, ¡°Well sorry boys.¡± I clutch my sword as they begin to charge at me, she leaps high into the air using her skill, ¡°Demonic Slice.¡± Body parts go flying and I accidently slice through the shins of the boss. Her fist drills a massive hole through its head, ¡°Run before the smell hits!¡±


    ¡°Ta!Ta!Ta!¡± She disappears down the hall as I sprint after her.


    ¡°No fair!¡± The smell of warm guts lingers, ¡°Catch!¡± I Hold up a special item, a dragon tusk that came from a dragon who used magnetism to fight. All of the coins that dropped fly toward the fang and I catch them with my small pouch, I''ll count later. I rush down the hall once more, sprinting lest the smell follow me.


    The cavern is lit by green glowing crystals that emerge from the ceiling, ¡°Agh that was fun my love.¡±


    ¡°I don''t think I''ll ever get used to the smell of minotaur entrails.¡± I clear my nose but can''t seem to get the stench out.


    We continue walking down the emerald corridor, the long voyage has done a toll on my mind, our Stamina Pills replenish the body, but there are no pills to fix a tired mind, ¡°This is a good place for camp, I''ll take first watch while you sleep.¡± I dig into my satchel and pull out our sleeping bags, her fluffy pillow and some tea crystals along with our mugs. I pour us drinks, ¡°Lay down and rest, I''ll go set traps. Hurry my love take off your armor and rest easy, I will guard you.¡± I kiss her forehead as she begins to take her gauntlets off.


    ¡°You are so kind to me, I will rest easy with not a single worry, thank you my love.¡± She quickly takes off the rest of her armor and leaps into the sleeping bags.


    ¡°Call for me if you need me okay?¡± I smile and wave.


    ¡°Goodnight love!¡± She whispers, falling into the dream state, how long it has been since we''ve slept.


    ¡°Night night my Queen.¡± I begin walking towards the opposite corridor, I''m certain no enemies will walk through the room of minotaur guts. The halls are massive, as if made my titans, a closer look at the cobblestone filled cracks in the pillars reveal that they are made of gold, with an unknown ancient language engraved in them. I make my way to the end of the hall, there are no monsters in sight. I reach in my bag and pull out my jar of Dragon Mucus and cover the doorway with it. Any monster that steps on it will be trapped, I also put bells on a string next to the doorway, so we''ll know if anything attacks. I walk a few feet away from the door and attach my hammock to two sturdy looking pillars and rest easy, my eyelids heavy and the fuzz that covers my tired eyes fade into darkness.


    My dream is a myriad of colors, all in the shapes of dragons, swirling and swirling. It feels as if an eternity passes, I wake up refreshed, brand new. The mucus is dry, it takes a minimum of three days to dry, as I said before the voyage has been long.


    I stretch my limbs and unhook my hammock, fold it and put it back in my bag. All is calm and quiet, I walk back down the corridor towards my love, the lonely crunching of pebbles underneath my armored boots, the silence that fills the air. And there she is, sleeping peacefully, curled up in the sleeping bag. I reach into my bag and pull out some Fire Stone, and ingredients for food, a pan and some firewood. The sweet smell of meat cooking drifts calmly to her nose, and as if the meat sizzling was an incantation to summon her, she opens her eyes and licks her lips then yawns, ¡°Morning love.¡± I say with a smile.


    ¡°Good morning! How many days has it been?¡± She stretches like a feline.


    ¡°About three or four days at most, it seems as though we were very tired.¡± My laughter rings throughout the vast space, filling the emptiness.


    ¡°I didn''t know we had any meat left?¡± She folds the sleeping bags and puts them away.


    ¡°I scavenged what I could from those dead minotaur while you were sleeping.¡± I smile.


    ¡°No you did not!¡± She clutches her gauntlets.


    ¡°No of course I didn''t don''t hit me!¡± I put my hands up quickly.


    ¡°What was it last time, three broken ribs?¡± She gives me a stern look.


    ¡°A broken arm as well.¡± I continue to cook.


    ¡°Sorry love, you know I get mad easily.¡± She kisses my cheek.


    ¡°You have the hot headedness of a minotaur my love and I mean that in the best of ways so don''t hit me.¡± I smile.


    ¡°You get a free pass this time!¡± My mouth waters from the simmering fat.


    ¡°Thank you for showing me mercy my love, ah and breakfast is finished.¡± I pull out two pieces of bread and we begin to eat, the sweet tender juices promise a great morning or night, for you can never tell the time of day inside the shafts of a mine, but to us, morning is simply whenever you awaken.


    She eats like a wild starving wolf, as do I. And after we''ve had our fill and pack our things, we equip or gear once more, ¡°My armor feels lighter already love, I can''t wait to crush more foes with these hands!¡±


    Wow her beautiful smile heals my broken soul, ¡°We trek through uncharted lands, who knows how strong our opponents are, so please be weary love, and if we are in a life or death situation please leave me behind.¡±


    She holds me ever so closely, ¡°You know as well as I that I would rather die by your side than live a thousand years without waking up next to you.¡± She kisses my cheek.


    ¡°Aye, I do love. A life without you would be meaningless.¡± I kiss her softly, we make love, our moans of pleasure ringing throughout the deepest caverns, must have sparked the pleasure action in the beasts as well for the moans are greeted with moans in return, such a pity we will have to slay them eventually.


    We use Water Crystals to wash off, and soft wool to dry off. Now that our minds, body and spirit are well rested we can head out on our journey once more. My equipment feeling lighter than ever. A small icon appears near the exit, ¡°Caution you are entering a Legendary Raid Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°My love, legendary raids are done with multiple guilds of players with at least thirty healers, what shall we do?¡± Her tone is sarcastic and confident.


    ¡°We should still be cautious my love.¡± I am hesitant to continue, why am I hesitant?


    ¡°We shall destroy all in our path!¡± She clenches her fists, a look of determination in her eyes.


    I see visions in my mind, of white fire that is cold, dragons dancing, Behemoths, massive beasts the size of mountains, the blood of the woman I love covering me, ¡°We can''t go in there.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Her eyes are worried.


    ¡°When was the last time we''ve ever gotten a notification of a boss room? Not since we slayed our first dragon. Why now has it warned us?¡± I point to the icon that has yet to disappear.


    ¡°We are strong, we will overcome anything in our path love!¡± She is stubborn as always.


    I don''t tell her about my visions, for I don''t want to have them in my mind, ¡°If we go then promise me one thing?¡±This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    ¡°Yes? Anything my love.¡± She calms down a bit.


    ¡°If there is any chance of danger and I mean if a monster is able to do damage to us, then you must leave me behind and come back with our elite fighters and save me. It doesn''t matter how long it takes, I will hold the beast off until you return.¡± My eyes must show fright.


    ¡°Why are you saying this? What are you not telling me?¡± She sees through my soul.


    ¡°I have had visions, and you must do what I say. Please.¡± The desperation in my voice must worry her.


    ¡°I promise, I will use my Ever Mana Stone and travel across the land if I have to. Now lets fight with no restraint my love!¡± She pounds her fists together as I stretch my arms.


    ¡°Aye lets fight gloriously.¡± We step through the door.


    What I thought would lead into another cavern leads to a stairway, I look up above at the winding endless stairs, ¡°Looks like you have it rough huh!¡± She pats my back, ¡°Ta! Ta! Ta!¡± She travels upwards.


    ¡°Why must you be so cruel.¡± I begin my long walk up. What seems like an hour of walking up I sit down to catch my breath, ¡°Ah finally.¡±


    A rope falls slowly past my set of stairs, I grab hold and tug twice, quickly wrapping it around me, two more tugs and I get quickly pulled up. The sound of screaming could be heard as three minotaur fall quickly past me also tied to rope, my lovers handiwork, a effective pulley method.


    ¡°That was fast.¡± A hallway filled with minotaur parts.


    ¡°Yup! We still have lots of enemies to kill, but I thought I would save some for you as a warm up.¡± She has the loveliest smile on her face.


    ¡°Thank you love.¡± I untie the rope and put my sword away, then I search my bag for my strongest sword, the Blackfire Sword, made from the dreaded Hades Dragon. Anything this blade touches becomes covered in black flame that can burn through the most dense metal, I will not take any chances.


    ¡°Looks like you''re not holding back love? I suppose I shall use my strongest weapons as well.¡± She quickly puts her gauntlets away and digs through her bag and pulls out two shimmering white gauntlets that have massive trench spikes on the knuckles, the Vampiric Impalers made from Vlad the Vampire King. They give Lifesteal to the user and a special attack boost when fighting in the absence of sunlight.


    ¡°All set?¡± I slowly walk towards the opening before us.


    ¡°Yup!¡± She walks beside me.


    The doorway leads into a massive room, endless as if we are above ground on a different world. There is no moon out, just the light from our Everglow Stones, ¡°I¡¯m not a fan of fighting in the dark love.¡± I reach into my bag and throw Glow Stones as far as I can, it does little to help, but I can make out many figures and beasts with glowing eyes ready to attack, ¡°Demonic Slice.¡± The land is covered in flame and body parts, ¡°Let us continue.¡±


    We walk past the remains of numerous enemies, ¡°Look out!¡±


    I block sickle-like fangs as she punches through the body of a serpent, I stand there in shock, ¡°How could anything survive my Demonic Slice, especially with Blackfire Sword equipped?¡±


    ¡°Maybe it was hiding underground?¡± She quickly says to comfort me.


    ¡°Hopefully. There seems to be no end to these enemies.¡± Movement could be seen in the dim light of our Glow Stones scattered about the area, sharp hooves, talons and tentacles, various beasts of the dark.


    ¡°We will destroy them all my love!¡± She punches through a praying mantis looking enemy, I can see a massive beast rushing at us from the distance.


    ¡°Demonic Slice!¡± I cut through the air, the beast uses five of its many arms to block my attack, they all fall to the floor in a burning pile. It continues rushing towards us.


    ¡°Ta! Ta!¡± She punches the beasts face, the impact so loud as if dynamite were set off in the hall, the beast punches towards her, but it is deflected by another one of her punches, followed by another punch to the head. The beast falls to the floor. We walk towards the exit, into the next chamber that emerges to the outside world. The sun shines brightly, or at least what we perceived to be the sun, ¡°That''s the biggest Everglow Stone I''ve seen.¡±


    ¡°That is such a magnificent sight to behold.¡± We have little time to take in the beauty of this chamber, for already an eight-armed minotaur in dense armor covering his body sprints from across the vast room, its steps shaking the ground as it roars loudly.


    ¡°I got this!¡± She takes a deep breath.


    ¡°Be careful please.¡± I plead, I wonder if she hears the desperation in my voice.


    A determined look on her face as she sprints towards the enemy, within no time she is dodging massive fists, punching the weak spots in between the armor, she grabs a hand and flips the minotaur onto its back and begins punching the face until it is nothing but a pile of flesh.


    She calms down once more and waves at me, ¡°See no trouble at all!¡±


    ¡°Look out!¡± My body reacts on its own, the attack was so fast how did I even block that? Before me is a shirtless beast with massive black horns, his grey body hard like steel, blood red eyes glaring at me, the pressure from my sword blocking his fist digs my feet into the ground below, and although he is covered in the black flames it has no effect, I swing upwards and he vanishes.


    My passive skill Intuition Automatically blocks attacks that can''t be seen with the naked eye by 100% is working at full force, this beast faster than her speed skill. How can something be faster than the speed of light yet so strong? I look above his head, Grimgar the Terrible and close to it usually is their level but this has five question marks. How can that be? I block a punch with my sword and the force sends me flying towards the wall. I push off of it, leaving a huge crater, ¡°Demonic Slice Barrage!¡± She is behind me  drinking potions as my sword destroys everything in front of me. Grimgar stands still, taunting me, ¡°Grand Demonic Slice!¡± My strongest attack, concentrated into a single line the size of a spider web, his eyes open wide as he holds his chest and screams. I put my sword away, confident that I slayed him. The attack is too fast for me to react, even my skill isn''t fast enough, all I see is the ground where he stood destroyed, a fist crashing down on me.


    ¡°Ta!¡± I am moved a few feet over, ¡°Ta!¡± A punch blocked, ¡°Ta!¡± A kick blocked. They''re moving too fast for me to keep up, she must have drunk a speed potion to boost her stats.


    The sound of metal clashing on what seems to be metal rings throughout the hall, just how strong is this beast? My strongest sword and attack did so little damage to it, the health bar slowly draining from her attacks, it gets to 25% and begins to aggro, bouncing around the walls.


    I pull out my Black Lightning Blade and dual wield, I manage to hit him and his body begins to twitch. As I thought lightning would have a special effect on it, ¡°Finish him now!¡±


    ¡°Got it!¡± She rushes and plunges her fist through his body. The beast vaporizes into thin air, leaving behind twenty Gold Nugz. Our levels go up to 61.


    ¡°I thought we were at max level?¡± I say as she flicks through her stats.


    ¡°We''re supposed to be.¡± I say, trying to process what just happened, sheathing my swords and trying to calm down, ¡°Fighting something ten, or even twenty levels above us would be dangerous, maybe we should head back and get reinforcements?¡± She must hear the worry in my voice.


    ¡°We will be fine love, we''ve made it too far to turn back now. We''re so close to our goal I can feel it!¡± How can I say no to those passionate eyes, and although my judgement says to turn back, I sigh and we continue onwards.


    The chamber leads to a small staircase, climbing up with ease we emerge into the outside world once more. The moon shines brightly across the land, the shrieks and growls of many beasts echo throughout the vast forest behind us. Before us are endless plains as far as the eye can see, the tall grass swaying to and fro with the calm ocean breeze that drifts ever so elegantly through the air, as if dancing to the tune of a flute, such a beautiful landscape, but such unease in my stomach.


    ¡°Hey love?¡± She kisses my cheek and I look into her eyes.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I got a bone to pick with you.¡± She''s smiling.


    I''m a bit confused, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°You''ll understand in a few seconds hehe!¡± She''s laughing hysterically.


    ¡°You are too much you know that.¡± In the distance running towards us is an army of skeleton warriors clad in black armor, spearmen, some holding swords, others holding bow and arrows.


    ¡°Finally something besides stinky minotaur!¡± She stretches her arms.


    ¡°I could probably take them all out in one blow.¡± My confidence is glowing.


    ¡°Hmm that is true. Go ahead and do it my love, I''ll fight the boss.¡± She gives me a thumbs up.


    ¡°Very well, the boss is yours.¡± I draw my sword as the sky is filled with arrows speeding towards us, ¡°Demonic Slice!¡± My slice deflects the sea of arrows and destroys the whole army, black flame covers the land. All is silent for the longest time. Then the bones begin to shift, the fragments and splinters from the army move together in a massive pile, spiraling like a vortex a few feet off of the ground. It forms into two massive arms, with a bulky muscular body.


    ¡°Ooh nice a Bone Golem! I get dibs you promised!¡± She''s all fired up and ready to go.


    ¡°He''s all yours, just be careful please.¡± I reach into my bag and pull out a large log. Taking a seat I glance to my left at a unarmed skeleton warrior who puts his hands up in surrender. I see her ready to pounce on it, ¡°Wait don''t kill him, I could use the company.¡± I dig in my bag and drink a purple potion, giving me the ability to talk to the undead.


    ¡°Jeez fine! I''ll be back love!¡± She walks towards the golem.


    The skeleton warrior gives a gesture of relief as I pull out another log, ¡°Come take a seat and relax, if possible I would like to gain your loyalty. It seems you are the leader, but you meant us no harm. Even if I didn''t deflect those arrows, I saw that they were rounded practice ones and the warriors I destroyed were the ones possessed by the golem, I also saw you hide everyone while the dust covered the area. What a great leader you are. ¡±


    ¡°Aye we did, yer kind words humble a dead man like meself, thank you for sparing our lives, my name is Denis the Boneless, we have been under that horrible golem¡¯s rule for far too long. With your powers, if you manage to liberate us then our undying loyalty you will have. Aye! Yer brave woman is in grave danger, no pun intended, physical attacks don''t work on the beast!¡± Denis quickly gets up but I put my hand out.


    ¡°Relax my friend, the woman can manage a mere golem. Just rest easy and watch.¡± I smile, reaching into my bag once more, pulling out two wooden mugs and a Dragon''s Venom Ale Crystal, I fill up our mugs and place the orange crystal on my lap, offering a mug to him, ¡°You look tense have a drink.¡±


    ¡°I am an undead, we are unable to eat or drink Sir.¡± He is already giving me honorable titles.


    ¡°This is my own ale made from the saliva of a dragon and mixed with certain items. I call it Dragon''s Venom Ale drinkable to all creatures alive or not. Go ahead and try.¡± He timidly takes the mug and hesitates, ¡°Don''t worry it isn''t poisonous, and even if it is you¡¯re already deceased.¡± We both chuckle heartily.


    ¡°Aye much thanks to you Sir!¡± The liquid is quickly poured into his mouth, his body glowing orange, ¡°Sir I can actually taste it! And this relaxation buff makes me feel as if I am drunk! You could make a fortune selling this I am so humble, thank you for allowing me to drink such a rare ale.¡± I refill his cup.


    My arm around his shoulder, ¡°No need to thank me, just become my drinking partner when we return to my Kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Kingdom Sir?¡±


    ¡°Oops time to watch the fight!¡± I sip my drink, the army of skeletons watch from a nearby hill, the golem more massive than the minotaur. The arms muscular and filled with jagged bone, she sprints towards the beast with no fear, as she gets nearer she begins to move so fast in a zig-zag pattern towards it, the two swing their fists and collide, a loud boom followed by a shockwave of wind sweeping through our feet, the two are standing their ground. No beast has matched her strength, I''m worried, a cold chill runs up my spine. From the floor comes out two arms but she teleports up above, then crashes down on the golem but it does no damage, a barrage of spikes rise from the ground trying to impale her but she punches them into dust, the golem lunges but she dodges, teleporting high above into the sky. She lingers for a moment and then speeds downward at great speed, stopping in front of the golem¡¯s face and punching, the air pressure crushing the massive body into the ground, a small black crystal floating slightly above the floor is quickly crushed and her Exp gauge goes up a bit, ¡°See nothing to worry about.¡± I warmly smile at Denis, who is cheering loudly.


    ¡°You have our loyalty Sir, we will do anything you ask of us!¡± He bows.


    ¡°You don''t need to bow, thank you. My first order is to have a great time and drink until we return!¡± I reach into my bag and pull out many mugs and a second ale crystal, then magical armor and weapons, ¡°Here equip these to your men and prepare to aid us if we need you. Our journey has just begun, and your liberation from the beast is something to celebrate! We will return!¡±


    ¡°Aye we are so humbled by your generosity! Thank you my Lord! We will await your return and if you need call upon us at any time!¡± The skeleton army raises their mugs and cheer triumphantly.


    ¡°Did you see how strong that guy was!?¡± She''s smiling and wiping sweat from her brow, ¡°Drunk already I see!¡±


    ¡°We ugh made new friends, this is Denis the Fearless.¡± I clink mugs with him and we drink some more.


    ¡°Aye you humble me Sir, that was a beautiful battle M¡¯lady, much respect and honor to thee, you have our undying loyalty! Ahahaha!¡± We both laugh.


    ¡°Agh you jokesters!¡± She kisses my cheek and grabs ahold of my hand, ¡°Come come! We have more to do! We will call upon you brave warriors soon enough! Farewell!¡±


    I quickly hand my mug and crystal to Denis, ¡°Aye see you soon! Be safe!¡±


    ¡°We will await your return Sir! Safe travels ya hear! Safe travels!¡± Denis waves his mug at me. I wave farewell to my friend.


    ¡°It seems you make new friends everywhere we go love.¡± She smiles.


    ¡°Our kingdom needs to be filled, it''s a shame we destroy everything in our path.¡± I stretch my arms.


    ¡°A kingdom filled with monsters and humans, it would be a crazy idea for most.¡± She laughs softly.


    ¡°I guess we''re a bit crazy love. I trust our commander is keeping the kingdom safe and in order after all of this time away.¡± We walk onwards through the plains.


    ¡°I''m sure everyone is happy!¡± The kingdom is the last thing on my mind, for the path ahead seems more and more dangerous with each step.


    We walk in silence towards the edge of the field, up ahead is a mountain range that leads to the volcano. Massive dragons could be seen flying in and out of the clouds so elegantly. I am lost for words. A staircase could be seen leading up to the top of the volcano, a massive castle rests on the outer rim. ¡°I really don''t want to climb a mountain right now.¡±


    ¡°We can be lazy and use mounts love.¡± She smiles and digs through her bag, pulling out two small summoning horns. We each blow one.


    ¡°Come on something good! If I have to ride a slug up the stairs I''ll just chop the volcano in half.¡± A memory of this one time she got a chimera and I got a slug appears in my mind.


    ¡°Come on give me a good one too!¡± Out of the floor a bright light emerges, taking the form of a summoned creature at random.


    ¡°No way.¡± Why does life always test me like this?


    ¡°Hey don''t be mean to him, it''s not his fault he''s a slug! Plus he has a really cool saddle!¡± She''s sitting on a griffin.


    ¡°Yeah the saddle is pretty cool, ugh I guess I''ll meet you at the top, but don''t fight anything until I get there!¡± The saddle is made of a black metal with extra cushioning.


    ¡°Okay okay I won''t! See you soon!¡± She kisses me and then shouts, signaling the griffin to lift off.


    ¡°Well, let''s get a move on my old friend.¡± The slug lets out a tiny shriek of a roar. Slowly we slide up the stairs, and with no creatures in sight I assume that this is the final boss. I could only imagine how strong it is, and it frightens me. What if one of us should perish? Who will rule our kingdom, how would the other cope with being left alone in this world? What meaning would anything have if I didn''t have her? How would I react. My mind is in a morbid state, I drink a potion that clears my mind and focuses mana recovery. Everything will turn out fine, I am sure it will. Just how long was I in thought? For there she sits at the edge of the stairs, petting the griffin.


    ¡°That slug got faster, probably because you make fun of it so much, see you''re not the only one working hard.¡± She pets the slug who purrs softly.


    ¡°Aye that is true, agh that skeleton got me talking like him!¡± I let out a hearty laugh, then I am back to being focused when I look at the massive gold chamber doors ahead of us.


    She looks back, ¡°Last boss huh? Seems like everything we''ve looked for is kept in there, this whole journey is almost at a end, or is it just the beginning of another one?¡± She smiles, ¡°Everything will be fine!¡±


    ¡°Did you have a vision?¡± I could see past her facade.


    ¡°Of course not, I would''ve told you if I did.¡± She gives a reassuring smile.


    ¡°Okay love if you say so.¡± I turn to the slug, ¡°Thank you, you can return now, keep getting stronger my noble mount.¡± This may be the last time I am able to speak to it, I hope it knows how thankful I am.


    It lets out a mighty, ¡°Kreee!¡± And disappears.


    She rubs the beak of the griffin, ¡°Thank you, see you soon okay.¡± A squawk and the griffin disappears as well.


    I take a deep breath and I double check my gear, everything looks fine and ready for battle.


    ¡°You ready?¡± She cracks her knuckles.


    ¡°Nova?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I love you.¡± This may be the last time I tell her that.


    ¡°And I love you as well Umbra, my Umbra.¡± I hold her in my arms for the longest time, gently kissing her for what could be the last time.


    ¡°Shall we go make all of our dreams come true?¡± She smiles.


    ¡°Yes we shall.¡± I will fight until my body can no longer move.


    We slowly push open the giant doors, the inside is one single massive room made out of glittering diamond, there is no time to take in the beauty of the chamber, for a volley of white lightning strikes are hailing from the ceiling, we dodge as fast as we can.


    ¡°Sit boy.¡± I block a punch, and end up in a daze, sitting on the floor, ¡°Nova what happened!¡± Her armor is battered, she is breathing heavily while holding her left arm, it''s bloody and her hand is crushed.


    Before her is a humanoid looking white dragon, a smirk on his face, ¡°I fought at light speed. Usually everything moves as if it were in slow motion, but this beast moved faster than I could keep up, as if it could manipulate time itself.¡±


    ¡°Agh so it seems you are clever, let me introduce myself. I am Deus Ex Machina, Lord of Time. A dragon that has gone past the mere limitations of this world, I am God.¡± A evil gleam in his eyes.


    ¡°Nova we have to retreat!¡± I try to stand, but the beast is already clutching my neck, holding me up against the wall, Nova is on the floor across the room unconscious.


    ¡°None can escape the endless flow of time, death. But I see your past, everything you''ve been through to get to this point. The hardships you''ve overcome. I feel as though you can grant my wish. If you help me I will spare her life, for I am a merciful god.¡± His voice is cold, robotic.


    ¡°I would do anything for you, just please spare her.¡± I am sitting on a chair in a white room.


    ¡°Once, a long time ago I lived a normal life.¡± A small screen appears before us, showing a beautiful white dragon soaring through the sky, ¡°And then I was attacked and captured by a Necromancer, the evil king who was vanquished by the Five Kingdoms, but by the time they saved me it was too late. His experiments and torture turned me into what you see in front of you, more machine than anything, and although I can control time and travel freely back and forth, I have no power in altering the past. You must unite the five kingdoms and defeat the Evil Lord before he captures me. I wish to have lived a normal life.¡±


    ¡°But if he doesn''t capture you, how will I return? Won''t I be stuck there?¡± I can''t take my eyes off of Nova. My gaze returns to his shining violet eyes.


    ¡°I was a time dragon before I was captured, the Necromancer just made me robotic and immortal. Drink this potion.¡± He hands me a vial filled with black liquid.


    I drink it with no questions asked, a bitter taste slowly falling down my throat, ¡°Your blood?¡± I ask calmly.


    ¡°Yes, once you are near my past self, I will be able to materialize and talk some sense into the past me, that is if you survive long enough.¡± A grin on his face.


    ¡°Will you give me your word no harm will come to her?¡± My Nova, my precious Nova.


    ¡°You have my word. See.¡± She is sleeping in a hammock in between two pillars, her arm is healed and is covered by a warm looking blanket, ¡°I must warn you though, if you die there is no returning, and she will perish. Years over there will be mere minutes here, you will feel each passing day without the woman you love so do hurry if you want to return. Oh and since you will be in the past, your level will return to one.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Sir, with all due respect I am ready to leave. Could I say goodbye one last time to the woman I love?¡± Our power levels are on different ends. I am powerless against him.


    ¡°Of course, please accept my quest and then depart when you are ready. I am counting on you to end my suffering. Thank you Umbra, I am sorry I had to force you, knowing your honor I am sure you would have done it out of the kindness of your heart, alas I only have the power to send one of you and we both know how stubborn she is. Take your time and enter the warp gate when you are ready. I shall take my leave. Thank you.¡± I am caught off guard by the amount of respect shown, ¡°Oh and one more thing, a reminder of what you are fighting for.¡± He places a gold chain necklace of a dragon in my hand, it opens up to reveal a picture of Nova riding her griffin, so much beauty in one picture.


    ¡°Thank you. I will do my best. I understand. I will cherish this locket for all eternity. I am humble and thankful for your kindness.¡± I bow, he bows and then walks out of the chamber. I slowly walk over to the hammock, ¡°My Nova, I will return. And I won''t rest until I do. I will return. I love you. I love you with all of my being.¡± I kiss my sleeping queen softly, knowing it is the last time I will see her for who knows how long. I memorize her face, I kiss her cheek.


    ¡°Let me go instead. I''ll beat your ass Deus, you can''t keep me locked up in a force field.¡± She whispers, rolling over and cuddling her blanket. I can''t help but chuckle.


    So that''s what happened, she broke her arm forcing her way out, ¡°I love you so much.¡±


    ¡°I love you so so much.¡± She whispers.


    I kiss her one last time and walk next to the portal. I glance back one more time, my heart is in so much pain, ¡°I will be back my love.¡± I walk into the portal.

 Chapter Two: Survival

    <h1>Chapter Two: Survival</h1>


    A blinding light sucks me through a wormhole for the longest time, I don''t know how long, just the feeling of endless floating. I finally land on solid ground, my body feels heavier, weaker.


    ¡°Well this sucks.¡± I say to myself, I spawn with no armor or weapon. Just a plain black long sleeve shirt and black pants with tattered boots, I look around me and seem to be in the middle of a forest. I need to find a weapon fast before any enemies arrive. I feel so vulnerable, so weak. All of my Nugz, skills and equipment are gone, But I must fight for Nova. I rub the necklace and my mind is focused. Essentials for survival, food, weapon, water. Years of dungeon crawling have prepared me for this, I quickly search for a broken branch, a rock, anything. I find a long pole of a branch and rub it against a rock, trying to make it as sharp as I can. It does little good but shave a few splinters off, I must hurry so a dull branch will have to do. I walk as quietly as I can through the large spaced out trees, stopping every now and then to listen for approaching enemies. I hear footsteps coming from up ahead, I duck behind a tree and peek out at the source of the noise. A level 2 green goblin holding a small knife walks without a care in the world down the path. I don''t think I can kill it with this stick and he''s too fast for me to fight at this level, what should I do. I ponder through every possible scenario and then decide upon one I think will work. I pick up a small rock by my feet and wait for it to be near my tree. I throw the rock over his head and the rock hits a nearby tree, the goblin turns to where the sound came from and I take that moment to grab the knife and slice its throat. The pained gurgle as it chokes on blood and dies. I gain a bit of Exp. and loot the knife holster, it dropped one single Copper. That was probably just a scout, and there must be a whole den of them somewhere close by. I''m barely level 1, a few hits by them and I''ll be done for so I have to be careful. My mind is in panic mode, it''s been years since I was this weak, I''m just glad my mental survival knowledge remained intact. I slowly continue walking through the forest, every snap of a twig, every little movement my body is in full attack mode. I must calm myself, two more goblins in the distance, one with an axe, another with a wooden club. Should take out the axe one first, can¡¯t fight both of them at the same time, level too low, have to seperate them, slowly I sneak behind the one with the axe and shove my knife into the back of its neck while holding its mouth, then I grab the axe and throw it into the forehead of the other goblin who grunts softly before falling over onto the floor. Two more Copper, I keep the axe and tie the holster around my waist. I need to find out my location as well and head in a direction where there would be a village, I don¡¯t have enough Nugz for supplies and armor. What to do, what to do. I walk to a nearby tree and grab ahold of a vine, giving it a hard tug to make sure it can carry my weight, I pull myself up slowly, the trees being as massive as the towers in the Fire Kingdom. It takes me a long time to climb, I am filled with sweat, the flies buzzing around my face, I look down and it¡¯s as if I climbed to the top of a mountain. I walk along the massive tree branches and can see far into the distance, winding rivers, mountains, the sun high above, must be mid day, and there in the distance I see an outpost. Looks like a two day walk at most, depending on how many enemies I run into. That is the goal for now, I just need to keep on fighting, maybe get a sword soon but I doubt any goblins would have a sword. The time to rest is over, I memorize the terrain before me and make my descent down the tree, I need armor, possibly a wooden shield, but that would drop my speed, maybe I should stick with the knife and axe, I can take out two goblins quickly, maybe three if I have to. The way down is quicker than how long it took to get up, I must keep my mind sharp and focused, I quickly jog through the treeline, stopping here and there to listen for enemies. The sweet smell of meat hits my nose, I can¡¯t help but follow the scent. A goblin rests at a small fire, happily cooking a rabbit, singing to itself. I am sorry friend, but I must save my love no matter how many rivers of blood I spill. I quickly hold his mouth and slice his throat. Like a vulture I quickly devour the food, I take the small coin pouch on his hip, one Silver plus the four Copper, maybe I¡¯ll have enough for a weak sword. I continue running quickly, there¡¯s a riverbed that I can follow down towards my destination, I want to get as far as I can before nightfall. Oh no, ¡°Somebody help! Please!¡± A horde of goblin are chasing a girl, she looks like a elf mage, there¡¯s too many of them for me to fight, two heavy set brawlers with clubs in each hand, one archer and five grunts with axes. I am hesitating as the mage trips over a tree limb and falls. I can feel Nova punching my arm, saying something along the lines of I¡¯m a man and should be protecting a woman in need. I sigh and rush into action, sprinting around the tree to take out the archer first, I knife his face and take the bow and two arrows, I quickly shoot to the back of the heads of both brawlers and then throw my axe into one of the grunts. They are startled and panic as I hit one with the bow and slice another one¡¯s neck. I grab the axe from one and throw it at another, with one left it starts to run away but I quickly tackle it and end the panicked squeals coming out of his mouth. I quickly collect the eight Copper and three of the axes and grab the mage by the hand, ¡°No time to talk we have to move before more come.¡±


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s get proof of our hunt.¡± She nods her head and quickly chops the ring studded ears off of the brawlers and places them in a pouch. The item collection system must be outdated, this must be more primitive compared where I came from. Weird, I need to compare the differences in mechanics, but there¡¯s no time to waste, ¡°Okay we should leave.¡±


    We quickly sprint deeper into the endless trees for what seemed to be ten minutes before squatting behind a massive tree trunk. I scout the area and there seems to be no enemies in sight, ¡°How are you even alive with no armor or gear?¡± She peers over me, staring above my head, ¡°Holy smokes a Dragon Slayer class?! No way I''ve only heard of those in legend but never knew they actually existed!¡±


    ¡°Yup, that''s me.¡± I look above her head it shows her name Embra level 10, ¡°So you''re a noob and ran into a mob train?¡± I begin to laugh at this short, robed glasses wearing elf with long blonde hair whose face turns red.


    ¡°What are you talking about You¡¯re only level 4!¡± She clutches her staff and I put my hands up in surrender.


    ¡°Woah there relax, enemies up ahead.¡± I think my sudden change of mood startled her, she ducks behind me and clutches her staff.


    ¡°How many are there?¡± She timidly says.


    ¡°Just a twenty foot troll, no biggie, you just hide here until it''s all over okay?¡± I give a thumbs up and smile.


    ¡°Um okay, but here let me help first.¡± She grips her staff with one hand and points her right palm at me, ¡°Defense! Attack! Speed!¡±


    Three buff clocks appear above my name, my body glowing slightly, ¡°Thank you so much, I''ll fight hard so we can make it to the city safely. I''ll be right back.¡± The troll is sniffing the air loudly. I dash out of the treeline at speeds close to that of my max level and I push off of the ground and before the troll can react my knife is lunged into his forehead, I grab an axe and dig it deep into the skull, and like a massive tree it falls over with a loud thud. I quickly collect the single Silver and chop off his ear, I try to pull the knife out but it''s broken. So two axes it is.


    ¡°Congratulations! You have reached Level 5! New Skill Focus Slice unlocked!¡±


    Great at least my skill tree is the same, who knows how long it''ll be until I can get my full fighting power back. I rush to Embra, ¡°We must hurry!¡± I place the ear in her pouch.


    She is in shock, ¡°What kind of monster are you?¡±


    ¡°It was all thanks to your buffs, I know that took a lot of mana so thank you.¡± We continue to run, ¡°When we make it to the city could you please teach me about the mechanics of this game? You know like territories and inventory and like this trophy system.¡±


    ¡°Didn''t you learn that in the tutorial?¡± She''s out of breath.


    ¡°I didn''t exactly start normally. I was kind of dropped in the middle of the forest by a time dragon.¡± I scratch the back of my head.


    ¡°You know you''re not supposed to eat the mushrooms growing on the floor right?¡± She laughs, ¡°Let''s get going Mr. Time Dragon.¡±


    ¡°I guess so, don''t believe me.¡± I laugh, ¡°Even though we can die I haven''t had this much fun fighting in such a long time!¡±


    The most shocked look on her face, ¡°You''re insane.¡±


    ¡°Thanks!¡± I continue laughing, probably too loud because I catch a arrow that was about to hit her face. She quickly holds out her hand, ¡°No buffs, I''ll be fine. Just watch and learn!¡±


    I throw one axe at the archer and it lodges into his brain. The other goblin is a tank with a heavy oak shield. I rush to attack but he hides behind it so I plant my feet, ¡°Focus Slice.¡± My axe charges and glows red for five long seconds but the tank is too focused on hiding behind the shield it doesn''t notice I am vulnerable to attack, or was at least for I swing the axe and it rips the body and shield in half. I quickly carve the ear and toss it to Embra, ¡°I hate being low level it takes forever to charge skills. Let''s keep going.¡± I smile while carefully stepping over the dead goblin guts and grabbing my one Copper and one Silver. We continue running and don''t run into any enemies for the longest time. The sun is beginning to set and we still have a long way to go, ¡°We should set up camp in this tree before it gets completely dark.¡± I gaze up above at a towering tree.


    ¡°Um I''m afraid of heights and I trust you to not take advantage of me!¡± Her legs are shaking.


    ¡°I have a wife who I am fighting to save, do not worry at all. And would you rather be high up in a tree or fighting swarms of massive ten foot spiders?¡± A nearby bush rustles.


    ¡°Spiders that big oh no! Let''s go quick!¡± She rushes up a vine and I follow her although she is climbing like a monkey. She must have used a speed buff. We make it to the very top tree branch, the sun is slowly dipping behind a mountain, the many violet and soft colors of the sunset as the night comes and washes over the land with stars and darkness. The river glistens in the last drops of sunlight.


    ¡°Items items, what did they do again?¡± She has her small satchel on her lap while she digs through it, ¡°Glop Stone was it?¡±


    ¡°Glow Stone.¡± I say instinctively, ¡°Wait you have items? Do you happen to have Water Crystals?¡±


    ¡°Yes we get the tutorial items, and hmmm let me check.¡± She rummages through her bag but thirst takes ahold of me.


    ¡°Here this one. Sorry I''m about to pass out from dehydration.¡± I take a few small swigs.


    ¡°You did save my life so that''s fair.¡± She drinks some as well, ¡°I have a few Food Pills also, we should eat.¡± She plops two in my hand.


    ¡°I will pay you back when we get to the city I promise.¡± I smile and eat both pills, it''s as if I am eating a full three course meal of turkey and potatoes.


    ¡°Just keep fighting hard okay!¡± She flexes her bicep.


    ¡°I will, that¡¯s a promise.¡± The dimly lit Glow Stone gives us light as we sit down and listen to the many howls and noises of the night. The ocean of stars up above are such a beautiful sight. A loud roar makes her shudder, a closer look and she is very young, probably a teenager, ¡°Oh Nova what shall I do?¡± I whisper aloud.


    ¡°Sir, is Nova your wife?¡± A sad look in her eyes.


    ¡°I am sorry, I haven''t told you my name, it is Umbra. And yes that is the name of the woman I love. Who I fight for.¡± Is the sadness in her eyes just a reflection of mine?


    ¡°Umbra, what a strong name. What is she like?¡± It''s as if we are around a small smoldering fire.


    In my mind the countless battles we''ve fought, ¡°Strong, very strong. Able to fight an army of minotaur titans with her bare knuckles and one hand tied behind her back. She lost a bet once and had to slay a dragon with only her big toe, and she punched me afterwards and broke three ribs because she chipped her toe paint!¡± I chuckle aloud, the fond memories drifting through my mind.


    ¡°She sounds heroic please tell me more!¡±


    Like a child hearing bedtime stories she is glued to my words.


    The pain in my chest is too much to bear, ¡°Aye another time. We need to rest, for the next few days ahead are going to be long.¡±


    ¡°I wonder if my friends made it safely to the city yet. I um, I lied about being on my own. The truth is my three other party members wanted to stay in the lower levels but I rushed them and said we could handle this forest and when we ran into that goblin mob I had them hide while I ran. I''m a horrible Leader and without my buffs they could be having a hard time.¡± She begins to cry.


    ¡°As a Leader you will have to make decisions, you will have to send your best friends to die, but instead of letting them die for you, you chose to go instead and that is the quality of the greatest kings throughout time. I''m sure they are okay, believe in yourself and the choices you make with undying conviction. As a leader you must take charge of any situation given to you and push through no matter what.¡± A newfound spark of determination in her eyes.


    ¡°Thank you. I will remember these words for eternity.¡± She smiles, ¡°We''re lucky we are in the warm territory or not having blankets would have been horrible. I think I''m going to sleep now, thank you Umbra for saving me and teaching me. I will repay you one day you have my word.¡±


    ¡°The water you gave me was more than I could ask for, sleep well. We shall leave whenever we wake up. No need to rush, we need our full strength to survive. Goodnight.¡± I stare at the stars above, then glance at her.


    ¡°Goodnight!¡± She puts the Glow Stone in her bag and calmly drifts to sleep.


    Oh how I wish to spend nights like this with Nova once more, and if we had a daughter I wish she would be like Embra. But for now I must get her safely to her friends and focus on that and leveling up. I need to get stronger.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    I let my mind drift to sleep, all is calm like floating in a river.


    ¡°Umbra wake up quick!¡± I am quickly shaken awake, I gasp and clutch my axe.


    ¡°What''s wrong?¡± My eyes are blinded by sunlight.


    ¡°It''s a person on a wyvern! And the Earth Kingdom crest is painted on the belly! I''ll use my Signal Flare!¡± She quickly shuffles through her bag and pulls out a small stone and sets it on the edge of the tree branch and lights a small wick with a Fire Stone.


    ¡°Hopefully they are friendly.¡± Streaks of red and green fireballs shoot into the sky, the rider notices and swiftly lands on the branch.


    ¡°Names Emdrax, are you Embra by chance?¡± The wyvern lets air out of his nostrils.


    ¡°Yes that''s me.¡± A smile on her face.


    ¡°Your friends payed a lot of Nugz to have me come rescue you, luckily I have room for the both of you so please hop on.¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much!¡± Embra grabs her gear and sits down on the leather saddle.


    ¡°Many thanks from myself as well.¡± We nod at each other like men do.


    ¡°Woop!¡± A mix of a howl and a screech, the elf clad in leather armor with a bow signals the wyvern to take flight, and over the lush forest we go and safely land in the middle of the village.


    ¡°Embra you''re safe!¡± A small thief class girl says, while wiping tears from her cheek.


    ¡°I''m so glad you''re okay!¡± A young archer boy next to her.


    ¡°Thank goodness.¡± A dual wielder girl next to them.


    ¡°Well my job is done here.¡± Emdrax gives a nod and then takes flight once more.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you''re all okay!¡± Embra hugs her friends.


    ¡°Embra is this your whole party?¡± I rub my chin in thought.


    ¡°Um yes everyone''s here why?¡± A confused look on her face.


    ¡°You need to look for a tank class Adventurer or things will be more troublesome as you reach the higher levels. You need someone to keep the enemie¡¯s focus while the rest do damage whenever there''s openings, got it?¡± I give a thumbs up and smile.


    ¡°Yes sensei!¡± She gives a thumbs up and smiles.


    ¡°Sensei?¡± The thief says.


    ¡°Oh yes how rude! This is Umbra, Dragon Slayer class who saved me and is now Sensei!¡± The look on their faces is priceless.


    ¡°Thank you for saving our Captain!¡± They bow in respect, ¡°We''re going to go rest at a inn now would you like to join us?¡±


    ¡°It was no problem at all. I must get going now, but take care and fight hard, I¡¯m sure our paths will cross again.¡± I begin walking towards the merchant shop. My heart is heavy.


    ¡°You can''t just leave! What about the trophies we need to cash in? There''s so much you need to teach me!¡± Embra is crying.


    ¡°You keep them as thanks for keeping me company. When I have my own kingdom come to my home, you are always welcome. You are the daughter I never had. Take care okay and lead your team as a strong warrior. I believe in you! And so I know you''re safe, I am creating a Guild, please join.¡± I put my hand on her head while typing on the guild box settings in front of me. I turn to her party, ¡°Please take care of her and fight hard and strong. I''m counting on you. Thank you for joining The Light Kingdom Guild.¡± A small emblem of a white dragon appears next to their names after they accept. There is one by my name as well.


    ¡°We will do our best!¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡±


    ¡°Take care!¡±


    ¡°Don''t you go dying on me Umbra!¡± I glance back one last time before heading into the shop.


    ¡°Hello! Welcome!¡± A small old man is behind the counter.


    ¡°Hello, I''m looking for basic survival gear and a sword please.¡±


    ¡°Oh I see, and what is your budget?¡± He adjusts his glasses.


    ¡°Let me see how much I-¡± I reach in my pocket but there are no Nugz in it. Then I remember how we asked Emdrax to do tricks. They must have fallen out then, ¡°Well all of my Nugz fell out, how much would you buy a Nethershard earring off of me for?¡±


    ¡°Nethershard!? How in the blazes did you get your hands on one of those? Why you can have my whole store for a sand grain size!¡± It seems my earrings didn''t fade away because they''re not magic items, I unhook the marble sized earring and place it on the counter.


    ¡°I got it while traveling.¡± He looks up and down at my tattered basic clothing.


    ¡°No questions asked, Appraisal!¡± His hands glow a faint green as it covers the earring.


    ¡°Oh my. One million Platinum. I''m afraid I can''t afford that. Not even everything in my shop is worth that much.¡± He wipes the sweat from his brow.


    ¡°Is this the only shop you own?¡±


    ¡°Why yes it is, and I''m hardly making enough to live because the nobles keep raising taxes.¡±


    ¡°Here is my offer to you. This I will offer once. Work with me as an equal partner, create an empire of merchant shops with the Nugz from the Nethershard, become head of finance. How does that sound?¡± I must act quickly.


    ¡°What do you intend to do?¡±


    ¡°I intend to create my own kingdom and overthrow the Dark Lord to save the woman I love.¡± The seriousness in my voice is returned with a serious expression on his face.


    ¡°I understand. My that is an offer of a lifetime, I will accept. Do you want me to act according to a plan? And if I shall fail?¡± Worry fills his voice.


    ¡°I trust in your judgement, Emdul.¡± I grab a nearby map, the layout hasn''t changed much and it all makes sense to me now. I point to an area, ¡°See if you can purchase this land, this whole stretch.¡± I trace it with a pencil.


    ¡°With all due respect those are dangerous lands, exactly the reason why there is no kingdom there.¡± The worry in his voice.


    ¡°Trust in me please, I leave it in your hands.¡± I send him a guild invite.


    He accepts, ¡°I shall work as hard as I can. Thank you Dragon Slayer. Anything you would like please take with you on your journey, I will send updates through Guild Chat. Thank you once again for this opportunity.¡± He nods and carefully takes the Nethershard in his hands and places it in a glass case.


    ¡°Thank you so much. I will work hard as well. I will be taking all of the dungeon supplies, about a few months worth.¡± I quickly grab items, Magic Endless Satchel that can hold a whole shop of inventory, Fire Stones, Glow Stones, Water Crystals, Food Pills, Cold and Hot Pills, Stamina Pills, an old dented armor set with no helmet and a beat up sword. I also grab a Dungeoneering Kit, It''s filled with many useful items for spending days or months in a dungeon. It''s better than nothing and my supplies are all I need, ¡°I will be on my way then. Thank you once again.¡±


    ¡°I won''t let you down Lord Umbra. I won''t.¡± I walk out of the shop and head down the winding roads of the village into the edge of the treeline. I take a few seconds to look back, and then I head into a dungeon once more.


    I am more at ease now that I have armor and a sword, I don''t have to worry much about getting one shot by a strong enemy, I mean not as much. The never ending forests of the Earth Kingdom stretch before me, but if I level up fast enough then I won¡¯t have to spend years in this world. I must hurry though, to get stronger for everyone, ¡°Seriously?¡± Before me a massive level 25 Forest Snake bearing its massive poisonous fangs.


    I jump to the left to dodge while slicing through the thick armored scales that run along its body, simple creatures that are easy to kill. But since the level was way above mine, my level rose to 15. I quickly put all of my points into strength stats. I need to become stronger and focus on nothing else. There''s no need for my other skills so I upgrade Focus Slice, level 10 gave me reduced cast time, level 15 allows me to use it as a instant skill but damage is cut in half. I quickly use my last skill point, ¡°Shit. Feint!¡± My body quickly moves two feet above me, Feint allows me to instantly move three feet in any direction, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± I slice downward to cut off the head of another Forest Snake, I collect the 5 Copper each dropped and place them in my satchel, I won''t lose my Nugz again. I quickly carve both fangs from each snake and place them in my satchel, it is embedded with magic so there is so much space, my old satchel could fit entire castles in it and who knows if a merchant would believe I killed two if I handed one set of fangs. Old me would have sat here for a few days making a armor set from this, but I must sacrifice defense and continue raising my attack power. I continue onwards, the early morning promises a long day ahead and I can cover much ground, if only I had a mount. Maybe I could capture some beast and use it to travel through the forest, that¡¯s actually a great idea. Good job me. I cut a few big chunks of snake meat and carry them down towards a small clearing. I leave the lumps on the floor and quickly gather sticks and vines. I place the sticks in a pile and use the Fire Stone to spark a flame, then I hang the meat above the fire using the vines, the cooking meat bubbling and dripping fat into the fire. It takes me a while to cook the meat, I stand a bit away from the fire and proudly look at my delicious meal then I draw my sword. I begin swinging it, causing wind to blow the scent of cooked meat into the forest. Almost instantly massive beasts rush into view and fight amongst each other. I cut down the massive cooked slabs of meat and hold it in my arms, taking a bite of my hard work. Three Forest Snakes, two four man goblin parties, and a massive Under Wolf are engaged in a ferocious battle while I watch, eating the meat. Two of the snakes coil each other as the wolf rips apart a whole goblin party in an instant. The other party is fighting a snake but the wolf destroys both of them with a combo of attacks, a howl that debuffs by slowing them down and then focused claw attacks. The two snakes are both dead from each other¡¯s poisonous fangs. All that is left is me and the wolf, ¡°Wait, I wish to offer you a deal.¡± I say in the wolf''s language, I am lucky to have retained my knowledge, the wolf is shocked, his mouth hangs wide open.


    ¡°I am confused.¡± He scratches his head.


    ¡°I was taught your language long ago, but don''t worry I am no enemy.¡± I smile.


    ¡°How do I know for certain you will not trick me?¡± His guard is still up.


    I set my sword on the ground and toss over the cube of meat, which he holds with one paw, ¡°I know your clan hates eating raw meat and has a hard time storing it during the winter, so I am willing to teach you how to preserve meat and cook it.¡±


    ¡°That is true, but such knowledge must come with a heavy price. I am willing to become your lapdog for the sake of helping my people have a better life void of starvation.¡± He bows down to me but I wave my hands.


    ¡°Please don''t, there is no need for that. What I ask for is undying loyalty from the Under Wolf Clan, I plan to create my own kingdom and when I do you will have your own territory where your people can be free and at peace. I know it is hard to live in this forest with all of the new Adventurers killing any wolf they come upon, not knowing you are only foraging to feed your children, your clan, and that the voyage from the mine shafts to the forest in search of food is very dangerous, I wish to help end that suffering.¡± His mouth wide open in shock, his sky blue eyes shining, his body more relaxed.


    ¡°How do you know so much about our people? And could you really give us a peaceful life?¡± He sits down.


    ¡°I am from the future, and once there was a time where I came to this same forest and I came upon an old Wolf King and saved him from a group of young Adventurers. I became great friends with him and saved his people. Aye you look so much younger Desthro, my how time changes things.¡± I unstrap the armor on my left arm and roll up my sleeve to show my forearm, ¡°When you passed, I mixed ink with your blood, the crest of Our people.¡± The ancient markings only taught to Wolf Kings.


    ¡°I think I''m going to faint.¡± He swayed his head back and forth.


    ¡°Heal.¡± I raise my palm and a white light glows and covers his body, a basic healing spell, I thought it would save me in a pinch, worth the skill point.


    He is calm once more and talks as I strap my armor back on, ¡°What you say is true, and that is the King¡¯s Mark, so I will give our undying loyalty to you. What is your name friend?¡±


    ¡°I am Umbra, please just treat me as an old friend, no formal talking is needed. Here, I will teach you everything you need in the future, but in the meantime take these.¡± I reach into my satchel and when I reach for something it gets within grabbing distance. I pull out a jar of Food Pills and a jar of Water Crystals, ¡°These are Food Pills and Water Crystals. Split the Food Pill into fourths and the crystals give water. This is a three month supply of food and water. I plan on having my own kingdom in one month, but the extra two months just in case things don''t go according to plan. Seal the entrance to the cavern and rest easy, sunlight still shines through the top but for now you can rest at ease.¡± I smile.


    ¡°Umbra, I am forever in your debt! Anything you need I will do!¡± I grab some more vine.


    ¡°I''ll tie them to you, there is one more thing I ask. Since we''re headed the same direction could you please give me a ride there?¡± I tie the jars like a necklace around him.


    ¡°Yes of course! Hop on and we shall go as fast as I can!¡± It is as if a curse has been lifted from my old friend.


    ¡°Aye, sounds great.¡± I hop on the familiar mane of fur and he speeds off into the forest, running past enemies so quickly they don''t even notice us. And what would have taken me weeks to travel we make it in half an hour.


    ¡°This is the outskirts of the forest, to the left is the secret tunnels to our clan, up ahead are the mine shafts. I humbly thank you for saving us. And when the time comes, we will give you our aid.¡± I put my hand on his head.


    ¡°Form a pact with me as my familiar please so when the time comes it would be easier to communicate, and also if you need my aid.¡± I bow my head.


    ¡°Of course. You have my undying loyalty and friendship.¡± We put our foreheads together, ¡°Pact Seal!¡± Shining light glows on both of us.


    ¡°I will be off then, take care!¡± I wave while walking towards the mine shafts.


    ¡°I will await your call!¡± He lets out a mighty howl.


    My body glows, ¡°You have gained the title Wolf King! Strength boost! Agility boost! Senses heightened during night time!¡± The NPC voice appears in my head, the title appears next to my name.


    ¡°Thank you Desthro, I will see you soon.¡± We both run in different directions, I wasn''t expecting this encounter but I am happy to have seen an old friend once more. I am faster and stronger by such a huge amount, nowhere near what I used to be but a huge difference. I need to invest more points into making my mana bar bigger so I can spam Demonic Slice eventually. But for now I can focus on the task ahead. I rush into the winding cavern, two centipede monsters attack but are quickly sliced to pieces. The Wolf King title helps me use my senses to travel through the mines without having to rely on Glow Stones. In what seems like half a day I make it to the boss room. I push open the two massive wooden doors and make my way in, ignoring the warning that my level is too low. I stare at the massive level 35 cave troll that sits on a throne of bones, a massive Greatsword next to it. Around 30 goblins in front of me, and more crawling out of the walls behind the throne. I spring into action, slicing furiously at the endless mob before me, all of them level 25, my level shoots up to 20. I quickly upgrade Focus Slice, I get an attack boost and it hits 5 ft in any direction. I use Feint to gain distance, then I charge Focus Slice. It takes a bit but I mow down a bunch of them. My level shoots up to 25, I quickly upgrade it again. Less charge time. The horde of goblins retreat into the walls once more and the cave troll stands up, wielding his weapon. I use Feint to appear behind him and use the instant Focus Slice three times, chopping off his head and breaking my sword in the process. I carve his earring studded ear and collect the Nugz on the floor, although it takes a long time. I get 30 Copper and the big guy gave me 1 Gold, ¡°Excuse me, Emdul can you hear me?¡± I use Guild Chat. It''s long range communication.


    A few minutes pass by as I find the sheath for the Greatsword and equip it to my back. A magic sword that gives me an attack boost, ¡°Hello? Yes Lord Umbra?¡±


    The timid voice of the old man resonates in my head, ¡°Could you please explain the currency in this world?¡±


    ¡°Um yes I most certainly can! The coins are called Nugz, Copper is a value of one, one Silver is equal to one hundred Copper, one Gold is one hundred Silver and one Platinum is one hundred Gold. Also, I will be looking into the land in the upcoming days.¡± The silence that follows shows that he is finished.


    It seems currency is the same, ¡°Thank you, keep up the good work, I''ll keep in touch.¡± I exit the chamber and follow a trail that leads up to the top. I begin sprinting and using Stamina Pills to run non-stop for two weeks, slicing through enemies as I run past, I must act as fast as I can. Oh Nova, my sweet Nova. The endless forest behind me, and instead of taking months to travel through the Earth Kingdom I am already at the edge of the Fire Kingdom. Endless volcanoes and lava rivers, massive thunder clouds and stretching into the horizon are the Scorched Plains. I take a Cold Pill and am unaffected by the heat. I am level 27 now. I take a deep breath and begin my lonely journey through the fire and flames.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Three: Fire Kingdom

    <h1>Chapter Three: Fire Kingdom</h1>


    Two weeks of running has taken a toll on my mentality, I must build shelter and rest for a while, the sun is about to set. I use the Dungeoneering Kit and set up a perimeter of traps and then a portable hammock, my core temperature will stay cool thanks to the Cold Pill, so there is no need to use my blanket. I sleep in my armor in case something attacks and my sword rests on the floor near me. The warm glow of the volcanoes and lava create a homely atmosphere and the many stars above makes life feel so distant and lonely. Oh how I miss Nova, if she were here we would be talking around a fire, ¡°Hello? Umbra? I don''t know how to use this.¡±


    ¡°Embra are you in trouble?! Do you need me? Where are you?¡± I quickly reach for my sword.


    ¡°No no we''re perfectly fine! We got caught up in a bunch of low level fetch quests so we um still haven''t left the city yet.¡± She laughs nervously.


    I put my sword back and lay down, ¡°Oh I see. If I remember correctly there was a quest called Fetch The Goose Egg. It''s best to avoid it.¡±


    ¡°That quest took a week to complete!¡± She lets out a big sigh.


    ¡°I watched Nova fight that goose countless times but in the end all you had to do was feed it bread to get the egg!¡± My laugh is a mighty roar.


    ¡°We figured that out today.¡± She laughs quietly.


    ¡°Oh yes what is it you needed from me?¡± I move my hair from my stomach, it is long and crimson, I don''t recall how long it''s been since I''ve looked at my hair.


    ¡°I just know you''re out there probably in some dungeon by yourself and the night time drags down people''s minds and fills them with dark thoughts and I know how much you miss Nova, so here I am to keep you company, and if possible I would like to hear more stories about her, that is if you don''t mind. Oh and how is your night!?¡± She is so kind.


    ¡°Aye, thank you. I am under the stars basking in the glow of distant volcanoes at the very edge of the Fire Kingdom. Be sure to bring lots of Cold Pills to resist the heat. I''m in a hammock and I wish I had some meat or stew. I am resting from running for two weeks without a break.¡± I chuckle.


    ¡°Woah that sounds amazing! Make sure to not overwork yourself! I''m in our room in the Lazy Elf Inn, everyone''s asleep, it''s been a long day and we can afford to stay in a room for so long thanks to you!¡± It''s as if the world is less cold, having company although what stretches before me is nothingness. I can''t help but smile.


    ¡°Thank you for reminding me what I fight for. You are right, the dark thoughts that come with loneliness do a toll on the mind and heart, but I will be fine now. You dissipated them before they had the chance to attack, what kind of story would you like to hear?¡± My mind is more at ease now.


    ¡°No problem! I can talk at night whenever you can! And hmmm what was your first date with Nova like?¡± She is the child I never had.


    ¡°That would be much appreciated, our first date? Hmmm let me remember.¡± I run my hand along my smooth face, the memories flooding into me, ¡°I wouldn''t really call it a date, I mean I guess you could. We were both in the Earth Kingdom Capital, which I ran past without seeing the sights, I don''t know why I didn''t do that agh. But anyways, we were both in line for ice cream and as I was about to purchase the last Dragonberry scoop, Nova challenged me to a duel for the ice cream, this is happening all on our first date and guess what I did?¡± The stars look so nice.


    ¡°Did you fight her for her hand in marriage?!¡± She says with excitement.


    ¡°Not at all, I ate the last scoop with one bite and fled on a Under Wolf and hid in the bottom of a winding tunnel system, it only took her a week to find me but by that time she was no longer mad about the ice cream because at the other street corner there was another ice cream vendor. It was hilarious!¡± Agh my sweet Nova.


    ¡°That''s so funny! I''m getting pretty sleepy, I''ll be going now. Thank you for the story! I hope you get some rest and be careful out there, I''ll talk to you tomorrow when the sun goes down Dad!¡± She lets out a slight gasp.


    ¡°Dad? Is that what you called me?¡± I try to calm her down.


    ¡°Yeah I did is that fine? I mean I don''t really-¡±


    ¡°It''s perfectly fine, I understand. You are the child I never had, just make sure to be cautious out there. And to call on me if you need help, thank you so much for keeping me company. Goodnight!¡± I can hear her crying quietly.


    ¡°I''m so happy! Goodnight! Thank you!¡± Silence fills the air once more, but it''s nice outside. I''m okay with being here in this moment, I am at peace.


    ¡°Emdul are you awake?¡± The sound of running water.


    ¡°Yes, yes I am Lord Umbra, what is it that I can help you with?¡± The water quickly stops.


    ¡°You can call me just Umbra, no need for the lord stuff, and are you in the bath?¡± I can hear him getting out.


    ¡°Ugh yes I was but I''m done now since there''s business to attend to.¡± He''s so diligent.


    ¡°No no it''s okay, just dry your arms, grab something to write with and sit back in the bath and relax friend for I am swaying in the calm breeze in a hammock with a wonderful landscape of  volcanoes and stars, and if I am relaxing then you have the right to relax as well.¡± I can hear him mumbling to himself.


    ¡°Hmm why ah yes that does make sense, alrighty then I shall relax in my nice hot bath.¡± I can hear him sinking back in slowly, ¡°Okay Umbra, here is the update, we are able to purchase the land, but there are tales of a deadly dragon that rules that part named Drathor the Lightning Dragon. And many other beasts.¡±


    ¡°But we can purchase the land?¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes we can.¡±


    ¡°Okay good, purchase it as quickly as you can under the name Light Kingdom Guild. And for Drathor, he is a huge fan of Dragonberry ice cream, a large amount of that should get his loyalty.¡± I chuckle remembering our encounter.


    ¡°Ice cream sir? Is that some sort of spell?¡± I forget the time difference.


    ¡°Okay this is what I also need you to do. Set up four separate 20 man forage quests, they must be level 40 or above. All get paid 200 Gold each after the quest is finished. One will go to the Ice Plains West of the Water Kingdom to fill one Greater Magic Satchel with ice each, warn them of the Ice Golems that roam there. The second quest is also in the Water Kingdom but to the East in the Great Salt Lakes, to fill one Greater Magic Satchel each with salt. Be wary of the Hydras that lurk there. The Third quest is to the Earth Kingdom to fill one Greater Magic Gourd with milk from the wild female Cows, the males are vicious and number in the hundreds. The Fourth is the most dangerous one, to travel to Mt. Basilisk at the edge of the Earth Kingdom, and secure a single Dragonberry, there are many vicious enemies along that path and a massive Basilisk in the caves, offer two extra Platinum for this quest and they keep the items and rewards. Once the items are gathered I can walk you through how to use it. But make sure you warn how dangerous the mission is, and if they are willing to give up their lives for that much Gold. The few that survive, offer them a place in our guild. They will have surely earned it. That is all.¡± I can hear him furiously scribbling things down, ¡°Oh yeah one more thing.¡± I grab a scroll and quickly write a spell on it then send it over, ¡°This spell can create copies of yourself, use it to set up merchant shops in every city. Anyone in our guild gets everything for free, set up a shop in our territory and hire a blacksmith and a army of mercenaries to guard it. Head over as fast as you can, aim for four days at most. Ride the fastest mount no matter the cost. That is all. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°I will make sure things run smoothly Umbra! If there is anything else I can help with don''t hesitate to call upon me!¡± I hope I didn''t forget anything.


    ¡°Thank you, sorry for interrupting your bath, make sure to relax, we have long days ahead of us my friend. Thank you for trusting me. Goodnight.¡± I roll onto my side.


    ¡°Goodnight Sir!¡± The splashing resumes, followed by silence.


    I''ll probably have to fight level 40 to 50 monsters here, I''m still level 27, but with all of my attack buffs and my class I''m sure I will be fine and level up quicker too, I should sleep now. Oh Nova, I miss you so much. The darkness that is sleep surrounds me and peacefully embraces me and envelops me in a warm shell of bliss.


    The rising sun hurts my face, for not being under the cover of the lush canopy anymore, I must hurry and pack my things to continue my journey, the emptiness caused by my dream creates an indescribable pain in my core so I reach out to my anchor of sanity, of happiness in this world, ¡°Embra, you there?¡±


    I finish packing my gear and traps, ¡°Umbra! Are you okay? It''s been three days! I was so worried!¡±


    ¡°Wow I was asleep for three days, I must''ve been tired haha, I''m just packing my things, about to leave and you?¡± I place my sword on my back and grab my satchel.


    ¡°Speed! Agh nice well at least you got some rest Im glad! It''s at one HP hurry! Sorry I''m in the middle of fighting a troll.¡± I can hear the sounds of battle and items dropping.


    ¡°I would say be careful but I know you guys can handle yourselves, what level are you now?¡± I begin walking towards the distant volcanoes.


    ¡°Most of us are level ten now but once we finish this dungeon we should be around level fifteen hopefully.¡± Their levels being that high in the beginning dungeons put me at ease.


    ¡°That''s very good, be careful and if you ever need me I''ll be right over okay, just wait a bit until I beat the Vampire King Vlad then I get a ring and can use Instant Teleportation, that''s where I''m headed next.¡± I chuckle, knowing everything is kind of cheating.


    ¡°Woah that''s so cool! After this dungeon we''ll probably rest in a small village for a few days, it''s been non-stop fighting I don''t know how you do it. Be careful being solo okay!¡±


    ¡°Is that Umbra? Tell him I said hi!¡±


    ¡°Me too!¡±


    ¡°Yeah same!¡±


    ¡°Tell everyone I say hello too and to be careful and take their time going through the dungeons. If I remember correctly there were catacombs beneath the biggest volcano that were filled with vampires so it''ll take a while to head there. Then once my level is high enough I can slay a dragon and make a good armor and weapon set. That will be my goals for now. Just in case I disappear, it''s always good to let someone know where you will be okay?¡± I worry so much about her like a protective father.


    ¡°Aye aye Captain! Another troll let''s do this!¡± The excitement of battle in her voice.


    ¡°I''ll let you focus! Take care of your team and fight hard! I¡¯m always here okay?¡± I begin walking.


    ¡°Okay! See ya! Be careful!¡± It is silent once more.


    My Cold Pill wearing off I quickly swallow another one. The floor is hard like stone, the clouds ominous, the field endless. I wish I had a mount, agh walking it is. Just me and my thoughts, my weak gear and body, I miss Nova. This is how empty and lonely my life was before her, what am I to do? I begin humming and making different noises with my mouth, I wish there was a monster to fight, or anything. I swallow a Food Pill and drink some water while walking, I need to keep up my strength. The slight creaking of my armor plates, agh I miss my old armor set. With Vlad¡¯s ring I can teleport to anywhere I''ve been or to anyone in my guild. Super convenient but vampires are so hard to kill, not really for me though. I continue walking while lost in my thoughts for some time. The volcano a few hundred yards ahead of me, I''m surprised there was no enemies, but then again it is daytime and the vampires have hunted the area clean, ¡°Oh boy. Feint!¡± I use it twice to move to the left to dodge the massive fist of a Lava Golem, I sprint to the left, dodging more fists and a lava beam that tears through the floor, ¡°Feint!¡± I spam it to get behind the golem, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± I stand there charging up as it slowly turns and faces me. Another lava beam is charging but mine is charged faster. As it shoots my Focus Slice deflects it and tears the golem into a pile of rubble. I take the Silver and head towards the massive entrance of the Vlad Catacombs. My descent into darkness begins, but I can see clear as day. I sheath my sword and slowly walk towards a massive metal door. I open it slowly but it being a really old door creaks loudly, I can hear the hissing of vampires as one hundred stone coffins are pulled open, ¡°Oh boy.¡± I say to myself and put my hands up, ¡°I come here in the name of the Under Wolf Tribe to make a peace treaty with Vlad from one King to another. Honor the ancient pact and don''t attack.¡±


    ¡°He looks just like a commoner! How can we trust him?¡± One vampire hisses.


    ¡°The old ways must be respected!¡±


    ¡°Off with his head!¡±


    ¡°What is all this commotion so early in the morning? Ugh my head.¡± A tall man in red armor with long black hair, goatee and moustache appears from a balcony behind them, the vampires quickly bow.


    ¡°Vlad my lord this intruder claims to be an Under Wolf King seeking a treaty.¡± He rubs his chin in thought.


    ¡°We are not at war? Is this a trick?¡± His red eyes glare at me.


    ¡°It is no trick Vlad, I also am able to cure Sophia.¡± His eyes widen, I put my sword on the ground.


    ¡°Sophia? How do you- no harm shall come to this King. Let him through!¡± A pathway opens up for me to walk through, one vampire holds my sword for me. Vlad appears at the door below, ¡°Welcome to my home. Allow me to formally introduce myself, I am Vlad III the Vampire King. Come on in please.¡± I shake his hand.


    ¡°I am Under Wolf King Umbra, Dragon Slayer class. Pleasure to meet you.¡± I follow him to red velvet chairs and take a seat.


    ¡°What brings you here to my humble abode? And how do you know about Sophia?¡± Vlad is unblinking.


    ¡°Life to a vampire is endless if they live right, I come from the future where you are old and withered, a relic of the past with no Kingdom, sleeping in this very catacomb alone. We are good friends and you shared your people''s most sacred history with me and about Sophia.¡± He listens without saying anything, ¡°The Dark Lord that overthrew your castle and how you fled to this area and survived off of Lava Lizards. The curse placed upon your only child, your wife held captive in the 32nd floor of the Dark Lord¡¯s dungeon. I know of the ink rose in the inside of your lip from when you were mortal.¡±Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°And what is it you want? I believe every word, for not even my closest servants know that much about me or this kingdom.¡± I look at the green emerald ring on his finger.


    ¡°The Ring of Teleportation and your loyalty.¡± He brushes his finger over the ring.


    ¡°My wedding ring, the only thing I have left of my wife. And you expect me to bow down to you?¡± The voice of a hurt man.


    ¡°I expect loyalty as an equal, fight alongside me against the Dark Lord and save your wife as well. I will cure Sophia, I will use the ring to become stronger and travel to my troops faster. I will build a kingdom and raise an army big enough to fight the Necromancer that overthrew Vlad the most powerful vampire. Then I will return your ring. These words are my promises to you.¡± He is thinking hard.


    ¡°You can really do this?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± He clenches his fist and takes off his ring.


    ¡°I will trust you. Please cure Sophia and help me save my people and my wife.¡± I place the ring on my finger and shake his hand.


    ¡°You have gained the title King of Kings! Attack boost! Agility boost! Defense boost! Level raised to 30!¡± The NPC announces.


    ¡°I will not let you down.¡± I reach into my satchel and take out a jar of Stamina Pills, ¡°Sophia is half Human, the stress of being a vampire takes a toll on her body. When she is older her body will die and she will become a full vampire but until then it is a constant struggle for the body to be strong and healthy. These are Stamina Pills that will help. Give her half every twelve hours, that is all she needs, the Dark Lord is a tricky one.¡± I hand him the jar.


    ¡°That makes perfect sense, I would have never thought that! Thank you so much! I will be right back!¡± He disappears for a few minutes. He returns with a smile on his face, ¡°Thank you my friend, I haven''t seen Sophia void of pain in the longest time, I thank you deeply. As a reward please allow me to give you this as well, for I am in the greatest of debts to you.¡±


    ¡°You are in no debt to me at all.¡± He waves his hands furiously.


    ¡°Please you are offering me a way to return how life once was, to be happy with my family. The least I can give you is this to help with your battles.¡± Two of his servants bring a massive crate, ¡°My Great Grandfather¡¯s armor Black Death, crafted from the scales of a God level Behemoth. Resistant to all magic attacks. The Greatsword Hades, crafted from a thousand fallen vampires¡¯ fangs gives Lifesteal with each hit. May these aid in your- our battle.¡±


    Oh my I hold back my tears, ¡°Thank you so much! I unequip my crappy gear and strap on the armor, it feels dense yet lightweight and hugs against my body. The massive sword magically attaches to my back, the massive sword shaped like a Claymore but ten times thicker.


    ¡°You don''t need the helmet?¡± Vlad holds it in his hand.


    ¡°No thank you, it gets in the way of my vision. Before I forget, please join my guild so I can travel to you fast.¡± I send him an invite.


    ¡°Of course, and yes I will.¡± He accepts the guild invite, ¡°Light, how interesting. Well good luck and if you need me please ask at any time. Thank you so much Umbra, for everything.¡± He shakes my hand again.


    ¡°Thank you as well friend. I will return when everything is settled. Give me a month or sooner okay. Thank you.¡± I give a nod goodbye and think of the catacomb entrance, ¡°Teleport Catacomb Entrance.¡± I''m instantly standing out front. What to do now, I have super epic legendary gear and an army of vampires, I guess I can relax for a few days, ¡°Embra?¡± I sit down and wait a few minutes.


    ¡°Hello! You okay?¡± Everything seems quiet on her end.


    ¡°Yeah I was wondering if I could travel with the four of you for a few days? If that''s not a bother?¡± I hold a stone in my hand.


    ¡°Yes of course! We''re right outside the boss room too!¡± The happiness in her voice lifts my spirits.


    ¡°Umbra¡¯s coming? Yes!¡±


    ¡°That''s so cool!¡±


    ¡°We get to see him fight!¡±


    ¡°Okay I will be right over then! Teleport Embra!¡± I am sitting on the floor next to them, there is a small fire and a perimeter of Glow Stones hung around a cavern that has many passageways. I''m right next to Embra who gives me a big hug.


    ¡°That was so cool!¡± The thief girl holds out her hand, ¡°I''m Emma nice to see you again!¡±


    The timid archer holds out his hand, ¡°My name is Emduk, let''s fight hard!¡±


    The dual wield girl holds out her hand as well, ¡°Embal is my name! I''ll be with you on the front lines!¡±


    I shake their hands, ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you, I will not be fighting, just watching how you work as a team and if you get in a pinch I''ll step in. Just pretend I''m not here once the fighting starts okay?¡± The nervous looks on their faces while I laugh.


    ¡°Woah look at that armor and sword! What level are you now?!¡± Embra¡¯s yelling echoes throughout the cave.


    ¡°Level 30.¡± I smile, ¡°So me fighting with you would just be cheating and I want you to level up and get used to fighting.¡±


    ¡°That makes perfect sense!¡± Emma says.


    ¡°Well that was enough rest, is everyone ready to fight?¡± Embra stands up and dusts off her pants.


    ¡°We''re ready!¡± The three say, grabbing their weapons.


    ¡°Okay let''s do this!¡± I stand up as well as Embra pushes the two wooden doors open, revealing a massive chamber filled with five trolls and a thirty foot troll sitting on a pile of bones at the far end of the hall, ¡°Everyone stay calm, battle formations but first get close.¡± They group up, ¡°Agility! Attack! Defense! Mana!¡± The spells affect me too, they''re not single person buffs anymore but ranged area buffs. The party glowing many colors, Emma and Embal get in front while Embra and Emduk are at the back. They begin firing arrows and magic shards of rock. Emma and Emdal charge at the trolls that have been blinded by the attacks. The swift potent attacks of the thief combined with the furiously vicious attacks of the Dual Blades are a DPS combo that quickly drains the HP of monsters with many small attacks. The many trolls fall one by one without fail. There is no need for a tank with their strategy, I knew Embra would figure something out. Emma and Embal rush the boss. The big boss the only one left begins to stand up slowly while growling, the shockwaves flinging up the ground around him, sending shockwaves toward the two.


    ¡°Uwaaaghh!¡± Emma screams, being sent into the wall along with Embal. Who falls to the floor with a sliver of HP left. The troll points his finger at them, a magic ring on it, the finger glowing black, it can''t be.


    ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I quickly grab both of them and place them near Embra, ¡°Heal.¡± The two are at full health once more, the spot they were at is covered in black flame. The four are shaking violently, this is no regular boss, ¡°Stay back and don''t let that flame touch you, it''s called Blackfire, the item is from a God level legendary dragon named Hades. I don''t know why this troll has it or is a level 50 in this beginner dungeon, but please let me fight it without any interference, I didn''t notice the power level because of the many smaller ones.¡± I pull my Greatsword from my back, I can swing it around easily thanks to Embra¡¯s buffs.


    ¡°Good luck!¡± Everyone but Embra is too in shock to speak, she gives me a thumbs up as they sit against the wall clutching their knees and shaking furiously.


    I run towards the beast as he points his finger at me, then shoots five balls of flame that fly at great speed toward me but before it gets close to my body a red shield nullifies them, the panic in his eyes as I smirk, ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I quickly move close to the beast and push off of the ground, the concrete below flying everywhere as I slice upwards, cutting the massive beast in half, ¡°See no need to worry while I''m around okay?¡± I try to reassure the others, but by now they are standing up and smiling.


    ¡°That was amazing!¡± Embra helps pick up the five Silver and one Platinum. Their levels are now at 15, mine shot up to 35 for killing this big boy. I upgrade to get attack boost for Focus Slice and my stats rose greatly.


    I carefully pick up the ring, ¡°Embra you take this okay? Focus the energy through your staff and shoot it like you would any other spell. I will rest easy knowing that you have this and so can your party. This will take down any enemy with one hit unless they have magic resistant armor like myself.¡±


    She hesitates, ¡°Is it really okay to take this?¡±


    I smile and place it in her hand, ¡°Of course, don''t you want to protect your friends? Just make sure they aren''t close to it and if you accidently hit them then quickly call me and continuously heal them until I arrive go it?¡±


    ¡°Mhm! Got it!¡± She gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°Are you two okay? I know that was a heavy hit.¡±


    Emma dusts her pants off, ¡°Yeah. I just need to get stronger that''s all. Thanks for saving us.¡±


    Embal is cheerful again and gives a thumbs up, ¡°I''ll work hard to get stronger too!¡±


    ¡°Good I''m glad your spirit didn''t get broken. When you get to the city look for our guild shop, there should be shops popping up around the whole map please stock up on items and the best gear it''s all free, just keep fighting hard okay? I must go now but before I go let me give you this.¡± I activate my Under Wolf King skill and howl. The title Wolf Pup appears next to their names.


    ¡°Exp. Multiplier! Attack Boost! Agility Boost! Defense Boost!¡± Are all said by the NPC.


    ¡°Wow I feel so light and strong!¡± Emma hops back and forth from right leg to left leg really fast her body is like a blur.


    ¡°Wow I can focus my accuracy so much now!¡± Emduk shoots three arrows into each other against the wall.


    ¡°Thank you Umbra!¡±


    ¡°Thank you!¡±


    ¡°Thanks!¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much! We are much stronger in your short visit, I''ll make sure to protect them and we''ll get stronger okay! See ya Umbra!¡± Embra cries tears of joy.


    ¡°Keep on fighting! I believe in you, all of you. See ya soon! Teleport Catacombs!¡± The faces of the young ones fade away and I am alone again in the desolate landscape of fire and ash. There is no need to make armor out of the fire dragon for myself but I can help get the young ones a set and weapon and since they''re small it would only take one dragon. I can level up as well, ¡°Embra sorry to bother you even though I just left, but could you and the party camp in the forest for the night? I have to show you something but it might take all day to get it.¡±


    Almost instantly, ¡°Yes of course! I was going to thank you but I guess I can now so thank you! We will set up a perimeter once we climb all of these stairs to the top, we''ll wait for you! Be careful!¡± I can hear the others thanking me in the background.


    ¡°Tell them I said thank you for the company. I shouldn''t take too long okay?¡± I begin walking again past the catacombs. I look for the staircase that leads up to the top.


    ¡°Okay see ya!¡± I can hear the rest saying bye as well.


    ¡°Bye, see you soon!¡± I keep looking, ¡°Where are those stairs? Don''t tell me there isn''t any.¡± I''m way too lazy to climb up and as I stare up above at this endless massive volcano and those ominous clouds I think of Nova. Agh yeah I can do that! I grab a handful of Mana Pills and hold them in my hand, ¡°Feint! Feint!¡± I slowly move upwards towards the top. It takes me around eight hours to finally reach the top and by this time I''m so exhausted but I take a stamina pill and feel fine. The volcano¡¯s rim stretches a mile across and down below there is a pool of smoldering lava. I stretch my legs and close my satchel as it hangs at my hip, more like the size of a small pouch.


    My senses tell me of danger approaching. Out of the sky an object falls like a meteor, I draw my sword as it crashes into the ground ten feet in front of me. The top of the volcano trembles, ¡°Are you here to challenge me!¡± He yells, a long haired bearded young man clad in the armor of God level Elder Dragon parts, wielding a massive Long Sword filled with the teeth of a God level legendary dragon.


    ¡°No I''m not, just passing through that''s all.¡± I grip my sword knowing he won''t take no for an answer.


    ¡°Lies! You''re here for my treasure! Agility boost! Attack boost! Defense boost!¡± With each charge a surge of power erupts and covers his body, the endless energy overflowing.


    He has question marks where his level should be, ¡°Wundah! That is your name correct?¡±


    ¡°Yes it is and you are Umbra, prepare to fight because I won''t hold back!¡±


    I see his body lean forward, then what remains is an afterimage as a massive crater erupts from the pressure of his foot, luckily I am used to Nova¡¯s speed so I can see him clearly. I block a 50 hit combo and step on his boots, then I kick his shin. I deflect a strike and my feet dig into the ground below, ¡°Feint!¡± I use Feint to attempt to match his speed, it seems like his stamina is endless. I decide to go on the offensive. I swing wildly and fiercely, as our swords clash it sounds like booming thunder, the shockwaves destroy the ground around us. He becomes faster and it''s as if there are many clones of him, each one does a 50 hit combo. It takes all of my strength to block the attacks, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± The powerful swing sends him flying through the air. I use that time to charge fully as he regains his balance and charges at me, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± For a moment my sword is glowing red, a massive wave of energy flies out toward Wundah who punches through it with ease. It looks like I have to change tactics. I drop my sword on the floor and use Feint to slightly move a few inches to dodge his blade but to also get close to him. I wrap my arm behind his arm and I pull his neck down while kicking his legs. As he begins to fall downward onto his back I kick the middle of his back and use Feint to put both of us high into the air, then I quickly use Feint to get above and kick his stomach with both feet and use Feint to speed us down to the ground where I crash down on him, the ground beneath us crumbling away.


    He stares at me blankly, ¡°Is that all you got?¡± He begins to lift his body upwards.


    I smirk, using Feint once more to quickly move under him, putting him in a choke hold, no matter how strong an opponent is if their oxygen is cut then there is no winning. I squeeze as hard as I can while he struggles, throwing elbows and punches that I endure.


    His consciousness is fading away, ¡°My treasure. Is yours... if you..spare me.¡±


    ¡°Promise not to attack if I let go?¡± I still squeeze tightly.


    ¡°Yes...you have my...word.¡± His eyes begin rolling into the back of his head.


    ¡°Deal.¡± I let go of him and he catches his breath, ¡°Great fight, you''re a strong warrior. A bit cocky, but very strong!¡± I laugh loudly.


    ¡°Thank you, I underestimated you.¡± We help each other up, ¡°Well my treasure is yours to keep.¡±


    I hold my hands up, ¡°I told you I wasn''t here for your treasure, I''m here to hunt the Elder Dragon Fuzzy. I know it lies dormant inside the lava.¡±


    A shocked look on his face, ¡°You serious? Is it like the normal ones?¡±


    ¡°It''s God level. Six times bigger than the normal ones, I need to fight it to level up.¡± I give him a thumbs up.


    ¡°But God level monsters you need multiple guilds to take it on, whole kingdoms of resources! You plan on fighting it yourself?¡± The shock in his eyes.


    ¡°Yeah, I don''t have the Dragon Slayer class for nothing! It''ll be fine my friend.¡± I walk towards my sword.


    ¡°I would help but then the Exp. would go to me so I''ll watch if that''s cool? I should return to my team soon anyways, they''re in a different world I just came here to earn enough Nugz to have them revived, that''s a thing in that world as well my dude.¡± He smiles at me.


    ¡°That is no problem at all. Take a seat on that rock over there and watch me take this big boy on. I''ll kill it with one hit.¡± I pick up my sword.


    ¡°One hit? I''ll give you this ring crafted from a God level Sphinx that traveled at light speed. One hit though!¡± He smiles, showing me a black diamond ring.


    ¡°Deal.¡± Nova''s ring, how is it here of all places.


    ¡°But we haven''t said what I get if you fail?¡± Wundah holds it in the palm of his hand.


    ¡°I won''t fail.¡± I throw two Cold Pills into the lava.


    ¡°I know you won''t.¡± Wundah smiles at me as I clutch my sword, the Cold Pills making the lava turn into stone, a beam of flame shoots into the sky, scattering the clouds up above, it begins to rain chunks of stone and lava. A deathly roar sounds in the air, ¡°It''s showtime! You got this!¡± Wundah claps his hands.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± I give a thumbs up and wait for the massive beast to emerge out of the volcano. A huge claw peaks over the inside, then another, followed by the enormous body of Fuzzy, it is a massive black dragon with two sharp horns and a lion mane. The eyes are light-blue and glowing. I take two Mana Pills to make my bar become full. One strike is all it will take. The towering dragon roars at me, flame drifting through its teeth into the air, ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± In an instant I move high in the sky above it, then I use Feint to come crashing down so fast the dragon has no time to react, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± I slice the head off with one swift strike. My level shoots up to 50, my charge time for Focus Slice is reduced, attack, defense and agility is boosted. I pick up the 10 Platinum pieces and store them away.


    ¡°That was so cool! Here is the ring as promised!¡± Wundah puts the ring in my hand.


    ¡°Thank you very much, this was no, is my wife''s ring. I am in your debt.¡± He holds out his fist.


    I put my fist to his, ¡°I know Umbra! You weren''t the only one sent here, well my job here is done. You got the ring and now my friends will be revived. Thank you for the fight I had a lot of fun! I hope to see each other one day! Next time I won''t go easy on you.¡±


    ¡°I have so many questions! Who sent you here?¡± My mind is confused.


    He pauses and smiles, ¡°You did.¡± A bright portal appears near him, ¡°Time''s up. Take care old friend!¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡± He jumps in and disappears, I rub my thumb over the ring, ¡°Roses wither and die but our love will last for eternity.¡± The words engraved in Elvish runes on the inside. I put it on, I feel the warmth of my love surrounding me, I must hurry and get back to her. My heart yearns to hold her, to kiss her. I must hurry, ¡°Embra have you set up camp yet?¡±


    A minute passes bye, ¡°Yes we have! The area is clear of beasts too!¡±


    ¡°Great! Are you in an open field? Can you get really far from camp please?¡± I walk to the dead body of the dragon.


    ¡°Yes can do!¡± She runs for a few seconds, ¡°Okay I''m far!¡±


    ¡°I''ll be right over.¡± I lift the body with one hand and the head with the other hand above my head, ¡°Teleport Embra!¡±


    ¡°Woah! What is that!?¡± I''m holding it above her head, I gently set it down in the grass.


    ¡°You killed that Umbra! Nice!¡± Emma yells, cooking stew over a fire.


    ¡°Wooow amazing!¡± Embal says, her mouth wide open.


    ¡°So strong.¡± Emduk says.


    ¡°I killed it with one hit too hehe, Embra look this is my wife''s ring.¡± I show her the ring and it''s as if she is gazing upon an ancient magical sword.


    ¡°Woah that''s so pretty!¡± She runs her hand over it.


    ¡°Yeah and look at this. Ta!¡± So this is how she felt, it is as if time is frozen in place, I walk across and sit next to Emma, then as if by will, time resumes again.


    ¡°Agh!¡± The started scream of Emma.


    ¡°You moved so fast! Speed of light!¡± Embra is astonished.


    ¡°I have ten more levels until I am max level, then I must somehow get even stronger.¡± I smile, ¡°but first I will teach you what you need to survive in this world is that a deal?¡±


    ¡°Deal!¡± I use the Dungeoneering Kit and pull out some scent blockers and place it on the dragon, ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Blocking the scent of a dead animal so other monsters don''t become attracted to it, it also helps preserve the meat in case we want to use it for cooking. After we eat I''ll teach you how to carve and craft for armor and weapons, how to cut and prepare meat and also store it for long voyages, how to use every part of the beast so it doesn''t go to waste and you can make more Nugz selling parts you didn''t know could be sold okay?¡± I sit down next to the fire with Embra.


    ¡°Okay it''s all done!¡± Emma hands out small wooden bowls and spoons filled with broth.


    ¡°Thank you! Agh it smells so good!¡± Embal says while viciously scooping it into her mouth.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± I say while grabbing a bowl, the warmth in my hands and the smell of many spices, carrot, potato and rabbit meat. The taste reminds me of Nova''s cooking and my heart feels pain once more.


    ¡°You''re very welcome Umbra!¡± Emma snaps me out of my trance. Food is passed out to the rest, all is quiet but the chewing of food and the stars above to keep us company. There are howls of many monsters filling the air but none seem close and the others are at ease and don''t pay them any attention.


    ¡°Embra told us you''re from a different world, shouldn''t you be in a hurry? Why are you teaching us all of this and helping us?¡± Emduk asks while pausing between drinking huge gulps of water.


    ¡°Because we are men and we must become strong to protect the women and the people we love. The four of you remind me of how things were with my childhood friends, so in a way this is me paying my debt that I owe.¡± The memories long forgotten resurface.


    ¡°Debt?¡± The small fire casts a shadow on the four, their sullen expressions awaiting a story, one that has not been told for decades.


    ¡°This story only few have seen, an old memory of when I became an Adventurer like yourself, please watch very carefully for I do not wish anyone to repeat the choices I have made in life. Please.¡± I take a few slow, deep breaths, mentally preparing my mind and my spirit for the journey I am about to embark upon once more. I point my left hand at the four and my right towards my face, ¡°Saudade!¡± A flash of white light erupts from my hands.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Four: Saudade

    <h1>Chapter Four: Saudade</h1>


    Nothing is remembered when you open your eyes, all that you feel in the beginning is the quiet darkness that surrounds your body, then as if by graceful hands you are pulled up and showed the world, the beautiful landscape that is the Earth Kingdom, I blink my eyes a few times as they adjust to the bright sunlight, the many shades of green that spread across the land. The bustling village of people buying items and the soft hum of a woman singing. A man in front of me, adjusting his glasses and staring through my soul. I look at my hands, they are soft and frail.


    I look over my basic cloth garments and then to the three people next to me. Two girls and a guy then in front of me is a robed elderly elf, ¡°Ahem, my name is Emsee I will tell you four new Adventurers your class, and then teach you how to use your beginning skills. I will start with you young lady Eva, if you look a bit above the head you can see a status bar that includes a health bar, if it hits zero you die and a mana bar, if it hits zero you are unable to use spells. To the right is a number, that is your level the max is sixty, at the very top is your name, to the right of that will be your class and if you''re granted a Title for example a Hero or King it shall appear above your name, at the very bottom is your Experience Point Gauge. When it fills up you shall gain a level. You gain experience by completing quests or slaying monsters. Fighting monsters with higher levels than you will be very dangerous and difficult so take your time to level up. You each have different abilities and can upgrade them as you level up. If you press your finger in front of you to your right a display will appear where you can access your skill trees, and other features you will learn in time. For now allow me to reveal your class and skills, starting with Eva.¡± They all nod in silence as if in a classroom. Emsee puts his hand on a massive spellbook and points his other palm at Eva, a bright green light glows from them as she moves her long strands of white hair from her face, ¡°Eva you are a Wind Mage. Your beginning spells are Air Bullet, shooting focused air from a staff and Wind Dodge, quickly moving using wind magic.¡±


    She bows her head, ¡°Thank you!¡±


    Emsee moves to the next person, a massive muscular guy with short red hair and does the same identification spell, ¡°Juzo the Water Kingdom Tank you will use swords, Grand Slash and Dragon Armor.¡± It seems he is now impatient and wants to speed along the process. He moves to the girl next to me who has long black hair, ¡°Azula the Fire Kingdom Brawler, Fireball and Fists of Flame.¡± He gets to me and smiles, ¡°An Elf! Oh my what a grand day it is! Let us see here.¡± The light glows on me, ¡°Oh my. Wait right here for a moment please.¡± He teleports and is gone for a few minutes and then returns with three more men that look just like him. They all use identification magic.


    ¡°So it is true!¡± One yells.


    ¡°It is a miracle! This only happens once every millenia!¡± One is rubbing his beard fiercely.


    ¡°A Dragon Slayer is born. You can use Focus Slice, a skill that can destroy entire kingdoms, and Feint a skill that makes you untouchable. Great things are in store for you, for all of you. Please follow the path to our merchant shop for top tier weapons and armor instead of used beginner gear, you shall be treated like royalty. It has been a pleasure.¡± Emsee bows his head and I nod.


    ¡°Thank you for your kindness.¡± I begin walking with the other three down the cobblestone road.


    ¡°So three frontline and one ranged, we can breeze through the dungeons!¡± Juzo says enthusiastically.


    ¡°Wow a Dragon Slayer that''s so cool!¡± Azula wraps her arm around my shoulder. I begin to blush.


    ¡°Yeah but Fire Brawler is great as well!¡± She doesn''t let go of me.


    ¡°I wonder if I can learn healing magic. That would be helpful.¡± Eva is a bit shy but she has a good idea.


    ¡°That would be great!¡± Juzo looks over the shop signs, ¡°Aha! Merchant shop!¡±


    We look from outside the window at the many shiny items that look really expensive, ¡°Woah!¡± Azula grabs ahold of my hand, I glance over at Eva who is gazing contently.


    ¡°Um Azula?¡± I timidly say.


    ¡°Yes Umbra?¡± She smiles.


    ¡°Your hand?¡± I point to our hands, hers is so warm.


    ¡°What of it?¡± She looks into my eyes, her green eyes shining brightly.


    ¡°Why are you holding it?¡± I blush and look away.


    ¡°Oooh so cute!¡± Juzo yells.


    ¡°So bold.¡± Eva whispers.


    ¡°I''ve decided to be your woman, to protect you everywhere we go. To love and cherish you no matter what life throws at us, please do not reject my love for it is genuine.¡± She rubs her thumb over mine.


    ¡°I um, I will accept your love and I will return it with mine as well, would that be okay with you two?¡± I look over at Juzo and Eva.


    Juzo quickly gives a thumbs up, ¡°Hell yah! Lucky man to have already found love so fast!¡±


    ¡°That is so nice! Then Juzo will you become my lover as well? I will um heal you and love you!¡± Eva twiddles her hair as she blushes.


    Juzo¡¯s face turns red, ¡°Yes! I will love and cherish you and protect you and cook for you!¡±


    ¡°Then it''s settled, we must fight hard to protect the people we love!¡± I say with confidence.


    ¡°Aye aye!¡± Azula cheers, ¡°Now let''s get our gear!¡±


    Juzo holds the door open as we walk in, there are staffs and swords and shields all lined with gemstones hanging from the walls, this place smells of perfume and seems really expensive. Azula lets go of my hand and smiles at me as we are greeted by an old elf, ¡°Hello there young Adventurers! Welcome to the Earth Kingdom High Merchant shop, everything and anything is free for you four, Dragon Slayer class must be protected by his party at all costs, at all costs.¡± The stern gleam in his eyes, ¡°Feel free to look around! These Magic satchels are filled with many supplies for your journey, simply reach into it and the item you are aiming for will come within reach.¡± He then goes one by one teaching us about the various items to be used while traveling, ¡°Now that you know all that you need, feel free to look around!¡±


    We thank him and go in different directions wandering through the shop, Juzo is really loud as he screams for Eva to look at the swords with him. The many weapons hung along the wall each have a brief description of their lore, they all cost hundreds of Platinum, and most have elemental damage as well. Am I really that special?


    ¡°These are so pretty huh?¡± I am pulled from my trance.


    ¡°Oh yeah those are, they look so sharp.¡± Azula has two silver gauntlets on that each have four small blades at the edge.


    ¡°They''re called Hermes, there''s no elemental buff but it increases my agility stats, I''ll upgrade my agility so I can get to you as fast as I can whenever you need me, no matter how far away you are. I will protect you.¡± She punches her fists together, ¡°I''m going to look at armor now, come help me pick a set once you find a sword okay?¡± She kisses my cheek.


    ¡°Okay I will.¡± I blush and quickly walk away. I stand in front of the swords, there are so many to choose from, a thin blue Long Sword katana  catches my eye. I gently pick it up and look over it, dragons are engraved into the blades edge, the handle is cold and firm.


    ¡°Agh yes excellent choice Dragon Slayer, Thunderbolt was crafted from the God level thunder dragon Drathor, it gives lightning damage as well.¡± The old man grins, ¡°I will bring the sheathe and hold it for you up front. If there is anything else you need let me know.¡±


    ¡°I will, thank you.¡± I walk towards the armor and Juzo walks out of the fitting room with a red full plated heavy armor suit on, ¡°Looks great!¡±


    ¡°Thank you! I just have to get used to all of this weight.¡± It seems he is going for defense, the true tank position.


    ¡°I''ll be far away mostly so I won''t be using armor but this dress is so pretty!¡± Eva spins around elegantly in the air wearing a light blue flowy dress.


    ¡°So beautiful!¡± Juzo has hearts in his eyes.


    ¡°Umbra what do you think?¡± Azula has light black metal armor that a thief class would wear, metal shoes, forearm and shin guards along with chest and back plates over a nice black and red tracksuit. Her hair is tied back in a ponytail and held in place by a red flame shaped clip. She punches and kicks the air to make sure the clothes aren''t too tight.


    ¡°Beautiful and strong, so wonderful.¡± She blushes and kisses my cheek once more.


    ¡°Thank you! Those plain garbs did no justice!¡± There are so many different armor sets along the wall as well. I should focus on defense but I don''t want my speed to be debuffed so I choose a blue stained lightweight full body armor set to match my sword, and with my blue eyes and long blonde hair the colors compliment each other beautifully. I change in the fitting room and the armor is nicely padded on the inside, almost as if soft pillows are gently hugging my body. I walk out of the fitting room to my party clapping.


    ¡°That looks so nice!¡± Juzo pats my back and we both flex our muscles.


    ¡°Wooh!¡± Azula yells.


    ¡°So heroic!¡± Eva chuckles.


    ¡°We should grab our weapons and head out to the first dungeon.¡± I calmly say without thinking.


    ¡°Sounds good Leader!¡± Juzo smiles at me, his bright yellow eyes burning into my soul.


    ¡°Leader?¡± I ask in confusion.


    ¡°Of course! You are Dragon Slayer after all, so be our strong Leader okay?¡± Azula smiles as we walk towards the front.


    ¡°That is true, please lead us to greatness.¡± Eva gives the warmest smile, her white eyes glowing in the slight rays of sunlight that slips through the window.


    ¡°Okay, I will um try my best!¡± I nervously play with the loose strands of hair that fall to my waist.


    ¡°Agh! What valient looking armor and weapons you have all chosen, I am sure legends will be told of your many great feats! Here are your Greater Magic Satchels, they magically attach themselves to your waist, you can store anything you''d like as I''ve explained before. And your weapons are here too, the sheathes attach to your hip as well, Juzo since you use a Greatsword it shall attach to your back. I expect to hear great things from all of you! Farewell! Make sure to not let your HP hit zero, you will die.¡±


    I place my satchel and sword on my hip, ¡°Thank you so much! We''ll be sure to be careful!¡± We each thank him and walk out of the shop.


    Juzo stretches his arms, the massive sword on his back and the heavy armor must be a lot for him, ¡°Try this Juzo.¡± I dig through the satchel and pull out a small jar filled with Stamina Pills, I take one and hand it to him, ¡°Since your body''s not used to all of the weight maybe this will help.¡± He takes the pill and instantly feels better.


    ¡°Smart thinking Leader! Where should we go now?¡± Juzo seems like his body is more relaxed.


    Azula grabs ahold of my hand, her gauntlets hanging on her hip, ¡°We should go to the first dungeon and then set up camp once night comes around.¡±


    ¡°I''ll try to catch us some food while we''re out there too!¡± Azula rubs her warm thumb over my hand.


    ¡°Good idea, we should practice our skills as well.¡± Eva is quiet but really smart.


    ¡°That way we can execute them easily, we should also go over battle strategies too! We''re so lucky starting out with really good gear too it''s almost like we''re cheating in a way, but it''s still nice!¡± Juzo laughs cheerfully.


    ¡°Those are all great ideas, well our adventure starts now I suppose.¡± We walk through the busy city towards the main gate where elf archer guards open the gate and allow us to walk past. The gate closes behind us and ahead is a wide bridge that leads towards open fields, ¡°We can practice in the fields for a while until we feel comfortable. Juzo any ideas for formation?¡±


    He stares ahead calculating in his mind, ¡°I feel as if right now we don''t have to worry much, but once we reach higher level bosses or if one has wandered into the lower levels then we should have me keeping attention while you and Azula attack the minions and then once those are gone you can focus on the boss while Eva focuses on either healing me or dealing ranged damage. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°I think my skill takes a while to charge so that would be a good plan too, Azula or Eva any suggestions?¡± I look over at Azula who is deep in thought.


    ¡°Hmm nope it seems Juzo is a master strategist!¡± She smiles and gives a thumbs up with her free hand.


    ¡°Agh you''re too kind! How about you Eva?¡± Juzo timidly holds her hand as well.


    ¡°Once I learn healing spells I''ll be able to but that plan sounds great!¡± She blushes.


    ¡°Okay it''s settled, we''ll work as a team to destroy everything that stands in our way.¡± I smile, the promise of adventure and the calming scent of nature and the many trees in the distance, this is the beginning of a long voyage.


    We walk deep into the plains, it seems as if nothing is around us, a few hundred feet ahead are a few boar scattered about a hundred feet apart or so, ¡°Classic to have boar as beginner enemies huh!¡± Juzo has both hands on his knees, wiping tears from his eyes.


    ¡°Agh that is sad to say the least.¡± Eva floats around the floor with air magic.


    ¡°I wonder if I could, excuse me love.¡± Azula kisses my hand and lets it go then steps a few feet away and shoots fire from her hands to propel her forward, she throws a vicious combo of punches and kicks.


    ¡°Guess we''re all practicing.¡± We space out and I focus on my sword, I reach over and slowly pull it out of the sheathe, the metal is dense and cold. It takes me a while to get a comfortable grip on it. While Juzo viciously swings his sword I grip mine in my hand, ¡°Focus Slice.¡± My body can feel energy surging into the sword as it glows red, I feel as if it is ready to explode, I swing my sword and a shockwave of air blows towards the others.


    ¡°Watch out! Dragon Armor!¡± Juzo jumps in front of Eva and Azula, blocking the impact with his sword as his body is hardened like dragon scales. His feet dig into the ground as he grunts loudly, he slices the air pressure in half, the floor on both sides caving in, leaving two lines of destruction that go on for a hundred feet. Is that really my power?


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry! Are you guys okay?¡± I rush to the three.


    ¡°Yeah I''m fine! Don''t even worry I know you were just testing out your skill! It puts me at ease knowing how strong you are!¡± Juzo laughs heartily.


    ¡°Agh that was so cool my big strong Dragon Slayer!¡± Azula pats Juzo on the back, ¡°Good save Juzo thank you!¡±


    ¡°Juzo that was so brave! Thank you, and since we know the range now Umbra can charge next to me and then hit the boss!¡± She practices shooting while moving with wind magic.


    ¡°Smart idea, well back to practicing!¡± Juzo uses his skills, they look so destructive.


    ¡°Woah so beautiful.¡± I am awestruck as I watch Azula cover her fists in flames with her gauntlets.


    She does really fast combos of fire punches and kicks, somersaults and then she takes a deep breath, ¡°Fireball!¡± She blows and a massive ball of fire almost like a flamethrower erupts from her mouth, charring the grass ahead of her and floating into the sky. She''s lost in thought, ¡°I just have to be careful using it in tight spaces, or gaseous mines.¡±


    ¡°Grand Slash!¡± Instantly like a fast whip Juzo¡¯s sword swings in front of him in a wide arc while shining white, he triggers the skill three times consecutively.


    ¡°Woah it''s a Instant skill so you can keep using it until your mana runs out!¡± Eva says, holding her staff and focusing ahead, ¡°Wind Bullet!¡± It takes a few seconds for her spell to charge. Out of her staff flies three small balls of air that shoot straight for one hundred meters, ¡°Wind Dodge!¡± The air is furious around her feet as she glides across the floor.


    ¡°Feint.¡± My body moves quickly to the side and I stumble to keep my footing, it''ll take me some time to get the hang of it. We practice our skills for an hour, ¡°Are we all comfortable with our skills?¡± My body is sore but it feels nice. I take a Stamina Pill and Mana Pill then hand some out to the others.


    ¡°Thanks! Yeah I''m ready to go!¡± Juzo is pumped up.


    ¡°Same here love.¡± The freckles that mask Azula¡¯s nose are so beautiful.


    ¡°I''m ready too!¡± Eva nervously clutches her staff.


    ¡°Then let''s go hunt! I think for the boar we should face them on our own. What do you guys think?¡± I see in the distance boar are evenly spaced apart in fours a few hundred feet from each other.


    ¡°Yeah that sounds fine! It was made that way right? Then we all fight the big boar at the end of the fields. Or that''s how it usually goes right?¡± Juzo stretches his arms as we walk towards the hunting grounds.


    ¡°Truuee.¡± Azula cracks her neck and shakes her arms.


    ¡°I''ll be fine as well!¡± Eva has confidence in her eyes.


    ¡°Let''s do this!¡± We spread out and run towards our boars.


    I take mine by surprise and grip my sword with both hands while slicing through its body, the feel of cold steel tearing flesh and the squealing pains of the boar are all too real. It topples over as I watch Azula crash down on hers with her heel, Juzo chopping his in half and Eva ripping hers to shreds with her Air Bullet.


    ¡°Woah this is so much gore!¡± Azula picks up the small Copper coin that appears next to the boar. Each one of us got a single Copper.


    ¡°How should we split item drops?¡± Juzo asks calmly, putting his Copper in his pouch.


    ¡°We keep what we kill unless it''s useful for a different class and then we can trade, pay equal shares if we''re renting a inn or getting food. And if we''re low on cash we help each other. We don¡¯t really have to worry about gear here.¡± That''s what sounds reasonable in my head.


    ¡°Sounds good to me!¡± He yells as we advance to the next wave of boar.


    ¡°I''m glad we agree with each other!¡± Eva smiles.


    ¡°Same here!¡± Azula launches into the air and crashes down with both feet, killing the boar instantly. We continue boar after boar and they die with a single hit, ¡°Woah level 2 already!¡± All of our stats are boosted.


    ¡°Nice! We''ll be stronger in no time!¡± Juzo stares into an enormous pile of wood stacked in the middle of the field in front of us. My neck hurts from looking so high, ¡°Azula torch that stack hurry!¡±


    ¡°On it! Fireball!¡± Many pieces of wood catch on fire but it¡¯s as if an explosion causes the branches to fly in all directions as a giant tusked boar huffs at us, near his head are three health bars and the name Boarliath.


    ¡°Quick battle formations! Dragon Armor!¡± Juzo blocks the tusks with his sword as we fling into formation with Azula using flames to get on top, crashing down on his back with vicious kicks. Eva charges Air Bullet.


    ¡°Focus Slice! Juzo buy me some time please!¡± I focus on the energy building up and flowing through my sword.


    ¡°Okay! Dragon Armor is wearing off in five seconds!¡± His legs dig into the dirt below.


    ¡°My kicks and fire punches aren''t doing damage!¡± Azula keeps attacking.


    ¡°His wool is too thick! Air Bullets don''t work either!¡± Eva yells, not knowing what to do.


    ¡°I can''t hold him any longer! Grand Slash!¡± Juzo swings his sword, causing the boar to become off balance.


    ¡°Juzo! Azula! Move!¡± They both jump out of the way as I swing my sword, the shockwave from the attack slices the beast right down the middle and it falls into halves on the floor. All of our levels shoot up to level 5.


    ¡°Woah attack boosts on our skills!¡± We each get our skills upgraded.


    I pick up the One Silver, everyone is out of breath, ¡°Good job team! I''ll put this into our guild Nugz bag for traveling expenses, if that''s okay with everyone?¡±


    ¡°Yeah that''s great! A guild with four people?¡± Juzo rubs his arm and takes a Health Pill.


    ¡°Sure why not! One day we''ll rule our own kingdom I''m sure!¡± Azula dusts off her armor.


    ¡°I believe in our abilities! Sorry I couldn''t do much this fight!¡± Eva smiles brightly.


    ¡°Don''t worry there was nothing to be done! We should look for healing spell scrolls once we get to a city!¡± I dig through the satchel for the Carving Knife.


    ¡°Guild sounds great then! When the time comes we will be awesome rulers!¡± Juzo looks at me while I run my hand over the boar¡¯s tusks, ¡°Whatcha doin there Leader?¡±


    ¡°We are short on Nugz so I thought we could sell the tusks at a merchant in the city and then cut slabs of meat and store them for food so we can save the Food Pills for emergencies since they only gave us a few.¡± I cut thin pieces of the thick meat, the small blade cutting through the meat as if it were butter.


    ¡°That''s actually really smart! Agh Leader is so smart!¡± Juzo talking in a high pitched voice and dancing around.


    ¡°Here I''ll set up a small fire with many prongs so we can cook the meat and-wait how do you plan on preserving it?¡± Azula stops picking up sticks and stares at me confused.


    ¡°We''ve been fighting boar for the past few hours and it''s about mid-day now. If we cut them into small slabs and then leave them on a drying rack and let the sun slowly dehydrate it during the eight or so more hours then we have a bunch of jerky that will last at least a year, especially with how much meat this big boy has.¡± I smile and continue cutting pieces.


    ¡°Resting here would be nice too! And I don''t see any flies so we don''t have to worry about that! It just smells a bit so I''ll set up camp down that way!¡± Juzo walks fifty feet away and sets his sword down and takes his armor off. Eva pulls a blanket from her satchel and lays it out, putting her staff on it and then they both run back to help.


    ¡°I''ll make the racks with Azula!¡± Eva gathers sticks and they begin digging them into the ground a little bit away from camp.


    ¡°We''ll get this done in no time, I was thinking of making like ten rows spaced apart so we can walk down the middle.¡± Azula holds sticks in her hands.


    ¡°I''ll help Umbra! Agh with all that armor off I feel so good, so small slabs like this?¡± He shows me a perfectly cut slab.


    ¡°Yeah just like that.¡± The slabs I cut I lay them out on a thick log until I run out of room, ¡°Azula could you take this please?¡± She quickly takes it.


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    ¡°Save some so we can cook later too please.¡± She softly lays them out.


    ¡°Ooh yes meat!¡± Eva licks her lips.


    ¡°If only there was rice too! And hot sauce!¡± Juzo had a good idea.


    ¡°We can stock up on that once we get to the city too, it shouldn''t be too long until we get there.¡± And we must get plenty of supplies, who knows how long it would take to reach the city after that, ¡°We could look for a map too and any quests that give rewards we need. I''ll try to remember all this but there''s just so much we need.¡±


    ¡°Well our adventure has just begun, we have good gear and food now and each other''s company, I¡¯m sure eventually we''ll have everything we need! All in good time am I right?¡± I enjoy Juzo''s optimistic view on life.


    ¡°Yeah man. Everything will be good.¡± In my mind I make a list of everything we need, I don''t even know how much a night in a inn is. Oh well no point in dwelling on it now. The girls are hard at work talking to each other.


    ¡°Leader.¡± I look over at him and he''s staring at his fists.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I continue to cut, but pause, waiting for his reply.


    ¡°I know we''re strong and capable, but as we go in the higher levels things could get risky and if we get in a pinch and there''s no way out or like if one of us has to stay behind please protect the girls and leave me. Promise me you won''t hesitate.¡± His eyes are serious and poking through my soul.


    ¡°Fine, I won''t argue with you. Just know that I''ll always be prepared and have a way out okay. I promise you, I''ll keep us alive.¡± I return his smile, what leader would I be if I didn''t stay behind, but I''ll plan so that will never happen. There are so many things to take into account like our food supply and how much Mana and Health pills we have. Most of the Nugz should go into buying Health Pills since we can¡¯t fight without them and Eva could just relax in back for the most part. I''ll work it all out in my head later, right now I have to focus on meat. Juzo and I continue to slice in silence, he wipes his brow, ¡°Looks like that''s all of it!¡± We hand Azula the last log of meat and the sun is still high in the sky. We walk to them and all of the meat is organized neatly, ¡°Woah good job!¡± Juzo claps his hands.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± Eva helps put on the last of the meat.


    ¡°We put the best looking pieces in a bowl so we can cook, we should wash our hands first.¡± She pulls out a Water Crystal and we all hold our hands out, ¡°We don''t know how much this holds so wash your hands at the same time to save water then someone switch with me.¡±


    ¡°Right!¡± She begins to pour and we quickly wash our hands.


    ¡°Here switch with me.¡± I say, using the Water Crystal to help her wash her hands.


    ¡°Thanks love, All clean! I''ll rest for a bit before cooking.¡± She takes off her armor and sits in her tracksuit.


    ¡°Good idea, it''s been a long day.¡± I take my armor of too and lay my sword down, my body feels stiff from all of that fighting. We lay out another blanket.


    ¡°This place is so nice, like look at the view and everything.¡± Azula rests her head on my shoulder.


    ¡°Yeah and the dead chopped up body of the floor boss.¡± I make the three laugh so hard Juzo snorts, ¡°No but yeah it really is beautiful here and even though we haven''t really spent much time together I feel so close to you three, we''re in this for life. You know, unless you find a guild you want to be in or different party members.¡± Such is life.


    ¡°I''m loyal to all of you for life, we''re supposed to make names for ourselves and start our own kingdom, my sword belongs to all of you, I think I should invest in a shield too huh?¡± Juzo punches his fists together.


    ¡°Same here! I don''t need to be with anyone else just you three!¡± Eva gives the warmest smile.


    ¡°I¡¯m with you all for life, until I can''t fight any longer.¡± Azula kisses my cheek, ¡°We will become Gods in this world.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for sticking around then. We should count how many Nugz we have so we know our budget.¡± I pull our guild bag out of the satchel along with my own bag.


    ¡°Sounds like a great idea. We killed boars for hours but they only dropped Copper and those are like Pennies?¡± A confused expression on Juzo¡¯s face, on all of our faces.


    ¡°Pennies?¡± Eva asks.


    ¡°Hmm I feel like I know that word, but I can''t remember what it means.¡± Azula says lost in thought.


    ¡°Same here.¡± I say.


    ¡°Hmmm well then basically there''s one hundred Copper in a Silver. So Silver would be a value of One and then Gold is a value of One Hundred. Agh this is so confusing!¡± Juzo laughs while scratching his head.


    ¡°As we passed one of the vendors outside I saw most of his trinkets were a few Silver. So we''ll just assume for now everything will cost a few Silver.¡± We all count our Copper.


    ¡°Fifty Copper that means fifty boar and our level shot up to level 2 and they gave 2 Exp. every kill and that gives us 3 Silvers in total with all of us combined. Wow talk about rich.¡± Eva laughs.


    ¡°Yeah you''re right. I hope Health Pills aren''t expensive. Or we would have to hide somewhere after every fight and let our health heal over time.¡± I say, calculating the pills, but Eva was way ahead of me.


    ¡°Juzo took two Stamina Pills, I took one Mana Pill, Umbra took one Stamina Pill. They gave us five in each jar. So twenty of each in total. Or eighteen stamina, nineteen mana and twenty health. Until Juzo gets used to the weight of his armor we keep giving him Stamina Pills whenever each one wears off. Only take mana or health when it''s an emergency okay?¡± Everyone nods in agreement.


    ¡°Got it. We should check prices for pills at the city, even if we can only afford one we should stock up on Health Pills.¡± I say, looking at the tough journey ahead of us.


    ¡°Sounds good, I wonder why there''s no other Adventurers around?¡± Azula looks off into the distance of where we came from.


    ¡°I think they come in waves every few days so the servers don''t get overloaded.¡± More foreign words came out of my mouth.


    ¡°I know there''s more Adventurers once we clear the Earth Kingdom dungeons, but we have to watch out for hostile Adventurers.¡± Juzo tries to keep conversation without dwelling on the unknown.


    ¡°I need a healing spell so bad.¡± Eva presses her finger on her cheek.


    ¡°We''ll get one soon I''m sure. Should we camp here for the night or keep going? Because the meat will be done close to sundown.¡± I take into account the terrain and our lack of shelter.


    ¡°That''s a good question. We don''t know what beasts come out in the dark or the range of the Glow Stones and we''re on no time limit so we can go as fast or as slow as we want, we could just sit back and enjoy the ride.¡± Azula says, putting her palm forward, ¡°I wonder if there''s paint for nails, it would have to be fireproof, maybe a nice silver would do. Would you like that Eva?¡±


    Eva is already looking at her nails, ¡°Oh my glob yes!¡±


    ¡°Then it''s settled, Health Pills, a shield, Healing Spell Scroll and nail paint!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°But first we need to set up a perimeter and get rid of that rotting body so it doesn''t attract monsters at night. We could just bury it.¡± I kiss Azula¡¯s cheek and stand up then I grab my sword.


    ¡°How do you plan on doing that?¡± Juzo asks and stands up too.


    ¡°While Azula and Eva cook, Juzo and I will bury the big boy.¡± Juzo grabs his sword and holds it against his shoulder with one hand.


    ¡°It''s just going to be cooked meat but that''s better than nothing! I wish we had seasoning though we should look for some as well.¡± Azula cracks her knuckles and begins piling up sticks.


    ¡°I''ll be right here okay do your best!¡± Eva smiles while helping Azula.


    ¡°We''ll be back! Just yell if you need anything!¡± Juzo pats me on the back, ¡°What''s the plan to get rid of it?¡±


    ¡°I was thinking my Focus Slice, I have to stay still so the impact would be diagonal if I sliced downward because it would hit me if I swung straight down. So if you used Dragon Armor while holding me above your shoulders I can make a hole big enough to bury it in.¡± I can see Juzo playing it out in his head.


    ¡°That is a very um dangerous idea, but I like it! Yeah let''s try it! I can hold you by your feet that way the swing is straight down.¡± We both laugh so hard.


    ¡°This is insane you know that right?¡± I smile because we''re having so much fun as we should be.


    ¡°Okay got it! Dragon Armor!¡± His grip is firm as he holds me by my ankles.


    ¡°Focus Slice!¡± My body charges until I feel the surge of power, ¡°Here I go!¡± I swing and the shockwave sends the ground caving into a massive hole.


    Juzo puts me down and dusts off his pants, ¡°That was cool! What do we do now?¡±


    I sheathe my sword and pat his back, ¡°We push the rest of the pieces in.¡± I use a log to push a small chunk into the pit.


    ¡°Yeah sounds about right.¡± Juzo grunts while lifting both empty halves of the boar and tosses it in while I use the log to scoot the rest of the smaller pieces in.


    ¡°Well that''s all of it. Time to close the hole. I got it.¡± I pull out my sword, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± I charge and hit the side of the hole, causing it to cave in.


    ¡°That''s another job done. And the food smells so good!¡± We start walking over to the girls while Juzo leans in real close to me and whispers, ¡°Bro we lucked out so much, badass classes and those two melon babes in love with us, we''re the luckiest Adventurers in this world.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I take a closer look at Azula¡¯s and Eva¡¯s racks, I haven''t noticed much because Azula wears armor, ¡°Oh my god.¡± How did I not notice before, both of them are plump like watermelons or grapefruits.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± I stand there staring in awe as Juzo waves his hand back and forth in front of me.


    ¡°Umbra what''s wrong?¡± Azula asks.


    ¡°Um nothing!¡± I say in a high pitched tone.


    Juzo gives a thumbs up to me and winks, ¡°Lucky to be alive!¡±


    We walk to the girls and put or swords in the grass, ¡°Wow this smells really nice.¡± There is a small fire pit full of smoldering embers. Azula hands us two bowls of meat, ¡°We should wash our hands.¡± I tell Juzo and we both look at our dirty hands.


    ¡°True.¡± We quickly walk a few feet away and wash them.


    ¡°Is the boar all gone?¡± Eva asks, handing Juzo his bowl back and taking a bite of her meat.


    ¡°Yep! We dumped it in a hole.¡± Juzo takes a bite of the juicy meat, ¡°This is so good!¡±


    ¡°Umbra are you going to eat too?¡± I''m lost in a trance of boobs, accidentally looking at Azula''s my gaze is shifted back to her eyes, ¡°What''s wrong?¡±


    I blush, ¡°Nothing! Thanks for cooking!¡± I shove a handful of meat in my mouth and she chuckles.


    ¡°Thanks for the food!¡± Juzo yells.


    ¡°Both of you are very welcome!¡± Eva smiles.


    ¡°Eat up!¡± Azula laughs as I take a bite of the meat.


    ¡°This is so good!¡± It tastes so juicy, it''s so good.


    We all finish eating and Juzo rubs his belly, ¡°Time for a nap!¡± He lays on his back and stares at the sky up above, ¡°Agh this is the life. Thank you friends.¡± He wipes his hands on the grass and holds Eva''s hand.


    ¡°I''ll take first watch the two of you can rest as well. It''s been a long day.¡± I give a thumbs up.


    ¡°You sure?¡± Azula asks.


    ¡°Okay night!¡± Eva cuddles with Juzo who kisses her cheek.


    ¡°Yeah rest up!¡± I pull out my blanket and hand it to Azula, ¡°Use this as a pillow.¡± I smile.


    ¡°Thank you so much Leader.¡± She kisses me softly on the lips and stretches out on the blanket then falls peacefully asleep. I work on my breathing and peacefully meditate while staying on guard.


    I look around us as the sun begins to set, there are plains that stretch for miles until there''s a treeline in the far distance, behind us is plains and the city really faint and far away, ¡°What are- what are you looking at?¡± Azula wipes her tired eyes, ¡°How long was I sleeping for?¡±


    ¡°How far the trees are, the city and our surroundings. If we made camp here at night we would be out in the open.¡± I have to plan ahead.


    ¡°Yeah that''s very true, but we''re in the beginning plains level, there''s nothing here but boar and they''re all... dead.¡± Her eyes open wide.


    ¡°Exactly, and at night there are more ominous monsters with great noses that can even travel from other areas just to eat. It''s the cycle of nature. We only have about thirty minutes or less of sunlight left, I already packed our jerky into jars so we don''t have to worry about that.


    ¡°Juzo! Eva! Psst we have to hurry!¡± Azula is frantically putting her armor on.


    ¡°What is it!?¡± Juzo jumps up and grabs his sword.


    ¡°What Azula!?¡± Eva grabs her staff and points it into the distance.


    ¡°At least we know you''ll wake up fast if we get ambushed. We have about thirty minutes until sundown, we''re out in the open and all of the dead boar will attract monsters and I barely realized it I''m so sorry!¡± I say as I quickly put my armor on.


    Juzo shoves a Stamina Pill in his mouth and puts his armor on, ¡°What do we do then Leader?¡± Eva wraps up the blankets while Azula rinses the bowls and they put the items away. It''s like we were never there, except for the sticks where we let the meat dry, which is also covered in meat.


    ¡°We bolt straight for the forest and climb the nearest big tree and make camp up there, from what I can see the trees are giant towers. That way we put distance between all of that dead meat and us. Azula if you could use Fireball on the sticks we used to dry the meat it''ll keep monsters here as well while we run. That sound fine to everyone?¡± I attach my sword to my hip.


    ¡°Yeah let''s go while we still have some light left!¡± Juzo starts jogging, the clank of his armor sounding in the air.


    ¡°Juzo wait for me!¡± Eva uses wind to dash after him.


    ¡°Fireball!¡± Azula lights the sticks and meat on fire, ¡°Come on we have to hurry!¡± Azula uses her flames to push her across to Eva.


    I run as fast as I can, ¡°Feint!¡± I use the skill to move a bit further, ¡°Feint!¡± I continue to use the skill to catch up and most of my mana is used up at that point.


    ¡°It''s too dark to see.¡± Juzo says, stopping to catch his breath, ¡°And the forest is still really far.¡±


    ¡°Glow Stones quick.¡± I say, digging into my satchel. The small stones give off the smallest amount of light, like little lanterns. The sky up above is filled with beautiful stars but that is the last thing on our mind for we can hear the howls and grunts of animals behind us. The Glow Stones attach to my shoulder guard like a magnet, ¡°That''s cool it attaches to your staff. I need to let my mana recover and there''s still a long way to go and now we''re in the dark still but showing off our location. If we get ambushed it''s going to be a tough battle.¡± My mind is in a panic. I need to calm down.


    ¡°It''s okay, it''ll be okay, we''re okay.¡± Azula puts her hand on my cheek and calms me down.


    ¡°You''re right. Sorry, let''s walk at a slow pace if you all are fine to walk.¡± I ask, making sure we have strength to fight is essential.


    ¡°Yeah I''m good.¡± Juzo quickly says, holding his sword over his shoulder.


    ¡°Me too.¡± Eva clutches her staff lightly.


    ¡°Same.¡± Azula has her gauntlets on.


    ¡°Then let''s walk on but make sure to stay quiet okay and if we run into something don''t yell or scream.¡± At that they all nod and we walk onwards in silence for what seemed like hours.


    ¡°Shh.¡± Juzo quickly holds the three of us back with his arm.


    ¡°Lights off.¡± I quietly whisper, I can already hear it with my elf ears, something big walking on all fours, making the ground shake about twenty feet away from us, headed in a slow pace in our direction.


    Everyone quickly hides their Glow Stone and Juzo gets right next to my ear, ¡°What do we do?¡±


    ¡°We don''t know how strong it is. Azula when it gets close use Fireball and then while it''s stunned we bolt for the treeline.¡± My hands are shaking, I need to focus. Plan two steps ahead, ¡°If that doesn''t work and it catches up then we have to fight in the dark and more enemies might show up. If we get separated then climb the nearest tree and tie a Glow Stone at the top.¡±


    ¡°Got it.¡± Juzo quickly says.


    ¡°Fight hard even if we have to fight alone.¡± Azula kisses my cheek.


    ¡°If we get separated I¡¯m going to run away since my defense stats aren''t good.¡± Eva says, her voice shaking.


    ¡°That''s perfectly fine, it would be best to avoid fighting anyways.¡± My ears twitch, ¡°Azula now!¡±


    ¡°Fireball!¡± A huge ball of flame erupts and the light reveals the massive body of a gorilla-like creature with massive horns on its head. Both of the enormous forearms block the fire, the info bar can be seen, he''s a level 25 Lightning Ape.


    ¡°Everyone run! Eva use wind magic and rush to the forest! Hang a Glow Stone so we know where to go. This thing would kill you with one hit so hurry!¡± I begin sprinting away from the beast as it lets out a deafening roar.


    ¡°Got it! Be careful!¡± A huge gust of wind and she is gone. I feel an uneasy pain in the back of my head so I quickly glance behind me, ¡°Everyone dodge!¡± I don''t have time to speak so I leap to the left as a beam of electricity shoots past us, the ape¡¯s fur has turned yellow and electricity is surging throughout its body, the sharp teeth closing, the beam fades away. The creature is glowing brightly in the darkness, ¡°Everyone okay?¡± I quickly get back to my feet.


    ¡°Yeah fine here.¡± Azula''s voice.


    ¡°I''m good too.¡± Juzo''s voice.


    ¡°Keep running okay!¡± I keep my eyes on the beast, who is slowly sniffing the air.


    It''s as if our eyes lock on to each other, even though an ocean of darkness lies in between us, I know I''m his chosen opponent, ¡°Oh no.¡±


    The beasts body moves as if using Feint. It teleports diagonally in my direction, both forearms ten times the size of Juzo, the beast a mix of a gorilla and a lion with very muscular arms and legs, ¡°Dragon Armor!¡±


    ¡°No Juzo don''t! Its attacks are too powerful! Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± Sorry man, I use Feint to quickly pick up speed and kick Juzo in the temple. He flies into the darkness, ¡°Azula take Juzo and run please!¡±


    ¡°Umbra what are you doing?¡± The beast is closing distance fast.


    ¡°I have to protect my party, I''m leader so please let me do this. I don''t have time! Hurry and take Juzo before he wakes up! Please!¡± I grip my sword.


    ¡°I believe in you. Be careful okay.¡± She kisses me quickly and uses flames to jump where Juzo landed, I can hear him trying to fight his way to help. I must focus on my battle. I''m sure I can only take one or two hits so I have to be careful. Especially with that massive body and speed. I calm myself down, my mind is focused on the task ahead. Nothing else but the beast in front of me that I have to cut down.


    ¡°Feint!¡± I dodge the massive double fist crashing down from the sky, a closer look and the arms are glowing a slight red, must mean an attack boost. I''ll avoid hitting that. I swing, cutting the body, but it does little damage. A barrage of fists flying towards me, I continue dodging, my body having a slight reaction, and I follow with the direction it signals me to go. I assume some would call this intuition? Maybe it''s a passive skill. No time to think now, I focus on hitting the same spot, the monster''s hit combos are repetitive, there seems to be a good amount of blood leaking out of his left thigh. I focus on his right thigh now, dodging a swing and then the opening should be right there, I swing my sword but it is blocked by the massive tree trunk-like left arm. I drop to the floor and roll to my right, dodging a combo of kicks. That would''ve been bad. The beast leaps high into the air and spins in place. I quickly get up and roll as it crashes down, causing the ground to shake, I roll again as it quickly leaps up and crashes again, it does this at least ten more times, my body is exhausted but I must keep fighting. The beast is standing on two feet now, swinging the massive fists while walking towards me. My mana a bit low. I want to save it for Focus Slice so I backstep quickly, behind the beast in the distance I can see three faint lights hung from the top of a tree, just how long have I been fighting for? Well at least my friends are safe. Oh no. I trip over a log. There is no time to dodge. The beast is standing right above me, I don''t want to die, but at least my friends are safe, the beast raises both fists and swings downward, I put out my left arm, I can feel my armor caving in, I think my arm is broken instantly but that stopped his attack. It raises his arms again. This is how I die huh? As it swings downward, a blinding white light explodes between me and the beast. It hurls itself on the floor rolling around, or at least that''s what I can hear.


    ¡°Hold onto me!¡± I quickly wrap my arm around Azula. I can feel her pushing off of the ground, the wind blowing through my hair.


    ¡°Th...thank.¡± I can''t speak. I can''t open my eyes.


    ¡°Save your strength love, your HP is very low.¡± I don''t know how long we traveled for, it felt so long. The beast probably couldn''t follow us because of its injury.


    I can feel a vine being tied around me, ¡°Pull him up hurry! Fists of Flame!¡±


    I''m pulled up for the longest time. I''m still in a daze, but I can hear Azula fighting, ¡°Azula! Hurry save her please.¡± I beg whoever is laying me down.


    ¡°Swallow this, hurry! Agh his armor is busted. Wait hold on!¡± It''s so hard to move, my vision still isn''t normal, I''m pulled up and a bowl is placed to my lips, ¡°Drink this!¡±


    It hurts but I slowly drink the thick liquid, my body is slowly returning to normal, but my vision is still bad. I can move around normally now, my arm is no longer broken.


    ¡°Go help Azula she''s fighting the ape down there! Please!¡± I reach for my sword and as I start to pull it out I can feel her hands grab mine.


    ¡°It''s fine, everything''s fine, there was a few goblins but no sign of the ape don''t push yourself okay?¡± She kisses my cheek, I can feel tears falling onto my face, ¡°I was so worried!¡±


    ¡°Umbra please don''t knock me out again, but then at the same time, thank you. Knowing my fighting style I would''ve just been in the way. When I came to I was tied up but I watched most of the fight from here, it was Eva who picked apart through the Dungeoneering Kit and figured there was something to fend off a big monster and we found a Flashbang. Azula grabbed it so fast and rushed out before we could say anything.¡± Juzo pats my shoulder, ¡°Thank you for saving us.¡±


    ¡°I''m glad you''re okay. It seems you can mix pills and drink them like potions as well. And it seems your arm is no longer broken, Health Pills heal that as well. I will work on my Apothecary so we can have a lot of buffs in the future. I''ll be the best support instead of running away. I''m sorry you had such a huge burden.¡± Eva begins to cry.


    ¡°It''s not your fault, just mine. If we didn''t stay in the fields so long we probably could have made it to town by now. I wasn''t thinking, but next time I''ll be more prepared. I''m sorry I let you down as a leader.¡± I feel useless.


    ¡°Not at all. None of us would have known, and now we have so much food. As a leader you did the right thing, you really did. We''re all alive and that''s what matters.¡± Azula wipes the tears from my eyes.


    ¡°I still can''t see, someone look and tell me if there''s a status-ailment near my name.¡± Everything is darkness even with my eyes open.


    ¡°Yeah there''s an eye with a line through it and it looks like a three hour countdown. If only we had antidotes for those.¡± Eva says, rummaging through her kit, ¡°Nope nothing here, sorry.¡±


    ¡°I should sleep anyways, it''s been a long day, but we survived our first day as Adventurers so thank you everyone.¡± I smile and clap.


    ¡°Yeah that''s true!¡± Juzo claps too.


    ¡°Hooray!¡± Azula cheers


    ¡°And many more to come!¡± Eva claps too.


    ¡°Well I''m off to bed, goodnight everyone. We''re pretty high up so nothing should attack us.¡± Azula rests next to me, her armor still on it feels cold but a nice cold.


    ¡°I''ll stand guard anyways, Eva get some rest okay?¡± Juzo kneels down next to me, ¡°You did great today Leader, don''t beat yourself up okay? You saved my life, you really did. Thank you.¡± Juzo pats my chest.


    ¡°Thank you Juzo, I''m sure you''ll save mine one day as well. We''re brothers for life man.¡± I reach out with my fist and he places his fist against it.


    ¡°For life.¡± His armor clanks as he sits down against the tree.


    ¡°Goodnight!¡± Eva whispers.


    ¡°Goodnight everyone.¡± I say.


    ¡°Rest up! We''ll make it to the city tomorrow.¡± Azula kisses my cheek.


    ¡°I''ll wake you up if anything happens. Goodnight everyone.¡± Juzo whispers.


    ¡°Juzo wake me up in four hours so we can switch please, plus I want to look at this world at night.¡± I give a thumbs up.


    ¡°Okay Leader, get some rest.¡± I assume he''s giving a thumbs up too. I let the darkness embrace me, I let my mind drift into nothingness. No dreams occur in this realm, just darkness, I wonder why that is. I almost died today, I guess I should get used to it. Because even when I''m max level it''s a fight for survival, just now even more so since we''re weak, but I''ll get better both as a fighter and as a Leader.


    It''s as if I am being pulled back into my body, I am gently shaken awake, ¡°Leader, can you see?¡± It''s Juzo, I blink a few times and slowly sit up.


    ¡°Yeah I can, thanks.¡± There are a few Glow Stones around camp. We¡¯re on a massive tree branch. I stand up slowly and walk to where he was sitting.


    ¡°Come check this out.¡± He says, leading me towards the edge of the tree branch, or what I thought was the edge. He moves thick bushes and I walk through them, the branch arcs upwards, ¡°Use the grooves for grip, it doesn¡¯t get too steep.¡±


    ¡°Got it. Listen I''m sorry I knocked you out.¡± I follow closely behind him.


    ¡°I told you it was okay, you did what you had to do. One day I''ll get my defense up so high you could literally use me as a shield so just keep boosting your attack okay?¡± He looks back and gives me a thumbs up while smiling.


    ¡°I''ll do my best. If we got you a shield it would take a while to get used to the weight but as your strength gets better you''ll get used to it.¡± I can see the thick tops of trees come into view as we climb to the top of the branch. It evens out like a little platform, ¡°Woah!¡±


    ¡°This is nice right! Look at the view bro!¡± He has his hands on his hips, taking in the view.


    There is a giant moon in the distance, the stars fill every inch of the sky and the many lights of the city could be seen not too far away, ¡°This is so beautiful! Man I almost died today huh?¡± I chuckle and sigh, taking a seat at the edge of the branch, the surrounding forest stretches far into the distance.


    ¡°That was bad, but we¡¯re alive and that''s what matters ya know.¡± Juzo takes a seat next to me and laughs, ¡°Level 25 monsters are that strong and I hear the cap is sixty. It''s gonna be intense battles, way more intense than boar.¡±


    I can¡¯t imagine the monsters to come, ¡°That was just one of those Lightning Apes, imagine a whole forest full of them?¡±


    ¡°That would be so bad.¡± We sit there in silence for the longest time, ¡°Hey Umbra?¡±


    I turn my attention back to him, ¡°Yeah bro?¡±


    ¡°Thanks for saving us. I know you blame yourself but don''t. You got us food to live and protected us when things went wrong. Just when I get stronger let me be a badass too okay?¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°I will I promise. And we saved each other out there, I would''ve been dead if it wasn''t for Eva and Azula too. We have to get stronger to protect those girls, even though they''re the ones saving us huh?¡± We both chuckle.


    ¡°We don''t have much Nugz, we could see how many Health Pills we can buy, and take a better look at your armor in the morning.¡± Juzo thinking ahead.


    ¡°Good idea, my arm snapped and I could feel everything, but when I took those Health Pills my whole body went back to normal, it''s crazy.¡± I show him my arm, it looks perfectly normal.


    ¡°I wonder how bad the injuries could get before they''re unable to be healed.¡± Juzo is lost in thought.


    ¡°Yeah that''s true. We don''t know much about this world and were only taught the basics, I wonder just how big this world is too and how many Adventurers are fighting and dying as we speak.¡± I stand up and stretch, my body feeling less stiff than before, ¡°You should get some rest, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Yeah we do.¡± Juzo yawns loudly and I help him up, ¡°Wait up, I want to remember this place forever.¡± Juzo digs into his satchel for the Carving Knife.


    ¡°What''s that for?¡± I ask.


    ¡°To leave our mark, so we can always come back and remember no matter where life takes us.¡± He begins carving for some time as I watch in silence, ¡°There, all done!¡±


    ¡°Woah that''s so cool!¡± It¡¯s the Lightning Ape fighting the four of us with our names carved next to it.


    ¡°This is just one day of adventures, people will fill massive books with our battles one day I''m sure of it! Let''s get some rest now yeah.¡± He gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°Yeah, sounds good.¡± I take one last look before we climb down.


    He keeps his armor on and lays down, yawning while putting a blanket over himself, ¡°Goodnight Juzo, see you in the morning.¡±


    ¡°Goodnight Leader, we made it through today. Let''s fight hard tomorrow too.¡± He raises a clenched fist and then rolls onto his side.


    I take a seat against the tree with my blanket over me and my sword by my feet, all is silent but the chirping of small insects and the occasional howling of animals in the far off distance. Did I do the right thing as leader today, why am I so weak, how could I have fought differently, I didn''t have the chance to use Focus Slice either, what if we worked as a team. All of these questions flow through my mind, but I shake them off, the past is the past and tomorrow is a new day of surviving. I have to be strong. I wonder if I can use other weapons for Focus Slice, I grab a nearby stick and hold it in my hand, ¡°Focus Slice.¡± I whisper, I can feel the mana flowing through my body into the stick and it glows red. I shouldn''t swing it so I let go of it. I should try to relax my body and mind until the sun rises. I put my fists together and close my eyes and begin to meditate, breathing in through my nose and out of my mouth slowly, my legs criss-crossed. I can feel the mana flowing through my body, I can control where it goes. So I circulate it along with my breathing, it''s as if time speeds up for when I open my eyes Azula is yawning and stretching while licking her dry lips, ¡°Morning.¡± I say, blinking as my eyes adjust to the rising sun.


    ¡°Morning love, how''s your body feeling?¡± She folds the blanket.


    ¡°It''s fine, thanks for saving me yesterday.¡± She breathes into her palm.


    ¡°Oooh no smelly breath! Yes!¡± She walks over to me and kisses me, ¡°I will always save you, no matter what I have to fight. I will always save you okay?¡±


    My heart is so warm and happy, ¡°Thank you love.¡±


    She blushes, ¡°Aw you called me Love you''re so nice. Should we wake the others?¡±


    ¡°Already up, we have a long day ahead of us. I say we grab what we can afford and head into the next dungeon.¡± Eva is folding her blanket, ¡°But then again that''s your call Umbra. Good morning by the way.¡± She gives a warm smile.


    ¡°No yeah you''re right, the faster we do more dungeons the faster we level up and have more Nugz to spend on items and gear. I''ll gladly take either one of your input on anything, we''re a team.¡± I smile and give a thumbs up, then begin folding my blanket, ¡°How busted is my armor?¡±


    Azula points to my armor in a pile by the tree, ¡°I couldn''t really tell, should we wake Juzo?¡±


    ¡°No he can rest a bit more, he already has his armor on anyway. Well my breast, back plate and left arm piece are completely shattered.¡± I pick them up only to have them crumble into small broken pieces, ¡°That leaves me with leg guards and my right arm piece, I can make or buy new armor eventually, but I should be fine in the meantime.¡± I quickly strap my armor on.


    ¡°You sure you''ll be fine?¡± Eva asks.


    ¡°Yeah I''ll dodge as much as I can. Oh yeah how many pills did you mix into the drink last night?¡± I finish strapping my armor on.


    ¡°I put three Health Pills and one Stamina Pill, you had just a sliver of health left and the three put you at seventy-five percent, so each one heals us around twenty-five percent.¡± Eva grabs her staff.


    ¡°Okay thanks that''s good to know. Juzo, hey Juzo.¡± I gently shake him.


    ¡°Who is it!¡± He lunges with fists clenched, ¡°Whoops sorry! Morning everyone!¡± He laughs while rubbing the back of his head.


    ¡°It''s time to head out. We should snack a bit first though.¡± I hand Boar Jerky and cups of water to everyone.


    ¡°Let''s eat!¡± We cheer, eating our first breakfast together.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Five: Goblin Forest

    <h1>Chapter Five: Goblin Forest</h1>


    ¡°Agh that was so good! I wish we had rice or side dishes!¡± Juzo pats his belly and his armor makes loud noises.


    ¡°We need so many items but we''re so poor.¡± I laugh, holding up three fingers.


    ¡°Oh yeah that''s true, maybe we''ll hit a treasure chest.¡± Azula says as I take one last look at our campsite, the tree is so huge, towering above for as far as the eye can see.


    ¡°Maybe we can sell the jerky to food merchants?¡± Eva says, gently landing on the ground, ¡°So long tree.¡±


    ¡°I''m sure we''ll figure something out! I can''t wait to see nice places and a dragon too and-¡± The few birds that were singing moments ago are now silent.


    ¡°Juzo quiet down, I''m trying to listen.¡± But he continues talking.


    ¡°I can''t wait to try out different foods too agh it''s going to be so-¡± I punch his arm.


    ¡°Juzo stop! Azula watch out!¡± My body moves on its own and the arrow plunges deep into my back, ¡°Azula Fireball into the tree branch to the left. Juzo two approaching behind, Eva Wind Bullet to the bush on the right, hurry!¡± I try to reach for the arrow but it''s too low for me to reach.


    ¡°Fireball!¡±


    ¡°Wind Bullet!¡±


    ¡°Dragon Armor! Grand Slash!¡± I can''t see what they''re doing because I''m trying to reach the arrow before it makes me bleed out. I hear the goblins screaming, some falling to the ground with a hard thud.


    ¡°I don''t hear any more, Azula pull the arrow out please.¡± Not having armor is going to be tough.


    ¡°Got it got it! Hold still.¡± She tugs really hard and I grunt.


    ¡°Check to see if there''s any poison ailments, goblins use poison weapons sometimes.¡± I can feel the arrow tearing through my back as it gets pulled out.


    ¡°No nothing! There''s so much blood, the number minus five keeps appearing next to you and your health is dropping fast!¡± I quickly dig for a Health Pill and swallow it.


    ¡°I''m so sorry I should''ve paid more attention!¡± Juzo punches the tree.


    ¡°Juzo it''s fine you were excited for the day but remember we''re still in a dungeon, please be ready at all times to fight until we get in the city. Azula did the hole close?¡± The pain is gone but I have to double check.


    ¡°Yeah it''s closed but your shirt still has a hole.¡± I sigh.


    ¡°Okay good. Take any weapons or Nugz from the dead goblins. We should keep going.¡± I dust off my pants.


    ¡°I got the loot. There wasn''t much. A few Copper, two bows and two axes.¡± Eva grips her staff, ¡°I really need to learn healing.¡±


    ¡°We''ll be better equipped soon.¡± I say as we begin walking, Juzo walks in back of everyone in silence, ¡°Wait.¡± I stretch out my arms to stop Azula and Eva from stepping on a vine.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Eva asks.


    ¡°The color is different from the rest of the vines. It''s a shade too light.¡± I pull out my sword and slice down on it.  It wriggles violently while spewing out a green liquid as a screech sounds in the bushes twenty feet away. Ten long vines whip violently from the bush, ¡°Fireball!¡± The vines shrivel up and begin to retract slowly.


    ¡°Grand Slash!¡± Juzo cuts them all off in an instant and then leaps back towards us.


    ¡°Air Bullet!¡± Eva shoots the flames that rise towards the top of the trees and they disappear.


    ¡°Focus Slice!¡± I can feel the mana charging, but I channel and focus it into my sword faster, it seems the meditation helped. I swing and the charred massive venus fly trap falls to the floor in pieces.


    ¡°I''ll carve the teeth, make sure the fire doesn''t spread.¡± I pull out the Carving Knife and begin carving away at the many rows of sharp teeth. The beast dropped twenty Copper. Eva uses wind magic to put out the small flames that cover the area.


    ¡°Good job everyone!¡± Juzo says as we begin walking again.


    ¡°Azula try practicing on controlling the flame, it might have to do with how much mana you put into it, that way we don''t burn ourselves too.¡± I say as nicely as I can.


    ¡°Yeah I get what you mean, it''s just hard to control but I''ll work on it!¡± She smiles and moves hair from her face.


    ¡°We should see if there''s any quests in town that give Nugz as a reward too.¡± Eva says, gliding around, using wind to push the dense thicket of dead branches away.


    ¡°Yeah we could use more Nugz.¡± I say focusing on the ground in front of us in case there''s more of those vine monsters.


    ¡°Hey Umbra?¡± I look over to Azula who smiles at me.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I smile and look back at the ground.


    ¡°You think you can teach me how to meditate? That''s what you were doing in the morning right?¡± The village is in sight finally.


    ¡°Yeah I can! It''ll help with mana control too. Agh finally the city!¡± There are massive cobblestone walls surrounding the big city. Elf guards with bows patrol on top, we emerge out of the treeline into plains once more.


    ¡°Woah we made it!¡± Juzo says loudly while waving at the nearest guard who waves back and smiles.


    ¡°Sweet!¡± Eva walks next to us.


    ¡°Thank you love! Agh we can look at the different shops too!¡± Azula holds my hand and kisses my cheek. We all put our weapons away and walk through the massive wooden gate.


    A tall muscular elf holding a lance greets us, ¡°Welcome to Cobblestone Village, a small resting stop for all Adventurers, the gate closes at sundown so if you plan to leave on a quest it is best to return before then.¡±


    ¡°You mean this isn''t the Earth Kingdom Capital city?¡± I say, looking around at all of the tall buildings.


    He lets out a hearty laugh, ¡°Oh no boy, this here is a mere sliver of the glory that is the Earth Kingdom, I do hope you survive long enough to feast your young elf eyes upon the homeland. Fight hard young ones! Fight hard!¡±


    ¡°Thank you sir, I hope I get to see it one day as well. We will be off now.¡± I bow out of courtesy and so do the others. We walk into the massive entrance of the city that is a courtyard with a fountain and many people walking around. The buzz of a crowded city with carts being drawn by massive lizards and so many Adventurers walking around with various power levels.


    ¡°Look a level 60!¡± Azula points at a man in shining gold armor riding what seems to be a mix of a polar bear and a eagle.


    ¡°Woah we get mounts too!¡± Juzo says, trying to keep his eyes off of a big breasted catwoman who is being followed by a young man in a white shirt holding a sword.


    A deep morbid sigh from Azula and Eva, ¡°Out of all the classes we could''ve been cat girls.¡±You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    ¡°I know right!¡± Another deep sigh.


    I let my thoughts get to me imagining Azula as a cat girl drinking milk and getting it all over her huge melons, ¡°Umbra what''s with that look?¡±


    ¡°Uggh! Nothing! Let''s um lets look for a merchant okay?¡± I laugh nervously and hurry down the street.


    The city is so massive and crowded, shops are all over the place and Adventurers have their own mini shops on the sidewalk either in small stands or on the floor on blankets. Many people yelling out their specialty and what they have for sale.


    ¡°This is a bit overwhelming, could we take a small break?¡± Eva says, clutching Juzo''s arm tightly.


    ¡°Leader is a break fine?¡± Juzo asks.


    ¡°Yeah sounds good, we can sit in that alleyway.¡± It''s a small side alleyway and no people selling items in it so we all take a seat, all except for Azula, who is digging through her satchel, ¡°What you doing?¡±


    ¡°Hmm I almost got it.¡± She continues digging into the satchel.


    ¡°Did it really work?¡± Eva says.


    ¡°Did what work?¡± Juzo scratches his head.


    ¡°Another way of preserving meat. I put water in a jar and then added a Cold Pill and then wrapped meat in leaves to preserve it. I stored away logs and I made a holder for my cooking pan so I can cook comfortably just like this.¡± She pulls out a jar full of meat and the logs, it looks similar to a makeshift table now.


    ¡°That''s actually really smart.¡± Juzo says while staring at the meat with a gleam in his eyes.


    ¡°We have to plan ahead right?¡± She smiles and uses her left hand to keep a small flame under the pan while placing the meat with her right.


    ¡°You''re so smart Azula! Make sure to rest after though okay?¡± I smile at her while she concentrates.


    ¡°I will I will! After we eat!¡± The sizzling of meat along with the smoke, ¡°Oh yeah I can''t really keep up these flames, it was just to heat the pan. Eva can I use your pan as well please?¡± She stops her flame and digs through the satchel once more, pulling out a huge pile of sticks and logs.


    ¡°Here you go!¡± Eva quickly hands her the pan and Azula places another log underneath the first pan and then puts small sticks in it, making a small fire. The intensity of the cooking meat rises and the sweet juices make the alleyway smell so good. Before we realize there are people gathering around, spellbound by the wonderful food.


    ¡°Is that meat!?¡± A man in a full armor set says, taking a big whiff.


    ¡°Yeah but sorry not for sale we''re just trying to eat.¡± Azula politely says.


    ¡°Five Silver! I''ll give five Silver for a bowl of meat!¡± He begs.


    ¡°Someone has meat over here!¡±


    ¡°Meat!? Like actual meat?¡±


    The crowd is in a uproar. I stand up, ¡°Everyone please calm down! Is meat really that rare here?¡± I look at their drooling faces.


    ¡°The only food here is sweets and basic pastries along with Food Pills. Nobody''s actually cooked or eaten meat here before, or at least not these low level noobs! And meat in shops or restaurants are super overpriced.¡± The man says.


    ¡°Hey you''re only level ten!¡± One guy yells.


    ¡°Shut up! So how about it? Five Silver okay?¡± I don''t think this guy will take no for an answer.


    Azula looks back at me, ¡°What should we do?¡±


    ¡°We could sell the jerky for Nugz? Would you guys be fine with eating Food Pills and maybe we can find more edible beasts in the next dungeon?¡± I turn to Juzo and Eva who give a thumbs up.


    ¡°We can get new gear too!¡± Juzo stands up slowly.


    ¡°And afford a Healing Spell Scroll as well.¡± Eva smiles.


    Juzo takes in a deep breathe and then shouts, ¡°This meat is not for sale! But we have Boar Jerky for sale for-¡± He quickly turns to me, ¡°How much?¡±


    ¡°Three Silver each, limit three per customer.¡± I finish counting the jar of two hundred pieces.


    ¡°Three Silver each! Limit three per customer! You can also store these for up to a year! So make a single file line if you''re interested!¡± As if he cast a magic spell all of them quietly got in a line, ¡°And if you don''t like it you can have your Nugz back!¡± He looks at me and gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°I''ll take the Nugz right here and he will hand you the pieces don''t worry he just washed his hands!¡± Eva turns to me, ¡°He just washed his hands. Right?¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah! Sorry!¡± Juzo helps me quickly wash my hands.


    ¡°I''ll be over here cooking so have fun!¡± She waves at me while the line moves away from her.


    ¡°Three!¡± Eva says, taking the Nugz.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± The man says, eyeing the piece as if it were a fine gem, ¡°Well I guess I''ll try it.¡± He shoves the whole thing in his mouth and chews. Tears fall down his face, ¡°This is so good! Please let me buy more!¡±


    ¡°Limit three per customer.¡± Eva sternly says.


    ¡°I''ll give you ten Gold for the whole jar! Please I beg of you this is the best thing I have ever tasted!¡± He gets really close to Eva.


    ¡°Sorry man, everyone is equal here so wait in line.¡± Juzo pushes him away from Eva gently.


    ¡°Don''t push me! Are you trying to fight! I''m ten levels above you pal!¡± Juzo moves Eva back towards me.


    ¡°Don''t do this man.¡± Juzo grips his sword with both hands.


    ¡°Paralysis.¡± The man begins to fall to the floor and is put against the wall by a level 60 Adventurer, his face is covered by a black mask, his armor pitch black and a massive Greatsword rests on his back.


    ¡°What did you do?¡± Juzo asks.


    ¡°Don''t worry the effect will wear off in ten minutes. In the meantime I would like to pay for everyone, all I ask for is one small piece of the cooked meat. I''ll offer ten Gold.¡± The man pulls out a pouch with ten Gold coins.


    ¡°That sounds like a fair trade, Azula give him a bowl please. Thank you for helping as well.¡± I bow to thank him but he holds his fist out.


    ¡°Aye, It''s no problem at all, I''m sure you had it all under control.¡± I bump fists with him, his hand is firm and strong. The sign of a true warrior.


    ¡°Here you go!¡± Azula hands him a bowl and the man stares at it for some time, then back at her, and then back at the bowl.


    ¡°Thank you. I will be on my way.¡± He teleports by muttering something under his breath.


    ¡°Well there''s enough for everyone and it''s all paid for!¡± Juzo yells as everyone cheers.


    We spend the next ten minutes passing out the jerky, the paralysis wears off on the man and he runs away.


    ¡°We''re all out of meat! Go on and have a great day and fight hard! Find us next time we might have more! Thank you all!¡± Juzo is a great merchant.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± The people yell and the crowd quickly disappears.


    ¡°Meat is all ready. And we made some Nugz!¡± Azula hands us each a bowl and we take a seat.


    ¡°There''s even Silvers in the tip jar!¡± Eva shakes a jar filled half way and then sets it down and holds her bowl.


    ¡°Time to dig in! Thank you Azula!¡± Juzo yells at the top of his lungs.


    ¡°Still in merchant mode huh? Thank you Azula.¡± I can''t help but laugh.


    ¡°Thank you Azula!¡± Eva quickly takes a bite.


    ¡°You''re all very welcome, thanks for selling the meat and making us Nugz! We could retire and just become merchants. Or have merchants work for us and make a whole chain of jerky shops!¡± Azula takes a bite of her food while I savor every juicy piece.


    ¡°That would be nice!¡± Juzo laughs, scoffing down his food.


    ¡°This is the life!¡± Eva smiles, we finish eating and clean up.


    ¡°We should go to the merchant shop, we need new armor, Health Pills and seasoning for food, and a shield for Juzo. Was that everything?¡± I help Azula up from the floor.


    ¡°Healing Scroll!¡± Eva yells.


    ¡°Oh yeah that too.¡± The city is so massive and there''s even more merchants on the sidewalk than before.


    ¡°I''m not sure if I should use a shield, my mobility would decrease by a lot. I need to get used to all of the weight first. If that''s fine?¡± Juzo asks, looking left and right down the pathways.


    ¡°Yeah that''s a good idea! It looks like you''re carrying a lot too!¡± Azula says while pointing at a merchant on the floor, ¡°Isn''t that the person who helped us? The level sixty?¡±


    There''s an arm piece and a chest and back plate, ¡°Let''s go see how much those are!¡± Juzo hurriedly walks towards the man, who still wears the mask. I weave in between passing carts and people, ¡°Hello again! How much for those pieces please!¡± Juzo is still in merchant mode.


    ¡°Why hello Adventurers, these three pieces are epic legendary items that resists magic attacks, you can look at them if you¡¯d like.¡± He hands them to me, the material is firm and cold, as if made from crystals. They''re smooth and black, the chest and back plates are lighter than I expected, ¡°Usually these go for a couple hundred Platinum, but I''ll make a deal with you four if you''re willing.¡±


    ¡°What''s the deal?¡± I ask calmly.


    He holds out his hand, showing four small black earrings, ¡°These are called Nethershard, very valuable and hard to obtain, I want the four of you to wear them. It gives me the ability to take half of your mana no matter how far the distance, the skill can only be used once, but it the four of you will have matching pieces everywhere you go, it helps me and is also stylish and symbolic for you. If you take the risk and wear two sets then I''ll also throw in this very effective legendary healing spell scroll, since your mage doesn''t have any.¡±


    ¡°Agh so pretty!¡± Azula holds an earring in her hand.


    ¡°This is too good to be true!¡± Eva reads over the scroll, ¡°Has a one-hundred percent chance to give a random buff as well as healing!¡±


    ¡°What''s the catch?¡± I say, this is too perfect.


    ¡°There is no catch, I just have good ears and thought If I was ever in a pinch I could use the extra mana.¡± He gives two thumbs up.


    ¡°What do you think?¡± I ask Juzo who is rubbing his chin.


    ¡°Hmm, would I look good with those? Yes! Yes I would! I''m in!¡± He smiles.


    ¡°We could use the gear love.¡± Azula holds the earrings in her hand.


    ¡°I¡¯m in as well.¡± Eva says.


    ¡°Okay looks like you have a deal.¡± I take the earrings from the man.


    ¡°Thank you, pleasure doing business. If you would hold out the earrings in front of you please.¡± He stands up and we put our hands out. He has earrings in his hands too, ¡°Seal!¡± Both earrings glow and float up towards our ears, quickly pushing through the skin and latching themselves, ¡°See quick and painless. Now mage just point your palm towards the scroll and yell learn.¡±


    ¡°Um like this?¡± She points her palm, ¡°Learn!¡± The scroll glows white and vanishes, ¡°Thank you!¡±


    ¡°Fight hard Adventurers and may we see each other again one day!¡± The tone of his voice changes, ¡°Goodbye Nova.¡± He mutters quietly, but my ears are the only one that hears, ¡°Teleport castle.¡± He vanishes.


    ¡°Well looks like we got gear!¡± Juzo says as Azula and Eva touch their earrings.


    ¡°We should get Health Pills and head out to the next dungeon.¡± Azula says calmly, my mind still lost in thought.


    ¡°Yeah that''s a good idea! Umbra let''s go!¡± My mind has more questions, but I snap out of my daze and run to catch up to them.


    ¡°You okay love?¡± Azula smiles at me.


    ¡°Yeah sorry was looking at my new armor.¡± It feels warm and smooth against my skin.


    ¡°It looks very lovely.¡± She holds the door open for me.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Eva is talking to the merchant, another elderly elf, almost identical to the one in the city before.


    ¡°Umbra we have fifteen Gold with all of our Nugz counting the tip jar as well. Health Pills are two Gold each or we can do a fetch quest for a jar of fifteen Health Pills. What do you think?¡± Eva asks, shaking her jar of coins.


    ¡°What''s the quest?¡± I ask, nodding at the merchant who smiles warmly.


    ¡°My young Dragon Slayer, the quest is a simple quest called Fetch the Goose Egg. I need a single goose egg to finish crafting a certain item. The reward will be a jar of Health Pills. Do you accept?¡± He talks calmly and slowly.


    ¡°What do you three think? Do fetch quest, finish quick and head into dungeon with Health Pills and save our Nugz for an inn?¡± I count the price difference in my head, we can get seven pills and be broke or do this quest.


    ¡°I say we do the quest.¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°That would be helpful.¡± Eva puts her jar away.


    ¡°We''ll be done with it in such a short amount of time!¡± Azula cracks her knuckles.


    ¡°Okay sure, yes we accept the quest.¡± I press the accept icon on the quest summary.


    ¡°Good! There are no monsters in that area and the quest requires the use of no weapons, fists are allowed though. You can keep your weapons here.¡± I hand him my sword.


    ¡°Okay sounds good! Looks like we''ll be relying on Azula a lot.¡± They hand their weapons over as well.


    ¡°The goose is near the big tree near the lake in the outskirts of town, Be very weary and heed my warning, this goose is very strong. It would be best to try to befriend it instead of stealing the egg. And the goose will never make your health go down.¡± The old man chuckles, but Azula and the other two are already out the door.


    I nod, ¡°Thank you sir, I''ll be on my way.¡±


    ¡°Good luck!¡± He begins to laugh while stroking his long grey beard.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Six: Fetch The Goose Egg

    <h1>Chapter Six: Fetch The Goose Egg</h1>


    ¡°Hold up! How¡¯d you even get so far that fast?¡± I''m out of breath from running down the street to catch up, the gate to exit the city is right ahead.


    ¡°Sorry! It''s our first quest so we''re excited!¡± Azula continues running with the other two.


    ¡°Yeah man keep up!¡± Juzo''s footsteps are heavy.


    ¡°I''m winning!¡± Eva quickly glides down the street.


    ¡°Coming through!¡± Eva waves at the guards as she glides past.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Juzo yells as he runs by.


    ¡°Keep protecting the city you''re doing great!¡± Azula yells as she passes. The guards smile and wave.


    ¡°Sorry It''s our first quest and we''re excited! Thank you!¡± I yell as I pass them.


    ¡°Good luck on your quest! Thank you! Finally someone appreciates us!¡± They cheer while blushing and crying.


    We run past the bridge and there are plains surrounding a lake with trees spread out like freckles. I can see into the far distance where the forest starts, it looks dark and gloomy, I turn my head away from it and see the three have gotten way ahead of me so I hurry to catch up. There seems to be no enemies around, a few Adventurers are in the area, some laying in the grass on a blanket, some headed towards the forest. The three are squatting down, staring at a tree as I catch up, ¡°What are-¡±


    ¡°Shh.¡± Azula holds her finger against her lips. And then points to the bottom of the tree. I squat down with them and there are two red eyes glowing with such intensity inside a hole in the bottom of the tree, a small figure slowly makes its way out, ¡°No way.¡±


    ¡°You have to be kidding.¡± Juzo says.


    ¡°Oh my.¡± Eva''s face gets super pale.


    ¡°No way! This is too good!¡± Azula says as we begin laughing nervously.


    ¡°Quack! Quack! Quuuaaaaackkkk!¡± The goose walks on two really buff legs, it has a twelve pack of bulging muscles, the upper body of a world champion bodybuilder, all of this in the form of a two foot goose, it has a black headband on, it clenches its fist and energy begins flowing and spiraling around it.


    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± I take a few steps backwards as it quickly disappears.


    ¡°Juzo look out!¡± Azula yells as the goose appears behind him, viciously karate chopping the side of his head, his health bar doesn''t take any damage but the force from the hit sends him flying into the distance, rolling in the grass.


    ¡°Quaaaack!¡± Eva quickly runs away.


    ¡°Sorry!¡± She screams, taking a seat next to Juzo who is rubbing his head.


    ¡°Look the egg is in the tree!¡± Azula points to a shiny gold egg, ¡°I''ll distract it you get the egg!¡± She tells me and I nod.


    ¡°Feint! Feint!¡± I try to get to it as fast as I can, Azula is busy fighting the goose, but as I reach for the egg my hand is blocked by the fist of the massive goose.


    ¡°What?¡± I look back at Azula, who is still fighting it, but I can feel it, the goose is running back and forth, fighting and holding my hand. I am lifted up and pushed backwards. I roll in the grass and stare at Azula fighting while trying to catch my breath, my head spinning.


    How does it even move that fast? A combo of vicious kicks from Azula returned with a combo of vicious punches by the goose. It opens the buff mouth and a beam of water shoots out, Azula quickly dodges, ¡°I swear if you mess up my hair I''ll kill you! Fireball!¡± The flame and water collide making mist around the area. Both of them continue to punch and block. Azula uses flames to boost her punching and kicking speed. The battle rages on all day. Both the goose and Azula are panting while clenching their fists. I''m sitting on a blanket in the shade as Juzo and Eva take a nap nearby, I''m watching silently as the two clash again and again. It seems they''re both at their limit, ¡°Azula the sun is beginning to set, we should get a inn and come back in the morning.¡± I don''t want to be outside the city with no weapon at night.


    ¡°You got lucky I have to leave! I''ll come back tomorrow! For now this is a draw!¡± Azula wipes the sweat from her forehead.


    The goose points at her, ¡°Quaack!¡± It punches his fists together and walks into the tree and the hole closes.


    ¡°What a jerk!¡± I pour Azula some water as she sits on the floor, ¡°Thank you love!¡± She gulps it down.


    ¡°We should wake them up and leave.¡± I say, the sky beginning to turn violet.


    ¡°Yeah we should hurry!¡± Azula rushes up and shakes the two violently, ¡°We have to go it''s getting dark! Hurry!¡±


    The panic in the sleepy faces of Juzo and Eva are priceless.


    ¡°We have to run!¡± Juzo begins to sprint.


    ¡°Did you beat it?¡± Eva asks Azula as we run after Juzo.


    ¡°Don''t even ask!¡± Azula¡¯s face turns red.


    I begin laughing as we continue to run, I stop abruptly as she glances over, her gleaming eyes staring through me, ¡°Oh look the bridge! And it''s about to close too!¡±


    Juzo waves at the guards, ¡°Hey! We''re back!¡±


    ¡°Welcome back! I hope you had fun! How did it go?¡± The guards are friendly and waving.


    ¡°We fought a buff goose! I lost so bad!¡± Juzo scratches the back of his head.


    ¡°Same.¡± I say, sulking.


    ¡°I ran away!¡± Eva gives a thumbs up and winks.


    ¡°I''m going to crush that goose tomorrow!¡± Flames in her eyes.


    ¡°You aren''t doing Fetch the Goose Egg are you?¡± Their faces are pale.


    ¡°Yup!¡± Juzo says.


    ¡°No one in history has completed that quest, let alone lasted more than a minute fighting that oversized goose.¡± The guard wipes sweat from his forehead, ¡°It''s not following you is it?¡±


    ¡°No I fought it all day but it was a draw and we have our rematch tomorrow. I''m gonna merc it!¡± Azula cracks her fingers.


    A sigh of relief, ¡°Oh good, that goose destroys everything in his path.¡±


    ¡°I''ll beat it tomorrow!¡± Azula punches her fists together.


    ¡°Well good luck!¡± The guards say as we walk through the city gates.


    ¡°What should we do now?¡± I ask the group.


    ¡°We should look for a cheap inn, and then I''m pretty hungry but we should save our Food Pills for dungeons.¡± Eva says, playing with her hair.


    ¡°I''m sure we can find something around here.¡± The city lights are lit up with large chunks of Glow Stone. There are many Adventurers walking around and talking. The area that had all of the merchants is empty as we walk down the sidewalk, Azula and Eva talking about the goose. Juzo walks in silence, a sweet familiar smell kisses my nose.


    ¡°Right here.¡± Juzo is already pulling aside the small tarp that covers the shop, ¡°Hello there!¡±


    ¡°Why hello Adventurers! What a wonderful night isn''t it?¡± The small bearded man who stands on a stool hands us menus as we take a seat on bar stools.


    ¡°This smells so good!¡± Azula sits next to me, Eva next to Juzo.


    I look over the prices, ¡°Noodle and boar meat broth for eight Silver, drinks for two Silver. We can afford that.¡± I turn to the three who are drooling over the menu.


    ¡°I''d recommend number eight. It gives a relaxation boost, then our lemon-lime drink is really good, almost a familiar taste from a different life. Aye, a different world.¡± He rubs his beard, lost in thought as I look over to the three.


    ¡°Yes that sounds great!¡± Juzo says, handing him the menu.


    ¡°Same for all?¡± The man asks, looking at us as we nod yes, ¡°Aye that¡¯d be forty Silver.¡±


    I count them out and set the Nugz on the counter, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    He nods, ¡°Food¡¯ll be comin right up!¡± His hands move quickly, placing five large wooden mugs on the counter and pouring a bubbly clear liquid into them, then five bowls of noodles mixed with herbs and meat, ¡°Ye be new Adventurers right?¡±


    ¡°Um yes today is our second night but we''ve been through so much already, it''s a life of adventure for an um Adventurer hehe!¡± I scratch the back of my head nervously.


    ¡°Aye you lads protect yer women! The days will be long an hard, the battles many. You all have the smell of battle and Lightning Ape blood. Tis heroic to have survived a battle with one of those.¡± Azula and Eva begin smelling themselves as the man laughs, ¡°Worry not, for I have the nose of a wolf. We shall eat and drink heartily young Dragon Slayer and brave friends! Oh yee my name is Rex, us Dwarves enjoy good food and battle, but I am too old to fight any longer, so food it is!¡± He is very cheerful.


    He holds out a closed fist to all of us and we put ours to his, ¡°Nice to meet you Rex I''m Juzo!¡±


    ¡°Eva!¡±


    ¡°Azula!¡±


    ¡°Umbra.¡± I bump his fist and he quickly places the bowls in front of us and himself, then passes out the drinks and holds his up.


    ¡°We''ll make a toast!¡± We hold our cups up as he stands on his stool, ¡°May the Gods bless young Dragon Slayer and his friends! To the freedom of being an Adventurer! To the glory of battle! To treasure! To friendship! To good food and drink! Aye! Aye! Aye!¡±


    We put our mugs together, ¡°Aye! Aye! Aye!¡± I take a big swig of my drink, it tastes bubbly and familiar.


    ¡°It tastes just like soda!¡± Eva says, but gets quickly confused.


    ¡°Mystery words again!¡± Juzo laughs.


    ¡°So good! There should be an explanation to these words.¡± Azula says.


    Rex rubs his long beard, ¡°Throughout your travels you will hear or say many words that you will not understand, it''s best if ye paid no heed to them. Eat up before the broth gets cold!¡± We use metal forks to eat the noodles, they''re so thick and long.


    ¡°So yummy!¡± Eva is eating so fast.


    ¡°This is so good! Thank you Rex!¡± Juzo devours his bowl and drinks all of the broth and exhales.


    ¡°Refills are four Silver!¡± Rex drinks from his bowl, a single noodle hanging from his beard, he looks down, ¡°I be saving that for later aha!¡± He grabs it and eats it while laughing. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    ¡°How about it Leader can we afford more?¡± Juzo asks, I look at our bowls and they''re already empty as well as our drinks.


    ¡°You buy fresh bowls I''ll throw in drink refills for free!¡± Rex gives two thumbs up and a smile.


    ¡°Aww yeah!¡± Azula chugs the rest of her drink.


    ¡°Thank you Rex!¡± Eva says as I set the Silver on the counter.


    ¡°This food is great!¡± I quickly eat the noodles, the flavor melting my taste buds.


    ¡°Aye thank you! It was a long process to get it this good, but I''m glad I get ta feed new Adventurers like yaselves! Never let the hard battles extinguish your flame ya hear!¡± With our bellies full and the mugs and bowls empty we rub our bellies.


    ¡°Thank you Rex! We''ll see you soon!¡± Juzo says before bumping fists and leaving the shop.


    ¡°Safe travels and do come back!¡± He is so cheerful.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± Azula leaves.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Eva waves goodbye.


    ¡°Aye be careful out there Dragon Slayer!¡± I bump his fist and leave a extra 20 Silver.


    ¡°Thanks for the hospitality! See you soon Rex!¡± I wave and leave the shop, Juzo is stretching his legs on the sidewalk.


    ¡°That was so good! I''m so full!¡± Eva rubs her belly.


    ¡°What''s next oh yeah the inn!¡± Azula points down the street to the many inn signs.


    ¡°Cheaper the better right?¡± Juzo looks up at the skyscraper looking inn.


    ¡°Nope too fancy.¡± We continue walking.


    ¡°Nope.¡± A inn with a large lake and boats.


    ¡°No.¡± A inn made out of crystal.


    ¡°This one?¡± I say after saying no to countless inns, the one in front of us has a broken dusty sign, ¡°The Boar Inn.¡±


    ¡°Yeah it looks cheap and run down. Perfect.¡± Eva says, staring at the massive building that is lit brightly by many Glow Stones.


    ¡°Well let''s see how much it is.¡± I say as we walk up the pathway into the entrance.


    ¡°Why hello there! Welcome to the Boar Inn! It is one Gold per night, breakfast included, that''s the cheapest price around here.¡± A young elf woman says as I look over to the three and they nod yes.


    ¡°One room please!¡± I put the gold coin in her hand and she flips it with her thumb.


    ¡°Okay follow me this way! Doors are protected by a magic barrier so only those with the key can enter. There''s one bed and one shower unless you''d like to pay another Gold for a room with two beds? Sorry I forgot to ask.¡± She smiles and lets out a nervous laugh.


    ¡°Is two beds fine or one?¡± I ask the three.


    ¡°I''m a big guy, I don''t think we would fit on one bed but the girls could and us men could sleep on the floor?¡± Juzo has a good point.


    ¡°Yeah who knows how many days it would take to finish the quest. We should save our Nugz.¡± Eva says while looking up at the wooden ceiling.


    ¡°Yup! As long as I can shower!¡± Azula stretches her arms.


    ¡°Then yes one bed will be fine!¡± I tell the woman and we continue walking.


    ¡°You''ll be on the twenty-eighth floor, there''s thirty in total, with ten rooms on each floor. If you get lost there are lifts on each side of the hallways. Please watch your head.¡± She steps into the lift and we follow.


    ¡°Wow that''s so many rooms! What room number is ours?¡± I ask so I can remember.


    ¡°Room two hundred-eighty three, please be sure not to break anything please! The rooms are also soundproof for um various reasons hehe! Going up!¡± She presses the button twenty-eight and the lift begins to go upward. The sinking feeling in my stomach feels familiar. The light shows a number and as we pass a level the number rises and all is silent as we reach the twenty-eighth floor.


    ¡°Here is your room! There are alarms for when breakfast is served and here is your key.¡± She hands me a small crystal, ¡°Just place it against the door and push. Have a great night and do call if you um need anything! There are also single use Cleaning Crystals that freshen your clothes, those are in your bathroom, just hold them above your clothes and armor!¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡± It seems as if there is no door but I push the crystal against the number and it opens to reveal our room.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± Juzo says, following behind me.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Azula bows.


    ¡°Agh a shower, thank you!¡± Eva waves as the woman leaves and I shut the door behind us, it makes the sound of a large metal vault being shut.


    Azula and Juzo are tearing off their armor, ¡°Girls get dibs at showers first!¡± She yells.


    ¡°Guys shower faster we should go first!¡± Juzo pleads, looking at me for backup.


    ¡°I''ve been fighting a goose all day! I smell like goose!¡± Azula clenches her fists.


    ¡°Juzo.¡± I say trying to warn him.


    ¡°But we have the manly sweat of men to wash off with a nice warm shower!¡± He is cracking his neck.


    Eva stands next to me, ¡°It''s like two bears fighting for meat.¡±


    ¡°It''s like scary.¡± I take a deep breath, ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I move into the bathroom and lock the door. I can hear the confused gasp of Azula and Juzo, followed by the hard footsteps of the two and the pounding on the door.


    I look into the mirror at my face, my skin is so smooth and my eyes are shining blue, my hair long and blonde. I unstrap my armor as the pounding stops in defeat, I turn the water on hot and as I wait for the water to heat up I look around the room and it''s as if something is missing. There is cabinets and a sink along with the mirror but something. Something is missing, ¡°Toilet?¡± Whatever that is I''m certain we don''t need one. I remember what Rex told us and I shrug it off. I step into the shower and pull the curtain closed, the warm water against my skin feels so good, the grime, dirt and blood of the little time we have been here washing away. There is a large bottle filled with liquid and I pour some in my hands and cover my body with the soap. My hair and body becoming smooth. I stand there soaking and relaxing for a while and then turn the water off. I step on the floor mat and use a towel to dry myself. I grab one of the four small blue Cleaning Crystals and hold it above my pile of clothes and armor. It breaks and the pile glows light-blue and then returns to normal. They no longer smell and the armor looks as if it was shined and polished. I put on my clothes and take a deep breath before I walk out of the bathroom.


    ¡°Woah you smell so good! That was like two minutes! Juzo you can go next aha!¡± Azula smiles and gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°Take your armor too, the Cleaning Crystal also cleans your armor, just put everything in a pile.¡± I say while setting my armor down, ¡°It feels weird not having my sword. We should finish this quest quickly.¡± I sigh, laying down on the bed, ¡°So comfy!¡±


    ¡°Okay I''ll be back in a few!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up and closes the door.


    Azula and Eva sit in chairs at a small table, I curl up in my blanket and can feel myself falling asleep so I move to the floor and let my eyes drift. I must be tired, oh yeah Rex¡¯s food gave relaxation buffs, or maybe that nice shower or being in a secure room filled with a constant flow of cool air. This feels so nice, so very nice, ¡°Umbra.¡± I can feel my body being pulled back, ¡°Umbra. Pssst! Umbra wake up.¡± My face is softly slapped awake.


    ¡°What is?¡± A hand covers my mouth.


    ¡°Shhhh.¡± It''s Juzo, ¡°Just listen.¡± There''s a huge grin on his face.


    ¡°No way.¡± My face becomes hot, ¡°I can''t thank you enough.¡± We both listen to the giggles of the girls as the bath water flows softly, we can hear them splashing around.


    ¡°Oh my Azula yours are so big! That''s so much soap too!¡± A high pitched squeal and loud splashing.


    ¡°I''ll get you back!¡± Azula says as Eva begins to yell loudly.


    ¡°Is this paradise?¡± I say to Juzo who gives me a thumbs up and wipes blood from his nose.


    ¡°This is the life.¡± We laugh at each other.


    ¡°What is?¡± Azula and Eva smile while walking out of bathroom with towels wrapped around their head.


    ¡°Um nothing! Just adventures and actually staying in a safe room!¡± Juzo looks over at me.


    ¡°Yeah! It feels nice to not have to worry about monsters.¡± I smile and laugh nervously, ¡°Goodnight!¡± I curl up in my blanket and pretend to sleep.


    ¡°I''m about to fall asleep too!¡± Juzo says while curling up in his blanket.


    ¡°Thanks you two for sleeping on the floor!¡± Azula and Eva climb into bed.


    ¡°No problem!¡± Juzo says as I curl up and get comfy.


    ¡°I''m going to merc that goose so bad tomorrow!¡± Azula laughs to herself and I let sleep take ahold of me once more.


    I awake to two soft pillows being shoved in my face, oh my what could these be? I softly squeeze them and open my eyes, ¡°Azu-¡± My mouth is covered by her hand.


    ¡°Shh they''ll wake up.¡± She whispers in my ear, I look over to Juzo and Eva sleeping peacefully.


    She''s on top of me in black silky underwear, my body is hot and flustered as she begins to lick my neck like a cat girl, ¡°Oh Azula that feels so good!¡±


    ¡°What is he doing?¡± Juzo''s voice is loud.


    ¡°Shhh don''t ruin this, don''t move.¡±


    ¡°Oh my god.¡±


    Azula disappears and I suddenly wake up with my lips against Juzo''s back while my hands are gripping both of his buttcheeks, ¡°Good morning sunshine!¡± Azula''s on the bed laughing and wiping tears from her eyes, ¡°What kind of dream were you having pervert!¡±


    ¡°Hey um Umbra you can let go of my butt now.¡± Juzo laughs so loud and I let go.


    My face is probably red, ¡°Sorry Juzo.¡±


    ¡°This is how you start the day!¡± Eva''s face is bright pink as she rolls around on the bed.


    ¡°I didn''t know you were a butt guy Umbra! Ahahaha!¡± Juzo stands up and looks at me while cracking his knuckles, ¡°My turn to grab your butt!¡±


    ¡°Noooooo! Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I dash around the room as Juzo chases me. Who knows how long this goes on for, but Azula stops us.


    ¡°Boys we have to leave! The alarm sounded by the way we should get breakfast and then head out. I have a goose to crush!¡± There''s a evil aura surrounding Azula, we both immediately stop.


    ¡°Yes!¡± We rush to throw on our armor and pack our things and rush out of the door.


    ¡°I wonder what food there is?¡± We walk into the lift and make our way down.


    ¡°Who knows? I''ll eat anything. I''m going to eat that goose after I murder it.¡± The most evil gleam in Azula''s eyes.


    The three of us laugh nervously as she chuckles like a maniac to herself. The lift opens and we are greeted by the delicious scent of breakfast. There are signs that direct us to the food hall, there are so many Adventurers walking along the hallway. The hallway opens up and there is a massive room with long tables that have plates filled with food and cups with drinks and bowls with refills of both in the middle of the table. There is so much noise and talking from everyone, the innkeeper yells while holding up a massive wooden mug, ¡°Sit wherever there is an open seat! Eat as much as you would like and thank you for your Nugz! Please come again and fight hard no matter what difficulties lie ahead! Thank you! Cheers!¡±


    ¡°Cheers!¡± The hall echoes with clapping and yelling.


    ¡°Cheers! Woo!¡± The four of us go wild and then take a seat at the edge of a long table, the wide benches we sit on are made of wood and cushions. The drink in front of us is that drink Rex gave us last night and the food is an assortment of steamed vegetables, eggs, toasted bread, brownies, muffins and rice.


    Azula and Juzo pile their plates high with food, the bowls refilling themselves instantly, ¡°Agh this is so good!¡± Azula shovels eggs into her mouth.


    ¡°Yeah this is so good!¡± Juzo is eating three pieces of toast at once.


    ¡°This is!¡± I''m eating so much as well, this is what we should be eating like, my goal in this place is going to be focused on food! This is so good!


    ¡°Aghh!¡± Eva has a pile of rice and eggs on her plate, shoving spoonful after spoonful in her small mouth, her cheeks becoming filled and puffy like a chipmunk.


    It seems as if we eat for hours and everyone is cheering and singing songs, it''s a fun place to be, ¡°You four have fun today ya hear? And if ya needa stay again I''ll be sure ta save the same room!¡± The innkeeper is drunk as she rests her arms over Juzo and my shoulder, her massive boobs hanging in a low cut shirt near our faces. I glance at Juzo¡¯s face and it¡¯s bright red, I can feel the evil aura of Eva and Azula next to us.


    ¡°Thank you miss!¡± Juzo and I yell.


    ¡°Miss Leona be me name! Aye how soft you look, but glad ta see ya doing well, not many survive a Lightning Ape. Fight on and fight strong!¡± She smiles and flexes her bicep. She walks away to a different table.


    ¡°Well that was um, different.¡± I laugh nervously but I can feel the intense energy from Azula and Eva.


    ¡°Yeah haha! Um I''m going to leave now.¡± Juzo slowly inches away from the bench.


    ¡°What were you staring at Juzo?¡± Eva slowly says.


    ¡°Yeah Umbra you too huh?¡± Azula has fire in her eyes.


    ¡°Let''s go!¡± We start running away from Azula and Eva who sit there with evil expressions as they watch us run away.


    ¡°Oh that was a close one.¡± I say, both of us out of breath, holding our knees as we stare at the open hole in the tree trunk.


    ¡°We ran here so fast. The guards were happy to see us too.¡± Juzo wipes the sweat from his forehead.


    ¡°Ooh look at these two, I''m still mad at you but I have to fight so you''re off the hook for now!¡± Azula smiles and winks at me.


    ¡°You too Juzo! I expect a back rub later!¡± Eva kisses his cheek.


    ¡°Yes Eva!¡± Juzo blushes.


    ¡°Me too Umbra!¡± Azula stretches her arms and legs.


    ¡°Yes Azula!¡± Juzo and I are sweating bullets.


    ¡°Come out you stupid goose!¡± Azula punches the tree.


    ¡°Quaaack! Quaaackkk!¡± The buff goose emerges from the hole and they begin fighting again. It lasts all day and three naps in the shade later the sun is beginning to set again.


    ¡°Azula we have to head back now.¡± I yawn loudly as Juzo and Eva finish packing their things.


    ¡°I''ll get you tomorrow goose!¡± Azula is out of breath and so is the goose, who points at her with his buff finger.


    ¡°Quack!¡± He rushes into the tree and slams the door shut.


    ¡°I''ll get it next time for sure!¡± Azula is steaming mad.


    ¡°I''m sure you will!¡± I cheer her on and yesterday''s events repeat itself, eating with Rex, renting the inn, eating in the morning, Azula fighting the goose, it being a draw. Six days pass in this order and we have five Gold sicty-four Silver left. It''s morning time and we''re eating at the hall again, ¡°The same food for a week sure is getting to me.¡± I say to Juzo who is hardly eating.


    ¡°Yeah same here, it''s already been so long. Should we just give up?¡± Juzo slowly shoves a spoonful of eggs in his mouth.


    ¡°I can beat it! Today will be the last day!¡± Azula clenches her fists.


    ¡°I believe you!¡± Eva smiles and takes a bite of bread.


    ¡°I''m going to take some bread with us today so we can snack on it.¡± I put some away thinking about food expenses.


    ¡°Good idea!¡± Azula smiles and we finish eating.


    We leave the hall and make our way back to the tree trunk where the fighting continues on throughout the day.


    Azula drops down with both feet, then throws a massive uppercut that is barely dodged by the goose. The goose does a summersault and shoots beams of water that are easily dodged, ¡°Azula! Food!¡± I yell, pulling out toast and eggs. Juzo and Eva are sitting on the blanket as well.


    ¡°Okay! Um timeout goose!¡± The goose nods and sits in the grass in confusion. Azula quickly sits down and we begin to eat, the goose has a sad expression on his face as if he is being left out. I glance at Azula who is having an internal battle in her mind, ¡°Here! You gonna sit over there by yourself or you gonna eat with us? You need strength to fight don''t ya!¡±


    The sad, gloomy expression is replaced with a huge smile as the goose makes his way over and takes the bread and egg sandwich, ¡°Quack!¡± He takes a bite and tears flow from his eyes, ¡°Quuuaaaackkk!¡±


    ¡°Awww in a way he''s kinda cute for a super buff goose!¡± Eva says smiling.


    ¡°I''ve never seen someone so happy before haha!¡± The goose quickly rushes into the hole in the tree and returns with a golden egg and hands it to Azula, ¡°Quaack!¡±


    ¡°I think this is the item we needed. We could''ve fed him this whole time.¡± She bumps his fist and gives him a thumbs up, ¡°Thank you for helping me become a better fighter!¡±


    ¡°Quack!¡± He sits and eats with us for some time and with the sun still high in the sky we say farewell as he returns to his home. We make our way back to the city gate.


    ¡°Hello Adventurers! Did you fail again?¡± One of the guards says.


    ¡°Nope! We actually got the egg!¡± Azula holds up the gold egg.


    ¡°Woah nice! Did you use a super move to beat it?¡± We pass through the gate.


    ¡°Nope! Not all battles need to be fought to be won.¡± We wave and walk into the busy streets, ¡°Agh I''m going to miss this city.¡±


    ¡°We''ll be sure to visit again, I''m going to miss showers!¡± Eva twiddles her hair.


    ¡°Oh yeah and safely sleeping too.¡± I picture us sleeping in some cave on edge, staring into the darkness and fearing attacks from monsters.


    ¡°And constantly having to worry for our lives.¡± Juzo has a stern look on his face.


    ¡°Well we''ll have plenty of Health Pills!¡± Azula pushes open the shop doors.


    ¡°Hello Adventurers! Back I see. Did you befriend it like I advised you to?¡± The old man chuckles.


    ¡°We um tried fighting it for six days.¡± I laugh and scratch the back of my head.


    ¡°I was close to beating it too!¡± Azula smiles and hands him the egg.


    ¡°As tempered as ever I see, thank you for completing the quest, here is your reward.¡± The old man hands the jar of Health Pills and places our weapons on the counter, ¡°And here are your weapons. Please have a safe journey on your travels. Feel free to look around. If you want to buy items I will give you a discount. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much!¡± We say and bow to give thanks.


    ¡°The store is so big, what items did we need again?¡± I ask Eva who is usually on these things.


    ¡°We got the armor, Healing Scroll, Health Pills. Um some seasoning for meat, no shield for Juzo since we''re focusing on attack power, some rice would be good and then we can save our Nugz. Sound good?¡± She smiles and puts her finger to her lip.


    ¡°Seasoning and rice, sounds good. Juzo and Azula anything else?¡± We walk past many rows of items on a shelf.


    ¡°That sounds like enough.¡± Juzo says, looking at the prices of the bags of rice.


    ¡°Yeah true, here''s a cheap seasoning for forty Silver. It smells good too.¡± Azula holds a large bottle in her hand.


    ¡°Okay yeah that does smell good.¡± I point to a large bag of rice, ¡°This is two Gold but it''ll last us a good while?¡±


    ¡°Yeah better to have food than to starve to death!¡± Juzo says, giving a thumbs up.


    ¡°Okay we''re all set then!¡± Eva says as we make our way to the merchant.


    ¡°These two items please.¡± Juzo places the large sack of rice on the counter.


    ¡°This would cost two Gold and forty Silver but I will give it to you for one Gold and fifty Silver!¡± He smiles, ¡°I''ll also give you two Water Crystals to cook the rice, on the house! Split!¡± He holds his hand over the bag and it splits into four smaller bags along with four small Water Crystals, ¡°The storage system is flawed, if you get split up and only one of you has food that would be unfortunate. Fight hard and fight strong okay!¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much!¡± I hand him the Nugz and I put the items in my satchel.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± The three say as well. We wave before walking out of the shop.


    ¡°He had a good point on the items. Let''s split the Health Pills we just got too.¡± I pull out the jar and divide them, ¡°I''ll keep one less, Eva should have one extra because of her low defense.¡±


    ¡°That works fine!¡± Azula says, putting her items away, ¡°The sun is still high, we should head out to the next dungeon.¡± The flames of adventure in her eyes.


    ¡°Yeah let''s get going!¡± Juzo says, punching his fists together.


    ¡°I can finally heal!¡± Eva screams while floating around.


    ¡°Time to fight for survival again.¡± I grip the handle of my sword.


    ¡°Bye friends! We''ll be back!¡± I wave at the guards as they begin to wipe tears from their cheeks.


    ¡°Fight hard and don''t you die okay! Farewell!¡± They both wave.


    ¡°See ya!¡± Azula and Eva wave bye.


    ¡°Stay buff!¡± Juzo flexes his biceps and they flex theirs as well. We take a deep breath as we stand in front of the treeline, the towering trees ahead of us once more.


    ¡°Entering dungeon! Caution! Entering dungeon!¡± The NPC warns us as I look over to the three.


    ¡°Let''s do this!¡± I draw my sword and we walk into the treeline.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Seven: Rabbits?

    <h1>Chapter Seven: Rabbits?</h1>


    ¡°This forest way spooky or is it just me?¡± Juzo says while clutching his sword and looking around at every small noise, we all have our Glow Stones on even though the sun is high up still, the canopy above is so thick the forest is really dim. The trees look black as if charred and very ominous. I have the worst sinking feeling in my gut.


    ¡°No you''re right this place is creepy.¡± I can see my breath, the air feels cold and there''s a slight fog setting in.


    ¡°I don''t like this at all.¡± Azula clutches her gauntlets as we walk in formation with Juzo at front, me to the left, Azula to the right and Eva in the middle.


    ¡°This feels so creepy.¡± Eva clutches her staff close to her chest.


    ¡°If we get split up then hang a Glow Stone from the tallest tree you can find okay?¡± I have to keep a calm head if we''re going to make it through this in one piece.


    ¡°The fog seems to be getting thicker, should we keep going?¡± Juzo stops and points to a small shadow on the floor in the fog.


    ¡°What is that?¡± I say, bracing myself for battle.


    ¡°Should I use Fireball?¡± Azula says, stepping forward.


    ¡°No there''s too many trees around, just stay on guard.¡± The shadowy figure comes into view and we all clutch our weapons firmly.


    ¡°Awww a bunny!¡± Eva says crouching down to pet it.


    ¡°Eva wait we don''t know if it''s dangerous!¡± Juzo says as she laughs.


    ¡°Dangerous? How can this cute bunny be danger- ouch!¡± The rabbit bites her finger, small drops of blood drip down from it, ¡°That really hurt!¡±


    ¡°See it could be poisonous.¡± Juzo says, his eyes glued to Eva''s finger.


    ¡°No. Even worse.¡± Azula says with the coldest tone.


    ¡°What do you-¡± I turn my attention away from Juzo and Eva to look at the rabbit, ¡°Mean? Oh holy shit!¡±


    ¡°What the hell!¡± Juzo''s voice is filled with fright.


    Eva lets out a loud scream as the rabbit grunts and morphs, the body becoming elongated and the fur turning a dark red color, it stands on two skinny feet with sharp talons at the edge, its arms and legs long and slender, the body almost hunched over due to the limbs being so long. A long snout with three rows of razor sharp teeth, it lets out a loud howl that is returned by many in the surrounding area, ¡°Wererabbit level ten.¡± Azula clenches her fists.


    It quickly lunges forward, ¡°Juzo!¡±


    Juzo nods at me, ¡°Dragon Armor!¡± He grabs it by the neck and slams it on the floor as my sword quickly crashes down, chopping the head off.


    There''s no time to pick up the five Copper that fall near the body. A long slender arm reaches from the fog and pulls Eva by the leg, ¡°Help! Juzo please!¡± She screams as we rush to help.


    I''m tackled by a Wererabbit and use my forearm to keep the snapping teeth away from my face, Eva screams in agony as Juzo and Azula continue fighting in the fog.


    ¡°Feint!¡± I appear behind it and chop through its spine, then I rush to Azula and Juzo. I slice the back of the neck of one and the leg of another. There are two eating and tearing through Eva''s stomach, her HP is very low, ¡°Feint! Feint!¡± I quickly chop off their hands and feet and kick them against a tree, the two Wererabbits writhe in pain on the ground and then become still. I quickly shuffle through my satchel and give Eva three Health Pills, ¡°You can''t die okay? Eat these please!¡±


    Juzo and Azula stand guard as I quickly crush the pills and mix them with water, ¡°I...need to get...stronger.¡± She begins to cough blood, her chest wide open, her guts hanging out of her red dress.


    ¡°Don''t talk it''s fine, please drink this please.¡± My hands are shaking but as I hold the bowl close to her lips she pushes it away.


    ¡°No...sa..save them¡­¡± She points her right hand at herself, ¡°He...Heal!¡± Her hand glows white and her health bar recovers quickly, her body returns to normal. She slowly stands up, ¡°See brand new! Sorry I''m so weak, but soon I''ll be strong okay?¡±


    Juzo and Azula are crying, ¡°I''m just glad you''re okay!¡± Juzo says loudly.


    ¡°It was my fault I let my guard down. Thank you Umbra, thank you Azula and Juzo!¡± She smiles as if nothing just happened.


    ¡°Stay on guard, there could be more okay?¡± I calmly say, listening for more beasts but there seems to be none in the area.


    ¡°Are you okay though? Like mentally? I mean you just had your guts ripped out.¡± Azula asks Eva, wrapping her arms around Eva and squeezing tightly.


    ¡°Yes I''m fine, this is the world we live in. I have to get used to battle and being injured. I''m prepared for the worst okay? Just keep fighting strong!¡± They squeeze each other tightly as Juzo and I quickly pick up the 30 Copper and place them in my satchel.


    ¡°That was weird.¡± Juzo picks his sword up from the floor.


    ¡°What was?¡± I quickly carve their hands and feet.


    ¡°My sword wouldn''t cut so I had to use my hands.¡± I put the pieces in my satchel and take a closer look at his sword.


    ¡°When was the last time you sharpened it?¡±


    ¡°Sharpened it?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it''s a sword and unlike Azula''s gauntlets or Eva''s staff our weapons lose sharpness with use.¡± I reach into the satchel and hand him a small square stone, ¡°Sharpening Stone, just slowly move it along the edge a few times. With practice it could be reduced to a single swipe and these never run out. We need to make sure to keep our gear in top shape, it could be life or death.¡±


    ¡°Got it. Thanks Leader!¡± Juzo slowly runs the Sharpening Stone against his sword for a minute and then hands me the stone, ¡°Thanks! What now?¡±


    ¡°We keep going, we''ll buy Eva new clothes and some basic armor once we get to the next town.¡± I quickly run the Sharpening Stone across my blade and then put it away.


    We continue walking into the dense fog. We hear screaming nearby and rush to check it out. As we get close to where the noise is coming from Azula and Eva suddenly duck behind a large tree, their faces pale, ¡°What is it?¡± I ask, clutching my sword and walking towards whatever was causing them this much panic.


    Azula quickly grabs my arm and pulls me to the tree, ¡°Don''t look, Juzo watch out.¡± She whispers but it''s too late, Juzo glimpses whatever is out there and quickly hides, his breathing becomes fast, his face is pale as well.


    ¡°What is it?¡± I try to lean over and peak.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    ¡°Don''t look, trust me.¡± Juzo says, wiping beads of sweat from his forehead.


    ¡°I have to look.¡± I slowly look over and see blood splattered everywhere with pieces of Adventurer bodies scattered across the floor, what seems to be an arm or a leg is being chewed viciously by a pack of eight Wererabbits. I duck back behind the tree, the snarls and barks of the pack along with howls are returned by a few sets of howls in different directions, ¡°What should we do?¡±


    ¡°We should hide in the trees, there''s way too many of them to fight.¡± Juzo¡¯s breathing is back to normal now. My hands are shaking but I need to stay calm.


    ¡°It would be hard for you to get up right?¡± Azula''s voice is shakey.


    ¡°I can use Feint to take him up. Eva and Azula can get up easily so let''s try this.¡± I wrap my arms around Juzo, ¡°On the count of three okay?¡±


    ¡°No we have to go now hurry!¡± Azula points to a pack that breaks through the fog, rushing towards us.


    ¡°Hurry! Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± Eva quickly uses her wind powers to get to the lowest branch while Azula shoots a fireball and then pushes herself up with flames. Juzo is really heavy but we''re slowly moving upward, my mana dropping quickly, we barely make it on the branch.


    ¡°They can climb!¡± Eva screams while pointing her staff down towards the bottom, ¡°Wind Bullet!¡± There is a cyclone of snapping fangs and claws at the bottom, too many Wererabbits to count.


    ¡°This is the life huh? Constant fights for our life where we could die at any moment. I took these past few days in the town for granted.¡± I let out a deep sigh, ¡°Juzo hold me up again.¡±


    ¡°This is the life of an Adventurer and I wouldn''t want to live any other way!¡± Juzo cracks his knuckles.


    ¡°Eva use the healing spell as many times as you can on us, what was it like two?¡± I grip my sword and calm my breathing.


    ¡°Yeah two, but I wouldn''t be able to heal for a while after okay? Wait no just once I''ve been using spells sorry!¡± She has a worried look on her face.


    ¡°Look out!¡± Azula quickly kicks a Wererabbit off of the branch and it falls to the floor while screeching loudly. A thud and a small yellow plus sign with numbers that are too quick to see appear next to the four of us and our Exp. bar increases slightly .


    ¡°What was that number?¡± Azula stands on guard, scanning the rest of the tree branch.


    ¡°Eva it''s fine use it! Azula that was Exp. share, I have the ability to change the settings since I''m party leader, I want us to all level up at the same time if that''s fine with everyone? That way nobody gets left behind.¡± I look at the three and they nod.


    ¡°Thank you Leader! Heal!¡± Eva points her palm towards the floor and all of our bodies glow yellow as a speed buff clock appears next to our names.


    ¡°I was hoping for attack boost but speed is fine, any buff is better than none. Juzo you ready?¡± I grip my sword.


    ¡°Yep! Dragon Armor!¡± He grabs me by the ankles again and I try to control my breathing.


    ¡°Focus Slice!¡± My sword glows and I swing, the shockwave falling along the trunk of the tree, ripping through the many Wererabbits climbing up. Our levels rise to 8 and the Wererabbits scatter away in a panic.


    We sit down holding our knees, every now and then we hear the screaming deaths of a group of Adventurers and can''t help but to feel sorry for them, ¡°Going from fighting the Boar and then straight to these where they''re at level ten, it doesn''t seem right at all. There isn''t enough time to have actual battle experience for a combat situation like this. We got great gear to start, these Adventurers probably have shit gear and stats and just get thrown out into the world. Keep feeding the beasts and they''ll stay away from the towns, or maybe it''s just out of their control.¡±


    ¡°It''s not fair at all. Once I''m stronger I''ll change things.¡± Juzo wipes tears from his eyes.


    ¡°They sound so helpless.¡± Azula says, the day feels endless.


    ¡°Any of those people dying could have been us. Especially me, while I was being dragged away my throat was cut, but I was barely able to use the healing spell. Then they ate me all over again. I really owe whoever that person who sold us the items, I owe them big time.¡± She rubs her earrings with her fingers.


    ¡°I didn''t know you were that close to death. We all have to be careful.¡± My mind is filled with doubt, how will I lead them this time, will we even survive?


    ¡°It''ll work out, we just need to work as a team, that''s it.¡± Juzo says, standing up, ¡°We should make our way out of this forest before nightfall, who knows what kind of beasts will come out then.¡±


    ¡°I forgot it was still daytime. Yeah Juzo''s right we should hurry.¡± Azula stretches her legs.


    ¡°What''s the plan of attack?¡± Eva is looking at me for answers.


    ¡°We have to be very careful, avoid the pack if we can, even if there are Adventurers being eaten we have to keep pushing forward.¡± Is that really what a hero would say? But then again I am no hero, just a leader trying to keep my party alive, ¡°Eva use healing only if it''s life or death got it? Also can you get to the very top and look to see where the forest ends?¡± I calm my mind and prepare to fight for survival.


    ¡°Got it!¡± She quickly uses air magic to get to the top, disappearing from view. She returns after a few minutes, ¡°There¡¯s the edge of the forest half a mile in that direction.¡± She points her staff.


    ¡°Thank you, we dash that way and don''t stop until we reach it.¡± I look at my team and we''re all ready to fight once more, we look down into the fog covered floor. We are about to leave the safety of the nest, ¡°Juzo let''s go.¡± I wrap my arms around him and we jump off of the branch, ¡°Feint, Feint, Feint.¡± I slowly let both of us fall and then we silently land, listening for any sign of movement, we quickly move from tree to tree.


    ¡°Shit. Hold.¡± Juzo puts his hand up and we stop and stare at a pack of Wererabbits growling at a single swordsman who is covered in blood, holding his sword with one hand.


    ¡°Just run away please!¡± A girl is on the floor covered in blood, tugging at his shoe. The other two members of his party are unconscious with limbs missing.


    ¡°No! I have to protect you, what kind of Leader would I be if I just ran away? I won''t! I''ll fight until I die!¡± The snarling Wererabbits prepare to attack, my body moves on its own and I lunge into action, ¡°Feint! Middle! Feint!¡±


    ¡°Dragon Armor! Left! Grand Slash!¡±


    ¡°Right! Fists of Flame!¡±


    ¡°Heal!¡±


    I listen to the call outs of my team as I focus on the two Wererabbits ahead of me, I dodge a claw and chop off one''s leg then the arm of a second one. I quickly grab whatever coins they dropped and rush to the four Adventurers, ¡°You guys okay?¡±


    They''re all healed perfectly, ¡°Thank you! Thank you so much!¡±


    ¡°Leader what''s the plan? Hurry!¡± Juzo listens to the distant howls and barks that echo throughout the forest.


    ¡°We have to hurry, keep going and save any team we find along the way. Eva use as many Mana Pills that you need. We can''t create a kingdom if there aren''t any Adventurers alive, we have to hurry.¡± They nod in agreement and follow closely as we quickly run through the treeline. I hold my hand up, there are bodies all over the floor but none seem to be Adventurers I hear a faint yelling in the distance.


    ¡°Let''s check it out.¡± Juzo nods and everyone rushes through the fog.


    ¡°Help! Somebody!¡± Wererabbit pieces are all over the floor, there''s a guy carrying his friend over his shoulder while limping, ¡°My friends are still fighting!¡±


    ¡°Eva.¡±


    ¡°Got it! Everyone get close to them! Heal!¡± We all get attack buffs and the two are perfectly healed.


    ¡°Swarm the Wererabbits!¡± We all dash as one big mob through the fog tearing through the Wererabbits, Eva heals the next two players and we continue running through the fog, swarming the few Wererabbits and healing the two other players.


    ¡°Hold!¡± I hold out my hand and they all stop, ¡°Focus Slice.¡± I charge my mana and slice through a massive tree in front of us and it falls down with a loud crash the tree stump is now a large platform, ¡°Everyone we''ll use this as our battle arena. Juzo can you yell for me please, tell any Adventurer to use their emergency Flashbang on any Wererabbits and flares to signal us and to run in our direction. Azula can you shoot Fireball into the sky, the branches are high enough to not catch fire.¡±


    ¡°Got it, ADVENTURERS IF YOU''RE IN THE FOG RUN TOWARDS OUR FIRE AND USE YOUR FLASHBANG IN YOUR DUNGEONEERING KITS ON ANY WERERABBITS AND THEN EMERGENCY FLARES AS YOU RUUUUUUN!!!!!!¡± Juzo repeats this as Azula shoots Fireball into the sky, the bright flames light up the forest.


    ¡°Everyone else prepare for battle, keep the healer and two signaling in the middle got it! Fight hard!¡± I roar as they prepare themselves, we take on a circle formation as Juzo and Azula continue to signal, we see six sets of blinding flashes from different directions and sparks begin to fly into the sky, a few join up and continue to run, the groups break through the trees with panicked faces.


    ¡°There''s so many of them!¡± They all run up to the tree stump and we help them up.


    ¡°Azula light the fallen tree on fire so they can only approach from the front and then protect the ranged fighters! I think this is everyone! Ranged fighters in the back! Healers behind them! DPS and Assassin classes come with me! Tanks up front with Juzo! Formations go! Understood!? Juzo got it!?¡±


    ¡°Copy that!¡± Azula quickly swallows two Mana Pills and lights the tree on fire then stands next to Eva and stretches her legs.


    I hear the thunderous sound of footsteps quickly approaching. At least 50 of them and one big one, must be the boss, ¡°Fight hard and we''ll make it out of here alive!¡±


    ¡°Got it! You heard him people move your asses!¡± Juzo gives me a thumbs up as nine Adventurers gather next to me.


    ¡°What''s the plan?¡± One of them asks.


    ¡°No time, let''s go. Juzo there''s a big boss with them be careful!¡± Juzo gives me a thumbs up and I motion to the treeline, the nine sprint with me as fast as they can. After a few minutes I hold my hand up, ¡°Hold. The battle is about to begin. How many here have wide ranged DPS attack skills?¡± Four raise their hands, ¡°We''ll ambush them from behind and spam our spells as the Assassin class Adventurers guard us. Got the plan?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± They say, I focus my hearing. Juzo shouting orders, him tanking the big boss by himself, everyone else fighting the others, ¡°We need to go now!¡±


    We sprint once again towards battle, as fast as we can. The Assassin class become invisible, ¡°You saved us, I''ll protect you with my life.¡± One of them quickly says.


    ¡°We''re Adventurers, we should have each other''s backs. Let''s do this!¡± The battlezone is fierce, the tanks are holding the line, the ranged fighters are blasting spells as fast as they can. Juzo is to the left of everything fighting the big boss, who is a massive colossal Wererabbit with enormous muscles, and rather than slicing he¡¯s using his huge fists to fight. We get close enough to where our spells are in range, ¡°Now attack! Focus Slice!¡± I channel my mana and my blade glows, the other four say their skills and are charging as well, seems like they''re spellcasters. A few Wererabbits notice us and rush to attack, I trust in the Assassins. A Wererabbit gets close but falls down with a crunch as a kunai lodges in the back of its head.


    ¡°We got you!¡± One of them says.


    ¡°Tanks watch out!¡± I swing my sword as the others cast their spells.


    Juzo yells from his battle, ¡°Shields up!¡±


    The tanks all use their defensive skills, ¡°Shield Wall! Defense! Barrier! Fortify!¡±


    My Focus Slice rips through the Wererabbits as a hailstorm with sharp shards of icicles impale them, a tornado sweeps some up, molten lava burns a bunch to a crisp, and then crystal spikes impale others, there are only a few left, ¡°Swarm them and then the boss! Tanks surround it! Ranged attackers keep firing!¡±


    I rush through the carcass covered floor and slice down the few remaining Wererabbits. I run towards Juzo to help, Wererabbit King level 20, with five different health bars. It moves very quickly for its size doing a 20 kick combo. Juzo goes flying into the large tree that''s on fire, ¡°Juzo!¡± Eva screams and rushes to help.


    ¡°Azula help Eva! I got this! Tanks surround him!¡± I rush towards the towering beast. Some of the tanks are against the trees sobbing, most of the ranged fighters are throwing up or sitting down. Three exhausted tanks are trying to hold formation, ¡°Launch me!¡± I scream to one of them who holds a massive shield up, I jump on it and he flings me into the air, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± My body becomes stiff in the air but I am behind the beast, it turns around quickly, the gleaming red eyes locked on me, steam seeping through the massive jagged teeth, it punches towards me. It''s too fast I won''t be able to charge in time, ¡°Shit.¡±


    ¡°Bomb Kunai! Hidden Blade! Flash Kunai! Poison Kunai! Shock Kunai!¡± The Assassin Squad appears out of nowhere, the beast clutches his eyes, one health bar is drained.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± My skill is fully charged this might be a cheap move but I aim for the upper thigh and swing my sword. The tendons and flesh tear apart as it wails in agony. It falls over as blood gushes everywhere, the health bar slowly draining.


    ¡°Get off your asses! Help finish this thing!¡± Juzo roars while jumping through the flame, the surrounding players all glow a light-blue color and their morale is boosted. Everyone cheers as we finish the boss, and as the last HP point reaches zero the fog disappears.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Eight: Deliverance

    <h1>Chapter Eight: Deliverance</h1>


    ¡°Everyone gather around and sharpen your swords or take Mana Pills, hurry there are people rushing this way!¡± I quickly pull out my Sharpening Stone and glide it across my blade.


    ¡°Battle Formations!¡± Juzo yells, taking up front guard with me.


    ¡°Assassin Squad hide in the trees to the left just in case.¡± I say, nodding at them, ¡°On my signal.¡±


    ¡°Got it boss!¡± They cloak themselves and disappear.


    I close my eyes and listen, about forty but their footsteps don''t sound like monsters, the clanking of armor. They should appear in a few moments, ¡°Hold your fire! We are the Earth Kingdom Vanguard, there was a distress signal from this forest, the Dark Lord has been attacking low level areas as of late, it is a miracle that you have survived at all. Who is in charge?¡± A woman''s voice from the treeline but there is not a single person to be seen.


    ¡°Wow the Earth Kingdom?!¡± One of the tanks yells.


    ¡°We''re saved!¡± Another one says.


    ¡°Keep your guard up. Pass the word. Juzo I''ll check it out.¡± I quickly whisper.


    ¡°Got it. You heard the guy, pass it on. Be careful Leader.¡± Juzo bumps my fist and I step towards the treeline.


    ¡°My name is Umbra! Dragon Slayer class, show yourselves!¡± I have this sinking feeling in my gut.


    ¡°Void Shot.¡± I hear silently whispered, I cover my face with my left arm and brace for impact.


    ¡°Shields up!¡± I say as a volley of at least two hundred black arrows are shot into my chest, only to do no damage and shatter into tiny fragments, ¡°Show yourself!¡± I yell as she growls in frustration.


    ¡°How did such a low level Adventurer get that type of armor!¡± Gleaming purple eyes are all we can see through the darkness of the treeline. A tall slender woman with massive black horns steps forward, her skin is very pale and she wears black armor, a jagged long sword in her hand. Nekra level 60 The rest of her group emerge as well, the same purple eyes and features, but massive beasts almost that of orcs standing eight feet tall all level 60 as well, ¡°The Earth, Fire and Water Kingdoms have fallen to the hands of the Dark Lord. All Adventurers will be hunted and destroyed. Come to our side Dragon Slayer and you will be made commander of the main army.¡±


    ¡°I will never betray my fellow Adventurers!¡± I clutch my sword, most of us are barely level fifteen now. We need a plan quick.


    She lets out a ghoulish laugh, ¡°Oh Dragon Slayer I assure you one day you''ll betray everyone you love, come with us or we will destroy everyone here!¡±


    A slight nudge on my shoulder, ¡°Traps are set, there are mine shafts behind us we can retreat to, or we stay and fight it''s your call leader.¡± The voice of one of the assassins.


    ¡°Give word to everyone for retreat. I''ll stall a bit longer.¡± I whisper then use party chat telepathy to tell the others, ¡°And what if I join you?¡±


    She moves her lips, rows of sharp teeth reveal an ominous smile, ¡°Then you will have unimaginable power.¡±


    ¡°Sorry to disappoint you, now!¡± Blinding light and a binding tar along with smokescreen cover the enemies, ¡°Everyone run!¡±


    The ranged fighters are already gone, the tanks have heavy armor so it''s hard for them to run fast, I can hear the traps being quickly destroyed, they''re catching up fast. I turn around to face them, Juzo and the Assassin Squad stop as well, ¡°You guys keep going I''ll hold them!¡±


    ¡°We''ll fight with you!¡± Juzo says.


    The masked man that sold us the armor appears in front of me with a massive Greatsword in hand, ¡°All of you continue to the mines, find your way to the Light Kingdom it''s on the border of the Dark Kingdom. Air Kingdom has fallen as well. Light is the stronghold. Lead your people to safety and don''t make the same mistakes as me Umbra. Join my guild and also my party so I can reach you faster.¡± He sends me two invites and I accept, a white dragon appears next to my name.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°Light Kingdom Guild.¡± I clutch my sword again, ¡°You can''t fight them all by yourself!¡± I take two steps forward but he quickly puts his hand up.


    ¡°Barrier!¡± A massive wall of energy rises into the sky, ¡°Fight hard, I''ll see you again one day.¡± He instantly vanishes and the sound of clashing swords fills the air.


    ¡°Let''s keep going Leader!¡± Juzo pats my back and we run to the mines where everyone is waiting in formation right outside.


    ¡°They''re not following us! Light Kingdom is the destination, it''s near the Dark Kingdom. Air Kingdom has fallen as well! We must stick together and fight, and rescue any Adventurer we see! But the number one rule is we must survive!¡± I say and they all cheer, ¡°Let''s head into the mines and close the entrance!¡± The Assassin Squad walks next to Juzo and I up front, Azula collapses the entrance and everyone has their Glow Stones on, I reach into my Satchel to get mine but my hand touches what seems to be a wooden crate, ¡°Juzo can you give me some light please?¡±


    ¡°Yeah sure, woah that satchel¡¯s black isn''t ours brown?¡± He shines his Glow Stone closer.


    ¡°Yeah, that level sixty must have switched ours.¡± I shine the light, ¡°No way. This is a room piled to the top with crates, Food Pills, Stamina Pills, Mana and Health Pills, a pile of Flashbang, then a crate labeled Forbidden Fruit. Everyone we have supplies! We don''t have time to split items between everyone so let''s hurry onwards before the enemies catch up!¡± I reach into the satchel and grab what feels like a Glow Stone. It reads Everglow Stone, the light it gives off is so bright. I put it on my shoulder and we walk into the winding tunnel system.


    Deeper and deeper it goes and there is no enemy for the time being but we are all on edge and prepared to fight, ¡°Assassin Squad, what are your names?¡± I ask the five walking next to me.


    They turn and smile at the same time, ¡°Name¡¯s Carbon. And there''s only one of me, one of my skills is Clone, nice to meet you Umbra.¡± He shakes my hand.


    ¡°Nice to meet you too.¡± A small rock falls from the ceiling and before I know what¡¯s happening I draw my sword and cut it five times in a single moment. My body feels stronger and faster, ¡°What the?¡±


    ¡°No freaking way! Look at your level!¡± Juzo screams, his voice echoes throughout the cavern.


    ¡°How? What the hell.¡± I''m at level sixty now, ¡°Exp. Share through the party. Woah I should upgrade my skills I guess, that level sixty that saved us had me join his party and guild, I wonder what¡¯s next?¡±


    ¡°Umbra can you hear me?¡± A voice in my head, the voice of the man.


    ¡°Yeah I can, what do you need?¡± I say out loud.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Juzo asks, scratching his head.


    ¡°Juzo it''s the level sixty in party chat.¡± Juzo nods and keeps guard as I continue talking.


    ¡°Listen and listen very closely, I need you to add Juzo, Eva and Azula to the party so I can max them out. Then you four will train hard. You four will be the last hope. Do you trust me?¡± His voice seems frantic and scared.


    ¡°Yeah I trust you.¡± I add the three to the party.


    ¡°Thank you, wait two minutes.¡± He inhales sharply.


    ¡°Okay I will.¡±


    ¡°Ta.¡± All is silent on his side for the longest time.


    ¡°Woah!¡± Azula yells, ¡°This is crazy.¡±


    Her level is at max, ¡°Oh nice!¡± Eva flies around filled with happiness.


    ¡°We can protect everyone now!¡± Juzo clenches his fists.


    ¡°Okay I''m back, two portals will appear, your squad will walk into the one on the right, the others to the left.¡± Immediately two portals appear in front of us.


    ¡°Should we blindly trust this?¡± Juzo asks, rubbing his chin.


    ¡°He saved us and got us to max level why shouldn''t we?¡± I stare at the spiraling portal.


    ¡°Just a feeling I guess.¡± Juzo takes a deep breath.


    ¡°I''ll go check it out.¡± Carbon sends one of his clones through and we stand there in silence, ¡°Everything''s fine, it''s a massive warzone. A kingdom made of shimmering gold, it''s fine. I''ll take charge and protect this group, I assume you four have another battle to be at.¡± He nods and bumps my fist.


    ¡°Be careful, I''ll see you soon enough. Okay everyone through this portal! Fight hard! You''re in good hands okay?¡± They all cheer loudly.


    ¡°Wait before they go there''s a Forbidden Fruit crate in the pouch, it gives temporary max level to any player for two days. Have them take it.¡± The level sixty quickly says, his voice seems out of breath.


    ¡°Got it. Everyone this fruit gives you max level for two days! Fight hard!¡± I hand them the crate and they all begin to walk into the portal.


    With everyone gone Carbon gives one last look back, ¡°Fight hard and fight strong, no matter what path life may take us. We will meet eventually. I promise you. Leader.¡± He gives a thumbs up and walks through the portal. It disappears and the four of us quickly shuffle through our skill trees and max out everything, there''s so much to choose from and so much to do. We sit there for the longest time.


    ¡°You can fix whatever you need later... It''s time to go, please.¡± The voice says and we get up quickly.


    ¡°Time to go then.¡± We step through the portal and are surrounded by a room of gleaming diamonds, the level sixty is sitting on the floor with his armor broken and sword missing. He holds his right thigh to stop the bleeding, his left leg and arm are missing.


    ¡°Heal!¡± Eva screams but it has no effect, ¡°Why isn''t it working!? Heal! Heal!¡±


    ¡°Eva, it won''t work because I''m not the main body, just a clone.¡± He coughs violently as blood falls through the mouthpiece of his helmet, his face is still covered but I can see a single red eye through a crack in the helmet, an eye that looks familiar, ¡°I''ll use my magic to seal you in a training space for five years, it will be five minutes here. Your body will grow five times faster as well, your physical bodies will become strong and tough. Once you come back I will send you to the one-hundred level dungeon of the Dark Lord. You will find him at the very top. Train hard okay, the future is in your hands. I''ll be destroying your Greater Magic Satchels as well, so you can teach yourself how to survive. When you return you''ll be so strong you won''t need them.¡± More blood falls through his helmet as he coughs violently.


    ¡°Believe in us!¡± I say as we hand him our satchels.


    He points his hand toward the wall, ¡°Zeitkammer!¡± A red portal appears, ¡°Hurry I can only hold it open for five minutes.¡±


    ¡°We will train hard!¡± I say rushing through.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Azula says.


    ¡°Leave it to us!¡± Eva rushes in.


    ¡°I will fight as hard as I can!¡± Juzo appears as well and the portal closes behind us.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Nine: Endless War

    <h1>Chapter Nine: Endless War</h1>


    Five years have passed, the battle has been an endless war that we were tossed into, and like soft clay being molded and baked in an oven our skill grew as did our bodies. The most ferocious of monsters and enemies appeared before us and we fought through it all and even now we fight. I am in the middle of a large field with the other three, there are thousands and thousands of massive armored forest trolls with warhammers around us yet we fight, we fight as we have been for the longest time, we have been fighting, I don''t remember why though, what was the reason. There was a reason, ¡°Umbra snap out of it!¡± Juzo quickly pulls me back with his enormous tree trunk arms as Nova jumps in front of us, ¡°We have to get some distance! Transformation!¡± His Dragon Armor at max level allows him to transform into a humanoid dragon, Grand Slash is now a 500 hit combo. His new armor has slits where his wings form, he quickly flies into the distance.


    Nova jumps in the air and whispers, ¡°Supernova.¡± Her body glows a blinding white light that grows larger and larger, tearing up the floor and the surrounding area, it continues to spread. Her Fists of Flame turned into Flame Aura, it covers her whole body in flame, and Fireball turned into Supernova, a massive explosion at the cost of half of her health.


    ¡°We''re not gonna make it!¡± Juzo has sped across miles and miles yet her attack continues to gain distance. It is only a few feet away from us.


    ¡°Wind Spirit!¡± Eva is flying next to us, our bodies become transparent. Her skill makes allies and herself untouchable for a short duration of time, then she has Air Cannon, a powerful wide-ranged air attack.


    The blinding white light surrounds us, ¡°We have to fly above it!¡± Juzo yells, rushing to get out before Wind Spirit wears off. Closer and closer we go but there seems to be no end in sight.


    ¡°Ten seconds till it wears off!¡± Eva screams as we scramble, the top is in sight, ¡°Five seconds!¡± We push but it won''t be fast enough.


    I quickly grab Eva, ¡°Feint!¡± It takes us a few inches above the attack that seems to have reached its max height, but it continues to expand. We''ve had to use this twice so far and only when we''re in a pinch, only when someone is about to die. We stay above it for some time, it eventually fades away. I wipe the sweat from my forehead, ¡°That was close.¡±


    ¡°Yeah too close.¡± Juzo starts flying back, ¡°Let''s check on her.¡± Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    ¡°There was too many of them I couldn''t dodge quick enough.¡± Eva says as we make our way over.


    Nova is standing still, staring at a portal in front of her, ¡°What do you think this is?¡±


    ¡°I have no idea.¡± I scratch my hair and for some reason I remember this.


    ¡°Let''s walk in.¡± Juzo says, returning to his normal form.


    ¡°Yeah it feels familiar.¡± Eva says, grabbing Juzo''s hand.


    ¡°I''ll go first.¡± I grip my sword and walk into the portal, I shield my eyes from the blinding light of gleaming diamonds until my eyes adjust. Then I remember everything, ¡°Are you okay?!¡± I yell at the man who is on the floor breathing slowly.


    ¡°Wow how you four have grown. It seems your fighting days are not over¡­.¡± He begins coughing violently, blood falls from his helmet onto the floor, ¡°Whatever you may face, fight it without hesitation. Even if that person is yourself.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Nova asks, clenching her fists.


    ¡°Nova, this belongs to you. One day you will understand, and these circumstances are not the best to tell that story, for I am also out of time.¡± He holds a black ring of a diamond sphinx in his palm. She picks it up carefully and looks over the properties.


    ¡°Move at the speed of light five feet in any direction?! Why me?¡± She puts it on her ring finger.


    ¡°Say Ta to activate the item. Everything will make sense, but now is not the time. You must go and fight. Clear the one-hundred levels and defeat the Dark Lord, I will use the last of my strength to teleport you to the entrance, you must fight hard. Break the endless cycle. I leave the Light Kingdom in your hands.¡± He holds up his hand and a portal opens up.


    ¡°We will not let you down.¡± Juzo says while clenching his fists and walking through.


    ¡°Thank you for everything.¡± Eva gives a sad smile as she walks through.


    ¡°We will save the kingdom.¡± Nova punches her fists together and walks through.


    ¡°I will try my best.¡± I say, stepping through the portal, ¡°Thank you Umbra.¡±


    ¡°Goodbye my friends, Nova I''m on my way to meet you, sorry it''s taken so long, my love.¡± I can hear him whisper with his last breath, the portal quickly disappears, everything seems to make sense for a slight moment and then I must focus on the task ahead.


    The roar of battle behind us, we''re on top of a enormous staircase made of black marble. In the far distance there is a large mass of land where a war is taking place with thousands and thousands of people, an enormous barrier reaches into the sky protecting a gleaming gold city is slowly breaking into pieces. Before us are two metal doors with dragons etched in them, ¡°Everyone ready?¡± We stretch our limbs and prepare our minds for battle.


    ¡°We got this.¡± Juzo chuckles, ¡°This is going to be bad I can feel it, but even though we don''t have epic level gear I feel we can push through.¡±


    ¡°I''ll punch everything into dust.¡± Nova bumps her gauntlets together.


    ¡°I''ll be on heals.¡± Eva clutches her staff.


    ¡°We have been fighting for the past five years, we got this.¡± I bump fists with my team and inhale sharply. I push the doors open and we walk through, the doors shut behind us and there is a single purple portal. We walk through and appear to be on top of a mountain standing in ankle deep snow, it is slightly windy and cold, but this cold is nothing compared to when we fought ice giants in frozen water. I exhale and I have the icy white breath of a dragon. I can hear footsteps coming from the distance. I prepare for battle.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Ten: Level 1-5

    <h1>Chapter Ten: Level 1-5</h1>


    1


    Walking slowly and staring at us as if we were mere fleas, the towering beast slowly approaches us, scars on the inner thigh, ¡°My how you''ve grown, I was hoping I could get a rematch one day. Do you remember me?¡± I say calmly, the air that steams out of his nose, the level 60 Red Lightning Ape stands on two feet and roars loudly, six health bars appearing by his name, ¡°I''ll take of this, Eva if you could take care of the minions please.¡±


    ¡°Got it!¡± Eva smiles as I place my sword into the ground and crack my knuckles.


    ¡°I''ll sit this one out but I get to fight the next boss!¡± Nova pulls out two logs from her makeshift satchel and takes a seat with Juzo.


    ¡°Yeah do your thing, I call the third level boss then!¡± Juzo sits down and wipes his nose, ¡°Just hurry my nose is runny.¡±


    Thirty smaller versions of the Red Lightning Ape appear out of thin air, and sprint at us, ¡°Air Minigun.¡± Eva shoots fast bullets of air that rip the minions to shreds in an instant. They turn into black sand and no items drop.


    I walk slowly towards the beast as it charges its skill. I continue to walk slowly as it lunges forward with his fists in the ground and a enormous red beam of energy rushes towards me. I punch with my right fist and the energy is reflected back into his mouth, the beast crashes to the floor and then scrambles to get back up. I push off of the ground and instantly I am in front of him. A swing of his fist that I move to the side while crashing down with my elbow on his forearm. The loud crunch followed by pained screams, I punch his fist, breaking every bone in it. Then I pick him up with ease and slam the beast onto his back, a large crater in the ground. I crash down on his shin with the heel of my foot and it caves in, then I jump high into the air and land with both feet, snapping his other leg. He tries to crawl away using his one good arm and I walk slowly next to him as he huffs and grunts with pain. I grip his throat and slowly squeeze the breath out of him. I let go and it gasps for air, then I squeeze once more. This agonizing torture I bestow for a good twenty minutes before snapping his neck. He turns into black sand and drifts into the wind over the side of the mountain. Another portal appears before us, ¡°I don''t remember how weak we were before. Isn''t that weird? A long time ago that almost killed me, but now it couldn''t hurt me at all.¡±


    ¡°We lived in Valhalla for the past 5 years, training for this very moment. Giant Behemoths, Trolls, hunting to survive. Everything this place should have been but more, the only enemy we should fear is heartbreak.¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up and hands Nova the log, ¡°Thanks for the seat. Looks like you get the next boss, I''m sure you can handle all of them.¡±


    ¡°You bet I got it!¡± She punches her fists together.


    ¡°I''ll relax too!¡± Eva smiles at the bloodlust surrounding Nova''s body.


    ¡°Yeah same here, go wild my love.¡± We shoot each other a smile as we walk into the portal.


    2


    It seems as if we are at the top of a mountain, but looking down over the nearby ledge I see the night sky and many shining stars. There is a small wooden door in front of us that Nova punches through. The pathway is lit up by glowing violet stones, we slowly walk in silence as Nova searches the area for enemies, ¡°This is a maze, but I don''t have time to dungeon crawl right now. Flame.¡± A bright white flame covers her right hand and shoots forward as she melts through the crystal walls. This goes on for some time until we make it to a giant wooden door, ¡°Time to fight! I''m all fired up! Haha get it?¡± She smiles at us and punches through the door.


    It goes flying across the grand hall filled with piles of skeletons, a chamber of massive violet crystals hanging from the ceiling, ¡°Agh!¡± The high-pitched startled scream of the Undead Necromancer who casts his spells from the far end in a hurry, ¡°Summon Undead! Curse! Vitality Drain! Poison Cloud! Dark Spheres!¡± A few thousand skeleton warriors rise from the ground, Curse cut defense and movement speed by 25%, Vitality Drain gives him HP when he deals damage, Poison Cloud creates a violet mist through the hall, six-hundred dark orbs appear above him.


    Nova smiles and punches the air, the mist instantly disappearing, ¡°Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta!¡± It takes all of my skill and focus to follow her movements because they''re so fast but I see her punching through the army viciously and as if a single moment passed the shockwaves of her fists cause them to fall into little fragments of bone on the floor. A wave his hand and the orbs streak across the room, ¡°Fire.¡± She puts both of her fists together and a molten beam of white flame melts through the many orbs and hits half of his body. In a panic he quickly holds up his hands, the bones scattered throughout the hall rushes to him and he changes into a Colossal Skeleton Drake, his sharp talons glowing purple. Nova uses flame to push off of the ground and lift her high up to the ceiling where she pushes off once more, the Drake shoots a beam of dark energy that she dodges. She punches the forehead and all of the bones shatter, she quickly punches through the falling necromancer who turns into black sand.


    The three of us cheer as she bows, ¡°I get next!¡± Juzo yells as a portal appears.


    ¡°Go wild Juzo!¡± Nova gives a thumbs up and wipes the sweat from her forehead.


    ¡°I will!¡± He stretches his arms.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    ¡°Destroy everything honey!¡± Eva kisses his cheek.


    ¡°If we have to jump in and help you have to buy us food!¡± I laugh and we walk through the portal.


    3


    Before us is a building made out of crimson stained glass windows, Juzo gently opens the door and we walk in, a red glow fills the building.


    ¡°Giant mirror can only mean one thing, I''m gonna have a flex off with the enemy!¡± Juzo walks up to the massive mirror in the middle of the room and checks himself out in front of it.


    The mirror glows purple, a shadow version of Juzo steps out of the mirror, violet mist drifting out of the corners of his mouth, he swings his Greatsword and is quickly blocked by Juzo. A red flash and we are floating in a pitch black room full of stars, I sit down as Juzo and Shadow Juzo use Transformation and soar up above into the endless sky, clashing and spiraling like two planets colliding. Juzo unleashes his 500 hit combo but Shadow Juzo does as well, it seems they are evenly matched. Juzo pretends to attack, causing Shadow Juzo to block as Juzo flies downward as fast as he can, punching the ground. The floor crumbles from the Impact, ¡°Protection!¡± Eva puts a barrier around us as the building collapses, the mirror is shattered in pieces on the floor, Shadow Juzo is nowhere to be seen and the portal appears once more.


    ¡°Eva has next boss huh?¡± Juzo dusts off his armor, ¡°Good luck love!¡± He gives the biggest smile.


    ¡°Yup! I''ll be fine!¡± She flexes her bicep and I can''t help but to worry a bit.


    ¡°You got this!¡± Nova pats her on the back and gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°If you need us to jump in just give the signal okay?¡± I shoot a quick smile.


    ¡°Will do!¡± She looks so cheerful as I give two thumbs up and we head into the portal.


    4


    The damp smell of the building is replaced by the dry desert air, before us is a wide endless canyon. The sun is high up in the sky, ¡°Eva knock them dead!¡± Juzo yells with a determined look on his face.


    ¡°You got this!¡± I yell over the deafening roars coming from the enemie¡¯s mouths.


    ¡°Woo! Knock em dead! Agh I wish I had this one!¡± Nova stares out into the distance with bloodlust, but we must fight one boss each to preserve mana since we have no supplies, also it''s more fun this way.


    ¡°Wish me luck!¡± She flies out towards the distant enemies. Ten sixty-armed Titans as tall as the sky, all clad in gleaming gold armor walking on two legs, each step shaking the ground. Spartan-like armor covers their face, arms and legs, flowing red capes drift into the distance, long forests of blonde hair fall down past their shoulders, each one of their fists is the size of a mountain, but I am not worried in the least, for Eva has trained harder than the rest of us, driven to catch up to our power unknowing of her own monstrous strength.


    ¡°Ughhh I wish I had this!¡± Nova yells, pacing back and forth.


    ¡°This is so intense, how many levels do you think this is?¡± Juzo takes a seat and watches intently.


    ¡°Who knows? We''ll smash through all of them though.¡± I say, focused on the fight ahead, ¡°Ooh look the fight¡¯s about to start. Eagle Eye.¡± My eyes get the power to see really far.


    ¡°Eagle Eye.¡± Nova says.


    ¡°Eagle Eye.¡± Juzo says and we watch in silence.


    Eva takes a deep breathe, standing in the air in front of them, ¡°Heal Heal Heal Heal.¡± Four buff clocks appear near her name and her body glows, ¡°Wind Spirit, Agility Boost, Mana Pool, Summon Tornado Storm!¡± The Sky over the titans turns black, thousands of tornados surround them, and as if brought to life by the challenge they all rush to attack, their movements are surprisingly fast for their size. As if they are a single entity their movements are all the same, surrounding Eva as their fists glow golden and a vicious 6,000 hit combo is unleashed by the ten, but Eva is unaffected by it. She glances back at Juzo who gives her a thumbs up. She takes a deep breath and then roars, ¡°RrrrAaaaghhhhhhh!¡± A gust of wind flows through my hair as their combo is negated and each titan is stunned and holding their ears, ¡°Air Cannon!¡± She holds her staff with both hands while pointing it at the nearest titan who is holding his head and screaming in agony, she is pushed back almost a hundred feet by the force of the spell, the pressure punches a wide hole through the head of the titan, who crashes into the ground and then turns into a mountain of black sand.


    ¡°Woooooh! Yeah Eva! I knew you could do it!¡± Juzo roars.


    In a frenzy the others activate another skill, their palms glowing and out of each hand beams of energy shoot towards Eva, ¡°Air Cannon! Air Cannon! Air Cannon!¡± She rushes in front of each titan and punches a hole through them, too quick for them to react, they are quickly destroyed. As the last one falls a portal appears next to us, ¡°That wasn''t as bad as I thought it would be!¡± Eva flies back and moves the hair from her face.


    Nova hugs her and rubs her cheeks together, ¡°Agh you were so great!¡±


    ¡°Thank you Nova! Did you see all of those energy beams!? And my roar! Aghhhhhh!¡± The excitement in her voice gets to Juzo.


    ¡°Good job! That was so cool Eva!¡± He hugs the both of them and spins them around and then places each one on his shoulder, ¡°Come on time to watch Leader fight!¡±


    ¡°Wooh get em Leader!¡± Nova screams and flexes her bicep.


    ¡°Wooooh!¡± Eva yells as we walk into the portal.


    5


    The room is pitch black, ¡°Lantern Flame.¡± Nova says, throwing fireballs around the room that stick against the walls and stay glowing, Eva and Nova jump down from Juzo''s shoulder, ¡°Let me see how big this room is.¡± She puts all of her strength into her next throw and it flies across the massive hall and hits something tall and solid, a metal clink is heard as the flame goes out.


    The faint glow of two violet eyes and I see a few seconds into the future, ¡°Watch out!¡± I yell as I leap in front of the three, ¡°Barrier!¡± I push them away as the beast crushes the floor where Juzo was standing with the heel of his foot. I duck to dodge a fist and then step to the left to dodge a kick, his name is Grimgar the Terrible. It seems as if he moves faster than Nova, but after five years I''m used to her speed, it looks as if he is sprinting but I can see his movements clearly. Another punch, a kick, none of his attacks are combos, just thrown attacks. He must not have ever fought anyone who could actually keep up with his speed and just relies on brute strength. I dodge another fist and throw a kick, his body feels as if it is made of metal, but if I could kick and break the leg of a armor plated Behemoth then this is nothing. My kick to his stomach makes him spit black blood before he is sent crashing into the wall, all of this happens in the span of a few seconds, ¡°Nova more light please!¡±


    ¡°Got it!¡± She covers the ceiling with flame, giving the cavern light.


    Grimgar rushes from the hole in the wall with a basic punch, I sidestep and grab his arm then flip him, stepping forward and slamming him into the ground then I wrap my arms around his stomach as he attempts to stand up. I clench and slam him backwards behind me, his head crashing into the ground. I spin around and pin him down with my knee and punch with my right hand while holding his arms down with my left hand. His wails of agony are interrupted by the pressure of my fists, I break all of his teeth and cave in the metallic face until his body becomes still and explodes into black sand. The portal appears.


    ¡°That was so quick! Expected of Leader!¡± Eva yells, flying around the floor.


    ¡°Nice one! He was pretty fast!¡± Nova smiles and punches her fists together, ¡°My turn to smash something''s face in!¡±


    ¡°Good luck love!¡± I give a thumbs up.


    ¡°I wish we had tougher opponents.¡± Juzo says with a glum expression.


    ¡°Juzo maybe we''re too strong.¡± I scratch the back of my head and laugh.


    ¡°True, let''s set handicaps for the next levels then? Hehe.¡± Nova chuckles holding up her pinky finger.


    ¡°No way haha! Fine fine sounds good!¡± Eva jumps onto Juzo''s shoulders as we walk into the portal.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Eleven: Level 6-10

    <h1>Chapter Eleven: Level 6-10</h1>


    6


    The sun is shining brightly through the spacious trees, the sweet smell of morning honeydew and the chirping of birds. The three of us pull out logs and take a seat, awaiting the enemy to reveal itself. Nova takes a few steps forward, ¡°I am your enemy! Don''t target those three!¡± She holds her pinky up in the air. Three massive trolls appear with two goblins but Nova is so excited to fight she gives them no time to react, ¡°Ta!¡± She flicks them with her pinky, causing them to explode into black sand. She walks back to us, ¡°Agh that was too eas-¡± She turns around to quickly dodge and bite down to catch the end of a kunai and swiftly moves her head to deflect twenty more with the kunai in her mouth. Twenty assassins rush out of the treeline with swords while throwing a volley of kunai, Nova puts her hands behind her back and spits her kunai into the air, ¡°Ta!¡± She jumps and catches the kunai in her mouth again, dodging each one and running past each assassin while slitting their throat. An endless ocean of assassins emerge from the treeline, ¡°I don''t have time for this! Meteor!¡± She opens her mouth and it''s filled with fire as she leaps high into the air, shooting a massive meteor of flame and molten lava. She continuously shoots massive meteors that hail down on the forest and the endless assassins. The landscape is covered in flame and ash. A single assassin crawls her way out of the fire and reaches towards me her violet eyes turning green, blonde hair filled with blood covers her face, ¡°Um...bra¡­¡± She whispers as she falls down into the dirt, the portal opens up but her body doesn''t turn into black sand for a moment, then it slowly falls apart into black sand. A small dagger remains in the sand.


    ¡°Juzo got next!¡± Nova smiles and walks towards us with her hands behind her head, ¡°My love what''s wrong?¡±


    I''m snapped out of my trance, ¡°It''s nothing! Juzo fight hard!¡± I smile as Nova motions for me to climb on her back and she carries me into the portal.


    7


    ¡°Oooh! Juzo this is so spooky! Rain Barrier. Good luck!¡± Eva sits criss crossed in the air and points her hand up, a barrier of wind shields us from the falling rain. Lightning streaks across the sky as thunder booms, before us is endless charred plains and a towering volcano in the distance. I sit on a log next to Nova, ¡°Good luck!¡±


    ¡°Woooh Juzo!¡± Nova yells while spitting a small pile of lava on the floor to keep us warm.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± Juzo puts his thumb up and grips his sword as he exits the barrier, the pit-pat of the rain hitting his armor is the only thing we can hear, ¡°Transformation!¡± He yells but stays still, and quickly covers himself with his wings as five massive bats send sonic waves through the air that push down on Juzo,  keeping him in place, his body crushing the floor beneath him as he sinks down. He clenches his fists and lets out a deafening roar, the rain is pushed away from him and the pressure of his voice causes the bats to vomit and fall to the ground with a splat. He has little time to recover as a man with shining white claw gauntlets attacks, slashing viciously as Juzo grips his sword, ¡°Grand Slash!¡± Each strike hits the beast, who takes no damage.


    ¡°Eagle Eye.¡± I say, trying to see what''s going on.


    They are moving too fast for me to read his name, ¡°Vampire.¡± I see the vampire aiming for Juzo''s wings, Juzo''s health bar getting hit for a few points only to quickly recover, ¡°Juzo! He has Lifesteal!¡± The vampire hisses at me.


    ¡°Got it thanks!¡± Juzo throws his sword into the vampire¡¯s chest and wraps his arms around him, flying high into the sky and crashing down, creating a crater. The vampire¡¯s legs are cut off, his body motionless as the portal appears and Juzo makes his way over to us.


    ¡°My turn let''s go!¡± Eva screams as she ushers Juzo into the portal.


    ¡°Wait for me!¡± Nova rushes in after them.


    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    As I begin to walk towards the portal Eagle Eye is still active, I glimpse the vampire raise his hand to the sky, his eyes fade from violet to a dark red, a sullen look on his frowning face, blood tears falling from his eyes, ¡°So¡­.phi..a.¡± His body goes limp and slowly turns into black sand. The slight gleam of the half buried claws reflect lightning that streaks across the sky. I walk into the portal.


    8


    ¡°That was intense!¡± Eva says as she stretches her legs.


    The sun shines brightly up above us and it feels nice to be in calm pleasant weather, ¡°Have fun!¡± Juzo yells as Eva smirks.


    ¡°This will be over in one hit watch!¡± She soars high into the sky and dodges two enormous fangs and the jaws of a black snake that fills the plains as far as the eye can see. She crashes down on its head with her heel and as it falls she screams, ¡°Air Cannon! Air Cannon! Air Cannon!¡± Punching holes and severing the head of the snake. It quickly fades into black sand, ¡°Agh so weak.¡± Her face full of disappointment as the portal appears.


    ¡°Don''t worry they''ll get stronger the higher we go!¡± Juzo gives her a big hug and she sits on his shoulders.


    ¡°Yeah you''re right. Get the next one Umbra!¡± Eva flexes her bicep as they enter the portal.


    ¡°Nova what''s wrong?¡± Her face is blankly staring off into the distance then she is suddenly back, ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°I''m fine, let''s hurry to the next level.¡± She shoots a quick smile and walks into the portal. I brush it off and focus on the task ahead.


    After walking through the portal I am hit by a gust of wind and rain. The all too familiar smell of a Behemoth hits my nose, but this is no regular one, as black lightning surrounds him I glimpse the name Dragnaroth the God Level Behemoth.


    9


    I quickly calm my mind and step forward, the top of the tower is flatground a mile wide, Dragnaroth stands on two muscular legs, the towering bull-like body covering most of the sky, the two black horns have a chain of black lightning connecting them, his mouth full of Greatsword sized fangs where black flame rises up, ¡°Well wish me luck.¡± I flex my bicep and draw my sword.


    ¡°Kick his ass!¡± Nova screams over the monstrous wind from the flapping of his wings.


    ¡°You got this!¡± Juzo yells as a bolt of lightning streaks across the sky followed by thunderous booms.


    ¡°You got this!¡± Eva flexes her bicep.


    I turn and prepare myself, ¡°Agility, Attack, Defense, Dragon Attack, Grand Barrier, Dragon Slayer Focus Slice.¡± I plant my feet on the ground, my body and sword glows red. A white barrier surrounds me, it takes one minute to charge my skill. So now I just wait.


    Dragnaroth roars loudly then shoots lightning into the sky, causing a endless volley of lightning strikes to fall down on the barrier. He charges the chain of lightning on his horns and shoots a beam of lightning while shooting a beam of black flames that hit my barrier and slowly fall down the side of it. The many splashes of color reminds me of getting my car washed and watching the soap fall down my windows. Huh? Another weird thought, oh yeah the task ahead. Just a bit more. Dragnaroth flies into the air and then crashes down with both fists but is repelled by the defense of the barrier. All set, ¡°Barrier Down!¡± Dragnaroth combines his black fire and lightning into a single beam and fires as I swing my sword. The beam of energy disappears as white energy hits Dragnaroth, causing his body to age into an elderly dragon, falling to the floor and breathing his last breath before going limp. His body lingers for some time before turning into black sand that falls off of the edge of the tower into the dark depths below. We hurriedly walk into the portal to escape the rain.


    10


    ¡°Here let me dry you off!¡± Eva says while casting a spell on me, my body no longer wet.


    ¡°Thank you! We''re in another nice field. Good luck Nova!¡± I say taking a seat, my body a bit fatigued from that battle.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± Nova smiles warmly and begins to walk towards the middle of the field.


    ¡°Wooh!¡± Juzo yells, taking a seat next to me.


    ¡°Good luck!¡± Eva shouts, sitting down as well. We activate Eagle Eye and watch the fight closely.


    There is a single mage girl in the middle of the field waiting for Nova. She raises her staff, ¡°Ta!¡± Nova says but as she runs towards the mage multiple black barriers appear to block her. Nova punches through ten of them but there are hundreds of layers now, all in the form of a cylinder. The mage points her staff towards the sky and a massive gravity field pushes down on Nova, who fights it, causing the ground to crumble beneath her, ¡°Stop fucking with me! Beam!¡± Flames fill her mouth and she gathers energy, then with such force and power she shoots condensed beam of fire that rips through each barrier and before it hits the mage it is challenged by a beam of black flame coming out of the mage¡¯s staff. Both of them struggle for ten minutes before Nova¡¯s flame pushes through and pierces the heart of the mage. Nova''s legs buckle and I quickly use Feint to catch her, ¡°You okay?¡± I carry her in my arms.


    ¡°Yeah thanks love, she was tough.¡± She smiles and kisses my cheek.


    ¡°Um¡­.bra...why?¡± I look over at the mage girl who has tears in her eyes as she clutches her chest and falls to the floor, remains motionless, then slowly crumbles away into black sand.


    ¡°How could you possibly have known her?¡± Nova asks with a serious expression.


    ¡°I don''t know, we just have to keep fighting okay?¡± I try to wash away her worries with a smile. Nova quickly nods.


    ¡°She looked so strong! Juzo''s turn! Hopefully no rain this time!¡± Eva glides around the grass.


    ¡°I''m so done with rain, where''s like a level with food. That¡¯d be so nice!¡± Juzo walks into the portal with Eva.


    I carry Nova into the portal, Juzo gets to go all out.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Twelve: Level 11-20

    <h1>Chapter Twelve: Level 11-20</h1>


    11


    The pleasant sunlight is replaced by a cloud-filled sky, and a snowy landscape. A shirtless eight foot tall man with spiky red hair and arms twice the size of Juzo stands cross armed, waiting for his opponent, ¡°I am the Demon Drex! Who dares challenge me! Show the might of your fists!¡± He shoots beams of fire into the sky with his mouth and hands.


    ¡°Dammit this isn''t fair I want to fight him!¡± Nova yells, leaping out of my arms and shooting flames ten times bigger into the sky.


    Drex immediately stops, ¡°Um yeah ugh okay who am I uh fighting! Not her please.¡± He nervously scratches his head.


    ¡°I''ll be your opponent!¡± Juzo has taken off his armor, his ten pack of dense armor plated abs bulge as he cracks his neck.


    Drex¡¯s eyes open wide, ¡°Well um jeez what are you guys this isn''t even cool. I guess I have to go full power!¡± He yells while charging up, flames surround his body and his body morphs ten times bigger than his original form. His voice changes into a deep growl, ¡°That¡¯s more like it! Kekekekekeke!¡±


    ¡°Transformation!¡± Juzo''s body morphs and becomes even more armor plated.


    ¡°Jeez! That''s still not fair!¡± Drex sighs deeply and says in a sullen voice, ¡°Well shit, here I come. Fire Nova!¡± Massive balls of flame shoot from his hands and Juzo quickly dodges them. They pick up speed and swing, their fists colliding. Drex explodes into a mist of black sand.


    ¡°Well then. Um yeah hehe!¡± Juzo stares at his fist and lets out a deep sigh.


    ¡°Don''t worry you''ll fight someone strong soon enough!¡± I laugh as I hand him his armor and then continue to laugh as I walk into the portal.


    12


    Eva is up now, ¡°Dammit! A snowstorm! Why!?¡± Nova yells, spitting lava in a circle next to us, ¡°Good luck Eva! He looks tough!¡±


    Juzo takes his time putting on his armor, ¡°Kick his ass!¡± He quickly gives a thumbs up and catches his shin guard.


    ¡°Good luck!¡± I warm my hands by the lava, staring into the distance at the enormous ice werewolf, at the army of ice werewolf clones.


    Eva spins her staff in circles and then holds her staff forward, ¡°Tornado Storm!¡± Endless tails of tornados swarm around the werewolves and suck them high into the sky, ¡°When will I fight something hard!?!¡± Eva kicks the snow in anger as the portal appears.


    ¡°Don''t worry! You''ll get to fight something strong soon!¡± Nova yells, jumping into the portal.


    ¡°It''ll be something super strong, like Juzo''s farts!¡± I laugh and walk in.


    13


    Juzo and Eva appear as well and we are on top of a stone temple with massive vines surrounding the area.


    ¡°Ooh look are those Gorillas? Wait four arms and they have armor. This will be easy.¡± I say while handing Nova my sword, ¡°Could you hold this please I''m going to just use kicks for this one.¡± I smile and stretch my legs a bit.


    ¡°Do that super kick combo!¡± She kisses my cheek.


    ¡°Okay okay!¡± I laugh as Juzo takes a seat next to us.


    ¡°Lucky I want to fight a gorilla!¡± Juzo pulls out cups and fills them with water from a gourd, ¡°Thirsty?¡±


    ¡°Yeah thanks!¡± Eva takes a cup and we slowly drink.


    ¡°Do you think there will be stronger enemies as we go up?¡± Nova says, slowly sipping her drink.


    ¡°Yeah hopefully! Oh now that''s just rude man.¡± I quickly kick a ball of molten lava away and hand my cup to Juzo, ¡°I''ll be back.¡±


    ¡°Your cup will be waiting for you!¡± Juzo laughs and keeps sipping his drink loudly.


    ¡°Agility.¡± My body glows yellow and I quickly make my way over to the two gorillas in an instant, kicking away their streams of lava, I kick one in the chest and it flies into the distance, then I quickly kick the other one into the first and they both crash into the wall, ¡°Well that was easy.¡± The rubble is quickly pushed away as the two fuse to create a massive eight armed gorilla. The gorilla pushes off of the ground and charges at me like how Nova uses her flames to gain distance, I quickly kick it three times in an instant, causing it to explode into black sand. I walk over to Juzo and take my drink back, ¡°I think they''ll get stronger hopefully.¡±


    ¡°Those gorillas were rude.¡± Eva laughs, ¡°Hopefully there''s a strong one next!¡± We hand the cups back to Juzo and walk into the portal.


    14


    Reaching high into the sky are shiny buildings and skyscrapers made of gleaming green crystals, ¡°Who dares come into my kingdom!?!¡± A short buff man with a white beard yells, Nova walks up to him and cracks her knuckles.


    ¡°Please tell me you''re strong.¡± She steps on the floor, creating a massive meteor and causing the city to shake.


    ¡°I am the strongest Demon King Carl!¡± He clenches his fists and charges his energy, violet balls of darkness form above him and fly into his mouth, causing his body to grow bigger than the skyscrapers.


    Nova jumps high into the air, ¡°Finally someone strong!¡± She punches his armored forehead and his head explodes into black sand, ¡°No! Why!?¡±


    She lands with a frustrated expression, ¡°Haha loser!¡± I yell and immediately have to run for my life dodging fireballs.


    ¡°I''m going to roast you alive!¡± Nova chases me as I run into the portal.


    15


    I quietly hide in a crack near some rubble overlooking a ruined temple. I quietly breathe so Nova doesn''t find me, Juzo is stretching his arms as a massive dark wizard is releasing a volley of black flame and black electricity orbs that bounce off of his armored skin, black holes surround him and endless orbs bounce off of his body and explode around him. Juzo swings his swords and chops straight through his body but the wizard is instantly healed by ten dark priests behind him. Juzo opens his mouth and roars, causing them to explode into black sand, then he punches through the wizard''s chest, killing it. I quickly try to sneak my way into the portal but Nova catches me and pulls me into it with her while kissing me.


    16


    ¡°You can''t get away from me now Umbra! Muahaha!¡± She kisses me even harder on the cheek, I can''t escape her iron grip.


    ¡°I love you Nova! Please let me go!¡± I try to struggle but she cradles me like a baby.


    ¡°Nope! You''re my cute little baby!¡± She says in a high pitched voice.


    ¡°Awww the little baby!¡± Juzo tickles my face and laughs.


    ¡°Cute little baby!¡± Eva yells while pointing her staff ahead into the darkness, ¡°Light!¡± A bright glowing sun emerges from her staff and lights up the cavern, hundreds of glowing violet eyes hiss as the army of gnomes raise their hands creating an army of stone golems.


    ¡°Woo! Stone golems so strong. Haha!¡± I say sarcastically as Nova continues to cradle me and shower me with affection.


    ¡°I seriously thought I would get something strong this time. I really really thought so.¡± Eva says while shaking her head, ¡°Any other party and these would''ve been so hard like Infectious Bite turns the person into a slave for thirty minutes but seriously, agh fine fine. Wind Blade!¡± She swings her staff and a line of razor sharp wind slices the gnomes and stone golems in half, the next portal opens up, ¡°Jeeez why me?!?¡± She groans.


    ¡°Don''t worry you''ll have a strong opponent soon!¡± Nova yells as she puts me down, ¡°There you''re free to walk around now!¡±


    ¡°Thanks love! You fiery hot woman hehe!¡± I hold her hand as we walk through the portal.


    17


    ¡°Oh my so lucky!¡± Eva screams while falling down on her knees and holding her fists to the sky, ¡°Why can''t I do this onnneeeeee!¡±


    ¡°Sorry Eva, I''m sure you''ll get something good soon enough!¡± I grip my sword and yell over the growling army of ten thousand orcs who are blowing horns and beating on drums. I begin walking across the large field to fight them.


    ¡°Knock them dead!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°Good luck!¡± Nova yells.


    ¡°Kill them all Umbra!¡± Eva screams and flexes her bicep.


    I raise my thumb high into the air. The gleaming silver armor of the orcs shine brightly with the sun, all of these enemies but can they give me a challenge? I take a deep breath, ¡°Agility, Attack, Defense, Dragon Lightning Armor.¡± Red lightning chainmail covers my body, the sunlight is engulfed by thousands of arrows falling towards me. I hold out my hand, ¡°Reflect Mirror!¡± A large barrier rises into the air, absorbing the arrows and multiplying them while shooting back at the army. I focus my energy on my feet and push forward. I continue rushing forward and break through their front line, stabbing through hundreds along the way. It seems I am in the middle of an ocean of orc. Countless spears and swords are aimed at me yet my mind is calm, ¡°I dare one of you to touch me.¡± I chuckle as I grab the face of the nearest orc, ¡°Oh no you touched me.¡± My red lightning armor shocks the orc and spreads throughout the nearby orcs, causing them all to turn into black sand around me, ¡°I should stop playing around. Grand Demonic Focus Slice Barrage.¡± I have to stand still for five minutes as my body charges. The red lightning slithers like a massive snake, protecting me as my sword glows with red energy, wind surrounding me in a vicious vortex. Countless orcs continue to rush into the lightning only to die a meaningless death. With my skill all charged up I begin swinging wildly, wave after wave of energy rips apart the vast orc army. Each slice reaching countless miles into the distance. In the corner of my eye I glimpse something shiny and quickly catch a arrow and throw it to deflect another one. On top of the castle wall is an archer charging a large dark energy arrow. I push off of the ground and soar into the air. He shoots the arrow as I swing and release the last energy of my skill. It cuts through the enormous arrow and slices through the archer who coughs blood and looks at me in a daze, ¡°Emb..ra...where''s Em..bra?¡± He falls over the other side of the castle wall and the portal appears. I shrug off this sad feeling and make my way back to the other three.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    ¡°That looked fun!¡± Eva says while glaring at me.


    ¡°Yeah it was hehe! I''m sure you''ll fight something strong soon!¡± I stretch my back and yawn.


    ¡°Hopefully I get something good too!¡± Nova is all pumped up and ready to go.


    ¡°Awww yes! Let''s destroy everything!¡± Juzo cracks his knuckles and we walk into the portal.


    18


    ¡°Hopefully this is a strong one!¡± Nova waves at us as she walks across the huge room to meet a dual wielder girl who stands in the middle with her weapons drawn, ¡°Ta!¡± Nova runs quickly toward the enemy. As she swings the enemy ducks and dodges swinging both swords and throwing a kick. Nova quickly dodges and punches but the enemy steps inward and grabs Nova''s arm and tries to flip her but Nova is immovable.


    She grabs the enemy''s arms and kicks through her chest. The girl in pain as she coughs blood, ¡°Um...br¡± She explodes into black sand.


    ¡°Agh fast but not strong enough.¡± Nova makes her way back to us and gives a thumbs up, ¡°Juzo good luck!¡±


    ¡°Thank you!¡± He punches his fists together in excitement and rushes into the portal, ¡°Yes! Yeeees! Finally!¡±


    19


    ¡°That''s not fair! Aghhh! Heavy Rain Shield!¡± Eva screams to block us from the rain.


    ¡°Wooh! Nice!¡± I yell over the thunderous booms. We''re on top of a tower, up on the edge of it flies Drathor the God Level Lightning Dragon. He''s so big it makes us look like insects.


    ¡°Wooooooh! Kill


    it! Kill it!¡± Nova screams at the top of her lungs.


    ¡°Here I go!¡± Juzo yells, ¡°Transformation! Defense! Agility! Attack! Mana!¡± Juzo waves quickly and then pushes off of the floor, rushing into the distance at the towering light-blue dragon that glimmers with black lightning surrounding his body. He notices Juzo and roars, causing endless lightning strikes to fall down on Juzo who quickly dodges. Drathor opens his mouth and a beam of energy engulfs Juzo. Juzo flies out of it and hovers while charging his energy, his body glowing white. Drathor shoots once more but Juzo opens his mouth at the same time, shooting a massive beam of white energy that overpowers Drathor¡¯s attack. Juzo slices Drathor down the middle, causing it to fall down below to the floor in a pile of black sand drifting furiously in the wind. Juzo makes his way back to us with a sad expression on his face, ¡°Even the God level dragons are no challenge.¡±


    ¡°Don''t worry maybe the dark lord will be stronger. Hopefully.¡± I pat his back as Eva dries him off.


    ¡°Hopefully!¡± Nova yells and ushers us to the portal, ¡°I''m tired of rain!¡±


    ¡°Me too! Hurry!¡± Eva yells, pushing me into the portal.


    20


    ¡°Agh this is more like it!¡± Nova yells, breathing in the smoky fumes of the lava on the floor.


    ¡°I''ll take fire over rain any day! Fire Protection!¡± Eva casts a spell on us so the flames don''t cause damage.


    ¡°This is so nice! Let''s just stay here.¡± Juzo sits down on the floor and stretches his legs.


    ¡°Have fun Eva, looks like another snakey snake.¡± I sit down next to Juzo as Nova is shooting fire into a pool of lava.


    ¡°Fire! Fire! More fire! Muahahahahah! Fire! I am the Fire Queeen!¡± She roars and fire spouts out of her mouth.


    I glance over at Juzo, ¡°Should we stop her?¡±


    ¡°We both know that''s a bad idea haha!¡± We both focus our attention on Eva who is approaching a large snake that is swimming in a shallow puddle of lava. The snake rises from the lava and screeches, Nova¡¯s flame vanishes from her hands.


    ¡°What!?! I can''t use fire!¡± She tries over and over again but nothing comes out.


    ¡°Check the status window.¡± I quickly look, ¡°Silence is the skill it just used, enemies unable to use abilities during the whole fight.¡±


    ¡°What! That''s so stupid!¡± Nova sits down next to us.


    ¡°She''ll be fine I''m sure! Wooh! Get him Eva!¡± Juzo yells full of confidence.


    Eva runs toward the snake quickly but is stopped in her tracks as the snake shoots a small black ball that roots Eva to the floor, causing small amounts of damage over time. Eva quickly kicks the slime into the wall but the snake continues to shoot projectiles, ¡°I can''t block these or use abilities but I still have my staff you dumb snake!¡± With all of her strength Eva throws her staff and it lodges deep into the snake¡¯s head, causing it to burst into black sand. The portal appears, but then a second one also appears and from that portal three people appear.


    ¡°Yooooo that''s a badass power!¡± One of them says, adjusting his massive blue Greatsword, his shirt, shoes, pants and trench coat seem to be made out of a red dragon, a headband made out of the same material falls down his back and seems to dance in the wind.


    ¡°Bro this heat feels nice on my skin awww yeah! I''m gonna throw em!¡± The guy next to him says, Eva¡¯s face turns red at the sight of his bulging muscles, dong shaped war hammer and a bright pink loincloth made from dragon skin.


    ¡°No not yet!¡± The third guy says as he throws what seems to be Cold Pills into the bigger pool of lava across the cavern, ¡°Broooo noooooo! We have to talk to them first!¡± The guy has a Long Sword made from dragon teeth, and armor made from Elder Dragon scales that give off a slight gleam.


    ¡°Shit my bad!¡± The loincloth guy scratches the back of his head.


    ¡°Duuudee nooooooo!¡± The headband guy screams as the lava becomes solid and the cavern begins to rumble.


    ¡°Umbra could you put up a barrier please! Hurry!¡± The guy in Elder Dragon armor says, waving at me with both hands.


    ¡°How do you know my name?¡± I say but he quickly points at a enormous red dragon emerging from the lava.


    ¡°No time! Don''t kill it just put up a barrier please! Hurry!¡± He continues to viciously wave his hands.


    ¡°Oh okay okay. Barrier.¡± I put the dragon in a massive cube, quickly silencing the roars.


    ¡°Are you enemies!?¡± Juzo says, grabbing his sword.


    ¡°Nah man chill, we''re here to help.¡± The loincloth guy steps toward Juzo. It seems like they''re comparing muscles.


    ¡°Really?¡± Eva says, gleaming her eyes at headband guy who sticks out his tongue.


    ¡°Bleghhhh! Yeah we''re here to send you dudes up to the top! Orders of clone Umbra.¡± He laughs as Juzo and Loincloth are face to face.


    ¡°Why should we trust you?¡± Nova says, punching her fists together and stepping towards the headband guy with Eva by her side.


    ¡°Everyone calm down, unless you guys want to get humiliated! Yooooo!¡± The Long Sword guy yells.


    ¡°Yooooooo!¡± Loincloth guy and Headband guy yells.


    ¡°Yo Wundah, if you lose you owe me some ramen!¡± Headband guy yells at the Long Sword guy, ¡°Andrew same goes for you.¡± He yells at Loincloth guy.


    ¡°AvatarPyro, suck my ass! I''m going to beat this less buff guy and be the ultimate buff guy!¡± Andrew yells and it echoes throughout the cavern.


    ¡°Juzo don''t!¡± I yell as Juzo loses his temper and throws a punch. He hits Andrew on the forehead and a shockwave creates a hole in the wall behind them but Andrew is unfazed.


    ¡°I call 1v1s! You fuckin cheap shot!¡± Andrew yells, pointing to all of us, ¡°Everyone else sit this out!¡±


    ¡°Fine dude fine kick his ass!¡± Wundah says, grabbing AvatarPyro by the arm, ¡°Umbra put at least a hundred layers of barrier along the walls and the ground so this place doesn''t cave in. I don''t want Andrew to kill us.¡± He gives me a thumbs up and drags AvatarPyro across the room.


    ¡°Yeah sure. Juzo let loose! Grand Demonice Barrier!¡± I spam the spell over and over again until there are hundreds of layers, ¡°It''s all set!¡±


    ¡°Get him Juzo!¡± Nova yells at the top of her lungs.


    ¡°Fight hard!¡± Eva shouts.


    ¡°Yoooo! Spank him till he surrenders!¡± AvatarPyro yells and that causes everyone''s face to turn red.


    ¡°Wooooh! Do it! Ultimate skill! Make him call you Daddy!¡± Wundah yells while laughing so much.


    ¡°Brooooo stop they''re gonna get the wrong idea about me! Don''t worry Jizzo I won''t spank you.¡± Andrew has a huge smile on his face.


    ¡°Brrooooooo! You''re in a pink loincloth how can they not think wrong! Jizzo! This dude just said Jizzo! Aghhhhhh! Don''t kill him just knock him out! Fight start!¡± AvatarPyro yells while holding his stomach, Andrew swings his hammer to block Juzo''s sword. Juzo gets pushed back to the wall.


    ¡°I have to knock you out so I can only use half strength. Lucky you.¡± Andrew pushes off of the ground and kicks but Juzo jumps backward.


    ¡°Transformation! Defense! Attack! Agility!¡± Juzo quickly buffs himself.


    ¡°Ooh lucky you guys can do that!¡± Andrew says as he holds his hammer by his waist, ¡°Boom!¡±


    ¡°Grand Slash!¡± Juzo quickly swings as Andrew spins with his hammer, pushing Juzo back even more. Juzo opens his mouth and shoots a beam of energy, but Andrew shields himself with his hammer and closes the distance between him and Juzo.


    Andrew tosses his hammer into the air and punches Juzo into the wall, then he grabs the hammer and swings it but stops before it hits Juzo¡¯s face. The pressure of his swing shakes the whole cavern and knocks Juzo unconscious. Andrew easily picks him up and sets him down next to Eva, ¡°Yo um heal him, little wind girl. I don''t think he''s breathing. I thought he could handle a small swing like that.¡±


    ¡°Heal!¡± Eva was already planning on it. Juzo gasps for air, ¡°Juzo are you okay!?¡± Eva yells, squeezing him tightly.


    ¡°Ughh...yeah I''m fine. You''re strong man.¡± Juzo gets helped up by Andrew.


    ¡°Good shit man good shit!¡± Andrew pats Juzo''s back and points at AvatarPyro who''s standing in the middle with his arms crossed and his sword resting near Wundah, ¡°Yoooo good luck pp boi!¡±


    ¡°Thanks bro! Who''s fighting me?¡± He stretches his legs and grunts then he points to Eva and Nova, ¡°You two losers fight me at the same time!¡±


    ¡°I''ll destroy you!¡± Nova yells, putting her gauntlets on the floor near me.


    ¡°You should have tried to just fight one of us not both! I won''t go easy on you!¡± Eva points her staff on the floor near her and Nova, ¡°Attack! Agility! Defense! Buff Maximise! Buff Multiply! Constant Heal!¡± The buffs keep stacking and multiplying in power, Nova and Eva are overflowing with a powerful energy cloak that rises up to the ceiling.


    ¡°Wundah you have to stop the fight! They''re unstoppable like that!¡± I beg before his friend gets hurt because Nova has a hard time controlling herself.


    He smiles a wide grin and shakes his head, ¡°You don''t understand, he just drank some juice bro, he''s unstoppable. He also has the power of herbs! Ahahahaha!¡± Wundah and Andrew laugh hysterically as I try to understand what they mean but as I look at AvatarPyro. He is stuffing his mouth with something too quick for me to see.


    ¡°Ta!¡± A streak of color too fast to see, AvatarPyro ducks and quickly punches, Nova goes flying into the distant wall but jumps off and speeds towards him.


    ¡°Tornado Storm!¡± Eva yells, causing a mini storm of tornadoes around AvatarPyro who quickly runs through them, Nova gets sent flying across the room again.


    ¡°Time to get serious.¡± His facial expression changes, he moves from across the room to behind Eva in a single moment as she is about to use Wind Spirit. He softly karate chops her neck to knock her out.


    She suddenly appears next to my feet in a blanket with a pillow under her head and ¡®Heal Me Bro¡¯ written in the sand, ¡°Heal.¡±


    Eva wakes up as Nova shoots four massive meteors followed by a condensed beam of molten energy, there is nowhere for AvatarPyro to go, ¡°Oh no I''m trapped. Nooooooooo.¡± He says in a sarcastic tone. He punches forward and the pressure from his fist causes the meteors to disappear. Nova''s beam rushes back into her mouth and she tries to block his attack but he is already in front of her pausing slightly to charge, his fists glowing red, he releases his energy with a double punch and then five uppercuts to her stomach, lifting her up ten feet into the air then he lightly flicks her chin with his finger, knocking her out and placing her next to me wrapped in a blanket and pillow then he sits next to Wundah and Andrew all in one instant.


    ¡°Heal!¡± Eva yells and Nova wakes up.


    ¡°Agh I lost, good fight! Umbra you have to win!¡± She''s back to her usual self now.


    I take a deep breath, ¡°Fine I''ll do my best.¡±


    ¡°Be careful Umbra!¡± Juzo stands with his arms crossed.


    ¡°I''ll try my best.¡± I step forward with my sword in my hand, Wundah stretches his arms.


    ¡°Dude if you lose you suck monkey ass!¡± Andrew laughs really hard.


    ¡°Hey Umbra!?¡± AvatarPyro yells at me.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I ask.


    ¡°The only way you can beat Wundah is if you have a special item called Ligma!¡± He glances over to Andrew and Wundah who hold in their laughter.


    ¡°What''s Ligma?¡± I yell so he can hear.


    ¡°Ligma balls!!! Ahahahaha!¡± The three erupt with laughter.


    ¡°No really though you have to watch out for his special skill Dragon Deez!¡± Andrew quickly glances over at the two.


    ¡°Any skill he uses I can beat!¡± I yell with confidence.


    ¡°Dragon deez nuts across your face!¡± Andrew yells and continues laughing.


    ¡°No I''ll defeat you when I summon Wendy!¡± Wundah screams at the top of his lungs.


    ¡°I''ll defeat whatever creature you summon! I''m not afraid!¡± I clutch my sword and prepare for an attack.


    ¡°Wendys nutz go in your mouth!¡± Wundah yells and lunges towards me.


    I push off the ground, ¡°Attack! Defense! Agility! Dragon Lightning Armor!¡± I swing my sword and it looks as if he is going to swing as well but his body stops and he holds his sword in front of himself while I swing. His body glows white as my sword is parried high into the sky his speed so fast I don''t know what happened. I wake up next to Nova holding me, ¡°I lost huh? Good fight Wundah!¡±


    ¡°Thanks bro! Are you four ready to listen now?¡± He says as he stretches his legs.


    ¡°Yeah sorry.¡± Juzo laughs as Andrew bumps his fist.


    ¡°It''s cool man we''re just on different levels. I don''t know if you can see by our names but we have gold crowns by our levels.¡± Andrew says while scratching his stomach.


    ¡°Yeah sorry but you were outleveled by a lot. But this is the only portal that allows you into our world but like the worlds join here since it''s part of the Dark Lord¡¯s dungeon so yeah usually we don''t have level numbers, we just kill things with skill.¡± AvatarPyro says and I take a look by their name.


    ¡°Over two hundred!?!¡± Nova screams.


    ¡°Yeah sorry we tried talking but Juzo punched first.¡± Wundah smiles and waves his hands.


    ¡°Sorry!¡±


    ¡°It''s fine it''s fine! As long as we get to kill that dragon, this portal leads to the top level, the rest of the dungeon is just a endless loop of endless monsters so this is the only way. We''re going to kill the dragon once you leave, but fight hard and thanks for saving me all that time ago man. Or at least your other self. I can''t explain or it''ll get confusing so hurry and go into the portal, you all should have leveled up by now so good luck!¡± Wundah rushes us to the portal, ¡°I feel like I''m forgetting to say something. Eh it''s fine!¡±


    ¡°Wait I have so many questions!¡± I try to ask but Juzo, Eva and Nova get thrown into the portal already.


    ¡°I don''t even have time to explain why I don''t have time to explain!¡± Wundah screams and nudges me towards the portal.


    ¡°Sorry bro you gotta go! Fight hard! I''ll see you again!¡± AvatarPyro waves at me and grabs his sword while staring down the dragon, I look at the level and it says 999 but I know they can destroy it.


    ¡°Lates man!¡± Andrew yells while stretching his shoulder.


    ¡°See ya. I still have to revive one more friend.¡± Wundah bumps my fist.


    ¡°Thank you Wundah, thank you guys. I will always remember you, come visit one day!¡± They nod and give their attention to the dragon. I let the barrier down and I walk into the portal as the battle begins.


    I appear in a massive hall made out of obsidian stone, there is a throne with a man covered in gold armor wearing a gold helmet, holding a Greatsword, ¡°Come face me you weaklings! I am the Dark Lord!¡± His voice is deep like that of a demon. The four of us spring into action to fight the Dark Lord.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Thirteen: Preparation

    <h1>Chapter Thirteen: Preparation</h1>


    I braid a strand of my red hair as Embra stares at me with wide open eyes, ¡°What happened to Juzo?¡±


    I look down at the flame, ¡°He died in that field fighting the Lightning Ape. I regret it to this day, if only my legs would''ve moved to fight, I can''t believe he knocked me out and by the time Azula went to help it was too late. Juzo rushed into the fight and got crushed to death. There are so many regrets I have in life, but now this is the path I have to walk. All I have is Nova now.¡±


    ¡°And Eva? What about her?¡± Emma says, staring at the flames as well.


    ¡°Eva got her throat bit open by Wererabbits, Nova and I ran through the forest, ignoring the screams of dying Adventurers. We were so weak then. That''s why I don''t want you to do the same, to be weak and full of regrets.¡± I look back at the dragon and stand up, ¡°Okay rest time is up, let''s craft you armor and weapons!¡± I smile and try to bring the mood back up, maybe sharing the Lightning Ape story with them was a bit too much, but it''s been so long since I''ve had company, ¡°If you look in your inventory there is a Carving Knife. It can cut through the toughest skin, we could either try it ourselves or take it to a blacksmith and have it made?¡±


    ¡°I think we should have a blacksmith do it, we should be fine until we make it to a town.¡± Embra says, looking over the massive dragon.


    ¡°Yeah that would be best.¡± Emduk pokes at the massive dragon head.


    ¡°Hmmm then time to pack up. Hey Emdul can you hear me?¡± I wait a few minutes for his response.


    ¡°Hello Umbra! Everything is set up here! There is a numerous amount of beasts though!¡± I can hear the roars and noises of battle.


    ¡°Emdul can you stand in a open field please? I''ll be right over!¡± I turn quickly to the four, ¡°Pack everything we have to go.¡±


    ¡°Already on it!¡± Emma yells as she quickly scoops everything up.


    ¡°Everyone climb on the dragon and get ready for battle!¡± I yell and put my sword on my back.


    ¡°Okay!¡± Emduk helps Embra on as Emma and Embal jump on top.


    I hold the dragon above me, ¡°Emdul are you in a field?¡±


    ¡°Yes I am!¡±


    ¡°Teleport Emdul!¡± I place the dragon down and stare out into the endless dark field full of gleaming eyes. Five mercenaries are holding the line but I can see Drathor the Lightning Dragon in the far distance, ¡°Embra I''m going to take a lot of them out. After I use my skill use the ring to create a wall of fire then I''ll fight Drathor! Understood?¡± I glance over at her and she nods. I jump to the mercenaries in the distance and slash the beasts they''re fighting, ¡°Ta!¡± I quickly take out the closest enemies with ease even though they''re max level, ¡°Focus Slice!¡± My sword begins to glow, ¡°Mercenaries I need one minute to charge!¡±


    ¡°Got it!¡± A samurai with a Long Sword stands in front of me as a towering cyclops with a battle axe rushes towards us, ¡°Slash!¡± His body moves forward and he quickly draws his weapon, cutting the cyclops in half, ¡°Kunai!¡± Metal daggers appear in between his fingertips and he throws them at four goblins then slices through their neck. The other four are fighting a troll. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    ¡°Time''s up thank you!¡± I yell as my sword glows red.


    ¡°Got it!¡± The samurai quickly leaps behind me. I swing my sword, and it cuts through the charging enemies.


    ¡°Blackfire!¡± Embra shoots the black flame and it forms into a giant wall of flame, ¡°What!?¡±


    ¡°I had Exp. Share on, the five of us are max level now.¡± I quickly shuffle through my skills upgrading and sorting them, ¡°Sacred Split.¡± I hold my hand to myself, a copy of myself appears before me.


    ¡°Yo.¡± He bumps my fist, he wears the basic starter cloth garments.


    I quickly write directions on a scroll and hand it to him, ¡°Everything is on here, even the power I obtained from the time dragon using warp gates. Here take my armor and weapon, I''ll make new ones.¡± I quickly hand him all of my gear, ¡°Take this too.¡± I brush my finger over Nova''s ring and then hand it to him as well.


    ¡°I understand, wipe everyone''s memories once I leave. I''ll see you again soon. Ta!¡± He waves and uses the ring to disappear towards the Earth Kingdom.


    ¡°Memory Wipe!¡± I hold up my hand and a small light flashes in front of our faces.


    ¡°Agh my eyes!¡± The samurai yells.


    ¡°Hurry they''re using lightning magic! Barrier wall!¡± I quickly put up a gleaming white barrier that stretches into the far distance, creating a dome around the vast land known as the Light Kingdom. Drathor crashes into the barrier but bounces off. It shoots a beam of lightning only to have his attack reflected back at it. I pay it and the army no attention, ¡°Good job Embra! It''s still dark out huh, Luminous Sun!¡± I hold my hand up and a orb of bright light floats up to the ceiling and gives off light to the whole kingdom, ¡° I quickly craft items and hand a pile to Emdul, ¡°Emdul with your clones could you move supplies, villagers, mercenaries and Adventurers into the middle plaza of each city that you''re in please? Add all fighters to the guild so they can move freely through the barrier. Use the items I gave you to teleport them here. We''re going to need a whole army. Emma, Emduk, Embal and Embra I need you to protect Emdul during this. Be his personal guard and trust me to end the war and defeat the Dark Lord. Got it? This will be the last time we see each other for a while.¡± I quickly hug all four of them, ¡°Emdul have the blacksmith carve them armor and weapons out of Furry over there. I have to go get some people. The barrier will hold but we have to hurry. Offer as much as we have to for the mercenaries. See ya.¡± I hug Embra for a really long time, ¡°I''ll be back.¡± I know I won''t be and I don''t know what hurts more, the look she gives me or the look I''m giving her that I see through the reflection in her eyes, ¡°Summon Builders.¡± Ten giants appear wearing aprons, ¡°Build a gleaming city of gold. You choose the layout, no matter how much the cost.¡±


    They nod at me and begin using magic to create a beautiful city of gold.


    ¡°Emdul pay them as much as you need. Teleport Desthro.¡± I appear in a open field hidden in a cave, ¡°We need to gather everyone quickly old friend, I don''t have time to explain but you need to get everyone. Secure the perimeter of the kingdom and protect it from enemies.¡± I quickly say to him, Armor and Weapon are the last things on my mind.


    Desthro howls and every Under Wolf gathers in the large field, ¡°There''s about three hundred of us. Two hundred are warriors ready to fight. Thank you for keeping your word.¡±


    ¡°You''re welcome. We have a long battle ahead. Emdul I''m sending troops over, this king is commander of the army. I''ll give more details later.¡± I add all to the guild and throw a Greater Safe Haven Scroll into the air and a magic circle appears underneath the wolves, teleporting them to the Light Kingdom. ¡°Teleport Vlad!¡±


    I appear in the room with all of the coffins. Each vampire is wearing gold armor with golden weapons. Vlad holds his helmet by his waist, ¡°I heard the call, we are ready to fight as well. What happened to your armor? I''m sure it was for an important reason. Here have this.¡±


    A vampire hands me a full suit of golden armor and a black Greatsword, ¡°Thank you.¡± I say, equipping the gear.


    ¡°Golden magic resistant armor and a Blackfire Greatsword made from a Behemoth. I will accompany you to the main dungeon.¡± Vlad says while putting on his helmet.


    ¡°It''ll be the two of us, everyone else will be fighting the main force while we sneak in. Time to go everyone. Thank you for the gear.¡± I take a deep breath.


    ¡°Soldiers fight to reclaim our land! To take revenge on the Dark Lord who has taken from us everything! Causing us to survive on Lava Lizards! He will not be forgiven! Fight hard and fight strong!¡± The speech of a king. The soldier¡¯s roars echo throughout the hall.


    I add all of them to the guild and toss a Greater Safe Haven Scroll and the army teleports to the Light Kingdom, The rest will be here by morning, ¡°You ready Vlad?¡±


    ¡°Yes I am, Sophia was with those soldiers as well. She will be safe. Let us fight hard and slaughter the Dark Lord!¡± I bump his fist and put the helmet in my pouch, there are half the items I usually have in stock but I brush it off because we have a long battle ahead of us.


    ¡°Aye that we will.¡± I grab onto him, ¡°Teleport Barrier!¡± The wall of fire continues to act as a shield for the barrier, enemies are walking the long way around to fight different parts of the barrier but aren''t attacking, just gathering around. Vlad and I quickly hide in the bushes, ¡°You have a plan?¡± I ask him, looking into the far distant Kingdom full of darkness and lightning.


    ¡°I can use Invisibility Cloak and fly us there.¡± He says his spell and turns into a giant bat. I climb onto his back and we fly into the distance, leaving the battle to Desthro.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Fourteen: Resurrection/Reflection

    <h1>Chapter Fourteen: Resurrection/Reflection</h1>


    The Game Over screen quickly fades away and Wundah can feel the sun hitting his face once more, he groans in pain but then realizes he isn''t in pain, ¡°What the hell?¡±


    ¡°Good thing I arrived in time huh?¡± A hand pulls Wundah up and he looks around in shock.


    ¡°Is there revival in here?¡± Wundah looks at his hands.


    ¡°I healed you just in time, it''s kind of complicated. I understand you lost your friends in battle, there is a way to revive comrades but it does cost a lot of Nugz. I understand you would do what you can to revive them? I can help if you''re willing to do a few things for me.¡± The man smiles and dusts off his hair.


    ¡°Yeah I''ll do anything to revive my friends! What do you need?¡± Wundah clenches his fists.


    ¡°Deal. There will be three portals. The first will take you on top of a mountain, give this to the man on top. You can fight him if you want just don''t kill him.¡± The man hands Wundah a small ring of a sphinx, ¡°The second portal will send you to a place to revive your friends, only two. The other one will be revived after you enter the third portal. Through the third portal you will meet four people, another portal will open up but have them go through it. If they don''t listen you can force them but don''t kill them. Your power levels will be much stronger, you will fight a Legendary God Level Dragon as well to revive your friend, also those children you handed your sword to couldn''t carry it so here it is.¡± The man hands Wundah his sword and the first portal appears, ¡°Any questions?¡±The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Ugh no dude I got it. You can count on me!¡± Wundah gives a thumbs up and walks into the portal.


    Umbra takes a deep breath and reads over the scroll to himself once more, ¡°Change the history of Childhood Umbra and make the group strong and give them Nethershard Earrings, find the Dragon King Squad Leader and resurrect him then send him to give Umbra Sphinx ring on top of volcano, send Childhood Umbra and team to the training chamber and then dungeon, use Dragon King Squad to teleport Childhood Umbra to top of dungeon.¡± He glances back at the scroll and reads it over carefully a couple of times, ¡°Looks like time is up huh. I guess it can''t be helped. I gave them the items, they''re in the cave right now. Umbra can you hear me?¡± Umbra creates a portal and walks through it.


    ¡°Yeah I can, what do you need?¡± The soft voice of Childhood Umbra is heard as the man appears in a enormous hall full of clones of Grimgar the Terrible holding giant battle axes, ¡°You can''t do this!¡± He yells to the person who takes a seat on the throne and puts their helmet on, ¡°Listen and listen very closely, I need you to add Juzo, Eva and Azula to the party so I can max them out. Then you four will train hard. You four will be the last hope. Do you trust me?¡± Umbra grips his sword and adjusts his helmet, ¡°Summon item!¡± The sphinx ring falls from a small portal into his hands and he quickly puts it on.


    ¡°Yeah I trust you.¡± Umbra adds the three to the party.


    ¡°Thank you, wait two minutes.¡± Umbra inhales sharply, ¡°Attack! Defense! Agility! Barrier Aura!¡±


    ¡°Okay I will.¡±


    ¡°Ta.¡± Ten Grimgar attack from all angles but Umbra quickly deflects their attacks and slices through six of them. He swings hard with his left at one of the remaining ones but Grimgar moves so fast he disappears, the three of them cut at the same time, Umbra¡¯s left arm and leg along with his right thigh are cut off instantly and his armor is smashed as he is slammed up to the ceiling and then the floor. As he falls to the floor he places a portal on the ground, transporting him into a small diamond cavern.


    ¡°Okay I''m back, two portals will appear, your squad will walk into the one on the right, the others to the left.¡± He holds his hand up and a portal appears, ¡°Wait before they go there''s a Forbidden Fruit crate in the pouch, it gives temporary max level to any player for two days. Have them take it.¡± Umbra is panting with pain in his voice, he can hear Childhood Umbra talking about skills, ¡°You can fix whatever you need later... It''s time to go, please.¡± They appear through the portal.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Fifteen: Darkness and Light

    <h1>Chapter Fifteen: Darkness and Light</h1>


    Vlad soars quickly through the sky, avoiding many monstrous enemies along the way. He lands to the right of the towering castle of the Dark Lord that seems to reach past the stars and returns to his normal form, ¡°Why did we land here?¡± I ask quietly.


    ¡°I came to this tower long ago, but only I know the secret passageway to the top floor, warpgate magic that is long forgotten, it will take us to the final battle.¡± Vlad runs his hand along the stone carvings in the wall and chants a spell.


    ¡°What about your wife?¡± The stone carvings glow a light-purple color.


    ¡°I will save her once we cut off the head of the Dark Lord.¡± A spiraling portal appears and he draws his sword, ¡°Whatever we may face, I will fight alongside you until the very end.¡±


    ¡°Aye let''s fight hard then!¡± Nova I will see you soon. We both rush through the portal, ready to save the kingdom.


    We arrive in a empty hall, there is nobody on the throne. It''s very quiet as the two of us walk with our weapons drawn.


    A mage appears out of nowhere, ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I teleport behind him before he can react and shove the Greatsword through his body. A ball of dark energy floats from his body and hovers near me.


    I try to focus but my vision is blurry, as if I''m looking through glass. What is this feeling? I can''t feel my body, ¡°Vl...Vlad why?¡± His sword is poking through my stomach. I''m high in the air, this isn''t how I was supposed to die.


    ¡°Do you really think I would betray the Dark Lord?¡± Vlad lets out a ghoulish laugh.


    The necklace Deus Ex Machina gave me glows a violet color as blood falls like a river from my mouth onto the floor. A black orb floats out of my mouth and spins with the other orb to create a portal. Deus Ex Machina walks through with Nova standing next to him, ¡°It seems as if the ritual was successful.¡± Steam flows out of his nostrils, I am standing beside him healed now.


    ¡°Who are you?!¡± Vlad yells, black energy surging around him.


    ¡°He is the true Dark Lord.¡± A tall slender woman clad in black armor with long black horns appears next to Vlad and bows to Deus, ¡°My love, it seems your revival was complete. There was an Umbra clone at the forest who protected the four. He will be here shortly.¡±


    ¡°My lord!¡± Vlad bows, ¡°Revival? What do you mean?¡±


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°Nova what''s wrong? An Umbra clone?¡± Her face is blank and unchanging, ¡°Nova?¡±


    ¡°Not yet my love, but soon, very soon.¡± Deus changes form into a tall muscular man whose skin is covered in rune symbols, ¡°Umbra I have to thank you. You played right into my plan, but it seems that you and Nova forgot who you fight for.¡± My body won''t move.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I am stuck in place.


    ¡°Two weak Adventurers wandering through the forest at night, being chased by Wererabbits, who instead of dying chose to make a deal with a vampyric dark magician, that was my master. Haven''t you ever wondered why your hair is red? The sign of a Dark Elf, and Nova''s fangs? Do you understand how many rivers of blood you two have spilled? Have drunk. You left me to die in that field and said I volunteered to help but you knocked me unconscious! I was saved by a dark magician who taught me the ways of evil. You left Eva to die when she tripped over a root, but I saved her and we stand here before you today to destroy everyone you love.¡± I struggle to move as he holds a knife to Nova''s neck.


    ¡°It is you Juzo! How did you send me to the past? This doesn''t make sense!¡± As much as I struggle I can''t lift a single finger.


    ¡°There are many different worlds connected to this tower, some are exact copies of this world, I merely sent you to a world with a similar timeline and used the potion to clone myself here as well. You were my pawn all along you fool! I will show you true despair! You don''t deserve happiness!¡± He laughs evilly and holds his hand towards me, ¡°Mind Control!¡± The dark glow of his hand makes the necklace glow and puts my mind in a trance. I can''t control my body.


    ¡°Summon Allies!¡± I say, using a spell I didn''t know existed. No! No I can''t do this! Emma, Embra, Emduk, Embal, Desthro, and Emdul appear but are trapped in black spheres. They yell and try to break out but are unable to. I grip my sword but try to fight it, I can''t control myself, ¡°All hail the Dark Lord.¡± I whisper and slowly push my Greatsword through each one of their bodies, the frightened and pained faces I can''t escape for I am forced to watch as I slaughter my loved ones. The orb sinks into their skin and they stand still in a line, their eyes a light violet color. Desthro takes the form of a ice werewolf and Emdul turns into a tall mage with dark orbs hovering around him. Juzo holds his hand toward Vlad who mindlessly walks in line with the others.


    ¡°Great job Umbra! Vlad was a mere pawn as well and as the old Dark Lord of this realm he cannot remain alive. Now for the love of your life.¡± Juzo motions with his hand and as much as I try to I can''t stop myself. My blade sinks into the middle of her body, the violet eyes return to red as she gasps and chokes on her blood.


    ¡°My love...I wasn''t strong...enough.¡± She slowly whispers, rubbing her hand on my cheek.


    ¡°I''m so sorry, I will find you wherever you may go in the afterlife. I will follow you!¡± I wrap my arms around her, ¡°Do it love.¡±


    ¡°How did you break my mind control!? It doesn''t matter anyway! You will die along with Nova!¡± He laughs hysterically.


    ¡°My love.¡± I kiss Nova, ¡°Infinity Barrier! Do it Nova! The Final Step Supernova!¡±


    I use all of my mana to create a sphere of infinite barriers around Nova, Eva, Juzo and myself. It is a last resort skill, but then again this is a last resort, ¡°Nooooo!¡± Juzo attempts to break through but can''t.


    ¡°Noooo it won''t break!¡± Eva is shooting a volley of purple projectiles.


    ¡°Good...bye¡­ my love¡­..I..love...you¡­. Final¡­.Step...Super...Nova!¡± I wrap my arms around her, the smell of her hair like dead roses, I missed her so much. I will leave with her to the next plane of existence, wherever that may be.


    ¡°Juzo, Eva. I''m sorry I wasn''t strong enough! I''m sorry I was a coward, but the Umbra of this realm has protected you, the four are coming up. They will fix everything, this is what my clone has told me.¡± I sigh as Eva and Juzo hold each other. They stare in silence then look away. I guess nothing has to be said, I don''t deserve their forgiveness. Oh well. I kiss Nova''s forehead as a blinding white light envelops us.


    The white orb of the barrier disappears, and silence fills the hall. Vlad and the others remain motionless. A summoning spell of runes on the floor glows and a portal appears. Deus Ex Machina walks through, ¡°Good timing Clone Juzo. Guess I have to do everything myself. All of you get to the lower dungeons! We have company coming soon.¡± His form changes to Juzo with runes as he turns around and takes a deep breath. The group vanishes, ¡°Summon Grimgar Ex Battle Axe Clones!¡± He holds his hand up and from the ground appear an army of Grimgar the Terrible holding large battle axes. Juzo walks through them to the throne with his helmet under his arm and Greatsword on his back.


    He turns around and smirks, ¡°You can''t do this!¡± Clone Umbra screams as Juzo puts his helmet on and sits down.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Sixteen: Training/Survival

    <h1>Chapter Sixteen: Training/Survival</h1>


    I sink my head slowly in the water and paddle underneath the wave, the sea is calm and there are plenty of fish. I gently glide through the water with my wooden spear, the end split into many sharp points. I spot a big slow fish and thrust through it, then quickly head towards shore before any large predators show up. If this peaceful life could last forever that would be so nice.


    The portal closes behind us and we emerge in a humid island, the sun above us shining relentlessly. The chiming of birds and howling of monkeys that swing through the vines in the tree overhead, ¡°Be careful and watch out for enemies. I''m going to go through my skill tree for a while, so many were unlocked from maxing out!¡± I say, thinking about how much has happened since this morning. I quickly look through the many forms of Focus Slice that have turned into Demonic Slice. I can use healing spells, memory spells, and barrier spells. That will come in handy.


    ¡°It seems as if the day has just begun here, the air is slightly cold and a wind is flowing from my right side so we must be near the sea.¡± Juzo says, flipping through his skills, ¡°No way a five hundred hit combo! Dragon Armor turned into Transformation, I can turn into a dragon now!¡±


    ¡°Flame Aura covers my body in flames, oooh Supernova uses half of my health but destroys everything in a five hundred mile radius and the final one uses all of my health and expands one hundred thousand miles and then melts everything at the molecular level. Woah crazy!¡± Azula holds her hand out and the flame that comes from it is a gleaming white.


    ¡°So pretty!¡± Eva says as she glides up into the air, ¡°Don''t look under! I can fly now and shoot a lot of different air skills, ummm I can become untouchable for a short amount of time and give that skill to allies. There''s a whole list of buffs we can use now too! I''m going to see what''s around us!¡±


    ¡°Okay be careful!¡± I yell as she flies around us and then high into the air.


    ¡°Transformation!¡± Juzo says and his body morphs into a humanoid dragon, ¡°Ouch! Ouch! The wings can''t get through because of the armor!¡± Juzo returns to normal and takes his chest piece off, ¡°Transformation! Azula can you cut holes for my wings please?¡±


    The massive black wings spread three times his body, ¡°I''m on it!¡± Azula says as she holds his chest piece next to his wings and uses her finger to create a hot torch flame that melts through the armor, ¡°Here try this.¡±


    Juzo returns to normal and then straps on his armor, ¡°Transformation!¡± His wings form through the holes and then spread out, ¡°That''s so much better thank you Azula!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up and flaps his wings slowly, trying to get used to this new body. He flaps his wings faster and then pushes off of the ground and awkwardly flaps here and there, trying to get used to it. He falls straight down but eventually controls his body and flies in circles. His yells of excitement fill me with joy. Eva returns, ¡°Ooh nice Juzo! Flying is so cool huh!?¡± They circle each other and then land on the floor.


    ¡°What does it look like from up there?¡± I ask, looking around at the lush jungle.


    ¡°It looks like we''re on a massive island, like really really huge and there''s a volcano so far away, almost like impossible to see even with eye enhancing skills. There''s a large forest, then a desert, endless snow. and then a large valley and I don''t know so much land and different terrain, I don''t really know what to make out of it. There were no enemies in sight though!¡± Eva smiles and rubs her cheek.


    ¡°Okay good, we should focus on basic survival right now, food, shelter and water. Who wants to do what?¡± I ask, thinking what else we need.


    ¡°I can make us huts out of the surrounding bamboo, I''ll make two so we each have a small home if that''s fine?¡± Juzo blushes and then we all blush.


    ¡°That would be so nice! Then we get to sleep together every night!¡± Eva hugs Juzo tightly.


    ¡°Then I can carry you to bed every night!¡± Azula picks me up.


    Juzo and I quickly give each other a thumbs up, ¡°I''ll gather rocks for a fire pit and a bathtub, I have the ability to spit lava now so we can have clean fresh water and warm baths and even have our own little cooking place.¡±


    ¡°Ooh nice! There were boulders down that way!¡± Eva points into the distance.


    ¡°Okay thanks! Did you guys want to set up here?¡± I ask, looking around.


    ¡°Right here is fine, the ocean is about two hundred feet or so.¡± Juzo says, taking his armor off.


    ¡°Okay! I''ll get us fresh water!¡± Eva smiles and flies into the air.


    ¡°That leaves me with food, should I cut all of these trees down?¡± I ask, wondering how long we will be staying here.


    ¡°It''s fine if you cut everything down we would be exposed to all of the elements if there''s no trees to protect us. I''ll make a perimeter too so don''t worry! Everyone good to go?¡± Juzo picks up his Greatsword.


    ¡°All set!¡± Azula says, stretching her legs.


    ¡°Yup! All set!¡± Eva flies higher.


    ¡°Yeah I''ll be back too.¡± I say, starting to walk towards the ocean.


    ¡°Okay break!¡± Juzo smiles and Eva flies off into the distance. Azula uses flames to fly as well towards where Eva pointed, ¡°Transformation!¡± Juzo flies and chops nearby trees quickly as I use Feint to get out of his way and travel to the ocean quickly.


    The soft sand below me and what seems like a wicked turn of events that led us here flash through my mind. I walk along the edge, the ocean seems to be endless, the small waves kissing the shore and receding back into the sea. I ponder over what food would be here, possibly fruits, maybe small animals. I''ll try my shot at fish in the meantime. Somehow I know how to fish, I walk towards the treeline and find a decent sized bamboo stick. I use my sword to cut the edge in fourths, then I get two small sticks and wedge them in between them and use a bit of vine to tighten them. I carefully sharpen the points into spears, I hope the water is warm. This seems like a tropical island so I''d assume it is. I finally get to rest a bit, I guess this is me getting lost in my thoughts. I wonder how the level sixty is doing. Oh yeah time is slower here, or faster there? I take off my clothes and armor then set my sword on top, I hope no one sees me naked. I grab my spear and dive into the shallow water, it''s crystal clear and so warm, like the shower at the inn. I swim a way out and dip my head under the water, I can see all the way to the ocean floor. There''s coral reef and small colorful fish swimming around in a frenzy. I see a really large fish slowly swimming around, I pop my head back above the surface and take a deep breath. I dive down and focus my eyes on my prey, the fish doesn''t even respond to my attack, I guess they don''t have any predators in this area. All four spear points impale the fish, I use all of my strength to swim to the surface with it, ¡°This is so heavy it feels like I''m carrying Azula or something.¡± I say to myself and laugh, holding the fish above my head.


    ¡°What did you just say!?!¡± I hear her scream in my head and a loud explosion in the distance.


    ¡°Umbra the Party Chat is still on.¡± Juzo gasps and then in a serious tone he says, ¡°You should hide hahaha!¡±


    ¡°Azula calm down he didn''t know! Azula!¡± Eva¡¯s probably chasing her. I''m so dead.


    ¡°Aghhhhhhh! I''m gonna get you Umbra!¡± Azula screams, the sound of wind distorts her voice.


    ¡°Feint! Feint!¡± I use Feint to get to the shoreline and I quickly set the fish down on a bamboo leaf. I can hear Azula flying through the air with Eva trying to calm her down.


    ¡°Umbra you need to r-¡± Juzo lands next to me, ¡°Hahahaha! You''re naked!¡± He starts laughing and slapping his knee, then suddenly stops, ¡°You''re naked! You''re naked and the girls are coming! Hurry put clothes on!¡± He throws a shirt at me but it''s too late.


    ¡°Who are you calling fat! Aghhhh! You''re naked!¡± Juzo covers me with his wing.


    ¡°What''s happening?¡± Eva lands on the sand.


    ¡°Eva don''t look he''s naked!¡± Juzo screams really loud.


    ¡°Why are you naked!?¡± Azula wipes the blood from her nose.


    ¡°I was fishing, let me put clothes on!¡± I quickly stumble to put on my clothes.


    ¡°Well I''m gonna go back to doing my work, I''m almost done. I''ll be turning off party chat.¡± Eva nervously smiles and then winks at Juzo and flies away.


    A huge grin on his face, ¡°Ugh yeah me too, I''ll put the fish in ice for now.¡± Juzo pats my back and flies off with the massive fish.


    ¡°Well you saw me naked.¡± I laugh and scratch the back of my head.


    ¡°Yes, yes I did.¡± Azula shakes her head, and then starts to unstrap her armor pieces.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± She unzips her jacket and takes off her shirt, revealing a black lacey bra.


    ¡°I''m going swimming with you, take your clothes off and I''ll forgive you for the fish comment!¡± She smiles at me and I''m sure I''m sweating.


    ¡°I ugh I can''t take my clothes off in front of you!¡± My face is probably really red.


    She smiles and holds out her hand, a massive ball of white flame forms above her, ¡°I said take off your clothes!¡±


    ¡°Okay!¡± I quickly undress while she stares at me and blushes. I cover my junk with my hands and walk backwards into the ocean and sink into the water, ¡°No way.¡±


    She takes off her bra and then her pants and black underwear, I feel like I''m going to pass out. She uses flames to push herself into the water and disappears. She pops up next to me, the beads of water falling from her hair and her body, her massive melons not being covered by a plate of armor float to the top of the water, ¡°Umbra. You''re drooling.¡± She chuckles and then wraps her arms around me, her wet body feeling so warm and soft, steam floating from her body. Am I dreaming? She kisses me so softly, ¡°We''ve been through so much in such a short amount of time, it''s crazy huh, how things changed so quickly. A normal life spending every day with the three of you would have been so nice.¡±


    ¡°The normal life we would''ve had, but honestly I''m kind of glad we''re living this timeline, being strong enough to protect each other and others, it''s better than dying by Wererabbits.¡± She holds me tightly and kisses my neck.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    ¡°That''s very true as well. We''re still together and that''s all that matters!¡± Her smile is so beautiful to me, the endless ocean and sky behind her, the reflection of the calm water in her eyes and for a moment I forget the whole kingdom is on the brink of destruction.


    ¡°I love you so much.¡± I kiss her over and over, each kiss becomes harder and more passionate. She wraps her arms and legs around me and I carry her to the sand, ¡°Barrier.¡± I hold out my hand and place a barrier on the sand that we can lay on. I grip her thighs and set her down, our bodies and souls become one in a dance of fire and passion.


    She splashes ocean water on her face and then washes out her hair, ¡°Sorry! I um didn''t really know that would happen!¡± I rub the back of my head, washing off as well.


    ¡°It''s fine my love, that was wonderful, just wonderful!¡± She smiles and then walks out of the water, her body naturally drying her off, ¡°I wonder how Juzo and Eva are doing?¡±


    ¡°Well, um.¡± The cries of passion are ringing throughout the rainforest, ¡°We should give them some more time haha!¡± I laugh nervously as we put our clothes back on and take a seat in the sand.


    ¡°I was thinking of making trenches full of lava around our base just in case enemies show up at night.¡± She blows flame to warm her hands.


    ¡°That sounds like a great idea, it would give us lighting too. Even though we have skills that allow us to see in the dark, I wouldn''t be used to fighting that way.¡± My hair is still wet but I can feel it starting to dry.


    ¡°This is a beautiful island, but I feel as if this is the calm before the storm.¡± She looks at the sky, ¡°We keep saying these weird phrases, Familiars. As if we came here from somewhere else? A different world perhaps?¡± She smiles at me, ¡°No matter what, let''s go on endless adventures forever. Even if we have to give our left hand to obtain that power, let''s stay together, You and Juzo and Eva just going on countless adventures and fighting every type of beast. Forever. Wouldn''t that be nice?¡± She grabs a handful of sand and lets it fall through.


    ¡°We will go on endless adventures, so many. Too many to even count. I swear. We''ll defeat the Dark Lord and then travel like normal Adventurers. Using mana limiters and just basic skills to fight. We will travel like new Adventurers as we were supposed to. It will be so nice, so very nice.¡± I hold her hand, it''s so warm and strong. She rests her head on my shoulder and we stare out into the sea, lost in our thoughts. I wish I could pause time, live this moment in an endless loop. Forever. This is why I exist. She is the reason I exist. We sit there for the longest time lost in thought. She falls asleep on my shoulder and I play with her hair. I use a barrier as a pillow for us and lay down. I put a barrier around us and drift to sleep. It''s been a very long journey.


    I wake up to Azula yawning and stretching. She glances at my barriers, ¡°My love, do you think you can use that barrier to dig holes?¡± Azula asks, biting her fingernail.


    ¡°Hmm let me try.¡± I take down the others, ¡°Barrier!¡± I form a cylindrical barrier and plunge it deep into the sand, then close the bottom half and lift it up. A large hole remains. I place the barrier back and let it disappear, ¡°Yeah it works, what did you have in mind?¡±


    ¡°If we made a large hole and filled it with clay and bamboo planks, then stone slabs at the bottom and filled it with water, then if I bury lava underneath the stone slabs it would heat the pool. Then we can relax!¡± She smiles and runs her hand through her hair.


    ¡°That could work. I''ll help with it! We should start making the perimeter defenses.¡± I stand up and strap my armor on then equip my sword.


    ¡°Yeah sounds like a good idea.¡± Azula straps her armor on and clips her gauntlets to her waist. She takes a deep breath, ¡°Juuuuzoooooo! Evvvaaaaa! Weeereeee goinnng tooo makkkeeee periiiiimeterrrrr deeefensseeeeees!¡±


    ¡°About time you two lazy bones got to work.¡± Juzo flies with Eva above us.


    ¡°Yeah! We already finished a long time ago!¡± Eva has a stern look on her face.


    Azula looks at me shocked as I say, ¡°But um the yelling?¡±


    My face turns red and she glances at Juzo, ¡°Juzo was teaching me how to do a battle roar!¡±


    Azula snorts, ¡°Really? That''s so interesting!¡±


    ¡°Yeah I think we got it too! It took us a while but we got it! Go ahead and show them!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up.


    Eva looks at Juzo and gives a thumbs up and then turns to us and holds her fists in front of her, ¡°Hmph!¡± She takes a really deep breath, ¡°Rraaawwwwgghhhhhh!¡±


    Her roar is soft and high pitched, ¡°She''s ugh still practicing, but one day she''ll roar so loud even a behemoth will cover its ears in fear!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up, ¡°Hmph!¡±


    Eva gives a thumbs up, ¡°Hmph!¡±


    Azula and I start clapping, ¡°That was great! One day you''ll roar so loud like thunder!¡±


    ¡°I believe in you!¡± I say, shaking the sand from my armor.


    ¡°Thanks you two!¡± Eva smiles and flies near the treetops, ¡°Come look at our hard work!¡± She waves and flies back towards base.


    ¡°Let''s go!¡± Juzo flies as well.


    ¡°Want a lift?¡± Azula warmly smiles.


    ¡°Yeah sure sure.¡± She holds out her arms and picks me up just like when the Lightning Ape almost killed me, this is nice, so nice. She pushes off of the floor and soars high into the sky and uses flames to gently float down towards base, the trees in a wide radius are all cut down, a fence of bamboo in the shape of a square is inside the circle and two huts spaced out on opposite sides. In the far right towards the beach the circle is filled with snow and three giant blocks of ice. To the left is a pile of bamboo, ¡°Woah good work guys!¡± Azula sets me down and we look at how far everything is.


    ¡°So pool on that side?¡± I point to the left.


    ¡°Thanks! Yeah for water we just melt some of the ice blocks!¡± Eva smiles and puts her finger to her chin.


    ¡°Yeah and I put bamboo on the floors of the huts so you can walk around barefoot. There wasn''t much material for bedding but once we hunt animals we can use the fur. I put them on opposite sides in case we get ambushed from both sides.¡± Juzo quickly winks at me, ¡°It''s like we''re married and living together!¡± The four of us blush.


    ¡°Good job Juzo! It''s like paradise ya know!¡± Azula stretches her arms, ¡°Should we make a pool first or outer defenses?¡±


    ¡°Probably defenses because night will sneak up on us.¡± I say, trying to figure out how many hours of sunlight we have left.


    ¡°Yup! Defenses sound good!¡± Juzo walks towards the ice, ¡°I''m going to clean out the fish and then leave it in ice.¡±


    ¡°I still have to get a few more ice blocks! See you two in a bit!¡± Eva flies off into the distance.


    ¡°Well how should we do this?¡± I walk with Azula to the side facing the rest of the island.


    ¡°Use your skill to cut a large crevice and then I fill that with lava?¡± She gives me a thumbs up, ¡°Just don''t use full power or everything will get destroyed!¡±


    ¡°Fine fine I got it!¡± I grip my sword, ¡°Demonic Slice!¡± In the two seconds I cast the skill I feel tremendous power flow through my sword. I quickly swing downwards and the crevice is at least a few hundred feet deep and wide, stretching past the edge of the square.


    ¡°Well that worked!¡± Azula cracks her knuckles and then puts both of her palms out facing the crevice, ¡°Lava!¡± A river of lava gushes from her palms, filling the large hole in minutes, the lava bubbling and making tiny popping sounds.


    ¡°Ooh so hot! Hehe!¡± I laugh at my own corny joke.


    ¡°Seriously? You''re such a goofball!¡± We laugh as we head to the next side. We repeat the process until the whole base is surrounded by a outer layer of lava, ¡°Agh! Finally we can make a pool!¡± Azula stretches her back as we jump over the wall.


    ¡°Yo! Outside perimeter is secure, I''ll start cooking the fish while the girls make the pool.¡± I say to Juzo who is resting in a hammock made of vines and bamboo.


    ¡°Sounds good, I''ll help with cooking. Agh we don''t have a frying pan!¡± The frustration in Juzo''s voice.


    ¡°That''s what rocks are for!¡± Azula walks next to us holding a large flat rock. She punches the floor softly to create a small hole then fills it with lava and sets the rock on top of it, ¡°See! Who needs items when we have burning hot lava! Laaavvaaaaaaa! Muahahaha! I will make my pool now! Fare thee well gentlemen!¡± She bows and then rushes to make her pool.


    ¡°She''s so funny bro.¡± Juzo smiles at me and places small slabs of fish on the rock. They begin to cook and sizzle, the smell is so good.


    ¡°Yeah, this is really nice. Where did we even start saying bro? Where did that come from?¡± I laugh as the sun begins to set.


    ¡°Probably some 60¡¯s surfing movie.¡± We look at each other puzzled but then laugh because we don''t know what that even meant.


    ¡°Agh I love how we say things we don''t understand.¡± Juzo puts the finished pieces on the far side of the rock.


    ¡°It''s like we don''t even remember who we are or something. I can''t believe we''re going to be here for five years. That''s so long.¡± I let out a deep sigh, ¡°I want to get stronger to protect everyone.¡±


    ¡°We''ll protect each other, no matter what happens.¡± Juzo bumps my fist, ¡°I will have your back through thick and thin bro.¡±


    I hear a faint noise far off into the distance, my left ear twitches, ¡°I''ll be right back.¡±


    ¡°Everything alright?¡± Juzo stops flipping the fish.


    ¡°Yeah I thought I heard something. I''ll go check it out just keep cooking I''m starving.¡± I smile and pick up my sword.


    ¡°Alright shout if you need anything and I''ll come flying as fast as I can.¡± Juzo focuses back on the food.


    I walk in the direction of the side away from the island. My ear twitches two more times at the sound of something metallic, maybe armor? I jump over the fence and look into the distance but there is nothing out of the ordinary. I hear the whooshing noise of arrows flying in the air and my body moves so fast to quickly block them with my sword. There''s enemies in a bush on the opposite side of the lava, I wonder if my attack will work. I hold out my hand, ¡°Barrier! Barrier! Barrier!¡± I make three layers of circles around the bush and squeeze my hand shut, causing them to collapse slowly. I can see five goblins screeching and squirming around in it as their bodies pop and blood fills the barrier. I let it sink into the lava and jump back over the fence.


    The three are rushing towards me with their weapons in hand, ¡°What was it?¡± Juzo asks.


    ¡°Small scout party of goblins. We might have to fight tonight, don''t really know how many.¡± I motion towards the fish, ¡°But we worry about that later. Food comes first and then we fight.¡±


    ¡°Okay fine I''ll crush all of them!¡± Azula bumps her fists together.


    ¡°I''ll go see how many there are!¡± Eva starts to fly.


    ¡°I should go!¡± Juzo yells, trying to stop her.


    ¡°No! What if your Transformation runs out? So no I''m going dummy!¡± Eva kisses his cheek.


    ¡°Yeah you have a point.¡± He scratches the back of his head and kisses her, ¡°Be careful and if you need anything just scream in party chat!¡±


    ¡°Don''t go too far okay?¡± I say giving her a thumbs up.


    ¡°You need me over there just say the word and I''ll crush everything! Muahahahaha!¡± Fire flies from Azula''s mouth as she laughs.


    Eva gives a thumbs up, ¡°Hmph! I''ll be back!¡± She flies off into the distance.


    ¡°Agh the fish!¡± Juzo rushes to it and quickly flips the remaining pieces, a whole pile rests on planks of bamboo.


    Azula sighs, ¡°I''ll finish the pool tomorrow, but as I was searching the forest I found a dead regular tree and made us log chairs!¡± She jumps over to her pool and then quickly jumps back with a pile of firewood and four logs in her arms. She places one down next to me, ¡°A seat for my love, a seat for Juzo, one for Eva and a seat for me!¡± She punches another small hole in the middle of us and then jumps back and forth with bundles of firewood. She stacks a few large sticks in the circle, ¡°I''ll wait for Eva to get back! Fiiireeeee!¡± She has the most beautiful twinkle in her eyes, ¡°Oh yeah look I made a small holder too!¡± She shows a makeshift satchel weaved from small vines.


    ¡°Thanks Azula!¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up, ¡°I made this water gourd so we have water too!¡± Juzo shows a small water holder tied to his waist.


    ¡°I''m back!¡± Eva floats down and sits on her log.


    ¡°Nice Juzo! Fire time!¡± Azula lights the fire with her flame.


    ¡°Here! Eat up! Tell us what happened Eva.¡± Juzo passes each one of us a bamboo plate piled high with fish and a bamboo bowl of water.


    ¡°Thanks Juzo!¡± We yell.


    ¡°Thanks to all of us! We worked hard today hehe!¡± Juzo smiles and scratches the back of his head.


    ¡°There was a army of a couple thousand goblins, they''ll probably be here by the morning, but that''s not all! There''s endless enemies headed towards us! As far as I could see with vision enhancing skills! Massive beasts and dragons and Lightning Apes! They''re all rushing here!¡±


    ¡°That''s bad.¡± I say blankly.


    ¡°We could head into the ocean and go around them?¡± Juzo suggests.


    ¡°I''ll burn them all!¡± Azula yells.


    ¡°That''s not it though! I thought about that too but as I went to look at the ocean it''s falling into nothing!¡± The shock in her eyes show she isn''t lying.


    ¡°What do you mean nothing?¡± Juzo asks, shoveling fish in his mouth.


    ¡°It looks similar to that Void attack Nekra used on Umbra, just evil darkness swallowing up the land.¡± She takes another bite of food, ¡°This is really good by the way!¡± She smiles and eats more, ¡°That is all!¡±


    ¡°I will burn them all!¡± Azula yells at the top of her lungs while waving a piece of fish. Juzo and Eva begin talking about the plan of attack while I finish my fish, ¡°I will roast them! Muahahaha! They will all die when I look at them and say Supernova!¡± Azula pauses and the three of us quickly glance at her health bar.


    ¡°No you didn''t.¡± I drop my food and scramble for my sword.


    ¡°I''ll get Umbra you fly away Eva!¡± Juzo quickly scrambles for his sword as well.


    ¡°Azula what the heck!¡± Eva throws her food in her mouth and begins flying away.


    ¡°Oh no oh no oh no! I''m so sorry!¡± Azula has her hands in front of her face as her body begins to glow a shining white, ¡°Guess you should just call me Nova now, because I''m super.¡± She laughs nervously and shoots finger guns at us, ¡°Sorry! Sorry! You should go now!¡±


    ¡°Transform!¡± Juzo quickly picks me up and we speed off into the sky. The bright white light shines on her body and then erupts with devastating glowing energy and as the sun fades away it is replaced by Nova¡¯s powerful beauty. We slowly catch up to Eva who is waiting for us, ¡°We need to hurry!¡± The blast spreads like a massive bubble destroying everything in its path. We fly over the goblin army as the white light destroys it. The light stops at the edge of them but we''ve been flying for so long Juzo lets out a slight, ¡°Oh no.¡± Before quickly descending to the floor. His Transformation runs out and we land on the ground really hard, creating craters beneath us.


    ¡°Well, looks like we fight.¡± I take a deep breath that just comes out as a deep sigh.


    ¡°We got this!¡± Eva hovers above us.


    ¡°This is intense.¡± Juzo grabs his sword and prepares himself for battle.


    ¡°Nova will meet us eventually!¡± I say reaching for my sword.


    ¡°Nova? We calling her Nova now?¡± Eva says, activating her buffs.


    ¡°Yeah she told us to and I think that suits her.¡± Juzo gives a thumbs up, ¡°What''s wrong?¡± He asks me.


    ¡°My sword? I can''t find it.¡± I look around me but it''s nowhere in sight.


    ¡°Is that it?¡± Eva points high above into the distance a giant Minotaur is using it as a toothpick.


    ¡°It must''ve flew as we landed.¡± Well looks like I need to use Barrier Magic.


    ¡°Let''s go!¡± Juzo rushes ahead and chops smaller minotaur into pieces.


    Eva summons a storm of tornado and I hold both hands up and focus my mana, ¡°Barrier!¡± I create a huge crescent shaped barrier and throw it towards the enemies who get cut in half. There seems to be no end to them though, as a Behemoth lands in front of me. I block a punch with my forearms and then quickly kick its shin and it crumbles to pieces. The Behemoth roars as it falls to the ground. I shake my head in disbelief and then Jump to my sword. I chop off the Minotaur¡¯s head and use the body to land back at the Behemoth. ¡°Demonic Focus Slice.¡± I quickly swing to behead it.


    ¡°Look out!¡± I turn around to see a Behemoth fist rushing towards my face but it is blocked by a punch and sent flying into the distance.


    ¡°Thanks Nova! Are you okay?¡± I smile at her as she blushes, ¡°What is it? Do you want me to call you Azula instead?¡±


    Tears fall from her face, ¡°I''m sorry! I''m so sorry! I didn''t mean to do that!¡±


    I go to hug her as another Behemoth shoots a beam of fire mixed with electricity, ¡°Barrier! How rude can''t you see we''re having a moment!¡± I leave it in a floating bubble. I wrap my arms around her, ¡°It''s fine. We''re all okay and that''s what matters.¡±


    ¡°Thank you love, and yes Nova would be nice. I need to crush something! I''m better now. Thank you.¡± She kisses me and holds me tightly then rushes into battle.


    That was the start of the battle that raged on for five years. At times one would sleep while the other three fought. Or one would forage for food and water while the others fought. It made us strong both physically and mentally. We needed it, for we are about to face the Dark Lord.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Seventeen: Love

    <h1>Chapter Seventeen: Love</h1>


    ¡°Umbra where are you?!¡± The stern voice of Nova in my party chat.


    ¡°I had to get a few things but I''m on my way.¡± I hand two Silver to the merchant and take the two cones, ¡°Thank you.¡± The merchant nods at me.


    ¡°Why are you thanking me? I swear if you''re late for our first date I''m going to punch you!¡± I hurriedly walk through the busy alleyway.


    ¡°I''m coming! I''m coming!¡± I rush towards the middle of the city, the streets lit by many giant Glow Stone floating above the small posts. My armor making little clicking noises against the cobblestone floor. I turn the corner and see her sitting on a bench under the giant tree of the city that has small glowing violet and pink petals that fall down elegantly only to disappear as it touches the floor or any object.


    ¡°Umbra!¡± She sits with her arms crossed.


    ¡°I''m here I''m here.¡± I say handing her a cone.


    ¡°Dragonberry!? You know the way to my heart don''t you?¡± She smiles and hugs me.


    She''s wearing a red kimono with her hair tied up and crimson lipstick to match her eyes, ¡°You look so beautiful.¡± I am completely spellbound by her beauty.


    ¡°Thank you! You were supposed to leave your armor at the Inn!¡± She licks her ice cream, ¡°Agh! So good!¡±


    ¡°I left most of it! I felt so vulnerable without my sword I at least need to be able to kick something!¡± I smile and sit down next to her. There''s so many people walking around, Merchants, Adventurers, Performers and Bards, ¡°The Earth Kingdom Capital really is amazing huh?¡± I hold out my hand and watch a petal land on it then disappear.


    ¡°This is such a nice place, I just wish Juzo and Eva could''ve seen it.¡± My chest caves in out of guilt.


    ¡°Me too.¡± We eat our ice cream in silence.


    The city bell rings twelve times, ¡°It''s about to start! Let''s go!¡± Nova pulls me by the hand and we run towards the lake on the far side of the city.


    We run past many stalls and vendors of the festival and are greeted by an elderly elf as we reach the lake, ¡°Welcome to the Earth Kingdom Lantern Festival!¡± He motions his hands to a pile of lanterns and markers, ¡°You may each take one, write your hearts deepest desire and let it soar unto the heavens so the Elder Gods may heed your wish and bestow upon you their greatest blessing!¡±


    We bow and he smiles. As we grab our lanterns and markers we hear him repeat the message over and over again. There are a thousand people gathering along the fields near the river. Nova rubs her thumb over mine as we gaze up above at the many stars in the sky. ¡°What do you wish for?¡± She asks as I give her my back so she can write down her wish.


    ¡°It''s a secret, or it won''t come true.¡± I laugh but we both know already, ¡°What more could I wish for when I already have a woman like you by my side?¡±


    ¡°Dragonberry ice cream. Rivers of Dragonberry ice cream.¡± She smiles and turns around for me to write on my lantern.


    ¡°That''s very true.¡± I write down ¡®Forgiveness'' although I wouldn''t expect either Juzo or Eva to forgive me for being a coward. My heart will remain heavy, but in a way this is also me forgiving myself. I get to live happily with this woman, the love of my life. She is the only thing that matters to me.


    ¡°Attention everyone! Please light your lanterns with the match inside and may the Gods hear your wishes!¡± The old man''s voice echoes through the land.


    Nova uses her fingertip to light our lanterns and we let go of them as they float into the sky. It seems as if ours are the first two to take flight, drifting in the endless sky followed by countless other shimmering lights. I hold her tightly as we watch the many lights fill the sky, ¡°Nova, I love you so much. You are my flame, both literally and figuratively. You''re so hot.¡±


    She gently slaps my hand and kisses me, ¡°Stop with the fire jokes.¡±


    ¡°Okay okay!¡± I kiss her again.


    ¡°I love you Umbra, with all of me. With everything that makes me, me.¡± I kiss her cheek as the sky fills with fireworks and fire mages standing on the kingdom walls shooting many different colors and shapes in the sky. Dragons that soar and many different beasts walking around, goblins and trolls. The crowd cheers as the show comes to a conclusion and the lanterns are too far to be seen.


    ¡°What do you want to do now?¡± I ask, squeezing her tightly.


    ¡°Let''s look at the vendors and then get really drunk!¡± She yells triumphantly.


    A squad of dwarves next to us Cheer, ¡°Aye! Aye! Aye! We''ll see yee two at the pubs!¡±


    ¡°I''ve never drunk with a dwarf before, let''s see who can drink more!¡± I laugh heartily.


    ¡°Yer on! Didn''t n¡¯ybody tell ya not ta challenge a dwarf ta drinking! I like this lad!¡± The dwarf rubs his big belly and runs his hand through his long grey beard.


    ¡°We''ll see you gentlemen tonight then! Invite everyone you see to the Boar Pub!¡± Nova yells and smiles, the way she laughs is so beautiful to me.


    ¡°Will do missy! Will do!¡± They begin walking in the direction of the pubs.


    ¡°I''m so hungry I wonder what kind of meat they have!¡± Nova rubs her belly, ¡°Belly needs meat!¡±


    ¡°I''m sure there will be plenty.¡± There are bards and performers everywhere, children playing with fireworks and dragon kites. Lanterns decorate the many rows of vendors.


    ¡°Ooh look this one sells masks!¡± Nova picks up a clay mask of a Behemoth and tries it on, ¡°Raaaghhhh! Raaghhh! Pshhhhh lightning blast!¡± We begin laughing.


    ¡°I hate fighting them so much.¡± I pick up a Under Wolf mask, ¡°Look it''s Desthro.¡± I put on the mask and howl.


    ¡°Lovely, just lovely.¡± She smiles at me.


    ¡°Can I help you two? Masks are on sale right now.¡± A young elf boy asks us.


    I put my mask back, ¡°Thank you but we''re just browsing.¡±


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    ¡°Okay! Just let me know if you need anything!¡± The boy goes back to painting a mask of a hydra.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Nova says as we exit the stall, ¡°Agh meat meat meat where could you be? Meat meat meat!¡±


    I can feel the bloodlust of hunger emanating from her, ¡°Look at that will that be enough for you?¡± I point over to a game where a roasted Boarliath is the prize.


    ¡°Come one come all and test your skill! Winner gets a whole roasted boar! For only ten Gold you can have a chance to play!¡± The large Elf man next to it yells, ¡°The rule is simple! Hit the platform with this mallet to make the metal ball ring the bell and you get the prize!¡±


    ¡°This will be easy!¡± A tall muscular level 60 Adventurer stretches his shoulder and hands the ten Gold to the Elf who has a sly grin on his face.


    ¡°We have a player everyone!¡± A large crowd gathers and cheers for the Adventurer who grabs ahold of the mallet and practices swinging it.


    ¡°Agghhh!¡± He swings downward with a gust of wind following his impact. The metal ball rises halfway and the push of a button heard by Nova and myself is unheard by everyone else. The ball comes to a sudden halt and falls down.


    The elf clicks his tongue, ¡°Oh what a great try! Give it up for him everyone!¡± The crowd cheers loudly, ¡°Would you like to try again for five Gold?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! I''ll get it this time!¡± The Adventurer shoves five Gold in his hand and walks back to the platform. He takes a few deep breaths, ¡°Grand Smash!¡± The mallet glows white and the Adventurer steps forward with all of his weight, causing the floor to crack and like a whip the mallet smashes into the platform, causing the ball to shoot up, snapping the mallet in half in the process.


    Another click of a button and the metal ball stops before it hits the bell and falls down. More clicking of his tongue, ¡°My my what a shame but a great try!¡±


    The Adventurer¡¯s face becomes red, ¡°This game is rigged!¡±


    The Elf wiggles his finger, ¡°Nuh uh! Here''s the secret! You have to have a swinging force stronger than that of a God Level Behemoth to make that ball ring the bell! Sadly you are just not strong enough! Kekekekekekeke!¡± The Elf laughs hysterically.


    ¡°That''s not even fair!¡± The Adventurer looks at his hands.


    ¡°Dang isn''t that funny?¡± I say to Nova but when I look to the left she isn''t there.


    ¡°Here you go!¡± She hands the Elf ten Gold.


    ¡°Didn''t you hear? It''s impossible to ring that bell! How can a slim woman like you beat it?¡± The Adventurer pleads.


    ¡°Give the woman a chance! She''s paid after all!¡± The Elf has a wide smirk across his face.


    ¡°Aw thanks for calling me slim!¡± She grabs the broken half of the mallet and swings. Before she makes contact with the platform she whispers, ¡°Ta.¡± She runs to the Elf and puts the remote in his other pocket then returns to the platform and softly hits it with the mallet. The Elf goes to click the button that isn''t in that pocket and the bell rings. The crowd cheers wildly.


    ¡°What the?¡± The Elf whispers then says calmly, ¡°We have a¡­ a winner?¡±


    ¡°Crazy strong!¡± The Adventurer says, ¡°Sorry I doubted you! First rounds on me tonight!¡±


    ¡°What''s the matter think that was a fluke? How¡¯d you like to bet all of your gold that I can do it with just my pinky?¡± Nova¡¯s trying to get tonight''s booze for free.


    ¡°Woah really?!¡± The crowd cheers, ¡°Take the bet! Take the bet! Take the bet!¡± They chant.


    The Elf¡¯s face turns red, ¡°Fine! But if I win you have to give me two Platinum!¡± He has a smirk on his face.


    ¡°Fine it''s a deal!¡± She holds out two Platinum and places it in the Adventurer¡¯s hand, ¡°He will hold the Nugz in case one of us tries to run without paying.¡±


    ¡°Got it! Count on me!¡± The Adventurer smiles.


    The Elf hesitates and then places the bag of Gold in his hand, ¡°Fine a bet is a bet!¡±


    He squeezes onto the remote tightly, holding the button in place as Nova walks to the platform and holds her pinky up for the crowd to see. She lightly taps the platform and the metal ball shoots up too fast for the eye to see and then it hits the bell and causes the whole thing to burst into flames. The crowd is silent but then bursts into cheering.


    ¡°Cheater! You''re a cheater!¡± The Elf pulls out a dagger and rushes towards Nova who is waving at the crowd.


    ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I quickly grab his arm and squeeze it, causing him to drop the weapon.


    The crowd gasps, ¡°Cheat who''s a cheat when you have this remote in your pocket!¡± I yell pulling out the remote, ¡°This is why the ball never hit the top!¡±


    Two guards rush from the crowd, ¡°What is going on here!?¡±


    ¡°The Elf was a cheat, but these two stopped him and won the Gold and boar fair and square.¡± The Adventurer says calmly, ¡°Camouflage Unequip!¡± His appearance changes to a Elf with flowing blonde hair and dark green armor.


    The guards bow in a panic, ¡°Sir Velek! You tried the game too?¡±


    ¡°At ease soldiers, I was investigating this fraud after my second in command tried this game a year ago. Even with my strongest attack the metal ball didn''t budge. I''d like to thank you two for helping.¡± We both nod at him, ¡°As for this scoundrel, revoke his merchant license and throw him in jail for fraud. That is all. Let the festival continue!¡±


    ¡°Aye sir!¡± The guards say as I hand the Elf to them. Velek hands Nova the Nugz.


    ¡°Thanks for helping.¡± He nods at me as well.


    ¡°It''s no problem at all!¡± I shake his hand, I can feel the firm grip and strength of a warrior.


    ¡°No problem! Everyone! Come to the Boar Pub! Food and drinks are on us until this Gold runs out! Invite everyone you see!¡± Nova yells into the night sky and everyone cheers loudly.


    ¡°I''ll have guards escort the Boarliath to the pub for you. It''s the least I can do.¡± Velek says with a smile, ¡°And as I said a round of beers is on me as well friends.¡±


    ¡°Thank you! We''ll see you soon and you better be ready to get stupid drunk!¡± Nova gives a thumbs up along with a huge grin.


    ¡°We''ll see who the better warrior is through drinking, there will also be Dwarves joining us so bring your best drinkers!¡± I taunt him and laugh heartily.


    ¡°Earth Kingdom warriors are some of the best drinkers in the land! Be prepared!¡± Velek laughs as well and we give each other a thumbs up.


    Nova puts the Nugz in her satchel and we walk down to look at the rest of the stalls.


    ¡°This is so much fun! We should come here every year!¡± She smiles at me and I walk into a stall filled with amulets.


    ¡°I would love to spend every year here with you.¡± I smile at her and two small black earrings catch my eye, ¡°Excuse me what are these?¡±


    I point to them as the merchant glances at me with two bright violet eyes, ¡°Ah yes they are called Nethershard, foraged from a distant land filled with darkness. They protect you from God level world ending attacks. I will sell both to you for two Platinum.¡± I sense no danger coming from this woman.


    ¡°What do you think love?¡± I ask Nova who holds one in her hand.


    ¡°Ooh so pretty! If we had matching earrings that''d be so nice!¡± She smiles and reaches for her satchel.


    ¡°I''ll take them, thank you.¡± I quickly hand her two Platinum.


    ¡°I was going to pay for them!¡± Nova yells at me.


    ¡°I saw them first love, just pay for drinks tonight?¡± I smile at the merchant.


    ¡°Fine, fine thank you my love.¡± She brushes her thumb over it.


    ¡°Seal.¡± The merchant says and the earrings glow and float next to our left ears and push through, latching themselves, ¡°All done, thank you for your service.¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much.¡± I bow and hold Nova''s hand.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Nova waves as we walk out of the stall, ¡°Food and drink now! Muahahaha!¡± She rushes me towards the pub.


    The grand hall of the Boar Pub is as vast as any battlefield, it is already filled with many people eating and drinking. As we walk in the doors the crowd begins to cheer, ¡°Cheers to the two Adventurers who gave us food and drink! Aye! Aye! Aye!¡± We are given mugs of beer and are taken to seats on a platform where two mountains of Boarliath meat are waiting for us.


    ¡°Aye! Let''s get drunk and celebrate life!¡± Nova holds her mug up high in the air.


    ¡°Aye! Aye! Aye!¡± Everyone yells and laughs.


    I stand up, ¡°Where are the Dwarves and Velek at! We have a drinking competition to have! Everyone has to join in the drinking competition!¡± I cheer and hold my drink up then gulp it down.


    ¡°Aye! Aye! Aye!¡± The crowd yells as I laugh heartily. My ears twitch and I hear screaming outside.


    Velek rushes into the Pub with blood covering his right eye, ¡°Earth Kingdom is under attack! Hurry to the underground shelter! Hurry!¡±


    ¡°My sword is on the other side of the city!¡± I say as Nova and I jump into action, rushing outside to see what is happening. Velek rushes back towards the main gate that faces the Dark Kingdom. There are dark ominous clouds above with rain that seems to be depleting our Mana, ¡°Nova the sky!¡±


    ¡°Got it!¡± She leaps into the air, ¡°Meteor! Meteor! Meteor!¡± Three massive balls of while flame and lava fill the sky and rush up towards the clouds. As they hit the clouds they crumble into tiny purple shards. She lands back down, ¡°I''ll get your sword! Ta!¡± She disappears and I continue to run towards the main gate. A few minutes later she returns with my Long Sword and armor, ¡°Sorry there was a pack of Minotaur. I hate them.¡±


    ¡°Thanks love!¡± I quickly put on my armor and clip my sheathe as we run.


    Velek is surrounded by his Royal Guard, alongside them are many high level Adventurers all facing a giant purple portal that blocks the gate entrance, ¡°Healers and long range at the back! Tanks up front! Everyone else flank from the sides!¡±


    I jump to the front with Nova and we nod at Velek, ¡°What''s going on!?¡± I ask.


    ¡°Every Kingdom is being attacked by the Dark Lord! We have to evacuate everyone!¡± Velek yells, keeping his eye on the portal.


    ¡°We will help!¡± Nova has her gauntlets on.


    ¡°Mind Control!¡± A voice from the portal says, the Nethershard glows and pulsates. I can''t control my body. Nova struggles to fight it but we both can''t move. A tall woman in black armor with long horns appears holding a jagged sword, ¡°Nova and Umbra, drink the blood of every person in this Kingdom! I Nekra, servant of the Dark Lord command you. Drink!¡±


    ¡°I turn to look at Nova, she is already attacking, her fingers covered in small torches of flame are sticking through Velek¡¯s neck. My mind is blurry as my body moves on its own, as my sword slices through innocents, as I gorge myself on their blood. I drink the Earth Kingdom dry, the Dwarves that I was supposed to drink with, the crowd that was cheering with us, everything left to ruin and ash, ablaze in a unquenchable fire. We were used to take over the Four Kingdoms. To destroy everything in our path. To spill and drink endless rivers of blood. Then we were sent on one final mission by Eva, to use a portal and find a secret amulet, one to revive our comrades. Who knew we were just bringing back Juzo who was banished by a mage to a different dimension. The Dark Lord Mage ruled over my timeline but that realm was destroyed by a clone Nova¡¯s Final Step Supernova attack, Clone Juzo and Eva are about to perish with me in this timeline, but I sense the island Juzo will appear. Be cautious, I trust in you. Be weary of the Nethershard earrings! Goodbye.¡± I tell them with my final breaths, I hope the future is different. I hope it is brighter. I hope I can pay for my sins. The blinding white light from Nova is so warm, it destroys me.


    ¡°Yoooo! This dude just told a whole story in my head!¡± Wundah stares at the portal.


    ¡°Do you know what he meant?¡± AvatarPyro punches his fists together.


    ¡°I want some earrings dude!¡± Andrew scratches his right buttcheek.


    ¡°Who knows, who knows.¡± Wundah says before they jump into the portal.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Eighteen: The Final Battle

    <h1>Chapter Eighteen: The Final Battle</h1>


    ¡°To the left!¡± I scream as we rush towards the Dark Lord who gleams at us from his throne.


    ¡°Got it!¡± Nova says, punching through a Grimgar Ex. I can see their movements before they attack, as if the fight with Wundah increased my fighting perception greatly.


    ¡°Barrier!¡± I block a battle axe as Juzo unleashes a deadly combo.


    ¡°Aghhh! Take this!¡± He chops three into pieces and they turn into black sand.


    ¡°Move! Super Air Cannon Volley!¡± The three of us dive backwards as Eva unleashes a vicious volley that tears through the Grimgar, leaving the Dark Lord Exposed.


    ¡°Nova don''t!¡± I rush to her arm and push her back she she tries to activate the ring.


    ¡°Reflection Barrier!¡± The Dark Lord says, raising a glowing green barrier.


    ¡°Don''t touch it!¡± Juzo stops his attack inches away from it, ¡°Barrier Needle!¡± I shoot a small needle that cracks the barrier, ¡°Nova Flame Barrage!¡±


    ¡°Grand Void Beams!¡± The Dark Lord yells, snapping his finger. On every surface of the hall a spell circle is glowing bright violet. I can''t see the next move.


    ¡°Ta!¡± Nova punches the floor beneath us making a huge hole but the spell circle remains and glows brightly. I quickly unstrap my arm armor.


    ¡°Nova block the top! Juzo pick me up and use me to block bottom! Eva hold us in the air please!¡± I toss my armor to Nova.


    ¡°Got it!¡± She holds it in front of the spell circle.


    ¡°Gotcha!¡± Juzo picks me up and holds me over the circle.


    ¡°I''ll use my huge muscles to hold you guys!¡± Eva balances Nova with one arm and holds Juzo with the other as the hall fills with beams of energy. The small area that we block is big enough for us to avoid the attack. The beams surge for a long time and then disappear.


    ¡°I''m done playing with you fools!¡± The Dark Lord holds his hand out towards us, ¡°Mind Control!¡± We move to dodge but nothing happens, ¡°Mind Control! Mind Control!¡± He keeps yelling as nothing happens, ¡°Why isn''t it working! I had Nekra make sure to command Umbra to give his clone orders to make you wear two Nethershard earrings each! They can only be unequipped by Divine Heroes!¡±


    I reach towards my ears but all that remains is empty holes, ¡°It must''ve been the guys when they knocked us unconscious!¡± Juzo yells feeling for his earrings.


    ¡°They provoked a fight on purpose just to help us out huh! Agh what cool people!¡± Nova smiles and cracks her knuckles.


    ¡°They helped us level up too! I want to repay them one day! Prepare yourself Dark Lord we''re going to wreck you!¡± Eva yells and clutches her staff, ¡°Agility! Defense! Attack! Stamina! Mana Pool!¡± She buffs the four of us.


    ¡°Thank you Wundah and guys for looking out for us. Rounds on me all night when this is over!¡± I step to the left to avoid a punch from a Grimgar who has four arms and glowing purple energy emanating from his body. I kick high with both feet and he blocks the punch as Nova punches at the same time with flames covering her fist. It melts straight through his body.


    ¡°Meteor Barrage!¡± She leaps into the air and shoots ten massive meteors that rush across the hall at the Dark Lord who opens his mouth.


    ¡°Beam!¡± A ball of energy appears in front of his mouth and from it a surge of energy rips though the meteors but that was just a distraction.


    ¡°Tornado!¡± Eva screams and above the Dark Lord a powerful tornado spawns and surrounds him but his feet stay planted in the ground.


    ¡°It seems we are at a standstill, I will cut you to pieces instead!¡± The Dark Lord grabs his Greatsword, the same sword Clone Umbra had and swings it, the tornado instantly disappearing, ¡°Summon Hydra!¡± A massive black seven headed hydra appears behind Juzo and I.


    ¡°We got this!¡± Nova yells, dodging acid, ice, fire, wind, dark energy, mud mixed with red electricity and bright blue lightning beams surging from their mouths as the hydra roars.


    ¡°Air Cannon!¡± Eva punches a hole through the Hydra but it instantly heals. I turn my focus to the Dark Lord, who is clashing swords with Juzo who is in his Transformation state. I rush in and see my opportunity, Juzo slashes from the top while I slash sideways and the Dark Lord has to block both, I quickly kick his left thigh as Juzo punches his chin. Our swings were just bluffs for the counter attack. The Dark Lord is sent flying into the wall. Juzo picks up his Greatsword and throws his across the room. It lodges into the Hydra.


    ¡°Thanks for the new sword. This didn''t belong to you in the first place so I don''t want to hear you pouting.¡± He lets out a big laugh.


    ¡°You will regret underestimating me! Limiter Removal! Grand Demonic Transformation! World Calamity!¡± There is a bright violet flash like that of a Flashbang. The towering muscular Dark Lord''s body becomes even bigger, expanding to the point where his armor shatters as he morphs into a towering black humanoid dragon the size of those titans Eva fought, Juzo and I stare up at him as he roars, as the roof is destroyed and sent flying into the distance, as he spreads his wings. A beam of black energy surges from around his body into the bright-blue sky. It reaches as far as the eye can see and then explodes, spreading and blocking out the sun and every inch of blue. The world is shrouded in darkness. The purple runes along the Dark Lord''s body glow and surge with power.


    ¡°Woah look at that big boy!¡± Nova holds Juzo''s Greatsword on her fingertip, ¡°I''ll give this back later Juzo thanks for the help!¡±


    ¡°You can keep it! How''d you beat that Hydra?¡± Juzo stares up above at the towering beast.


    ¡°She was so cool! You should''ve seen her!¡± Eva yells enthusiastically.


    ¡°I chopped it into dust! Muahahaha!¡± Her eyes gleam with fire, ¡°Can''t regenerate if there''s nothing to regenerate!¡±


    ¡°Nice! This guy is going to be hard to take down, the dark energy is giving him unlimited mana! Final Step Dragon Slayer Focus Slice! It will take a long time to charge!¡± I say, planting my feet and holding my sword steady, surging as much mana as I possibly can into this attack.


    ¡°We got it covered! Transformation!¡± Juzo says, flying along the Dark Lord''s leg while digging his Greatsword deep into the skin. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°I''ll be back!¡± Nova rushes to fight, shooting twenty enormous meteors and following up with a beam of energy. The Dark Lord roars and shoots a coin sized ball of dark energy at Juzo that he quickly dodges. It flies into the distant pavement and explodes with dark energy twice the impact and range of Nova''s Supernova attack.


    ¡°Wind Spirit! This should hold for a while, just focus and let us take care of it Leader!¡± Eva shoots a smile and flies off, shooting Air Cannon into the Dark Lord''s face. They force him to follow them away from me, I breathe slowly, channeling my mana as calmly and slowly as I can.


    ¡°Look out!¡± Juzo pushes Nova away as a long black spike crashes down from the sky and goes through his left arm.


    ¡°Wind Spirit!¡± Eva yells, causing Juzo to fall through the spike and protecting the three of them from an onslaught of spikes falling from the sky, ¡°Heal!¡± He''s back to normal.


    ¡°Thanks Juzo! We have to get away from these!¡± Nova yells, the endless hail of spikes continue to fall as the Dark Lord shoots a beam from his mouth.


    ¡°There!¡± I swing my sword and a enormous crescent shaped beam of white energy cuts the Dark Lord in half, his body aging and withering into bone and then dust.


    ¡°Wooooh!¡± Juzo yells, flying down to me.


    ¡°Nice! We did it!¡± Nova smiles and kisses my cheek.


    ¡°Good job everyone!¡± Eva smiles, clutching her staff as Wind Spirit wears off for us.


    ¡°Look out!¡± Juzo yells but I''ve already sensed it, the real Dark Lord is behind me, rushing to attack, the massive one was a clone made during the flash. I quickly kick with the back of my heel, not looking where I''m striking. As I make impact I hear a crunch of armor and high-pitched yelp from the Dark Lord, as I turn around to look his hands are down as Juzo slices him in half, Nova grabs his head and shoots a beam of fire through her hand while Eva slices the rest of his body with many numerous Mini Wind Scythes. The darkness that surrounds the sky vanishes, the sun shines brightly once more.


    ¡°That wasn''t as bad as I expected it to be, kind of a letdown honestly.¡± Nova dusts off her hands.


    ¡°I completely understand.¡± Juzo sighs and clips the Greatsword onto his back.


    ¡°Yeah well we did train for so long.¡± Eva smiles and then runs her fingers through her hair, ¡°Let''s hurry and help out everyone else that''s fighting!¡±


    ¡°Hey Carbon what''s the status of the battle?¡± I say in guild chat. Minutes pass but no response, ¡°Carbon?¡±


    ¡°Carbon has fallen in battle, he fought bravely. The enemies have retreated back into the dark crevices that they once hid in. I assume things have gone well on your end. This is Sophia, the battle has been long, but we are alive and the time to rebuild is upon us. Come, return to your kingdom brave Dragon Slayer.¡± The woman¡¯s voice brings joy and sadness into my heart.


    ¡°Thank you Sophia, we will be on our way.¡± I sigh as I clench my fist, ¡°Let''s go.¡±


    ¡°That sucks, sorry bro. Let''s head down. Transformation.¡± Juzo pats my back.


    ¡°Thanks Juzo, dying is all part of this world. Isn''t it?¡± Nova picks me up again and I rest my head against her arm.


    ¡°I''ll take us down as safely as I can!¡± She smiles at me and kisses my cheek.


    ¡°This has been so stressful! I just want to take a nice hot bath!¡± Eva smiles and we jump over the edge of the destroyed battlefield.


    ¡°Same here!¡± Nova chuckles and we fly for the longest time downward towards a charred battlefield full of slayed beasts. The Kingdom is safe once more, but who knows for how long. I ponder over the future of our lives, the broken fragments of what was and what is so come. How long this battle has been, and now I can rest peacefully in the arms of the woman that I love. I just want good drink and good food. I want to sleep in a comfortable bed surrounded by pillows. I gaze upon the exhausted faces of my friends, dark rings surround their eyes and I am certain to be the same way. Is this what it is to be a hero? Is this just the life of an Adventurer? How was Umbra able to use portals? What are the other dimensions? ¡°Love!¡±


    I look up at Nova, ¡°Yeah?!¡±


    ¡°Let''s get married!¡± She has the biggest smile on her face.


    ¡°You sure you want me?!¡± I yell, smiling as the wind furiously blows our hair.


    ¡°Yes of course! You are my world!¡± She laughs and pauses for a second.


    ¡°Look out!¡± Juzo yells, from below. I turn to see a Behemoth flying towards us at full speed.


    ¡°Don''t ruin this moment stupid!¡± Nova yells and shoots a thin beam of energy from her mouth, splitting the Behemoth in half, its body falling to the floor. She takes a deep breath and smiles at me, ¡°So what do you say?¡±


    ¡°I would love to marry you, to spend my life with you going on countless quests and fighting endless enemies. I want to spend weeks mapping out a cave system and finding hidden relics and loot. Please, yes let''s get married!¡± We kiss each other and then laugh. This is happiness, I wish I could stay in this moment forever.


    ¡°They''re over there!¡± Eva yells, pointing to a vast army who continue to cheer triumphantly.


    The dead bodies of many God level legendary creatures are spewn about the battlefield. As we land I search for the body of Carbon, the friend who saved my life. Someone who I wanted to have a beer with after this was all done, the army cheers as we land. I am approached by a tall woman in golden armor, ¡°I am Queen Sophia, congratulations on this victory to the four of you!¡± A nearby wolf howls in the air, it is followed by the howling of many wolves and cheering of everyone else.


    ¡°Thank you Sophia! Carbon, where''s his body?¡± I ask in a panic.


    ¡°He fought a powerful mage who had long white hair and bright red eyes. The mage hit him with a Dark Lightning attack and kicked him into a portal, the mage disappeared shortly after, but the thing is, he attacked the Dark Lord''s army with a hail of black spikes before he left, turning the tide of battle.¡± Sophia nods to a small broken tree in the distance, ¡°That is where the portal was.¡±


    My vision focuses on the tree, I see mana flowing next to it. Then I am faced with the question of searching for my friend or staying here and help to rebuild the kingdom. ¡°You see it too?¡± Juzo says as the sun shines warmly on his face.


    ¡°Yeah, where do you think it goes?¡± I say, pondering the many outcomes of this moment.


    ¡°I think you and Nova should go. If there''s a slight chance Carbon could be alive, you should at least try.¡± Juzo pats me on the back and fakes a smile with a thumbs up.


    ¡°I can''t just leave the two of you, we have so many adventures to go on still.¡± I stare at the small clouds floating in the distance.


    ¡°I''m telling you to go and then come back as fast as you can. Then we''ll walk every inch of this world.¡± I can hear the sadness in his voice.


    ¡°What if there''s no way back? What then?¡± I say coldly.


    ¡°If a year passes then I will start searching for you. I will summon you using dark magic if I have to. We owe Carbon a great debt for saving our lives, it''s something we have to do.¡± He takes a deep breath, ¡°Got it?¡±


    ¡°What do you think Nova? Eva?¡± I look back at the two and they have sad expressions on their faces.


    ¡°You two go and come back as fast as you can!¡± Eva has tears falling down her cheek, she hugs Nova tightly.


    ¡°We''ll go as fast as we can I swear!¡± Nova yells, sobbing loudly.


    ¡°Alright bro, stay cool. I''ll see you soon!¡± I hold back my tears and hug Juzo.


    ¡°Be careful out there!¡± Juzo''s nose is running, the saddest expression on his face.


    ¡°I will I will, bye Eva.¡± I hug Eva and she gives me a stern look.


    ¡°You better take care of her!¡± She wipes the tears from her eyes.


    ¡°I will I swear on everything I will.¡± I give a thumbs up and so does she.


    ¡°Bye Juzo, take care of Eva okay, we''ll be back!¡± Nova hugs Juzo and I stare at the perfectly built kingdom of shining gold buildings.


    ¡°I will! I will!¡± Juzo wipes his face.


    I hold out my hand toward the kingdom, ¡°Infinity Barrier!¡± I use up all but a small sliver of my mana to create a large indestructible barrier of white light encircling the kingdom and its surrounding land. It will protect against the forces of evil, ¡°Alright time to go.¡± I hold Nova''s hand and we wave at Juzo and Eva, ¡°See ya.¡±


    ¡°Bye you two!¡± Eva yells even though we''re close together.


    ¡°Bye!¡± Nova yells.


    ¡°Be careful! See ya!¡± Juzo yells, I can''t look back. This is the decision we''ve made. We walk towards the tree and I focus where the mana is flowing from and we run into it.


    Nova hits the side of the tree trunk and falls down onto the floor. My face hits something soft and squishy and I fall grabbing onto it.


    ¡°Wha? What who''s there!?¡± A voice yells in a slurred panic.


    ¡°Carbon is that you?! It''s Umbra! Turn your invisibility off!¡± I sit up from the ground.


    ¡°Release!¡± Carbon is laying on the floor face down with his butt in the air, my face turns red, ¡°Did we win?¡±


    ¡°Heal!¡± I heal a large gash on his arm.


    ¡°Ouccchhhhh that huuurt!¡± Nova is rubbing her face.


    ¡°Carbon! Man you''re alive!¡± Juzo yells, standing next to us.


    ¡°Nova are you okayyy? Agh no not your face!¡± Eva is picking twigs out of Nova¡¯s hair.


    ¡°Yeah the war is over and the Dark Lord is defeated. Are you the original Carbon?¡± My heart beats fast in anticipation.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ yeah I am. That Necromancer took a clone and asked if I could help save his wife. There was a certain sadness in his eyes so I knew I had to help, plus he saved me from a pack of Hydra. I won''t know what adventures my clone goes on, but I hope everything turns out okay. I''m glad everything worked out!¡± He laughs while rubbing his neck. I help him up and we stare at the vast army behind us.


    ¡°What should we do now?¡± Juzo asks while stretching his arms and taking a deep sigh.


    ¡°We help this kingdom blossom into a thriving sanctuary for any Adventurer no matter how rich or poor or weak they are. For beasts and Adventurers to coexist together and live in peace. Should we start building defenses? Let''s look at our guild bank.¡± I swipe through it and can''t believe my eyes, ¡°Close to one million Platinum! We can renovate however we want!¡± Plans for defense appear in my mind.


    ¡°I want a hot tub in my room!¡± Nova smiles and screams with excitement.


    ¡°Me too!¡± Eva yells while giving Nova a thumbs up.


    I quickly glance at Juzo who winks at me, ¡°Yes of course!¡± We smile at each other.


    ¡°If possible I would like to marry Sophia.¡± Carbon smiles as Sophia blushes.


    ¡°Um well yes we did declare love for each other during the battle. Yes Carbon.¡± She holds him in her arms.


    It took some time for the Light Kingdom to be up and running, but the dream Umbra had of making a sanctuary for beasts and Adventurers alike became reality. The four of us became the Kings and Queens of the kingdom, but put King Carbon and Queen Sophia in charge so we can go on adventures across the land. The journey has been long but after a month of rest we finally embarked on another quest.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Nineteen: Firelight

    <h1>Chapter Nineteen: Firelight</h1>


    ¡°There''s so many birds in the trees!¡± Nova smiles while looking up above at a canopy full of colorful birds, ¡°So pretty!¡±


    I sit down and run a Sharpening Stone across my sword, ¡°I hope Juzo and Eva find water I''m dying right now. We''ve been in this forest for like a month now.¡±


    ¡°Don''t worry we''ll be out so-¡± As she talks I see the bird look at her and take aim, that was the worst mistake of that bird¡¯s short life.


    ¡°Oh no.¡± I say as a large white drop of bird poop falls onto her shoulder with a splat.


    She pauses and stares at her shoulder, then her face turns red as she looks above at the bird, ¡°Fireball!¡± The canopy is covered in flames and the birds fall to the ground charred and black.


    ¡°Well looks like we eat good tonight!¡± I say as I put them into my satchel.


    ¡°I really need to wash this off! Eh I guess it can''t be helped. Cover me please love.¡± She unstraps her armor and I scan the treeline for enemies.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I say as I quickly glance.


    ¡°My Jacket is dirty so I''m just going to wear my armor with no shirt! There see it''s fine now!¡± She looks so strong yet beautiful, I''m awestruck, ¡°Love you''re drooling.¡± She kisses my cheek and smiles, ¡°Come on we have to meet up with them now.¡±


    ¡°Okay okay!¡± I say as I follow after her, my armor feels heavy. This humidity is killing me no matter what I do to try and avoid it, ¡°A part of me thinks we should''ve stayed in the Earth Kingdom. Unlimited food, hot steamy baths, battles with monsters invading from the Dark Kingdom, regular temperature.¡±


    ¡°Me too ughhhhhh I just want to take a bath!¡± Nova yells, as a gust of wind flows through our hair as a tree flies into another tree ahead of us, ¡°I''ll rush to help!¡± Nova jumps high into the air as I use Feint to zigzag through the trees.


    ¡°What''s going on?!¡± I yell while holding out my sword.


    ¡°Hey sorry! We''re playing a game!¡± Juzo scratches the back of his head and laughs, chopped down trees rest in a pile next to him.


    ¡°Yeah! It''s so much fun watch!¡± Eva smiles and focuses her mana, ¡°Wind Club!¡± A massive club of wind forms and she grips it with two hands, holding it behind her head.


    ¡°Here I go!¡± Juzo picks up a tree with one hand and tosses it at her.


    ¡°Hyah!¡± Eva swings the club and sends the tree flying into the distance, ¡°Home run!¡± Eva smiles.


    ¡°Home run!¡± Juzo yells, ¡°We don''t know what that means but we''ve been yelling it all day!¡± Juzo laughs with joy.


    ¡°Nova try it!¡± Eva scoots over next to me as Nova gets in position.


    ¡°Okay let''s do this! Fire Club!¡± A club of flame appears in her hands and she holds it behind her head.


    ¡°Ready?¡± Juzo says, grabbing a tree and holding it above his shoulder.


    ¡°Yup! Toss it!¡± Nova yells and Juzo throws it. Nova swings and the tree catches flame and is sent into the distant sky, ¡°Home run!¡± She screams.


    ¡°Hooooommeeee ruuunnn!¡± Eva yells at the top of her lungs.


    ¡°Hooome runnnn wooo!¡± Juzo yells while looking at the distant sky.


    ¡°Woooooh! Home run!¡± I yell, ¡°Sorry but did you find water? We got a bunch of food.¡± I ask while licking my dry lips.


    ¡°Yeah we did! Here!¡± Eva reaches into her satchel and hands me a gourd that''s filled with water.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± I take a small sip and hand it to Nova who takes some as well.


    ¡°Should we make camp here for the night?¡± Juzo wipes the sweat off of his forehead and looks at the light colors of the setting sun.


    ¡°Yeah, what should we do for defenses?¡± I look around at the trees, how we''re in the middle of this endless forest that we''ve been flying through for weeks with no sign of it ending. The beasts in this area at night are unknown to us, there''s only so much preparation we can do.


    ¡°I think we should make a trench around us and fill it with fire?¡± Nova says, scratching her head, ¡°If only I knew how to spit lava! That''d be so cool I could just fill it up!¡±


    ¡°If only our levels were higher we could.¡± Eva says with a gloomy expression.


    ¡°Don''t worry! We''ll just get stronger!¡± Juzo says while smiling and taking in a deep breath, ¡°Time to go to work! Umbra make trenches while I chop these trees down!¡± He sprints to the nearby trees and yells loudly while chopping through them.


    ¡°Got it! Focus Slice!¡± I stand there for the longest time charging my attack and then I swing, causing a large trench in the ground. Juzo tosses the chopped trees in and Nova spams Fireball to light them on fire. I move on to the next side and we repeat the process until there is a large square of flame surrounding us. We sit on our logs around a small fire and laugh as the last rays of sunlight flicker across the sky and then disappear. The sound of crickets chirping and the many twinkling stars up above, the roar of the flames and the soft glow of Nova''s face against the firelight, ¡°Thanks for the meat Nova!¡± Juzo has two birds in his hands and is eating so fast.


    ¡°It''s no problem! Stupid birds.¡± Nova smiles and adjusts her jacket.


    ¡°Yeah thanks guys!¡± Eva takes a bite and then takes a sip of water.


    ¡°The sky is so beautiful.¡± I look up above at the many shimmering lights that seem to dance with life, the pitch black surrounding illuminated by the flames, the shadows that seem to sway to and fro on the floor, ¡°Hey guys?¡±


    ¡°Yeah Umbra?¡± Juzo holds a stick to the flame and looks up at me.


    ¡°Let''s stay going on adventures together forever please. I''m sure this is what happiness is, just here with my friends out in the vast wilderness with our weapons and each other''s company to keep. I couldn''t imagine how lonely it would be if I was just in a forest by myself with only my thoughts to keep, I don''t know. I''m so grateful to have this life with you. Sorry I''m ranting, I just think that no matter what happens, I want to keep going on these adventures forever.¡± I throw my stick in the fire and smile, my mind worrying about what might happen if one of them dies, if I become lonely and cold, lost in the vast wilderness of this world.


    ¡°Don''t worry we''ll be together forever!¡± Juzo gives me a thumbs up.


    ¡°We''ll go to so many great places with good food!¡± Nova shoots more flame into the fire and chuckles evilly to herself.


    ¡°It''ll be so nice!¡± Eva hums to herself while making little tornados with the fire.


    ¡°Thanks everyone, I just worry a lot. They say happiness is temporary and I don''t want to lose it. You are my happiness.¡± I don''t know why this pain is filling my heart, this empty hole draining and sucking all of this happiness out of me. Everything feels much darker than it usually is, as if a shadow is covering me. The air becomes harder to breathe and my mind gets dizzy.


    ¡°Umbra what''s wrong?!¡± Nova screams.


    ¡°Hey!? Hey!? Umbra wake up! Hey stay with me!¡± Juzo is slapping my face with his massive tree hands, I can''t feel it though, I can''t feel anything.


    ¡°Look¡­. look... out.¡± I whisper. I think I whisper. I can''t hear much.


    ¡°What? What''d you say? There''s nothing there!¡± I try to point but I can''t lift my hands. I can''t move. I am helpless.


    ¡°Shit! Dragon Armor!¡± The shadows in my mind dance around in battle, everything is dark. I can''t do anything. No not Juzo. Please no. What is this? Is this his blood why is he bleeding? Is he okay?


    ¡°Eva heal him. Please! Heal him. Eva what are you doing?¡± Eva why isn''t she trying to heal him? Why not? What''s she even doing, ¡°Hey Eva? Hey heal Juzo please. He needs to be healed. I don''t know any healing spells. Don''t you? Don''t you have anything? Eva? Hey Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? What''s wrong? Hey wake up? What are you doing? Why are you standing over there hurry! Please! Juzo isn''t going to make it! Hurry please! Evaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Savvee! Juzo! Please! Hurry!¡± I try shaking her but she won''t heal Juzo, maybe if I move her mouth it''ll work. I keep trying but she won''t say the spell, maybe if I put her head on her body. Wait no what why isn''t her head on her body? This isn''t right.Stolen novel; please report.


    ¡°Nova can you help me?¡± I can''t stop trying to put her head on her body but it still won''t go on. Where did she go? What is this? Soup? I don''t know, ¡°Eva! Eva heal Juzo! Hurry! Juzo where did you go! Juzo! Juzo please!¡± I look for him in the shadows, the fires are too hot for me to look in them, ¡°Nova! Where are you? Hey! Nova! Hey! What are you doing over there! Help me! I need to heal Juzo! I don''t know where Eva is! Help! Love! Please! Help me please! I need! I need help! I don''t know what to do! Help! Please! Nova! Why''d we start calling you that again? It was like sun right? Something about light? Why is it so dark here? What''s wrong with my eyes? Did I poke them out? Are these them? No these are just egg yolks, why are there egg yolks in my hands? Hey! Nova help Juzo! Please! I can''t heal! Please Juzo needs help! Please! I don''t know what to do! I don''t have any healing spells! Please! Where am I? Where are we? I can''t see! It''s so dark! Nova! Nova please!¡±


    I can''t shake this shadow off, what is this? What is this feeling of sadness? Where is Nova? Where is she? Please I need to hold her. I need her next to me, where is she? I don''t know what to do. Please I need her. I need her next to me. Why is my mind melting. What is this? Is this coldness fire? Is this a hand through my chest, ¡°No¡­.Nova? Why? Why?¡± I throw up blood. I''ll have to clean that later. Please what''s going on? Please?


    ¡°This endless loop, it''s your destiny for everything you''ve done. You don''t deserve happiness. You''re all alone. You have nobody. You will betray everyone you love. I will never forgive you for what you did. You deserve pain. You don''t deserve forgiveness. I will torment you until I run out of mana. This endless loop. Look at the dead bodies of your loved ones. Look at them.¡± A woman''s voice hissed behind my ear. Before me is Juzo, Eva and Nova, I''m forced to watch them die over and over again. They get sliced in half, beaten, clubbed, burned, frozen, melted, exploded, impaled, ravaged, killed over and over again in every way. I can''t look away. I can''t move. I am helpless. Please someone save me. Please. Please someone come and save me. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Are these tears of blood? Am I drowning in blood? Why is it so warm? What is this feeling. Please someone save Juzo. He needs to be healed. Eva why aren''t you healing him? Eva? Please heal Juzo! Eva! Please! Hurry!


    I reach out my hands but there''s darkness once more. Why are there egg yolks in my hands, ¡°Nova! Nova please help! I can''t see! Nova! Hey! Nova! Please! Nova! Help me! Hey! Nova! Help! I don''t know why you''re not answering! Please! Help me! Please!¡±


    ¡°There is nothing you can do love. I know everything you did. Deus Ex Machina told me. He told me everything, I can''t believe I was in love with such a coward. Why? How could you not fight beside Juzo? Why did you leave Eva even though she was begging for you to help her. You could''ve fought them and saved her! We could have been camping under the stars together! Imagine all of the adventures we could have had?¡± I see images of our adventures but with Juzo and Eva in them, ¡°This could have been our life if you weren''t such a coward! I don''t need you anymore! I have Deus. He''s everything to me.¡± Nova? What are you doing? Why are you letting him do that to you? Why? What is happening? This isn''t real is it? No please make it stop! I can''t take it! I can''t take it! Please! No!¡± My mind breaks. I can''t look, the screaming moans, the way her body is moving. No this is too much for me. Please make it stop. Please. Please. I close my eyes. I think I''m dying.


    ¡°Looks like I need to restart the loop again. I have enough mana to do this three thousand times. Enjoy the torment Umbra. Enjoy every ounce of happiness I hand you only to take it away. Enjoy it as much as I am.¡± An evil laugh as I drift back to sleep. I can''t stop this.


    ¡°There''s so many birds in the trees!¡± Nova smiles while looking up above at a canopy full of colorful birds, ¡°So pretty!¡±


    I sit down and run a Sharpening Stone across my sword, ¡°I hope Juzo and Eva find water I''m dying right now. We''ve been in this forest for like a month now.¡±


    ¡°Don''t worry we''ll be out so-¡± As she talks I see the bird look at her and take aim, that was the worst mistake of that birds short life.


    ¡°Oh no.¡± I say as a large white drop of bird poop falls onto her shoulder with a splat.


    She pauses and stares at her shoulder, then her face turns red as she looks above at the bird, ¡°Fireball!¡± The canopy is covered in flames and the birds fall to the ground charred and black.


    ¡°Well looks like we eat good tonight!¡± I say as I put them into my satchel.


    ¡°I really need to wash this off! Eh I guess it can''t be helped. Cover me please love.¡± She unstraps her armor and I scan the treeline for enemies.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I say as I quickly glance.


    ¡°My Jacket is dirty so I''m just going to wear my armor with no shirt! There see it''s fine now!¡± She looks so strong yet beautiful, I''m awestruck, ¡°Love you''re drooling.¡± She kisses my cheek and smiles, ¡°Come on we have to meet up with them now.¡±


    ¡°Okay okay!¡± I say as I follow after her, my armor feels heavy. This humidity is killing me no matter what I do to try and avoid it, ¡°A part of me thinks we should''ve stayed in the Light Kingdom. Unlimited food, hot steamy baths, battles with monsters invading from the Dark Kingdom, regular temperature.¡±


    ¡°Me too ughhhhhh I just want to take a bath!¡± Nova yells, a gust of wind flows through our hair as a tree flies into another tree ahead of us, ¡°I''ll rush to help!¡± Nova jumps high into the air as I use Feint to zigzag through the trees.


    ¡°What''s going on?!¡± I yell while holding out my sword.


    ¡°Hey sorry! We''re playing a game!¡± Juzo scratches the back of his head and laughs, chopped down trees rest in a pile next to him.


    ¡°Yeah! It''s so much fun watch!¡± Eva smiles and focuses her mana, ¡°Wind Club!¡± A massive club of wind forms and she grips it with two hands, holding it behind her head.


    ¡°Here I go!¡± Juzo picks up a tree with one hand and tosses it at her.


    ¡°Hyah!¡± Eva swings the club and sends the tree flying into the distance, ¡°Home run!¡± Eva smiles.


    ¡°Home run!¡± Juzo yells, ¡°We don''t know what that means but we''ve been yelling it all day!¡± Juzo laughs with joy.


    ¡°Nova try it!¡± Eva scoots over next to me as Nova gets in position.


    ¡°Okay let''s do this! Fire Club!¡± A club of flame appears in her hands and she holds it behind her head.


    ¡°Ready?¡± Juzo says, grabbing a tree and holding it above his shoulder.


    ¡°Yup! Toss it!¡± Nova yells and Juzo throws it. Nova swings and the tree catches flame and is sent into the distant sky, ¡°Home run!¡± She screams.


    ¡°Hooooommeeee ruuunnn!¡± Eva yells at the top of her lungs.


    ¡°Hooome runnnn wooo!¡± Juzo yells while looking at the distant sky.


    ¡°Woooooh! Home run!¡± I yell, ¡°Sorry but did you find water? We got a bunch of food.¡± I ask while licking my dry lips.


    ¡°Yeah we did! Here!¡± Eva reaches into her satchel and hands me a gourd that''s filled with water.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± I take a small sip and hand it to Nova who takes some as well.


    ¡°Should we make camp here for the night?¡± Juzo wipes the sweat off of his forehead and looks at the light colors of the setting sun.


    ¡°Yeah, what should we do for defenses?¡± I look around at the trees, how we''re in the middle of this endless forest that we''ve been flying through for weeks with no sign of it ending. The beasts in this area at night are unknown to us, there''s only so much preparation we can do.


    ¡°I think we should make a trench around us and fill it with fire?¡± Nova says, scratching her head, ¡°If only I knew how to spit lava! That''d be so cool I could just fill it up!¡±


    ¡°If only our levels were higher we could.¡± Eva says with a gloomy expression.


    ¡°Don''t worry! We''ll just get stronger!¡± Juzo says while smiling and taking in a deep breath, ¡°Time to go to work! Umbra make trenches while I chop these trees down!¡± He sprints to the nearby trees and yells loudly while chopping through them.


    ¡°Got it! Focus Slice!¡± I stand there for the longest time charging my attack and then I swing, causing a large trench in the ground. Juzo tosses the chopped trees in and Nova spams Fireball to light them on fire. I move on to the next side and we repeat the process until there is a large square of flame surrounding us. We sit on our logs around a small fire and laugh as the last rays of sunlight flicker across the sky and then disappear. The sound of crickets chirping and the many twinkling stars up above, the roar of the flames and the soft glow of Nova''s face against the firelight. ¡°Thanks for the meat Nova!¡± Juzo has two birds in his hands and is eating so fast.


    ¡°It''s no problem! Stupid birds.¡± Nova smiles and adjusts her jacket.


    ¡°Yeah thanks guys!¡± Eva take a bite and then takes a sip of water.


    ¡°The sky is so beautiful.¡± I look up above at the many shimmering lights that seem to dance with life, the pitch black surrounding illuminated by the flames, the shadows that seem to sway to and fro on the floor, ¡°Hey guys?¡±


    ¡°Yeah Umbra?¡± Juzo holds a stick to the flame and looks up at me.


    ¡°Let''s stay going on adventures together forever please. I''m sure this is what happiness is, just here with my friends out in the vast wilderness with our weapons and each other''s company to keep. I couldn''t imagine how lonely it would be if I was just in a forest by myself with only my thoughts to keep, I don''t know. I''m so grateful to have this life with you. Sorry I''m ranting, I just think that no matter what happens, I want to keep going on these adventures forever.¡± I throw my stick in the fire and smile, my mind worrying about what might happen if one of them dies, if I become lonely and cold, lost in the vast wilderness of this world.


    ¡°Don''t worry we''ll be together forever!¡± Juzo gives me a thumbs up.


    ¡°We''ll go to so many great places with good food!¡± Nova shoots more flame into the fire and chuckles evilly to herself.


    ¡°It''ll be so nice!¡± Eva hums to herself while making little tornados with the fire.


    ¡°Thanks everyone, I just worry a lot. They say happiness is temporary and I don''t want to lose it. You are my happiness.¡± I don''t know why this pain is filling my heart, this empty hole draining and sucking all of this happiness out of me. Everything feels much darker than it usually is, as if a shadow is covering me. The air becomes harder to breathe and my mind gets dizzy.


    ¡°Umbra what''s wrong?!¡± Nova screams.


    ¡°Hey!? Hey!? Umbra wake up! Hey stay with me!¡± Juzo is slapping my face with his massive tree hands, I can''t feel it though, I can''t feel anything.


    ¡°Look¡­. look... out.¡± I whisper. I think I whisper. I can''t hear much.


    ¡°What? What''d you say? There''s nothing there!¡± I try to point but I can''t lift my hands. I can''t move. I am helpless.


    ¡°Shit! Dragon Armor!¡± The shadows in my mind dance around in battle, everything is dark. I can''t do anything. No not Juzo. Please no. What is this? Is this his blood why is he bleeding? Is he okay?


    ¡°Eva heal him. Please! Heal him. Eva what are you doing?¡± Eva why isn''t she trying to heal him? Why not? What''s she even doing, ¡°Hey Eva? Hey heal Juzo please. He needs to be healed. I don''t know any healing spells. Don''t you? Don''t you have anything? Eva? Hey Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? Eva? What''s wrong? Hey wake up? What are you doing? Why are you standing over there hurry! Please! Juzo isn''t going to make it! Hurry please! Evaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Savvee! Juzo! Please! Hurry!¡± I try shaking her but she won''t heal Juzo, maybe if I move her mouth it''ll work. I keep trying but she won''t say the spell, maybe if I put her head on her body. Wait no what why isn''t her head on her body? This isn''t right.


    ¡°Nova can you help me?¡± I can''t stop trying to put her head on her body but it still won''t go on. Where did she go? What is this? Soup? I don''t know, ¡°Eva! Eva heal Juzo! Hurry! Juzo where did you go! Juzo! Juzo please!¡± I look for him in the shadows, the fires are too hot for me to look in them, ¡°Nova! Where are you? Hey! Nova! Hey! What are you doing over there! Help me! I need to heal Juzo! I don''t know where Eva is! Help! Love! Please! Help me please! I need! I need help! I don''t know what to do! Help! Please! Nova! Why''d we start calling you that again? It was like sun right? Something about light? Why is it so dark here? What''s wrong with my eyes? Did I poke them out? Are these them? No these are just egg yolks, why are there egg yolks in my hands? Hey! Nova help Juzo! Please! I can''t heal! Please Juzo needs help! Please! I don''t know what to do! I don''t have any healing spells! Please! Where am I? Where are we? I can''t see! It''s so dark! Nova! Nova please!¡±


    I can''t shake this shadow off, what is this? What is this feeling of sadness? Where is Nova? Where is she? Please I need to hold her. I need her next to me, where is she? I don''t know what to do. Please I need her. I need her next to me. Why is my mind melting. What is this? Is this coldness fire? Is this a hand through my chest, ¡°No¡­.Nova? Why? Why?¡± I throw up blood. I''ll have to clean that later. Please what''s going on? Please?


    ¡°This endless loop, it''s your destiny for everything you''ve done. You don''t deserve happiness. You''re all alone. You have nobody. You will betray everyone you love. I will never forgive you for what you did. You deserve pain. You don''t deserve forgiveness. I will torment you until I run out of mana. This endless loop. Look at the dead bodies of your loved ones. Look at them.¡± A woman''s voice hissed behind my ear. Before me is Juzo, Eva and Nova, I''m forced to watch them die over and over again. They get sliced in half, beaten, clubbed, burned, frozen, melted, exploded, impaled, ravaged, killed over and over again in every way. I can''t look away. I can''t move. I am helpless. Please someone save me. Please. Please someone come and save me. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Are these tears of blood? Am I drowning in blood? Why is it so warm? What is this feeling. Please someone save Juzo. He needs to be healed. Eva why aren''t you healing him? Eva? Please heal Juzo! Eva! Please! Hurry!


    I reach out my hands but there''s darkness once more. Why are there egg yolks in my hands, ¡°Nova! Nova please help! I can''t see! Nova! Hey! Nova! Please! Nova! Help me! Hey! Nova! Help! I don''t know why you''re not answering! Please! Help me! Please!¡±


    ¡°There is nothing you can do love. I know everything you did. Deus Ex Machina told me. He told me everything, I can''t believe I was in love with such a coward. Why? How could you not fight beside Juzo? Why did you leave Eva even though she was begging for you to help her. You could''ve fought them and saved her! We could have been camping under the stars together! Imagine all of the adventures we could have had?¡± I see images of this month''s adventure, ¡°This could have been our life if you weren''t such a coward! I don''t need you anymore! I have Deus. He''s everything to me.¡± Nova? What are you doing? Why are you letting him do that to you? Why? What is happening? This isn''t real is it? No please make it stop! I can''t take it! I can''t take it! Please! No!¡± My mind breaks. I can''t look, the screaming moans, the way her body is moving. No this is too much for me. Please make it stop. Please. Please. I close my eyes. I think I''m dying.


    ¡°What a shame, three thousandth time''s the charm. Lucky for you it looks like I''m out of mana. Don''t forget to give the childhood version of yourself and friends Nethershard Earrings through a clone. I will see you again Umbra.¡± The tall woman waves at me as she walks away into the darkness. I know that walk.


    ¡°Eva?! Eva what has happened to you?!¡± I scream. She turns around and stares at me with a gloomy expression.


    The rising sun hurts my face, for not being under the cover of the lush canopy anymore, I must hurry and pack my things to continue my journey, the emptiness caused by my dream causes an indescribable pain in my core so I reach out to my anchor of sanity, of happiness in this world, ¡°Embra, you there?¡± The volcano in the distance helps me know I''m still alive. Juzo, Eva I''m sorry I was such a coward. I''m going to make this world better. I''m going to prevent everything, I''m going to have us have happy adventures. I''ll guide these young Adventurers to become strong and live the life I always wanted. Everything will be better. I promise.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Twenty: Sunlight Delight

    <h1>Chapter Twenty: Sunlight Delight</h1>


    ¡°Should we really be here? I mean we should help govern the city right?¡± Juzo says, scratching the back of his head.


    His face bright red as Eva jumps up and down in front of him, ¡°No it''s fine! Carbon said he and Sophia can handle it! Let''s enjoy the Water Kingdom¡¯s ocean!¡± I stare at Juzo''s feet to avoid the deathly stare of Nova.


    ¡°Eva you''re in a swimsuit, they''re um moving around like jello. Ahem.¡± Juzo clears his throat, ¡°Well if Carbon says it''s fine then let''s go! Alley oop!¡±


    ¡°Yessss the water''s so warm and clear!¡± Juzo picks up Eva and puts her on his shoulders and they run into the water.


    ¡°Um Umbra?¡± Nova is playing with her hair.


    ¡°Yes?¡± I try not to stare at her cleavage, agh those beautiful steam buns of joy, those wonderful wonderful enormous lumps of beauty.


    ¡°You''re drooling.¡± She grabs her boobs and lifts them then talks in a seductive voice, ¡°Is this what you want you pervert?¡± She bites her lip and squeezes them, ¡°You want to squeeze them too?¡±


    I quickly blush and look away, ¡°No I ugh.¡±


    She laughs, ¡°I''m just kidding! Could you carry me on your shoulders please!¡± She doesn''t wait for a response, she quickly jumps on my shoulders.


    ¡°This is really fun huh? The Water Kingdom is really nice!¡± The ocean is endless and calm, there are many Adventurers and NPCs lounging around in swim trunks and bikinis. This is a well deserved paradise, her thighs are so smooth and nice. My body is warm and flustered.


    ¡°Aannnnnnd Booost!¡± She uses flames from her hands to push us high into the air, ¡°whoooooo! Cannon Ball!¡± We both plunge into the water with a massive splash. The water¡¯s so warm, as if we were back at the island. There''s waves crashing in the distance where Eva is standing on Juzo''s back as he flies with the wave.


    ¡°Agh this is so nice!¡± I float on my back and stare at the sky.


    Nova stands next to me talking to herself, ¡°I wonder? Hmmmm I wonder.¡±


    ¡°Wonder what?¡± I ask even though I know I shouldn''t ask.


    ¡°Wonder how far and big I can shoot my mouth beam hehehe!¡± She has the biggest grin on her face as she springs into action and uses flames to float a bit in the air.


    ¡°Juzo! Eva! Look at this!¡± I yell while pointing at Nova who is calming her breathing and channeling her mana, a massive aura surrounding her.


    ¡°Beam.¡± She breathes in for the longest time while tilting her head back and then she pushes her head forward and opens her mouth, a flood of energy rushes from her mouth and travels into the distance, further than the eye can see, it seems to fly endlessly. She continues to shoot her beam for the longest time and then stops and splashes back down, ¡°Agh that was so cool!¡± She floats in the water with me, her body heating up the water around us.


    ¡°I think you just needed to heat up, that was really nice though!¡± I stand next to her and kiss her stomach.


    ¡°That was so cool!¡± Juzo yells and they continue to surf waves.


    ¡°Yeah! So so cool!¡± Eva spins around on Juzo''s back and laughs.


    ¡°Thankkkk yooou!¡± She yells and waves.


    ¡°I am so in love with you Nova.¡± I smile and continue kissing her stomach.


    ¡°I love you with everything that makes me, me Umbra. To me you are the sun and the moon, you are a star-filled sky. I want to hold you and cherish you. I want to kiss you and tell you I love you every single day that I live. I want to slay dragons and Behemoths with you. It is you, it''s always been you, it always will be you, my love, my Dragon Slayer, my Umbra.¡± She holds my face and pulls me closer to her then kisses me softly, her warm soft lips, the way her body feels pressed against mine. The massive buns of joy rubbing against my chest.


    ¡°I love you so much! I''m no good with words, but you are my world. You''re my everything.¡± I kiss her over and over again, our bodies getting closer and closer, ¡°Juzo! Eva! We''ll be back!¡±


    ¡°Woooh! Okay!¡± Juzo winks and gives me a thumbs up.


    ¡°Okay! See ya later!¡± Eva smiles and glides across the surface of the water.


    ¡°I used up all of my mana love I can''t fly.¡± Nova tells me as she stands up, the water up to her neck.


    ¡°I can fly now.¡± I look at her with the most serious expression on my face.


    ¡°What really?¡± She smiles and jumps into my arms.


    ¡°Feint! Feint! Feint!¡± I slowly move us across the water deeper and deeper into the ocean, ¡°This is far enough. Barrier!¡± I make a thirty layer barrier in a massive square and we immediately begin kissing each other. My body becomes so hot as I nibble on those buns of joy. Pure joy and happiness. I melt into her.


    ¡°Love?¡± Nova wakes me up by kissing my cheek over and over again.


    ¡°Yes?¡± I stretch my arms and stare up at the endless sky, at the endless sea and our little home in this vast endless space.


    ¡°I love you so much.¡± She kisses me softly and then puts on her bikini.


    ¡°I love you from the depths of my soul.¡± I kiss her over and over again. She gets on top of me and unties her bikini again. We melt into each other a second time.


    I am sinking down below the water. I can see the shimmering light above me,the shining bright sun seems so far away, so out of reach. I begin to paddle upward but I don''t make any progress. This feeling is this suffocation? Am I going to die here? I have so many adventures to go on though, I can''t die here! I open my eyes and I''m being smothered by Nova''s dumplings. I move my head and take a deep breath of air, ¡°Whew that was close.¡± I rub my stiff arms and watch the sun as it slowly begins to sink toward the horizon, ¡°Hey Nova?¡± I gently shake her awake.


    ¡°I''m up I''m up!¡± She kisses my cheek but remains sleeping.


    ¡°Love we have to go soon before it gets dark.¡± The faint shimmer of stars begin to appear.


    ¡°Ooh look is that a dragon!?¡± Nova smiles and points up above to a bright blue dragon that has scales that glimmer in the faint rays of sunlight.


    ¡°That''s so pretty!¡± I smile but something falls down too fast for me to put up a barrier.


    ¡°No way he didn''t!¡± with a huge splash we''re covered in sticky dragon poop. That poor dragon could have lived a longer life, ¡°Beam!¡± Nova shoots a small beam that punches a hole through the heart of the dragon. It grunts and falls towards the ocean, ¡°Ta!¡± Nova spams her skill and runs to catch the dragon, lifting it with one hand she holds me with her other hand and we make our way to the sand. We moved so fast the poop flew right off but we quickly dive into the water to wash off.


    ¡°Woooah!¡± Eva pokes the dragon''s face.


    ¡°What the hell that''s so cool!¡± Juzo yells while looking at the dragon.


    ¡°He ugh pooped on us so he had to die! I¡¯m going to eat him! Everyone! Free feast tonight with unlimited beer! Invite everyone you know to the Hydra Pub!¡± The crowd of people on the beach cheer and stare at the towering dragon that is the size of a Behemoth.


    ¡°A feast sounds very nice right now.¡± The dragon''s tongue hangs out of the side of his mouth. I dust the sand off of my chest and look at the small sliver of the sun as it makes its way below the surface, the stars grow more and more with the many bold shades of color that is brought about with the setting sun.


    ¡°I''m going to drop off the dragon and then I''ll meet you guys at our room!¡± A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    ¡°Okay see you soon!¡± Eva yells while walking next to Juzo.


    Nova picks the dragon up, ¡°Ta!¡±


    I stand there for a while admiring the beautiful sky, ¡°I''m going to start heading back, want a lift?¡± Juzo asks while transforming.


    ¡°No thanks, I think I''ll walk and pick up a few things on the way.¡± I give him a thumbs up.


    ¡°Okay see ya soon!¡± He flies into the air with Eva.


    ¡°The feast will be great! See ya soon!¡± She waves at me and flies with Juzo toward the distant city.


    I walk through the sand and make my way to the cobblestone road that leads to the Water Kingdom Capital Aquaz, Glow Stone float inside small bubbles, lighting the pathway. I walk through the gates of the city and duck through a narrow pathway that leads to the Merchant Alley. Many vendors are selling items, armor and weapons in makeshift booths to Adventurers. The town is loud with the buzz and noise of people living their lives. There are many different leveled Adventurers in the area. I walk into a small dusty shop, the chimes of small bells ring and I am greeted by a faint voice of a woman from a room full of books behind the counter, ¡°Hello? Sorry! I''ll be ugh be right with you!¡±


    I can hear piles of books falling and the shuffling of papers, ¡°It''s fine take your time!¡±


    After a few minutes a tall slender woman in a black maid outfit with a low cut top and big melons that jiggle as she talks appears, ¡°Hi sorry my name is Vala how may I help you?¡± She adjusts her glasses and scratches her black cat ears.


    ¡°I need a item transferred here and then a Greater Teleportation Scroll please.¡± I focus my attention on her whiskers.


    ¡°Okay that will cost two Gold for item transfer and two Platinum for the scroll is that fine nya?¡± She smiles and purrs softly.


    ¡°Yeah that''s fine, just the only catch is the item is being summoned from a clone of myself is that a problem?¡± She bites her lip, lost in thought.


    ¡°Hmmmm you must be a Dragon Slayer class huh! I hear they can clone themselves to be able to vanquish armies of dragons, or that''s how the legends go. In that case we can just summon the clone if regular item summoning doesn''t work. As for the scroll that is no problem at all nya nya!¡± She leaps back into the hallway behind the desk and rummages through many different scrolls and spellbooks, ¡°How did you find this place by the way? Not many people know about it.¡± She yells while flipping through a big black book.


    ¡°I have a friend who has eyes and ears around the whole map, literally and I needed these items badly so yeah.¡± I place the Nugz on the counter, I''m glad I kept a few in my pocket.


    ¡°Well I''m glad I can help!¡± She sets the book down on the counter and it¡¯s open to a page with many symbols drawn on it, ¡°I just need one drop of blood please.¡±


    ¡°Okay no problem.¡± I bite my thumb and let a drop of blood fall onto the page.


    She sharply breathes in and slams her palm on the page, ¡°Summoning!¡± The letters glow a bright blue color as a black cloud of smoke rises into the air, ¡°No way! How? I''ve only read of this!¡±


    ¡°My friend helped me a lot, thank you.¡± I let her examine the item for a few minutes and then she hands it to me along with a scroll.


    ¡°Thank you for letting me hold it! To use the scroll just say where you want to teleport to, you can fold it as well. Thank you nya! Nya!¡± She smiles and tries to hand me my change as I fold the scroll into a tiny square and put it in my pocket.


    ¡°Keep the rest as thanks.¡± I smile and make sure I have everything securely in my pocket and wave as I walk out of the shop. I continue down the crowded alleyway and make my way to the inn. I knock on our door and it is opened by Juzo who is dressed in a black suit with his hair slicked back, ¡°Looking sharp Juzo.¡± I pat his back and walk in, the room is quiet, ¡°Where''s the girls?¡±


    ¡°Nova and Eva changed into their dresses and rushed to go shopping before the feast. I hope Eva doesn''t get her dress too dirty.¡± Juzo chuckles as I grab my clothes and put Nova and Eva''s stuff into my satchel.


    ¡°That''s why I bought extra clothes cleaners haha, I''m going to shower and change.¡± I hold my clothes in my hand.


    ¡°Everything work out fine on your end?¡± Juzo snacks on a slab of boar jerky.


    I hold the bathroom door handle and smile at him then nod, ¡°Yeah, and you?¡±


    He gives me a thumbs up, ¡°All good! Go ahead and shower I''ll be out here.¡±


    ¡°Sweet bro sweet.¡± I walk in and shut the door. I carefully place my items in my pocket and set the suit down near the sink. I sit down in the shower and stare at the drain as the water falls on my head. This has been such a long journey in such a short amount of time, not even counting the five years of training. I take a deep breath and wash my body then I dry off and get dressed. I touch the small dragon earrings that we replaced the Nethershards with. My black suit is really smooth. I open the door and Juzo shows me his palm, ¡°Woah that''s nice!¡± I look around the room and make sure we have everything.


    ¡°Thanks for helping me find them!¡± Juzo stands up and scans the room as well.


    ¡°No problem at all bro, we got everything?¡± I look again just in case.


    ¡°All set!¡± Juzo opens the door and I follow him out.


    We walk down the stairs and place the key on the counter and walk out of the inn. I walk down the street with Juzo in silence and we laugh really nervously and hard together as the sounds of laughter and clanking of mugs ring throughout the star-filled sky.


    ¡°Love! You guys took so long!¡± Nova hugs me and kisses me, her red dress is silky and flowing in the wind, she has bright red paint on her lips and fingernails.


    ¡°Juuuuuzoooooo!!!¡± Eva wraps her arms around him, she''s in a light-blue silky dress and has light-blue paint on her lips and nails, her long white hair drifts elegantly in the wind.


    ¡°You''re so beautiful.¡± I hug Nova tightly.


    ¡°Eva! Oh my gosh look at you!¡± Juzo squeezes her tightly and kisses her.


    ¡°Everyone''s having fun let''s go!¡± Nova pulls me by my hand and we are greeted by everyone cheering and raising their mugs.


    Juzo clenches his fists and yells, ¡°Excuse me can I have everyone''s attention please!¡±


    The pub is immediately quiet. I nod at Juzo, ¡°Ready bro?¡±


    He gives me a thumbs up, ¡°Yeah, one, two, three!¡±


    We both reach into our pockets and drop to one knee, ¡°Nova!¡±


    ¡°Eva!¡±


    ¡°Will You Marry Me!?¡± My heart is beating out of my chest, I''m sure I''m sweating.


    Nova looks at my hand, ¡°The Sphinx ring! Yes! Yes! Yes!¡±


    ¡°Awwwww Juzo! Yes! Oh my gosh yes!¡± We kiss our lovers as the pub goes wild and cheers.


    Nova puts the ring on her hand and I put my ring on, a black ring made out of the sphinx. Eva puts a glimmering blue ring that''s in the shape of a dragon on and Juzo puts a glimmering dragon ring on as well.


    ¡°Soulbind!¡± We yell, our bodies glowing and our spirits turn into dragons and dance as they intertwine in the room and rush back into us. I feel as if Nova is a part of me and I am a part of her. We kiss each other tightly as Juzo and Eva kiss. This is what happiness feels like.


    I turn to the cheering crowd, ¡°All of you are invited to the wedding!¡± I pull out the folded paper and unfold it, ¡°Teleport Royal Hall!¡± The symbols glow a bright blue color and cover the walls and floor, ¡°And awayyyyy we go!¡± I yell as everyone screams and appears in the massive royal hall.


    ¡°It''s time to party!¡± Nova yells as King Carbon and Queen Sophia hands everyone drinks. A massive banquet with piles of food lines the wall.


    ¡°Thanks for the help Carbon.¡± I say, bumping his fist, ¡°Thank you for staying Sophia.¡± I give her a hug.


    ¡°It''s no problem at all! I can''t believe you made me king. I won''t let you down!¡± He has a shiny golden crown on his head.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Sophia says while smiling and drinking.


    ¡°We still have many adventures to go on, so thank you for staying.¡± Juzo bumps his fist and hugs Sophia.


    ¡°Thank you Carbon and Sophia! Now drink!¡± Nova shoves a mug in both of their hands even though they already have mugs.


    ¡°Time to drink! Driiinkkkk!¡± Eva yells at the top of her lungs and the hall chants with her.


    There are many different kinds of Adventurers and races of people inside the enormous hall, thousands of people are eating dragon meat and drinking from large mugs. Nova and Eva are drinking large barrels in a circle of short dwarves who are chugging beer from two large mugs. I walk with a barrel and chug it then laugh as Juzo walks over with a huge barrel and chugs it in a few gulps, ¡°Moooore! Ahahaha!¡± He yells at the top of his lungs.


    ¡°Arrrrrm! Wreeeeeestling! Conteeeeeessssssst!¡± Nova shouts as she stands near a tall sturdy log.


    ¡°Aye! I got this!¡± An eight foot tall muscular man slowly walks up to the log and slams his elbow down.


    ¡°Woooooh! Get him Nova!¡± I yell, I''m so happy.


    ¡°Ready! Set! Go!¡± Eva yells at the top of her lungs.


    The man stomps on the floor and charges all of his strength, his body glowing bright red. Nova calmly sips her drink as he struggles and nothing happens. She slams his hand down and he grabs a mug and toasts to her, ¡°Aye! I have been proven wrong!¡±


    He laughs heartily as Nova nods and sips more drink, ¡°Good try! Who''s next!?¡± She has a evil gleam in her eyes.


    One after another everyone who tries gets easily beaten, Nova is having the time of her life. The smile on her face is so beautiful. When did she start to smile so much? Is this what love is? How would I even know? I guess I do know. Do I? I never want things to change, I want to spend the rest of my life going on adventures with my friends, I don''t want us to grow apart and never talk to each other. That pain would be worse than death. These mugs just keep filling up. It''s so nice. So very nice. My body feels so warm, I am so in love with her. I wish I could just hold her every day. I will. I''ll hold her as we fall asleep and I''ll wake up next to her and everything will be so nice. I just can''t wait to go on so many adventures, this is an adventure. Right here, right now it is one. Look at all of these people, that''s so crazy! So many people that we managed to save from the Dark Lord. This kingdom, this land and everyone in it would have been engulfed in darkness. Agh I remember being so frail and weak, so helpless, but look at us now. Everything that we''ve been through feels as if it were just a bad dream. All just a bad long dream, but everything is better now. I continue to drink and my vision begins to get blurry but the good times will continue, the night will continue on. I laugh to myself as one by one a challenger is defeated by the love of my life. I laugh and drink with them, this is great, oh so great. I grab a slab of dragon meat and take a bite. It''s so juicy and warm, I can''t stop eating it. This is so good I should''ve been cooking dragon instead of destroying them agh this whole time I could''ve been eating so good! Why? Why did I make this mistake? Nooooo! Whyyyy! I continue to eat and drink and laugh with everyone. This is so nice, I really can''t explain much more. My mind is in a dizzy state, this is so warm though. As if I''m wrapped in a warm shell, I can feel myself embrace this warm feeling and float there in my mind. I feel like a small fire, glowing and burning brightly in a snowstorm. Like a small candle in the dark. I feel secure. I feel relaxed and at peace. I can feel myself being carried, ¡°Nooooova! I looooveeee yoooouuuuuu!¡± I see nothing but the darkness that surrounds me, but I am warm. A fire that shines brightly. I love her so much. I love her with all of me. Nova, I love Nova so much.


    Nova waves at Juzo who is carrying a sleeping Eva and whispers, ¡°See you in the morning.¡±


    He gives a thumbs up as he cradles Eva like a newborn baby, ¡°Yeah, goodnight and congratulations.¡±


    ¡°You too Juzo, thank you.¡± Nova smiles and waves with her free hand as she also cradles Umbra like a newborn baby.


    ¡°Noraba I lovesss yoooouuuu! Norba no! norva!¡± Nova smiles and kisses his cheek.


    ¡°Yes yes my love! I don''t know why you had to challenge dwarves to a drinking contest. You are so wonderful Umbra. So so wonderful!¡± Nova kisses his cheek and then his forehead and then continues to kiss the rest of his face while he giggles furiously.


    ¡°I looooveeee yoooouuuu! Hehehehehehe! I! Loooveeee! Yoooouuu! So so so so so so muchhhhhhh! I love you Nova!¡± Umbra has his eyes closed and a wide grin on his face, ¡°My loves! My Nova! My Wife! My everything!¡±


    Nova smiles and kisses him, ¡°I love you with everything that makes me, me. All of me. Every single skill, every Mana Point. Every Hit Point. It belongs to you, I love, loves you. I love you so so so much my love. No matter what we go through, the sadness that is life, the happiness and everything we may encounter. I will be your shield and your sword. I will be the flame that lights and repels the darkness that may attack you. I love you with all of me ya hear! All! Of! Me!¡± She smiles while pressing the crystal and opening the door. The room is massive with a king sized bed and a balcony view of the Light Kingdom. Nova carries him to the bathroom that is illuminated by Everglow Stone that covers the ceiling, ¡°Love here let me take your shirt off.¡± Nova gently whispers.


    Umbra holds his chest, ¡°No don''t look at my boobies!¡± Umbras face is bright red.


    Nova smiles and pulls his shirt off, ¡°Hehehe! Give me them boobies!¡±


    Umbra gives up in surrender amd yells at the top of his lungs, ¡°Fine! Fine! My boobies! I surrender them!¡±


    Umbra pinches his nipples as Nova pulls off his socks, ¡°Take the rest of your clothes off Mister!¡±


    ¡°Ugh fine but only because I love yoooouuu!¡± He pulls off his pants and underwear and rolls back and forth.


    ¡°Upsy daisy.¡± Nova picks Umbra up and gently places him in the bath and turns it on. The hot water causing him to lay back and relax.


    ¡°Aghhhh this is so nice! So very um very very nice!¡± He says while splashing water on his face.


    Nova takes her clothes off and sits across from him, ¡°How ya feeling love?¡± She asks.


    He keeps his eyes closed and has his head on the edge of the bath, ¡°I feel good.¡± He whispers while beginning to softly snore.


    ¡°Oh love, whatever will I do with you if you leave? I shouldn''t think these things but life is short and tomorrow isn''t promised. The pain of losing you is too great, the thought drives me mad. I will prevent it at any costs my love. I promise you.¡± Nova rubs his cheek with her finger and sits next to him, watching him snore softly in silence. She hums to herself and lets the water slowly drain. She softly picks him up and dries him off with a towel and then puts warm pajamas on him and places him in bed. She puts pajamas on as well and lays down with him, ¡°I love you Umbra.¡±


    She kisses his forehead softly, ¡°My loves.¡± He whispers as he rolls over and holds her in his arms. They fall asleep peacefully.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Twenty-One: Moondance

    <h1>Chapter Twenty-One: Moondance</h1>


    The warmth of the woman I love surrounds me as I gently sleep. I can feel warmth and happiness, I can feel love and passion. I feel secure and loved and everything feels so nice. I am still a bit drunk, last night is hard to remember, well everything after I started drinking with those dwarves. I kiss Nova''s cheek and just stare at the glimmering ceiling. I rub her cheek as she softly snores, the bustle of people walking around or using tools to build ring through the balcony window.


    ¡°Nova. My love.¡± I gently shake her.


    ¡°No not yet, ten more minutes.¡± She kisses my cheek.


    ¡°We have to hurry if we''re going to get back before It''s dark.¡± I change out of my pajamas and start to equip my armor.


    ¡°Fine fine! I''m up!¡± She stretches and yawns.


    ¡°Morning love.¡± I tighten my straps.


    ¡°I wish we could just sleep all day.¡± She rolls around on the bed while stretching.


    ¡°I think we did, we have like four hours of sunlight left.¡± The sun is falling down low but I''m sure if we go fast enough we can make it in time.


    ¡°Okay fine fine I''m up!¡± She wipes her eyes a takes a Stamina Pill, ¡°Agh much better! I''ll be ready super fast hehe Ta! Ta!¡± She uses her skill to quickly change. ¡°Okay I''m all set!¡±


    ¡°Off we go then!¡± I hop on her back and she jumps out of the window, using flame to push us high into the air towards the Dark Kingdom. We travel a far distance past the battlefield all the way to a barren land of black charred dirt and dead trees. There are no enemies in sight.


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    ¡°Okay this is far enough.¡± I say and she lands softly.


    ¡°Agh this place smells like fire, I like it!¡± She yells and takes a deep breath then exhales loudly, ¡°I love fire hehe!¡±


    ¡°You''re so hot love.¡± I chuckle as she claps her hands together.


    Her body becomes covered with white flame, ¡°Am I? Hehe!¡± She smiles and squints her eyes, concentrating on her open palm. The flame around her body slowly moves to her hand.


    ¡°Focus! Focus! You got this!¡± I cheer her on as she breathes deeply and fast.


    ¡°Aaaghhh come on!¡± The flame slowly solidifies into a Long Sword and glows brightly, ¡°Step One complete! now Step Two! Ignite!¡± The sword grows into a enormous pillar of flame as her body is surrounded with a white aura of flame.


    ¡°Yes! Now swing it!¡± I yell at the top of my lungs.


    ¡°Aghhhhhhhhh!¡± She uses all of her strength and slams the sword down on a nearby mountain that gets easily split in half.


    ¡°Woooooh! You did it!¡± I yell as I catch a massive boulder and toss it.


    ¡°Steeeeep Threeeeee!¡± She holds her fists clenched and the energy around her rises high into the air and then condenses to create glowing armor around her. She stomps on the floor and punches forward, ¡°Ha!¡± A wave of energy crashes through what remains of the mountain and reduces it to nothing. The flames disappear as Nova holds her knees while sweating and panting.


    I clap loudly, ¡°You did it! Aghh that''s so good!¡±


    She''s breathing heavily, ¡°Agh! Thanks love! Your turn!¡±


    ¡°Agh I''m not sure if I even got it down yet.¡± I scratch the back of my head and laugh.


    ¡°There''s a mountain right there give it your best shot!¡± She sits on the ground and gives me a thumbs up then takes a drink from her Water Crystal.


    ¡°Okay okay thanks love.¡± I try to focus my mana, we trained like this a lot during our five years, but never really got to go all out because of the constant battles and this depletes all of our mana. I try to focus my breathing, feel the flow of mana inside my body. Try to imagine this energy inside of me, I reach my right hand to the mountain, ¡°Barrier!¡± A spherical barrier surrounds it and digs deep underneath it, lifting into the air I hold it with all of my strength.


    ¡°You got this! Push!¡± Nova yells while clenching her fists.


    ¡°Crush!¡± I yell at the top of my lungs, causing the barrier to shrink down. I push with all of my strength and mana until the barrier is the size of a small marble.


    ¡°Do it!¡± Nova yells while pointing at a mountain to the left of the one she destroyed.


    ¡°Step Two! Smash!¡± I yell, swinging my hand, controlling the small marble and making it crash into the mountain. It hits with such a powerful impact the mountain shatters into a fine pile of sand.


    ¡°Yes! You did it! Aghh I''m so proud of you love!¡± Nova kisses my cheek as I bring the small marble right next to me. I put it in my satchel and leave it floating and wrap my arms around her, ¡°We''ve come this far huh? It''s crazy how far we''ve gotten, how many adventures we''ve been on.¡± She hands me a few Mana Pills and we both take them.


    ¡°It has been such a long journey, I hope we can go on more fore-¡± A red energy surrounds our bodies and we land in front of Umbra, Nova and a mysterious man with long silver hair.


    <h1> </h1>

 Chapter Twenty-Two: Reunion

    <h1>Chapter Twenty-Two: Reunion</h1>


    I close my eyes and listen to the waves softly kiss the shoreline and recede back into the endless sea. It''s as if we are on our own little planet in the vast world, the adventures we have been through have been so crazy in the shortest amount of time. How different my mindset is right now compared to the last few years barely surviving and struggling to live. I am at peace, my body is under no stress or fatigue and my vision is clear. The sun feels nice and warm, I smile because I am so happy. How long has it been since I''ve felt bliss like this? Have I ever been happy? Hmmm I wish things would never change, but such is life. Life is constantly changing like the endless ripples of the ocean. Nova quietly sleeps with her head resting on my chest and I dare not move lest I wake her up from her well deserved peaceful slumber. I am so very in love with her, everything about her. The way she smiles and dances, her hot blooded temper and the way she loves to catch things on fire. How she has so much fun when she fights. The way she''s always there for me, always fighting to protect me. I can''t imagine losing her, the pain that I would feel if she died. What is this emotion, this sinking pain in my heart that just feels dark and heavy. This is the utmost sense of vulnerability and yet the pleasant feeling of a warm bubble surrounding me, comforting me although I am surrounded by darkness. The dark shadows of the past that haunt me, that resonate a feeling of dread throughout my body, I was the cause of this. If only I was wiser, more cautious in my actions. If only I could return to the past and change everything, but alas here I am. We must strive to pick up the pieces. I have so many regrets, but those are regrets that I must bear on my shoulders. What actions must we take now? What can be done? I don''t know which way we can change how the events of our lives have unfolded, or even what can be done about my own guilt but I must push forward and relax. I need a break, maybe a little time swimming in the calm crystal clear oceans of the Water Kingdom. Or maybe I can eat endless heaps of ice cream as well, or challenge a bunch of dwarves to a drinking contest. I don''t know whatever may lie ahead of us but I will challenge it head on, whatever it may be. I feel as if I''m floating in place again, how long I''ve lived, how things have changed so much. How I have changed and stayed the same. My mind is flooding with a heap of thoughts and insecurities that I can not push away. It seems as if I am weak. That I can no longer keep my sharp mind after the encounter with Juzo and Eva. I wish I was not such a coward back then, that I would''ve attempted to help. That I was a leader instead of a backstabbing traitor. The look on Juzo¡¯s face, the look of despair on Eva''s as I left her to die. I didn''t have the power to save either one, not even in the end did I try to help them. I just ran away from my problems as always. Whatever else was there to do? They were set on killing me. Killing everyone. I killed the ones I loved. I did that huh. Embra, my poor daughter. The look on her face, I can''t even bear to think about it. I can''t. The sadness in my heart is too much for me to bear. The friends, the small ones. I killed them too. They trusted me. They all trusted me when they shouldn''t have. They should''ve thanked me and then left to live their own adventurous lives. It would''ve been nice to spend more time with them. To see them get strong and protect each other. To see how they would become in stressful situations and times where I would teleport to help then when they''re in need. All of my friends are dead, but then again I have made new friends, or at least my clone did. I know their lives turned out differently than mine, they will live happily with each other going on countless adventures and having so much fun. That Umbra wasn''t a coward. Not like me. No, he fought to protect his loved ones. He fought for his happiness that''s well deserved. He will lead people to places that I never had dreamed of. He will fight many beasts and have so much fun, agh how I wish I could''ve seen the smiling faces of Juzo and Eva as they fought valiantly against ogres and titans, but that would never happen to me because I destroy everything I touch. I don''t deserve happiness. I don''t deserve love. I deserve to be miserable but Nova wouldn''t let that happen no matter how much I pushed her away or begged for her to take my life or to let me take my own life. She wouldn''t give up on me. She loves me with all of my faults. With all of me and I love her with every fiber in my body. With every little fragment of me. I love Nova, the most beautiful girl that smiles while shes punching through a dragon. Laughing as she covers a horde of goblins with flame, as she burns down countless forests of enemies. My Nova, the beautiful woman who dances with elves under the moonlight. The woman who out-drinks halls full of dwarves and laughs at the sight of danger. My woman, my strong strong woman who I adore, the woman I wish to spend eternity with, even if I have to destroy countless people to stay with her. If I have to cut through oceans of enemies I would not hesitate to do so. She is the reason I have life, the reason I smile and cry and laugh. The reason I wake up and fight. She is the reason I live. Her smile, those squinty eyes. The long hair and that beautiful fragrance she gives off when she''s fighting. The flames that she uses to keep me warm. I find comfort in her. I find comfort in the way she talks and the way she''s always making sure I am alright. As my mind wanders I keep thinking to myself just how lucky I am to have such a wonderful woman by my side. I am so very lucky. I am so very in love with her it''s like she is what I strive for in life. Not Gold, not treasure or to become a valiant hero that is known throughout the land, but to be her lover. I will be her lover forever I will-


    A soft whisper snaps me back to reality, ¡°Lord Umbra, tis Denis. Defenses be ready for the Army of Gold approaches.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Commander.¡± I wonder to myself how long was I daydreaming and nod. He quickly runs off into the distance, rallying various beasts and Adventurers to the castle walls.


    ¡°Love?¡± I shake Nova softly, ¡°Love?¡±


    She kisses my cheek, ¡°Five more minutes.¡±


    ¡°We have to prepare.¡± She wipes her eyes and yawns loudly.


    ¡°Okay, fine.¡± She sits up and stretches her neck.


    ¡°Preparations are complete, the others will be here soon as well. On behalf of Outcast Kingdom and all who reside here, I humbly thank you two for helping us.¡± The man clad in black armor bows, his long flowing silver hair drapes over his shoulders, he looks at us with tired bright red eyes.


    ¡°You don''t have to bow, it''s all thanks to you for bringing us here or we would have been stuck on that island forever. Your skills must be very high. Thank you son.¡±


    A flashback appears in my mind of the battle with Evil Juzo. As I set up the infinity barrier Nova and I cloned ourselves to be sacrificed with Juzo and Eva. I used Teleportation Ring to teleport to Denis on the island. That is how we survived. We lived there for a long time until a man came claiming to be our son. He brought us here and then quickly left, we always hoped one day he would appear again in our lives after we left him such a long time ago.


    I help Nova up and we embrace in a hug with him, who knew these events would unfold.


    ¡°I have waited my whole life to meet you two, I''ve seen the darkness of this world, yet I''ve also seen the light. I have felt hate and love, I have been hurt and hurt others, yet in the end I have comrades and a kingdom of people to protect. How long I''ve waited just to see you two, I''m sorry I''m ranting. I really am!¡± He continues to cry, Nova squeezes tightly.


    ¡°I always hoped to see you one day, it was so hard to leave you with Desthro, we had no choice. Times were too dangerous. I made sure to leave a fortune to bribe the administration when it was time for you to become an Adventurer so you could live a normal life. Who knew the corruption would be spread so far. My child. My strong child.¡± Nova laughs while tears fall to the floor.


    ¡°I am so proud of you. You did what I always dreamed of doing, creating a sanctuary for beast and man alike. I don''t know what to say.¡± I laugh heartily and pick up my Blackfire Greatsword, ¡°Time to fight.¡±


    ¡°Time to destroy everything! I can''t wait to see your powers son!¡± The pure joy on Nova''s face as she walks with her arm around his shoulder as his dark gloomy expression and dark black rings under his eyes are replaced with a smile of happiness, pure happiness. I can''t imagine the pain he has gone through, but I suppose that is his story to tell. A story I will listen to with open ears once day when all is at peace, but for now we fight.


    We stop before we get to the castle walls, ¡°Now is fine if you could please.¡± He asks.


    ¡°Got it.¡± I hold out my hand in front of me, ¡°Summon Allies!¡±


    ¡°Whaaaat you''re alive!¡± Eva yells loudly while clutching her staff.


    ¡°The original right?!¡± Childhood Nova moves her hair out of her face and stares at Childhood Umbra in disbelief.


    ¡°Woah is that the guy that took Carbon¡¯s clone?¡± Juzo asks, he''s holding the vampire sword, Umbra smiles and runs his hand over the blade.


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    ¡°I''m glad it ended up in your hands. Fight hard with it.¡± Umbra smiles.


    ¡°Will do!¡± Juzo nods.


    ¡°Hello! I''m a good guy!¡± Nekki puts his hands up.


    ¡°Relax! We''re all friends here aren''t we!¡± Nova pats his back and smiles.


    ¡°You must need our help? You guys too?! Long time no see!¡± Childhood Umbra says while bumping fists with Wundah. The four Dragon Kings wear armor and clothing made out of the God Level Dragon.


    ¡°Yoooooo! Dude how¡¯ve you been!¡± Wundah smiles and hugs Eva and Nova.


    ¡°Brooooo! Juzo man!¡± Andrew and Juzo bump fists and flex their muscles at each other.


    ¡°Yo! You been training?¡± AvatarPyro waves at Childhood Nova who has a evil gleam in her eyes.


    ¡°I''ve trained in hopes for a rematch!¡± She yells while cracking her knuckles.


    ¡°Hello um hi everyone! I''m Lawa.¡± She smiles and waves timidly.


    ¡°Hello! I am Nekki!¡± Nekki scratches his head, ¡°We have to fight um the Five Kingdoms, Fire, Air, Water, Earth and Gold! They are corrupt and evil! On behalf of the Outcast Kingdom I beg for your help!¡± Nekki bows as Wundah quickly shouts.


    ¡°Nekki you don''t have to bow, we got your back bro!¡± Wundah gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°I will crush everything to dust with my fists and fire!!!¡± Childhood Nova yells and laughs evilly, ¡°Muahahaha!¡±


    ¡°With our flames combined we will destroy the whole army! Muahahahaha!¡± Nova stands besides Childhood Nova and laughs with her, flames coming out of their mouths.


    ¡°We are with some scary women huh?¡± Childhood Umbra whispers to Umbra.


    ¡°We heard that!¡± The two scream.


    ¡°Oh here!¡± Childhood Nova yells while reaching into her satchel and handing Nova the ring.


    ¡°Oh my thank you so much! Thank you!¡± She hugs Childhood Nova who smiles brightly.


    ¡°No problem! Now who do we have to murder with our fists of fire!?¡± The two of them laugh hysterically as Nekki motions for everyone to walk over.


    ¡°There are many things that don''t make sense if you think about the many timelines of events that have happened. The evil Juzo or Dark Lord told me there were many different worlds in different dimensions, but from what I saw as I traveled to your world.¡± Umbra points to Childhood Umbra, ¡°To the Island and to the Dragon King world, also mine, and then this world. Everything makes sense. How the items being used are similar, how the beasts and fighting mechanics are similar. It''s because there are not different dimensions, they''re different time periods of the same map. The Island is the beginning, then the Dragon Slayers world, followed by Umbras, then my world and now we are in Nekki¡¯s. This is all a theory of mine. Would you please tell them what our situation is in more detail please?¡± Umbra adjusts his sword and stares at the black ominous clouds above them.


    ¡°Hi! Yeah um I am Nekki! I''m the son of Umbra and Nova! I ended up as a Necromancer and the Kingdom is ruled by puppet kings and fake royalty. They were all followers of the Dark Lord and tried to have me killed but I survived and created this kingdom. My friends are all under their control. I searched through the darkest dungeons for scrolls on time travel and uncovered a secret tunnel built by King Carbon a long time ago. It needed a clone of his to be sacrificed in order to open it, that is why I was at your Great War. I assumed you were evil until the vampires refused to follow their King and Vampire Queen Sophia took control and fought bravely and then Carbon explained everything to me. Ummmmmmmm yeah! Evil people are trying to kill us! Oh and one more catch!¡± The main gate opens up to reveal a wide bridge with two titans guarding the entrance. As far as the eye can see are enemies, ¡°We are fighting Carbon clones that were born morphed using dark magic and science!¡± He yells over the roar of enemies chanting spells, ¡°I mean it pretty much speaks for itself! Haha!¡± Nekki chuckles as he looks at Umbra, ¡°Can you hold a barrier beneath us please?¡±


    Umbra nods, ¡°Yeah sure thing Son.¡±


    ¡°Sweet, Teleport!¡± The group is teleported to the front of the bridge in between the two titan¡¯s heads. They nod and hold their spears silently.


    ¡°Woah nice!¡± Wundah says.


    ¡°Oh my look at all those chickens!¡± AvatarPyro says and the Dragon Kings laugh.


    ¡°Agh I miss those so much!¡± Andrew scratches his stomach.


    ¡°So many enemies to kill hehe.¡± Lawa smiles and unsheathes her sword.


    ¡°How do you want to do this?¡± Juzo asks Nekki who is humming to himself.


    ¡°Whaat your not intimidated by all of those Umbra?!?¡± Thousands upon thousands of Umbra clones are marching in the distance. Some on wolves, some riding dragons or cyclops. Hundreds are riding on top of Behemoths and ice giants. Towering sixty-armed Umbra titans are walking in the distance. The sheer power of this army would cause anyone to drop to their knees in surrender.


    ¡°This is nothing man! Look at us!¡± Juzo smiles and flexes his muscles with Andrew.


    ¡°I''ll punch holes through all of them!¡± Eva yells at the top of her lungs.


    ¡°Just don''t mistake us for them!¡± Umbra yells.


    ¡°Yeah please don''t!¡± Childhood Umbra also yells.


    ¡°I''ll punch any Umbra I see!¡± Nova smiles and kisses Umbra''s cheek, ¡°Hehe I''m just kidding!¡±


    ¡°Here these can help.¡± AvatarPyro holds two bright yellow headbands and hands them to the two, ¡°Welcome to the club of kicking ass!¡± He gives a thumbs up and smiles.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Childhood Umbra ties it around his head.


    ¡°Thanks a lot!¡± Umbra also ties his and then stretches his arms.


    ¡°Oh yeah um battle plans battle plans! Ughhhhhhhh how should we do this? Hehe!¡± Nekki nervously laughs and rubs the back of his head.


    ¡°Wundah and I work as a team.¡± AvatarPyro says, standing next to Wundah.


    ¡°Yeet! We can hold the line on the far left.¡± Wundah looks back at the many Adventurers and beasts lined up along the floor near the castle walls, ¡°Any that we don''t get the army can handle.¡±


    ¡°I can crush everything with Juzo, the two of our muscles combined will send them flying into the sky!¡± Andrew flexes his muscles with Juzo who is laughing and flexing.


    ¡°Yeah that sounds good! We''ll be to the right of Wundah and AvatarPyro!¡± Juzo stretches his arms and legs.


    ¡°Hi uh I''m Lawa, I stab things with my sword!¡± Lawa smiles at Eva as a dark aura surrounds her body.


    Eva smiles and flexes her bicep, ¡°Eva''s the name and punching holes in my enemies is my game! I can also heal! Nice to meet ya! We''ll be to the right of Juzo and Andrew!¡±


    ¡°I''ll take the middle with wide ranged attacks!¡± Nekki gives a thumbs up.


    ¡°We''ll take to the right of Nekki, just let us know if you need support! That fine?¡± Umbra asks Childhood Umbra.


    ¡°Yeah that''s good!¡± Childhood Umbra takes a deep breath and focuses on his area.


    ¡°Nova squad gets to destroy everything on the far right! Flaammmessssss!¡± Childhood Nova punches her fists together.


    ¡°I''m going to punch through everything hehehehehe! Muahahahaha!¡± Nova is laughing evilly.


    ¡°I feel sorry for everyone on the right side oh my gosh those poor souls.¡± Umbra smiles and kisses Nova''s cheek, ¡°If you need me say the word and I''ll be right over.¡±


    ¡°Yeah! If anyone needs help just ask I''ll rush and kill everything!¡± Nova screams, she''s so pumped up to fight.


    ¡°Okay! Everyone set on battle positions?!¡± Nekki asks, scratching his forehead.


    ¡°Yup!¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡±


    ¡°Let''s do it!¡±


    ¡°I''m gonna stab everything!¡±


    ¡°Here''s some buffs! Agility! Defense! Attack! Mana!¡± Eva smiles and everyone has glowing auras surrounding them.


    ¡°Let me also give you guys a buff! Dark Protection!¡± Nekki smiles and everyone''s body has a slight black glow, ¡°This will make you immune to my spells, they''re mostly wide ranged so this will be good. It doesn''t wear off until I deactivate it so it''s fine!¡±


    ¡°Thank you Nekki!¡± Eva smiles as Umbra grips his sword.


    ¡°Aye let''s do this! Raaaaaaaahhhhh!¡± Umbra roars at the top of his lungs and the others roar as well. The front line of Umbra Clones hold Long Swords, they howl and hiss. More like beasts than man. They drool and continue to howl and roar. The dark clouds overhead are filled with lightning. It surges and surges. Red lightning flows from the Umbra Clones¡¯ bodies and the ground.


    AvatarPyro quickly glances at Wundah who glances at Lawa who glances at Andrew, ¡°Noooooooo wayyyy! Everyone dodge!¡± He screams and they quickly move to dodge.


    ¡°It''s fine! Don''t worry!¡± Nekki flies above them and as a massive bolt of red lightning falls towards the Adventurers he holds his index finger up. The lightning flows into it and turns into a small ball of buzzing energy, ¡°Death to all enemies.¡± Nekki whispers with an ominous grin as he tosses the small ball of lightning that gently floats across the sky and softly hits a Umbra Clone. A shockwave cuts a line through the center of the army that stretches into the distance.


    ¡°Yeah that sure is your son Nova! Haha! I guess the war has begun.¡± Umbra whispers, ¡°Time to go! Be careful everyone!¡± Umbra waves at Nova and jumps down.


    ¡°Be careful!¡± Childhood Umbra waves and jumps down.


    ¡°Got it!¡± Juzo pats Andrew''s back, ¡°Let''s go bro!¡±


    ¡°Yeah! Be careful!¡± Andrew jumps with him and they land in the floor with a huge crash of energy.


    ¡°See ya!¡± Eva smiles and waves, flying down.


    ¡°Don''t die okay!¡± Lawa smiles at AvatarPyro and jumps down.


    ¡°I won''t! Let''s go bro!¡± AvatarPyro jumps down holding a Greatsword.


    ¡°See ya!¡± Wundah jumps down and rushes to battle with AvatarPyro.


    ¡°Time to destroy everything!¡± Nova clenches her fists and smiles warmly, ¡°Be careful Son! I love you!¡±


    Nekki blushes, ¡°I love you too Mom! Let me know if you need me!¡± Nekki waves as Nova jumps down.


    ¡°Be careful okay!¡± Childhood Nova smiles and waves then jumps down.


    ¡°Well time to go as well.¡± Nekki takes a deep breath as he watches everyone rushing into battle with smiles on their faces, ¡°Azaz I will save you.¡± A sudden look of sadness flashes across his face. He shakes it off and then teleports to the front of the line and smiles, ¡°Rain!¡± Thin black needles the size of a raindrop falls down onto the battlefield, it melts through the armor of a few Umbra Clones but one of them roars loudly, sending a shockwave that stops the spell, ¡°Well I tried. Dark Volley!¡± Thirty spell circles appear above him and beams of energy rip through the front line. They begin to charge in a frenzy and it seems the battle has begun. With the countless enemies in front of them, not one Adventurer is scared. They face the battle head on with bright smiles across their faces. As the two Novas punch through enemies, as Andrew and Juzo smash their way through the front line, as Wundah and AvatarPyro do deadly combos, Eva and Lawa are ruthless and the Umbras are charging their sword skills. The many adventures that will be told will be shared throughout the vast endless flow of time. The rest will be known in the next book, Outcast Kingdom.


    ~ Fin

 Prologue

    Shinda Kokoro


    By


    AvatarPyro


    To AvatarPyro, Wundah, Andrew and Lawa. May your adventures live on throughout the vast flow of time.


    Big Thanks to my Dungeon Design Team:


    Sam (Wundah) Chumpitazi


    Kyo Ly


    Streetdweller Eddy


    Ricky Artmanni


    Young Ghoul


    Steven R


    Andrew


    DD


    TooManyFaces


    <h1>Prologue:


    </h1>


    The three of us eating full course meals around the table, the food is delicious, and although it may be our last meal, we laugh and cheer. We buy Health Pills and Cure-All Pills, Hot and Cold Pills, all of the necessities for battle. No matter how much planning, how hyped we are, nothing could prepare us for the dreaded Elder Dragon, the fucking Fuzzy.


    As we leave the gates of the city it dawns on me, this is not where the story begins. No, it starts years ago, such a long time ago.


    "Yo Andrew wake up! Hurry!" The figure moved around his room, typing different phrases into his monitor, sending them out at lightning speed, "Wundah head over! Hurry!"


    The screen turns blue, "Accept call. Split screen." Two tired faces appear on the screen.


    "Do you know what fucking time it is?" Below the face in white letters it reads Andrew.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    "Yoooo! Dude what''s goin on?" Wundah wipes his eyes.


    "I found it! I found it!" Below the figures moving shadow his name reads AvatarPyro in white. He pushes a bunch of buttons and swipes left, a map pops up on the screen.


    Andrew sighs, "This could be anything, how do we know it''s even real?"


    "True." Wundah yawns.


    "I had to bid so much for this! It''s in the antique shop by the pier. Let''s just look and if it isn''t there then oh well. You guys down to go?" AvatarPyro scratches his head.


    After some pondering Andrew lets out a sigh, "Okay fine."


    "And you Wundah?" AvatarPyro looks over to the other side of the screen.


    "Down, let''s do this." Wundah gives a thumbs up.


    "When is it open?" Andrew can be seen walking around his room.


    AvatarPyro looks at his screen, "It opened two minutes ago, let''s meet at the pier in ten."


    "Ugh fine! See you in ten." Andrew exits the chat.


    "Cool man see you soon!" Wundah logs off.


    AvatarPyro is already packed, so he heads out the door and walks to the pier, the air is crisp and he''s full of excitement.


    After time waiting he sees Wundah in the distance, "Yooo!"


    "What''s up dude?" They bump fists.


    "Where''s Andrew?" Wundah chuckles.


    "I''m here, I''m here." Andrew is yawning.


    "Nice, well let''s go in guys." AvatarPyro holds the old cobweb-filled door open.


    "Why hello young travelers, my how early it is. Come on in, come on in." They are greeted by the warm smile of an elderly man.


    Andrew nudges AvatarPyro, "Excuse me sir, I found this map online and it says this place has this game.¡± He shows the old man his phone, ¡°The open world one."


    A slight smirk on the old man''s face, "This place has many games, long forgotten ones, horrible ones that make nightmares come true, and yes, it has the one you seek." The old man makes his way to a small bookshelf and pulls a red book. The secret passage is opened, and a massive room is revealed. He presses his finger to his lips, "Shh, must be quiet or you''ll wake the other players. They must concentrate." He motions towards the many game pods where people could be seen wearing headgear.


    "Woah." Wundah taps AvatarPyro''s arm and points to a game called Generation S., a young boy is running through a hallway of slaughtered soldiers, blood and body parts cover the floor as something grotesque chases after him.


    "Damn." AvatarPyro walks on. He looks back and clenches his fist, "Good luck man." He whispers.


    They see the screen. The theme song is playing softly, "I must warn you before you dive in, There is no exiting the game. No Pausing. No do overs. Once you die, you die in real life. Your character gets erased and you will not exist in this world or that one. Time will not matter as your body will be in a deep, coma-like state. If you would like to back out, now would be the chance to." The old man smiles.


    "I''m all in." AvatarPyro says with no hesitation.


    "Cool, let''s do this." Wundah smirks.


    "Fuck yeah, I''m in." Andrew sighs.


    "Congratulations Adventurers, please get inside and put on the helmet when you''re ready." The old man activates the machine.


    "Thank you sir, what is your name?" AvatarPyro puts on the helmet.


    "My name is J-" His name couldn''t be heard. AvatarPyro gets sucked through a stream of bright lights.


    <h1> </h1>