After a hearty breakfast, the size and proportions of a feast for some, and with plenty of compliments to the chef expressed, Rex left the inn, taking on teh ussual shady adventurer getup- cloaked and a hood hiding his features. Using his mana pulse, noting any suspicious entity snooping around, he did as well as he have always done, some minutes later exiting from some random alleyway, nowhere near Beth's Hearth. If anyone had to guess from Rex's appearance in this particular location, they would logically assume two or three other inn's as his lodging place. With the slight subterfuge performed, he was on his way towards the path of the skitterer, locked in on his coming grind session.
As he aproached the gate, he noticed two, unfamiliar huards manning the position he was used to seeing Ivan and Jake in. Logically speaking, either their shif started an hour or two later, or someone was already trying to make some moves. Luckaly for Rex, he did not give a fuck, nor could the guards do anything to intercept him. That did not mean they could not try their luck though. As evident by the slightly akward movement towards him one of the guards was attempting to make.
"Sir, If you could.." he started, though was quickly interrupted by a growl like sound, coming from Rex, startling the man and causing him to step back.
"Just Dont." half whisper, half growl left Rex throat, causing the hair on the necks of the guards to stand, the warning clear as day. With the two guards frozen in place due to either fear of him, or the possible consequences should they try to pester him, Rex walked over to scan his ID, and, once that was done, walked further, dissapearing into the tunnel leading down in the dungeon's depths.
"Fuuuck." gasped one of the guards, slumping to his feet, his jaw clattering as if he was cold beyond reason. "The hell was that?" he asked, his jaw still clattering. The other, in a slightly better state, noticable by his still standing figure, shivered visably. "That, my young friend, was pure and uncontrolled bloodlust. And judging from the intensity, we have a true A rank on our hands."
A comfortable silence, save for the clattering of ones jaw, took over the gate, only descending into complete silence a few minutes later. A couple minutes later still, the guard who had fared worse of the two, asked "So, are we getting punished for our failure?" slight aprehension in his voice.
"Nope. Not with the info we just learned. Best thing the bosses can do is ask Ivan nicely to pass along the invitation. Guys like him" the older guard pointed his thumb towards the tunnel entrance, clearly meaning Rex "dont like to be pestered. And while young, he clearly must have lived on his own, one way or another. Such life makes em like that. Then again, earn his respect and friendship, with no underhanded or sleazy means, and damn, that kind of men are the best to have your back." A few minutes later still, the same guard added "And boy, does the kid have potential. If he is at this point right now? Ufff, I predict peak rank A class easily." With that, the place descended in a peacefull silence once more, each of the guards thinking their own thoughts, not willing to disturb the other. Their task was done, one way or another.
Rex had chosen the response he did for several reasons, one of the more prominent being that one of the guards, the older one, radiated combat experience. Even as idle as he had been before he started his move, he had little to none holes in his defence. And the moment of hesitation, while seemingly due to nervousness or the like, was a calculated move, clearly ment to lower his guard to earn a beter position for their coming interaction. And so, Rex responded with sharp and controlled agression, though in a manner that conveyed his intention clearly, perfectly understandable for a war veteran like the man he was dealing with. And at the same time, he established a certain character to be percieved. IF the veteran was as good as Rex felt he was, at least the military part of the city would steer clear of him, assuming no ego maniac fool was in charge.
And so, having stepped his foot in the tunnel, teeming with all kinds of monsters the deeper he delved, Rex proceeded to speed run the early part of the dungeon, blasting straight towards the habitat of the buss tarantulas, as he nicknamed the buss sized, burrow digging tarantula like spiders. As he proceeded onwards, his sword in one hand, slicing monster after monster, all the while using his left hand, equiped with his new blood shield, swating creatures getting in his way aside, opening them for a sword strike, larger and larger smile crept on his face that sometimes got stained with fresh blood, only moments later, the foreign liquid crawling along his neck, then arm, untill it fused into either the shield or his sword. It was time to grind.
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"So? Report soldier." spoke the man, short gray hair and small moustache coverign his face, sitting behind his desk that was covered in all sorts of reports and missives, awaiting for the soldier in front of him to speak.
"As you have been informed, the man in question entered teh path of the skitterer in the early hours of the morning, before the supposed ussual time he would do so, not encountering the two ladies supposed to greet him."
"Yes, yes. I know that already!" grumbled the older gentleman, rubbing his forehead with one hand. "Tell me what is so important that you asked to see me so urgently?"
"I would advise to stop any attempts to honeypot the man in question. It might spectacularily backfire."
"Ellaborate commander Felix."
"Yes sir. While incredibly young, barely a grown man, he posessed a bloodlust even I could not dare to boast, as well as a perfect controll over it. Recruit Famos, who was with me at the gate, was paralyzed with fear, his teeth clattering for few mintes after the man had left."
"Oh." the general replied, his face stiff. "Damn, good thing those pretty ladies were not there yet. We might have dodged an arrow there."
"A poisoned one at that. Yes." continiued Felix.
"So, your proposal then? I doubt you would have come without one." the general asked.
"Yes, indeed. I would advise, as I did beforehand, have the guard, Ivan, pass along our desire to be on friendly terms. Nothing more. If this Rex, is not inclined at the moment the message is passed, do not force the issue. He is an adventurer first and dangerous man if pushed secondly. Neither would respond well to force or coersion." Felix spoke.
"So, we play the long game. Is that what you are saying?"
"Yes Zirion, thats exactly what I would suggest." commander Felix replied with a serious expression on his face.
"So be it. Pass along the order. No one is to contact the man besides the message guard Ivan is to pass along. We stand by and wait."
"Yes sir." replied Felix, turning around and leaving after saluting the general, Zirion Mardian- Lord commander of Solendiel defence force.
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It was close to evening of the day when Rex had departed towards his latest dungeon delve. Beth was, as ussual, happily humming a song of the darven people, bussying herself with cleaning the mugs, hanging behind the bar in the large room, serving as both diner and hall at the same time, much like in those mediaval taverns, the stairs to the second and third floor off to the side of her and the counter. A creaking of the door, followed by a melodious chime, indicated that yet another possible guest, guests, or a simple passerby, have entered the building, earning a glance their way from Beth. As she noticed the new arrivals, a slight smile creeped on her face. 'Yet another pouch of coins, delivering itself to my doorstep.' she thought, the smile remaining on her face.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
The trio, two men, clad in silver-gray armour, a kite shield on their back, a sword attached to their hip and the helmet in their other hand, pressed againt their side. Cleanly shaved and groomed faces, with angular shapes and stern, somewhat haughty attitude as they glanced around, clearly looking for someone. The third person, standing in the middle, was a rather beautifull young lady, clad in leather armour, embroidered with golden threads and an obvious heraldry on her chest, no doubt the same heraldry could be seen on the face of teh shields the two knigts had on their backs. Fair skin, heart shaped face, alluring, slightly pursed lips, raven black, shoulder lenght hair and emerald green eyes that took in the modest, yet well kept interior of Beth's tavern. Noticing her behind the bar counter, doing her thing, the trio walked over, just moments later finding themselves before Beth.
"Welcome to Beth's Hearth. How may I help you?" she asked, the same light smile on her face when meeting a potential customer. She was ninety nine percent sure that these nobles would not 'debase' themselves and stay at a common inn, not when their own estates were just an hour or so away. Did not mean she would act foolishly, not more so than expected from a crafty innkeeper that is.
"Have you seen this man?" the lady asked, placing a sketch of a person on the table, turning Beth's attention towards it. Beth looked at the sketch for a while, finding it to be quite a good drawing of Rex, much better than the rest she had seen today, and she had seen her fair share of those ever since morning. She then glanced back towarsd the lady, a silence in between them. Then, as if asking 'You know inkeepers dont speak for free, right?' rose an eyebrow, untill, a small pouch of gold fell on the table, courtesy of the noble lady.
"Not bad." she replied, continiuing "I have to say, out of all the portraits of Rex I have seen today, yours is the one closest to the real thing. You have my praise." Clearly, her response was what the trio had been hoping for for quite a while, their gazes locked on Beth, waiting for her to continiue. She quickly opened the small pouch, estimating her profit, smiled, noticing the fair number of silver coins and spoke further.
"I wil tell you the same thing I told the rest. Yes, he stays here. No, he is not in at the moment. Left on another one of his delves, Will be back probably in..." she started to count on fingers, calculating the expected lenght of Rex's dive "In two or three days. He left this morning and ussually stays out for around three days. Thats all I can tell you about his current whereabouts. As for how deep he might be? I would bet my lilly ass he must be rushing towards those new monsters he discovered down there. Anything else I can help you with?" she added at the end, rather sure that was all the nobles in front of her wanted.
"How many others?" the lady asked, her voice gentle yet authorative, though not in a forcefull manner.
"At least half a dozen. Likely a bit more. My apologies, lady. Did not keep a precice count." Beth inclined her head in a slight bow, indicating she was indeed slightly apologetic about her inability to answer with a precise number, though not inclined to lie. She could have acted differently, more scared and subservient, as most others no doubt did, but, she had two advantages others did not. Firstly, Rex was staying in her place, thus the info she provided was valuable. Secondly, Rex had advised her to do so, and he liked the dwarven lady quite a bit, giving her an extra injection of courage, a small medalion around her neck the proof of Rex's protection. Her rather brave front did not go unnoticed, one of the knights almost glaring at her, though did not act out in front of the woman.
"Understood. Have a nice day." the lady replied, signaling to the knights, turning around and walking off, the two tin cans following right behind her, leaving Beth on her own as she waved goobye to the trio. 'A profitable day indeed.' Beth smiled, returning to her precious task, polishing the mugs once more.
"My lady, that commoner was out of line. We should teach her some manners." the irritated knight spoke once they had left the inn, clearly upset about Beth;s light hearted attitude, even if she showed them enough respect, at least as far a dwarf was concerned.
"Have you ever seen a dwarven woman, an owner of her own business, to act like a fool?" the lady scolded the knight "I would bet that the A ranker, this Rex, is backing her. No way would she act as she did otherwise. There is no noble family who would want to start a feud with an A ranker, especially when there is no reason to do so."
"But, my lady. She was out of line. A proper peasant should kneel and happily answer any question someone of noble birth like you would ask."
"I said enough!" the lady raised her voice, no longer sounding gentle. Now, the demeanor of a ruler, one willing to act with brutality and force, came to the forefront. "Neither is she a human, nor a subject of ours. You will stand down. That is an order. Unless, of course, you want to try your luck in a duel to the death against an A ranker?"
"U-understood, my lady." The alternative was not something the disgruntled knight was willing to try, well aware of the short, and undoubtedly painfull end he would experience in such a case.
"Still, it is slightly disconcerning. The number of other noble houses chasing after this new A ranker indicates that someone behind the scenes has started moving. I must inform father. Storm might be rising on the horizon."
Unbeknownst to Rex, numerous players in the capital had started moving their pieces, every player greedy to aquire the new and shiny one that had appeared on the board, all because of him. And Rex, well, he was, as expected, dismembering yet another buss tarantula, the poor monster still alive for a while longer. Grinning as he collected not only the monsters core but also the crystal it dropped, the third of those Rex had aquired today, he moved onwards, happy at the progress he was making, not one iota worried about the things happening in the capital. Right now, he was far too absorbed in the bliss of the grind, and he still had a couple days of such pleasant time.
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"Muaaaaa" Rex yawned, his hands stretching to both sides as he basked in the warm sun of the early morning. He had just exited the tunnel, his three day delve finaly over, a satisfied smile adorning his face and a pleasant exaustion taking over his body. In the sight of his eyes, the now familiar gate stood, inviting him to pass through and get both a hearthy meal and a well deserved rest after such bussy schedule. The slight smile adorning his face dropped the moment he used a mana pulse, an action he did on reflex ever now and then, scanning for any possible hidden danger in his vicinity.
As he slowly walked forward, the gate nearing ever closer to him, he noticed a relaxed Ivan, slumped against his ussual spot, seemingly oblivious to all of worlds problems, only his grip on the weapon, and unmoving frame, the light movement of his chest, indication of the mans breathing, not including, betraying his focused state, clearly listening in on any sound coming from the tunnel Rex had just left. And indeed, as Rex walked few meters further, the old man's head turned in his dirrection, eyes popping open and locking on Rex. Then, aware that the aproaching entity was not a monster, indicating a monster flood, he returned to his previous state.
"Went and stirred the hornets nest, you did." Ivan spoke, still maintaining his previous position, as Rex walked through the gates, scanning his ID, indicating his return.
"Got the message and then went and pestered you, did they?" Rex asked, a slight smirk on his face.
"Tch. What'tcha think?" the old man scoffed back, then sighed. "Sure did. Good thing I am O so understanding and kind." then he snickered "Bad thing I am old and senile fool, close to his last breath, ready to fall over at any moment. Say kid, wanna do an old man some kindness?"
"Depends. Got some loand sharks bullying your granddaughter? I can take care of those. And well, if she decides to thank me passionatly, who am I to deny such heartfelt thanks." Rex snickered as he shot back, yawning afterwards once again.
"You sound tired, more so than ussual kid."
"Well, you try spending three days hunting A ranked monsters, spending rare few hours on minimal rest. See how much better you fare. Say, how many dumb fucks you aware off, scouting the gate, probably waiting for my return."
"A dozen? Maybee two? Depends if all those second rate noble families sent their people to try and kiss up to you." Ivan noted, remaining in his place.
"Wonderfull. Seems like every fly in the capital has smelled the fresh dung. So? What did your side wanted to convey? Can do atleast that much. Hope they paid you extra for that." Rex sighed, his attention on Ivan.
"Same old same old. 'If his exelency would be so kind, bla bla bla. Visit the military branch, bla bla bla. Maybee some future cooperation. Bla bla bla.' You get the gist kid, dont ya? I assume everyone coming to you will speak the same bullshit."
"Yea, I fugured." Rex sighed. "Well, might consider, as long as they dont annoy me first. I would guess for at least a month or so I will be particularily irritable." Rex then turned to Jake, the son in law of Ivan "Jake, feel free to forward that part to those superiors of yours." His intention clear- dont bother me for teh coming moth at the very least.
"Will do. Thank you." Replied Jake, not cearly as relaxed and nonchallant as Ivan. He was far too young to have caugh 'I dont give a shit' bug.