Victor woke up on the side of the road with a change of clothing, a green tunic and a long brown cloak. He felt in his right hand Swordie in book form and a small book sized bag around his waist. He stood up looking at bright skies as dawn broke over the tops of the trees. A lush forest surrounded him as the wind gently rustled the leaves. It was warm, he took a deep breath and opened his arms just taking in the new world he had been thrown into. He sat down on a flat nearby rock to hear a nearby babbling brook flowing nearby. He opened Swordie and spoke excited to see the new world and new choices afforded him. “Which way should I go? I don’t really know where I am.”
On the page without voicing a word as he had before the book spelled out ‘To your right lies the village of Jocal an hour walk. To your left lies the path to a dungeon going deep within an old cave that goblins frequent. Which will you choose?’
He thought for a moment and tried to modify his vision to include buff durations. After some fiddling he managed to add it. He noticed the buff Luzuzal’s Promise ticking down with 15:02:31 time remaining. “I suppose I arrived very early this morning and was reincarnated asleep. I wonder if it was painful? Oh well best not to dwell on it. My normal cautious self wouldn’t want to head to the cave because it would be a dumb choice to fight without joining others who are more experienced, but this buff is running. Ah heck with it if I die, I die, already happened once anyway.” So he started walking along the road. After a few minutes he began to notice horse tracks. Two sets of them and one set of footprints.
“Oh man I bet this buff just made it so the cave is empty and everything is dead already. That would be a funny twist.” He chuckled. “I guess it’s always possible.” Victor walked along the road for a few minutes before a hole in the ground near a large pile of rocks stretched almost as high as the trees. The cave has a skull on a spear and two horses tied to a nearby tree. Victor considered turning around but shook his head. ‘I have to make use of Luzuzal’s gift to me.’ He thought to himself taking a deep breath and gulping as he took another step forward, and then another. He and Swordie approached the cave for stagnant air to meet his nose.
Victor picked up a piece of wood and tried to cast Jolt on it. He extended his hand and pointed it channeling “Jolt” The lightning instantly ignited the wood catching it ablaze. With that Victor began making his way into the cave. Sure enough three dead goblins at his feet, Victor pulled out Swordie cracked him open. “What level are goblins normally?” On the page 1-4 appeared on the page. ‘Perfect he thought to himself putting Swordie away. He held his hand forward ready to defend or attack and noticed that it took several minutes for his mana to regain a single point. ‘I guess my flow is relatively low. That means I have about 12 or 13 spells before I need to back out and wait.’
He proceeded into the cave finding several more goblins dead, mostly from stabbing possibly some slashing wounds. The stench was stronger on the left and the tracks went to the right. Something made him decide go left he really had no rhyme or reason to pick it over the other side but really wanted to try and find something on the first day. Moving forward slowly he finally heard growling. A creature on four legs with large teeth and thick fur coated in some kind of oil or tar turned to him snarling. It charged at him. “Jolt!” The lightning blasted the creature in the face knocking it back, it wasn’t enough. “Jolt!” Again he connected easily causing it to slump over. ‘The range really makes a big difference. I could have used barrier but now that I think about it how would I get something away from me if it reached me.’
Goblin Wolf 1: Experience Increase: 0.5%
Current Exp to level 5 0.5%
‘Oh yeah I tried to add that to the delusion skill but I didn’t know if that would work. It does block my vision in the middle though.’ He moved his hand in front of him then down to the bottom left of his vision. If he had been paying closer attention he would have been able to see the goblin lunge for his legs. A slash connected on his left leg only for the goblin to back off as fast as possible to the edge of the light. He felt the hot dripping of blood as his leg bled. Fortunately the cut wasn’t clean or deep. As the goblin worked his way around Victor carefully and slowly pointed his finger toward the goblin waiting for it to move toward him. It finally dashed leaving the ground briefly and at that moment “Jolt” the bolt hit the goblin square in the head killing it instantly.
Goblin 1: Experience Increase: 0.4%
Current Exp to level 5 0.9%
‘Damn, I hope that wasn’t poisoned.’ Victor checked his leg and it was a lot smaller than he thought. He walked up to the goblin and picked up the blade. It wasn’t poisoned just dirty. He wiped it off and placed the dagger in his pocket. The filth on the dagger didn’t seem to reach his leg being wiped off on his pants. He carefully wiped his pants off and looked around. It was a clear dead end. They raised that wolf here. The pain seething in his leg made him wonder. He glanced at his health. He had only lost 6 health from that hit. He noticed a blood droplet and 40 seconds remaining. He considered trying to move but instead just sat on the ground and held his leg wound with one hand until the symbol went away. He lost four more health over those 40 seconds as he watched intently to make sure he wasn’t going to die losing an hp every second to a simple goblin cut.
“If I get hit again I should back out.” Victor said to himself. He realized he would need about 200 goblins at the rate he was going which was far more than he thought he could reasonably ever do in one day. ‘They must not be quite my level.’ He made his way back to the fork in the cave and sighed walking down the other pathway. Another half dozen goblins dead in a small clearing as they walked forward, the room is clearly used to prepare food with meat everywhere and a couple of goblin cooking tools. As Victor entered the room he smelled the boar meat on a metal plate, shabby wooden tables and chairs, and damaged chairs dead center at the sight of six dead goblins.
A single tunnel stretched into the distance. Victor continued deeper into the cave seeing his mana tick up again back to full. Victor could hear the sound of combat in the distance and the light from torches came into full view. The sounds of screeches and someone shouting “THE ONE WITH THE BOW JOHN!”
Victor realized he was lucky the common language matched his language, or was he under some other effect, or perhaps Luzuzal’s Delusion set language? He had no idea and no time to think about that and approached. Within the cave he could see a woman bleeding at the edge of the cave and two men with blades and light metal armor slashed at a goblin and narrowly missed. Before them Victor could see three goblins, two with swords and wooden shields one with a bow in the back. Victor waited silently for the goblin with a bow to draw his bowstring and took aim at the larger of the two men. “Jolt” Victor stepped in and the lightning traveled near instantly to the goblin blasting it down with a sizzling blow.
“Great!” The guy on the left shouted blocking the goblins swing. “Lenny shove one away then help me finish this guy off.”
The one on the right with a larger sword slapped the goblin with the flat of it on his shield sending him flying back and then both coordinated a quick swing on the goblin in front of the shorter man. Victor noticed the other goblin dashing toward them and once again cast “Jolt” blasting it to the ground causing it to sizzle just like the other goblin and stop moving.
Goblin 1: Experience Increase: 0.4%
Current Exp to level 5 1.7%
The three of them looked seriously hurt as the two men bled and turned toward him. “Thank you for the help. We were so close to finishing with this goblin nest I we didn’t want to run. We are down to one healing potion.”
Victor looked at the woman bleeding against a wall. She panted “Water… Please…” She had a tan complexion and a short haircut as her fingers trembled toward Victor. “Water…”
“I don’t have any water for her do either of you?” Victor asked.
“Lenny you have our water right?” John asked him.
“Yeah here.” He threw a water skin to the girl and it landed on her chest hitting her hard. Victor estimated that may have actually caused a point of damage.
Her hands trembled desperately trying to open it but her heavy breathing and uneasy hands made her unable to open the skin. Victor reached down taking it. She reached up for it like a child reaching for its drink. He uncapped it and leaned over to help her balance it giving her a drink. He noticed her tattoo on her chest. A circle with two downward arrows through it, Victor though it strange but paid it little mind. She quickly drained the water skin as though she was dying of thirst, which Victor thought might not be far off. “She’s bleeding can we stop it?”
“Nah we used all the bandages already.” Lenny replied. “We only have one healing potion left and I think John needs it.”
As they turned with their torches Victor could see them bloodied but in far better shape than the girl on the verge of death. A single red vial on a bandoleer that Lenny had across his chest along with two empty slots told the tale Victor could see even with so little light. Another bandoleer across John’s chest and blood leaking from his mid section through his chain shirt, Victor knew they had used five potions across the group. If they didn’t use that potion on the girl she’d die. No medical training would be needed to know that. John spoke up. “They definitely poisoned me, when they stabbed my foot.” He said panting.
“Yeah we aren’t using our last potion on a slave.” Lenny spoke his final words.
It took a fraction of a second virtually against his own will for Victor to point at his head and cast “Jolt” His head sizzled and he fell backward with a charred black skull and boiled eyes. “Speed boost.”
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“You bastard! KILL HIM SERENA!” The woman on the ground fumbled for her dagger but fell to the ground panting. The other man charged him with great vigor “CHARGE!” he moved far faster than mere running should be able to be possible.
Victor quickly dropped his torch throwing up his other hand “Barrier shield” as he cast it the man tried to stop moving but crashed into it dropping his weapon and staggering forward. Victor grabbed his metal helmet and cast “JOLT!” as the lightning blasted through his helmet and his brain fried to a crisp. The sizzling scorch of scalp he held in his hand started causing him to shake. “I just killed two people…” He shook with all his body and his hands wouldn’t steady. The woman below him tried to move an inch and could only barely crawl. He knew he had to walk over to the corpse he just created and take the potion off it.
Still shaking he approached with great trepidation. Almost worried he hadn’t finished the job, or perhaps more worried that he did. He reached down for the potion with both hands to try and steady his shaking hands. So much adrenaline rushed through his body he could feel his heart beating in his eyes, his feet, and his fingertips. He knelt down to the woman in a daze and tilted her face. “Take this” He panted barely able to realize what he had just done. He finally noticed the message in the bottom left.
Fighter Level 5: Experience Increase: 11.2%
Fighter Level 4: Experience Increase: 9.8%
Current Exp to Level 5 22.7%
‘They were worth that much?’ Victor distracted himself from the beautiful bleeding woman slowly catching her breath. He turned back to her as she finished the potion. She continued bleeding. Victor balled up his cloak and put it under her head as she laid there panting. “Don’t move you take more bleeding damage if you move.” He wasn’t sure of that but it felt true and it definitely wouldn’t hurt her. Victor ripped apart the tattered cloak of one of the men and started bandaging her. ‘I heard them call her a slave and I just suddenly lost control of myself. My body felt like it was moving and I was a passenger. It’s scary but it definitely doesn’t feel wrong to free someone from slavery.’
“Thank… you…” The woman said passing out.
“Ah heck, I should make sure the area is clear. I can’t really do much more, I don’t have any medicine. The bleeding seems to have stopped though.” He placed his hand on her chest. ‘Her heart is still beating, and she’s still warm, very warm. It’s not like she’s going to die in the next few minutes. Now living or dying is up to her.’ Victor stood and looked at his mana slowly regenerating and still spent. He searched the room with the torch. It was fully sealed there were no other exits. This was clearly some kind of small store room as it had bones of discarded creatures and some random items. “Should I take their equipment?” He wondered if that was stealing as his hands wavered unsteady
“I just murdered two people.” He panted against the wall. “Will I be sent to jail?” He realized if there are those that go into the wilderness to do combat with creatures like goblins they must die sometimes. ‘I just have to make it look like a goblin killed them. He picked up the two swords and stabbed them into their guts. He couldn’t help but feel disgust as he killed them but with each wave of self doubt he repeated to himself ‘They owned a slave. They owned a person. On earth we fought wars over that. I wonder how common that is here.’
“Swordie, how common are slavers here?” He turned open the book desperately hoping that slavery was a rare sight and these two were truly disastrously evil scum beyond repentance to ease his guilty mind. The book presented a question.
Clarification: How common on Verdan, or how common in the nation of Hoxal?
Verdan Hoxal
First Victor pressed Verdan to the response of ‘Common.’ He sighed and pressed Hoxal, presumably the country or city he resided in. ‘Ubiquitous.’
“Wait that means universal or everywhere right?” Victor groaned.
Yes
“You know I don’t feel like my luck changed at all.” He groaned. He checked his status sheet and noticed indeed his luck had not yet changed a single point. “I guess encountering those two when they were on their last legs was good fortune especially I would have done it anyway. Man I really thought I’d meet a group of people adventuring rush in and save them then be welcomed as a new member to the group. Instead I kill them and possibly don’t even save the girl who they had enslaved.” He slumped back.
He decided to rummage through their bodies finding their money pouches. He poured out the coins into his hands. 5 gold, 7 silver, 4 copper, and 5 gold, 2 silver, and 9 copper in the second pouch. Two people had only about 11 gold between them, assuming 10 silver is 1 gold. He took their coins. ‘Am I rich for my level?’
Victor sat back and looked at the ceiling as the smell of burning wood reached his nose. He held his hand above him shaking. “Is something wrong?” Luzuzal’s voice echoed in his mind.
‘I just murdered two people. I didn’t really feel anything hitting the goblins they tried to kill me first but it’s hard to get over being a killer. I never hurt anyone my life before this.’ He kept shaking completely unable to control the tremors in his hands.
“Calm yourself Victor.” Luzuzal took his hand. “They were scum worshiping Kokoxol. Unintentionally but they did still venerate Kokoxol. He seeks the enslavement of all life to be held to their master, who in turn will be held to him. Generally speaking even for those that consider me evil such an act of denying someone their own goals and their own desires to serve another consider such actions far more evil. This world has fallen under his thrall and so many willingly accept him without knowing better or despite knowing this. Their cruelty is unmatched.” Luzuzal released his hand revealing he never touched him and yet Victor’s hands suddenly reached a tranquil calm. “To say they are evil is a vast understatement. Freedom is one of the core values you told me you possess. My skill merely helped you to seize an opportunity to make the world one person freer than it was before. Never forget that.” Luzuzal faded from his view and he couldn’t tell how much time had passed as the fire was dying down.
He quickly relight the other two torches only to see the girl sitting upright with her arms around her stomach. “Are you alright?” Victor asked to a nod and groan as she gritted her teeth in pain. She had been stabbed in the stomach by those creatures. “Will you let me see what is wrong?” She shook her head ‘No.’ Victor sighed. “Just let me see it.” He gently grabbed her hand and noticed that while it had stopped bleeding the wound was still open. “Ah hell, I’m not even good at this but I don’t know what else to do.” He began searching for a needle or fish hook and found a small thin hook amongst the goblins things. He cut one of the clean parts from the cape of the dead unwinding the thread from a portion of the clean area. He carefully tied the string to the hook and said “This will definitely hurt but if we don’t close it you’ll die.”
He approached and she hit him in the face with her foot. “Stop! Please Master!”
“Master?” Victor nearly vomited at the word. “No my name is Victor Vogal, and if we don’t close that wound it will get infected and you’ll die.” He sterilized the hook running it through the fire of the torch causing her to back toward the wall. “This is going to hurt, please stay still.” As gently as he could he began to stitch her up remembering the time he had to stitch up a frog in class. Only four stitches to close the dagger wound. She winced in pain each time he ran it through but soon she was stitched up. “Sorry I know it hurts but they didn’t have more potions.”
“Thank you master.” She answered totally obedient.
“Please stop calling me that. You are free. I didn’t kill them to take you from them. I killed them because they owned you.” Victor explained.
“I’m free? You saved me from slavery?” She looked at her bloody hands. “Did someone send you to save me?”
“No, I just heard them call you a slave.” Victor sat against the wall looking out to the torch.
“You just saved me because they called me a slave?” She looked down at her sword and grabbed it putting it to Victor’s throat almost instantly. “No one is that nice. Did you save me to sell me? To take advantage of my body? Why!?”
“You just seemed like you needed help, so I took the risk that I was making the right call. Did I make the right call?” Victor turned and asked her as he felt the steel brush against his chin.
“You’re serious… You just killed them just for being slave owners. You didn’t even know me and you killed for me.” She relaxed and dropped her blade. “You didn’t take ownership of me while I was asleep either.” She felt her body stiff as a board collapse as she dropped her dagger to the ground. “Who are you?”
“I told you I’m Victor Vogal, Victor Vance Vogal to be precise. I’m just a wandering mage.” He explained.
“You aren’t some shining knight worshiping the Goddess? Not some nobility bent on changing the world?” She asked still confused.
“You sound disappointed.” Victor hung his head.
“No! Not at all just completely lost, I’ve been a slave for almost three years now and you freed me so suddenly I don’t know what to do with myself.” She looked down at her chest. “I still have the slave symbol inked into my chest.” She slumped back down nearly in tears. “If I don’t get it off of me the next slaver that finds out I am unclaimed will just take ownership of me. I might even have to fight monsters until I die like these two would have done to me.”
“Relax, we can stay here for tonight and you can heal a bit. We can talk about what to do in the morning.” Victor added.
“We? You’ll keep helping me?” She asked.
“I feel like you may have had a hard life and could use a little help, I wouldn’t even consider myself a good guy.” Victor shrugged. “More like the default average guy, little more than a simple man. I am painfully generic as a person.”
“You may be the kindest person I’ve ever met.” She sighed.
“That is profoundly sad.” Victor mused grabbing one of the other cloaks.
“My life has been… Difficult… My name is Serena Brooks. Those two recently bought me at an auction in the city south of here, before this a nobleman owned me. He whipped me regularly enjoying the torment before selling me, only after I had lost his interest because of the scars. Those two forced me to check ahead for monsters and traps. They never gave me a healing potion and I nearly died three times with them.” She hobbled to her feet. “We can go back to the other room where the goblins had a couple candles lit and eat something.” She smiled. “Thank you Victor.”