Chapter 2
Keith placed the magic tablet aside a few minutes later and rubbed his forehead as he ignored the clacking sounds coming from his Uncle. To sum it up, Zachery’s parents worked for the mercenary guild and took on degrading jobs such as powerleveling or bodyguarding rich brats. They funneled everything into their son’s education.
All sorts of renowned tutors trained Zachery since he was a toddler, so it was no wonder he had such stats and skills at his age. Keith guessed Zachery was at the Rare grade, meaning he could fight ten Normal grade monsters simultaneously if they were equivalent level. Since he was only 18 years old, that made him a genius.
The System gave both monsters and items the same grading system, which went Rare, Epic, Legendary, to Mythic. The System didn't give grades to adventurers, but society determined anyone who could defeat a monster by themselves at Rare grade or above could claim they were at the same grade as the monster defeated.
Keith was overwhelmed with emotion after reaching this conclusion. Much like his mother, the Turners did everything they could to improve Zachery’s life. It was a heartwarming story, at least, until disaster struck.
According to the police report, the Turners wanted to hire Orland Cruz, a formidable swordmaster above level 300 who happened to have a training slot available. To pay for his fee, the Turners took a dangerous job near the demon domain. While it was currently peacetime, minor skirmishes between demons and humans still occurred. It was on this job the Turners died.
The latest report in Zachery’s profile stated he stopped going to school and has been missing ever since. That was three months ago.
Keith took a few moments to calm down when a thought struck him. Why was Zachery out here in the wilds of Adira? This wasn’t the sort of place an 18-year old adventurer should be, especially alone. And why did Zachery have the avenger title? There was no mention of the demon who killed his parents, so how could he possibly hunt the killer down?
“It can’t be!” Keith exclaimed aloud. It was ridiculous, but maybe Zachery wanted to annihilate the entire demon race? Who did he think he was? Demons were notorious for their violent behavior, so it wasn’t uncommon for other species to hate them, but they weren’t pushovers. The demon civilization was one of the big three, alongside orcs and humans. For Zachery to want to eradicate them, did he think he was some hero?
Keith couldn’t imagine the sorrow and rage Zachery felt. He thought it was okay to punish the killer for their crimes, but that didn’t extend to the rest of demonkind. They were innocent.
Putting that matter aside, Keith guessed Zachery must’ve been training like crazy out in the wild. It was a miracle he was still alive, but Keith felt it was only a matter of time before Zachery died.
Sighing, Keith wondered if he should help.
His mother was a drinking buddy with Adventurer University's headmaster. As humanity’s number one school, it only accepted the best of the best. The minimum requirement for entry was to be Rare grade. Unfortunately, Keith guessed Zachery lacked the connections to register.
All Keith had to do was mention Zachery’s situation to his mom. The problem was, what if Zachery became strong enough to massacre the demon race to satisfy his vengeance? Keith didn’t feel comfortable with that, yet he couldn’t just leave the guy to die out here in the wild now that he encountered him.
“Hey, Lil’ Bro.”
If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
An angelic voice pulled Keith away from his thoughts. Startled, he looked up and found Annallee and Elora standing next to him. When Annallee saw she had Keith’s attention, she asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Just a small problem.” Keith shook his head. “Are you done fighting?”
“Yep!” Annallee stretched her arms. “It was a good workout.”
Keith rolled his eyes at her remark. Only a barbarian would think slaughtering a horde of monsters for an hour was a workout. She was an elf, wasn’t she? Why couldn’t she be more gentle?
“What are you thinking about?” Annallee suddenly squeezed Keith’s shoulder with a dangerous glint in her eyes.
“Ow, ow, ow!” Keith squirmed in his chair. Sure enough, her strength rivals barbarians.
“Hmph!” Annallee pulled back her hand after realizing she used too much power.
At this moment, Elora gently tugged at Keith’s robe. To this, Keith smiled warmly at Elora with brotherly love. Look how kind and sweet Elora was. Compared to a certain barbarian who shall not be named, it was day and night.
Elora pointed at her clothes covered in sweat and wolf blood. He immediately knew what she wanted. Sporting a grin, Keith activated one of the rings on his fingers. Although you couldn’t tell, he currently wore a complete set of equipment, including ten rings, two earrings, and a necklace. Keith usually set his combat equipment to invisible, or else nobody could see his outfits. Even so, they still gave their effects.
[Epic] Cleanliness Ring
Description: Grants the wearer the ‘Purify’ spell while equipped.
[Purify]
Description: Consume 5 mana to clean everything within 10-feet. 1-minute cooldown.
A gentle pulse covered everything within 10-feet of Keith. Like snow under the sun, the blood and sweat covering the twins dissipated into nothing. Even their hair and skin shined with a brighter glow as if they had turned a year younger.
While the Cleanliness ring provided no combat power whatsoever, it was just as rare as a legendary grade weapon. Rich and powerful women purchased any that popped onto the market. Keith would’ve bought two for his sisters, but it was only by luck he managed to grab the one he had. It wasn’t because he loved having them ask for help. Definitely not.
“Who was that guy earlier? He seemed hostile,” Annallee asked after inspecting her armor with a satisfied nod. At her side, Elora squinted, appearing interested.
“Oh, you won’t believe this-“ Keith was just about to share what he learned about Zachery when a giant fireball exploded some forty feet from where they were. Dirt and dust flew everywhere as Keith’s party looked over.
“Speak of the devil,” Keith exclaimed as he watched Zachery sprint out of the hellish forest at full speed, followed by a monstrous wolf the size of an ogre.
[Epic, Elemental, Rift Boss] Enkindled Wolf King – Level 150
Health: 500/500
“He aggroed the Rift Boss?!” Keith jumped off the chair, now fully alert. Unlike the wolves Annallee and Elora fought earlier, flames covered this wolf from head to toe while its mane burned yellow with tendrils of fire coiling high into the air.
As for Zachery, he had a massive bite mark across his left shoulder, below which his arm dangled helplessly. His chest armor was missing, most likely dissipating after its durability hit zero. Whatever mediocre gear he had on couldn’t withstand the attack power an Epic Rift Boss could unleash.
Zachery noticed Keith’s party shortly after exiting the forest. If he stayed on his current path, he’d run straight into them. Zachery could offload the aggro to Keith, someone he detested, but he chose not to. Clenching his teeth, Zachery changed directions, although the decision shorted the distance between him and the Rift Boss.
The Rift Boss howled and waved its front claw, sending out five arcs of red flame, which slashed across Zachery’s exposed back. Keith watched as Zachery tumbled, followed by the Rift Boss pouncing. At that moment, Keith shouted. “Uncle Doven, save him!”
Just before the Rift Boss’s jaws snapped shut, Uncle Doven casually picked up a pebble, glanced over, then swung his arm. A sonic boom knocked Keith backward as his chair and umbrella tumbled about. Annallee caught him from behind as he watched the upper half of the wolf’s body explode.
The Rift Boss died instantly as its body dissipated into particles of light. A shower of items fell onto Zachery, who groaned in pain when a helmet smacked against his head.
Uncle Doven resumed enjoying his jawbreaker after finishing his task, not interested in the loot at all.
“Quick, Elora. You have a patient to heal!” Keith sprinted off towards Zachery as Elora’s eyes sparkled. She withdrew her spiked club and followed after her brother, her smile as clear as day.