Chapter 10

"Puuuh I'm out, finally. That stench, even with all this snow. I can't believe people live IN there day in and day out." Gwenith sighed as she build up her tent about a mile to the west of Valaan. 'Luckily I didn't come across any Maqir monks.' The Crusaders of Maqir weren't actually monks but they wore grey robes and all had shaven heads which made them resemble monks at least in looks if not in anything else. The streets of Valaan were empty that night mostly because of the snowstorm going through the area but also because of the recently occupying Crusaders. Tension was in the air as any magician who hasn't yet fled the city feared for his life.

Gwenith didn't bother to prepare any early alarm systems. Her Vitality and Resistances were at such a high level that barely anything could harm her seriously. Once her blood was drawn she'd awake with a smile on her face and eyes turning red but tonight nothing disturbed her sleep. Even the beasts were affected by the storm or they sensed the danger coming from the lonely tent.

Gwenith woke up to muffled sounds of sniffing and growling. "Aaaaah" she stretched herself "What a beautiful morning." She opened her tent to find it buried in snow. After punching through the white layer she was greeted by three black wolves. They seemed to be around level 20 and looked at Gwenith's head sticking out of the snow while baring their teeth. "Good morning lovelies" she said while smiling. 'Bloodthirst' she activated her main skill. While crimson shining tattoos appeared on her body the snow around her melted. Two of the wolves were already running but one was still glaring at her from brown to red changing eyes while starting to tremble. The light soon dimmed and black tattoos could be seen on the visible skin of the woman. "What a lovely breakfast you are" she said as she stood in the puddle of water. The trembling wolf started to turn but found himself unable to move. Something was holding his tail. "I don't think so little friend" she said as she easily dragged the wolf towards her. She broke his neck in one quick movement and skinned the beast in less than five minutes...with her bare hands. "Aaah I looove the scent of blood" she licked her fingers and begun eating parts of the wolf. The tattoos soon disappeared as Gwenith finished her meal. Other beasts would gladly finish the partially eaten wolf she left behind.

Before she started westwards Gwenith cleaned her hands and face with snow and dried her tent before putting it back in her rucksack. Psychology hasn't been very developed so far in Dawn but it is speculated that classes have an influence on the personality of a human. There was no proof so far because there was also a theory stating that classes are assigned based on personality.

The sun came up from behind the trees and lit the snow covered region in a warm light. A lone woman could be seen walking to the west. Not many dared travel alone so this sight was certainly special. Gwenith followed the partially paved road to make sure of the direction. After four hours of walking, killing the occasional wolf, Hellhound and Ice spider she came across a small camp on the side of the road. It should be mentioned that the road at this point consisted only of markings on trees and stones because it was too dangerous to build so far into the wild, or they couldn't pay for sufficient adventurers to protect them.

"Greetings fellow traveler, coming from Valaan?" the guard greeted her and she saw the other five people lift their heads from their meals to inspect the interesting newcomer. "Indeed, it has been a tough journey so far, would you let me join you for safety and strength?" saying those two last words Gwenith asked to join their party for the time being. It started early in the new world as people joined together to hunt and protect. Many died and still do. Nearly nobody would reject someone in the wild, no matter how suspicious they may seem. Outside the walls the enemy is Dawn and not other humans, that is still the rule even though it seemed to slowly change in the past year.

"And there I thought you were just a lost girl in the woods. Apologies friend and of course you may join in our safety." younger people often didn't know about sayings like that mostly because they just aren't used as often anymore but everybody fighting for over five years would know them. Safety and strength was one of the first used to join parties and it at least implied that the one using it is a veteran. Of course everybody could utter those words but younger or less experienced Travelers were heavily discouraged to do so. Some even lost a couple teeth over it.

"Thank you all." said Gwenith as she joined the five people sitting by the fire. They were eating soup with seemingly potatoes but she had already eaten beforehand and didn't ask for food. The group seemed fairly standard. 'Tank, Healer, Thief and three warriors it seems...hmm no wizards' she sat down and looked at the fire. "Any news from Valaan?" asked the presumed Thief. "The winter hit hard, some even experience hunger for the first time in years. The Guild lacks personnel." it was custom for newcomers to inform the party about the area they've come from. she continued "The Crusaders have gained further influence, seems like they'll seize the city in a couple months...peacefully mind me...with the occasional pyres of course."

One of the warriors shot a glance towards the Thief as he heard the last words but nobody reacted further. Gwenith only caught it because of her high perception. She didn't join the party particularly because the way was dangerous. She would manage alone as she always did but it was stranger for a group of people to gather here. No known ruins or monster dens were around here which meant they were either traveling or hunting for something else. If that something else was a fleeing mage Gwenith couldn't help but be interested. The Crusaders had special hit squads that didn't look like the rest of them and this group could certainly be one of those. 'Well let's see how they are' "Are you going westwards?" she asked towards the Thief who seemed to lead the group.

"Indeed, but only for another couple miles. We got a job in the vicinity. What leads you here?" he answered surprisingly detailed. 'He thinks himself safe...' she smiled internally as she answered "I finally left Valaan to travel to the capital. I hated that stinking city and its imprisoning walls." it was only partially true. Gwenith liked Valaan, it was her home even with its shortcomings. She loved the wild more but didn't have to mention that to the group. 'Chances are pretty high they at least work for the Crusaders.' the questions seemed way to suspicious, nearly like an interrogation in which she could ask some questions back. The lack of mages was her main problem though. Nobody could deal with clusters of monsters as well as an elemental wizard. 'Having three warriors makes little sense, except you're not primarily hunting monsters. And they do have a healer, the only magic not seen as corrupted by Maqir.'

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"I'm not sure starting your adventure in the capital is the best idea..." said the Tank before finishing his bowl of soup. "I'm not sure about that...they're only rumors and very few have died." the healer added as he put another piece of wood into the fire. "If it gets too dangerous I'll just come east again. Outside the forests should be safe..." she opened her backpack and searched for a whetstone. After finding one she unsheathed one of the seven feet Ultragreatswords and started to treat it. Her hand was burning as she held the sword down but she didn't show the pain. 'Let's see how suspicious they are now...'

One of the warriors shook his head "Come on Seth, you're seeing this right?" he expectantly looked towards the thief. "Alright." Seth sighed and thrust his hand towards Gwenith. "Seth, nice to meet you. Sorry about the interrogation, we're with the Crusaders." Gwenith took his hand "Gwenith, likewise nice meeting you. I'm a warrior so don't worry about that anymore." Seth abruptly turned her hand and showed it to his colleagues who in turn immediately shot up and drew their weapons. "Then Gwenith...how do you explain that burned hand?" he asked in a very calm voice. 'I knew this would cause trouble...he's good if he noticed my hand though.' she freed herself and jumped two steps backwards. "I just bought the swords and my level is still a little too low to use them, that's also why I wanted to join you. I can't gather experience without using my weapons." that wasn't the whole truth. Gwenith could easily kill with her hands only to reach level 190 but it certainly would be faster in a party and she was also curious about them.

"Hmm, sounds fishy but I know of a good way to test it...what's your level?" Seth asked. Still in a calm and reasonable tone. "134, I have 350 Strength." there is no way to check another's level or stats so lying about them was very common and even advised. Except when looking for a good party but even then people would sometimes lie causing unpredicted trouble. Some parties were wiped out because nobody even reached the level they advertised in. Most use a test to determine one's level. "Ragen you still have that 120 sword with 200 Strength requirement right?" Seth looked towards the tank who sheathed his weapon and started to unpack his huge bag.

"Seth she's suspicious, we should just finish her off." another one of the warriors said. "And confirm the bias that the Crusaders are murdering zealots? No Noah we'll find out, we're only a day behind. We have some time." Noah's expression changed as he looked at Gwenith with fury in his eyes. Meanwhile the tank found the mentioned sword after nearly emptying his bag and handed it to Seth. "Alright just pick it up and strike that tree over there for a minute." He pointed at the tree next to Gwenith and skillfully threw the sword before her. She easily picked it up and started to work on the tree. 'Lucky, I'm not sure if I could've taken them with just my hands. Seth seems to be in his higher Gold levels and Ragen is even higher. That shield can't be used before level 200 I'm sure of it.' she thought as she mangled the tree with her powerful blows.

"Y...You can stop now...you're fine." Seth lightly tapped her shoulder as she worked on the stump of the tree she felled in under a minute. 'Oh shit I was too focused...well it shouldn't matter...they probably assumed I lied about my level anyway.' she stopped and handed Seth the sword. Regan after packing his bag back together, which took a considerable amount of time because he first had to dry all its contents, walked towards Gwenith and shook her hand. "Name's Regan, squad leader you passed the test I guess." while smiling heartily. "You're free to join us on our hunt."

After that each of the party introduced themselves but Noah still eyed her with suspicion. They had gotten the assignment to check on a local legend. "A witch? There are actual witches?" it didn't sound very probable. Gwenith saw a wide variety of mages and wizards but none of them were actual witches like in the stories from Earth. "Are you sure it's not just bloodmagic or something like that?" she asked with genuine interest but was promptly shut down "Well isn't that exactly what a witch does?" Seth looked at her with a confused expression. 'Well so much for zealots, these people are dangerous. I shouldn't use my skills at all while traveling with them.'

Regan touched Seth's shoulder and smiled "You must excuse his ignorance. The younger soldiers often find it hard to understand the wide variety of mana users. The target is indeed speculated to be a bloodmagic or necromancy user. We're not sure if it's a monster or a Traveler." Gwenith could already think of someone who might fit that description. "You're not serious are you....those are just stories...to keep little kids from going outside the walls." she couldn't believe they were after the wicked witch. "Oh Gwenith if it were only stories. We found several witnesses telling of a woman living around a mile west from here. She has killed dozens but some have escaped. Even if you don't believe in the corruption you must agree that she's dangerous and must be killed." Regan looked towards Seth and continued "Oh by the way Seth that was good work back there, I'll be sure to mention it to the commander."

"Hahahahahaha" the sudden laughter startled the party as they looked towards Gwenith "The wicked witch...oh I have to see this." she wiped tears from her eyes "I'll join your hunt oh noble Crusaders" she said with a grin. Noah grinded his teeth at her sarcasm but Regan only chuckled "Then so be it. Let's pack together and move on, we've lost enough time as it is." All of them went to work and even Gwenith helped packing up. It didn't matter which ideology or faction one belonged to, in the wild everybody was still an adventurer.