"How is it?” Anastasia asks me.

I sigh. “I found a guy, but the problem is that there are around thirty humans in the village, nearly all of them in the 2nd tier. We don’t stand a chance in a direct confrontation.”

All of us fall into silence, thinking about the solution. Axi is sitting cross-legged near me. Her face in deep thought looks kind of cute. I stop myself from looking, and return to thinking about the problem.

Asaru’s magic is incredibly versatile. I guess the fact that she had it for likely tens of years helps a lot. Regardless, I don’t like relying on her, but I find myself thinking about ways we can kill the man using her magic powers.

“I’m not sure if this is possible,” Anastasia starts, “but could you make my arrow invisible? We could kill him without entering the place.”

Oh. That’s a good idea.

“I can, but I’m not sure you will be able to kill him even with that.” Asaru explains.

I chuckle. “This is a great idea. Remember, I can boost her, while we can do something to enhance the bow with Asaru’s magic. Actually, “ I look at Axi and say, "I think we have the basics of a plan.”

[Samantha’s POV]

“Maybe we should have changed direction on that dirt road back then.” Nancy complains.

“Stop it! We can’t turn around at this point.” I shout.

We managed to buy a bunch of cheap weapons and food, and then we left the town. Fortunately, before anyone decided to interrogate us about Smag. Maybe we should have picked that dirt road, but I fear bandits. And so, we try to pull the cart through the forest.

We both dismounted the cart long ago. I’m glad none of our cargo is fragile.

“Do we even move in the right direction? If monsters kill us, I will haunt you after my death.”

I scoff. “Can one ghost even haunt another? You are unreasonable! Maybe we should have stayed in the town...”

“Just keep pushing.”

I grumble, but help push the cart over a root. I’m all sweaty. This is not a life I imagined I would have.

After another hour, we recognize the forest, to the relive of both of us. We change directions a bit and keep whipping the poor horse. “Come on, we will let you rest soon. Just a few minutes more,” I say to the horse.

When we notice the village, we both hug each other. We made it. We move towards it, while the villagers look at us. Those who know us give us incredulous looks, while those who don’t know us, look at us with some hope and eagerness. There are still the town’s guards around, though they seem busy. I guess the news was faster than us.

“What are you doing here? You aren’t welcome.” Daria, that arrogant bitch says to us.

“We need to speak to Adam. Call him for us.” I reply arrogantly, to which she scowls.

“Over my dead body.”

“Are you merchants?” Someone else asks.

“We are! We would like to speak to your leader, though!” I shout, and someone goes to fetch him, I guess. Few people who know us smile. I guess they think it’s funny how we speak. I’m a bit embarrassed as well, but we are still in danger. Who cares more about embarrassment than their life?

Adam comes to us after a minute. “I heard there was a commotion in the town. I’m sure you had nothing to do with it.” He gives us a pointed look.

I hedge a bit, and me and Nancy look at each other.

“Nope.”

“Nothing at all.”

“Good. Come to my house, we will discuss your offer, I presume.”

We both nod obediently. “About the cart…”

“Don’t worry.” He then shouts orders to his fighters. “Guard the cart; make sure nobody steals anything. We can’t have our reputation tarnished.”

We follow him to a clay house. Inside, his girlfriend serves us tea. When was the village so wealthy? Or did they discover a local plant that could be brewed?

“Why did you come here? And what about Smag?”

“Lord Smag is busy in the town, and he told us to stay here for a while.”

Adam grimaces at our lie.

“We have food and some weapons with us. We offer them in exchange for keeping us here safe and well-fed for the time being.”

“Are you not worried someone would steal your cart?”

“We trust in your rightfulness.”

“I’m sure nobody wants to anger Lord Smag.” Nancy adds.

“I suppose it’s true. Very well, you have a deal. Stay in my house until the town’s guards leave. What happened in the town?”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

We nod and explain that Smag went into the dungeon to do goblinish and warlockish things. We try to sound knowledgeable and in control, but I have a feeling we are failing horribly. Adam looks thoughtful, however. Maybe we are not so bad?

[Smag’s POV]

“How about making it both invisible and sharp and hard as steel?” I ask Asaru.

“What is invisible and hard?”

“Invisible blade?”

She shrugs. “I never saw any.”

I sigh. I suppose this is the main weakness of her mana type. She can fake anything in theory, but only once at a time. She also needs to understand what she is doing. Which is better? Sharpness, or invisibility?

How much Endurance could Guildmaster possibly have? How much Vitality? My Vitality is doing fine due to my trait, but Endurance is on par with a durable 1st tier monster. Axi is more durable than me, but she is still made of flesh. An arrow that would punch right through me would stop on her muscles.

That’s the plan. I think Anastasia could assassinate the Guildmaster using an arrow. We won’t need to enter the village. Escaping would be easier. Axi already filled the second arrow to the brim with fire mana, which is meant to act as a distraction. The explosion won’t be too damaging, especially against experienced 2nd tier fighters, but that’s not the point. We just want them to erect their defenses in response, giving us a few seconds of them not chasing us.

The problem is the actual assassination. “Let’s try it.” I move to my last surviving hobgoblin. Asaru changes him into fake air, while I try to buff him. It isn’t working.

“Can you make us invisible in a different way? Maybe project a fake image of a tunnel?”

She thinks for a moment, then agrees. “Probably, but that would take most of my mana.”

I frown. So, invisible, or powerful arrow? I decide to go with the invisible. Asaru can make it like a sharp gale, not losing the arrowhead’s sharpness, but also not adding to it. We can still reinforce it in a classical way with more ambient mana. It should be enough to pierce the Guildmaster, especially since the arrow will be very fast. We don’t have any poison, but hitting a vital point should also be enough to overcome Guildmaster Vitality.

“Let’s go!” I declare.

Asaru makes us all invisible and opens the tunnel. She leaves it with me and Anastasia. We creep to the bored adventurers. They both keep Mana Shields. I sigh and channel some isolating mana into my right arm. This mess with the fake mana, making my hand partially visible, but this is necessary. Both me and Asaru hit guardsman heads at the same time, inserting isolating mana into their heads.

Asaru waves her hand, and a film-like object appears across the tunnel, showing two guards and nothing else. Both me and Anastasia become visible shortly after. I place the unconscious guard to the side. Killing them would likely alert the Guildmaster.

“The bow.” I command, and Asaru makes Anastasia’s bow change into a fake metal bow. I stir vitality inside her, making it go berserk, and add more on top of it. This is my strongest version of the buff that doesn’t mess with nerves, aka the transmission of information through vitality.

Anastasia exhales and inhales. She draws her bow, making it creek from the exertion. I don’t think Asaru film blocks sound, but it doesn't seem like someone noticed, or, more troublesome, decided to investigate.

She aims while her arms shake a bit. My buff is no joke, being practically a berserking skill. She told us she has perks that would make it possible to shoot regardless, so I trust that won’t be the problem. It's better for an arrow to be too slow than to miss.

Suddenly, her arms stop completely. She makes minute adjustments and loose her arrow. Before checking the first one, she nocks the second one that contains fire mana and shoots it.

I observe the first arrow, though. It flies quite beautifully, missing a few tents and an adventurer. Then, it hits Guildmaster’s head, pushing twenty centimeters inside. Unless they have a great healer or the Guildmaster is an incredible tank, this should be over. I don’t wait to see the effect of the second arrow, but I rush back with the girls.

We reach the hidden tunnel and run through it to the second exit. We leave as a group and enter another hidden tunnel shortly after. We sit down for now.

“Should we hit them now?” Anastasia asks.

“I’m nearly out of mana.” Axi declares.

“I’m on scraps as well.” I say.

“Half.” Asaru says. What? How is that possible?

“Didn’t you spend most of your mana on that illusion back then?”

“Yes, but I recovered it back. After all, it was near me when I broke it.”

“What do you mean?”

Asaru rotates her head like a dog that sees something strange. “I don’t understand.”

I analyze it quickly in my head. “Can you turn fakeness back into fake mana?”

“You can’t?”

I frown. “No.”

“Oh. No wonder you are lacking mana all the time.”

I scowl. Even if I could, I wouldn't help me that much. Healing is not reversible, as harming someone’s vitality directly is nearly impossible. You need to overpower their Will. I could do that to people I gave my Healer rune, but most of them are my allies and are worth more as combatants than emergency vitality mana supplies. Even if I were to try it, they would likely protest, and the Healer rune that allows me to use wills in conjunction would fail.

“Anyway,” I change the subject, “we should probably strike weaker targets.”

“Not me.”

“Why?” I’m irritated. It’s a bit embarrassing to admit, but she is the strongest and most useful among us.

“I survived decades by avoiding going to war with adventurers. You won’t win like that.” She shakes her head.

I frown. This is an argument I can win, and I need to win it. I restrain myself and think of an approach.

“You know, the war is already happening, wherever you want it or not. Humans are going to sweep the tunnels again. You may be able to hide yourself, but would you also hide all your subordinates?”

“Or I can give them your group.” She gives me a pointed look.

I’m not intimidated. “Yes. And live here without any hope for a few more decades. Alternatively, you can go along with my plan, and maybe leave this place in a month or two.” I continue. “Humans just lost their main way of communication, and there has to be some confusion, even if they have a plan B. We need to use the chance and kill at least some of them, even if we are tired ourselves.”

Axi nods and raises up. Anastasia sighs, but joins us.

Asaru's face becomes gloomy. I wait for her, while she sits on the ground.

“Very well.” She declares and raises as well.

In this type of fight, we have to rely on Asaru. She finds targets, assassinates one of them, then either escapes or motions us to ambush. We wander and fight for around two hours, killing four whole groups. Asaru assassinates ten more humans on top of that, most of them priests.

“It seems they are regrouping.”

“Everyone is wary, at least. There must be a word spreading about us.” Anastasia adds.

“Let’s end it for today. Asaru, can you lead us to a safe location for tonight?”

She nods, and we find a place. We drop luggage. It’s a waste to let go of most of the adventurers’ possessions, so we dragged them with us. Weapons, water, and food are the main things in the bags, as are clothes and sometimes blankets.

Sounds of crunching bones make me look at the group. Right. Also, corpses. Human food is fine, but it’s also limited. Most of them don’t plan to spend days here.

Looking at the corpses, I feel some revulsion. I never been squeamish. Actually, I always figured that if I were to be stranded on some desert due to a crash without food, I would be one of the first to propose to eat others.

“Having second thoughts?” Anastasia taunts me.

I scoff. “It’s just…” I suppose it’s the way of eating. You can eat human meat culturally or like an animal. Asaru and Axi eat like animals. Should I find a plate for myself? I sigh self-depreciatingly.

“What?”

“I don’t need rich food, I will settle for human provisions for now.”

She chuckles. “Welcome to the club.”

Axi and Asaru don’t have such problems. Both have a leg in their claws that they eagerly devour. Blood is dripping from Axi’s chin.

I don’t know what humans will do tomorrow, but we need to be prepared. I sharpen my sword a bit and go to sleep near Axi.