This castle. It's surrounded. Outside, the looting and burning dances like shadows on the horizon. I made out panicked cats, dragged into the streets by trolls. It did not end well for them.

Perhaps this wasn't the greatest idea. My walk back to the kitchens to find Pixie turned into a run. I have a bad feeling.

The plan I told Bartin, at least, was the trolls take the castle. That's what I told him. The trolls should besiege the castle, the King dies in the middle of the chaos, I dash to Ravyn's rescue with Pixie in tow. I tell Ravyn, "Hey, look at all those trolls. This Kingdom is over with! I'll save you, come with me!"

And then, I'd have Ravyn and Pixie in my pocket, on the road, within dagger range. Oh, and Scott is there, too. That was the dream. Have Pixie take the throne? Yes, that was her idea. But, I don't want her there. Who knows how my position is going to change with her when she gets some real authority? Of course if the King died and my escape got blocked, or if Ravyn showed some hidden strength I'd have to use the Guild to defend this castle from the trolls.

I stopped outside the kitchen, taking one last look out the castle windows. Yes, the trolls still haven't set a foot towards the castle. I slammed the stone windowsill, dashing into the kitchens, straight for the back, I found nothing.

Pixie and Scott were gone. I checked under the bed. I checked her closet I stole for her. I checked her underwear drawer. Not here. I further checked her underwear drawer. Then, I left in a panic.

Where? I've got to find them. Vizar, I'll go to the library. Maybe Pixie is acting on her own. In that case, she'd go to the guy who taught her Slime Slave, right?

Dashing down the halls, I saw Bartin ambling by, blood on his sword. I slowed down, catching his sight, but the mouse looked away. I came close to the mouse, sword out, I asked him what's going on.

"You can see. The trolls have betrayed me. I just got word from their messenger. They attacked my lands." Bartin stepped towards me, angling his sword at my throat. "We were diminished in strength after the ambush! We had so few left! So few left..." Bartin lowered his sword, looking away. "No. This is not your fault. You defended your Crimson Princess. This has nothing to do with you. I must fight. I must save as many as I can, right now!"

The fever in the mouse's eyes scared me. I slipped in front of him, trying to get as much information from him as I could. I asked him what the trolls were doing, my voice rushing.

"The trolls? They hate the cats. You handed them the cats on a silver platter, with your trick-drug. Now, Nyanyork burns, and my people are spread out in the flames! Stand aside, or I will cut you down!"

I got pushed out the way before I could move. Bartin's eyes reflected the fire burning outside as he leapt into it. I watched him pelt his body into the city streets in an instant, trolls bodies exploding in his wake.

I shrugged. Then, I reassessed. That, that was my T.T. counter. In case anything went wrong with the guild, I'd isolate T.T. first, send Bartin against them... naive. It was too simple minded of me to think I could control him. The people I trusted most in this world appears to be the trolls, literally a mob I never met. I didn't even ask about them. I just enjoyed food products made out of troll! I feel stupid.

Well, at least, let's salvage the situation. I dashed towards the library. I could say, Bartin's controlling the situation in the city, so he's working in my favor! Actually, it was my plan all along to burn down the cats and leave the castle standing! Yeah, yeah right. I slowed down again as I knocked on the library door, only to hear the crackle of lightning. Vizar's magic. I kicked down the door.

Across from Vizar stood Geradt. The two of them faced off. Geradt's simple brown robe burned with live flame and singed cloth as a green aura emanated from him. Vizar blasted him with a flash of lightning, pushing him off. Vizar held his head, but I didn't see any damage. Then, Geradt fist plunged into Vizar's skull, caving it in. I watched as Geradt's position reset to before his punch. Vizar, however, stumbled back, firing lighting wildly. Books in the library were caught in a merry blaze.

The green and red lights dancing from Geradt's magic and the flaming books reminded me of Christmas. It's a great time to use that new ability I got from my dagger upgrade. I'll get closer.

I saw Scott in a corner, protecting Pixie. Vizar stumbled back onto Scott's shield, taking another hit. Guess he's a wimp. Vizar whirled toward Geradt, shouting.

"Stop this! What good is it now!"

Geradt answered by crushing Vizar's head again.

"I understand now. You've always loved heroes. But, I never thought you hated the elves. You knew, you knew how much, for how long I served them, and you kept your hatred from me, for all these years?!" A gut punch, followed by a shot to Vizar's head. "Look outside, at those mongrels! Who do you think caused this, who do you think decayed the order of the elves? These Heroes! I am sure of it, they have—"

A rain of daggers soared into his back. My bad. Your monologue was the perfect time for a fatal attack. This is one of my new abilities. [Gifting This Wonderful World With Daggerings]. It allows me to control a rain of phantom daggers. Geradt's back filled up with them as I poured on more, making a slight game of how much I could stack onto his upper back alone.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Geradt turned. Despite all that, he isn't phased? I'm kinda scared. I drew my dagger, raising to my feet. Geradt lumbered towards me. "You. You. You did this. You did everything..."

I did, actually, and I'm regretting it, but, that's besides the point. "Geradt. Do you remember?"

Geradt face screwed up. He stopped, as a cloud of phantom daggers formed behind him.

"Remember? Now? What could you possibly say to me now? Are you begging for your life with some strange, Hero plot?"

"You asked Pixie to pay you."

Geradt forget the daggers in his back for a moment.

"Pay?"

"At the guild. For the healing. But, you know." I lowered my hand, watching the daggers flood into Geradt's aura. "I hate debt."

Geradt's knees buckled to the ground, his voice silenced by daggers. He lay on the floor, a green aura strengthening around him. I walked over, crouched, and stabbed his head. It took a few minutes, and summoning more daggering clouds to rain down before the green light died out.

Vizar tumbled into a chair, gasping for breath. Pixie squeezed past Scott, latching onto me. I saw she had a hit on her head. My hand brushed her hair off the wound as I motioned to Scott.

"Can't you fix this?" I said, glancing at the hit on her head. Scott shook his head, grim.

"Let's put her in that chair." Scott helped me move Pixie carefully, sitting her down. Scott's eyes watered a bit. "Not your fault," I whispered, blaming him inside myself, I sought Vizar.

The old man lay breathing hard in a chair. His hat lay burning in flames in a corner. I patted the old wizard's cheek, trying to get him to his senses. No good. His pupils are flying about, not looking at me. Now that I think about it, I must have really good willpower to withstand dying so much. Maybe my WIL stat? No, couldn't be. I laughed inside, taking the old man's hand over my shoulder, I got him to his feet. He dragged along as I supported him out of the burning room, then soared back in to grab Pixie. Scott and I managed to get her down on the carpet outside. I went back into the burning room, shutting the windows and cutting off a wall hanging, I left the library. Closing the door, I stuffed the wall hanging at the door's crack. This might slow the fire down, a little. Right?

I questioned my own thinking as I leaned over the Princess, using a panty I stole earlier from her drawer to wipe the blood off her head. Scott scowled at me, crouching down. "Fire?" He asked. "What?" I genuinely don't know what he's thinking.

"Shouldn't we put the fire out..." He glanced out the window. "Lotta trolls outside."

"We could use my blood."

Scott looked at me in shock.

"What? That's disgusting."

"It would work."

"How'd you even come up with that? Ugh. Not gonna get that image out of my head."

"You asked first." I stared at Pixie's head. "I'm used to death. It might take awhile, but..."

"Okay, okay, please, please stop." Scott's hands were pleading with me. What's wrong with him?

I checked her head. "Yeah. It would be great if we had a healer."

"You just killed the healer. Where'd you pull that spell from? Said 'Dagger magic' in the combat log."

"Dagger magic. I like it." I sighed, staring at Vizar leaning against a wall. An eye strayed towards Pixie. My tone wavered. "How- how's Pixie been otherwise?" What am I saying.

Scott blanked at me with his face. "Why, why would you ask that now?"

"Nevermind," I rose. We can't leave them here. Then, Pixie's hand rose to her head. Her hand shaking, it emitted a pale green light. "Oh!" I cheered in excitement. Pixie adjusted her head, coughing a little, she sat up, pulling herself against the wall. I crouched down next to her. "You okay?"

"Fine. Just fine." And there's that trademark smile, hiding hatred, I see.

"I came as fast as I could."

"It's fine."

"I'm sorry."

"You'd better be." Pixie sighed. "The trolls. How'd the trolls get here?"

Well I happen to have conspired with the mouse hero to drug the cat population and then inform the troll leaders of this so that they may lead me to a more advantageous personal position, supposedly, all at the expense of your kingdom, milady.

"Dunno."

She looks upset. She can't read minds. There is no way she can read minds, so, calm down. After testing if Pixie could walk fine, we grabbed Vizar, retreating to the throne room. I tried to convince the Princess to head for my prepared secret escape route. She wasn't having any of it. There, on the throne, her father's corpse.

Must have been Bartin. He had blood on his sword earlier. Though, there's no point in telling her that. Pixie attached herself to me.

Ravyn. I need to get to Ravyn. Get her, escape. However, from the back of the throne, the elf strode, revealing himself. Two daggers in his hands, six on his waist. Blood shined on both daggers.

"The king is dead, mister dagger. As we agreed." Flynn grinned. Pixie's eyes glinted at me from below, her hand tightening on my shirt, ripping it.

"Hey hey, he's lying! I really didn't! You'd believe an elf over me?" I think she would.

Flynn plodded closer across the throne rooms carpet. Pixie flung herself off of me, running behind a pillar. Scott took up my back.

"Why, Flynn? What's the point?"

"Point? This is your act, isn't it?" Flynn looked out over Nyanyork. "You plotted with me to grant the throne to Pixie, isn't this exactly what you wanted?"

We never had that conversation. He's trolling me. Flynn must have seen me with Bartin, and when the trolls came on the horizon, he saw a chance. Separate me from the Princess, is that it? Turn her against me? She wouldn't join the side of her father's murderer. Even if she plotted slaying her dad herself, this is different. As if the intent is solely to have Pixie distrust me.

I summoned a cloud of daggers behind Flynn. He charged. "Dagger magic? You are amusing."

He slipped behind me, kicking me while I took two stabs to my head and back. "And now, the main course."

Scott screamed, taking a dagger to his gut. Flynn took a punch to his face, then Scott reset backwards. The dagger wound disappeared. Flynn grinned, pulling his arms wide. "Merry Christmas."

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Quest Complete! Level Cap Removed!

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The elf's form faded, as if flickering. One of his daggers fell to the ground, a devilish grin lighting his face. "Spam email, it's the gift that keeps on giving, isn't it?"