Chapter 3
I could feel a dark presence shrouding me on the inside, like some kind of tar creeping all over my soul, and pain was crackling through my body like so many tiny lightning snakes.
Then like a balm on a wound, I felt a serene and cold presence wash over me, and I raised my head to look at my benefactor.
She was tall, taller than most catkin I ever encountered, and had deep golden eyes whose vertical slits seemed to pierce me, as if she was looking beyond my physical body.
She had a massive mane of red hair that fell low on her back, slightly above her long black tail, and her head was adorned with beautiful black ears.
Her face was as serene and cold as her spells, her resting expression neutral and slightly… empty? I’m not sure, but that’s how it felt: empty.
She was clothed in a sleeveless A-line dress with a flared knee-length skirt and a deep cleavage showing much of her four-row bosom. The cut was simple but quite beautiful, black cloth and red hair mixing beautifully.
“Leave the support to me.” She said with her deep, motherly voice, warm and welcoming, nodding at me.
I felt hope swell in my chest and power rise through my body as I decisively grabbed the horrible sword she had given me, my only mean of survival, then turned around to kill those green monsters that had chased us since we fell in this hell.
I smirked. How strange this situation was. Back then, I would have never thought that this could happen to me.
***
Growing up, my brother and I didn’t lack much. Mom and Dad were pretty good adventurers, so they had both money and reputation aplenty. We would just miss them very much when they went hunting or dungeon-diving, but even then Mom’s sisters, our aunts, would take care of us as if we were their own children.
We were free, we played a ton with our cousins and the other village kids. Summers were hot, winters were cold, and we would roam by any time. Life was great, even though we were forced to go to school, our parents really insisted on that.
Then Mom and Dad died in a dungeon, and our life changed.
At first it was only loss and sadness. Losing your parents when you’re nine is a pretty big shock, after all, even if you’re not alone to mourn.
We cried on their tomb alongside our aunts and cousins, wept a few more days then, like a lasso, life dragged us back to our daily routine.
Food tasted like ash, though. The sun was too cold, or too hot. Springs colors were faded, as were autumn but, honestly, if we knew what the future had in stock for us, I would have prayed for life to stay that way.
It hadn’t been a few months since our parents’ death that our village got attacked, a feud between our lord and the one close byOur village was pillaged under the name of justice, and we were taken as prisoners, then sold as slaves.
The slaver that bought us was a dirty woman, a crook that looked at us like we were mere tools. She didn’t do anything that would have ‘damaged the merchandise’, as she says, but her employees had means to entertain themselves without leaving marks.
We were hers for only a month, but it felt longer than the whole time we had been alive since then. Daily beatings, bullying and degrading orders slowly broke our resolve, until she finally decided to sell us.
We weren’t a costly commodity, and only a handful of silver passed hands to relinquish us from her contract.
The man that bought us was a trainer, as they called them.
Take cheap slaves, children, and train them to make them ready to take a new class once they were twelve, when the system unlocked the battle classes.
It was a better life than with the slave trader. We weren’t roughed up without purpose, we weren’t tortured or bullied, but it was still hard.
We had to push our bodies to their limit every day, grind our stats and acquire as many useful skills as possible, to be ready to be sold as bodyguards or gladiators trainees.
It was harsh, but we survived, Kael and I, by relying on each other. I helped him with the physical exercises, massaging him and carrying him when he was too tired to keep going, and he help me learn to read common and rune language, since he had a knack for it.
As the date of our sale came closer, however, we became more and more restless. After all, we didn’t know if we were going to be separated or not, and we feared that.
After so much hardship, however, it seemed that luck was finally on our side.
A minor noble bought us exactly on our birthday, together.
He took us back and cared for us, being very kind in a cold and distant kind of way. Back at his manor, we were washed by maids and equipment was made for us, and he asked us to show him what we had learned and our status.
We were greeted by other slaves from many different races, that all worked for him. He was a noble that took his oath to protect his people quite seriously and, for this end, he would dive in dungeons, not unlike adventurers, to be sure to have the proper levels and classes to fulfill his duty, taking slaves and retainers with him to build his forces, and be the most useful since his main class was a kind of commander-support type.
We were his newest helpers and, honestly, it didn’t feel that bad. We were treated well, the other slaves were quite nice and reassured us, telling us that he may appear cold but that he was really just soft and fluffy on the inside, and we got our hopes up.
A few days passed as we trained with the rest of the group, to be sure that we would be able to coordinate well, then we set for a freshly-appeared dungeon, whose first few floors had already been explored and secured enough by adventurers.
It was the day we would fight for the first time, level up and gain our second class, our first combat-oriented one.
Then all the excitement and all our hopes, were all crushed once again when we fell into a trap.
The last thing I remember from then was the face of that noble, extending his hand toward me and my brother, trying to save us, before a flashing light rendered us blind, and we found ourselves somewhere else.
The meadow had had a welcome feeling to it, but we could see we were still in the dungeon, at first simply because of the walls and ceiling, then by the fact that monsters started to track us.
We ran, and ran, and ran, but my brother’s body wasn’t like man and, sooner than later, he fell from exhaustion.
My body was on fire, my lungs screaming for air and my muscles begging for rest, but I still grabbed Kael and kept running, because I knew that if we were caught, we would die.
I wanted to cry, to beg, to scream, but I had to keep my strength to run and couldn’t even vent as despair grew inside of me, at the same speed exhaustion ate me.
That's when it happened. She happened.
***
Now my body felt like it had a week to rest, and strength was swelling inside of me as the stranger’s spells boosted me. Sword in hand and determined to use it, I dashed at the enemy.
I didn’t know if I could believe the stranger, if she would really help and support me through this fight, or what would happen to me since I was now cursed by the sword I was wielding, but I knew that if I didn’t fight here, Kael and I would die.
I didn’t survive the death of my parents, the destruction of my village and our enslavement to die in a fucking dungeon!
***
I don’t know where she finds that determination, but it’s good that she’s able to fight.
I really thought she would just freeze.
She’s really just a level 6 commoner?
Well, it’s clear there’s a story behind that, I mean…
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Yeah, those skills and stats don’t come from nowhere.
I don’t really care where they come from right now, though.
I’m just happy she’s able to fight.
Indeed. It would have been a lot more difficult if she hadn’t been quite so ready to take that weapon and start the battle.
And since we were the ones that started it… I said to my fold-minds, we’ll also properly support her. Less chit-chat, more support.
Yes!
Of course Main!
On it!
The hobgoblins were now entirely free but they didn’t rush madly into battle. Those were high-level hobs, intelligent and warry of the new variable in the equation of this battle, me.
Lana was also careful, she was outnumbered, and seeing how few actual battle skills she possessed, this may be her first real fight.
She turned twelve two weeks ago, so it’s not surprising.
“Terrenacht is a longsword, you need to use both hands to use it. It is slow and powerful.” I started explaining as the enemy slowly fanned out around us.
“You won’t be able to outmatch their speed, so you need to be careful about committing to a strike, but you also need to fully commit once you’re on your way. One decisive strike is all you need, even a simple cut big enough to make them bleed out is sufficient, as most monsters don’t have high-powered healing means.”
I could feel that she was only half-listening, but it was understandable, she didn’t really have the time to focus entirely on me.
“They’re more numerous than you. If I wasn’t here, that would be a problem, but right now, focus on disabling each hobgoblin in one strike. Don’t worry about me, try to avoid attacks from the other monsters but don’t hesitate to strike, even if you’re left open. It’s unavoidable in such a fight. Don’t be scared, I won’t let you die.”
She nodded at me and, as if this was a signal, she and the hobs suddenly rushed into battle.
You could see that her Evasion skill was indeed quite high when she dodged the first hobs’ strike but, apart from that, she really was a newbie in a fight.
Well, it was surprising since you couldn’t learn offense-oriented skills nor equip catalysts before twelve.
Having dodged the strike, she used the brute strength her STR stat gave her to counterattack, her speed not half bad compared to those monsters since her AGI was pretty good, but the hob showed the difference in experience by expertly parrying the strike.
Holy shit.
Which didn’t do it any good, though, when the Terrenacht’s edge turned ventablack-kind of dark, cutting straight through the Hobgoblin’s sword, armor and body. Lana’s strike had been so heavy that she even fell frontward, sticking her sword in the ground.
The other monsters, ready to attack the previous second, didn’t take the opportunity, struck in place by shock and surprise, not unlike Lana who looked at the gory scene that had been the hob just a second before, blood sprayed everywhere, tainting her white armor red.
Are level 20 Hobgoblins really that weak for a level 6 commoner to cut through them?
No, Terrenacht’s attack value is just insane.
I’m not sure about that. I said the manyfolds, we may just be rusty.
We’ve been fighting high-level monsters for too long.
And since we can’t do any damage, our judgment isn’t spot one?
Can’t really blame us, if you don’t play the game you can’t grasp its rules.
The Hobs recovered slightly faster than Lana and finally used the opportunity to strike at her.
Not on my watch.
Hands full of Lana’s brother, that I had clothed in the meantime, since I didn't think he would like staying naked, I used a level 1 Wind spell, air bullet, to deflect its blade.
It was an offensive spell normally, and I had learned back then because I didn’t believe the claim of our summoners that my class was unable to produce any damage.
It turned out to be true, but wind spells were still useful for crowd control, if you were imaginative enough.
The Hob was surprised, of course, as it recover from the shock of its blade being yanked from his hand.
I didn’t think I made that bullet so strong.
They’re just weak, Main. Don’t fret about it.
Diminish the power further. We want the girl to fight them. She won’t learn anything from a slaughter.
Lana finally pulled herself together and, with a heavy grunt, took the sword out of the ground. She turned around, following the sound of the Hob’s own grunt when I struck its blade, and cut it in two diagonally, spraying even more blood on herself.
She was breathing heavily, and it wasn’t exhaustion since I replenished her stamina and healed her before the start of the fight.
I could even see that her face was green, since she was facing me right now.
However, she seemed to overcome her shock and disgust when she saw a hobgoblin striking at me.
“Watch out!” She screamed at me when the Hob that snuck behind me finally attacked.
What a sweet girl, she’s so worried about her brother that she recovered, even if only for a second.
Heck, she even took a step to start running at us. It was dumb, of course, there were still nine Hobs around us, most of them near her and ready to grasp any opening they saw, but that was a spirit I could respect.
“Don’t worry.” I said, my arms still full of Kael, Lana’s brother. I didn’t use magic or any fancy trick here since I had to conserve my resources, I simply turned on myself and took a step, and I masterfully dodged the Hob’s attack.
“I said it. Your brother is safe with me.” I had stopped making him levitate a while ago to, you guessed it, not waste any mana, reason why I was now holding him.
He really looks like his sister.
He’s quite girly.
Not exactly, his features are just soft.
I guess there’s a reason why his charisma is pretty high.
“Looking out for your support is a good idea, but right now you should focus on the direct threats.” I said, diverting a sword and a club away from her as she rushed toward me.
However she didn’t stop and I had to quickly deflect two other weapons as she ran at the assassin that tried to kill me.
“Tss. Fine. I guess it’s hard to do target prioritization during your first fight.” I commented as I kept dodging the assassin’s blade, moving like water and wind as the poo hobgoblin tried to hit me, at least until Lana was on it.
“Stealth-type fighters have escape means, in a proper party it’s your own AGI-based class that would deal with it, because a warrior can have a hard time catching those fast bastards.” I explained, not ashamed a bit that I was myself one of those fast bastards.
As I explained indeed, the assassin did a somersault that launched it in the air, too far away from Lana for her to strike at the monster.
Or it’s what would have happened if I didn’t bind its legs, rooting it for just the right amount of time for Lana to cut it in two.
“However, since we don’t have an AGI-based class to counter those kinds of enemies, I’ll use the second best option against them; control magic. Most mages can’t do it properly because it requires an insane reaction time to properly catch an assassin and such, but worry not, for I am not most mages.” I said with a flat voice, even dodging the blood that splashed everywhere.
Three down.
***
Milestone reached, level up.
Milestone reached, level up.
Milestone reached, level up.
You have absorbed new skills experience.
You have absorbed new skills experience.
You have…
Oh god! I wanted to puke as the smell of blood and entrails filled my nose again.
My heart was beating too fast, my arms were shaking and I could feel my mind being strained by the sword’s mana drain each time I struck at an, absorbing my mana to automatically create that edge of darkness that seemed to cut everything.
My mind was also in disarray as I felt strength swell through my body in waves, level up and skills acquisition pilling on.
Despite all of that I tried to stay focused on the fight, but that stranger’s explanations were making it even harder, and all I could do was go with the flow.
I know it hadn’t been smart to rush that dagger monster, but the fear I felt when I saw it attack the stranger, and my brother, hadn’t left enough space for rational thought.
I could see that the green monsters were now slightly scared, they didn’t know what to do it seems but I didn’t care or mind, I didn’t have the ability to think about it anyway.
I just rushed to the next, then the next, then the next with total abandon. Most attacks wouldn’t even touch me anyway, those that linked were unable to pierce my armor, and the lone time when I got wounded I was immediately healed by the stranger.
Honestly, even I thought this was too one-sided. I wasn’t a warrior at all, I was just being hard-carried by this blade and the stranger, to use a term Mom sometimes said with disgust, but I didn’t care.
This wasn’t training, this was life or death and I would take any advantage I could, because I was so bad at it.
Soon enough only three green humanoids were left and, feeling my sword’s hunger, I was ready to throw myself at them but they looked at each other and suddenly turned tails and fled
“Nuhu, you’re good xp for this young cat, you won’t get away.” However, the stranger wasn’t ready to let them go and they all tripped down as the woman’s ropes moved like serpents of light to ensnare the remaining monsters.
“They won’t put up a fight anymore, just kill them to get their xp and skills.” She said dismissively, looking down at them then coldly at me.
Again with the empty eyes. She was slightly scary, honestly. I had been around fighters and mages for a bit, but she was… different. No incantations, no motions, she wasn’t even looking at them most of the time.
That thought was quickly pushed to the back of my mind, however, as hunger filled most of it, and confusion the rest.
I walked towards them, unsteady, and weakly cut their head one after the other, feeling worse and worse as the system slowly crushed my consciousness with a flood of new input and attention-seeking skills.
It was so intense, in fact, that I fell on my knee once the last kill down.
“Oh my, that’s a lot of new skills in one go. Terrenacht may be a bit too harsh on you.” She commented, walking towards me with my brother still in her arms.
“You need to let your mind and the system adjust to each other. It will be painful. Hum.” She looked down at me with her cold eyes, her tail slowly waging behind her back.
“That won’t do. Go to sleep for now.” She finally said before putting a hand on my head.
Darkness swallowed me blissfully as I felt the system’s strain get farther and farther away, protected by this magical sleep.