Ysnik was nowhere to be found by the time I was out of the building, but I did see her two male allies running full speed toward the northern gate. I chased close behind them, zipping through crowds and doing my best not to lose sight of the kids who’d robbed us… again. Thanks to my Stamina Band as well as my 78 Stamina, not only was I able to keep up with them but I’d been gaining on them.
Eventually, I caught up to them just out of the city. The lanky kid had his hands on his knees like he’d been running a marathon, while the stocky kid had his hands on his head like he was trying to play his exhaustion off. Ysnik was nowhere to be found, though, neither in my view nor on the minimap. Considering she’d been tracking me for a day before robbing us the first time, though, that wasn’t exactly saying much.
“You’re the leader of Galerose, right? Ysnik said you’re the guy with the Demon Knight impersonator in your party!” The lanky goblin kid said, accusation in his voice. I scanned him.
Zel Xochipilli - Civilized Goblin
0-Star Native
Level 42
You know those people who become fans of something before making it their entire personality? If you do, then you already know who Zel Xochipilli is! He isn’t a fan of World of Cerus, he is the fan of World of Cerus. Everyone in the WoC Community knows who he is, and he takes pride in his superfan status.
You know, I think this is the first time I’ve outleveled an actual person since arriving in the Ellalara Belt. This kid is weak!
“I am the leader of the Galerose Hearts, and you two have our Battle Points!” I replied, trying to add as much authority to my voice as possible. It was just as bad as it was with the Bargainer Wolves, but I didn’t have time to get caught up in that right now. “If you want things to end amicably, then I need you two to give them back.”
“If it makes you feel any better, Ysnik could’ve cleaned out your inventories, too.” the stocky goblin kid retorted. “If you ask me, I’d say she’s showing mercy on you all. The same way Zel and I can show mercy on you if you just walk away and forget any of this happened.”
I analyzed the stocky kid and did my best not to smile.
Isets Itzamna - Civilized Goblin
0-Star Native
Level 55
A simp.
They’re both weaker than me! I can beat them no sweat! I don’t need to talk my way out of anything with them.
I would need to be mindful around Ysnik, though. She was the main problem given our strength gap. Sure, I’d nearly killed Ciz’s Presence, but Ysnik was a living person with more autonomy than a spirit ghost or whatever Presences were. Beyond that, she was still a kid. Even if I could, I wouldn’t want that on my conscience; especially considering I could get what I needed by knocking them unconscious anyway.
So I need to knock these two out then either reason with Ysnik or try and knock her out too. Or I could stall until Opix and Cerus get up.
“This isn’t a negotiation. You two will give me my Battle Points, and then you’re going to stay away from us for the rest of the Alliance.”
“And what makes you so–” the stocky goblin, Isets, tried, but he never got to finish.
The GALEROSE ALLIANCE has challenged the GRIMHAVEN PROTECTION FORCE to a fight! This battle will not end until one side is either dead or unconscious.
There are 1212 Battle Points on the line. To the victor goes the spoils! Escape will be considered a loss. Good luck!
“What the hell! You can’t just–”
I dashed forward and slammed Zel’s face into the dirt, knocking his health down to 70%. I looked up to find Isets staring behind me, but before I could turn to see what he was looking at my entire body froze.
“Now!” Isets shouted, revealing a thick club underneath his black cloak.
You have been Stunned for twenty seconds!
You have been Stunned for twenty seconds!
You have been Stunned for twenty seconds!
You have been Stunlocked! You will be unfrozen in one minute!
So you’re close by, Ysnik. I need to end this now.
Isets moved in close for a club strike to my left while the Zel slowly recovered on the ground ahead of me. I waited for the kid to get just close enough before I cast Hot Shower on myself, washing away the Stunlock completely.
“How did you–”
I hooked his exposed side, launching him into his lanky ally with a palm strike to the face. Zel rolled out of the way, and I cast Taunt on him as soon as he stood to his full height. He rushed forward, and I cast Hidden Fist to slow down his assault. I cast both Boost and Essence of Aura, striking Zel in the stomach faster than he could dodge. To both my and Isets’ shock, Zel’s health went from 70% to 1%, rendering him unconscious.
”Zel!” a familiar voice sounded from behind me.
“Ysnik!” I called, turning to face her.
It was my turn to be too late, now. Ysnik Stunlocked me as she unsheathed the blades that’d been strapped to her back when we first met and slashed me across the stomach. In one swift motion, my health was brought down to 20%.
I cast Hot Shower on myself as Ysnik began a reckless assault against me, moving as though she’d been Taunted even though I hadn’t cast it on her.
“You won’t kill him! You won’t kill him! You won’t!”
Despite the splitting pain, dodging Ysnik was a breeze. She didn’t leave any openings to attack, though, so I was forced to dance around wild swings from her twin blades. Isets, thankfully, hadn’t joined Ysnik’s onslaught. He’d just been staring, dumbfounded by both Zel’s loss and Ysnik’s sudden grief.
Grim: I’d appreciate some backup!
Cerus: i have been stunlocked for an hour
Cerus: i have not been this profoundly angry in centuries haha
Opix: Yeah, she came in soon after you left. She tried to knock us out, but some mercenaries came in and ran her out of the village since violence wasn’t allowed. They healed us, but they don’t have anything for the Stunlock. Sorry, but you’re on your own. Don’t feel bad if you need to retreat. We can just meet her in the Mid Tier Zone and steal the Gem from her if anything. There are always other Quests.
Grim: I’ll see what I can do before I call it quits. I knocked one of her allies unconscious and now she’s acting like I Taunted her. If I can reason with her, I can probably get her to give us our Battle Points back like she did with our items.
Cerus: i agree with angel boy
Cerus: Negotiate a plan that allows for us all to face them in an enclosed setting. Preferably in 1-on-1 encounters.
Opix: I’m surprised you’re on board with that.
Cerus: I simply do not want any interruptions when I dole out my punishment.
Opix: Please don’t forget that they’re just traumatized kids trying to survive…
Cerus: DO YOU THINK I GIVE A SHIT???
Cerus: I AM GOING TO TRAUMATIZE THEM FURTHER FOR ROBBING ME A SECOND TIME!
Grim: Alright. I’m gonna try and talk Ysnik down, but if it comes down to it I’ll fight. I’m at 20%, so if things go bad I’ll retreat.
Ysnik Stunlocked me as she tried to pincer stab me with her blades. I cast Hot Shower and dodged at the last second, dashing for a still-dazed Isets.
“No! Don’t!” Ysnik yelled as I got closer.
Rather than strike, though, I grabbed the boy by his collar and threw him at Ysnik. She didn’t catch him so much as she cushioned his fall. Regardless, the moment he was in her grasp she seemed to ease up ever so slightly. Zel was at my feet, still unconscious, so I grabbed him like a duffel bag and threw him at Ysnik as well. She caught him more easily, and the moment they were reunited she finally seemed to step off the gas so to speak.
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“You know, there are so many people you could be pointing your blades at yet you choose us,” I said.
“I watched you all kill Solstice Serenade. Don’t act all high and mighty!” Ysnik retorted.
“Then you should know we had no choice. They were waiting for us, and they didn’t exactly seem like the negotiating type. Henrietta wanted that Gem, and I’m willing to bet she’d kill for it.” I pointed at her, flaring Essence of Aura. “Are you willing to kill for it?”
“I’ll do whatever I have to to get rid of the Silent Hand,” Ysnik frowned.
“What about Zel? Isets? Are they willing to kill for it?”
I needed to play my cards right here. She’d been able to see reason before, so I was hoping she’d be able to see reason once again. She’d mentioned wanting to get money to arm her friends and keep them safe, so I needed to play into that if I wanted her to come around.
“They are!” She turned to Isets. “Are you?”
“Of course, Yiss!” He confirmed, straightening like an arrow. “Everything I do is to see the Silent Hand destroyed!”
“Then why are you here? Fighting us? You guys aren’t coordinated like Solstice Serenade to the point you can afford to make plans like this. You aren’t strong like Ciz to the point where you can wipe out a city full of Rangers. The ‘Grimhaven Protection Force’ is one strong goblin with her two rookie friends. I don’t need to be an Ellalara Belt expert to know that won’t be enough to take out the Silent Hand.”
“That’s why we need the Gem!” Ysnik said like she was trying to convince me. “If we have the Gems, we can make up for our low levels! They won’t be able to–”
“No!” I interrupted, putting on my best Mrs. Gertrude impression of all people. She seemed like the right person to embody right now. “You alone are getting strength while your friends are left dragging behind you! Have you begun to consider the consequences of your actions? You’ve banned yourself from the only safe village in the Mid Tier Zone, you’ve made enemies of every Native and Reincarnator you knocked out for Battle Points – which I know they took seriously – and you’re trying your absolute hardest to make enemies of us!” I lowered my voice. “You’re going to have more enemies than allies, Ysnik. And if you want the Silent Hand defeated, you won’t be able to do that by yourself.”
Ysnik turned to her friends as if looking at them in a new light. I felt a weight lift from my shoulders as she sheathed her blades, though she still looked at me like she was prepared to fight me at any second.
“Zel and Isets are all I have. They’re all I need in this shitty Ellalara Belt.”
I decided to latch onto that, mainly because I could relate to it. I disabled Essence of Aura, but I didn’t drop my guard for a second. I stepped a bit closer and gave her the most genuine smile I could muster.
“You know, I felt the same way before I met Opix and Cerus. It’s only been two days, but they’re the closest friends I’ve ever had, which probably says a lot about me… Huh, I hadn’t even thought about it like–... Jeez. Cerus is right, I really am a loser…”
Ysnik smiled ever so slightly, but Isets furrowed his brow when she did. That was fine. If the System’s label of him was even 20% accurate, he’d come around as soon as Ysnik did.
“Anyway, I say that to say that my friends’ goals have also become mine. Opix wants to kill Final Testament and Cerus wants to kill the Felzian Queen, and now because we’re friends I want that too. Just a week ago my only goal was keeping a job stocking books at a library. Funny how life works when you have friends.”
“Does this story have a point?” Ysnik frowned.
“It does. Before things went bad, Henrietta told us that she would’ve partnered with us under different circumstances. I bet that would’ve led to us getting new goals. I never got to hear any of Ciz’s goals personally, but Opix said that she was determined to rescue her friend from the Silent Hand in Grimhaven.”
Ysnik’s eyes widened at that. “W-we… took her Battle Points too… On the way… here…”
Goddammit, kid.
I took a deep breath, doing my best to maintain my calm appearance. “Do you see what I mean? She was a 4-Star Level 99 who would have certainly allied with you if you allowed that interaction to take place.” Once again, I filled my voice with authority. “The enemy team likely has some powerful people on their side. You need allies if you want a shot at defeating them, not more enemies. A 3-Star with two 0-Stars and a Gem has no chance at winning against the Silent Hand, the Rangers, or anyone else they’d go up against.”
Ysnik frowned. “Your team is just three people.”
“No, it’s four. Five if you count Ciz’s Presence. She isn’t in Galerose, but she’s a friend of the family.”
The more I spoke, the more I felt something come over me. The same feeling I had before I’d killed the Rangers, and the same one I had before I stabbed the eye out of Ciz’s Presence. It was my ideal, my desire to fight against the world’s indifference. My hatred of “futility”.
“The ‘family’ will grow. It’ll grow with every world we visit. Eventually, it’ll be large enough that we can take down anyone. The Rangers, the Silent Hand, the Felzian Queen, Final Testament… whoever’s dumb enough to get in my–... our way.”
“What are you trying to say?”
I narrowed my eyes. “I want you to be part of that family, Ysnik. We’ll kill them all. There’s no need for us to be enemies when we can be allies.”
It was only after I finished saying that that I remembered what I was supposed to be doing. I needed to negotiate for the fucking Gem and here I was trying to make her my ally. I felt that same lack of control that I did whenever I followed my ideal, and only now that I’d said my piece did I find myself stuck thinking of ways to loop back to the Gem.
I need to find an opening…
Ysnik turned to Isets but didn’t say anything out loud, so I could only assume they were using their chat. After about five minutes, Ysnik revealed two bottles of “Stun-Away Potion” from her inventory and tossed them at me.
“Fine. I will accept your offer, but only on one condition.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“Tomorrow at sunset. Meet us at the forest in the Low Tier Zone where we first met. Opix and Cerus will fight Zel and Isets. I will fight you. To death or unconsciousness. For our partnership, and for the Green Gem.”
“Do you mind if I consult them first?”
“Yes, I do. You are the group leader, so I want you to decide right now.”
If I said yes, that meant we were out of Battle Points. Not only that, but we’d literally need to grind from sunrise to sunset to be ready for Ysnik’s challenge.
There’s still the marketplace. The mercenaries said the Gnomes are putting good stuff up on there tomorrow. If we beat the big mobs, we’ll end up with a couple hundred BP to spend on rare armor and weapons, and if we beat Ysnik on top of that we win bigtime.
“Deal,” I finally said. “We’ll do it.”
Ysnik smiled, hoisting Zel up over her shoulders. “Good. See you tomorrow!” Her face fell slightly. “Also, sorry about stealing your Battle Points. I didn’t have much of a choice. I don’t have much choice about fighting you either. I’m really sticking my neck out for you, so I hope you’re serious about this whole partnership thing to beat the bad guys.”
“I am, but what are you talking about.”
“The Gnomes,” Ysnik said matter of factly. “We went to the Master Zone earlier and they gave me that Battle Point stealer thing. They’ve been making it all day just to use on you guys.”
“Why? What’d we do?”
“It’s Cerus. They hate her guts for some reason. We sold that Dogtooth Sword to them for a lot of money, and they said they’d pay us 100,000 gold if we killed Cerus ‘more slowly than slow’. I agreed to it before I really understood how serious they were, and they paid me in advance! They said if I back out they'll make me suffer 'a thousand deaths'!"
Grim: Cerus, what the fuck did you do to those Gnomes?!
Cerus: i have no clue what you are referring to
Cerus: you are so handsome grim hearts
Cerus: come back i miss you
Grim: Cerus, that BP stealer was made to hinder us! They paid Ysnik 100k to kill you slowly! You can’t just not tell us!
Opix: Holy shit, are you serious?!
Cerus: bad bitches and haters go together like bread and butter
Cerus: you want to know why the gnomes hate me but i want to know why you are not back yet
Cerus: hurry up and tell me you negotiated a fight
Grim: Yeah. Tomorrow at sunset you and Opix are gonna fight her weak allies while I fight Ysnik.
Cerus: SHE PUT HER WEAK ALLIES AGAINST ME???
Cerus: HAHAHAHAHAHA SHE MUST HATE THEM
Opix: If she has the support of the Gnomes, they’re probably gonna be buffed to the gills and dressed in some ultra-rare armor… I doubt it’ll be that easy.
Grim: Also, she gave me stunlock cures. I’ll get you two unfrozen after I get out of here. Also, we’re out of Battle Points.
Cerus: that just means tomorrow we have to grind like strippers
Opix: Pretty much.
“Thanks for taking that risk, Ysnik. I know how much money means to you,” I said.
“No, you don– ow!”
Ysnik smacked Isets on the back. “Hush! Anyway, we’re gonna go now. Tomorrow at sunset, okay?”
“Tomorrow at sunset. After we win, we’ll discuss next steps.”
Battle Complete!
The GRIMHAVEN PROTECTION FORCE has defeated the GALEROSE ALLIANCE by way of forfeit! The GRIMHAVEN PROTECTION FORCE is immune to all attacks from the GALEROSE ALLIANCE for the next two hours! Your Alliance now has 0 Battle Points. And you were so close…
“And when we win, we’re going to go after more Gems! B-but, I think I’ll recruit Ciz to join us maybe.”
I smiled. “See? You’re making progress.”