Given everything Finn had shared with me, I couldn't in good conscience lock him up in jail. However, I didn’t return his weapons, and kept the gate house closed so he couldn’t leave. He didn’t seem to mind it, and even told me that, ‘If you keep feeding me like this, I wouldn’t want to go anyway.’
After the meal with Finn, I promptly converted some gold into Nexus points, and used them to purchase a number of defense installations, such as local portals, flame lance and freezing turrets, anti-gravity circles, floating platforms, and spot lights. I spent the rest of the evening practicing with them. They worked great, but there was one problem with them -- they were here in the Nexus, and not in the village.
Darya exited the portal from the village, and ran up to me with a glum look on her face. I felt anxiety rise up in my chest before she even said a word. It could only be bad news.
“Two kids are missing, they didn’t come home,” Darya told me.
I groaned. “You think-”
She nodded. “Pretty sure it’s them. We searched everywhere, except-”
“Did they notice that their bounty hunter is missing?” I asked.
“No, they’d been drinking and hollering.”
I checked the time, and cursed under my breath. [Measured Savagery] wasn’t going to help me now. Do I wait, or do I let the kids suffer? Who knows what they’d do to them in the meantime, but judging from what Finn told us about them, it wouldn’t be good at all, and quite permanent.
“Alright .. alright. Seems like things have gone from bad to worse.”
I told Darya what to expect before putting on my helmet and checking if the straps on my armor were tight. Things were about to get ugly and before going through the portal, I opened up the evolution interface and selected [Iron-Weave Hide] for twenty evolution points. This left me with twenty-one points in case I needed another upgrade on the fly.
This upgrade was another kick in the gut and had me doubling over. I gritted my teeth as my skin felt like it was on fire, leaving me itching all over. It also left my skin darker than before, with subtle black filaments criss-crossing it in a weblike pattern. It took me a few minutes to catch my breath and for the itching to subside, then I walked through the portal.
On the other side, I exited the storage shed and found it surprisingly quiet and dark. Amelia poked her head out of the chapel door and we exchanged looks. Her worried face said it all, and she didn’t have to say anything. I knew which house they were staying at. With wands within quick reach, I walked cautiously, watching and listening.
Soon, I was coming up to the place and could hear them. Light was coming out of the windows, along with sounds of boisterous laughter and banging noises.
I had a pretty good idea what I’d be up against. I may have been in this world for a couple of weeks, but they were born here. They grew up, trained and practiced for years long before I arrived. They had the money and knowledge over me. They had passives too, and many more powerful items than me. Finn didn’t know the details, but he was aware of what they could do. Lastly, they had numbers. It would be four versus one.
I stopped on the road before the entrance to the place. Their horses were hitched around the corner as the stable near the inn had also been destroyed.
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My plan of attack changed as Bob described the interior layout and their positions. Because of the hostages, a boiling tar bomb wouldn’t work, not with the candles being used for light.
Just in case, I took a gulp from my Bottomless Flask, increasing my attributes by +37% and into the low five hundreds for a few minutes. Oddly, the concoction tasted bitter like black, hazelnut coffee. I would have preferred vanilla, or better yet, a double shot of whiskey to calm my nerves.
Before entering, I switched my Loop of Vacillation ring from my left finger to right for the 50% Increased Wand Damage. Lastly, I used the Nexus key to open a portal on the street facing the entrance of the house. The dimmed light from the plant’s night cycle in the Nexus streamed through the portal, illuminating the area.
I walked up to the door and kicked it open. Four heads turned in my direction, starting with a man with black hair and a scar down his cheek. According to Finn, his name was Joris and he was a lightning magic specialist. Lightning spells were quite popular among the Raiders for their speed and ability to stun their opponents.
Sitting next to him at the table was Pieter, the red-headed lad. He was their dedicated healer without any offensive abilities. On his other side was Arend, an older man with a gray beard. He specialized in casting buffs, and especially the kind that improved physical strength and speed.
Lastly, and the one I had to watch out for, was the one standing over the table with a stein in his hand. Edward was a massive man, as tall and wide as I was, maybe more. Within close reach was his two-handed mace, the Ronkor’s Rattler, a Mythic quality relic.
It was powerful enough to rupture the ground, making it difficult for enemies to maintain their footing. It may have looked heavy and unwieldy, but that was far from the case. While having a mass of fifty pounds, Finn said it felt as light as a broom to wield.
Their laughter died and their expressions turned from joy to concern in an instant. Their gaze was hazy, and I could hear the drunken gears turning slowly in their inebriated heads. The lot must have drunk the entire barrel of beer that was lying off to the side. Also, none of the four was wearing much of their armor -- they weren’t expecting trouble.
In the back, and in the line of fire were the two missing girls, huddling together, looking terrified with fresh bruises on their cheeks. If I were to shoot these bastards and miss, the girls would get splattered. Also, this house wasn’t large, and there wasn’t much room to maneuver so that I could come at them from the side. I had to be smart about this, I had to lure them out.
“The fuck you want?” Edward blurted out with disdain, his speech slurred from drinking.
***
Luther watched the Supreme Commander approach the house with the captives and a smile broadened on his face. These fools were going to get what they deserved. He was going to ruin their little festivities. Of all the kids they could have taken, they should have known better than to kidnap a princess and her servant -- they were going to pay for that.
Luther stood up on his toes and peeked inside through the window just in time to see the door crash inward, sending pieces flying. All the revelry died in an instant. In a moment of silence, the chunks of the door settled on the ground.
A menacing demon now occupied the doorway. His dark silhouette crowned by his curved horns blazing like embers from hell.
“Did I come at a bad time?” he growled. “I do apologize for barging in at such a … late hour.” He took a step forward, his boots crushing bits of wood underneath.
“I heard you were asking to see the village chief?” He turned his head from side to side. “Well … here I am.”
From his hand, something fell to the floor with a heavy thud. In an instant, the house became enveloped in smoke and shouting, stools falling over, and people clambering for weapons.
All hell broke loose.
This was just the distraction that Luther needed. Not wasting a moment, he climbed up through the window and into the house. From gathered intel, he knew the general area where the princess was being held.
For once in his life Luther said a prayer to the Great Mother. Normally, he didn’t have much faith in the gods, as he felt abandoned by them. But today, things have changed.