Reis' POV

Walking within the merchants ring, I reminisced of the past.

My general, a small person, yet one who brought our country to its' knees.

Can I, a mere human, claim friendship with such a being?

The answer was told to me directly from the mouth of my general. My general put his hand on my shoulder, and drank from the same cup as me. He looked into my eyes, and told me that I was his.

Now, it has been months since I left. I have followed my generals orders to the letter, gathering information of the nearby lands and making contacts.

Now, I will follow another of my generals' orders. He told me to defend whatever land I resided in, assuming I respected the ruler and people.

This city has fulfilled those requirements, and now I have another chance to shed blood. My general told me to avoid killing, but I think that he will forgive me this once.

The merchants ring, just like the peasants ring, had four gates at each entrance. However, the bastard ring had only one entrance. Right now, the gate was closed and the guards were relaxing, resting in case any enemies made it this far into the city.

Little did they know, that soon they would be in a very mortal kind of danger.

I, as a man experienced in war, knew that there was one sure fire way to end a battle, or in this case, a siege.

Just kill the king.

I couldn't let others see me fight for...reasons, Only my general knew the full extent of my power. He had told me to keep it secret, so I would do so.

Setting down the bag I had carried from my shop, I took out the contents.

A set of armor, and a red cloak.

I began to don my armor, and when the pure red lacquered  armor once again rested on my body, I let out a sigh of relief. It has been too long. Far, far too long, since I was bathed in the blood of my foes.

I held up the red cloak, and lowered my head.

The symbol of a fanatic, this red cloak. How proud I am to have it, and to wear it.

Slinging the cloak around my shoulders, I take out a sword and cut the gates in half. Walking through the gate, I see that the assassins have already killed all the guards. Even as I come in, several black-clothed individuals are crouched over dead bodies.

They swear and try to escape, but-

"Ki Blade"

The assassins, who have become half the warriors they used to be, fell to the ground. As I turned and prepared for the second wave, a green haired man appears at the broken gate.

"Oh, hi there! I don't think we've met..." He trails off, seeing the dead men all around, and me dressed in my red armor and holding a sword.

He turns around. "I'm just gonna go..."

"Stop. I am here in defense of this city, and I believe you are too?"

He turned around, looking surprised, and nervously walked over. "Um, scary man, yes. A secret quest I just got-I mean, a gut feeling told me to come here."

I nodded. "So, you are a world traveler. It's good to meet you."

"Wah!? How did you know?"

"...I see, some world travelers are idiots...good to know."

"No! I mean, how do you know about other worlds?"

I held a hand to my chin. "Well, my general traveled with one for a while, and during that time I got to know her quite well. She talked of another world, and quests, and expee, and levels, and many other things that made absolutely no sense to me."

"Oh...I see. So I wasn't the only one! That's good..."

I looked over at the green haired fellow. Behind him appeared an elf mage, who remained silent. "Say, can you tell me my level? The other world traveler told me just before she left, but I like to think I may have increased by one or two levels."

He looked flustered, and stumbled over his own words. "S-sure! Just let me..." he went slack-jawed.

:

"Hm? What's the problem?"

He pointed toward a location slightly above my head. "I can't see anything! Just a bunch of question marks. How strong are you...?"

I had to laugh out loud at this. "Haha! I guess you are a low-level, right? How low?"

"7"

I had to snicker. "Seriously? Hah! Well, it's not like the other world traveler didn't have this happen to them."

"What do you mean?"

"The world traveler couldn't ever see my generals level, all she saw was question marks."

"Oh. How high level was she?"

"She was level five-hundred and sixty three."

"WTF?!"

I turned to face the assassins coming closer. "Oh, and in case you were wondering, I'm level six-hundred-seventy-four."

He just about fell over, and I smiled. It was quite satisfying to show off. Now...

"Oi! You bumbling oafs trying to hide! Come out and let me show you what a fanatic can do. Haha! I can barely wait!"

Blood is never quite as tasty preserved as it is fresh.

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Lichs' POV

Why is it, that out of all the possible people in the entire world, I am the one who meets all these crazies.

Never mind. I already know the answer.

The real question is, how have I survived this long when god obviously wants my existence to cease?

The self-proclaimed villain stood twenty feet away from me, surrounded by a whirlwind of sand and flame.

He was young, perhaps nineteen years old. He had a narrow face, and a smug grin seemed permanently plastered on his mouth. He wore a red robe and hat in the shape of a cone with a rim.

I would say he looked stupid, but I can't really speak. After all, I am currently wearing a ripped dress. I really need a new outfit...

"Now, little girl, how about we see which one of us is the evilest?"

"Is that even a word?" I reply, while raising my hands.

He pulls his hat over his eyes with one hand while loosely putting the other one up.

"Then, let us begin. Sandstorm."

Dust erupts from the ground and covers the fields for hundreds of meters in all directions, blocking my vision. Abbicus' voice seemed to echo from all directions. "Quite the disadvantage, wouldn't you say? Most wizards are next to useless if they are blinded, and as the saying goes "A witch without her eyes is just a girl.""

Fireballs appeared from five directions and assaulted my Aura, sending cracks across its' entirety. Once again, Abbicus' voice seems to come from everywhere. "However, for those wizards that have mastered the so-called "Blind Casting" using our spells without the use of our eyes is child's play."

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

My mana repairs my aura, only for more fireballs to send cracks running through my shield. That annoying wizards' voice speaks as if it is right next to me. "You're obviously a novice. Did you know? "Aura" is a barrier spell that requires five times the regular amount of mana in upkeep. So, for someone with a high fire attribute, and someone using five times the mana as they should, which do you think will run out first?"

This is a little bad. I mean, this whole battle was going really badly, but even worse I had sand in my-

Wow. I have finally realized just how bad this is. No wonder my father would insult me using that phrase...

But, to the matter at hand. This so-called "Blind Casting" didn't sound all that hard.

"Frozen Threads"

Sand whirls around me, but besides that, nothing happens. Well, I'm just gonna forget about that, except-

I have photographic memory. Fuck.

So, how would I solve this problem? While I had tried(Failed) casting a spell, seemingly endless fireballs pounded on my aura. Only my fast-draining pool was keeping me alive.

Fireballs. This is so unfair! I can barely cast Fire Bolt five times before running out of mana! How come he gets to shoot dozens of fireballs with impunity?

Which, reminds me. Suddenly, a not-so-distant memory is recalled. And, having already memorized the formation, I decided I'd try a bit of this kingdoms magic. Why not?

"Void"

With a screeching howl, the sand is sucked up into a howling whole from whence no sand can escape. And standing a couple feet away from me, with a stupid looking expression on his face, is the evil(self-proclaimed) wizard.

"..."

"..."

Back at the gate, the cavalry has dismounted and is trying to breach the undeads' fortifications. I say that word loosely, as their "Fortifications" Are a bunch of wooden stakes driven into the dirt.

"So...nice weather we're having, huh?" I say politely, trying to be tactful.

"Yes, quite nice. The bright sun, cloudless sky, it's perfect for a picnic."

"..."

"..."

"I'm going to try to kill you now, okay?"

He laughs some-what manically, doing his best to sound menacing. "The word you should put emphasis on is "Try!"

Sending a barrage of fireballs my way, I reach up with my left hand and yawn.

"Defuse"

In rapid succession from left to right, the fireballs curl in on themselves and disappear. He tries again, and I repeat my spell. He starts swearing, and pulling out bottles of blue liquid and drinking them.

"You! You are one of a kind, little girl. To have lasted so long against my magical genius-"

"Magical idiocy' Would be more like it."

His expression was worth more gold than i had ever owned in my life. He continued with his magical assault, which brought to life another concern-

I currently have about one-tenth of my mana left. The "Void" spell had taken quite a bit of power, plus I had been fending off his fireballs with my aura for a while before finding a solution, which worked together to tell me "you're screwed, ha ha."

Now, I tried to do what anyone else would do, and run away-

Error: Cannot leave a dual before one or both combatants are unable to battle.

'What is this shit?! No one told me about this rule!'

Answer: You did not ask before accepting the dual. stupid.

'What was that?'

Answer: Nothing. I did not say anything. Idiot.

Damn, even the voice in my head had something against me! I have been set up for failure, haven't I?

But...

'Activate -True Form-'

I felt the power rise up in my gut, and the immense strength flooded through me-

Then a pain, such that it felt as if I had crushed, then cauterized my testicles encompassed all that I was. I fell to the ground and shook, frothing at the mouth, before having the remainder of my mana dry up and disappear.

I was left lying on the ground, my mana pool empty, weak, and without any energy. I reached out, searching for that hidden power, and felt it at the edge of my existence-

And it left.

I was, as I have always been, alone.

"Thou reachest for a power beyond thee. It is not surprising that it left such a weak and unworthy host."

With froth leaking from the corner of my mouth, I gasped "Who are you?"

"Thou wishest to know me, immortal? To think I was brought here by such a fragile being, it shames me."

"I don't actually care...I just want to know who will hear my last words."

"Last words? Hah! A truly foolish immortal, aren't thee?

Well, I cannot say I do not feel empathy. I was once too weak to crush my enemies. I propose a compromise."

"What kind of compromise?" I whisper, too weak to say anything more. The shouts and screams of dying men and horses interrupts my peace, and makes the darkness lessen.

"Thou material form is too fragile to contain me, so I suggest thou take but a piece of me. Perhaps thou can survive then, though I doubt it."

"What would be the consequences?"

The voice chuckled. "Thou learns fast. Should thou proceed with this course of action, you will need to pay a price for each time you activate me. Are thou willing?"

I thought of all the other times I have been screwed over, and how this couldn't end well. But...

Perhaps if I throw myself into the deepest, darkest pit of misfortune, then maybe, things could get better.

"Deal."

The voice responded with laughter.