Escavile, Dakota Dukedom
World: 81 days.
Escaville: 10 days.
"Hnnnn? What brings you here, lads." Sam asks casually before he and Jason fell into smalltalk and discussed various things including his plans for the merchant. Unsurprisingly, Sam promised to help with that. He also provided a plan for the next number of months. As he is expected to return to Tatter Town briefly after finishing things here, Jason and Chanty would head to their next destination: Lassie Town. There Jason can address his taming needs, and Sam would most likely reunite with them there.
From there, the party would head to Claymore Town to have a sword made or bought as well as the ogre leather put to good use. There's more to the plan, but that's just the short-term.
Sam recommend a couple more days of rest while he sorts things out with the merchant and guild to make their departure as streamline and profitable as possible. And with a mock salute, Jason makes to return to the village with Sammy in tow. He had seen enough, and the conversation had gone on long enough. Sam was a busy elf. As the two departed, Chanty can be seen exiting the mine entrance. Apparently she was part of the cleansing operation.
Escavile, Dakota Dukedom
World: 83 days.
Escaville: 12 days.
Two days later, and a heartfelt goodbye to Sammy once again, Jason and Chanty would depart with a merchant of Sam's choosing. They'd provide escort on their way to the town called Lassie where Jason would learn taming. Along the way, Jason was splitting his attention between keeping watch and cultivating. Absorbing the energy from the life cores was as straightforward as meditating. He sure was glad this world wasn't like the usual cultivation worlds where he'd have to cultivate in isolation for 100 year to get 1 percent stronger or something as ludicrous. By nightfall they arrived at the first town on the way and spent the night at a local in.
Day 84
The merchant sells his wares while Jason and Chanty hunt hazard beasts in the area. By nighttime the group sleeps at the inn once again.
Day 85
First thing in the morning the group leaves town to continue their journey. Around noon, and a few miles off from the next town, there's an incident.
"Do you see that, pupil?" Asks Chanty nonchalantly.
"You mean the large tree blocking the road? Yup. Clear as day. This could only mean..." Jason pondered.
"Bandits." They both spoke in unison as the merchant began sweating.
"Good, good! Finally a fight with bloodlust and above goblin levels of intelligence. You remember your role, pupil?"
"Yup!" Jason responds as he gets to the top of the carriage with his bow and arrows ready. Chanty positions herself beside the merchant whose driving inorder to protect him. And the merchants apprentice locks the carriage doors and hides inside. As they approach the log, bandits begin revealing themselves from the surrounding bush ahead and behind the carriage. The group was surrounded.
"I'm counting a dozen so far. Haven't spotted anyone hiding ye-whoa!" Jason abruptly dodges an arrow fired at him from outta nowhere. "Never mind!" He takes aim, fires, and a yell can be heard at a distance. Jason fires off a couple more at his target to seal the deal. This exchange is the trigger that starts the battle as the dozen bandits bumrush the carriage. Both Jason and Chanty begin letting loose projectiles: arrows and ki blasts respectively.
When the foes get too close, Jason jumps to the ground and engages them in melee. These guys were amateurs, so he handled them like oversized toddlers and knocked them out. Chanty was also done with her group, but unlike Jason, she left no survivors.
Informing her of his intention, Jason leaves to find the Archer who fired on him earlier. Unfortunately, said Archer somehow managed to escape. This confused Jason as he was sure the injuries sustained was potentially lethal if not treated immediately. He returns to Chanty with the news, and she becomes troubled. If their identities got revealed to the larger bandit group, it would put a target on their backs and result in harassment from said group seeking revenge. They had only on option: trail the escapee to their camp and wipe them out. However they couldn't do this now and leave their client unprotected, so they'd Escort him to town and then double back.
With decisions made, Jason and Chanty got busy clearing the road and looting the bodies. The sound of breaking necks made as Chanty was dispatching the remaining bandits sent a chill down Jason's spine as he heard it. Among the loot was a mildly worn longsword which Jason took for himself. He'd practice with this for the meantime.
After arriving at the town Chanty went off to a cheap clothing store for a few minutes, while Jason was to head to the local Adventurers Guild to issue a quest. After completing their respective tasks they met up with Jason at the town entrance. Then the duo took off in a sprint. Soon they reached the scene of their battle, and Jason led the way in tracking the runaway Archer. Sam's lessons were coming in clutch here. The two trekked for 1 hour until they noticed a camp in the distance. There were tents all around with a cave at the back. The dozens of bandits inhabiting this place were on high alert, and security was tight. Some were seen to be packing their belongings, but made no move to leave. It was as if they were waiting for orders or a signal.
The two knew they had to hit them now, and hit them hard. Chanty gave the gameplan: Jason would snipe key targets from a distance while Chanty charged in from the opposite side of the camp. After getting into position, Jason would kick things off with an arrow to an unsuspecting guard's torso. This caused those around the victim to freeze in confusion long enough for Jason to hit another target before all hell broke loose. Most of the bandits ran for cover while cooler heads began barking orders and getting things organised. At that moment, Chanty would swoop in and end them with a swift slash: opting for a ki blade to make quick work of her foes. Jason did his best to cover her while she went after anyone that looked competent. The goal was to take the heads of the leader of these bandits, followed by the rest, and end their operation permanently.
"What the hell is going on out there!" Yelled large man that exited the cave. Jason would best describe him as half viking half barbarian. Without missing a beat, Chanty darts towards this man: taking out anyone who tried to obstruct her along the way. The suddenness of her approach took the man by surprise and he was almost too slow in unsheating his blade to block Chanty. Before she could make a follow up attack, a nearby bandit swong at her forcing her to abandon the attack. This gave the leader time to recover and attempt an attack of his own before he's forced to dodge an arrow that whizzed by where his head was a moment ago.
Chanty was deep in enemy territory, and was beginning to be pressed. Jason had to jump in soon to alleviate some of that. He began firing 3 arrows at a time and at a faster rate. This dropped his accuracy by quite a bit, but he kept mobs at bay and dropped the occasional body. Once he ran out of arrows, he made a made dash for the camp.
"Keep still, you wench!" Hollered the bandit leader in frustration as he tried and failed to strike Chanty. She expertly weaved around all her attackers and kept a safe distance from his blade's reach. Too much time had been wasted, and the camp was less disorganised now. Bandits where getting into various positions waiting for a golden opportunity to strike. They too were keeping their distance from Chanty. This give her a moment of reprieve she used to catch her breath. She has been fighting full throttle from the getgo, which can drain anyone no matter how much stamina they had. And she had alot.
"Getting tired eh?! Don't worry, I intent to capture you alive. You'll be begging for mercy on my bed soon. Just you wait." The Bandit Leader said through gritted teeth. Chanty just gave him a smug smile as a response.
That only pissed him off further. "That's it! Deploy the net!" Out of nowhere, a net was falling on Chanty. She had no idea when they had thrown it. However, that wasn't a concern as she easily cut through with a ki blade. At that moment, a dozen bandits bumrushed her from all directions; cutting off all paths of escape. Without hesitation, she rushes at a random direction and let loose a flying crescent slash. This took out 3 men instantly, she darted through the opening only to be intercepted my the leader.
'He's faster than he looks. Hmm? Why's he wearing goggles?' Wondered Chanty as the surrounding bandits threw small balls at the two which all burst into smoke.
"Smoke pellets! Argh!" These weren't ordinary smoke pellet. They irritated the eyes as well. Chanty wasted no time in attempting to distance herself from the giant of a man, but the encirclement caught up. And as she exited the smoke cloud, she was grabbed by the ankle and by one of her arms. She cut off the offending hand gripping her ankle, and materialized a ki blade on her other hand which impaled her other brappler. All this happened in a single second, however in that same time she was grabbed twice more. In no time she was basically dogpiled and restrained. When all her assailants got a good hold of here, they pulled her up to a standing position as she was presented to their Boss. He casually walked over, reached out, grabbed a boob and squeezed hard. Chanty did well to hide the immense pain and only let out a grunt. Not satisfied with her reaction, the Boss released the hold, then delivered a nasty backhand to her face. Then gripped her hair and pulled her face up to face him.
"After I deal with your archer friend, I'm coming back to deal with you. That's a taste of what to expect." Was the man's threat, but Chanty only gave him her usual smug smile. Her defiance infuriated the man further, but the sound of whirling caught his attention and he turned to its direction.
"Wha-" The boss's words died in his throat as crisp whip noise sounded off, and he felt searing pain in his gut. His leather armor protected him some, but the damage was still considerable as he doubled over in pain from the stone that hit him.
Infront of him was a young man in casual clothes running at him with a sword. Energized by rage, he overcomes the pain and gets to his feet just in time to intercept the swing.
Clang! Woo woo woo woo woo.
The young man's sword was sent flying, but it was the boss who was in shock. 'It was a faint!' He screamed in his head.
Jason had let go of his sword a moment before the clash and continued into the boss's personal space while he was over wide open. The boss could only watch hopelessly as he took a full powered punch with a full sprint behind it to the same spot on his turso he just took a stone going a Mach speed.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
BAM!
The pain he felt was beyond words as he spat out blood. Before he could even think, he felt a second blow to his liver as Jason slipped passed him inorder to deliver a nasty haymaker to a bandit holding one of Chanty's arm.
It took a seconds for the boss to recover and attempt another attack, but as the swong his sword, the delayed pain from the liver shot kicked in and undermined said swing. Because of this, Jason easily catches him by the wrist with one hand while simultaneously pointing his index finger at the boss's exposed neck.
SHINK!
A thin ki blade manifests and plunges through the boss's neck. He immediately let's go of the sword and attempts the stop the bleeding, as Jason grabs said sword out of the air, coats it in ki, then delivers a decapitating blow to the man. Ending him then and there as though it were an execution.
Before the headless corpse could hit the ground, Jason turns around and stabs at one of men holding Chanty. She's immediately let go by everyone holding her as they all scramble to escape, but they're all cut down by the two. Looking over all the death and destruction is Jason with an enraged look on his face as he grips the sword very tightly. Chanty places her hands on his in attempts to calm him down.
"Good, good! This level of indignation for seeing one's teacher manhandled is quite respectable. I am deeply touched!" After seeing that her words were having some effect, she decided land a critical hit. She reached up to her hurt breast and began massaging it with a half pained half aroused moan. "Ugh... So sore."
This act threw Jason for a loop, and he couldn't maintain his mental state. This as the first time she had done anything sexually suggestive ever. Chanty pokes his side playfully before pointing out it's after dark and urges for them to loot the place quickly and leave. Jason agrees and the atmosphere soon goes straight to depressing as the two entered some tents to discover women who were used and abused. Some where unconscious, others were awake, and a handful appeared awake but completely unresponsive with glazed over eyes.
Chanty explained to Jason that that's the key symptom of Mind Break. When one is subjected to intense trauma, they lose the will to live and do nothing but open their eyes on occasion and stare at nothing with an emptiness in their eyes.
Chanty was the one to attend to the girls. She cleaned them up best she could, and gave them cheap clothes to replace their torn and missing ones. After an hour, they finish looting the camp. All is left was the cave the boss walked out of.
They soon enter and begin taking things valuable along the way. Soon they reach the far end of the cave. There was a bedroom with a woman heavy battered and bruised quivering in the corner. Nearby, they also found a girl chained up within a cage. This was no ordinary girl.
"A vladi?!" Chanty points out in surprise. This was one of the 4 races Jason read about. Vladi, vladlin, vladlad, they went by multiple names. They were basically vampires without the sun weakness except that they easily tan. They were easily identified by their black hair, red pupils and irises, black lips and porcelain white skin where the sun didn't touch. They looked and dressed like goths and emos.
They weren't rare per se, they were just less common on his island to the point a good chunk of the population had never seen one. And judging by the high quality of her clothes, she was related to someone important. Explains why she was in pristine condition as the bandits didn't do anything to her beyond caging her.
Jason had to leave the room so Chanty could do her thing.
Trying her best to not look threatening, Chanty approached the girl and attempted communicating. Said girl didn't speak or show emotion. She only nodded or shook her head in response to questions. Regardless, Chanty knew she was reeling mentally since she had a frontrow seat to the horrors the other woman had gone through. And she looked way younger than 16. This experience would definitely scar her for a very long time.
Minutes passed before Chanty exited the cave with the other two girls in tow. One visibly shaken and the other with a blank expression. Now they had to get all these girls to the town safely. They couldn't remain in the bandit camp for various reasons, plus they did not want to encounter whoever the bandits seemed to be waiting for. There was a clearing some minutes walk back the way Chanty and Jason came. They would set up camp there and spend the night. Early morning, they'd continue their trek.
The trip was arduous not only for the girls who were weak from all they endured, but also for Jason who had to carry some of the Mind Break victims along the way. Chanty on the other hand walked with the vladi girl and acted as their guard through it all. Eventually they made it to the clearing, set up camp, and Jason stood guard as Chanty made sure all the girls were attended to. A couple Hazard Beasts tried their luck but we're turned into dinner by Jason for the girls who unsurprisingly were starving.
Day 86
The night went by, and the morning trek to the road was just as harsh. The group had to make multiple stops just to recuperate. When they finally made it to the road, a group of female adventurers were waiting with a carriage. This was arranged by Jason per Chanty's direction, as she expected they'd be returning with some survivors. Also, a party of all women was explicitly specified as men would spook the girls. Jason's presence was uncomfortable enough as is. In no time, all the girls were ferried back to the town where they'd remain under guild custody for sometime until further decisions could be made.
The Guild had procedures for cases such as these. They'd take the victims into protective custody, gather data from said victims and use its information network to contact their families or related Sects inorder to transfer the responsibility of their care. The Guild wasn't a charity organisation, so if no 3rd party came to claim the victims within a specific time, they hand them cheap clothes and some money, and send them on their way. They'd be on their own. Things got even dicier for people with Mind Break. They required more care, and they couldn't be let loose for obvious reasons. This was an issue that has always plagued the inhabitants of this world. Mercy killings weren't uncommon.
Learning this made Jason worry for the wellbeing of the girls he carried since the day before. However, they were out of his hands, and he had other things to concern himself with: such as collecting the bounty on the Bandit Boss. While Jason was in the guild the day before, he checked the wanted posters and recalled the Boss was on there. The severed head sufficed as proof. Taking his bounty money, he returned to the inn for a much deserved rest. They'd be leaving tomorrow morning.
DING! DING! DING! DING!
"WTF?!" Jason was unceremoniously awoken from by the sound. It reminded him of a church bell. But this wasn't time for a sermon. This was the guild bell ringing which signals an emergency requiring all adventurers who can hear it to respond. It's such a big deal one would be punished if they were found to have ignored it. So Jason groggily gets dressed and is joined by Chanty in the inn lobby before they depart together.
"Wonder what this is about." Asked Jason.
"Hmmm... The faint smell of smoke and the distant clouds looking red tells me: forest fire."
"Yeah! I was thinking the exact same thing."
"-_- Precocious pupil! You did not."
The two bantered their way to the guild hall where dozens of other adventurers awaited further instructions. Some more minutes pass and more adventurers show up before the local Guild Master himself stepped forward to address the crowd.
"Sorry to ruin your sleep everyone, but we have an emergency. They've been a number of forest fires outside of town that started out of nowhere. We have to put them out pronto before they spread and cause untold amount of damage. The Guild Staff will direct the operation. Don't be a hardass, and do what you're told. Working together as a unit will ensure things are handled quickly and properly. I've said my piece, so let's get started!"
The Guild Master steps back and away, as some guild staff step forward and relay the plan. As they do so, the Guild Master walks towards Chanty and Jason.
"It's been quite awhile, miss Chanty. If you're here, does that mean you're back in action?" The GM asked.
"Hello to you too Guild Master. Yes, you're right on the money." Replied Chanty.
"Excellent! That's what I was hoping to hear. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to discuss some business with you in my office."
"That's fine with me. Would it be alright if my pupil came along? We're in the same party, you see."
"Pupil? You mean he's the one you're nominating for your Sect's tournament? Hmmm... I don't see why not. Let's go."
After the 3 got to the office, the GM sat down and got straight to business. "I have a quest specifically for you: protect the Vladi girl you brought in until her guardians come to pick her up. Are you up for it?"
Chanty for a moment before saying "Hmmm... I feel there's more to this than you're letting on, Guild Master. I'd like to know what I'm getting into before I can accept."
"Hn. Yeah, You're right. This whole debacle is a pain. Look. I'm no strategist, but I've lived long enough to notice a diversion when I see one. Those fires are definitely man-made, and for them to start right after you bring in the brat of that influencial Vladi family that has been turning the island upside down looking for her is not a coincidence.
Whoever abducted the kid wants her back. And with her family beelining over here as we speak, they want her back now. The fires are going to remove most of our fighting force from play. And if these bastard were able to snatch away a kid with such a background, it's fair to assume they're pros: Second Stage at least. We don't fully understand what fighting force we're dealing with here.
I'm assigning you this Quest because you're the only B-rank Adventurer in this town. That's what you're getting into."
"Oh my."
"Indeed."
"Why do you think they're after her?"
"I don't know, and honestly, I'm not at liberty to care. I just want this hot potato out of my hands. We have to hold out till the family arrives, and that'll be in 2 days if we're lucky."
Chanty contemplates for awhile before turning to her side. "Jason?"
"Huh? Yes?"
"Are you willing to weather this storm with me? There's a good chance we might be wept away."
"What are you asking all of a sudden? You know I got your back. Isn't what a party is all about?"
"Hmm! Good, good! Well said." Chanty then turned turned to the GM. "We shall take it."
The man raised an eyebrow. "We?"
After convincing the GM of Jason's competence, the quest was officially assigned to the two.
The vladi girl was placed in a guest room within the Guild with Chanty, while Jason guarded the door. They had to send a messenger to the merchant about their change in plans, plus revise their deal. Standing guard like that was hella boring for Jason, so he decided to play around with something he would see in lots of anime: Strings. String users would cover an area with wires which they used as an early warning system for approaching enemies. Jason kicked things off by conjuring a string of ki from a fingertip. It was too thick and visible plus he had difficulty controlling the thickness. His solution to this problem was to pull out a strand of his hair, coat it in ki, then extend the ki thread. He let the thread extend from his finger to the ground, then run along the floor down the hallway. As it got to the hallway entrance, he made a curtain of threads.
Jason's ki strings had the strength of hair. Any stronger would cost more ki. He didn't fully understand the depths of this world's power system, so wanted to be prepared against a potentially invisible foe, or one who used illusions or the like. If they were intangible, he'd rage quit.
With that taken care of, Jason began going a step beyond by covering the entire hallway surface with a grid of strings. Now only a ghost could approach without him noticing.
By meditating and sinking his consciousness into the string, it was like an extention of his body and he was aware of every square inch. Not one to be satisfied, Jason extended the grid into the room behind him where Chanty and Vladi-chan were. This didn't count as peeking to him unless he was into feet. This wasn't 360 degree vision or local omniscience. It was just the 3D outline of the room plus pressure sense. However he soon had to forgo griding the stool and bed after feeling Chanty's butt pressed on the stool as she sat.
'Dang! She's thicker than I thought... Huh?!' Jason senses movement in his domain. Judging by the pressure signals, it was something smaller than a clenched fist, had four legs with a long tail dragged behind it. Looking in the direction he sensed it, Jason saw a white mouse. Both their eyes met and the rodent froze it's advance. Jason stared at it for a long minute while the mouse acted oblivious but still remained in place. Then out of nowhere it began grooming itself for a short time, before scurrying unhurried in the opposite direct like nothing happened.
"... Do you think I'm retarded or something?" Jason wasn't leaving anything to chance. That mouse was acting all kinds of sus. He immediately took control of the threads in such a way that he was griding 1 meter square around the mouse as it moved, and retracting said grids over areas it had already passed. This was to save surface area and not spread his consciousness too thin.
"I don't know if it's different in this world, but white mice aren't usual in the wild. They're primarily bred by people. Either this punk broke free, or it was sent here." That wasn't all that was running through his mind: Taming!
Jason didn't know much about the mechanics of taming. But judging by the mouse's behavior, it looked like it was being controlled remotely as it was showing rather human mannerisms. He had to make sure.
Knock knock. "Hey Chanty?"
"Yes, pupil."
"Can tamers control animals remotely?"
"Why the sudden odd question?"
"Well..."
Minutes later in a shady part of town, a white mouse crawls into a cage, then a meditating figure beside it sighs.
"Report." Orders a cloaked figure.
"There's a guy guarding the door. He matches the description of one of the people who brought in our target. He was somehow able to sense me the moment I entered the hallway and kept staring like I owed him money." Answered the once meditating figure as they got to their feet.
"Hmm... Ki sensing or hightened senses. Since he didn't notice you earlier, it's fair to assume he has a limited range. Were you followed?"
"Nah. He didn't tail me. He hasn't even left the guild."
"Good. Regardless, it seems they are expecting us. Further preparations are unnecessary. Signal the others. The operation starts in 15 minutes. Go!"
"Aye aye!"
Shirebunkle, Dakota Dukedom
World: 86 days.
Shirebunkle: 2 days.