Hadespera
The 6th of Elaphebolion
The Year 4631 in the Era of Mortals
The next several days of their journey fell into a routine. They walked all day, sparred in the evening, and occasionally Lyssa would leave to hunt. Arche’s Swordsmanship skill improved another three levels, putting it at Level Eight. The journeying and training were not without their own benefits, as his attributes showed. By their fourth day of travel, he’d progressed significantly from his first day waking up in the forest.
Your attributes have increased.
+1 Strength
+1 Dexterity
+1 Fortitude
+2 Endurance
As they approached evening, Lyssa signaled a halt and crouched low to the ground, her bow materializing in her hand. Arche followed suit, pulling his own bow out of his inventory and nocking an arrow to it. He had taken to carrying his sword on his hip and a quiver across his back, as retrieving items from his inventory was too slow for him to do quickly. He was not nearly as proficient at manipulating the inventory system as Lyssa was, but he was still uncomfortable carrying the bow strung over his shoulder.
“Wolves,” Lyssa whispered. “Three of them.”
A tinge of fear crept up Arche’s back. Images of the half-rotted wolf’s face floated in his mind’s eye.
“What’s the plan?”
“They’ve caught our scent and seem hungry enough to risk hunting us. You can’t outrun them; we’ll have to fight. Aim for the one on the right, be ready to draw your sword.”
Arche peeked around a tree and saw the wolves. They were twenty-five strides away, snarling and advancing slowly.
“On my mark,” Lyssa said quietly. “Now!”
Their bows twanged in rapid succession. Both arrows found their mark, but Arche’s wasn’t fatal. The wolf charged, his arrow sticking out of its chest. The uninjured wolf charged as well. Lyssa’s wolf keeled over, the fletching of her arrow tickled its eye while the metal tip stuck out the back of its head. Arche dropped his bow and drew his sword as the beasts closed the gap, knowing he didn’t have time for another shot. Lyssa’s skill with the bow flexed itself as she loosed a second arrow as the wolves came within ten paces. It struck the third wolf in the neck, a fatal blow but not immediately.
She rolled to the side as the wolf lunged at her, both snarling at each other. Arche’s attention was captured by his own wolf, which growled and snapped at him. He swung his sword but the wolf darted backwards, out of reach. Before he could bring the blade around for a second swipe, the wolf jumped, aiming for his throat. Arche dropped his shoulder and fell to the ground, turning the momentum from his missed slash into a roll as the wolf lunged.
The beast sailed overhead, but Arche managed to extend his sword and catch it across the flank as it passed him. The wolf let out a yelp of pain and turned to threaten him again. Arche came up into a short crouch, sword held at the ready. This time, when the wolf lunged for him, he stepped to the side and brought the sword down on the back of the wolf’s neck. He felt a grinding vibration as the blade glanced across bone. A gentle, pulsating glow in the corner of his vision told him he had a notification waiting for him. He ignored it and looked for Lyssa, who wrenched her curved, bloody sword out of the head of the second wolf, now dead.
Golden light washed over Arche, cleaning off wolf blood and muck from days of journeying.
“You all right?” he asked, breathless.
“I am uninjured. You leveled? I didn’t think this would be enough. Have you been training your skills?”
“Not really outside of our practice.”
“Odd.”
Lyssa placed a hand on the side of the dead wolf. As Arche watched, her arrow disappeared, along with the pelt of the wolf and much of its meat.
“What did you just do?”
“I gathered what was of use. The rest of it can be left here, to nourish the forest.”
Arche looked down at his own wolf, then extended a hand and placed it on the beast’s side. A notification appeared before him.
Wolf’s Inventory
1x Ruined Wolf Pelt
10 kg of Wolf Meat (Raw)
1x Arrow (Ironwood)
With a thought, he transferred the items directly into his own inventory, watching as it filled up some of the empty spaces in his backpack. Again, he marveled at how nothing he put into the backpack made it any heavier, and as he patted it, it felt empty. Lyssa moved on to search the other wolf’s body as Arche let his notifications appear.
You have slain a Level 4 Wolf.
You gain 40 experience.
You have discovered a Trait!
Slayer of the Mighty
Receive a bonus to experience when you get the killing blow on an enemy that is a higher level than you are.
Bonus experience = (Level difference)(100)
Slayer of the Mighty activated!
You gain 200 bonus experience.
Lyssanderyli has slain two Wolves.
You gain 40 experience.
You have reached Level 3.
As a Human, you gain 5 points to distribute per level.
That was unexpected.
“Hey, Lyssa?”
“What?”
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“What’s a trait?”
Lyssa grabbed Arche by his leather chest piece and lifted him up until his toes barely scraped the ground.
“Do not lie to me. Tell me why you ask.”
The fierceness of her expression made his words stumble out.
“I-I discovered a trait when I killed the wolf. What’s wrong?”
Lyssa stared hard into his eyes. After several seconds, she let him go. He took a step back reflexively, rubbing at his throat.
“Traits are rare. Incredibly rare. What exactly is the trait you discovered?”
“It’s called ‘Slayer of the Mighty.’ It says it grants me bonus experience for killing foes of a higher level than I am.”
“I’ve not heard of that one, but you should be very cautious. It can allow you to grow in power at incredible speed, but only with exceptional danger. Levels are not everything in Tartarus. Strategy and equipment can overcome even extraordinary gaps in levels and different species have different baselines for power.”
“Don’t bite off more than I can chew. Got it.”
“Yes.” Lyssa cocked her head. “I suppose that’s one way of putting it. But having a trait often invites more trouble than it may be worth.”
“How so?”
“Where there is one trait, there are often more. Any others that you discover, keep to yourself and those you trust above all others. If a Trait-Bearer kills another, they have a chance of stealing a trait. The more traits they have, the higher the chance. There are other circumstances besides, but many would resort to backstabbing even for the slightest opportunity to propel themselves forwards. You must be very careful.”
“I will be, thanks. In the meantime, what do we do?”
Lyssa smiled.
“Hunt stronger prey, of course. Wolves are not the only beasts in these woods. Tomorrow, we will be out of the lands claimed by the Dawnwood and into the Sylv, which forms a majority of the rest of the Forest of Mycenae.”
“The Sylv?”
“A wild place, full of monsters. You would do best to have your wits about you.”
“More danger. Of course.”
“Thinking of turning back?”
“Back to what, exactly? The same forest, but by myself? No, I’m with you, Lyssa.”
Lyssa smiled. Arche caught a glimmer in her eye, as though her mind was suddenly far away. The sky above them was beginning to darken.
“We should make camp.”
Arche nodded, looking about the forest for a flat spot.
“All right, I’ll collect some firewood.”
Within an hour they had a hearty cooking fire and both tents set up. Lyssa prepared the wolf meat in a copper pan while Arche used an old rag to clean his sword. Another hour passed and they were sitting with full bellies, staring at the comforting orange flames beneath a dark sky.
“This may be the safest night we have for a long while,” Lyssa said, breaking the silence. “We might as well make the most of it.”
She held out her hand and a bottle materialized as she pulled it from her inventory.
“Is that…?”
“Sweet wine.” Lyssa took a pull from the bottle before handing it to him.
Arche took it and sniffed. It smelled like flowers, but also curled the hairs in his nose. He took a swig, then coughed. Lyssa was right, it was certainly sweet, but there was an undercurrent of bitterness that dried out his mouth. He handed the bottle back, squinting.
“Was that your first drink?” Lyssa asked, accepting the bottle.
“Of alcohol? Yeah, I think so.”
“I forget so much is new to you. You just seem like a traveler from far and distant lands, with all those strange customs you use.”
Arche shrugged. “I suppose I am, in a way. I’d like to find out where I’m from, some day. Who I used to be. Assuming, of course, that I actually existed before a few days ago.”
“Do you ever worry about that?”
“What do you mean?”
“What if you don’t like the person you used to be?”
Arche took the bottle proffered him and drank another swig, feeling the heat warm his belly and chest. The second time was slightly easier to manage now that he knew what to expect. At least he didn’t cough again.
“They’re just the person I used to be, right? Good or bad, I’m someone else, now. Besides, it doesn’t help to worry about things that may have been. If I get the chance to learn what actually happened to me, I’ll take it, but I can’t worry about hypothetical actions I may have taken in the past. I’ll go nuts.”
“Fair enough,” Lyssa said, before stretching and yawning. “If you don’t mind taking the first watch, I’m going to get some rest. Wake me in four hours and you can have the rest of the night.”
“All right, enjoy your shuteye. I’ll keep the fire going. If I start shouting, we’re under attack.”
Lyssa retired to her tent, shutting the flap behind her for privacy. Arche stared at the fire for a while before deciding it was time, he checked his profile.
Arche
Level: 3
Experience to Next Level: 220 (26%)
Race: Human
Age: 27
Height: 184 centimeters
Weight: 78.8 kilograms
Profession: N/A
Trade: N/A
Traits: Slayer of the Mighty
Companions: Lyssanderyli
Adventuring Party: N/A
You have 5 undistributed attribute points
Health: 265 / 265
100%
Stamina: 195 / 195
100%
Mana: 110 / 110
100%
Strength: 14
Dexterity: 12
Agility: 11
Fortitude: 13
Endurance: 13
Intelligence: 11
Wisdom: 11
Willpower: 11
Perception: 11
Charisma: 10
Comeliness: 1
Luck: 10
His weight had increased slightly, so it seemed, lending credence to the idea that investing points into Strength and Fortitude had made a measurable difference. Either that, or he’d overeaten his meals. With five points to distribute, he placed one point into Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, Willpower, and Perception. He wanted to make sure that he increased his combat capabilities, but he didn’t want to neglect his mental attributes. With his allocation settled, he looked at his Skills page.
Skills
Archery
Level 10
Novice
Swordsmanship
Level 8
Beginner
It was hard not to be disappointed by his lack of skills. He had to convince Lyssa to teach him more skills or try to discover some on his own. He also wanted to explore the world of non-combat skills and, most especially, magic. He wanted to know as much as he could, but those things would have to wait.
Arche tossed another log onto the fire, listening to it crackle as he settled against his bedroll. It was a clear night and the smoke was doing a wonderful job at keeping the bugs away, so he felt no need to set up his tent. He wondered if this kind of life was normal, or if people elsewhere lived in greater or lesser comfort. He was somewhat aware of the concept of cities, with thousands of people living practically on top of each other, but it seemed far-fetched, in a way. There was so much wilderness, it seemed, in Tartarus, that it made the concept of so many people living together appear like a dream or a distant memory. Even in Dawnwood, it had not escaped his notice that most of the dwellings were high in the trees, away from the forest floor where presumably powerful predators may once have stalked.
So far, the worst thing he had come to face was wolves—really, the wolf with half a face, which made occasional appearances in his dreams—but he had the feeling that the monsters Lyssa had mentioned would be worse than any beast. He couldn’t help but feel that he wasn’t ready. The wolves he had fought had already come close to killing him. Levels and numbers aside, he really did feel like a child in a great, big, new world. Every new piece of information he learned came with a dozen more questions, all unlocking even more pieces of a puzzle that had no edges.
He was glad to have Lyssa with him. She could claim to have no fondness for humans all she wished, but he had a feeling that what she had done for him was more than what her own people had done for her. He’d have been dead, likely several times over, if not for her intervention. He owed her everything.
He just hoped he wouldn’t let her down.