POV: Male Elf Guard Captain Pothes
It’s been a day since that exiled heretical slave crawled back to the village to deliver the herbs he owes us—his pathetic attempt to stave off punishment. I can’t believe that little wretch is forcing me to send someone to teach him a lesson again. Did he learn nothing the last time, when we left his back striped of flesh with the rose whip? I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “Lynse, come here. I have a task for you.”
Lynse. The exile’s cousin. He’s the one who turned in the boy and his mother for their heresy against our Creator. It was because of Lynse’s unwavering devotion to the faith—and his willingness to betray his blood—that I promoted him from a lowly trainee to my squire. The memory stirred in me. I could still hear the mother’s screams as the purifying flames consumed her. That symphony of agony had been… exquisite. Just thinking about it sent a pleasant shiver down my spine. A shame we hadn’t been able to—
A knock at the door broke through my reverie. “Enter, Lynse,” I called, allowing a faint smile to cross my lips.
The door opened, and Lynse stepped in, saluting smartly. He was taller and stronger than the exiled slave, being ten years his senior. His looks bore the mark of the devoted chosen—a handsomeness that came with divine favor.
“You called for me, Sire?” he asked, his voice steady and respectful.
Such a good boy. “Yes, Lynse. The exile has failed to meet his quota on time again. I’m sending you and your subordinates to deal with him. Punish him if he resists, but bring him back to me alive. I want to handle his real punishment personally. Start by checking that little tree hut he sulks in.” I gestured to the map on my desk.
A wide grin spread across Lynse’s face. “I’ll bring him back without delay, my lord. May I request to use the prisoner’s whip instead of the rose whip this time?”
I chuckled, pleased with his enthusiasm. “Of course, but don’t damage him too much. I’d rather not waste resources healing him before I punish him.” I reached into the drawer and tossed him a whip crafted from the bones of prisoners we’d executed. It was enchanted with a pain multiplier, increasing the torment tenfold while preventing the victim from gaining any resistance skills to the pain. All my whips bore the same enchantment, but this one held a particularly cruel legacy. It was crafted by the Ex-Captain who came before me during the war with the lower species.
Lynse caught the whip, bowing deeply. “Thank you, Sire. I’ll have him back within forty minutes. If he’s too injured, I’ll have Kath heal him to save your resources.”
I raised a brow. “Kath? She’s learned to heal now?” My tone turned icy, though my eyes betrayed my curiosity.
“Yes, Sire,” Lynse said quickly, dropping to one knee. “I was about to report it before you summoned me. After we cleared the dungeon, she gained the ability from a skill book it dropped. I’ll make sure she’s available to tend to the exile when we return… and to you if you wish.”
A dark smile tugged at my lips. “You should’ve informed me sooner. I might have to punish you for that oversight—but I may forgive you if you bring her to me tonight.”
“I apologize, Sire,” Lynse stammered. “To make amends, I brought this as well.” He reached into his pocket bag and produced a skill book, holding it out reverently.
I used a gust of wind to carry the book to my hands. The title on the cover made my eyes gleam: Flare Gale, Rank 3, Level 1/50. Finally. This was the rare skill book I’d sought for over two centuries. It would enhance my power beyond measure. I wouldn’t let Lynse know how pleased I was—better to keep him eager to prove himself—but this offering secured his place in my good graces.
I wasted no time activating the book, merging its knowledge with my current skills. A thrill ran through me as the fusion was completed.
“Go now, Lynse,” I ordered, my voice laced with a dark promise. “If you keep me waiting too long, you’ll regret it.”
Lynse bowed deeply again, retreating from the room with haste. The door clicked shut behind him, and I leaned back in my chair, already anticipating the exile’s screams and the pleasures that awaited when I took Kath tonight, she has grown in a lot of ways. I think I shall love the taste of her.
----------------------------------------
Pov Lynse
I ran as fast as my legs could carry me. When the Captain gets that look in his eye, it means he’s in one of those moods—the kind where someone always ends up broken, or worse. I couldn’t waste any time. If I didn’t find that exile quickly, the Captain might turn his fury on me after he was done with the boy. Not even offering him Kath—my Kath—would sate him if his desires ran deep tonight. I prayed that wasn't what the captain wanted but I could never be sure. But hopefully, Kath talked to the healer ahead of time instead of waiting like usual.
Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!
I bolted toward the tavern where my party was supposed to meet. Hopefully, they hadn’t taken off their gear yet. If they had, there wouldn’t be time to put it back on before we had to leave.
The smell of ale and roasted meat hit me as I entered the dimly lit room. At least some luck was on my side—Kay, the tank of our group, was still fully armored, his heavy plate reflecting the firelight. But Kath... She wasn’t so prepared. She was dressed in something far too revealing, her usual choice when we returned from the dungeon and went straight home for a bath. She didn't go to the healer like I thought.
Damn, that exile. Because of him, I’d have to have Kath stay with the captain today instead of with me, and with the way the captain is he might use her healing for something cruel. My fists clenched as rage bubbled inside me. When we found the boy, I was going to make him regret every second of his miserable existence. I gave a quick prayer asking for the captain not to do anything to Kath. Fuck I shouldn't have mentioned the healing skill yet and instead have taken the punishment for forgetting the skill gain.
I approached the table quickly but didn’t run, knowing the elder who owned the tavern wouldn’t tolerate such behavior indoors. “Come on, we need to leave. Now,” I said, my voice low but urgent. “The exile is causing trouble again. Captain wants us to drag him back so he can deal with him personally.”
Kay groaned, his broad shoulders slumping. Kath’s face twisted in annoyance. “We just got back,” she complained. “We were in that dungeon for four days. Everyone else gets to rest after a run. Why can’t we?”
I slammed my fist on the table, my patience wearing thin. “Do you think I want this? The Captain gave us a direct order. If we don’t bring that filth back, we’ll be punished with him. Is that what you want?”
My outburst silenced them both. They grumbled under their breath but stood up, recognizing the tone in my voice. They knew I wasn’t messing around.
Outside, we didn’t waste time. I pulled a spare staff and a ring of protection from my pocket bag and tossed them to Kath. She hadn’t been lucky enough to find her own bag in the dungeon yet. Kay drew a kite shield and longsword from his bag, checking them quickly before nodding to me.
We sprinted out of the village, heading for the exile’s hut. It wasn’t far—only about five minutes at full speed thanks to our high agility stats. I could’ve made it even faster on my own, but the rules were clear: no one leaves the village alone. A group ensures survival against stronger threats, and if something goes wrong, the fastest among us could run back for reinforcements. Still, I didn’t need my group. I was one of the fastest spell swords in the village, and I knew it.
The exile’s pathetic tree hut came into view, poorly concealed among the branches. It wasn’t even worth calling a hiding spot. “Kay, check the hut,” I ordered. “Kath, I need to talk to you.”
Kath gave me a wary look as Kay climbed the tree. I took a deep breath, hating what I had to say. “Kath, I’m sorry. We won’t be spending tonight together. When I reported on the dungeon and gave the Captain the skill book, he called me in and demanded I find the exile. But when I mentioned your new healing skill... he got angry that I hadn’t told him sooner. He wants you to spend the night with him.” My stomach twisted as I spoke, but I forced myself to continue. “I don’t know what he wants, but be careful. If he tries anything, I’ll tell the head elder she might help us if he does.”
Her face darkened with a mix of fear and irritation. “You idiot,” she snapped. “Why’d you tell him? I was going to inform the village healer first thing tomorrow and become her disciple. Now you are going to ruin everything!”
“I had to tell him, Kath!” I hissed. “If I hadn’t, we’d both be punished. And this is mostly your fault, too! You should’ve gone straight to the healer when we got back, instead of wasting time bathing and relaxing.”
She glared at me, gripping her staff tightly as if she wanted to hit me. “I wasn’t going to meet the healer covered in blood and sweat! I wanted to make a good impression! Plus I wanted to meet her in the morning and not so late.”
“Do you think she cares about that? She’s seen people with their guts spilling out! You should’ve gone anyway and blamed your condition on healing Kay if she even asked!” I sighed, forcing myself to calm down. “Look, I’ll send Kay to the healer as soon as we’re back. He’ll explain that you want to be her disciple but couldn’t come right away. But if she’s busy, you’ll have to deal with the Captain. He might leave you alone... but don’t count on it.”
Kath’s expression softened slightly, but before she could respond, Kay called out from the hut. “Lynse, you need to see this!”
“Damn it,” I muttered, turning toward the tree. I summoned a lift from the grass and plants nearby using nature mana, rising swiftly to the top.
What I saw stopped me cold.
The hut was in shambles, the walls shredded by deep claw marks. Blood stained the floorboards. It looked like something attacked the exile in his sleep—something with sharp, strong claws. A goblin, maybe? But goblins would’ve taken his rusted rapier, worthless as it was. Whatever attacked him had left it behind.
“Shit,” I muttered. “I can’t tell what did this. We need to report this immediately.”
I jumped back down to the others. “Kay, when we get back, head straight to the healer and tell her Kath wants to be her disciple. Explain that she can’t come yet because the captain wants to talk to her alone. Kath, pray she’s available to respond. Let’s move.”
We ran back to the village, alert for danger but moving as quickly as we could. Whatever happened at that hut, it wasn’t going to end well for anyone. Whatever attacked the exile was something with a higher level of intelligence than regular monsters with a very high level of stealth skill. It was able to get to the door and attack the exile in his sleep without him knowing it was there untell it broke through the thin bark door. Something like that can mean a lot of things, but I hope it is just a stray stealth monster trying to migrate to another area. I only pray it wasn't something worse.
I am not one of the hunters so I am unable to tell everything that happened but hopefully telling this to the captain makes him forget about Kath. He should be more focused on that since whatever killed the exile was able to get passed all of the scouts and wards set up.