The trio had made camp at midday after a less than fruitful morning. There were two options available to them: head south or north around the perimeter of the region, or head deeper into the east for bigger hunts. Willow and Hana wanted to circle around and hunt the perimeter, to stop any monsters before they could make it to nearby villages and towns. But Jinyoung…
“What about the mid-boss?”
That was exactly what Hana didn’t want to hear. One of the consequences of the Seorak Outbreak was the inevitable encounter with a mid-boss. Due to the hidden nature of its source, it could only be hunted once a year. It was a target. But more than that, it was a trophy.
“So that’s why there are so many people here. They’re all here because they want to hunt this thing, is that it?”
Willow waited for Hana to answer, but the silence stretched on. So she answered for her.
“That’s why they’re here. We’re here to make sure that none of the people who live in the area wake up to monsters on their lawns.”
The two opinions were fair to Hana’s mind. The fact was she had wondered herself if they should be heading deeper in to hunt bigger game. It was an easy argument to make. That the experience of fighting bigger and stronger monsters would only allow them to help more people in the future. The only problem was that after a long career in the wilds, she’d walked both paths. And she knew from experience that chasing fame, fortune and power was never ending.
But that for each person to figure out on their own.
“We’ll head south, check the quadrant right below us. After last night, there’s a merchant’s road that cuts through the forest I want to check on.”
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
Last night, while Jinyoung and Willow were enjoying the night party, Hana talked with the shopkeepers and traveling brokers. Several were moving on today, but they were worried about protection on the road. The players charged with clearing the road were known for cutting corners.
“We’ll head in deeper and see if we can find the place where these damned things spawn, but only after we’ve made sure the caravan heading out today is safe.”
***
By the time they were close enough to hear the shouts, the three of them for a second had the same thought.
We should’ve come sooner.
The shouts and explosions could be heard from a distance. Too far for any abilities to track down the caravan’s whereabouts. Instead, the trio moved as quickly as they could towards the point in the road where they thought the merchants would most likely be.
When they found them, it was utter chaos.
A small army of lizardmen had camped out in the trees, not unlike the first ambush the Phoenix had run into. But this time, there was no one to warn the convoy so they took the brunt of a surprise attack. Two players were killed in the opening seconds leaving seven untrained civilians, a red mage and a rogue to deal with over 20 lizardmen. Some of the vehicles were mangled leaving the caravan stuck.
Jinyoung and Hana ran directly at the fray while Willow ran in a wide circle to take up a position behind a tight group of trees. Once they were close enough, Jinyoung Dashed in and took the head off of one monster. Hana targeted four lizardmen closing in on the wounded mage and sent them flying with a well placed [shield bash].
For a second it looked like they might turn the tide of battle. Willow slew two monsters on her own, targeting them with her crossbow and [magic bolt]. But this wasn’t a small group of five or six monsters, it was a small army. Just by pure numbers, they began to beat the humans back. Jinyoung and Willow struggled to fight the monsters and protect the caravan, while a group of 10 had surrounded Hana and were attacking her mercilessly. She used defensive skills to prevent any real danger to her, but neither was she able to help the others.
Out of the corner of her eye, Hana could only watch as the rogue took a swipe to her leg and went down on one knee. Six lizardmen stood between them and there was no way she could make it to her in time.
And then something roared.
image [https://i.imgur.com/khUjszQ.jpeg]