“Be careful, Baron’s coming over here.” Blanche whispered harshly out of the corner of his mouth.

Instantly, Alice stiffened and the brief burst of excitement drifted away as she was met with the crushing weight of reality. Composing herself and molding her face into a serious expression, Alice turned around to watch Blanche approach the duo.

Now that he was getting closer, it was easy to see Alice’s initial assumptions were off the mark. Baron was actually severely damaged, with heavy bandaging across the entirety of his body and constricting his movements from a purposeful stride into a meek hobble. Half of his face was patched up with an array of healing herbs and sludge slapped on, making him possess a keen resemblance to a swamp monster of sorts.

Even with all that, there was no denying the fearsome aura radiating off his imposing figure. Alice gulped as he approached, coming to a halt a few feet in front of the duo.

Alice shuffled closer to Blanche, drawing comfort from how unruffled the dwarf was in the presence of Baron. She pushed her shoulders back, trying to appear larger than she was.

Baron surprised her by inclining his head. It wasn’t quite a bow, but Alice figured that was the furthest he was willing to go as a leader figure. “Thank you for your aid in our battle against the monster. You have exceeded my expectations, and proven your worth.”

Alice wrinkled her forehead. Something about his tone and diction didn’t exactly convey gratitude…in fact, his words resembled that of a noble more than a commoner. Alice narrowed her eyes. “Sure. No problem. I guess.”

Baron raised his head. “I’m sure you’ve received numerous boons from the monster. May I see what you have been gifted?”

Blanche subtly nudged Alice in her ribs. Alice jolted, rubbing the sore spot and glowering at the back of Blanche’s head. I wasn’t going to tell him, jerk! Out loud, she forced a smile and said, “It doesn’t look like I got anything particularly special. Maybe Lily got the prize because it was thanks to her Skill?”

Alice carefully observed Baron’s face and wasn’t surprised when his expression darkened, like a shutter was coming down and blocking the sun. “I…see. Well, Blanche, we’re going to be leaving momentarily. See to it that you and your apprentice don’t fall behind.”

Blanche let out a hearty chuckle. “Don’t worry about us! Take care of your party and mind they don’t slow us down. They look like they’re going to fall asleep any moment now.”

Baron’s eyebrow twitched. “So that’s how you’re going to play it? Fine. We’re moving out!” he ordered, flicking his hand. There was a coordinated response of, “Yes, Sir!” and everybody picked up the pace.

Baron and Blanche exchanged a final series of smug looks before Baron limped away to a pile of leaking sacks.

Before Alice could get a better look at what was inside, she was rudely smacked over the head. “Ow!” Alice hissed, knocking Blanche’s hand away. “What the hell was that for!?”

“You fool, why’d you have to mention Lily to Baron?” Blanche asked. Alice paused in her ministrations and tilted her head, a triumphant smile breaking across her face.

“Ah-ha! So there is something going on! I wasn’t sure at first, but Lily is definitely the only person Baron doesn’t like. Do you know why?” Alice prodded Blanche.

Blanche let out a long-suffering sigh, dragging his hand down his face. Although his voice was muffled by his palm, Alice was fairly certain he said, “Why did I get saddled with her?”

Before she could take proper offense at that statement, Blanche carried on. “Baron and Lily have a complex relationship. That’s all I can tell you. It’s their story, and they don’t need a stranger learning it.”

Alice crossed her arms and pouted, but she couldn’t give a good explanation as to why she should hear it other than she wanted to. Blanche was right, as usual. Alice had nothing to do with their story. “Fine. Can you at least tell me if Baron was always like that? Talking super stiff and noble-esque?” Alice scrunched up her nose the last words.

Blanche frowned. “That I can tell you. Baron’s village was overtaken by a small noble family 3 years ago. They weren’t overly powerful or influential, but it was more than enough to consume a weak village like Baron’s. He had to make sacrifices if he wanted to be able to protect his people. Part of that was throwing away his commoner past, and becoming the servant of the nobility.”

“Oh.” was all Alice had to say as she watched Baron help some people with the bags. She saw him in an entirely new light; instead of a threatening warrior, she witnessed a beaten down leader who had to make difficult choices. Alice clenched her hands; that still didn’t excuse him for treating Lily the way he did though.

“We’re leaving!” Baron yelled, his voice rippling through the clearing. Everybody stopped what they were doing and moved closer, gathering around their leader in a half circle. Alice and Blanche stood awkwardly to the side, a little away from the rest of the people. “The forerunners will go in front, the supply carriers will go in the middle, and the vanguard will be protecting our back! Since we had to move locations, we will be navigating new territory for many of you. Do not worry and follow the experts. We shall make it back home safe and sound!”

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

“Yaaaaaa!” For a few seconds, the clearing was filled with the rambunctious cheering of the party, spurred on by encouraging words of their leader. Then they began to fall into formation, their easy and fluid motions making it clear this was something they had done thousands of times.

Alice somehow found herself squished in the middle, walking next to a guy who was carrying one of the large sacks she’d seen earlier. She opened her mouth to ask him what was inside. He shot her an inquisitive look and before she knew it, she’d shut her mouth again. Chucking awkwardly, she shrugged, trying to make up for her fumble. He stared at her with a peculiar expression for a couple more seconds before facing the front.

What the hell was that?! Why’d I clam up? Grr, Blanche! Making me self-conscious of what I say! Alice didn’t venture into the unknown to be quiet. She wasn’t going to be someone who allowed others to trample over her voice. Coughing, Alice attempted to speak again.

“Hey, so—!”

“WE’RE MOVING OUT!” Baron roared. Alice jumped, her body shuddering uncontrollably at the sudden volume. Everybody began marching forward and Alice let out an indignant squak when the person behind her shoved against her back. Shooting a dirty glare back at the guilty person, who simply kept her gaze locked straight ahead, Alice started walking.

Realizing that her ‘partner’ had left her in the dust, Alice picked up the pace, breaking into a light jog to catch up. When she returned to her original position, Alice slowed down to a steady pace, observing her partner and marveling at how well he was carrying the bag. It was about half his size and he was hefting it on top of his shoulder, while maintaining a relatively fast pace.

“What is that?” Alice asked, mentally pumping a fist at successfully getting the words out. The man momentarily flicked his eyes towards her but quickly resumed boring into the back of the head in front of him.

Alice frowned. Rude. Reaching up, Alice poked at the bag. Her eyebrows shot up when her prodding appendage sunk into the coarse fabric, meeting something squishy within. She even heard the faint sound of fatty meat swirling around in the bag, and at this close, Alice spotted patches of darkness in the fabric where juice had seeped through. When she pulled her finger to her face, she saw the barest green-tinted liquid at the tip.

“This is the serpent?!” Alice asked. She inclined her back, tracking the line of people behind them. There were at least five bags like these being carried by the various party members, each one a varying degree of fullness. That in itself wasn’t surprising; the serpent was certainly big enough to fill several bags. What was surprising was that they were going to eat it?

“Is monster meat even safe?” Alice mumbled to herself when somebody grabbed her wrist and sharply pulled. Startled, Alice stumbled forward and ran into what felt like a rock-solid wall. Tilting her head up, she discovered she was chest-to-chest with the woman behind her, who had her wrist clenched tightly in one hand and a murderous expression on her face.

“Don’t go touching our meat.” she ordered in a low tone.

Something inside Alice bristled at the obnoxiously self-assured tone she used. She roughly snatched her wrist out of the woman’s hand, rubbing the sore area. “Don’t go touching my meat. Some of this should belong to me by right. I held the monster down.” Alice snapped.

“Blanche already declined to take any of the meat. This is ours.” the woman insisted, her face growing darker.

Great. Thanks a lot, Blanche. “Fine. Whatever.” Alice grit out. “Didn’t see you in the fight, but who cares, am I right?” Alice snuck in one last remark.

Before the woman could retaliate, Alice promptly turned her back onto her. She heard the woman struggle to contain herself, grunting and muttering before she finally fell into an uneasy silence, only broken by the sound of her teeth grinding.

A self-satisfied grin appeared on Alice’s face. Ha! Take that!

//Congratulations! You have gained the Skill, [Taunt of the Weak]!

So soon? Damn, I’m on a roll with getting these Skills! Standing on her toes, Alice tried her best to look over the heads of the march to locate Blanche but failed to catch a glimpse of his shiny locks. Nearly tripping on a pebble, Alice gave up on finding Blanche and resumed her normal walking. Well, he said not to tell anybody my stats, not that I can’t ask.

What does [Taunt of the Weak] do? Alice asked in her head, unsure whether she was simply making a fool of herself. To her delight, a ding rang across the forest and the mechanical voice popped up once more. Smiling, Alice went to town taking in all the new information.

//[Taunt of the Weak] is a mental-based Skill that is only effective on beings who are a lower level than the wielder. It increases the emotional range of the target, aggravating them and causing them to lose their rationality.

Alice paused. That…sounded bad. Definitely not a Skill she should use often, if it meant interfering with somebody else’s mind and causing them to ‘lose their rationality.’

Still, if I can just level it up, it could be really useful. Alice bit her lip. She’d sworn not to let an obsession over her stats and Skills fester in case it overrode her true goal. Alice had thought it wouldn’t be a problem, that her will was strong enough to resist the alluring temptation but it was tough work. The urge to constantly check was more pronounced than ever, lingering at the edges of her consciousness.

Keep your head in the game, Alice! Don’t lose sight of your goal!

Alice let out a long suffering groan. This was going to be harder than she expected.