It had been a day since the waterfall incident, and Jake decided to stay with the group to assess the competence of a group of unranked mercenaries and to guide them to the best locations he had mentioned to Mary.
“So, you say there is a good site about a day’s walk from here, but didn’t you say that yesterday it was only a day away?” Dave said with an irritating tone.
“On my way to the waterfall, I was using a skill that lets me move much quicker than you.”
“Mary, is he always like this?”
“Yeah, he just doesn’t like you.”
“Okay, I can deal with that. He can just join a rather large club. He will have plenty of company there.”
“What the fuck are you two talking about now? And if you have such a skill, why don’t you find the site’s location by yourself? That makes little sense. Or is it that you don’t have a rank because you couldn’t even pass the entrance test?”
“You know, mate, you’re getting on my nerves. Just shut the fuck up and do your job, Mr. Swords guy.”
“My name is Dave. Dave, already. Get it right.”
“Okay, Bob, don’t blow your top. It’s just a name.”
Dave’s face went as red as a beetroot as he yelled, “I will fucken kill you!” and ran at Jake with his sword in his hand. Jake teleported behind the man, grabbing one of his arms and twisting it so hard that it broke in three places. Dave’s brother, Lewis, started to move, but Jake just looked at him, and he froze in place.
“Teaching time for you idiots.”
Basic rule:
1. always use ‘Identify,’ no matter the circumstances.
2. If your target’s info comes back as a ‘?’, their true level is much higher than your own.
3. Under no circumstances should you attack an enemy in single combat if you are unable to identify them.
“What do you know? You’re just some arr–” Jake broke his other arm. “Now let’s continue.”
1. When you attack an enemy above your level, do it as a team.
“And finally, for those of you who don’t seem to be able to listen,” Jake stood in the centre of Dave’s back, pulled his head back, and spoke directly into his ear,
1. Don’t telegraph your attacks. So, don’t be a fuckhead.
Jake rammed Dave’s head into the ground with just enough force to render him unconscious.
As Dave lay unconscious, Jake was a nice person for once and helped by sealing the idiot’s wounds on his arms with the skill Healing Hand, but stopped short of fixing his face.
“So, you’re all going to do a bit of training now,” Jake said, then released his new hunting skill to find a target for the team. “This way, follow me and keep quiet.” The group didn’t say a word and followed Jake. Lewis picked up his brother as he followed behind the group.
An hour later, Jake was crouching behind a bush, looking down at a monster he would never have bothered with at his current level, but this wasn’t for him to fight.
“So, do you know what this one is?” Jake said to Lewis.
“No.”
“My fucken God, are you as stupid as your brother?” Jake looked at one of the neckbeards, “Harrison Lopez, wasn’t it. Do you know the answer I want?”
Harrison identified the monster.
Race: Rattling Level: 40
“It’s a level 40 Rattling. It’s above the guideline’s level for our ranks.”
“That it is, and yet you are going to kill it today.”
“But the chance of failure is too high. What if one of us dies?”
“Then one of you dies. The world has changed; you either change with it or get destroyed by it.”
“But me and Joel are only officials.”
“Correct again, but as officials, do you not need to protect yourselves?”
“Yes, we do.”
“Then it’s time for you all to start working as a team and not as individuals. What are your profession, class, and skills?”
Mary brought up her skills and showed them to the team.
Class: Magical Fighter
Profession: Builder’s Apprentice
Skills:
Class:
Mana-Infused Impact
Light Weapons Fighter
Mana-Boosted Speed
Heavy Weapons Fighter
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Profession:
Builder’s Sight
Mana Hammer
Conjure Item
The two neckbeards went next.
Class: Light Trooper
Profession: Tech Engineer
Skills:
Class:
Steady Aim
Hard Impact
Transmute Powder
Profession:
Micro Sight
System Coding
Blueprinting
Heated Hand
The last to give his information was Lewis, as he did it only because Mary threatened him with a silent glance towards his genitals.
“Me and my brother have the same class, skills, and profession.”
Class: Magic Knight
Profession: Smith’s Apprentice
Skills:
Class:
Mana Barrier
Swords of Justice
Light Weapons Specialist
Light Footwork
Profession:
Smith’s Sight
Muscle Mass
Smithing Flame
“We’ve told you ours; now it’s your turn,” Lewis said in a snarky tone.
“I’m not part of your team, and as such, I won’t be taking part in your fights. But I can tell you one of my skills: you’ve seen part of it in action already. It’s called...”
Skill: Shadow Step (Rare) Teleporting from shadow to shadow is as easy as taking a single step. Shadows must be in visual range. Cost of use: arcane energy, stamina, and mana. Create a barrier around yourself to hinder vision and dash or teleport from shadow to shadow. Gives a 10% damage multiplier to all unseen attacks.
Unlike the group, Jake gave a full description of the skill, showing that he wasn’t afraid of anyone here.
“Does that satisfy your curiosity? I might even give you one more; you know this one first hand.”
Skill: Fighter’s Eyes (Rare) Your enemy will cower at your sight. Illuminate the pathway to your target. Uses mana to enhance your eyesight and your perception stat to find your prey. Uses a burst of mana to attempt to immobilize your target; there is a 50% chance the target will run.
Lewis’s mouth dropped in shock.
“Yes. From the start, your chances were set - you had a 50% chance to either run like a chicken or freeze in place.”
“And these skills are not even my real combat skills, so if you want to keep acting like a spoiled little brat, I can just kill you. I really don’t mind.”
Lewis said nothing and just listened.
“Now, shall we get started on this fight? Quick question. How are you going to handle this monster?”
The group talked amongst themselves for a bit. Then the four said, “Mary and Lewis will attack the monster at close range while Harrison and Joel provide oversight for the fight and alert us if something goes wrong.”
“Shall I point out the stupidity of what you all just said, yes or no?”
“What was wrong with our plan?” Mary said.
“Well, let’s see, cutting your power in half by leaving two people on the sideline while two close-range fighters attack alone.”
“But those two are only officials, and they don’t have any ammunition to fire,” Lewis said.
“Are you a smith or not? Can you make projectiles or not?”
“I’m an apprentice, not a smith.”
“Tell me, do you have the skill to make a flame and the strength to shape the metal? Hell, you even have the skill to create a barrier. So, the answer you should have said is yes. And as for removing them from the fight because they have no ammunition, well, can you make something like this?” Jake threw a simple flash bomb over to them; it was one of Jake’s first attempts, severely lacking power, but it should be within the capabilities of the two light troopers. “And as for you, Mary, you are lacking in weapon combos. You can use both light and heavy weapons, right? Try using different weapon types and combine them with your mana skills.”
Jake handed over ammunition to the troopers, then said, “Have another go at planning, then act on it. If it fails, you will die. I will not help you with this fight.”
The group took Jake’s words to heart and went over their group’s makeup and skills, not leaving anything out. After an hour of talk, Jake finally asked, “Do you have your plan?”
“Yes,” they all said.
“That’s good. Just don’t forget that your plan won’t survive first contact, so be ready to improvise,” Jake said, before vanishing into the shadows. “I am your hidden enemy, so be careful,” Jake laughed from the shadows.
Jake watched from the shadows as the group of mercenaries got into position for their first strike on the rattling. Jake hoped it would at least survive for a bit.
The mercenary group’s first actual fight
Mary waited for the opening salvo from the two troopers before it would be her turn to act. Her first job was to stun the enemy with the grenade Joel gave her. The surrounding area lit up as the two troopers fired their muskets at the enemy. She went to throw the bomb, but just as it was about to leave her hand, her legs buckled under her, and she hit the ground, the bomb falling and rolling toward her fellow close combatant.
Bang!
The grenade went off between the two, blinding them and removing their best advantage.
“What the fuck was that?” Lewis yelled, his hearing affected by the loud explosion.
Mary yelled back, “Watch the shadows! He can be anywhere.”
The only ones in the group unaffected by the explosion were the troopers, and as they had fired their first round, they were working on loading their second. It seemed that their weapons lacked the ability to summon the powder and projectile straight into the chamber.
Jake laughed and said from the shadows, “Load faster; your teammates are going to die.”
Just as the two troopers got their muskets loaded, they had to fire them again, as the rattling was just about on top of Mary’s position. “Faster, faster, faster,” Jake yelled from just behind the two troopers. After the third round, Mary and Lewis had regained their senses and closed in on the rattling from both sides. It was now time for Jake to make his next move. He teleported behind Lewis and kicked his legs out from under him; he hit the ground hard before rolling onto his side. Mary’s first strike hit, but her second failed, and she took a claw to her stomach, sending her flying backward.
Jake let them recover for a bit while the two troopers fired a few more times before he attacked them, knocking one out and sending the other flying.
The gunfire went silent as the rattling began its charge at Lewis. This time, Lewis pulled out his sword and stood his ground, knowing that if he fell, everyone behind him would die as well.
He activated the skill Mana Barrier and launched forward with the skill Light Footwork. Using his last two skills, a wall of replica swords formed in the air, and as he swung the sword in his hand, all the swords moved together, turning the poor little rattling into an echidna. The rattling dropped to the ground, dead, and Lewis dropped to his knees, resting on his sword. Jake popped out of a shadow behind Lewis and said,
“Good job. You protected your team. You should feel proud of your actions today.”
“Thank you for the training you have given us. I’m sorry for what we did and said.”
“Don’t worry about it. But try to get your brother to see his path as well,” Jake said before collecting the rest of the team and bringing them over to rest as he sat guard for them high in the trees, where no one could see him.