Aurora

I stood next to Roland, Zaras, and the others along with nearly two hundred Common Vampires. All of them outfitted with steel armor and weapons. I was almost bouncing on my heels from excitement from the coming battle. I never thought of myself as an adrenaline junkie, but I might just that. The thought of the coming battle was making my heartbeat rapidly.

Thanks to my persona of Kaga, I learned that the goblin was about to be attacked by a force from the main group in the forest. That’s when I got a fun idea. I needed to kill monsters to gain experience for my dungeon. Since nothing had come inside in a long time, likely due to Maxwell and Razz making sure the monsters were staying away from my entrance, I decided to claim myself a nice little snack of goblins.

I looked at the pass that ran along the side of the mountain. It was likely that the inquisition would come down this path if they wanted to move quickly against our friends in the mud pit. Nothing came along for a long time though. I glanced at Roland. “We’re sure that they are coming down this route?”

The man quickly knelt in front of me. “Yes. Our scouts reported that they should have only been a few hours from here.”

I glanced at Zaras who nodded only slightly. “Very well. I can’t move any further from the dungeon in this body. Send another scout to find out how much longer.” I looked to the star covered sky. “None of us want to be out here when the sun comes up.”

Roland saluted. “Understood, my queen.” I watched as he took off with a few of the scout type vampires. I really hoped that he wasn’t the one that betrayed me. He was the first of my Higher Vampires. It would hurt me almost as much if I found he had been the one to end Losa’s life.

“For you, my queen,” Zaras remarked as he brought me to a table and chair set for evening tea. It was simple but bringing a chair and table on a military expedition that called for speed was a burden for someone. The fact that I hadn’t noticed the furniture before meant I wasn’t paying enough attention.

“Thank you, Zaras.” I sat down then took a sip of the tea, finding it to be warmed blood. I never thought I would enjoy blood of all things as my drink. It was amazing how much a person could adapt to a situation. I set the cup down on the plate. “Everyone is aware of the plan, correct?”

“Yes. We will kill most of the attacking force while capturing those that we can. After that, we claim to have been sent by Maxwell and Razz and that this area is claimed in their name to any survivors.”

I nodded, pleased. “It’ll be two birds with one stone. Everything that I need to accomplish requires a higher level. With the two of them starving me, I need a way to attract some fresh meat. If we piss off the goblin nation enough they’re sure to send a larger force. That means more fresh blood and giving that annoying prick Maxwell a headache at the same time.”

“Perhaps letting the force through would be the better course of action?” Carson asked.

“Maybe. I know after the battle the other day Maxwell is injured, but I know for a fact that he’s already replaced most of the soldiers he lost. They might not be quite as high level, but they are there.” I couldn’t exactly say that this was a world based on a game. The rules in place meant that Razz had a chance to succeed. I doubted a few months were enough to change that fact. No. I was sure that since Razz had Maxwell supporting him, the goblin village would have made it through the coming challenge.

Another hour passed before the Roland returned along with the scouts. I stood from my chair. “They set up camp about two kilometers down the road. I spent some time to scout out their force. They number around five hundred, with several Champions and Captains. There is a Major as well, but he stuck to his tent. I couldn’t get a good read on him.”

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“Magic users?” I asked since the goblins main strength was, well, their strength, and their numbers.

“About twenty or thirty.”

“Roland, Carson. Take a detachment and wake them up. Try to do enough to make sure they commit to attacking. I don’t want to wait any longer.”

“Understood!” The two saluted then began to yell orders to the vampires under their command. The bloodlust rolling off from them was almost tangible in the air. I sat back down then whistled. Varroth came over and laid his head in my lap for me to pet. Looking at the demon worg, I was considering making another one soon. They were powerful and loyal if slightly crazed when they were on the battlefield.

I didn’t have to wait long before the sounds of battle reached us. Carson’s unit consisting of devoted mages helped get the goblins up and fighting. Before long, my vampires came back around the pass with frenzied goblins hot on their heels. A towering goblin that looked more like a troll than a goblin was further back, but was clearly in a pissed off mood.

Stroking Varroth’s head one last time, I gently patted him. “Go. Hunt.” He roared out a growl then exploded into motion as he charged at the goblins. Being a sort of berserker, the more injured he got, the stronger he’d become. Zaras held out his hand, taking it, I stood up as I pulled out of the magic pistols made for me. I just hoped it survived more than a single shot this time.

I pointed the rifle at the coming goblins. With a feeling of exhilaration, I sent several death spells into the midst of the enemy force. The weaker goblins dropped to the ground subsequently being trampled. Those that had stronger life force were soon covered in boils and lesions. “Plague!” I laughed as the goblins screamed in horror and pain. A bit more calmly, I looked over to the still vampires. “Go.”

Even covered in steel armor, the vampires moved like shadows. To be frank, the goblins were no match. Swords, spears, shields, and more sent blood spraying into the moonlit night. Any time a group managed to start holding their ground, I along with several of the mages would send magic spells into their midst.

“You said they had magic users,” I remarked to Roland when he pulled back from the battle to recover his mana.

Roland knelt with a salute. “We’ve already killed most of them. Since we were going to attack the camp, I made sure to make it worth it.” I narrowed my eyes at him. He was designed to be an expert at battles. I didn’t quite understand how the knowledge was imparted to him by the system, but I knew he was skillful enough to make such a call.

“Very well.” I looked back to the battle. We had already cut down over half of their force. The Captains, Champions, and Major were making it hard to fully break them, however. I did a quick check and found about two dozen of my vampires had been defeated. I’d rather not waste much more time or mana. I flapped my wings and rose into the air. I could feel the hum of the border. Much further and I would be forced to stop.

Reaching a good height, I aimed my pistols at the Goblin Major. Since I knew I couldn’t kill him in one hit, I decided to go a different route. I chanted my spell then let the gem in the pistols gather energy until they glowed almost too brightly. “Pain!” With a crack, the dual cast spell flew across the field and slammed into the Goblin Major.

His ferocious swings immediately came to a stop as he screamed at the top of his lungs. The spell only did a limited amount of damage to his HP, but his mind was in pure agony right now. He tossed his axe as he began rolling on the ground, gripping his head. The other goblins seeing their leader in obvious torture began to crack. Screams from the front lines as they were cut down caused the rear to finally succumb to their panic as one, then two, then a dozen began to flee into the surroundings.

I dropped down from the air landing gracefully on Varroth’s back. I looked to my leaders. “Round up a few of them. You know the story.” Glancing at the still screaming leader, I leveled my pistol at him before sending round after round of Death into him. He finally came to a stop after about twenty shots. I had nearly used up all my mana to do it as well. The Goblin Major’s body looked like it had been rotting for weeks. “I’ll be returning to the dungeon.”

“Understood, my queen,” Zaras said with a salute. The others saluted as well behind him. Looking down on them like this, I actually felt… powerful for the first time since I came here. This was my power! I grinned as the sound of screaming almost sounded like music to my ears. As Varroth turned and moved along the path, I decided that I would paint when I got back to the dungeon. A moment like this needed to be recorded in history.