Penny lay in bed. She was sharing a room with the other women she had escaped the goblins with—about twenty-four people in total, double the normal number of people to a room. The room was one of the new rooms they had created through the settlement interphase on the fifth floor.
It looked like a classroom, only it was completely empty and had that level of cleanliness that only came from the lack of people. They had managed to stuff a couple of beds to one side of the room as sleeping arrangements. They also had some cupboards for clothing and a few other pieces of furniture. They had even managed to mount a TV on the wall.
Honestly, it was half a group bedroom and half a living room.
Penny, however, wasn't interested in getting out of bed. She didn't want to talk to the other girls. After she had assigned her two new levels to [Courtesan], she flopped into bed. She just wanted to sleep. She had died. That had been the one all-consuming thought she had been stuck with since yesterday. What was she supposed to do now? How was she supposed to handle death? She had died trying to save people who didn't want to be saved, and then she came back. Did she even come back? Was she the same Penny Noel that had been beaten to death by those groupies, or did she just think she was? Was the real Penny dead, and she was just a replacement? She just kept spiralling through these questions as she lay in bed.
Then, a sharp kick knocked her out of bed and sent her sprawling to the floor.
Penny spluttered as she got to her feet, her knife in hand. Only to find Eve staring down at her.
"Wha ---"
"Come on up," Eve said, cutting her off. "You've been moping around since yesterday. Get up."
"I died," Penny protested.
"You think that's any excuse? I've had a dozen patients die on me only to come back from the dead. They aren't moping around in bed like sleeping beauty."
Penny stashed her knife away in her inventory as she got to her feet, shuffling back to bed.
"Just let me sleep," Penny said
Eve scowled at her as she returned to bed before stomping off. She thought that maybe Eve was going to leave her alone when a bucket of ice-cold water was splashed over her head.
"WHAT THE FUCK!!" Penny screamed as she shot out of bed, completely soaked.
"I told you to get up," Eve said, smiling as she held the still-dripping bucket. "It's not my fault you didn't listen. Now, come on. You're getting out of bed and spending the day with me, or else."
Penny was unwilling to find out what else meant, so she changed out of her wet clothes into something warm. She wished she could dress for style, but her wardrobe was a mix of salvaged clothes from people's homes and stores, so it was more improved than proper fashion. She kept her blonde hair in a ponytail to keep it out of her eyes before following Eve out of the room.
"Alright, so where are we going?" Penny asked.
"You're going to put on a music performance for the kids in the gym. I'm here to make sure you show up," Eve said.
"I don't feel like it." Penny pouted.
"Doctors orders," Eve said as she prodded her to keep moving.
"I don't even have an instrument," she protested.
"You have skills," Eve shot back.
That was Penny's last excuse, so she nodded and followed along until they came to a large gym with a bunch of kids waiting around for her.
"Hey, kids, this is my friend Penny. She's going to play a song for you!!" Eve said in that sickly sweet tone reserved for children.
Penny sat down in front of the rows of children, a fake smile on her lips. Her hands raised as if she were holding an invisible guitar, and that's when she felt something—almost like she was holding an invisible guitar. It was faint, just on the edge of her tactile sense, but it was there.
The kids, especially Tom's little sister, stared at her, waiting for her to do something. Her large dog was sitting right next to her. In addition to the kids, two of the cooks, Mavis, Takashi, Eve, and Ms.Lewis, were in the room. For some reason, they were recording her.
It wasn't the debut she had been expecting. But she didn't really care at the moment.
"Okay, kids," Penny said with a forced smile. "Are you ready for some magic?"
They nodded eagerly, giggles and whispers of excitement spreading through the group.
"Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O,
And on that farm, he had a cow, E-I-E-I-O,
With a moo moo here, and a moo moo there,
Here a moo, there a moo, everywhere a moo moo,
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O …"
As she sang counting stars, her fingers strummed her nonexistent guitar, and to her amazement, the unmistakable sound of a guitar filled the room. Each strum on her [Air Guitar] created the notes she wanted and resonated as if played on a real instrument. The children's jaws dropped, their eyes sparkling with delight and wonder.
"Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O,
And on that farm, he had a duck, E-I-E-I-O,
With a quack quack here, and a quack quack there,
Here a quack, there a quack, everywhere a quack quack,
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O …"
The kids began to sing along, their faces lit up with pure joy, and Penny felt her own gloom getting pushed back as she played.
"How is she doing that?" Chloe asked the girl next to her, but the other kids quickly hushed her up.
"Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O,
And on that farm, he had a pig, E-I-E-I-O,
With an oink oink here, and an oink oink there,
Here an oink, there an oink, everywhere an oink oink,
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O ..."
Penny just smiled as her fingers kept dancing in the air. She threw in a few dramatic flourishes, her hands moving in exaggerated arcs as if she were a rock star, to see how her skills would interpret her actions. It turns out it didn't really matter what she did as much as what she intended. The kids were completely into the over-the-top action, with more than a few of them getting up to dance with her.
"Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O,
And on that farm, he had a horse, E-I-E-I-O,
With a neigh neigh here, and a neigh neigh there,
Here a neigh, there a neigh, everywhere a neigh neigh,
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O …"
As Penny's magical performance continued, the room seemed to fill with an almost tangible energy. The kids bounced off the walls as the song surged, and a notification sprung up in the side of Penny's vision.
DING!!!
You have performed the song [Old MacDonald Had a Farm]
The Respeciants of this gain the following buffs for 15 minutes
* +0.5% to STR, CON and END
* +0.5% to Stamina
* Receive the buff: [Calm]
Quality: Uncommon
Song Rarity: Rare
Finally, Penny struck a grand, imaginary final chord. Her hands raised high above her head. The guitar sound faded, leaving behind a room full of thrilled and impressed children.
"Thank you, thank you!" Penny said, taking an exaggerated bow as she blew kisses to the kids. "You've been a wonderful audience!"
The kids erupted into applause, their faces beaming with happiness. Penny couldn't help it as she started her next song. Each song she played seemed alive now, almost … magical.
When she was finally finished, the little girl sitting next to Chloe walked up to her. The little girl made her best puppy dog eyes as she piped up, "Can you teach me how to do that?"
Penny chuckled, ruffling the girl's hair. "Sure, we can go to the music room later, and you can learn how to play a musical instrument later,"
As the children chattered excitedly, Penny sat back down as the notifications came in. She smiled until she reached the last one.
<[Bardic Music] has Reached Level 2>
<[Bardic Music] has Reached Level 3>
<...>
<[Bardic Music] has Reached Level 16>
<[Extended Song] has Reached Level 2>
<[Extended Song] has Reached Level 3>
<...>
<[Extended Song] has Reached Level 9>
<[Whisper Wind] has Reached Level 5>
<[Whisper Wind] has Reached Level 6>
<...>
<[Whisper Wind] has Reached Level 7>
<[Air Guitar] has Reached Level 2>
<[Air Guitar] has Reached Level 3>
<...>
<[Air Guitar] has Reached Level 16>
<[Air Magic] has Reached Level 21>
DING!!!
You have Banished Death Sickness.
Death Sickness is a common ailment that affects those returned from the hereafter. Symptoms include depression, anxiety, existentialism, and an unhealthy attachment to life.
"Eve!!" Penny called out, walking over to her friend.
"That was great." Eve cheered as she wandered over to where Penny was sitting. "I didn't know you were so talented."
"You know I was actually trying to become a musician before all of this." Penny pointed out.
Eve smiled, and Penny took that moment to ask her question.
"Did you know about this … death sickness?" Penny asked.
Eve shrugged sheepishly.
"You're not the first one with that problem. I'm still not sure if it's a system thing or just normal mental issues from dying." Eve said.
Penny embraced her diminutive friend.
"Thanks for giving me a kick in the ass."
Then she pulled a water bottle out of her inventory and poured it down the back of Eve's neck.
Eve screeched, shoving her away as she tried to get the water out of her neck.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
"And that's for splashing me with cold water," Penny laughed as her friend tried to get the water out of her shirt.
She had needed this—just a few hours of normality, which lasted until she got her next notification.
DING!!!
Alert the (Awoken Myths) guild is under attack by the faction (Bloody Teeth Goblin Horde)
To arms Awoken Myths. Defend your settlement or lose it.
Penny shot to her feet in panic as she activated [Charm Speak]
"Alright, kids, it's time to leave. Through the small Gym," she called out.
The kids had almost no resistance to [Mind], so they started moving towards the small gym like a herd of insects.
They didn't get far before the doors to the small gym flew open, and a goblin shaman walked through. Dozens of spectral apparitions flew around him, and a dozen goblins followed behind him, with more pouring in every second.
"Kids get away from that thing!!!" Penny screamed, using [Whisper wind] to deliver her orders into the ear of every kid.
The shaman raised its staff, ready to start casting spells at the kids.
Penny panicked for a fraction of a second before an idea she had come up with when reviewing her battle with Altan's group came to her mind. Penny activated [Air Guitar] and played the loudest decibel she could as [Whisper Wind] made it play directly in the shaman's inner ear. The shaman dropped his staff as he grasped his ears in pain as blood spurted out of his ear.
That had bought the kids enough time to put some distance between them and the goblins. The two chefs had also stepped up with their own magic. Mavis was tossing fire at the goblins while Takashi was throwing water bolts at them. They were dealing with the goblins easily enough, but the spellcaster around the shaman protected him from any spells that got too close. But they didn't protect him from Penny trying to blow out his ear drums.
Unfortunately, it didn't last long before the shaman threw up some kind of magic shield. Penny switched to using what was quickly becoming her favourite skill.
"[Get Naked]" she said.
Instantly, the shaman's clothes fell to the floor; it didn't improve his visage. Regardless, the shaman scrambled to pick up his clothes as Penny raced towards him, drawing her sacrificial dagger failing to notice the red tint upon the blade.
Unfortunately, she didn't get far before a goblin lept at her, tackling her to the ground as it tried to stab her in the throat. Instead, it got her shoulder. The knife felt like fire as the blade tore through muscle and scratched at the bone underneath.
"Get off me, you stupid Troglodyte," Penny ordered with [Charm speak]
The goblin hesitated but didn't get off of her. But it was enough for her to bring the sacrificial knife around and bury it into the goblin's neck, causing its black blood to splatter all over her as she wrenched the blade and ripped out his throat.
"Fucking hell." Penny cursed as she struggled to her knees.
Two more goblins were charging towards her, but she just blew out their eardrums, stripped them naked and then stabbed them in vulnerable bits. [Ritual Sacrifice] allowed her to heal her injuries as she restored her health pool, but it didn't repair the injury.
Taking the mana, she summoned Des. The Demon appeared out of the eather. His incandescent bone blades looked hungry.
"Kill the goblins, don't harm the humans," Penny ordered.
Des charged forward just as the Shaman made his move. The ghosts that had been surrounding him lunged outwards. Mavis and Takashi didn't have a chance, as three ghosts were bearing down on each of them. Des had a dozen spirits chasing him, but Penny only had one ghost to deal with. However, she quickly ran into the problem. Her skills couldn't affect it.
She quickly ran through her entire list of skills; only [Air Magic] had any effect, and she had precious little mana after summoning Des.
She tried to slash at it with the sacrificial dagger. The ghost recoiled from the dagger, but then it grabbed her arm, wrenching her into the air as it broke her wrist from the force of its actions. She dangled there, completely helpless.
"Dammit, not again," Penny cursed.
Dropping the sacrificial dagger from her injured hand, she caught it in her uninjured hand.
"Shocking Touch," she croaked out.
Lighting to arc up and down the bronze dagger before she slammed the blade into the ghost.
The undead howled in pain and fury as it recoiled from her, dropping her to the ground. It glared at her with murder in its eyes as it rose up to ---
"Lucy sick em," the voice of Tom's little sister somehow reached Penny's ears. Despite all the chaos, it was odd. But her next thoughts were cut off as a blood-chilling, soul-shrivelling howl ripped through her body and sent shivers down his spine.
HOOOOOOOOOOWWWLLL
Everyone stopped fighting for an instant as it washed over them. No one moved, not the goblins, not the humans, not the ghosts; even Des froze mid-swing.
DING!!!
You have been affected by Lucys [Despair Aura]
You are [Terrified]
You are [Confused]
Penny turned her head almost against her will as she looked to where Eve had been moving the kids. Tom's little sister stood in front of the group, though what stood next to her had everyone's attention.
What had once been the girl's pet, Woodle stood there menacingly. It had somehow grown from the size of a normal dog to the size of a small elephant. Its fur had changed from charcoal black to an absolutely black of the abyss. It didn't shine or glimmer. It was just black nothingness in the shape of a giant dog. Its eyes glittered like rubies dipped in tar. Its claws and teeth glowed a ghostly blue, with red and black flames dripping from its mouth, sizzling the ground around it like some demonic form of rabies.
"That's Lucy?!" Penny asked, stunned.
Then, all at once, the goblins, the ghosts, and the shaman jerked into action. The ghost who had been prepared to attack her turned and fled. They didn't even try to fight back as they turned and fled for their lives, unlives. Even Des ran, turning from the goblins and getting as far away from Lucy as he could.
Lucy pounced, leaping at the nearest ghost like an overgrown puppy with a chew toy. Unfortunately, the chew toy didn't last a second as Lucy's jaws popped the ghost like a water balloon. Penny could swear the hell dog even looked disappointed that the deadly ghost she had just been facing hadn't lasted longer.
Some of the goblins seemed to regain their courage as they turned and attacked Lucy. Even the shaman threw a couple of spells at her. To literally no effect, the physical weapons bounced off her fur, while the magical stuff just winked out of existence on contact, swallowed up by the black fur.
Calmly, almost disturbingly so, Lucy turned and blasted them with those black and red flames. Any goblin that came into contact with those flames screamed in agony as they died. The ghosts didn't even get that. They just evaporated on contact. Lucy bit and snapped at the goblins, but it was the dog's colossal bulk that killed most of them as she sent most of them flying, shattering bones as they hit the ground, injured, cripppled even, but not dead.
That's when Penny realized something: Even as spells, arrows and spears impacted her body, Lucy wasn't attacking them. She was playing with them. She was acting like an overeager puppy who just wanted to play with someone. The only difference was that she was so massive that a glancing blow was enough to shatter bones.
Eve had made her way over to Penny as she sat there completely stunned and started to heal her arm.
"That's a pet?!" Penny asked as Lucy slaughtered the goblins with a level of ease that terrified her all over again.
"Yeah, I guess it makes sense," Eve said as she fixed Penny's wrist.
"What does?" Penny asked.
"Duncan said Tom was really protective of his sister. I didn't understand why he was so okay with leaving her on her own, but now I do."
Suddenly, it clicked for Penny. The little girl wasn't in danger; she and her pet were dangerous to the rest of them. She couldn't suppress a shudder that ran up her spine at the realization.
Lucy had apparently finally found a good chew toy, the shaman. She was currently shaking her head back and forth as the shaman tried and failed to escape her massive jaw.s
Eve helped Penny up, and they made their way back to the rest of the kids. Ms.Lewis had already taken Mavis and Takashi back to the kids to be healed by some of the kids who had learned life magic.
Chloe and her friend were cheering on Lucy as she finished off the shaman.
"Is everyone all right?" Eve asked as she dumped a mass heal on the group of a thousand children.
"It's great!!" Chloe cried out in excitement, jumping up and down. Can we do this again?!"
Penny looked over the other kids. They looked shaken but were fine. In fact, more than a few were cheering on the massive murder puppy. She was pretty sure the Shaman was already dead, and the dog was just chewing on it like a biscuit.
DING!!!
Congratulations, you have successfully defended your settlement.
Battle Status: Victory
Allied Survivors 84%
Enemy survivors 0%
Notable standouts:
1. Thomas Bruner
2. Alexandra Ling
3. Travis the Lizard Wizard
4. Luke Graceson
5. Chloe Bruner
6. Gareth Brown
7. Penny Noel
8. Samatha Mato
9. Joey Hunt
10. Andrew Mack
"How did Chloe get so much credit?" Penny asked.
"I guess since Lucy was a tamed pet, the system considered her an extension of her," Eve suggested.
"That fucking terrifying. You know that, right?" Penny asked.
Further conversation was cut off as the PA system came on.
"Hello, everyone." Tom's voice cut through the intercom.
"Tom!!" Chloe cheered
"Today, we were suddenly and deliberately attacked by the goblins of Kwantlen. This was their first attack, but it won't be their last.
These were just scouts. If we leave them to fester, they will crash against us again, and again, and again, until they break us. No one is coming to save us. No one is coming to fix our problems. So, each and every one of us is given a choice: we can squabble amongst ourselves, or we can stand together and face the monsters that are at our door and bring the fight to them! Now, who's with me?!" Tom roared
Penny could hear ragged cheers go up around the school, and that was the moment she got an update.
DING!!!
Regional Quest: Bloody Goblin Horde
Your home, your nation, and your world are being invaded by goblins who intend to subjugate and conquer it. Will you run from the horde, or will you stand with your guild and fight for what's yours?
Objectives:
Destroy or Capture the Bloodstone: 0/1
Destroy or Capture the Gate: 0/1
Bonus Objectives:
Kill all of the Goblins: 6,236 / ??????
Kill the ???: 0/1
Kill Seraphel: 0/1
Kill Goblin Shaman: 1/1
Kill ???: 0/1
Kill ???: 0/1
Rewards:
2 Levels for everyone involved, Bonus XP for Everyone, a Title: Goblin Killer, 5000 Settlement Points, Winter Event Guild Token
"That was a nice speech," Penny said.
"I think he stole half of it from Franklin Roosevelt. And Pacific rim," Eve admitted as the notifications came in.
<[Viper Style: Touch of the Jellyfish] has Reached Level 14>
<[Viper Style: Touch of the Jellyfish] has Reached Level 15>
<[Charm Speak] has Reached Level 12>
<[Walk of Shame] has Reached Level 18>
<[Walk of Shame] has Reached Level 19>
<[Walk of Shame] has Reached Level 20>
<[Get Naked] has Reached Level 9>
<[Summon Demonic Familiar] has Reached Level 13>
<[Air Magic] has Reached Level 22>
<[Air Magic] has Reached Level 23>
<...>
<[Air Magic] has Reached Level 30>
<[Ritual Sacrifice] has Reached Level 7>
<[Ritual Sacrifice] has Reached Level 8>
<[Air Guitar] has Reached Level 17>
<[Air Guitar] has Reached Level 18>
<...>
<[Air Guitar] has Reached Level 20>
<[Whisper Wind] has Reached Level 8>
<[Whisper Wind] has Reached Level 9>
<...>
<[Whisper Wind] has Reached Level 15>
Penny sighed as she looked down at her sacrificial dagger. They would be going off to war soon. She wondered if they needed a [Bard]?
You may skip to the next chapter.
Name: Penny Noel
Race: Human
Type: Humanoid
LVL: 17
SubRace: Caucasian
Age 18
Health: 995
Stamina: 1335
Mana: 1360
Health Regen: 12.5 per hour
Stamina Regen: 17.6 per min
Mana Regen: 6.8 per min
Titles: Free*, Breaker of Chains
Immune
N/A
Resistances
N/A
Weakness
N/A
Bane
Manslayer
Classes: Courtesan 8 / Warlock 5 / Bard 4
Total
STR: 17
AGIL: 68
DEX: 56
CON: 74
END: 51
PER: 51
INT: 68
WILL: 17
SPIRIT: 51
EGO: 34
CHA: 88
LCK: 17
Base
STR: 17
AGIL: 68
DEX: 51 +10%
CON: 68 +10%
END: 51
PER: 51
INT: 68
WILL: 17
SPIRIT: 51
EGO: 34
CHA: 80 +10%
LCK: 17
Personal: +4 CHA +3 AGIL +3 INT +2 DEX +2 PER
Racial: +3 CON +2 END +2 SPIRIT +1 EGO
Level Bonus: +1 to all Stats
Skill Slots: 18/60: Skill Points: 1
Personal Skills
* [Pursuit Hunter] - Level 17
* [StoryTeller] - N/A
* [Storage] - Level 4 >> Level 9
* [Meditation] - Level 1 >> Level 23
Courtesan 5/11
* [Viper Style: Touch of the Jellyfish] - Level 13 >> Level 15
* [Charm Speak] - Level 11 >> Level 12
* [Walk of Shame] - Level 17 >> Level 20
* [Pheromone Control] - Level 9
* [Get Naked] - Level 8 >> Level 9
Warlock 5/11
* [Summon Demonic Familiar] - Level 12 >> Level 13
* [Empty]
* [Air Magic] - Level 20 >> Level 30
* [Ritual Sacrifice] - Level 6 >> Level 8
* [Demonology] - Level 9
Bard 4/6
* [Bardic Music] - Level 1 >> Level 16
* [Extended Song] - Level 1 >> Level 9
* [Air Guitar] - Level 1 >> Level 16
* [Whisper Wind] - Level 1 >> Level 7