Blood and gore dripped from its mouth as the creature took the measure of us. It reminded me of a badger, except for the fact that it was over three times larger than any badger I’d ever seen. Its horns and blood red eyes gave the beast an air of menace that was not found in the animal kingdom.
The books of the Armingtage library made clear the difference between animals and monsters. The one trait every monster shared were the blood red eyes. Most of them had horns and multiple rows of razor sharp black teeth among other nightmarish features.
When it came to a higher ranked monster there was no need to look closely for such details. If you were unfortunate enough to come across one of those abominations, you would have no doubt what you were facing.
It gave a high pitched scream when it saw us. It's mouth opened a full 180 degrees displaying row upon row of black razor sharp teeth. As it screamed, chunks of the deer it was consuming, sprayed from its mouth. It charged at us without closing it's jaws as if it was trying to give us a preview of our fate.
Judging by its speed there was no way to run from it. Madeline and I pulled out our knives with no other choice left. With Lameria unarmed I yelled at her to get back. The monster changed its course from a charge in our general direction to one directly aimed at Madeline.
She backed up, unsure of how to attack the beast head on as the gap continued to close. Seeing her in trouble I did the only thing I could think to. I picked up a near by rock with my free hand and tossed it at the head of the monster. It didn't seem to have much of an effect, but I got it's attention. It was now coming towards me.
“Madeline, we need to attack it from behind. While it's focused on me see if you can get a few strikes in.” I picked up a large thick branch and jabbed it at the creature. I kept my knife in my other hand but I didn't want to get that close if I could help it.
Madeline froze in panic for a moment with this being her first life and death experience. But she quickly heeded my words and jumped into action. I tried to keep it's attention on me as Madeline snuck up behind it. With each bite of it's mighty jaws my branch shortened.
Madeline stabbed the monster from behind. It was too far to get the neck so she focused on the back and the rear legs. She got 3 deep punctures in before the beast turned on her. It would have no doubt killed her right then and there if she hadn't done her job well.
Her attacks managed to cripple one of its legs and slowed the monster down considerably. I came up from behind it and stabbed down numerous times with its back towards me. It turned on me faster then I expected. I was able to avoid it's teeth but it's claws found my right arm.
The knife was knocked from my hand and deep gashes appeared where the claws struck. The injuries wouldn't be life threatening, but it still hurt like hell. The force of the hit caused me to lose my balance.
Seeing me down it charged in for the kill as best it could with it's lame leg. Madeline stabbed the monster as it came towards me, but it's focus was fully now on taking my life, not protecting its own. I still held the branch in my hand and pointed it towards the monster.
As I was thrusting the stick at it's face to slow it's momentum, Madeline fiercely stabbed down over and over. It's oily black blood spilling out as it chomped up my branch inch by inch. Lameria came up from behind me with a long branch of her own to help push it away from me.
Madeline's dagger finally came down into the monster's red eye. It gave a large spasm and then went limp as a puppet with its strings cut. Even it's death felt unnatural. I slowly got to my feet to examine it's corpse. We gave it a few more stabs for good measure, you can never be too safe.
I tried to thank the girls for their help but their focus went immediately to my arm. I told them it was fine but Lameria went right to work dressing the wound without even hearing my thanks. As for Madeline she was suddenly distracted by something else. She gave us both a wide smile.
“It says that I just reached level 7. Did either of you get any levels or experience?” I shook my head as I spoke with a slight grunt through the pain of my wound being dressed.
“Only the person who actually gets the kill gets the experience. Nothing else matters. It was in one of the books in your library. I thought you would have read all about that.” She gave me a sour look.
“I read some of them. I thought I would have plenty of time so I was never in a rush to get through them all.” My wound was dressed and the bleeding stopped. The thought of Madeline leveling up made a thought cross my mind that I'm surprised I over looked till now.
“By the way, I think it would be a good idea to show each other our status screens. Unless you two have any objection that is?” Seeing no reason not to, they both did as I asked while I showed them mine.
Name: William Taylor
Age: 16
Race Human
Class: None
Sub Class: None
Skills: 1/10 Teacher 3/10 Swordsmanship 1/10 Assassin
Level: 5
Experience: 08%
Constitution: 16
Dexterity: 17
Intelligence: 21
Strength: 18
Wisdom: 21
Charisma: 17
Health: 37/38
Mana: 38/38
Stamina: 19/19
Attribute Points: 0
Name: Madeline Armingtage
Age: 18
Race: Human
Class: None
Sub Class: None
Skills: 6/10 Swordsmanship
Level: 7
Experience: 24%
Constitution: 16
Dexterity: 22
Intelligence: 22
Strength: 16
Wisdom: 22
Charisma: 18
Health: 37/37
Mana: 50/50
Stamina: 21/21
Attribute Points: 0
Name: Lameria Vulpes
Age: 20
Race: Foxkin
Class: None
Sub Class: None
Skills: None
Level: 7
Experience: 23%
Constitution: 18
Dexterity: 19
Intelligence: 19
Strength: 27
Wisdom: 19
Charisma: 13
Health: 50/50
Mana: 30/30
Stamina: 25/25
Attribute Points: 0
The main differences I noticed, besides them both having a higher level than me, were how Madeline seemed physically weaker but had more mana, while Lameria lacked mana but had more stamina and strength. I wonder if it was the same for all beastkin.
A thought cross my mine as I looked at their status screen. That man who was there when I was first sold into slavery; he could read my status screen without me opening it. No doubt some kind of appraisal skill. No matter what we did to hide, I'm sure her father either had people like that or would hire them. I shared my concerns.
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“There are people who can see our status screens without us showing them. That means they can just look up and see our information without us being able to do anything to stop them. Hiding from such people is impossible, even if we change our appearance. Is there anything we can do about that?”
“Like what? The status screen can only show the truth. That's what it's for, isn't that obvious?” Madeline was always surprised at the little tidbits I didn't know. I figured this may be the case but the wheels in my head kept turning.
“What if it's a nickname? Something that isn't an outright lie but just not the most obvious and literal thing. Is that possible?” They looked at each other as they thought it over. Trying to think of cases in the past where that might have happened. Madeline answered.
“I guess, as long as it isn't something completely made up and it's in some way derivative of the root name. I've seen people who've had short hand nicknames in there status screen because that's what everyone called them. I don't think it was a conscious choice though.”
I started to pace as I thought. William would be easy but could it be done with the last name too? I worried this might be a bit of an overstep. Something like this may end up bringing me back to level 1 if the 'Mother' thought I was over stepping the rules of the system. But I had to chance it considering the situation.
“Okay, from now on I want both of you to call me Bill Mitchell. Mitchell is my middle name by the way. Also, make sure it is the name you use from now on unless we agree to change back.” They both agreed and said my new stated name out loud.. It wasn't the first time in my life anyone called me Bill but it wasn't common for me.
I couldn't exactly take out a pencil to erase my old name and write in the new one. Instead I tried to picture my name change and said it over and over again in my mind while watching my status screen and willing it to change. It took a little while but it worked, my name in the status screen now read Bill Mitchell instead of William Taylor.
I waited to see if anything bad would happen. After a little while when no negative effects occurred, I figured it was safe to have Madeline and Lameria do the same.
Madeline dropped her full first name to Maddy, which she used to be called when young, and changed her last name to Rose, which was her middle name. The new name really didn't fit her personality in my opinion.
I was confident no one would remember Lameria's last name. I doubted anyone cared to get to know her well enough to ask about it. Her first name was the issue. I doubted this world had all that many foxkin and even fewer ones named Lameria. She wasn't called any nicknames when young like Maddy and myself, so I was a bit nervous that this wouldn't work.
Luckily it worked with no penalty given. Lameria Vulpes was now Meri Vulpes. Hopefully it would be enough to fool someone if they were looking for us and didn't know our faces. With this done the three of us decided to continue towards town. We had no idea what to do with the monsters body so we left it. As we continued our walk I spoke.
“From now on these are the names we will go by, even in private. I don't want to cause any kind of penalty or have an untimely slip of the tongue that could get us caught. The best way to avoid that is to totally commit to them.” They agreed that this was the best idea. It did make me a little sad that it had to be like that as I preferred their full names.
We kept walking for about an hour longer until we finally reached the town. With the money Maddy had we could easily afford anything we wanted, but it wouldn't do to be wasteful given our situation. We paid to have my wound tended to and for Meri to finally get some traveling boots of her own. We also purchased a new set of clothes for her as the ones she had seemed out of place, even covered by the cloak.
We bought some food, water canteens and camping gear. I wanted to buy some swords as well but this town was fairly small and didn't have a blacksmith. We all wanted to pay for a room but we knew that it would be safer to camp in the woods.
So far we had done well to avoid any capture, but constantly running in the woods would not be a long term solution. We needed a place where we could hold up for a while and not be found. I also needed to get my hands on a map of this entire area and see if I could get the location of my sister's town. I learned that the only place where both could be done was in one of the larger cities.
I asked the towns people to name a couple of the cities that were within a few days walk from here. I wanted somewhere that had a diverse populace and cultural make up. Some place that a group like ours would be less likely to stick out. After they named all the nearby locations I asked Madeline what she thought would be the best one while keeping in mind the things I was looking for.
“Northwood would probably be the best choice out of the cities they named. Besides the things you mentioned, it also has a reputation for being a place where people don't tend to ask a lot of questions.” That sounded just about perfect for what we needed. After making all our purchases we continued on foot towards Northwood.
On the way we would pass by a few more towns to buy new supplies as needed and maybe take a rest at an inn, if it seemed safe. When we needed to get supplies the girls always wore their cloaks and hoods. It was important to keep their faces hidden for now until we got to a major city. Maddy for obvious reasons and Meri because a foxkin would attract too much attention in a small town.
The journey turned into a repetition of walking, resting, camping and buying supplies. Half way through our journey we decided to stay at an inn one late night. I paid for a room on the bottom floor and slipped Meri and Maddy through the back. It was nice to get a chance to wash off and sleep in a real bed, for them at least. I slept on the floor while they shared the bed.
The night before we were to arrive at Northwood we camped in the woods. I hoped that we could make it by nightfall but sadly we were still a few hours away by Maddy's estimation when it got dark. We sat around a fire enjoying our food and drink. I was happy to see that slowly but surely Maddy and Meri had been getting closer.
It looked like the old saying about how opposites mixed was true. Maddy, while 2 years younger, a few inches shorter and with a smaller build, had clearly taken on more of the big sister role when it came to Meri. She seemed determined to slowly but surely pull her out of her shell.
Maddy almost never bit her tongue with anyone she spoke to, but I noticed when she talked to Meri she was careful with her words and tone. She had learned by now that if she ever told Meri to do anything that she would do it without question and that if she made fun of her or told the wrong kind of joke, instead of returning the jab in kind, Meri would sincerely ask for forgiveness. It would take a long time for the damage to be undone.
It occurred to me that considering Meri's role within the household that it was very possible that Maddy had never seen her before the moment she ran into my room. The thought of serving someone you never even got to see for over 15 years was something I had a hard time wrapping my head around.
With all these thoughts about years and age differences something came to mind. I realized that in all the commotion I had lost track of the days here, but I was pretty sure it was today. I opened my status screen to see if I was right. It turned out I was, my age was now 17. Happy Birthday to me i guess. Maddy and Meri both looked up to see my screen.
Maddy wished me a happy birthday in her usual robust way while Meri gave me a quiet but very sincere happy birthday. Maddy muttered that it simply wouldn't do to have a birthday without getting a present. She perked up as a mischievous thought came to mind.
“It's customary on someones birthday to give them a birthday kiss you know.” Maddy prodded Meri a little with her elbow. Meri looked nervously at Maddy and then to me. Nodding her head she slowly stood up and walked over while Maddy had a big laugh at my reaction. I shook my hands out in front of me to signal her to stop.
“That isn't a custom of mine Meri. Don't worry about it, but thank you for the offer.” She gave a sigh of relief and sat back down. I gave Maddy an annoyed look and she gave me a playful one back.
“You just need to ruin all my fun, don't you Bill? I guess in the end you are just far too pure a guy. Wait a minute, would that have been your first kiss?” I tried not to give away if it was or wasn't. As a matter of fact it would have been my third kiss, and only the second one that a girl ended up hating.
“If you think it's so amusing then how about next time you volunteer yourself instead of someone else?” I said the comment without really thinking about it. At first she gave a peculiar look, but then a coy smile spread across her face.
“Fine.” She stood up and marched towards me keeping the same expression.
“Hey, hold on. I didn't mean for you to actually-”. She grabbed me by my shirt and pushed her lips forcefully against mine. This wasn't a soft sweet kiss. It was overtly aggressive. almost combative.
I tried to back away but in response she put her hand behind my head pulling me tightly towards her. She pushed her tongue deep into my mouth which caught me by surprise. It went on for what I would guess was about 10 seconds before she finally let go.
“Happy Birthday Bill.” She quickly walked back to where she was sitting and looked a bit surprised and embarrassed at her own actions. Eventually it gave way to a laughing fit. One that we all joined in on after the nerves wore off.
It was honestly kind of funny. I also had to admit something about it was very sexy.
We arrived at Northwood the next day early in the morning. I already worked out in my head what I wanted to do here. Meri as usual went along with what was decided but Maddy took some convincing. Not because she didn't agree it was a good idea, but because she found it distasteful.
And that's exactly why I wanted to do it. We had to go to a place where they wouldn't think a young lord's daughter would hide. If someone like Maddy didn't want to be there, then clearly the mere suggestion of searching such an area would be insulting.
After asking around a bit I found just the place we needed. While it was technically an inn open to anyone, it was primarily used by nearby prostitutes as a makeshift brothel. As I walked in I couldn't help but think that the inside of this establishment looked exactly like I pictured it; run down and dirty. We walked up to the counter to see the man that I assumed was the owner.
“How can I help you?” The unsavory and unwashed middle aged bald man asked while giving me a suspicious look. He certainly didn't recognize the girls next to me and they didn't figure for the usual type that he saw here.
“We want 2 rooms and some jobs.” He gave us a look over before answering curtly.
“A room is 2 silver by the hour, and I'm not hiring”. He grabbed a ledger to get the transaction ready.
“We aren't paying by the hour, we want 2 weeks. We're willing to pay in advance for a discount rate. Also, with all the mess around here I doubt you couldn't use a little labor”. He didn't appreciate my tone, but the 2 weeks in advance caught his interest.
“I'll give you 2 rooms for 5 gold coins. As for hiring you, I'm not interested, I have enough useless lazy asses around here. I certainly don't need more.”
“Make that 3 gold for 2 weeks along with 3 jobs, and you got yourself a deal.” He laughed at my offer.
“I can make 2 silver coins an hour for a room. Why would I take 3 gold for 2 rooms to be booked for 2 weeks?”
“Because you won't have to change the sheets every time someone leaves for one. That's laundry and labor cost you won't have to pay for. As a bonus you'll get 3 employees who will be right here at your inn, so at the very least we'll show up for work on time.”
He considered my words. It was true a lot of the money they made went right to cleaning and labor. It wasn't like he ever filled all the rooms in the first place. Even on the busiest nights he had a number of unused rooms. The 3 gold coins was more than he could make from renting those rooms out for a month. If he didn't like how we worked then he could just kick us out and wouldn't lose anything on top of it.
“What can you do?”
“We can clean this place up for one. On top of that you will find no better server than this young lady right here.” I pointed to Meri before continuing my pitch.
“Not to mention I'm a pretty skilled swordsman and should any trouble arise I can handle it for you.”
I didn't mention the swordsmanship skill Maddy had. That would invite too many questions and get her more attention which is what I came here to avoid. The fact we didn't have a sword right now made my swordsmanship skill useless. But he didn't need to know that. He rubbed his cheeks as he considered. Finally he dropped his hand and spoke.
“Deal, but if you're not up to snuff I'll fire you all on the spot and you're still on the hook for the rooms. The 2 up in the corner on the left are the least used ones. They aren't that nice but they're clean at least. Work starts tonight around dinner, that's when business really picks up.”
Meri and Maddy took the keys and gave the man 3 gold coins. I took the purse from Meri and told them I'd be back in about an hour, and that I was going to by some basic goods. Maddy wanted to come but eventually agreed it would be better to be seen around the city as little as possible for now.
The first order of business was to buy the daily necessities of food, water and a few more pairs of clothing. I didn't want to make any major purchases without all 3 of us there, but I thought it would be nice to buy some cheap practice swords as well I needed to find out where the hell I could get my hands on a map. The next time a fight broke out, Maddy and I would be prepared with our swords in hand. But if we came across trouble again what would Meri do?
It was well past time I started thinking about what kind of weapon to get her.