[Notice: You’re ready to level up]
Isabelle wanted to try out her Staff of the Undead on one of the orcs that she’d just killed, but she also needed to level up. Isabelle figured she’d level up first, since the system would just keep nagging her until she did anyways. Isabelle shrugged.
[Notice: You’ve reached level 9!]
[hp restored to 32]
Isabelle had forgotten she’d even lost hp in that battle with the orcs. It’d been such a joke. Were low level enemies always so pitiful? Isabelle remembered that when she’d been level 1 she’d managed to blow a kobold’s head open with a loaf of Tahsi’s bread. Then again, not all bread was made equally, and Tahsi’s was the stalest around, so maybe that had something to do with it.
[Notice: You have attribute and skill points to spend]
[Would you like to spend your points now?]
[Y/N]
Isabelle thought yes.
Attributes Points to Spend: 7
Hp:
32
H-Regen:
3/50sec
Mana:
18
M-Regen:
2/min
Stm:
17
S-Regen:
0.5/sec
Isabelle decided to put three points to her stm and four to her hp. Her mana was only eighteen, sure, but Isabelle had these great necromancy robes now that added ten mana. Plus, she had that ring that leveled up her destroy magic.
Skill Points to Spend: 7
Str:
12
Int:
13
Dx:
10
Wis:
13
Const:
12
Char:
10
Obviously Isabelle needed to put some points into char. She decided on three to char, three to str, and one to dx.
[Congratulations, you’ve finished leveling up!]
Isabelle smiled. She always liked how positive the system was whenever she leveled up.
Character Status
Name:
Isabelle
Gender:
Female
Level:
9
Class:
Undefined
Race:
Human
Alignment:
Neutral-Neutral
Attributes
Hp:
36
H-Regen:
3/50sec
Mana:
18
M-Regen:
2/min
Stm:
20
S-Regen:
0.5/sec
Skill Points
Str:
15
Int:
13
Dx:
11
Wis:
13
Const:
12
Char:
13
Magic Ability Levels
Enchant:
0
Summon:
0
Heal:
0
Destroy:
3
Transmute:
0
Confuse:
0
Normal Ability Levels
Crafting:
4
Sneak:
4
Archery:
4
Lockpick:
0
Armed Combat:
5
Melee Combat:
3
Speechcraft:
3
Slight Of Hand:
0
Great. Now Isabelle could focus on testing out that cool new staff she had on one of these dead orcs.
Or, should she? Isabelle realized she hadn’t looted any of the orcs yet. Brak the Bitter, the archer orc who’d tried to run away, was a little far off for an immediate looting, but Isabelle had two worthy contenders at her feet. Isabelle looked down at the orc whose head she’d exploded with electricity and focused on his body.
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.
[Loot ‘Dhandad the Fearless’?]
Isabelle thought yes.
Inventory: Dhandad the Fearless
Steel Armor (orc)
+3 str, +6 carry weight
Steel Greatsword
+5 damage, +3 str, +5 carry weight
Copper (5)
n/a
Hmm. The armor didn’t seem at all useful. However, Isabelle figured those five copper pieces might come in handy next time she went somewhere shady to buy a drink. Plus, Isabelle liked the look of that steel greatsword, though it’d put her at almost full carrying capacity.
Inventory: Dhandad the Fearless
Steel Armor (orc)
+3 str, +6 carry weight
Isabelle looked to the other dead orc, the burly one whose veins had exploded when she shocked him with lightning.
[Loot ‘Shomvug the Merciless’?]
Isabelle thought yes.
Inventory: Shomvug the Merciless
Steel Armor (orc)
+3 str, +6 carry weight
Spiked Steel Gauntlets
+1 str, +1 damage, +2 carry weight
Potion of Lesser Health
+5 hp, +0.5 carry weight
Copper (1)
n/a
These were some lame orcs. Then again, Isabelle thought, the fight hadn’t been all that difficult. It was probably fair enough that their goodies were a little less fun than those she’d gotten at the Citadel or in the dungeon. Isabelle took the copper and the potion of lesser health, just to be safe.
Inventory: Shomvug the Merciless
Steel Armor (orc)
+3 str, +6 carry weight
Spiked Steel Gauntlets
+1 str, +1 damage, +2 carry weight
Now that she’d looted, it was time for Isabelle to have some fun with this new staff of hers. First, Isabelle looked around, making sure there was no one around. Luckily, there wasn’t—it was still about midday, which apparently in a nation full of kobolds was the same as midnight. So, Isabelle opened her inventory.
Inventory: Isabelle
Carrying capacity: 64.5/70
Staff of the Undead
+5 mana, +2 carry weight
Abbreviated list based on prior use. Focus to see more items…
Hey, her carrying capacity had gone up! Isabelle had forgotten leveling up her str could have that effect, though it made sense in hindsight. She was also thrilled that her inventory could pull up one specific item for her if that’s all she wanted.
[Staff of the Undead equipped]
[+5 mana]
Isabelle looked at the dead orcs at her feet. She figured it’d be cruel, and probably useless for what she wanted to do, to cast ‘raise dead’ on the headless orc. She pointed her staff, which was long and black and had a skull at the top of it, at Shomvug the Merciless and thought ‘Cast Raise Dead.’
[Mana 94%]
A plume of purple smoke encircled Shomvug’s body. Slowly, his body began to quiver and jerk, and then it started to give off a deep purple glow. It staggered and shook, and soon Shomvug the Merciless was pulling himself to his feet and looking to Isabelle with wide, bulging eyes.
[Achievement Unlocked: Reanimate a dead body]
[Spell Duration Remaining ‘Raise Dead’: 00:01:00]
“How can I help you, Isabelle?” asked Shomvug. Drool spilled from his mouth as he talked, it was kind of like he’d had a lobotomy. Isabelle also found it funny that he knew her name all of a sudden.
“Um,” said Isabelle. “I was wondering if you could tell me why you and your buddies attacked me.”
“Sure thing, Isabelle,” said Shomvug with a nod. One of his eyes popped out of the socket and dangled over his lips, so he had to squeeze it back in place. “We were put up to it by our buddy, Dogvug the Unsightly. He runs the bar a few blocks away. He said you had loads of money, and if we killed you, that he’d split it four ways with us, and it’d still be more money than any of us make in six months!”
[Spell Duration Remaining ‘Raise Dead’: 00:00:35]
“Oh,” said Isabelle. “That makes sense. So, none of you were coming after me because of any wanted posters or anything?”
“Wanted posters?” the orc laughed. One of his teeth fell out, and he stopped laughing. “I’m surprised they don’t have wanted posters out for me, with all the petty theft I commit.”
“You mean committed,” said Isabelle. “You know, since you’re dead?”
[Spell Duration Remaining ‘Raise Dead’: 00:00:13]
“I’m dead?!” Shomvug’s jaw dropped, literally. He tried to scream, which was difficult without a jaw, so he started pulling at the top of his head, ripping some of the skin off. He gurgled, trying to speak, but it was useless.
“This is horrifying,” said Isabelle. “Honestly, I’m sorry I did this to you. I just wanted—well, needed, a little information is all.”
[Spell Duration Remaining ‘Raise Dead’: 00:00:05]
Shomvug ran in circles around Isabelle, gurgling and groaning as more bits of his body fell apart. She was glad the spell was about over.
[Spell Duration Remaining ‘Raise Dead’: 00:00:00]
Shomvug’s body immediately tumbled over, limp, and the purple glow faded away quickly. Isabelle took a long, deep breath and shook her head. Then, she opened her inventory.
Inventory: Isabelle
Carrying capacity: 64.5/70
Item
Traits
Necromancer Robes
+10 mana, +3 confuse, +3 enchant, +1 destroy, +4 carry weight
Ring of Improved Destroy
+3 destroy
Staff of the Undead
+5 mana, +2 carry weight
Steel Dagger
+5 damage, +1 carry weight
Spell Tome of Minor Destroying Magic
+5 carry weight
Abbreviated list based on prior use. Focus to see more items…
[Staff of the Undead unequipped]
[-5 mana]
[Steel Dagger equipped]
[+5 damage]
Isabelle figured she’d take a break from the Staff of the Undead for a while. Maybe she wasn’t cut out for that Secret Necromancy Society whose shrine she’d activated.
Wait a second. Why had her system shown Isabelle the Spell Tome of Minor Destroying Magic? Was it trying to tell her something?
[Clarification: You can use your Spell Tome of Minor Destroying Magic to learn or level up one spell a day.]
Oh. Isabelle realized that it was a new day, after all. She thanked her system for the heads up, not that it ever responded to or seemed eager for her thanks, and focused on the Spell Tome.
[Spell Tome of Minor Destroying Magic equipped]
[Would you like to learn a spell?]
[Y/N]
Isabelle thought yes.
[Please select a spell]
Isabelle couldn’t remember what spells were available in the Tome, so she thought ‘Get Spells List.’
[Spells: Draw Flame, Ice Blast, Flame Blast, Shoot Lightning]
[Please select a spell]
Hmmm. Isabelle felt like Draw Flame might be a useful spell, but she wanted to know more about it first. Isabelle thought ‘Learn More About Draw Flame.’
Spell: Draw Flame
Cost: 4 mana
Description: A puff of fire appears in your open hand. You can use this fire for enhanced melee attacks with a +3 damage and +1 fire damage bonus, you can also use it to light torches or set other things on fire as you see fit. You can also dual wield this spell in a melee situation. Mana cost is 4 over time, about every 20s.
That sounded useful enough. Isabelle thought ‘Learn Spell Draw Flame.’
[Learn Spell: Draw Flame?]
[Y/N]
Isabelle thought yes.
[Learning Spell Draw Flame]
[…]
[…]
[…]
[Spell Draw Flame Learned]
[You’ve already learned a spell today. Unequip ‘Spell Tome of Minor Destroying Magic’?]
[Y/N]
Isabelle thought yes.
[Spell Tome of Minor Destroying Magic unequipped]
Isabelle decided to go ahead and try it out. She held out her left palm and thought, ‘Cast Draw Flame.’
Isabelle’s left hand ignited like a candle. It was amazing—she could feel the heat of the fire, but no pain. What was more, it followed her hand wherever it went.
[Mana 94%]
Eager to give the flame a bit of a test run, she ran her hand across the back of one of the dead orc bodies. Immediately, the body ignited. Isabelle backed up as the flames fanned. Noticing how suspicious she would look standing next to a dead, burning orc, Isabelle focused on her hand and watched the flame extinguish from it. The orc was still on fire. Isabelle ran towards the dead orc archer, Brak the Bitter. She was determined to loot him before fleeing the scene. Isabelle looked down at his body.
[Loot ‘Brak the Bitter’?]
Isabelle thought yes.
Inventory: Brak the Bitter
Steel Armor (orc)
+3 str, +6 carry weight
Orcish Longbow
+5 damage, +1 dx, +1.5 carry weight
Copper (3)
n/a
A lot of good that steel armor had done these idiots, huh? Plus, where was Isabelle’s arrow in this orc’s inventory? She could see it sticking out of his head, but for some reason she couldn’t add it to her inventory? That didn’t seem right. Isabelle reached down, grabbed the arrow from the back of the orc’s head, and yanked it up. With a horrible cracking sound, half the arrow snapped into her hand, the sharp end still deeply embedded in the orc’s noggin. That explained that, Isabelle figured.
Looking back at the orc’s inventory, Isabelle took notice of the orcish longbow. Its damage was noticeably better than the longbow she’d already been using and it even came with a dexterity bonus! Isabelle took that, and she also took the three copper, just in case.
Inventory: Brak the Bitter
Steel Armor (orc)
+3 str, +6 carry weight
Isabelle looked back at the orc body she’d left burning in the distance. It seemed to be slowly snuffing itself out. Good. Isabelle wasn’t aiming to make any more of a spectacle.
Isabelle looked to the dusty street that Brak the Bitter had died beside and realized it was Caslodge Highway. Nice! Isabelle could see the bridge over the riverside to the left, and she could see the gate to Cloud Reach to the right. Isabelle took a right.
As she walked on the dusty path, Isabelle looked at the magnificence of the Cloud Reach gate and the wall flanking it. It was made of tightly packed stone with seemingly ornate carvings, though she’d have to get closer to make out any huge details. The sun was already getting lower in the sky than it had been, so Isabelle had to pick up the pace.
It was only when Isabelle was within eyesight of the guards at either side of the gate that she remembered a dilemma. How exactly could she get past these guards? Surely, if they were members of the Cloud Reach guard, they’d know what she looked like, and who she was. They had wanted posters up for her everywhere! Really, unless these guards were the laziest, most buffoonish fools in all existence, Isabelle didn’t stand a chance.
Isabelle crouched, wondering if she might be able to sneak by them.
[Current Visbility: 250/250]
“Excuse me, miss, did you drop something? Why are you crouching?” asked a guard from the distance.
Shit. There was not chance. Isabelle was fucked. She’d have to go ahead and kill these guards and hope she was quick enough that nobody else would notice. Then, she could sneak around through Cloud Reach and snake her way over to the South Ward. It was the only way. Isabelle opened her inventory.
Inventory: Isabelle
Carrying capacity: 66/70
Steel Greatsword
+5 damage, +3 str, +5 carry weight
Steel Mace
+7 damage, +4 carry weight
Giant Spider Armor (human)
+4 hp, +8 str, +13 carry weight
Fang Blades (poisoned)
+3 poison, +8 damage, +1 str, +1 dx, +5 carry weight
Giant Spider Gauntlets
+4 damage, +3 stm, +1 dx, +3 carry weight
Giant Spider Boots
+4 stm, +2 str, +1 dx, +5 carry weight
Abbreviated list based on prior use. Focus to see more items…
Isabelle’s system was getting to know her so well.
[Giant spider armor (human) equipped]
[+4 hp]
[+8 str]
[Fang Blades (poisoned) equipped]
[+3 poison]
[+8 damage]
[+1 str]
[+1 dx]
[Giant spider gauntlets equipped]
[+4 damage]
[+3 stm]
[+1 dx]
[Giant spider boots equipped]
[+4 stm]
[+2 str]
[+1 dx]
Feeling a little more confident, Isabelle got out of a crouching position and walked forward. However, she noticed that combat mode never activated.
“Ma’am, did you just change outfits in a split second?” asked one of the guards with a scratch of his chin and an adjustment of his helmet.
Isabelle realized at that moment that the guards still hadn’t recognized her.
[Speechcraft attempt: deceive]
“Huh? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” said Isabelle.
[Speechcraft failed]
“No, you were definitely wearing something different a moment ago,” said the other guard. He pointed a gloved finger at Isabelle. “There’s something suspicious about you. I just can’t figure out what.”
Oh boy. Here it comes. Isabelle had to think of something else to say to these guards, and quickly.
[Speechcraft attempt: mislead]
“You know, I was wearing a robe over this outfit earlier, but I took it off because I was getting warm,” said Isabelle. She noticed that this attempt was categorized as ‘mislead’ instead of ‘deceive,’ something that also happened back at the bar in Wheatstar.
[Speechcraft succeeded]
“That makes sense,” said one of the guards.
“Yes,” said the other guard with a nod. “That has to be what happened. Sorry for making you feel overexamined, ma’am. Now, if you don’t mind us asking, what brings you to Cloud Reach?”
[Speechcraft attempt: mislead]
“I was coming into town on way to Chox, er, because I heard you were having a hanging here tonight?”
[Speechcraft succeeded]
“Yes, of course! We of the Cloud Reach guard pride ourselves on providing exceptional hangings for citizens and visitors alike!” said one of the guards.
“Hangings are, in fact, a large part of Cloud Reach’s tourism industry,” said the other guard. “Our chief commanding officer will be so glad to hear that you’ve come here to see one!”
“Oh. That’s nice,” said Isabelle with a forced smile.
The guards stepped aside and ushered her to walk forward. They called up to their men at the top of their stone walls to raise the gate. Isabelle watched as the great iron grating slowly jerked upward. As she started to walk forward, one of the guards put a hand on her shoulder.
“Hey, this is just a heads up—” whispered the guard, “—There’s a prisoner on the loose somewhere in Cloud Reach. She’s highly dangerous. They call her Isabelle the Giant Slayer because she killed a giant at the Citadel. Split his head right down the middle! Not that I was there, I just heard about it, but still. I just wanted to let you know because you’re a young human woman and, well, let’s be honest, human on human crime has been really bad in Cloud Reach recently. So, please, be careful. I wouldn’t want to be the guilty party if an innocent human on their way to a hanging like yourself got caught in the line of fire between such a dangerous criminal.”
“Thanks,” said Isabelle. “I appreciate that.”
The guard released her shoulder. Isabelle walked under the iron grating and listened as it started to lower behind her. Isabelle looked out at the dense downtown area of Cloud Reach, which was almost as dead as Wheatstar had looked, save for a couple of humans and orcs wandering about.
A sheet of paper hit Isabelle in the face, covering it completely. Isabelle pulled it away and looked at it. Her own face was looking back at her. It was the same wanted poster for herself that she’d seen in Wheatstar, but the reward for finding her here in Cloud Reach was much, much higher. Isabelle looked around a little and noticed that there were similar posters plastered all over the place.
[Notice: you are wanted in this area]
[Notice: if anyone recognizes you, and/or you fail three speechcraft checks, you will be pursued by the guard of Cloud Reach]
[Recognized: 0/100]
That was a new one. There was a status screen for whether Isabelle was being recognized?
[Clarification: Yes. It measures the amount of recognition anyone within 50 feet of you has regarding your wanted poster. Speechcraft checks can help offset this, but they can also raise your recognized status when you fail.]
Great. Isabelle was in for a tough time. Only, how hadn’t those guards realized who she was? Wasn’t that their whole job?
“Didn’t that human look a little bit like the lady on the wanted posters?” asked one of the guards.
[Recognized: 5/100]
“Oh, come on, Uhlu, you’re being paranoid. All humans look the same anyway,” said the other guard.
[Recognized: 0/100]
Isabelle rolled her eyes and wondered if she’d ever get to a place in Beaubinte that wasn’t inhabited almost entirely by kobolds.