CHAPTER 4

Drake’s anger fully dispersed and was replaced with a feeling of satisfaction and fulfillment. At that moment, the sound of chairs screeching against wood rang out. The group of three men behind Drake stood up. One of them turned towards Grix with a playful voice. “Hey now, Grix, where do ya think you’re running off to?”

Grix froze in place, immediately realizing he had forgotten something very important. Still, when he felt his daughter’s small hand in his own, he mustered his courage and turned to face the cloaked man. “Yander, you can’t be referring to that loan, right?”

Yander pulled down his hood, a young man in his twenties appearing underneath. He sneered. “Why yes, of course. What else?”

(Common) Bandit Yander - Level 8

Grix spat. “Cut the crap. Captain Maccon saved my life, and for that I’m grateful, but to blackmail me and ask for money for his ‘generous’ act? I’ve paid enough already, so I’m leaving, and you can’t stop me.”

Yander shrugged indifferently. “Well, if that’s the case, then be my guest.”

Grix gave Yander a wary glance before turning to leave. When his back was exposed, Yander abruptly pulled out a knife and threw it. Just as it left his hand, Drake, who stood next to Yander, reached out and grabbed it before sliding it across Yander’s neck in one smooth motion. Everything happened too quickly. Yander’s eyes bulged out as he turned to look at Drake in disbelief. His two companions roared in anger as they pulled out their weapons and dashed forward.

Drake’s pupils shrunk to the size of a needle as all of the pores in his body opened up. The trajectories of the daggers played out in his mind. He twisted his torso, narrowly avoiding both attacks. Just as he was about to retaliate, one of the bandit’s daggers lit up with a white light. Miraculously, the dagger sharply changed directions while conserving all of its momentum. It was too sudden. Drake could only watch as the dagger plunged itself into his heart. Crap! Was that a skill?

Gritting his teeth, Drake ignored the wound and stepped closer to the bandits. With two quick motions, the bandits fell backwards, the life draining from their bodies. Like them, Drake felt strength leave his body so quickly that he knew he had just moments left to live. He staggered backwards and fell into a nearby chair while clutching his chest. At the same time, numerous messages appeared in his mind.

You have surpassed levels to kill an opponent! Bonus XP acquired. +150 XP.

You have surpassed levels to kill an opponent! Bonus XP acquired. +125 XP.

You have surpassed levels to kill an opponent! Bonus XP acquired. +125 XP.

Ding! You are now level 3.

Reward: 1 stat point.

Ding! You are now level 4.

Reward: 1 stat point.

Hidden Quest: (F) A family’s peril has been completed.

Reward: A title.

You have acquired the title, ‘(F) A Budding Hero’.

(F) A Budding Hero - 5% increased reputation with righteous factions.

Sweet. The rewards just keep on coming. The system awarded him considerably. The only cost was his life. Still, with a quick revive, he’ll be back and raring to go. At least he thought as much until he saw the next message.

Warning: You have killed Bandit Yander, brother of Captain Maccoon. You are now at war with the faction: Maccoon’s Bandit Gang.

Uh oh. Drake chuckled bitterly at the message. Most likely, this village was under Captain Maccoon’s control. Where would he respawn now? If it was at the center of the village, wouldn’t he be spawn camped by NPCs? Since when has that ever happened? Usually players do the spawn camping, not the other way around. Drake shrugged. Oh well, at least dad will get a kick out of this.

Lucy and Grix ran up to Drake with pale faces. Lucy tried to plug the hole in Drake’s chest with her hand, but the blood wouldn’t stop. “Uhh, what do I do? It’s not stopping.”

Drake pushed them away with a carefree smile. “Don’t worry about me. Escape while you can. The other bandits will notice what happened here shortly. You don’t have much time.”

“No!” Lucy shook her head firmly.

“Sorry…” Grix clenched his teeth and picked up Lucy before running away.

Drake watched as they left the building, disappearing into the world beyond. His eyelids started to grow heavy as the feeling of death grew stronger. Even so, it was worth it.

The sound of clapping came from behind him. Startled, Drake turned his head only to find the last person in the tavern stand up. It was the cloaked man Drake spotted earlier in the darkest part of the tavern. The man made his way over to Drake, swiveled a nearby chair around, and sat on it with his hands crossed over the top rail. “That was amazing, kid, truly.”

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

(Chieftain) ??? - Level ??

For the first time, Drake was unable to glean any information about an NPC, only that he was of the Chieftain rank. He stared at the man, unsure of how to respond.

“I mean, you’re an idiot, but still an amazing idiot,” The man clicked his tongue in amazement. “You got good technical skills, but not the levels to back it up. You musta just left your mother’s house, huh? You thought, ‘hey, I want to be an adventurer!’ and so you traveled all the way to the borderlands to be a hero.” The man patted Drake’s shoulder while giving a thumbs up. “You got guts! I like you!”

Drake gave the man a level stare. “Are you crazy?”

The man placed his index finger just a tad higher than his thumb. “Just a bit, hehe.”

“Well in any case, thanks for accompanying me as I die.” Drake said sarcastically as his eyelids grew heavy.

“No problem, no proble- Hey!” The man slapped Drake’s cheek so hard it turned red. “Don’t go to sleep yet! I’m not done talking yet.”

Annoyed, Drake forced his eyes open through sheer willpower. “Oh, sorry about that…”

“Anyway, as I was saying,” The man continued without a shred of concern for Drake’s condition. “Those two you saved? Grix and whatsername?”

“Lucy.” Drake accidentally spat out a mouthful of blood as he responded.

“Right, Lucy!” The man wiped the blood from his face before clapping his hands in delight. “Yeah, sorry to break it to you, but they’re gonna die for sure.”

“What did you say?” Drake suddenly sat up as if he was full of energy and stared at the man closely for the first time. To his horror, the face underneath the hood was nothing like the cheery voice he’d been listening to. The man’s face was disfigured beyond recognition. Black veins filled his eyes as they alternated between madness and clarity. It was bewildering. At the same time, a message appeared in Drake’s mind.

Due to repeated special actions, you have gained a new trait!

(S) Determination To Defy Death - By relying on willpower alone, you are able to stave off some fatal wounds for a brief time.

Due to a special action, you have unlocked the Willpower special stat!

“Huh?” Drake tilted his head as he felt strength flowing through his body. Though death was still approaching, it was like he had gained another few moments of life. What’s a trait? And it’s not a skill? Can it be leveled up?

“Hot damn!” The disfigured man abruptly stood up, knocking over the chair he was sitting on in the process. He grabbed Drake’s shoulders so hard that they were on the verge of cracking. “You got it, right? The trait and stat?”

“Yes?” Drake was unable to keep up with this wacko.

“I knew it!” The man let go of Drake and slapped his thigh. “I saw that tenacious spark in your eye, and sure enough, you didn’t let me down.”

Drake recalled all of the man’s actions in the last minute and came to a realization. He was egging me on? Drake’s thoughts turned back to the father and daughter. He released a sigh of relief. “You were just lying to me about Grix and Lucy dying right?”

“Oh, them?” The man shook his head. “They’re goners for sure. Captain Racoon, no, Maccoon is a skilled tracker. They won’t be able to escape him.”

Drake fell back in his seat, dejected. “Why does it have to be this way?”

The man gave Drake a sideways glance. “I can save them, y’know.”

Drake wasn’t an idiot. In this brief encounter, he learned that although the man was mad, there was logic weaved within. Drake clenched his hands. “What do you want?”

“Me?” The man picked his nose with one hand while inspecting the grimey fingernails of his other hand. “Oh, just for you to perform an experiment or two with me.”

“Deal!” Drake agreed without hesitation.

You have accepted the quest: © Restoring An Old Man’s Reputation.

Task: Successfully complete the experiment.

Rewards: Unknown.

“Great, let’s get going then!” The man sped towards the tavern’s entrance, only to slide to a stop and spin around, completely and utterly baffled. “Why aren’t you coming?”

Drake groaned helplessly. “I AM on the verge of death here, remember?”

“Oh, right!” The man smacked his forehead. He returned to Drake’s side and swiped out with his hand. In the blink of an eye, a red vial suddenly appeared in between his fingers. “Here, drink up. It’s strawberry flavored, my favorite.”

(Rare) Strawberry Flavored Healing Potion: Restores Lifeforce based on Recovery (B), Fortitude (E), and Strength (F).

Drake wouldn’t drink something given by a madman so easily. Only after a quick inspection did he find it safe to use. Looks like the item system is the same as earlier cycles. How much the potion healed depended on three stats, with a higher grade having more effect than lower grades. In this case, Recovery affected the potion more than Fortitude and Strength.

Feeling death swiftly approaching, he downed the contents of the vial in one gulp. As the liquid slid down his throat, a warm vibrant energy entered his body, gathering towards the tiny hole in his heart. The energy slowly disappeared as the wound healed itself. In a short moment, the wound vanished as if it was never there.

Seeing that Drake was back to normal, the man grabbed Drake’s hand and dragged him with such force that Drake couldn’t resist. “The experiment awaits! Hahaha, I’ll prove it to all those fools! Then they’ll believe me!”

“We made a deal!” Drake snapped, afraid the man would renege on his end of the bargain.

“Hehe, whoops. I forgot!” The man changed directions and headed straight for the largest building in the village. He moved so quickly that the world was just a blur for Drake. He’s so fast! What level is he?

As they passed by other users, all they felt was a gust of wind. “Huh, what was that?”

“A person? Nah, couldn’t be.”

In the center of the village was a wooden three story building with an open courtyard. A man clad in a set of black and grey leather armor stood there with a sword in his hand. With every flick of his arm, the sword cut through the air, creating a soft gust of wind. Again and again he repeated the same action. Just as he was about to cut again, he glanced over his shoulder, sensing something amiss. “What’s that?”

In one moment, all he saw was a dot running towards him, and in the next, a disfigured man wearing a wry smile stood in front of him. “Sorry, buddy, have a nice afterlife!”

“Huh? What are y-” Captain Maccoon watched as the world spun around and around. Even at the moment of his death, he didn’t understand what was happening.

Drake’s body was limp on the ground, his arm still held tightly by the disfigured man. He felt that the rollercoaster ride was over and raised his head just in time to see a single slap make Maccoon’s head pop off. Killing a man with a single slap! What was even scarier was that he could see Captain Maccoon’s stats.

(Elite) Bandit Leader Captain Maccoon - Level 15

Hidden Quest: (D) Maccoon’s Pursuit has been completed!

Reward: Upgraded title.

Title ‘A Budding Hero’ has upgraded to rank (E). Now increases reputation gain by 20%.

A bunch of loot was left behind after Maccoon’s corpse dispersed into light. The disfigured man raised his arm, bringing Drake’s eyes level to his. “There. You happy now?”

Drake nodded, his head still in a daze. The disfigured man huffed in annoyance as he ran towards the village entrance. “You’re like a girlfriend I had once. So needy!”

Before Drake knew it, they were already far from the village. He could just barely discern that it seemed like they were entering a forest. A dreary and evil forest. He gulped. Well, it should be fine, right?