6 A Companion's Promise - Part 2
I wake up quite well-rested and get a deep kiss from her as a greeting. I think this should be a morning routine.
My MP increased by 40 (now 255). That's kinda high since I didn't train very well yesterday, so could this be the result of prayer?
I decide to look at the extermination requests at the hunters' guild. With Alissa's tracking, we can hunt for some of those juicy bounties.
We walk along the streets with our arms entwined. She's a few centimeters taller than me, so it's a bit awkward at first until we get used to each other's rhythm.
We enter the guild and start looking at requests, then I hear footsteps approach.
"Hello! Are you Wolf Ryder?" A chipper and gruff male voice greets me. We turn around and see a short and wide man in full chainmail armor. He has black hair and droopy eyes that make him look like he's always thinking. "I'm Targua, from Honest Shield." He adds after a moment and gives us a diplomatic smile.
"Uh… hi, hello, yes, I'm Ryder," I confusedly return the greeting.
Another voice comes from further back in the guild, "Oi! don't listen to him, join my fellowship, instead!" A blonde and lanky man with a bow slung over his shoulder comes running and interjects. His face seems a bit roguish, and he sports a considerable nose.
"What?" I mumble, dumbfounded.
Stop, rewind, and start from the beginning this time.
Targua facepalms and chides him, "Bug off, mate. I haven't even asked him yet and you just jump in the middle."
The lanky man stops in front of me and gives me a business smile while extending his hand for a handshake. "I'm Simon, from Swift Wind. Pleasure to meetcha, yeah? How about you join my fellowship?" He quickly introduces himself and immediately announces his offer.
Where did you two even come from?
I hesitantly shake his large and rough hand, then Targua sends us a strained smile and continues, "Uh… sorry, but yeah, how about you join my fellowship instead?"
I frown in confusion and sincerely ask, "Why are you guys asking me to join?"
"No shit we're looking for you, mate," Simon grunts and snorts. "A magic swordsman who can kill and carry a Grey Berserker or an Orc Headhunter is no joke. And then yesterday, everyone at the training grounds was raving about your new companion who's a crazy pretty lass with an extremely deadly bow."
His speech sounds weird. Is this the effect of the [Andraste Language] skill trying to translate casual slang?
I look at Targua and he shrugs.
The thing that annoys me is how they want us to join their fellowship. No, thanks.
I shake my head and reject their offer, "Sorry, but I prefer to keep walking my own path for now."
"Ehh. Really?" Simon frowns reprovingly, and I nod at him. "Well, that's a shame, mate. We could make a killing with you and the girl."
I feel Alissa's grip tighten in subtle anger.
Targua takes a step closer and clasps his hands in a subtle pleading gesture. "Is that so? Is there no room for negotiations? We could always search for a good deal that'd benefit both of us."
I kind of like your attitude, but back off, you're too close to Alissa.
I look at them sternly and stand my ground, "No, sorry. It's not a question about money, it's personal."
Simon shrugs and makes a sour face. "Well, I tried," he mumbles and walks away.
Targua gently nods in understanding and accepts, "Sorry to bother you, then. Be well Mr. Ryder" Then he also leaves.
"I fully agree with your decision, Master," Alissa whispers while sending a mean gaze to the two men walking away. "Those men would exploit you. It's almost always what happens when getting scouted by veterans. Fellowships are bonds made of trust, and those which are made of money are weak."
How romantic.
I nod in agreement, then we turn back and continue searching for a request.
There's a good one. It's a bounty for an Oodogloo which was found yesterday. This monster is a threat level three. It's a large, transparent slime with a human skeleton inside. Because it can walk with the skeleton, it's faster than normal crawling slimes that move like caterpillars or worms. It should have a distinctive ammonia scent, so it's easy to track with Alissa's nose, but it's a very annoying enemy to catch because it runs away from everything and preys on livestock. It was last found half a day away northwest from here, at the farms past Royd's Kerfuffle.
Alissa follows my eyes and sees the request I'm interested in. "I can take you there on my fox form," she suggests.
Oh, yes.
I smirk and reply, "Want to go there right now?"
She smiles brightly and her tail sways. "Yes! I want to test my bow. The Oodogloo is good for target practice because it's so nimble."
"Then let's go."
I want to go not because I'm excited to fight, but because I want a reason to ride Alissa. We already have all the requirements for sleeping outside, so we're completely ready.
--
We pass through customs with ease since we're both adventurers.
A few meters away from the crowd trying to enter the town, Alissa turns to me and excitedly says, "I'm skilled enough to absorb my clothes after transforming, but you'll have to hold my weapons, Master."
I hold them for her, and she turns around.
Here comes the trademark of magic in this world: she starts to shine. Her skin turns black, and her armor disappears inside her body, then orange fur starts to grow everywhere and her limbs warp. In just a couple of seconds, she turns into a one-meter tall orange fox.
Her big orange eyes look at me, then she opens her mouth and talks, but her jaw doesn't move, "Master, get on me, please." Seeing her speak like this is really weird.
"Uhh… shouldn't we get a saddle?" I question.
"There's no need; just grab my fur. This form is made of mana, so I don't feel pain."
I shrug. "If you say so."
I awkwardly mount her and delight myself with her incredibly soft and warm fur. I immediately notice that a big part of her body is pure fluffy fur and that she isn't very muscular.
I nuzzle up to her neck and secure myself.
Once I'm comfortable, she starts walking forward and explains, "I'll increase speed slowly, so tell me if it shakes too much."
"Alright, let's go."
Then she starts running, and I start to feel weird from the rhythmic swaying. She's fast, though, so it's really advantageous for us to move this way. I've never ridden a horse, so I need some time to learn how to deal with this.
During the trip, I keep thinking about what to do with her skill points. She has six free points that I can assign, and that's kind of a lot.
It's going to be hard to explain this ability to her, though. I can just use the "it's a secret" excuse, but this is kind of a big and weird secret because it seemingly violates the laws of the skill system. She could even think I'm a demi-god, or something, and I'm not comfortable with that.
I think I'll lie to her, again. I'll look into the skill she wants to improve the most and slowly put those points there. It's just the less messy way, I believe.
Well, I could just do whatever I want and shrug if she notices something wrong. It's not like she's going to assume I'm the one doing it. But I'll tell her the truth, one day… just not now.
To test things, I put one point in [Enhanced Stamina].
--
The landscape remains the same all the way: long plantations on one side of the road, and a small wall on the other with the Sea of Trees behind it. It's a rather calming trip through a soothing scenery.
It takes us less than half the time to walk there, and we reach our target location a few hours before midday. We stop in front of the farm that was attacked, Woodwick Ranch.
Alissa slows down and stops under the shade of a tree by the road, then I drop down, and she reverses the transformation. She graciously gets up from being on her fours and looks at me, then I notice her posture seems a little droopy from tiredness.
I sit down on the roots and pull out the old sleeping bag beside me. I return her weapons to her, then she ties the sword and quiver to her waist and slings her bow over her shoulder.
"Lay down here, please," I ask and pat the bag.
"Thank you, Master," she diligently obeys.
She's so polite. She's always thanking me, but it does make me a bit uncomfortable, though.
"This is odd, I'm not as tired as I thought I'd be," she remarks and lays down.
So she noticed.
I pat her head, then she closes her eyes, and her tail twitches under her.
"Is that so? Didn't you miscalculate the distance? Or perhaps just by sleeping with me you got stronger?" I suggest with a grin.
She opens her eyes in surprise and stares at me.
"That was a joke, my body is no miracle drug," I add flatly and snort.
She awkwardly looks away for a moment. "Y-yes. That's not what I was thinking, though."
"Then what were you thinking?"
"It's what you said about being happy increases performance. It could be true."
So she's actually happy, now? I'm glad.
"Well, I wasn't lying," I tease her with a pout.
Her face warps with fear. "I'm sorry! That wasn't what I meant. I wanted to say that I just noticed it for the first time."
I chuckle at her, and she immediately pouts at my teasing. "It's okay, I understand," I whisper and pat her head faster.
She calms down and closes her eyes again.
--
She gets up after a good half-hour, fully recovered from our trip.
"Oh? I got a new skill, [Enhanced Stamina]," she observes and knits her eyebrows in confusion.
I hold back my grin and respond, "That's great. It means you can stay longer in your fox form right?"
"Yes, precisely," she mumbles with a puzzled face.
"Something wrong?"
Her tail lazily sways. "It's just that it was too easy. Like 'Endurance,' these sort of skills are hard to come by."
"Maybe you put more effort than you thought. I think you're a serious and hard worker, so this isn't unexpected for me." I give her shoulder an assuring squeeze.
She shrinks her posture, feeling a bit shy, but her tail starts wagging.
"Perhaps…" And her voice trails off while she looks into the distance.
Now that she has a better [Sense Presence] than me, I decide to remove it along with [Mental Resistance] since there's no need for it here. I increase [Blessing Magic] to level ten so I can use [Swift Foot] to give us a boost in speed. I increase [Electric Magic] to five and [Mana Control] to one so I can use [Lightning Bolt] more effectively to stun the Oodogloo because it's likely to run away.
My skills look like this:
-
Wolf Ryder Skill Report
Physical
Sword Use: 6+2 | Dodge: 2+4 | Parry: 1+4
Block: 2+4 | Shield Bash 0+1
Magical
Mana Efficiency: 4+0 | Mana Recovery: 3+0 | Reduced Mana Cost 3+0
Mana Control: 1+0 | Electric Magic: 5+0 | Nature Magic: 5+0
Blessing Magic: 10+0
Miscellaneous
Andraste Language 10+0 | Dismantling: 0+1
OBS: Level means (free point)+(trained point)
-
Now I need to explain my skills to Alissa, it's time to lie… again.
"Alissa, strategy meeting. Time to tell you another secret," I call her attention, and she sits down again obediently. I clear my throat and continue, "I have a power that basically allows me to use all kinds of magic, but it takes time to switch between magic types, and I'm not exactly proficient in any of them."
"Wow… that's amazing, Master," she innocently coos in wonder. "So, you're actually a genius magician."
Not true, but it's convenient that you think like this, so I won't tell you otherwise.
I awkwardly massage my neck. "Well, err… perhaps it is so. I just know it's something I'm capable of. But like I said, I'm not very proficient in magic in general. I'm a jack-of-all-trades, master of none."
"'Jack-of-all-trades'?" She tilts her head. Her confused face is adorable.
"An expression from my homeland, it means 'a person who can do anything,' but I'm not particularly good in any of them, therefore, I'm a 'master of none.'"
"I see…" She nods in understanding.
"Then, for this hunt, I'm going to use [Blessing Magic] and [Electric Magic]. I'll give us [Swift Foot], and when we meet the monster, I'll use [Lightning Bolt] to try to stun it. You just turn it into a pincushion."
"Pin… cushion. Ah, with the arrows. Another reference, I think." She looks puzzled, then smiles faintly once she gets it.
The pincushion isn't a thing yet?
"Ready?" I ask.
She gets up and hums confidently, "Yes, let's start looking for the monster."
Since Alissa has [Sense Presence] and the bow, she'll be basically assassinating every monster while I kind of do nothing until the battle, but there's no way around it, that's how trackers work.
Still, we're going to search the Sea of Trees during the day, so we could meet something that won't go down so easily. That's when I'll have to protect Alissa from getting into melee.
I cast [Swift Foot] on both of us, and two-thirds of my mana disappear.
--
We'll search the Sea of Trees for the Oodoogloo during the day while it sleeps, then we'll return to the farm to protect the livestock when the night falls.
This monster is the annoying kind that preys on large animals, but it isn't smart, just cowardly. It attacks the farms at random, so finding it before it leaves its nest is a better option than waiting for the night to come.
I bought a small compass, which will help with navigation, but we're basically going to wander around until Alissa catches its trail. If a farm gets attacked tonight, then it might leave tracks for us to follow, but the reward will drop a bit if it kills anything, so we don't want to rely on that.
As we make our way into the Sea of Trees, a familiar scenery appears before me: huge trees, damp air, dark atmosphere, unfamiliar fruits, gigantic entwining roots, hanging vines everywhere, and random patches of weirdly colored trees. I'm surprised there aren't more insects here considering how warm and wet this place is. Thank god for the Japanese devs who must hate bugs.
I lead the way with the compass, and we go directly west, deep into the forest.
--
After half an hour of walking, Alissa stops me. "Something is coming. Two small monsters," she whispers soberly.
We hide and wait for them to get into visual range, then Alissa ID's them: two lightly armored goblins. They have leather jackets, loincloths, a stone-tipped spear, and a crude wooden shield.
I give the order, "Fire at will. I'll block the second one if it reaches us."
She nods vigorously. "Understood." Then she gets up and fires two quick arrows.
Both goblins silently die with an arrow between their eyes before they can even react.
"Well…" I shrug and smile wryly.
I collect their ears and return to her.
"Likely scouts. There could be a small group camping nearby," Alissa guesses.
"Let's not get close to their camp."
"Understood."
Her demeanor has become as serious as when she was training, and I guess it's because she's fulfilling her "duty."
We move west again, and only a few minutes later, we have our second encounter. This time, there are three enemies coming, fast.
Alissa doesn't recognize what they are, and she doesn't believe they've detected us, but our paths are going to cross, and they're too close to safely avoid.
I decide to ambush them, so I'll get the one on the right, and Alissa will try to quickly kill the two on the left.
We patiently wait for them to approach, and I start to hear the pitter-patter of multiple small feet scurrying closer to us.
Alissa gives me the signal, then we spring out of our hiding spot and attack. Our enemies are three Mossy Fangpines.
I immediately cast [Lightning Bolt] at the first Fangpine, and the second receives an arrow on its head. A second arrow immediately flies towards the third Fangpine, but it's way too agile and manages to dodge, then it charges towards us.
I cast another [Lightning Bolt] at the stunned Fangpine, then an arrow sinks into its forehead and it dies.
I prepare myself to receive the charging monster. With my sword hiding behind my shield, I wait until the last moment, then I thrust.
The Fangpine is stupid and jumps into my sword, which sinks into its body, then it falls on my shield and I nearly lose my footing.
It starts to wriggle wildly, so I cast a [Lightning Bolt] with my shield hand right at its face and it goes limp, then I use my shield to push it off from my sword.
It falls on the ground with a thud, but it doesn't get up.
"Dead. You must've pierced its heart," Alissa comments.
"Lucky strike, I guess," I respond nervously.
"Perhaps… you could use a spear?" She suggests tentatively.
I scratch my head. "Perhaps… I feel a bit more comfortable with the sword, though."
She gives me a rather pitying look. "Your sword has a small reach, and I don't think you have the 'Strength' to use anything bigger."
I feel like pouting, but I hold it back.
I'm working on it.
The Fangpines are valuable, but their price varies depending on the stocks of ingredients for the alchemists or meat for the restaurants. So far, I haven't seen their meat being sold, so maybe the stocks are low.
"They must've sensed the goblins' deaths," Alissa speculates.
"Then let's change our direction. Let's move towards the north a little."
I collect all of their bodies and we move on.
--
There are no encounters for another hour, so we decide to have lunch early.
I spread a large cloth over the ground, and we sit down on it.
Our meal is a bean paste and Rabid Rabbit meat sandwich on a not-baguette. Unfortunately, the crust is not as crunchy as I'd like, but at least it doesn't make a mess. I forgot to buy fruit for juice or to even bring tea, so the meal is kind of boring.
"Next time, we should buy tea," I mutter.
Her ears twitch and her tail wags. "Oh? You like tea? You didn't tell me."
I smile awkwardly. "I forgot…"
My mind was too busy with abusing your body.
--
After our meal, I cast [Wind Armor] on both of us and [Sharp Blades] on myself. After the next break, I'll cast [Sharp Blades] on her. It's kind of annoying that I don't have enough MP to cast all my [Blessing Magic] in one go, but that can only be solved with more training.
We get up and move southwest since there's not much sense in going north too far. The Oodogloo nests deep in the forest during the day, but it's not smart enough to move diagonally to purposely avoid those chasing him.
We walk for another half hour before Alissa detects the next enemy.
"This one is large. I don't think it's a Grey Berserker, but I don't know what it is," she reports.
"Then let's observe."
Alissa leads ten meters in front because I don't have [Quiet Steps].
She makes the signal for me to stop, then sneaks ahead, circling a large root. She sights our target, then comes back to report.
"It's a Young Ogre."
A threat level 4 monster. It's capable of wiping a squad of soldiers, but we should be able to deal with him if we follow proper tactics. A simple plan is the most powerful power multiplier.
They're becoming a common sight after the culling, it seems, and this must be why their leather is cheap. The new monster is emigrating into the empty territory. They'll likely remain a common encounter until the next culling.
I store my shield inside my "Items" and give up on using a spear. Neither of these will be useful in this fight.
"Standard formation. For your first arrow, aim for the eye," I order, and she nods in acknowledgment.
Our "standard formation" is her being the damage dealer while I'm the bait and controller. She'll fire the first arrow, then I'll cast [Lightning Bolt] repeatedly and keep it busy while she aims for the vitals.
She sneaks towards it again without making a single sound, then she draws her bow and releases.
"UGOOOOH!" The ogre's scream makes the trees tremble. If this is a young one, then the adult will cause an earthquake.
It rushes from behind the root with an arrow sticking out of its right eye. I observe it and wait until it gets into range.
The ogre is a two meters tall red-brown skinned humanoid with ridiculously thick arms, legs, and a six-pack that makes bodybuilders jealous. He's bald and his face is round, flat, and deformed, making him look like a cartoon character that hit a wall.
He's especially resistant against blunt force attacks, but his vulnerability is slashing and bleeding to death. His body is very thick, so he's not fast or dexterous. For me, the best strategy is to just avoid him and counterattack by slashing whenever an opening appears.
Alissa runs past me and stops a few dozen meters away, then carefully aims her arrows. Even for proto-Legolas, she can't hit the eyes of a moving target, so she's aiming for the neck. The other vulnerable spot would be the groin, but I'm in the way, so the neck it is.
I try to ignore it, but it's impossible, he's way too tall. The worst thing about this monster is that it's naked. A long, dangling, disgusting thing sways threateningly almost at eye-level as it comes towards me. Fuck this world.
With [Mana Control], I can put a little more or less mana into the spell and control the discharge for a second or two, so I charge up the stronger version of [Lightning Bolt] while wrinkling my nose in disgust.
I release it, and the Ogre grunts, then decrease his speed a little. It's subtle, but I noticed that the bolt is stronger.
I cast it again, and his speed reduces even more, falling to more manageable levels.
Because of my spells, he ignores Alissa, and focuses solely on me. He gets into melee range and tries to kick, but I jump sideways and slash his leg, drawing blood.
He growls, then tries to do a sweep with his arm. I duck, and an arrow appears on his neck.
Another kick with the other leg, another dodge and a slash.
He tries to smash downwards with both hands held together, and this time, I dodge further away to get out of counterattack range.
Once his hands hit the ground, a second arrow appears next to the first.
I dash towards his blind eye, and he loses sight of me for a second. That's enough of an opening, so I charge forward and slash his flank.
I immediately run away, and he sluggishly turns towards me.
I realize this is not a good position for Alissa since the back of his neck and head are more protected than the front due to his spinal bones and thick skull. Ogres are built like tanks, it seems.
I stop and let him approach, then he tries to do an arm sweep again. Since I'm further away this time, I easily dodge and counter with a horizontal sweeping slash.
My sword sinks into his left forearm, opening a huge wound, but it's almost ripped from my hand as he yanks his arm away. I'm not sure I should do this again.
He growls even harder, and now things might amp up in difficulty. Like the Grey Berserker, he becomes faster the angrier he gets.
I circle him to give Alissa a good angle again. He remains in place while sluggishly turning, then a third arrow appears on his neck, and a considerable trickle of blood starts to seep from his wounds.
I cast Bolt again, and he twitches in pain. It's enough of an opening for a fourth arrow.
"UGOO-BLEH!" He tries to shout while punching but coughs.
His punch comes too slow and sloppy, so he gets another deep cut on his other arm. The blood starts pouring faster than the other wounds, so perhaps I cut a large vein or something?
I need lessons in anatomy.
He protects his neck with his right arm and glares at me hatefully.
It's kind of late now, you dumbass.
Alissa can't act, but now his actions are more limited.
He sweeps with his arm, using the back of his hand, and it creates a huge opening. I jump forward and cut near his armpit, drawing a spurt of blood.
He kicks me in response, but the angle is awkward for him. I twist my body and block with my sword. The force of his kick nearly makes me trip, but I jump backward and recover.
He becomes cautious and stops attacking.
I cut his leg once and start to circle him.
After a few laps, he sways slightly, seemingly becoming dizzy. I must've cut something important, so I'll just wait for now.
After a minute or so, his skin gets covered with vibrant blood. His punching arm slows down to a laughable speed, and his kicks completely lose accuracy. His body starts to sway heavily, and he becomes out of breath.
Then he finally falls on his ass. He's near death, but his eyes still spell anger instead of fear.
An arrow pokes his last eye.
"Ugooo…!" He lets out a weak scream.
I jump forward and slash his neck where his thick fingers aren't covering. A large amount of blood pours, and then he falls on his back.
We wait another minute in silence.
"He's dead," Alissa finally announces.
That was fucking brutal.
As the adrenaline runs out, I start to get very anguished at the sight in front of my eyes. I clean my blade and quickly put his body on my "Items," Then I look away from the large pool of blood.
"Let's move, quickly," I order, and we jog away from here.
--
"Master, we shouldn't encounter anything this far…" Alissa points out, and I stop. She walks closer to me and lands a hand on my shoulder. "May I ask you a question?" She requests soberly.
I turn around to face her and reply hesitantly, "Y-yes, what is it?"
Her serious gaze turns to concern and worry. "Are you okay? Your expression changed, and your face is much darker now."
I look away from her and stay silent.
"Are you tired? Let's rest," she tries to comfort me.
"No, it's… not that…" I mumble tiredly.
"Then what is it?"
"I just..." I sigh and frown. I just don't want to admit this, but I also don't feel like forcing her to stop probing my feelings. "I feel bad about the ogre we killed."
"What?" She asks with a deliberate gentle tone to not hurt my feelings.
"He looked too human, and I didn't want to make him suffer."
"But he was a monster."
"Still…" Another sigh escapes me. I didn't want to say it like this, but I have to now. I face her and confess, "My homeland was too peaceful, so I didn't have to fight there. I'm not used to seeing so much blood, to hear the death cries of things, of… living beings that look so human. It makes me feel sick and guilty."
She stays silent as she reflects deeply on my words, but her gaze is still gentle and reassuring.
After a few moments, she suddenly pulls me into a hug and whispers into my ear, "That's okay, Master. Forgive me for saying this, but I'll selfishly ask for you to continue being the way you are even if it makes you suffer. I think that the realm needs people like you, someone with a truly kind and merciful heart. I'll support you, I'll help you, I'll heal you, and I'll give you my all just so you can continue being like this."
That was completely unexpected, and I don't know how to answer, so I just remain still.
Aren't you naive? How long have you known me? It's been just a few days. No matter how close we are, or if we had sex or not, it's just not enough time for you to say things like that.
But still… I want to believe this. I tried to throw away what held me back, but some things are harder than others. I needed someone to support and love me, so I changed, but now I want to keep this part of my humanity.
I want to believe that she's right… No, I will believe in her.
I hug her back and rest my head against her shoulder. I must not cry.
--
After a few minutes, I start to feel better and awkwardly break the hug. She lets me go with a slightly smug but still adorable smile.
I clear my throat and propose, "Let's go back. It's still early, but we should take another less direct route, so it'll take more time."
"Understood. Please rely on me more, Master," she obediently responds, then clenches her fist over her chest.
I nod and smile.
--
We move southeast with a gentle jog.
[Swift Foot] is a really nice spell. It lets us walk almost effortlessly, so we can maintain this pace for a long time. Even in this forest full of roots and bushes, we quickly cross the obstacles without any problem.
Then Alissa gets another hit.
"Four goblins," she reports.
I knit my eyebrows in worry. "Hmm… they're increasing in number."
"Perhaps there's a nest nearby?" She supposes again.
"Let's observe them."
We get closer so we reach visual range, and we see four fully armored goblins. Two use spears, and two use swords, but all have shields.
I don't feel comfortable using a spear against shields while outnumbered…
They seem very aware of their surroundings, but since we're hidden in the bushes, they can't detect us. They cautiously explore forward at a very slow pace.
"They look awfully intelligent," I comment.
Are they searching for something?
"You think you can kill two if we ambush?" I whisper.
She matches my volume, "Unlikely; they're alert for something. One is guaranteed, the other I'm not so sure."
"We'll sync our attacks. You kill the one on the right, and I use a Bolt on the one on the left. It might stun it long enough for you to fire another arrow."
"I'll use [Muscle Explosion], but I can't use it repeatedly."
"It's alright. I'll be bait, and once the first strike is launched, you sneak around them until you have a shot. When I remove my hand from your shoulder, we attack."
She responds with a steady and unwavering voice, "Understood."
I charge the spell, then I get up and let it loose as I take my hand off her shoulder, and the forest resounds with the roar of the thunder.
The first goblin doesn't even react, it gets hit by lightning and its body locks in place for a moment, then the other goblin falls with an arrow through its temple.
The stunned goblin raises its shield to defend itself, then the brim touches the shaft of the arrow stuck through its face. It's already dead.
The two sword goblins hide behind their shields. They're teardrop-shaped and taller than mine, and with a goblin's small stature, they can easily cover their entire bodies with it.
I get in the open and wait for the goblins to come, then Alissa starts sneaking around them.
Since they're not charging forward, I have time to cast [Lightning Bolt] again. The left goblin twitches and groans, but it doesn't fall. It's likely that the shield reduced the damage to its body.
Suddenly, the right goblin falls with an arrow poking out of its forehead. The last goblin notices it, then turns towards where the arrow came from. That's enough of a distraction; I charge forward.
I thrust towards the goblin, but it suddenly reacts and blocks, then counters. Our shields and swords get tangled in a messy battle, but we're both too cautious to score a hit on the other.
It growls and gets into a rage, then wildly tries to stab me.
Its ferocity gives me pause, and I fight defensively, but I keep it occupied so it doesn't notice Alissa.
The goblin is smaller than me, so when it foolishly decides to hide its eyes behind the shield to dodge my attack, I follow with a kick, and it staggers backward.
Its eyes lock with mine, then an arrow sinks into its temple. It winces for a second, then it goes limp and falls down.
Alissa comes back, and we inspect the bodies.
They may be armored, but it's all shitty, old, and tattered. The weapons must've been pillaged from some adventurers because they look relatively new, so they might be worth something. I grab the weapons and shields, then I cut the ears from the goblins and move towards Alissa.
"Honestly, we make a pretty good team," I happily comment.
She smiles faintly, but she sends me a worried look. "I'd prefer it if you weren't used as bait. We need another companion to act as the front line, Master. Preferably a spearman."
"Yeah, well…" I shrug.
She's not wrong. I don't really have the stats to be front line, it's just that I don't have the money. I used it all on her and her equipment, but I don't regret it, though.
--
We keep moving forward and meet two other duos of goblins. The first duo one isn't alert, so Alissa kills them both with ease, but the second one is, and it takes a bit more effort. By that I mean I shoot lightning twice, stunning them long enough for Alissa to finish the job.
If you don't have a shield, you're fucked against Alissa.
Then we meet a group of four Mossy Fangpines. They aren't coming directly towards us, so this means that the anti-odor powder is working. But perhaps they're searching for the trail of blood we're leaving behind us?
Killing monsters attracts more monsters, so being a good hunter takes a lot more than just winning the battle. You also have to survive the following encounters.
I start debating whether or not to fight them when Alissa gets another hit: another two-meters tall Young Ogre.
"Now, we wait. They aren't going to get too close to us, right?" I question.
She nods and agrees, "Yes, we'll be safe if we wait here. No need to endanger ourselves unnecessarily."
The two monsters end up meeting, and something interesting happens: the Fangpines attack the Ogre. We decide to move a bit closer so we can see.
With his back against a huge tree, a red-brown ogre swings his arm around while fast and small monsters dash all around him.
"Wow, can they really kill him?" I wonder.
Alissa whispers in a teaching tone, "If they can avoid getting crushed, they can certainly poison him slowly until he dies."
"Hm…" I rub my chin in thought as a dirty idea enters my mind. "Let's third-party this fight."
"'Third-party'?"
I scratch my head awkwardly. "Erm… Let's wait until the ogre is almost dead, then we jump in and kill the Fangpines."
Alissa nods, content. "Oh, I see. Yes, that sounds like a good idea."
"I want the Experience more than anything, so we need to be near the Ogre when it dies by the Fangpines."
Her expression instantly turns serious. "I see. Once he starts to move slower, we should get closer and prepare for the ambush. I'll warn you once his movement pattern changes."
"Alright," I agree and nod. Alissa has better eyesight, so she'll be able to notice this detail easily.
The fight takes a while. The Ogre gets bitten multiple times, but he just can't catch the Fangpines as they're smart enough to let go before they're crushed. I see the ogre growing hair all over its body. It's stiff, slightly green hair, the spikes from the Fangpines.
The fight could be said to be entertaining if I was into blood sports. The orc is surrounded, and the Fangpines maintain a continuous attack towards his blind spots. The small monsters get plenty of close calls, but none of them get hit even once, a testament to their nimbleness.
The ogre stops trying to punch and kick them, then he tries to grab their heads when they come for a bite.
"The Fangpines are salivating, I think they're starving," Alissa comments.
Makes sense. The culling removed food sources, and the ogres are the ones who are moving in, so they became the new targets of the predators here. Though a huge monster like an ogre becoming "prey" seems "wrong," somehow.
Suddenly, the Ogre stomps behind him, and the head of a Fangpine becomes mush.
"Oh!" Alissa whispers in surprise.
The Ogre managed to predict the attack, but I think it was pure luck.
"The rest of the body is still valuable, so it's a good thing that it was only the head," I remark.
It takes around ten minutes, but the Ogre's movements finally start to slow down.
"It's time," Alissa reports.
We sneak forward, and I manage to catch a better view of the battle. I can finally see the Fangpines, and they're all out of breath and salivating.
Just how much saliva can they produce?
"You take the one on the right, and I'll stun the one on the left. Same thing, hand on shoulder," I order, and she nods obediently.
The ogre falls to his knees, then I charge my spell, get up, and take my hand off her shoulder.
Thunder roars through the forest again, then a Fangpine rolls on the ground as smoke comes out of his body, and another dies with an arrow through its eye. The last one turns around and charges towards me without hesitation.
Really vicious, these pieces of shit.
The monster jumps towards me, and I skewer it with my crude goblin spear. The body falls heavily on me, but I can deal with it, just barely.
With a grunt of effort, I throw the spear, and it falls a few meters away. While it writhes in agony, an arrow sinks into its throat.
It screams like a wounded dog and writhes, then I draw my sword and dash forward.
The zapped Fangpine weakly gets up, then an arrow ends its life.
I kneel and stab down, and my sword sinks into the Fangpine's head, ending its life.
I immediately get up and dislodge my sword, then I turn around and see that the ogre is still on his knees, but his eyes can barely maintain focus.
"Ugoo~..." He lets out a faint moan.
I dash and slash his neck. He doesn't even resist, and I open a deep wound that lets a stream of blood pour out.
He falls on his back, then he dies after a minute.
"You're now level 11."
I collect the ogre and Fangpines.
"I leveled up," I dryly say.
Alissa grabs my hand and reassures me, "That's good. Our plan was perfect."
"Indeed," I whisper and smile, trying to remove the image of the dying ogre from my mind. "Let's move. I have something to think about, so I'll just follow you."
"Understood, Master," she obediently responds and takes the lead.
--
My skills are like this now:
Wolf Ryder Skill Report
Physical
Sword Use: 6+2 | Dodge: 2+4 | Parry: 1+4
Block: 2+4 | Shield Bash 0+1
Magical
Mana Efficiency: 4+0 | Mana Recovery: 3+0 | Reduced Mana Cost 3+0
Mana Control: 4+0 | Electric Magic: 5+0 | Nature Magic: 5+0
Blessing Magic: 10+0
Miscellaneous
Andraste Language 10+0 | Dismantling: 0+1
OBS: Level means (free point)+(trained point)
-
The next level, I'm increasing my melee skills. Possibly [Block] and [Sword Use].
We're past half the way back, so we turn towards the north-east. We're likely to exit the forest near our point of entry this way.
The trees slowly thin out, and no more encounters are found, then we exit the forest.
"I think we're a few minutes south of the farm," Alissa estimates.
"Yeah, let's just go north along the road."
"Want to ride me again?" Alissa suggests with an innocent smile.
"No man will ever say no to that," I reply and smirk mischievously.
She takes a moment to understand, then she starts blushing. "What…? Ah, M-Master!"
I shrug. "You set yourself up, don't blame me for easy pickings."
She whimpers softly and pouts.
"Let's go," she mumbles embarrassedly and transforms into a fox.
--
The farms are surprisingly orderly, so there's always a sign telling their names, and a road leading to the manor, making it easy to find the house of our employers.
We find the sign for the Woodwick Ranch, then Alissa enters the trail towards the manor. It's made of packed dirt, so Alissa kicks up some dust.
The large golden plantations of something similar to wheat pass by our sides in a blur as Alissa dashes down the road. Moments like these remind me of road trips, making me feel nostalgic.
After a few minutes, we reach the manor. The plantation opens up, and I see a large blue and purple three-story house. It's timber-framed with purple beams and blue stone, which is a rather odd choice of color. The stones and the logs aren't painted, so perhaps they're found in the valley north of here.
A large grass garden surrounds the house, and I see a not-apple tree with a swing and a clothesline at the front; far behind the house, there's an enclosure where the livestock grazes; like a golden wall, the plantations surround all sides of this open field.
We make our way towards the porch, where a pale old man in simple clothes is dozing off.
He hears Alissa's footsteps, and opens his eyes, then jumps out of his cushioned chair from the odd sight of a large fox being ridden by a young boy quickly approaching.
"Oooh! Oh…? OH!" The man lets out multiple sounds as his brain processes what his eyes see. "YOU BE THE HIRED HUNTERS!?" He yells excitedly.
Why yell? We are coming, so just wait for us to get near.
Alissa slows down near the porch, then I dismount.
I clear my throat and serenely greet him, "Yes, we're the Helios fellowship."
The guild has a variety of ways of contacting people when someone accepts a request. Like magic stones, spirit messaging, telepathy, summons, and many others. Depends on the price paid.
Our employers chose a homing carrier-pigeon, so they should've gotten word of us an hour or two after we accepted their request. We could've reached this place faster than the pigeon if we came directly without searching the forest, though.
Alissa transforms back and I return her weapons.
The old man grins and laughs excitedly, "Ohohoho. How nice, a wereanimal. Impressive, too…" -His excitement suddenly fades and he clears his throat awkwardly- "Erm, anyway, you're here to spend the night, right?"
I nod and politely answer, "Yes. We were roaming the Sea of Trees, but we didn't find the Oodogloo."
He clicks his tongue. "That would be some damn luck if you found it like that, but did you find anything interesting, instead?"
"Two Young Ogres and a bunch of goblins. There might be a goblins' nest nearby because we found a squad of four that were well-armed and intelligent."
He claps his hands and scowls. "AH! The little shits made another nest! You're going to report this to the guild right?"
I twitch and almost recoil from his overly-energetic demeanor. "Yeah, but only tomorrow."
He waves his arm dismissively. "Eh, that's fine. We can find a passing traveler to send word or something." Then he goes inside the house, and a scream suddenly booms through the entire house, "OI, BELTA! THE WHACKERS ARE HERE!"
"I HEAR YE!" A female voice screams back.
I knit my eyebrows and whisper to Alissa, "Whackers?"
She obediently instructs me with her teaching tone, "Slang. Farmers always have to keep hiring hunters to kill pests that come back all the time, so they started calling it 'whacking' monsters instead of 'exterminating' them." She shrugs.
A chubby, round-faced, and well-tanned woman appears. Then we see a girl which is a mini version of the woman and a pale-faced boy coyly hiding behind the stairs.
The woman smiles brightly and greets, "Ah, welcome. You must be the Helios duo, am I right?"
"Yes, that's us." I nod respectfully.
She motions for us to come in and returns the nod. "Enter, please. I'll make you some tea and we can wait until my husband comes back. He's at the nearby farms sending word you came."
The Oodogloo might attack a random farm, so the man must be warning the other farms to come here if the monster appears tonight. They'll likely stand guard all night, waiting for it.
Belta lays out for us a simple weak tea with a little bit of sugar and some simple nice cookies. Alissa gracefully eats the snacks, showing more class than I do, and making me feel like a smelly adventurer. The tea and cookies are pretty good, though, so they're worth the awkwardness.
As we tell the woman of our small survey of the forest, a small, wide, and pale man suddenly comes in. He seems to be a man of excess. Excess black hair on his head, excess hair on his chin, excess fat in his belly, and excess muscles in his arms. I see a shortsword hanging on his waist, which should be enough to keep the usual naked goblin away, but not much else.
He doesn't want to make small talk, so we immediately discuss the simple plan for the night. We'll stand guard near the livestock and sleep in turns. The other farms have a bell alarm system, so when the monster is sighted, they'll sound the alarm. The monster will run from the alarm, but since we have a tracker, we can follow its trail.
Then we continue our tale of the expedition until dusk comes. The woman lends her bathtub to us, and we're very thankful for that since bucket baths are quite awful, then she invites us for dinner, and we fill our bellies with a simple but tasty meal. After that, we leave the house to stand guard.
--
I look up into the night sky and get stunned at the sight. I see a giant moon with a storm of colors raging all over its surface. Each blotch of color is in constant movement, changing every few seconds to another random color. They create waves and crash against each other, causing ripples upon ripples, like a lake's surface under the rain.
Then I notice seven smaller moons, each a different color of the rainbow, orbiting the bigger moon at a visible speed. They seem to make a full turn every minute, which is blindingly fast for a celestial body.
Are they even actual moons?
"Hm? What is it, Master?" Alissa curiously whispers.
Just what the fuck is this? Why a rainbow? Why is the moon… moons so different from the sun? I slept two days under the night sky and didn't even notice this? Oh, yeah, it was cloudy…
"I'm just wondering why is the sun so simple and the moons so colorful," I casually lie.
She laughs girlishly. "What kind of thoughts are you having? The sun is the same as the moons, but he gives us light instead of life."
I blink repeatedly in surprise and look at her. "Wait, what? Remember, I'm very ignorant about things."
Her ears go flat and her posture shrinks shyly. "Oh, I'm sorry, Master." -She quickly recomposes herself and assumes her teaching tone again- "Well, scholars have found that the sun looks the same as the moons. The God of the Sun gives us light to work during the day, but with that, we can't see him properly. The Goddess of the Moons gives us a blessing that replenishes our life, increasing our HP and MP recovery during the night. This is why we sleep when she's watching over us: it's so our recovery is even greater."
Well, at least it ain't just some boring old rock.
I look back at the moon and imagine what an acid trip would be to land there. "But why does the moon look like this storm of color, and why are these seven smaller moons orbiting it?"
"That is the Goddess' avatar in our realm. We don't know exactly why it looks like this, and it's said that we can't really understand something that is above our existence. I think I heard that the smaller moons and colors are said to represent 'aspects' of the god. What 'aspects' are, I don't know, so you should ask a priest." She shrugs.
I'll need some time to process this, so I motion for us to keep moving.
The livestock grazing area covers a large corner of the backyard, and we set up camp as far as we can from it so Alissa doesn't suffer from the smell. Her nose is quite sensitive.
I tell her that I'll switch [Blessing Magic] for [Summoning Magic], then I put ten points in it.
The spells of this magic school give me a ball of light that I can throw to summon things, so it kind of feels like I'm using pocket monsters. If I put a little more "effort" in summoning when I press the "cast" button inside my mind, I can instantly call a summon in a small radius around me.
I press the [Summon Dog] spell in my mind, then force a German Shepherd to appear beside me, and Alissa coos in wonder and claps.
With that, half of my MP is consumed and my max MP is reduced by one fourth. This is quite an improvement in comparison to the bird I summoned for the first time.
I keep the dog's hearing sense, and tell it to patrol the farms in search of the Oodogloo's scent, which is ammonia. If it finds the monster, then it should bark for a while to warn me and the farms, and also chase after it if it runs away.
I take the first watch and put down an hourglass. It'll mark one hour, and once I turn it three times, I'll switch with Alissa. It's kinda sad to see her sleep alone, but it'll be even sadder when it's my turn.
My watch goes without a problem, and I practice my [Mana Control] while staring at the moons, then I wake up Alissa and switch with her.
This tent is cold, not physically, but it makes my heart feel cold. I just want to sleep hugging my cute fox.
--
I wake up to the sound of angry barking. Through my dog's eyes, I can see it staring intensely at some weird, black humanoid outline frozen in fear. The dog's vision is monochrome and poor, but there's no mistaking it, that's the Oodogloo.
"Alissa! The dog!" I exclaim.
She's in front of the tent, maintaining my sword, and she immediately stores the oil in her [Item Box], then hands me our weapons and turns into a fox.
In a hurry, I sheath my sword, strap on my shield, store the tent and sleeping bag on my "Items," grab her equipment, and mount her.
"To the Jolly Ranch!" I command, and she darts forward.
Even though Alissa can see well in the moonlight, I can't, so I add one point to [Light Magic] and cast [Spirit Light]. A small, light-blue, glowing ball appears above my head and illuminates the whole field with eerie colored light.
This color really makes me feel like it's a "spirit" light.
A minute later, Alissa casts her own [Spirit Light], but hers is white, and it reduces the spooky air caused by mine.
The dog stops barking, and I start to hear the bells being rung from the farmhouses.
I cut the hearing sense, then I turn on the olfact, and I immediately sense the ammonia.
Suddenly, the shape turns away and runs into the plantation. The dog gives chase but keeps its distance.
I take my melee skills off and put them on [Blessing Magic], then I cast [Swift Foot] on Alissa, and she speeds up a lot. We fly through the dirt roads between the plantations as she runs with the wind.
She shakes so much that it becomes rather uncomfortable for me, but the trip only lasts a few minutes, and we reach our destination.
The bells all around the neighboring farms quickly reach full blast, creating a painfully loud cacophony.
Like a fellowship bond, I know at all times the direction and distance my summoned dog is, so I guide Alissa into the plantation.
"I got his scent!" She suddenly announces.
It's a bad idea to fight it in the middle of the plantation, so we slow down and wait until it enters another open field.
I switch my points back into combat mode. I also won't be able to use the spear this time, not unless I want the Oodogloo to use a tentacle to steal it from my hands and use it against me.
After a minute of painfully running through the middle of the plantation, we enter another backyard. We can see another manor to the side and a dark humanoid figure awkwardly running away with the dog chasing a few meters away.
I dismiss the summon and see it instantly turn into a cloud of smoke that completely disappears in a few seconds, then I cast [Lightning Bolt] at the Oodogloo and hit its back.
The figure falls, then Alissa slows down and keeps her distance.
Not yet.
The figure gets up and starts to run away. I cast [Lightning Bolt] again, now with the full power of level three [Mana Control]. The figure falls again, but it doesn't get up, and its shape starts to melt.
"Now!" I give the signal.
Alissa stops and I dismount, then put her equipment on the ground.
As she shifts back to humanoid, I unsheathe my sword and jog towards the enemy.
I hear a commotion near the manor, but I ignore it. They won't help us because they could get in the way, so they just leave it to the "pros." The farmhands can deal with the occasional naked goblin, but this monster is way above their level.
I cast [Lightning Bolt] again to provoke it, then the now unidentified black mass comes in our direction.
"OOOOO...duh… GLOOOOO!" It lets out a long and dull scream.
This sound is what gave it its name. This ridiculous slime who wishes to be human tries to imitate our vocal cords, but it can only let out this silly sound. It runs away whenever it sees an enemy, but can it be enraged if provoked repeatedly, then it loses its human form and attacks with the bones it has inside.
The slime reaches our Lights, and we see its transparent gooey mass sliding forward at a frightening speed. An amalgamation of human bones floats inside it, constantly moving in a wild storm, reflecting the slime's mood.
An arrow sinks into the slime with a watery "thunk" sound.
I cast [Lightning Bolt] again and it convulses wildly, stopping its advance for a second. Another two arrows enter it, and the slime starts losing liquid like a leaky water balloon.
A tentacle shoots out like a bullet, and I block it with my shield, then my shield resonates loudly. Its attacks are tough like a hammer strike.
I counter with a slash but it whiffs, the slime is just too fast.
I dodge a few smaller and slower tentacles, then a third and a fourth arrow creates more places for it to leak.
I see a thick tentacle is forming, telegraphing a massive attack. I grit my teeth and charge [Lightning Bolt].
The next moment, a huge tentacle flies towards me, and I release my Bolt. The shield resonates again and I stumble backward as my shoulder flares with pain.
I steady my feet, then I jump forward and chop without even looking.
My sword sinks into the huge, convulsing tentacle and splits it in two, then a large amount of liquid and a variety of human bones drop from the wound.
It uses a mass of bones like a sledgehammer, while the small, pointy ones are used as piercing weapons. Fortunately, the small tentacles aren't as powerful as the large one.
Grievously wounded, the slime tries to run. It's leaking water from everywhere, and Alissa continues free-firing, increasing the number of holes.
I cast a short [Lightning Bolt], stunning it again, and I take the opportunity to attack.
I slash open an even bigger wound than the one before, then its whole body wriggles in panic, and an uncountable number of little tentacles appear on the surface of the slime.
I dive backward and the tentacles absolutely fill the area where I just was.
I immediately get up and start retreating, keeping my distance from it.
The slime tries to chase, but it has lost too much water, and its surface has become wrinkly, greatly reducing its speed.
For the next half minute, it tries a desperate last effort to hurt me, but it has trouble moving due to the number of arrows poking out of its entire body.
The tentacles lose power and speed, then the slime finally stops moving.
Everything becomes completely silent as the bells stop ringing, then I see seven heads peeking out of the windows of the manor.
"Fuck yeah! It's dead!" I cheer and throw my arms up.
Alissa laughs girlishly, then I hear cheering from the manor.
--
We collect the bones and the remaining slime skin, then we give a short greeting to the family inside the manor, and the man of the house gives me a bottle of wine as thanks for dealing with this pesky monster. I don't drink, but Alissa whispers for me to accept it, so I try to do it graciously.
Then we leave and return to the manor of our contractor. Belta is ecstatic, and her husband gives me a painful pat on the back then laughs with a booming voice. Alissa squirms from seeing my pain but says nothing this time.
They let us stay the night in the guest room, which has two single beds, but we can't stand to sleep separately anymore, so we crowd on a single one. It's a little hot and cramped, but we manage to fit in.
"Honestly, I don't see any problem with our teamwork. We do well together," I comment.
"Aside from you being in the front," Alissa responds worriedly. "I can see you struggling to defend against the monsters' attacks. No shield-bearer should struggle so much."
I awkwardly massage my neck."Well… I'd already decided to train my body and skills more. With this reward, we can spend a good time training without worrying about hunting monsters. Also, I'll level up soon, and that should help a lot."
Alissa pouts and retorts. "Still, I don't think I'll ever be comfortable with you in the front line. Your talent is magic, so you shouldn't need to spend so much time training melee." She lazily traces her finger on my chest as she talks.
I smile warmly at her. "Your concern makes me happy, but my real advantage is versatility. We just have to hold on and be careful for a while longer," I reassure her and kiss her nose.
"A while longer…" She repeats, then she kisses my lips lightly.
After some light kissing, she breaks it and turns her face away.
"What is it?" I ask.
"Hm…" She pouts again, and I see her tail is swaying.
She stays silent for a few seconds, then she moves down, below the covers. I feel my pants going down, then something warm and wet wraps around my dick.
She's really good at this, so I don't last long again.
--
Intermission 1
-
Now I'm sure that Master is someone special. He's a kind and calm, but a completely different person in bed; he has the knowledge and curiosity of a child, but the wisdom of someone much older; he has mercy and compassion for monsters, but the resolve to keep fighting. Those aren't things you find among the common man, but those are things that must be protected.
Master is alone, that much I'm sure, but I'll do what I can to fill that hole. I'm already happy enough that he depends on me in battle and in bed, but I'll show him I can do much more. Even though I know he's letting out his lust on me, I'm content with being able to help with this. Once the lust subsides, his heart will be ready for a deeper bond with mine.
He tries to look collected and composed, but I know he's anxious about something, and he has no one to confide on, so I can only try my best to lower his burdens. He doesn't trust me enough to tell me his secrets, but I'll support him regardless until he opens up one day.
I thought that my endurance training would be wasted living such a lavish lifestyle, but now I know it's merely going to be used in a different way than what I'd imagined. His mind is fragile and precious, his will is so strong he's bound to hurt himself, and his code of honor will soon have him face the wicked, which will leave a wound on his soul. All I wish for is the ability to support him through whatever destiny the Gods have for him. I'll stay by his side, no matter what.
