I'll make you call me big brother

Chapter 32: I'll make you call me big brother

Bryce's adventure continued for a few days.

He followed common roads, meeting some bandits and villagers who couldn't just live off their salaries and went through a few points marked on his minimap to gather stuff to sell in his first city.

Against humans, Bryce defended himself and Gengo easily through his new item, Invis Defe, which was the name of the defensive item Bryce had taken away from the villain as his victory trophy. That item was a real treasure as it could be activated independently without leveraging a user's mana.

It simply stored mana for future use, but Bryce also could keep it activated through a connection with it.

Bryce's targets were monsters living in the forests and by the mountains' feet. He killed them for resources, stuffed their bodies with Excalibur's Holy Curse for his own progress, and went around their camps with Gengo to find natural resources to sell them later in the city.

His leveling up was slow, though. In anything, Gengo used the chance to catch up with some levels. He, as the support, leveraged his connection with Bryce and enjoyed the harvest.

"Man, without a carriage or some transport, we will be in the city in two weeks, won't we?" Bryce wasn't a man to complain about such stuff, but he started getting bored with no real challenges in the vicinity.

It was obvious by now that he was in low-level zones.

His main goal was to get into a city, get the proper equipment and consumable items, then start his first dungeon expedition! He wasn't particularly looking for teammates, for these could always be found inside dungeons, but he wanted more stuff, intel, and strength before visiting the Freedom Metropolis.

Having some clues to his origins, Bryce would do his research with sufficient connections made.

"It's obvious that I can't think of the first villain as of the real challenge. He must have been one of those doomed to die in their early days," Bryce started another conversation with Gengo to kill time.

Being in a puppy size, Gengo was in Bryce's clothes. He stuck close to his chest and barked at all comments, keeping their talk going. That kind of closure reminded both about their childhood, of course, but there was more to that.

In Bryce's coat, Gengo's holiness was also covered, so it was a helpful measure for any encounters on their road, which looked soulless so far.

But then, Bryce spotted a man surrounded by a group of bandits. Those people covered their faces in many ways, scarves being the most popular, and the rest of their clothes looked as pitiful as they could get. They were a bunch of easily recognizable people.

However, the man was clearly on a different level. Everyone was at his mercy! After beating them and leaving claw marks on their chests, the man focused on one bandit. Hoisting and pinning him to the tree, the man glowered with dangerously shining golden eyes and threatened.

"You can't read the map? Don't you live in those areas?! I'm fucking lost, and I have an excuse because I am clearly not from these trash lands!"

"Sir, good sir," the bandit spoke with quivering lips, stuttering, "I- I don't know how to read a map, I really don't, I am just a peasant, no more, good sir!"

"You dare to attack me but not to learn map?" the man's eyes turned feral, grip on the bandit's shirt became stronger as well.

At this point, Bryce was satisfied with the show. He really missed some action and socializing with people like that man, particularly that man who seemed strong and not fond of mindless killing.

From what Bryce inferred, the man had enough strength to kill every bandit with one move. But as he had left them littering the ground with blood oozing out of their chests, their lives not in jeopardy, the man clearly just wanted to achieve his goal.

The bandits weren't saints, either, for they surely attacked first.

"If you're looking for some directions, I can be of help," Bryce called out with a smile, his words akin to a gentle tone of an angel, for the bandit slid down the tree, his life safe.

He cast a thankful gaze at Bryce, but the young man just ignored him.

Instead, Bryce trained his vision on the strong man's face. He was probably his age, maybe some years older, his body was ripped and honed through real combat experiences, and his face was wildly handsome, his white hair slicked behind. His golden eyes seemed divine, but Bryce sensed a feral beast hidden behind those, which didn't seem holy.

The man was his height, so their gazes matched, and he inferred the man was scrutinizing him, too.

Bryce broke the silence, "I'm Bryce, eighteen."

"Wolfgang, nineteen," the man replied with a faint smile, but his eyes remained narrowed, for he found something odd within Bryce.

He knew that feeling, but the race he had on his mind clearly had different features. Still, he didn't like having any questions in his mind, so he turned around and distanced himself from the bandits. When Bryce joined up with him, Wolfgang properly faced him again.

"Are you a half-breed? I mean, you clearly give me that annoying feeling of a vampire. Because I am a werewolf, you should get it, too." Wolfgang raised his chin and scratched around his neck.

Knowing it was pointless to hide that stuff, Bryce nodded.

Wolfgang sent him thumbs up, "Great. Some half-breed vampires can perfectly hide their features. If I tell this to my elder sister, she won't rebuke me for leaving the castle. Ah fuck, I ended up with a habit of talking to myself, now."

Bryce found him funny, so he casually asked, "How long have you been lost?"

"Hey," Wolfgang's casual mood suddenly shifted, as though he had a personality disorder, "I don't like questions." He sounded quieter and more dangerous, his aura lethal.

But nothing of that threatened Bryce. True, he felt his vampire's bloodline stored in his heart thumping with indignation and wanting to come out, and he could sense that the werewolf before him was a real deal. Yet, Wolfgang hadn't shown a real killing intent and just voiced his feelings.

"You were asking questions, though. Anyway, you made me feel that annoying feeling of a werewolf. I'd say it feels really influential, and I might let it free if you keep glaring at me like that. Your neck looks red enough, but I reckon you want to keep scratching it." Bryce replied in his way, not allowing the new guy he'd met on his road to call the shots.

Yes, he wanted to have some more talk, and as Wolfgang was a werewolf, Bryce had an inkling he'd know something about his mother.

But first, it seemed like Wolfgang wanted to know whether Bryce was a pushover.

"You sure you can speak like that, eighteen years old half-vampire?"

"I'm not fond of seniority based on just age alone. If you are way stronger than me, you will find my respect for you. But if we are on the same power level, I hope you will reciprocate it."

"You're really a half-breed from these lands! Any vampire from The Crimson Kingdom knows that white hair and golden eyes are features of the werewolf royalty!"

"And if you were to open your eyes, you would see that I'm standing in the sunshine, without any effects of my skin exposed to the sun. If that's not enough for you-" Bryce smirked, his hair turning blond, his eyes shining red, and his skin drained of color.

Wolfgang gawked at Bryce with widened eyes and uttered, "Dude, you are in worse shit than me. Heh, alright, I'll make you call me big brother."