Ciz’s “Den” as she called it, was a small yellow house a few blocks away from the western entrance of the High Tier Zone. I scanned her on the way there, curious to see what the System would say about her. That ended up being a waste of time due to my inability to focus on anything other than her level.

Ciz Weroz - Sunstriding Vampire

4-Star Reincarnator

Level 99

Did you know that Sunstriding Vampires level up faster than any other species in the Ellalara Belt? There’s a reason they aren’t popular picks, though. Let’s just say, most people don’t have the stomach for it.

Ciz does, though. She’d stomach anything for her precious Vri. If you looked up the phrase “Ride or Die” in the dictionary, Ciz’s picture wouldn’t be there. She’s a vampire. An artist’s rendition of her face would be, though, and it’d be fitting!

The house's interior was just as retro as its exterior, so much so that it truly did remind me of Mrs. Gertrude’s house. There was a light brown table in the sunroom to our right with wavy orange chairs and earth-toned table dressings. The living room to our left had a wooden accent wall with a boxy TV at the center with two brown couches that sat atop a faux grass carpet. There were stained-glass lamps at either end of the couches, though the natural light made them unnecessary for now.

Ciz led us into the sunroom and sat us at the table, taking a seat next to me while Opix sat across from us next to Cerus. Despite Ciz’s insistence that we’d be fine, every single one of us – including her – was on edge. You could see it on all of our faces. When Ciz finally broke the silence, her voice was significantly more stuttery and shaky than it’d been when we met.

“I have… refreshments in the… kitchen.”

“Not to be rude,” I began, trying to seem calm. “But how do we know you haven’t poisoned them?”

“I have… attempted to poison… items in the past, but the System will… note them as… having been tampered with. N-not that I was trying to poison y-you guys! Look! I’m being serious!”

She revealed an “Omni Potion” from her inventory and handed it to me. I swirled the bottle in my hand as I scanned it.

Omni Potion

Heals all ailments and refills all meters. A good night’s sleep in a bottle.

WARNING: Ciz Weroz has added 2.2mL of water to this Omni Potion.

I exchanged a look with the others before taking a tentative–

“Give that here!” Cerus barked, snatching it out of my hand before I could try it. “You hardly need it, thrall!”

“Hey! She gave it to me!”

“Please do not argue! I have a lot of them in the kitchen.”

Cerus gave me a dirty look and handed me back the Omni-Potion she’d stolen.

“I do not want yours if there are many.”

I gloured at her and drank it. Much like the other potions, this one tasted like flat soda. This one in particular tasted like Mountain Dew, which while not my favorite could have certainly been worse. I felt my whole body tingle as my lingering pain and fatigue vanished with each swig of potion. Ciz brought two identical Omni Potions from the kitchen and gave them to Opix and Cerus.

“Thanks, Ciz. It means a lot,” Opix said, taking his and our empty bottles to the garbage can in the kitchen.

“D-don’t mention it! We don’t all have to be e-enemies.” Ciz called to him.

“Why not?” Cerus asked, tilting her head. “In fact, why did you heal us? Do you wish us to be in top shape before you make an attempt on our lives? I will have you know my thrall can manipulate mobs! We got the Swingtails eaten!”

“I… saw,” Ciz replied, giving me a nervous glance. She turned back to Cerus at the same time Opix came back to the table. “In truth, I wish to… speak with you all. I know you are all tired, so I would rather do that a-after you all have… rested.”

“You have not answered my question, vampire. Do you wish us to be in top shape before you make an attempt on our lives?”

Ciz shifted uncomfortably and blushed before she spoke. “I… um… well… I’m already… I mean… You all are 1-Stars… and… I’m a… 4-Star… so I don’t exactly feel… um… t-threatened by… you all.”

Cerus slammed her hands on the table and stood. She shook with rage as her cheeks reddened. “I um think um you should um watch um your fucking mouth!”

Ciz looked dumbfounded before finally letting out a hearty laugh. Opix and I were still on edge, but we’d begun to loosen up. Regardless, we both seemed unsure of how to react properly. When Ciz spoke again, her voice wasn’t nearly as shaky as it had been.

“I’m sorry, I-I’m… I’m working on it. I’m trying not to be the girl I was back home.”

I feel you there.

We’d all finally relaxed after a few more minutes of small talk. Even Cerus, who’d just been at Ciz’s neck was now chatting with her about their unique experiences in Swingtail. Ciz and Cerus both seemed to like the vibe of the city more than anything, though they disagreed on what nightlife options they preferred.

Eventually, Ciz brought out the refreshments she’d mentioned earlier. They were baked goods; cookies, cupcakes, and brownies. Each of them had enough tiny imperfections for me to know they were homemade and not purchased from a bakery or a store. I double-checked them with the System to make sure they were safe before I ate them, indulging as soon as they passed that test. The After-Action Report finally went off while we all ate.

After-Action Report

You have had 9 Quests poached! You suck.

You have unlocked (4) New Achievements!

You have Leveled Up!

You now have 11,943 Gold!

The GALEROSE ALLIANCE now has 711 BP! You are the #1 Alliance in the Battle Network!

“Do you mind if we open Achievements here?” I asked Ciz.

She nodded. “You’ll have more space in the living room, so you s-should do it there.”

I nodded and walked to the living room, Cerus following close behind me. Opix, surprisingly, didn’t join us. Instead, he and Ciz started talking about her time in Satyrsong. Before I could probe him in the chat, Cerus pulled me to the couch nearest the TV.

“Okay, thrall. Open your Achievements. I’ll keep the good items and you can keep the bad ones.”

“Do you seriously think I’m just gonna give you my good stuff?”

“I mean… yes? Are you not my thrall?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes you are, you agreed to be it when we met.” I protested, but she cut me off with a hand. “Open them, thrall, lest you draw my ire.”

I opened my first achievement. When the System spoke, it did so in a sarcastic, almost accusatory tone that I’d never heard from it before.

Achievement Unlocked: Native Killer

You killed your first Native! You saw an obstacle in your way and you got rid of it. Such is the way of the ranger.

Reward: You have received a 0-Star Accessory.

I focused on the Accessory. It was an amulet just like the Blood Amulet I was wearing except instead of a crying eye inside there was the picture of a crudely drawn gun. It was even worse than the Dogtooth sword, and I doubted it was as monetarily valuable.

“You may keep that one, Grim Hearts,” Cerus had said as soon as she’d scanned it.

Berserker Amulet

0-Star Accessory

Provides the wearer with a persistent 2% Strength increase. Lowers Health stat to 1 as long as it is worn.

“No thanks,” I shrugged. I walked it over to the garbage can with the empty Omni-Potion bottles.

“Next!” Cerus clapped as soon as I returned.

Achievement Unlocked: Quest Loser

Your Quest got poached by Solstice Serenade! Did you do that on purpose? I hope not.

Reward: You would have received a 3-Star Armor Set for completing this Quest, but it was rewarded to Sying of Solstice Serenade for landing the killing blow on a pathetic-looking spider creature.

Achievement Unwocked: One Twue Hewo!

Those big bad Q-Quests were way too hawd to b-be kept on the Quest Boawd, so you took t-them a-all down so nobody e-ewse wouwd have to do it〜☆ You’re so n-noble-.- You’re s-so c-couwageous (* ^ ω ^) The E-Ellawawa B-Bewt is a much safer pwace because o-of you!

Rewawd: You have w-weceived a 1-Staw Weapon!

I…scanned the Weapon. Thankfully, it didn’t put that annoying filter over the Weapon description – though that didn’t make it any better.

Sword of the True Hero

1-Star Weapon

Because every courageous warrior needs his sword! It’s perfect for someone like you who doesn’t complete Quests!

This weapon provides the following benefits: Has a 10% chance of instakilling Grim Hearts upon a successful hit.

Strangely, I was able to wield the sword with no strain on my Dexterity. I’d be surprised if I couldn’t, though, considering it was literally a foam sword like you’d find at a Halloween shop. We obviously couldn’t keep it, but we needed to be careful about how we disposed of it. As much as I wanted to trust Ciz, throwing it away in her garbage can was dumb. Holding it in my inventory felt risky considering Ysnik’s ability, but we had little choice. When the opportunity arose, I’d throw it out safely. Opix probably knew a blacksmith I could sell it to.

Thankfully, the next and last Achievement was significantly better than the other three.

Achievement Unlocked: Strategist

Alright, fine. Sure, you got your Quests poached, but you got two other members of the Battle Network killed by them. That takes ingenuity. I guess that can be rewarded…

Reward: You have received a 0-Star Weapon.

I examined the weapon. It was a wooden crossbow with an arrow pre-loaded into it. With this, I finally had the means of fighting at both close and long ranges. Cerus mentioned a while ago that I needed to have a decent arsenal to stay versatile while Opix said it was important to pay attention to how an opponent fights early on. I hoped with this new addition I’d be able to properly apply those techniques in a genuine fight.

Basic Satyrsonian Crossbow

0-Star Weapon

You won’t have to worry about running out of bolts with this crossbow. Or any, for that matter. They have unlimited ammo! Other than that, there’s nothing interesting about this weapon… It’s a crossbow!

I slipped the Saytrsonian Crossbow into my pack and reorganized everything in its inventory. Since this pack had five slots up top and five on the bottom, I wanted the weapons to be on the top row with my healing potions and mana potions on the bottom. While I did, Cerus showed off much of her own loot. She got a lot of armor sets, but complained because none of them were stylish enough for her. The best thing she’d gotten was a 1-Star Claymore that gave her +10 to her Stamina, but only when she was below 70% HP. According to her, the best Weapons and Accessories were the ones that had some sort of activation effect, likening it to my Blood Amulet and its requirement to kill ten things before it’s fully charged.

More impressive than that, though, was her level. She was Level 74 now, due in large part to her long battle with Honeydew Henrietta. Opix had been locked in conversation with Ciz about who knows what, but a quick scan showed that even he’d risen to Level 71. I’d been dreading checking my own level. While I’d gotten plenty of kills against the Tucaby, I’d been nothing more than a distraction against Honeydew Henrietta and Jane. There was no way I’d risen as high as they had.

LEVEL UP!

You are now Level 35

Current Stats:

Health: 23

Strength: 26

Stamina: 48

Intelligence: 37

Mana: 42

Dexterity: 36

Cerus tilted her head at me, giving me that inquisitive look that suggested she wanted me to say something. Honestly, I had no idea what to say. I was embarrassed. I wanted to be stronger, to be able to do more than distract enemies. Those enemies were significantly stronger than me, and I knew that if things went south I’d be in the same role, but I still wanted to be able to be useful on equal footing. This wasn’t the person I wanted to become, but I couldn’t fake my way into being a 10-Star or anything. Cerus finally broke eye contact with me, turning to Opix and Ciz while fidgeting uncomfortably beside me.

Cerus: okay so none of us trust the vampire right

Cerus: im getting bad vibes from her

Opix: I don’t think she’s untrustworthy. She has a good heart; I trust her.

Cerus: i have always wondered what a post-mortem message would look like

Grim: Yeah... Trusting her isn’t the right move. She seems like a nice person, but we have to look out for ourselves.

Opix: I should’ve clarified. I trust her as a person, not as an active participant in the Battle Network. She’s still our enemy. We have to fight for this to be over. We know that, and I know she does too.

Grim: So what does that mean for us? Are we just waiting for the inevitable fight?

Opix: For now… yes. She’s been in the High Tier Zone since we got access to the Battle Board. She knows this place better than we do, so the odds of her having traps hidden or knowing where we could hide or scheme is high. We also don’t have any Quests to use against her other than the ones outside the town, so we’re at a disadvantage unless we can make a break for the Mid-Tier Zone.

Cerus: Okay, let me put my glasses on for this one. The vampire was in the High Tier Zone for days, correct? What could she have been doing in this entirely abandoned Zone? There are no other people here, no Quests to be had, and no friends to be merry with. There is a secret, and I believe our victory lies in our discovery of that secret!

Grim: I… agree? Cerus, you should keep you “glasses” on.

Cerus: dont tell me what to do

I exchanged looks with her on the couch while Opix remained locked in conversation with Ciz. He’d really gotten her to warm up, though her comment about not being threatened by us made me reconsider whether it truly was Opix’s doing or the massive strength gap. Either way, Cerus was right. There was something to uncover here, and I wanted to be there to uncover it. It’d help me get my mind off of my inadequacies while also allowing me to be useful.

Grim: Opix, I think Cerus and I should go look while you keep Ciz occupied.

Cerus: so the thrall finally wants alone time with his master

Cerus: a tale as old as time

Opix: Sounds good. If things go left, I’ll stall until you guys get back. Try to be quick, alright?

Beside me, Cerus chuckled under her breath as she typed out her message. A pit formed in my stomach as I read it.

Cerus: okay im gonna distract ciz so she wont come looking for us

Cerus: grim follow my lead

She rose from beside me, grabbing my hand in hers as she pulled me up to the table where Ciz and Opix were chatting. The moment they turned to us, Cerus wrapped her arm around mine.

“Vampire? Grim Hearts and I will be taking our leave now. We will be having sex!”

Opix looked about ready to kill her. Ciz, meanwhile, reddened as I did my best not to say anything incriminating. I wasn’t sure what that was, so I decided to just keep my mouth shut. The last thing I needed to do was force my acting and ruin Cerus’ plan.

“O-oh… o…kay. Just… please do not mess up the plants. I-I’ve spent a while… maintaining them.” Ciz stammered, looking everywhere in the room except at Cerus and me.

“Worry not about those plants! I will water them myself!” She smiled. “They call me the ‘Ellalaran Water Park’.”

“Who the hell calls you that?!” I blurted.

“Your father! And his father before him. Come, thrall. Uphold the family tradition!”

Ciz exchanged looks with Opix, who’d morphed his utterly defeated glare into one of mock confusion the moment he locked eyes with Ciz. When she faced us again, she spoke more clearly than before.

“You two en…joy yourselves, but be sure not to stray from the High Tier Zone. I can see the mobs circling the Zone waiting for any of us to leave.” She looked out the window and pointed in the direction of the entrance. “They can’t enter the High Tier Zone since the entirety of it is a village. The dumber ones will stay near the entrance. The stronger, smarter ones will wait at the choke points on the way back to the Mid Tier Zone.”

Cerus nodded. “I see. In that case, do you have any suitable locations for us?”

“I would… rather you stay here so that we may talk,” Ciz said, hints of impatience coloring her words.

“Unfortunately I cannot do that.” Cerus pulled my arm. “I have waited far too long!”

Ciz laughed as she turned back toward Opix. “So be it, then. Have fun.”

With that, Cerus walked me out of Ciz’s house over to the side porch and immediately burst into muffled laughter.

“Cerus, what the fuck was that?!” I shout-whispered. “There’s no way she doesn’t know something is up!”

“So what? It was funny! Ciz did not attack us, so all is well.”

“I…ugh. Just… That waterpark comment was gross. What does that even mean?”

Cerus scoffed. “Virgin. Everyone knows what that means!”

“Oh, my bad. I didn’t know you were popular in Swingtail.”

“My experiences have nothing to do with you, Grim Hearts. I am making fun of you. Do not inquire again, lest you draw my ire.” She turned her nose up at me. “And if you must know, I was saving myself for Rikard, but he has since turned into a monster thing and died. My body is an Infernal Cathedral.”

“You mean temple?”

“No? That is not how that saying goes, dingbat.” She scoffed. “Let us not be distracted. We have places to be Grim Hearts. Chop chop.”