[Player Ashley has acquired a new trait: Merciful Ruler]

{+5 Charisma with your own subjects)

[You have gained experience in leadership and ruling of others]

[Level up! Lvl 7 0/40]

"Interesting... it seems that we can gain experience and levels by leading others... regardless of our methods...", Garett noted with a slightly sadistic grin on his face.

[Player Garett: Charisma +2, Strength +1, Intelligence +2]

[Strength: 8]

[Dexterity: 2]

[Perception: 1]

[Charisma: 3]

[Intelligence: 6]

[HP 35/35 MP 25/25]

[Player Trevor: Dexterity +3, Strength +1, Charisma +2, Intelligence +3, Perception +1]

[Strength: 5]

[Dexterity: 12] (-1 For Suit)

[Perception: 8]

[Charisma: 6] (+5 with cultured beings)

[Intelligence: 9]

[HP 25/25/ MP 30/30]

[Player Samantha: Intelligence +2, Charisma +5, Perception +1, Strength +1, Dexterity +2]

[Strength: 5]

[Dexterity: 5]

[Perception: 6]

[Charisma: 12] (+5 Halo)

[Intelligence: 10]

[HP 25/25 MP 40/40]

[Player Ashley: Intelligence +7, Perception +2, Strength +2, Dexterity +1]

[Strength: 6](+5 Against Defenseless)

[Dexterity: 5]

[Perception: 8]

[Charisma: 2] (+5 with lawful beings)(+5 Wish subjects)

[Intelligence: 23]

[HP 25/25 MP 60/60]

After taking a look at the status upgrades, Garett noticed something.

"Hey, take a look at this"

He addressed his party members, as they were also studying the changes in the numbers.

"Based on what we've seen so far from my analysis, the numbers were reaching are nothing like the monsters of similar levels."

"I think this is what was meant by exponential increase in power. Do you think it is possible that we alone could be using this type of system?"

The lizardmen who were level 18- over 10 levels higher- had only 45 health, 10 more than Garett at level 7- not to mention the fact that Garett was gaining strength slower than his party members.

The lizardman was not a magician, but he only had 10 MP and a single spell at level 18.

By that alone, no conclusion could be made, as they would need to see more examples of monsters levels and statistics, but it was looking like the antiheroes were going to be stronger than opposition even of the same level.

"Even so, we cannot jump to conclusions. We must proceed with caution as we have been.", Trevor stated.

Garett nodded.

As they were walking, with Rithargus behind them and the slime people all staring at them from the doorsteps of their homes, a young slime girl ran out of one of the houses.

It was Helen, the girl who Ashley had strangled the other day.

"Ghost lady!!! Do you wanna play today!?"

She ran out and gave Ashley a hug.

Ashley hugged the girl and looked at her kindly, while patting her head.

"Sorry, but were going to be very busy today. We have to go somewhere else, but we will be back soon. I promise that we will play when we get back."

The girl puckered her lip and pouted a bit at first, but upon Ashley's statement, looked up again with hope in her eyes.

"Promise?"

"Mhm."

"Alrighhhhhht..."

And she then let go of Ashley and went back into her home.

"Looks like you have a way with children, eh?", Trevor teased.

"Only with the ones that aren't little shits who think they're better than me", she said, glaring at Rithargus

After this, Claire came out of her hut, yawning. It appeared that she had just woken up.

"Auuuuuu.... What's going on out here? What was all that commotion..."

"Nothing that you need to worry about. We were just subjugating a peasant who wouldn't submit himself to the dictators." Trevor said calmly.

"WHAT!?"

"Didn't we tell you before? We won't hurt anyone innocent. That doesn't apply to those who attack us first and look at us with spite", Garett reminded Claire.

"Why you..."

Claire ran over to Rithargus, who was still lying on the street, in a state which looked somewhat like a melted ice cube. It seemed that the less health the slimes had, the less viscous they would become. Essentially, a liquid slime was a dead slime.

She tried to help him up, but he didn't take her hand.

"Helen... why? Why are you getting along with those... those creatures...", he whispered under his breath. "Did they do something to you? Are you under some sort of spell?"

Claire stood by him, her hand not taken.

She bent down to speak with Rithargus.

"It isn't that she is under any sort of spell. Those people repented for what they did to her, and apologized. Helen is a sweet child, and is very forgiving. You should try to be like her as well. They may seem like monsters to you- and perhaps they are- but deep down I can tell that they are kind hearted and loving."

"You say too much woman. We aren't the kind people you seem to think we are. We only agreed to become your heroes of justice because it benefits us. That's all." Trevor explained.

"No, the fact that you only gave this kid a beatdown and did not kill him says that you actually did not want to kill a child. Unlike that man..."

"As I said, you're wrong. We only kept him alive because he may be useful to us..."

Rithargus began to contemplate the situation.

The demons in front of him were certainly obstinate in getting other to think that they were evil.

And he knew for certain that the red demon was trying to kill him...

Wait.

Perhaps he wasn't?

Surely that demon was stronger than he let on to be.

Most of the hits that the demon hit him with were mere slaps, only enough to cause scratches at the most.

There was one hit that did a bit more, but even at that, it did not kill him.

That meant that he was likely capable of producing more power than he was letting on. And as a higher demon, it was not likely that those weak hits which couldn't even kill Rithargus were his best shots.

Had he been held back on?

Rithargus was frustrated at the prospect, but he also remembered to when the spirit lady took his attacks.

She ran at him, stopped him from attacking further by squeezing him, and then called off the attack...

While it was true that they had attacked him 3 on 1, if any single one of them had truly intended to kill him, they would likely have done so.

Were these demons actually merciful? Was that the reason why Helen was able to love and play with the very person who hurt her so happily?

Perhaps the red demon did not realize how weak slimes actually were, and when he wanted to continue attacking, was merely trying to avenge the damage Rithargus had done to his party member. Perhaps he did not know that Rithargus was an inch away from death....

The reason the elf held him back must have been because he knew how weak the slimes were, and how close Rithargus was to death.

Had Rithargus misjudged them?

But why were they so insistent on looking like the bad guys?

Why did that elf keep saying things like "We only let him stay alive because he might be useful"

Would someone who was truly trying to use people really admit that so easily?

Would they not hide their true intentions and pretend to be the good guys while twisting others around their fingers?

Rithargus made his decision.

"New lords of the village! Forgive me for going against you! I now understand your mercy and kindness towards the slime people! Please accept me as a loyal subject!"

Trevor grinned and whispered to the party members.

"Exactly as planned"

"We accept your loyalty. Work hard for us in the future. For now, protect the village while we are gone."

Garett then turned to Claire.

"You too. I know that you cannot harm others, but you can at least prevent yourself from being harmed if someone attacks you. This means that if someone is attacking, all you have to do is draw the attention to yourself and get in front of anyone who is being attacked before they are hurt. I know that might be... mentally challenging, but you do have the ability to protect others in that way."

Claire nodded.

"I will do everything I can to protect these people!"

She could not protect those far from her, and she could not attack others, but she could get in front of a blow to reset the entities, preventing it from having happened.

If she kept everyone near her, and the enemy was unable to take any hostages, nobody would be able to attack the people of this village while Claire was here.

And with that, Garett and his party took off.

----

"I've been meaning to ask you all. What do you all think about the slime people and their village?"

Trevor asked the group.

"They might prove to be useful, but only for potion production. If we want to truly get stronger it seems that we will need to obtain the ability to produce more than just potions.", Garett replied.

"I don't mind ruling over the slimes. As long as they bow to us then it should be fine right?", Samantha stated.

"As long as we can put them in their place I have no issues", Ashley said.

"I see. Garett, what other types of production do you think would be useful?"

"Well, having access to a blacksmith for weapons and armor, and an enchanting lab to enhance weapons with magical effects would be the things that would likely allow me to use my abilities to the maximum. While I may be unskilled right now, if I learn bit by bit I should be able to increase our strength overall."

"Indeed. Add that onto the fact that we are growing in strength much faster than other beings of the same level in this world- even on this so called 'nightmare mode', if we can survive then we will obtain much."

Ashley smiled as Trevor said this.

"World domination might not be a pipe dream after all... heh heh heh..."

"I think that the reason for our fast growth is precisely because of nightmare mode... in games, there are often options to go on harder difficulties for higher rewards. Do you not think this is similar to that?", Garett suggested. 

"Perhaps."

The party walked for a while until eventually reaching the cave that they had been told about by the elder.

It was a small opening in the side of a hill that had a wooden door and a small glass window inside the door. There were wooden posts as if it were a mine, holding up the earth.

"It looks like this is it. What do you think is in here?" Samantha asked.

"This looks too civilized to be a simple cave... it looks more like a mine. Do you think that the monsters in here have technology like the slimes do? Even so... will they be intelligent enough to reason with?" Trevor thought out loud.

"Only one way to find out... however be careful. We never know when an event will be trigge-"

[Player Garett: Dexterity roll. Roll needed: 99. Roll: 25]

[Player Garett, like a total idiot, steps forward without checking for traps. Unfortunately for him, there was a trap. How dumb can one be?]

And just like that, the earth crumbled below the feet of Garett and he fell into a hole.

Or at least... he should have.

Garett fell down into the hole, which would have led to the cave below.

But as he fell, he reached the maximum allowable distance from his other party members.

As this happened, the boundary sphere appeared with Garett on the bottom of the sphere, landing, and the other 3 party members on the top of the sphere.

It was as if they were all stuck in a hamster ball. However this hamster ball was only able to come into contact with the players themselves, and as such it phased right through the ground.

What happened as a result of this, was that Garett's weight was pulling the ball down, and the other three party members were crushed by the top of the sphere, and forced to the ground, holding up Garret's weight.

OOF!

UGH!

AGH!!

Trevor, Ashley, and Samantha all mustered up all the strength they had, and began to lift the sphere up with their backs.

As they did so, Garret was slowly lifted out of the hole.

But the pressure that they were exerting on the soil beneath their feet was too great.

The soil couldn't bear the stress, and it crumbled.

And just like that, the party fell into a hole.

[Player Trevor: Rolling for Luck. 1-10]

[Roll: 4]

"A luck roll? I have never seen that one before..."

As they were in midair, Garett looked up at Trevor, who seemed confused.

"I think I know what that one is..."

Garett smiled, completely enthusiastically.

They were falling. They didn't know where they were going to land. It could be a field of spikes or a set trap, the bottom of a large ravine, or a concrete floor.

But Garett couldn't help himself from smiling.

"That roll, my friend..."

Garett's lips seemed to spread all the way from ear to ear, and his eyes bulged with veins in excitement.

"Was one that we have absolutely no control over"

----

1: Spiky Pit

2-3: Concrete floor

4-6: Dirt floor

7-8: Water

9-10: Cotton bedding

Ugh!

Blegh!

Oof!

Agh!

The four all splatted onto the dirt ground after falling a few meters.

The wind was knocked out of Garett, and Trevor was trying desperately to stand.

Samantha and Ashley had landed on top of the other two, and rolled off, breathing heavily.

In movies, landing on someone is often portrayed to be safer than landing on the ground.

The character on the bottom will comically be crushed by the person who lands on top, who will be perfectly fine.

But that isn't what happened here.

Human bones are hard, and as such, Ashley and Samantha were in almost as much pain as Trevor and Garett.

[Player Garett: HP: 30/35]

[Player Ashley: HP: 22/25]

[Player Trevor: HP: 20/25]

[Player Samantha: HP: 22/25]

Dirt and dust was kicked up from the landing. After the four gained their breath and stood up, they looked around them.

They were in a dirt tunnel, which had only a single path to go- and it led downward.

"You idiot! Just after you were talking about being careful you drag us into this mess!!", Samantha shouted, flustered and angry with Garett.

"Wait a minute. It wasn't his fault. There is no way to control the random events caused by this nightmare mode. Even if were careful, we cannot control the events. They just... happen."

Trevor tried to explain and defend Garett.

Samantha sighed.

"You're right. I'm sorry", she said, apologizing to Garett.

But Garett looked up at the rest of the party members.

And rather than giving them a look of despair, or of guilt, he wore a face of delight.

He was completely intrigued by the prospect of living at the roll of a dice.

He was a true gambling addict. Not one who is in it for the money. One who is in it simply for the thrill of winning or losing.

"This guy- he's going psycho! Look at him!!"

"He's not crazy.", Ashley said, as she floated closer to him.

"He is simply accepting the situation for what it is. There's no point in despairing or losing hope. We might as well have fun while we are alive to do so... heh heh..."

"Why are you all nuts!? Trevor, surely you don't agree..."

"I think you already know that answer. I am only invested in benefits. And it benefits me the most to not worry about that which is uncontrollable"

"Sigh.... you too..."

"Lets move on", Garett said, happily.

They all stood up, and began to walk down the dirt path, which soon became a stone. Stalactites and stalagmites filled the wall, and water dripped from them slowly.  They had entered a cave, and it branched off and opened up with many paths and branches.

All of a sudden, as they were at this crossroad that led off to 4 different paths, along with the one they came from, they started to hear the earth vibrate.

It felt like an earthquake. The entire surroundings started to shake violently.

"Whats going on!?", Samantha yelled.

"Ah... if I'm not wrong... this is the part where a giant worm tries to eat us up or something", Ashley said nonchalantly.

"EHHH!!!!????"

And just as predicted, a horrifying creature appeared in front of the party, bursting from the ground below them.

It had fangs in a circular pattern around its mouth, and looked like a silkworm. It was white, with a diameter of around a meter, and a length of around 5 meters.

It burst out of the ground, barely missing Garett and shaking him off his footing, and continued burrowing through the ceiling above them only to come back down later.

The party was flung into chaos, and they all tried to run in different directions before being stopped by the distance limitation and running into the invisible sphere.

"What do we do!!?!?!"

"We need to attack it!!! Ghost girl, use flame wall!!!"

"Got it"

"Red, use analysis next time it appears"

"On it"

Trevor started giving out orders to the party by calling them by their characteristics instead of their names.

[Earth Burrower] (Lvl 10)

Attack: 6-15 (Melee)

Physical Defense: 4

Magical Defense: 2

HP: 30/30

MP: 0/0

Special skills: Burrowing attacks.

"It may be level 10, but it isn't that strong!!"

Ashley held out her hands, and in the space between the other party members she cast the [Wall of Fire]

The wall ended up separating Ashley and Samantha from Garett and Trevor, and limiting their own movement, but they were still able to jump to the side in order to avoid the attacks of the worm.

However, Trevor sensed the worm aiming at Garett using his [Track enemies] skill, and grabbed hold of Garret's collar.

"Sorry about this!"

And he threw Garett through the wall of fire.