Ogre Tyrant: Chapter 31 - Fight Club Experience - Part One

 

Stalking amidst a field of corpses, I lashed out at anything that moved. With the Hulking Boar keeping its distance and the disappointingly small evolution of the Vulpine Bat battling for its life in the sky above, I didn’t have to worry about accidentally striking an ally.

 

All the respawned monsters in the immediate vicinity were already dead. Those that remained were being drawn by the scent of blood and the evolved bat’s agitating shrieks.

 

The giant spiders were too large to properly gang up on me, getting in each other's way more often than not and falling to infighting. The spiked lizards were a little better, but they spent more time gorging on the fallen than actively looking for a fight.

 

Meanwhile, the protracted battle above was only growing worse. There were close to a hundred or more bats shrieking and yelping in the sky as they attempted to swarm the much smaller Chiropteran Hunter in their midst. Lacking any sort of ranged weapon, and unwilling to part with my hammer, I could only pick up a rock every so often and pelt it upwards into the swarm between mashing spiders.

 

Admittedly, there were so many bats that they were not hard to hit. So, as often as not, I would injure one sufficiently to send it crashing down to the ground where it would either die on impact or be finished off by other monsters. In either case, it earned me Exp, although only half the original amount if they were left for the opportunistic wild monsters to deliver the killing blow. Given that the whole reason I was out here was to earn enough Exp to level up and increase my maximum mana so I could use the portal, I was extremely thorough with the spiders and lizards, relenting only after receiving a kill notification.

 

The near mindless violence reminded me of when I was culling V-Rabbits on the first floor. The primary difference was that I now had to pay attention to my surroundings and at the same time ignore the thickening layers of gore soaking into my clothing.

 

The longer I fought, the more I came to realise my mistake. Farming Exp on my own was not just more dangerous, it was also painfully inefficient. Besides the bats above, the spiders and lizards were skirmishing farther afield with one another, leaving only a relative few for me to kill for Exp.

 

Granted, I probably wouldn’t be able to handle so many all at once, but it still irked me all the same.

 

The closest I had come to injury thus far was when a spider's pulped abdomen splashed its foul ichor into my eyes. But even then I was only momentarily blinded as the Sand Stalker’s blood was absorbed in a matter of seconds through a combination of my own Iron Gut ability and the otherwise useless Chiropteran Hunter’s Hemophage Ability. I didn’t know that at the time of course, but once I had some time to think about it there was really no other explanation I could come up with.

 

*Whap, Thump*

 

Drawn to the sound of the impact, I found a Vulpine Bat with a crushed chest thrashing atop a small mound of corpses.

 

*Crunch*

 

I made sure to claim the Exp for my own first and then looked around for what was responsible.

 

Eight more bats fell from the sky before I realised which direction the attacks were coming from and who was responsible.

 

At first, I thought it was the hunters who had approached me earlier when I first set out. However, the unmistakable sight of Senn, or more likely a projection of her, meant that the twenty hunters headed my way were most likely from the Flowing Waters tribe. With half their number armed with slings as backup weapons and the rest armed with long wooden spears, they were cautiously approaching my hunting ground in a roughly circular formation. In the centre of their formation was Chief Izsa and her daughter Ezha, and at the head, leading the way, was Senn.

 

<Overlord?> Senn seemed surprised. <What are you doing out here alone?> A hint of panic entered her thoughts and within a couple of moments the Flowing Waters formation sped up into a light run.

 

<Farming experience.> I replied somewhat flatly, my mind more than a little fatigued by the protracted state of wariness.

 

<You did all of this?...> Senn seemed profoundly shocked.

 

I took a moment to consider the mounds of corpses littering the landscape. What had seemed insufficient in terms of my goals for farming more experience now seemed more ghoulish and destructive. <What are you and the Flowing Waters doing out here?> I demanded somewhat defensively.

 

<Farming experience and manastones…> Senn replied meekly. <The monsters are much easier to find in the early morning and the Pact Bound do not tire so quickly in the cold.>

 

I was going to ask a follow-up question but the Flowing Waters were now halted a short distance away and appeared to be waiting for me to join them.

 

<Chief Izsa wishes to speak with you, Overlord.> Senn confirmed a few moments later.

 

The slingers continued pelting at the swarming bats in the sky while I made my approach. Even though they did not seem to deliver a killing strike with each blow, the wounds delivered were almost universally fatal. Not wanting to miss out on the experience, I took a moment and used my position as Overlord to force invitations upon the Flowing Waters hunters into my party and retinue. Pleased by the stream of experience now coming my way, I passed through the perimeter of hunters and stood before Senn, Izsa and Ezha directly.

 

Izsa and Ezha bowed respectfully at my approach and seemed genuinely surprised to see me.

 

“Chieftain Tim, this is a surprise,” Chief Izsa confirmed diplomatically, “Although a most welcome one I am certain,” she smiled. Izsa's slightly wavering pupils suggested she was following the kill notifications like I was.

 

I nodded and considered her hunting party. “Why didn’t you bring a wagon or a sled for retrieving carcasses for reclamation?” I asked curiously. I was actually a little peeved at myself for not considering this earlier. Without a team to harvest and haul off the carcasses, all of this meat was going to go to waste, not to mention the manastones…

 

Izsa winced slightly but recovered quickly, “An oversight my Chieftain. One we will correct momentarily,” she insisted and then gave her daughter an insistent and expectant look.

 

Ezha nodded quickly in agreement and hastily began concentrating her mana.

 

A shimmering translucent tear appeared on the ground nearby. After a couple of moments, two clawed hands reached up through the rift and anchored themselves on either side. Simultaneously pushing the rift to widen the available space and drawing itself out, a spindly bodied Daemon with giant bat-like wings crawled free of the rift and a few moments later the rift sealed itself shut.

 

Largely resembling a gargoyle statue found on old cathedrals and church rooftops, Garn had otherwise taken a more practical approach in regards to both his body and wings in order to allow flight. Like Senn, Garn technically had four arms. Unlike a bat, he had retained his original arms and had canine-like rear jointed legs like the Gnolls. Similarly, Garn’s body was covered in mottled dark blue fur and the membrane of his wings were deep purple. However, both his hands and feet sported inch long hooked claws like a cat, and his whip-like tail ended with a curved blade of bone.

 

<Overlord!> Garn seemed just as surprised as Senn had been, although he was also noticeably happier about the surprise. Garn looked upwards towards the swarming bats hungrily and flexed his claws.

 

“Daemon! You will bear a message to the storekeeper Kedra to dispatch wagons and hunters for carcass recovery!” Ezha ordered with unexpected authority and intensity.

 

Garn bowed his head and placed one spindly clawed hand over his heart, “It will be done,” he chittered, revealing sharp rodent-like teeth. Walking a short distance from the hunters’ circle, Garn bunched his legs and sprang into the air. As he unfurled his wings, Garn opportunistically whipped his tail at a nearby bat and severed its head. Swooping back down, Garn caught the severed head with a clawed hand and then began flapping madly as he headed for Stonewell.

 

At least a quarter of the bats attempted to follow Garn, but they gave up quickly when he proved too fast to catch.

 

“Will you be staying much longer, Chieftain Tim?” Izsa inquired. The bare ambition in her eyes made it obvious that she had realised the potential of the retinue I had formed.

 

“I will,” I confirmed.

 

Izsa’s eyes flashed as she turned to her hunters and made a signal with her hand.

 

The hunters grunted in near unison and broke away into four-member kill teams. These kill teams then began cautiously stalking the periphery of corpse piles in search of fresh prey while the slingers continued hurling stones into the swarm of bats above.

 

For her part, Senn remained behind with Izsa and Ezha, although it was unclear if she was doing so in order to serve as a bodyguard or to stay in my company.

 

<What do you think of Ezha?> I asked Senn. Her earlier display of authority had taken me by surprise and made me realise I had been working off an initial impression alone and knew practically nothing about her.

 

Senn seemed contemplative as she continued scanning our surroundings for threats. <Soft...But determined.> She replied somewhat cagily. <She has none of her mother’s raw ambition...Yet she has her own motivations for pursuing power. I believe…> Senn was momentarily distracted by a bat falling nearby. <I believe she is much like you, Overlord. She wants strength in order to protect her people, and to a greater degree, her intended mate and future children.>

 

<Has she participated in weapon training?> I asked curiously.

 

Senn shook her head. <Not beyond the knife fighting they all seem obsessed with.> She clarified disdainfully.

 

<Do you think Ezha has better leadership potential than her mother?> I knew this question would be difficult for Senn to answer considering her own vested interests.

 

As expected, Senn took much longer to answer. <In line with your goals, Overlord? Yes, I believe the daughter holds greater potential than her mother…>

 

<You seem disappointed?> I observed.

 

Senn stiffened slightly and then relaxed. <No, Overlord. I just...I see more of myself in the mother…>

 

<And you think that will disqualify you from promotion?> I asked, trying not to let my amusement bleed through the mental link.

 

Senn nodded dejectedly.

 

<Even ambition like Izsa’s has a place and purpose, so long as it is bent to a greater purpose.> I reassured her. I meant it too. Ambitious people could accomplish great things, and so long as they were given a suitable direction to exercise their ambitions, everyone could benefit from it.

 

A sudden influx of Human settlers had made an ever-rising number of Underlord promotions available through Sanctuary. While I had no intention of putting others in excessive danger in order to facilitate my plans for power levelling, I had few problems with making use of those already taking on such risks. Furthermore, I was curious to see what Custom Classes the Warlock and Pact Binder could unlock.

 

How Izsa reacted to what would come next would determine her own worthiness of promotion. Focusing on Ezha, I mentally confirmed her promotion and waited to see the change to her Status.

 

Ezha gasped in surprise and stared at me with wide eyes.

 

Izsa’s eyes narrowed slightly as she turned to look at her daughter while still keeping sight of me in the corner of her eye. She quietly asked a question, but her words were lost amidst the flapping of leathery wings and intermittent shrieks.

 

Ezha said something in reply, but her voice was lost in the same noise pollution as her mother’s had been.

 

Izsa’s back straightened and her eyes widened in surprise as she hastily whispered another question.

 

Ezha shrugged numbly and shook her head.

 

Izsa was quiet for a while, the visible portion of her face going through a number of mixed emotions before seeming to calm down and settle on one of support. Izsa nodded and rested her hand reassuringly on her daughter’s shoulder.

 

Ezha accepted the promotion and her Status began to change. Pact Binder was removed and momentarily replaced by Imperator. Then, as I had come to expect, Imperator was replaced with the word Pending.

 

Ezha seemed worried by this turn of events, so I gave her a small smile motioned for her to be patient. “It always does this,” I explained reassuringly.

 

Ezha relaxed a little but still seemed tense.

 

Senn was somewhat tense as well, and perhaps for good reason. This was the first time we had experimented with active summons being present while their summoner changed Classes. Theoretically, Both Senn and Garn would have already been sustained for a predetermined period according to the conditions of their original summoning, and this appeared to be the case. So regardless of Ezha losing her summoning Ability, they were effectively permitted to run the course of that summons until the supplied mana ran out.

 

If Ezha didn’t unlock a similar Ability again, I wanted to see if Senn could prolong that summoning duration by consuming manastones. After all, it could prove important in the future.

 

Unfortunately, my desire to test prolonging summons would need to wait. Ezha’s custom Leadership Class was another strange one that exceeded my expectations.

 

Hybrid Soul Binder Lord

 

[(Class Ability: Mana Syphon): Manastones consumed by your minions within range generate bonus MP that can be used to power extended Summons. Increases hostility of all unaffiliated monsters within range. {Willpower} increases the range of Effects. Stored MP:(0).]

 

[(Class Ability: True Binding): Daemons, Angels and Spirits can be summoned by speaking their True Name and expending MP proportional to the desired power level. {Willpower} reduces the MP required to summon unwilling participants.]

 

[(Class Ability: Hybrid Binding): Summoned monsters can be combined by expending additional MP while performing their summons. {Intelligence} increases the number of potentially bound monsters. Limit:(0/3)]

 

[(Class Ability: Forbiddance): Summoned monsters may be forbidden from certain activities or actions, requiring them to make a contested {Willpower} test. {Willpower} determines the maximum number of summoned monsters that can be affected by Forbiddance. Limit:(0/3)]

 

True Binding and Forbiddance were both carryovers from the Pact Binder Advanced Class, but the Mana Syphon and Hybrid binding were completely new. Besides the rather ominous name, Ezha’s new Class certainly seemed interesting. Of course, she was now level zero and had to begin from scratch, but at least Ezha could form a retinue of her own in order to quickly replace the levels she had managed to gain in the past few days.

 

Putting off promoting Izsa for the time being, I decided to treat the delay as another test. I wanted to promote all the Chief’s, or their designated heirs, sometime later in the day.

 

A black notification briefly flickered in front of my eyes and announced that the Chiropteran Hunter was dead. For such a weak monster, it had survived an incredibly long time despite being surrounded by so many enemies. All the same, I regretted evolving it.

 

A brief glimpse at the Hulking Boar’s HP revealed it was doing just fine. This was hardly surprising given its penchant for using bite attacks and swallowing anything that came loose in the process. Combining that habit and the synergy from my own Iron Gut Ability made it unlikely the boar would take damage long enough for it to matter.

 

Ezha’s Mana Syphon Ability had an immediately noticeable effect on the swarming bats. No longer chasing and encircling the Chiropteran Hunter, the swarm had shifted targets to Ezha.

 

“They are coming!” Senn hissed eagerly, materialising crude iron blades into her hands and a leather helmet onto her head that shielded her eyes while leaving her mouth completely unobstructed.

 

Izsa briefly flared her mana and took on some minor changes in her appearance. Most notably, Izsa’s nails on her hands thickened into claws and her visible skin grew shimmering scales to match Senn’s own.

 

Ezha tightly clutched her wooden spear and stared determinedly at the bats that had begun landing atop the mounds of nearby corpses.

 

Giving my hammer a few practice swings, I began moving towards the closest cluster of bats. Despite baring their fangs and rearing up on their hind legs in order to look larger, the bats did not seem eager to advance or attack me in any way.

 

*Crunch, Crack, Crunch*

 

I didn’t care and dashed their brains out with my hammer, making sure to use enough force to make sure my weapon wouldn’t become stuck. It was one of the drawbacks to the weapon that I was growing annoyed with.

 

Avoiding looking back towards the others, I moved on to the next group of bats.

 

*Crunch*

 

I drove a bat backwards with my foot and bore my weight down on its chest, collapsing its fragile ribs and piercing its vital organs.

 

*Thwack*

 

I instinctively swatted a bat out of the sky as it came careening towards my face. A half-second later, a bright flash of light illuminated the immediate area and elicited a discordant chorus of alarmed shrieks from the swarm of bats.

 

Many bats crashed into one another and tumbled to the ground, making them easy prey.

 

Sparing my back, I stomped or kicked any bats I found that were lying stunned on the ground. I was so thoroughly covered in gore at this point that I honestly didn’t care anymore.

 

A constant stream of notifications bearing Senn’s name revealed just how in her element the Daemon was right now. I was tempted to turn around and watch her fight, but I knew Ezha was due for another level and didn’t want to risk being blinded.

 

Sure enough, a handful of seconds later the mounds of corpses were illuminated by another flash of golden light.

 

The violence entered a familiar rhythm and it didn’t take me long to lose myself in it again. Apparently rendered blind, the Vulpine Bats struggled to reorient themselves and present even a token defence.

 

It was the persistent radiance of the rising sun that brought me back to my senses. I wasn’t sure when the last status alert had signalled the death of a monster, but I was fairly certain that the frequency had dropped off almost entirely. Without saying a word, I ignored the retrieval teams that had appeared in the meantime and sent a mental command to the hulking boar.

 

The saddle on the Hulking Boar’s back showed some sign of minor damage, but nothing serious. After readjusting the cords, I awkwardly climbed into the saddle and began making my way back to Stone Well. I felt beyond mentally exhausted like I was running on the last fumes left in the tank. I didn’t feel bad about what I had done, but the sense of accomplishment I had hoped to feel was absent too.

 

All that death and violence had equated to a single level gained, increasing my maximum mana by one.

 

Objectively, I knew that adventurers spent months or even years in order to level up Basic and Advanced Classes. So to make so much progress, literally overnight, was unbelievably fast. All the same, it irked me and I felt thoroughly unsatisfied.

 

Leaving the Hulking Boar for hunters in the staging area to take care of, I took the elevator up to Stone Well and began stripping off my soiled clothes. Just a cursory glance told me that the robe and pants were beyond saving and would forever be stained brown from the drying blood. The Tunic had a few questionable splotches and my boxers seemed fine, so I casually balled up and threw the tunic onto the terrace of our lodgings as I passed it on the street.

 

Heading for the well in the centre of the village, my intention was to scrub the worst of the gore loose with Mors’s moss and then hopefully wash most of it off with one single pot of water. Even as I sat down and began laboriously scrubbing at my arms and legs, I knew that it was going to take at least two to three pots of water minimum in order to wash all the blood off. Scrubbing my head, this was perhaps the first time I had been glad to be bald. I could only imagine how difficult it would be to scrub fragments of bone, chitin and guts out of even relatively short hair.

 

Mors offered to help me scrub down, but I waved him off. I was in no mood to talk and even less enthusiastic about sharing company with anyone.

 

Wetting a fresh patch of moss with water from the pot, I did my best to remove the worst of the blood as well and had moderate success. I repeated this process until I felt confident the remaining water in the pot would wash off the remaining blood. Thankfully, only Mors had been witness to my heinous waste of water. Not that any of the villagers would complain about it. Especially if they knew how much water was going to be reclaimed from my midnight of butchery.

 

All the same, I felt guilty about it. It didn’t matter that I earned it, it still felt in poor taste to be so frivolous when so many had been on the brink of fatal dehydration when I first arrived.

 

Stumbling into bed wearing only my boxers and the dangling magic crotch protector I fell asleep almost immediately.

 

I woke up sometime in the afternoon. Carefully stretching, I was surprised that I couldn’t find any pulled muscles or sore joints. From what little I recalled of my midnight activities, I had gotten quite reckless towards the end and frequently overextended myself. Factoring in that I hadn’t eaten since before midnight, I couldn’t think of a satisfactory explanation for my disturbingly peak condition.

 

While getting dressed in a spare change of clothes, the loud complaints coming from my stomach were a reminder that I had barely eaten anything over the past week. That realisation slowly gave way to another as I walked down the street to the storehouse. I was almost certain that I was depressed and that my violent episode last night was an expression of that fact.

 

Not being able to spend time with Lash had been disappointing and upsetting, but the fact that she had left me there with what could have been a severe head wound...On some level, I felt betrayed, that she had let me down when I needed her most...All the same, I missed her and was hoping she would accompany Ril and Toofy when they returned tonight.

 

Accepting the dried meat Fadwa offered without question, I decided to visit the hospital and inform Hessin of Mors’s innovation with the altered olives. As head Surgeon for the village, it would be her responsibility to spread the knowledge to others and enforce use in moderation.

 

Osa was waiting outside the hospital, supposedly in order to take a lunch break or something similar with his wife. Making the most of the opportunity, I roughly outlined my plan for power levelling the warriors and hunters of the village in stages. I also made sure to mention that I was going to meet with the Chiefs later to promote some of them to better accommodate the power levelling with retinues.

 

Osa had some reservations, which was good, I didn’t want him blindly agreeing with everything I happened to suggest. Leaving the details of the operation to Osa, I killed some time grazing on olives to balance out the dry and fatless meat. We would not begin the power levelling until midnight on the following day, so Osa technically had one and a half days to get things as organised as he could manage.

 

After waiting close to an hour, I made my way to Chief Uday’s home and asked one of the warriors stationed outside to gather the Chiefs for an important meeting.

 

Uday was currently out, so I decided to wait on a nearby bench in the shade. Just like on Earth, it was considered incredibly rude to just enter other peoples homes and behave as if you owned it. Besides, I could use this time to better consider how I was going to approach suggesting the Chiefs place the promotions in the hands of their heirs rather than themselves. I didn’t honestly expect anyone besides Chief Forgut to go along with the idea, or maybe Chief Uday. Izsa was far too ambitious to leave a potential promotion on the table, and I honestly didn’t know enough about Chief Aisha to even guess at how she would react.

 

Just like last time, Chief Forgut brought his four wives and Chief Aisha brought her husband. Izsa and Uday each arrived alone.

 

Chief Uday took a few minutes to get his house in order before sending one of his warriors to allow us inside. Besides the addition of what looked like strips of cooked lizard meat, everything appeared just about the same as last time.

 

Once everyone was seated I gave a brief explanation of my intentions and made sure to make it clear Osa could and would rescind promotions from anyone he deemed unworthy or uncooperative.

 

“The promised promotions have conditions,” Chief Aisha observed dryly, the corners of her eyes wrinkling as she smirked beneath her veil.

 

“I told you that these promotions would have additional responsibilities, and my expectations are not unreasonable considering the power and influence that the available Classes hold,” I countered just as dryly.

 

Chief Forgut rested his hands on his knees and leaned forward with a keen look in his otherwise slightly cloudy eyes, “You believe this is true?” The elderly Desert Orc asked, “Classes and promotions are really powerful? Even to you?”

 

I nodded, “They are, or at least have the potential to be.”

 

Apparently satisfied, Chief Forgut leaned back in his cushions again and quietly took counsel with his wives.

 

“Promotions are limited and made available through the population of the Settlement. So I do not have enough promotions to go around if you also intend for your designated heirs to be promoted.as well. It will have to be one or the other until the Settlement’s numbers grow,” I explained again in an attempt to drive the point home that the elders would each need to make a difficult decision for the future of their respective tribe’s.

 

“Forgut is too old for fighting anymore,” Forgut admitted, “Futures will be fought, won by warriors,” he made a show of struggling to make a fist, his inflamed arthritic knuckles making the attempted action painful.

 

Aisha snorted and deftly interlocked her fingers in her lap, “Not all are so old,” she commented.

 

Chief Uday nodded but was looking down at his hands as he slowly opened and closed them. Not as old as Forgut or as young as Aisha, he was stuck somewhere in between.

 

“I think there has been a misunderstanding here. Just because you will be passing up the promotion and its formal status does not mean your position as an advisor will be cast aside. The young need the accumulated experience of those who came before them in order to make educated and well-considered decisions,” I explained wryly. “Just because a son or daughter find’s their mate, becomes bonded and moves out, it doesn’t stop them from being your child and doesn’t stop you from being their parents. Some of you have heirs who are already adults with responsibilities and have been prepared for the mantle of your responsibilities for years,” I looked pointedly at Forgut and Izsa, “Others may not feel like their children are ready for the burden,” I glanced briefly at Uday and Aisha, “But the longer you put it off, the longer it will take for them to grow their own power. The promoted Classes require the recipient to begin levelling from scratch, so the sooner they make the transition, the more secure they will be in the future.”

 

Chief Forgut and his wives seemed to have made up their minds already but were now far more confident in their choice.

 

Chief Izsa looked like she now had a better understanding of why I had promoted Ezha and not her. It was hard not to smile as I considered her own imminent promotion to sate my curiosity. Stone Well needed a Summoner of some description in order to have access to the Daemons, so I hadn’t intended to count Ezha’s promotion from the start.

 

Chief Uday seemed like he was on the brink of making his final decision, which would supposedly be passing up the promotion and allowing Jarwal to have it instead.

 

Where she had been so certain a few minutes earlier, Chief Aisha was now visibly conflicted, and for good reason. Taking power for herself now would make it that much harder for her heir to establish themselves later and leave them comparatively vulnerable during the transition. The hushed argument with her husband was a testament to different issues to consider on both sides of the decision. A unified front was easy when the decision was kept simple, it was much more difficult when problematic details changed the scope of the issue entirely.

 

“You have until dawn tomorrow to inform Osa of your decision. He will make sure whomever you choose receives the required training in order to unlock the Leadership Class and make the most of the promotion.” I stood up and gave each Chief a weighted look and then left. With any luck they would come to a unified agreement. Stone Well would be much safer with the elders providing advice to more combat capable leaders.

 

Returning to Mors I made a special request for a knobbly club similar to what Nadine had bought for me back on the first floor. Of course, I wanted more than one this time and for them to be stronger and capable of taking a great deal more punishment.

 

My hammer was an alright weapon, but it was far more difficult to use effectively against unarmoured enemies than my morningstar had been, which was in turn slightly more difficult than the large club had been. Practising with different weapons had given me a reasonably good idea about what suited my build, temperament and admittedly novice skill level. The sheer versatility of the club was very forgiving and allowed me to better leverage my strength without having to worry about the weapon becoming stuck or any otherwise distracting considerations.

 

Mors and I spent hours trying to find the best balance between the prototype’s weight and length. Eventually, we settled on a six-foot long stave with the general appearance of a long-handled baseball bat covered in knobbled studs. The longer handle allowed me to shift my grip higher up the club for a more controlled swing, or farther downward to really cut loose. It also allowed me to use it with both hands if I wanted to, but I would need a lot more practice before I could move as confidently with a two-handed grip. It wasn’t the fault of the weapon so much as I had grown far too accustomed to only using weapons one-handed and felt awkward when using both hands.

 

Once we finalised the weapon design, Mors spent a solid hour doing his best to make the wood as strong as possible before removing it from the host tree. After repeating the process so I would have spares, I asked Mors to try and provide thick sheets of bark we could use for crude wooden body armour. I wanted to take my weapon practice to the next level, and that required my sparring partners to be well protected from heavy blows. I hoped that the combination of inch thick bark and layers of silk clothing beneath would prove sufficient to allow my sparring partners to take multiple heavy blows in rapid succession without being fatally injured. I also wanted a helmet for my own protection as well.

 

Mors didn’t have much trouble growing a large thick tree we could harvest for bark, but the best compromise we could find for a helmet was weaving a basket from the extra hard roots and making it larger on one side to provide a slitted visor that protected the eyes. After making a half dozen of these prototype helmets, I left Mors to it and visited the weavers to ask them to make a thick padded cap to wear underneath. The combination of the padded cap and the wicker helmet should do a decent job of not just absorbing impacts, but also deflecting potential blows as well. So I was becoming more than a little excited at the prospect of being able to train for real in a situation that would roughly approximate real combat.

 

I planned on making a real event of it all too. I had racked up huge amounts of Exp killing monsters last night and Eminence had harvested a decent amount that could be awarded through quests. While I didn’t exactly plan on receiving much of that Exp from the impromptu tournament, I knew it would go a long way towards preparing the weaker warriors and hunters for our Exp farming cull in two nights time.

 

With the plentiful availability of Aspirin to facilitate the Surgeons healing abilities on bruises and inflammation, it was very unlikely that any participants in my impromptu competition would be out of the fight for long. In fact, the plentiful injuries would give the Surgeons more Exp to better prepare them for emergencies as well.

 

The only downside I could see with holding a tournament like this was the comparatively heightened vulnerability it would place on the Settlement. However, Stone Well’s sheer elevation was a substantial defence unto itself, and access was limited through using the guarded elevator.

 

The armour provided for participants would be objectively crude and primitive, but it would be sufficient for warding off the worst of the blunt impacts. Making it more difficult to actually injure one another would make the fights take longer to be resolved, but would also raise far more Exp when a participant was knocked out.

 

Unlike the points-based training game I enacted in Sanctuary, I intended for this tournament to be more realistic and test competitors' endurance and fighting ability to award Exp not only to the winners, but to the losers of each bout as well. The Sanctuary sparring game was too low stakes to make the Exp worth awarding to the loser. However, by setting the winning condition to whoever reduced their opponent to half of their maximum HP, the Exp reward for losing seemed to be roughly two-thirds of the potential of the winner assuming they were more or less evenly matched.

 

This would make my intended King of the Hill challenge at the end of the tournament all the more rewarding for veterans and novices alike. With a fourteenth level Master Class and as a tenth tier evolution monster, the internal workings of the quest Exp calculator had me designated as an ‘almost’ unbeatable opponent. Just by attempting to fight me under ‘realistic’ battle conditions, the novices were likely to gain at least a single level, perhaps two or three if they were progressing with a Basic Class.

 

That was a disparity I had noticed between the Quest system reward structure and that of just killing a monster. Killing monsters did not seem to factor Classes into the Exp reward at all, while quests Exp rewards seemed to attempt reflecting the actual challenge involved in its entirety. This was interesting because theoretically, I could gain a lot of Exp fighting dedicated opponents in the future that were cultivated to be roughly similar in calculated difficulty to myself and level faster than just fighting wild monsters.

 

After manically putting together the tournament in my mind, I realised that I had neglected to inform Osa. Besides being somewhat disrespectful of the authority I had given him, it also meant that I had likely fed who knows what rumours to the weavers just by making my requests. In order to set things right, I went hunting for Osa to inform him of my decision to hold a tournament.

 

*****

 

Escorting the sticky-fingered Goblin and its pale-skinned progeny through the royal palace was a trying experience for Captain Desmond. He was under explicit orders to make them both feel welcome for the duration of their stay and to protect them with his life as well as those of his men if necessary.

 

Privy to a number of reports from the Hurst Labyrinth, Captain Desmond understood that the two Goblins were important to the Regent’s plans and to realm security. However, it was still a trying experience witnessing the older Goblin leave a trail of crumbs through the royal armoury while her offspring directed the Regent himself to the magic items she required to fulfil the purpose of their visit.

 

Unlike its parent, the pale-skinned aquatic variant was polite and conducted itself with a disturbingly keen level of awareness and intelligence. Upon entering the armoury and being given leave to take the items required to complete the project for the Regent, she beelined straight for the most powerful relics hidden behind an ornate tapestry and display case.

 

Casually pushing the large display case aside and yanking the tapestry free of its anchorings, the Aquatic Goblin paused and carefully considered the steel combination safe. “Mama,” she called out childishly and pointed to the safe, “Help.”

 

The other Goblin stopped chewing on its fifth loaf of bread and hurried over to its progeny’s side.

 

*Clang, Tik, Tak, Clatter*

 

Captain Desmond’s breath caught in his throat as the half-ton safe disappeared beneath the Goblin’s touch and its former contents fell to the ground.

 

“I had wondered if you would find them on your own,” The Regent chuckled in amusement, “But I had not believed you would be able to circumvent my security measures.”

 

The Aquatic Goblin smiled and revealed a mouth full of thin needle-like teeth, “Mama is resourceful,” she stated proudly and briefly snuggled affectionately with her mother. “These will suffice,” the Goblin insisted and pointed to the small pile of wands and short staves that had fallen to the ground.

 

The Regent nodded and motioned for one of Captain Desmond’s men to collect them. “Now, I was led to believe that the gate will require a comparatively large area to function efficiently. Is that correct?” The Regent inquired conversationally.

 

The black-eyed Goblin nodded and began leading her mother out of the armoury and back the way they had come. “It is best to have too much space than too little when dealing with spatial manipulation,” she explained matter of factly, unfazed as Captain Desmond and his men rushed to take up flanking and lead positions.

 

The Regent caught up to them with little apparent effort, his long stride mincing the distance in moments, “Behind the old guard barracks would serve best I think. There is plenty of open space for wagons and enough room to easily maneuver them. Don’t you agree Captain?”

 

“Yes Regent,” Captain Desmond replied automatically, his mind taking a moment to fully process the Regent’s words. Of course, he knew the place the Regent was referring to and agreed that the comparatively open space was more than suitable for stowing as many as a couple of dozen wagons and more if necessary.

 

The Goblin had returned to chewing on her loaf of bread and leaving a fresh trail of crumbs on the castle floor.

 

With the state of heightened security in effect, Captain Desmond knew he would be expected to assign one or more of his own men to clean up the mess.

 

Arriving at the Regent’s designated location, the Goblin scarfed down the last crust of the bread loaf and casually waved her hand.

 

*CLANG*

 

A giant ironwork gate crashed against the cobblestones and sent chips of stone and loose dirt flying.

 

“AH!” The Goblin covered her ears and shrieked irritably, “LOUD!” She stomped her foot on the gate reproachfully and hissed, baring her sharp teeth.

 

Captain Desmond felt a cold shiver run down his spine and his mouth turned dry. Disappearing the steel safe had been one thing, materialising a giant gate like that out of thin air...It was something else entirely.

 

“Alright!” The Regent slapped his hands together eagerly, “Captain, have your men raise the Gate if you will, and send someone to fetch the stonemasons put up with the Quartermaster. We are working to a tight schedule and I do not want to keep our esteemed guests longer than is absolutely necessary!”

 

Captain Desmond quickly set his men to work in following the Regent’s commands. Captain Desmond was forced to admit he had drastically underestimated the danger presented by the underwhelming appearance of the Goblins, and he was now more eager than ever to be rid of them.

 

“The spatial wands should be enough for this side of the gateway,” the Aquatic Goblin commented conversationally. “That is if you still intend for the port gateway to serve as the primary connection?” She directed this question to the Regent with cold unreadable eyes.

 

The Regent nodded, “Yes, that is still our preferred staging point in the Hurst Labyrinth. Am I to assume the staves will be used to power the Port Gidian gateway then?”

 

The Aquatic Goblin nodded and pointed to the sconces worked into the iron gate, “The spatial wands should fit into those mounts with minimal pressure,” she explained confidently, “Once the gate is adequately anchored to the ground I will establish a tether to the other side and take the staves to power the connection.”

 

“Very good,” The Regent agreed and waved forward Sergeant Hagen who had picked up the contents of the safe. “I know that there are likely a number of factors involved,” he hedged, “But do you know how long the connection can be maintained and how frequently we can make use of it?”

 

The Aquatic Goblin didn’t even bat an eye, “One hour of continuous operation will be possible every twenty-four hours when the connection is established from this gateway. Or any number of shorter activations provided they do not exceed that duration during the recharge period,” she replied as casually as if commenting on the weather.

 

The Regent seemed surprised, “The duration would be different when activated from elsewhere?” he asked curiously.

 

The Goblin fixed the Regent with a black-eyed stare, “Of course,” she replied casually, “Your capital is intended to have the stronger connection in order to accept higher traffic. So naturally, it requires a greater ability to renew its mana reserves to reliably accept and support those connections.”

 

“How long could the gateway on Port Gidian’s side support the connection to this gateway?” The Regent asked with keen interest.

 

This time the Aquatic Goblin had to stop and think about it for a while before answering. “Perhaps one hour of continuous activation every six hours? Maybe more?” She seemed uncertain and was now curiously engaged.

 

“You seem less certain?” The Regent prompted.

 

“The connection to...the outside, is easier, but the mana is also much thinner,” the black-eyed Goblin seemed distracted as she answered the question.

 

Seeing the masons approach, the Regent decided to hold his questions for later.

 

Shielding the pair of Goblins from the curious eyes of the masons, Captain Desmond tried to get a grip on how much more efficient the Regent’s relocation efforts would become with access to the gateways as described. Assuming the Goblin wasn’t lying, which he doubted was the case after all he had witnessed thus far, it might be possible for the Rangers to relocate as many as five entire villages each day.

 

Giving up the lesser teleportation wands seemed a ludicrous price to pay for that capability. The wands themselves were incredibly rare and expensive, but the possible distance each activation would provide was only a few miles or so and could only be activated three to four times a day. They also have the distinct possibility of going off course if the user didn’t carry a beacon to keep them on target.

 

That last point made Captain Desmond nervous enough that he planned to have a word with the Regent once their guests were otherwise occupied.

 

The Aquatic Goblin turned her pitch-black eyes on him and smirked.

 

The otherwise innocuous gesture sent a fresh chill down Captain Desmon’s spine, although he didn’t know for the life of him why.

 

Leaning in to whisper something to her mother, the black-eyed Goblin gave the Captain another brief smirk before turning her attention to the Regent.

 

The Aquatic Goblin’s mother nodded and waved her hand.

 

Captain Desmond involuntarily flinched.

 

*Clack Clack Tak Clack Tik Clack Tak Clack Tik*

 

A mound of wooden tokens each the size of his thumb rained out of the air in front of the Goblins.

 

“The gateways will be anchored and not need these tokens,” the Aquatic Goblin explained with a faint grin, “But those amongst your minions with sufficient mana reserves may be capable of fueling individual access through the gateways without activating them. If they are to attempt it, I strongly suggest they have one of these tokens on their person to ensure safe arrival at their intended destination.”

 

Visibly shocked, the Regent took a moment to collect himself. “Do you mean one of my soldiers could travel to Port Gidian under their own power without activating the gateways at all?” He asked in surprise.

 

The aquatic goblins grinned wide, revealing her needle-like teeth again, “Of course. Although you will find the cost of such travel increases depending on such factors as carried items, intended destination and the minion’s tier of evolution.” After considering her words, the Goblin giggled to herself, “You are lucky in a way,” she commented with a wide smile, “You are all still so weak that the cost could prove quite low. I wouldn’t be surprised if even your most novice minions would be capable of making the journey after consuming only a handful of manastones.”

 

The Regent was about to ask a follow-up question but the masons had finished anchoring the giant gateway by driving tall spikes of steel through the base of the gateway and into the ground below.

 

As Sergeant Hagen had already mounted the wands as instructed, the Aquatic Goblin abruptly ended her conversation with the Regent and went to stand before the gate.

 

Nothing seemed to happen for a very long time. A half-hour or more passed in relative silence as the black-eyed Goblin just stood there, her scaly finned tail slowly waving back and forth along the ground.

 

The long wait seemed to do little for the other Goblin’s patience, and she made a point of advertising it by huffing and kicking dejectedly at the ground while pacing behind her daughter. Every so often, she would give Captain Desmond or one of his men an appraising look before shaking her head and renewing her pacing.

 

Unsure of what the Goblin was thinking, Captain Desmond was just thankful that she decided against acting on her impulses. The last he wanted at this point was to jeopardize the Regent’s plans by retaliating before being able to stop himself. After all, there were far too many lives at stake.

 

After a full hour had passed, the Aquatic Goblin slumped slightly and released a loud sigh, “It is done,” she declared and turned to face Sergeant Hagen, “The staves,” the goblin held out her hands expectantly.

 

Sergeant Hagen looked to Captain Desmond, who in turn looked to the Regent for confirmation.

 

The Regent nodded and motioned for them to be quick about it.

 

Sergeant Hagen hastily handed over the two staves.

 

“Once I finish attuning the staves to the other gate, the gateway will become active and allow both limited activation and personal travel,” The Aquatic Goblin stated loudly to make sure they all heard her, “I will need to rest first, as the return will drain my mana further, so do not attempt either until your minions confirm the completion on the other side.”

 

The Regent nodded in understanding, “Indeed, I am grateful for your assistance and hope your brief stay in our kingdom was not otherwise too draining. Ah, but before you leave, might you impart knowledge of how to use the gateway?”

 

The Goblin narrowed its black eyes at the Regent and cocked her head slightly to one side as she smiled faintly, “Traversing the gateway on one's own is the same as activating the wands or staves, while continuous activation is...more complicated. I will need to explain to one of your minions once I recover.”

 

The Regent bowed his head and placed his hand over his heart, “You have my deepest thanks Lady Ril. We will make sure to prioritise sending additional materials for the construction of the library as agreed, but if there is anything else we can do to return this favour, please contact me.”

 

The Aquatic Goblin, Lady Ril, nodded, took her mothers hand and then disappeared.

 

The Regent released a long sigh of relief before composing himself again. “Captain! I want this gate under constant surveillance. No one approaches without explicit orders from myself, one of the governors or Baron Klive. Am I clear?!”

 

Captain Desmond snapped a rigid salute, “Sir!” He barked in reply almost automatically.

 

“Good man!” The Regent clapped him on the shoulder and then made as if to leave before stopping in his tracks, “Oh, and send one of your men for the Quartermaster. Make it clear that I expect every one of these tokens to be catalogued and accounted for. And be sure to keep an eye out while the counting takes place! These tokens may very well be the very lifeblood of our people! We cannot afford to err when the stakes are so very high!”

 

“Sir!” Captain Desmond barked again and did his best to engrave the words in his heart. He had read other reports besides those of the goings-on in the Labyrinths and knew that the empire was already on the move. Open war was only months away at the latest and every day of peace from now until then was a precious resource that they had to make the most of if they intended for their people to remain free of foreign tyranny.

 

Captain Desmond was thankful that his own family had been transferred to Port Gidian already, but he still felt a responsibility to the citizens of Asrus that had not yet been afforded the opportunity to escape the war.

 

Barking orders to his men, Captain Desmond cast an eye to the darkening sky and approaching storm clouds while doing his best not to wonder what sort of ill omen it might hold for his people.