"Are you a descendant of the Archmage?"

Marlon saw that the entire audience had frozen, as if suspended in time. Everyone was hanging on his every word, waiting for an answer.

He thought before answering but didn't want to risk being found out if his lie was revealed, especially not now that he had a good relationship with Selia.

"Not to my knowledge. I'm an orphan and don't know my origins. But this is the first time this kind of thing has happened..."

The Huntress reflected, but her joy seemed to remain despite Marlon's ignorance.

"Only the descendants of Magnus summon the Runes from the dead bodies of their enemies. Even if you don't know your origins, they speak for you, young man!"

Marlon thought that he should discuss this archmage topic with Selia later, when they were in a place more suitable for a normal discussion, without a severed head and a pool of fresh blood running at their feet.

Selia then invited the crowd to disperse, and they did so without delay, not without addressing a respectful salute to the adventurer standing on the platform from which a trickle of blood was flowing, accentuating the more than solemn side of the moment. The young man felt almost embarrassed by this kind of fervor that emanated from them, but he had to admit that it was quite exhilarating.

The three of them then returned to the house of Selia and her father, Svein, as he finally learned from her. Since he had separated the head from the body of his victim, the latter had become much kinder and more respectful towards him.

Sometimes it doesn't take much to make people change, Marlon thought wryly.

The smells of hot bread and molten metal filled his nostrils as they crossed the street of artisans. The sound of hammering echoed in their ears and the chatter was lively as the locals lingered and created a jovial atmosphere. It was strange after an execution, but that's how human nature was.

The Huntress made Marlon wait in front of the entrance and came back down a few minutes later, completely changed for a more comfortable outfit. She was now wearing loose blue cloth pants that fit her muscular curves perfectly. A white wool top clashed with her previous outfit but made her look much more approachable. Covered with a simple light leather vest, she looked beautiful.

She carried a pile of clothes in her arms and handed them to Marlon. The smell of flowers immediately tickled her nostrils and her eyes moistened at the thought of clean clothes. The fabric was soft to the touch and almost felt like silk.

"Let's go to the inn, you can change into these instead of continuing to wear these blood-stained frusks. They were made with Arachnid threads, you should appreciate that" she added with a wink."

So they did. Once washed and changed, Marlon felt much better, and he took the opportunity to take a look at the Interface, which he had put off for too long now.

When he thought about the interface, a window appeared before his eyes and he noticed four different tabs.

The first one, Status, he already knew and he put it aside for later.

The second one, Map, gave access to what looked like a game minimap, seen from above, but only the places Marlon had visited were visible, except for the area around Akranio, which was probably due to his quest reward.

He could see the wheat fields, the training ground, as well as a part of the surrounding forest, called the Forest of a Thousand Miles.

He nodded, deciding that this tab would probably come in handy later on, then moved on to the next one.

It was a kind of codex. A collection of the information he gathered during his adventure, only a few entries visible for the moment. There was an Akranio section, another on Selia, and the same for the Field Rats and the archmage that the Huntress had mentioned. Again, only what he had already heard or experienced himself was marked under the various headings.

It would also be very useful to him, but only when he had lived and explored much more in these virtual lands.

The last tab was named Class and Skills.

Not much was indicated, except for the rune absorbed during the execution, the Run rune, and the name of his class, Ancient Runist. He would surely unlock more content once he met the famous Drevos, so he took his time and closed the Interface, having nothing more to gain for the moment.

Now dressed in what looked very much like a silk camouflage outfit, he found himself much more presentable. Green and khaki patterns overlapped on the pants and shirt she had given him, and leather shoes completed the outfit. He had even been entitled to a pair of socks! The young man was really delighted.

All ate like ogres at the inn, the poor innkeeper running like crazy to keep up with the pace imposed on him. But the copper coins rained down from Selia, so he had, despite the sweat and the difficulty, a happy smile on his face. Between two plates, they spoke a lot about the situation on Gaïa.

That was the name the Akranians gave to their planet. It turned out that life was not nearly as simple as Marlon first thought.

He heard stories of a mad emperor, of dragons hunting in the great human cities without anyone being able to stop them, or of armies of Inhumans massing at the gates of the human kingdom in an attempt to conquer it. From what he understood, only the archmage, Magnus, had prevented the Necros from invading and destroying the living lands, but he had been gone for millennia and his legacy was unraveling century after century.

He had been one of the founding figures of the Empire, a territory covering several continents and existing for several thousand years. Magnus had also been known to strengthen himself on the bodies of his opponents, like Marlon when he had decapitated the player. He also learned that a few people had had this power over the centuries, but that all of them had ended up disappearing in the twists and turns of history.

Svein even told him a few stories of epic battles when he was still a general in a city carved out of a volcano called Forgeciel, and his brigandish laughter echoed many times in the inn as he mimed parts of his great battles, but he changed the subject every time Marlon asked him to teach him how to fight as if he didn't want to reveal his techniques.

For a few hours, Marlon was able to feel at home, forgetting the pain and anger, just enjoying the moment.

Once the pantagruelian meal was over, everyone returned to their homes, for the sun had meanwhile set behind the horizon and the emotions of the day had exhausted everyone. Selia stopped at the entrance of the inn, looking a little confused from having eaten and drunk so much.

"Will you walk me home?" she asked Marlon, a greedy look on her face.

The young man had never been introduced to the pleasures of the flesh in his former life, and although his whole being wanted to say yes and let himself be done by this impressive woman, a flash of conscience told him that it would have been a bad, bad idea. At least for the moment.

"Believe me, I would enjoy it, but it's late and it's a long day tomorrow," he justified himself, trying to hide his confusion.

Although slightly surprised by his refusal, she understood and did not resent it in the least. It's not like he was going to leave Akranio right away. She would have plenty of other opportunities to have fun with him.

"I have a request if you don't mind? For the excursion, can I take the healer who took care of us today, as well as the one you spared today?"

Interloqued, she thought for a few seconds before answering.

"No worries about the healer, but why do you want the thief? He won't be of any use to you."

Marlon shrugged his shoulders with a casual gesture.

"Let's just say I'd rather have it move to the front of the line, in case there are any nasty surprises. It would save some hassle..."

Selia's thunderous laughter rang out and startled the few people still hanging around.

"I love the way you think. I'd go get him. According to the soldiers he's holed up near the training grounds and I don't think he'll leave at night. Count on me to do whatever is necessary! Tomorrow I may be busy scouting the west. Alune, the caretaker, will have all the details you need for your mission. See you in a few days, Revenge Drelor," she concluded with a wink.

"Just call me Revenge...see you in a few days, Selia."

He liked her a lot, it was necessary to recognize it, so he wanted to make her understand that he did not reject her. He rather invited her to wait for a little. And he had just secured a joker card in case anything would happen: the caretaker.

Given the realism of Neo-Life, having a healer by her side who could make wounds disappear was something vital.

His belly had doubled in size and the only thing he was able to do after greeting Selia and her father, and then the innkeeper was to collapse into bed and start snoring like a bellhop.

The next day, he went to the training field at dawn, having had a wonderfully restful night and ready to go to find Drevos.

Alune was waiting for him under one of the tents stationed near the fields. She was holding a rope at the end of which was the unfortunate player, looking more resigned than anything else. A gag had been put on him to prevent any unnecessary talking. Marlon thought this was very good. He didn't really intend to use him as a scout, but rather to kill him as soon as he had the chance.

Underneath his air of virtuous adventurers, he still had only one goal: to become stronger and to dethrone the emperor. The previous day's execution had proven him wrong. He could start hunting players now! The usefulness of the runes would only be revealed once he found an instructor, but that didn't stop him from starting his collection now.

His only concern was that Alune wouldn't suspect anything. But he would think about it as he went along, not worrying too much about the consequences.

"Hello, Alune, how are you?"

A resplendent smile nearly blinded her as she answered him.

"Very well, it is an honor to accompany you, Sire Revenge!"

He turned the name over in his head several times and smiled inwardly. Sire Revenge. It was very pleasant to be called that.

"One last thing...do you have any duffel bags we can store stuff in?"

Alune stood up and pointed to two large packages behind her.

"Selia has thought of everything, sire. She also left a sword for you."

Marlon raised an eyebrow as he spotted the sword resting gently against one of the two packs. He grabbed it, weighed it, but did not make the mistake of running his finger over the edge of the weapon. The quality was obviously much better than his own, and he immediately discarded the old one, leaving it on the table at the back of the tent.

Obviously, befriending the Huntress was the best thing he'd ever done. He had only done one beginner's quest, and already he had new clothes, decent equipment, and most importantly a bag that could carry many resources.

He opened his status window with a simple thought and saw that his stats had increased. His reflexes had gone up a few points, as well as his strength and endurance. But above all, his influence, which was at 0 at the time, had passed the 10-point mark. Of course, he did not rely at all on what he saw, because he had understood that in Neo-Life only experience counts.

 The proof was in the two days that had passed. These stats only reflected his experience in this world, so he had decided to ignore them completely and not rest on virtual laurels.

"Perfect...I guess we can get on the road then!"

Alune nodded and put his pack on his back. Marlon did the same, and after clipping his sword to his new belt, he grabbed the rope that his 'scout' was tied to. He leaned over to him and whispered so that only he and his prisoner could hear what he was saying.

"Walk first, don't be a jerk, and I'll let you out as soon as we get home. Got it?"

The young man, with tears in his eyes, nodded frantically to make his acceptance and total submission clear. Satisfied, Marlon stood him up and they headed for the edge of the forest.

"The trail is right in front of us. We'll have to follow it for half a day or more, depending on our pace."

"Any dangers in particular?" the young man asked, anxious to save himself as much trouble as possible.

"None, except for a few creatures of lower rank. But they usually only go after people alone. If it makes you feel any better, I can also defend myself, I'm not just a healer."

Hearing this reassured Marlon that he would not have to defend her as well as himself. He would rather bring her back to Akranio in one piece. No one spoke of the prisoner, and the worry in his eyes could be read.

In front of the entrance to the path, the young man immersed himself for a few seconds in this fairy tale setting. Trees as far as the eye could see, a canopy covering the sky and filled with life, and a simple dirt road leading to the unknown. No one on Earth had seen this in hundreds of years. He could never have dreamed of this, it was so incredible, and inwardly he blessed his benefactor, promising himself that he would see it through to the end.

Resolute, admiring, and deeply grateful for this new life that was opening up before him, they then set off down the path, their prisoner taking the lead and the caretaker closing the march.
The sound of wildlife was omnipresent, from the chirping of birds to the screeching of what must have been a wildcat. He kept turning around as he heard the small animals walking around and probably crossing the trail to watch these humans come into their territory.

The smells of deadwood and earth invaded their noses, and Marlon relished the scents. He could feel the dead leaves crunching under his feet as well as the roots poking out of the ground, forcing his feet to adjust to their contours.

For a few hours, they did not talk much, saving their energy and concentrating on the walk and the environment. The air they breathed had become heavier, more humid. After questioning Alune, he confirmed that this was something normal in a dense forest like this.

Finally, they came to an intersection and Marlon let the caregiver take the lead. He hadn't had any opportunity to get rid of their dead weight yet, but it wasn't slowing them down, so it wasn't too much of a hindrance at the moment. He simply stumbled from time to time on roots that popped out of the ground here and there.

They spotted a few small creatures stealthily crossing the path in front of them, and Alune explained that they were rather skittish rodents who loved to steal the possessions of carefree travelers, the Delmix. Unconsciously he tightened his hand on the hilt of his weapon as if that would change anything.

He also learned that the caretaker was not from Akranio, but from Delia, the capital of the continent. She didn't explain why she was staying there permanently, but from what he understood, she liked her life in Akranio very much.

"Are we still far from where Drevos resides?"

"We should get there in an hour or two at the rate we're going," Alune replied.

Marlon had the impression that they were going deeper into the forest. The trees were getting denser, the path narrowed as the animal sounds diminished. He saw that Alune was tensing imperceptibly, so he asked her to go back behind as his prisoner went ahead again.

Even the birds were getting quieter and this added to the eerie atmosphere that was being created.

"Why do I feel like everything is not going according to plan, Alune?"

"Sorry, it's not much but...I just have a bad feeling."

The young man nodded and his attention became even more piercing, carefully observing the depths of the forest so as not to be surprised by any creature.

The next hour was nerve-wracking. Every sound almost startled them, and the tension built up in them slowly but surely. They even saw a bear of some sort in the distance, its brown coat making it look much bigger than it really was. Huge claws protruded from its front paws and the young man swallowed as he thought of what would happen if he ever got hit by it.

The nurse reassured Marlon who had become very nervous at the sight of the creature.

"It's just a harmless herbivore. A Brunus. All we have to do is not attack it and it will ignore us. If he ever attacks you, climb a tree. He's too heavy to get up high and his head can't rise fully, making him a perfect target from an elevated position."

The young man drank in every word, soaking up the knowledge that might one day save his life. Alune had an exhaustive knowledge of the entire forest, and he smiled as he checked his Codex, which was slowly but surely filling up with information that could be of use to him later.

Drelammote, a plant that stops bleeding. Palfir, a mushroom that causes violent but harmless nausea. And what pleased him a lot because of its incongruity, the Glasin, a liana used by alchemists to create aphrodisiac candles.

 When Marlon finally saw what appeared to be a clearing, he did not relax for a moment. The trees disappeared and a circle of grassland about a hundred yards in diameter opened up.

"This is the clearing where Drevos normally lives. But one of his familiars should have come to greet us. Something's wrong," Alune said.

A heavy, metallic smell hung in the air. It was the smell of blood, they all knew it.

Marlon gave the rope with the player attached to it to the caretaker and drew his sword without further ado. They approached the forest foliage at a snail's pace, and good for them. A dull roar reached the young man's ears and grew louder as he approached the clearing. No other sound reached them, the surrounding fauna having been completely silent.

He was now almost crouching down so much he was bending down to be discreet, and the scene that was offered to his eyes was surprising, to say the least.

A stone hut stood almost in the middle of the clearing, and around it lay dozens of corpses on the ground in pools of blood. From what Marlon could see, they were some kind of six-legged dogs, slightly larger than what he had seen on earth. Each of them must have weighed at least a hundred kilos. But they had been disemboweled or dismembered by the thing that was making that dull growl they had been hearing for a few minutes.

However, he saw two of them moving weakly, trying as best they could to get up, but the state of their bodies did not allow them to do such a thing. They made plaintive moans that would have broken anyone's heart, but Marlon remained unmoved.

The contrast with the depths of the forest was shocking, almost too extreme to be accepted by the young man's brain. He went from a dream landscape to a nightmare scene.

 Then Marlon saw it. The thing that growled.

It was a feline that must have been almost two meters high at the withers and had an incredibly thick brown coat. Large wounds were visible on its flanks and blood flowed continuously from its wounds. Its mouth looked more like a lion's than a cat's, except for the red eyes that looked like they came straight from hell. This thing must have weighed six hundred, even seven hundred kilos!

He limped heavily, one of his hind legs cut to the bone. But he circled around the stone hut like a lame dervish, and from time to time, he gave a raging paw against the walls, which shook dangerously under the assault.

The young man moved back a few steps, still crouching, and came to stand beside Alune.

"What is this horror?"

Her eyes seemed to be about to pop out of her head as she could not take her eyes off the monster.

"It's a Mantis, and it doesn't belong here! It's a monster that can only be found in the heart of the Silver Mountains...Drevos must have had another stupid idea!"

Hearing the healer swear made Marlon raise an eyebrow, but he was already thinking of a way to get rid of this creature. Even though it was massive, it looked badly injured, and all it needed was one well-placed blow...

"Do you know of any spells other than healing that could distract this...this Mantis?" the young man asked.

She shook her head in disillusion.

"No, no one has had offensive magic in Akranio for years. Only Devros might possibly know some, but we still don't know where he is."

"I think he's in the cabin. Otherwise, the Mantis wouldn't be standing there trying to destroy it. This guy must have really pissed him off to get to this point..."

He thought about everything they had, and for a few minutes, only the rumbling of the Mantis and the blows inflicted on the hut sounded in their ears.

"Tell me, how long does the healing spell take to work on severe wounds?"

Alune thought for a short while before answering.

"A few seconds, at most. The severity of the injury is not that important. The magic simply returns any injured organic matter to a previous state. Why are you asking me this?"

Marlon smiled icily and Alune shivered under his gaze, which was not good.

"I think we can get rid of this thing. It's a little risky, but luckily we have bait," he said, pointing to their prisoner with that same toothy grin.

The latter began to tremble and his eyes filled with tears, suspecting that the next few minutes would be very long for him.

The young man explained his plan to the nurse in a low voice without the prisoner being able to hear them, and she was surprised by his accuracy and ingenuity. Marlon and herself would not take so many risks if everything went well.

She nodded and went to stand at the edge of the clearing, as close to the cabin as possible.

The young adventurer dragged his prisoner further south of the clearing along with the foliage as quietly as possible. He reached the south side of the clearing in a few minutes, and the Mantis' growling did not diminish in the least. He chose a large tree and took out of his pack a rope even longer than the one that tied his bait.

He went around the tree and finally joined the two links, giving the prisoner about ten meters of slack. Then he crouched down and grabbing his outfit, they both moved forward into the clearing without the Mantis, about fifty yards away, suspecting anything.

Marlon turned to the decoy and smiled coldly.

"I'm sorry, but you're going to have to endure a little longer, okay? We'll save you as soon as we can."

Without further ado, the young man struck the bait with the hilt of his sword, which made him groggy for a few seconds.

Strengthening his resolve, he removed the gag that prevented him from speaking. Then he reached behind him and raised his sword high before bringing it down hard on the unlucky player's right leg.

The pain revived his consciousness and he suddenly began to scream with all his lungs. It was a very unpleasant sound, but the volume of the sound would accomplish its purpose.

The Mantis, alerted by this noise, roared and turned back to its source. Marlon had long since disappeared under the forest foliage, and he could see Alune rushing to accomplish his mission.

Literally throwing herself over the bodies of the still moaning dogs, she summoned her healing magic as fast as she could as the giant feline slowly moved towards the bait. It hadn't quite reached her when two dogs were back on their feet and didn't hesitate a moment before pouncing on the Mantis.

They covered the distance that separated them from the monster in just a few seconds! The six legs they had seemed to allow them to reach tremendous speeds in a very short time. The growl that came out of their throats as they sprinted had nothing to envy to that of the Mantis.

Bellowing in pain as one of them took one of its able-bodied paws in its mouth and squeezed so hard that a cracking sound was distinctly heard, the creature was green with rage. It shook itself as hard as it could, but the hundred pounds of muscle that made up the first dog would not let go.

The second one arrived just at that moment and jumped at his throat, catching with his predatory jaw almost half of the feline's neck. The hoarse growl turned into a hissing sound under the pressure. This was the moment Marlon was waiting to act.

The attention of the Mantis was completely diverted by the two canine creatures, so he ran as fast as he could towards the feline, approaching from behind so that he could see it as late as possible. The latter, with a very violent claw, almost cut in two the dog hanging on its hind leg. He saw Marlon but fortunately, he had no valid hind legs and one of the dogs was still firmly choking him. He jumped as hard as his legs would allow and like a madman, his weapon came down on the Mantis' snout.

The blade sank deep, cutting through the flesh and cracking the bones of the skull. The Mantis fell to the ground, but before it did, it had time to send a paw at Marlon, who could do nothing to avoid it. As the creature fell to the ground and could not get up again, the young man cried out in agony, and as he looked down, he nearly fainted at the sight of his own entrails trying to escape from his body.

A tetanizing coldness took hold of him, and his mind became empty. He felt his consciousness weaken and in the last thought, he said to himself "one life less...", before the total blackness came.

He thought he was dead, but the pain wouldn't go away, still throbbing and intense.

Aren't we supposed to feel nothing when we die?

An intense heat made him reopen his eyes at the same time as the peak of pain attenuated very gradually. He saw Alune leaning over him, her face pale, both hands projecting a white light much more powerful than what he had seen before.

It only lasted a few seconds, and it was as if it had all been a bad dream.

He stood up, amazed by the power of this healing spell, and helped the healer to stand up as well, for she had crouched down to heal him but could no longer stand up for lack of energy.

"Stay here, I have to finish something."

She nodded and closed her eyes for a few seconds, seeming to have some trouble keeping her balance. Marlon ran to the player who had stopped screaming and was deeply relieved to see him still alive. Not very strong, gray-faced and glassy-eyed, but alive all the same.

"Ho, you came to save me, merc..."

Marlon's sword separated his head from his body in one swift movement and the young man sighed with relief. He had not lost this opportunity! He had thought he would bleed to death before he could kill him, and that would have been a terrible waste!

As the head rolled a few feet away, the blood formed a rune like that of his last victim, and he knew he would remember it for as long as necessary.

Ding

You have just learned the runic word Spark. An instructor is needed to use the Runes.

As he walked up to Alune, he saw that she was leaning against the corpse of the monster and looking at him with a faint smile.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah, I just overdid the healing spell a little bit and used too much mana. I'll be fine in an hour or two. Let's go get Drevos."

"For the priso..."

Alune interrupted her by raising her hand and shaking her head.

"We all knew he wouldn't come back alive. Don't worry about that, even Selia asked me to make sure you kill him to gain power like yesterday."

The young man was chilled by this revelation. The Huntress had seen right through him all along and yet she had let him. Was being a descendant of an Archmage really that important?

Just as he was wondering about their real motivation, the door to the cabin opened with a desperate bellow.

"Nooooo, my baby! You killed my baby!"