Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

Towards the corrupted area

After breakfast, Gjaki had led them through the Gate. They had arrived at a small locked room.

"A safe?" Eldi observed, surprised.

Unlike his two companions, he had never seen it from the inside. In the game, they could only be seen from the outside. However, there were several clues that indicated its nature.

"And he looked dumb! Who would've thought!" Gjaki mocked, while disguised as Goldki.

"Ha. Ha," the high human laughed ironically and artificially. He was also been disguised as an elf.

"I just hope you haven't forgotten the combination" the elf laughed too.

"Well, now that you mention it..." the vampiress mumbled to herself.

They all looked at her between incredulous and astonished, with a certain friendly hostility.

"It was a joke, it was a joke. Let's go," she opened the armored door.

She closed it when everyone got out, thus protecting the Gate inscription.

"You've arrived quite early. Do you have my breakfast?" Maldoa greeted them.

"Sure. I don't want to have you complaining all day," Goldmi brought her some sandwiches.

They were the drelf's favorites, and hers alone. The rest found them too sweet to eat normally.

The bread itself was already sweet, and was stuffed with pieces of different fruits. Inside, one of them had an assortment of fresh fruits covered in honey and hot chocolate. That was the least sweet.

"That's defamation! I wouldn't be complaining about it all day!" she protested exaggeratedly.

The lynx looked at her for a moment, and then looked away. The goshawk did the same. Gjaki shook her head, and ignored her. Goldmi rolled her eyes, and headed for the exit.

Only Eldi didn't know her well enough to judge her, although the attitude of the rest gave him a good clue. He decided to look away and follow the others out of the room.

"Hey! Don't ignore me! Hmmmm! It tastes great!"

She barely took a moment to forget about everything other than her sweet breakfast. While nibbling on her sandwich, she followed them. They were heading towards the exit of the outpost, when a reptilian, with a serrated natural line of scales on his back that protected his spine, got in their way.

"What do you think you're doing here? This isn't a game. You don't have enough level. Go back to the lower areas".

Maldoa had her mouth and hands too full to say anything, apart from the fact that she was at the end of the group. Although not so Gjaki. Her level was Disguised at 86, 6 less than the adventurer.

Without knowing how, the reptilian found himself on the ground before he or his companions could react. Without needing to exceed level 86, the vampiress had moved her foot after the adventurer's, to push his at the same time she pushed him.

"What we do or don't do is none of your business," she declared with a threatening tone as she held him immobilized.

He stared at her from the ground, and his companions kept watch at a distance. They were surprised by the speed and ease with which she had taken down the reptilian. It was evident that she wasn't a common adventurer.

They saw that her companions were unperturbed, as if nothing exceptional had happened, so they preferred to stay still and say nothing. They were no longer so sure that they could boss them around.

It should be said that the goshawk was already in the sky, while the lynx had temporarily hidden In the Shadow of the elf. She preferred it than a disguise.

"Always so violent," Goldmi sighed.

"I haven't done anything to him! I mean, I've been tempted to give him a Supreme Knee, and I didn't," the vampiress defended herself.

The elf laughed, while Eldi wasn't so amused by that blow name. Instinctively, he almost shielded his crotch.

The truth is that the vampiress had been quite soft for what was usual for her. She had doubted if that adventurer was really worried about them, or he was simply taking the opportunity to abuse the authority of having a few more levels. If she had believed the second, perhaps, that day the reptilian wouldn't have been able to leave without drinking a healing potion.

During the Blood Wars, a bluish-skinned adventurer named Bruki had become famous for beating up all the tavern thugs who ran afoul of her. She seemed weak and easily intimidated, at least until the first Head-butt to their face.

Of course, that adventurer was Gjaki in disguise, trying to gather information from her enemies. As time went on, her mere appearance intimidated those bullies, so the need for a demonstration became less and less necessary.

However, since there were also impersonators trying to take advantage of her fame, she occasionally had to deal with a disbeliever. If they ended up with a broken bone, they could consider themselves lucky.

"Towards there. A corrupted two-tailed fox," the elf pointed out.

She hadn't seen or felt it, but her winged sister had. She was flying safely over their heads, for winged losts were rare, unless a general was nearby. Since Pikshbxgra hadn't detected anything, there was no danger.

The aerial losts were highly prized by the shadows, as they were very useful for surprise attacks. Therefore, they take care to recruit them before the other shadows did, and it was rare to see them alone.

The fairy was in some kind of backpack for babies, which the archer had filled with a small Consecrated Ground. Since the volume was small, it didn't waste much mana, and the fairy didn't have to fight the nasty miasma.

"There it is. Level 91," the archer informed when she saw it with Hawkeye.

It was a fox two meters tall. Its fur was dark red, one could say dirty. In the past, it had been a beautiful red, bordering on orange.

Three arrows with Purifying Touch pierced its back, thus drawing its attention. It got up hastily, ignored the wound that was purifying that small part of its body, and looked around.

Disdainfully, it stepped slightly to the side to avoid the next arrow. It didn't expect Curved Shot to make it change direction and hit its huge body.

Furious, it charged towards the direction the arrow had come from.

"It's coming," the elf warned.