Return to Jorgaldur Volume II: the druid archer

Corrupted leveling area (IV)

A level 5 bird similar to a black hawk, with red eyes and a small horn on its forehead, rushed towards Goldmi, opening its beak to emit an ultrasound that could be very painful for its victims, even stunning them. However, in doing so, it gave a chance to the elf, who shot an arrow that pierced the corrupted bird, entering through its mouth and peeking out from its back. It collapsed, and disappeared after hitting the ground.

Two wolfpines without serious injuries ran towards the lynx, one level 5 and another 6. Three snakes did the same, and two of those black horses. In addition, twenty other figures were approaching, although with less speed and injured.

Two of the snakes, level 5, were soon nailed to the ground by several arrows they were trying to get rid of, and the leg of one of the horses had been rendered useless, while the two wolfpines were hobbling.

The other horse came almost at the position of the feline, when three arrows nearly struck its face, one after the other. It managed to dodge two of them, since it was observing Goldmi, and the other only caused minor injuries, since it had changed the position of its head, so the projectile slipped on the outside of its skin. However, those arrows weren't intended to seriously injure it, but to divert its attention.

Suddenly, a powerful jaw plunged into the neck of the distracted corrupted horse, while two claws dug into its side. It jerked violently, reared up, and tried to bite its attacker, or hit her with its hooves. But she didn't let it go, and kept clinging to the weakening prey, which soon fell to the ground and disappeared.

Goldmi kept firing at the wolfpines, but not at the level 6 snake, leaving it to approach on its own. Only when it neared her sister, did she turn her attention to it.

The lynx lunged toward the snake, which wanted to receive her with its fangs open and the embrace of its long body. But, at the last instant, she leaped aside, making way for an Ethereal Arrow enhanced with Penetrating Arrow. The moment the arrow pierced the snake's jaw, the feline changed direction again, leaping at it. She held the reptile's neck with her jaws, while her claws were attacking the body, trying to prevent it from coiling on her, in addition to exposing it to arrows fire.

The snake had been taken by surprise and seriously wounded, and now its body was being attacked on two fronts, and even pinned on the ground. It died before the arrival of the wolfpines.

Goldmi was trying to get the enemies to arrive little by little, or even deny them their mobility, while attacking in sync with her sister those which were arriving. Soon, nearly twenty of them had died, five others had been immobilized, and about ten were trying to catch them up, most of them seriously injured. Many had not even had a chance to defend themselves because of the distance Hawkeye could reach.

Meanwhile, there was a fairy continually wandering around the battlefield and picking up arrows, though some were out of range, too close to enemies.

More were coming, and more and more were level 6, and not as many were level 5. Even a level 7 had just appeared.

The lynx took care of something akin to a giant beetle with cutting legs like saws, while the archer hurried to finish off as many as she could of those lying on the ground, before both returned to the cave.

Then, exhausted, they came back to the village to rest and eat.

Looking tired, the elf greeted the Oracle, who simply nodded. Then, she started preparing food, or rather directing the fairies.

The lynx, who was lying in front, was looking expectantly and sniffing the aroma that was released, while Goldmi was healing the scratches on her sister. She had nothing serious, but she allowed to be treated without resistance. She appreciated her sister's care, in addition to knowing that she couldn't dissuade her otherwise.

They had both risen to level 6. She had unlocked one of the game's most useless spells, which was at level 2. It could only be used with direct contact, either from her hands or from weapons infused with that power, but no one had managed to find a practical use for it, so it was considered a developer's joke. However, upon seeing it, the elf understood that, in her current circumstances, it could be very valuable, since Purifying Touch seemed to be the antithesis of corrupted beings.

Instead, the Three better than one skill was extremely useful in the game. She had it at 10, and it allowed her to shoot three arrows at once, while being able to add any skill or spell to each of the arrows. In the game, she could target three different objectives, and she wondered how it was possible. So, she tested it, by hitting three targets with the same precision as shooting to only one, as if it were the easiest thing in the world.

And, in addition to the new resources, she was also now wearing level 6 equipment. Admittedly, it had been an overspending in the game to have bought gear at each level, until she had met Gjaki and Eldi. They had laughed at her for doing it that way, and advised her to only do it every five levels, but now she was glad of her mistake, and of having kept everything. Their life was at stake, so any increase in power was more than welcome.

It's hard to say if the exercise had gotten her hungry, or if she was just gluttonous, but the lynx devoured her dinner and dessert, even licking on the plate. After that, she began to smooth the fur with her rough tongue, while Goldmi was watching her, a smile appearing on her face.

It was a peaceful and intimate scene, which contrasted with what they had experienced hours before, and what they were going to experience the next day. They intended to continue releasing the corrupted beings, and to level up at the same time, as now they had more confidence in themselves.

She got up and went to the anvil to continue repairing arrows. Although she had hundreds of them, perhaps more than a thousand, she had used more than a hundred, perhaps two hundred, and hadn't managed to recover them all. And although many would no longer be needed because of their lower level, she preferred to have them available, just in case.

After that, they went to sleep and, although she believed that it would be difficult for her to fall asleep, she did it immediately, since the warmth and embrace of her sister was extremely comforting, helping her to forget about the tension to which she had been subjected.