"Damn it Orcbolg, every time it's something with you! Thinking you had been devoured by the horde, your coldness at the start of the year, your abduction by the slavers and now your dying of a curse!" High Elf Archer gritted her teeth as tears already began to gather in the corners of her eyes. "Why the hell did you not say anything before? Have you no faith in your friends?"
Goblin Slayer and his party had returned that night, the goblins had been dealt with, and Priestess had gone about informing the miners while Dwarf Shaman and High Elf Archer went to inform Cow Girl and Guild Girl of what had happened on the quest. Half-Dragon Mother made sure that her daughter was preoccupied playing with Wolf and Snow, she did not want her daughter to hear anything else that might upset her. In the same room Goblin Slayer had served as an advisor during a promotion exam, he met with everyone to finally tell them what they had been suspecting from the start of the year.
"I'm forced to agree with Long-Ears here Beardcutter. We've put our trust in you, yet you go and keep this from us for so long…just what in the world were you thinking?"
"I…I am sorry."
"Goblin Slayer…just saying you're sorry is not going to make this situation any better." Guild Girl had a frown as she looked toward Goblin Slayer. "You have all these people to help you and…care about your well-being. You should have told us the moment you started suffering."
"I did not want to make anyone worry, so I tried to find a solution myself." Goblin Slayer grunted once again as he was forced to clutch at his left shoulder. "During the first month of travel alone, while dealing with the goblins, I sought out a possible cure for the curse. Healing spells and herbs did not prove successful. Instead I chose to try and fight the influence…though there were times I lost myself to the darkness within."
"The darkness within…this is what Earth Mother was referring to. Does this mean, we were too late to help him?" Priestess frowned as she clutched her sounding staff at the thought of failing her teacher.
Cow Girl had been silent this whole time, a frown present on her face as she held her eyes down, yet now she needed to act. She stood from her seat, drawing everyone's attention as she calmly walked over toward Goblin Slayer. She paused in front of him before moving to undo the strap beneath his helmet.
"What are you doing?"
Cow Girl remained silent as she carefully removed his helmet and set it on the floor before looking at him. The others could see the black patches of skin that covered part of the left side of his face. Goblin Slayer was curious as to why she had removed his helmet and as he looked at her could see the frown upon her face. Cow Girl raised her right arm with a quick strike, slapped Goblin Slayer across the left side of his face. There was a look of shock from the others seeing her strike him, Goblin Slayer grunted from the initial pain, he himself slightly surprised by her actions, yet as he turned to look at her saw the tears running down her face.
"You may have the body of an adult, but your mind is still that of a child." Cow Girl continued to cry as she leaned in to hug her friend. "You've been suffering with this for more than three months and you think that by keeping it to yourself, we won't worry? You can be so stupid at times."
Goblin Slayer was at a loss for what to do, not since seeing her refuse to leave the farm during the Goblin King's invasion had she caught him off guard. Ever cautious, he slowly brought his right arm around her back and gently patted his friend. The others saw this and had small smiles as they stood to move toward Goblin Slayer.
"I…I don't know how much time I still have. I would like your assistance."
"You're a damn stupid fool Beardcutter, but you are still our friend. We'll do all we can."
"Well said Sir Mage, but where to start, given how unpredictable the curse can be?"
"Let us get him to the Temple of the Earth Mother, hopefully Mother Superior can aid him." Priestess put forward a weak smile but was internally worried. "I'm worried, I know she had not been trained in performing any high-level exorcisms, that is why we could not bring the knight to her."
Goblin Slayer went about replacing his helmet when a sudden pain forced him to drop to his knee as he once again clutched at his left shoulder. The rest of his friends rushed to his side to help him yet paused as they heard a sinister chuckle echoing from within his helmet.
"Milord Goblin Slayer?"
"Fools." Goblin Slayer continued his chuckle as he looked upward towards his party members with twin glowing eyes. "You cannot stop my destiny! I will have this body and then I will do what that foolish lich could not…I will slay all the mortal races, starting with everyone of you."
Goblin Slayer grunted once again as he lowered his head, his breathing quite labored yet he stopped chuckling.
"Are you "you" again Goblin Slayer?" Half-Demon Thief reflexively placed a hand on her dagger to defend herself in necessary.
"For the moment…I cannot…predict when I will lose control."
"That damn Lich and her curse, even in death she still torments us." High Elf Archer found herself gritting her teeth as she tightly clenched her fist.
"The Lich…is trying to help…"
The rest of his party looked at him with a confused expression, as they heard him say this odd statement.
"What do you mean she's trying to help, isn't she the one who cursed you to begin with?" Guild Girl could not understand why Goblin Slayer would say something like that. "Perhaps an effect of the curse?"
"At first, she wished for my death but now…she seems to have changed. In the mine…it was her who stopped me."
"Milord Goblin Slayer, you're telling us it was the Lich Queen who saved Priestess?"
"Yes…she claims it is the interactions with all of you…that made her recall her humanity, but her voice…is becoming harder to hear."
"I'm not sure if I like the idea of this Lich Queen actually trying to help, it may be a trick." Cow Girl was worried as she heard him defend the creature that cursed him.
"Regardless, our first step is to get him to the temple."
The group got Goblin Slayer back to his feet, and exited the office, in hope of avoiding a scene. They did not have to worry about any of that, as the front desk was swarmed with people. Amidst the cries of the panicked villagers, Heavy Warrior and Spearman did their best to keep the people from pushing forward. Guild Girl and the others quickly took notices of this and rushed to aid in the situation while Cow Girl stayed with Goblin Slayer.
"Where have you been?" Inspector turned toward Guild Girl with a relieved look on her face.
"My apologies, I had wanted to check in with the group that had to deal with the sudden emergence of the goblins at the mine. What's all this, we're about to close for the evening?" Guild Girl joined her friend at the front desk.
"These people just rushed, screaming about something loose in the woods near the smaller villages." Spearman commented as he spread his arms out in hopes of keeping the people from overrunning the guild.
"There's something loose in the woods, something with three arms and three faces, it attacked out village, killed my family and nearly killed me."
"Our neighbors were attacked by three of them, massive things, tore through the house as if it were a child's plaything. These things were about the size of trolls but looked like goblins."
"Goblins?" Goblin Slayer's attention was immediately drawn to the mere mention of possible goblins sighted.
"No. You have your own things to deal with." Cow Girl was stern in her reply took hold of Goblin Slayer's shoulder and shook her head.
"We are getting ready to close for the night, is there any way you submit your quest requests in…" Guild Girl attempted to calm everyone down but was quickly cut off by roar of the crowd.
"You're saying you should fend for ourselves?"
"Aren't you adventurers? Aren't you paid to protect us?"
"Enough!"
The shout came from Spearman who slammed the bottom of his spear along the floor with such force that the room instantly became silent.
"You lot seem to have the wrong idea, we don't offer our for free nor are we obligated to help just because someone asks! You got some nerve barging in here demanding we save you without any form of compensation!"
There was a look of shock and confusion upon the faces of the villagers as they heard this from the adventurer, but a look around the room of the remaining adventurers just reaffirmed what he was saying.
"Under ordinary circumstances, we'd have you wait until morning to submit your requests."
Everyone turned their attention to see a well-dressed man walk out of the back offices with a rather stern look about his face.
"Manager." Both Guild Girl and Inspector were surprised to see him come out with such a look on his face.
"The guild will offer a bounty of ten gold coins to the adventurers who will go out." The manager smiled toward Spearman and the others before turning his gaze back toward the frightened people. "I'll expect you all to pay back the restitutions the guild is making on such short notice. I understand your fears, but there is no need to be acting in such an uncivilized manner."
There was a grumble from many of the people, but others were relieved to hear that the adventurers would out on patrol looking for these monsters. Spearman, Heavy Warrior and other experienced warriors gladly took on the challenge to search for these supposed monsters loose around the countryside. Goblin Slayer's party and friends too would investigate these odd claims, but they first helped get Goblin Slayer to the Temple of the Earth Mother. Mother Superior and the acolytes immediately took the young man and proceeded to remove his armor to examine the state of his curse, to their surprise they discovered that not only was it the left side of his neck and shoulder, but much of his chest and nearly his entire left arm were covered by these odd patches of black skin.
"This curse…I have never seen anything on this scale. What kind of man is he to endure this pain for more than three months?" Mother Superior was surprised by all she was seeing, but quickly turned toward Priestess with a frown. "Rest assured little one, we will do all we can to assist him."
"Thank you Mother Superior." Priestess smiled as she bowed her head toward head of the temple.
The rest of the party left the temple, still worried for their friend, but knew the best thing they could do was all those in the temple to work un interrupted. Cow Girl reluctantly returned to the farm with Wolf and Snow by her side, it was late and she would have a rough time getting ready in the morning, but would make it a point to check tomorrow at the temple to see how her friend was. The remainder of his party would undertake the quest assigned to them by the guild, perhaps these unusual monsters would have some connection to the Faceless Man who killed the slavers.
xxxx
"My loyal followers…our time approaches!"
Deep within the sewers, Necromancer stood before the few dozen Faceless Men who kneeled before their master.
"The few creations we have unleashed upon the countryside prove that our struggles were correct! We have brought life to the lifeless! Pushed past the limitations set by the gods and have created beings of superior strength and skill. Now…now we can continue our research on a grander scale!" necromancer reached within his robes to pull out a small vial of the green elixir, the glow radiating off it within his hands. "Each of you shall be given a vial to use when you feel you are ready to embrace the gift. Your transformation shall only be limited to your desire for truth and power! We are not mindless slaves but visionaries who refuse to settle for what we have been told and because we question the truth of the gods, we are labeled as crazed maniacs! I say…this is for the Miracle of Life!"
"For the Miracle of Life!" The Faceless Men bowed their heads in unison before raising them to once again view their master.
"We shall see the world unravel itself, from the small villages to the capital, all shall see the fruits of our labors! They themselves will come to be enlightened and in that moment…will become followers who shall see the truth with their own eyes! It is because of all your hard work and devotion that I am able to push this research to its limits!" Necromancer turned to the table near him and took the large black tome in his hands and raised it high over his head. "This is the proof of our research. This book contains the creation of the elixir, the accounts of our research and the records of our success! For the Miracle of Life!"
"For the Miracle of Life! For the Miracle of Life! For the Miracle of Life!"
Necromancer nodded to his followers as they continued to chant before exiting the room of worship and returning back to his labs. In the cages were various monsters, the goblins who survived the transformation became his hulking Brutes. The bodies of the dead were sown back together, pieces of the various races used for their different attributes, these Abominations were nearly as large as the Brutes but far more agile. The Elixir affected the others in different ways, regardless of their race, Necromancer smiled at the sight of his lovely creations.
"My giant spiders, though they only possess six limbs, they are still capable of creating webs to trap their prey. Every female subject is turned into wing demons with a terrifying shriek, my Banshees. Males are affected much differently, becoming spiders, werewolves, gargoyle-like creatures and mindless walkers. Even children will become monstrous little imps."
"Welcome Master"
Within his lab Necromancer could see some of his most trusted Faceless Men continuing their studies of the creations. Necromancer carefully looked over their notes and smiled at the results of the experiments.
"These are promising results indeed, we will need to add them to the Black Tome." Necromancer chuckled to himself as he thumbed through the pages. "The wolves show such muscle growth that their fur it torn off their bodies, their ears become hard like horns and they can breathe fire, how wonderful my Hellhounds. What of the giant rats and roaches?"
"The rats have the appearance of wolves master, they roam the sewer in packs, much faster than they were before. The roaches have also changed, after their molt, their bodies are leaner making them far more mobile than before and the armor that covers their bodies are hard enough to pierce through stone."
"Fantastic." Necromancer set the papers down and turned his attention back to his followers. "Did you find him?"
"Yes Master, we made sure to deal with the guards, by the morning it will appear that he simply escaped his cell."
From within the shadows, two more Faceless Men walked forward with a middle-aged man with black hair down to his shoulders in tow. This man had shackles around his wrists, a scar across his right eye and a scowl as he looked around the lab then focused his attention on the Necromancer.
"I welcome you, most esteemed Highway Man." Necromancer bowed his head toward the prisoner before him. "Over the last 20 years of your life, you've been accused of the murders of more than 300 people. You kill and steal from anyone and everyone who was unlucky enough to cross your path. Have I missed anything?"
"The 300 are the people are the ones the King knows about; the number should be closer to about 1,000." Highway Man smirked as he looked toward the Necromancer then examined the shackles that held him captive. "You were wise to have your men keep me bound, otherwise I'd kill them too."
"Oh my, how rude of us. Release him at once."
The Faceless Men nodded their heads and went to work removing the shackles around his wrists.
"If you had your people bring me here, I assume you're one of those people who wish to kill me personally?" Highway Man carefully rubbed the areas around his wrists where the shackles had been.
"Oh heavens no, I sought you out because I wish to ask for your assistance in an experiment."
"Experiment?" Highway Man was surprised to hear this, even more surprised as one of the Faceless Men stepped forward with his clothing and weapons retrieved from the dungeon. "These are…where did you get these?"
"Master instructed that we fetch your belongings as we liberated you."
Highway Man, proceeded to tear off the rags he was provided while in the dungeon and changed back to his usual attire. The clothing was simple: blue trousers, a dirty, white hempen shirt, black boots, and a brown leather waistcoat with a belt wrapped around his midsection. Tucked away along his belt and inside his waist coat were his knives he would use to slaughter the unsuspecting victims.
"Feels good to be back in more comfortable clothing. Now what did you mean by experiments?"
"I am researching the Miracle of Life and have tested it on many subjects as you can see." Necromancer as he motioned creatures around him. "Wonderful aren't they?"
"These things? They were once human weren't they?" Highway Man was in shock at the sight of the various monstrosities.
"Human, elf, rhea, goblin…it doesn't matter now, they have become far stronger than they would have if they were to remain in their prior state."
"And, you want to turn me into one of these things? You crazy bastard, I should kill you now."
"You could, my followers would use the elixir on my remains to restore me, so I have no need to stop you. I only wish to give you more power than your current self." Necromancer smiled as he began to circle around the Highway Man. "How many more people do you think you'll be able to kill given your current body…100, maybe less. With no armor, what's to stop an adventurer from eventually piercing your body? I know you, you kill because you enjoy the sight of blood, the thrill of hunting your victims down. I am merely offering you a stronger body, but it will only work if you want it to! Only if your desire for power is strong enough to survive the effects of the elixir! So again I ask…will you aid me in my research?"
Necromancer held out the vial of the green liquid in his right hand, a sinister smile on his face as he looked toward Highway Man. Highway Man was obviously wary of this man, he could sense that thins individual was like him in many ways, yet the enticing thought of more power was quite alluring.
"What the hell…I was going to die either way, so what have I got to lose?" Highway Man smiled as he took the vial in his hand, the power within it seem to reverberate in his hands. "Let's see just how much stronger I can become?"
Highway Man removed the cork cover from the top of the vial and downed the contents in one gulp. The liquid itself was bitter and with it completely empty he threw the glass vial aside with a satisfying shattering sound. In mere moments he could feel a burning sensation coursing through his body, he clutched at his sides and bellowed in agony while Necromancer looked on with a wide smile. Highway Man could feel his body changing, his feet expanding that the tore through his boots, his limbs painfully grew longer, his muscles began to bulge, his face extended and teeth growing into jagged fangs. Necromancer panned his eyes upward as the Highway Man grew in stature, his hands nearly reaching down to his knees, his once human eyes now replaced with pupil-less tapetum, his own smile overshadowed by the vicious grin of the monstrous being before him.
"How do you feel?" Necromancer smiled as he approached the monstrous Highway Man.
"Hungry."
Highway Man reached out with his giant hands to grasp one of the Faceless Men and brought him toward his mouth, with his jaws open wide he bit down on the Faceless Man and tore away the head and began to chew loudly, he continued to devour the body while the others looked on, none of them yelling or trying to stop him. Once down, Highway Man looked down at his bloody hands then turned his attention back to Necromancer.
"Should I eat you next?"
"You are free to do whatever you wish. I am happy to see that your personality has not been changed since you drank the elixir. But what about your weapons?"
Highway Man, nearly three meters tall, looked down towards his weapons, his normal knives were now nothing but children's toys in his hands, only his larger daggers seemed appropriate for him. Much of his clothing had been ripped as he transformed before these people.
"Many of them are useless now?" Highway man's smile turned toward a frown as he threw the smaller blades aside.
"Not to worry, we shall shape swords to match your lost knives and attend to your torn garments. All I ask is that you continue to kill and push your body to its limits."
Highway Man, even though he knew he had transformed into a monster, was slightly unnerved by this human before him, yet knew he would be able to continue his legacy of violence unimpeded if he served this man.
"Very well Master, give me the appropriate tools and I shall kill for you!"
xxxx
"How are you doing my lady?" Noble Fencer could see the frown upon Sword Maiden's face.
It was two carriages that traveled along the roads at night, in one was Sword Maiden, the Hero's party and Noble Fencer. In the second carriage were the attendants who would accompany Sword Maiden on her various tasks.
"I am worried for the adventurer in Frontier Town…Goblin Slayer. The recent events are quite troubling as well as the reports of his odd behaviors."
"To have endured nearly a month of torture would be difficult for any person. I'm sure that once we've seen him, all of our worries will be taken care of." Hero smiled outwardly but was still worried about the handout received by the Supreme God.
"What worries me is the odd sightings of these men in plague masks and black robes collecting bodies from battlefields and graveyards." Female Swordmaster had her arms crossed as she pondered what these men could be thinking while she rode along in the carriage.
"Perhaps they are seeking some way of reviving the Demon Lord…though I believed that living sacrifices were needed." Sage kept a neutral face as calmly gave her response to her friend's question.
"Once we have clarified the meaning behind the message from the Supreme God, we can focus on the task of these odd men and who they serve." Sword Maiden calmly exhaled and she hoped they would get to Frontier Town as quickly as possible when a new sensation moved through her. "Stop the carriage!"
The driver quickly pulled on the reins to bring the carriage to an abrupt halt, the second carriage behind them reacted quickly to do the same and avoid crashing into the first. The moment the carriage stopped Sword Maiden quickly opened the door and stepped outside, her attendants in the other carriage curious as to her actions. Hero and the rest of her party disembarked with weapons ready and stood beside Sword Maiden, Noble Fencer remained by the carriage with sword in hand to defend the driver.
"Sword Maiden…what is it?" Hero held her sword tight as she looked out in the forest, though at night it was hard to make out any discernable shapes.
Sword Maiden focused her eyes on the forest, though her eyes were covered, the gods above had bestowed upon her the ability to see the forms of the various entities and objects around her. She could sense the murderous intent emanating from the whatever was in the forest and little by little she could discern their shape. It was a massive beast walking on all fours, it reminded her of the two large dire wolves Goblin Slayer had in his possession, yet this one was far more vicious. Then she noticed that there were two more of these creatures nearby, the three beasts stared directly at her and the others, drool dripping from their mouths.
"There are three of them, near the trees…I do not know what type of creatures they are, but they seek to devour us." Sword Maiden raised her sword and scales then slammed the base of it along the ground. "By the will of the Supreme God, Holiest of all, bathe this land in your radiant glow…Holy Light!"
A bright, white light shown from atop her staff, all directed towards the woods near them: Hero and her party temporarily winced their eyes from the sudden light then gasped when the caught sight of the monstrous beasts. The three creatures were red in color, with large green eyes, they snarled at the party before charging forth on all fours.
"What manner of creature are these?" Female Sword Master raised her sword to face the unknown monster.
"We can investigate after they have been dealt with! Protect Sword Maiden!" Hero gave the yell before she charged forward to attack.
"Wind from the north, bring the chill of the ice and immobilize my enemy…Freeze!"
Sage pointed her staff toward the approaching creature and a strong gale collided with the monster freezing two of its legs. The beast dropped to the ground and roared towards the girl, before turning its attention to its frozen limbs. The opened its mouth and spewed forth flames which melted the ice, unaware that in doing so it would destroy its legs. Even with two legs missing, the monster thrashed about trying to move closer towards Sage. Female Sword Master and Hero struck at the monsters with their sword, surprised by how durable their flesh was, even as they were able to cut the creature and see the blood flow from their wounds, the creatures continued to battle them. It took several more strikes before both monsters were finally brought down. Sage had then cast Lightning, the bolt of lightning struck the creature finally killing it as steam wafted off its body.
"By the gods, what kind of monsters are these, they're far tougher than most of the creature's we've come across." Female Sword Master wiped the sweat from her brow before putting her sword away.
"Indeed. Bring a torch." Hero knelt down to examine the creature.
Noble Fencer brought forth a torch, joined by Sword Maiden and the rest of Hero's party, and they carefully looked over the body of the creature. To their surprise, they quickly realized the red coloring was due to this beast having no skin on its body but being nothing but visible muscle.
"What is this thing? It has no skin, the muscles are so thick it can withstand multiple sword strikes, and can breathe fire." Hero was confused by the sight of this monster.
"Look carefully at its face, notice the shape of the jaws?" Sage carefully took hold of the head and turned it from side to side.
"It looks like the wolf but…what kind of wolf grows this big?" Female Sword Master shook her head at the sight of this thing.
"Dire Wolves can get this large as we've all seen, but I've never heard of a dire wolf taking on this type of appearance." Sword Maiden had a frown as she though about these things were tracking the carriage. "Even a wolf is not so bold to attack such a large object…they stalk their prey and attack when the opportunity is right? These ones were had every intention of attacking!"
"We should get back on the road, we don't know if there are any more of these things around." Hero tightened her grip on her sword as she carefully looked over the area.
The party got back into the carriage and once again started on their way towards Frontier Town, unaware that two more of the monsters had arrived, snarling as the carriages moved on, then went to feed on the corpses of their fallen brothers.
xxxx
"What in the hell did you bring back?" Half-Demon Thief looked down at the misshapen body before with utter disgust.
Five days had passed since Goblin Slayer's party had taken him to the Temple of the Earth Mother, and at the same time also under took the emergency quest to seek out the odd monsters that had been attacked the smaller hamlets around the countryside. They along with other parties had been out looking for any clues, but they themselves had found nothing, but their colleagues came back this morning with something large draped with a cloth atop a cart.
With the cloth removed, the adventurers and guild employees were finally able to see massive corpse, more than two meters, the body itself seemed to be that of a lizardman, but the rest of it was completely foreign to them. The head atop the shoulders was that of a male elf, yet there on its chest were two more heads a dwarf and a human, there were two arms attached to its right side, each capable of grabbing and holding something, yet on the left side was a single arm, yet a disgusting hook made of bone was attached where the left hand would have been. Much of the body appeared to have been sown together as horrid stitches covered much of its torso and arms.
"This damn thing stormed out of the woods to attack us, took the big guy and I several attacked to finally bring it down." Spearman angrily sighed as he looked at the beast.
"We slashed and stabbed at it so many times, it seemed like it could not feel any pain from our attacks, but eventually toppled over." Heavy Warrior too was disgusted by the sight of it.
"When we….found it…it was eating…the body…of a child." Witch had a frown on her face as she looked at the beats then turned her attention towards Female Knight. "I am thankful…you were able…to help us. Though…I thought…you and he…would be resting."
"I got enough rest on the trip back from the Hell Games. I can't let what happened hamper my goal of becoming a paladin." Female Knight smiled towards her friend then frowned as she looked back at the body. "I could smell something off in the area…this thing had the stench of death on it."
The others knew to keep any mention of her werewolf curse secret from Spearman and the others, for now their focus was placed on the mangled body before them.
"How horrid, to have a fellow lizardman used in such a manner is truly troubling."
"What the hell causes this…this thing to come into being. It has three heads, each a different race and a body that itself is also different. Is this a cursed body?" Half-Demon Thief was at a loss for how this abomination was created.
"I don't think it was a curse, these faces and limbs have been stitched to the body…someone who knows about medicine would have to find a way to attached everything correctly." Dwarf Shaman carefully moved the heads to examine the stitching.
"Then assuming it was a corpse before all this was done to it, how the hell would it be able to get back up and move around and are there any more of these things?" Spearman motioned with his hands at the body.
"I couldn't say lad, but we now know what to be looking for and as you said…how many more of these things are loose?"
The adventurers were left there with an unusual body, reports of other monster sightings, and a mystery of how this monster was created. Just then both Guild Girl and Cow Girl came in accompanied by the dire wolves and the half-dragons.
"We're going to the temple." Cow Girl had a frown on her face as she looked toward the rest of his party.
Cow Girl had gone just about everyday in hopes of that the day she arrived would be the day she would get the good news that the curse had been lifted, yet everyday the acolytes told her there had been no change and it would be best for her not to see him.
"We'll be going with you." Priestess gave them a quick nod before gathering her supplies to join them.
The rest of his party joined the others, and the large group slowly left the guild hall and traveled toward the temple, unaware that as they were leaving two large carriages were entering into the town. Priestess entered into the temple and bowed her head towards her fellow acolytes and anxiously looked around for Mother Superior.
"Mother Superior!" Priestess happily called out with a wave.
Mother Superior turned and gave her young acolyte a small smile, but that soon frowned as she saw the others with her.
"I am afraid to tell you that, despite our best efforts, we have not be able to remove the curse from your friend. It…it almost seems that in every attempt we made, something was fighting us, doing all it could to prevent itself from being removed, much to the pain of the adventurer."
The news itself was heartbreaking to Goblin Slayer's party and his friends, for Half-Dragon Daughter she was on the verge of bawling. Her mama and papa carefully explained to her what her brother was going through and she hoped that after this treatment he would recover, but now that did not seem to be the case.
"Damn that Lich Queen." High Elf Archer angrily clenched her fists.
"Lich Queen…is that the one who cursed your friend?" Mother Superior was surprised by this comment.
"Yes, does that mean something?" Priestess was hopeful that this news might mean something useful in helping Goblin Slayer.
"Well I thought it odd at first, but during many of our attempts at using Heal and Purify, we heard a female voice call out to us, but it was not the one attacking him, it carried a melancholy tone to it."
"What…what did this voice say?" Cow Girl was surprised to hear this from Mother Superior.
"The voice would say…Be Strong Beloved…Please Save Him." Mother Superior had a small frown on her face as she said this.
The others were surprised by what they were told, it seemed as if Goblin Slayer was correct in his assumption of the Lich Queen trying to aid him, though there was still the speculation that this was a trick on her part.
"Mother Superior, may we see him?"
"I have him in the isolation chamber as to avoid disturbing the others who are injured."
The large group calmly traveled down the hall ways of the temple and eventually came to the room called the isolation chamber. With the heavy door opened, in the brightly lit room, thanks to the large windows, they found Goblin Slayer once again in his usual armor sitting on the bed, clutching at his shoulder.
"Goblin Slayer?" Priestess was cautious as she looked at her teacher with unsure eyes.
"They have…been unsuccessful…in removing the curse."
For the moment he was still himself as the party and his friends entered the room to talk with him. Though they tried to put on a brave face for their friend, they all knew his time was running short.
"You can't lose hope yet Beardcutter, we'll get this figured out."
"The dwarf's right, besides, if you're not here to slay the goblins, then who will. I'm certainly not about to start covering myself in goblin entrails to hide my scent."
There was a brief chuckle for many of the people there, but it died down just as quickly as it began.
"If…if I am to turn…into this wraith…you must be prepared…to stop me."
The cold tone from Goblin Slayer was like a punch to the gut as he essentially asked them to kill him, if no solution could present itself. For many it was a look of disbelief, for other like Cow Girl, Guild Girl and Half-Dragon daughter they had to turn their heads away to avoid crying in front of him.
"Mi, Milord Goblin Slayer, surely there is no need to go that far."
"I…will not be able to stop myself, if I am consumed by the curse."
"That is why we are here."
It was a young voice drew everyone's attention toward the doorway, Hero and her party entered into the chamber followed by Sword Maiden and Noble Fencer. Though some of them were happy to see their fellow colleagues, there was still the surprise of having them appear so suddenly.
"The Hero and the Sword Maiden, what brings you all here?" Guild Girl, still surprised by their presence, bowed her head towards them.
"Prior to coming, we too had been helping in the recovery of Goblin Slayer as directed by Supreme God." Sword Maiden frowned as she looked upon Goblin Slayer.
"You received a handout as well?"
"Yes, the Supreme God gave the Sword Maiden and myself the same message, to find Goblin Slayer and do what we must to save the world." Hero looked uneasy as she glanced over toward Goblin Slayer. "You say that you were cursed by the Lich Queen and will become a wraith?"
"That…is what I…have been told."
"A wraith is a difficult opponent to deal with, it possess all the knowledge and skill of its host in addition to the power the entity bring with it. They are also nearly immortal, meaning if you lose control…there may not be a way to stop you." Hero had a poignant expression on her face as she took hold of the grip of her sword for, she knew what the Supreme God had intended for her. "If we are to save the world and prevent your transformation, it may be in our best interest to put you out of your misery now while you are still human."
Author's Note: Sorry this one took a little bit to come out, had a bout of writer's block trying to get this chapter going. For a couple of you I've spoken to, I had ideas for my next big stories going through my head and was busy writing them down. The next chapter will have our heroes attempt one final solution that may save Goblin Slayer but, in this process, they will have to come face to face with Slayer. While this is going on, the gods being the beings they are, will not let this chance go by. And at the same time, Necromancer is drawing ever closer to unleashing his horde upon the capital.