Argentum: Great! Onto the next chapter!
Slayer: Right… And what a doozy this one will be…
Argentum: Eyup! Great to have at least one of ya back for this.
Slayer: Look you're using one of my creations for this. So I thought it best to be here to help out.
Argentum: I guess…
Grel'Slyfer: So moving on from that we have an announcement to make!
Shadow: Alright time for my job! Ahem… I'm here to announce the winner of the poll! And the winner is… Cassandra, Chris, and someone else to be decided.
Argentum: Despite how that choice was a joke choice Judan added in. Though I guess I don't have any room to talk seeing how I decided to keep it.
Slayer: All your fault… should've known that was what people would be going for.
Argentum: Right… Oh well time to add in more fun things with Chris then.
Slayer: Kool.
Grel'Slyfer: Wrong spelling but meh…Oh yeah speaking of chapters. I hoped you like the last chapter's line break quote. For this chapter has one as well!
Slayer: Right… funny that you should say that because I was thinking on it. And I do believe I've-
Argentum/Grel'Slyfer: A no spoiler territory this is!
Slayer: I… alright fine… sheesh…
Shadow: The nerve of that guy...
Argentum: How about we now finish this authors section? Slayer mind sending us off?
Slayer: Now it's the comments section. Ahem… us here at the Dark Guard productions own nothing but OC's and reality building concepts. All else belongs to their respective owners. Now without further ado…
Everyone: Onwards to the story!
Argentum: Oi! Don't think I didn't see what you did there… Took me editing this chapter to see it… BUT I DO!
Slayer: Bro! I have no idea what you mean.~
Hello= Regular talk
Hello= Thoughts
[Hello]= Radio
(Hello)= Telepathy/Mind reading
Chapter Eleven: How I went a bit feral or… How I tried to outsmart a deal broker…
What Chris told us that evening was not what I was expecting… In fact I was still reeling from what she had told us. Thankfully Cassandra was able to process what had happened to our goddess thief faster than me. But like I said she was smarter than I was, so I listened to her as she put the situation into her own words.
"Correct me if I misunderstood… Within the time we were separated you were approached by this Gruldo Cane yes?" Chris nodded her head as Cassandra elaborated. "That man had then approached you and asked you on a date which you quickly refused. Now despite the dismissal he pressed on and offered you a bet. A bet on which if you won you'd be given three hundred thousand Eris, but if you lost you would have to perform to the best of your ability in his play… where another addendum was added. Only this one on whether you were a hit with the crowd. If you were successful you would have to go on a quest with him. If he did exceptional only then would you go on a date with him… does that about cover things?"
Chris nodded sheepishly. "Yeah… well you left out the part where I had to do what he wished on the date as long as it wasn't anything "creepy". But yes that about sums things up with the deal we made… Still can't believe he stole my money pouch before I stole his…" She grumbled that last part under her breath, but we still heard her and sighed. After a sheepish laugh she continued. "He also may have had some sort of compulsion affect that is forcing me to keep my end of the deal… now that's the part that is currently worrying me." I furrowed my brow at this little tidbit.
"Compulsion? Does that even work on a…" I trailed off while looking around to make sure no one heard us before whispering. "Does such a thing even work on a goddess?"
Chris grimaced before answering. "Well… compulsions from other gods and high-level demons work… but also special powers like the one you got also work on us." I hummed at that wondering who or what Gruldo was.
"Hmm… well if he was a demon… it would explain why I feel so uneasy around him." They both looked at me in confusion at my statement. "What's with those looks?"
Shaking her head Cassandra quickly answered. "Oh… well I certainly did not feel anything off about the man." Chris nodded her head and backed up what my elf princess said.
"I also didn't feel a thing." That got me to frown and Chris to hypothesize. "Maybe… maybe it's a skill you got? Or maybe your something to do with your eyes?"
As Cassandra nodded I shook my head. "No… I don't have any skill like that, and my eyes only allow me to see the "equations" of the world. Though next time I see him I'll make sure to use my eyes on him." Chris nodded thankfully at my words.
"Thanks…" She then bit her lower lip while looking at her feet. "I'll admit… I'm a little scared of what might happen. Especially after what happened during the play." She then looked up at us some fear in her eyes. "I was never any good at acting… but during the play… after getting a bit used to crowd… I suddenly became an expert! Part of the deal was that I'd go beyond what I thought I could during the play. If only to make the bet fair. His compulsion somehow made me so much better than what I was! And that scares me… it scares me a lot…" My gaze softened at her words and I quickly hugged her.
As Cassandra followed my lead I spoke. "Chris… I promise that we won't let anything happen to you. We'll find out what's going on and make sure he doesn't do anything to you." As our thief sniffled, Cassandra backed my words up.
"Trust us… for even if we have to follow you for both the quest you'll be going on… as well as this date if things work out like that. We will make sure nothing happens." Now smiling Chris hugged us both back but only kissed me on the cheek.
"Thank you both… once more I'm glad to finally have such awesome friends!" We smiled as she seemed to decide on something. "You know… this might seem as favoritism… but I don't care!" Our thief pulled away from us as she put a hand on each of our foreheads. "I hereby give you my greatest blessing my greatest friends~." Both of us glowed silver for a moment before I felt something shift. At our confusion Eris smiled at the both of us. "Take a look at your cards real quickly." Doing as she said I took a look… only for my jaw to nearly fall off.
My luck stat was now through the roof! "Wha-what did you just do?" She giggled for a moment before answering.
"I made the two of you my champions! Thus giving you an enormous boost to your luck! I felt it fitting since the two of you were going to do your best to protect me tomorrow~."
Cassandra was the first to try and refute her. "I… I cannot accept this! I was only doing this because you are our most precious friend! I am most sure Michael feels the absolute same! No doubt he will also agree with me stating that we need no reward for helping you!" I could only nod as our goddess smiled softly at us.
"I know that… but I want you two to have my greatest blessing anyways. Not only as a reward, not only as a thank you for the kindness you've shown me. But also because you two are my best friends… and I love you both…" She then winked at Cassandra. "Only platonically for you of course… I'm not into girls after all." Cassandra rolled her eyes before smirking herself.
What she said next turned Chris into a blushing mess. "Oh? Only platonically for me is it? Well how about for our handsome black haired ranger? What do you feel for him?" While Chris spluttered I frowned.
I don't remember having black hair… Looking up at a strand I simply huffed. My once brown hair had become much, much darker. Guess it's a change but an understandable one. Shaking my head I turned my thoughts towards the now arguing elf princess and thief goddess. Shaking my head I decided to put a stop to it for now. "Alright that's enough teasing our poor goddess." As Cassandra pouted adorably, a still red faced Chris smiled at me.
"Thank you… at least one of you knows when to put a stop to the teasing." She glared a Cassandra when she said that last part. I for one could only shake my head with a small smile.
"Heh… you know that we both love you right Chris?" Trying to get one last tease in Cassandra backed me up with a grin.
"That we do… though only platonically for me. I have no attraction to the fairer sex myself." Chris could only glare at her before huffing. "Is something the matter my dear friend?" After giving her the stink eye Chris turned to me.
"So… any ideas on how to keep an eye on him?" Rubbing my chin I thought on the situation at hand. Going over a number of situations that could and can happen, as I thought Chris and Cassandra waited patiently for me to finish thinking. They both knew that I while I was good at coming up with plans on the fly. I was much better when I had the time to think things through. When I had time to analyze all the different scenarios and various paths before me.
Eventually I grinned coming up with what I believed to be the best plan. "I think I got it… but first a question." I looked directly at Chris for this one. "Does the deal you're forced to comply with directly related to what the words of the deal were?" After a moment Chris nodded.
"I believe so… I mean I was forced to my absolute best for the play. And his words were that I do my best. Why do you ask?"
Smirking I continued with my plan. "Well… for the quest tomorrow he didn't say you two had to be alone. So my idea is for not only myself and Cassandra to join… but also for Darkness and her party to join." They looked at me in confusion as I elaborated. "Now hear me out! His words were that if he did exceptionally he you would go out on a date with him. My idea is for the standard of exceptional be skewed for the quest." Both my favorite girls cutely tilted their heads in confusion as I continued. "Okay look… we all know how insane Darkness' party is. However they still have skills and abilities that if used right are amazing. Then you have me, yourself, and Cassandra. If all of us outdo Gruldo in some fashion, then he won't perform exceptionally. Do you get what I'm saying now?" Cassandra's eyes lit up as she processed what I said.
"I see! The deal was if he performed exceptionally, however if everyone else does their best and outdo him in some way. It would mean that even if he was doing incredibly, Gruldo would only be performing averagely!"
Chris smiled viciously at my plan. "Ohoho! Now that's an idea I can get behind! This will teach him not to abuse his powers!" She then looked at me appraisingly. "Hmm… you know… if I ever get in trouble with the law would you be my lawyer?" I couldn't help but laugh and pat her head making her pout.
"If it were to help you out I'd study all the law books for you." I then turned and patted Cassandra on her head as well making her smile. "Same for you." Stopping my head pats I stretched out my back. "Alright… we should probably find Darkness and the others and ask them for their help. My whole plan does hinge on their willingness to help. Though if I must I'll just use the debt Kazuma and Aqua still owes me against them." That got the both of them to laugh as I simply smirked and started walking toward the guild hall. "Well come on, they're probably getting drunk at the guild." With nods they caught up to me and hugged my arms. Shaking my head I walked arm in arm with the both of them. Despite all the stares of jealousy towards me from the male populous. Guess some things are cliché for a reason…
We quickly found Darkness and her party eating and drinking at the guild building. Thankfully it didn't take much to convince Darkness and her party to help us out. Though I did have to forgive the debt I was owed, but it was for a good cause so I wasn't upset about it. We had also invited them back to the mansion where our teachers were rather accommodating. They even understood our reasons for skipping the next day's training. Though Cassandra and I were the ones who had to cook dinner that night. That same night the two of us were banned from cooking for the foreseeable future. Turns out we simply sucked at cooking… Or at the least suck at making dinner foods. After that it was time for a bath and then bed.
Though as I laid down I had to question my lovely princess on something. "So… what's the reason for the three of sleeping together this time?" Once more Chris was in-between myself and my princess. And she was blushing heavily from our positions. Cassandra on the other hand simply giggled.
"Hehehe… I thought that was clear already? The three of us are cuddle buddies as you have eloquently put it~." At her words me and our goddess gave my princess a bored look. She only stuck her tongue out at us. Looking at Chris and she at me, the two of us both sighed. There was simply no point in trying to argue with the beautiful elf. For much like the princess that she was… we could only give her what she wanted. Worst part about that was that Cassandra knew that as well. Laughing her melodic laugh for a bit at our looks, Cassandra hugged Chris to herself while reaching for me. "Come now~! Let's rest up for tomorrows trials~." As Chris blushed I rolled my eyes and hugged our goddess thief as well.
"Well least sleeping like this isn't uncomfortable." At my words a still blushing Chris nodded her head.
"I suppose you're right…" With those final words we all drifted off to sleep, knowing that we'd need our strength for tomorrow.
!hturt eht ot resolc gnitteg era uoy syas kaerb enil sihT
The next day the three of us had woken up to in a position we most certainly didn't go to sleep in. Somehow Chris had ended up on my left side, and Cassandra had ended up on my right… and both of them were on top of me. Now when it had happened with just Cassandra that was fine. We are together together now after all. Chris though… while I liked her a lot and found her quite beautiful… we were not together. So it was a little awkward for the two of us. Cassandra on the other hand…
"Oh this position is much more enjoyable~!" The two of us could only give her bored looks once again. She responded with her usual laugh. Deciding that this was just sort of our thing now, I got up and grabbed my stuff for the day.
Before I left I waved at them as I closed the door. "Well I'll give you two ladies some privacy. As for me I'll get ready and find the others for some breakfast." After the girls gave me the go ahead I left get myself ready in the bathroom. Once finished I actually found a tired looking Kazuma walking around in a daze. "Yo!" I was a bit louder than I intended and my fellow reincarnee seemed to jump out of his skin.
"AHH!" Turning towards my sheepish self he yelled at me. "Don't do that! I almost died again!" Chuckling a bit I apologized.
"Sorry about that man… I was simply trying to see what you were up to. That and I wanted to show you where breakfast was." Calming at my words he nodded his head while folding his arms.
"MHM! Sounds like a plan to me!" Shaking my head I quickly led him towards the dining area as I went to the kitchen. Now despite the last night's disaster I could still make simple breakfast items. Such as eggs, toast, sausage, and delicious bacon! I could also, in my humble opinion, make the greatest pancakes! So I decided on making just that, and thankfully with yesterday's food run we had plenty of ingredients. Eventually at some point Cassandra now dressed and ready, joined me in the kitchen.
Remembering last night as she asked what she could do to help I hastily answered. "Uh… you know I don't really need too much help right now. Instead you could help set the table for everyone. In fact you could get Kazuma in here for that? I think it would be best for at least one of us to keep an eye on those misfits… well that and I don't trust Kazuma to not do anything to Chris." Was I really upset about how Kazuma stole our thief's underwear still? Eh maybe a bit, but I more or less didn't trust Cassandra with much at the moment.
At my suggestion Cassandra nodded in understanding. "I suppose that makes sense. I'll go ask him to come in and help." Smiling brightly my princess walked up to me and gave me a quick kiss causing me to blush. "Hehehe… I have a desire to always get in one morning kiss. Though only to see you blush cutely." I couldn't help but give her the stink eye as Cassandra left laughing. Shaking my head I went back to cooking as Kazuma came in.
But like expected he was rather disgruntled. "And why did you ask for me specifically?" Shaking my head I place a large plate of scrambled eggs to the side. Next to it were the sausage and bacon.
"I asked for you specifically because the only other person I would trust with food is Chris. However I believe both she and Cassandra are enough to keep the others from breaking anything. As for Cassandra… after last night… well I don't trust her with anything besides cleaning at this point." Seeing my logic he nodded his head sagely.
"In that case then I'm the only one you could call aren't I?" I was actually quite please on how he picked up on the situation as quickly as he did. But then again… his only other above average stat was intelligence so his intuition only made sense.
Smirking I gave a nod as I pointed to a plate of food. "Got it in one my friend! Now take this out there please, still got more pancakes to make… especially with Cassandra out there." Furrowing my brow I quickly asked him a question. "Is there anyone in your party that eats as much as my beautiful yet gluttonous elf?" He snorted before answering.
"Pfft… thankfully not! I doubt our funds would last if we did! It's bad enough with Aqua frequently increasing her debt! We don't need anyone who eats as much as your girlfriend… uh no offense or anything…" Shaking my head I waved him off as he picked up the egg plate.
"Nah… no offense taken, I mean there was a reason I called her gluttonous." Giving out a laugh he left with the food as I created another pancake. "Heh… though I guess I wouldn't have her any other way." As I hummed away while I cooked, trying to pass the time away as things finished up. Time would fly by, and soon enough I was done… and so was Cassandra and everyone else. Turns out no one waited as I cooked. Thus leaving me to eat alone as we all discussed the plan of action.
Kazuma was actually the firs to get the ball rolling on that. "Soooo… what's the plan here exactly? I mean with everyone we'll be having, the job we go on will need to be a good one." The panty thief than grimaced. "And if I'm honest… my party isn't all the great when it comes to the harder ones. In fact the only one I can really rely on is Darkness." As Aqua and Megumin started beating on him for his words, the rest of us started thinking. Unfortunately that's when Darkness spoke up with enthusiasm.
"OH! OH! I have the perfect job in mind!" We all hesitantly turned towards her. "OH! Those scathing looks! They're simply wonderful ~!" After letting some of… "that"… out of her system she continued. "Ahem… well I saw a job to kill a wyvern on the board yesterday. If that's still there… then it would be a perfect job for what we're planning!"
Scratching her chin Chris spoke up. "That… that's actually a pretty good idea Darkness." Grinning she spoke out the thought she was having. "Usually large groups do come together to kill the dragonkin… and though Michael, Cassandra, and myself would normally be enough to take care of it ourselves… if we have the rest of you try your hardest to help take it down… then that creep Gruldo would have no leg to stand on! Great job remembering that job Darkness!" The compliment actually embarrassed our masochistic crusader as she blushed and rubbed the back of her head.
"Oh no! I just wanted to see if I could convince the others to do the job today is all! No need to compliment me or anything!" Darkness' reaction quickly got the rest of us to laugh at her, making the crusader pout. "HEY! This isn't the kind of embarrassment I enj- I mean can tolerate!" That got us to stop, and while my party could only look at her fondly. Her party quickly sighed in disappointment. "I… I don't know how to process these two very distinct looks…"
After a bit more of poking fun at Darkness I was finally done. "Alright time to clean up and go meet Mr. Top hat I suppose." Seeing what might happen if we fail everyone became slightly more serious. Seeing their determination made me nod in approval… and I just had to ruin the serious air about. "But first… we need to clean up the table and then the kitchen.~" Everyone seemed to fall over comically as I laughed and started cleaning. After cleaning it was finally time to head out, everyone was ready and had their gear prepared. It was time to hunt down a wyvern.
When we arrived at the guild building we could see that Gruldo was there waiting. A black and red cane one that complemented his attire at his side. I couldn't help but grit my teeth as he looked up and waved at us. Not even bothered about our large group.
It's as if he already expected us to bring in reinforcements. It was strange… as I looked at him… something in me wanted to either kill him or run away from him. There was also a sense of competition brought out of me. A need… a desire to beat this… man at his own games… I've never felt this was in my entire life. Even against that bastard Nel'Ren I didn't feel this way… no for the Darkwraith there was the desire for vengeance. This… this was something completely different. Just what is with this guy… and why am I the only one feeling this way? Shaking my head I led the way over to him as Chris spoke up. Her smile strained as she greeted him.
"Hey there~! Sorry for making you wait for so long, but I thought that we could go on a job with my friends. That cool with you?" Like I feared Gruldo didn't seem to mind at all. In fact by the tone of his voice he seemed happy that we were invited.
"No No~! All is well my dear~! The more the merrier is what I always say." He then gestured to everyone. "But please… do introduce your friends here~. I simply adore meeting new people." His polite voice grated on everyone's nerves, but Chris still introduced everyone. But when Aqua was introduced his gaze settled on her for just a moment longer than the others. It was something I normally wouldn't notice, but since I was so hyper focused on the man I managed to pick up on it. Almost instantly did warning bells go off inside my head.
Please don't tell me he knows who both Chris and Aqua actually are! Though it may have been paranoia on my part, it was a possibility I did not dismiss. I decided something right then and there… I wasn't ever going to let him be alone with either Chris or Aqua. Well mostly Chris… pretty sure Aqua is attached by to hip to Kazuma. Shaking my head I went back to observing Gruldo as Chris clapped her hands.
"And that's everyone~! Now we have already decided upon a job… well if it's still there that is. Hope you don't mind too much?"
Gruldo laughed her off with a wave of his hand. "HAHA! No issue here at all my dear~! In fact I was hoping that you'd pick a quest yourself! Would make the challenge even more interesting~." There it was… I couldn't help but grimace as my suspicion of him knowing that Chris would bring help was pretty much confirmed. The only ones who seemed to pick up on his words were Cassandra and Darkness. Now I could understand Cassandra, her being that she probably had to deal with guys like this in royal court. As for Darkness… well I had guessed was that the crusader was much more attentive than I first thought.
Thankfully the wyvern quest was still there, though when shown Gruldo gained this feral look. "Ooh… a wyvern… I think this is a perfect job." He then chuckled before continuing. "I do hate dragons and their relatives. Such unseemly beasts…" In the next instant the look was gone and he was smiling. "It's almost as if fate is shining down on us~! Now I hope that you are all prepared for we have an unsightly beast to slay~." Everyone stiffly nodded their heads as he got up and started leading the way out. That time… I knew everyone felt what I had felt from him.
Aqua shivering spoke up. "Umm… is it too late to back out of this now?" Both Kazuma and Megumin seemed to agree with her sentiment, thankfully Darkness quickly took charge.
"That would be dishonorable! We agreed to this and now we must do as we said we would! Plus the quest has a six hundred thousand Eris reward and we could really use the money." That got them into high gear.
So as they shouted in courage and began leaving themselves I sighed. Ah yes… greed is truly as wondrous motivation… Shaking my head I gave Darkness a thumb's up which she returned with a smile. It was time to hunt us down a wyvern.
!hturt eht ot resolc gnitteg era uoy syas kaerb enil sihT
It took us an hour to finally find the roost where the dragonkin lived. It had made a large nest out of rock and wood in the middle of a nearby forest. In fact it was the same forest where Cassandra and I slew our first Leshen. Seemed as if the wyvern took the opportunity to take over once the competition was no more. I scenery certainly brought back memories is nothing else. Unfortunately it seemed as if the wyvern was off hunting. Thankfully this left us the chance to set up an ambush. This was where my plan truly came into play. Taking out a magic reinforcement potion, I increased the amount of MP I had at my disposal by two hundred. Just barely enough to use my minor territory creation spell.
It was my first time using it, but it was simple enough. All I did was use it to hide all of our smells and presences. It wasn't invisibility but it would fool the wyvern enough to allow the first stirke. Once that was completed I drank a few MP potions to recover some of my strength. After that I gave out my instructions.
"Alright the plan is this…" I turned to address Megumin first. "We will first have Megumin use her explosion spell on it. Weakening it before the battle has even begun. Also if you can aim for its back where its wings connect. A grounded wyvern will be much easier to deal with than a flying one." Megumin nodded as I turned to Chris. "You'll be the skirmisher in the fight, dealing out quick and light damage to help whittle the wyvern's strength down." Chris nodded as I turned to Cassandra and Darkness. "You two will be the main front line fighters. For out of all of us you have the strongest armor and defense. So you two will be able to take the most hits and deal out the most damage." While Cassandra nodded in understanding… Darkness nodded in excitement. Liking the thought of getting hit by the winged monster.
Shaking my head I turned to Kazuma. "You will be protecting both Aqua and Megumin. The first of who will be on healing duty, while the later… well you know what she'll be doing." As Megumin pouted Kazuma nodded sagely. I smirked before turning to Gruldo. "Hmm so what can you do exactly?"
Gruldo smirked himself before answering as he tapped his cane on the ground. "Oh… a little of this and that… though I can hit pretty my trusty cane." I narrowed my eyes as he had deliberately left his abilities vague. However wanting to make him the most useless among us I gave him a simple job.
"If that's the case… then if Cassandra, Chris, myself, or Darkness happen to not be able to fight anymore. That's when you can come in." Despite basically regaling him to the background Gruldo continued to smirk and accept my decision.
"A solid plan… always good to have someone on the side lines in case something goes wrong~." Though I turned away my gaze with a nod I did narrow my eyes.
Just what is this man planning? Shaking my head I decided to focus on the now. If he tries something I'll just need to adjust and come up with some kind of excuse. I couldn't help but sigh at that. Ugh… is this what a lawyer feels like? With that thought I sat down waiting, prompting everyone else to do the same. Though as usual both Cassandra and Chris sat down next to me.
Though this time Chris was whispering to me worriedly. "It's as if nothing fazes this guy… do you think he planned against our plan somehow?" Though I didn't want to worry Chris I also didn't want to lie. So told her my suspicions which only made her look a bit fearful. "Oh… that's not good…" Smiling warmly I gave her a one armed hug as Cassandra moved to her other side to do the same. "Thanks guys… I needed that." We simply smiled and continued to hug our goddess thief.
It would be an hour before Cassandra picked up on the sounds of wingbeats. "Hmm… the time has come my friends!" Blinking I didn't question her and stood up. Getting out my bow and notching in an arrow. Using a new spell I had gained by through the ranger class, I enchanted the arrow with fireball. As everyone else got into position I could now hear wingbeats myself. Looking up I could see the giant monster slowly start landing on its nest. A large cow inside of its fanged maw. As soon as it was almost down I looked to where Megumin was hiding and nodded. Smiling fiercely Megumin took full advantage of her concealment and started chanting.
I was surprised to see her explosion was even stronger than it was last time. "Did she seriously increase its power without increasing her reserves first?!" At my question Kazuma rubbed his head sheepishly. Normally I'd have something else to say but the loud roar of the wyvern drew my attention. It would appear that I had survived… and it was pissed. "Alright… figured it would survive… Alright everyone you know your jobs!" With a yell our front liners charged in as I fired my arrow into its open jaw. While it didn't do too much damage it did cause the wyvern to reel back in some pain. Roaring in displeasure as it did so.
Chris with her advanced speed was the first to strike. Having taken up duel-wielding daggers, her attack was rather successful. Smirking I started firing arrows at its hide as Cassandra and Darkness reached it. Our plan was working remarkably well, in fact it was working so well… that I had begun to think we could make it so Gruldo wouldn't even be able to do anything. The wyvern's wings were damaged, and thanks to my first shot it couldn't even breathe out its breath attack.
"Heh… all too easy." Hearing those words from my left I turned to Gruldo who hadn't lost his smile. As if he knew something was going to happen that I didn't. Unfortunately before I could question him something began happening. The wyvern seemed to roar and send out a wave of concussive force. Sending our three front fighters flying, Darkness rammed into Kazuma much to his pain if his yell was any indication. While Cassandra and Chris were sent at me, though I was able to catch them with difficulty.
Now huffing Chris spoke in shock. "What… What was that?!" I had no answer… no… I could only watch in morbid fascination as the wyvern's once brown reddish scales turned black. And its eyes, before yellow but now red and full of hate turned towards us. As it opened its jaw towards us I panicked and still holding onto my two favorite girls jumped back.
As a beam of black lightning hit where I once was I couldn't help but yell in panic. "That's not supposed to happen!" Everyone was now in a panic… everyone but Gruldo who only seemed to look at the transformed wyvern in interest. I could see in his purple eyes that he while he wasn't expecting this. He didn't mind this outcome at all. Gritting my teeth I set down my girls and unsheathed my sword. My bow now a burnt mess along with a large piece of the forest floor. Gripping my sword I charged forward. Getting up and close to the wyvern to avoid its tail and jaw I swung upwards. The beast however also seemed to have become faster. For I was only able to shear off a bit of one of its jaw spikes, I then had to duck as it tried to impale me on another.
Thankfully my back up arrived quickly and Cassandra blocked off a bite attack with her shield. Jamming her large kite shield into its nose. It reeled back and then sneezed some lighting at us. We were able to dodge as Chris ran up and struck at its back legs. It only did superfluous damage but distracted it enough for me and my princess to carve in some chest wounds. Roaring in pain it jumped into the sky and flew for a moment before unleashing a large amount of black lightning on the whole nest site. All of us had to duck and cover, though it didn't matter too much as we were all sent flying. I myself had slammed my left arm into a tree… and the tree wasn't the thing that snapped.
Gritting my teeth to stop myself from screaming out in pain I used a heal spell to fix my arm. Looking around I could see everyone groaning in pain. In particular Chris and Cassandra having also been in the blast radius looked the most hurt. Thankfully Aqua somehow made it unscathed and had quickly started healing everyone else. Seeing how everyone would be fine I stood up and quickly got out my card.
I don't want to do this… but I don't have much choice… guess that elemental sword skill will have to wait. Sighing I dumped all my remaining points into dexterity. Instantly boosting the stat to an even two hundred. Even ignoring the skill I gained from it I could feel it now… the instant speed and agility boost was awesome! Heh… let's see if it can keep up with me now?! With a feral grin I charged in with a yell drawing its attention to myself. It had hurt my friends and my girls… so now… I'm going to cut it to pieces! Jumping on a tree I swiftly kicked off it to reach my prey. I was too fast for it and I cut into my prey's wing. Hot blood sprayed onto me, some even getting into my mouth. But I ignored it and grabbed onto a back spine. My prey was screeching and roaring, trying to buck me off as I slashed at its wings. For a moment I could see Gruldo, and for once his face showed shock behind his dark glasses.
That filled me with glee as I continued to rip into my prey. I hurt those I care about! It will pay! I didn't know where these thoughts were coming from... Where these feelings were coming from… All I knew… was that I was enjoying tearing this thing apart. As I fought my Lyb'Craeft was in full swing. Taking in anything and everything, so I wasn't too surprised when I noticed my prey about to send out another burst of energy. Jumping off I stabbed my sword into a tree as it exploded with power. My prey had missed me completely, but as I smirked I saw Kazuma take up his sword and toss it at my prey.
Thanks to his enormous luck his sword somehow lodged into my prey's side. Causing it to roar in anguish, causing me to be rather impressed with Kazuma's action. I could tell that he was scared but he still was brave enough to try and do something. That's when something… happened…
Everything was going well, we had my prey on the ropes, and I was in position to attack once again. Using my eyes I could see that my prey was halfway weakened. I just needed to push a little more and it would be the end. But whether it was my new state of primal fury, or Kazuma's lucky hit that motivated him… Gruldo had decided to step up to the plate. He was fast… even faster than myself. But with one jump he was in front of my prey. His cane up and swinging… my eyes processed everything. How he collected an enormous amount of magical energy into the cane, and how he unleashed it in one slash. The wyvern didn't stand a ghost of a chance.
As Gruldo landed the wyvern was cut in half shocking all of us. As the wyvern fell so too did our hearts… for though the battle was won… we had lost in another way. Dropping down I looked over to see Chris' shocked expression. I also saw some fear in her eyes, so doing what I could I walked over to her and hugged her tightly.
"Don't worry… we'll follow to make sure he doesn't try anything." Chris could only nod gratefully while she buried her face into my chest. Walking up to us, Cassandra put a hand on my thief's back comfortingly. When I heard joyous laughter I couldn't help but turn around and glare at Gruldo.
"HAHAH! AH! My prowess has once again shocked and awe all!" As I let go of Chris he turned to us with a smile. "So my dear~! Do you find myself to have done exceptionally?" As if compelled to nod Chris did so with a shaky smile.
"Ye-Yes… sorry if I'm a little shocked… I just didn't think you could do such an attack."
He waved her off with a laugh. "HAHA! No worries my dear~! A perfectly reasonable response! Now then… it would appear that I've won our little bet now doesn't it?" Chris once again seemed forced to nod. "Perfect! We'll talk about our date when we reach the guildhall! Now come my companions! Let us rejoice over our victory!" The man then with monstrous strength, picked up both halves of the wyvern and started dragging it back to Axel.
With gritted teeth I spoke to those everyone. "Dammit… if only he had held off a bit longer! I could've killed it myself!" Sighing Chris shook her head.
"Yes… you could have… probably why he struck when he did… still have no idea how the wyvern transformed. But even Gruldo looked a bit surprised when it did, so he didn't plan for that… no he only took advantage of it." She then looked up me. "Please… please make sure he doesn't try anything tomorrow!" Patting her head I gave a kind smile.
"Don't worry… I promise we won't let him do anything. If he tries I'll personally cut off one of his hands." Chris actually laughed at that while everyone else but Cassandra looked at me fearfully. My princess only smiled at my words, seemingly in full support. Taking a breath to release some anger I turned to everyone else. "Okay… from this point on it's basically just us three. Thanks for all your help however… despite what happened you helped out quite a bit. And for that we thank you." With my words said I couldn't help but bow a bit in gratitude. Now while Megumin, Darkness, and Kazuma seemed a bit bashful at my actions. Aqua on the other hand…
"OHOHOH! Finally recognizing me for my greatness eh?! Well! I'm glad you saw the light at long last. Now I for payment for my services I'll nee-" She was cut off as Kazuma started pulling her cheeks.
"Stop it! You're embarrassing us all right now!" As Aqua begged for forgiveness and the rest of their party sighed in exasperation. My little group could only laugh at their antics. Having some levity returned to all of us. Stopping my laughter after a few moments, I took out my card and whistled at my level. Now level seventy five, I had gone up a whole five levels. Seeing this I quickly distributed my points and put it away. Feeling much stronger than I once was.
It was a good thing to… seeing how much strength I'd need to even attempt to compete with Gruldo. I knew that even if I wanted not to… I would still have to fight Gruldo tomorrow. Call it paranoia… call it intuition… all I knew was that I wanted to either put him in the ground, or take those I care about and run as far away from him as I could. There was no in-between, however with Chris being in some sort of binding deal… I had to stay put and fight. There were also two new perks that weren't there before… a perk that feels as if it should've been there all along. Yet only showed up now. Deciding to look at them later I shook my head and put my card away.
My next action was to both take my thief's hand in my left, and my princess' hand in my right and speak up. "Alright everyone… we should probably get going now. Don't want Gruldo to get suspicious about why we're taking so long." As everyone voiced their understanding I began leading the way out. Thinking about the day to come. If that bastard thinks he can do whatever he wants to my thief than he has another thing coming! Prepare yourself well for tomorrow Gruldo Cane… because you're going to need all the help you can get. With those thoughts I walked hand in hand with my girls towards the next dawn. Having no idea what was going on with either myself… or even my new enemy.
!hturt eht ot resolc gnitteg era uoy syas kaerb enil sihT
Argentum: YES! Finally done with this chapter! Man did it take a while to put everything into place!
Slayer: I think it went marginally well though. Lots of little bits of foreshadowing and hints about the future.
Argentum: Yeah… the hard part was deciding what to foreshadow. And how not to make it too obvious. But I think it works.
Chris: HA! I'm still going to have to go on a date with the creepy deal maker! And you said I was now part of your harem…
Argentum: Well… it's a very small one but don't worry! It's better than the alternative which I had originally thought of for you!
Slayer: What was the alternative anyways?
Argentum: Oh it was Chris dying.
Everyone-Argentum: WHAT?!
Argentum: Yep… glad it turned out differently now.
Cassandra: Oh I do agree with that sentiment.
Chris: So do I!
Grel'Slyfer: It would appear that Judan has rubbed off on you a bit… Pretty sure he killed a main character in his void emperor story.
Argentum: Yeah… anyways we should probably end this now. Cassandra mind doing so?
Cassandra: Not at all… Ahem… This has been a Dark Guard production now signing off!
Everyone: Goodbye!