Author's Note: I've really been writing a lot of Digital/Extra, time for a Life of a Zero Dragon chapter! Also, greetings to all those who are joining us! And welcome back my readers!
P.s. I went to Disney World! Had a nice time! Especially at Epcot, so much food, even bought a few eastern dragon statuettes. I should put Eastern Dragons in LoaD Sequel some day.
MasterXMaster: That status menu at the end might hold some significance! But rest assured, I won't kill characters without proper development.
AsahinaTora: Level ups, level ups everywhere! I enjoy some good D&D myself!
Muraku: Princess has already shown up (Abigail), but her coming into this world didn't go so well, the system probably doesn't know what to make of her.
Enjoy the chapter everybody! This is a big one!
Life of a Zero Dragon
Chapter 31: Role Playing Game
"My King, scouts report on the border of Kayla Kingdom matches with the testaments of the merchants. We are surrounded on all sides by foreign territory and could not reach more outward without being considered an hostile movement," Marthan spoke as he folded back together a scroll.
King Aylmer of Kayla, the eighth player, pressed a hand against the wooden table as his eyes scoured over the map details presented. "Mhm…" He muttered, "To the north, Germania… South, Romania. While westward lies both Gallia and Tristan. Then we have little information concerning the eastern borders outside rumored speculations…" Aylmer trailed off as he pointed to each area in question, the borders vaguely drawn in comparison to another map in which lied the Halkeginia's drawn landscape before the Transition.
He looked upward, around this table were four other individuals besides himself and Marrhan. These people of reputable notice were part of the hidden or shown lore of the Kayla Kingdom, the noble houses of Kayla.
The House of Volt.
The House of Sapphire.
The House of Stars.
And the House of Iron.
In the game, they were unknown background knowledge, only the Map Maker and a few of his testers knew of this information. However, whatever lore that had been drafted or put into the game had come to life and develop itself into reality. Now Aylmer had to deal with these four noble houses on top of the management of the Kayla Kingdom. It had proved a hassle, and only whatever skill he had in roleplaying and acting kept him from possibly making things worse for him.
The House of Volt seemed to be at most minor nobles, not to mention the least influential in the political atmosphere of the Kingdom. Their leader, a tall woman with long red hair, which seemed to be commonplace color in her household, garbed in padded leather armor and chainmail corset, she also carried with her a unique item.
It was a glaive, an odd weapon choice. But regardless, this Lady Narin Volt remained mostly impassive to his decisions.
On the other side, an old man who looked quite militaristic in Aylmer's eyes, was the current leader of the also minor noble House of Star. He was also, apparently, Kayla Kingdom's current general of high-tiered soldiers outside of the Legionnaires, of which were only loyal to Aylmer himself. The man's face was wrinkled, and his hair gray and dull, but his position remained upright and proud, matched by the steel breastplate he wore.
Sir Walter Vikostar was quite the militaristic man.
Then there was the asshole, in Aylmer's opinion, a stuck up stereotypical noble man who believed that he was entitled to everything. As leader of the House of Sapphire, he was indeed a political challenge to the player, but his loyalties stilled lied to Aylmer, not to mention he was the one who overseers Arcantis, which was probably the only thing keeping the prince from wringing the man's neck in frustration.
Duke Michael Sapphire, mage and prick both.
Finally, the de facto noble of Desert City, he who is in charge of the city's populace outside the monarchy. A man whom had the highest economical mindset amongst all the nobility at this table. He worse a lavished robe, but his face was quite rugged, around his neck was some sort of amulet or necklace, with a symbol Aylmer had recently distinguished to be that which dedicated worshippers of the Maker wore. This told the player that this particular noble was a religious man, not just a merchant.
Lord Arathor Iron, a man of religion and prosperity, of which who spoke first.
"While I appreciate the expansion of the additional acres, this wide change of landscape has had its own effects on Desert City. A many merchants have reported increased duration in travel time between Farmer's Cross and our city, which makes it more difficult for food stuffs and essential supplies to arrive on date," Arathor spoke.
Aylmer looked towards the Duke, "If I recall, I had asked the mages of Arcantis to rectify travel time with the ships going up and down the river?"
"You can't expect the magic users to create additional means overnight my King," Duke Michael replied. "The study into Arana Kingdom's lost magics takes time and resources, of which we lack the latter with the displacement of Orangebark Forest's tin and copper mounds with the whole biome itself."
"Not to mention," Sir Vikostar began, "Our military is spread thin as it is, most of the cities are guarded with militia alone, an exception to that being the Capital itself and Arcantis, which has its own spellcasters."
Lady Narin Volt decided to speak, "What of the Legionnaires? Can we not spare a few from the Capital to protect the roads and cities?"
Vikostar shook his head, "Not without leaving the Capital and the Princess herself left unguarded save but a few basic footmen."
Aylmer knew that Vikostar did not mention the King due to Aylmer himself being a Hero, which ties him to the Altar of Kings. Abigail, however, does not have such a fortunate binding, making assassination a plausible action against the girl.
He would sooner abandon all of the Kayla Kingdom than let his younger sister come to harm.
"That is not an option," Aylmer stated. "We have troops in training at this very moment, which should lessen the strain of our current army upon their completion. Until then, the cities will have to make due with its current defenses. Have all current fortifications been upgraded with Guard or Arcane Towers?" He asked.
Lord Iron brought out a slit of paper, unraveling out, "As of two days prior, all upgrades made to Scout Towers have been converted into Guard Towers as well as a small stone wall barricade built on the southern entrance into Desert City."
Aylmer nodded, that created a fortified front against any attacks from the south, they would to make an extended siege against the city or risk bottlenecking into a death hole of arrows to enter.
Lady Volt questioned, "What of Winterfall? The smallest city had any problems?"
Aylmer replied, "They have been fine, even better without the nuisance of Ice Trolls."
Marthan grabbed a report from a young man that had entered the room, he read it and said, "My liege, this letter has news."
"What is it, Marthan?" Aylmer asked.
"A report from Winterfall, most of it is basic information but there is a note tied to it that a dragonet has been spotted in company with a foreigner," the advisor said.
Lady Narin Volt took a definite note of interest at the mention of a dragon-related topic, "A dragonet? All studies in dragons tell that dragonets barely leave the safety of the nests. Only one notable exception applies."
Vikostar looked to her, "You don't mean a Chosen Dragon?"
She nods, "If they are born, it could entitle that this worldly shift has more to it than we think," Lady Volt finished.
Duke Sapphire scoffed, "Typical for a Dragon Knight to be concerned over the appearance of dragons."
Lady Volt glared at the Duke, "Like you could understand the implications of a Chosen Dragon, it is only your history that should explain the monumental deeds they have done two centuries ago."
"I don't deal with history, my Lady, I deal with what is now," the Duke responded.
"That is enough, we are more important matters than petty argument," Aylmer raised his voice. "Chosen Dragons or not, we are the the precipice of potential conflict with neighboring nations with unknown capability. For all we know, they could be more advanced and powerful than the fallen Arana Kingdom, or they could very well be weaker than us. What we do know is that whether we like it or not, we are surrounded at all sides."
"Not to mention," Vikostar said, "Polarvale is currently under demon occupation. While we do have forces stationed just outside, the threat still remains."
Lord Iron looked to his King, "Let us not forget that the information we've gathered thus far has not put a kind light on our closest neighbor, Gallia."
Aylmer frowned, coupled with the Arcane Tower's revelation of the Orcish Empire, it really puts a tight knot of how much the Kayla Kingdom could do at this time.
The King of Kayla spoke, "For now, our more pressing matters lies at home. The first order of business is building a sizable, well-equipped army that can retake Polarvale City under our control. During which our scouts and spies can gather more information about the surrounding nations. Meeting dismissed."
Saito Hiraga placed a map on top a small table, careful not to use his claws to shred the thin parchment. He looked up towards the bed, the small room provided for them in this inn provided adequate accommodations. Though, compared to modern day, even a motel would have been better. It was atypical, a plain wooden bed with the parts made of mostly animal skin lain atop one another to form the mattress along with some hay. Still, it was better than sleeping outside.
Louise Valliere had her cloak folded and placed on the other side of the table, she had rested herself in the same clothing she had worn for around two to three days now. Saito can guess she was discomforted with the fact she had no clean alternatives to wear.
"Louise," He spoke, garnering her attention towards him, the mage stood up and walked towards the table.
"You found a map, Erisdar?" Louise questioned.
"Yes, it may be outdated but it should serve its purpose," Saito said. He wondered absently what had changed him since becoming a Chosen Dragon, his mind did feel more clear, and it was easier to pick apart information. That did not mean he was any smarter, but he could hazard a guess that perhaps he just filtered knowledge better.
Saito circled the map with a claw, "Alright, see this area? This is the human kingdom of Kayla, it's quite large but in comparison to Tristain it might be smaller."
Louise nodded, "Yes, though are all these major cities? Most of Tristain comprises of villages or towns, with very few large cities." The mage could probably count the number of cities on one hand.
"Yeah," Saito answered her. "We're in Winterfall, up here, smallest of the cities. If Winterfall has changed this much, it is likely the other would be significantly larger." He could only imagine how massive the Capital must be now, its walls might put any of Earth's counterparts to shame.
Ugh, he only knew bits and pieces of the lore, mostly just gameplay stuff.
"How do you even know this…?"
"Instinctual knowledge," He lied, Saito doubted that Louise would believe the truth.
"Once we get to the capital we can settle down from all the traveling," Saito said. "But we do have a problem, this road is filled with brigands and they are relentless."
They were hostile NPCs, mobs, creeps, however term you used to imply to them it remained all the same. They were not players, not real characters, and Saito believed that Louise was far from the static nature of non-player characters. He was now a color, and also a Warcraft III hero, he could rid the brigands, gain some experience points and also a potential item or two. But, Louise didn't know they were NPCs, he doubted she even knew what the term meant, she could become a liability if he were to conduct this raid.
He could feel his heart pump, eager anticipation, it was a feeling he experienced a few times before. Always occurring in the midst of battle or right before it, perhaps this was the inner instinct that made him a dragon? If so, did that make his human mind shift? He did not believe so, for while he could feel different sensations or pulls towards certain subjects, he felt entirely himself within the depths of his own mind.
"Why hasn't the guard dealt with them yet?" Louise questioned.
"They aren't exactly well-equipped to do so," Saito replied, "You did see them, mostly town guardsmen, not soldiers."
He spotted Louise's hand tightening her grip on her wand, "So you say we have to fight them again…?"
Her voice wavered, but it remained collected, clearly having some sort of training in matters.
"Hey, Louise, didn't you say you were a noble? What's your family like?" He changed the subject.
"Well, the Valliere family is an esteemed line connected to royalty itself," Her attitude shifted into a boastful one, "We are well known, dating back hundreds of years, having a reputation for being with the crown's military. My mother is widely known as the strongest square class wind mage in the present day."
"How strong?"
"She once told me a tale on how she destroyed an entire fort of bandits in mere minutes with a single spell," Louise said.
If Saito could whistle, he would have, because that level of power would be like a high level character wiping out the brigand encampment. Though, he would not tell his female partner that a character like that would be slaughtering a camp in seconds instead of minutes. But, the scale of the battle would probably be smaller in-game then it would be after the Transition.
He would speak further, but his stomach decided to growl.
"Hungry?" Louise said with a smirk.
"Guess so, let's go get our meal."
Food first, journey later.
Alex Storm had taken the opportunity to think clearly, there had been a number of events that occurred in such a fast pace that even the Chosen Dragon had to take time to back up and rest. While he was a Chosen Dragon, that didn't discount the fact that he was still a dragonet, the child stage of a dragon's lifespan. He had hoped that they would have found the location of the Dragon Knight city of Icra, but it turned out that not only was the Great Kayla Desert significantly larger, but also that it may have been possible that Icra City itself may have moved.
Whether it was the Map Maker or the Transition, Alex theorized that Icra City is nowhere to be found in or near the Great Kayla Desert. Not that it mattered, they were exhausted, had barely to little supplies, and had only just increased their party size with the addition of Tabitha and Sylphid. While normally having an increased party size in Life of a Dragon Sequel would warrant good tiding, as it would be easier to deal with dangerous enemies, the Transition made the notion a more complicated subject.
First, Tabitha was a valuable companion, she had shared a lot of knowledge about Halkeginia that both Elizabeth and he didn't know. In return, Elizabeth explained many aspects about Kayla, the world of the Warcraft III map. Amazingly, there had been an odd set of parallel occurrences that happened at almost exactly the same instance in which the Transition had occurred.
He also noticed how he had been referring to the incident as the 'Transition' as if he has already known about it. Which was even weirder considering that Elizabeth also became aware of that she also referred to it as such.
In any case, apparently, there was another Chosen Dragon out there, who had been named Erisdar. He was summoned by a mage noble called Louise, just at the same exact time, all of this occurred.
Alex had a hard time believing a lone teenager girl has the enormous power to pull off something as grand as bringing Kayla's world to life, but he couldn't deny that she was possibly linked to whatever the true reason behind the Transition was. Still, she was an impressive individual to summon a Chosen Dragon by her side, if the lore was any implication, Louise must pack some serious magical energy behind her.
After all, failure in spellcasting or not, if you shoved enough energy into something then you would get results in a explosive matter. The word 'explosive' being less about the result of kinetic energy and more along the sides of dangerous large-scale side effects.
But he's spent too much time thinking deeply.
"How is everyone?" Alex asked his companions.
Elizabeth looked to him, "Ever watched a survival documentary where they don't sleep for two days?" She asked in a sarcastic, but tired, tone.
"No… But I can understand where you're coming from," He responded. They hadn't slept for more than twenty-four hours, rested sure, but they even a Warcraft Hero's body requires proper sleep.
Tabitha raised her head a bit, "Same," She responded briefly in her usual demeanor, but her voice was strained with exhaustion.
"Kyuu," Sylphid replied, Tabitha's familiar, whined.
"Alright then," Elizabeth began. "Since it seems we can't find Icra City, we should return to Desert City back in the Kayla Kingdom," She said.
There was more to those words, Alex Storm had noticed the immediate difference in abilities between himself and Elizabeth. It wasn't just the obvious spells, but rather, the Mercenary woman's lack of the Attribute Bonus. At first glance, missing such a Hero ability might not do much, but the more you continue to level the more apparent it became.
Attribute Bonus was a passive Hero Ability with twelve levels, each level increased the Hero's natural stats by three. That includes Strength, Agility, and Intelligence, if you multiplied that by twelve, it would equivalent to thirty-six points for each individual stat.
That more hit points, more mana, higher damage, increased armor rating, quicker speed, etc.
And the Sorceress Mercenary lacked that.
It was crucial, because every single other Hero in Life of a Dragon Sequel had the Attribute Bonus ability, for the Sorceress to not have such a vital skill would make playing her incredibly challenging. The map was balanced around to take Attribute Bonus into consideration, to lack it would be like switching the game's difficulty from normal to hard.
"You sure?" Alex questioned, "Desert City could be a long way from our current position. It's better we return to the Bronze Nest," The Bronze Chosen Dragon said.
"It's probably the same distance at this point," the Mercenary stated.
"Well, then we're just-"
The Lord of Tauren has come forth.
"Shit!" Alex cursed as his wings beat his body back in a single, strong motion, having narrowly avoided being turned into draconic pancake. He glanced back at his previous position to spot a large tauren, it's skin seemed to be tinted a murky orange hue and a large two-handed log rested on the massive creep's shoulder.
"An event!?" Elizabeth took a few steps back as her body adjusted itself to the change of the situation, her legs lowering and both hands outstretched to begin spellcasting at any moment.
Tabitha struck first, mouthing something below her breath with her wand raised and pointed directly at the Lord of Tauren monster, following this motion formed three large ice crystals with dagger points that fired like arrows towards it.
However…
The second the elemental spell reached just a hair's length from impaling the creep, a bright shield of magic suddenly formed and dispelled the ice shards into ambient magical energy.
Elizabeth's eyes widened, "Is that a Spell Shield? Maker, why did you give a monster such an ability!?"
The Chosen Dragon narrowed his eyes at the beast, "If this is an event like we think it is, it most likely has more than one ability."
"Spell Shield?" Tabitha questioned while gripping the staff with two hands, Sylphid, her dragon familiar, growled from behind her.
The Mercenary hands glowed with light violet magical residue, her inner mana channeling outward into her palms. "Arcane Dust!" She shouted and the magic burst outward and thinly covered the Lord of Tauren's form, weakening its physical strength.
Alex answered Tabitha, "It deflects any hostile spell, no matter how powerful, it is possibly the ultimate defensive armament against magic. Thankfully, it only has one charge before it goes into a cooling period where it'll take up to a minute or two before it is able to activate again," The dragonet explained.
The Lord of Tauren raised a foot and proceeded to slam it down against the sand with such tremendous force that it created a large outburst of sand similar to that of a small wave. The four companions had to hastily cover their eyes as to prevent their vision from being impaired. The Bronze Chosen Dragon only had a second before he saw the monstrous form of the event creature now stood over him, it brought down the carved log downward.
"Bulky Bulk!" Alex said as he felt the spell encase him and increase his damage, armor, and regenerative capabilities. He didn't have time to counter, as he instinctively raised a claw in defense and felt the full strength of the attack.
The stone he stood on for support cracked apart under the pressure, the dragonet could barely hold back the log from crushing him. He snarled, and in his right paw opened wide while his left held the attack at bay, his mana surged outward in a showcase of electric energy, arcs of lightning current around his open appendage before they took the shape of a hammer made out of pure electrical power.
"Storm Bolt!" The Chosen Dragon roared as he brought the hammer in a uppercut, slamming it against the body of the Tauren Lord. In a blast of lightning, it knocked back the creature and stunned it just long enough for Alex to disengage its improvised weapon.
Elizabeth looked in disbelief, "Did you just slam Storm Bolt, a ranged spell, like a melee weapon?"
Alex took a breath, "Uh… I guess I did?"
Tabitha twirled her staff before aiming it at the Lord of Tauren, "Wind Gale," She muttered, then a small whirlwind burst out of the top of the staff, traveling across the dune and impacting against the beast. It enshrouded the creature, debris such as sand and small rocks picked up and scratched and scraped against the hide.
Although the monster had experienced pain, it didn't display such feedback. It continued to attack with relentless abandon, uncaring of its own personal lifeblood that flowed from a few minor injuries. While the attacks from both Alex and Tabitha were dangerous to the normal human; against a creep from Life of a Dragon, they meet resistance.
All creeps above a certain level, or those from events, carried in them a small magical resistance to enemy spellcraft. These magic resistance ranking varied between certain levels of the monsters.
But, in a more simple explanation, both Alex and Tabitha's spells did less damage than they would have. In any case, with Alex's spell being low level as it is right now and Tabitha choosing a less offensive spell, they were not high on output in the first place.
The Mercenary Sorceress channeled her inner mana and fired a line of green light, "Siphon Energy!"
But when the spell reached its intended target, once again, a translucent shield formed in front of the Lord of Tauren, which deflected the Sorceress's ability into but ambient magic which harmlessly dispelled into the air.
"By the Maker, I hate Spell Shield with a passion right now!" Elizabeth cursed, her speech interchanging with her character's setting.
Sylphid came charging in, roaring at the Tauren Lord with a high pitched sound atypical to young creatures. The blue halkeginia dragon raised its claws and sliced at the monster. The Tauren abandoned its weapon and flailed its arms about in an attempt to sway off the familiar. At first, Sylphid managed to get a few strikes in, but soon the Tauren grabbed hold of the log once more and swung it in a wide arc, battering Sylphid's side and sending the poor dragon crashing into a near boulder.
"Sylphid," Tabitha said with an underlying tone of anger. She stepped forward, gripping her staff tightly with both hands, and thrust it with a forward motion. A multitude of small ice shards, a contrasting element within the heat of the desert, formed and barraged at the Lord of Tauren.
While the creep's attention was drawn towards Tabitha, the Bronze Dragonet aimed his general body toward the Tauren, in a flash, electrical arcs surrounded Alex's figure before in a few short seconds a bolt of lightning fired like one had pulled the trigger to a firearm.
"Chain Lightning!" Alex roared the name of the spell, while its primary purpose was to hit multiple targets one after another, it could still deal more damage to a single target than his default attack could ever do.
In the combination of both Alex and Tabitha's attacked, coupled with Elizabeth who shot small bird-shape bolts of magical attacks that were her default and Sylphid's previous engagement, the Lord of Tauren finally fell and perished on the desert sands.
This, coupled with the fact that Elizabeth's and Alex's forms were briefly enveloped by a golden light, signaling their level up.
The group relaxed, breaths ragged and heavy, mana reserves at a low point and some injuries that may need tending.
Alex walked over to the corpse of the Tauren, which already began to decompose, if much, much slower than the in-game counterpart. He noticed two small objects, each entering his inventory on grabbing hold of them.
The first item…
Tauren Lord's Log
Unique
Increases damage by 4, Strength by 4, and allows the user to deflect a hostile spell every 180 seconds.
"That's really good," Alex said, tempted to keep it for himself but he was a nice guy so he'll chat with the others about it.
The second…
Scroll of Town Portal
Teleports the user and nearby friendly units or heroes to the player's personal Castle, Fortress, or Dragon Cave.
"Maker's breath! Finally a way out of this desert!" Alex shouted and immediately turned to face the others, "Hey! We got a teleport scroll!"
Inner magical energy seemed to vibrate under the purple scales were apart of his draconic body, arcane forces under the hold of his paws, eager to be called upon, seeking to be used by the one called Erisdar, the player named Saito Hiraga.
The first Chosen Dragon player had quite a decent meal, what with how he used the remaining gold coins he had on his person from the ogres he slew back in Orangebark. Not only that, but the provided food had brightened his companion's, Louise, day. As she was no longer complaining, content that she was warm, satisfied, and also cleaner than any of the past few days combined.
Saito couldn't recall if it had been two or three days since the incident with the Golem. Yes, he had tried to access the Chosen Potential ability again, but the ultimate level spell had vanished as mysteriously as it came.
He didn't have enough gold to purchase any consumable items at the General Store, Saito could go and kill off the brigands in the world if he used his skills. As a purple dragon, he had access to three skills.
Mana Burn.
Scattering Arcane.
And Mana Shield.
While he also had Attribute Bonus and his Fast Very Fast ability, the last and final spell he had yet to learn would require him to level up more.
To briefly explain, Mana Burn was a small ranged spell that combusts a target's own magical energy within against them, dealing damage equivalent to the amount of mana lost. It was deadly against spellcasters.
Scattering Arcane, which was a new spell that Saito has not used before, but from its description, it was a multi-target medium range spell that hit many enemies at once, on the downside since it hit a larger number of foes it dealt less damage than any single target spell would.
Mana Shield is what it says, it is a spherical orb of his own mana energy that can be activated and stay activated with little to no cost to his own reserves. The sphere would surround him entirely, creating a barrier against all physical and magical attacks. When hit, it would consume his mana, or magical energy, to keep the Mana Shield up. It would either turn off at his command or when he runs out of mana.
But moving on, the Purple Chosen Dragon took in a deep breath and faced his young female companion.
'Wait, she is like fourteen right?' He thought to himself, he has had this thought before but didn't really confirm.
"Hey Louise," Saito said to get her attention.
The pink-haired teenager looked to him and away from the bustling town of Winterfall, "What is it, Erisdar?"
"Pardon my rudeness," He attempted to start politely, women never liked being asked their age. "What are you in human years?" He said in a method that would make it seem like he didn't know all too much about humans.
"Sixteen," Louise replied clearly, though there was a certain dislike in her tone.
He decided to play it safe, "Wow! You sure are grown!"
She smiled briefly, "Thank you," She said.
"Now, the only way to the Capital from here is through Fall Forest road, if you recall, that is the spot where we got ambushed yesterday," Saito said.
The noble girl nodded, "I remember, will we get ambushed again?"
"Don't know, but it is likely," The Chosen Dragon replies. "I'm stronger now and can deal with a few brigands on my own. With you at my side, they wouldn't stand a chance if they decided to ambush again."
There was a visible sign of relief from Louise's face, but she was still apprehensive. "We only need to pass by that and we should be in the clear?"
"Yes," Saito answered.
"Then let's get this over with," Louise said.
"I'll lead," Saito finished.
A head face planted right onto the top of a wooden table, a resounding thud that echoed briefly around the furniture. A groan escaped said person who's face had slammed against it, this figure, whose speech patterns only hours before had would have indicated a figure of noble birth, now cursed without a care.
"Fuck," The women said, "This is awful, utterly terrible in every way you see it. I can't believe I had not noticed it before," She finished while her left hand gripped the handle of an alcoholic beverage.
"What's the matter, Rosina?" A blue dragonet spoke from across the table, her very presence had kept most of the other patronage a distance away.
"It's the food and drink, Cora," Rosina. "It's complete shit. I can't believe I have to eat this stuff, I miss my microwave meals. Frozen shepherd's pie, please, come back to me! Ramen, forgive my previous criticism and save me from this world!"
"Oh bother," Cora rolled her eyes at the pitiful state of the Dragon Catcher. "Surprised you're actually like this considering you pulled a leader speech back there earlier…"
A waiter came up, carrying two plates, "Rabbit's meal, here you go miss," He said, placing down the two plates on the table, causing Rosina to sit back upright. He nodded, then took his leave.
Rosina stared at the plate, "This looks awful, and salt is not a commodity yet? How am I supposed to do awesome hero moments if all I get is poverty food?" She complained.
"Maybe the civil war just made it hard to import salt from other places? So they're running dry on spices," Cora theorized.
The Dragon Catcher took a gulp of the alcoholic beverage before placing it back down.
"And to top all the crap I have to deal with, I can't even get drunk to drown it out," Rosina continued. "Like, what the hell Maker, too damn lazy to make a system for heroes to get drunk? All I get is a small speed debuff that lasts for like 10 seconds! That's hardly enough for me to even feel a buzz!" She exclaimed.
Cora poked a claw on the rabbit meat, the sharp bone easily tore through it with ease. She looked up to the human Hero, "Isn't that a good thing? You shouldn't drink anyway."
"A good thing? Hardly! Isn't the merry adventures of heroes suppose to be topped up with intervals filled with good food and great drinks? This, this right here," She waved over the cooked rabbit and mug, "Is a disgrace to role playing everywhere!"
Rosina slumped back against her chair, "Wizard One O One would be ashamed at this travesty of a D and D game." She continued.
"I don't think this counts as a game of Dungeons and Dragons, Rosina," Cora said, taking the chance to drag her meal closer so to better grip and eat it. "After all, all this is probably far from what that company expected."
The Dragon Catcher hero cut off a piece of the meal and savored it for a few seconds before forcefully swallowing it down. She groaned in displeasure, "Fuck… So this Civil War shit, what's it all about? I only got some snippet about some uptight nobles going all pissy against the current royalty."
Cora began to highly doubt Rosina lived in Britain, considering her manner of speech, then again it can be sometimes hard to tell if such a person stayed on the internet for so long.
The technology of voice communication can do that.
The Chosen Dragon took a chunk out of the rabbit and didn't even bother to taste it, simply swallowing it whole down her gullet. Then she replied, "That's the basic knowledge of it, but considering the attitude of the rebel faction, they are closer to just nobles wanting more power than actual revolution."
"So, it's a rebellion more than a revolution. Like the start of the French Revolution?" Rosina questioned.
"No," Cora said. "Think more power hungry and convincing the mass of nobles that you are in the right by the use of religion."
Rosina paused, then took a large finishing gulp out of the mug, before she placed it back down.
"Ah shit, I've played enough video games to know that this will lead to disaster. Why is it always religion with these fantasy tropes? At least Life of a Dragon didn't have this stuff," Rosina said.
Cora swallowed another piece of rabbit flesh, "Yet; We don't know what the Map Maker had planned."
Rosina suddenly stabbed her silverware into the rabbit, "Then it's decided."
"Huh?" Cora Rune blinked.
"I'm going to save the royal family's losing asses by kicking the Reconsiquestia to the curve, so that I may have a damn seasoned meal outside of this garbage!" She exclaimed.
Cora's mouth went agape at the declaration, "You're going to fight any entire faction just so that you can put salt into your meal!?"
"Yes!" The Dragon Catcher confirmed.
The Chosen Dragon sighed, "And they say wars have been fought for less…"
Rosina dropped a few coins on the table, Cora quickly finished her meal by engulfing the rest of the rabbit into her jaws. The Dragon Catcher hero stood up from the table and looked outward.
"Come, my fellow Hero, time to liberate the city and start a civil war in a civil war!"
"How the hell do you plan on that?" Cora said in a burst question.
"We take control of the docks," Rosina said. "If we show the common people that they can defeat the occupying force then they will flock to us."
"Were… Were you a history teacher or something?" Cora questioned.
"Nope, just played Dragon Age before all this!"
"That explains way too much…"
Current Status:
Chosen Dragon Player 1: Saito Hiraga - Alive - Purple Dragonet (Agility) Level 11
Chosen Dragon Player 2: Alex Storm - Alive - Bronze Dragonet (Strength) Level 9
Chosen Dragon Player 3: Asuna Godiva - Alive - Nether Dragonet (Strength) Level 11
Chosen Dragon Player 4: Artos Archway - Alive - Green Dragonet (Agility) Level 8
Chosen Dragon Player 5: Cora Rune - Alive - Blue Dragonet (Intelligence) Level 10
Dragon Slayer Player 6: Celdrahil - Alive - Slayer Level 8
Dragon Catcher Player 7: Rosina - Alive - Catcher Level 12
The Human Kingdom Player 8: Aylmer and Abigail - Alive - King Level 4, Princess Level [Error]
The Fel Empire Player 9: Grom - Alive - King of Fel Empire Level 8
Mercenary Player 10: Elizabeth Loyal - Alive - Sorceress Level 8
Observer Map Maker: Map Maker - Alive - The World Editor