Civilization #65 Chapter 65 - Read Civilization 65 Chapter 65 Online - All Page - Novel Usb
After going through my uneventful day I return to Settlement. We were still positioned in the cave poised for battle in case the enemy had a method to scale the wall.
"Did anyone see who attacked us?"
While I did know that they were human-like figures, they were still far away and I was doubting myself. One of the archer goblins answered my question.
"Leader Ian, I had a look through a gap in the shields. There were 10 enemies. They look like a mix of human and demi-human or humanoid monsters. Less likely to be humanoid monsters as they would not use a bow and arrow to attack their prey. There was 6 bow wields and 3 throwing stones. 1 was on the side looking at us and I think they were commanding the rest to attack us."
"Wow. Good job GomiTwo! I had only seen 10 human-like figures but I could barely make out anything else. How did you notice them?"
"Umm...I'm not sure leader Ian. I just kind of noticed them I guessโฆ?"
"Hmm, well good job anyways at least we have some information about them. Let's stay here until dusk before moving forward again. If we get attacked again on our way there we will retreat."
With that order, I made the goblins relax and chill at the entrance. I had them stand guard a bit further into the cave to make sure they could escape into the darker territory to take advantage of their night vision. During the same time, I went down deeper towards the copper vein. I took GomiTwo with me since his vision seems to be better than other goblins and after looking at his status I found the reason.
Name: GomiTwo
Race: Gobin
Health Points (HP): 10/10
Mana Points (MP): 3/3
Strength: 3
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 8
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 4
Luck: 1
Skill: Enhanced Sight ( Passive )
[ Enhanced Sight ( Passive) - Allows the user to see further away as well as increased vision in cloudy, foggy or even dark environments ]
What an insane skill to have! Being able to see further away was like having a free telescope and the fact that the user can see better in blurry environments makes ambushing in a foggy area even better.
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Taking GomiTwo down to the copper vein was to allow him to look around in the dark environment where the torches cannot reach. Places like the corner of the cave or the ceiling were places I could not see and thus I needed GomiTwo.
Once we arrived GomiTwo let out a low whistle. The sight before him was stunning and even for me, seeing it for a second time I could not help but step back at how amazing this place looked.
"Ok, GomiTwo I need your eyes here. Places where I cannot see, you will be able to see. I need you to tell me if there is anything unusual or anything that might be different or things that might not belong here."
"Yes, leader Ian!"
A scroll in a dark cave with a goblin, not the most ideal date but I guess I had no choice right? I wanted to know more about this place and GomiTwo will or should have my answers.
"Leader Ian, this place is amazing. The light reflecting off the brown things on the wall makes everything sparkle a different color compared to the sun reflecting off the river. There also seems to be blue mixed in with the brown substance. Near the top, however, are even more golden-looking things."
"What do you mean golden-looking things?"
"Exactly what I mean. The things near the ground against the wall are brown however, there is like a gap somewhere about three-quarters the way up and then a little bit higher instead of brown it looks more golden."
"Wait. Wait. So, it looks like gold rocks right?"
"Yes, leader Ian. If you want it in simple terms then yes gold rocks."
"Oh my god. There is not just copper here. THERE IS GOLD TOO! WE'RE GONNA BE RICH!"
"Umm, leader Ian?"
"YES GOMITWO?"
"Uhh...In the far corner of the cave, I can see something looking at us."
"Whatโฆ?"
"Its perched upside down, grey skin, two large wings, red eyes and pretty sharp-looking claws. Looks kind of like a human too."
"And it's looking at us. It didn't do anything before when we were last here. Maybe it does nothing?"
"Umm, leader Ian?"
"Yes, GomiTwo?"n0๐๐๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ท.๐0๐ถ
"There are more coming from a hole of some sort next to the creature."
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"Walk back slowly. Don't turn around and we walk back to the surface. It's only about 50 or so paces away we can do this."
My heart was racing. I could not even see the monster since it was so dark in the cave. Where the light from the standing torches reaches was the extent of my vision and the fact that were monsters in the cave slowly increasing terrified me. I can't see the monsters but they can see us. With chattering teeth and a trembling body, GomiTwo slows down and point towards the direction of the monsters
"L-L-Leader Ian."
"Yea?"
"A b-b-bigger version of the m-m-monster appeared through the hole."
I look towards the exit towards the tunnel leading upwards.
"Only 10 steps...GomiTwo! RUN!"
I turn my body and push off the ground with all my might dashing towards the tunnel. Behind me I hear GomiTwo's hurried steps as well. To my horror though, the moment I started to run I could hear loud flapping from the corner of the cave. Like a bird lifting off the ground ready to take flight.
"THEY'RE COMING! LEADER IAN THEY'RE COMING!"
"I KNOW I CAN HEAR THEIR WINGS! JUST RUN UP!"
Reaching the tunnel was easy but it was the next part. A bending narrow road to the top with monsters flying towards us. They were most likely faster than us as well. I look back and see that GomiTwo was extremely slower than me. With lower agility and smaller legs the distance he covered in the same amount of time as I was a lot smaller.
I grab his waist and pushed his body over my shoulder.
"Grab onto my neck with one of your arms to stabilize yourself. I'm going to be running for my life ok?"
"Okay leader Ian!"
I had only gotten around the first bend when I could finally see the monsters entering the tunnel. The torch nearby illuminates their body for me too see and like how GomiTwo describes it, they had stone-like skin, a body of a human but with red eyes and blood-like tears and two large bat-like wings on their backs.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
That was the only thought on my mind.
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Luckily for me, I left my weapons with the goblins near the entrance so there were fewer things to weigh me down. Unluckily for me, I left my weapons with the goblins. I HAVE NOTHING TO DEFEND MYSELF IF THEY REACH ME!
"L-Leader Ian, leave me. I'll stall for time!"
"Are you kidding me, GomiTwo? Those things will rip you to shreds in seconds while chasing me. Don't waste your life like that. Do you not believe I can outrun them?"
"Umm, well...They do be gaining on you."
"It's fine. It's all part of the plan. Haha."
I push my feet off the ground and pump my arm up and down forcing every ounce of strength I had into running. I can feel my chest pound and my blood flowing through my veins while I run. I do not dare look behind me, the sound of their wings already sending shivers down my spine.
What made it worse was they made no sound. No growling. No howling. No grunting. Nothing. Just silence other than the sound of their wings propelling their body forward.
From what little I saw when they entered the tunnel it seemed like only 1 maybe 2 of those monsters can fit side by side but with their wings being almost the same size as their bodies at most they were in single file.
While would have made it easy for them to be defeated if there was a proper method of fighting them, however, I cannot do that right now.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Run.
Push off your feet harder.
Lift your knees higher.
Anything and everything just move. Move as fast as you can.
So few thoughts were left in my mind.
I turn the corner once again and this time I can see it.
I can see the entrance of the cave.
I can see the goblins crowded around the front.
Wait.
They are crowded around the front and not in the correct formation.
Something happened.n0๐๐๐๐ข๐๐.๐ธ0๐ช
I grit my teeth and continue running. Keeping my eyes peeled in front of me observing the situation. I can hear the monsters getting closer. Only a few steps after I turned the corner did one of them crash into the wall. Which meant they were not too far away.
Mixed with the sound of the monster's wings flapping behind me was the sound of weapons and shouts. As I get closer I can see that the goblins were defending against some enemies, presumably the ones we encountered before.
"Leader Ian, I have an idea. Once we get a little closer shout to the goblins to jump close to the side walls and lay flat on their bellies."
"Why?!"
"Just do it leader Ian, I guarantee it will work."
"Fine, fine."
I continue running and by mistake, I took a small glance behind me.
That hideous stone human-like face with tears of blood staring at me close enough that I could touch it.
A silent scream escapes my lips and I bolted faster. Phishing my body to its utmost limits.
I was close to the battle in front of me but I don't even though if I could reach it.
"Now, leader Ian!"
Hearing GomiTwo's signal, I suck in some air and let out the loudest shout I could do while running.
"ALL GOBLINS!... STICK TO THE WALLS AND GET ON THE GROUND NOW!"
My booming voice reached the goblin's ears faster than lightning. Like puppets they ceased the fighting and lept towards the sides on command, some even rolling until they reach the wall.
"Leader Ian, jump to the side now!"
Once again, following GomiTwo's signal, I leap for the stars or in this case for the walls. With great timing, the monster had just reached me and swung its claws at my previous position. I roll along the ground and behind a rock breathing heavily. I could see the terrified looks of our enemies. With how close I was to them I could finally make out their figures.
There were 5 humans and 5 humans with wolf-like ears on the top of their heads. They were dressed in leather armor and held onto bows and spears.
But even they were terrified at the sight before them. The monster now unable to see me, instead sees 10 new prey. Not just that the rest of its kin had arrived behind it. The sound of their wings echoes throughout the cave eliminating any other sounds.
"Shit! What are those?"
"Gabe, What are those creatures?"
"How would I know? I'm only here because those goblins looked easy to kill but well equipped."
"Goddamit, should we run?"
"Run? Look how many there are you think we can run?"
"I don't care about you guys but I'm jetting, cya!"
"Fine. Fine. RUN!"
The moment they turned around to escape was when the slaughter happened. The monster dashed forward knocking them down to the ground. Grabbing the closest human by the head it pulls his limbs until they tear away from his body. The deathly scream of the victim, followed by the screams of his allies fills the cave.
It starts with just his arm, then his leg, his other arm, his other leg until he could not scream anymore. Silent from the victim and whimpers from his allies. They were wide-eyed and frozen in fear.
Were they next on the chopping block? That thought must have run through their minds but what about goblins and me are we even safe? After the monsters kill those humans and demi-humans aren't we just next?
Where are the goblins?
I peek around the rock and see everyone placing their hand over their mouths to prevent any sound from coming out all looking at me with terrified expressions. Only one thing to do here right? I grit my teeth and prepare to shout after all only one word comes to mind.
Run.
"EVERYONE, RUN! DON'T LOOK BACK! RUN BACK TO HAVENFALL A.S.A.P!!"
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I push off the ground and dash past the stunned humans on the ground. Following my command, the goblins ran after me, running around the humans and making them human shields against the monster.
"Yo! Gabe! That dude is a player!"
"Yea and Kingston just died and we have a big ass stone human freak thing in front of us what do you want to do?
"Shut up you two and run! Every man for themselves."
"Just leave the demi-humans they are just NPCs anyways."
"Okay, okay, running."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. While the conversation was short I figured out that the humans were players while the demi-humans were NPCs. At the same time, I was disgusted by their attitude towards the NPCs. Thinking about the residents of HavenFall, I would never treat them like that. I glance behind me the moment I escaped the cave and I saw a scene from hell.
The goblins had escaped from the monster's reach and were ahead of the human/demi-human party. However, behind the goblins was a grotesque scene. With the monster's wings folded and them on the ground, they grabbed the escaping demi-humans ankles pulling them closer. The screams and cries by the captured demi-humans silenced the moment a monster's claw enters their body.
Heads roll, limbs torn and shattered.
And blood.
Splattered everywhere.
The monsters weren't even eating the demi-humans.
Just killing.
Ripping.
Tearing.
Their once stone-grey bodies are now covered in the blood of the demi-humans.
Even the once haughty players were speechless at the scene.
They back off slowly.
One of them covered their mouth with their hands trying not to gag.
It was horrifyingโฆ
"Oi...Let's get out of here."
I could hear a soft whisper from one of the players before the 4 of them bolted towards the exit.
My group had escaped and once they did we kept running. Our feet dig deep into the muddy river banks leaving clear distinct tracks behind. I dare not look behind, afraid I would see one of the monsters flying out looking for prey.
"Leader Ian. Leader Ian. LEADER IAN!"
I turn around after hearing my name being called. To my surprise, the goblins were very far away from me. I had crossed the river and ran almost to the next corner while the goblins had only just entered the river.
"I thought you guys were behind meโฆ"
GomiTwo reached me first and after taking a few deep breaths to control his breathing again.
"No...No...You kept running leader Ian."
"I'm sorry, I did not mean to run ahead."
Was I that terrified that I wanted to escape that area as soon as possible? So much that I left the goblins behind and I didn't even notice.
I leaned against the canyon wall waiting for the rest of the goblins to catch up before moving again. I look at the goblin's condition and I was disappointed in myself. They were wearing haggard faces as they drag their feet along the ground. Despite this, not one of them let go of their weapon or shield. Other than the ones that got hit away during a battle or damaged during the escape every goblin was holding onto their weapons firmly.
What about me? I left my spear thinking it was going to be safe down at the copper mines. Ended up some random monster ambush awaited me and without GomiTwo I would have most likely died and the goblins would have died as a result. Even after running from the monsters, I did not pick up my weapon to fight, no the first thought was to run.
I could convince myself that running was the better option. Run and fight another day but there was this uncomfortable feeling in my chest as I walk alongside these goblins. They were determined to die. If I had told them to stand and buy me time to run away I guarantee they would do it and feel proud that they helped.
But what about me? I can't do that. The only battles I have faced were ones that I have calculated that I could win or at least have a high chance to win. Fighting a losing battle? No, I ran from them. The Blood Ogre, the dragon, the human/demi-human party and then the stone monsters. I ran from them.
Would the goblins have just fought them even if they were going to die?
Snapping myself out of this spiraling descent into depression was a familiar sound. The sound of wings flapping behind me.
"Quick! Around the corner!"
Sensing the urgency in my voice the goblins run, dash and leap over each other in order to get around the corner as soon as possible. I fine tune my sense of hearing and lo-behold I do hear it, the distinct sound that I heard from the start of the tunnel to the end.n0๐๐๐๐ข๐๐.๐ธ0๐ช
I peek around the corner to catch a glimpse of just one of those monsters flying slowly along the river. It looked like it was hovering above the water, its feet just skimming the surface as it looks left and right searching for something, maybe us?
I look around me and spot a couple of protruding rocks along the wall.
"There is one monster following us. It is going at a slow pace and I propose we try to kill it. Anyone object? Be honest as well."
With no hands being raised or voices of objection, I continue with the plan.
"Okay, I want the same formation as before, shields spearmen and then archers. However, we are only going to do half of the formation the rest will hide along the wall behind the rock ready to set up the same formation behind the monster. We are going to pincer it. The most dangerous thing about it is its ability to fly and its sharp claws. We can't stop it from flying but we can defend against the claws. When it raises its arm be ready to defend against the strike and if needed sacrifice the shield. Everyone got that?"
"Yes, leader Ian!"
"Okay, let's do this. Let's hunt one of those scary monsters."
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Facing the corner, nervously breathing were 5 goblins. 2 in the front, shields in front of their faces and knives in their hands. 2 more behind with spears pointing forward ready to puncture the enemy and finally a lone archer at the back poised to shoot at any moment.
Not too far away hidden behind small rocks and protruding edges of the cliff was the rest of the team. 2 shields nearby the main party ready to engage at a moments notice while not too far away was the spearmen and I. Located on the other side of the river were the two other archers ready to fight as well.
We were waiting with bated breath as the sound of the monster's wings drew closer.
Each second feels like an eternity.
Sweat drips down my nose, falling to the ground forming a small puddle.
I lick my dry lips and peek above the rock and as I do I see it turn.
Its dead eyes crying rivers of blood look in our direction.
Quickly I duck down afraid it might have seen me. My heart thumps against my chest ready to burst out.
What was happening?
Why was it so quiet?
By now the monster should have seen the goblins standing stationary and should be aggressively moving towards them but I don't even hear the sound of its wings flapping.
I resist the temptation to look at the situation and could only try to listen more attentively to figure out the situation.
The goblins spoke no words only breathing slightly quicker than normal.
The monster did not move and since I could not hear the sound of the wings it must have landed on the ground silently observing the situation.
Until the archer goblin lost his patience and let loose an arrow towards the monster. The arrow cuts through the air creating a whistling sound before hearing it getting hit out of the sky.
But that one arrow set the battle into motion.
No longer hesitating I could hear the heavy footsteps of the monster as it charges towards the goblins.
"Jump towards the river!"
I could hear one of the goblins taking charge of the tactics. Quickly, forming an escape route which would work to our advantage as well.
"Archers! Help!"
With a cry of help from the mainline, the archers hiding on the other side of the river emerge. Sending a small volley of arrows in the direction of the monster. Although the damage was minuscule it served its purpose of momentarily distracting the monster. Allowing the goblins to enter the river and wade halfway across before turning back and facing the monster.
"OVER HERE, YOU STONE BASTARD!"
Further adding to the distractions was one of the spearman goblin shouting and calling out to the monster. Whether the monster understood the language was a different story but it worked. The monster slowly turned towards them and instead of flying above the water it enters it slowly moving its heavy feet through the river.
Surprised by the turn of events, the goblins slightly panicked and retreated further towards the other side of the river. The archers sent arrow after arrow at the monster hoping to get lucky and hit a weakness.
Once the monster was halfway through the water it was our turn.
"LETSGO!"
With a battle cry, I come out of hiding with the other goblins. Without a weapon to fight I picked up a decent-sized rock and tossed it at the monster hitting its head squarely. At the same time, the shield goblins stood at the river bank ankles in the water position with their shields up ready to block any attack while the spearmen behind them thrust their spears at the monster.
With great coordination, the goblins at the other side attacked as well pressing forward with their spears and stabbing at the monster. Old man Hus's weapon pierces the monster's stone skin but that was as far as it could goโฆ
With just a little bit of the tip entering the monster the damage we did was the same as an insect would do to him.
It spreads its wings out knocking the goblins behind back onto the riverbank while pulling back its right claw ready to attack.
"SHIELDS!"
I shout at the top of my voice and luckily for me the goblins were ready for the attack. As the monster's claw starts to descend towards the goblins in front of it all the shields got pressed against each other. The claw strikes the row of shields creating an annoying high-pitched sound as well as 4 clear white marks along the shield.
Grunts and groans could be heard from the goblins that withstood the attack, however, the goblins that were knocked away were still unconscious leaving only 7 goblins left. I went over and picked up the dropped spear and shield and turn back at the monster.
"We can do this. We can do this."
I psyche myself up before yelling at the top of my lungs as I charge at the monster. Attacking near its chest, lower back and wing area had proven to be ineffective, courtesy to the goblin's smaller stature and attack range. If it was similar to a human than its head is still a weakness and that was my aim.
I run into the river as the monster swipes at the goblins again creating another annoying sound as well as breaking one of the shields this time.
My feet push against the river displacing the water around it before I leap into the air pulling the spear above my hand and following an arc motion, I swing it downwards as I get closer to the monster.
Being so close to it now I could see the intricate details on its skin. It was like a desert lake. Cracks across the whole body but from a distance, it seemed complete.n0๐๐ข๐๐ฐ๐๐ฉ.๐0๐
As the spear comes downwards to the monster's head it suddenly swerved to the left while knocking the spear with its right hand and in the process knocking me away as well. I land in the river with a loud splash followed by GomiTwo's voice.
"Leader Ian, the weakness is its head. Much like other creatures without a head, it cannot cooperate. We need to cut it off or destroy it."
"Easy thing for you to say but how do we even kill it?"
"Hmm...Towards HavenFall and with the collective effort of everyone we can definitely defeat it."
"Okay then if we get out of this situation alive we need to lead it to HavenFall. Let's do it GomiTwo."
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"Aim at the face archers! And spearmen when thrusting, thrust at the face and then quickly retract ready to defend against a counter-attack!"
I pick myself up and push my wet hair to the side grabbing my spear with my free hand. I see GomiTwo opposite me holding onto a spear behind the shields. I can see the tip of the spear shaking up and down slightly as well as GomiTwo's terrified expression.
"L-l-leader...I might be w-w-wrong about defeating it."
Through the cracks of GomiTwo's teeth, he squeezes out a message towards me without taking his eyes off the monster. It wasn't just GomiTwo whose eyes were glued to the monster. The four shieldbearers were standing stationary with their shields half covering their face and their eyes shaking back and forth.
What's happening to them?
I step forward cautiously gripping the spear in two hands and pointing the tip towards the head of the monster. Slowly wading through the river gradually got closer to the monster but soon I realized only I was moving. Even the archers couldn't fire another arrow and all the goblin's that were with me about to attack or defend depending on the situation were frozen, shaking in their boots.
"L-l-leader...run, please."
Hearing those words quietly coming out of GomiTwo's mouth sent shivers down my spine. Subconsciously I felt myself taking a step back, heeding to GomiTwo's words but all of a sudden I felt my whole body freeze.
I find myself staring at the monster's head.
As slow as a snail I see its neck turn. The cracks along its skin shift ever so slowly but even then I couldn't move. My feet were planted on the ground and the spear felt glued to my hand. The river flowed around me and I could feel the slow-moving undercurrent against my leg.
Slowly but surely I could start to see the side of its face which I wished I didn't see.
The corner of its mouth almost touched its ear while a crimson red trail of tears flowed down its cheeks, over the mouth and stopping at its chin. Its eye is in a half-moon shape and was as black as night.
I couldn't peel my eyes off its eye. I felt like I was traveling up a red carpet towards the abyss. The space around me was void of light and my body moved at a robotic pace getting closer and closer to the abyss.
Seconds tick away and the only thing in my vision was the monster's expression. It covered everything I saw, I don't even know how GomiTwo was able to speak to me. I felt like my throat was clogged, only big enough for air to pass through.
Seconds become minutes and minutes become hours or at least that what it felt like to me. I couldn't tell how long I was staring at the monster's eyes for and even if I did what would I do with the knowledge.n0๐๐๐๐ข๐๐.๐ธ0๐ช
I am trapped.
Frozen in place.
I can't move.
I can't speak.
I can only look at the half-moon eyes, the carpet of blood and a smile that reaches the ears.
Until its whole face was finally in front of me.
Anxiety.
Fear.
Dread.
Distress.
Horror.
Scare.
Stress.
Worry.
Panic.
So many thoughts.
So many emotions.
I watch as the monster finally made its move. It snaps its head forward, to its rightful position before stepping closer to the goblins in front of it. With 4 shield bearers and GomiTwo behind them trembling in their places, I could feel the vibrations in the water as the monster gets closer. Each step closer meant a step closer to certain death.
Despite this, I found my eyes just following it as it moves towards them. Unable to even move a muscle I follow its movements closely. Each movement of its limbs, the drawback of its arm as it lifts its hand high creating a claw in midair. The sudden acceleration of its hand as it smashes down on the gobins' shield knocking them away as well as pushing the goblins through the river and onto the riverbank. Caught in the crossfire, GomiTwo is launched as well to the riverbank.
Like a spell had been broken, they were able to move. The slight movement of their hands as they press against their bruised area confirmed it for them that they were able to me.
"GETTING HIT ALLOWS FREEDOM FROM THE FREEZING SKILL! NOT SURE ON THE ACTIVATION YET THOUGH!"
GomTwo screams out his findings as he quickly gathers the goblins and puts their shields up preventing any eye to eye contact.
"Test 1, eye contact!"
The 5 goblins walk further inland before the goblins lowered their shield and stared at the monster with bated breath.
Who would have thought, only 1 test was needed to figure out the method the monster used to freeze us.
Some sort of paralysis or hypnosis was caused by looking at the monster directly at the eyes. Even though I did not look at the monster directly for too long I was also affected. This means the monster can nominate when to use the ability as well as when to turn it off.
That means we can never make any eye contact with the monster or else we would eventually freeze in place unable to move.
"Getting hit allows freedom. Goblin buddies let us hit our allies including leader-"
Before GomiTwo could finish his sentence the monster dashed forward slamming a fist at the unsuspected frontline. Smashing hard into the goblins and in turn sending GomiTwo back a few paces as well. The shield end up cracking and looking like it could barely defend against another attack.
"Everyone split up. Hit as many allies as possible before the monster catches us."
A final order from GomiTwo was issued to the goblins before they sprint in different directions away from the monster.
Only hope and luck were left in this battle.
And retreat is the only option.
Fighting was next to impossible...
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My legs feel like jelly.
My lips cracked and peeling.
My throat is as dry as a desert.
My eyes wander aimlessly.
My head is spinning.
The pungent smell of blood and urine fill the atmosphere around me. I wade through a thick ocean of blood and flesh as it slowly merges and mixes with the constant flow of the river. From a glistening aquamarine blue to a vivid dark ruby red.
My knees drop and a small wave of blood splash against me, slapping across my face covering me in this mixture. My eyes void from light blinking slowly unaware of the surroundings.
Behind me slowly drifting towards me until it bumped into my back as something soft but hard at the same time. It rolls around me with the current and drifts around in front of me.
I hold back the urge to chunder as I see the once helpful and insightful GomiTwo's head drift away from me.
His face had a mix of surprise, anger and a hint of sadness. I had only properly got to know him in the pass day and it wasn't just him. Properly speaking and communicating with the other 9 goblins only happened after leaving HavenFall with them.
Now, they were dead. Some smashed into a pile of flesh. Others ripped limb from limb. But the most disturbing death was when the monster opened its wide mouth revealing a row of sharp teeth shredding the unfortunate goblin before spitting out parts of the goblin and blood into the river.
It didn't even start with me. Whenever there was a choice between killing me and killing a goblin it would always kill a goblin first. Not even allowing the chance of one of the goblins to escape and run back to HavenFall to bring back reinforcements.
"What...What did I do wrong to make this happenโฆ? I-I-I should have kept running with everyone. Why did I say we could defeat it if we ambush it. Why..."
I look up at the clear blue sky. Without a single cloud and with the sun raining down on me I speak to myself.
Quietly splashing and sploshing towards me was the very same monster that caused this massacure. A gigantic shadow looms over me as it leans forward. Spreading its wings and creating a bigger darkness around me as it slowly grips my neck with one hand. Its sharp claws slightly dig into my skin causing my neck to bleed slowly from multiple locations. I can feel the blood run out of my body slowly being dragged downwards by gravity, over the stone cold claws and down my weathered body and finally joining the styx river.
With its other hand it grabs my waist. This time with more force making my body tremble a littl causing the claw to dig deeper into my neck creating long lacerations on my neck and waist.
The air moves so slowly through my nose and mouth. I desperately try to inhale air only to find myself slowly losing consciousness.
n0๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐.๐ธ0๐
Was it from bleeding? Or was it because I couldn't breathe? A combination of both maybe?
The monster peers into my eyes. Its deep dark black eyes, void of any life stares at me. It was like looking into the abyss.
Its already wide smile grows wider as it increases the pressure on my neck. I could feel my life slowly escaping me bit by bit with every second that passes. I bring my hands up from the river gripping onto the stone claw. I pull and tug on it but it doesn't move.
Punch, pull, claw, anything I could do.
I start to lail my legs about creating larger and larger waves. Forcing the blood river to move downstream faster but no matter how much I struggled the monster did not even move, it didn't blink, it didn't flinch. No, it stood there with the creepy wide simile, looking down on me and covering as much sun as possible.
Then nothing.
With a small tug upward and downward my head separated from my body.
The clear sensation of my skin tearing, arteries bursting and finally my bones snapping apart lingers on my mind.
It happened so suddenly. Like an impulsive decision. Like a toddler deciding whether or not to kill an ant passing by its feet.
Then my vision fills with darkness.
Seconds pass and then minutes before the darkness fades away.
Replacing it, the ceiling of my room.
I slowly move my hand up towards my neck feeling it with the fingers of my hand then the palm. No cuts, no lacerations and no bleeding. I move my hand down my chest towards my waist. Again, no cuts, no lacerations and no bleeding.
"Just a game...Right, I was just playing a game."
I sit up and take off my VR helmet and place it to the side. I checked my phone and it was only 0125. Early for the game but late in real life. It felt different. I turn on the light around my house and pour myself some water, drinking it all in one gulp. I place the glass down and lean back in a chair.
"Just a gameโฆ"
I feel my neck again just to make sure it was still there.
"How...How did other people deal with this feeling when they died in the game? It's horrible. Terrifying. How...How is this a game?"
I curl up in a ball.
Close my eyes.
Sleep?
How can I?
I just saw 10 goblins who I had just spoken with not too long ago about their lives die in front of me or around me. Their screams and desperate cries for help echo in my ears.
And...And GomiTwo's last wordsโฆ
"Leader Ian...I'm sorry"
The waterworks won't stop. What is this feeling?
I hate it.
I hate it.
I hate it.
I hate it.
Just a game my ass. If I'm trying to play a game where my people's lives are a resource then I can't keep letting him die. The less people there are, the less things I can do. Less manpower, less food, less troops. I can't let this keep happening.
"Next time. No one will die."
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It is still late at night for most people and since I had died in the game I could not go back into the game until tomorrow. I didn't feel tired so what can I do during this time? For the past month and a bit, this was the time I was in the game experiencing a different world alongside characters' who I have established a bond with but now I don't even know what is happening in the game.
I poured myself a cup of water and sat at my table, pondering on what I should be doing with my time. I had no work tomorrow so I was free to do anything and since I can't schedule anything with Evan and Sabrina since they were still in the game and won't see the message until after 0600.
Sleep? No...Not with how awake I am right now. After experiencing the monster completely massacring everything around me I just didn't feel like sleeping. I had an odd feeling around my neck, like a noose slowly getting tighter and tighter.
I boot up my computer and sip on my water while thinking about what just happened in the past couple of days of playing Settlement. I found players nearby, got ambushed by an extremely stronger group of monsters than I was used too and died for the first time in the game. What have I learned?
Absolutely nothing!
My location felt so isolated from other potential players due to the towering walls of the canyon as well as the steep mountainous terrain and the dark creepy forest. I almost didn't think I was going to see another player until a couple more months into the game when players become more adventurous.
Then there were the monsters. The previous safe copper mine had been overrun and overtaken by them but why now? During Balta's 'reign' of the copper mines they weren't seen or mentioned. Usually, when a bag guy is about to die they would mention a higher power seeking revenge but now nothing like that came from Balta which leads me to think that they had only recently discovered the mine as well and from a different entrance.
This means that could have just been a scouting force or their real nest or home is in a location not too far away from the copper mine. This worries me since they are just so much stronger and I didn't have a way to defeat them yet.
Lastly was death. It felt terrifying. The feeling of my head leaving my body and then reattaching it again after some time while I was still 'alive' was completely unreal. Like an out-of-body experience except I was experiencing it every step of the way.
I shiver slightly and look at my screen since the computer has booted up. I go to the game forum to find out some information on other players that have experienced death. Scrolling through the forum I see a lot of similar posts.
"Dying by a goblin stabbing me in the chest. Not the best feeling by the way" - 5lay3r
"A goblin ambushed me from behind. Embarrassing right?" - LighterOfHell
"ORCS! ORCS! ORCS! I HATE THEM!!!" - HateOrcs2021
"Can't believe I died like thisโฆ" - WiZARDo
"Yet another death." - Constant
.
.
.
"Dying by strangulation and going to a physiatrist." - Therapy101
A post near the release of the game attracted my attention. Much like me the player had more or less died from trauma to the neck. In this player's case, it was strangulation and in my case it was decapitation. Both are pretty bad ways to die.
I look through the post and the player describes his death in great detail. From prior to his death to after his death the player had described everything and post-death we were the same. After dying, the player felt 'alive' while in a dark space. Clearly feeling the fact that his throat had been squeezed and air could not flow inside them but being able to see the dark space around for a while until he was transported back to his room.
After the event, he tried to sleep however was incapable of doing so as his throat kept feeling like it was being squeezed. Breathing became difficult and with the increasing lack of sleep, he resorted to going to the hospital where he was referred to a physiatrist.n0๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐.๐ธ0๐
As explained in his post, he spent multiple days with said physiatrist as well as being in the hospital where they would force him to sleep allowing his body to recover slowly. After many meetings, he explained that the feeling of death in the game will vary from player to player and the more extreme or violent the death was the more likely the brain would believe it was a real event.
Once the brain is tricked into believing it has happened then the brain would try to recreate the event slowly making the body do things that would harm itself. For example, if the brain believed that the player died from being stabbed then around the area that was stabbed causing the death of the player would be a scar. A kind of stigma the brain creates to resemble death.
After reading the post, I subconsciously touched my neck to see if there were any bumps or cuts and luckily there were none. I was fine for now.
I close the forum and take a deep breath before shaking my head.
"I'm fine. Just a game. Just a game."
I bring out my phone and texted the group chats with Evan and Sabrina.
"Hey, I just died in the game and I want to talk about it with someone. Is anyone free during the day to have lunch or something?" - Ian
Knowing that the message would not be seen by anyone for a while I turn off my phone and turn the lights off before climbing into bed and under my covers. I looked at my ceiling and for some reason, it just felt off.
I felt uncomfortable like something was wrong with this scenario. Me being in bed under my covers in the dead of night trying to sleep but it felt weird. I brought my hand to my neck again and once again confirmed it was still there. I sat up and just looked around my eyes, slowly adjusting to the darkness.
Nothing was out of the ordinary around me nor did my body feel weird but this atmosphere...It didn't feel right. Unable to pinpoint the reason I stood up and turned the lights back on and put a movie on the TV and watched in silence until my phone buzzed at 0610.
"Brunch 1000!" - Sabrina
"Not free, sorry." - Evan
"Where?" - Ian
"Cafe next to the game shop. TTYL! CYA!" - Sabrinan0๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐.๐ธ0๐
I put the phone down and get up to pour myself yet another cup of water. Most of the early morning I had been drinking water and watching random movies but now it was time for my daily routine, exercising.
I go out of my house and do some light stretches before jogging at a nice slow pace. The sun had already risen over the horizon and a nice golden glow was blanketing the suburb. I pull my hoodie over my head as I start to jog faster. The route had changed from just around the block to traveling around a couple of blocks and through a park.
The park had outdoor fitness equipment set up for the locals who don't want to go to the gym to do some simple bodyweight training. After discovering the fitness equipment I had started to regularly travel here during my morning exercise to complete some simple tasks. I would start by jogging to the location as a warm-up and once I arrived I would immediately stretch again.
The first task would be pull-ups, followed by sit-ups, leg raises, dips and finally push-ups. Nearby, is a water station that allows me to stay hydrated throughout the whole exercise. After being stagnant at home for hours thinking about the game moving about felt oddly satisfying.
I sat on a bench after stretching since I finished my workout and looked around. Some other early birds had arrived and started working out nearby as well. Some doing yoga stretches others practicing some tai chi and some using the equipment I had just finished using.
Next to me were two girls who were doing some stretches while chatting with each other and as I was just relaxing basking in the sunlight I happened to hear some details especially after I heard them mention Settlement.
"Mary, how's Settlement?"
"Hmm, it's okay like I'm not doing too much. Just relaxing with the NPCs near a river. Nothing dangerous so far."
"What! A river, lucky! I'm stuck in a rocky region. Barely any water or even grass for that matter. I'm lucky one of my NPCs can get water from the cactus-like plants."
"Well, have you heard Renee there is a company that is going around recruiting Settlement players?"
"WHAT! Really? Mary, should we go to them today? Maybe we can get them to help us in the game."
"Yea, we can try I don't mind. Next to the big game building in the city is Bones, the company recruiting players."
"Bones? Why have I heard them beforeโฆ?"
"Silly Renee. They are the ones that usually make the player guilds in games. They created MercSwords in LeafStory, PowerHouse in World of Witches and Bones'R'Bones in MagicSwords. So, assuming the same trend they will most likely create another guild like place in Settlement even though there are no guild functions in the game."
"Hmm...I see, I kind of understand but not really...Oh well, you can explain it to me more let's start heading there first."
"Wait, Renee. Wait up you're running too fast."
I watch the girls run away and think to myself about the little snippet of information they had leaked. I remember seeing a post on the forum about recruiting people for a guild but never did I imagine it was something this big.
Should I join it?
I get up from the bench and slowly walk back home thinking about how to progress in the game and whether to join the guild the girls were talking about. I can check it out since I am going near it today to meet up with Sabrina and at the same time maybe get her opinion on it as well.
I got home, showered and changed into something more casual before walking to the train station and getting on the train. A nice comfortable ride without much happening around me until I got to the cafe.
It's 945, a little early so I went to send a text to Sabrina saying I have arrived.
"I'm here." - Ian
"OH! Wait, almost there. Walking from the station." - Sabrina
"Take your time, no rush." - Ian
Standing in front of the cafe I am able to see the tall glass building next to the game shop. At the top of the building in big white bold letters is the world Bones, with two long bones in a shape of an X behind the letter B. At their front door is a line snaking around the side of the building with men in black suits and black glasses standing near the line. I look at the people slowly moving up the line when another person exits the building.
The people exiting the buildings always had a big smile on their faces, holding onto a Bones carry-on bag.
"Wondering what's happening in the building to Ian?"
A sudden voice coming from behind me surprises me, making me jump in fright while I turn around. Sabrina, dressed in a white crop top, an unzipped maroon red jacket and short denim shorts appeared behind me.
"Why did you come at me like that?"
"I don't know. It seemed fun as a thought. I was originally going to hit you on the back but then again you are not Evan so...Didn't do it. Come on let's go in the cafe I'm hungry, tired and thirsty. You are paying by the way."
"What?!"
"Hurry up!"
Without any warning she had already entered the cafe and sat down, waving to me to sit with her.
"Okayyyy, I want pancakes with honey and maple syrup andddd an iced vanilla latte. What are you getting?"
"I...Don't know. I just sat down."
"Come on, hurry up it's not that hard."
I quickly look at the menu and looked at the cheaper options.
"I'll get a ham and cheese toast with water."
"Why are you telling me? Go to the counter."
I look at her in disbelief and confusion but once I saw her face as she looked at the menu and a picture of the pancakes I just sighed and went to the counter.
After ordering the food I went back to the table and sat down.
"So, you died. Are you feeling ok?"
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I look at Sabrina's stone-cold expression. Her eyes carefully look at my expression as she places her head on her hands propping them up.
"It felt weirdly disturbing. Like...Like I truly died."
"Are you ok?"
"Well, if you consider the fact that I woke up in cold sweat, spent 3 or 4 hours thinking back to the moment and then came here. Yea, I'm okay."
"So you are not ok, don't worry that's why you are eating at a cafe with a cute girl."
"Where is the cute girl? I don't-ARGH!"
A sharp pain shot up from my shin when I felt Sabrina kick me.
"Hrmp, whatever. What happened prior to your death?"
"It...Uhh...I...I was going around my area following an item and I came across some other players. Since I was in a disadvantaged position I retreated to a previously destroyed encampment. There I encountered a group of new monsters, stone humans with devil wings and creepy smiles. Imagine a gargoyle but the face and is more human-like. These monsters were extremely strong but after running away there was one stray monster and thinking I could defeat it with my team I challenged it only to get completely and utterly dominated. The gargoyle killed everyone around before killing me last."
"How strong were they? Compared to the events that happened previously."
"Insanely strong and this was just one monster. If the whole I don't know pack found me or where my people lived we would be wiped out in a second."
"Okay, how about after you died? How or what were you feeling?"
"That was worse. I felt like I was alive but I knew that my head was separated from my body. I couldn't move and I was in a dark space floating but not really floating. Then after a bit, I woke up in my room."
After, recounting the story the waiter brought our food and drinks to the table. Telling Sabrina about what happened felt like something was lifted off my chest.
"Eat up first Ian, we can talk more after."
...โฆ..
"I...I almost died in the game."
We had finished eating and I was just sipping on my water when Sabrina broke the silence. The unexpected comment made me almost choke on the water.
"What happened?"
"The event with the invasion happened. One of the slimes was a bomb slime variant. When one of my people killed it with a sword it exploded and I happened to be nearby. The blast propelled the blade of the sword in my direction and it ended up stabbing me in the chest. I thought I was going to die. The pain of being stabbed was unreal. I couldn't believe what I was feeling but I guess with the devil's luck I wasn't immediately killed and one of the other NPCs was able to take the blade out and apply a slave from herbs found in the river nearby."
"You, you never told this before. Does Evan even know?"
"No, of course, that idiot doesn't know. What is he going to do about it?"
"But stillโฆ"
"Don't worry it's been a while. Ultimately, the feeling that I was going to die was something different. I never thought I could feel so much pain, sadness and anger at the same time. Like it's a game but it felt real."
"I know what you mean...It felt very real to me."
We sit in silence for a bit drinking from our cups and listening to the sounds around us. People chatting, doors opening, milk foaming, utensils clicking and feet shuffling. I look at Sabrina and notice a soft smile on her lips as she looks at her drink.
"What are you thinking about when you look at your drink?"
"Oh, I was smiling? Sorry, I didn't realize. Evan introduced me to this drink one time when I was feeling down and since then whenever I or whoever I am meeting feels a little sad I would get this drink."
"Really? That's pretty sweet of Evan to do that for you."
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"Maybe, who knows...Now, want to go down and see what is all the fuss over at the Bones building?"
"Sure why not."
With a small shrug, I agree with the idea and follow Sabrina out of the cafe. The line at the Bones front gate still looked as long as before we had our food. With Sabrina confidently leading the way towards the Bones building, I walked closely behind her. Walking closer to the building I could feel how impressive it was with its many bodyguards watching the line as well as the many different security features at the front gate.
"Wow, they really went all out."
"What do you mean, Sabrina?"
"This isn't the first time Bones have done mass recruitment and nor are they the only company. The major three gaming companies Bones, Lotus and Aqua always create guilds in the big new games and employ players to help them dominate the game. Even if one of these companies make the game their guild firms are separate from the main company in order to provide a more fair way to compete."
"Have you or Evan joined any of them before?"
"We have in a couple of games but since Settlement is a vast sandbox-like game we were deciding to not join one of the companies and make a small guild together with just us two and well most likely you too."
"Having help in the game would be nice and it would make exploring the world feel safer."
"Exactly and that's what these companies are doing. They are taking the insecurity of players in this different world and trying to make a profit out of them. Evan showed me a post on the forum about a player explaining the benefits they received once they got hired. In exchange for daily reports on location, game events, NPCs, flora, fauna, environment etc they receive information on nearby other players employed by the company and are required to team up and help each other. That's it. Information on other players nearby. It's a scam and players are buying it because they don't know what is beyond their scope of exploration."
"Surely, they have approached other players on the top 10 right?"
"Yep and the most likely provide or offer more than the general public. Ian, what do you want to do? If you want to join a guild then go ahead we won't hate you for it since they are still a safe option and with the fact that you are in the top 10 they would most likely provide you with a lot in order to keep you. "
"Sabrina, I think for now I am content with what I have. Playing the game for fun and talking to you and Evan about it. The only thing I want is to eventually meet up in the game."
As we were chatting near the front of the Bones building both of our phones vibrated. Evan had messaged the group chat and his message was slightly worrying.
"Ian, you said that your base was in a canyon right? I think some players have found it and are preparing to make a show out of it. Look at the latest forum post." - Evan
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After reading the text, I could feel my heart skip a beat. I look at Sabrina and she was already on the web browser searching up the forum. Quickly I do the same and once I opened the forum it was the first post I saw.
"To the guy surrounded by goblins in the canyon" - EyeSpy
We will find you! We will find you and kill you, your little goblins and your NPCs. To any other players who have seen/heard or have any information help us avenge our friends. This player who we will call P, lured 3 of my friends, our 4 NPCs and myself into a cave where he set loose an army of stone freaks to kill us.
What did we do to you? Nothing. We did nothing. We saw you at the bottom of the canyon and wanted to talk but instead, you ran away. Thinking it was weird we followed and got ambushed by the stone monsters.
These things ripped us to pieces. Like literally torn us limb from limb. One of my friends is having nightmares about it and could barely sleep for the rest of the night.
SO. We will find you. We will kill you. So be ready.
While the post was small and only contained a bit of information the comments were erupting in a storm. Players were curious about who P was and where the 'war' would take place. Some players were commenting that they knew who P was in real life and other was commenting about P's army.
False information was thrown everywhere in the post as this was the first kind of player versus player event even if it was unofficial.n0๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐๐ท.๐ฐ0๐
"Hey, are you going to be ok?"
Sabrina grabs my arm and asks me a question not even I knew the answer to. I could only shrug and just shake my head not knowing how to answer her.
"When you go back into the game tonight make sure you prepare your defenses straightaway, okay?"
"Yea, I know Sabrina...Do you believe in what they said in the post?"
"Are you kidding me? Of course not! I already know your story. They are just a bunch of attention seekers. I bet they aren't even that strong."
"Right...So, if I die again you're paying for the meal ok?"
"WHAT? Helllllllll no. You are paying no matter what happens. Well hopefully, you won't die again, after all, you really did not look well when I first saw you."
A slight smile appears on my face and I turn around, walking away from the Bones building. I currently have no need to join the guild and no reason to give away my information. Playing by myself with my NPCs and finding out more about the world is more than enough for now and eventually, there will be a way to connect with Sabrina and Evan.
The both of us talked a bit more before parting ways at the train station. On the way home there was much to think about including the players who will be attacking me soon, the stone monsters, the copper mine, the tin deposit and then progressing HavenFall to a higher level.
What can I do for my small village that would help them? Thinking about my options I realize there were not many but something did come to mind when I thought about fighting against a group of people. It was the area of effect attacks or what most gamers called AOE.
What are AOE attacks good against if not groups of mobs? While there is no magic in HavenFall a very primitive method of attacking would be using fire and as if a light bulb turned on above my head, flaming arrows.
With the army of goblins plus Robin and Howard who are proficient at using a bow and arrow constantly firing flaming arrows, it would be able to handle most if not all situations where the opponent's military strength is more or less the same as mine.
I already have an advantage with terrain, being the location of HavenFall and the limited methods of entry but if I include using height and flames as well I can improve our militaristic strength by tenfolds.
Ok, range weaponry can be improved but what about melee fights? With the fight against the stone monsters eminent there needs to be a way to defeat them. Most attacks from the spears and arrows only made scratches against the skin of the stone monsters. While the goblins do have lower strength than Howard or David or even Frank they were still capable of attacking and defending against them to an extent. However, what if Howard or David was fighting the stone monsters could they penetrate the skin?
My mind goes to work thinking about a weapon that can help the fight and eventually lead towards the club. Blunt weapons are effective in doing heavy strong strikes like how a hammer is used in the process of refining metal. So what if we got a club that can do damage to the stone monsters? I look through my phone and searched on the internet for some answers.
An effective ancient era blunt weapon was the club which evolved into the mace. Finding a large sturdy stone and then attaching a solid wooden pole would create a simple mace and I can easily tell old man Hus of this weapon. Furthermore, a mace is more effective on heavily armored units which in a sense is what the stone monsters are therefore, using a mace would allow more damage.
Now, the defense was the circular wooden shields enough? I remember the fight against the stone monster, the goblins tried to protect each other by lining their shields together. If it was a human opponent then that makeshift formation had too many holes but luckily the stone monster only knew how to swipe its claws. If old man Hus can make tower shields or the scutum then that's a different story. Long rectangular shields held by the Roman legion were called the scutum and it was the core of the phalanx formation.
A big grin appeared on my face as a thought went into my head. What if I can make a goblin phalanx formation? While the individual strength might not be there just yet if they are able to cooperate effectively and perform the formation to a high degree they would be able to defend and retaliate against most other monsters. So long the enemy isn't insanely bigger or extremely sturdy then the formation might be able to work.
The insane ideas run through my head as I sit on the train and as I walk home. Things from history that worked and things that didn't work and why did they not work, I kept thinking and thinking, researching and researching all the way home. Once I got to my doorstep, it was already night.
I had spent extra time wandering the streets formulating ideas and looking through my phone reading about ancient history that I didn't even realize how much time had passed. Still, there was some time before the game opens for the night. I made a simple dinner of rice and stir fry beef, enjoying the meal since in the game I would be very busy preparing everything.
After cleaning the dishes, I went to my room and took out a notepad.
Things to do in Settlement
Create new weapons, shields, armor
Mace
Scutum
Fire arrow
Figure out a way to teach the phalanx formation to goblins, Howard and others if needed
Prepare a rotating night shift to secure eyes and ears 24/7 throughout the day
Be wary of players attacking
Be wary of the stone monsters
Copper and Tin mining expedition
Creating a road from HavenFall and the mines
Find more encampments to increase the population
Make sure agriculture is doing well for future food resource
GET STRONGER!
I jot down some of the main points I needed to do or work on in the notepad. Afterward, I relaxed while watching some TV or scrolling on my phone until midnight where it was time to go back into the game.
I lay down in my bed and close my eyes after placing the VR helmet on and once I open them again I see that I had spawned in the mud house where I had slept in during the nights of Settlement. I walk out of the house surprising Lucina and Melody who had been walking past the house towards the farm.
"Ian! What are you doing here? Weren't you on the scouting mission?"
Lucina spoke in a surprised tone still in a state of disbelief.
"It...It was a failure. A lot of variables came up during it and the goblins diedโฆ"
"Oh no...Wait here, Melody and I will get everyone else so you can tell them what happened."
"Thank you, Lucina."
I sit down by the fire putting some more firewood into it allowing it to burn stronger. It didn't take long for everyone to gather even Gobi and his goblin troops joined in not too far away.
"Okay, since everyone is here I'll keep it plain and simple. We might be getting attacked very soon. It could be today, tonight or even tomorrow, I don't know."
"Ian, what...what happened?"
I look at Gobi and I could see the dark clouds covering his face.
"Gobi...We were attacked by humans and demi-humans when we were very close to the objective and due to that, we retreated. We went back to the cave where we defeated Balta and since we were in an advantageous position I went deeper into the cave with GomiTwo. There we found stone monsters that looked like humans with wings.
These monsters attacked us and eventually we had to retreat again. One of the monsters separated from the group and I thought we could defeat it. I severely underestimated its power and we got massacred.
These monsters are not too far away from us and might eventually reach us. Then the humans also might be coming as well as the monsters did kill some of them and they most likely blame us for it."
"So, do you think we can defeat them?"
Surprisingly, Owen came forward and asked the most important question.
"Yes, Owen I do think we can defeat them. However, not as we are now. I have ideas which can help us defeat them however since I don't know when they might attack we might be pressed against time."
Howard stands up and hits his left palm with his fist, grinning like a child.
"Then what are you waiting for Ian? Tell us what we need to do."
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I stand up, grin and clap my hands together. It's time to do some work.n0๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐๐.๐0๐
"Maces, shields and arrows. These 3 things will be our first step in improving our offense and defense. To explain, the maces are going to be very simple. Big rock plus wooden stick, done! Arrows, simple as well. Lots of them, however, the head is not a point instead it will be something like a ball of flammable objects. We can use tree sap, small vines and tinder to create the head of the arrow. These arrows will be set alight before firing them and even if they miss the target, having lots of these will reduce the area of where our opponents can move."
"Are we using fire as a weapon?"
"Yes, David we are and it is a very effective weapon used correctly. Lastly is the shields. They are the most difficult thing we need to create and I will be working with old man Hus and Lime to complete it. Lucina, Melody, Robin and Howard will be creating arrows. David, Frank, Owen and Noah will be creating the maces. Celine, Gobi and the goblin troops will be patrolling the area. I want the wolves with Celine at the bottom of the canyon alongside 3 goblins while the rest is spread in the forest. Do not go too far and retreat immediately if seen. Does everyone understand?"
I look around for a bit, observing each person's expression before moving on to the next.
"Can you explain what kind of size you want the mace to be? As well as a description of it?"
Owen steps forward to confirm about the mace and I was glad he said something. After Oscar's death, I wanted Owen to be more proactive. Searching for things to do and things to improve on as well as interacting with other people and asking for answers when needed.
"A mace is a relatively simple weapon to create. Its base design is a club and all you need to do is find a rock with a hole in it and drill to the other side using old man Hus's hand drill and slide the club into the hole. Secure it with some vines and you have created a mace. Stone plus stick."
"Why is this weapon going to be helpful? Wouldn't our axes already be enough? Both is a stone plus stick."
With a smile old man Hus answered the questions for me.
"Young Owen, what do you use to break stone? Is it an ax? No, you use something of similar material or higher which means you use a stone to break the stone. A hammer or a mace are one and the same, with the same function of breaking."
"I seeโฆThe hard skin of the stone monsters is why we need maces."
"Yes, exactly. While I do think our axes will work, creating them takes a longer process as the blade of an ax needs to be sharpened. Maces however are easier to create and maintain."
"Ian!"
I snap my head towards the voice and find myself looking at Robin.
"The arrows won't work. How will they fly if the head is a ball?"
"It doesn't have to be a ball, it can be vines wrapped around the tip of the arrow covered in tree sap and tinder. It just needs to be able to carry enough flammable objects on the arrow so that it stays alight all the way until it lands on our target."
"Okay, and how many do you want?"
"The more the better. We might use all of them in the following battle and if there are any leftovers then they are used in future battles."
"Understood."
"Any more questions before we begin?"
I look around once more making sure to double-check so I didn't skip anyone that might be hesitant about asking a question.
"Okay everyone you know what your job is so go and complete the task. If there are any questions come and talk with me. Old man Hus and Lime let's go to your crafting space."
Everyone dispersed into their own little group talking with each other about the roles needed to complete their tasks. I could see Robin's group that the girls had already run into the forest to collect the materials while Howard was setting up another fire further away to test their arrows. Noah and Owen were going down the river in search of large rocks while David and Frank headed to the forest to find a solid stick to the handle.
I lead the way towards old man Hus's crafting space while thinking about how to create a scutum. I had researched about it on the internet prior to coming to the game and luckily for me the scutum was made out of layers of wood stuck together by a glue of some sort and leather. Since there was no leather or glue in HavenFall I thought about using vines and some homemade glue.
"Lime, I have an important job for you. I need you to collect a lot of sap and charcoal. The charcoal is from the fire we burn, around it is a lot of charcoal. However, the sap will have to be from the trees in the forest. Grab one of the clay pots and collect it until it fills it all up. While this is happening I will be constructing the basic skeleton of the shield with old man Hus. Do you understand?"
"Got it! I'll be back soon with everything you asked."
I watch Lime run away with a clay pot in her hand as she joins up with Lucina and Melody on their sap collection.
"Lad, so what do you want me to do for you?"
"Old man Hus this shield might be a bit hard."
"Why is that lad?"
"Because of the detail. I want this shield to be light but durable and big enough that even David can hide behind it and his body won't be shown. At the same time light enough for the goblins to be able to pick them up and walk or run around with it."
"ThatโฆThat's impossible. You would need to cut the wood into very thin pieces but the thinner it is the more likely it will break."
"That's why I need the glue solution. Old man Hus, the scutum is not one piece of wood as the shield. It is layers of wood that create the shield."
With a confused look old man Hus blinks at me waiting for me to elaborate.
"Okay, the shield is bent outwards. We can make a mold using some of the wood we have to create an arc shape. Once we have done that we cut out the wood so that it can bend enough to fit the curvature. Then, apply the glue and place another layer of wood on top of that. Do this so that there are 3 layers of wood and then let it dry and we have finished out the first shield. Sound easy?"
I let old man Hus contemplate the idea while I search around his area. Since he was using the front of the food/armory shelter as his own personal crafting space there had been quite a lot of material piled up waiting to be used.
Howard or David must have helped him cut down some trees as he had logs cut into smaller logs placed evenly along the back and side of the shelter. By sheer coincidence, the sizes of the logs happen to be close to the desired length. I lift one of the logs up to compare the size kneeling a bit I was shorter than the log. I smile to myself at the coincidence and was ready to make the shield.
"Lad, I have an idea to improve on your idea of the shield. You want three layers of one solid piece of wood correct?"
"Yea, that sounds about right."
"What if instead of 3 large pieces, each piece is cut into 3 pieces since the wood we have does not come in large sizes. Then when constructing the first layer will be up and down while the second layer is across and the third layer is up and down again."
"WaitโฆOld man Hus that's brilliant! It solves the problem of our resource plus having both horizontal and vertical points of the shield allows for a different area of protection. If a blow is too heavy on one side, instead of the whole shield breaking it could just be one part. That's brilliant!"
"Hahaha, thank you, lad. It was because of you that I can keep my mind moving with new ideas."
Excited at the new method of creating an ancient shield I quickly went to move the logs closer to us. Old man Hus went to grab his makeshift saw which was just a stone he had sharpened to cut the log into thinner pieces.
There were no machines to do this step for us so a collaborative effort was needed. I hold onto the sides of the log balancing it vertically. Old man Hus stepping onto a flat rock to get higher starts to cut into the log. Slowly by surely, he makes his way from the top to the bottom. The sawdust fly onto my face and body, making breathing a challenge but ultimately I had to close my eyes and ask for breaks every so often.
Lime had come back with a clay pot filled all the way with tree sap. The tree sap was still hard and in lots of clumps but that is okay since the point of the tree sap was to slowly melt it.
I had Lime create a smaller fire near us using some tinder and small branches and start to melt the tree sap. With her trusty pair of large sticks to transfer the hot clay pot away from the flame, she started to move the tree sap around as it melts. I warn her to not let the sap boil but instead, continuously move the melted sap with the nonmelted sap to make it melt faster as well as keep it smooth and even.
Keeping an eye on Lime's mixture as well as stabilizing the log got easier as old man Hus got lower. With less sawdust in my eyes, I could look at Lime as she mixes the paste together. I get her to crush some charcoal on a rock until it is a fine powder making sure to look out for the paste as we don't want it to burn or boil.
Once the tree sap was at a consistency of sticky bread dough just shy of a liquid I made Lime add the charcoal. Mixing the two ingredients together created a black swamp-like creation in the clay pot, dying the inside jet black. After incorporating the charcoal evenly into the mixture I had Lime apply it on a stick. Gradually layering the black glue until there was only a little left sticking to the clay pot.
Our black glue stick is about the size of a remote controller both in length and width. Sticking the nonglue side into the ground we let it cool off to the side as I continue to help old man Hus cut down the logs. I ask Lime to make more glue sticks and by the end of the day as night is about to roll in I and old man Hus had cut down approximately enough wooden planks for 10 shields and Lime had made 5 glue sticks. While the width of each cut is a little bit different from one another it was fine since that just added to extra protection in parts of the shield.
I head to the mud house to relax and get some shut-eye keen for tomorrow as old man Hus and I would be assembling the shield.
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A new morning. Waking up to the roaring sound of the waterfall and the golden ray of light. A big smile on my face as I breathe in the fresh air. Standing at the top of the path looking over the canyon, seeing the wolves taking a morning walk. With the only adult wolf in the lead, the young wolves follow behind her closely as they around in circles. I stand next to Ariel's Statue looking at it being bathed in the morning glow.
Old man Hus walks up to me enjoying the early morning as well as giving me a slight nod before looking at Ariel's Statue as well. He closes his eyes and straightens his back in front of the statue. He brings his hands together, intertwining them and slowly breathes in and out rhythmically.
I assume it was his method of praying to Ariel and while it is different from other prayers I have seen before I didn't say anything but instead I copied it. I give my own prayer to the first NPC of the game and wish for an enjoyable time. After a moment of silence, I open my eyes and what I saw wasn't Ariel's face but insteadโฆ
[ You have acquired 100 Faith ]
[ You are able to pick a Pantheon ]
[ Please select a Pantheon
Goddess of Fertility
God of Crafts
God of Healing
God of the Forge
God of the Sky
God of the Sea
God of War
.
.
.
Goddess of the Hunt
Monument to the Gods
God King
Goddess of Luck
]
,m A list longer than any research paper was shown to me. Like an endless sea of different gods and goddesses each with their own unique trait. I click on some of the names which interested me like:
Goddess of Fertility - Your Settlement growth rate will be 10% higher
God of War - When you or your troops kill an enemy Faith equal to 10% of their HP will be rewarded
Monument to the Gods - When constructing a wonder, the effect will be increased by 10%
God King - 1 Strength, 1 Vitality, 1 Intelligence, 1 Dexterity, 1 Agility, 1 Luck, 1 Faith, 1 Culture
Goddess of Luck - Anything with a randomness element to it will always be slightly more favorable to you
With so many options I couldn't even think of what to choose. I stood there staring at blank space as I click on random names and read their trait definition. Some had caught my eye but the one that stood out to me the most was the Goddess of Luck. I already had a high luck stat but what if I could increase it even further?
Acquiring the Pantheon for the Goddess of Luck would make it whenever I open an ancient ruin the reward will always be better than average. While it might not be the best or most needed reward it will never be negative. If I had this trait in the real world I would immediately go to the casino.
I said my goodbye to old man Hus telling him that we can get started on the construction of the shield after some breakfast and a small rest. Most of the time I would be looking through the long list trying to compare different gods and goddesses for each situation.
The Goddess of Fertility was a very long-term investment, since increasing the rate at which my settlement grows will always be better in the long run. An increase in population would eventually lead to a baby boom, increasing the amount of work and jobs needed to accommodate everyone's needs and wants.
However, looking on the short term even the God of War sounded reasonable. Going into a battle soon knowing that there will be killing would serve as a motivation to gather more Faith. Having more Faith will eventually lead to more benefits whether it would be short or long-term benefits.
By the time it was almost time to log out of the game I had only just made a decision. I am choosing Goddess of Luck! Why? Because lady luck will always shine on me if I pick Goddess of Luck as my Pantheon.
[ You have selected Goddess of Luck as your Pantheon ]n0๐ฅโฏ๐๐๐๐.๐0๐
[ Congratulations for being the first player to acquire a Pantheon. As a reward, you will be given a gift]
[ 1 x Goddess of Luck Fortuna's Statue ]
Much like the time I acquire Ariel's Statue the same small stone figure appeared before me. A woman dressed in a simple elegant tight-fitting dress, accompanied by a necklace of the sun as well as wings made up of feathers standing on a pile of coins with her back slightly arched backward. She raises her right hand over her head pointing her elbow outwards and looking in the opposite direction with her eyes focused on a large woven bag in a shape of a bukkehorn. Overflowing from the bag are the same coins she is standing on.
Since I was standing next to Ariel's Statue I placed down Fortuna's Statue on the other side of Ariel and an enlarged version of Fortuna's Statue appears making it look like two angelic gatekeepers watching over the path to the canyon.
I look at the description of Fortuna's Statue.
[ Goddess of Luck Fortuna's Statue
Faith 5 per day
Luck 1 Permanently
The goddess of luck smiles upon her subjects, watching over the growth of their fortunes ]
Happy with the new addition of Fortuna I head towards old man Hus to construction the shield, checking my stats as I move along.
Name: Ian
Race: Human
Faith: 0/10,000 ( Reach 10,000 to pick a Religion )
Happiness: 2 ( Happy )
Health Points (HP): 10/10
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 5
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 5
Luck: 11
I notice the next hurdle for Faith is 10,000 Faith. A massive jump from the previous 100 as what can picking a religion mean? Picking an already known religion like Buddhism or Christianity? Or is it like how I picked a Pantheon? Choosing a trait or multiple traits to construct a religion for my Settlement. A lot of questions pop into my head but one of them was what is culture?
I encountered it during the selection screen for the Pantheon. Some of them increased my culture either by a percentage or by 1 but there was no description of what was culture. Much like Faith, it is a hidden stat that is most likely going to be unlocked once I complete a certain task but until then I'll push it to the back of my mind and focus on what I need to do now and that is making HavenFall stronger.
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Chapter 77 - Scutum
"Old man Hus! Are you ready?"
I call out to old man Hus once I got closer. His beaming expression told a thousand worlds. I had Lime prepare another fire nearby as well as all of her black glue sticks as well ready to soften the glue at a moment's notice to begin the sticking process.
The original scutum is slightly convex however, bending wood requires a bit of time as well as resources. Creating clamps to hold down the wood as it glues together as well as build frames and molds of the shape would increase the amount of time to create the shield.
In response to this, old man Hus suggested we make a straight shield and section it into three parts both vertically and horizontally. I start off by gathering three planks of wood and setting them elevated between two stacks of wood, with only the top and bottom of the planks touching the planks.
"Lime start melting the first glue. Make sure to stop before it gets too runny."
"Okay!"
Once Lime had melted the glue it was time to apply it. Carefully I run the tip of the glue stick alongside the side of the plank. A black line appears on the plank running all the way from top to bottom. I let old man Hus push the two planks together while I apply the glue on the third plank. Lime watches over our shoulders curious about the whole process. Why she had heard the conversation between me and old man Hus she did not understand it fully and proceeded to bombard old man Hus with questions after I left.
The rhythmic sound of a wooden hammer slowly fills the atmosphere. Old man Hus, after pushing the two planks together was softly hitting the side of the planks. A method to ensure that both planks are properly touching. I could see small dots of black glue popping out of the side where old man Hus scraped away using a small flat stone. Applying the glue in places where the wood does not align perfectly.
I never took into account that the wood would not be perfectly touching and thus didn't have a plan to cover up the small cracks and gaps but it seems like I didn't even need to worry about it. Using glue as putty he fills the holes with the excess glue and he repeats this process with the third plank creating the first layer of the shield.
Without even finishing one stick of glue we had already finished one layer but now onto the next. The second layer is horizontal pieces of wood, 4 pieces all together and they were smaller in size as well since the shield is rectangular.
I apply the glue alongside one of the flat sides. Using up the rest of the glue stick and making Lime melt another one. I carefully place it at the top of the first layer and once again old man Hus prefects the piece, hammering it down and scraping away the excess. The second, third and fourth pieces were the same process applying the glue on a flat side as well as one of the long sides.
With the second layer done it was finally time for the last layer. The process is mainly the same as the second layer just with longer planks. The whole process of making the shield took about an hour or so, however, the glue had not dried yet and we were leaving the shield on top of the stack of wood to dry.
Throughout the rest of the day old man Hus and I kept gluing planks of wood together and even allowed Lime to glue some together as well. Altogether we were able to make 5 shields, not enough for every goblin but with what we had I thought we did very well.
For some reason, I was unable to see the specs of the shield. Does that mean it is still incomplete? Then I realized it, I hadn't placed a handleโฆ
"Old man Hus, I forgot to put a handle in the design of the shieldโฆ"
"Lad, I know. Don't worry I have a solution."
With some of the smaller pieces of wood that were cut from the log, I saw old man Hus use a hand drill and create two holes on the back of the shield. Putting some of the glue in the hole and then inserting a wooden pole into it securing it with more glue. Connecting the two poles was another wooden pole and more glue but he also secures all three poles using small thin vines, creating a wooden handle at the back of the shield.
"What do you think lad?"
I pick up the only shield with a handle after hearing old man Hus's question and I smile at him.
[ You have created a shield. Please give it a name. ]
"Old man Hus, I think this shield is great. As for the name is it okay if I give it a name?"
"Of course, lad. I don't care too much about that stuff anyway."
"Great, then from today onwards, the shields created with this process will be called Scutum. After all, I wasn't the first person to create a shield like this, the Romans had already created it millenniums ago."
[ Scutum
Defense: 25
A shield created by layering wooden planks on top of one another.
Made by Ian, Hus and Lime ]
Satisfied by our work I got to chopping more planks with old man Hus while telling Lime to gather more tree sap to make more glue. The amount of glue used in the process was far exceeded expectations. Unknowingly I had to continuously add more glue to the wood in order to stick them together.n0๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐๐.๐0๐
This is still the first version of the shield and I already have ways to improve it including the addition of a spindle-shaped boss in the middle of the shield to allow another form of attack when bashing the shield on the enemies. Furthermore, adding leather or canvas in between the layers and on the outside will further increase the defense and strength of the shield as well as make the shield convex in shape.
But for now, this was enough. Luckily for us, there has been no development in the situation with the stone monsters and the other players. With Celine, the goblins and the wolves guarding the only entrances to HavenFall, if there were any disturbances then I would have known by now.
Gobi is constantly instructing the goblins in the forest to move to places around the forest slowly expanding the area of coverage. I still made sure to warn him to not push too far since the forest is still a big unknown for us. Thinking back to it, I'm worried about what Luke has been up to. I sent him out a long time ago to explore but he still has not come back and since there have been no notifications of his death I can only assume he is safe somewhere.
The day rolls by and night enters. I stop making more shields with old man Hus and retire for the night. The progress for today was better than I had thought with 5 completed Scutum, enough pieces for 3 additional Scutums and about 100 additional arrows. The arrows are of higher quality than the previous stone arrows with the addition of the glue stick next to the arrowhead. It seemed Lime had given Robin some ideas after discovering about glue and she applied it to the body of the arrow, sticking more tinder and creating fletching at the back of the arrow. Using small leaves she had improved the aerodynamics of the arrow without even knowing it as the fletching creates wind drag making the arrow spin in the air and making it more stable and accurate.
[ Flammable Arrow
Attack: 1
A stone arrow with flammable glue and tinder along the shaft.
Made by Robin, Lucina, Melody and Howard ]
It seems like the attack value is the same despite the different names and descriptions. Damage caused by fire must not have a real damage value but will do damage to the victim if they are burning from the flames.
Then there were the maces. Stone is brittle and heavy for most people to wield however, without metal stone is still my best option. The rocks around the canyon can easily shatter once enough force is applied so I told Owen and Noah to create lots of maces and just rotate them out once a mace has been destroyed. In turn, they had made about 30 maces. All different sizes and shapes but they all have a similar design with the stone hollowed out and filled with a wooden stick and the glue. The glue connects the stick and stone together and afterward it is wrapped in vines to prevent any slippage.
[ Stone Mace
Attack: 7
A mace made out of a stone and stick found anywhere. It can break very easily.
Made by Noah, Frank, Owen and David ]
I am impressed with their efficiency and happy with the preparations and even though some of the weapons created by them looked dodgy I felt it was okay. Weapons during this time period are all about what can be found right next to me. What can I use right now in order to deal more damage than I was doing just 5 minutes ago?
So long as we have more weapons, shields and people eventually HavenFall will be safe.
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Dead of night, with only the moon and stars to illuminate the surroundings. The constant stream of water echoed throughout the village. The rustling of leaves in the night breeze. I open my eyes to an unfamiliar but familiar sound, a single long howl.
I get up from my leafy bed and exit the mud house. I wasn't the only person alerted by the howl. Celine, Howard, Robin, Noah and Owen all exited the mud house. We look at each other and nod proceeding to the cliff. Meeting us at the entrance were 4 goblins and the wolf cubs.
"Leader Ian, it seems like the female wolf has spotted a couple of humans walking along the banks of the river not too far away. She howled as a warning signal to them as well as an alarm for us to be ready."
"Okay, get the rest of the goblins as well as Gobi and proceed with gathering the weapons. Each goblin is to be armed with a spear or a knife as well as a shield. Have the 5 strongest goblins use the Scutum and then set up a wall on our side of the river. In addition, the fastest goblins are to move forward to scout with the female wolf."
The 4 goblins nodded and moved towards the goblin house to carry out my orders.
"Umm, Ian."
"Yes, Celine?"
"You do know the female wolf is called Luna right?"
"WHAT? They had names? I only knew about Aur because he spoke."
It might have been the wrong time to be surprised as well as late to find out that the female wolf had a name but I am very surprised.
"Yes, she told me that it was her name. While you never called her by her name she still acknowledges your leadership due to the wolf called Aur. Aur accepted a person called Luke and Luke sees you as the leader and thus Luna and the wolf cubs see you as a leader."
"Wow, I never knew about this. Do the wolf cubs have names as well?"
"Unfortunately not. They are only able to receive a name once they become adult wolves. "
"Okay, I understand. Thank you for telling me, Celine."
"That's okay."
"Okay. Everyone, it is time for the battle and I want everyone to be awake. Prepare a fire at the corner of HavenFall and have Robin, Lucina, Lime and some of the goblins as archers. Wake up everyone else and have them pick up the weapons at the armory and head down to the canyon as well."
With a nod from Howard, Celine, Robin and Noah they went off to wake everyone. Hearing the news about the attack instantly woke everyone up. Lime went to create a fire while Lucina grabbed more firewood from a pile next to our main fire. Owen and David moved the many arrows towards the sniping position, placing them in clay pots nearby for easy access.
Noah, Frank and Howard went to get the weapons and shields while old man Hus helped fit them into the wooden armor. They also grabbed more spears and maces and placed them at the base of the path in case their primary weapon breaks and they have a quick way to get another weapon. Celine went with Gobi and the goblins to set up the first line of defence as well as communicate with the wolves to find out about the situation.
Standing at the top of the path watching over the hustling and bustling of the village made me feel proud. I had people that were following their orders as well as going above and beyond, thinking for themselves on how to improve the situation. I never told them to get spare weapons or put on the armor but they did it. It felt refreshing, like I wasn't a complete overlord over my people and they had the freedom to do things they believe was right.
I put on my own armor and weapons before heading down the slope to meet up with Celine. From the top I could see that the goblins that went first with the wolf cubs had already come back and reported to Celine about the situation. Luna not being with the returning party meant that she was still at the very front lines either observing the movement of the attacking party or was already fighting them.
"What is the situation like Celine?
"Ian, Luna is currently engaging with the enemy. From what the cubs were able to get from Luna was that there are 20 humans and 15 demi-humans on their way here. They have to walk 3 people side by side due to the narrowness of the river bank and Luna has been attacking them as she retreats towards us."
"What's the attacking army's troops like? Archers? Spearmen? Swordsmen?"
"From what could be seen and what Luna told them there are only about 10 known weapons used. Spears, clubs and arrows. At the back were 3 known archers and in the front consisted of spearmen. No shields but they were wearing some sort of armor on their chest. That was all the information they were able to receive from Luna."
"Okay that's good. How long until they arrive here?"
"They were close to the copper mine so they should still be a couple hours away."
"Good, we are going to set up an ambush for them. On the other side of the river hiding in the cracks of the rocks will be the goblins. Not all of them, have 8 goblins on the other side as well as the wolf cubs. The 5 goblins here will be wielding the Scutum shields while the rest of us are behind. 3 goblins will be archers with Lucina and Robin and have them fire only on my command. Gobi! Relay my message to the goblins."
"Yes Ian!"
Quickly the gobins moved to their designated spots and with their superior night vision they were able to find hidden spots where they could fit into without being seen from our enemies. Gobi stayed at the front holding on a shield n the very middle, grasping onto a spear as well speaking to the other goblins and boasting their morale.
Behind them were Howard and David, our two strongest warriors each holding onto their stone ax and a wooden shield, taking deep breaths as they prepared themselves for the fight. Noah, Frank and Owen were ready with their spears as well quietly talking to each other and making final checks on each other's armor.
Standing behind them all was me. The weakest of the bunch but that was okay because this time I'm holding onto the Hobgoblin's Club. Our strongest weapon and my trump card in case things go south. Not much longer now before we have to face other players.
Will I be okay?
What about the stone monsters?n0๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฒ๐ฌ๐ฉ.๐ฐ0๐
How did they reach the copper mines and not be attacked by them?
What is happening near Luna?
Nothing bad will happen right?
We can survive this right?
No-one will die rightโฆ?
n0๐ฅโฏ๐๐๐๐.๐0๐
Dashing around the corner was Luna, throwing herself into the river before spinning around. I can see cuts on her leg and blood dripping from her fur. With a glance in our direction Luna runs out of the river and towards us and not long later were the enemies.
They emerge around the corner and take defensive positions instantly as they see us. Some of them were holding onto torches lighting up their faces a bit. I can see the mix of humans and demi-humans, each holding onto a weapon with a slight grin on their face. They spoke loudly as if they wanted me to hear their conversation.
"Hey Gabe, that should be the player right? Somewhere in that crowd."
"Yes, Phil I do believe a player is there. Some mutt that attacked us not too long ago."
"If only we can live-stream this or record it. How much money we would make for being one of the first PVP fights?"
"Shut up Kingston! Gabe, how should we do this?"
"Well, we kill the player. Get their NPCs to follow us. Then take everything in their village and finally tell Bones about everything and we get paid a nice bonus."
"Right, right, kill, steal and get real money. How good of a job this is? We were so lucky we found another player."
"Yea, I know right!"
"Shut up Kingston! You are a waste of air only thing you can do is be good at fighting and think about what if I could make money."
"But I-"
"What part of Shut up do you not understand? Now go forward with the demi-humans and start attacking. Stupid halfbreed NPCs only listen to another monkey."
Bones? I didn't think I would hear such useful information here. I guess some of the companies are already trying to establish a lease on their hired guns. By offering money for such services they can control the player base and eventually establish a territory of only Bones Players. I won't let myself be the first victim of this corporate scam. Let's start by trying to talk to them.
"Hey, question! Since we are both players why did you come and attack me? We could have maybe set up a trading route or even become allies."
"Oi, Gabe I think he is talking to you."
"Phil, I know. Ahem. Uhhh player P, it is quite unfortunate but it's all about the money."
"Wow, Gabe I didn't know you were such a miser. Only about the money what is that?"
"Shut up Phil or I'll take 10% of your share."
"Yes, Boss!"
Money? Is that all there is?
"So you would risk being killed for money?"
"Are you kidding me P? This is a game, people die. Just part of the process. Plus you don't even know where our village is so we have all the advantages here. If we die we only lose these shitty NPCs and we respawn back at our village."
"You have a pointโฆ"
"Right, so I would say I'm sorry for this but I'm really not. Kingston! Attack!"
"DEMI-HUMANS CHARGE! RAHHHHH!!!!"
At the front of the enemy's army is one of the players, Kingston. A muscular man with arms like cannons wielding a wooden club as his weapon. With the minimal light, I could make out that he was wearing some sort of light armor. It didn't look bulky like the wooden armor we were wearing but instead fit tightly against his body, kind of like leather armor in other games.
The charge consisted of Kingston at the head followed by 10 demi-humans behind him all wielding either spears or clubs. The demi-humans had wolf or dog-like ears along with three distinctive scratch-like marks on their cheeks resembling those whiskers as well as small fangs replacing their canines. I was lucky enough to observe some of the demi-humans due to the torches they carried, illuminating their face as well as a small area around them.
"Shields! Dig the shield into the dirt and do not get pushed back. Howard and David stay closer to the sides of the shields and fend off anyone that is trying to go around them. Noah, Frank and Owen prepare to fight back with your spears over the top of the shields. Luna stay with me and be ready to pounce on anyone."
I made sure to give out clear orders as the enemy army charged towards us. I even gave Luna orders not knowing if she can understand me but maybe since Celine can communicate with the wolves they would be able to understand me to a similar degree.
"HAHAHA! Do you think your shield can stand against me?!"
With a large swing of his club, Kingston hammered against the shield Gobi was holding creating a loud DONG sound to echo throughout the canyon. Gobi pushes his shoulder against the shield digging the bottom of the Scutum into the ground as he braces the attack. His whole body shakes and as he feels his legs about to slide back from the sheer force of the attack, Noah grabs Gobi's body and pushes forward stabilizing the situation.
"WHAT!?"
"COUNTER-ATTACK!"
As soon as the first contact rides in our favor Owen and Frank stab their stone spears at the confused Kingston, slicing against his shoulder but only creating surface wounds. Multiple drum-like sounds echo in the canyon as the demi-humans start bashing the Scutums hoping to bring it down. David would occasionally swing around the side attacking any ambitious enemies that want to go around the shield and some really ambitious demi-humans would climb on the cliff wall only to be attacked by Howard.
"Shit, demi-human archers and human archers start to volley!"
"Well, if you are going to attack with arrows then we will too. ROBIN! FIRE! AIM AT THE ENEMY ARCHERS!"
The moment I said those words I could see above me a rain of fire pummeling down on the condensed archer troops. While a volley of arrows was released from them first, most of the arrows overshot or undershot hitting their allies more than us. However, our fire arrows were on point. With the aid of higher ground, there was less aiming to do and the fire is already helping. Burning hair or clothes and sending the archer troop into a panic.
"RUN INTO THE RIVER YOU IDIOTS IT WILL PUT OUT THE FIRE!"
"Good, it's time. Luna howl for me, signal the wolf cubs to attack."
The battle is already in my favor but something tells me it shouldn't be this simple.
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Another long howl fills the canyon. One wolf speaking to another, signaling a pincer attack. In response, multiple higher pitch howls come from behind the enemy army along with the short grunts and yells from the goblins.
In the dark, their bright yellow eyes shone brighter than any light. I can see them darting around as they approach the confused enemy troops, some wading into the water while others nocked their arrows into their bows and let loose an arrow.
Screams and cries come from both the human and demi-human NPCs as they are attacked from different angles and directions by the goblins. Their lack of sight only increased their fear.
"STOP SCREAMING LIKE LITTEL KIDS! IT'S ONLY GOBLINS. STICK CLOSE TO EACH OTHER AND WATCH ALL ANGLES"
Gabe's booming voice struck all the NPCs like lightning. Quickly they formed groups of 3 or 4 with their backs against each other they only need to worry about the threat that is in front of them. Soon their counter-attack began, they slowly retaliated against the goblins and the wolf cubs waving their spears, clubs and arrows in front of them to ward off any attacks. However, they forgot that there was a team of archers above them and with them sticking close to one another without moving the target on their backs only grew larger.
Robin, Lucina, Lime and the goblins let loose a rain of normal arrows with some fire arrows mixed into it on the floating army. Arrows pierce skulls, shoulders, backs and arms filling the river with blood.
"GET BACK! GET BACK! RETREAT! KINGSTON! WE ARE RETREATING!"
With a hurried voice, Gabe tries his best to recall his troops, however, the ones stuck in the river could not get out. With goblins on the other side shooting arrows directly at the floating targets and goblin spearmen ready to pounce on any enemy close enough they could only slowly wade their way towards the river bank taking damage from the countless arrows.
The battle at the frontline wasn't looking too well for Gabe and his friends. Kingston is constantly being kept in check by Howard or David preventing him from turning around and running. The other demi-humans were busy doing their best to break down the Scutum wall but to no avail, the spears from Gobi and the other shield bearers slowly piling on the damage. Each stab and thrust hit the ankles, skin and feet creating lots of scratches and cuts. Furthermore, Noah, Frank and Owen were doing their best to attack any demi-human brave enough to try and climb over the wall.
Blood splatter in all directions and screams echo in my ears but lucky for me there have been no casualties yet. With the constant downpour of arrows as support for the main fight, everyone felt confident and morale skyrocketed.
"Gabe! We need to run now! Leave Kingstone he can't escape anyways."
"Shit, you are right Phil. Who is still able to retreat with us?"
"Just 3 demi-human archers and a human spearman."
"Okay, everyone let's leave this is a losing battle."
"Yes, sir Gabe."
As I observe the battle from behind my troops I could see the torch that was always illuminating Gabe's face moving further away. I squint my eyes and I couldn't believe my eyes. They are running? Already? The fight had just started. Only some of his troops had died but most have life-threatening injures. But even then there is still a big bulk of his army that has not died or given up yet. However, he gives up first?
"DROP YOUR WEAPONS ON THE GROUND AND YOU WILL BE SPARED! YOUR COMMANDER OR LEADER IS RUNNING THERE IS NO NEED TO FIGHT ANYMORE!"
"HAHAHA! Bullshit! Gabe would never leave me! Right, Gabe?"
Kingston steps back a bit after doing a big swing which cracks the shield and left a dent. He turns around expecting to see Gabe and Phil watching him from behind but to his disappointment they were gone. He could only see 10 or so humans and demi-humans drenched in blood and water with their hands in the air and their weapons on the ground next to their feet.
"Whatโฆ?"
"Kingston, give up. Your friends left you to save themselves. "
"ThisโฆThisโฆ"
As Kingston begins to comprehend the situation some of the more heavily injured demi-humans fighting with the shieldbearers drop their weapon and slump on the ground throwing his head back and taking big breaths. With the one demi-human losing his will to fight a chain reaction is set forth throughout the remaining army. One by one whether they were human or demi-human they drop their weapons and looked at me waiting for my decision.
"Kingston. Let's stop this. How about you join me? I can tell you are a Traveller instead of a Leader. Gabe and Phil obviously left you to die. Are you going to just let them do that?"
"IโฆGabeโฆHeโฆHe promised that after this we would eat some Korean BBQ together. We would get the money from Bones andโฆand have dinner together."n0๐ฑ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐.๐0๐
It felt weird seeing such a big guy confused about the situation and unsure about how to proceed, break down in front of me. I wasn't sure how to handle it myself but I can only try and get him on my side.
"I can't promise you Korean BBQ but I can at least promise you that if you team up with me you can at least ask Gabe why he let you."
"Really? I can do that?"
"Yes, you can."
"Okay, let's go now!"
From behind the shield wall, I come out and ask Gobi to move the wall to the side to shake Kingston's hand. The first player ally and it happened to be a previous enemy who would have thought.
As we just shook hands and I was about to tell everyone to start moving a blood-curdling scream is heard in front of us. Kingston turns around and I peek around his massive body. It's dark so I couldn't see much but the goblins further away started to sprint towards us with frightened eyes.
"Robin fire a fire arrow towards the bend. Now!"
Without hesitation, Robin fires an arrow the moment I finished my order. The bright orange flame zooms across the sky but I focus on the dark space that is the river bend.
To my surprise, the arrow lands on a body. With half a head, brains splattered across the ground and blood pooling was Gabe's body. The upper half of his body ripped and separated from his lower half with his intestines dangling between the two halves.
Another scream is head and what little of what used to be Phil's body was smashed on top of Gabe's body not once, not twice but three times. Merging the two piles of flesh.
A stone arm grips the leg of what once was Phil and pulls the congealed mess around the corner.
"Oh noโฆ"
I guess my bad feeling was right. The fight was not over, heck it hasn't even begun yet.
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The goblins scramble away running towards the main force as quickly as they can, their feet pushing off the soft muddy ground kicking up mud, dirt and small pebbles. Desperate cries and shouts come from them as their terrified expressions come closer, amplified by the lack of light. Their bright yellow eyes dart around telling a hundred words but despite it all, they still cling to their weapon, holding it close to their chest.
It didn't take long before everyone was grouped up together and with the addition of all the goblins, the surrendered humans, demi-humans and Kingston, a new battle formation was formed. With the imminent threat that is the stone monsters, there was only one option if we didn't want to die. Stand together. No matter how cheesy it might be the situation just did not allow for anything else.
"Everyone group up. Humans, demi-humans and goblins throw away anything and everything about race. Right now we are just prey to the stone monsters and as we just saw one of them just killed Gabe and Phil."
"Ian, can we win against a whole bunch of them?"
Howard grabs his mace and balances it on his shoulder as he looks towards me.
"Howard, in all honesty, I don't even know if we can handle one of them. The last time I tried I pretty much got played with until I died. I can only hope we can deal with them."
"Okay, how do you propose we go about this?"
I look at everyone around me and I can only see similar expressions. It didn't matter if it was someone I knew or someone from HavenFall or someone I just met in this battle. They all wore worried and depressed faces as if they know no matter what happens during the fight they are going to die. I grit my teeth and took a deep breath before addressing everyone.
"Everyone, listen up here is the plan. All archers, goblins, humans and demi-humans head up the path to the top and replenish your arrows. Your position will be on the path as well as HavenFall. The monsters are able to fly and while the arrows might not damage them consistently they might be able to distract the flying monsters and divert the attention away."
With a slight nod the archers slowly left, following my orders and positioning themselves correctly.
"New human and demi-human members I want you to be at the top defending the archers in case anything unexpected happens. There are spare wooden shields at the base of the path. Noah, I want you to be the temporary leader of this group. Get old man Hus to make as many makeshift weapons, armor and shields as he can right now and during the fight."
"Sure, Ian. I'll get some of the new recruits to help out as well. Lime too because she is pretty handy in these things."
"Thank you, Noah. Goblin spearmen and warriors your position will be within the formation. Right behind Gobi and the other 4 Scutum shields will be your spears and clubs. The moment the shield looks like it is going to move or the goblin behind the shield is wearing out, push against the shield or replace the goblin shield-bearer immediately. Constantly look out for each other and say something the moment it looks bad."
"YES LEADER IAN!"
"Howard, David and Kingston you will be the main warriors and our method of attacking the stone monster. We have disposable maces, clubs and spears that you will be able to use the moment your current weapon breaks. I feel like I am too weak to join in on the fight however I will be constantly looking out for you. I will shout, scream or yell at you the moment the situation changes, especially if the situation worsens. Howard, you will be using the Hobgoblin's Club. Be careful ok?"
"Okay, Ian. Don't worry we will be fine."
"Y-y-yeah we will be fine. This is not that s-s-scary right?"
"WELL SAID! Give me a weapon and I will crush these monsters."
The different responses from the main damage dealers somewhat cleared the knot in my stomach. Even though David is still scared, in his own way he is trying to cope and rather than running away from the problem he is even making a joke out of it. Even Kingston sounded excited to be fighting.
"Frank and Owen, your job is going to be to support these three. Use your agility and longer reach with the spear to intercept any anomalies. If I don't catch something, it is your job to detect it and defend against it to protect the others okay?"
"Got it."
A synchronized response from the two of them bought a slight smile to my face. My troops are starting to intertwine with one another and getting closer.
It's time to prepare for the attack.
"ROBIN LIGHT UP THE SPACE IN FRONT OF US!"
With a shout, I start my preparation for the attack and the first thing I needed to do was create some light for everyone. Rather than looking into the darkness waiting for the creature to emerge, it might be drawn out by the light and then exposes itself to us.
10 or so fire arrows get released at the same time creating an arc across the night sky. Some land on the ground and emit a faint light around it, while others land in the river and a lucky few land on the small shrubbery creating a small bonfire. The embers spread to other small greenery creating a carpet of flames.
I take small breaths as I wait for the action. My heart racing faster and faster, beating against my chest as each second ticks. I can tell it wasn't just me. The tension in the air was tighter than a taut rope.n0๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐๐.๐0๐
Waiting.
Waiting.
Waiting.
Waiting.
Waiting.
Waiting.
And when I thought nothing was going to happen. It happens.
At the end of the carpet of flames, hovering just off the ground emerges the stone monster. The flickering light from the fire creates a massive shadow, extending from the monster into the abyss behind it. Its large wings spread wide as the embers from the fire tap against its skin before falling to the ground. Its arms hanging by its side and at the tip of the claws was dried blood. The most horrific part about the monster was its expression. The same smile that reaches its ears and crescent moon-like eyes as it looks at us.
Despite appearing from the darkness ever so slowly it didn't move after it revealed itself.
Just floating there, with the same expression.
Watching us.
Looking at us.
Observing us.
Without blinking.
Without moving.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
It's only a game.
It's just a monster in a game.
It's got big scary claws.
A menacing smile.
Hard skin.
Wings.
Looks like a human.
It's fine.
It's fine.
What can go wrong?
"Ian. What do we do?"
A question. So quiet I thought I missed it. The words escaped through the small gaps between the teeth. What do WE do?
What can be done?
Do we move first?
Is it by itself?
Will we be able to defend against it?
Are the shields strong enough to withstand the sharp claws?
Do we even have a weapon that can damage the monster?
"HowardโฆI don't know."
I can feel the sweat forming on my forehead. I can feel it trickle down the side of my cheek and pool together at my chin before separating from my body and falling to the ground.
I can tell it wasn't just me. I see Howard and David constantly shifting their hands on their weapon. As well as Gobi and the other goblins slightly trembling as they wait in silence unable to even see the monster.
"It moved."
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
I gulp on my non-existent saliva as I observe the stone monster hover towards us a bit. It didn't move much. Just a bit. Like someone taking a step forward. But it was enough.
Unconsciously, everyone took a step back. The tension and pressure in the air loom over us, forcing us to take a step back whether we wanted to or not.
I try to calm myself. Focusing on the task at hand. But I can feel my body shaking slightly. The scene of GomiTwo and the other goblins getting massacred in front of me plays in front of me. Only yesterday did a whole squad of goblins and myself get killed by the stone monster. Complete domination, without us, even standing a chance.
I bite down on my lip and shake my head. I'm going to force my words out. If I the leader of HavenFall is already in this state then what about everyone else. They must be feeling worse or at least the same as me, right?
"Everyone, It's slowly approaching us but we can't let it have the first move. We must be ready right now to engage with it and be prepared for anything that happens."
I gulp once again and lick my dry lips.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
I inhale, filling my lungs with a lot of air.
"ROBIN! FIRE THE ARROWS IN FRONT OF US!"
Responding to my shout a rain of arrows pummels down from the cliffs. Both fire arrows and normal arrows rain down but it wasn't just the archers above that responded to my shout. Kicking off the air, the stone monster flies towards us with its arms wide open. Its creepy smile slightly agape with the rows of sharp teeth slightly showing. The arrows bounce off its hard skin and wings unable to penetrate through. Even the fire arrows have no effect since there was nothing to burn, but at least they lit the area sightly.
"SHIELDS PREPARE FOR IMPACT!"
With my warning, Gobi and the others push the shields into the mud bracing themselves for the impact.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Four seconds.
Five seconds.
IT'S HERE!
With its arms bent backward it swings it down at the shields. Penetrating into the first layer of wood and slicing across the whole row of shields, not once by twice. The sheer amount of force pushed the goblins back but luckily the other goblin spearmen and warriors were right behind them helping them keep the shield steady.
Activating Roar, Howard jumps up swinging the Hobgoblin's Club at the stone monster's face. Reacting to the taunt the stone monster looks at Howard, only to receive a full swing to its face by Howard. Knocking its head back was the best Howard could do with his attack but it created an opening.
"DAVID FOLLOW UP! LUNA YOU TOO!"
David steps around the shield wall, splashing into the river before dashing up the river bank to the stone monster. Faster and more agile than David Luna jumps on top of the landing Howard and leaps into the air slamming her body against the stone monster's chest causing it to fall on the ground and giving David a chance to catch up. He swings the stone ax above his head before smashing it down on the monster's head. But it didn't work out like how I thought about it in my head.
The ax breaks into smaller rocks and the handle of the ax breaks in half. The monster swings his arm along the ground hitting David's legs knocking him off the ground and making him land on his back. A loud groan escapes David's lips but shortly turns into a cry for help. The monster grabs his ankle and lifts up David as it uses his wings to get off the ground.
n0๐ฑ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐.๐0๐
"KINGSTON! HOWARD!"
"ON IT!!"
With the higher attack on the Hobgoblin's Club Howard jumps over the wall with the help of Frank and Owen and smashes the club against the right side of the monster cracking its skin. Seeing the opportunity Kingston wraps around the wall following David's previous path and swings his ax at the same side Howard just attacked creating a web of cracks along the side of the monster.
Its expression changes for the worse, with its creepy smile now replaced with a frown. The curves of its mouth create a big upsidedown U and the river of blood flowing from its eyes started to flow down the whole body reaching its feet. Tossing David against the canyon wall, it hovers in front of Howard and Kingston looking down on them.
"GOBI! We are moving the wall! GOGOGO!"
Like a machine, the goblins holding the shields lift them off the ground and form a new wall in front of Howard and Kingston, quickly forming a new defensive line.
"We can do this! Howard can do damage to it. That means we can win-"
Before I could even finish my moral boosting speech the monster swings its claws down again on the shields. This time constantly beating down on the shield and unable to handle the force the goblins got knocked back and the Scutums were mostly destroyed only having one layer of wood left.
With no wall between the monster and us, it rushes with its arms wide ready to swing down and claw into our flesh. Being the first person to create damage on the monster Howard meets its claw with a swing of his club. Followed by Kingston jumping on Howard's back screaming like a madman as his ax smashes into the monster's face shattering into pieces.
For the first time, I heard the monster scream. Like a cat's claw running along a blackboard, the piercing sound blasts into my ear. An unexpected sound coming from the monster incapacitates everyone bringing them all to their knees.
The shadow of death looms over us once again.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Don't be afraid.
Again all I hear in my head is my voice repeating the same words.
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I can taste the dirt in my mouth as my ears ring with that uncomfortable sound. I'm barely able to open my eyes to the surroundings. Holding my hands over my eyes didn't help and I can see that everyone was trying their best to endure the pain but it hurts. It really, really, hurts.
Then.
Something warm sprays over my head and back.
I reach a little over my shoulder as I feel something trickle down the nape of my neck. I touch the warm liquid with the tips of my fingers and then bring it away from my shoulder and closer to my eyes.
Blood.
Whose?
I jolt my body up quickly but a wave of dizziness hits me at the same time forcing my body to lean to the side. I prop myself up with my arm to prevent myself from falling and I look around. Whose blood was it?
The towering monster covered most of my sight. Standing in a pool of blood and munching on a goblin leg as if it was a drumstick. At the same time, I finally notice the death notification in the corner of my eye.
[ Gopo has died. ]
[ Guro has died. ]
[ Gami has died. ]
[ GobuTi has died. ]
[ Garipi has died. ]
[ Gebui has died. ]
6 goblins had perished to the monster. Their green blood pool around the monster's feet with their torn limbs scattered in every direction.
Quickly I check my status to view my HP.
Name: Ian
Race: Human
Faith: 23/10,000 ( Reach 10,000 to pick a Religion )
Happiness: 2 ( Happy )
Health Points (HP): 6/10
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 5
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 5
Luck: 11
Equipment: Lucky Goblin Totem Necklace, Improved Stone Spear, Stone Chest Plate, Stone Knife, Stone Shield
I must have taken some damage earlier from the stone monster's screech. Around me, I could hear the soft groans of the survivors. Howard, Frank, Owen etc all slowly struggling to get to their feet. The front of their body is covered in mud and dirt while their backs were spotted with bits and pieces of goblin flesh and blood.
The stench of blood envelops the surroundings and with green lipstick on, the monster smiles at us. Its side still shattered from our attempt of bringing it down before but when it smiled at us a chill ran down my spine. An illusion that our damage was negligible. Oppression from its presence.
"Ian! Snap out of it. We can defeat it."
Howard places his hand on my shoulder waking me up from my own delusions.
"RightโฆEveryone make sure you have a shield and a stone mace. Aim for the cracked part and be run or shield if needed!"n0๐ฑ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐.๐0๐
With a somewhat determined voice, I instruct everyone on their duty. Knowing I wasn't in the best mental state Howard chimes in and yells at the top of his voice while swinging the club above his head. Followed by Kingston as he grabs a stone mace and charges towards the monster.
With newfound energy, the rest of the residents charge including Luna and Gobi. Howard lead the charge with Kingston and Luna following behind him closely, the rest followed behind shields ready for an unexpected situation.
With a loud cry from Howard, the monster turns towards him swinging its stone fists. Matching the fist was the Hobgoblin Club creating a loud sound that echoed in my ears. Momentarily stopping the monster's movements and creating an opportunity for the agile Luna to dash around Howard's body ramming the monster's weakness forcing it to take a step back. Followed up by Kingston shattering yet another weapon across the monster's head but this time creating a small web of cracks on the place of impact.
Those three weren't the only ones putting in work. Owen and Frank did their best to poke and stab at the monster's cracked skin creating small holes which slowly enlargened after multiple stabs.
Behind the monster, I could see our reinforcement as well. Noah and a rag-tag team of demi-humans, humans and goblins came sprinting down the pathway each holding onto a spear or a mace and some of the stronger ones holding onto a shield, leading the charge.
With the attacks increasing on the monster it starts to panic and flails around. Bashing its stone arms around and continuously turning and spinning, picking up dirt and scattering rocks. Weapons constantly break against its hard skin but at the same time the web of cracks grows and holes appear more frequently until with a last loud screech the stone monster falls.
The stone monster is now replaced by a mound of rocks but with something blue and shiny at the top of it. Throughout the whole battle, I was at the back watching everyone fight, I was afraid of it and couldn't move.
BUT since it was over, time for me to move. I walk past everyone that was huffing and puffing near the rocks and climbed the small mound of rocks. At the top, I took a quick glance around somewhat expecting something to happen but nothing.
I kneel down and look at the shiny object at the top of the stone mound. It was the size and shape of a tennis ball but a translucent blue color. I pick up the blue ball and a message appears in front of me.
[ Golem Core
A blue translucent ball that can contain mana. Combined with a magic circle and a medium a golem can be created. ]
Waitโฆ
That stone monster was a golem.
Those stone monsters which took over the copper mines were all golems?
Who is controlling them then?
Or are they autonomous?
What is happeningโฆ?
I took a deep breath look up and in the corner of my eye was something flying away. I snap my head towards the fleeing object and squint my eyes.
A bat? No, a bird? Noโฆ
It was a flying golem, similar to the one we just defeated but a smaller size.
ShitโฆWhoever it was, was watching us for the longest of time.
Looking at the fleeing golem I gulp and pray for the best.
Hopefully, I won't be raided by them any time soonโฆ
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n0๐๐๐๐๐ฌ๐ท.๐0๐
"Luke! Luke! Look, look. LOOOOOOOOKKKKKKKKKKKK!"
"Okay, okay, I'm looking."
Her jet-black hair twirls around in the air as she performs a backflip. Her clothes accentuate her already petite body. With just a small amount of cloth, some vines and animal skin, she looked like a war goddess descending from the skies as she lands. Except, her cheeky smiles and childish nature shatter the image in seconds.
"I'm glad you are all better, Sylvia."
Standing behind me were two women. A blonde hair slender elf as well as a silver hair curvaceous dark elf. After being with them for a while I had gotten to learn more about their circumstances.
Originally, their two tribes were at each other's throats constantly fighting for supremacy until a wave of monsters attacked them at the same time killing most of their tribe. Some individuals were captured instead and were used as experiments in creating new kinds of monsters much like the failed goblin/orc thing that I faced a while back.
The two of them were captured separately but tossed to the same location where they met. Having known each other briefly through their battles they were somewhat surprised to meet each other but due to their circumstances, they quickly bonded and tried to help each other survive. But their luck was going to run out, after a couple of months of dodging the guillotine they were going to used to feed a failed experiment however, I appeared and helped them out of the situation.
After the battle, we quickly retreated away deep into the forest where we found a cave hidden behind some large trees and moss where we tended to each other's wounds and made sure that Sylvia was going to be okay.
Solar harnesses the power from the sun in order to display healing powers as well as light magic. Likewise, Stellar utilizes the moon's energy to display healing powers and dark magic. However, there were clear differences between the two's power.
Solar was more focused on healing and supporting magic whereas Stellar while she can heal her magic was more offensive-oriented and played more on stealth.
"Well, that was all because of you two, Solar and Stellar."
"We didn't do too much. With the help of the energy from the moon and the sun as well as your own body's natural healing abilities, you were able to recover much faster than we expected."
Her smile grew even larger and it seemed like she had a cheeky grin on her face.
"See that Luke. My body is amazing! HAHAHA!"
"Yes, yes I get it. Well, now that you are all rested let's get a move on. While we were here, I did some scouting and found a couple of encampments in the general vicinity. We can start by taking down the closest ones and saving anyone in there to increase our strength as well as balance out our formation."
"Do you know what monster occupies the encampments?"
"Two of them were goblins and the last one was some sort of stone monster with wings and-"
"Did you say stone monster with wings?
"Yea, Solar what is wrong?"
Solar grips her head with her hands while Stellar replies for her.
"Those monsters were what attacked our tribes."
"What!"
Both Sylvia and myself exclaimed our surprise at the same time.
"Those monsters aren't monsters in the conventional sense."
"What do you mean by that?"
This time Solar explains more about the monsters in detail.
"What you saw most likely looked like a large human with wings like a bat and claws for hands right?"
"Yes."
"Right, these monsters are like pawns to Kronos. While he prefers to experiment and create new kinds of hideous monsters he much like the other Kings has his own army. These stone monsters are golems he creates to substitute for a flesh and blood army while he spends his time creating stronger and stronger monsters to command the golems."
"So, they aren't living monsters?"
"That is half correct. They aren't living like how you and I are living but they are still very much alive. They make their own decisions in battle and have different styles of combat which they prefer. With only a golem core to power their movements and a hard stone skin to protect the core. They were thought to be one of the stronger armies of all the kings."
"Okay Solar, so that encampment which I saw is most likely one of the numerous bases Kronos has around this area right?"
"Maybe, I would think he is gathering resources for his experiments and he is using the golems to acquire whatever he needs."
"Should we fight them?
Sylvia jumps into the conversation after listening in and absorbing the content.
"Kronos's army wouldn't all be here. This would be like a scouting party of some sort and there wouldn't be as many golems. OR we can raid the goblin encampment first and potentially gather more allies before attacking the golem army but if we do that we risk being detected by that golem army and they can attack us and we lose the element of surprise."
After hearing Sylvia's point I got to thinking, what would Ian do here? Would he attack the stronger army and rely on the 4 of us to be able to handle it? Or would he retreat and attack other places and recruit more people?
As I was thinking about it, the golden wolves which have been with me for the whole journey came back from scouting. I communicated with them about our potential plans as well as learned from them that the golem encampment is on the move. Some of the golems had left and only about half of them remained however one of the wolves saw a golem that looked different from the rest.
It was larger than the normal golem was wielding a white stone greatsword and it had a large horn in the middle of its forehead. Was it an evolved golem?
"Oh no, it's the horned golem. It's one of the generals of the golems. It looks like a golem because Kronos made it that way however, it is actually an experiment that turned out to not be a failure. Its strength outclassed our tribe's elders. We should avoid it at all costs!"
Listening to Solar's plea I decided to postpone attacking the golem encampment despite most of the golems leaving the encampment. The new horned golem just seemed like too big of a risk to fight against.
Instead, I lead Solar, Stellar, Sylvia and the wolves to the furthest goblin encampment slowly while covering our tracks the best we could to avoid any accidents. The goblin encampment housed 20-30 goblins with two humans, a boy and a girl, trapped in a cage. The goblins were dancing around the two constantly jabbing at them with their knives and spears while jeering and spitting. The terrified looks on their faces reminded me of my past experiences.
I grit my teeth as I watch the scene almost pouncing out of hiding from the rage that was building up inside me.
"Wolves loop around the right, Stellar stealth to the left, Solar support from behind and Sylvia you are with me."
I grip my knife tightly while looking at Sylvia as she tosses her knife in the air.
"Luke, don't worry. I have your back."
"Thanks, Sylvia. Letsgo!"
What a familiar feeling.
My small stone knife with just the edges sharpened against other rocks slicing, cutting and stabbing into flesh. Green blood splattered everywhere covering my arm, my body, my legs, the rocks, the dirt and even other goblins.
The constant screams, shrieks and yells fill my ears. My eyes dart around constantly taking in the new information, where is the closest goblin? Should I dodge backward and then attack? Maybe a stab here will be enough to kill it? Is Sylvia doing okay other there? How about Solar? Stellar?
I stab my knife into the eye of an attacking goblin puncturing through it and twisting it, destroying its brain before pulling my knife out. I take away the goblin knife held within its clutches and proceed onwards to the next enemy.
Stab.
Slice.
Cut.
Rinse and repeat.
The sound around me muddles together. Like the feeling of trying to listen to someone talk to you when they are above water while you are submerged. My breathing slows but my body moves faster and faster.
I cut and cut.
And once my knife breaks I pick up another from my enemy pushing forward constantly.
"..keโฆLuโฆkeโฆLUKE!"
Pulled out from my trance and literally pulled backward I fall on my back looking at the clear blue sky.n0๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐๐.๐0๐
"WhatโฆWhat?"
"You dumbass. Look at where you were going to attack."
I push myself up with my elbows and look in front of me. Standing behind the cage in front of the girl was the guy. Both with terrified looks on their faces, like they saw a monster even though goblins were just surrounding them.
I reach out with my hand trying to grab onto the cage in order to break them free.
"H-hey-"
"STAY BACK!"
I jolted back from his aggressive tone.
"Just stay back, please."
I stood there in a daze. Unsure what to do.
"Luke, the goblins have been more or less defeated with the wolves hunting down any escapees."
"Thank you Stellar. Where is Solar? And Sylvia are you okay?"
"Solar is tending to one of the wolves. As for whether or not I'm okay, I should be asking you that. What the hell happened during that fight? You started to go crazy you know. Running headfirst into a crowd of goblins. Sure you got out alive and barely touched but that is some reckless behavior."
"Sorry, Sylviaโฆ"
"Whatever. JustโฆJust say something if you aren't feeling well. HEY! You two what are your names? I'm Sylvia, this dumbass on the ground is Luke and the dark elf is Stellar. We have another companion who is an elf called Solar and some wolf friends."
The boy looks behind him, seeming hesitant about revealing anything about himself or the girl. But for better or for worse he resolves himself and introduced themselves.
"My name is Spike and this is my little sister Val. We were slaves that were captured yesterday when the goblins here attacked a transportation unit between two other settlements."
Hearing about active trade routes piqued my interest.
"Who was trading with who and where is the trade route?"
"KronosโฆAnd any settlement or village within his domain. However, trading slaves is the norm. We have been shipped to 5 or 6 different settlements already but yesterday just so happened to be the first time where we were attacked mid transport."
"Kronos is gathering slaves? What for?"
"Sorry, I'm not sure. Most of the time we get traded between other slave traders. This time someone or something with a Kronos emblem was trying to gather slaves of any and all kinds. I doubt they care if one batch of slaves were lost."
Listening to Spike's story I began to wonder more about the purpose of the golem encampment.
"HmmโฆStellar what do you make of this?"
"Well, I think Kronos wanted to conduct some experiments by mixing different races rather than different monsters. Or even mixing races and monsters together."
"That would be worrying right?"
'Luke! Enough thinking let's get the two of them out first."
"Okay, okay. Stellar give Sylvia a hand. I don't think I should help here."
Sylvia and Stellar began to knock down the cage with the goblin clubs. At the same time, I went to find Solar and thankfully she wasn't too far away.
Kneeling next to a golden wolf whose side had been stabbed by a knife was Solar closing her eyes and pouring a soft golden light into the wound.
"Solar, after you are done here can you do a quick check on the new people. The boy is called Spike and the quiet girl is Val. Heal any wounds they might have sustained."
"Sure Luke. Are you okay by the way?"
"I'm fine why do you ask?"
"I was going to cast haste and lesser shield on you however both spells seemed to be unable to be cast on you. It happened when you ran into the horde of goblins and you were surrounded. I understood you came out okay but I was still worried."
"I'm not too sure about it either. During that whole time, I felt like I was in a trance-like state. I couldn't hear anything around me. Like someone had covered my ears with something just enough that I can hear sounds around me but I couldn't make out any words."
"HmmโฆNot too sure either sorry."
"That's okay Solar. Thank you for worrying about me."
Solar gives me a soft smile before turning back to the wolf and continuing to heal her. I walk back to the cage where Sylvia and Stellar had released the two. At the same time, Sylvia had broken some sort of wooden plank chain around their wrists and feet allowing them to move their limbs more freely.
"Spike and Val. I have a question for you. Will you join us in gathering more people? My goal is to save people or other demi-humans or other races that have been placed in an unfair situation due to monsters or the Kings."
"You want us to fight? Never! Me and my sister are not fighting for your goals. Even if the goal is a very just and selfless goal. I cannot risk my sister who is my only family dying."
"That's fine. I only wanted to ask you. However, there is no place safe at the moment. I know of a safe haven however it is far from here and I do not intend to return there any time soon. I can take you there after I finish my business, is that okay?"
After a moment's silence, Spike gives in to my proposal.
"OkayโฆBut my priority is my sister. If the fight looks unwinnable I will leave as soon as I can."
"That's fine as well."
I smile and look away from Spike and look towards Sylvia who was tending to Val's hair.
It's so strange how can anyone be able to communicate so well with someone they had just met. This girl who I had deemed quiet and reserved is giggling away with Sylvia.
Noticing my stare she gives me a small frown, pushing the inside of her brows together and pouting her cheek a bit.
"What you looking at, huh? Dumb Luke!"
I can only sigh, why is she like this?
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"So, what do you want us to do?"
With a slightly angry but determined face, Spike steps forward to confront me about his role.
"Well, do you have any preference in weapons? Have you fought before?"
"I have not fought before. As for preference in weapons, I wouldn't know."
"Then take this goblin club. Just swing it at anything that moves in front of you when we are in a fight. That goes for your sister as well. She needs to be able to defend herself with her own weapon."
"Okay."
Spike grabs onto the club somewhat hesitantly. His anxious eyes move quickly between me, his sister and the club.
"What now?"
"Now? Nothing. We search through the encampment, see if there is anything we can take, and move on to the next one."
And with that I left Spike and started to search through the small goblin huts. There unfortunately was not much here, just some animal bones, animal skin, bits and pieces of rotten flesh, some makeshift pots and other assortments of goblin weapons.
Deep down, I knew that goblin knives I keep recycling weren't good weapons. They break easily, and they were small and short, an eventually I might have to battle a creature or monster where the goblin knife is just useless against. In the back of my head, I feel a slight panic, hoping to find a weapon that would be of use against larger and stronger enemies but to my disappointment after searching through the whole encampment with everyone there was no such weapon.
I had Spike and Val pick up any goblin knives they came across, and at the end of the search there was a total of 15 goblin knives. I distribute 4 to Stellar, 2 to Solar, 2 to Sylvia and 1 each to Spike and Val while keeping 5 tied, so they were hanging from a vine and I wrapped the vine around my waist.
"Heyyyyy Luke. Are we done here yet?"
I look towards the bored Sylvia. Honestly, I couldn't believe she had a bored expression on her face as she lies on the ground, resting her head on one of the wolves stomach, whilst the surroundings were green blood and broken huts. Absolutely unbelievable.
"Yea, I'm done. Let's move onto the next encampment."
I do a short howl to gather the wolves and asked them to lead us to the next goblin encampment.
Along the move towards the next encampment, Val asked me some questions.
"So, how come you can talk to the wolves?"
"Just can."
"Do they have names?"
"Yep."
"Oh. What are their names?"
"The two adults are called Belle and Dawn, while the cub is Hugo."
As I was finishing introducing the names of the wolves, Sylvia, who was at the front of the pack, turns around and zooms towards me.
"THEY HAD NAMES??? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME!!!"
I was shaken back and forth by the surprised Sylvia, and the words could barely escape my mouth.
"NoโฆOneโฆAsked"
"Ugh, whatever. At least now I don't need to guess which wolf is which. I can say their names now! Belle! Dawn! Hugo! Come follow me!!"
Like a storm, she pushes me aside and runs to the front with the wolves on her tail.
"You have your work cut out for yourself, Luke."
"Stop giggling to yourself, Stellar and Solar, wipe that smile off your face."
"Whatever you say."
Both the elves walk past me, following the chaotic path of Sylvia and the wolves. However, I turn to the side since Val stopped moving and Spike was checking on Val.
"Sis, are you okay?"
"I'm fine brother. I just slipped a little. Let's keep moving."
Confirming that nothing was wrong, I let the siblings move ahead of me before following them closely.
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary during our walk from one encampment to another, but regardless, night was slowly approaching. The sun was kissing the horizon and its golden rays wash over the canopy of the forest and peek through the gaps between the trees.
In front of us, another encampment. Since night is coming, the best move would be to attack now before the goblin's night vision becomes a problem.
After a quick scout around the perimeter, Stellar comes back and reports the details.
"About 20 goblins. Slightly less than the last encampment, however, there is a hobgoblin leading this group as well as a cage housing 5 or 6 humans and another cage next to it housing 2 demi-humans. All the captives look beaten and broken."
"What about the weapons the goblins and hobgoblin are using?"
"From what I can tell, most of the goblins have some sort of chest plate, shield and small sword. It's longer than the goblin knives we have, so they would have more reach, but we should be able to still out range them with our longer limbs. The hobgoblin was holding onto a whip of some sort, as well as a club. Not sure if it will use the whip as a weapon or if its just a device to torture captives."
"Okay I understand. Thank you Stellar."
"It's fine."
I close my eyes for a moment to think about a plan which would reduce the amount of risk and injury. However, with the additional armour and weapons compared to normal goblins, I was not sure how strong they would be as well as how strong the hobgoblin compared to the goblins.
My last encounter with a hobgoblin was when Ian fought it, however it had a club and was worn down from constant fighting beforehand. I grip onto the wolf fang necklace and concentrated on the task at hand. After a moment of silence, I open my eyes and started to tell everyone my plan.
"We will be doing a diversion. Dawn and Belle will come into the encampment and attract as many goblins as they can by wrecking havoc before running away. Depending on how many goblins follow them will depend on our next plan. If there are only a few, then we go after Belle and Dawn and defeat the goblins first before repeating this part of the plan again. However, if half or more than half of the goblins get baiting into running after the wolves, then we run into the goblin encampment and fight."
"What about the hobgoblin?"
"Sylvia, relax, I'm getting to that point. Solar will buff me before we rush into the encampment, and I will rush towards the hobgoblin and start fighting it. Sylvia will lead the charge, with Spike and Val behind her. Stellar will focus on defending the group from unexpected angles, while Solar will provide support. Hugo will do what a wolf cub does!"
"WHAT! You want to send poor Hugo into battle?"
"Sylvia, he already has gone into battle."
"But he had the adults with him that time."
"It doesn't matter. A wolf will always be a wolf, even if he is a cub. Don't worry about him."
"HmmโฆOkay."
"Okay, any questions?"
I look around and stop at Spike and Val, almost expecting them to have a question for me.n0๐ฑ๐๐๐๐๐.๐ฐ0๐
"I got one."
And I was right.
"Is this battle dangerous?"
"Every battle is dangerous. Anything can happen in battle. You can meet a monster which shouldn't even be here. You can run as far and as fast as you want, but it will still chase you down. Likewise, you can fight and struggle, only to die. There are no guarantees. You have to trust the people around you, Spike. Even your sister looks like she is ready."
"Val?"
Val was gripping onto the goblin knife handle, slightly trembling.
Sylvia placed her hand on both Spike's and Val's shoulder, whispering words of encouragement to the both of them.
"Spike, Val, we can do this. We just have to protect each other, okay? Don't worry. Luke is going to kill that hobgoblin suppperrr fast then come back and help us if we need it."
With a weak nod, the both of them looked slightly more confident.
"Okay let's begin."
With a small, short howl, I signal Belle and Dawn to start the attack. Like two bolts of lightning flashing through the forest, they jet towards the encampment. Howls and growls resonate and mix with the confused cries of the goblins. I can hear the hurried steps of goblins finding their weapons before attempting to attack the wolves.
With a loud howl, Belle starts to run out the side of the encampment, followed by Dawn and a handful of goblins slowly running behind. Keeping their attention, I saw Dawn looping back and attacking the group of goblins before running away again.
"Luke, I think about 10 goblins left."
"Are you sure, Stellar?"
"I am half sure. We can regroup of the wolves and attack the goblins before attacking the main encampment."
"No, if we do that, they might suspect a second attack by that time. However, it will be a complete surprise if we attack right now."
"Then?"
"Solar start the buffs on me. I'm going in as soon as you are done."
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Solar clasps her hands together and closes her eyes. Her hands glow a soft yellow tinge and with a quiet inhale she starts to chant the buff.
" .ษสฯฑiส ฦจiส ni miส ษษษษoษฟq bnษ
bnษiษฟส ฮณm ฦจฦจษld nฯ ฦจ ษสษ ฮณษM
Shield!
สษษd ฦจiส ษฦจniษฯฑษ wold ฦจbniw ษสษ ษษl bnษ
bnษiษฟส ฮณm ฦจฦจษld nฯ ฦจ ษสษ ฮณษM
Haste!"
After Solar finished giving me the buffs, I could feel the magic around my body. A whitish-yellow glow surrounds my body, as well as the weightlessness of my body. With a nod at Solar, I run around the perimeter of the encampment and got closer to the hobgoblin.
As I left, Sylvia dashed out of the forest with everyone else towards the goblins, managing to defeat a confused goblin straightaway. The fighting drew the attention of the goblins and then it starts. The cries. The screams. The constant chattering of goblin as they fumble around towards the fight.
However, the hobgoblin stays behind. Looking from my position, I see that it is standing between the cages and its hut. Like Stellar had mentioned there was a whip and a club however, it was currently only wielding the whip. Hanging from its belt, tied together, was the whip and the club was casually resting against its hut. With its arms crossed and a grumpy expression, it looks in the direction where Sylvia and the others were fighting.
I sneak as close as I can and grip onto the handle of the goblin knife tightly. Looking left and right for one last time, I push off the ground as hard as I could, dashing forward, knife in hand and slashing the hobgoblin's throat.
Or at least that was where I aimed.
Did I make a sound as I dashed toward it?
Or did it already know I was targeting it?
No, that should be impossible. I didn't reveal myself at all.
There is no way it could have thought that it would be attacked right after the wolves left.
ThenโฆHow?
As if it had eyes on the back of its head, the hobgoblin swerved its neck out of the way and repositioned its body to face me. At the same time, it grabbed its whip and cracked it in the air, creating a loud thunderclap. The loud and unfamiliar sound temporary stuns me, and I flinch expecting something to happen, and as I let my guard down the whip hits my face. Luckily for me, the shield absorbed the damage.
The hobgoblin grins menacingly while it cracks the whip to the side, producing thunderclaps with a flick of its wrists. I click my tongue at my failed attempt of dealing substantial damage before the fight begins.
Guess I have to do this the hard way. I breathe out and dash forward, using the speed boost from 'Haste' to close the gap between me and the hobgoblin. However, as if it predicted I would dash forward, the hobgoblin brings the whip from the side and lashes at me ruthlessly. Its wide swings and quick flicks of the wrists created a constant barrage in front of me, hitting all parts of my body.
I couldn't just dash forward hoping to close the distance anymore. I reluctantly retreat outside the range of the whip, and once I did the hobgoblin stopped its barrage. Moving slowly backwards until it could grab its club.
Now what?
I can't approach it and even if I did, it's got a weapon.
A cocky expression forms on the hobgoblin's face and with a snarl it slowly moves closer to me, occasionally cracking the whip in front of me.
Even though I had the shield buff, I couldn't just run in head first. What if it ran out in the middle? I could have been bombarded with the whip until I couldn't move.
I glance at my surroundings.
Cages. Huts. Rocks.
Hobgoblin in front.
Cages to my right.
Huts to my left.
Rocks behind me.
Gaps between each cage.
Lure it closer?
What about the captives?
I glance at the humans and demi-humans in the cages for the first time. Huddled and terrified. Crouching together in the middle of their respective cages with their eyes closes, begging and praying for it all to end.
I can do this. I can save them. Ian did it for me. I can do it for them.
Taking my eyes off the hobgoblin was a mistake, unfortunately. Just that glance was enough for it to quickly step forward and crack the whip at my face. Slapping me across the face. No damage, but I could still, regardless, feel the blow. I retreat back a bit more and slowly move towards the gap in between the two cages.
Like an idiot, the hobgoblin approaches me at the same speed, occasionally cracking the whip at me but missing since I was out of its range. Once I reached the gap, I toss the goblin knife I was holding at the hobgoblin and quickly brought out another while dashing quickly to the gap.
Dodging by a hair, the hobgoblin pushes forward, cracking the whip in the air before attempting to attack me in the gap. It can see me and I can see it through the small gaps in the cage, but regardless, I let it push closer push I bolted from the other side of the cage through the opening and at the hobgoblin.
Already in mid-motion for the whip, it continues to bring it down on me, hitting me on the left shoulder. The surrounding shield vibrates and fades, but I push onwards. I toss a knife at its face while simultaneously slashing at its right thigh. The hobgoblin barely blocks the flying knife with its club but suffers from a deep cut on its thigh.
It yells. It screams.
Dropping the whip on the ground and desperately swinging the club to make be retreat, however, I had already looped around it With the additional speed from 'Haste' I was able to attack and run around the hobgoblin before it was able to react and proceeded to do another deep slash at its other thigh forcing the hobgoblin to slump to the ground.
Immobilised and unable to retaliate, I finish it off with a stab to its throat.
A lot easier than I had thought.
Maybe I could have brute forced it at the start, rather than being careful.
I wipe the sweat off my forehead and had a look around.
I had a proper look at the humans and demi-humans in the cages. 5 humans in a cage and 2 demi-humans in a separate cage. In the cage with the humans, a young girl was held in the arms of 3 women, desperately holding in their screams and tears, while a dumbfounded teenage male stood in front of them.
I look to the demi-human cage and saw teenage twins, a boy and a girl. Both with white wolf-like ears and a small fluffy white wolf tail. They were standing there confused and slightly on guard.
"My name is Luke. I have friends currently fighting on the other side of the encampment. I will go to them first and come back for you. Okay?"
With a slow nod from the teenage boy and the twins, I push off the ground and run towards Sylvia and the rest. It didn't take me too long to meet up with them, but I guess I was too worried. They had just finished defeating the last goblin as I arrived.
"Heyyyy slowpoke. What took you so long to defeat 1 hobgoblin?"
"Shut up Sylvia. Is everyone okay?"
"Yep! We were doing fine and the Belle and Dawn arrived which made it even easier."
I see all the wolves cuddling Solar as she heals Spike. There was a small cut along his forearm, but with Solar's healing it should be gone in a minute.
"Did anything happen, Sylvia?"
"Not really. Stellar though we were getting ambushed from behind, but it was just the wolves. How about you, everything okay?"
"Solar's shield helped me a lot. Since I was not used to it, I wasn't sure how much it could handle, so I was more careful about getting hit and took it a little slower."
"Luke. How are the people in the cages?"
"They are fine, Stellar. A little confused but fine. I told them I was going here first then coming back to help them out since everyone here is my first priority."
"Then let's go and free them and explain the situation."n0๐ฑ๐๐๐๐๐.๐ฐ0๐
I nod at Stellar's comment and after helping Val, who was sitting on the ground next to Solar and Spike up, we moved back to the cages. We took apart the cages and released everyone that was trapped, and finally were able to introduce ourselves properly.
"Like I said before, my name is Luke and these are my friends. We came here to help free people from the monsters. Is everyone okay?"
The teenage boy was the first to speak.
"We are fine. I am Rex and these are Lily, Rose, Daisy and the little one is Meg. We were captured from different places. I overheard from a monster in a black robe that spoke the human tongue that we were meant to be sent to Kronos. IโฆWeโฆThought we were going to just die."
The 4 girls, Lily a slender girl with long dark-blue hair, Rose a short weak-looking girl with short pink hair, Daisy a well-endowed young lady with brown hair and blonde highlights and Meg a young girl with brown twin tails.
"I see. How about you two, can you understand us?"
I look at the twins, hoping they could understand me. I didn't realise that there were different languages, since Solar and Stellar understood me. I guess they already knew the human language. Then, does that mean the language they speak to cast their spells is elvish?
"WeโฆUnderstandโฆSmallโฆNameโฆKenโฆSisterโฆKaede"
"Understood. I know it might be hard for you to speak, but you can slowly learn. I have a question I want to ask everyone. I am looking for companions to help save those that are trapped in other encampments. Will you help me?"
I let my words sink into them while I look behind me. I see Sylvia nodding at my words while Stellar was busy looking into the distance, Solar brushing Belle's fur and the siblings standing next to each other taking in everything I was saying as well.
"WeโฆHelpโฆLuke."
This time it was the twins that initiated. Stepping forward together with determined faces.
"Wait, Luke. We want to help, but I am worried about the girls."
"Rex. We can take care of ourselves, okay?"
"DaisyโฆBut."
"It will be fine. Luke will help us. Right?"
"UhhโฆDaisy was it? I will do my best, but everyone will take care of themselves, especially during battle."
"Then we will join you. That okay girls? And Rex?"
,m The girls next to Daisy nodded quickly, while Rex reluctantly agreed.
"Then-"
Cutting me from telling the rest of my plan, a loud explosion was heard in the distance. The direction of the golem encampment. What happened?
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A cloud of smoke in the distance, rising up into the sky and small black dots circling the cloud.
"Lukeโฆ"
"I know, Stellar. We need to go there. Our best chance in attacking that encampment is right now. Everyone, let's move."
I howl at the wolves and told them to lead the way. Everyone started to run after Belle and Dawn without much complaint. I see the nervous expressions on our new companions as they follow my lead towards the unknown.
As we ran through the place where Sylvia and the others fought the goblins, we took the goblin weapons and shields and proceeded to move onward. Out the corner of my eye, I see Sylvia holding the hobgoblin's club and whip.
When did she take those?
As I was about to say something, she notices my gaze. With a carefree smile, she points forward, and I follow her finger. The wolves at the front had stopped and were growling.
I in turn stop as well and put my hand up hoping that everyone would stop as well. Luckily, they did, but a wave of uncertainty washes over us.
Nothing in front us.
No sound around us.
Which is already a sign of danger.
The forest should be buzzing with insects, however right now it was as silent as a grave.
I carefully watch our surroundings. Observing every small movement my eye can catch.
But.
Nothing.
No movement.
Only Belle and Dawn, silently growling.
I gulp nervously.
My sweat dripping down my cheek.
A slight tremor below my feet.
Like the ground had a heart and it was beating slowly and rhythmically.
Turn back?
Stay?
It's like I'm in a loop.
Always deciding whether to push forward or to turn back and retreat. Never an easy option.
The tremors become stronger by the second, and the wolves become more and more agitated.
What do they see in front of us that I can not?
An enemy right?
Move back Luke.
Move back.
We should move back.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
Retreat.
"Retreatโฆ"
My thoughts escape my mouth very so quietly.
But it was enough. Sylvia sensed my distress and immediately yelled out to everyone else.
"MOVE BACK. RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN!"
Like mice scurrying away from a cat, everyone bolted backwards towards the encampment.
I ran as fast as I can as well, but I noticed Belle and Dawn not moving. I howl at the top of my lungs for them to get back, but maybe I was too late in my decision.
I finally saw it.
Crashing the trees down as if they were saplings and emerging from the depths of the forest was a golem with a giant horn on its forehead wielding a white great sword.
"The general golemโฆ?"
Stellar's voice trembles as she notices the monster behind us. From what I heard from wolf's description when it originally saw it, I didn't realise it was going to be so huge. With a body as big as a house with a sword as big as its body, it towers over Belle and Dawn.
But they didn't retreat. Instead, they dash in opposite directions, targeting both sides of the golem. Ramming the legs with their whole body and then dashing away was their strategy and due to their agile steps, and they were able to dodge the golem's attack.
I stood there dumbfounded.
You can do that? You don't need to just run away?
Seeing me stop, Sylvia told everyone to pause on the running. She jogs up to me and asks me a question I was asking myself.
"Do you think we can fight it?"
I look at her. My face full of confusion.
"IโฆI don't know."
"Both Belle and Dawn are doing okay, but it might not last long. They will eventually tire out and with them constantly ramming the golem they might be taking more damage with each hit while the golem looks perfectly fine to me. We don't have a weapon that can hurt it, unless you think maybe this club can?"
She waves the club in front of me with a nonchalant face.
"She is right, Luke. Even if we try to attack it, we have no weapon to fight it. It's better off for us to run."
Stellar joins the conversation with her own point, and frankly I agree with it.
"What about Belle and Dawn? I can't leave them, and they didn't listen to me when I tried earlier."
"Hehehe, Luke you just need to try again and this time we can have Hugo try too."
Sylvia grabs Hugo off the ground. The little wolf cub had been busy following Val and Spike and hadn't been bothering anyone.
"I'll try again. Hugo call for Belle and Dawn with me, okay?"
With a short howl at Hugo to get the point across, I breathe in a huge amount of air and howl at the sky. A high pitch howl occurs next to me as Hugo joins in. Noticing our call, both Belle and Dawn respond as well, and after dodging the golem's attack once more they start to run toward us.
"Okay, everyone move we need to get away as fast as we can."
One foot in front of the other, faster and faster. We run and run back to the goblin encampment. Val and Meg were the slowest, so I grabbed Val and swept her off the ground and carried her and seeing my actions, Stellar helped Meg.
However, I could feel it. Below my feet.
The ground trembling as we run on top of it.
The shaking becomes stronger and stronger and not daring to look behind us, I focus on moving. Being at the back of the group doesn't make it any easier, too.
"LUKE DUCK!"
Val's words pierce through my thoughts. Without even thinking, I duck my head and pushed my body forward into a roll. A gush of wind brushes above me and the crashing of trees fill my surroundings.
It caught up.
It's right next to me.
Shit.
What now?
I stand up and look at the golem.
Being so far away before, I didn't even notice the disgusting expression it was making. A cheeky grin from ear to ear and eyes like a crescent moon. It looks at me from above like it is looking at an insect. I can only imagine what kind of expression it was making while it was chasing me
"LUKE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, RUN!"
"No Sylvia. If I run, it can potentially kill all of us. Get everyone back to the goblin encampment. I'll try and fight it. Toss me the hobgoblin's club, Sylvia."
"What no. Luke just run."
"Trust me. I'll be fine. Val run away now, okay?"
I put Val on the ground while keeping an eye on the golem. It didn't even try to attack. Is it just confident that it can kill me and then move on to kill the rest.
"Luke. Don't die okayโฆ"
Sylvia tosses the club towards me before picking up Val and running away.
" .ษสฯฑiส ฦจiส ni miส ษษษษoษฟq bnษ
bnษiษฟส ฮณm ฦจฦจษld nฯ ฦจ ษสษ ฮณษM
Shield!
สษษd ฦจiส ษฦจniษฯฑษ wold ฦจbniw ษสษ ษษl bnษ
bnษiษฟส ฮณm ฦจฦจษld nฯ ฦจ ษสษ ฮณษM
Haste!
Don't die on us, Luke. "
Solar was able to cast her buffs on me before she left and standing next to me was Belle and Dawn growling at the golem once again.
"I won't. I'll come back in a bit."
My whole body trembles and I can feel a chill on my neck as I look at the golem. I take a deep breath and howl towards the skies.
Another fight.
Another chance to lose my life.
But another chance to grow stronger.
I grip the cold wooden club in my hands and exhale. I can do this. How hard can it be? Just a golem twice or even three times the size of me. Hard skin which would break the tiny goblin knives which I normally use, and a giant sword which would squash me rather than cut me. I should be fine!
Almost instinctively, the wolves dash to the sides as the golem lifts its sword above its head. Time to move. I dash forward while keeping an eye on the sword, but I greatly underestimated the golem's speed. In the nick of time, I jump to the side and the ground shakes from the impact of the sword. Dirt and dust cloud my vision and in a futile attempt I slam the club against the golem's ankle only to feel the force bounce back into my arms.
The wolves continuing their attempt from before while ramming their bodies into the golem's legs, but maybe it was luck, or maybe it was working, the golem shook slightly to one side as Belle hit it with her body.n0๐ฑ๐ข๐๐๐๐ฏ.๐0๐
Another chance for us.
I'm bait.
Belle and Dawn are the ones truly doing damage to the golem.
"Hey, big guy. I don't know if you can understand me, but you have to do better than that if you want to hit me with your sword."
It's face contorts and shifts. The once cheeky grin replaced with a large frown. The crescent eyes replaced with an angry stare.
It can understand and it knows.
Well, shit.
Clouds of dirt block my view. Loud explosive sounds ring in my ear. Sweat flying in every direction as I desperately dodge and jump out of the way. It is hard dodging in this environment.
Trees becoming sticks.
Boulders becoming rocks.
And the once levelled land filled with dips.
What makes it worse is that it is night. The darkness has crept in, and the sun has fallen, replaced by the moon. It's moonlight softly illuminates the surroundings but even then it is not enough. A massive shadow is cast over the ground, blocking the majestic light.
Belle and Dawn's movement has turned sluggish from the repeated attacks on the golem, however, not a dent can be seen in its stone skin. Even when I attempted to damage it with the club, it was futile.
Nothing can hurt it.
The protective shield from Solar has also disappeared after saving me from some unfortunate hits. At the same time, I can feel my own movements slow down as well. It won't be long until I run out of stamina.
My heavy breathing condensed white clouds in front of my face.
I can only try it again.
I reposition myself, dashing forward and under the golem's legs. Turning my back to the moon as it shines up in the sky. I can feel it. A deep gaze upon my back, just like before.
I channel the feeling inside me and imagine myself in that state once again. A soft yellow glow envelops my body.
A heart beat right next to mine.
Aurโฆ
The golem turns around and looks down at me, readying its sword above its head. I breathe in sharply and whisper under my breath.
"Golden Ascension."
I jump forward, smashing the club against the golem's face. Cracks form around its skull, but before I could attack it with all my strength again, it retaliated. Swinging its head around and almost hitting me with the point of its horn. I kick off its neck and land on the ground, dashing forward immediately and attacking its legs.
Cracks form with each attack, but it came at a price. The hobgoblin's club was slowly breaking.
I need to deal a decisive blow before the club gets destroyed.
I dodge out of the way as I see the golem stomp the ground. A desperate attempt to retaliate against me. It starts to flail, stomping the ground near it and swinging its sword around its body.
Belle and Dawn rendezvous at my position and look at me. I felt a deep connection with the both of them. I howl at the moon while pushing the energy inside me to its limit. Yellow sparks envelop both wolves. Their fur gradually glowing a bright yellow, and their fangs grew larger and longer. A distinct lightning bolt can be seen in their eyes as they howl to the moon. Their bodies wrapped in a cloak of lightning as they dash towards the golem.
Their speed double, maybe even triple what it originally was as they ram their bodies into the legs of the golem, targeting the cracks which I created.
Not wanting to fall behind, I move forward as well. Slower than Belle and Dawn, it takes me a bit longer before I joined the attack, but I felt slight changes in my body. At first, it was just a second heart beat that I could feel, however after howling to the moon and placing all my energy into it, I could feel Belle's and Dawn's heartbeat. Their hearts beating at the same time as mine. Synced together.
I feel like they are drawing power from me while I am drawing power from them. I can see it. Tiny sparks along my skin and the yellow glow becoming brighter and more defined.
An explosion like sound occurs to the side of me as Dawn destroys one of the golem's legs. I run out of the way as the golem collapses on one of its knees. Seeing an opportunity and seeing as how the club is on its last legs, I dash forward while calling for Belle and Dawn to follow me.
Time to finish this.
We dodge past the last attack of the golem, using its falling momentum to attack us with its sword. Its face completely open and without any protection was our objective.
Belle rams into the side of the horn, cracking it, while Dawn proceeds to destroy it with another ram. Followed up by me as I swing the club into the same spot where I attack the first time. The club cracks and shatters into many small splinters, but so did the golem's head. Small stones scatter in multiple directions, all except for a blue stone. Placed in a hole of the golem's neck as a blue stone. Not knowing any better, I take out the ball and like magic the golem, which was upright on one knee, tilts to the side and collapses on its side.n0๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฉ.๐0๐
The yellow glow leaves my body and the wolves turn back to normal.
Belle brushes her head against my body seeking attention, followed by Dawn as she licks the back of my hand. I give them a gentle smile as I brush their fur.
However, strength leaves my legs and I fall. My eyes blur, and before I pass out, a shadow overlaps the moon.
...
"Will Luke be okay, Solar?"
"Sylvia, can you please stop asking. He is going to be fine. He just overexerted himself."
"Yeah, but likeโฆ"
"Sylvia. It's going to be okay. Can you go find Stellar for me?"
"Okayโฆ"
Sylvia leaves in search of Stellar, while I slowly awaken. My eyes flutter open and I feel my whole body groan.
"Luke, stop moving. I felt like you were somewhat awake during that short talk with Sylvia. I told her to go out, so I can talk to you privately."
"WhereโฆAre we?"
"At the goblin encampment that we raided before sun down. We are currently inside one of the huts. Stellar is in the forest with Hugo and the twins while Val, Spike and the other two wolves are nearby next to a fire warming up."
"That'sโฆ Good. Everyone is safe."
"Lukeโฆ I don't think we can keep raiding encampments. Sure the goblin encampments are doable however, I doubt we will be able to find any more of them. You weren't there during the fight between us and the goblins, and you didn't see it, but we were definitely struggling. Now, seeing the golem attack us like that and how little power we have against them, we will die at this rate."
"... I -"
"That's not all. We have more people now. Some of them have no experience fighting. Even Spike and Val had to take up arms. It was fine hen it was you, Sylvia, Stellar and me since we were used to fighting, however, not everyone is like us."
"Then what do you suggest?"
"We find a home for them. Somewhere, some place where they will be safe. You came from a safe haven, did you not?"
"Yeah, I did, but I don't know if I am ready to go backโฆ"
"What do you mean?"
I elevate my body slightly, leaning on my elbows and looking at the concern Solar.
"Solar. I left that place because I needed to become stronger. IโฆI let my friend die before. I can't let that happen again."
"LUKE! It will happen again if you are not careful. You were lucky this time with the golem but what about next time. When Sylvia saw you on top of Belle's back, she thought you died. You obviously didn't wake up when she was crying and shaking you, which only added to her worries. I'll leave you for a bit and let you think about what I said. Get some rest for now."
Solar stands up and walks out of the goblin hut. Her steps quiet and hesitant.
Once she left, I slump back down to the ground. My whole body refusing to move the way I want it too.
Solar's words stick in my mind. Is it okay to go back? I haven't even achieved anything yet. Would Ian, Howard, Lucina and old man Hus welcome me back? I would right?
What do I even say to them? Hey, I'm back and well these are my friends I helped along the way. Is that it? How long have I even been gone? A couple of weeks? A month? Maybe 2?
As these questions bombard my head, Sylvia enters the room. I tilt my head back a bit and see her worried expression as she looks down at me. Tears well up in her eyes and I can see her holding them back.
"Sylvia, you can cry, you know."
I expected a waterfall of tears, but to my surprise it was more of a small stream.
"I-I know. *hic* I know. *hic* "
"Come, sit. Talk to me."
"I-I *hic* Thought you died. *hic* Don't die you idiot."
"I won't die."
"Don't *hic* die."
"I won't."
I lay there in silence as Sylvia softly cries. Holding onto one of her hands softly to reassure her was the best I could do but after a while she stopped. Her eyes puffy and red, but it looked like she was ready to talk.
"Luke, I know you are stupid and an idiot, but you cannot go rushing into battle again like that, okay?"
"Yea, I get it, Sylvia."
"And we should prepare ourselves more for upcoming battles. Weapons and armour. We can't go running into strong monsters like that with small knives and animal skin."
"Yea I understand."
"And we should teach the newer people how to fight. They will have to put in some effort or else we will all die to an ambush."
"Yea."
"And we-"
"Sylvia."
"Yea, Luke?"
"Let's go to a place. A place where it is safe."
"Huh? Where?"
"HavenFall."
"So, Ian. Have you seen any elves yet?" - Evan
"No Evan, I have not. Are you going to ask me that every time you have the chance?" - Ian
"OF COURSE!" - Evan
"EvanโฆSHUT UP! I have had enough of your elf fetish. JUST STOP!" - Sabrina
"Wow. Wow. Sabrina chillax hon. Why so serious?" - Evan
"ARGH, YOU MOTHER! You infuriate me!" - Sabrina
"Guys, stop it, please. We are here to discuss the main storyline and about the forum." - Ian
"Right. Sabrina, calm down, let us talk like civil humans." - Evan
"Evan. Get ready for the next time I see you." - Sabrina
"Let's talk about the forum first. Has everyone seen it?" - Ian
"Yep." - Evan, Sabrina
[
Bones, Lotus and Aqua Territories - Settlement_News_Agentn0๐ฑ๐ข๐๐๐๐ฏ.๐0๐
Hello everyone, my name is Settlement_News_Agent. You may recognise me from my other names, such as Cyber007_News_Agent or WEW_News_Agent or even FRXX_News_Agent. Today, I am here to share to the community about some of the findings I have come across in the new game Settlement, specifically about the "Territories" of the 3 major guilds.
From what I have found out, every continent in the world is separated in the game as well. For example, New Oceania as a continent is connected to a single continent in Settlement. This also applies to our ranking. The top 10 is New Oceania's top 10 and while there has been leaks of other continents top 10 we can only wait until an official release for the correct information.
Moving on, our continent is made up of 5 parts. 4 of these parts are ruled by a 'King'. Players across the continent have already found out some basic knowledge about these 'Kings' and at the same time using this information we can roughly map our continent. On a very basic scale, imagine the continent as North, East, South, West and Center. North is ruled by The Horde, East by Kronos, South by Reaper and West by Cordelia. Now I know some of you have guessed it, but Cordelia does sound like a female name, so technically it should be Queen but who knows, we cannot judge!
The Center is like a dead-man's land as all 4 'King's venture into this area whether it is to potential steal resources from one another or to wage war we do not know. The information from the players that have spawn in this location usually consisted of them being attack not long after they established a base of some sort. While there have been reports of player interaction, it had typically ended up in some form of fighting.
Getting to the main point now of the territories of the major guilds. Judging by the players recruited by the different guilds, they have seemed to collected in their own respective sections of the map. Bones are mainly in the North, Lotus in the East and Aqua in the West. The South consists of smaller guilds that have not decided to join the major guilds and of course there are smaller guilds in each territory, I am just giving a very basic overview.
Now, what does this mean? With what information I could collect from players, it seems like the difficulty of each part of the map varies greatly.
Bones are currently in a state of complete chaos as the army of The Horde continues to engage in warfare, slowing the technological advancement as well as establishing villages or cities.
Lotus is currently in short supply of resources, as Kronos seems to be a greedy King. Collect everything of value in large quantities. His army of golems also provide little back to the players that do end up defeating it.
Aqua, however, seems to be having a great time. The land is full of rivers and lush forests and jungles, and it seems like Cordelia has not engaged in any warfare just yet. There hasn't been as much information on this part of the map since players are slowly traverse through the dense jungles.
Furthermore, the South is a place where death is imminent. The Reaper's army consist of the undead, which also spreads a poisonous environment in places it has been. The lack of fertile land has proven to be a great challenge for players in this area.
That is all the information I am going to share at this time. After more extensive work, I will return with another news update. Thank you.
]
"Settlement_News_Agent really out did himself. He plays every game and loves to be like a commentator of sorts." - Evan
"Plus, his information about the 'Kings' is more or less accurate." - Sabrina
"From this are the both of you about to tell where bouts on the continent you guys are?" - Ian
"I'm most likely in the West. The amount of huge trees and dense shrubbery I have to go through when I'm exploring near my village is insane." - Evan
"I think I'm in the East. There is very minimal resources here. However, there is a surprising amount of monsters and some look very different from others eve tough they are of the same species. Not sure why that is." - Sabrina
"Yea, and I told you about how I'm in the Center." - Ian
"Have you met anything other than that dragon and ogre?" - Evan
"I had to fight the golems. Which means Kronos's army is also in the Center." - Ian
"Hmm. Oh, well, not much we can do about it yet. We are all still split and with no way to connect with each other. Sabrina, just stay safe and try not to engage with the Lotus guild, if possible just establish friendly terms. They won't invade you just because you are playing the game and they are the more friendly of the 3 guilds."
"Will do. I've had interactions with other players, but I don't think they were part of the Lotus guild. Most likely Travellers, since they were wondering about just hunting monsters." - Sabrina.
"Okay, since that is settled, let's move onto the next topic, the main storyline. As you know, I was the one who interacted with the main storyline first by encountering the Blood Ogre and the dragon. Since then, I had an encounter with Kronos's golems and unfortunately a flying golem flew away after seeing my village. There has been no major attack since, only small skirmishes with lone golems. Not sure if this correlates to the main storyline" - Ian
"Going purely off the new interactions with the game since the patch, we can assume the main storyline is to do with the 4 "Kings". Most likely, we will be facing against them and potentially overthrowing them until it is players ruling over each section of the continent." - Evan
"The only problem with that scenario is the difficulty of the "Kings". Ian died to a golem and was only about to beat one after pouring in a lot of resources and losing some of his citizens." - Sabrina
"I think you are looking at this wrong, Sabrina. Ian was in a 1 vs 1 situation. This game consists of thousands of players, each with their own set of NPCs. Defeating the "Kings" will depend on the numbers as much as it will depend on an individual's strength. " - Evan
"I agree with Evan here. No matter what we do, we will not be able to defeat the top leaders of the "Kings" army. I saw it first hand with the Blood Ogre. It completely destroyed everything, just imagine what it would be like in a real battlefield. This game is trying to create alliance and go to war, whether it is against other players or against the monsters in the game" - Ian
"Then isn't it a big disadvantage to solo players and small guilds?" - Sabrina
"Of course it is but isn't that every other game as well. The major guilds will always be at the top, fighting each other for no.1 but solo players have their own method of playing and so do small guilds. Don't you remember debauchery tea party? A small guild consisting of only elite players. This game has a lot of freedom for us to do what we want. Plus, everyone starts the same starting point." - Evan
"So, how are we going to deal with the main storyline?" - Ian
"Not much. I will try to find a path to reach the Center and then set up a way for us to trade. Maybe even move my NPCs closer, since it would be easier for us to help each other if we are closer." - Evan
"Then I will do the same." - Sabrina
"Okay. I guess I will continue to discover more about it, whenever I have to fight a new enemy." - Ian
"YEAH GO IAN WOOOO! BTW, if you do see elves, say something, okay?" - Evan
"Shut UP Evan." - Sabrina
"HAHA, peace going to play some games." -Evan
"BYE!" - Sabrina
"Okay, talk to you guys later." - Ian
I turn off my phone and place it on the table. It has been 10 days since the battle with the golem. In the real world, I haven't changed that much. Casual meet-ups and talks with Evan and Sabrina, lots of work and exercising daily. I check the forum every so often just to see what the new topic is and sometimes there are some interesting posts.
A couple of them include the rankings of the other continents. Some familiar names that have dominated other games have appeared again in this game, but there are also a lot of new names. The major guilds have been pushing recruitment in the city as well as the forum, filling it with a lot of garbage posts.
At the same time, I have been researching more on different weapons, shields and armor that can be used in the Stone Age era since I am still having difficulty reaching the copper mine. However, that doesn't stop me from researching about the Bronze Age. The next step for HavenFall is to enter the Bronze Age and acquire stronger weapons in order to defeat stronger foes.
Time flies while I watch YouTube videos and read small articles about history, and eventually midnight comes.
Time to go back to HavenFall.
Report chapter Comments
I open my eyes to the bright sun and crashing waterfall, as well as the constant chatter between humans, demi-humans and goblins, with the occasional howl and growl here and there. HavenFall has grown since the battle, no it needed to grow. With the addition of new NPCs, HavenFall needed to change in order to accommodate them, but if we were changing just for the new members, then HavenFall wouldn't be improving.
So, what was needed first? Houses. With more hands available, it sped up the process of creating more houses. 3 additional kilns were made next to the original one down by the river, and more clay was gathered along the river banks. However, it posed to be a dangerous job since there were roaming golems. Fortunately, there was always a team of the strongest warriors as well as scouts nearby to ensure safety.
Howard was always at the forefront of a battle, leading the charge alongside Kingston and David. Kingston and I have been in contact ever since that night, and his 'friends' have since left him. Good for him though since those people were worse than pigs and having a player who can fight effectively is a big bonus for HavenFall, so on you Kingston!
Noah has been handling the scouting alongside Celine. With Celine's special skill of communication with the wolves, Noah has been able to plan out scouting paths with both goblin scouts and wolf scouts in order to always have eyes and ears in our surroundings.
But now that we have houses, what was next? I thought it would be good to introduce education to everyone. Teaching them how to write as well as mathematics will prove useful now and in the future. I thought about this after some new human NPCs and the demi-humans looked at the "HavenFall" sign at the wall and was wondering what those words meant. Can't have my own NPCs not even know how to read HavenFall, the name of this place.
So, I took the liberty of gathering who I thought would be good at teaching and taught them the basics first. By writing out the alphabet on a clay board and firing it, I was able to produce a character cheat sheet to help the teaching process. I decided on Melody and one of the newer demi-human NPCs, Ash, to be the teachers. Melody was keen on the project and I wanted a non-human to also have an important role as to show to other demi-humans and future non-humans that they too can have a good future in HavenFall.
I also taught simple addition and subtraction using food items as an example to Melody and Ash so that they can in turn teach them to everyone else. With the power bestowed upon me, I made it mandatory to everyone to attend a class every day. Holding a class in the morning with Melody and one before dinner with Ash, allows people who have things to do ample time to attend at least one of the two classes.
Since, I was ale to create an alphabet cheat sheet, I also went ahead and made a clay calendar. Using a red mixture from berries and water, I crossed out the dates that have passed since the opening of the game until today and told everyone the date. I could see the confusion on their faces since they never had a calendar before, however I assured them it would allow keeping track of time as well as planning for future events to become easier with the help of a calendar.
During these events, I got a lot of notifications.
[ Writing Technology Completed ]
[ Calendar Technology Completed ]
[ Construction Technology Completed ]
[ Mathematics Technology Completed ]
[ You have exited the Ancient Era. You have entered the Classical Era ]
[ Ancient Era Technology which has not been completed can be viewed in the Technology Tree ]
As per the instructions given by the system, when I view the Technology Tree I was able to see the Techs which I haven't finished and once I saw it I knew why.
[ Technology Tree ]
[ Completed
Archery
The Wheel
Masonry
Pottery
Writing
Calendar
Construction
Mathematics ]
[ Partial Completed
Philosophy ]
[ Incomplete
Sailingn0๐ฃ๐ข๐ต๐๐๐.๐ 0๐
Animal Husbandry
Trapping
Bronze Working ]
Since HavenFall is not near the ocean or even a lake, I understood 'Sailing' was never going to be completed anytime soon. In addition, 'Bronze Working' is something I am currently trying to achieve with acquiring copper. However, 'Animal Husbandry' and 'Trapping' is going to be more difficult. I have only seen the occasional rabbit in the forest and with a bow and arrow from Robin or any of the goblin archers there was not a need to create any traps. I can only assume these will be completed once a larger animal similar to a sheep or a cow or even a horse are captured and tamed, but for now that is very unlikely.
Moving on to the rest of the new additions to HavenFall is our Barracks and Armory. We constructed 4 new buildings next to the first goblin house. 2 more goblin houses for future goblin residents from the 'Goblin Hut' as well as a Barracks and Armory. The Barracks hold our weaponry on top of built-in wooden shelves and benches. These include the various goblin knives and clubs, the stone spears, maces, bows and arrows. While the Armory holds the stone chest plates, shields and the new wooden helmets, arm guards and leg guards.
Gobi has also started to train the goblins even harder ever since he saw his friends die tragically against the golem. I remember the day after, he came to me with a determined face and told me.
"Ian. I have failed. I know goblins are weak, but I saw it. We could fight against that golem, but we failed. Next time, next time will be different. The ones that are still alive feel the same as me. We will train harder than anyone else. All new goblins will go through the strictest training as well. The next time we fight against those monsters, we will give them hell for our brothers."
The fire in his eyes and heart was blazing. I could see his attitude towards the goblins change, and he was morphing more into a leader. The goblins would train day in and day out with a new recruit collapsing every day but after a goodnight's sleep I see them back at it working towards a goal.
The small area in front of the 'Goblin Hut' got transformed into a training ground. With wooden training dummies, stone weights and wooden spears/swords. It wasn't just the goblins training in that area. Demi-humans and humans come there to spar and work up a sweat while participating in Gobi's training. A specialized training for the scutum shields can also be seen every day with both a goblin team and a human team. As well as a team of archers with Robin teaching and guiding both demi-humans, humans and goblin archers.
On the other side of HavenFall is Lucina's farm. Taking care of the farm has been Lucina's job and with some help from new NPCs she has been expanding it slowly. Adding new crops and taking care of the old, and from what she can see it will only take another week or two for the first harvest. We built a small house for her to keep all the vegetables and fruits she has collected, as well as a place for her to store any seeds she might find.
Both Owen and Frank have been running around everywhere. From fighting golems to scouting to helping with construction to gardening, they have been helping everywhere. Their continuous efforts motivated everyone to strive to achiever better results, boosting morale and happiness.
Old man Hus and his apprentice Lime had recruiting a few more hands to create more weapons and armor for everyone. The construction of scutum has peaked to the point that there were multiple spare shields in case they broke. As well as additional weapons and armor placed in the Barracks or Armory. Sometimes I would see old man Hus create something obscure only to break it to pieces with a grumpy look. I guess he is trying to create something new, but since he won't tell me, I won't find out until he completes it.
I look at the status menu to observe any changes in my NPCs and found that everyone that participated in fights or training had increased their stats.
For example, Gobi's stats have improved a lot since the battle with the golem.
Name: Gobi
Race: Gobin
Health Points (HP): 20/20
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 11
Vitality: 10
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 9
Agility: 10
Luck: 1
Skill: Leadership (Passive)
Leadership (Passive) - 10% increase in allied stats when under the leadership of this person
Gobi even acquired a skill for his efforts. The other NPCs such as Howard and David have increased their stats greatly from the continuous battles, the only problem is me. My stats are still the same, but I guess that's just one way to play this game. Rather than increase my own strength, I will create a strong unified army.
Every day in the game, I was following Howard around fighting golems but instead of fighting alongside him, I was assisting with quick commands. Calling out new plans in the heat of the moment and providing changes to tactics as if I was playing a real time strategy game. Helping out with the decision-making for my troops provided a different method of fighting, and it helped elevate our fighting potential. I guess I am more of a commander or general rather than a warrior.
I look at my own status to see progress in the 'Faith' as well as to check on the 'Happiness' stat.
Name: Ian
Race: Human
Faith: 516/10,000 ( Reach 10,000 to pick a Religion )
Happiness: 10 ( Happy )
Health Points (HP): 10/10
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 5
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 5
Luck: 11
More people means more 'Faith' and since there are no conflicts then the 'Happiness' is constantly positive. Smiling to myself, I pick up my gear and proceed to the river, where I know Howard and the others are waiting. Today was the day I planned to assault the copper mines and take back what should have been mine.
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Walking past both statues of Ariel and Fortuna, I start my descent into the canyon. Noticing my steps, Howard looks up and waves at me.
"Ian, are you ready?"
I smile back and hurry my steps.
"Ready. Is everyone else ready?"
"Of course!"
The team I got together for the battle consisted of Howard, David, Kingston, 3 more humans, 3 demi-humans and 5 goblins. Our strategy was simple. Howard, David and Kingston were the main damage dealers, while in front of them was a scutum shield formation using the combination of humans and demi-humans. The goblins were going to be both archers and assassins since they are able to see in the dark as well as counter-attack anything that might get through our front-line.
I will be in charge of orchestrating the fight as well as light. Prepared for me were 30 arrows with the black glue mixture on the tip, as well as 10 extra torches. I would light up one at the start and continuously fire arrows into the cave for vision while the goblins make sure nothing is out of the ordinary in the dark. Luckily for me, Robin was a good teacher and while I won't be the best archer, I can at least fire an arrow.
The frontline is equipped with the scutum shield, an extra smaller circular shield, two stone knives, and either a short spear or an ax. In addition, they are wearing wooden chest plates, helmet, arm and leg guards. With the help of Lime's ingenuity and Lucina's weaving skills, we were able to create belts and small holders from vines. This made holding onto multiple weapons a lot easier, as well as fixating them on the body for easy access.
Howard is currently holding onto the Hobgoblin's Club, as well as an additional stone ax and two stone knives. Fitted with a stone chest plate and wooden helmets, arm and leg guards, he was the most stacked NPC I had.
Next to him was David. While still somewhat cowardly, his attitude has changed and his confidence has been boosted. It might have been from experiencing the golem fight which changed him, or it could have been through the many fights with Howard and Kingston which made him feel safe knowing that there were reliable people around him. He has chosen to wield a stone spear to add to the variety of attacks as well as provide some mid-range damage, while also holding onto 2 knives in case his weapon breaks in the cave. His armor is the same as Howard, only slightly bigger, since his stature was larger than Howard's.
Kingston, the other player in HavenFall was more relaxed and calm about the whole expedition. He had told me he was very excited to participate and since everyone was nice, and friendly, he has gotten along with the NPCs. Dual wielding stone axes as well as carrying two short spears and two knives, he looked like an anime character ready to fight a boss. Of course, he was also equipped with the same armor, and he was busy talking to the demi-humans.
The goblins wore lighter armor, using wooden chest plates and helmets as their main defense. They carried two quivers each holding 30 arrows, as well as a single goblin knife and bow. While they might look weak, these 5 goblins have been hard at work under Gobi and have proven to almost best some human warriors in a spar.
Then there was me. I made sure to put on everything needed in order to keep myself safe, as well as carefully tie the quiver and torch basket to my body, so nothing would fall out. Strange enough when I look at my stats and look under equipped only the quiver shows as an equipment and not the basket of torches.
Name: Ian
Race: Human
Faith: 516/10,000 ( Reach 10,000 to pick a Religion )
Happiness: 10 ( Happy )
Health Points (HP): 10/10
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 5
Vitality: 5
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 5
Luck: 11
Equipment: Lucky Goblin Totem Necklace, Improved Stone Spear, Stone Chest Plate, Wooden Helmet, Wooden Arm Guards, Wooden Leg Guards, Stone Knife, 30x Flammable Arrows, Wooden Bow
[ Wooden Helmet
Defense: 2
A simple helmet shaped like a bowl. It helps protect the head and is tied below the chin by a small piece of vine.
Made by Hus and Lime ]
[ Wooden Arm Guards
Defense: 3
A carved out log with vines tied tougher around the fore arm. Basic, but it works.
Made by Hus and Lime ]
[ Wooden Leg Guards
Defense: 3
A carved out log with vines tied tougher around the lower leg. Basic, but it works.
Made by Hus and Lime ]
"Okay, since we are all ready, let's go. I had Celine tell Luna to go first and scout the area towards the cave. There will be wolf cubs along the way to signal the one in front that we are coming."
"Okay, leader!"
I sigh to myself, ever since the goblins called me leader Ian, everyone else have picked it up and started to call me leader. Except for Kingston and the first few NPCs, everyone else including Howard and Noah have adopted the new trend.
We venture off following the river and at the first bend resting her head between her paws was the first cub. There were now 4 cubs in HavenFall with one reaching adulthood, but this one was the youngest, only came out of the den today. Noticing our presence, she stands up and howls to the sky, before running towards us and rubbing her head against my leg.
I signal for the group to move onwards. There was no second howl, which meant the coast was clear for now.
,m As we proceed towards the second cub, Kingston slows down until he is walking next to me.
"Ian, what do you expect to see at the cave."
"A golem army. However, with how small the cave is, at most we would be fighting them two at a time. If we are careful and slowly progress deeper into the cave, then we should be able to fight them off."n0๐๐๐ต๐๐๐ท.๐0๐
"I understand that, but I am worried about our stamina."
"What do you mean Kingston?"
"Fighting constantly will drain our stamina, obviously. But when you are fighting in an enclosed space where there is no escape, then your mental strength depletes faster than your physical strength. It's like being bullied constantly, but the bullies do not hurt you."
"Then how do you suggest we fight them?"
"Are we able to fight, then back off?"
"Not from how they are programmed. The first time I met them, I was only able to escape by running fast enough and getting out of their vision."
"Which means it will be an endless stream of golems. Shit man, what did I sign up for?"
"It's fine Kingston. Believe in us. You have seen them fight first hand with the stray golems. We got this."
"Whatever you say, man. I got nothing to lose, right."
After finishing his comment, Kingston jogs up and claps David on the back, proceeding to make conversations to lighten up the mood. Although, what he said has weighed in the back of my mind. I knew the battle will be relentless, but going off the information on the forum about Kronos then I think there will be fewer golems. Most likely, they have taken most of the copper and maybe even the gold and left behind some golems to defend the place in case Kronos needed more resources. However, I find it unlikely that a monster greedy by nature would bother with an already raided resource.
I can only hope that there is enough copper in order to create more bronze weaponry and armor. Potentially even use the copper for other projects like electricity. However, that's for another day's thought.
Reaching the second cub, he howls to the sky, signally our arrival as well as our journey to the third. It didn't take us long before we reached the third and then the fourth. Looking at all the cubs side by side, you can see their growth period, with the first cub being the smallest and youngest and the fourth cub being the largest. Well, he might even be called a teenager in wolf years.
The fourth wolf signals Luna of our departure from that section, and we proceed onwards towards the cave. Everyone is currently in high spirits, joking about with each other and having some fun and happy conversations. I even joined in with the banter at the front, as well as the banter with the goblins.
With high morale and less tension in the air, we finally saw Luna waiting patiently in front of the cave. She was resting on top of a small boulder, placed directly in front of the cave. Facing towards the cave, she waited for us. Her ears perked up as we went around the bend and a small howl was used to greet us. The cubs respond with their own howl and dashed towards her.
Using this opportunity, I stopped everyone for one last pep talk.
"Everyone, it is finally time. Luna will have our backs, so everyone only needs to focus on the front. Everyone here is a talented individual, and together we are a strong team. Nothing will get past our front line, and we will push forward like kings. Let's reclaim what should have been ours. FOR HAVENFALL!"
"FOR HAVENFALL!"
"Phalanx shield formation!"
As the words roll out of my mouth, my men gather in front of me. Shields pressed against each other, shoulder to shoulder, with a shield roof covering their heads. It might not be to the extent of the ancient Greeks, it's purpose still stands. To create a physical wall in front and above in order to defend against the enemy. I would have loved it for Howard and David to join the formation, however, their size and stature were too large and uneven when grouped with the others.
I proposed that the demi-humans would be at the front, since their strength and vitality is higher than the other humans, and now that I am looking at the formation in front of the cave, I feel like that was one of the best decisions I could have done. Howard is positioned behind and on the left, whereas David would be on the right, with Kingston in the middle. There will be times when I miss something, and having Kingston in the middle would provide him a better view of the battle, allowing him to make split second decisions if needed.
I position myself behind the three, with the goblins next to me. I take out a stone and hit it against another, producing sparks. I only found out recently that Owen had found some flint stones in the river. Having a goblin hold a torch, I proceeded to light it with the flint. Once, the torch was ablaze, I hold an arrow and light the end. Calmly, I position myself to fire the arrow.
Following Robin's instructions, I breathe in and out, nocking the arrow and pulling back. With another breath, I release the string at the same time I exhale. The arrow flies into the cave, whistling through the air and lighting up the path. Unfortunately, it doesn't fly all the way until the first corner, instead it gradually falls onto the ground burning slowly on the path.
"It looks clear for now. Gibing, anything in front?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary, leader Ian."n0๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐.๐ฐ0๐
"Okay, everyone advance."
"Yes, leader!"
With one foot in front of the other, the shield wall advances. Three people side by side with the scutum shields just barely fit in the cave, with only enough space for maybe a goblin to squeeze through.
Each step, we make echos throughout the cave. An accidental bump with the shields would cause the air to vibrate softly, resonating with the echos. Tension fills the air, and I can sense everyone's grip tighten on their weapons. Even though there has been no signal from Gibing and the other goblins, everyone still reacts to even the slightest of sounds.
In what felt like an eternity, we finally reached the place where my arrow landed. The fire has long since extinguished and only a wisp of smoke remain.
"Everyone, take a deep breath. I know it is tense, but we can't keep progressing like this. Every time someone accidentally makes a sound, I can see everyone tense up, and that's going to keep happening unless we learn to relax a little. So, DEEP breaths everyone."
I try my best to calm everyone's nerves. Making them stop and perform a different task. At the same time, while everyone was trying to relax, I nocked another arrow and fired it forwards.
"See everyone. I know it is tense, and we don't know what is in front of us but look. That arrow will light our path and each arrow after it. We will know when something is in front of us, and we will be able to prepare for it, okay? Now, relax yourself and let's move onwards."
Contrary to everyone's thoughts, I was the most tense, but at least now they have more confidence in themselves. Each step they took felt less hesitant and a small flame can be seen in their eyes.
We reach the second arrow, this time much quicker. One of the demi-humans at the front picked up the arrow and passed it back. I take the arrow and fire it again, sending it down the tunnel, but as I do, I hear a loud banging noise echoing from the depths. Howard glances at me and I nod at him.
"Everyone, get ready. They're coming."
It sounds like giant scurrying mouses running from the bottom of the cave up, each step bringing them closer and closer. Stone banging against stone, tumbling forward with all their might. The vibrations in the ground feel like an earthquake is happening, stones fall from the sides and the ceilings.
I give Gibing a fire arrow, telling him to shoot it as far as he can, at the same time I light up 2 torches and throw them in front of us as well as another 2 behind us lighting up our surroundings. Gibing's arrow flies further than mine, landing just shy of the next corner, but it was enough.
Seconds later, the first golem turns the corner. Its white stone body peak from behind the corner and horrific grin can be seen. Its long claws creep around the corner and like a tsunami, more golems rush behind it. Smashing into the cave wall before tumbling forward. At the forefront of the golem's attack, zooming faster than the others, was a flying golem. With a sinister grin and its wings stretched out far enough that it is scraping along the walls, it flies towards us.
"GET READY! BRACE FOR IMPACT! SHOVE THOSE SHIELDS INTO THE GROUND AND DO NOT GET PUSHED BACK NO MATTER WHAT!! REMEMBER! DO NO GET PUSHED BACK!"
One second.
Two seconds.
Three-
"HOLD!"
Not long after my shout, the golem smashes head first into the shield wall.
"ARGHHHHAHHH!!!"
The demi-humans at the front groan together, shouting their lungs out as they push against the golem. I can see them struggling from the sheer force that the golem produced, but luckily they pushed off the initial impact.
"HOLD AGAIN!"
Unlike the people behind the shield, I could see the golem winding up. Its stone claw comes crashing down on the shield, creating an ear-piercing screech.
"Anyone with a spear attack first! Howard watch on your left, its wing might come close. David, attack it with your spear and Kingston you might have to help the shields hold its place, just be ready."
The two demi-humans on the side of the wall proceeds to stab the golem on the sides, while David and Howard find opportunities to attack when the golem gets too close. However, this was just the start of the fight.
Within, minutes the rest of the golems caught up and pressed against the first golem making it incapable of doing large swings and this worked in our favor. Making less space to move, it became more susceptible to hits. Ever since the golem fight, old man Hus thought about using the golem's body as a weapon. Replacing the original spearheads were sharpened golem stones, creating a stronger weapon. However, I only gave it to the front-line. Since the goblins and I won't be engaging in close combat, there was no need for us to use the weapon.
[ Golem Stone Spear
Attack: 15
Using the body of a slain general golem to create a stronger spearhead. It has a lower chance to break when struck against other objects.
Made by Hus ]
"Be careful on the right, David! Howard get back!"
I shout out commands while sending arrows over the heads of the golems, however with all the shoving and moving at the back the arrows get lost in the abyss. It was a slow grind as we constantly fight with the golem, each and every small stab eventually accumulated into cracks along the golem's body and with one good swing from Howard or David the golem's body would break.
Sweat flew off everyone's body as they continue to stand their ground against the wave of golems, and eventually their work paid off. The first kill.
"THAT WAS GREAT, DAVID! WE KILLED THE FIRST GOLEM! WE CAN DO THIS! KEEP IT UP, EVERYONE!"
With the first golem down, its body collapses onto the ground and is immediately stepped on. Broken into even small shard by the next golem. I notice that the golem was slightly different. The one in front of us was bulkier and had proper hands. Forming a fist, it lifts its hand above the shields.
"ITS COMING FROM ABOVE! GET READY! BRACE YOURSELVES!"
"Coming to support!"
Kingston rushes under the shields and holding it upwards with the other NPCs. The fists come slamming down on the top, mimicking an explosion as it echoes throughout the cave. Due to the golem failing its attack, both Howard and David stepped up slightly on the protruding rocks of the walls and swung their club/spear at the golem, smashing its upper body and simultaneously breaking the golem core. The second kill.
"GOOD JOB EVERYONE! HERE COMES THE NEXT GOLEM!"
Sometimes one and sometimes two, the golems, came up and banged on the shields. I see the blood dripping from the shield bearers' hands. Their skin peeling from gripping the handle too hard, but it wasn't just them. After noticing their pain, I signaled three goblins to rush to the front, replacing the shield bearers' duty of attack, allowing them to focus only on holding the shields together. In turn, they were able to switch the handle to their non-dominant hand and allow their other hand to take a break.
Kingston would constantly shift between helping the front shields push back against the golems and the top shields from the attacks. His extra strength allowed the shield bearers to have an easier time, but I can see the sweat dripping off his face. The constant attacks are wearing him down, and not just him, everyone as well. However, I can't see an end to the golems.
"Leader Ian, we might need to retreat slightly."
"Gibing, I know that, but why are you suggesting it now?"
"We do not need to go too far. Just around the corner. It will allow ample space for wolf Luna to attack from the sides while still being small enough that the golems will not push through."
"Are you sure on this information?"
"Positive, leader Ian."
"Okay. EVERYONE! WE ARE GOING TO RETREAT BACK TO THE CORNER! FOLLOW MY VOICE AS YOU STEP BACK AND KEEP IN FORMATION."
The best moment to move back is when Howard or David defeat a golem. Timing a step or two during that moment was easy enough, and with just 10 steps we were at the corner.
"LUNA!"
As if waiting for her turn, she goes under Howard's leg and through the gap on the left. Jumping off the ground and ramming into the closest golem before retreating back through the gap.
A hit-and-run strategy. While the damage caused to the golem was minimal due to its defenses, it provides another avenue of attack. This meant Howard and David do not be the only ones that needed to deal the final blow. When there were enough cracks on a golem, the force of Luna's attack shattered the golem into smaller rocks, dislodging the core and letting it fall to the ground. It was slow, but it works, and slowly I could see the stats of my NPCs rising. 1 strength here, 1 vitality there, bit by bit. While it wasn't guaranteed that they were gaining stats from every kill after a bunch, I could see a small increase.
Slow and steady.
Just like any MMO, there is always a time when you have to grind mobs.
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How long has it been?
An hour?
Two hours?
Maybe 3?
Who knows but all I do know is we survived. The tsunami of golems did not stop us, in fact, the toughest part was the start and the finish. The middle? Well, that wasโฆThat was just a blur.
The front line's shields slowly broke after the repeated attacks and replacing them were the shields covering the top. Howard, David, and Kingston had to face off against the golems the best they could while the shield bearers swapped out but it ended up in our win.
Everyone was resting on the ground or leaning against the wall. Even the goblins stepped in with their knives when it got dicey. I picked up one of the spears and attacked as well blocking a golem fist from hitting David.
Throughout the whole battle, I was firing off commands and small details. Warning those that might not have noticed any small attack. Reducing the amount of damage everyone took by carefully blocking an attack or telling them to dodge out of the way in time.
In the end, we had just lost some HP, our shields, some of our armor, and some weapons. In return, we beat down an army of golems that would have destroyed us given enough space. Their numbers and strength greatly exceeded ours but I guess with just the terrain advantage and some quick thinking even we can win against them.
The ground was littered with white stones of varying sizes. With the stampede of the golems, a lot of it became a fine powder, and scattered in the remains were crushed golem cores. Shining a torch over the powder would produce a blue glittering effect, kind of like the ocean sparkling from the sunlight. However, picking up the powder did not produce a system message. I thought maybe it would say "Shattered Golem Core" or something.
I look at everyones' status and was surprised to see their new stats.
Name: Howard
Race: Human
Health Points (HP): 3/40
Mana Points (MP): 1/5n0๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐.๐ฐ0๐
Strength: 15
Vitality: 20
Intelligence: 10
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 10
Luck: 1
Skill: Roar (active) - 2 MP
Name: David
Race: Human
Health Points (HP): 5/50
Mana Points (MP): 4/4
Strength: 19
Vitality: 25
Intelligence: 8
Dexterity: 5
Agility: 7
Luck: 1
Name: Gibing
Race: Gobin
Health Points (HP): 7/30
Mana Points (MP): 0/0
Strength: 10
Vitality: 15
Intelligence: 5
Dexterity: 10
Agility: 15
Luck: 1
Name: Luna
Race: Beast (Wolf)
Health Points (HP): 10/70
Mana Points (MP): 10/10
Strength: 20
Vitality: 35
Intelligence: 15
Dexterity: 8
Agility: 30
Luck: 5
Skill: Moonlight Renewal (active) - 2 MP, Pounce (Active) - 1 MP
The most important ones were Howard and David since they were closer to me. I would love to see Kingston's stats but I'll have to just ask him later, for now, I'll let him rest. Gibing and the rest of the goblin's had similar stats which exceeded even Gobi's. Their impact in the fight was definitely smaller, however, their keen eyes have helped some of the other NPCs from getting hurt. At the same time, they were able to hold the shields up for a little bit of time while the others swapped out to a smaller shield. I was surprised by the versatility of the goblins and if it wasn't golems but other humanoids then the goblin's would have been like an assassin in the dark.
Luna also put in a lot of work. Her stats were the highest but the match-up was not in her favor. The hard bodies of the golem prevented her from using her jaw to deal damage and her claws once produced scratches on its body. She did take some hard hits for the team when someone couldn't dodge but with her high vitality she was able to survive a lot of the hits.
There were only 2 other people who could move effectively, one demi-human and other human NPC. Together with them, I moved everyone out of the cave and into some fresh air. The whole ordeal took longer than I thought since David and Howard were so heavy, but I could feel their hands and feet shake slightly as they took deep breathes to recover their energy. I propped their bodies against the wall and told them to rest and not worry about anything.
The sun was setting by the time I took everyone out and I instructed the wolf cubs to go back to HavenFall and bring back some food for everyone. I made a couple of small fires near everyone as well 1 at the cave entrance. The goblins were placed closer to the entrance in case another enemy appears.
Once the wolf cubs came back with small baskets of fruit and boiled vegetables I slowly fed them to everyone. Without food in their stomachs, the recovering process would take longer since their bodies needed energy.
Night had arrived and I could see a group coming from HavenFall. The torches they carried lit up their faces telling me it was Lucina, Noah, 2 other human NPCs and 4 goblins. They carried more food as well as some herbs with medicinal properties. Lucina prepared a stone pot over the fire and proceeded to create a soup with the ingredients she bought while the goblins and human NPCs took up night watch around the camp. Noah comes over to me in order to get an update on the situation.
"What happened leader?"
"We won. Though I don't know how much longer we would have lasted. Luckily for us, the golems are big monsters and the tunnel inside the cave was small enough to only fit 1 or 2 depending on their form."
"Their form?"
"Yes, Noah their form. While some golems resembled each other there were some that had completely different forms. The common ones we have faced were golems with wings and sharp claws. Some were bulky with large fists, while others were skinny with ball-like fists. They were too many different shapes and sizes of the golems which makes me believe that Kronos created them differently in order to find a shape that was the strongest."
"Hmm, that would make sense. By the way, I have something to report. Right before I left, there was an explosion of some sort and a large amount of white smoke could be seen far off in the distance. Somewhere on the other side of the forest, there is a big battle happening."
"Interesting, was any goblin scouts able to get close?"
"No. It looked like a day or two away maybe even more. We have such little information of the forest and have only just touched the perimeter."
"I know. I hope there is enough copper in this place in order to have enough for everyone. The increased defense and attack will help us in expanding our search."
"This copper thing you mentioned are you sure it is there?"
"I know it is there. I saw it, however, I am afraid that Kronos has taken it all. I can only hope that once everyone has recovered enough we go down and I still see the copper. How was the journey here from HavenFall?"
"It was fine for us and the goblins however, Lucina did have trouble. She wasn't used to the slippery surface since she has never gone this way and there was a lot of tripping causing our journey to slow. I suggest creating a pathway."
"Yes, I have plans for that. Once we confirm there is copper we would need to mine it and then move it back to HavenFall. The pathway home is too uneven. I am thinking we need to create bridges of the river at the places where there is less ground to walk in as well as replace the ground with bricks."
"I will have everyone producing more bricks for this project then."
"Focus on housing first. I know it is still somewhat cramped. Build enough houses for everyone first before focusing on the road."
"Okay leader!."
"Ian, Noah, can you two help me give this soup to Howard and the others."
"Sure."
"Of course."
I took a small bowl to everyone and carefully helped them drink it. Feeding it slowly bit by bit. Once I got to Kingston, who was sleeping, I shook him a little making him wake up. I sit down next to him and waited for him to finish the soup.
"Hey, Ian. This soup is amazing!"
"Tell that to Lucina, she was the chef."
"No, no, no. Like the taste is kind of okay but it's the effect of it. 50% HP recovered over 10 minutes. This is the first potion dude!"
"Wait, what?"
I grab the soup bowl out of Kingston's hands but he had already finished it. Bringing it over to Lucina to refill it I also checked her status.
Name: Lucina
Race: Human
Health Points (HP): 14/14
Mana Points (MP): 10/10
Strength: 5
Vitality: 7
Intelligence: 20
Dexterity: 15
Agility: 5
Luck: 1
Skill: Beginner Herbalism (Passive)
Beginner Herbalism (Passive) - This allows the user to create food or potions with medical properties effectively. Also gives a slight increase in the herb's effect.
"Lucina, where did you learn how to create this soup specifically?"
"Oh, umm, Lime bought me back some herbs some time ago and she had scraped her knee. I applied a herb that I knew could soothe the pain but also created a soup from it since I had extra. Lime told me that the soup helped her soothe the pain and she was up and about helping old man Hus in no time. Why do you ask?"
"I think, that this soup helps with healing, quite effectively. Is it possible to create a farm for the herb?'
"Umm, I would have to find more samples and then test it out. I'm not too sure sorry Ian."
"No, that's fine. When you get back ask Lime to show some of the goblins where she found the herb and only take a few. Then test how it grows before taking more. We don't want to accidentally cause the herb to go extinct."
"Okay, I will look into it."
After taking some of the soup and drinking it, I realized that the effect is only applied after consumption of all the soup in the bowl. Any less and the effect would not work and trying to take another bowl of soup also did not add to the effect, nor did it reset the healing. Since there was no system message I couldn't get a clear understanding of the properties of the soup and eventually returned to Kingston's side in order to discuss it.
"Ian, this is the first potion. Nowhere on the forum has said anything about something like this yet. Did you find out why and how?"
"Lucina made the soup to treat Lime. However, it was Lime that found the herb. She also has a skill that makes her effectively create healing food and potions as well as increase the effect. This means that if one of us were to make it the same way as Lucina then the effect of the food would either not exist or would be much worst. Forget 50% healing it might not even be 10%."
"Okay, wow this game has so much hidden stuff. I know games have medicinal herbs but usually, you can find it using the system. Everything around us could be used differently and if we walk past a random plant we could have accidentally walked past something of insane value."
"I know what you mean, Kingston. This game is amazing. Okay, in roughly 10 minutes I'll get everyone to move down into the cave. Rest up for now, maybe even get some shut-eye."
"Will do, leader."
Lucina and Noah eventually finish feeding everyone some healing soup and after a while even recovered. The soup also helps animals as Luna's HP was recovered as well. Letting Lucina, Noah, and the new group leave, we venture back into the cave. Luckily for us, we replaced our weapons with the weapons of the new group. With new spears, clubs, small shields, arrows, and armor we walk into the cave.
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We slowly progress through the cave, keeping the same amount of caution as before, as well as lighting up the path with fire arrows. It's a slow journey, but we have no choice, danger lurks at every corner. As we walk past the previous battlefield, piles of white stones and powder cover the ground, making progress through the tunnel a slow and tedious process, but after a while, we get past it and follow down the tunnel once more.
I guess there wasn't anything left since we got to the cavern at the bottom without another fight, but just to be safe, we set up a shield wall at the entrance. The goblins and I fire arrows into the darkness, lighting up the cavern bit by bit. Once the coast was clear, we move a bit inside, just enough so that we can fire another set of arrows, this time to our direct sides.
Nothing.
Just darkness.
A good thing, I guess. No more fighting.
"Gibing, anything unusual at the other side of the cavern?"
"Nothing, leader Ian. The other goblins also confirm that there is nothing out of the ordinary at the moment. What should we do?"
"For now, spread out and search the cavern. Make sure to look up as well as down. Be wary of any cracks and crevices and be quick on your feet. Gibing, make sure to look up. There is a large hole somewhere."
"Yes, leader Ian. Let's go everyone."
I sent the goblins first int the cavern. Their superior eyesight allows them to see in the dark, which makes this place the perfect place for them. Furthermore, they had higher agility than most of the other NPCs, making them more likely to escape in a bad situation.
"Everyone, stay on high alert until the coast is clear. Keep your shields up and be ready for anything."
I make sure to warn everyone just in case. Setting up a lot of precaution since this was the final step. I didn't want anything to happen.
After a while, the goblins came back to me one by one, reporting that there was nothing in the area. Gibing, going to the furthest corner of the cavern, came back last.
"I have checked the back of the cavern as well as the top. There is a hole there however, at the moment there seems to be nothing coming out. I also think that there is no way for us to block it, so we would have to be on our guards at all time."
,m "I see, that is unfortunate."
"Furthermore, the ground is very uneven. Lots of small rocks are scattered across the ground, especially closer to the walls. Near one of the walls is a mound of rocks, towering close to halfway up the cavern."
"That would be the excess rocks from Kronos's mining. For now, let's search along the walls for anything left. I'll light up some more torches, so everyone can have one. Look for anything shiny or reflecting the light, okay?"
Our group traveled in the same formation while holding the torches close to the wall and ground. Working clockwise, we made our way patrolling the perimeter.
"Ian, what kind of shiny object are we looking for?"
"It's called copper, Howard. It is reddish brown, but also might have a slight blue tinge to it. When I saw it for the first time, it was beautiful. A whole wall was colored in a sea of red, brown and blue making wondrous shapes and lines. But alas, there does not seem to be much left."
"Don't be so disappointed. We have only just started, and this cavern is huge."
"Thanks, Howard."
"Is this copper important, leader Ian?"
"Gibing, without it, we won't be able to progress HavenFall to the next step. Acquiring copper will allow us to create bronze and in turn create stronger weapons and armor. With stronger weapons and armor, we can increase the range of our patrols, searching the surroundings for more material that can benefit us. At the same time, we can defeat stronger monsters and save other people, increasing the population of HavenFall. There is just so much we can do if we get stronger."
"I see. Leader Ian has thought about this a lot. We must find copper here then."
"Yes, we can do it. Just gotta believe, right?"
"Of course leader Ian."
"Well, Ian your belief might have just been enough."
"What do you mean, Kingston?"
"Look dude. We just passed it. We walked past the corner of the cave looking upwards, but we didn't look downwards. It's small, but it's definitely reddish-brown and since it goes into the cavern, sandwiched by the floor, there might be more if we can dig through the stone."
"KINGSTON! You're amazing! I can't believe we just passed it. Okay, okay, noting that down in my brain. Left corner as you walk into the cavern, potential copper. How did Kronos's golems missed this?"
"Maybe, they thought it was just too small to worry about. I can see not too far down there is a huge hole in the wall. Which meant, that was where the bulk of the mining took place."
"Alright, alright, I can't be too happy. Let's keep going."
Leaving the left corner and proceeding onwards, we got to the start of the hole Kingston had noticed.n0๐๐๐ ๐ฒ๐๐.๐ช0๐
"The mining must have been done by both ground golems and flying golems. After all, with the small light from the torch, we can't even see the roof of the hole. Gibing, how deep does the hole look?"
"One of the goblins went inside briefly to check before. It is not that large, possibly the size of Lucina's fields. However, from what I can see, the sides are all jagged and broken in different ways. There are a lot of small holes here and there as well as large holes and while I call them holes, it looks more like they were clawed out. "
"What you say is true. Just by looking at the ground and the sides here, the sizing is too irregular to be done by a pickax and carefully removing the mineral. More like something bulldozed into the side and ripped out the copper. Thank you for the observation Gibing."
"My pleasure, leader Ian."
"Let's move into the hole for now and serif they missed anything."
Like what Gibing had said, the whole wasn't that deep, being only about 20-30 steps deep, however as I suspected the sides of the hole is irregular. Stones are jutting out like horizontal stalagmites, and sections of the wall can be seen carved out. It was definitely a strange sight to see, but eventually we walked through the entire hole with nothing of importance to be seen.
Continuing on, we carefully scoured the rest of the left side, getting closer to the back of the cavern. From what small light the torches can provide, we were able to see that small sections of the cavern were carved out, leaving gaping holes here and there. From my memory, most of the walls of the cavern were covered in copper and the top layer being small amounts of gold, but from Gibing's vision all he saw were holes of crying shapes and sizes littering the cavern walls.
Nothing on the rest of the left side, and nothing at the back of the cavern. Making our way to the right side, one of the demi-humans spot something shiny on the ground. Hurrying over to pick it up, he notices that it's a reddish stone with blue streaks all around it. Brining it back to us with a huge smile on his face as I congratulate him on finding our first copper ore. While it might be small, it was definitely something. It was a start.
Moving on, the right wall was the same as the rest, just holes here and there, as well as the right wall next to the cavern entrance.
Nothing.
Scraped clean, except for that one spot that Kingston found.
"Kingston, I'm glad you saw that bit of copper. I would have been extremely sad and disappointed if we found nothing after all that hard work."
"Well, it might still be a small amount of copper, you know."
"I know, but at least we will be able to come back with something from here."
"How do you suggest we go about with mining it?"
"There are still a couple of goblins that mined before. They were the previous miners from Balta's camp. We go back to HavenFall, get some pickaxes using the golem's body, and come back. I also want some people to carry the stones and powder back home as well. It will be a large project. Get only the minimum amount of scouts in the forest and have a team of 5 staying back to keep constructing houses. The rest will come and transport the white stones and golem cores. Let's go back home."
"Yes, leader Ian."
And with that, our cavern journey comes to an end. We exit the cave and see Luna sleeping on the side, cuddling the other wolf cubs. It was night and the moon was at it's highest.
"Ian, how about we rest here for the night and return in the morning."
"You know, Howard, I was just about to suggest the same thing."
"David, Kingston, you two are on night duty first. Switch with the next two after an hour."
"There is no clock here, Ian. How do you think David and I will know when an hour is up?"
"I know that, look at the moon. Once the moon touches the cliff from this angle, then an hour has approximately gone by."
"Damn, how did you learn that?"
"Old man Hus taught me. Neat isn't it?"
"Very neat."
With that, I started a couple fires and used the wall as a pillow. The soft splashes of water and the slight whispering breeze fill my ear. I let all the fatigue out during the day and let out all the tension. I close my eyes and drift into sleep. Another night in Settlement, yet it strangely feels more comfortable than sleeping outside the game.
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"Leader Ian, it is time to wake up."
I open my eyes to Gibing shaking my shoulder.
"Thank you for waking me up. Is everyone well and rested as well?"
"Yes, it seems like everyone is fine and ready to head back home."n0๐๐๐ ๐ฒ๐๐.๐ช0๐
"Good, then let us make haste. I want 2 goblins to stay back with Luna, they are to report back if anyone approaches the cave."
"Of course, I will let Gowto and Gitpo stay with Luna."
Leaving behind the two goblins and Luna, we made our way back to HavenFall. On the way back, I was determining the route for the road as well as the bridges. An efficient path needs to be created so that wheelbarrows can carry the copper ore and golem stones away from the cave easily and effectively. The uneven ground is already posing to be difficult to replace. Digging it all up and then placing bricks down layer by layer might be easier.
As I ponder on the solution needed for the road, we eventually arrived back at HavenFall. Lucina, anticipating our arrival, had already prepared breakfast, consisting of more healing soup and some fruit. At the same time, some goblins came down and helped put away the weapons and armor.
I let everyone go to their own devices while I head towards Noah, who was currently placing more firewood into the kiln and firing the clay bricks.
"Noah! How is the brick production going?"
"Steady, with all kiln constantly firing bricks we should have enough for our final house, making it a total of 20 houses. There might be some empty houses since the people here have grown accustomed to living under the same roof, but at least now they will have an option to move."
"That's good. After that start, creating more bricks for the road. Pile them up near the kiln but not next to it. We need to dig into the ground in order to create a leveled surface before we place the bricks in and create the road."
"Of course, should we get started on the digging? I know that about 7 or 9 people who are more or less free. They usually attend class in the morning and then help with construction and train."
"Yes, and get Owen and Frank to lead them. I will also be accompanying them, as they do not know the route I want the road to take.
"Okay, let me go get them after I finish here."
"I will be with old man Hus if you need me."
After discussing with Noah the plan for the road, I head to old man Hus.
"Old man Hus, how are you feeling?"
"Fine lad. Something you need?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact. The weapons you made from the white stone that made up the golem's body were very effective in defeating them. Resulting in our victory, and furthermore, there is a lot more stone where that came from. Once we have transported everything here, I think that you will have enough materials to create armor and shields from them as well. That's not the most exciting thing though, we have found some copper and while it might be small, once we mine the tin as well you will be able to forge bronze things."
"Lad, you sound very excited about all this."
"Of course I am, but first I will be needing you to make be shovels and pickaxes. They can be normal stone since they will be used to dig up the riverbed, I also want more wood to make multiple bridges. Do you think you can handle that old man Hus?"
"Young lad, if I can't handle something so simple, I would rather die."
"Thank you, old man Hus."
Nodding at me, old man Hus turns around and calls for Lime. Seeing her energetic and ready for work put a smile on my face. Leaving them be, I go towards Melody as she proceeds to teach everyone available in the morning the alphabet. The training grounds Gobi uses had been converted into a small open classroom. Melody stood at the front with a pointed stick and the clay cheat sheet with the alphabet. There were about 14 humans, 2 demi-humans and 28 goblins in class. A huge number by normal standards, and what impressed me the most was they were very intent in learning.
In front of them were soft clay spread out relatively thin, and with a stick, they wrote down letters. The method of learning was simple, brute force muscle memory. By constantly writing down the letter and sounding it out, Melody was able to teach them all 26 letters, and now she is in the process of teaching them words. Luckily for her, she was a fast learner and was able to pick up on spelling relatively quickly when I was teaching her and Ash. I can tell, the moment we get paper or papyrus, Melody will be the first to create a book or novel, and with it, a library will be born, but that's deep into the future.
After watching the class for a bit, I head towards Lucina who was busy watering her crops. Having old man Hus make a watering can from wood was relatively easy and once he made it, it helped Lucina greatly in her farming.
"Lucina, is everything okay here?"
"Yes, I estimate that the first few crops I planted might be ready in a couple of days to a week. They are the most common crop found in the forest next to us and while there is still an abundance in the forest I thought it would be good to be self-sufficient."
"Excellent idea, Lucina! What of the herbs I asked you about last night?"
"Unfortunately there was none left in the small storage where I keep all the fresh crops and herbs."
"I seeโฆYou can ask Lime to help find some as well as instruct her to tell other scouts about the herb. Take a few and try to plant them. Hopefully, they will be able to thrive and we can farm them."
"Of course Ian. How are you feeling by the way?"
"Me?"
"Yes, you have been constantly running around every day doing different tasks. It seems like you never have a break."
"Ah, well, don't worry about me so much. I do take breaks but right now I want to get as many things completed as possible. Creating more housing, building the road, expanding the farm and then eventually mining. A lot to do with not enough time and manpower."
"That is true, but it is definitely better now than it was before with just the 5 of us. As more people join us, the place has gotten more lively. I used to be able to only hear Howard speaking but now the sounds of Gobi training the goblins or even the clanking near old man Hus drowns out his voice. People chattering while they build the houses and some even come to help me. It feels like a dream."
"It's not a dream. We have become bigger as a family, as a community and we will only keep becoming bigger."
"Yes, thank you Ian for saving us before."
"No problem, Lucina."
After a small conversation with Lucina, I proceed to help with the construction of the house. I had finished talking to the NPCs about the situation of HavenFall and with nothing else to instruct them about I can only help build and quicken the construction process. I started to make more clay bricks and set them aside to dry while I instructed Kingston and 3 demi-humans to go into the forest and cut down some trees. I would have liked to create a stone bridge like the Romans but making a wooden bridge might just be a little bit easier. Following the path towards the cave, I would need 3 bridges in order to make the journey as smooth as possible. Furthermore, the bridges need to be able to support the weight of not just a couple of humans but also the weight of the copper ore and stones. Will have to look into bridge-building once I get out of the game.
I converse with some of the different NPCs as I continuously create more and more bricks. Talking with them helped me understand their thoughts. I asked questions to do with the living standards, their general day-to-day life as well as how they felt about the other NPCs around them. Interestingly enough there was not one negative comment.
They were shocked by the cooperation between different races as well as the harmony built between everyone. No one was discriminated against as everyone was friendly towards one another, asking questions and asking for help. Fitting in was easy and finding something to do was easy too. Since HavenFall was only just starting to grow there was much to be done.
I was more surprised to hear that Gobi was a source of inspiration. A commander of the goblins, a taskmaster pushing for more effort and work but a kind superior ready to lend a hand when someone was down. I almost burst out laughing considering I know about his previous life, as a goblin that attacked us and then got defeated. However, I was glad that people were talking to each other and conversing creating a friendly environment. As I was talking to one of the goblins near me I heard a shout from above.
"IAN! HE IS BACK! LUKE IS BACK!"
Howard's shout boomed above me, his excitement shared with me as I place down what I was doing, rushing to the river to wash off the clay on my hands.
"Hurry up!"
"I'm coming, Howard. Give me a second."
For about a month now he had been gone. My most OP NPC, Luke!
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