Veil Online - Book 2: An Epic LitRPG Adventure

by John Cressman

  You stab Sewer Gator Bull for 0 damage.

  The girls joined in with attacks of their own.

  Mizzlethain-galliegarde shoots Sewer Gator for 2 magic damage.

  Raajoget crushes Sewer Gator for 2 damage.

  Almedha Pressalor Precisely shoots Sewer Gator for 0 damage.

  He heard Charlena curse as her arrow once again bounced off the thick hide. Jace tried to catch a glance of her but keeping an eye on the frenzied gator was consuming all of his attention.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 6 damage.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 0 damage.

  The creature’s last round of attacks brought him down to 16 health and they were barely scratching the thing. Jace got ready to use his health potion.

  You stab Sewer Gator Bull for 0 damage.

  You stab Sewer Gator Bull for 0 damage.

  Jace’s weapons once again failed to penetrate the alligator, and he silently swore. He really hated being a noob. He checked his Stamina and saw it was around 10%. Very soon, he’d have to stop attacking and focus solely on defense.

  Mizzlethain-galliegarde shoots Sewer Gator for 2 magic damage.

  Raajoget crushes Sewer Gator for 3 damage.

  Almedha Pressalor Precisely shoots Sewer Gator for 7 damage.

  At least the girl’s attacks were doing more damage than he was. Then again, he was playing the role of the tank. He wasn’t supposed to be the main damage dealer. But that just felt wrong after years of playing Mordred.

  His mental counter was ticking down, and he prepared to use his Taunt for the last time without having to tap into Luna’s mana. He spared a glance over to where Luna’s head was bobbing. The poor cat had fallen out of the sling and was now just trying to keep its soaked head above water by doggy-paddling to stay afloat. Or was it called kitty-paddling when a cat did it?

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 0 damage.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 0 damage.

  The gator’s attacks did no damage and Jace saw his opportunity. First, used his Taunt to keep the gator locked on him. “Fight me!”

  Next, he produced the potion from his inventory and drank it down.

  You use Cloudy Crimson Potion.

  Cloudy Crimson Potion restores 10 health.

  Jace shook his head at how little health the potion restored. It was a far cry from the Supreme Incandescent Potions he’d had as Mordred.

  Mizzlethain-galliegarde shoots Sewer Gator for 2 magic damage.

  Raajoget crushes Sewer Gator for 1 damage.

  Almedha Pressalor Precisely shoots Sewer Gator for 5 damage.

  His companions got in their attacks and thankfully their attacks were more effective.

  “I’m getting really low on Stamina,” Charlena yelled. “This fight has dragged on too long.”

  “Me too,” Diana and Mika agreed at nearly the same time.

  “Same here,” Jace confirmed. “I’ve got a few more hits but then I have to save everything for my Defense.”

  Once again Stamina was becoming an issue for him. He rarely, if ever, had run out of Stamina as Mordred, but then again, he was mostly soloing or in higher level groups. But these marathon fights were where it normally became an issue.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 0 damage.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 0 damage.

  The alligator seemed to be feeling it too, though he was sure this giant beast had plenty of Stamina. Plus, as a boss, it’s stats were even higher than a normal monster’s stats would be. Jace lunged out for the last time. After this, it would all be defense.

  You stab Sewer Gator Bull for 0 damage.

  You stab Sewer Gator Bull for 0 damage.

  He frowned and cursed the random number generator. He couldn’t even manage to do damage on his last hit.

  Mizzlethain-galliegarde shoots Sewer Gator for 1 magic damage.

  Raajoget crushes Sewer Gator for 1 damage.

  Almedha Pressalor Precisely shoots Sewer Gator for 10 damage.

  Jace was glad to see the girls were still doing damage, even if just a little. Charlena’s damage had increased since she’d moved behind it, even though she’d been out of the fight for a few minutes to find a tunnel that led behind the monster.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 4 damage.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 5 damage.

  As if sensing its end, the great alligator snapped twice at Jace, landing two hits, and almost completely undoing the healing potion he’d just used.

  Angry, he almost lashed out at the thing but remembered he needed to conserve his Stamina. If he fell over right now, they’d all die. It was time to go full tank mode.

  Mizzlethain-galliegarde shoots Sewer Gator for 1 magic damage.

  Raajoget crushes Sewer Gator for 3 damage.

  Almedha Pressalor Precisely shoots Sewer Gator for 6 damage.

  More solid hits from his teammates and Jace wondered how much more health this boss had. By his calculations, they should be close to finishing it off. But maybe he’d miscalculated.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 5 damage.

  Sewer Gator Bull bites YOU for 4 damage.

  The alligator once again tore into Jace’s legs causing him the grind his teeth to stop from crying out. He also saw his health had dropped down all the way down to 8. Another series of hits like the last two and he’d be done for. Screw Stamina, he needed to go all offense.

  Jace needed something that would help end this fight quickly. The only thing that the creature’s hide couldn’t deflect was magic. Luckily, he could cast spells, but it would mean using mana from Luna.

  He glanced over to the water-logged cat once more. If he died, all that mana would be wasted anyway. Jace set his jaw and cast his spell. “Minima fulmen ignem!”

  You burn Sewer Gator Bull with Flame Bolt for 5 fire damage.

  Your Fire Magic skill has increased by 1.

  Sewer Gator Bull dies.

  You gain 1000 experience.

  You have gained a level.

  You are now level 7 in Rogue.

  You gain 8 health.

  You gain 4 mana.

  The fiery missile hit the creature in its open mouth, burning its sensitive skin. The alligator shuddered and then dropped lifeless to the ground. Jace saw that he had gained a new level and guessed the girls had too.

  The girls cheered as the thing fell over, Diana grabbing Mika in a quick hug that the normally stoic girl returned. Charlena came bounding over the gator’s corpse and jumped into Jace’s arms.

  “We did it!” she exclaimed.

  Jace returned her hug and saw, out of the corner of his eye, his soaked familiar climb onto the alligator’s head and begin shaking itself off. It caught him looking and glared daggers at him.

  “I know. I know,” he sent to her. “Extra fish tonight.”

  “Yes,” the cat huffed, shaking water from her water-logged body. “Much extra!”

  Jace looted the giant alligator corpse and was disappointed to receive only a superb quality alligator skin and a sewer gator bull eye, which was obviously the quest item. He was sure they could sell it for some extra money, but it was disappointing to get nothing else.

  “That’s it?” Diana asked. “We sit here for fifteen minutes, beating down a gigantic crocodile and all we get is a hide and an eyeball?”

  “Alligator,” Mika corrected.

  Diana gave her a look and Mika just smiled in return.

  Jace agreed with them. There should have been more loot. He remembered the extra treasure he’d found on the Spider Queen, back in the forest. It hadn’t been on her body but actually in her spider web themselves, on mummified corpses. Perhaps there was a lair somewhere nearby.

  “There may be more loot,” he told them. “If so, it’s probably in some sort of lair or nest nearby. Probably a large room or deep water where the alligator would have rested.”

  His comment got the girls excited and they spread out and searched the area for the creat
ure’s loot. Luckily, it didn’t take long. Mika found a large pool where several pipes drained into. There were bits of floating debris in the room, but nothing that looked like loot.

  “No loot though,” Mika frowned, once they had all met in the room.

  “Oh dearies,” Diana said. “Don’t you know, alligators and crocodiles like to stuff their victims underwater so they can come back and munch on them. I researched them for a romance novel set in the amazon but ended up changing the setting to Egypt and the Nile river instead.”

  “Was that’s Pharaoh's Heart?” Charlena asked enthusiastically. “I loved that one!”

  Jace had nearly forgotten that Diana was a successful writer and that Charlena was one of her fans. In this case, the old writer proved to be on the money.

  The girls had unanimously volunteered him to dive under the murky water and search for bodies. Having no choice, he stripped off his armor and submerged himself in the dark waters. And he had found a number of partially eaten, bloated corpses stuffed into cracks it looked like the gator might have made with its massive tail.

  After checking them all, he swam back over to them to show the girls what he had found.

  Ring of Arcane Energy

  Type: Ring

  Level: 5

  Wt: .2 lbs

  Special: Wearer can store up to 4 mana in this ring

  Description: This ring was given to the son of a rich nobleman who had been accepted into the Mages Guild. It was lost, along with the son, when he disappeared during a night of carousing.

  Guardsman’s Hauberk

  Type: Chest Armor

  Level: 5

  Armor: 3 + 1 (Masterwork) + 1 (Sturdy)

  Wt: 10 lbs

  Description: By the faded guard emblem on the chest, this chain mail shirt probably belonged to a high ranking guardsman before his ill-fated trip to the sewer.

  Ardmore’s Bane

  Type: Long sword

  Level: 5

  Damage: 10 + 1 (Sharp)

  Wt: 4 lbs

  Special: When unsheathed, this sword radiates light in a 30 ft radius.

  Description: This weapon was enchanted for a wealthy merchant named Ardmore, who was rumored to be deathly afraid of the dark. Unfortunately, it made him a beacon for thugs when he ventured out one dark, stormy night.

  Jace had also found 2 potions of healing, which the group insisted he keep, and 37 gold, which he divided among them. They talked it over for several minutes before deciding to give the ring to Diana. She was a Mage after all and would benefit the most from extra mana.

  The hauberk went to Mika. It was better than the armor she wore and although Jace would have benefited too, it was only marginally better than his thieves guild jerkin and would make it harder for him to be stealthy.

  For the moment, Jace told Mika to keep the long sword as well. At least until she was able to buy a katana. Jace could put it to good use, but the light casting qualities would cramp his Stealth when he was doing thieves guild jobs.

  “Now can we get out of this dismal place?” Diana asked when they had distributed the loot.

  “Yes,” agreed Luna, who was still licking herself clean.

  Chapter 14

  The group found their way back to the surface. It was dark out and Jace realized they had been down in the sewers much longer than he had originally guessed. They went straight to the adventurers guild.

  When they arrived, they all went inside and presented the paper and the eyeball to the person behind the desk. The man they’d spoken to early was gone. In his place was a grizzled old dwarf with an eyepatch over his left eye.

  “What’s this?” the dwarf demanded.

  “We killed the giant alligator in the sewers,” Jace told him. He examined the dwarf in his HUD.

  Throdgrug Greydigger

  Level: 50

  Throdgrug looked down at the paper and then at the alligator eyeball that still lay on the desk. The dwarf gently picked up the alligator eye and brought up to his own good eye. He tilted it one way and then another, apparently examining it. Then, without warning, he popped it into his mouth and bit down. A popping sound came from inside his mouth and he smiled and began chewing.

  A chorus of “ewws” came from behind him and even Jace had to admit he felt a little squeamish at the site of the dwarf chewing the eye.

  “Eyes good!” came Luna’s meow from a nearby chair she had appropriated.

  “Any eyes we find that aren’t used for quests,” he reassured the cat, “you can have.”

  “Yes!” the little cat agreed.

  The dwarf chewed for several minutes before signing his name on the paper. He reached into one of the drawers in the desk and retrieved four small pouches of gold. Tossing them onto the desk, he nodded. “There you go. Thanks for your service.”

  And just like that, the quest was complete.

  You have completed the quest, “Alligators in the Sewer”

  You gain 750 experience. Experience to next level 1,170.

  You gain +25 faction with Whitecliff Adventurers Guild

  You gain +25 faction with Whitecliff

  Each of them collected their money, which was 50 gold each and Mika announced she was now 3rd level in Fighter. Two more levels and she could switch back to Priest.

  “Is this enough money for a katana?” Mika asked, her eyes hopeful.

  “I don’t know,” Jace shrugged. “We can go check out the weapon shops and find out.”

  Charlena looked out at the window and frowned. “Sorry, I need to get going. I work tomorrow and I need to be there early for orientation.” She leaned over to Jace and gave him a quick kiss. “I’ll log tomorrow night after work.”

  “See you then,” he said but she had already faded away.

  “Did someone say something about shopping?” Diana asked.

  ***

  Two hours later, they were leaving the Central Market and heading back to the inn. Mika had found a katana for her level, but it was 200 gold since it was an exotic weapon. Jace had spent fifteen minutes Haggling with the weapon merchant and managed to get the price down to 150 gold. They’d pooled their money so that she could buy the two-handed weapon, which she now carried like a treasure.

  The market had been good to Jace too. He ranked his Haggle skill to 10 and received the Silver-Tongued ability which gave him a permanent 2% discount on goods from NPC merchants. It wasn’t much now, but at rank 100 it became a 25% discount. And that was significant at the later levels.

  Jace had also managed to get his Pickpocket skill up to 10 by picking a few pockets as he bumped into people. He’d only earned a few gold, but he’d gotten the Sleight of Hand ability, which allowed him to do the opposite of pickpocketing, by placing an item in someone’s pocket. It didn’t seem particularly useful, but maybe he’d need it on a thieves guild quest.

  “You girls can head back to the inn if you want,” he told them. “Or go do some of your class quests. I need to work on my faction with the thieves guild.”

  “You’re not eating dinner?” Mika asked. He’d noticed she was getting more and more vocal the longer she was with them. Was she simply shy and it had taken her some time to warm up to them?

  “Don’t worry dear,” Diana told her. “We’ll see him tomorrow morning.”

  Mika looked at Jace, then back at Diana. “Yes. See you tomorrow, Jace.”

  The two of them walked away, leaving Jace alone with Luna. He looked down at the cat who glared at him. “I forgot your fish.”

  “You forgot,” she huffed.

  “I’ll make it up to your tomorrow morning,” he told her. “I promise.”

  Luna didn’t say anything, but she did follow him when he headed north to the thieves guild. He found Webley in the Lucky Coin and the guildmaster waved him over.

  “Sit down,” the master thief gestured to the seat across from him.

  Jace sat and the guildmaster nodded to the bartender who brought over two pints of mead and slapped them down on
the table.

  “Thanks,” Jace muttered and took a sip of his mead.

  The guildmaster took a long dawn from his own mug and set it down. “I’m hoping you’re here for work.”

  “I am,” Jace nodded.

  “Good,” Webley said. He smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. He looked worried about something.

  “Something wrong?”

  Webley narrowed his eyes. “What makes you ask that?”

  Jace smiled. “Other than you look like you’re carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders?”

  Webley relaxed and took another chug of his mead. “That obvious huh? I used to be better at hiding it. Let’s just say we have some bad business going on at the moment.”

  “Anything I can help with?”

  “We just found out the Crossroads guild was wiped out,” Webley told him. “Down to the last man. And the guildhouse, which I hear had just started going through some renovations, was burned to the ground. Word on the street is the new guildmaster, some vampyre named Mordred something-or-other, might have done it. It could also have been the guard who found out the location of the guild and wanted to make an example.”

  Jace went pale and Webley noticed it. He raised an eyebrow. “Something you want to tell me?”

  Jace tried to think quickly. He wasn’t about to tell Webley he’d defeated another guildmaster and taken the guild from him. There might be honor among thieves, but he wasn’t taking a chance. He had been wondering why the guild hadn’t sent any updates. Now he knew. It had been wiped out.

  He realized the guildmaster was still waiting for an answer and his face had become hard. It was time to see how well his Bluff skill would work against a high-level NPC. “I was just in Crossroads.”

  The guildmaster signaled him to go on.

  “I met some of the Rogues,” he told the man. So far, it was all true. He thought he remembered reading or hearing that the key to a good lie is mixing as much truth as possible.

  “They made me a member, but the town was too small for me,” Jace continued. Technically that was true. It was too small to have a Help Desk. And he had been a guildmaster, but technically that was still a member.