Estelar rose and performed the small series of movements with his fingers. A ray of rainbow colored light sprung from his hand and struck the opposite wall. It exploded into a large number of colorful droplets that fell to the ground.
Giddiness rose in Estelar. Using magic was so cool. In other games, he always played wizards that could cast powerful spells that could bring down tons of mobs at once. This spell was nothing like those, but he was more excited to cast it than any of the others. He guessed it was because he worked so hard to earn it, like he’d actually uncovered an ancient secret that was now his and his alone.
He contemplated this facet of the game’s design when there was a knock on his door. He opened it and Tatarna stood in the doorway.
“Hey Estelar, Larkin has another mission for us.”
The elf groaned internally. He wasn’t in the mood to lead more hapless newbies to their dooms. Oh well, this was his job and he had to do it. He prepared his gear and followed the tiger girl to Larkin’s office.
TWENTY-FIVE
Estelar rode in the lead as they prepared to send their next ten recruits to the slaughter beneath the light of a full moon. It didn’t take them very long to organize this bunch. Unlike the other recruitments they did, almost all of the prospects were as unskilled and dumb as the others. They only questions that any of the people Estelar interviewed asked were how much money they were going to get and how many players they’d get to gank. So his party just chose ten from their pool of prospects and moved on with the mission.
The group on foot loudly talked behind them as they neared the road to Caspadel. Each boasted how amazing they were in combat and told stories of their past accomplishments. Given their lack of focus on the task at hand, Estelar was disinclined to believe their stories.
When they were a few hundred meters from the road, the recruits were given their instructions and Estelar’s party took up their usual position further back from the recruits.
Using his superior eyesight, the elf kept watch on the road for an hour, watching a large number of heavily guarded caravans go by. Caravans had really ramped up the number of guards they had with them. It wasn’t uncommon to have guards outnumber regular personnel by three to one.
A few minutes after one heavily guarded caravan passed, two wagons came into view. They were tied together and being pulled by a team of two horses. There were four guards walking in a diamond formation around them.
It wasn’t quite a caravan, but Estelar thought it would do. He looked to his party members and they nodded. He gave the signal to the ten recruits and they charged.
Fearless and foolhardy, the new recruits charged toward the two wagons screaming bloody murder. The elf sighed. Given how much noise the ten morons were making, the caravan driver would know they were there. The guards could just climb in the wagon and they could ride away.
Instead of running, the caravan wagon stopped. The four guards rushed to the front to defend it. Either the caravaneer was an NPC or a really stupid player.
The guards fired their crossbows into their attackers. They managed to fire off four volleys and dropped two in that time.
The caravan guards saw they were severely outnumbered and quickly surrendered. There was no mercy in their attacker’s hearts. In a matter of moments the four caravan guards were slain.
Estelar gave the signal and they rode out toward the caravan. Most of their remaining recruits scrambled into the wagons to see what kind of loot they could get while the other leapt onto the driver’s seat in the lead wagon and attacked the driver. The driver screamed and jumped off the wagon. The recruit chased him while the short chubby human caravaneer ran as fast as his stubby legs would carry him.
Normally, Estelar would do what he could to spare a few of the members of their ill-fated recruits. However, he would have no problem slaughtering these vicious players. The elf pulled his mask over his face, gave a signal, and his party closed on the wagons.
Poppy broke off from the group and went after their recruit that was chasing the wagon driver while the others stayed to take out the ones in the wagons. Tiger woman, orc, and human dismounted and drew their weapons, but Estelar held up a hand.
He got off his horse and walked up to the last wagon. Four players tossed through the items looking for valuables to stuff their pockets with. The elf held up his hand and made the finger movements he made once before in his room.
A rainbow colored ray shot forth from his hand and crashed against one of the recruits. Multi colored droplets came down from the sky, mesmerising the players.
Your spellcasting has increased to level 1!
Your skill with illusion spells has increased to level 1!
The other three members of Estelar’s party grinned at him but he paid them no mind. He closed the pop up window in front of him and grimly pointed to the wagon. Padwin, Durga, and Tatarna rushed into the wagon and slaughter the bedazzled players.
The players in the lead wagon saw this and made to flee. Estelar shot another ray into the wagon and dazed them.
Your spellcasting has increased to level 2!
Your skill with illusion spells has increased to level 2!
By the time he closed this pop up, the remaining players were laying on the ground. A few minutes later Poppy returned leading the frightened caravan driver behind her horse. The wagon driver was told to spread the word.
The ride back to Shumpet passed in a blur. Estelar didn’t think about anything. His party tried to engage him in conversation about his cool new spell, but he didn’t hear them. All he heard were the sound of his horse’s hooves hitting the ground.
****
All five party members stood in Larkin’s waiting room. Larkin came out with his hood drawn over himself. There was a shadow over his face. The temperature of the room dropped several degrees and Estelar wrapped his arms around himself to fend off the cold.
Larkin put his head up and the glint of his smile could be seen.
“I assume everything went well?”
All of the party members nodded.
“Splendid work again, though I’m not surprised, you all have a tendency to succeed in every task I give you.”
Everyone thanked Larkin for his praise and the guildmaster continued.
“As you all know, other members of the guild have been carrying out similar missions across the region. For the most part, they’ve been successful, and the roads are now deemed very dangerous. Merchants are hiring more guards to protect their caravans and the cost of hiring a guard in this region has gone through the roof.
“News of our heroic defense of caravans that have come under attack by bandits has also spread. From scouting reports that have been brought to me, we now have a positive reputation in many of the cities in the area. We are also known as fierce warriors from our earlier work robbing caravans.”
The members of Estelar’s party looked at each other.
“I see you haven’t put the pieces of the puzzle together yet,” Larkin said. “This was what I was hoping to accomplish by setting up those false bandit attacks. Since this has been achieved, I am ready to move on to the next phase of my plan.
“As the price of caravan guards has risen to an alarmingly high level, I’m going to start hiring members of our guild to merchant companies to serve as guards. Guild membership has grown by a great deal in the past few days, so we have quite a few men to spare. I can undercut the competition, and given the number of guild members, we can make a fair bit of coin.
“I also plan to contact Caspadel, the city having the most trouble with bandits, and offer some of our warriors as mercenaries to guard the roads.”
“That plan sounds brilliant, sir,” Padwin said.
“Our guild is going to get filthy rich,” Durga said. “Our warriors are the best in the whole game.”
“Does that mean you’re going to have us guard caravans now?” Estelar said. His question came off a bit too earnestly. He hated attacking caravans and was e
xcited about the prospect of actually right side of the law.
Larkin shook his head. “No. You all are too valuable to waste on such a simple task. I have a special mission for you.”
All of the party members, save for Estelar, perked up and moved to the edge of their seats.
“I’m assigning your group to go out to a place that other players are currently calling ‘Monster Plain.’ It’s an area north of a very large forest known as The Wilderwood. I want you to go and visit some of the monster tribes that live there. I’ll give you a few valuable gifts I want you to pass out to the chiefs of those tribes and ask them if they will work with the Crimson Warriors, in exchange for a monthly payment.”
“Can we actually do that?” Poppy said.
“The Duke of Caspadel, who is a player, hired a goblin village to perform a task. My guess is that I can do the same. If you manage to convince any of the tribes to join us, I want your party to contact me via this magical bauble.”
Larkin held up a smooth, green glass ball the size of a golf ball. “We will proceed from there. Do you all understand?”
Everyone nodded.
“Great. For your work you’ve been sent more letters of credit. I’ve also set up a special surprise for you. It’s in Estelar’s room. I hope you didn’t mind me choosing your room for the surprise. But I’ve heard all sorts of action occurs there and figured you wouldn’t mind.”
The elf cocked an eyebrow but bowed slightly. “No, I don’t mind.”
“Run along now and enjoy yourselves, you have a great deal of work ahead of you.”
The party left Larkin’s quarters and made their way to Estelar’s room.
TWENTY-SIX
Estelar led the way to his room and opened the door. A round table was set up in the middle of the room. On it were silver platters piled with steak, roasted chicken, fish, and several delectable looking vegetables. In the room were six scantily clad people in sheer red silks, three masculine men and three busty, beautiful women standing around the table.
One of the women smiled at the group. “Good Afternoon milords and ladies, Master Larkin has summoned us here to serve your every need this afternoon.”
“If there is anything you desire, please let us know,” one of the men said, “it is our pleasure to serve your every desire.”
The eyes of the group widened. All six of the people - Estelar guessed they were servers - were stunningly beautiful. The elf, dwarf, and halfling women had features that would make any man that saw them stop in their tracks. The male orc, human, and gnoll had muscles that seemed to be chiseled from marble.
All of the party members took a seat and the group of six, scantily clad men and women placed napkins in their laps and laid out expensive looking silverware and plates in front of them. One woman brought a serving tray with a nice looking wine and a clay pitcher of ale. She served them drinks while the rest took portions of meats and vegetables and piled them on their plates.
Estelar’s mouth watered as he looked down at all of the wonderful food placed before him. As the female human placed another piece of fish on his plate she smiled and winked.
“We are also available for other services after your meal.”
The other servers also made hints that they were there for more than just their serving pleasure. The women grinned and hungrily gazed at the almost nude and attractive servers. Padwin elbowed Estelar and grinned.
“Nice, huh. Larkin really knows how to take care of us. If we keep this up we’ll each have our very own harems.”
Estelar stared down at the steaming meats on his plate and smirked. That would be nice. After a few more missions, perhaps he could ask Larkin to give him a personal attendant like he had. He pictured a busty elf maiden following him around, serving him hand and foot, and when he was in the mood, sateing all of the sexual desires that even Tatarna wasn’t brave enough to try.
That and probably more was in his grasp. One day, when the guild became large and powerful enough, Estelar would give him his own castle and lands. He pictured himself at the head of his own court, filled with beautiful nude women sitting around long tables adorned in gold and silver. They would all look at him with lust in their eyes, hoping to be the next lucky damsel taken by the powerful elf.
The thought brought him a great deal of arousal. Yes, sex every night, servants that always did they were told, and his own fief with soldiers that he could use to fulfil his own ambitions.
But what ambitions did he have? Subjugating villages? Conquering kingdoms? For what purpose would he do all these things? The choice of different women? More money to fill his coffers to buy nicer foods and wines? More soldiers to undertake larger campaigns?
The elf’s vision changed to himself sitting in a massive castle filled to the brim with exotic, nude women, all vying for his favor. He read a piece of parchment detailing all of his lands and the revenues that came from them. He wore a robe of the finest purple velvet and wore a golden crown beset with diamonds.
His face was bored and his body was spent from having sex all day long with different women. Each one looked the same as the last, and no matter how talented they were in the sexual arts, none of them could satisfy his craving for something new and exciting. He had everything, and on his mind was the constant fear of someone taking it from him.
He rose to his station on the heads of those he smashed. Their bodies littered the battlefield and were left to the crows. He saw the fire and heard the clash of steel from these would be battles, then the vision changed again. He saw the fearful faces of those he’d already taken down, and then the soft, pleading eyes of that dwarf woman, catgirl, and other players he spared in the fake bandit raids.
These visions faded into the real world before him. His party members voraciously ate the delicious looking food and slurped their booze. He looked down at his untouched plate of food and sighed. He lost his appetite.
Estelar rose from his seat and started walking toward the door.
“Is there something you need my lord?” The elf server said. “We would be happy to get it for you.”
Estelar shook his head. “No thanks.”
Tatarna looked up from her plate of food. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m good.”
Padwin turned his attention away from the female dwarf in his lap. “Don’t tell me you’re leaving. This food is awesome, and I know you don’t want to go before you have a tumble with a couple of these fine ladies Larkin sent.”
Estelar chuckled and shook his head. “No guys, I have to log out. I got stuff at home to do.”
“You can put it off for a bit, can’t you?” Tatarna said. “There’s some things I want you to try with me and this sexy orc over here.”
Tatarna brushed a hand across the orc male’s rocky torso.
“Let’s do it later. I’m gonna log off.”
His other party members raised objections but he didn’t hear them. He was tired and that room was the last place he wanted to be.
“I’ll see you guys when our next mission starts.”
“Oh well, more for us,” Padwin said.
The other party members shrugged and went back to the feast and the gorgeous people attending them. Estelar walked out of the room and shut the door.
TWENTY-SEVEN
Paul rubbed his temples and sat back in his computer chair. Thoughts swirled in his mind as he contemplated his life as Estelar. His adventuring career had been successful, more successful than most that scraped by in that world. But it was wearing on him. At first, the robbing and stealing really didn’t bother him, but now he thought about it constantly.
Even when he studied or went out to do something else, the atrocities he committed still poisoned any fun or distracted him from any activity.
Paul chuckled at himself. God was he pathetic. He was sitting there, spending his time whining about a game, when he could be doing something more productive. There had to be thousands of more things he could be putting his time in
to than that stupid game. It had been a while since he went out to the bar to just chill out and even longer since he’d been out camping or fishing in the countryside.
Unexplored was taking up a lot of time. Too much time, and he needed to get away from it for a while. Even though playing was more fun than anything else he’d ever done, and through the game he was actually meeting people, he was putting way too much of his life into the game. Yeah, he needed to put it aside and start pursuing something else.
What could he do, though? He was free this weekend. He could plan a little camping trip and get away from civilization for a while.
The idea of spending his weekend camping and fishing alone didn’t seem terribly fun. Maybe he could go to a club, do some dancing, maybe even meet a nice girl. That could be fun. At least it would be until his social anxiety flared up.
So, that was out. He could try to go to the VRCade but they hadn’t gotten any new games since he was a teenager. The idea of watching videos online all weekend didn’t seem like much fun. What was left? Not much, at least not much he was interested in. He could just leave the Crimson Warriors and find his own way in Unexplored, but the idea of travelling that hellish world alone felt suicidal, and the idea of leaving his fellow party members behind made him extremely uneasy.
Maybe he should just surf around online and find something else to get into. There was a big wide world out there. Something was about to catch his interest.
Paul spend the next two hours flipping through the net, looking up a bunch of different hobbies. The ones that weren’t too expensive seemed really boring and mundane. He shook his head and wondered to himself how people were ever able to keep themselves entertained without the internet.
He was about to log off and take a nap when a small blue screen popped up on his holomonitor.
Meaddrinker972: Good afternoon, master elf!
Paul smiled and immediately answered.
Estelar: Fonwilsia! How goes it fair dwarf damsel?
Unexplored - Rise of the Crimson Kingdom Page 13