by Sarah Lin
No one attacked them on their way, though they received a lot of suspicious glances. Eventually they reached a tall building of crumbling stone. Aside from green mana torches atop it, he would have thought it was unoccupied, perhaps condemned by the city.
When they got near the door, however, several figures who had merely been loitering around came together in a focused guard. One of them stepped forward. "You got business with Daek?"
"His subordinate asked for a Guild representative." Rhil'lahan jabbed a thumb at his chest. "That's us."
"Fine. I'll ask." The man disappeared into a creaky door for a time but soon reemerged and nodded to them grimly. They were escorted inside the shadowy building and Bloodwraith tensed his entire body.
To his surprise, the inside was larger and better kept than he would have expected based on the outside. There were even more suspicious men and women inside, all wearing dingy green cloaks. But he barely had time to look at their armaments, because they were led not forward, but down.
The first stair took them to a cavernous basement filled with crumbling carvings, as if the tower had been built atop an older structure. But he had just as little time to look at it, because they were led to another level below, this one more recently built. Nothing was crumbling or in poor repair here.
On the third basement level they finally stopped descending, instead moving forward. Though there were a number of rooms to the sides, most heavily barred, they headed down the central corridor. Bloodwraith knew little about traps, but he could still feel the whisper of wards. The place was better protected than the local governor's mansion, most likely.
Green mana torches lit the hallway for the final section with no side rooms, just torches and defenses. They were allowed inside through the heavy door, and finally they were escorted inside the private chambers of Daek the Knife.
Daek was a short, thin man sharpening a knife in a shadowed corner. He wore lean dark armor that looked effective and had knives strapped all over his body. But the most striking thing was the box that appeared when Bloodwraith focused on him.
Level 19. And everything else about him was listed as "???" - nothing more.
That didn't bode well, but he had no more time for such thoughts. Daek rose, his movements swift but troublingly graceful, like a snake. There was absolutely no smile on his face, but he gave them a polite bow once he rose to his feet.
"Welcome. I'm glad the Guild still sees fit to send representatives."
"Of course." Rhil'lahan spoke smoothly, bowing lower with no hint of his usual arrogance. "We respect how much you've done for Cresthaven. We wanted to apologize for this morning's little problem."
Bloodwraith shot him a glance. Daek's men had killed an adventurer - was he really going to just apologize and act like it hadn't happened? Perhaps his goal really was simply to finish the assignment and get credit for it. If so, Bloodwraith would have to alter his opinion of the man.
Things might have gone smoothly from there, except Herena clearly did not have the same plan. "You sent your men into a good part of town and murdered a citizen!" The healer stepped up and poked Daek in the chest. "You should be the one apologizing to the Guild!"
For a moment Daek's eyes went cold and Bloodwraith honestly believed that he would stab Herena right then. But the next instant he gave her a flat smile and stepped back. "I'm sorry for the behavior of my men. They were given orders to return the bodies without causing a scene..." Daek raised a hand to one of the green-cloaked men by the door. "Would you bring him in?"
After a short wait, the leader of the group appeared. He hesitated when he saw the group of adventurers, but still walked up to Daek. "You wanted something, boss?"
"They told me that your men began the fight this morning."
"That isn't... they hit first. Just because of a few bodies."
"Bodies that were lying in the street, according to my reports. Why didn't you take them directly to the Guild?" Daek stepped closer to his subordinate, false smile disappearing. The man swallowed and took a step back.
"We tried, but you know the Guild doesn't lik-"
Daek stabbed the man in the stomach. The movement was so fast that Bloodwraith barely saw it happen, and a moment later everyone else flinched back. As the man gasped in pain, Daek leaned closer to him. "I don't want excuses, just results. Perhaps your replacement won't fail me."
His hand jerked back and he stabbed several more times. The first blow resulted in a bloody gasp, but soon the man went silent and eventually fell to the ground as just a corpse. Daek wiped his knife off on the man's clothes, then stood and smiled at them.
"I trust that will serve as an apology." Daek replaced his knife smoothly and walked back to his corner. "There's no need to get Governor Andinn involved with this, is there? I like to stay on his good side. For the good of Cresthaven, of course."
Herena nodded begrudgingly. From what Bloodwraith had heard, Daek was being modest: he could fight Andinn if he needed to. The Governor still had significant power in Cresthaven, but he was undermined by the corruption in his own guard and administration. He stayed in power because everyone gained more profit that way.
Daek killing his own subordinate might have been intended to intimidate them, but Bloodwraith wasn't impressed. Killing subordinates who made mistakes was a poor way to attract good subordinates. Fear could be a powerful motivator, but you wanted your minions motivated to perform well, not motivated to avoid you for fear of murder.
From his position back on his stool, Daek regarded all of them coolly. "But I must say, I really am disappointed that the Guild hasn't dealt with my little problem. I didn't expect it to be an issue - a few strong adventurers ought to do it."
"I'm afraid we can't speak to that," Rhil'lahan said, raising his hands. But before he could say more, Khassfhit spoke up.
"You can't expect to draw the best adventurers with as little information as you've given."
"Really? I honestly thought this would be your sort of thing." Daek began cleaning his fingernails with a knife casually - too casually, Bloodwraith thought, but he wasn't sure if it was feigned. "The crypts beneath the city might be mostly unmapped, but from our attempted explorations, they seem to hold ancient artifacts. Doesn't that sort of thing motivate your kind?"
"We also like making a safe profit." But Khassfhit couldn't hide the new light in his eyes. "You said there were artifacts?"
"Oh, all kinds. We couldn't get in deep enough to find anything useful, but..." Daek glanced around his office and snapped up a silver sphere that was lying randomly on a shelf. "Take a look at this. They tell me it's an Outsider artifact, but I've never cared about that sort of thing. I just want the entire crypt cleared so that I can continue my business. That's why the terms are so good."
"You'd allow us to keep whatever we found?"
"If you do the job, of course. I'm paying to have the place cleared, after all." Daek glanced up at them. "Are you interested?"
"Ah, we have many duties..." Rhil'lahan started to speak, but Khassfhit cut him off.
"Give us more information about the monsters that have been found within, and we'll consider it."
"Khassfhit!" Rhil'lahan turned on him angrily and they began arguing with one another.
Though they spoke just above a whisper, Bloodwraith could hear the basics of it. Khassfhit believed this job was more lucrative than others understood and wanted to take advantage, while Rhil'lahan clearly wasn't interested in getting further involved. Regardless, Bloodwraith found himself looking up at Daek, who watched them with a careful lack of interest.
"This has been a problem for all of Cresthaven," Herena interjected into their argument, not bothering to lower her voice. "I think we should look into it."
Danniah nodded eagerly. "A real crypt! That sounds like a lot of fun!"
Seeing that he was outnumbered, Rhil'lahan sighed. A moment later he remembered that Bloodwraith existed and turned to him. "Raigar, surely you see reason. We shouldn't ris
k our lives in a crypt we know so little about!"
Bloodwraith looked back at him, realizing that he might well make the decision for them. Much as he loathed to admit it, he saw the elf's point. It was a substantial risk, especially before he'd established himself. But the boxes had mentioned Daek the Knife, so this might be relevant on a deeper level. The fact that he had been ushered here so quickly bothered him, but perhaps that was what the box gods wanted.
"I think we should investigate the crypt," Bloodwraith said. Rhil'lahan threw up his hands, the others nodded approvingly and smiled.
That included Daek, who gave them a very thin smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Very good. I am glad to hear the Guild hasn't abandoned its pledges. Of course, I wouldn't recommend that you throw yourselves into the crypt without preparation. Take some time... perhaps five days or more?"
[Quest Accepted!
Clear the crypt beneath Cresthaven for Daek the Knife.
Rewards: Reputation, Artifacts, 1 Gold/adventurer]
At the same point the box appeared, the decision seemed to have been made in the group as well. Instead of arguing over whether or not to go, they debated exactly how long to wait. Without explaining about his sword, Bloodwraith argued for it to be longer. Fortunately Khassfhit agreed, and in the end they decided that they would make the attempt in twelve days.
"Just over a tenday, then." Daek smiled at all of them. "I hope you do better than the last group."
With that, they were escorted out of the chamber, back down the long corridor. Bloodwraith looked over his shoulder one more time and caught a glimpse of Daek the Knife, his smile gone as he watched them. Those were exceptionally cruel eyes, and Bloodwraith had seen many cruel eyes.
Daek was no one to underestimate, but he was running this city like a lowly thief. When Bloodwraith had heard about him, he had imagined the man fused official and unofficial power in an effective way to turn the entire city into a machine for his will. This was brute fear and intimidation. Given a few months, Bloodwraith could run the city far better.
Did he even want to contemplate such a thing? When he considered...
[Potential Objective: Rule Cresthaven
Take control of Cresthaven from Daek the Knife.
Rewards: ???
Accept? Y/N]
Even as he walked, Bloodwraith stared at the box. This was one of the first times it had asked him to confirm anything since near the very beginning. That supported his theory that Daek was tied into whatever the boxes wanted, but it failed to answer any key questions.
For now, he simply willed the box away without answering its question. The crypt was a good enough objective for the time being. Before anything else, he had twelve days to prepare.
Chapter 9
Over the next tenday, Bloodwraith attempted to play the good adventurer. He soon understood that such a life would never satisfy him.
If he had been facing bandit ambushes and massive creatures every day, that would have been one thing. But logic held sway over the boxes in this case: a city the size of Cresthaven couldn't support an enormous population of bandits, despite all the adventuring malcontents. Instead he faced the work that most normal adventurers faced on a regular basis.
In a word: tedium. A local merchant wanted an object delivered to a local farm. The Governor paid adventurers to kill a specific monster that was too plentiful. Craftsmen wanted resources collected, just like Meara. It was all terribly dull.
Worse than that, it was unrewarding. In ten days of constant work, he had only earned 1454 EXP and 48 silver pieces. The boxes had also announced with much fanfare that he had earned 131 "local reputation" and 277 "Guild Points" but he refused to be distracted by its excitement. Those things might be useful in certain contexts, but they were not raw power, which was useful everywhere.
Sometimes he received rewards, which were usually weapons or armor slightly different than the current armor he was wearing. All of those he sold, which unfortunately didn't add much to the financial benefit because the market was flooded with so much of it.
The one benefit he had gained was a direct increase of all of his statistics, which he improved by working in the training yard. Unfortunately, each time the number increased, the obnoxious percentage value rose more slowly the next time. That might be logical in terms of increasing strength, but it meant that there was no easy path to power.
He might have done better if he worked more with Danniah, but he still had conflicted thoughts about her. One night she'd managed to convince him to go to the saunas again and it hadn't been horribly awkward, but it still bothered him. Bloodwraith didn't fully know who he was, not in this new body and new life.
But in the short term, he was a man who had a sword to collect.
Bloodwraith returned to the store and found Haral working at his forge, as before. There was no sign of his greatsword, but it would make sense that it might not be stored in an obvious location. But when the smith looked up and saw him, he shook his head.
"I told you today, but it's still not ready. One more day."
"A likely story." Bloodwraith found himself grasping the hilt of his greatsword, though he wasn't sure what he would do with it. Attacking the smith was obviously not an option, making the threat entirely empty. "Will you say the same tomorrow?"
"No. On my honor." Haral set down his hammer and approached, shaking his head. "It's just a bit more work than I expected. And you're getting a damn good deal with it, though I'll honor the price we agreed upon."
"Good. I'll be back tomorrow."
"Was that all for today?"
"I've earned some more coin working, so I'd like a bit more armor..." Specifically, he wanted to finally acquire the pieces of armor he had given up in order to afford the new greatsword. A few days ago a lowly wolf had succeeded in causing extended bleeding on his leg because he'd lacked armor, and he could imagine his arms taking similar injuries as well.
After limited negotiation, Bloodwraith managed to get good quality versions of both pieces of equipment for only 25 silvers. He was hardly equipped with masterworks or artifacts, but it was good to be fully armored. If his sword really was ready in another day, then he would be decently prepared for their journey into the crypt.
Though he wasn't likely to spend the 23 silvers he had remaining, he might as well check out the other room again and see what was available. If the lodestone greatsword proved useful, then repairing rare equipment might be the easiest way of equipping himself decently without paying the exorbitant prices that most rare equipment demanded.
Bloodwraith used the boxes to help him sort through all the items strewn about the room. Many were the same as before, but some had changed. The ring was gone - no surprise, given how broadly applicable such an item would be. There were a few items that would have been decent for a mage, but in his current body nothing struck him as all that useful.
Just as he was starting to leave, though, he caught sight of something. Not via the box's rating, but with his eyes. Bloodwraith slowly walked over to the side shelf and picked up the helm.
It wasn't the helm he had worn in his old life, he knew that. Rationally, he knew that it was only slightly similar, with the interlocking plates and the slanted eye slits. Yet at a glance, it still reminded him of the helm he had worn when he had been Father to the Undead. That one had been made of mana-forged bone and set with magic enhancing gems, whereas this one was simple steel. Well made, but nothing particularly special.
Despite that, he lifted it and very nearly put it on before he stopped himself. What the hell was wrong with him? Raigar's body certainly wouldn't be sentimental about that life. But perhaps the fleshly sentiment still infected him, making him nostalgic for the life he had lost.
Sentiment had never ruled him, so Bloodwraith set the helm back down. It still made him less pleased with the armor he currently wore. Leather rags, fully fitting the barbarian that he pretended to be. If he had to put up with this body, and had been stuck with
the skills of a warrior, at the very least he could acquire a more respectable set of armor.
Troubled by those thoughts, Bloodwraith left the shop at a brisk walk and returned to the Adventurers Guild. First, he would deal with this crypt. Better to focus on goals he could make meaningful progress toward.
He reached the training grounds and began practicing with his greatsword, watching the numbers slowly increment. But he had only been working for a few hours when Danniah arrived. Though useful in some ways, her cheerfulness was decidedly not what he needed at the moment. Unfortunately, there was no other exit, so he was trapped.
"Hey there!" Danniah waved with her free arm as she entered. "Working hard?"
"Yes," Bloodwraith answered flatly. Danniah stared at him, as if confused by his brusqueness.
"You seem kinda down, Raigar. I mean, you're always a serious type, but you seem extra down."
In response he just grunted. Unfortunately, Danniah came closer, settled her shield on the ground, and leaned forward on it to look at him.
"Guess you don't wanna talk, huh?"
He nearly called her an imbecile, but his heart wasn't in it. His movements slowed and after a time, he dismissed the boxes and leaned on his sword. "Why do you want to be an adventurer, Danniah?"
"Gosh. That's a big question." She blinked at him for a while. "I mean... it's kinda fun, and I'm good at it. But that's because of how I grew up, maybe? Maybe that's because I had to do a lot of things for my mother. Carrying stuff, or-"
"Not like that. Is it just for fun, or are you working toward some goal?"
"Oh, that's what you meant! If I ever get an awful lot of money, I was thinking of making an opposite Thieves Guild or something."
Bloodwraith stared at her a moment, then returned to his practice. Since he needed a distraction from the painfully slow progress, he decided to indulge her a little longer. "What does that mean? You sneak into people's houses and give money back to them?"