Quest for Camlan: A LitRPG Adventure (Camlan Realm Book 1)

by A. T. Gilbert

  I take a wide swing at the first creature that gets close enough. I barely nick its wings as it passes. So little, in fact, that the bat apparently doesn’t think I’m even worth attacking. A second bat flies within my reach and I swing again, this time missing completely. I take four more slow attempts, knocking off a measly 50 HP total from all the bats.

  This is going to take forever. There must be a trick to it that I’m not seeing, or a way to get higher. There’s no way I’m going to be able to eliminate all these bats with the weapons Bernadette has provided.

  I pause, just a moment, as realization dawns.

  Oh my god, I am such an idiot.

  I discard the scythe, the deadliest weapon that had been pointed out to me, the direction she had pointed my attention and let me believe I needed. Instead I equip my bow and arrow that I have been carrying since I first left Gemma earlier this morning.

  The light from the lantern isn’t very strong, but the Swift Bats present a large enough target, with plenty of vulnerable spots for even my subpar archery skills. I take aim and fire quickly, ripping a hole through the wing of the bat closest to me. It stumbles on its flight path and falls quickly to the floor of the barn, while the damage report flashes in the corner of my field of vision.

  Yes! Finally, I hit it. A game plan. My arrows can knock them out of the air then I can finish off the injured creature down below. As I take aim with my second arrow, I wonder what the point of the misdirection is. Surely the game’s AI knows that I carry a bow and arrow. Was the point to test my logic skills? Was it a glitch? Was it a deliberate sabotage to … I don’t know. Make for better live streaming?

  My archery skills are improving. I only miss completely a handful of times and manage to fell all the bats pretty quickly.

  Attention: You have unlocked Active Skill: Archery Level 4

  Description: Improved aim and power. Chance of direct hit + 10%

  Reward: +120 XP

  I take hold of the lantern again and make my way down to the barn floor that is now crawling with injured Swift Bats. Even crawling on the ground, they are half as large as me. Now is when that scythe will come in handy. A much larger blade than my dagger, and far more effective than my club.

  I step forward and start swinging.

  [+75 XP]

  [+75 XP]

  [+75 XP]

  Hit after hit after hit! It’s exhilarating. The scythe’s length keeps the bats well away from my person. I barely have to worry about injury—as long as I keep my back to the wall and avoid getting surrounded. Injured as they are, the Bats’ progress toward me is slow and I have plenty of time to address the attacks coming from all sides. I dispatch one bat after another. Hit after hit. I get in a rhythm and am almost able to plow through the enemy without much thought. The final bat collapses.

  But I don’t get the Quest Completed message I am expecting. Instead, I hear rustling and scratching sounds high above me. Something else stirs deep in Bernadette’s barn. The light of my lantern doesn’t stretch far enough. I can see hints of movement in the shadows but not much else.

  I switch back to my bow and arrow and aim upwards. Maybe if I can’t hit it, I can startle it enough to come down closer to the light. Focusing on the hints of movement, I let my arrow fly.

  A red flash of light deep in the shadows lets m know I got my mark. A hit! Wow, I’m kind of impressed with myself. That’s better than I expected. But the damage report in the corner of my vision tells me the creature is only about 10% injured.

  I have a bad feeling about this.

  Chapter 26

  I try again, aiming my arrow as best I can toward the movement above me and fire again. Before my brain can even register my success, an enormous creature swoops down at me.

  “Gah!” I scream.

  King Swift Bat: Level 24

  This Swift Bat is the size of a minivan. I don’t even know where it came from. How can it live here unseen? I cower and cover my head with my arms as the monster flies right at me, swiping with its claws.

  [-57 HP]

  God, I hope the livestream is following someone else right now and no one heard me scream like that. I’m afraid to check. In my defense, that thing is enormous. I have just a short moment to regroup while the bat-van-thing flies back up to the top. Arrow or scythe? Is it going to attack again? Judging from size and the level of this creature, I probably still need to hit it another four or five times before it’s incapacitated enough to stay grounded.

  I fire off two arrows, one right after another, in quick enough succession that he doesn’t have a chance to attack in the interval. I hear a pained, angry cry above me and know I’ve made progress. The light catches Boss-Bat’s wide, thin wing, replete with jagged holes from where my arrows hit their marks. He flaps a couple times, trying to stay airborne, but I’ve managed to shred his wing enough to make flight difficult. The wing wraps around his body as he tumbles through the air, crashing against the hayloft before hitting the ground on the far side of the barn.

  While he is still stunned from the fall, I aim and fire off another two arrows. This time, I can see the target better and manage to sink both into his abdomen.

  Attention: You have unlocked Active Skill: Archery Level 5

  Description +7 % accuracy and strength with each shot.

  Reward: +150 XP

  Despite the two hits, the monster rushes toward me, clawing his way across the dirty wooden floor. I’m too slow; I haven’t yet reequipped the scythe when the enormous vermin reaches me. His huge, powerful wing knocks me to the ground and sends me rolling across the floor until a thick wooden pillar stops my progress.

  [-62 HP]

  He’s on top of me before I can get up again, heavy talons scratching across the meat of my shoulder.

  [-34 HP]

  I wish I had had a chance to armor up before now. My health points take a huge hit, nearly 30% down already. I knew those first Swift Bats were too easy.

  I make a split-second decision to use the tiny chance I have to reequip my weapon, rather than try to equip the flask of Waters of Cai. I don’t think the game will let me drink while in battle anyway.

  Scythe in hand, I stand defensively, back under the loft, protected on at least one side by the wall behind me.

  The Boss-Bat is enraged. He hisses and shrieks at me. He can almost fit under the loft space where I’ve taken refuge and his talons almost reach me again and again. All I’m able to manage is keeping the attacks at bay. This is purely a defensive maneuver. My entire goal is keeping those sharp claws away from me. My health regenerates, but slowly. Too slowly. I can’t keep this up. I’ve got to move to offense.

  I equip my dagger in my left hand. It won’t do me much good, but it makes me feel better. Like a really sharp, potentially deadly comfort blanket. I’d laugh if I wasn’t so focused on staying alive. I should have allocated at least some of my attribute points to Dexterity. I’m going to need it. The next time the bat claws in at me, I deflect his claw with my scythe, but dart forward to swing at the limb and wing with my dagger.

  I land a minor hit. Not bad. Not great. I’m going to have to be even more aggressive. One eye on my health—I’ve regenerated to about 75%—I run forward several steps, hacking at the monster and surprising him before he is able to launch his next attack.

  A solid hit, but his claw finds purchase in my flesh too.

  We’re too evenly matched. Is this battle simply going to be a war of attrition, or can I prove myself actually smarter than the game?

  The bat resumes his swipes at me under the loft and I resume my defensive maneuvers. The only other tools I have at my disposal are the ladder and the lantern. This would be so much easier if I could just burn this barn down, but I’m pretty sure that won’t fulfill the quest’s requirements.

  But even without a full blown fire, that lantern has cast more light into this barn than the bats are used to. I left it in the middle of the barn floor, several yards away. In my distraction, he lands
another solid hit.

  [-67 HP]

  That’s it. Here we go. I run all the way to the far end of the barn and the Boss-Bat follows me. His injuries keep him from flying, but he’s still able to claw his way after me. I don’t even turn to look. I make a wide arc at the end and circle back, trying to put more distance between us so I can shoot off an arrow. Trying to lead him away from the lantern so I can get to it. The King Swift Bat follows me the whole time. All the way around. All the way back until I reach the lantern sitting in the middle of the floor. I maneuver my way around, so the lantern, that singular bright light, is between us and I turn back to face the bat.

  It has slowed its approach. An angry hiss warns me it’s frustrated, which gives me hope. I’m not sure how long I can rely on the bat’s aversion to light, so I quickly reequip my bow and arrow and finish my attack.

  I’m getting so much better at this. Calmer heart rate, deeper breaths. I no longer have a minor panic attack each time I shoot.

  Aim. Fire.

  The red flash indicating damage shines in the corner of my vision.

  Aim. Fire.

  The creature shrieks in pain.

  Aim. Fire.

  Over and over again. It takes a full eight, well-placed arrows to kill the beast, but soon it keels over, covering much of the barn floor with its bulk.

  Quest Completed: Beat Back the Bats

  Description: The Swift Bat infestation has been quelled for now. Bernadette will be able to use the building again.

  Reward: 130 XP, +5 Gold Crowns

  Level up! Congratulations you have leveled to 15!

  You have one attribute point to distribute.

  Name: SirAsh3r

  Level: 15

  Strength: 15

  Intelligence: 17

  Dexterity: 15

  Stamina: 16

  Magic: 16

  Skills: Woodcraft 2, Slash 2, Club 2, Paddle 1, Climbing 1, Stealth 1, Archery 5, Power Perception 1

  Abilities: Initiative 1, Focus 1

  Professions: Cooking 1

  Affinities: 2% Earth; 6% Water

  Fame: 350

  Achievements: First Explorer of Lake Galavant, First Explorer of Foyle Forest, First Visitor to Allynton

  Dexterity. Intelligence. Strength. I need all of them to even have a hope of beating Jargonaut. But Magic and Intelligence will set me apart the most. I don’t need Magic until I go back to the mayor and I won’t go back until I have that spy quest ready to turn in. Then I’ll hopefully level up again, get another attribute point, and be ready to learn some spells.

  Dexterity it is for now.

  “Oh, wonderful! Oh, thank you!” Bernadette appears in the doorway clapping gleefully. “You’re just so magnificent! My hero! This is exactly what I need. Thank you so much!”

  “Of course. No problem, ma’am.” I feel like she’s overreacting but who am I to turn down gratitude?

  “As a thank you for ridding my barn of these pests, as a small token of my gratitude … of course I can never hope to fully repay you, but perhaps this minuscule gesture will at last remind you. Every time you see it you will think of the great service you rendered my family and feel proud that we now sleep in peace and safety.”

  I wait for her to get to the point. She has lost her train of thought.

  “Um … the token?”

  “Oh, yes!” Bernadette produces a leather vest, in exactly my size and presents it to me. There’s a blank spot in the middle of the chest where a coat of arms or sigil might go, but at the moment it is unmarked. “My gift to you is the Rugged Leather Vest. May it keep you as safe as you have kept me.”

  Reward: Rugged Leather Vest

  Level: 16

  Description: +8 Armor, +3 Strength; -2 Dexterity

  I equip it immediately. I could have used this an hour ago. It is a little heavy for me, and I should really add more attribute points to Dexterity if I’m going to wear it, but it’ll do.

  “It’s perfect. Thank you.”

  But the end of my sentence is lost under the sound of movement in the hayloft above us.

  Chapter 27

  “Oh no!” Bernadette gasps. “Are there more bats? Please, SirAsh3r. I have need of your aid once more.”

  Quest Offered: Investigate the Noise

  Description: Something else lurks in the dark depths of Bernadette’s barn. Find the source of the noise.

  Reward: +50 XP

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Her melodrama is going to get old real quick.

  I pick up the lantern and make my way to the ladder leading up to the hayloft. Whatever is up here must have heard me coming and be smart enough to stay hidden, because the movement stops as I step up. I stop at the top of the ladder to listen. I have an idea of where the sound is coming from, but I don’t want to walk into anything unknown. Being surprised by an enemy is never fun.

  The next sound I hear shocks me in a way that I do not expect. It’s a sniffle. Someone trying to quietly keep their nose from running. It’s as human a sound as you can imagine. What is it doing coming from the hayloft?

  I lift the lantern and see a glimpse of dark in between piles of hay. The sniffle again sounds from that corner of the loft and the dark spot moves, revealing it to be a corner of navy blue fabric.

  Someone has stowed away up here. Someone has been living or at least staying in this dark, dirty barn with a whole host of Swift Bats.

  “I can see you.” I keep my scythe equipped, just in case. “Come out from under all that hay.”

  There is a long moment where I wonder if the person heard me, or if they are planning to an attack. But then, before I have to decide, small pale hands inch up out of the loose straw and start brushing it away. The top of a head of dark wavy hair is revealed. The small, narrow face of a boy is next. He blinks at the light and spits out dust and straw as he emerges. After a moment he has uncovered most of himself and stands up.

  Quest Completed: Investigate the Noise

  Description: You have discovered what else was lurking in Bernadette’s barn—a ten-year-old boy.

  Reward: +50 XP

  Quest Discovered: Who is This Guy?

  Description: A strange boy has been discovered hidden in a hayloft in the barn. Interrogate him; learn who he is and what he wants.

  Reward: +60 XP

  “Who are you?” I ask. “What do you want?” No points for creativity.

  “Liam? Liam Daniels? Is that you?”

  The boy starts at the sound of Bernadette using his name. He swallows nervously and remains mute.

  “Get down here,” she calls from below. “Your mother has been worried sick about you.”

  His eyes meet mine briefly before he looks away, passing me to climb down the ladder. I follow behind immediately. Bernadette may know who this boy is but I still need to learn why he was hiding here in order to finish my quest.

  Bernadette is fussing over him when I reach the barn floor, picking straw out of his hair and brushing dust off the back of his shirt.

  “Why were you hiding in here, Liam?” I ask gently, trying to make eye contact. “Was it the bats? Did they scare you?”

  The boy scoffs at me, as though only a baby would be scared of the bats. In the next second I realize he must have heard me scream at the King Swift Bat and I can feel my face flushing. I change the subject.

  “Ok, so not the bats. Were you running away from home? Did something happen there?”

  Bernadette stops her grooming to listen to the boy’s response. He glances at both of us before ducking his head, embarrassed.

  “I just wanted to stay for a while.”

  Quest Completed: Who is This Guy?

  Description: You’ve helped Bernadette learn that Liam Daniels has been hiding in her barn and that he had been staying awhile

  Reward: +60 XP

  Quest Discovered: Find Liam a Home

  Description: He doesn’t have to go home but he can’t stay here. Help Liam find a place to stay that is not
a dusty, vermin-infested hayloft

  Reward: +60 XP

  “Why don’t we find you some place better to stay?” I offer. “I’m going back to Whispering Fox Inn. You can come with me if you’d like.”

  “Liam, your mother has been tearing her hair out about you being missing.”

  “Or I can take you home.”

  “Or you stay here with me,” Bernadette says. “It will be tight but what is one more mouth to feed. You come with us, Liam, and explain yourself.”

  She places her hands on his shoulders and leads him out of the barn. I leave the scythe behind with her other weapons and follow Bernadette through the yard, back to the house. Full dark has fallen. Slightly anxious, I check the game clock. There’s time. There’s still some time. I can take care of Liam quickly, hopefully, and make it back to the inn before midnight.

  The small boy settles in at the table with a slice of bread and glass of milk, Bernadette fusses over him, scolding her own children to make room. I stay standing, but keep an eye on Liam, waiting for him to take a breath between bites. I wonder how long he has been away from home, and how long it has been since he has eaten.

  “Well, now, Liam Daniels. Now that you have food in your belly, it’s time to talk,” Bernadette says gently. For her.

  “Why did you leave home?” I ask.

  “’Cause I didn’t want my mom to get in trouble.”

  “In trouble with who?”

  “Him.”

  There can only be one ‘Him’ in this town.

  “Why would your mother be in trouble with Lord Crimson?” I ask.

  “I dunno.” Liam shakes his head. “But he came to talk to my mother a bunch of times and kept trying to make her get something for him.”

  “How do you know it was him?”

  “’Cause I know. He’d come at night after I was supposed to be asleep, but I heard him. I seen him.”

  “You’re sure?” I ask. “You actually saw him?”

  “Maybe you just thought you saw him, dear. A lot of people wear red in this town.”