by Tamryn Tamer
“Renna said it was okay,” Frost said while gesturing at the giggling elf. “Wait, was it not okay?”
“Of course, it’s okay,” Renna laughed. “I don’t mind having your baby.”
“Shalia’s cunt!” Lysandra practically jumped over Frost to get at Renna. “Get over here I’m going to suck it out.”
“No!” Renna clenched her legs shut. “He asked me if he could and I said okay!”
“I thought you were using the Infertility spell!” Frost said equally panicked. “That’s why I asked if it was okay! You said it was!”
“It is okay,” Renna said while moving away from both of them. “I want to have a baby!”
“Frost!” Lysandra pointed at Renna. “I don’t even know what to say about this!”
“What’s going on?” Ena and Fayeth came rushing into the room. “Why are you yelling?”
“Lysandra’s jealous that Frost gave me his seed,” Renna said smugly.
“He what?” Ena snapped. “She’s only twenty-six years old!”
“I thought she was using the infertility spell!” Frost held up his hands helplessly.
“Okay, let me think,” Ena said pensively. “Okay, I’ll go talk to Hestia. I’m sure she knows how to make one of those potions to handle this.”
“I’m not taking it!” Renna said angrily.
“The hell you aren’t!” Ena yelled.
“Are you all serious? You’re all panicking for nothing,” Fayeth said irritably while turning to leave the room. “Did you really forget what month it is? Now keep it down. Some of us are trying to sleep.”
The other three women all paused and while Ena and Lysandra both sighed in relief, Renna started kicking the bed like a child throwing a tantrum.
“Huh?” Frost looked at the women. “What’s she talking about?”
“None of your business,” Ena said before turning to leave the room. “And if you’re going to sleep with the entire village learn the Infertility spell!”
“Frost,” Renna grabbed his arm pleadingly. “We’ll do this again after this life cycle ends and the new one begins, right?”
“Life cycle,” Frost said as the dots all connected. He suddenly remembered he was in a village full of women and the entire village was likely on the same cycle. “Question. Does the life cycle for elf women impact them similarly to human woman?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lysandra asked defensively. “It sounds like you’re accusing us of something.”
“Are you going to leave us during the purge week?” Renna grabbed his arm.
“Purge week?” Frost was extremely uncomfortable with that name. There was no possible way women named that their purge week. That meant that male elves at some point in their history decided that purge week was the best description and nobody argued. “Is that what you call it?”
“Frost,” Lysandra said irritably. “You should be thankful. If not for the purge week you’d likely be having a child.”
“Praise the purge,” Frost said jokingly. “But, just for my own benefit, when exactly is it going to start?”
“You are going to leave!” Renna said accusingly.
“In the next couple of weeks,” Lysandra answered.
“Okay,” Frost nodded. “And how many days between purges?”
“It happens every year,” Renna grumbled. “It’s awful.”
“Good to know,” Frost said as he laid back down while trying to think of a plan to escape the village for that week. Once a year, there was no way it wasn’t going to be terrible.
“Lysandra?” Renna whispered as the three of them settled back in.
“What?” Lysandra asked irritably.
“Do you still want to suck it out?” Renna giggled.
“I suppose I’m awake anyway,” Lysandra sighed as Frost’s cock immediately became hard again.
CHAPTER 9
First thing in the morning Frost had Lysandra teach him the infertility spell. At its base level it was only eighty percent successful but with three levels it reached a hundred percent. After that, it simply lasted longer. It started with a one-day duration and each subsequent level added one until the tenth which added two.
Apparently, most of the elves in the village didn’t have any points in it because there weren’t any men around. Lysandra and a few of the older elves had three levels in the spell but it was universally agreed to be a waste of points as long as you cast it every day.
Frost went ahead and maxed it for the full ten-day duration. He could also recast it anytime and it’d restart the duration so as long as he remembered at some point, he’d never have to worry about it. As for casting itself, it was astoundingly easy once he understood the core premise.
He needed to memorize the runes necessary to cast, the flow of the spell which was a visual representation, understand the core concept of the spell, and say a trigger word while concentrating on his desired outcome. It wasn’t that different from applying ability points except for the memorization aspects which, thanks to his level ten memorization abilities, was a non-issue.
“I can’t help but feel a little offended,” Renna grumbled. “Is the thought of having a child with me so disgusting?”
“Disgusting?” Frost glanced at the pouting elf. “No. Just give me a few years to think about it, okay?”
“Fine,” Renna said while walking off in a huff. He was a little dejected that she didn’t want to stick around and try out the spell but he understood.
The rest of the day was spent with Fayeth. Lysandra assigned the young elf to teach him whatever combat abilities he asked for and while she started off being able to teach him quite a bit about acquiring skills, she quickly found herself falling behind as Frost’s knowledge of games kicked in.
“Wait,” Frost said while holding two different types of daggers. “These daggers feel different. Can you learn different abilities with different types of the same weapons?”
“I don’t know,” Fayeth said in a tone that sounded more like a question than an answer. “Do you think we should ask somebody?”
“Who would we ask?” Frost looked around at the young elves watching. They were practicing in a large field right outside of the city wall and while they stayed in their section, a bunch of elf children were being trained in another area. “Lysandra?”
“She can’t be bothered,” Fayeth said. “She’s behind on her counseling sessions.”
“Counseling,” Frost paused. “Like therapy?”
“I don’t know about that,” Fayeth said as her face turned pink. “She’s the high priestess so we just talk about how we’re feeling and how to handle those feelings. Sometimes we talk about what we want to do or what we’re struggling with and sometimes we just laugh about things.”
“Frost!” Emmy interrupted as she ran up to him with a bunch of elf children in tow. “Shael says that I’m not allowed to use a cudgel but she’s letting Vasati use one! Tell her it’s unfair!”
“Herald Frost,” a tan fit redhead before bowed politely. He’d noticed her on the first day and actually chatted with the impressive woman while doing his rounds. Frost found out that she was officially in charge of teaching all the children basic combat skills and the children liked her so much that she was also used as the village babysitter. “I apologize for the interruption. Everybody, come back to our side of the field. We can’t interrupt the herald’s training.”
“Oh,” Frost held up the two daggers. “Shael, you’re really knowledgeable about weapons and combat, right?”
“Yes,” Shael’s eyes lit up. “Is there something you want to know?”
“Well,” Frost held up the two daggers. The two blades were not only different lengths but one of them had a single edged while the other was double. “Will I be able to learn different abilities depending on the dagger I use?”
“What possessed you to ask that?” Shael panted as if he’d touched her inappropriately. “Nobody in the village asks questions like that.
Do you really want to know or are you just making conversation?”
“I want to know,” Frost chuckled as the children looked on eagerly waiting to find out as well. Shael stared at him while nodding excitedly. “So?”
“Yes,” Shael said enthusiastically. “The longer double-edged dagger is from the stiletto family and by using it you’ll learn abilities associated with that family. The other is considered a combat knife and the knife fighting style is completely different.”
“Really?” Frost stared at the two and it made sense. “Will the fighting styles carry over between them?”
“That’s a good question,” Shael clasped her hands together like he’d just answered her prayers. She glanced judgmentally at Fayeth. “Why didn’t you ask these types of questions during your training? If you’re really going to learn to be a combat instructor you need to be asking questions like this!”
“Does it matter?” Fayeth asked. “Besides, I’m an archer.”
“I imagine it applies to bows as well,” Frost said. “There are short bows, long bows, crossbows, not to mention arrow variety which likely…”
“Frost!” Shael practically tackled him as she wrapped her arms around him. The brawny redhead mercilessly squeezed him while pecking his cheeks. “Finally! Somebody I can really talk to about weapons and combat!”
“Shael,” Frost laughed nervously as he stared at her large tan breasts pressed against him. He glanced at the children covering their eyes. “The children.”
“Oh,” Shael released him and smiled nervously at the children. “Alright children. I’m going to discuss combat with the herald for a little while. In the meantime, everybody under ten practice blocking and dodging. Everybody over ten should take turns striking the dummy, understood?”
“Yes ma’am,” the group ran off to their respective side of the field. The older kids lined up with wooden weapons in front of a dummy while the younger ones appeared to be playing dodgeball with beanbags and shields.
“So,” Shael turned back to Frost. “You asked about whether the fighting styles carried over. The answer to that question is part of combat theory. In theory, any weapon ability can potentially be used with a similar weapon and sometimes a different one. For example, is the cleave ability different while using a two-handed axe versus a two-handed sword? The answer is no! They’re the same! Even if it’s a horizontal cleave or vertical cleave! But there is one important difference!”
“The blade and grip,” Frost nodded. “The axe will strike with more force but it’s harder to land the attack. And what if you use the ability with a two-handed mace?”
“Frost,” Shael stepped toward him but held herself back. She smiled while tugging down her loosely fitted top to showcase her breasts more better and began gently twisted as if trying to entice him. “I would make very strong babies, don’t you think?”
“Shael,” Fayeth chided. “We are here to learn about weapons!”
“I know,” Shael blushed. “Maybe after training you could visit my home for private lessons? I’ll send Phyrra away and we can really delve deep into the subject. Very deep.”
“Shael!” Fayeth stomped her foot authoritatively. “The herald doesn’t have time for nonsense!”
“But he hasn’t said no,” Shael insisted. “And…”
“Another time,” Frost smiled at the tan woman although he definitely wanted to take her up on it. He didn’t know if it was pheromones in her sweat or what, but he found Shael’s tan and fit form absolutely captivating. “Definitely another time.”
“Definitely?” Shael blushed. “When do you…”
“Shael!” Fayeth snapped.
“Right!” Shael said snapping back to the present. “I’m sorry. It’s just, having somebody who shares my interests…”
“Shael,” Frost chuckled. “We’ll have plenty of time to talk about combat and weapons in the future. I know how you feel and will make sure to set aside some time to talk to you about these things. But as Fayeth says, let’s focus.”
“I hope soon,” Shael beamed. “Anyway! You asked the mace question! Yes! cleave works with hammers but the ability becomes smash! The really interesting part is…”
“The points carry over,” Frost nodded as he put two and two together. In most games they’d be considered two different abilities but he could feel it while holding the knives. He just knew that a lunge attack would be the same for either weapon.
“Yes!” Shael jumped up and down. “In combat theory we call that the invisible hierarchy! Two-handed weapons share certain abilities so mastering those abilities gives greater versatility than others. The same goes for one-handed weapons, ranged weapons, but these schools even go deeper!”
“Right,” Frost nodded. “Overlaps. A two-handed sword is both a sword and a two-handed weapon. So, if you use one-handed swordsmanship certain abilities would carry over to the two-handed sword but others wouldn’t and vice-versa. Are there enchanted weapons?”
“I’m afraid you’re about to start asking questions I’m unable to answer,” Shael said apologetically while swaying her hips as if still trying to entice him. “I never got that far in my studies. My training was at an elf academy and we couldn’t afford enchanted weapons. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” Frost placed his hand on her bare shoulder and the elf’s face lit up. “You’ve been a huge help. But, do you know if there are weapons enchanted with fire in this world? Something like that?”
“Yes,” Shael nodded. “There are knights who use flaming swords, axes, and spears. How did you know that?”
“Fire is terrifying,” Frost said while thinking about flaming arrows landing on wooden houses. “It causes panic and chaos. At night especially. People won’t think, they’ll run. They’ll be forced to choose between putting out the fires or fighting. It’ll prevent them from organizing. Because of that, if you could enchant weapons with anything, you’d enchant them with fire.”
“Did you really think about that just now?” Fayeth said while staring at her bow. “I’d never even considered something like that. A bow in itself is scary enough, isn’t it?”
“No,” Frost chuckled while thinking of guns, cannons, and bombs. “A bow isn’t scary in the slightest. Does this world have guns?” The two women looked at each other confused. “A small metal handheld weapon that shoots metal at high speed?”
“I’ve never heard of anything like that,” Shael said. “But there are magic users that are able to fire metal at high speed.”
“Got it,” Frost was relieved. He was fairly certain a maximum level dodge would matter against a rifle. “Okay. Thank you Shael. I think the kids probably need your attention. I might come talk to you again if that’s alright.”
“Absolutely,” Shael said happily. “If you wish to talk about weapons, combat, or anything my bedroom is always available! Home! My home is always available!”
“Either works,” Frost said flirtatiously causing Shael’s tan face to turn as red as her hair. Fayeth glared at him judgmentally as Shael skipped back to her students. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I’m finding you difficult to understand,” Fayeth rubbed her head. “Why do you say things like that?”
“I like her,” Frost smiled. “Is it really that strange?”
“No,” Fayeth sighed. “Shael is very beautiful and fun to be with. It’s just strange that you feel that way. And you’re so, well, playful about it. Anyway, we should return to our studies. What weapon would you like to master?”
“Swords,” Frost answered. “I’ve mastered anatomy, dodge, block, counter, and unarmed. I also have a point in disarm. I think for the soldier job I needed to level a weapon and armor to unlock it.”
“Parry as well,” Fayeth said. “Are you sure you wish to become a soldier?”
“I can always change later,” Frost answered. “Let’s do this.”
Fayeth handed Frost a sword and as he swung it the Swordsmanship ability unlocked
. He leveled it once along with parry. He needed to be cautious with his points since he’d already overspent. Frost just needed to learn how to wear a specific armor type. He’d unlocked cloth already with his pants and was a bit curious as to how putting points in armor would impact him.
“Here,” Fayeth presented him with four varieties of glove. The first was leather, then chain, then scale, and finally plate. He’d already unlocked cloth from the pants he’d worn. “Try them all on and make a fist.”
“Thanks,” Frost said as he unlocked leather, chain, scale, and plate. He wondered if there were other types of armor as well. Some games had bone armor and it was possible that various enchanted armors existed. “Give me a minute to look through these.”
He examined the various armor abilities he’d unlocked to gain a better understanding but was finding their descriptions lackluster. From what he was gathering, leveling different types of armor increased his ability to transfer magic and strength to them. But different armor types also had different proficiencies.
“Tell me if I’m understanding this right,” Frost looked at Fayeth. “Cloth armor has a higher tolerance to accept mental energy which will increase magic resistance. Plate armor has a lower tolerance to accept mental energy but a high tolerance for physical energy increasing physical resistance.”
“That’s correct,” Fayeth said. “Other abilities will also become available depending on the armor class you choose to master. Although the abilities aren’t really useful to all classes.”
“What do you mean?” Frost asked while trying to decide what he should do.
“Renna and Ena both wear cloth armor but they have completely different abilities,” Fayeth answered. “Ena is leveling magic enhancement abilities while Renna is leveling stealth and speed enhancement abilities.”
“Ah!” Frost said excitedly. “Because cloth is used by mages and assassins! Alright, this is all coming together. So, in reality plate is probably used equally by knights and paladins but they level different abilities!”