Meanwhile, all the hobs had reached and engaged their targets. The remaining travelers overcame the shock of the ambush, drew their weapons, and readied themselves to meet their attackers.
That was a mistake. By reacting to my tactics and only focusing on the enemies targeting them, the travelers allowed me to dictate the course of battle.
I grimaced as the two forces clashed together.
They had a reason not to be worried. Despite the travelers losing one of their members early on, my little army was at a severe disadvantage with the enemy levels at least three times their own.
My strategy optimized our chances. But optimizing an attack against a massively overwhelming force just made an utterly shitty situation slightly less shitty; the smelly stuff didn’t stink any less.
The already alert, green-clad scout was the first to react. As Vrick and Bob charged him, he had time for a carefully aimed shot that struck Vrick in the forehead, penetrating his skull and killing the poor goblin lieutenant instantly. Still, that shot bought Bob the time to close in and engage him in melee.
The scout was 14 levels higher than the level 7 hobgoblin lieutenant, but he was a ranged fighter and was limited in his ability to engage in a face-to-face confrontation.
Bob led in with a sword thrust, slashing the scout for 18 damage. Before the scout could recover, Bob pointed his other hand. Vines uncoiled from his forearm and wrapped around the archer’s legs, restricting his movement and preventing escape.
Zia and Kilpi, my two shield bearers, were jockeying for positions against the two swordsmen, their guard high as they kept the fighters’ attention. I hoped that at least Kilpi Shīrudo, the stronger of the two, would live up to the name I’d assigned him, which meant ‘shield’ in two languages.
The other two hob warriors had rushed the healer with their axes held high. But the healer calmly raised his staff and, with a single word, was enveloped in a white sheen of magical force.
I cursed. That was a Holy Shield. It was similar to my Mana Shield spell, except it only defended against evil monsters and didn’t consume the caster’s mana.
Kroakar and Ryker struck the Holy Shield with powerful swings, but their axes had no effect against the magic barrier.
One of the melee fighters, Nesteph, kicked Zia’s shield, sending it wide open, then lunged forward with both his short swords, eviscerating her and taking off 80 percent of her health.
The two-handed swordsman lunged at Kilpi and swung, putting his whole body into the strike. The powerful attack hit the shield, shattered it, and hurled Kilpi away in a cloud of splinters, leaving him less than half his health.
I glanced at the foblins attacking Ragnar, the dwarven tank. What I saw was a bloody massacre.
Using the momentary surprise, the foblins had charged the dwarf, but they’d triggered some sort of ability as soon as they got near, allowing him to attack preemptively.
Swinging his axe with an almost bored expression, Ragnar dispatched four foblins while easily fending off the other six with his shield.
I winced. Well, at least they managed to keep him occupied for a bit.
Given that it was a successful ambush, our initial attack seemed underwhelming. But considering the level gap, the fact that we’d managed to kill even one traveler – and a wizard at that – was impressive.
The sword-wielding travelers were preparing their next attack while their healer started a chant.
I completed my spell first and three Shadow-Touched mastiffs leapt out of the shadows. Two attacked the swordsmen, while the third went for the healer.
Taken aback by the sudden appearance of the charging dark beasts, the swordsmen forwent finishing off the downed hobs and turned to face the attacking mastiffs. Their defensive attacks were perfectly timed but their blades passed harmlessly through the shadowed bodies. The third mastiff wasn’t as lucky. It leapt at the healer, but the traveler shot off a Holy Bolt at it. The white bolt hit the mastiff in mid-leap, exploding the beast’s dark-wrought body into trails of smoky shadow that faded into nothingness.
Meanwhile, Bob was doing well keeping the scout engaged. The hob lieutenant repeatedly slashed with his sword, forcing his opponent to deflect with the bowstave, preventing him from going on the offensive. Bob’s vines slithered and constricted around the scout’s body, further hampering his movements.
The flow of combat was going pretty well, but just when I thought we were gaining the upper hand, the dwarf tank intervened. Bellowing a deafening challenge, he banged on his shield.
An area taunt, I realized. Shit!
Except for Bob, all of my forces, including the mastiffs, disengaged their targets and charged at the tank.
A ‘Taunt’ debuff symbol appeared next to the icon of each party member on my display. Things were about to turn real bad, real quick. It was time to bring in the heavy guns.
Rhynorn, engage! Take down the healer!
Branches exploded into the clearing, showering the combatants with splinters as Rhynorn Bloodore burst from hiding and charged at the healer.
One of the travelers yelped in fright. “Crap, it’s a boss!”
Rhynorn ran at the healer, holding his weapon low like a golf club and used his momentum to swing it upward.
The club hit the healer’s white bubble, launching it into the air. I could sense the Ogre expending his mana to enhance the attack using his Dirty Trick skill. The healer and his bubble soared high into the air, then crashed into the ground, right in front of the Ogre. The bubble winked away from the impact just as Rhynorn started his follow-up attack. The giant club descended, pounding onto the head of the confounded healer, planting him into the ground figuratively and literally. A critical hit!
Battle information flowed all around me; I only needed to open my senses to grasp it. I knew the healer was nearly finished.
I’d intended at first to keep my more dramatic abilities a secret. But the first bout of combat, brief as it was, made me realize I would have to go all in if I wanted a chance of winning this one.
Flexing my will, my dagger shot forward and sank deep into the traveler’s chest.
Dagger hit Jeknett for 32 damage [+6 physical, +26 dark]
Immortal Killed!
Boss Tier 3 Progression: 1/50
That was interesting. Apparently, I’d just discovered another way to increase my boss tier; one that didn’t require me to spend huge amounts of energy.
The other travelers turned to stare at their fallen comrade. Their eyes widened as darkness oozed out of the dagger, consuming the body and leaving behind a good-sized void crystal.
“What the hell was that?” shouted the scout, still trying to fend off Bob’s attacks with his bow.
“Over there.” The dwarf tank pointed at me with his shield while easily repelling the attacks from the horde around him. “There’s a caster behind that tree.”
The two melee travelers engaged Rhynorn, their swords biting into his thick skin, drawing blood and taking 30 percent off his health bar.
“Holy crap! It’s another boss!” Nesteph squealed once he noticed me. He sounded like a teenager. “Where the hell did Vatras send us?”
I froze at hearing that accursed name. Vatras. Hate filled me, and my thoughts raced. Vatras! These bastards are his minions.
Unable to control myself, I stepped out from my hiding place.
“You are all dead,” I said with barely contained rage.
Concentrating on the dual-wielding traveler, I reached with my mind, found his mana pool, and commanded it to stop flowing. Nesteph froze mid-swing. I directed my dagger at him, and as with the healer, the dagger hit the traveler full in the chest.
Nesteph, Level 20, Sacrificed
+80 Faith Points
Immortal Killed!
Boss Tier 3 Progression: 2/50
It looked like sacrificing travelers was way more rewarding than sacrificing fellow monsters. Not o
nly did it enable me to move up in my boss tier, but I’d also received four times the normal amount of Faith Points. It was enough to unlock the next Faith rank.
Nesteph was quickly consumed by darkness. Only the scout, the two-handler sword guy, and the tank remained.
“Crap!” yelled the scout. “Ragnar, do something!”
“Don’t get’chya panties wet boy,” said Ragnar. He looked directly at Bob and used Taunt again. This time, unable to resist, Bob disengaged from the scout to charge at the tank.
Now that he was not being pressed, the scout put his long bow to deadly effect. Utilizing some sort of Area-of-Effect skill, dozens of brightly glowing arrows filled the air. The arrows rained down, dropping the foblins, the mastiffs, and all the hobgoblin warriors around the dwarf. A couple of arrows even hit the overpowered tank, but those simply shattered harmlessly against his armor.
Only Rhynorn, Bob, and I remained – two bosses and a lieutenant against three high-powered travelers.
Suddenly, a green-golden light surrounded the Ogre and his health jumped up by ten percent.
And Bek, I corrected myself.
Four against three. I can work with those odds.
Meanwhile, the sword wielder danced around Rhynorn, slicing at him in measured, precise strikes, bringing his health down to 50 percent.
Enraged, the Ogre bellowed, activating his Terrible Roar skill. A Shaken debuff icon appeared over the scout and swordsman’s heads but failed to affect the tank. At the same time, I felt invigorated and let loose another volley of drilling arrows while a still-taunted Bob charged at the tank with enhanced speed.
Another golden-green light appeared around Rhynorn and his health shot up again by ten percent.
“They got a healer!” the scout yelled.
In response, I used Freeze on him. Or at least I tried. The scout stopped moving for a fraction of a second, then he was free again.
Damn, he must have some sort of skill that resisted my power. I changed targets and concentrated my firepower on the swordsman. I summoned and fired drilling arrows at him just as the Ogre gladiator retaliated.
Using his Dirty Tricks again, Rhynorn’s club struck the player’s sword, deflecting it to the side, then followed through with a devastating hit to the center of his torso. The still-shaken traveler failed to dodge the massive attack and the impact took over a hundred of his hit points, then my drilling arrows slammed into him in rapid succession.
Drilling Arrows hit Zellion for 64 damage, [(15+17)X2]
We’d beaten and stabbed him continuously, bleeding his health down to ten percent, but the tough bastard kept fighting.
“Goddammit!” he yelled. “Heal! I need a heal!”
No one gave him any heed or heals.
Bob swung at the tank, but the dwarf easily intercepted the blow on his shield, absorbing the hit, then slashed at the vines Bob launched at him, tearing them apart.
Raising his longbow, the scout drew back, targeting me. The arrow at his string started glowing red, but he was too slow. With a thought, I raised my Mana Shield just as the arrow was released. The arrow banged against the magical barrier and exploded with a thunderous THUMP. It drained a good chunk of my mana bar, but no damage got through.
Even with that hit to my mana pool, I had over 400 points left. That was more than enough to last me through this fight.
Time to end this. I launched the dagger at the injured swordsman, timing a Freeze to take hold of him just before impact.
Dark Mana skill level increased to 27.
Zellion, Level 18, Sacrificed.
+72 Faith Points
Immortal Killed!
Boss Tier 3 Progression: 3/50
Finding himself suddenly without opponents to fight, Rhynorn Gleefully charged at the bow-wielding scout and swung his massive club. The heavy weapon connected fully and the hapless traveler’s body was flung through the air, crashing into a tree trunk five meters away. It was nice to have the heavy-hitting Ogres on my side for a change. The scout slid to the ground, stunned. Surprisingly, he still had half his health bar remaining.
Bob did his best to keep the tank traveler engaged, but he was ridiculously overmatched. Bashing away with his shield, the traveler dropped Bob to the ground, then delivered a fatal blow with his axe, splitting my lieutenant’s skull, ending him and his 75 HP with a single strike.
Another green-golden light surrounded the Ogre, healing him to 80 percent of his health.
The tank stared at me calmly.
Behind me, I could hear Rhynorn grunting with pleasure as his club made squishing sounds while he beat the traveler into a pulp.
“Hey there, fugly, I guess yor tha goblin we was sent after.” Ragnar had a thick southern accent.
I bared my teeth and snarled at him, feeling the unexplained surge of hate welling up again. “Dwarven mongrel! I’ll kill you and gnaw on your bones!”
The dwarf smiled. “I din’t evan believe it when Vatras said you was a playah. But I been wrong before. Y’gone all feral boy.”
I reined in my anger. “I’ll deal with that bastard soon enough. After I kill you!”
He chuckled. “You’ an what army, boy? That low-level beastie o’ yours won’t put a dent on me.”
He was right. Damn it!
“But I tell y’what, boy,” he continued, “I’ve had it up to here with this low-ass-level forest. Could’a earned myself some sweet levels with all tha time spent ‘round here parts. I reckon I done my job, found you good, boy. You ain’t worth the effort o’ putting down. You’re Vatras’s prob now. Enjoy your miserable existence for a little longer, before he comes for ya.”
With a roar of anger, I opened my inventory and retrieved the Fire Rod I’d crafted, just as the dwarf took a scroll from his inventory. We both activated our items at the same time. A jet of flame shot from the Fire Rod and engulfed the dwarf, singeing away 30 HP. But his body was already fading, disappearing as the effects of the teleport scroll whisked him away.
Bek came out of hiding. “Is … is it over?” he stuttered timidly.
The Ogre roared triumphantly. “Good fight! Strong enemy! Rhynorn Bloodore is the champion!”
“Yes, Bek, it’s over,” I said tiredly, looking at the corpse-strewn ground around me. Out of a party of 23, only the three of us had survived.
Now that the battle was over, I was being bombarded with messages.
Victory!
Total War Party XP gained: 27,840
Ashlazaria gained 1 level (dead)
Zia gained 1 level (dead)
Borbarabsus gained 2 levels (dead)
Kilpi Shīrudo gained 1 level (dead)
Kroakar gained 1 level (dead)
Ryker gained 1 level (dead)
Vrick gained 1 level (dead)
Rhynorn Bloodore gained 3 levels.
Bek gained 4 levels.
Level up! You have reached Character Level 18. You have 1 ability point to allocate.
Level up! You have reached Character Level 19. You have 2 ability points to allocate.
Level up! You have reached Character Level 20. You have 3 ability points to allocate.
I looked at the information in front of me in awe. The number of Faith Points and XP from defeating travelers was at least four times what I’d get for killing monsters of equal levels. While travelers never got XP from defeating other travelers, it seemed NEO rewarded my kind handsomely for dispatching those otherworldly creatures. Having survived the fight, Bek and Rhynorn received additional XP and leveled up more than the others.
My lips curled in disgust. Maybe I once was, Vic, but NEO doesn’t see me as such now. It is not some ‘game,’ it is a living, breathing entity. Only by accepting that and mastering its rules could I hope to survive.
Despite our victory, I starte
d to feel uneasiness settling at the pit of my stomach. We had been within a hair's breadth of losing. I could sense Vic’s apprehension about my reply. His cloak form dropped from around me and transformed into a purple goblin. He reached out and placed a hand on my shoulder. “You’re not a mindless NPC, Boss. You are unique. Don’t lose yourself in this Dad-awful world. Your people need you.” He hesitated before continuing. “I need you, Oren.”
That was touching. Despite his usual gruff, cynical manner, Vic was concerned about me.
My mood didn’t improve though. “Don't worry, Vic. I know who I am. I know where I came from.”
Vic seemed unconvinced by my response. But he didn’t pick up on my next thoughts. I’d deliberately stemmed the flow that connected us as I added, to myself, And I know where I’m going. Once I’ve built the clan into the strongest monster nation in NEO, I’ll teach these pesky travelers not to mess with us.
Still, looking around at all the dead bodies, I couldn’t help feeling it might be an impossible undertaking.
Bek rummaged through the fallen travelers’ corpses, then piled his findings on the ground. I went and looked them over.
Most of the stuff was random junk that cluttered all players’ inventories, regardless of their level; 15 pieces of single-use whetstone, five units of apple tobacco, and oddly enough, a gargoyle’s skull. Aside from that, the travelers dropped a total of 1,800 gold coins. It was a fortune compared to my character level, and I had absolutely no use for it.
Yeah, death debuff was a bitch. The random items loss was a pain, but I guessed it was better than dropping everything a character had on their person when they died like was common in other FIVR games.
I shook my head. My thoughts were pure nonsense. FIVR. Other worlds. Only one world mattered. My world.
Life Reset: EvP (Environment vs. Player) (New Era Online Book 2) Page 3