Inside the tent, there was a giant wooden throne placed behind a matching desk that took up half of the space.
And a giant man sitting on the throne with his legs crossed and arm propped up arrogantly. His previously closed eyes snapped open when I walked in and he glared at me with annoyance.
"How dare a woman walk into my tent while I'm resting? To think that the guards actually allowed such a thing, I'll have to replace them later." He scowled.
[Level 66 - Barbarian Chief Than]
I regret accepting this quest. The system also needs to get a better sense of humor.
At my current level, this quest boss could probably squish me like a cockroach. I don't like cockroaches.
Gotta play this smart. I really don't like the feeling of dying either. It's very unpleasant.
And painful.
And traumatizing.
"Hahaha don't blame the guards I was the one who asked to personally bring in your food," I said will a light tone.
He looked at me with curiosity.
"A little girl like you willingly walked into the tent of the man who's been terrorizing your village? You're gonna make me believe that?"
"Believe it or not, the evidence is right in front of you." I shrugged.
"Heh....looks like that old man finally did something right for once sending you over. He sure knows my preferences well. I'll deal with you later. Get out first, you are disturbing my rest."
...uh. Time to just...leave.
"Of course. Apologies for doing so."
I placed the mountain of food down and bowed politely before slowly backing out of the tent.
I guess I was just chased out. I don't even know why but that hurt my pride a bit.
Hopefully, he actually eats that stuff or else I'm probably gonna have to kill myself trying just to get out of here.
Smiling at one of the guards to show my 'harmlessness', I sat down next to the entrance and waited like the good hostage I was.
I waited for a few minutes.
And a few more.
I was actually getting excited that maybe the poison really worked when I heard his voice called me in.
Then I broke out in cold sweat.
He's still alive?
I steadied my breathing even though my plan went off track. It was unexpected that he didn't eat the food I had given him but that's fine. Since I'm always careful I made a Plan B!
If anything goes wrong then just stab him hard and run. Flawless.
Taking a deep breath, I walked into the tent and greeted the chief.
"I apologize for disturbing you earlier."
I quickly scanned the tent for the food but couldn't find the tray anywhere.
What the heck?
"What's your name? The old man sent you over right?" The perfectly healthy-looking Than asked while beckoning me closer.
"My name is Lynx. Village Chief Whit indeed was the one who had sent me over as a representative of the village to negotiate terms."
Than sneered at what I said.
"Negotiation? Hah! Only those with equal power have the rights to negotiate, a small village like yours can only submit to my wishes!"
I gotta admit, what he said makes a lot of sense. Survival of the fittest and that crap.
"A girl like you is quite pretty and die would be a waste. Come a bit closer." He ordered.
I kept my arms behind my cloak and went close enough to touch him.
Well, since Plan A didn't work I guess I have to go with Plan B. Stab and run!
With a quick flick of my wrist, I took my knife and thrust it towards the chief with a quick practiced movement.
He smiled and reacted professionally. In just a few moves he had me locked down.
"Hah! You would actually use martial arts against me. I used to be a general of the kingdom, this is nothing! I had a feeling that you were sent to assassinate me. You don't have the air of a normal girl." He spat out.
He held me up by my right wrist and looked me up and down.
"Hmm....well I guess I should teach you a less-"
The cloak covered my entire body so he couldn't see my left arm behind my back holding another knife with my Dual Wield skill. Before he could finish talking I used Vital Stab and aimed the knife at his neck.
He frowned and dodged. I only managed to barely cut his skin. With one move he stole my knife and held it in his hand.
Level gaps are way too overpowered. Dad, you should seriously nerf this.....
Although it's pretty suicidal for a level 7 to go against a level 66.
"I was actually going to let you live...but you're too dangerous. I'll just kill you and send your dead body back to the old bastard."
He brought my knife to my neck and prepared to strike.
Right as I was readying myself for death, the barbarian chief suddenly paled and flopped over like a puppet with its strings cut. While I was still shocked, I got many level-up notifications that confirmed the chief's death.
. . .
Uh. This is a bit unexpected. My heart almost leaped out from my chest.
I froze and listened for movement from outside. No signs of panic or sound.
Did the poison actually work.....? If it did....didn't the description say that it was instant?
A lightbulb light up in my brain.
The dosage was probably too little to make him die instantly! I never expected him to actually be level 66 when his soldiers are only around level 50. That honestly worked in my favor this time. It gave me an excuse to enter the tent.
This guy was a nice test for the poison.
I retrieved my other knife from his hand and looked around the tent for anything valuable before leaving. I have to enjoy my spoils after all!
Going around the tent I found a giant chest of gold coins which also had a level 60 special greatsword and a level 65 unique barbarian helmet.
It's such a shame that I can't equip any of these. My level and my class don't match the description.
But anybody can use the money!
I gathered up all the gold and threw it in my inventory. 247 gold coins! I'm probably richer than three Eugenes! That makes me pretty satisfied.
Before walking out, I poured the rest of the poison onto my dagger and hid it within my cloak.
I walked out of the tent and strode to the guard on my right. The nicer guard.
The distance between the two guards is far enough due to the large size of the tent that the other one wouldn't notice if I did anything minor.
"The Boss is busy.....can I talk to you instead? I'm really bored since I'm not allowed to do anything." I sweetly asked with a bright smile on my face.
The barbarian's guard dropped as he stared at me with a confused expression.
Probably thinking whether or not he was allowed to interact with me.
It took him a few more seconds before he finally snapped out of his daze. He sneakily glanced towards the tent before making a decision.
"Boss is busy? I can accompany you until he's free..." He said with a glint in his eyes.
The corner of my mouth twitched as I walked closer to him.
Yeah, I don't think I like this strategy after all. I would rather just take them all on at once instead of being subject to these looks...
But since I've already started, I might as well continue. I doubt I can defeat this barbarian camp at my current level.
As I drew closer I leaned slightly towards his ear. His eyes brightened after seeing that I wasn't resisting and he completely lowered his defenses against me.
"You know..." I softly whispered. "You're pretty dumb, just like you're Boss. And your Boss is dead."
He stiffened but before he could move I knocked him unconscious with a small stab of the poisoned knife to the chest.
I'm incredibly relieved that it was 'inserted into a blood vein'. This poison is seriously too scary. It knocked a level 40 out instantly!
The thud from the sound of his comrade's body falling attracted the attention of the other guard. His face darkened before he cautiously walked towards me with his sword out.
"What did you do to him?" He suspiciously asked.
I changed my face into one of utter confusion and innocence.
"I have no idea! I was simply talking with him to kill time since I'm not allowed out of sight, but then he suddenly collapsed." I explained.
The other guard didn't seem to completely buy my story. I wouldn't either, who the heck just randomly falls over?
"I seriously didn't do anything. Do you think that I would be able to harm him? I'm simply a village girl! If I could do something I would have escaped a long time ago. I have no idea why he fell over." I shrugged.
The guard wavered. "What you say does sound reasonable...."
He lowered his sword and bent over to check the pulse of his friend. Right as he lowered his guard, I whipped out the dagger that I had hidden and stabbed it hard at the back of his neck. There was still residue poison on the blade.
The first stab didn't manage to kill him off but did cause him to be stunned. I quickly stabbed down harder with all my strength a second time while also using Vital stab.
Even a level 50 mob would die if his vital point was attacked (twice) with a poisoned dagger at such close range with a special skill.
I stabbed him a couple more times to just confirm his death.
What? No, I wasn't getting revenge because of what he said to me at all! I'm not that petty. Nope.
After making sure he was dead, I did the same thing to the other still unconscious guard. Because of killing them, my level went up twice.
This is the best grinding strategy ever. I'm already at level 12 after killing the chief and just two of his soldiers! I quickly put my 25 stat points all into agility except for 5 on strength.
I don't really care how strong I am.....as long as I can go around in peace.
Before any other barbarian noticed, I dragged both of them into the tent as fast as I could and used my Shadow Walker skill before running for my life out of the camp.
Also, this poison sure is potent. I should ask the village chief for another one when I get back.