Akiol sprinted towards the archer. With his speed boost he was in front of them in less than three seconds.
The archer's eyes widened, they hastily attempted to do something but it was no use. Akiol had already sliced them several times, many of the hits were vital points.
Akiol turned towards the priest again. However the eccentric mercenaries had already regrouped together. The priest ordered, "Charles, George! Team up against him, Nigel stay with me."
Akiol wondered why they referred to each other with their real names. Even though Akiol and the others were referring to each by the names they originally had, it didn't mean it was their current ones.
The two warriors made their way towards Akiol. The defender guarded the priest, and to Akiol's slight surprise, the thief was no where to be found.
Akiol decided to be extra vigilant while fighting the warrior duo. One of them slashed diagonally towards Akiol's face. Akiol sidestepped this and gave a swift kick to their liver. The player bent over in pain, Akiol landed another kick on their face causing them to fall back.
<-20hp>
<-20hp>
The other warrior slightly flinched at this, but proceeded to slash their weapon towards Akiol. Akiol parried and sliced their hand causing them to drop their weapon.
<-45hp>
A pleasant surprise, ever since he obtained the weapon he never had the opportunity to see what the 'paralyzing' effect did. Simply because the chance was too low or he killed them too fast.
The warrior watched their weapon drop to the ground, struggling to move they looked at Akiol with a slightly fearful look. Akiol picked up the sword and compared the stats. The sword was better, but Akiol felt bad taking it.
He put the sword back into the paralyzed warrior's grip, making sure to close the hand forcefully. He then quickly dispatched the warrior.
He took a look at the priest and defender. Just as he was about to approach them he heard scuffling behind him. Akiol quickly spun and kicked towards the direction he heard the sound from.
Landing a kick on the crouched thief's face the thief spun and crumpled.
<-35hp>
Akiol took a look towards the priest again. He then suggested, "You guys should back off, it doesn't look like you will win this one."
The priest stared a bit before replying, "A good idea I suppose. But beware! For this is our first time going against you, we shall succeed the second!"
With that the three ran off into the distance, Akiol shook his head. They were truly a strange bunch, next time he ought to finish them off quicker. Opening the chat group he informed the party.
Akiol: Just dealt with some "mercenaries" I was right, keep your eyes peeled.
Wrock: Pretty sure I am being followed, I deal with it. Thanks for the warning though!
Kan'na: Noted.
Tilia: I am about to log off anyway, I will definitely keep an eye out tomorrow!
Akiol dusted off his clothes, he decided to use the rest of his [Aura Boost] time to dash the rest of the way to Goldlight. On his way there Stars began to talk.
'I must say you are indeed skilled.'
"Appreciate the compliment."
'Now how about that scabbard? If you can get a nice one I will let you carry me around. That sounds like a nice deal right?'
"Do I get to use you?"
'Depending on the scabbard I might let you.'
A good offer, Akiol thought about it. If all he had to do was obtain a scabbard that gained Stars approval to use them. Then that would indeed be a good deal.
"Well what kind of scabbard would you like?"
'Hmmm, something stylish but sturdy. It also should compliment me.'
"Then how about we make a scabbard out of that crystal you were trapped in?"
'But that was to hide my aura! What would be the point of that?'
"Wouldn't it be cooler if your aura was released as you were drawn?"
Stars was silent for a bit.
'That's a great idea! However not any blacksmith is capable of doing something out of that crystal. We would have to find a blacksmith in the higher civilizations.'
"We'll work on that when the time comes then."
As he finished the conversation with Stars he arrived at Goldlight. Once he was in the town he logged off.
Akiol put away the headset, and cleaned up his area. After using the light form of the body tempering technique he decided to browse the forums.
As he opened the forum page he decided he needed a new hobby. He vowed that tomorrow he would go out and do something else.
As he browsed through the forums he noticed the bounties set on the party's head. Akiol had a 500 gold bounty, while the others had 250 gold each. He linked the posts in the group chat.
Kan'na: My bounty increased! My worth has risen.
Wrock: What! How come I am half the worth of Akiol, now all the bounty hunters are going to go after him!
Akiol: If you want Wrock you could tag along on my quests next time. So when a particular "mercenary" group comes after me we could team up.
Wrock: Deal.
The rest of the forum posts were just the casual player banter. He didn't find anything of particular interest.
Akiol turned off the laptop and made himself some food. He decided on chicken, using the seasoning James approved of, he had cooked up the chicken.
The taste had earned Akiol's approval. He knew how to cook meat, but he hadn't eaten much with seasoning. The taste was amazing, Akiol decided that at least once a day, he would taste different foods around his area. Food wasn't something he felt he could defeat. He probably could be bribed with a tasty meal, at least for now.
He cleaned up his mess and headed to bed. As he drifted off to sleep he thought that perhaps this peaceful life wasn't too bad.