"Alright, we've reached the northern village. Everyone, I hope you have a pleasant day."
"Don't even say those words, gramps. Not a day is a pleasant day if you're working as a dog."
The three hopped out of the carriage and made their way into the northern village. Along the way, the atmosphere between the three was tense as they walked side by side.
To onlookers of the village, they'd look like a team, but to them, they're practically strangers.
"Oi, same thing again?"
"Since we have a third, why don't we try as a team?"
The two women discuss among themselves, while Seichi walks undisturbed.
"Ehh? I'm not comfortable with working in a group. Why don't you two work together? I'll just sneak past and kill their back ranks if you two make a scene."
"That is taking a very serious risk, Assassin. Your life will be in a precarious situation, so it's better if we stick as a trio than to do our gimmicks alone."
They went back and forth on this subject of working as a team and working as individuals. Seichi was smart, but he's not wise in the sense of tactic. So, to him both of them made a good point. But, it wasn't his place to judge since he lacks the expertise.
[Activating Dark Heart]
'?!!'
Suddenly, his heart, his entire body, was dyed red in anger. His veins bulge, and his feet moved on their own.
'The corner!'
"What are you going, oi!"
"Where–!!"
The two women's voices became distant in an instant. The acceleration was enormous, and the small dust cloud it made attested to its power.
"Hehe, what a pitiful sight for this monster."
"Uwah, what a disgusting monster! Should we kill it with fire? Hahahaha!"
"Good idea, I got to learn some Fire Magic, so it's a possibility!"
Around the corner of a house in the outskirts of town, a group of adolescent children, approximately the same or a little older than Seichi.
"W-Why are you-"
"Shut up, you abomination."
Just as Seichi made it to the scene, the scene in question was of his past.
'Hahahahahahahahaha…'
The auditory laughter seems to echo forever within his mind, as the scene slowed down to a snail's pace. His face contorted like a demon's, and so he rushed in blindly without thought.
"Woah!"
"Kuh!"
He didn't use deadly force, somehow managing to refrain himself from killing those children outright, and pick up the victim of the past into his arms.
"W-Who, are you?"
"No one… no one."
He was disillusioned by the past and mixed it with the present. His mind was in disarray, as well as his breathing and movement.
"Urk!"
He tripped, clearly not paying attention to his path in his disillusion. The trip, however, sent him back to the present as his mind realigned with the current situation.
'....I need to refocus.'
His enhanced Intelligence provided him with an increased mental processing. He sat up, and first looked at the person he'd just rescued.
"U-Uhhmm…"
It was another girl, something was starting to not feel right in his mind about the lack of male casts, but he didn't have time to think anything like that. She had dark purple hair, fair skin, bruises and cuts most definitely from the bullying moments ago, and the most special feature is a singular twisting horn on the left of her forehead. Her clothes were no more than rags tied together, and her current appearance left very little to the imagination.
"H-Hello, sorry to… no, sorry, it's… too sudden. Are, you okay first?"
"W-Well… y-yes, I am. Thank you for rescuing me, stranger."
The situation suddenly turned awkward for both people, and more so for Seichi as he'd never felt this close to a female in his entire life. Beatrice doesn't count, since he wasn't feeling anything in particular towards her obvious advances.
Seichi stands up and sets her down for the time being. Assassin and Paladin catch up to Seichi, and they're not very pleased with his sudden abandonment.
"OI! What… you went and saved an NPC?! What are you, an idiot?!"
"A… what?"
Suddenly, a window appears before Seichi. One that's golden, a special window.
{The Maiden is thankful for your kindness}
[You have triggered a Hidden Quest]
{????????}
[Quest Goal: You've saved a stranger you've never met. Decide what to do with her]
She hid behind Seichi as the two women stared at him with annoyance.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know what came over me. It was just instinct that I ran."
"Instinct my ass, and what's with the girl?"
"U-Uhmm… M-My name's Alice, I-I was rescued by this man here."
She stuttered hard when the attention was focused on her all of a sudden. She hid completely behind Seichi now, as the two women were pressuring her with their unnerving auras.
"We… should go. Leave her, kid. Our job is dangerous, and she'll be collateral if the battle happens right now."
"U-Uhm… are you perhaps, summoned champions of the Followers of Wisdom?"
"Oh?"
When the girl said that, the Assassin's brows perked up quizzically as if it was something interesting she had said.
"Yeah… who are you? The villagers in town all think we're travelers, so how did you infer our identity with just a glance?"
"I'm… uh, nevermind. It's best that, you three get going."
Alice distances herself from Seichi and turns around to go back to where she was rescued.
[Activating Dark Heart]
But, she was stopped by her savior, and he blurted out a very dubious line like in a love film.
"Wait, aren't you hurt? Please, stay. I can protect you."
Cringe, very cringe, so cringe that Assassin was making a cringed out face so hard as if she just ate a whole lemon. His voice also changed to a more tender, soft one to make it worse to hear. But, such a 'cringe' move proved to make a difference.
[Hidden Quest updated]
{A Maiden's Heart}
[Quest Difficulty: ?]
[Quest Goal: You have charmed a maiden with your oath of protection. Take responsibility and see through your words. Protect the Maiden]
[Quest Objective: Protect the Maiden and look after her well-being]
[Quest Completion Reward: The Maiden's full affection]
[Quest Failure Penalty: The Passive {Broken Promise} will be branded on you]
"U-Uwaa… U-Uhmm, it's very… sudden of you, m-mister."
Her face was rosy red, and her eyes were very unfocused and shaky. Seichi, unaware of what he had done, stared at her with a fiery determination that was mistaken as a fire for love. So, under such a gaze, her feelings melted and she relent.
"A-Alright, I… hope you'll take care of me."
".....What in the fuck."
......…
So, the team now updates to a four person group. One is a straggler though, since she doesn't seem to have any capability to fight.
'We're gonna go stealth on this one, lay low, and walk through the forest, alright?"
The Paladin, the group's voice of reason, spoke her piece of advice. This wasn't taken seriously by the Assassin who's the voice of chaos in the group.
"Nah, you guys do that, while I go first up ahead. I'll scout for you guys, so have fun with each other."
The group was in front of the forest separation line.
An overview of the second floor. First City, a tactical strategy game if you look from above. The churches are surrounded by a separation line, but if you look carefully, it's a hexagonal space with the church in the middle. For the Followers of Wisdom, their space has a village up north, a massive farmland section down southeast, an academy to train Mages, their other forces aside from the summoned champions, and several points of interests sprinkled in the space.
Each space is capable of holding many points of interest, but can only house three places, or 'buildings' if you want to use game terminology. First City is sort of like a base defender, and one Challenger manages to figure this out. The head of the Warmonger, a Challenger by the name of Felix, is a hungry son of a bitch.
Three spaces had fallen under his rule, and with all nine spaces made into buildings producing soldiers, he needed to expand fast. He's burning food as fuel, and he doesn't have any way else than to raid other spaces.
And, the one he's about to raid next is the Follower of Wisdom's space.
......…
Assassin passes through the forest separation line and advances into enemy territory quickly. Her appearance was shadowy and her movement like that of the wind.
She was quickly met with patrolling soldiers. It's a high grass field, so she laid low and hurriedly scurry through the grass. Shuffling noises could be heard, so she made her move very carefully and swiftly.
Her aim was at the necks of the patrolling soldiers. She detects four, and she's in the middle of the enemy's forces.
'That one.'
She makes her first mark and activates one of her Skills.
[Activating Mark for Killing]
[Increasing Agility and Strength towards the designated target]
She stealthily sneaks up on the soldier, and her hands move to pull out a curved knife located on her hip.
With a swift grab and a stab, the soldier blurted out muffled sounds before he died.
"Hmm?"
Then, another soldier looked over with raised eyebrows. He looks over the others, and realizes that they're missing a person.
"Oi, where's Gared?"
The loud voice of the alerted soldier made the other two notice the strange situation as well. Soon, however, their question was answered with a knife to each of their faces.
[Activating Shadow Duplication]
[The Item Shaiv's Curved Dagger can be duplicated for 20 Mana]
One was the real, silver dagger, while the other two was a shadowy black leaking mist. They were properly inserted into the three surviving soldiers' faces without fail, and Assassin lands with grace as a vague outline of a smile can be seen under the pitch black mask.
''Hahaha, it's so great to be able to kill without consequence.''
Real name Amelia Okari, a half American, half Japanese woman who has a fascination with killing and bloodshed. She's a woman in her mid-twenties, and her fascination started when she first spilled the blood of a rat that was caught in her basement.
''Kehehehehehe.''
A sinister, creepy laugh escapes her lips as she continues forward.
......…
"Dammit… that bitch really ticks me off."
"How far are we going?"
"Just a few more."
Seichi was carrying the Maiden in a princess carry. Paladin was guiding the way, since Seichi isn't very knowledgeable in the terrains yet.
"Just head forward in whatever direction you're going. Don't go anywhere else, or you'll get lost in this forest."
"I'll remember your advice."
"...."
The face of the Maiden was deep red as she placed her chin on Seichi's left shoulder. Seichi doesn't realize it, but the love of the Maiden for him was quite deep already. Her horn was pulsating with a faint glow, and her thoughts became erratic for a moment, conjuring one line that resonated particularly strong.
'Kill… him.'