At the edge of the forest, near the mountain range, Mike, Zephyr, and I decide to take a break to freshen up and plan our strategy. Zephyr's role is to provide support, while Mike is responsible for drawing attention and taking hits. I am the one who needs to deliver the finishing blows, commonly known as the DPS (damage per second). To locate the monsters' whereabouts, Zephyr uses her skill of Harmonious Listening. She closes her eyes, places her hands on a tree, and focuses on communicating with nature. The trees, leaves, and plants suddenly start vibrating softly. A gentle breeze picks up, and the sound of laughter can be heard. Faint, but sweet and joyful. The forest around us seems to subtly change, giving me the impression that the branches are surrounding and protecting us. After a few minutes, Zephyr opens her eyes and tells us that about four hundred meters to the west, there is a group of five Cliquatus.
"Quite handy skills," I say, amazed.
"Yeah, nature has a beautiful way of communicating. Gentle and serene," she replies calmly, pushing a lock of hair behind her pointed ear.
We finish preparing for our expedition and head west, ready to face the group of Cliquatus. Mike tightly grips a massive war axe in his hands. The axe is massive, with a double-edged head that shines bright red, reflecting the sunlight. I wonder how much it weighs, as it seems much heavier than me.
As for Zephyr, she is dressed in an emerald green robe adorned with intricate patterns that seem to dance to the rhythm of her graceful strides. She holds an elegant scepter, the tip of which is studded with a mesmerizing turquoise stone. I can't help but wonder what mystical power this stone holds, as it emits an enigmatic glow that catches my eye.
As we head west, I realize how lucky I am to have them as companions. Not many youths have friends as well-prepared and powerful as them.
As we approach the mountainous region, the trees become increasingly sparse. It doesn't take much longer for me to spot the small group about two hundred meters away from us. They look like children, but they are made up of metal parts and complex mechanisms. They are busy dissecting small monsters and sorting out resources. A pile of bones, a mountain of skin, and a heap of crystals surround them. The remaining corpses are thrown into a ditch. I alert my friends to what I see and we prepare ourselves for a fight. When we get closer, Mike uses his Provocation skill to attract the attention of the five Cliquatus. He roars with a deep growl and the monsters all turn around at the same time, weapons in hand, to face us. Meanwhile, Zephyr starts an incantation to unleash some Wind Blades. I take advantage of the monsters' focus on Mike to aim and shoot one of them. The head of the nearest Cliquatus explodes, releasing small electrical arcs. Zephyr finishes his spell and four Wind Blades quickly form and propel towards the remaining monsters. One blade, one kill. I realize that Zephyr's profession is actually quite powerful on the battlefield. We inspect our surroundings to avoid any surprises and decide to collect the loot from the Cliquatus. Zephyr shows us her hand and reveals a dark blue ring. She makes it hover above the piles and all the resources are swallowed by a small portal. I'm amazed, but then I realize that it's normal for her family to have a spatial ring. It's an equipment that contains an isolated space that varies depending on its grade. Almost all noble families have them, even though they are sold at astronomical prices. After all, having one signifies wealth, nobility, greatness, and demonstrates a high status. She collects everything, and we decide to rest a bit before heading back to the city. As I scan our surroundings, I catch the gaze of something. Hidden behind a tree more than two hundred meters away, someone is spying on us. I alert Mike and Zephyr to the situation and we prepare for a potential fight. Seeing us getting ready, the person comes out of hiding and approaches us calmly. The closer they get, the more I realize that it's not a human, but rather an Iron Servant. Similar to the Cliquatus, but with the appearance of a man. Usually, Iron Servants are created by advanced Artificers. Thinking about it, the non-heroic actions of the Cliquatus and now an Iron Servant appearing, I believe that something is brewing behind all this, I think to myself.
About five meters away, the servant stops and greets us with a robotic voice:
Good day, young mercenaries. I noticed that you have killed some Cliquatus. Unfortunately, they belonged to my master, and he is deeply saddened by this loss. He would like you to return what you have taken. You can leave the space ring, and everything will be settled," said the servant.
"What an exaggerated demand! It's practically robbery," I exclaimed, getting angry after listening to their request.
Mike, Zephyr, and I exchanged glances and nodded, preparing for battle.
Seeing our attitude change, the servant said, "You asked for it!"
With an invisible signal, several Scrap Dogs appeared and surrounded us. Together with the Iron Servant, there were nine opponents, three for each of us. Without hesitation, I aimed and shot one of the dogs in the head, and a screeching sound of metal echoed as it stopped moving. Now there were eight left to defeat. I reloaded while Mike tried to use his Provocation skill, but it was unsuccessful. Zephyr used his Wind Shield skill, and a half-sphere of rotating wind formed around us, creating a barrier. One of the dogs tried to pass through but was torn apart by the force of the wind. This gave me enough time to reload, and even before I could warn my friends, Zephyr raised his scepter, and the embedded stone began to glow. He cast a spell, and four Wind Blades formed from the shield, slicing through the dogs. Now, there were only three dogs and the servant left. The wind shield dissipated, but without waiting for them to react, I aimed and shot the Iron Servant. BAM! It collapsed to the ground. I reloaded and saw Mike swinging his axe and fighting off two other dogs. Zephyr was a bit exhausted from his incantation, so I took care of the last dog. It charged at me, leaping to kill me, but I used Dash and moved to its right side. With the bayonet on my musket, I impaled it. It turned around to bite me but used Shadow Step and reappeared on the other side. I struck its head since it was in a vulnerable position. My blade pierced its head, and its body stopped moving. I pulled out my weapon and finished reloading. Mike had already finished killing his two opponents, one of whom was completely split in half, and the other had a smashed head, probably from a kick, I thought as I examined the bodies.
I believed we made a great team. I asked them if they were in good shape, and both confirmed that they were. Zephyr just needed some rest to replenish his mana, but otherwise, everything was fine. After a brief moment, we realized that we should find the Artificer who was hiding to completely resolve any issues, as it would be troublesome to be ambushed on the way back. Zephyr used his Harmonious Listening skill. Nature sang and laughed peacefully again, revealing the location of a man surrounded by metal pieces in one of the nearby caves, about a kilometer from here. We decided to go there. On the way, we noticed a few creatures, indicating that the territory was dangerous for them and under the control of someone or something...