The thing he saw seemed to be patrolling the perimeter of the house, often stopping to look around with its bloodshot eyes, and then sniffing the air with it's snout. It was like a sentinel, a pretty dangerous one at that, but what Vali was feeling right now was not fear , but excitement.
'Jackpot!!' If Vali discovered a cabin such as this in the woods he would at most use it for sleeping the night and nothing more as it would be normally empty, but a cabin such as this in the dungeon was a treasure trove. Depending on his luck, he could find in it several things such as gold which was very rare, to foodstuffs which was common. It was like a treasure chest.
'It seems that I'm not so unlucky after all. Encountering such a thing is a huge boon. Not only can I get something from there, I can even hide in there. Monsters may come still, but it's going to be much safer with those wooden walls surrounding me.' Vali looked greedily at the cabin, but his greed was dampened by the 'thing' guarding it. It was still patrolling around the place like a good dog. As Vali came to that conclusion, something came up in his memory. He knew, or everyone knew that monsters inside the dungeon roamed aimlessly until they found their prey, but rarely you found ones with a purpose. Those of course were rare variants, and of course more powerful as they had received a big gift from the dark gods.His eyes widened at that realization.
"No way.....huupp..." Vali immediately shut his own mouth and sweat started to form on his back. His heartbeat was of the chart as it almost leaped out of his chest, and his breathing was ragged. If he was right the thing that was patrolling the cabin was much more dangerous than the thing he had accidentally killed. Unique monsters such a that would definitely need several skilled and heavily armed adventurers , maybe even a mage.
'The chosen ones by the dark gods; monsters with above human intelligence, skills, and strength. Paragon of destruction and chaos, something I definitely can't handle.' thought Vali as he closed his eyes and hoped he hadn't been discovered. He waited there with his eyes closed for about a minute, but it felt to go like an hour. Finally he opened his eyes and saw that nothing had happened to him, but it still took him another minute to finally move. He took one last look at the thing and retreated the same way he came.
......
"Hah...hahh..hah....man, this is not good for my heart. Ugh....and now this dammed wound is starting to bleed again. Fucking hell...." Vali looked at his wounded hand and used once again some alcohol to disinfect it, and then drunk the rest. He of course wasn't pleased or even managed to quench his thirst as the wine had already finished. "Dammit....
*step*
"Who..."Vali suddenly heard steps approaching him, and immediately turned towards the sound, his short wooden spear on the ready. His nerves were tense as he thought another monster was upon him, but a familiar face came into view. "Faust...." lighty said Vali as he saw Faust's figure approaching with another man in tow. The other man was more than 50 years in age and looked a little haggard. He had receding, graying hair, wore loose greenish robes with a partial gambeson over it, and had a long and well groomed beard. His eyes were lively as he looked at Vali's figure with joy.
"Oh, mister Faust, it seems that we have found and acquaintance of yours. This is definite good luck."
Faust smirked at the man's comment and approached Vali nonchalantly, but stopped when he saw his wounded hand. It seemed that his new acquaintance hadn't been so lucky after all. " It seems that you have had some kind of unpleasant encounter during the last hour.
I suggest that we rest for now, tend to your wounds and then we shall have a quick talk. "
........
Ten minutes had passed and now Vali's hand was bandaged by the ragged man. By the short conversation they had as he was bandaging his hand ,he was a herbalists. It was something in between a doctor and a alchemist if his memories were right, and as expected he was good at using herbs as medicine.
"And....it's done. Not a perfect treatment, but it will at least not bleed anymore or cause you as much pain haha...but I've got to say. You really are a lucky fellow aren't ye."
Vali rubbed lightly at his bandaged hand, and could only smile bitterly. " Old man, if you were in my shoes you wouldn't think the same. No luck here, I promise."
The man scratched his head." I see....but am I really that old? It definitely must be the light in this place. It's not bright enough."
"Uhhhh...." Vali was speechless at that statement, but fortunately Faust seemed to have his back. " Enough with joking around, it's time to get down to business." Faust patted Vali's shoulder and all of their faces became serious.
"About the wooden cabin?"
"Indeed, it's about that. If what you said was true, then there is money to he made there. It's a great opportunity for the three of us, but...
"But it's dangerous....is what everyone is thinking."
Faust looked at the old man who just interrupted him and just nodded. " Indeed it is dangerous, but it is also a great opportunity. Nothing comes free, especially in the dungeon, you should know that better than anyone else."
"Of course I do, but I've also seen plan's such as this fail more than I can remember. You should know that, don't you?"
Faust clenched his fist at those words. He knew that he was right, and that adventurers such as them died more often that he would like to accept , but his skill was making it difficult to pass on it. Vali who was the most out of the loop didn't say anything as he took a sip of some wine the old man had given him.
' Yeah...not a good wine but it hits the spot. ' his body relaxed and the pain of his hand was now almost nonexistent. He was like a little kid observing his parents quarreling.