Reborn as a Baron Lord (Light Novel) (A Steampunk LITRPG Light Novel Book 1)

by Han Yang

“Gotcha! Never gonna let go,” Joana teased playfully. I flushed crimson, feeling her warmth and happiness. “Just kiddin, we’re here I take it?”

  “Indeed. The Herkana Mines. Been about… Um… Hmm… Three years since I’ve been out here,” she said tapping her chin.

  I went about ensuring my bag was ready to adventure while the others got ready. “Is this one of the quests from the board?”

  “Heavens no,” she responded with a snicker. “That was just to throw the other factions off. We’re about a full day further than most others go. I kinda love this spot because it is a bit exclusive.”

  “Why’s that?” Joana asked.

  “So, Herkana Mines is named after a famous adventurer. There is a statue of her in the city near the big fountain by the arena.

  “This was her routine spot. She’d clear the defenders, mine for weeks, and then come home with enough to retire for a year or two. Then repeat the process.” Ginli opened the side of the carriage door to reveal a midday sunlight.

  A few things suddenly made sense all at once. We had the three wagons, a month of supplies, and a few gear sets. And the carriage was a metal fortified room with two beds. This wasn’t a day trip, this was an excursion.

  “Uh… What happened to her and how come we’re here?” I asked, rocking the carriage as I exited.

  “The mine became known and back then that was a big deal to Langshire. Most of these spots that Gearnix replenishes are documented and exploited. During her time, H had bigger drop rates, and mines contained thicker veins. She fought over this spot and it went from bronze, the most valuable, to gold because of constant harvesting.

  “I came out here three years ago, and it was silver and slinderlings that were defending. Decent H and the silver earned me enough to sit on my cute butt for a decade. I may have lived lavishly.

  “We’re here to see what the mine brings. And before you ask. No one ventures this far because adventuring has gone down due to good fishing, farming, and custom crafting. There are also bigger, better, and more reliable mines for the huge expeditions the guilds and companies launch.”

  Joana joined us while the steambots wheeled the extra wagons into a box formation around an old firepit that still held a stand and a bar for cooking.

  There were willow trees with a few oaks in the mix. Squirrels were busy foraging, birds were darting between trees, and the scene was serene.

  “I kinda thought you’d ease us into this?” I said, taking in the scent of the forest with a big inhale.

  “Well I’m not exactly oozing money either. If you’re going to risk your life, make it worth it. Three weeks supplies, and every one of these house attendants can mine ore veins. The big question is... When was this cleared last, what does it have now, and who wants to kill us to stop our mining.”

  “How does that work? Can we clear the caves and then poof, Gearnix has whatever evil monster it decides to attack me with suddenly appear beside me?”

  Ginli shook her head and then shrugged. “We clear the cave. Assuming we don’t miss any hidden rooms, or secret hiding spots, then no one comes out of a wall to eat your face.”

  I cringed and Joana laughed with a pat on my shoulder.

  Ginli continued, “While we work in peace on the inside, the area will draw attention. There will be roaming threats no matter what. Honestly part of taking eight horses, three wagons, and a carriage is just so we make it out here without being attacked a dozen times.”

  “Ah, the larger the convoy, the more the deterrence. Like how squirrels smell death, or see fire and run. They do have mechanisms and aren’t brain dead,” I said.

  The steambots finished moving the wagons and went about collecting sticks. We provided over watch while they gathered the wood we would need for the coming days. I did notice one thing was missing.

  “Water?”

  “In the caves, warm springs, clean to drink too. We’ll still boil it,” Ginli told us.

  Joana cleared her throat. “Thank you. This expedition had to be costly to organize.”

  “Was planning on going next month. I get fifty percent, you each get twenty five and that is -”

  “Because we’re getting the family rate. You honor us Ginli,” Joana said and I held back my confusion.

  Twenty five percent was lower than thirty three but I could see it as being fair. Assuming we even got anything, Ginli was taking all the risks. Well financial risks that is by organizing the convoy and such.

  Ginli went face to face with me, smirking when I grew nervous. She tugged on straps, adjusted belts, enclosed my watch stamp from the bank, corrected a harness on Darcy blunderbuss backup, fixed the sling on Darcy primary, and adjusted where my sword rested.

  When she finished inspecting Joana, Ginli waved us forward and onto a worn trail with fallen leaves thick over the treeless area. Undergrowth was wanting to reclaim the area and if I had to guess, it had been some time since someone had walked through here.

  “So… I know this might seem like a silly question, but do the defenders of the wilds ever shoot back?” I asked.

  “Yes. The creatures close to the city, and even a day’s ride is considered close typically, do not fire back. They are swarmers or ambush predators like that croc or the poisonous bunnies.

  “When you enter caves like this one, the defenders tend to be a tier above the area roamers. The slinderlings are ghouls that slung webs to ensnare food. They…” Ginli shivered in recollection. “They would feed you to the babies. Nasty things, and yes, they shot back.”

  I was about to ask about being shot back with weapons when a hand went up, halting our walk. Ginli lunged to get behind a tree, sliding into cover with precision. Joana and I were slower, moving rapidly to become hidden.

  Ginli swiped one eye all the way out, while taking the other eye to half way. She peered around the corner, quickly ducking back. This time she peered around the other edge of the tree. A long and loud sigh escaped her lips.

  “Well… that was close,” she said with a relieved smile.

  “Uh?” I stared at her in confusion.

  “Saw a glint of a scope. Normally that is what you see before you die, and well, I kinda have my guard down because I’ve grown complacent. After we secure the dead we’ll practice battle discipline and hold questions for a fire later,” Ginli said, increasing my confusion.

  Joana asked. “What is the threat?”

  Exactly what I was thinking.

  Ginli said, “Follow me, be vigilant.”

  She crouched forward, her weapon swiveling with her body in an aggressive manner. We followed the trail and diverted about a hundred feet deeper into the woods. The offshoot led us to a smaller camping site.

  I figured out what caused her panic. There were two skeletons here, their clothes tattered with time. The bodies were broken, and scattered.

  A steambot was smashed to bits, and cooking gear was laid out by the fire with the cast iron weathering time the best. I wasn’t sure if they even fought back but they certainly lost.

  A propped long rifle rested against a tree with vines tying the items together. The bursting sun glinted off the silvery scope, revealing the reason for Ginli’s caution.

  Ginli walked beyond the campsite, ensuring the area was secure. When she relaxed a smidge, I released the tension and breath I’d instinctively been holding.

  She went to a rotting cloth bag.

  “This is almost three years old. Maybe they came behind us to keep mining after I left. Yeah… there is no H on the ground, or shining trinkets. These fools,” Ginli said.

  She whipped her a knife off a belt, slashing branches until she was able to yank the long rifle free.

  “I… I have extra weapons hidden in the carriage. The plan was to only bring them out if we needed them. Didn’t want you taking a long rifle into a knife fight or weighing you down, but I came prepared, and this is junk so don’t get excited.”

  “Again, you’re confusing me. Treat me like a first time adve
nturer,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

  “When you clear a mine, it takes time for defenders to return,” she said, kicking a few logs over.

  I bobbed my head. “Sure the wilds magically and naturally respawn. Harvest too much, it reduces output, harvest too little, and it increases.”

  “Very good. I hired a few teams to help me extract the silver veins. Normally it was gold. Gold is worth less than silver. Meaning it was a big boon to find silver.

  “So I hired crews, and mined and mined. When I had enough to tide me over for a decade, I went home. There were still some lower veins in the mine, but there were chances of a respawn, or triggering an epic boss by staying in the area for too long.”

  “Extrapolate that last bit.”

  “You cannot live in the wilds. Sure camp out for a few weeks but if you build a settlement because you don’t like Langshire taxes… well, it’s doomed to fail. Can you claim wilds yes, and you can build a settlement, just not in an easy manner like building a permanent mine here with citizens.”

  “Well, how does it work?”

  Jonna cleared her throat. “In school it is taught that you have to purchase and assemble a city station. You need to go out and clear an area and defeat the legendary boss. Then when that is done you place the city station down. Until you insert enough hydrox to create walls the city is vulnerable.”

  “Never done it and that is about what I know,” Ginli said with a sigh. “Back to my story. After I departed, I told the teams the rest was fair game. These two stayed beyond a reasonable time. See, this bag has silver in it. You said you killed a big gorilla right?”

  “Uh, yea, about twice my height,” I recounted with a nod.

  She bit her inner cheek in thought. A few dusting of leaves had her grunting. She started tracing footprints with her fingers and came to a conclusion. “Looks like three of em apes killed these two. Damn. They never had a chance. A momma and two adolescents. Almost young enough to tame. So, spoils of war…

  “This is not ours. None of it. They have family and they need a fair shot at returning to claim this. By Langshire law, we will post a note about the dead on a special board that will probably match with a missing report for these two. Assemble all the easy to carry stuff, and haul it back to the carriage.

  “We can do that small favor for their family. Stay alert. Stay alive. I’m going to see what the wilds have for defenders.”

  Ginli was gone before I could even say anything. Joana had a sad expression that turned into resolve. We went about our grisly task.

  We found basic weapons, a set of tools for mining, tools for the steambots, canteens, the cooking supplies, and a few minted tin and gold coins.

  Joana found a second steambot in worse shape than the first one. The silver sack crumbled when we hefted it, spilling the contents to the dirt. An idea came to me and I pocketed a few rocks of silver.

  My bag was heavy by the time we retreated for the carriage. Every little noise had me on edge. Even my own footsteps triggered my anxiety. Death… it had a way of changing your outlook.

  “You okay?” Joana asked, noticing I’d gone quiet.

  I nodded. “I… am second guessing myself. I think I’d make a great deck boat card dealer or bartender. Death has a way of spooking me.”

  “So, Bradley. I don’t mean to discourage ya from doing a different type of job, and yeah, seeing skeletons tends to leave impressions. Just… those jobs treat ya like shit, and pay ya tin,” she said with a huff. “If yer me… I got to prop my chest out and shake my butt.”

  I snickered, “Hey, you're great at being a beautiful woman, but I understand. I can put myself in your shoes and see the lack of appeal. You kinda tied yourself to me. You do understand I’m like a cat.”

  We arrived at the campsite, heading for a wagon bed to stage the loot that was going to the families later. I… felt honored being able to return the items. Yeah… a tiny part of me tugged at wanting to keep the wealth. However, the overwhelming part of me knew I’d find validation in helping the families.

  “I like cats, don't see them much because they tend to run off and be independent,” Joana said, having an “Oh” moment of realizing what I meant. “Ouch.”

  Her hurtful tone pulled on my feelings. “Hey, I said give it time. Also, I like you. Honestly, and don’t tell Ginli this. I’m even sweet on her. You ladies… you’re new to me. Changing me in a good way.”

  “I heard that, ya sappy sap,” Ginli said, arriving from the woods with a giggle. “I got good news and bad news. The good is that we're here for some major, major H. For this zone anyway. The bad news is, we’re facing leperas.”

  “Oh no,” Joana exclaimed.

  “Oh no what?”

  She sighed, boosting her butt onto the edge of the wagon bed to dangle her feet. “Leperas are normally in the wild cities. Those types of adventures that the companies and guilds take part in. They are magicians. Not overly powerful, but more than we can probably handle.”

  Ginli tisked her. “We got him.”

  “Uh… not to make myself seem small or anything. But what?” I blurted.

  “Teasing. We got me. And that was cute to hear you’re becoming better with us around. Don’t trust me yet, let me save yer life a dozen times first and then you’ll be massaging my feet every night,” Ginli said with a snicker.

  “Um… Okay, so how do we win and what’s in the mine?”

  “Come close and I’ll let you in on the best plan ever,” Ginli said.

  We lit a fire, staged some chairs, boiled some water to make a stew, and when Ginli told me her plan I frowned. I wanted to act like a little boy and have a tantrum.

  Her plan was the worst!

  CHAPTER 12

  My palms sweated, my stomach knotted, and I needed to pee. Was I nervous, yeah, absolutely. In the distance, about three hundred feet away rested the mine entrance.

  A simple dirt hill with a cut in the middle that loomed black on the horizon. It’d be nothing special besides a hole in the terrain if it weren’t for the leperas guarding the entrance.

  The sun cast bright light onto the area they guarded from a lack of willows and oaks. Two towers stood on either side of the entrance with mages up high. On the ground… there was a dozen leperas roaming.

  A few held swords, a single had a puffy helm, and most were soldiers. The plan was -

  ZAP! ZAP!

  That was the signal for me to go. Puffy helm was the leader and he just got shot twice in the chest, altering his minions into a mix of panic and aggression.

  I had to close the distance to get the ones already in the trees. They were my mission. Run through the trees, take enemy fire, and kill those the ladies couldn’t snipe.

  I burst into a run, giving the enemy a target for the first time.

  Enemy mages charged spells that hissed with hydrox in a dazzling light green display. Billowing steam exuded from their dancing hands as they increased their channeling.

  When they released, I never expected the spells to soar for me so quickly.

  Lime green magic sizzled inches from my ear, burning hair within a fraction of a second. I tucked and performed a roll. My maneuver was reactive, and the poor aim saved my life.

  ZAP! ZAP!

  A tower mage screamed as it fell. The cry came to a sudden halt when I heard a thump resonate through the woods.

  I lunged back to my feet, tearing my foot into the forest floor, and returned to a sprint. A leopard humanoid, with a hunched back, and maw full of teeth, snarled at me from fifty feet away.

  I leveled Darcy at his chest while he channeled a new spell.

  BOOM!

  The weapon kicked back with an angry release of power.

  I expected this, using my mechanical ankle to spin with the force.

  The body of my foe lifted off its feet as it was flung back into a tree, giving a sickening thump upon impact.

  “Raroioska!” A leperas I hadn’t been tracking shouted.

&nbs
p; The magician unleashed a growing ball of steam and lime green energy. My eyes shot wide at this new attack that snowballed for my location.

  “Ya gotta be kidding me,” I said in a huff, bolting away from the tree.

  Crack! Boom!

  The oak I stood behind moments earlier burst into bits, sending shrapnel of wood scattering. I dove, sliding for a home plate that didn’t exist.

  A swarm of wood zoomed over me.

  ZAP! ZAP!

  There were screams of pain from the mages.

  I spat out a mouthful of blood from biting my tongue, scurrying to rise quickly. I found another tree to hide behind. With clumsy fingers, I slotted a bit of hydrox into the blunderbuss.

  The weapon hummed happily, telling me it had at least two shots left, which was great because there should only be two left in the trees.

  ZAP! ZAP!

  “Brinkarina!” An enemy leperas hollered while slinging green energy for my position.

  I snickered, already on the move, getting a lot of distance on this mage’s spell. That was… until their spell swerved, adjusting to follow me.

  WHAT!? Not good!

  I pumped my knees, pouring as much energy as I could to outrun the turning spell.

  “Yer doing great!” Joana yelled from her sniper perch. “We can’t see any more!”

  I wanted to retort, complaining to the woman who’s firing from behind cover, simply because she has a better aim score, but I bit my lip, holding in my reply.

  ZAP!

  Bluish energy zipped over my shoulder, diving into the chest of the mage I was closing the distance on. The leperas fell to its knees, clutching at the hole in its chest that oozed green blood.

  The spell chasing me cratered into the soft forest floor in a cascading explosion of energy. Dirt rained from above, not slowing my charge. I dug a foot in, pivoting left as a random slug lunged at me.

  I didn’t waste a shot on the disgusting creature with a thousand legs. It was slow and I was in a dead sprint.

  I weaved between trees seeing the last two leperas were archers with arrows being nocked.

  A quick over the shoulder check told me I was gaining big time on the slug. The momentary distraction gave the left archer an opening. The male was burly with thick chest fur and let out a terrific roar, challenging me.