“But…” Jace started but then stopped. It made sense. After all, players who wanted to get to the Black Market would need to go through the trial as well and most of them wouldn’t be Rogues. “So, the other traps? The trip wires?”
“Just alarms,” the guildmaster responded. Webley walked over to an odd-looking cluster of stones in the wall and pressed it in three places. The largest stone popped open revealing a hidden lever inside. Reaching in, he pulled the lever. “That’ll lock the pit in place, so a clumsy guard doesn’t figure out where we’ve gone.”
As the guildmaster was locking the pit into place, Jace remembered how stressed and anxious he’d been when he’d done the thieves guild trial. He’d really thought the traps were deadly and that one wrong move and he would have died. Had he known, the whole experience would have been much less stressful.
He took the opportunity to look around at where they were and realized he was in the sewer again, but in some sort of raised junction room. It reminded him of the room where Tiebaut had met the captain.
Webley closed the hidden panel and it once again blended in with the other stones of the wall. “We’re going to split up from here. There may be guards in the sewers too for all we know. Better they catch one of us than both of us.”
Jace nodded. That seemed like a sound plan to him as well.
“I will ask you a favor,” the guildmaster continued. “That magic that you use to change your appearance. Is it something you can give to me temporarily? My face is known and if any of the guards catch me, I doubt I’d be able to talk my way out of it. Not if they were bold enough to plan this raid.”
Taking the hat from his head, Jace considered. Maybe now was the time for him to make sure he had a way into the Noble District when he needed it. “How about a favor for a favor?”
Webley hadn’t been expecting that and he raised an eyebrow. “Go on.”
“At some point,” Jace started, “I will need to get into the Noble District. If I lend you my hat, maybe you can lend me the use of our inside man - no questions asked.”
The guildmaster smirked. “A trip into the Noble District, no questions asked, huh?” He paused as if considering but the man’s cocky grin told Jace he’d already decided. “It’s a deal. But… one time only. If you want a second jaunt over the wall, you’ll have to do me another favor. Deal?”
In response, Jace held out the hat. “Put on the hat. Then think of a race you want to be. It doesn’t do specific people, but you can emulate just about any race that’s roughly your size, give or take a few feet.”
Smiling, the guildmaster placed the hat on his head. His shape flickered and standing in his place was a sourly looking dwarf. Then it changed again, and it was an elf. It flickered again and he was back to Webley. The guildmaster was smiling.
“Nice toy,” Webley admitted. “You’ve earned your favor. I need to go open up the old guildhouse so we can resume business. But you can be darn sure I’ll be posting lookouts. I’m not sure who ratted us out, but I will find the person responsible and they will pay.”
The guildmaster’s comment reminded Jace of something. “Where’s the old guildhouse?”
The guildmaster nodded. “That’s right. You’re still fairly new. It’s north of the merchant district. On Tarot Street, you’ll find a closed tailor shop called the Griffon Fabrics. Go to the side door and knock three times, then once, then twice.”
“Griffon Fabrics,” Jace repeated. “Three times, once then twice.”
“You got it. See you there tonight.” With that, Webley changed back into a dwarf, turned, and stomped away in the opposite direction.
***
Jace walked for nearly fifteen minutes before he felt confident enough that he was out of the Luxury District. He wasn’t about to climb out anywhere near the thieves guild and risk being seen by a guard.
But fifteen minutes should have easily placed him outside the Luxury District. He found a grate with rungs in the wall beneath it. Climbing up, he peered through the grate to figure out where he was.
The grate appeared to be in an alleyway. He waited a couple of minutes to see if anyone walked nearby. When no one did, he braced himself against the wall and picked the lock keeping the grate closed.
Pushing the grate open, he slowly poked his head up and looked around. He had been right. He was in some sort of alleyway and there wasn’t soul in sight. He quickly pulled himself up and then closed and re-locked the grate.
As casually as he could, Jace walked back to the street and after a minute he figured out he was just east of the Luxury District. He felt good that he’d made it out of the raid alive and un-incarcerated. He felt really good that he had found a way to get into the Noble District! That was a big piece of his plan.
When Jace finally entered the Dwarvish Fork, he saw Mika and Diana sitting at their normal table with their back to him. Luna was on the table and immediately meowed when she saw him. “Jace.”
At the cat’s meow, the two girls turned around and stared at him and he could tell they had been worried. Mika shot out of her chair and charged Jace. Before he knew it, she had thrown herself at him and wrapped him up in a fierce hug. “Jace Burton! You are not dead or arrested!”
After a moment, Jace returned the hug and then, noticing some of the other patrons looking over his way, whispered. “Let’s keep the talk of being arrested quiet.”
Mika took a step back and looking around, she seemed to get his meaning. Blushing, she apologized. “Sorry. I am just very happy to see you.”
“We both are, dear one,” said Diana, who had come over to him as well. She gave him a small hug that could have been a friendly hug or a hug that a mother would give a child. But before she released him, she slapped his butt in a very un-motherly way, making him blush.
“Now,” she said as she stepped back. “How about we sit back down, and you regale us your tale.”
They did just that. Sitting back down at their table, Jace related the events of the last hour. He told them about the raid, his escape, and the favor he’d coerced from the guildmaster. When he was done, he sat back and took a sip of the mead he’d ordered.
“So, now we have a way into the Noble District,” Diana said. “What about the palace itself? Have you made any progress on that?”
“No,” Jace shook his head. “But I’m going to press Webley again. I think he owes me for the warning and maybe I can get him to tell me a way in.”
“You can do it,” Mika said enthusiastically and Jace couldn’t help but smile. He also thought back to the hug she’d given him and how nice it had felt to have her pressed up against him. Then he remembered Charlena and quickly pushed those thoughts out of his mind.
“Are you going to the new guildhouse tonight?” Diana asked him. “Do you think it’s safe?”
“I need to go,” Jace told her. “I never got a chance to ask him about armor.”
At that, Mika nearly bounced in her seat with excitement. “No, you don’t!”
He looked at her with curiosity. Had she somehow managed to find some Rogue armor? Was that even possible? He hoped she hadn’t spent all of her money buying armor for him.
Suddenly she pulled out some sort of plate looking armor that had a strange, organic look to it. It took him a moment to realize what it was. “Is this… chitin armor?”
“Yes,” Mika beamed. “I made it for you!”
Jace looked at her in shock. “How did you….”
“I have been working on my skills,” Mika interrupted. “I used the beetle carapaces to create it. Do you like it?”
Jace took the offered breastplate and examined it.
Chitin Breastplate
Type: Chest Armor
Level: 1
Armor: 4 + 1 (Masterwork)
Wt: 2 lb
Special: Provides 2 acid defense.
Restrictions: Leather armor skill or Metal Armor Skill
Description: Light and flexible, this armor was made from the carap
ace of a large insect. It has the strength of plate armor but the flexibility of leather armor.
Created By: Raajoget
“Wow,” was all Jace could say. “This is amazing.”
“Put it on!” Mika grinned. “I want to see it.”
Jace obediently equipped the armor. It felt a little different from his leather armor but as he bent and twisted, it was remarkably supple. “It feels great!”
Mika beamed and clapped her hands together. Then she pulled out several more pieces from her inventory and handed them to Jace. “Good! These are for you!”
The other pieces didn’t look quite as nice as the breastplate and Jace examined one.
Chitin Gauntlets
Type: Hand Armor
Level: 1
Armor: 4
Wt: 2 lb
Restrictions: Leather armor skill or Metal Armor Skill
Description: Light and flexible, this armor was made from the carapace of a large insect. It has the strength of plate armor but the flexibility of leather armor.
Created By: Raajoget
“Only one is masterwork?” he asked.
Mika’s smile faded and she looked down at the table. “My skill is not good enough to make masterwork yet.”
“But the breastplate…” Jace started and then remembered the queen’s carapace. “Is the breastplate made from the queen’s carapace?”
Mika looked up and nodded. “It was the only piece that turned out as masterwork.”
Jace smiled at the girl. “I didn’t mean anything. I think this is great and I really appreciate it. This is an excellent replacement for my old armor.”
She beamed again and Jace couldn’t help but chuckled. “Maybe we need to kill some more beetles so you can make some for yourself.”
At that, she grinned even wider. Her eyes went glassy for only a moment and her character was suddenly wearing a full suit of chitin armor. “I already did!”
“Get a room you two,” Diana said, rolling her eyes.
Mika blushed a deep scarlet and Jace was sure he was blushing too.
“Sorry dear ones,” she said in a mock apology. “Did I embarrass you?”
Chapter 23
Charlena had logged in a little after 6pm. She’d waved away Jace’s question about how her first day at work had gone. She was tired but had insisted on catching up with what they had done.
When they were done, Charlena smiled. “So, you basically played exterminators?”
“For giant bugs!” Mika said.
“That queen battle didn’t sound too good though,” she looked at Jace. “Are you sure you’re alright?”
“I’m fine,” Jace assured her. “Luckily, wounds don’t scar in the game.”
“Thank God for that,” Diana chimed in. “No scars and no aging. This place really is heaven. Except for the very large beetles who try to chew off your leg.”
“So, now what?” Charlena asked. “We need to do something so I can catch up. You guys are getting too far ahead of me.”
Charlena was right. Jace had been worried about that exact thing. Now that Charlena could only play a few hours a night, the rest of them would quickly overtake her level if they kept doing quests.
There were two solutions Jace could think of. Either Jace, Diana and Mika would need to stop doing things that gave them experience when Charlena wasn’t on - or the three of them would need to switch classes.
Jace looked between the three girls and sighed. “We will need to work on other classes.”
Mika nodded but Diana looked aghast. “What? Change classes? I’m still getting used to being a witch!”
Jace held up his hands in a placating gesture. “Diana, you can switch classes and still continue doing exactly what you’re doing. The only difference would be, you’d have some new skills and abilities.”
The older woman fell silent and leaned back in her chair. “I can stay just like this?”
Jace nodded. “Plus, you could get more spells if you choose by taking Priest.”
“How ghastly,” Diana said, her mouth curved into a look of disgust. “I’m certainly not the celibate type.”
Jace chuckled, remembering the small statuette he’d stolen. “It’s a fantasy game. There are lots of gods and goddesses. In fact, there’s a goddess of love and I know her followers aren’t celibate.”
“Oh?” Diana perked up.
“Chykela,” Jace told her. “Goddess of love and seduction.”
“Well,” Diana purred. “That sounds right up my alley.”
Charlena gave them an apologetic look. “Sorry to make you all switch classes. Hopefully, I can catch up on the weekends.”
Mika gave her a big smile. “No problem! I will change to Rogue and become a ninja! Samurai by day, ninja by night!”
Charlena looked to Jace. “What about you? Don’t you already have three classes?”
Jace nodded. “I do but I can switch back to Mage. I only took 2 levels, so I have a ways to go yet.”
He wasn’t happy with the idea. Part of him really wanted to reach level 11. At that level, his skill cap would jump up another 10 points and he’d have access to the next tier of weapons and armor.
But he also knew the importance of staying within 3 levels of Charlena and his other group members. If he was more than 3 levels above a member of his group, they would not receive experience from any kills. That would cause the person to fall even further and further behind.
“I’ll change now,” he said reluctantly and brought up his character sheet. He went to his class and clicked on the change class button. He chose Mage but then hesitated. Was this what he really wanted? He knew it wasn’t, but he also knew that if he wanted to keep grouping with Charlena, he had no choice. He confirmed his choice. His main class was now Mage.
“I cannot change yet,” Mika told them. “I switched back to Priest. I must reach level 7 before I can switch again. When I do, I will become Rogue!”
Charlena smiled at Mika and they all looked at Diana.
“Fine! Fine!” she said, rolling her eyes. “I’ll switch.” The woman hesitated for a moment then looked awkward. “How do I do that?”
Jace talked her through the process and after a few times of explaining things a second or third time, Diana finally managed to change her class. When she was done, he examined them all.
Almedha Pressalor
Race: Elf
Class: Scout
Level: 6
Raajoget
Race: Human
Class: Priest
Level: 5
Mizzlethain-galliegarde
Race: Human
Class: Priest
Level: 1
“It looks like we’re ready,” Jace said. “Shall we go see what the adventurers guild has in store for us?”
The four of them went back to the adventurers guild. On the way there, Jace stopped off at the Central Market and picked up a saber. It set him back 50 gold, but he didn’t really have a choice. He needed a hard hitting weapon to replace his rapier and the saber was the best piercing weapon he could get at his level.
Once they reached the guild, they found a quest called “Way of the Shaman.” It was the only level 5 or level 6 quest they could find so they had very little choice unless they wanted to go back to killing beetles. At the moment, Jace had no desire to lose more equipment, so they accepted the quest.
Dear guild members,
The citizens to the south have been attacked by grolls over the past two weeks. One of Whitecliff’s scouts have reported that these attacks are being encouraged by a new shaman who has taken power.
The army has been dispatched to deal with the recent dragon sighting and the city guard has offered to hire the Adventurers Guild to find and eliminate the grolls.
Signed,
Guildmaster Leofsige Blackwoode
The Adventurers Guild has offered you the quest, “Way of the Shaman”
Reward: +25 faction with Whitecliff Adventurers Guild
, +25 faction with Whitecliff Guard.
Level: 6
Accept quest? (Yes or No)
Jace waited for the exclusive timer message to appear but after several seconds, it hadn’t appeared.
“Uh-oh,” he told the girls. “It looks like we didn’t get this first. We may be competing with someone else for this quest.”
“Other players?” Charlena asked.
Jace nodded. “And they have at least a 24-hour head start on us.”
***
It took them almost a half hour to get to the south gate. Once they did, it took another half hour to reach the farmhouses that had been attacked. No sooner than they reached the first house when they heard a howl and what sounded like laughter but Jace knew better. It was the grolls.
Grolls were hyena-men. The creatures were roughly bipedal but could run on all fours when they needed a burst of speed. When they did stand on two legs, they were six or seven feet tall with very long reaches. While grolls weren’t particularly intelligent, they were cunning and loved to ambush their prey.
As if to punctuate his point, arrows suddenly rained down on them from the top of the farmhouse.
Broken Paw Groll shoots Raajoget for 0 damage.
Broken Paw Groll shoots Mizzlethain-galliegarde for 2 damage.
Broken Paw Groll shoots Mizzlethain-galliegarde for 3 damage.
Broken Paw Groll shoots Almedha Pressalor for 4 damage.
Broken Paw Groll shoots Almedha Pressalor for 10 damage.
Broken Paw Groll shoots YOU for 0 damage.
“Oh geez,” screamed Diana. “I’ve been shot!”
Jace hadn’t been using his Air Armor, but his chitin armor and buckler had been enough to deflect the arrows. He wasn’t about to test his luck. “Aeris Armatura!”
As the air around him solidified, Jace sprinted for the house. The grolls saw Jace coming and loosed their next volley at him.
Broken Paw Groll shoots YOU for 0 damage.
Veil Online - Book 2: An Epic LitRPG Adventure Page 15
