Wolf gurgled as his blood poured freely from his throat, his hands trying in vain to close the wound. He dropped to his knees and slumped to the grass as the rest of his blood ran from him.
We…we did it…
I was too exhausted to celebrate. Everything hurt, and with each passing second, my consciousness waned as the blood loss caught up with me. Eris looked over to me, her magic drained to the last drop, and her chitin armor flowed to retreat under her skin. Her entire body was covered in frost, and her skin was turning a sickly blue-black as necrosis set in. She gave me the barest hint of a smile before toppling over, slamming into the grass.
“Eris!” I ran to her and knelt, scooping her into my arms. The grass soft underneath me as I leaned her against my chest. “Eris, wake up!”
Her eyes fluttered open for a second, and I took her hand in mine. She managed one more smile. “Did we get him?”
I smiled back. “Yeah, we got him.”
Chapter 19 - The Serpent’s Tail
Her head lolled to the side as she passed out. I shouted at her to wake up, but she was out.
“Eris!”
Nothing, not even a flicker of her eyelids. Blood ran in rivers from her face and body, bleeding from a dozen different locations, all while the after-effects of Frostbite ate away at her flesh. Not good, need to heal her and fast before it permanently damages her.
I pulled my pack from my inventory and laid Eris’s head on it while uncapping a health potion and pressing the glass to her lips. But she wouldn’t drink, the red liquid falling from her mouth to run down her chin.
Fuck it. I poured a good measure into my mouth and pressed my lips to hers, forcing them apart and letting the liquid drain down her throat. I repeated the action until the potion was empty, and her wounds had closed. Her skin restitched itself, and the frostbite faded into nothingness. Eris’s breathing stabilized, and she slept deeply.
Okay, now, to take care of myself. I drank a health potion myself and waited for it to kick in. My body repaired itself, but not without a cost. I’d consumed too many potions in a short period, warranting potion sickness, but I’d gone beyond even that, overloading my system, and I was about to pay for it with interest.
Warning! System Overload! Shutting down to repair the damage.
Without any further warning, I fell into unconsciousness.
I awoke to pain, mind-numbing agony that sent waves of misery through my veins with every beat of my pulse. The minuscule light drifting in through the thick heavy curtains was enough to send spikes of pain into my retinas. Fuck, I forgot how awful this was. System overload sucked, but I was riding the tail end of it, and even it hurt like hell, I could move around normally now. I sat up, giving myself a once over. I was naked, but I didn’t have any visible wounds. Pulling my last set of clean clothes from my inventory, I put on a short-sleeved black tunic and black linen pants.
Just the act of getting dressed hurt and fighting the urge to hurl, I swung my legs out of bed. As my feet hit the wooden floor, I had a thought. Where the hell am I? I didn’t recognize the surroundings, but it seemed I was in a house. I could smell farmland through the open window and pushed back the curtain, flinching as bright light hit my face.
Blinking back tears, I tried once more to get my bearings. Outside was a field of barley, and I recognized the landscape. Am I back at Oscar’s? But how did I get here? Eris?! The fight came back to me instantly, and I strode across the small room and flew through the door.
“Eris!”
Both she and Oscar were seated at the dining table, having a meal. Eris had her hood down, and her pointed ears and compound eyes were easily visible, and Oscar didn’t seem to mind in the slightest.
While I was taking stock of the situation, Eris sucked in a sharp breath. “Sam!” Eris shouted, plowing into me and sending me flying to the ground.
I managed to croak out a pained “Ow,” before my mouth was occupied. Her lips were scorching as she kissed me before pulling away a second later and wrapping me in a crushing hug.
“You wouldn't wake up, no matter what I tried. I couldn't get you to wake up,” she blubbered into my chest, on the verge of tears.
I leaned over and brushed her hair back. “I’m fine, Eris, don’t worry about me.”
“Why didn’t you wake up?”
“It was the price I had to pay. I overdid it and was punished for it.”
She punched me weakly—well, to her—but it was hard enough to numb my arm.
“I was terrified. I woke up, and you were unconscious on the ground.” She punched me again. “Don’t ever do that again.”
I chuckled. “I’ll do my best.” to which her response was to hug me tighter for a few more minutes. When she was satisfied with her hugging, she leaned back and kissed me on the cheek.
“I’m glad you’re all right.”
“Me too, but how did we get here?”
Eris sat up and stood, pulling me up along with her. After her outburst, she calmed down considerably, and we went to sit next to Oscar, who went and fetched a beer for me. I took it with a nod and turned to face Eris.
“When I woke up, I tried everything to get you to wake up, but you wouldn’t, so I wanted to make camp and wait it out, but all the supplies were in your inventory, so I couldn’t. I picked you up and put you on Lacuna and walked here. Oscar was gracious enough to let us stay while you recovered. You’ve been unconscious for over two days.”
Only two? That’s actually pretty generous, considering the last time I overdid it, I was asleep for nearly a week. I took a drink of beer and thought things through while I pulled up my interface. I had several combat notifications to deal with.
Combat Results
7 Killed (Human): 10,500 Exp!
1 Downed: 1500 Exp!
Mercy Penalty: -500 Exp.
Total Exp Gain: 11,500 Exp!
Exp: 4600/4600
Level Up! (x2)
Exp: 2300/4800
Level 48
20 Skill Points Available
Damn, that's a ton of Exp. How unbalanced is this system? It's getting a little ridiculous. Though it looks like I didn’t get any Exp for the men Eris killed. I wounded Slip, but Eris got the kill, so I only received an assist. Still worth it, and I can’t really complain about the abundance of Exp. Wolf just about slaughtered us.
The massive Exp seemed a worthwhile amount for what we’d gone through. Two against a werewolf, and we won. The Guild will never believe it, though I bet Yumiko will get a kick out of it.
I closed the notifications tab and allocated my new stat points, putting five of each into Strength and Constitution, bringing both up to ninety. A solid feat for a level forty-eight. While previously, I’d prioritized Strength and Agility, having my Constitution so high this early made me much more durable than most others my level. But most players wouldn’t be so unbalanced in their stats.
With ten stat points remaining, I decided to add them to my Strength and Constitution Sub-Stats. I added five points to my Attack Damage and five to Durability, ensuring that I could continue to do both attacking and defending.
My Exoskeleton shifted under my skin as I confirmed my points. Does increasing my Durability also affect the resistance of my chitin? An exciting line of thought.
With my stats settled, that left one problem to deal with.
“How much, Oscar?”
He turned to me with confusion before smiling. “Oh, it’s no trouble, friend. There’s no need for payment.”
“That wasn’t what I was talking about,” I said, sliding my knife free from its sheath. “How much did they pay you to set us up?”
Oscar paled, which was all the confirmation I needed for my theory. He stood from the chair and started stammering.
“What are you talking about, Duran?” he asked, tripping over his words.
“Sam?” Eris asked, her head tilted to the side.
I stuck the point of my knife into the wood of the table, causing both o
f them to flinch.
“We were ambushed just outside the Outlier Farms. Darren and his filth were waiting for us, so someone tipped them off. I’ll ask one more time, Oscar. How much did they pay you?”
Oscar deflated, sighing into his hands, his face red with shame. “They didn’t pay me nuthin’. The leader kidnapped my wife, told me to keep an eye out for a red-haired male and a young demi-human. I was told to stall you if I could, and he gave me a communication scroll to warn him. Please believe me, I had no choice.”
From the look in his eyes to the timbre of his voice, I could tell he was speaking the truth, but it didn’t matter. It didn’t change what I had to do next.
“I do believe you, Oscar. I believe that you were only thinking of your wife and felt you had no choice, but you put me—and more importantly, Eris—in danger, and that’s not something I can forgive.”
Pulling the knife free from the table, I stood. Oscar panicked and fell backward out of his chair, landing in the kitchen. He scooted back in fear but hit the wooden counter a foot later.
“I’ll make it quick, if it’s any consolation,” I told him.
I stepped into the kitchen and raised the blade to slash his throat when Eris stopped me. She grabbed my hand and pulled me off balance.
“Stop, Sam. I know he wronged us, but put yourself in his place. What would you have done?”
“I’d kill anyone who dared get in my way to get you back.”
“Okay, but not everyone is as strong as you. I’m asking you to see reason. You don’t have to kill him.”
I knew I didn’t have to kill him. He didn’t have much choice in the matter, and realistically in his shoes, powerless against greater odds, I’d have made the exact same call. But it was a mistake to let enemies live.
Eris was pleading for Oscar’s life, but all of this was her fault.
“None of this would have happened if you’d let me kill Darren and his fucking friends back at the inn,” I said, jabbing a finger at her. “All of this happened because of your soft heart.”
Eris reeled back like I’d slapped her. Hurt filled her eyes as they watered, brimming with tears. Ah, hell.
“You’re right. I’m sorry,” she said, pushing past me to rush outside.
“Fuck,” I cursed, before turning to Oscar. “If you run, I’ll hunt you to the ends of the earth and butcher you like a dog.”
He nodded emphatically, but I was already heading for the door.
Outside, I frantically searched for her. I ran around the house and found her. Eris was sitting on a small stone fence that came waist-high, separating Oscar’s backyard from the road. Her head was in her hands, and she was shaking, crying.
More than anything else, I felt like an utter jackass for making her cry. Just because I was right didn’t give me the justification to shove it her face like I had. She was too consumed with her tears to hear me approach on the soft grass. I knelt and wrapped my arms around her, placing my forehead in between her shoulders.
“I’m sorry.”
She shook her head. “You’re right, though. I let all this happen. You warned me, but I didn’t listen.”
“Doesn’t make what I said okay, though, or what I was about to do to Oscar. I was furious that you got hurt, and I was going to kill him because he put you in danger, but you weren’t wrong, I’d have done the same thing in his place.”
Eris looked up and turned around, pulling my face to hers. Tears were still falling down her cheeks, but she curled into my neck, holding me tight. “I love you, Sam, but you can be so cold to others. Killing just to get rid of an obstacle isn’t always the correct thing to do.”
I cupped her cheek, rubbing away the streaks of tears with my thumb. “And sometimes it is, Eris. If I’d killed Darren, despite the darkness pushing my anger at the time, none of this would have happened. We nearly died because I let them live.”
“I know, but it can’t always be the first thing you jump to, especially for people like Oscar, okay? Promise me, that you’ll try to consider other options in the future.”
I sighed, pulling back from her, hopping over the fence to sit next to her. I didn’t say anything for a few minutes, trying to work out my thoughts. The more I thought about it, the more I knew I could never keep that promise.
“I can’t, Eris. I’ll do what I think is best to keep us both safe. Even if that means I have to wade through an ocean of blood to do it.”
Eris chuckled, smiling at me. “You’re the most stubborn person I’ve ever met.”
“Right back at you,” I said, laughing.
“I’ll just have to be your moral compass then. I’ll keep you on track.”
“One hell of a job, you sure you’re up for it?” I teased.
“Of course, my bonded. There’s no one better,” Eris said, leaning over to kiss me.
Her lips, her soft and welcoming lips. Whatever lingering tension between us dissolved with that one kiss. We forgave each other, and nothing more needed to be said between us about it. When we pulled apart, I stood to go back inside and decide what I was going to do with Oscar, but Eris held my hand and refused to let go.
“What is it?”
“There’s something we need to talk about,” she said.
Her tone was worrisome, but after what we just talked about, I wasn’t nervous. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it together.
“I should have figured it out much sooner, and for that I’m sorry. It’s about the Aspect inside you.”
“The what?”
“The voice, the entity that spoke during the fight.”
"You called it the Aspect. What is it?"
Eris ran her hands through her hair, trying to find the right words. "It's…hard to explain," she said, before pausing again. "It's kind of like a spirit, but that's not quite right. The Aspect of the Hive is a guide for the Hive Knights. A collection of memories and bits of consciousness of all the previous bearers of the title."
"So, it's supposed to help the knights?" I asked.
"It's supposed to, yes, but yours is acting unusually. It's violent and malicious when it's supposed to be very peaceful."
I paced in the dirt, trying to process and come up with answers. I knew the anger wasn’t my own, but I really should have spoken up when it started talking to me. We didn't have much time to sit around discussing this, but my curiosity and nervousness made this conversation critical. I wanted to find out why I’m the one that was different.
"Is it because I'm human?"
Eris shrugged her shoulders. "I honestly don't know. I was kept away from much of the internal politics of the regency when my mother ruled, so I don't know much. I'll have to consult the Hive Mind more to see what I can find. I looked through it while you were unconscious, and that’s when I found a bit of memory concerning the Aspect, but it was very brief."
“Well, I guess I’ll just deal with it like I have been. Despite the increased anger, it did help during the fight with Darren.”
“But at what cost? Just be careful, Sam. I don’t trust it.”
I leaned over and kissed her hair. “Now, that I can promise you.”
She stood up and held out her hand. “Let’s go talk with Oscar. Just talk, okay?”
“We’ll see.”
Oscar was sitting at the table when we got back inside. Three empty glasses next to him told me he was drinking his way through his stock of beer, and if I were in his shoes, that be my final act as well. His fourth mug slammed down empty as I shut the door. Oscar looked up and down at his empty glass with a sigh.
“Can I have one more?”
“Long as you bring me one.”
While Oscar fetched us more alcohol, I thought about what I wanted to do. Anger that had nothing to do with the Aspect bubbled to the surface. I wanted to end him solely because he’d betrayed me, but after listening to Eris, I couldn’t kill him in good conscience anymore. It was only barely justifiable in the first place.
Oscar returned and han
ded me my beer, but I left it untouched on the table. “Tell me, Oscar. Where is your wife?”
“I don’t know,” he said, shaking his head. “All I know is I was told she was being kept safe in a house near the ambush site and that she’d be returned to me when it was all over.”
“Hmm.” It’s not much to go on at all, but we were a few miles away from both the Outlier Farms and Grange. So how many houses could be out that way? If Eris uses her magic to search the area, then I bet we could find it quickly.
Oscar looked to me with hope in his eyes as he realized we might just help him. “Please, please, please, help find my wife.”
On cue, a quest icon flared to life in my vision, telling me I had a quest available.
Quest: Find Oscar’s Wife
Type: Random
Difficulty: D
Reward: 350 Exp
As I accepted the quest, I sighed in relief. At last, something about the game world makes sense again. No ridiculous amount of experience for a menial quest. I was starting to think the game had broken with how much it was doling out for experience, but this quest proved that the game world was just fine.
Though, if the game is working as it should, why the hell am I gaining so much Exp for combat?
“All right. We’ll find your wife.”
Oscar’s face blossomed from hope to relief as he sunk to the floor. “Thank you, thank you!”
“Yeah, whatever. The Gloom Knights complete a quest no matter the cost, so I’ll bring back your wife. I promise.”
He looked up, registered what I’d said, and the color drained from his face. “The—the Gloom—oh by Whisper’s lips.”
I didn’t bother responding. Eris and I quickly left Oscar’s and went to search the area. As we climbed atop Lacuna, Eris chuckled. “I see what you meant when you said your guild was infamous. Poor Oscar was practically shaking.”
I snickered. “Blow up one noble’s manor, and suddenly we’re degenerate criminals. Though it did help us with our reputation with the Merchants Guild after that, so it wasn’t all bad.”
Hive Knight: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG (Trinity of the Hive Book 1) Page 28
