He waited for the next swing from the club, and it came down in a massive overhand strike. He caught it on his sword and pushed the weapon farther up while taking a step forward and thrusting the dagger directly in the bottom of the Goblin’s jaw and up through its head. The creature collapsed before he was able to pull the knife back out, and it took the blade down with it.
You have dealt 120 damage to Goblin (4)(Level 6) with Simple Iron Dagger (Brain Rupture).
Goblin (4)(Level 6) has died.
You have gained 75 experience in Block for killing Goblin (4)(Level 6).
You have gained 75 experience in Swords for killing Goblin (4)(Level 6).
You have gained 75 experience in Small Blades for killing Goblin (4)(Level 6).
You have gained 75 experience in Dual Wield for killing Goblin (4)(Level 6).
You have gained 125 experience for slaying Goblin (4)(Level 6).
Goblin (1)(Level 6) has died.
You have gained 80 experience in Stealth for successful use against Goblin (1)(Level 6).
You have gained 75 experience in both Archery, and the Subskill Aim shot for killing Goblin (1)(Level 6).
He turned to face the other Goblin only to find it was already right on top of him. It swung the dagger at him, and he was able to get the sword up to deflect part of the hit but not fast enough to block all of it. The edge of the blade dug into his left shoulder but wasn’t a terrible injury.
Goblin (5)(Level 6) has dealt 20 damage to you with Rusty Iron Dagger(Glancing Blow).
The initial hit barely registered to Arthur, due to the adrenaline raging in him, but it started to ache shortly after the Goblin pulled back. He took a glance at his status.
HP: 130/150
Mana: 100/100
Stamina 70/150
He was pleased that he was holding up pretty well so far. The surprise attack that helped him drop some of them quickly had given him the upper hand so far, but he wasn’t sure what would be the best method for taking out the last Goblin. He wasn’t keen on being stabbed himself, and honestly, he wasn’t a skilled swordsman.
The Goblin rushed back in with a flurry of strikes, and Arthur struggled to keep up. Since he didn’t have his dagger to help block, he was only using the sword, and the little creature’s speed was faster than he could move. The Goblin was alternating between clawing him with its freehand and slashing with the rusty dagger it was holding. Arthur did his best to block the attacks but was trying to focus on the blade and ignoring the freehand. This allowed a few more hits to land.
Goblin (5)(Level 6) has dealt 5 damage to you with Melee.
Goblin (5)(Level 6) has dealt 5 damage to you with Melee.
Goblin (5)(Level 6) has dealt 5 damage to you with Melee.
Goblin (5)(Level 6) has dealt 20 damage to you with Rusty Iron Dagger(Glancing Blow).
The quickness of the Goblin was keeping him from being able to retaliate. He was searching for ideas when the decision was taken out of his hands as a hatchet suddenly sprouted from the top of the Goblin’s head, and it fell to the ground, dead.
Goblin (2)(Level 6) has died.
You have gained 80 experience in Stealth for successful use against Goblin (2)(Level 6).
You have gained 75 experience in both Archery, and the Subskill Aim shot for killing Goblin (2)(Level 6).
You have gained 125 experience for slaying Goblin (2)(Level 6).
You have gained 125 experience for the death of Goblin (5)(Level 6).
Standing behind the Goblin, with a grim look of determination, was Rowan. He looked at the Goblin and then at Arthur. He smiled at Arthur and then shrugged, “I couldn’t let you have all the fun.”
“You arrived just in time. I was debating just what to do about it, and you took care of the problem for me. I’m going to go check on our damsel in distress over there.” Arthur told him. He had taken two steps when Rowan grabbed his arm and turned Arthur toward him.
“Are you sure about that? It may not be a good idea to be conversing with her kind. I don’t mind helping her, because goblins are disgusting, but I am not sure we should approach her.” He told Arthur.
“Why would I not talk to her? She is drop-dead gorgeous and needed help. I’d like to see how she got caught out here by goblins, to begin with. How about you search through the goblins and take everything off of them that could be useful. Anything they had like the dagger that the last Goblin was using could be used or smelted down and reforged if needed. Probably worth salvaging the metal out of the other one’s club as well. Just sort through everything they have and gather it up while I talk to her.” Arthur suggested.
“Alright.” Rowan said, “I’m not a big fan of the idea of talking to her, but I’ll trust your judgment on the matter. I’ll work my way through the goblin bodies.”
Rowan turned to the nearest body and knelt to start his work while Arthur turned back toward the woman and started walking.
Chapter 12
Meeting with an Elf
Arthur strolled toward the lady that was still backed up to a tree with the dagger in her hand. She had a few scrapes and cuts on her, but nothing that looked serious. He raised his hands with his palms facing her to show he had nothing in his hands. Now that the fight was over and he was getting closer, he could see some more details of the woman.
She had smooth features and a slender build, as he noticed before. Her eyes were almond-shaped and slightly larger than he would expect but not unattractive. Her thin eyebrows were furrowed, although he suspected that was due to the situation and her not knowing him. She had rather high and sharp cheekbones that almost looked alien but did not take away from her striking good looks. Her breasts were kind of small but sat on her frame well. Her hair was a gunmetal gray, and her eye color was the most exciting part of all. It was a bright lavender color.
Arthur decided to use Scan as he approached.
You have gained 125 experience in Scan for successful use against Allendria (Level 10).
Name: Allendria
Level: 10
Age: ??
Race: Elf (Dark)
HP: 100/160
MP: 0/100
Stamina: 10/160
Strength: ?
Agility: ?
Intellect: ?
Wisdom: ?
Endurance: ?
Charisma: ?
Luck: ?
Experience: ???
Skills
???
Arthur was surprised at the lack of information. He quickly dismissed it as his low level in the ability, though. He guessed that people not classified as creatures probably required a higher level to glean information from.
Arthur came to a stop five feet from the woman and looked at her.
“Hello, my name is Arthur. Is there anything I can do to help you now that the monsters have been defeated?” he asked.
She gave him a look that flashed with a bit of fury and took him off guard.
“I am thankful for the help, but what do you want from me?” she asked him.
“My friend and I were merely traveling in the forest hunting when we heard your distress. We felt it necessary to help. No one deserves to be at the mercy of those nasty creatures. I do not desire anything from you, but I am rather intrigued by you. I have never seen one of the dark elf kindred before. Is your beauty a normal trait shared by your race?” he asked nonchalantly.
She blushed slightly, and then the steely looked flashed back over her face again.
“I do not want any trouble with your kind. The goblins only surprised me in too large of numbers for me to counter effectively.”
That was an odd thing for her to say. Was there some kind of tension between dark elves and humans? That might explain some of Rowan’s hesitance on him speaking with her.
“I merely wish to make sure you need no further assistance, although I was hoping you might tell me why you were out here alone. I noticed you have some cuts and that you are bleeding in a few spots. Do you nee
d assistance in cleaning the wounds?” Arthur asked.
Her voice changed a little the next time she spoke.
“Please give me the strength to make it through this Human’s lies and get out of here.” She mumbled.
“I told you the truth. I have no wish to harm you and only want to help.” Arthur said, but he also noticed a slight change to his voice as well. He couldn’t place what it was, though. As soon as he saw the look on her face, he forgot all about it.
She ran at him and grabbed him by the front of the shirt.
“How do you know the Tongue of the Fallen?” she screamed at him.
“What are you talking about? We have just been talking. What is this Tongue of the Fallen you are referring to?”
She cocked her head at him and looked at him closely. Arthur imagined the incredulous look on his face helped ease her fury a little because she backed up and took a deep breath.
“I am not sure how you do not realize this, but you did speak a different language, as did I. When I mumbled about the lies, I was speaking the language of the Dark Elves, the language referred to as the Tongue of the Fallen. Somehow, not only did you understand it, but you were subconsciously able to respond to me in the same language even though you claim to know nothing of it. Either you are lying about your associations, which I find as rather unlikely based on the reactions I’ve seen from you, or you have some type of special abilities with languages.” She said with a thoughtful look.
Arthur looked at her dumbfounded. “You are serious? I did speak a different language, then? I didn’t mean any disrespect or anything. I did not mean to anger you and was honestly only hoping to help. I am not familiar with many of the customs around here and have never met a Dark Elf myself, so if I did offer any type of insult, I apologize.”
Her tone changed again when she replied, “Well, it is surprising to find another with knowledge of our language, but there are no laws in our culture that I am aware of preventing others from knowing it. Usually, other people are not able to understand it even when we attempt to teach it. I also do not detect any magical device on you that could be assisting in translation, although I can tell you have a magical affinity with at least one element. I have to say it is refreshing to meet a polite and civilized human.”
“Thank you for the compliment, but I can honestly say I do not understand all of what is happening. Do you mind filling me in on what you mean? Why would there be animosity between humans and dark elves? As I said before, I am not from around here, so this is the first I have heard of this.” Right after he said that something clicked with him, though. “Wait, how can you tell I have a magic affinity with an element?”
She let out a quick laugh that was beautiful and musical. “Well, I will tell you that I can detect your magic. Elves, in general, are pretty sensitive to magic, and the fact that I have affinity in magic as well makes it even easier for me to detect yours. I am not advanced enough in my magical ability to determine exactly what element or elements you can control, but I can tell you can control at least one.”
“I guess that is good to know. I have pretty much no knowledge about magic and haven’t used mine much at all since I can’t seem to figure it out. I know we just met and all, but would you be willing to help me with a little bit of magical training? If you are busy or do not have the time, I do understand.” Arthur responded.
She gave Arthur a thoughtful look and stood in silence for a few moments.
“This is rather unusual for a human to cavort with one of my kind, much less to ask for help. On top of that, you have treated me fairly and with no prejudice. I will agree to accompany you and assist you with training if you can agree to do something for me first.” She said.
“I suppose that would be fair to gain the assistance of a rather fabulous looking dark elf for the price of a task,” Arthur said as he winked at her. “What is this task you need to be done?”.
She blushed, which was somewhat hard to tell with the dark complexion she had, but it was still visible if you looked right.
“It is rather simple, but with the danger we just faced, I could use some help. Before I was found by those creatures, I was camped in a small cave of the mountain not far from here. I heard them as I was returning to the cave and didn’t have enough time to grab my few belongings before I fled. If you could assist me in recovering these items, I will accompany you back to where you are staying and assist you with the training of your magical skills.”
Aiding Allendria
Requirements: Level 6
Rewards: Gain a companion
Description: After saving Allendria at the hands of goblins, she has asked you to help recover the few possessions she had before her fleeing their pursuit. Assist her in finding and retrieving the items.
Note: Companions will only accompany you until the terms of your agreements have been met or until your goals and feelings no longer align.
Do you wish to Accept this Quest? Yes/No
Arthur smiled broadly and acknowledged the quest acceptance, “Of course I would assist you with that. That is more than fair. Let us finish sorting out this mess with the bodies, and we can try and find this cave you stayed in before heading back to town. I wasn’t planning on us being out here much longer anyway with the amount of stuff we had gathered.”
Arthur turned and walked back toward Rowan. He could hear Allendria following behind him and smirked at the idea of this beautiful woman becoming his magic teacher. Hopefully, there would be no issues with her being in town with him. The amount of abject disdain he had seen from Rowan, for what appeared to be, no reason baffled him.
As he got closer, he noticed that Rowan had finished his work with the goblins. They were all lined up in a neat row, and it appeared they had been stripped of any possession worth note. There were still scraps of clothing on some of them, but nothing that looked like he would ever want it to touch his body. Rowan himself had a small pile of items off to the side and looked like he was sorting it all out.
When Arthur got close, Rowan looked up at him. The man gave him a quick smile and then had a quick look of shock and fear cross his face when he saw Allendria approaching Arthur. Arthur decided he needed to head this off quickly.
“Rowan, I’d like for you to meet Allendria. She will be accompanying us for a while. I have agreed to help her find some of her belongings she lost while fleeing these creatures, and then she has agreed to help me with an issue of my own once we return to the village.” Arthur said with a smile. “Allendria, this is Rowan, the local blacksmith, and my traveling companion.” Arthur waved his hand toward Rowan.
Allendria and Rowan both stared at each other for a few moments with looks of apprehension on their faces before I saw a determination in Rowan’s eyes. He stood up, walked over to her, and extended his hand out to her. “Pleasure to meet you, Allendria.”
She gave a lopsided smile, and after a moment’s hesitation, reached out her hand to shake his.
“It is a pleasure to meet you as well, Rowan, although I will say this is one of the first times I have ever used the human style greeting of shaking hands. I am familiar with many of your customs, but the lack of communication between our races has never given me much chance to practice.” She said with a slightly humorous note in her voice.
“Great! Now that we are all acquainted with each other, what have you found, Rowan?” Arthur asked.
Rowan looked back to Arthur. “Not much of value, to be honest. There were a few scraps of cloth that were somewhat serviceable, after extensive washing, of course. There were also a couple of weapons that are not worth much of anything as they are, but with the shortage of metal in the village, they can be reforged into something useful. No other belongings of any note were on any of them.” He summarized.
“Alright then, let’s load the few things worth keeping on the cart and get moving. We need to help Allendria find her belongings quickly so we can get back. We want to have plenty of time left to get some of this
stuff cleaned up and worked on. We also don’t want the meat sitting out very long today before we can get it cleaned and stored. Luckily it isn’t hot under cover of the trees here, so that is helping us right now.” Arthur told them.
They both nodded and set to work, putting the few items in the cart. Arthur saw no reason to bother with the bodies of the goblins now. The creatures of the forest would pick the bones clean, and what was left would just return to the soil itself over time. The cart was loaded rather quickly since there weren’t more than a few things to put on it, and they started in the general direction Allendria had indicated.
Allendria wasn’t entirely sure where the cave she had slept in was since she had been in a mad dash when escaping, but did say she would recognize the area when close. She spent a decent amount of time looking for, what she thought was, a safe place to sleep, so this allowed her to be familiar with the area close to the cave, but during the flight from the creatures, she wasn’t able to keep up with her surroundings.
During the trip, Rowan motioned to Arthur to join him by the cart while Allendria was leading the way. Arthur fell back to walk side by side with the man as they continued to follow her.
“Are you sure this is a good idea, Arthur?” he asked.
“I don’t know if it is a good idea, but I also don’t see any harm in it. Allendria needed help, and we helped her and are finishing the job. We are out here to look around for any useful resources anyway, so walking toward her cave only gives us more of a chance to find additional resources we may need. I also have a deal with her as well to assist me back in town.” Arthur stated.
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