“Have a good trip,” the master sergeant said, holding out his hand. “Think about it again while you’re on the way—maybe you don’t have to go see Ort after all.”
“I do, Master Sergeant, I do,” I replied, giving his hand a squeeze. “Thanks, soldier. And if anyone comes looking for me…”
“Old Trum always knows what to say,” the master sergeant replied proudly. “Rinko, I don’t want a hair on his head to be touched. Even if it means dying, make sure he’s alive and well. Because if he dies and they hear about it in the chapter, we’re all goners.”
“I’ll see to it, Master Sergeant,” Jack said, armor rattling. “He won’t die!”
“Get out of here, then.” The old soldier walked back into the mission and closed the door behind him.
“Where are we going?” I asked the knight.
“Straight,” he replied. “At the end of the street, there will be an outpost with a tunnel on the other side, and that tunnel will take us straight to the foot of the mountains.”
And that’s exactly how it went—we got out of the city without a sound. All the border issues seemed to be saved for people getting into the city; getting out of it was fine.
“By the way, Jack, why do you take orders from him all the time like that?” I asked the knight as we walked down the long tunnel. It had been masterfully dug through the mountain. “He isn’t a knight, so you have seniority in the order’s hierarchy, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do,” I replied. “But that’s just status. Really, he’s worlds above me. He’s been in the order for more than fifteen years, and he trained almost all our current grandmasters at Leeba. Before that he served in Aegan, in the royal palace. Plus, he’s training me, and your trainer is your trainer—you have to respect him and listen to what he says.”
“What’s he doing here if he knows everyone in the leadership?” I asked in surprise.
“He’s the one who wanted to come here,” the knight answered with a shrug. “He says it’s quiet and peaceful, and he got tired of all that action. I’ve never asked him what happened—it’s never felt like the right time.”
“I hear you.” He was an interesting guy, that master sergeant, and he sure knew a lot. Maybe I’ll change my mind and come back to the city at one point so I can have a chat with him. I could just sense that there was a good bit he could tell me.
“Ah, there’s the exit,” the knight exclaimed happily.
Ahead of us was, indeed, light at the end of the tunnel. Thank God, I’m going to be above ground again! I couldn’t wait.
We walked out into the light of the sun, which was sliding toward the west. It was almost blinding.
“Wow,” I said to the world as I shielded my eyes with my hand.
“Exactly.” The knight was blinking like a baby owl.
It was beautiful where we were. Judging by the cliffs on all sides, it was some kind of valley, and a big one at that. There was green grass, trees, buzzing bees…it was great.
“This is gorgeous,” I said, looking around.
“That barely begins to describe it,” Jack agreed. “And it only gets better the farther we go from the tunnel exit.”
He stopped once we’d walked half a kilometer down the path leading away from the tunnel and into the grotto.
“Turn around.”
I looked back to see the mountains. Behind me loomed ridges tipped with white, eternal snow, the peaks hidden in the clouds. It wasn’t just majestic; it was the kind of sight that digs deep into your soul.
“That’s Aikh-Marak,” Rinko explained. “The highest mountain in Fayroll.”
You saw Aikh-Marak, mount of the Lord of Snows.
To complete Great Wonders of Fayroll, see the other four wonders of the Fayroll world.
I was speechless. All I could do was gaze at the beauty in silence.
“Legend has it that the Lord of the Snows lives there,” Jack said to me softly. “Anyone who can get into his palace, make their way to the throne room, talk with him, and answer his three questions will receive great power and knowledge unmatched in Fayroll. At least, that’s what the legends say. I have no idea if they’re true or not. Probably not—wouldn’t someone have made it up there if they were?”
“Maybe they are true,” I objected. “What if whoever got up there just wasn’t able to come back down?”
The knight thought for a while before changing the subject.
“Let’s go. We still have a ways to go, and it’s getting close to nightfall.”
It turned out that the cliffs only surrounded the valley on three sides, as there was a pass into the next valley about six kilometers away from the grotto. Then there was another pass to another valley, with yet another following that one. The valleys were small, barely worthy of the name, and the passes were all different as well. Jack confidently plowed on ahead, from time to time commenting on what was around us.
One thing I learned was that “Sumaki Mountains” was a general name. There were a lot of mountains, but there was even more space suitable for living. On the north were the mines that were so infamous in Rattermark, while in the south was a small, perfectly safe mountain pass that led to the coast. Over there were a few cities: Monter, Flax, and…yep, Tronje. My home town, where my father’s house and my several brothers lived. I decided to go visit and see what it was like if I ever found the time.
He also told me about the many valleys in the area, and about the people living in them: in one there was a group of flower fairies, crafty and vindictive creatures; and in another were artisan dwarves. A third was home to the bandits that occasionally ran off from the mines. Even the mountains’ indigenous population still lived in them: the Vahury—wild, illiterate, terrifying creatures that were two meters tall but actually friendly if you didn’t cross them. They lived in communes laid out by their forebears, and they came down out of the mountains for salt and beads for their women every once in a while. Nobody had ever seen Vahury women, however, because women should stay at home, I said! In a word, had I been just another player, I would have happily spent some time wandering the area. It probably had plenty of quests, and pretty interesting ones at that. But no, I was on the clock—the goddess was pushing me hard, and I couldn’t let my foot off the gas pedal.
It was just about dark when Jack turned to me once again.
“All right, we’re almost there. It’s just over that hill and through the forest on the other side.”
The roar that pierced the air a dozen steps away from us cast doubt on his prediction. And when I saw who it came from, I had to wonder if we’d be getting anywhere at all. At least, not today…
Chapter Nineteen
In which the hero learns something interesting.
Why was I not even surprised? It was only fitting that the crazy day I’d had finish with as ridiculous a finale as the one I was looking at. Although, to be fair, I could count the non-crazy days I’d had in the recent past on my two hands—there was no need to get my toes involved.
The funniest part was that I’d actually gotten lucky! I’d made my way into the very small percentage of players who’d come across that rarest of phenomena: the Kingpin.
The Kingpin was a named monster, though it wasn’t quest-related and it didn’t respawn at the same location. It appeared only once in a great while, always randomly, and for a short period of time. If it didn’t come across any of the players while it was spawned in, usually for half an hour, the Kingpin was the only one who got lucky—it stayed alive. Although, really, that was debatable. Whatever the case may have been, there was no point expecting it to make two appearances in the same place, as the chances of that happening were incredibly low. It happened, of course, but the issue was when it would happen. The two things you could be sure of when it came to the Kingpin were that its level would average the level for the location where you were, and that the loot you would get for killing it would be off the charts. Everything else was completely unpredictable. Oh, but the fac
t that its level might not be all that high didn’t mean that you were in for a quick victory. The Kingpin had way more strength and health than everyone else at its level. The bear rearing up on its hind legs in front of me, the one with the golden-lettered and flickering nameplate that read Efstafius, Gray Bear Kingpin, was Level 63—but that actually put it somewhere around Level 80 or higher. And what am I supposed to do with Mr. Efstafius?
“He’s really big,” Jack noted as he pulled out his sword and placed himself between me and the bear.
“And strong,” I continued sadly, my blade coming out as well. “And we were so close.”
I felt a sudden and overwhelming urge to throw up my hands and just run away. I could’ve logged out, as well, coming back in half an hour when the beast was gone. But I–
“For the order!” yelled Jack, who picked up his sword and rushed toward the bear.
That was that. Screw all of you! I had to fight, since he was an NPC, rather than a player, and I needed to maintain a good relationship with him. At least, even if he, in particular, didn’t mean anything to me, I needed the order. If he lives, which, since he’s an NPC, will probably be the case, and heads back to tell them how I ran away from danger and abandoned him to the bear, what will happen to my reputation? Although, if the bear kills him…
Efstafius let out a prolonged roar as his clawed paw sent the knight on a tumbling journey through the grass. He ended up sprawled against a pine tree, and, judging by the sound he made, the rough landing wreaked havoc on his ribs. But that wasn’t the end of the line for him—his arms and legs continued to twitch. With friends like that… I wasn’t sure if he’d had time to get even one cut in with his sword.
The bear bellowed again, waving his front paws and looking at me menacingly. Time was running out—he was just about to roar one more time and head toward me.
I decided to send in the reserves, even though I really didn’t want to. I was hoping to have them in my back pocket for when I reached the hermit. For all I knew, that Ashen guy could have been a cannibal or some kind of madman.
“I summon the warriors of the Shadow Brigade.”
The air around me congealed, with the smoke morphing into three tall figures. Oh, come on! Four of them had shown up for an elf archer I could really have taken out without their help; when it came time to fight a Kingpin bear with enough health to sink a ship, I only got three of them. At least, they were Level 58. If they can’t take this guy on, I’m in trouble.
“Kill the one with the claws!” I pointed my sword in the direction of the bear.
The warriors tramped toward the bear, and I couldn’t help but notice they didn’t just rush him; they went off one by one to take him in a pincer movement. The Kingpin again waved his paws, watching my troops aggressively.
Two minutes isn’t that much time, I thought, adding my wolf to the fight.
“Bite that furry guy!”
He may have been a wolf, and not a dog, but he still ducked around the bear deftly to latch his jaws into the bear’s rear end and distract him in the process.
The bear spun around, the three blades belonging to my crimson warriors burying themselves in his muscular body.
“Eh, no point just waiting this out,” I said out loud. Running at the bear, I was able to slip my sword into his stomach. “Memory of the God!”
The bear really was a monster. Four swords had struck home, and he still kept swinging away with his paws, his health only easing its way lower. Still, four swords were four swords (three, already, as one of the warriors had already bitten the dust), and he was just about dead when my two remaining troops faded into the twilight. He staggered and wobbled from side to side, and then swung a paw at me. I ducked and swept my sword in his direction. Neither of us got lucky—we both missed.
God only knows how long we would have circled each other had a funny looking Rinko not come to and joined the battle. His open helmet had collected quite a bit of grass as he’d rolled along the ground, most of it stuck in what were battle cutouts or ventilation slits in his open helmet. Whatever they were, the brave knight looked more like a scarecrow or a girl at Kupala Night [10]celebrations. It was an odd sight.
The bear didn’t like Jack’s new look either. He turned around, and I realized that it was now or never.
Memory of the God worked that time, and the bear let out a dying rumble, got up on his back legs, took a few unsteady, waltzing steps, and crashed to the earth.
You unlocked Level 63!
Points ready to be distributed: 5
I didn’t know how much experience I’d gotten for the bear, but, judging by the fact that I leveled-up, it had to be quite a bit.
You unlocked Warrior Kingpins, Level 1.
To get it, destroy another nine Kingpins.
Reward:
Unflappable, a passive ability, Level 1: receive 5% of your total health when its level drops below 10%.
Title: Kingpin Conqueror
To see similar messages, go to the Action section of the attribute window.
It was an impossible action, I thought, though I’d thought the same about the wonders one—and I’d already seen three of them. The reward for the action was an excellent one, even better than the similar ability I had. Anyway, that’s for later—I need to go see what loot I earned from that fellow. It was just a shame that it was an animal, otherwise I definitely would’ve gotten some gear. I knew I’d get something good, though it would be for crafting and therefore useless to me.
And that’s exactly how it turned out: the skin, claws, an eye, and some bile. Oh, sweet mother, why bile?
Bear Kingpin Bile
Rare reagent
Concentration: 85%
Necessary ingredient for Level 8-10 elite potions
Weight: 250 grams
Oh wow, Level 8-10. Even my scanty recollection was enough to realize that the fact that it was for elite potions meant that I’d be getting a pretty penny for it. And a quarter of a kilo, too!
“Ooh,” Jack said, crouching a few times to see if he and his armor were in one piece.
“Pull that grass out of your helmet,” I said. “I mean, it’s better for camouflage, though it looks funny—definitely not befitting a knight.”
Jack slipped his helmet off and started yanking the grass out of the different openings, cursing through his teeth.
“So you said the hermit’s cave is nearby?” Judging by how fastidiously the knight was cleaning his armor, I figured he’d decided to go out dancing after he took me to see Ort. And I needed to get a move on things.
“Yes, we’ll be there in half an hour,” he rattled back as he shook a pauldron.
“Okay, let’s go!” I finally burst out. “If another one of those jumps us, we won’t be able to hold it off.”
“I barely survived the first one,” Jack said, not bothering to hide his emotions. “When he threw me against that pine, something snapped in my head—suddenly there were four of you. I thought I was just seeing things, but I looked back and the four of you were hacking away. That’s when I realized…nope, that was a stiff shot to the head. How could there be four of you?”
“Oh, that’s not good,” I replied. All I needed was another conversation about miracles. “But that happens when you hit your head that hard. Is there just one of me now?”
“Yes, only one.”
“Then you’re fine,” I pronounced categorically. “There was so much stress, and a hit that hard would have killed most people—but you were able to get up on your own! It happened just like with Gunther von Richter: we were fighting this witch once, and she sent him off to rattle around in the trees, too.”
“And what happened?” Jack was so curious, his ears practically stood on end.
“What happened?” I grunted. “He shook his head, got up, and stabbed the witch with his sword. That’s the kind of guy Gunther is!”
Jack was silent, either because his ribs hurt or because he was digesting the story, though he ke
pt plucking grass out of the joints in his armor.
“Almost done, Thane, just another couple minutes.”
I waved my hand, trying to hurry him up.
While I had time to kill, I pulled out the rest of what I’d gotten from the fallen bear.
Bear Kingpin Skin
Rare material
Can be used to create the Violent Barbarian Cloak, a Level 75 elite item with hidden attributes.
To create the cloak, you’ll need the Furrier ability, Level 15+, and the Tailor ability, Level 17+.
The claws and eye were also rare items for crafting, even if they didn’t have the skin’s bells and whistles. But they’re beautiful. I wonder how much I can get for them? I needed to check the forums, figuring I might net a few thousand gold.
The moon came out, full and round, to hang about the mountains like a large, yellow lantern. It did a good job illuminating the area as well as the path we were walking down.
“Do you get a lot of bandits around here?” I apprehensively asked Jack, who was walking ahead.
“Not here,” he replied immediately. “But on the other side of that ridge, absolutely. That’s their valley over there.”
“Why don’t they come here?”
“They’re afraid of the hermit. Everyone’s afraid of him around here.”
“You, too?” I asked directly.
“Me, too,” he replied in all honesty. “But I’ll go right to his cave if I have to. I have my orders, and my job is to carry them out.”
Sicilian Defense Page 25
