The Way of the Clan 2 (World of Valdira)

by Dem Mikhaylov

  'Have a look!’ I pointed by my chin.

  Something gray and black and rather large flashed among the trees....

  A few seconds passed in anxious waiting, and then I breathed an indescribable relief and cursed under my breath.

  ‘Mm-m... Deer?’ my companion asked trying to identify the flitting away animals.

  'Deer,’ I confirmed coming out to the shore. ‘And a lot. And different. A whole little horned family. But we’ll sort it out later. But now you are to tell me what you are keeping in your backpack!’

  ‘You can have a look,’ Keira shrugged. Honestly, I grabbed everything from the clan vault. Could hardly carry it then.’

  'Ok, let me check,’ I was really interested in it, displaying the contents of myinventory. I gasped once I saw it - dully gleaming chain mail, helmets, leggings, some predatory-looking swords, iron-bound shields, three tightly packed with a quiver of arrows, steel boots, some rags and a few scrolls with combat spells.

  Quickly looking through the contents of the bag to estimate its usability, I grimaced with displeasure - a range of equipment was from the fifteenth to the twentieth level. Nothing for growth. Anyway, for me. The things are "adjusted" for strength and protection, nothing for stamina except shields. Scrolls... four pieces of combat and one higher healing. Arrows... arrows are very good... but...’

  'Is the bow in your backpack?’ I threw over my shoulder. Keira was doing the same - inventory.

  'Bow... oh, no... and don’t you have it?’

  'Nope,’ I sighed and summed up, ‘So these arrows are for digging in the teeth. What scrolls have you got?’

  'Here you go,’ Keira moved her hand and after a moment a whole bunch of stuff appeared at her feet. She devastated the backpack on the ground. Quickly stooping, the girl picked up a few books and hid them back in the bag.

  ‘You are not clever,’ I chuckled starting to dig into items.

  'What?’

  ‘You don’t show me the books, hide them carefully. And if you are killed? What can stop me if I want to delve into your precious bag?’

  Without answering, Keira shrugged and began taking off her clothes until staying in a beautiful striped swimsuit.

  'Where's your diaper?’ I was surprised.

  'I’m not a noob to wear standard items, particularly ugly underwear,’ it was Keira’s turn to surprise, picking up the armor from the sand. ‘Wait... are you still wearing a nappy from the Cradle?’

  'Well,’ I shook my head in amazement. Does it make any difference what is under my pants? The main thing is to have armored pants! Why did not you take anything for stamina? And why do we need seven identical swords, four bronze maces and one silver trident? And this? A two-handed ax for the seventieth level with the minimum a hundred points force requirement!’

  'I told you, I was taking everything at random.’

  'You’re not very good at it,’ I sadly bowed my head. ‘If I were in your clan vault... Okay, we’ll use what we have. I have found twelve scrolls of higher rank in your pile. Seven combat, three healing and two divine blessing. Not many, actually.

  'Keep the scrolls,’ Keira advised. ‘You're a mage. This time, I'll protect you.’

  'Will you have enough health?’ I chuckled skeptically. ‘No, mate, until you level up, don’t even try to move forward. And generally hide behind my back during the entire journey.’

  'Health? I contributed only in stamina during last five levels! The rest is equally contributed between agility and strength. Plus the shield is very good for my level, while craft sword is certainly higher in damage than your spells. You have seen the rest of the outfit - all strength and protection. Well, I’m still a baby, but I’m a mini-tank with sharp teeth!’

  'All right, then,’ after thinking for a while I admitted she was right. ‘I’ll take a couple of healing scrolls of and the same number of combat ones. Just in case. Have you got ant native spells?

  “Small healing” and “small cleaning". Healing is almost second rank. But I’ve got very little mana. And I haven’t increased wisdom at all.’

  'The standard set,’ I summed up, and after inspecting the shore again, ordered, ‘Time to go!’

  ‘And about other things?’

  ‘We’ll leave unnecessary. Including the ax. This pile is just a bunch of junk. Ready?’

  'Ready!’

  Not satisfied with the response, I carefully looked at Keira from head to foot and snorted - she looked like a small bar of highly polished metal. She was holding powerful sword in her hand quite easily, there was a round shield behind, the head was hidden under the helmet with the emblem of a snow-white bird sprawling its wings.

  'I’m the leader,’ said Keira stubbornly bending her head forward.

  "No problem,’ I was eager to agree. ‘What shall I do, white mistress. But can you start to give orders in about ten or twenty minutes, all right?

  There followed a logical question, 'Why?

  'You will see soon,’ I promised, heading for a peaceful lawn with grazing animals. ‘Does your book say anything about deer?’

  'About deer? Actually nothing. Shore of love is without violence and threats. Something like a paradise. No word about deer.’

  'Very very good!’ I exclaimed happily, stopping at the edge of the lawn, one step before reaching the silky grass.

  'So beautiful!’

  I just nodded. Deer was just great. And I haven’t seen animals like these in the "big world". There was enough deer there, but they looked different. And not so beautiful.

  A full-grown male with a powerful neck and head proudly planted with huge antlered - forty-seventh level. The graceful doe with tremendous moist eyes - the fortieth level. And the three spotted fawns about the same age, but absolutely different from each other both by behavior or appearance. Fawns of the thirty-second level. Something confused me and looking closely I realized what it was - just two adults and three deer fawns. Maybe there is still violence on the shore of love or deer learned to give birth to triplets at a time.

  Noticing our presence, the head of the deer family snorted, but did not show a slightest aggression. The funny calves tossing their backsides ran at full speed towards us, however, delayed at every step to grab a tuft of grass or a flowe. Still very inexperienced...

  'Oh my cuties!’ Keira. ‘You're so beautiful! How lovely! Ross, you just have a look, how ridiculously they are running!’

  'Yeah... so about the deer, then, nor a word, right?’

  'I told you – nothing at all,’ she dismissed without turning her head. ‘They are simple mobs in the passing area. Perhaps, they are added to enliven the landscape. According to the legend, this place does not only signify Myrtle’s love, but also her dream. Maybe this is what she had dreamed of during her lifetime – together with Grim peacefully and happily walking with their three sons. Or something like that…’

  'It is clear,’ I muttered, pulling from my jacket pocket a folded scroll.

  I raised it above my head and, keeping the deer in view, shouted "Fire flow!" With a light crackling scroll melted in the air, my fingers got momentarily shrouded in translucent purple haze.

  Keira didn’t have time to understand anything, when raging fiery lava escaped from the land and roaring brought down to appease the clearing flow of liquid flame. One moment - and anxious deer parents were absorbed by the fiery wave and overflowing them it rushed away. One moment - and funny kids turn into ashes in front of us. One moment - and the hot wave of superheated air crashed into us, bringing with it the smell of burning and clubs of gray smoke... That burned your dream, Myrtle the Smashing Blade... turned into ash.

  Lines denoting experience were running continuously in front of my eyes. The fire burned all living creatures in the clearing. Including all the tiniest creatures such as bees and mice.

  You got a new level!

  You got a new level!

  You got a new level!

  You got a new level!

  'Twenty-seventh,�
� I gasped, looking gloomily at huge ashes with whitish smoke.

  'Ros... why...' Keira was crying, maybe she did not notice tears rolling down her digital cheeks. She was crying looking at me with disbelief in her eyes.

  'Wake up, Paladin!’ I snapped. ‘You told me it's a game! How do you want to go further? If that fucking shore of love have mobs of the fiftieth level! And what will happen at the point where you say: dark horror is crawling from all the cracks?! What happened to you, Keira? You’re different!’

  'Fawns...’

  'They’ll restore in one hour,’ I cut off. ‘As well as the burnt grass! And if we find other mobs - I'll burn them too!’

  ‘It’s a quest area and they may not restore,’ Keira sobbed, making me squint in puzzlement.

  'What happened to you, Keira? You're different.’

  'They were so beautiful…’

  'In this world, even rats look adorable! But you have killed dozens of them in order to win the tournament! How many levels did you level up?’

  'Six,’ sobbed Keira calming down,.

  'I have four,’ I sighed. ‘Four levels per one second. Four blanks... damn you, Gosha!’

  We have leveled up dramatically, but not free - none of our skills did not increase, did not perfect. Senseless growth. Weeds grow like that - quickly and violently, but without fruit, and soon dries up.

  ‘Contribute all in stamina,’ I muttered darkly, looking at the sight of a short line hovering in front of my eyes:

  Available contribution points: 20

  'We need to increase the survivability for love or money,’ I said. ‘Let’s spend a small part of the scrolls here and save the rest for passing through Myrtle’s madness. Oh, we came too early here!

  'You're right, Ros,’ Keira agreed nodding her head and wiping her tears. ‘I’m too emotional. Perhaps, I’m tired, you know all these events in real life. Maybe we came too early here, but we have to pass it! And we’ll do it!’

  ‘That’s it!’ I smiled. Now I can recognize real Keira. Come on, workmate. Let’s look for other "family dreams" and bring them to fire. Using another scroll, and then try to cope on our own.’

  We came across the next little family in five minutes, literally at a stone's throw from the steaming clearing, in a very small, but dense spruce forest. Green royal spruce will decorate any forest, but they looked a little out of place next to the golden beach and tropical palm trees. And in this spruce forest, we found another beastly family - two adults and three wolf cubs unable to sit still for a minute.

  At the sight of a huge male wolf with a lighter fur than the female wolf gave me the shudders - so powerful that fiftieth-level beast looked. Initially, I wanted to activate a "swamp" scroll, but then noticed owls sitting on a branch and then a squirrel jumping and its funny little family. A badger family went out rustling busily from the bushes, not paying attention to the wolves and predators, in turn, didn’t look at a comprehensive five-course lunch passing by. That's really true - no violence, no threat... Parents were walking, luxuriating on the grass, basking in the rays of the sun caressing and not paying any attention to their young. Kids of all colors were playing, and playing, and playing again without stopping this lesson for a second!

  And all the creatures in pairs... no way, in groups of five. Somehow that shore of love started to awaken my profound horror.

  Shaking my head to ward off the delusion, I removed the scroll back into the bag and fished out another -"rain of fire", which was likely to guarantee the total coverage of this idyll. I raised my hand up slowly he, and looked around the small spruce for the last time, muttering a rhyme that came to my mind:

  'Five cubs and five squirrels, and little badgers, owlets all funny kids...’

  'Ross, what are you doing?’ the girl said softly, standing in front of me, lowering the sword prepared for a battle.

  'Nothing... But this is not the shore of love... this is some well-disguised horror attraction. Fiery rain!..’

  Achievement!

  You’ve got the achievement "David and Goliath!" of the second grade!

  See the table of the obtained achievements in the settings of your character.

  Your reward for the achievement: + 0.5% to the gained experience.

  The current level of the bonus: + 1.5%

  With one last glance at the dying spruce, I muttered grimly, 'Plus six.’

  'Plus seven,’ echoed Keira.

  I reached the thirty-third level... Keira reached the twenty-eighth.

  'Growing up like mushrooms,’ Keira gave me a pale smile.

  'Uh-huh... and we have the same combat abilities as these fungi,’ I snorted. ‘Any mushroom picker will cope with us without a knife. Have you contributed available points?’

  ‘Just a moment.’

  'Focus on vitality,’ I reminded her and shook my head in annoyance. If Keira can benefit from extra stamina points as Paladin is essentially the same tank and even surpasses it in many ways, but for me...’

  'Yes, I know,’ Keira sighed. ‘Ready. Now I'm a plump girl with a thick skin. Have you contributed?’

  'I’m doing it now,’ I said.

  Fifty contribution points are available... So many and so few at the same time.

  I thought for a moment and decided to contribute I points into three parameters and then stared at the obtained result:

  The character’s current level: 33.

  Basic characteristics of the character:

  Strength - 16

  Intelligence - 87

  Agility -11

  Stamina - 30

  Wisdom - 27

  Digits hanging in the corner of the screen increased sharply, at the same time I became the owner of a new achievement.

  Achievement!

  You've got the achievement "Big Man" of the first rank!

  See the table of the obtained achievements in the settings of your character.

  Your reward for the achievement:

  + 5 to protection against attacks of the physical type.

  + 75 to the number of hit points.

  Current bonus protection: + 5

  Current bonus to life points: + 75

  If I contribute another thirteen points in intelligence, I’ll get the third rank of Egghead achievement. At such a rate, it is going to happen pretty soon.

  'Have you got any achievements?’ I wondered.

  'Yes, I have. Two good and a shameful one. Shit…’

  ‘What do you mean?’ I was amazed, checking the table of my achievements just in case. I have seen nothing shameful...

  'Idler!’

  ‘Am I an idler?!’

  'Well, no! It’s the name of the achievement: you’ve got the achievement "Idler" of the first rank! I received it because I got ten levels in a party doing nothing!’

  'Oh-oh-oh... And what does it give?’

  'The first rank is nothing wrong. However, a warning poped up that if I get a "Idler" of the second rank, the number of gained experience will drop by ten percent, plus other penalties. To get rid of the achievement, I need to get minimum eleven levels, leveling up alone. And…’

  'And?’

  'And a wooden statuette of a sleeping sloth appeared in the inventory! With an inscription: a perfect souvenir for your private room!’

  'Hmm... but we leveled up,’ I tried to make a good face at a bad game. ‘Let's go to your madness, my Protectress, you will protect me from it?’

  'The next round?’ Keira suddenly sobered. ‘But you said we needed to level up.’

  'Yes, I said it,’ I replied. ‘But I don’t know for sure. Only assumptions made on the basis of several passages from the book that I haven’t read. Besides, I have never been there, I haven’t fought there, I haven’t seen anything there. We have increased vitality, leveled up a bit. We’ll survive a couple of strokes. I think it's time to conduct reconnaissance.’

  'Maybe, we’d better stay here a little? There is no time limit.’

  'Let’s have a look first. If
we see that a distraught Tyrannosaurus of the eightieth level wearing a cheerful cap on is head is wandering there humming Jingle Bells, then we’ll certainly stay here longer. But according to the text passages there is no direct hint about evil monsters.’

  'And what about the dark horror crawling from all the cracks?’ she replied, getting to a hillock overgrown with thick grass and peering into the icy peak surrounded by mist. And I disliked this swirling mist – a thick impenetrable veil with raging twists inside and dark gray spikes pulling out of the total mass...

  I could not help admiring the Keira’s image. As if a female athlete clad in steel leaped straight from the old painting into Valdira. So she is standing on a hill... and gazing into the distance from under the chain mail glove, looking out for nasty creatures...

  'Horror differs,’ I chuckled, shrugging my shoulders. ‘Well, it’s up to you. I just mentioned it, and you are to concede…’

  'What?’

  ‘I mean, you are to agree,’ I corrected.

  'Let's go,’ Keira daring nodded. ‘Let’s reach the border between love and madness... ugh...’

  'There only one step from love to madness,’ I grinned.

  'We'll get to the border area and look cautiously what's going on in the fog. On the way we can kill all mobs to level up a little more.’

  ‘Yes, ma’am!’

  'Can you see a windmill behind the reed?’ Keira pointed at a small building. ‘On the hill? We are heading for it. Ready?’

  'True Pancho is always behind your shoulder!’ I foolishly stretched out at attention, saluting by my staff.

  Keira smiled faintly and I exhaled with relief. At least something…

  Still, Gosha is a bastard! The girl has experienced such troubles and hasn’t really come to herself, but he almost forced her into the gaming cocoon.

  All in the name of the Clan!

  And the bastard, I bet, is lying in the luxury ward eating kiwis... And I have to pretend being a clown here, remembering all known jokes and improvising on the go. Soon my virtual face will crack across of the stretched carefree smile of a fool...

  The sooner we finish with this incomprehensible task, the better.

  Catching my serious gaze that didn’t match a cheerful smile at all Keira smiled again, and, raising her gleaming sword over her head, shouted,