Eden's Gate: The Scourge: A LitRPG Adventure

by Edward Brody

  Jax stepped between us, placed his hand on my chest and started pushing me away from our High Elf guard. “Relax, Gunnar. Relax…”

  “He fuckin’ killed our prisoner!” I protested. “We put in a lot of work to get it over h—"

  “Look,” Jax interrupted. “The warlock wasn’t going to help, even if you resurrected it.”

  “You don’t know that,” I said.

  Jax smirked. “I know.”

  My nostrils flared with anger, and I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down.

  “We need the High Elves,” he explained. “Let’s not run them off. This is our village, but it must be a shock to their systems to see us babying an orc and talking about resurrecting a warlock.”

  “But—”

  “I know you have all these ideas of Unity and whatnot but remember who you’re dealing with.” He glanced back to the elves. “One step at a time, Gunnar. One step at a time. Forget the warlock. If you can’t get a disguise kit or figure out some other way to return the child, forget the damn quest.”

  I looked down, gritted my teeth, and clenched fists, but eventually, said, “Fine.”

  Jax gave me a nod of approval and patted me on the shoulder before turning to walk away.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  2/20/0001

  I sat on my bed, flipping the bloodthirsty blade over on each side, inspecting Aaron’s excellent craftsmanship. I was lost in thought—a little bit tired from the outing that day and still annoyed at what Arryl had done.

  I wondered if Jax was right. Was there really no chance that the warlock would’ve helped me, or had the High Elf simply ruined my plans? Were all the orcs really so heartless that they wouldn’t help a child of one of their own? From what I had seen, yes. But I also had to rationalize that I was in a game, and consider everything I had learned since the battling in the Freelands began.

  Clearly the orc’s mother cared for her child, or else she wouldn’t have gone to such great lengths to protect it, and I don’t think she would’ve tasked me with returning it if she thought her husband would react anywhere near the way the other orcs had. And I just couldn’t imagine that Eden’s Gate was a game world that would generate quests that had no path to completion—unless deceptive, of course, and this clearly wasn’t a deceptive quest.

  Was I expected to keep the baby until I was a higher level to complete the quest? That idea seemed a bit unreasonable, but I had other quests pending that were in no way completable at my current ability.

  Knock, knock, knock…

  I got up, opened the door, and was surprised to see Keysia standing outside with the dead orc’s robe in her hands.

  “Oh, hey,” I said.

  “Hey, Gunnar,” she said with a smile. She lifted the robe up for me to see. “You left before we looted the orc, but this seemed like something you would like. Rina’s robe looks a little… umm… feminine.”

  I looked down at the robe that Rina had given me and plucked the fabric. It was silky and quite a thin material, but I hadn’t really thought it was weird until Keysia mentioned it. “Really? You think it’s feminine?”

  “Yeah,” Keysia said. She held the orc’s robe out further. “Here, take this. It has reasonable stats, I suppose. It certainly won’t hurt you.”

  You've received: Lined Warlock’s Robe. +3 Armor. Requires 16 Intelligence. Durability: 6/10. Quality: Poor. Rarity: Common. Weight: 2.0 kg. +5% Dark Magic Damage

  “Yeah, this is way better,” I said. “A little beat up, but it looks a bit like my first mage’s robe.”

  “Trust me,” Keysia said with a smirk. “It’s better suited for you.”

  “Thanks…” I said low. I gulped as I eyed Keysia up and down. She still looked as stunning as ever, and it seemed as if she wasn’t holding any sort of resentment towards me. “Do you want to come inside?”

  “Inside your home?” she questioned. “Inside for what?”

  “Just to talk,” I answered.

  “Talk about what?”

  “Oh, come on,” I said, stepping aside and further opening my door. “You’re still a guildmate, right? You can leave any time you want, of course.”

  Keysia’s eyes darted to the side, and she rubbed her finger across her forehead before shrugging and saying, “Okay, but I won’t stay long.”

  I grinned, stepped back, and waved her inside.

  “What’s the sword in your hand?” she asked as soon as she stepped in.

  “It’s a Bloodthirsty Blade,” I said. I read the stats out to her while holding it out for her to see.

  “Aaron made that? He’s getting good at what he does.”

  “Yeah, he is,” I said. “Since I’m focusing on magic for now, I’m going to take this to Highcastle tomorrow to sell along with a few other items I looted today.”

  “Seems like a waste to sell such a good item,” she said.

  “Yeah, but we’ve got a lot of rebuilding to do, so the guild needs more gold. I’ll do it right after I…” I sighed and frowned. “…after I drop off the baby somewhere in the Freelands. Hopefully, the orcs will do what’s right.”

  Keysia nodded. “Let’s hope they do.” She suddenly perked up and reached for the satchel strapped to the side of her hip. “Oh, I also wanted to give you these,” she said as she pulled a small bag out and handed it to me.

  You’ve received: 5 Red Inscription Powders. Durability: 5/5. Quality: Average. Rarity: Uncommon. Weight: 0.1 kg. Used for Inscription.

  You've received: 5 Blank Runestones. Durability: 10/10. Quality: Average. Rarity: Rare. Weight: 0.1 kg. A mysterious stone with lots of potential.

  “Oh ho, nice,” I said. “I haven’t been able to practice my inscription since the fighting started. Where’d you get these?”

  “I found them in the rubble near the destroyed dark elves’ homes.” She rubbed her fingers across her vine-like gloves. “Same place I found this new gear.”

  “Well thanks,” I said with a grin. I shook my head and homed in on her. I wanted to tell her she was beautiful and how sexy she looked in her new outfit, but I didn’t want to scare her away. “Why are you being so kind to me after… ya know?”

  “You said it earlier yourself,” Keysia explained. “I’m still a guildmate, right?”

  I sighed. “Right.” I was hoping for a better answer than that, but I was just glad that Keysia was talking to me. I wasn’t going to back her into a corner and push her any further when she had already trusted me enough to come into my home. “Aaron has the baby, right?”

  “Yes, he has it.”

  “Good,” I said. I raised my eyebrow to her. “You know, you seem like a natural with the kid. Is that something that interests you?”

  “Orc children?” Keysia questioned.

  “No, just children in general. Are you going to have your own someday?”

  She placed her hand on her chest and veered back. “Me? Kids?”

  “Yeah,” I said, shrugging and shaking my head.

  Keysia looked down and to the side. “You know, I’ve never thought about it, since I’m a dark elf and all.”

  “Dark elves can’t have children?”

  “No, of course they can,” Keysia said. “It’s just uncommon. Our lifestyle, the way we’re treated—it’s not the kind of life you want to bring a child into.”

  “That’s harsh, don’t you think?”

  Keyshia lifted one of her shoulders. “It’s true.”

  “And I guess that means if dark elves have children, their children will be dark elves—not whatever they were before their skin changed?”

  Keysia nodded. “The few babies that I’ve seen have been dark elves.”

  “What if, say…the father was a human?”

  Keysia’s creased her brow.

  “Or a Reborn?”

  Her eyebrows perked up.

  “Would the kid be a half-dark elf?”

  Keysia shook her head. “I’ve never heard of a human mating with a dark elf. For as long a
s I’ve lived, I’ve actually never heard of any other race mixing with a dark elf. I couldn’t tell you what would happen.”

  “Right,” I said, looking away and nodding. I felt a bit anxious and wasn’t sure how to carry our conversation further.

  “What about you?” Keysia asked.

  “Me?” I asked. “You mean kids?”

  Keysia nodded.

  “Before I came to Eden’s Gate it never crossed my mind, but I think it would be cool someday.”

  “Cool?” Keysia creased her brow and smiled. “I can see by the way you treat the orc baby that you’ll be a great father someday.”

  I grinned, felt my stomach do a flip, and a brief moment—a potential future—flashed before my eyes. I imagined Keysia and I living together raising a child of our own. “Really?” I questioned.

  “Yeah, of course,” Keysia answered, smiling.

  I took a step closer and said, “You know, I’m sorry—about everything.” I gently grabbed Keysia’s hand and felt a tingle of energy pour out of her palms and up my arm as I lifted it. I held her hand near my chest and bobbed it up and down a couple times. “Sometimes I think about us, and I just… I don’t know how to explain it. I’m sorry.”

  Keysia stared into my eyes, but her face was unreadable.

  My heart was racing, and I wasn’t sure how else I could put what I was feeling into words. All I knew was that I needed to do something—not be the coward that always waits for the girl to make the first move.

  I closed my eyes, leaned in close, and readied my mouth in preparation for Keysia’s sweet, soft lips. Instead, I caught nothing but air and felt Keysia lean away.

  “Gunnar, are you on joojak?” She pulled her hand from me, took a step back, and smirked. “You’re acting like you’re on joojak.”

  “No, I’m not,” I said, slumping my shoulders and feeling all my excitement immediately fade to disappointment. “I don’t even have any joojak.”

  “Okay, well I’m going to go,” she said as she stepped towards the door. “I have a few things to take care of before it gets too late.”

  “W-wait…”

  “See ya, my nizzle,” she said as she opened the door and stepped outside. She turned around before she closed it. “But let me know if you cop anymore joojak. Aaron was talking about it all day today, and now I’m fienin’ for some of that good-good.”

  “I think you mean—” I tried to blurt before Keysia slammed the door shut. “—fiending…” I shook my head and muttered, “What the hell…?”

  Keysia had clearly been spending way too much time with Aaron, but it couldn’t be helped. No matter how many times I complained to him about teaching NPCs slang, he seemed determined to make them all speak like some combination of rapper and internet troll.

  Getting swerved by Keysia couldn’t be helped either. Actually, it kind of hurt how quickly she seemed to have moved on from me, but I couldn’t deny that it was all my fault. Should I just put all my effort towards Adeelee? I wondered. Should I just give up on both Keysia and Adeelee and just wait ‘til the day I can be reunited with Rachel?

  I sighed and tried to move my head towards more positive thoughts. I too wished that I had some joojak, just to help me relax and get my mind off of things. I made a mental note to pick up some the next day when I was in Highcastle—if I could find the shady guy who sold it.

  Wait a minute… A lightbulb went off in my head.

  Though Jeremy and Sung had failed to find anyone with a disguise kit, it seemed worth it to check if Windell, the shadowy drug dealer in Highcastle had or could get me one. Jax said that it was unlikely that I’d find it on a normal dealer in town as disguise kits were banned, but Windell was trying to sell me illegal stuff every time I saw him. He was hardly a normal vendor.

  Everyone expected me to get rid of the baby the next day, but I figured I could head out to Highcastle early in the morning before everyone woke up. Keysia and Aaron both seemed to have taken a liking to the baby, so I didn’t think they’d mind watching him overnight, which would allow me to slip away unnoticed. And I only promised Jax I’d get rid of the baby if I failed to find a disguise kit, so I wouldn’t be breaking any promises if I managed to find one. I might run a bit behind on doing what I said I was going to do, but I was pretty sure my guild was used to me being late.

  And if I couldn’t find Windell or he couldn’t help me with a disguise kit… Oh well. At least I tried. If I managed to find him, maybe I could get some joojak at the bare minimum.

  It seemed like a good plan. I’d slip away to sell the Bloodthirsty Blade and the items I had looted from the orcs bright and early in the morning. While in Highcastle, I’d make it a mission to find Windell.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  2/21/0001

  I recalled to the Mages Guild, and the study room was empty. I made my way out of the room, down the stairs, and flipped my hood up over my head as I stepped outside and started walking the streets.

  It didn’t take long until I was near the boarded-up house Bartholomew had allowed to be repossessed for failure to pay taxes. There was a weapon shop close by that I had passed several times but never visited, which I was hoping would give me top value for Aaron’s work.

  The shop was in another row of houses that had a similar, slender, tall, townhouse-like appearance to them as the houses in Bartholomew’s row, but this shop had an unusually wide, thick, metal door. On the door, a mace crossing a sword had been engraved, and hanging above the door was a wooden sign that read, “The Blade and Bludgeon”.

  When I pulled the heavy door open and stepped inside, I was greeted with humid air, and the smell of pungent oil and metal filled my nostrils. The grey-walled room was bigger inside than it looked from the outside, and on each wall, nearly every inch was covered with hanging swords, hammers, lances, and other metal weapons. It was by far the most extensive range of melee arms that I had seen in one place since being in Eden’s Gate.

  Stretched across the length of the room was a thick wooden counter, and behind the counter was a bulky man with a thick head of black hair that fell long past his shoulders. His sideburns looked like they had never been shaved and joined with his straight, loose beard. He had shaved both the center of his beard and his mustache down to stubble, giving him a gritty and unusual appearance. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, and his hulking hairy chest bulged between his leather overalls.

  The man was polishing a sword with a bottle of oil when I stepped inside, and he merely glanced at me before turning back to his work.

  I walked around a moment, admiring the range of weapons he had, but knowing that I had brought no money and would mostly be fighting with staves for a while—none of which he had on display.

  “Need something, ask,” the man grunted as I stepped up to the counter.

  “I’d like an appraisal,” I said as I pulled the Bloodthirsty Blade out of my bag.

  The man perked up, and immediately lost interest in the item he was polishing when he saw the red sheathe and high quality craftmanship that was obvious in Aaron’s creation.

  I sat the blade beside the sword the man had been working on, and he picked it up and rotated it, inspecting every inch. He pulled the blade partially out of the sheath, put the metal close to his face, and looked at it meticulously. He eventually drew the blade all the way out from the sheath, swung it, and ran his finger across the sharp edge, all the way down to the tip.

  He reached under his counter, pulled out a tiny, yellow identification wand, and touched the blade with the tip. After learning the weapon’s specifications, he looked up to me and smiled. “Nice weapon ‘cha got here.”

  “What will you give me for it?”

  “I reckon I can part with 8,000 for this. The healing ability makes it quite attractive.”

  I had to hold in my giddiness when he quoted the price—significantly more than what I thought I could get for it—and it made me more inclined to want to keep the sword. But, considering both me and my guil
d were desperate for cash, I knew I had to let it go.

  “How about 10,000?” I asked, pushing my luck.

  “Har!” the burly man laughed with an unusual, thick tone. “I’ve never seen you in here, but you won’t play old Reddun for a fool.”

  “9,000?” I tried again.

  “85 is the best you’re gonna get.”

  “86?” I pushed one more time.

  The man tilted his head down and looked at me from the top of his eyes as if he were wearing a pair of invisible spectacles.

  “Never mind,” I said, shaking my hand in a wash-away motion. Apparently, my negotiation skills weren’t very effective against old ‘Reddun’ as he called himself. “I’ll take 8,500 for it.”

  The man grinned, sat the Bloodthirsty blade behind the counter, then pulled a pouch from a pocket on the front of his overalls. He quickly counted out the gold.

  You’ve received: 8,500 Gold Pieces

  I grinned at the haul. “Thanks.”

  “Of course,” Reddun said. “If you ever get another weapon like that, bring it back here to The Blade and Bludgeon. I’ll be happy to buy it from ya.”

  “I have a few other things I’d like to sell,” I said with a grin as I started pulling out the Dark Magic spell, the warlock’s robe, the enforcer’s axe, and the two almost depleted staves.

  I wasn’t expecting the best rates from Reddun for the items, but if he could give me a reasonable amount of gold, I’d take it anyway. I had a mission to find Windell that morning, so I didn’t have a lot of time to visit various vendors to find the best payout.

  After he inspected all the items, he gave me a lowball offer, which I countered, and we eventually settled on a deal that both he and I were happy with. Overall, I made an additional 7,500 gold, bringing my total takings to a whipping 16,000.

  “Oh, and before you go,” Reddun said right as I was about to push open the door.