046. Crucible - 23

046. Crucible - 23

I decided to make my first showing for the Greens, though that was less about my existing impression of the Blacks, but the appearance of a large beast rushing forward, toward the border between Greens and the unaffiliated.

I wasn't the only one who noticed the beast. Both groups already noticed, trying to react to it. The unaffiliated tried to pull back, but the Greens were against that, forcing the group to take the point against the beast.

Considering the ragtag nature of the unaffiliated group put together at the last moment, armed badly, struggling morale, and with no plan for how to deal with the approaching beast it was not far from attempted manslaughter.

Or murder, I decided as I noticed one of the Greens taking the weapon of a young man, yet forcing him to stay on the line when he tried to pull back.

I expected the camp to collapse without leadership which was the whole reason I stayed, as chaos would allow me to experiment easily but this was faster than I expected.

Still, my first destination was not the Greens, nor did I go to meet with Jertann, who was leading a force toward the edge after noticing the struggle later than usual, Karak's absence showing. I walked forward, ahead of the rest of the groups, cutting the path of the beast a hundred yards away from the closest group, my halberd raised.

It was time to make a show.

"Come on, little beast," I shouted as I turned my gaze toward the beast which had the rough outline of a rabbit, but with the size of a horse and stood on its path bravely. It was not my preferred way of dealing with a beast, but I was trying to make a point.

The beast rushed forward, and at the last moment, it sped up, jumping forward. I pulled to the side before swinging my halberd, completing the movement like I was using a skill. Another drawback I had to deal with, but luckily, Perception allowed me to read the movement of the beast like an open book.

Alone, I would have attacked the head, trying to decapitate it, but the nature of the show I was putting on required something different. I needed to convince them that the first attempt was not an accident.

I hated the necessity to show off, but sometimes it was better to reveal cards earlier than later.

Behind me, I could see the camp freezing as I dismantled the beast with the methodical approach of a matador, each slash leaving another bloody mark, my steps bringing me just inches away from a devastating hit

Then, one last hit, taking it down.

[+9,291 Experience]

Altogether, it took only a minute, but the impact was beautiful. As I left the body behind and walked toward the disputed site, both groups had been looking at me with fear in their eyes the unaffiliated also had hoped to accompany their fear.

Now, it was time to make my point.

As I walked, one of the Greens stepped up the same one that had been stealing the weapon of the young man earlier. His fear was quick to fade, replaced with arrogance though only after looking at his side of the camp, where a group of reinforcements already moving to support them.

"Thanks for the assistance, old man, we'll handle the rest," he said smugly, then he pointed at two of the unaffiliated. "You lot, go and bring the body to our butchers."

I looked at him, then at the rest of his group, who stepped behind him to support him. I had to admit, in a way, it was a smart response. By challenging me in such a direct manner, they would destroy the aura of intimidation that I managed to establish. Jertann and the others were sufficiently far away, which meant we would be significantly underpowered for a brawl.

Pity they were too young to factor in one thing. For that, I needed to pull back.

My next move was not a nice move. I might even felt guilty for doing so if I hadn't watched the man in front of me steal the weapon of a young man and try to force him into a deadly battle without it. Of course, guilt wouldn't have prevented me from doing it, but still

I coughed pointedly.

"Present company excluded, of course," Zolast continued. "I have seen this before. Even if the noble returns, things will continue to deteriorate. What Euon did, while violent, was necessary. Unless we have someone strong enough to keep a lid on the situation, that's the best we can do."

I was interested in Zolast's mention of the young noble, mentioning his return as a probability rather than a certainty. If someone else said that, I would have ignored it, but Zolast had the habit of choosing his words carefully.

"There must be another way," Jertann commented.

I sighed, preparing to give Jertann a reality check, and just trying to decide which direction would have been more efficient, not wanting to shatter his enthusiasm for doing so. But then, I noticed Zolast looking thoughtful as well.

He had a solution as well. I kept my mouth shut, curious about what kind of answer I would receive.

"How long do you have until your promotion," Zolast asked me.

"Not a viable path for me, my friend," I answered, curious where he was going, but not enough to let him poke around my levels. To prevent him from asking too many questions, I made sure to reflect a sense of despair in my answer

HoweverI certainly didn't expect Zolast to give a matching expression. "Dead sigil?" he whispered. I gave a soft nod, one that could be taken as a positive answer. Luckily, he didn't push much. Instead, he turned to Jertann.

I was surprised by the speed he accepted, but after some consideration, I found his rapid acceptance reasonable. After all, why should a competent warrior slum at the worst possible camp if he didn't have a problem? Whatever a dead sigil was, it sounded sufficiently serious.

"How about you, young man? How far away are you from your Promotion?"

"I'm level twenty-eight," Jertann whispered back, careful as he looked around, showing that he was giving up a large secret.

"That's not bad," Zolast said. "How much until leveling up?" he asked.

"About halfway," Jertann admitted.

"Good. So, you will require about two hundred thousand, and about a hundred and fifty for your last level up. That should be doable with a temporary ward," he said.

I held back my surprise as I heard that numbers. For me, even at level thirteen, I needed over a hundred thousand. I didn't even want to imagine how much I would require later on however I had a feeling, I wouldn't find many sympathetic ears if I tried to complain about that.

"You can establish a ward. Are you a priest" Jertann gasped, luckily with enough presence of mind not to shout.

"No, but I learned a few things," Zolast answered. "Now, all you need to collect that experience and bring me three decent carcasses to power up the wards. I'll handle the rest."

"But, two hundred thousand, that would take weeks to collect, even at this pace," Jertann argued.

"Not if I help you, young man," I answered as I patted his shoulder, more than happy to help him kill a few beasts, especially if he could once again steal the attention of the camp and allow me to poke around happily. I turned to Zolast. "Do you think you set up the ward before noon?" I asked.

Zolast nodded, but Jertann gasped in shock. "Until noon, impossible."

"Be ready for the most exhausting day of your life, young man," I said as I twirled my halberd.