It took a few minutes to get enough meat for the day, but he had high hopes for it and wanted to preserve as much as possible. They could try cooking some of the meat that was around right now, but it was still early in the day, and they could make a lot more progress before taking their first break. He could wait until lunch before trying the meat.

With that done, they continued along the path, there still hadn’t been any large intersections or turns, so they confidently went down the relatively straight path. Since encountering the lizards, they began walking more carefully. Mash had found three or four more lizards along the path, which let them get the jump on the entire packs.

Simply being aware of them was enough to make the fights easier. Mash made javelins as they walked, so that everyone could throw them during the fights. Red continued to use her blood needles. They managed to get through five more packs of lizards before having to take a break. Mash’s energy was running low from making so many javelins, but he wanted to keep going. He tried to recover as fast as he could.

When they took a break, Luke offered to cook so Mash just meditated while he waited for lunch. During the break, everyone allocated their free stats since they had all gained at least one level. Red only gained one level and Mash managed to catch up to her. Luke and Jill were only one level beneath them now. The fights were easy, and he didn’t gain many stats from them. It seemed like the more challenging the fights were the more stats he would gain.

Once Mash finished meditating, he allocated his free stats. Mash figured that the most valuable thing he could do was increase the range of his sphere again, so he poured 8 stats into his intelligence and 2 into his strength. That way he could raise his intelligence to 70 and increase the range of mana sphere to 8 feet. The bigger range would make spotting the lizards easier and would help for whatever other enemies were in the labyrinth.

Name: Mash Class: Wood-Forged Pseudo-Monk

Level: 20

Health: 510 / 510

Energy: 1270 /1270

Fortitude: 50 → 51

Endurance: 57

Strength: 38 → 40

Agility: 50 → 52

Intelligence: 62 → 70

Wisdom: 50

Charisma: 25

Free Stats: 0

Skills: Persist, Mana-wood Creation, Artificial Meditation, Mana Sphere, Monks False Core

Mana Sphere (Passive): Your eyes just weren’t enough. Sense the changes in the mana around you.

Current Range: 7 feet → 8 feet

He had recovered completely and was ready to enjoy the meal. He grew wearier as he approached his friends. They didn’t have pleased expressions as they ate the lizard meat. Luke handed Mash a plate and he stared down at it reluctantly. He looked up again, noticing that they were all looking at him. He mustered up as much optimism as he could, maybe his friends didn’t like fish.

He took a bite and was certainly surprised. The meat was tender, feeling almost like a warm butter. The strange thing was that it melted like one too, and it turned into an oil as he chewed. The weirdest aspect of this meat was that it was sweet. It was tasty and reminded him more of a fruit, but the oily feeling was displeasing. He understood their looks now. An oily fishy meat that tasted oddly like fruit was disturbing, to say the least.

“This is interesting…”

Mash spoke still confused by the complex flavor. Everyone else was nodding along slowly, and they all took the next bite together. Whether they liked it or not, they would eat it to save their rations. They had packed other food, but without knowing how long they would be trapped down here, decided to eat it sparingly.

“It feels like I’m drinking a fruit oil. Do all lizards taste like this?”

Red was struggling to stop herself from gagging but managed to get the words out. He just stared at her blankly, and Jill replied with the appropriate amount of snark.

“No, my lady, lizards don’t normally taste like ripe fruits.”

She emphasized the “my lady” as she responded. Lizard meat was quite common back home, and most people ate it with some regularity. A lot of street food was made with lizard meat. Mash was surprised that Red hadn’t had lizard before. He gathered that she was rich, but he bumped her up another social level in his mind. Red’s shocked look gave Mash the confirmation that he needed, even before she responded.

“Wha- How did you know?”

She blurted out the words in a jumbled mess but managed to get the idea across. Jill just waved her hand dismissively and laughed mockingly. Mash couldn’t help but join her, and even heard Luke chuckling. It took effort to stop themselves, and Jill responded.

“You can’t be serious; I mean come on. Just look at yourself, and the weird things that only you know. That is ignoring all the very useful magical equipment you carry.”

Red seemed to process the words slowly before coming up with her rebuttal.

“What about Mash? He has almost as many expensive magic items as I do.”

She was looking at him as she spoke, and all he could do was shrug his shoulders. Jill though didn’t mind answering, seeming to gloat in her apparent victory.

“Mash is kind of famous in human circles, so I had a pretty good idea of who he was. Otherwise, I probably would have come to a similar conclusion.”

That got Red and Luke’s attentions, and they were staring more speculatively at Mash. Red asked the obvious question.

“Your famous, for what?”

It was not a subject Mash wanted to discuss but had known that it would come up eventually. He already knew that Jill recognized him. He still wasn’t ready for this conversation and tried pushing it later.

“I will tell you guys about it at dinner, for now I’m going to finish lunch so that we can get moving.

He genuinely meant it too, the weird lizard meat had grown on him. He liked the sweetness and ate it despite its texture. After the initial bites, he adjusted to the strangeness and enjoyed the rest of the meal. It felt like eating a dessert, and he eagerly began clearing his plate. The others did too, but clearly didn’t enjoy it as much as him.

Red seemed to notice Mash’s discomfort and took over the conversation. She talked about her situation to save Mash from talking about his. He silently thanked her while taking another bite of the food. She spoke softly as she explained.

“As you have so expertly deduced, I am of noble heritage. My real name is Ellinia Venfir.”

She paused taking another bite of food, letting the rest of them consider her words. Mash felt like he should know the name but couldn’t place it. He ate silently but noticed that Luke and Jill had stopped. Jill was just staring at her with eyebrows raised, while Luke looked down at his plate. He heard Jill mutter something under her breath.

“The betrayer.”

Then it clicked for Mash, and he spoke the words aloud in disbelief. He couldn’t hide the amazement in his voice.

“Your family killed the old king?”

She nodded but didn’t say anything. It was more significant than just that though. The current ruler of their kingdom had ruled for over a hundred years and would continue to do so, unless he was killed. The same should’ve been true for the last king. On top of being one of the most powerful kings, her ancestor had killed the first ever beastmen king.

The fallout resulted in a civil war that soured the relationships between humans and beastmen. It was done through a vile act of betrayal. Tanavar, one of the heirs to the Venfir dukedom, had poisoned the king and all his descendants. Ultimately leading to the downfall of the beastmen kingdom. The family though managed to avoid blame and ruin by disowning and killing Tanavar in retaliation. However, the lightness of the punishment sparked growing distrust between the races.

He glanced at Luke, this information most relevant to him. Luke looked unaffected though. Mash asked him a small question.

“You knew, didn’t you?”

He just nodded but didn’t elaborate any further. Red continued, not yet finished with her explanation. Mash heard the sadness in her voice as she talked.

“I, uh, ran away from home. No that’s not entirely true, they knew that I left but didn’t stop me. Its not like I’ve been abandoned or anything, they are probably loosely keeping track of me even now. The family has its secrets, and I didn’t agree with them. So, I left before getting too deeply embroiled in the family. I just want to explore the world and learn more about it. Becoming an adventurer and exploring dungeons was my way to do so.”

Mash wanted to hear more about the secrets, but it wasn’t his place to get involved. Maybe in the future he could help her, and he placed it on his mental list of tasks for when he was stronger. The list seemed to be growing far too quickly, and he would be glad to extend his life span at level 100 and 200. However, he could do something right now.

They had finished eating, but nobody moved. They just sat there, and Mash took the opportunity to tell them his own story. He told them of how he trained as a kid, and the fight with Jason. How he had killed the boy and ended up in the dungeons. Though, he didn’t tell them about how he felt after killing Jason. He now understood that his mind worked differently and was afraid that the others would judge him. He kept it to himself and hoped that his friends would understand eventually. He told them of how the general had reacted and the treatment he received after. He explained why he was famous now.

He didn’t sound regretful. Honestly, he was glad that it happened, because it was the reason he became an adventurer and met the others. He was surprised when Jill cut in at the end.

“That’s not why you’re famous. Sure, it was part of it, but it was only half. What you did after the incident was just as important. People knew that other knight’s apprentices and guards fought you. They saw you win and beat them easily. Even my parents thought that they were just outlandish rumors. That was until your brother became the youngest sentinel. Your family has become famous because of your brother. When your sister got a rare class, people started to worry. They thought you would become strong and were afraid that you would get back at them. You’re famous because you’re feared, and your appearance after getting the next class didn’t help you.”

Jill’s words shook Mash. He combed through his own memories in a new light. Normal people barely ever spoke to Mash anymore, they had been avoiding him for the past couple years. He blamed the general because it was easy, but never considered that they were afraid of his own potential. He knew he looked strange, but never thought it was that bad. He sounded weary as he asked the people in front of him.

“Do I really look that scary?”

He sounded pathetic and hated himself for the desperation that he heard in his own voice. He got even angrier at himself when he saw their concerned expressions. Jill answered, nonetheless.

“I wouldn’t say you're scary like a monster, but definitely unnerving. It’s like you are pretending to be human but are clearly not. I think that people would be less wary if you acted like an evil villain, but you act so nice that it feels wrong. It goes against your image and reputation. When we met, I was worried that you were going to kill me, or something. I’m sorry, but unless people get to know you, they will probably be scared.”

She shook her head sadly as she spoke. Mash weirdly felt better now. Their concern and Jill’s obvious frustration was something Mash would only ever get with his siblings. He wanted to move on, to lighten the mood slightly and cracked a stupid joke.

“Wwweeelllll… I guess I could become an evil god. At least I would match that way. It’s what’s expected after all”

Mash hid his anger as he spoke, the truth of the words fanning the flames of irritation. He was being treated like an outcast, all because he was a good person and wanted to become stronger. It was frustrating and he struggled to keep the emotion from his face. Luke saved him from his struggle.

“If you ever become a beastmen, I heard that they wanted another beastmen king, and I’m sure only half of them would be scared of you.”

Luke said the words grinning stupidly. It was out of character for him, and Mash just stared at him for a second. Mash couldn’t believe what he just heard, and he found himself chuckling. Luke never made jokes. Soon they were all laughing a little, even though the joke wasn’t particularly funny. Luke wasn’t done yet though, and still grinning, he spoke loudly.

“I guess I’m next.”