Rebirth: Rise of the Slave Master

Chapter Twenty-Three: Under the Moonlight

Escort missions had a different set of criteria for completion than most other quests. For starters, there was the long period of time over which the quest took place. It was hardly fair to force a player to stay logged into the game the entire time needed to accomplish one of these jobs. As such, players were free to log in and out as they pleased, and they would stay with the group as long as they were resting in one of the wagons. At the end of the quest, the players' total contribution to the overall safety of the caravan would determine the level of completion received. Additionally, increasing time logged on during the mission and repelling hostiles to protect your client both increased this rating.

Players often had to consider their own schedules in relation to the time in the game. If you worked during the day, it wasn’t really wise to accept a mission where most of the traveling would be done while you were forced to log out. It was a serious commitment.

Before accepting the quest, Rick didn’t have time to take all of this into account, so he was forced to make some changes to his schedule. He had to contact his favorite nerd and let him know that he wouldn’t be able to show up to the gym at their usual time, at least for the next four days. Although Bai complained a bit, he didn’t make any headway getting Rick to change his mind. That addict always made the game his highest priority. All he could do was tell Rick to keep up the training and not slack off.

Back in the game, Theo made an effort to stay away from most of the mercenaries. He usually stood near the central cart and tried to keep his slaves under control, taking in the scenery as it passed. It wasn’t very difficult. The majority of the guards were unwilling to get on the bad side of an adventurer, even if they considered him something of an outsider, especially at the beginning of the journey. The only people who regularly made the effort to check on him were the caravan leader, Roland, and the merc-in-training, Tom. Occasionally, the mercenary leader Quinn would drop by to share a few words before making his rounds.

The first day of the journey took place close to Oasis, and as such the road was fairly safe. At times, low-level monsters attacked, but only those too stupid or too angry to realize how vastly outnumbered and outmatched they were. Theo didn’t even have time to intervene before the trained guards easily took care of the problems.

Just as the sun was getting ready to set, a group of scouts returned and led the caravan to a decent site for the night. The tired beasts of burden could finally put down their cargo to take a well-deserved break. It was impossible to travel around the clock because the horses needed to rest, although there were plenty of exotic ways to get around this problem in Dream World Online. Only, such luxuries were too expensive for a simple merchant like Roland and his companions.

“Alright, you two can take your rest,” Theo said to Meatshield and Gobthnora as they finally reached the campsite.

It was said more for appearances than anything. As long as Theo was the one asking, Gobthnora wasn’t the type to complain, although Goblins were unsuited to long-winded activities like travel. Meatshield however, was completely unphased by the trip, and could probably go on for twice as long while carrying the Goblin on her shoulders. Her stamina was just that impressive. As a player, Theo didn’t feel any physical exhaustion no matter how much he walked, so he was still raring to go even after the hours of travel.

While the NPCs set up camp, he took the opportunity to logout and take care of his usual business. Two hours passed and he was ready for a busy evening.

Theo had considered bringing his slaves out for combat practice at night, as to not waste precious grinding time, but eventually decided against it. He didn’t want to travel too far from the carts in case there was an attack, and he couldn’t risk revealing the pair’s combat abilities in front of the caravan members. As far as the traders and mercenaries were concerned, these were simply two young girls still in mourning over the loss of their parents. He ordered both slaves to stay on the outskirts of the group and to not attract any attention.

Venturing out into the surrounding wilderness to hunt monsters by himself, the Slave Master was the most relaxed he’d been in a long while. He lost himself in the elation of battle as he faced down the level 12 [Verminous Worm]s in the area. They were large monsters almost as wide around as the [Desert Serpent Queen], but much shorter, giving them a fat, fleshy appearance. The monsters’ diets consisted mostly of stones and minerals, not people, but their nasty temper meant they would attack on sight.

On average, the [Verminous Worm] was even dumber than the rocks it ate, but made up for its stupidity with sheer toughness and a nasty ability. It habitually spat an acidic fluid that would cause serious damage to armor and weapons, and as such was an unpopular target. Unless their numbers grew too large, most players wouldn’t bother with them. Luckily, only the area around the mouth was corrosive, and Theo could easily close the distance and dance around to strike their exposed rears. He gleefully slaughtered one of these creatures after another, feeling a sense of respite from the humdrum life of training his slaves.

Theo had just finished wrenching his spear from the tubby body of the [Verminous Worm] when he felt that something was off. He activated his vastly improved [Perception] skill and scanned the horizon. Surely enough, he received a system message.

You are being watched!

The adventurer stood still and planted his spear in the ground, “Alright, come out, I know you’re there.”

Classic lines like these were always fun to say, and Theo did so while suppressing his smile. After a moment had passed, a figure crawled out of a patch of rocks. His spear was gleaming under the moonlight, and the glossy finish of his leather armor seemed oily black in the darkness.

“It figures,” Theo said, “What are you doing here, Tom?”

Tom smiled, his teeth lighting up his slight face, “Haha, you caught me, huh?” he said bashfully.

Picking up his spear, Theo turned it on the young man, “Answer the question first.”

Tom leaned his own weapon against his shoulder and raised his hands, “Alright, alright, you went off on your own and I followed you,” he looked over at the corpse of the worm Theo had just slain, “Did you kill that by yourself?”

“Among other things,” said Theo.

Tom let out a high whistle, failing to hide the hint of a mockery on his features, “That’s really impressive, you know? I don’t think I could do the same.”

The young man took a few steps forward as if to get a better look at the creature, but as he passed by Theo, he doubled back and struck out with his polearm. The blade cut through the night air as it plunged towards its target. The Slave Master couldn’t help smirking as he waited for the incoming attack.

The point of the spear struck Theo’s chest with a dull thud, shaving off a chunk of HP. The young mercenary had been looking for an opportunity to get into a scrap with him all day, and Theo had long since foreseen this outcome. As for why he didn’t dodge the attack, was there any need to? Theo wasn’t sporting the same fragile build as when he first started the game and was even a level higher than his opponent.

“Good, that’s your handicap then,” Theo said, sweeping his spear down and knocking Tom’s weapon away, “Let’s see if you can do it again.”

Tom quickly recovered and launched another attack. His thrusts were powerful and true, with a good sense of distance and coverage. It was clearly a league above the average level 10 NPC, with equivalent skill to a similar Elite enemy. Of course, Tom wasn’t an Elite, so it was something for him to be proud of. While the skill was there, it still wasn’t enough to touch Theo, who was used to reading much faster opponents and could easily dodge.

Trying to land a proper blow on Theo was like trying to pin down a shadow. What seemed like a perfect hit would end up grazing the air, as Theo took advantage of the invincibility frames of his [Dodge] skill with perfect timing. To an NPC, it really did appear to be an inhuman level of ability. Unlike the hot-headed Bai, who grew flustered by Theo’s defensive prowess, Tom seemed used to fighting opponents well above his skill level. He was probing, searching for any opening that he could take advantage of. Only, that opening never came.

“Is that it?” Theo mocked him, dodging under another blow.

The young man said nothing, entering into a defensive stance in anticipation of Theo’s next attack. It was a good idea, but too little, too late. Theo’s spear was as slippery as an eel, piercing through the attempt to block as if nothing stood in its way. The sharp point came right to the tip of Tom’s nose, just barely pricking him and causing a cold sweat to wash over his body.

Unwilling to admit his loss, the mercenary swung his spear again, trying to knock the blade away from his face. Although he registered the collision between the two hafts and prepared a counterattack, he was stopped by the spearpoint that appeared between his eyes. Recoiling from the shock, Tom nearly fell on his rear, but managed to just barely right himself. Theo pulled his weapon back and stood still, a wicked grin plastered on his face.

“Did you want to go again?”

Smiling as if he had already won, Tom leapt forward and cast out a wide sweep. It was the same skill Theo loved to use, [Fend]! How could Theo not know all the ins and outs of this technique after years of PvP combat? He could easily recognize it, and just as easily defend against it.

[Fend]

He countered with an identical application of the skill, sweeping the man up in the attack and sending both parties flying backwards. While Tom went tumbling onto the dirt, Theo landed more or less unperturbed. Rebounding just as smoothly, his feet kicked off the ground as he launched a follow-up strike. The most important aspect of the [Fend] skill was its ability to reposition an opponent who got too close while retaining the range advantage of polearm class weapons. It could provide excellent momentum when used offensively, but that benefit would be lost if your follow-up was delayed.

[Lunge]

Combo x2!

-208

With a single motion, almost half of Tom’s HP was gone.

For an NPC, this could be considered a devastating blow. If Theo followed up his attack with another flurry, he could easily put Tom in a shallow grave, but where was the fun in that? He might be able to manage the social fallout as the fledgling mercenary had attacked him first, but it would create a hostile atmosphere between him and Splitskulls for the rest of the trip. Theo was still counting on their protection, so he mercifully spared the young man an untimely death.

Theo cracked his neck and placed the spear over his shoulders, “Alright, that’s enough of that,” he said, “Quinn was right, kid, you’re not too bad.”

Tom’s armor had a rather nasty hole drilled through it now, finally giving him his first battlescar. If this was a fantasy novel, it would probably serve as a memory that would motivate the young man in the future. The battle under the moonlight with the mysterious adventurer... Theo smiled when he thought of it.

Tom looked like he wanted to continue, but couldn’t bring himself to speak.

“Thank your luck,” Theo warned him, “if I wasn’t worn out from fighting these damn worms, you’d be dead right now.”

Theo’s face was practically glowing with bad intentions.

[Lesser Persuasion] was used successfully. Mercenary Tom’s fear of Slave Master Theo increases slightly!

It was a ridiculous statement given Theo’s status as a player character. He would have to fight for hours on end before mental exhaustion set in, but it was enough to quash any silly ideas.

Tom stood up and dusted himself off, tending to his injured shoulder carefully. If he had seen the kind of damage that Meatshield took on a daily basis, Theo wondered if the young man would lose all faith in himself and give up as a mercenary. No, it wasn’t fair to compare that abnormal girl to other NPCs. Not even Gobthnora was that merciless to herself; however, it was Theo’s favorite quality about the princess.

“You’re good,” Tom said through gritted teeth.

Theo chuckled, “Good? I guess that’s one way to put it,” and after a moment, he added, “So what possessed you to come out here and get yourself done-in tonight?”

Tom couldn’t help but laugh at his own sorry state, “I don’t suppose you’d take overconfidence as an answer?”

Theo narrowed his eyes.

“It happened when I was a kid,” Tom said listlessly, “It’s not an uncommon story, a mercenary ends up on the wrong side of a conflict, and the other side has adventurers.”

“So that was it?” Theo thought to himself, “This guy wanted to get strong enough to hunt down the adventurer who killed someone important to him? And it’s an NPC adventurer too...”

Theo couldn’t blame him for wanting revenge, though. It was a concept that never made much sense to him until he ended up on the other end of it. He knew what it was like to feel the kind of hatred that makes your body shake and your blood boil, so much so you want to roll over and die, but can’t. Theo had to agree, at times it felt like it was worth killing over. Of course, a sob story like this wasn’t enough to soften the Slave Master’s heart.

“You’re going to get yourself killed,” Theo said.

The mercenary sighed, “You sound just like Quinn.”

“Well he’s right,” there was no point beating around the bush, NPC adventurers were terrifying entities even when compared to Theo, but he added, “Well, I have a soft spot for suicidal idiots. If you want to die, I’ll be happy to oblige.”

Tom looked at Theo like he was looking at madman, and quickly shook his head, “I’m not that crazy!” he sputtered.

Theo laughed, “Then maybe you want to come with me to kill some more of these beasts? You might learn a thing or two, if you can keep up.”

“You - do you really mean that?” the young man’s face lit up.

Theo clapped a hand on the mercenary’s shoulder, causing him to seize up from the sudden jolt to his wound. Tom almost bit his tongue and fell over, but Theo’s firm grip kept him standing.

“Just as long as you’re not dumb enough to turn that spear on me again…” he said.

[Lesser Persuasion] was used successfully! Mercenary Tom’s fear of Slave Master Theo increases greatly!

“Got it?” Theo hissed.

Tom could only manage to gulp down a mouth of saliva and nod along. He really was thanking the Gods that he hadn’t pissed off this man any more than he had. Tom thought he had seen the darkest parts of humanity when he glimpsed the look in Captain Quinn’s eyes during combat. Those eyes had seen the deaths of hundreds of men, and that many more at his own hands. The adventurer, though? His eyes were still bright and lively, but seemed to overflow with a positive love for killing. He was a monster. These weren’t eyes that could possibly belong to a human.

“Now then,” Theo reached into his inventory and removed one the [Goblin Shortsword]s he kept around for when Meatshield broke hers, “do you know how to take apart a monster?”

Tom was at a loss for words for a moment, but didn’t dare not answer, “I-I do, as part of my training.”

“Good,” the Slave Master handed the young man the blade, “That’s going to be your job for the next few nights.”

Theo had been feeling the sting of not having Meatshield around to harvest the good parts of the worms he killed. They held a useful item for crafting corrosive potions in the form of their [Acidic Bladder], but it was a rare drop if you just went around killing them. Now that Tom was going to be accompanying him, his profits could increase.

“W-what about sl-sleep?” Tom immediately regretted asking the question.

The adventurer, who was already trotting over to the body of the [Verminous Worm], turned back with a scowl on his face, “Are you sure that’s what you want to say to the man who just saved your life?”

Theo appeared more than willing to leave out the fact that he was the one threatening the man’s life in the first place. Mercy was good and all, but Theo didn’t believe in charity. Now that he knew Tom could take Meatshield’s place as a harvester, there was no way he was going to let the kid off the hook.

“Just hurry up, the sooner I reach my quota, the sooner you can get some rest!” he shouted.

Tom had no choice but to relent as he looked over the [Goblin Shortsword] in his hand. After contemplating something foolish for a moment, he painfully followed after the crazed man. It was only a few days more, and he decided it was in his best interest to concede, for now. Besides, he had come here to watch in the first place.