Rebirth: Rise of the Slave Master

Chapter Thirty-Two: Keep Talking

[Fireball] was a simple and reliable spell of elementalist magicians, and remained one of their staple attacks even into the late stages of the game.

Despite her newly polished combat skills, Gobthnora still had the habit of throwing the [Fireball] with an exaggerated wind-up, and the orb of fire went hurtling through the air in the direction of the charging horses. Her aim and timing had improved… The spell dropped to the ground just in front of the lead horse, who ended up galloping right into it without being able to stop. An explosion roared and sent the beast hurtling to the side. Cries and whinnies echoed over the craggy earth as the small band’s momentum was completely upset, and they went tumbling over one another.

“Good! Retreat to Aleside and warn the guards,” Theo ordered decisively, and turned to Meatshield, “You go too, and protect her!”

After a moment he added, “Oh, and don’t forget to keep your cloaks on.”

“Master will let these foolish humies taste Hell! Keekeekee!” Gobthnora didn’t hesitate to scurry away from the riders who had recovered and were resuming their charge.

The idiots who charged headlong into the [Fireball] spell were thrown off balance, but not for long. More than anything, it had served the purpose of disrupting the mounted archers, which were Theo’s primary concern.

Meatshield did as she was ordered and followed after the Goblin. It seemed like the strength Theo had shown her in their fights had impressed upon her how little he actually needed her protection.

“I wonder if that’s why she started taking things so seriously lately,” he mused with a slight smile.

The horsemen were already approaching. Theo withdrew [Skullsplitter] from his inventory and looked over it’s glinting, jagged edge. If they thought he was intimidating with the [Steel-Edged Partizan] in his hand, Theo was looking forward to the enemies’ expressions when he started swinging around this horrific-looking poleaxe.

There were at least a dozen horses whose hooves pounded against the dirt, and the sound was deafening when the men rode past. Weapons flashed wildly, and the exchange lasted only a second as the riders triumphantly roared. They were already circling around and preparing to finish off the battered fighter that they had overrun, but their eyes went wide when they saw the hooded figure standing around leisurely. It was like a pleasant breeze had passed him by.

“Kirk!” one of the horsemen shouted as he caught sight of something out of place in the scene.

One of the riders was sprawled out, his horse clearly knocked to the ground during the pass. It was squirming in pain as the animal tried to right itself, and paid no attention to its unseated rider when it finally stood up. The sight of the mount limping away from the fight sent a chill down the spines of the bandits. The feeling only intensified as the hooded man began walking closer to their comrade.

Mounted charges were certainly terrifying to the ordinary soldier, but only when you were in tight formation with nowhere to maneuver. Damage was multiplied by the force of the charge, that was, if you were hit. As long as Theo had room to dodge, this puny number of attacks wasn’t enough to touch a hair on his head. Afterall, as long as you avoided the horses, each rider was only given one opportunity to strike, if even that.

The dismounted man was still gathering his bearings after having the wind completely knocked out of him, and turned to look up at the looming shadow of death that was approaching. Fumbling hands reached for the blade at his waist, but the [Skullsplitter] had already dropped.

-170

[Inflict Pain]

-119. Dazed!

There was a terrible crunching noise as the blade struck the man, and his voice cracked under the pain of the skill. The weight of the blow drove him back into the ground, where another attack quickly finished him off. It was a chilling and brutal sight. His movements were simply too casual, like he was swatting a fly. The mounted bandits may have been dumbfounded at first, but they were trained fighters and were already readying another charge. All of their rage was focused purely on him. Theo was glad to see that he had successfully attracted the riders’ attention, and readied himself for another round.

“One down, how many more to go?” he smiled.

Taking advantage of the riders slower approach, [Skullsplitter] flew through the air, kicking up a torrent-like wind. After grinding against large groups of monsters, Theo’s level had reached 14 and his [Fend] skill had increased as well. With the extra weight from his weapon, the riders at the front were swept up in the skill and knocked to the ground. Several blades and spears landed in the dirt where Theo had been standing, but he had already moved out of the way by activating his usual combo.

[Lunge]

Combo x2! Critical hit!

-693

With the aid of a lucky Critical hit, one of the men afflicted by [Fend] was skewered in a single blow. NPCs were just too fragile compared to monsters in this game, well, Theo would have been dead if he took a hit like that too. Although the body, from Theo’s perspective, was simply tossed away and fell on the ground, he could only imagine what kind of carnage the NPCs had just witnessed. Several of them froze in place before a whirling blade connected with the side of a man’s head as a kindly reminder to pay attention.

“Adventurer!” one of the bandits called out with a shaking voice. The morale and bloodthirst of the group was washed away by a cold wind.

It had only taken a few seconds for the group of twelve to be reduced to nine, and yet their target was completely unscathed. Theo didn’t have any intention of letting these ruffians run away, though. He was getting close to reaching [Basic Polearm Mastery], and more than ready to let loose all of the stress he had accumulated during his slaves’ training. These bastards had shown up at just the right time!

The resulting battle was completely one-sided.

“W-we’ll burn your damn village to the ground!” the one remaining bandit was holding a small axe and looking at Theo.

It didn’t matter if it was man or beast, weapon or armor, the adventurer didn’t care. Everything fell under the gleam of that terrifying polearm. The man had just watched all of his friends being cut to ribbons. If he wasn’t so terrified, his blood would be boiling over in a rage. He had never regretted the decision to join the Black Mountain Clan until this day! Memories of his life flashed before his eyes as he felt his death approaching, inch by inch. Cold sweat poured from his forehead, and he gritted his teeth so hard they hurt.

With a foreboding aggravation, Theo looked at his HP which had dropped by more than half when the man had struck him only a second prior. A single thought went through his head.

“Why are you always so in character!” he roared, swinging the poleaxe in a wide arc.

The man was tossed back by the [Fend] skill, but he landed daintily after executing a perfect aerial somersault, and looked up at Theo with frightened eyes. The portion of mentality where the bandit ended and the Shapeshifter began was rolling back and forth, warping between exultation and agony as the man’s face began to slowly change shape.

“Ah! Why are you always so slippery? I thought for sure I had you that time!” the man chirped with a shaky voice.

“Hmph, do I need to put you back in the fire to teach you a lesson?” Theo shot back venomously.

Honestly, if he hadn’t decided to dodge the seemingly harmless bandit’s attack at the last moment, he really would have died. It was only because he was so stingy with HP that he managed to escape with only the shock damage. Even that much had been enough to put him a step away from death’s door.

The Shapeshifter clearly wasn’t going to underestimate him again.

“I’ve been wondering what was taking you so long to track me down. Turns out you’ve been playing bandit this whole time,” Theo muttered.

The Shapeshifter spoke up, “Well at first I tried to assassinate you the old fashioned way, but you damned adventurer, never sleeping... eating... using the lavatory... bathing… do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve been to kill!?”

Theo didn’t really know how to explain the fact that, as a player, he didn’t need to do any of these activities. From the perspective of an assassin, he really was an annoying entity. It appeared the thing had been waiting for an opportunity to get him alone this whole time. It was probably still afraid of Meatshield’s and Gobthnora’s killer combo, not that he could blame it after what had happened.

“So you made an opportunity yourself,” Theo prompted.

The chatty Shapeshifter shook its melting and reforming head, “I didn’t expect you to send your slaves away, honestly, I was just hoping they would be tied up by the bandits. Then you went and killed every last one of them by yourself… this poor body was so scared! He was really about to piss himself!”

Theo was letting it talk, biding his time while he searched for a way out of this predicament, but there didn’t seem to be one. There were options available if only he had been one level higher, but he just had to get himself into a situation like this right now. With the level 40-something opponent taking him seriously, and since he didn’t have the help of his slaves, the chances for victory were absolutely zero. He might be able to hold on for a while, but without the [Parry] skill…

“Am I just supposed to lay down and die?” Theo pondered his potential death carefully.

All in all it wouldn’t be too bad. He would respawn in Aleside and his Heat would be reset. It would get Old Man Snake Eyes off his back for however long he needed, and he would only get stronger before their next confrontation. Even when it came to losing his experience points, it wouldn’t take that long to get them back. The positives actually outweighed the negatives, but Theo was limitlessly stubborn.

He wasn’t going to go down without a fight, and readied [Skullplitter] with death-defying resolution. Seeing his behavior, the Shapeshifter gave him a smile. It had already been established that Theo was outmatched in a fight. He couldn’t deal any real damage to the assassin, who only had increased its attributes since their last bout. There was a limit to how much one could defend without the ability to counterattack. This must have been what monsters felt like when they were forced to go up against Meatshield.

“Enough talking, I’m eager to get your head and go home already,” the Shapeshifter lunged at him with the axe.

Theo began to dodge the attacks with every ounce of skill he could pull out of his current condition. Every swipe that came his way seemed to do so at a speed his eyes couldn’t keep up with, but it was possible as long as he could read the direction of the attacks. His [Dodge] skill had already reached lv. 10, and the cooldown time was as low as it was ever going to get. When it maxed out he would receive the [Counter] skill, which would grant a small damage bonus after a successful dodge, but that wasn’t something he could make use of right now even if he had it.

The Shapeshifter’s axe hewed through the hem of his poncho, and Theo couldn’t get out of the way in time. He only partially dodged the attack, and his HP plummeted as a result. Smelling the scent of blood, his assailant only grew more bold. They had only been fighting for a few rounds and already Theo was on the verge of death. It was impossible to rely on his HP regen to keep him alive this time.

“Looks like this is the end of the no death streak…” Theo wasn’t one to give up prematurely, but he didn’t see any alternatives.

-65

“Wait, what?” he was so surprised that he nearly let the Shapeshifter hit him again, but managed to roll out of the way just in time to avoid another swing.

His gaze turned to the perpetrator of the sudden damage.

[Rock Wolf] Lv. 13

A wolf! No, wolves! A small pack of mobs had spawned right on top of them! Would this be considered good luck or bad luck?

“What the, why are these things - get off me!” the Shapeshifter shouted annoyedly.

Although mobs in Dream World Online usually ignored targets that were a much higher level instinctively, it was a different story when Theo was present to send them into attack mode. Several of them lunged at the pair and began snapping their jaws wildly. Although he was off balance, Theo still managed to dodge and put some distance between himself and the sudden interlopers.

“Chance!” Theo immediately turned around and started running.

“W-wait! No! Come back here!” a rapidly fluctuating voice called after him.

The Shapeshifter swung its weapon and immediately cut down a pouncing [Rock Wolf], but there were two more gnawing at its heels. Ignoring the futile bite attacks, the Shapeshifter turned after its retreating prey and screamed in frustration.

Theo was currently dodging another attack and pushing his body as fast as he possibly could. The would-be assassin roared and the pair of grotesque wings grew from its body once again. The Shapeshifter took off from the ground as the wolves circled below and then flew off after the escaping Theo.

The surprise monster spawn wasn’t enough to keep the now aerial Shapeshifter tied down, and the distance between Theo and his pursuer shrunk rapidly. Getting out of this situation still seemed to be nothing but a pipe dream. At this rate, Theo was going to get caught.

“It’s not enough… but it does give me an idea!” the opportunistic player suddenly changed direction.

“Oh no you don’t!” the chaser shouted.

From this vantage point, it easily saw what Theo was trying to do. He was running towards another pack of monsters! His plan was to leapfrog the monster respawns until he got within the safety of the walls. The Shapeshifter crashed into the ground just in front of him and swung the axe once again, but Theo dove past the blow and woefully took the shock damage with a grimace.

He only had 43 HP left!

Even a stiff breeze would be enough to knock him over at this point, but his mind was made up the moment he saw a way out. Pushing his dodging skills to the absolute maximum, he charged up to a nearby [Thunder Tusk]. The huge pig creature, upon seeing its territory invaded, immediately started bucking and snorting. The Shapeshifter's attack route was cut off by the sudden rampage, but it wasn’t strong enough to knock aside the tanky creature in a single blow. The axe smashed furiously into the beast’s leathery hide, and in response it let loose its signature ability.

Bolts of electricity poured out of the monster’s spine and spread in all directions like a spider web. The surrounding space was completely lit up by the sudden attack, and even the Shapeshifter couldn’t escape unscathed. It was struck by an errant thunderbolt and screeched in pain.

“ARGH! Damn it all! You fucking pig!” it struck the [Thunder Tusk] again and again in a fit of rage.

The Shapeshifter had a short fuse to begin with, and went off at the slightest provocation. The creature moaned pitifully as it let out another storm of electricity, and collapsed on the ground with a final huff. The bloodlust finally cleared from the Shapeshifter’s eyes, and it scanned the horizon with a determined expression. It couldn’t stand to let that smug bastard live even a second more!

“Where… where did he go?”

Theo was nowhere to be seen. Aleside was still too far away for him to have escaped already, and his silhouette should have been easy to spot if he tried. There weren’t any rocks or shrubs to hide behind either! It was as if he had completely disappeared!

The Shapeshifter wasn’t a slouch when it came to stealth and detection, and quickly activated its [Perception] skill, or the NPC equivalent of such. The distorted eyes on its face changed shape, becoming large and hawk-like, and glowed with a golden light. Everything nearby seemed to be encapsulated in its vision, and a wicked grin too wide for its face crept across the Shapeshifter’s features.

“Found you!” it screamed and lunged at the unmoving body of the [Thunder Tusk].

The Shapeshifter’s arms bulged wildly, swelling up like a massive lopsided gorilla as it dug a handful of meaty fingers into the dead monster’s flesh. With a heave, the obese body was flung to the side, revealing a tattered and dusty looking Theo beneath it. The bastard had tried to hide under the body of the fallen [Thunder Tusk] and play dead!

It wasn’t just the assassin’s arms that were swollen, as it was filled with an overinflated sense of ego at the sight of imminent victory. The image of the battered man who had tortured it previously was like the most refreshing sight in the world to the enraged Shapeshifter. It wanted to wring the life out of this annoying insect with its bare hands, and make him scream in agony until he begged for death!

“Finally… finally, finally, finally, I get to kill you!” it repeated gleefully.

Theo wasn’t paying attention. His eyes seemed to be locked onto the ground, or something there that only he could see. Every second the Shapeshifter kept yapping was another step closer to his salvation.

“I’m going to rip off your legs first, and then your arms, and then…” it was still going.

“3… 2… 1…” Theo spit out a mouth of sand and smiled up at the babbling assailant.

The Shapeshifter looked at him, dumbfounded, as though he were a madman, but how could it understand a strategy that was only available to players? It wasn’t a common sight, but Theo knew that thirty seconds after a non-player opponent changed targets, it would be considered out of combat. If that was the case...

“My win,” Theo said shortly.

He logged out.