How much of a self-conceited spoiled brat can this guy be?

"You are a real pain in the ass, did you know that, Cloude? I could kill you right now, but I won't. You are becoming my prisoner."

"You will never take me alive, monster!" And he burns one of my bucket list phrases. I really hate you. But seriously? That cheesy?

"Flash Freeze."

I have minutes before people reach my place. It will be terrible if they see a troll. I could use the remains of these adventurers and make skeletons to buy time, but Marcy and Helen are with them.

Here go another 20 SP... level 6 should be enough. "Psychic Assault!"

Cloude lets out an inhumanly scream as the skill does its work and forcefully attempts to black his mind out. The ice breaks under the strain of the convulsions and he collapses.

In the minimap, the dots for Marcy and Helen stopped. Cloude also stops convulsing on the ground and is out cold. I hurriedly appraise him, but my worries are unfounded. He is still alive.

I remove his armor by storing it in the item box straight from his body. After that, wrap him in a bedroll and tie it up. Cloude salami. Already badly spoiled.

I cast invisibility on both of us and move away from the blast site.

Helen (4-Wizard) has gained 7 levels. Marcy (5-Guild Master) has gained 6 levels. Grendel (3-Monster Tamer) has gained 3+14 levels. 94 skill points awarded. Congratulations! You have reached your racial level cap. Evolution available.

"What the..." In my surprise, I think out loud. Someone the girls brought overheard me.

"What is this sound? Who is there?"

Crap. I should sneak away. Marcy brought guards.

After I move away for some 10 minutes carrying the unconscious Clouderpillar, I stop to check what the heck just happened.

What is my basic status now?

Basic Info Name: Grendel / Beowulf Age: 3 seasons (summer child) Race: [3] Troll

Current Job: [3] Monster Tamer Racial Level: 60 ( Next: ☆ ) Job Level: 37 (Next: 5%)

I don't know if I am happy I can evolve into a higher tier race or angry that my growth is stunted until I manage to evolve. Who knows how long it would take? Where is the evolution option in the status?

A few minutes later I've found it.

Evolution Options [tier 3] Accounting Troll [tier 4] Troll Berserker [tier 3] Aquatic Troll [tier 4] Ice Troll [tier 3] Jungle Troll [tier 4] Jotun [tier 3] Ettin Mage [tier 4] Troll Shaman [tier 3] Rock Troll [tier 4] Gemstone Troll [tier 3] Love Troll [tier 4] Troll Colossus [tier 3] Swamp Troll [tier 4] Shadow Troll [tier 3] Half-Troll Half-Elf [tier 4] Chaos Troll [tier 4] Cave Troll [tier 5] Troll King [tier 4] High Troll [tier 5] Half-Dragon Half-Troll [tier 4] Night Troll [tier 5] Qliphoth Dimensional Troll [tier 4] Troll Knight [tier 6] Troll Demigod

And I begin to suffer from an extreme case of overchoice. I can't choose now. Close without saving!

I'll summon some gnomes to protect Cloude, transform back into Scruffy Dee and rejoin Marcy and Helen. Oh, there is a rabbit. Air cannon. Dead rabbit. Let's bring it with me.

"Woof! Woof!"

They are at the lava bomb detonation site. Everything is charred and there are black rocks everywhere. Some of them still steaming. Body parts are scattered everywhere. There are some farmers here with Helen.

Helen receives me, "Scruffy! You are back! I was so worried! Did you hunt this rabbit? Who is a good boy!" She takes the rabbit from my mouth and gifts it over to a farmer. The farmer thanks her and leaves.

Marcy is over there where I fought Cloude with some guards. She noticed me but didn't stop or even gave more than a glance at me.

"Whimper!"

"What is wrong, boy! We are not angry at you for running away, cheer up!" Keywords are 'for running away'. It might mean they are angry at me for 'other' reasons.

With a lowered head and the tail between the legs, I approach Marcy. She doesn't bat an eye at me.

They are looking at the footprints of the fight. Damn, these are troll footprints. And thinking back to all the information leaks that happened, it would not take long for someone with a bit more brains and a good information network to put 2 and 2 together and figure out what happened.

There is also the thing about this impersonator. I can't even be sure it is a proper troll. Who would know the name 'Grendel'? Let's discard other transmigrated people from Earth. I named myself before Helen. She only revealed it to Marcy. No torture made her speak. Then Helen called Beowulf by Grendel when I was freaking out and running away from the guild. Then the gorilla kids called me that near Cloude. I'll assume Cloude told everything about us to the guild and whomever else listened to his drunk ramblings.

There are two points where the information leaked to the general public. The Colchester guild and Cloude.

Thinking again, no. There is one more. The guild crystal of Mirfield. I gave it to Kareena without knowing that any info registered in it would remain even after the linked guild master died. Kareena has my full appraisal from registration.

I'm glad the guild does not have long-range communication. I might have to return to Colchester and do away with that crystal. But the information might be already registered elsewhere or spread through word-of-mouth.

There is no use worrying about it. I'll just strengthen my defenses and wait for them to move. Maybe return to the dungeon to hunt a bit more.

One of the guards asks, "What was the thing that killed this poor boy? This foot is too big, probably an ogre?"

"Whatever it was, it went away to the south," another older guard with a recurve bow comments.

Marcy continues, "I think our presence scared it. It probably is a weaker member that could not get enough food to hibernate and is hungry and afraid."

"We will have to double the vigilance. It ran south, maybe it lives near the Dragonclaws. But if it tasted human flesh, it will come back for more," concludes the guardsman.

I have to protest. Human flesh is not tasty. I've eaten four and do not crave more. Much to the contrary, I don't want to even think about it.

"Now that my hound has returned, I can track the beast for a while. I'm sure we can go south for a few hours then keep on with our route. But while it was unfortunate, what happened here is obvious. Those adventurers were following us and used the moment we got separated from Cloude to attack him. Cloude was a magician, he probably awakened to Lava magic or something like that. It is not unheard of a person awakening new skills out of the blue during moments of stress."

The veteran guard seems to accept the excuse, "I see, I see. but did he survive?" Marcy steals a peek at me.

"We ran back to request help, but it was too late. It is possible that Cloude was wounded or even killed by his own spell and then that monster was drawn in by the scent of blood."

"Miss, I would like you to return to town and report."

"No can do. We need to track and slay that creature before it goes for the farmers. As you told, it might become a stalker that hunts people. I'll tell you what you should do. Take the cards of these men and bring them to the guild. Then do the report yourself. Or you can go hunt in the dead of winter now, and I go back to the garrison, sit in front of the fireplace and write on some parchment. How about each one of us does their own job?"

"Yes, miss, I understand." C-rank adventurers have a social rank equal to knights. There is no way a backwater frontier town guardsman would defy them.

Marcy goes to where Helen is but stops and turns to me, "Scruffy, heel!" She points at her boots. I think I should follow her, is it so? Let's go.

Helen notices our approach and asks, "How are you, Marcy?"

"It is sad to lose a childhood friend, but fatality is an occupational hazard of being an adventurer." She is really pissed. "We have a monster to track, come now. Ride on top of Scruffy. Upsy Daisy, here you go!"

Marcy picks Helen up and puts her on me. Using a belt, she does makeshift reins over my collar. Helen puts her legs in the now empty saddlebags to work as stirrups.

"We wish you good luck in your hunt!" The farmers wave us goodbye.

"I am running, Scruffy. Do not stay behind." And Marcy dashes out. Even using a quadruped form it was hard to keep up. I was saving stamina to keep my transformation.

We run south for half an hour and then stop by a stream to rest. It is frozen in the margins, but the middle still has running water. I lie down to let Helen dismount and cancel the transformation. I'm tired.

"Why did you have to kill him, Grendel?" Marcy finally lets the cat out of the bag. "He was an asshole, but he was my friend!"

Was that the reason she was so angry? If I didn't know her I'd think she is bipolar. One moment she is telling me she will kill him herself, the other she is almost crying because I allegedly killed her 'friend'.

"I didn't. I'm sorry. I tried to recruit him. I told him I would take him unharmed and let him roam free with a guard at the Hill. I also told him the entire truth. About who I am, about what I did. I admit I was angry and hurt at his betrayal, so I probably have worded it in a very bad way. But if I had a way to convert Cloude to our cause, I would do it. In the end, he decided to attack me. I've not fought back until the time you were about to arrive when I knocked him out and hid the boy away."

"You could have waited for us!" She yells at me.

"You were with several farmers and guards. I'm a monster. What do you think would have happened? How many would have died?"

"You could have possessed him again."

"You've seen my status. I was weakened. I can't possess the same person two times in a row in such a short notice. What is the difference between a puppet Cloude and a dead Cloude? We tried to get him on our side twice! He betrayed our trust. You know me. I'd never kill someone if there was a way of avoiding it."

"But killing Cloude in cold blood..." Did she listen to a bit of what I said?

"I. Did. Not. Kill. Him. Cloude is a bit away from here, guarded by gnomes. Did you really think I've killed him? He is alive. I'm saving the honor for you..."

Helen scolds me, "Grendel!"

"Just joking, Marcy. I won't let you become a cold-blood murderer. But I was framed."

"What do you mean?"

"There is a request to kill a troll that is harassing people on a road right next to this town and is also calling himself 'Grendel'. There are also troll sightings near Mirfield. Several. And more, there is this troll that attacked the flame gorilla tribe." I pause for emphasis, " A troll exterminated a tribe of fire monsters. Laughing. It made Kochurearc flee with the youngsters."

"It is too much coincidence."

"It is not too much coincidence. There is no coincidence at all. The troll that attacked the flame fist and the one in that road is probably the same troll. And it is one that has something to do with me."

"Why would it do such things and pin the blame on you?"

"Thinking about it now, there is a third way info about me leaked out of our circle, besides Cloude and the Colchester guild. I am, or at least my soul is from Earth. I was a human there, and the planet had no magic. Somehow I came to this world in the body of this troll. But there are these entities that brought me here. Some beings from another dimension, maybe gods even, brought my soul here. They are responsible for giving me those special skills."

"Things will get hectic again, right? About Cloude, I think I could let him live... Don't worry, Grendel. I'll get over it soon."

I can't even imagine what kind of mixed feelings she has now.

"Good. It is time to return home. We are going, and you are coming with me, Marcy."

I pick up both girls and move back to where Cloude is with a fast sprint now that my stamina has recovered. There he is all cozy sleeping and making his best impression of a fallen tree. I'm glad for him but annoyed nothing showed up to eat him. Can't be helped. I dismiss the gnomes and pick Cloude under my arm. Set an anchor and teleport home.

I want to check these evolution choices in depth. Put the goblins to watch over Cloude and let him rot for a while.