Restructure announcement: Chapter specific comments of the author (me) will stand above the chapter, with a link to the forum, in which there will be a section I'll call “Announcements” to inform you about the really important stuff, like the fact that I'm not going to release any chapters for a couple of weeks. Polls will not be included into chapters, but will be uploaded as polls only, unless they refer to the chapter they are part of (Example: how did you like xy in this chapter/ what should be done with the situation now?). All of this stuff will be inside a “spoiler” box you may ignore. I hope this is to your liking?

And to get something out of the way before it's even asked: I know that the “headshot” should be a T-box-shot for the “instant kill” but how many of my readers would know that? I didn't feel like explaining.. I'm doing enough of that already.

So, here is chapter 7. Don't expect a release this Sunday tho! (Maybe Monday?) PS: Because the vote is kinda balanced, I'll kinda do whatever I feel like doing till we have a clear majority.

“So, you wanted to capture and sell us, and that's normal... but elves can use voiceless incantations, how would you stop them from injuring you and running away?”

“There.. is a device called slave collar, the owner can kill the slave at whim and inflict great amounts of pain, and if the owner dies, so will the slave.”

(So it doesn't actually seal away actions, just prevents them.. no mind control magic..)

“And you have one of those?”

“Yes.. every adventurer around here has one.. for the case they.. get to make use of it.”

“Just say that it's for the case they find a runaway elf and can sell him for profit.. no need to be shy. .”

The point of light approached the shadow of the boss, painting his outline onto the ground with a trail of burnt grass.

“Yes! That's exactly how it is!”

“You understand that I want clear answers from now on?”

“Yes!”

“Good. Well, since I don't think that you came here for the purpose of capturing elves, what was your reason for being here? Dave mentioned you are hunting magical beasts?”

“Yes! Some parts sell for quite a sum, it's a somewhat dangerous, but also quite profitable job!”

“You seem to be in a team with four others, why did you split up?”

“We can deal with most beasts on our own, so this improves the hunting speed! If someone get's into trouble, he can signal it to us using those com-stones!”

(Yeah, tier 2 should be doable for them.. and as a team they should be able to deal with a tier 3.. and tier 4 would be the dangerzone. Seems like he isn't lying.)

“These.. you call them com-stones? I've never seen something like this, how do they work and what do they do?”

“When you power them with mana they will transmit a signal to nearby stones. They emit a small pulse when they receive a signal. We are using codes to communicate. Each group has their own set of codes.”

“And.. how does it work?”

“I.. I don't know! It's a rune device, nobody knows how they work! They.. just do what they do!”

“And this armor you are wearing..”

“It's also a rune device! On weapons and armor they are called rune armaments!”

(I know that..)

“And.. when it started to shine, what was that supposed to do?”

“It.. raises my defense. It should! It's just that it didn't work against your attack!”

“Well.. let's see what this does..”

The man was quickly robbed of his shiny armor.

(Help?)

Help: This is normal steel.. the quality is mediocre, even. Only those carvings look special. ... they seem to react to mana. Bringing mana close to them causes them to absorb it, reason unknown. This seems to result in this forcefield.. analysis: the movement of objects within it is slowed. This would reduce the impact of incoming physical attacks.

(But that's pretty useless against lasers.. looks like he really got unlucky meeting us..)

“Stuff like this, is it expensive?”

“Yes! But adventurers buy it so they can face even stronger creatures, thus earning even more money with the materials! But most others wouldn't bother waste their money on such items!”

“And.. is it rare?”

“Something like this can be purchased at a decent blacksmith.. com-stones are even more common.. the better the effect, the harder they are to get by.”

“I see.. hey what are you trying to do?”

Dave froze in mid-movement. His attempt to slowly step backwards ended instantly.

“So, you were getting bored from not getting to do anything? Sorry for neglecting you.. I've got a few questions for you too! First, that crossbow you used, is it a good weapon?”

“It.. it's a strong weapon.. ehm.. reloading takes a bit longer than for a longbow! But it's easier to aim with it!”

“Well, sorry for making it useless then.. are there stronger ranged weapons that can be used by a single person?”

“There are stronger crossbows! Mine was just a normal one..”

(Hmm, so, no guns. Perhaps.. the resources for explosives are rare? Could that be it? Anyways..)

“So, you are “adventurers”, right? Compared to others, are you strong?”

“We are about average. There aren't many that are notably stronger than us. But there aren't that many that are much weaker either.”

“And are there many people stronger than adventurers?”

“No.”

(Well, unless they lied, it should be rather safe.. but keeping them alive could become troublesome.. wow, not even the slightest bit of hesitation in thinking this, that skill really has changed me.. anyways, what would I gain from keeping them alive.. nothing really. Well, that was their death sentence. People of this world get reborn right? So.. technically, I'm not killing them? Heck, as if that matters.)

“Ehm.. could.. you let us go?”

“I was just about to answer that question! And the answer is.. well, no use talking to a corpse..”

After looting the corpses, Quintus was now wearing a new set of clothes. The original clothing needed some tailoring, but the size only had to be reduced, so it was rather easy. There were plenty of materials to make thread from around, while Mana never learned the methods to use them in her old life, this was one of the basics for elves.

The old armor may have been functional, but the iron wolf skin most likely was a rare material, it would attract attention. There was no guarantee iron wolves even existed outside of the elven part of the forest. Wearing the remodeled leather armor and a wide hood, Quintus almost looked like a thief. The “valuables”, like the rune engraved steel plates, the com-stones and the blades were put into a bag and the small colored coins which seemed to be the money in this world were put into a small pouch. The total weight was more than Quitus would be able to carry, but that didn't matter, Mana was able to help out. Resting to replenish mana, killing magical beast from time to time, their journey continued..

You have reached level 4.

(And another five meters of range.. at this rate, at level 100... ehm.. there's a mistake somewhere in this, right? 500 meters of range? As a radius around me? That seems somewhat unbalanced.. well, I've got other things to care about right now..)

Since their first encounter, they hadn't met other adventurers so far. It was only on the second day they encountered another group of humans. Well, perhaps “encounter” is the wrong word..

(How long do those guys plan to follow us.. they couldn't have noticed that Quintus is an elf right? Nah, probably thieves. Someone traveling alone would attract their attention. But I've got to say.. they are pretty good at hiding their presence.. no sounds so far. But they got to close, even if they are hiding behind objects, I can still see them..)

“Hey! How long do you three guys plan to keep following me?”

The one speaking was Mana. The voice was deep, rough, utterly unfitting of the small figure it was coming from. The stalkers froze in their movement, looked around.. there was no way they were in his line of sight!

“It's no use, I can still see you.. what do you want from me?”

They were uncertain about what they should do.. this person seemed special, perhaps dangerous. But their greed and the fact that they outnumbered him ended their hesitation.

“So you already noticed us? That makes things easy.. hand over your valuables, and we'll let you of with your life.”

“Hmm.. threatening me? Interesting! Well, if you want my items..

The bag was turned around, five swords, three daggers and a crossbow, along some pieces of armor and bolts fell to the ground.

..you can always try! Now, ask yourself how I got those, and then ask yourself if you shouldn't reconsider what you just said.. I'm giving you a chance to do so.”

(I.. don't really care, but some part of me is telling me that I shouldn't kill them.. so that's how much humanity is left in me?)

The message might seem obvious.. however.. in this forest, death was something that could always occur to anyone, even if they were careful. Thus there were not only adventurers, but also scavengers roaming this forest.. alongside the thieves that stole from either. What was a typical scavenger like? Quick on his feet even carrying heavy items, usually working alone, collecting the valuables of death adventurers. There weren't many of them, but they still existed.. and in the eyes of the thieves, Quintus just outed himself as one. To have killed a group of adventurers himself, alone? They didn't even consider this possibility. Thus what this man said only confused them..

“Don't know what game you're playing, but you better decide now. Hand it over, or we'll take your life alongside it.”

“This.. is your answer?”

“Hey, I asked you something, not the other way around! Hand over your...

You have slain a level 23 human. 11500 exp earned.

You have slain a level 20 human. 10000 exp earned.

You have slain a level 21 human. 10500 exp earned.

There was no time to react, no way to evade, they didn't even notice it. And each bullet was lethal.

(Yeah, melting one of those daggers was a good idea. Now, let's get those bullets back.. I wonder how they managed to sneak up on us without producing any sound, do they have some kind of rune armament for stealth?)

“There.. is a weapon that can use this attack..”

Looking at his sword, Quintus felt pathetic. So what if he mastered the blade? What use was mastering a weak weapon? What Mana just did, he would have taken much longer, perhaps risked his life, and success wasn't guaranteed. But this weapon didn't even require a single breath, not even a “second” to kill.

“Yep, there is. If you want I can try to craft one once we have the materials for it. Ah.. found it. So.. this device seems to prevent soundwaves? Pretty useful for stealth in a forest.. well, it's light, it won't hurt to take it with us.. any other valuables..”

Having money can never be a bad thing. Thus, having money was likely to be a good thing. It was a sound logic, free from what would have stopped others from doing what Mana did, free from hesitation and the feeling of guilt.

To kill.. for Mana, it was just “an action with consequences”. To Quintus.. it was something necessary. Unlike Mana he still had emotions. But he had learned that to kill was a requirement to stay alive in this world, so he was able to do it without hesitation. There was no need to feel guilty for his actions either, as what he did was the natural thing to do.

Perhaps living like this would have made some go crazy, but he had someone he could always depend on. Mana had saved his life countless times already, and while he knew that the way she acted was weird, he believed his “sister” to be a good person.

“Well, let's continue. We've been walking for a week, no matter how big this forest is it should have an end.”

“Okay, let's get going.”

After two more hours of walking, they finally reached the border of the forest.. beautiful plains could be seen, illuminated by the sunsets remaining light. It was a sight to behold, but completely ignored by Mana.

(Zoom times ten... ah, there it is! Looks like a village.. by this distance, roughly 10 km from here.. well, for Quintus it's about time to sleep. Let's go there tomorrow.. I wanna see what human society is like..)