Chapter 35: Captive (12) (Patreon)

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Skaris and I both whirled around, moving as one. Even in this high-stress situation, a subconscious part of my mind observed Skaris’ stance trying to learn something. He stretched one arm out completely, the javelin pointed at the stranger. The other, he held behind his back.

Maybe I could do something similar with my sword and shield.

The newcomer was a medium height man with blonde hair so fine, it bordered on white. It was so long that it almost reached his waist. He had fine features with pale skin, perhaps he would have been considered good-looking if not for the haggard look in his eyes or the bags underneath them. He wore beige tattered robes but I recognized the embroidery and runic markings on them just fine.

He was a mage.

I stepped clover to him, holding my sword. With my new Core, I could-

“Wait, I’m not your enemy.” He said furiously, desperate to get the words out fast enough.

I couldn’t put my finger on it but I felt like I recognized him. Even the voice was familiar. But I hadn’t met a single mage since I was transported here in MSS…

“I wish to help.” He whispered. “Please. I’ve been following you since before… since you killed those other two orcs. I heard everything about your plan. About how you want to help your friends. About how you want to ruin the Akka Xalud's plan.”

I wasn't stupid enough to think that he was a spy; a spy would have turned back and told this Akka Xalud or whatever they were about our plans. If Skaris and I, two slaves, were caught this early on in our plan we'd be powerless. The crux of our plan was the fact that we were undetected and could assault key points that had protection just weak enough for us to get through.

Then again, I wasn't stupid enough to think that a mage was offering his help to us out of his own free will.

Like I said before, mages are a peculiar breed.

“Identify yourself first.” I wanted to know more about him before I made my decision.

“Ssslaveborn?” Skaris muttered. “There isss no need to quessstion him. Let usss kill him and be done with it.”

The mage hadn’t flinched or shown any reaction towards Skaris’ statement. His eyes were on me and only me.

“You don’t remember… me?”

“We’ve met?” I answered easily.

“...No.” He answered, resigned. “Not officially.”

He wasn’t flat-out lying but was hiding something. I was determined to find out what.

I didn’t have the luxury of leaving my back to people I couldn’t trust. I had people to protect; my decisions here had lives hanging in the balance.

“Tell me the truth.” I purposefully spoke harshly to him. “Or turn back and never show yourself in front of me again. I don’t have time to play cloak-and-daggers this night.”

He needed to get the message that if he was only telling me half-truths, then any hope he had of cooperating with us was off the table.

I saw the mage swallow.

“My name is Kyrian Tricilan. I was part of the party that attacked yours.”

Memories came to me of lightning superheating the sand to glass, threatening us with certain death if we even looked in the wrong direction.

“That was you?” I was barely containing myself from lunging at the man.

Skaris took a step menacingly towards Kyrian. “Ssslaveborn.”

Half of me wanted to listen to Skaris but the other half wanted to hear the mage out. Having a mage on our side could change things dramatically. There was a reason why all mages were arrogant and haughty: they deserved it. Their usefulness could not be captured in words alone. Offensive spells, defensive spells, buffs, debuffs, you name it. Anything that Core abilities couldn’t do, a Mage could make up for.

But then again, he did try to kill us.

In the end, my reason won out over the desire for violence. I’d be lying if I said my anger was abated, but I was desperate.

“Let’s hear him out.”

Skaris growled but didn’t say otherwise.

“Speak. And speak quickly.” I didn’t want to carry on a full conversation with the berserkers less than a hundred paces from us.

“I’m one of the adventurers who signed up to be part of the Akka Xaluds forces.” He explained. “I was part of the party that was chasing you towards the dungeon. Another adventurer and I waited for you to come out of the dungeon to capture you… but needless to say we failed.”

I was seeing where this was going. I’d played MSS enough to know a tragic backstory when I saw one.

“So they sent you away after you failed? And now you want to work for the other side? Is that it?”

“...Jason Carid Akka Xalud had my mother executed.” The mage deflated.

Ok, now I felt bad.

Even Skaris expression loosened, but he didn’t turn the tip of his javelins away.

“I worked personally next to Jason. I know how he thinks, how he works. You’ve just heard of the Akka Xalud’s plans. I’ve seen Jason talk about it for months.” He continued, his voice getting heated. “I can help you.”

“What isss your goal?” Skaris was studying Kyrian.

“Revenge.” The mage answered without missing a beat. “I want revenge on Jason Akka Xalud.”

I had to admit, he was selling himself really well.

I hadn’t even heard of the name ‘Jason Carid Akka Xalud’ until he said it. Just knowing the name of one of the major players was a big deal. But still, I couldn’t trust him.

All the comrades I’d gathered so far had one thing in common: we worked towards a common goal.

L’teya, Clover and I had fought together as one because we wanted to survive. Arrosh wanted to pass on the Sword Saint’s teachings to me and I wanted to get stronger, which were in alignment with each other. For Skaris, even if it wasn’t for the life debt he owed me, I knew that he respected my decision to rescue my comrade. Perhaps there were even some lingering regret he felt for not being able to save his own.

But this mage, if he was out to get revenge on Jason…

Worst case scenario, he’d choose to make a stand when we had to run. If I was looking for someone whom I can use as a sacrificla piece at any moment’s notice, Kyrian was perfect for that role.

But wasn’t that exactly what I didn’t want to do? To see the people of this world as people? Not as NPCs that I can use at my own leisure?

Maybe I was a fool for deciding this but I didn’t want someone like that working with me.

“Ssslaveborn?” Skaris was deferring to me, wanting me to make the choice. It had been left unspoken, but I was the leader of our small party even if it was only two of us.

“No.” I said after a moment’s silence.

The look on Kyrian’s face was pure dejection, like a guy who got rejected after asking his crush to the prom.

“Why?” He said finally. “This deal has nothing but advantages for you. I am offering my services until you reach Jason, and then I could-”

“That’s exactly the problem.” I cut the air with my sword. “I don’t need an expendable piece. I need a comrade that I can trust will escape this hellhole with me. Someone I can trust, someone with a cool head on their shoulders.”

Kyrian rocked back like he got slapped.

Even Skaris was surprised. “Ssslaveborn. A mage could-”

“I know what a mage is capable of.” I whispered back furiously. “But I’d rather go against those berserkers myself than have a mage at my back whose only goal is suicide. I need someone who’s going to stick through to us till the end. We have to think about what will happen after we escape.”

“The desert is full of monsters, and there’ll be other stragglers looking for easy pickings. This city will crumble to dust tonight and I can’t have someone who has his own agenda working alongside us. You and I, we both want to get out of here. Kyrian wants revenge. Those are two fundamentally different things.”

I’d seen it often enough, watching over my parent’s shoulder as they managed their corporation. Trying to make the company bigger to push out better products and improve people’s lives was different than trying to make the company bigger to make more money.

I couldn’t take this guy with us.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.” I meant it. “In your eyes, I’m probably responsible for your mother’s death just as much as Jason is.”

“But I need a comrade. Not a… not whatever it is you areoffering.”

The mage had his head cast down, his blonde hair covering his expression.

“A comrade… not an expendable piece….” He muttered to himself.

I was loath to turn my back on him but I didn’t want to kill him after all that either. His story rang true and my heart told me so. The best I could do for him was to let him go.

I turned to make sure nothing had changed with the berserkers.

“Mana Vow.” I barely heard the mage utter the word.

I thought my mind was playing tricks on me, that it must have been the wind and made to turn around.

“I’ll make a Mana Vow to you, Lock Slaveborn.” Kyrian lifted his head and gone were the self-loathing and dejection.

Only determination.

“I swear to serve you until you and your comrades are safe. I will not put my goal above yours, and will obey your orders to the letter.”

Before I could stop him Kyrian’s blue mana swirled around the mage, forming a string.

I had no idea what a Mana Vow was but could get the gist of what was happening from context alone. He was binding himself to me with the conditions that he had just uttered. From Skaris’ reaction it wasn’t anything harmful. Another feature that hadn’t been existent in my own playthrough of the game.

The string looped around itself and settled into the palace above Kyrian’s heart.

“A Mana Vow… on onesssself?” Skaris’ tone implied the rarity of this situation..

“Why are you doing this?” I couldn’t understand why Kyrian was so desperate to help us.

“Because.” He looked me straight in the eyes, long blonde hair no longer hiding his own. “I’m tired of being a coward.”

“Fine.” I snapped. “But turn this Mana Vow thingie off, comrades don’t need-”

The moment I said the word ‘fine’, the string of mana brightened and disappeared. I swore I heard Kyrian’s heart thump, and the cave quake in rhythm. I didn’t need Kyrian to explain that it was too late to cancel the Mana Vow, it had already been established.

“What…”

“The Vow wasn’t about the words, it’s about my intention. It was about me serving you as long as you were willing to let me follow you.” He brought out a piece of string and began to tie his long hair back into a ponytail. “Do not worry, Lock. Even if I should break the vow, it will not affect you in the slightest.”

“I, er- what?” I was flabbergasted.

But Kyrian was acting like a different person. He finished tying his hair and I saw the ring on his hand gleam. It was a Dimension Ring. He took out a long staff with a yellow crystal embedded at the top. He spun it with practiced ease, letting it float in the air then the staff snapped to his hand. The mage looked like a practiced warrior, making sure his blade was still sharp.

“Kyrian Tricilan.” He gave us a vow. “Grade-8 mage. At your service.”

I ground my teeth, still frustrated at how this situation was going. But I could sense that the moment for arguing back and forth was over. I knew the look in his eye and it was someone who was determined to follow a decision through to the end. My father had once had those eyes when trying to remake something of himself. Nothing I would say would change his mind.

“Fine. But remember that I’ll be keeping an eye on you.”

“And I assss well.”

“I would have it no other way, Lock. Skaris.”

Kyrian Tricilan crossed the invisible barrier of tension, easily joining us. Skaris stood to my right and Kyrian to my left. The three of us turned to see the four orcs, whom were talking. I cursed beneath my breath.

“What issss it?” Skaris heard me after I swore.

“The guards we killed. They’re probably wondering why it’s taking them so long to come back.” I looked at the two besides me. “We need to strike now. Tell me what you’re good at, Kyrian.”

“Offensive magic. Light, Water and Earth are my specialties.”

“Not bad.” I had known he was proficient with lightning magic, evidenced by the time he chased us through the desert.

Now that I thought about it, him killing Puca had worked out for us and none of us had been hit by his spells. Maybe I shouldn’t really be holding a grudge against him.

Regardless, it was perfect for us. I knew for a fact that tiger totem users wouldn’t have the magic defense stat necessary to fend off more than a few spells.

“What about curse magic?”

Curse magic referred to debuffs in gamer’s terms.

“Only one. But if you are nearby, you will get caught up in it.”

The plan formed in my mind. “Ok. I’ll approach the orcs first, cast the curse on all of us. Then use as many offensive as you can to slow down the berserkers. Skaris, keep them back.”

“You want me to hit you with the curse?”

“Yes.” I didn’t repeat the instructions. “I’ll take care of the witch doctor so keep the berserkers off of me. Both of you.”

Skaris nodded. “Leave it to me, Ssslaveborn.”

“...I will be watching your back.” Kyrian added.

While Skaris and Kyrian went over their gear, I thought about what I was about to do. Was I really about to leave my backs to these two? I wasn’t even accounting for the backstabbing aspect, but just how well we would synergize with each other. Did I communicate their roles clearly enough? Did they understand it? Were they truly at a level where I could trust them?

This… must’ve been how L’teya and Arrosh felt about me in the beginning.

It was funny. This was the first time I had gotten comrades of my own accord, much like Arrosh and L’teya had done for me. Scarlet didn’t count, that had been temporary. This was temporary too but…

It felt a bit different.

“ It’s because we’re all on the same page. Scarlet and I ultimately had different goals. But these guys… they’re going to be with me every step of the way.”

As soon as they had checked over their equipment and signaled that they were ready, I dashed out from the Stalagmites; I began to sprint downhill towards the orcs.

Nothing to do but trust them.

｢Lock Slaveborn casts [Coin Toss] ｣

｢[Mana] has been reduced ｣

｢[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Coin Toss]｣

｢[Arcane Masochism] raises [Speed]｣

I felt my feet slide forward and yet, when I took a step I could feel the ground beneath me more solidly than before. It was like I was gripping the entire cavern with my foot and the ensuing momentum was propelling me faster than possible. The surroundings became a blur and I was already within sword strike reach when the first of the berserkers noticed me.

Low-ranking berserkers or not, they weren’t berserkers for nothing. In a menacing display, all three of them drew their weapons in a flash and I brought up my shield to block the first of the oncoming attacks. While this orc kept me occupied, the two other berserkers leaped ten feet into the air like they were martial artists on TV. One of them held a colossal sword, a claymore and the other was using a halberd.

I badly wanted to scream out now but left it up to Kyrian’s discretion.

｢Kyrian Tricilan casts [Reduce Sight]｣

I felt Kyrian’s debuff spells descend upon the area like a heavy fog on a lake on a chilly winter morning. The feeling was akin to bugs whose legs had been dipped in ice crawling all over my skin. But for me, the sensation didn’t last long. My passive, Arcane Masochism, activated and the feeling of being submerged in an ice bath full of bugs faded.

｢[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Reduce Sight]｣

｢[Arcane Masochism] raises [Defense]｣

Boom

Boom

Time seemed to slow as the two orcs who were in the air landed behind me with their weight shaking the ground. It only took a split second for me to see that the orc in front of me had his burrows frowned and there were hints of darkness lingering near his eyes. If I was right, this was a debuff to their [Sight] stat. A grade-8 magician couldn’t cast [Blind] but for a tiger-totem orc?

Well, this was more than enough.

Before the other two orcs could regain their sight or decide that impaling me along with their ally was worth it, I moved to action.

My goal wasn’t the berserkers, it was to kill the Witch Doctor before he could do anything.

｢ ??? has cast [Squishy Skin] ｣

｢ [Squishy Skin] lowers [Defense] ｣

｢[Arcane Masochism] cancels [Squishy Skin]｣

｢[Arcane Masochism] rases [Speed]｣

I felt the speed buff in my bones this time, they felt lighter. From this, I knew that the witch doctor had done something and he was starting to act. Acting quickly, I ducked under my shield right as the berserker in front of me blinked. I had wanted to stab him in the stomach but he was fast, twisting to one side at the last second. I ended up stabbing him in the space right below his ribs, red blood starting to leak out from the wound.

I withdrew my blade and spun around his body, passing him and sprinting towards the Witch Doctor.

Crackle-Crack

Crack Crack Crack

There was a flash of heat and light from behind me, bringing me back to that day running away from the lightning strikes. But the spells hadn’t been aimed at me, they were aimed at the orc whom I had just wounded. One strike wouldn’t be enough to down the berserker, but it would be enough to alert everyone to the mage’s presence. Skaris and Kyrian would serve as a distraction until I killed the witch doctor.

“Focus on your own task.” I stopped worrying about the two,, drawing up the familiar imagery of a sword within my mind.

I felt it when my latest Core’s ability activated.

It was as if someone took a word and dropped it in my head. It wasn’t an intrusive feeling though, more akin to having forgotten something and being reminded that this word did indeed exist. Yet there was nothing else, except the word. No context on what it meant or why it was there.

｢[Sadistic Kleptomania] has stolen [Leap]｣

Prince Charming's Core, the one that dropped from the named Shadow Wolf Mimic, was working perfectly fine.