Chapter 64: Fracture - Twilight Maze (11) (Patreon)

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Sarai dispelled [Dark Tendrils] as soon as the Neung-uh died, dropping loot.

I stared at the silent archer, sizing him up.  Baran was definitely the one who cast [Chained Arrow]. 

“If he has [Chained Arrow]... then he must have killed [Agwi Archer].  Elf archer with [Chained Arrow]... Surmising he’s unlocked the elf-racial trait; Aurora would be the best opponent for him.  I can kill Sarai first and-”

“Mr. Lock.  What are you going to do?”

Aurora’s voice brought me back to the present.

“What’s there to do? We’ll kill-”

“It would be best to avoid unnecessary hostility.”  She continued.  “Perhaps we can talk to them first.”

I paused.

She… was right.  Dammit, she was right.

Technically they hadn’t done anything wrong; just rude and obnoxious.  We hadn’t touched the monster, yet here I was, calmly thinking of a way to murder them.  If my first reaction to people wronging me in a dungeon was to kill them, there was something wrong with me.  What’s the difference between a monster and people? The ability to reason.

Yeah, I should talk to them.

But still… I knew how most situations like this in games ended.  The only difference was that we’d need their help when fighting the dungeon boss.  That was as far as I needed them for.

One chance.  I’d give them one chance.  That was it.

Luckily for us, Baran must’ve realized what he had done.  His party wasn’t touching the Neung-uh loot.  Instead, they were waiting for us to make the first move.

“I take it, you know what you did wrong?”  I called out, taking a few steps closer.  Against Baran and Sarai, I wanted to be ready to close the distance as fast as possible.

Baran took a few steps back while Pyret took a step forward.  They were experienced enough to realize what I was doing.  The fact that they took a few steps back at all meant they weren’t going to make this easy for us.

“It was an honest mistake.  We did not see you there,” the elven archer offered, “We’re willing to split the loot.”

“Ssssplit?!”  Skaris seemed outraged.  “The prey was oursss-”

“Skaris, let’s let Lock talk.”  Kyrian calmed the beastman.

“Skaris is right.  We had that beast surrounded.”  I peered at the droppings.

Another Moon Steel; gold coins, some Neung-uh scales and…

“Shit.”  

The fucking Neung-uh chose now of all times to drop a Unique Item: [Neung-Uh’s Ocarina].

“That… could be really useful.”  

“Leave the Moon Steel and the Ocarina.  You can have the rest.”  I offered.

The slight frown in Baran’s expression and a soft glance towards Sarai told me he was unhappy.

“How about we split the Moon Steel and Ocarina? Of course, we can give you priority since we were in the wrong.”  Sarai spoke in her brother’s stead.

I clicked my tongue, audibly.  From the look of things they had no idea what [Neung-uh’s Ocarina] was.

“Let’s take their deal, Mr. Lock.”

“Then we’ll take the Ocarina, gold coins and the scales.”  I said finally.

“...We’re fine with that.”

Snow continued to fall in the ensuing silence as we each picked up the drops.

I studied them.  Sarai had a haggard look about her and all of them looked tired.  They all obviously hadn’t been able to find a temporary shelter; Furgrin and Pyret were both bleeding from a few cuts.  They’d survived the Monsters but at this rate, they wouldn’t have much left.  In this team, Baran was the only ranged DPS barring the mages; who’d run out of mana pretty fast.

“Hmmm… if they’re in this state for the Boss Fight, it might be troublesome for us.”

“If you go down this way and take a right, there will be a small shelter.  You should be able to rest there.”

“Truly?”  Sarai looked excited them sullen as Baran shot her a glare.

“Why are you telling us that information?”

“We already rested.”  I explained.  “And that shelter is too small for all of us anyways; it should fit all four of you.”

“...if what you are saying is true, I won’t forget this debt.”

“Make sure you don’t.”  I said, putting emphasis on my words.

Baran’s eyes met mine, he knew what I was insinuating –the Fracture Splinter.  None of us had forgotten the true reason why we came into this dungeon.  We might be distracted by Phase 1 and Phase 2 but in the end, our true goal was the Fracture Splinter.

“I’ll remember it.”  He relented.

At the very least now, we won’t be stabbed in the back.  Or made it unlikely in any case.

Of course, I’d still be watching him.  No point in being a fool.  But every little bit would help; just like how I survived until now.  Every choice and decision piled into making a big difference that gave me the edge needed during moments of life or death.

“Let’s go, brother.”

After Baran’s party had gone, we continued our own journey into the maze.

“Mr. Lock.  That was nice of you.”

I didn’t answer.

“Most party leaders would have turned that into a fight to the death.”

“Only because we’re in the fracture.  Anywhere else and I would have reacted the same as anyone.”

“Still, you avoided needless bloodshed.”  Then Aurora smiled for the first time since I met her.  “Thank you.”

“...It was nothing.”

I didn’t feel much about Aurora’s ‘thank you’.  It wasn’t me that kept it from devolving to bloodshed.  Really, it had been Aurora’s advice.  My immediate instinct had been to kill them and I knew for a fact that it had been the same for Skaris.  Being a slave under the Samak Horde… it had turned us something far and away from the definition of what was considered a ‘normal’ adventurer.

Far too quick to fight.  Far too willing to kill.

Too starved to protect what was theirs.

What Baran had done could be construed as testing us.  By letting them get away with it, I felt like I was showing weakness.  But what else could I do? Until the dungeon boss was defeated, I had to try and keep everyone alive… just not united enough to stab us in the back at the last second.  It helped that the other party now owed me a favor.  All I had to do now was win the bet with Dibo.

But I learned something new about Aurora.  She didn’t like conflict with other adventurers, I hadn't seen her do anything to antagonize another person yet.  She did know about the fact that we were in a race to see who could take the Fracture Splinter home, yet she still kept up the talk about ‘cooperation’.  Could it be that despite being a noble, she wasn’t as stuck up or blood-hungry as other Scions?

It was the type of information that could come in handy later while trying to recruit her.

“I guess she doesn’t care about the rewards as much.”  I wondered if Aurora still had some backing of the Vetilius family, even if she was an illegitimate child.  That made me wonder what she was getting as a reward for entering this Fracture.

“Is fighting between adventurers so common?”  Eltis asked.

“Adventurer’s code also dictates that they should not have touched the monster we were hunting.”  Kyrian defended me.  “I doubt their story about not seeing us.  The Akka Xaluds often claimed entire hunting grounds for their own use, and even killed other adventurer parties over Cores and lesser loot.  It’s even worse in dungeons.  What happens in a dungeon, stays in the dungeon.”

“He isss lucky Ssslaveborn has become sssssoft.”  Skaris shook his head.  “If it wassss before, Sssslaevborn would have bitten off hissssss ear then-

“Enough of that.”  I put an end to the matter.  “I smell something around here.”

Yet, something about what Skaris said bothered me.

Had I really become soft?

I led the party for a few more hours, making sure to kill any monsters that were Grade-8 or below.  We even got to see Aurora level up. Even the stoic wariorress smiled softly as we congratulated her; she informed us that her Soul had finally grown enough to house another Core.  If we leveled up using Grade-8 monsters…

“Hm… so she wasn’t level 30 yet.”

Soon we reached the place I was looking for.

“Thisssss issss a deadend.”  

I began stumbling around the wall, trying to push it in.  “I can smell a monster from the other side.”

I was growing impatient.  I had killed one Neung-uh and Baran had killed another.  It was safe to assume that Dibo had killed one by now as well.  That meant all three Neung-uh traveling around the maze was accounted for.  That left only two left; both of them hidden in secret corridors.  If Dibo knew about the hidden ones but had been tricking me by saying there’s only three…

At best this could end as a draw.  At worst, I might lose.

Finally I found the pressure plate as a hidden passageway opened up; into another deadend.  But unlike the previous one, there was an inhabitant in here.  A Neung-uh –without its bubble– dozing peacefully on the ground.

Skaris and Aurora showed no remorse as they plunged spear and lance into the monster’s soft head.  

“Kuruk!”  It cried out right before fading.

“Honey, somehow it feels wrong to kill a sleeping monster.”  Eltis whispered.

I ignored them, continuing my previous train of thought about the bet with Dibo.

Would I lose? Really?

No… I didn’t believe it.  Not really.  Deep in my heart, I didn’t think I could lose the bet.  And even if I did? So what? I’d just become a slave for-

I reeled back like someone slapped me.

Holy shit.  What the fuck was I thinking?

Was I letting my emotions dictate my actions? Not my thoughts?

My brain knew that I could lose and become a slave again.  Why the hell didn’t my heart believe it?

What had changed? When I was a slave for the orcs, I made each decision carefully and took calculated risks.  But instead, I was taking risks with a calm demeanor, relying on the feeling that ‘everything was going to be alright’ like a gambler who didn’t care whether he won or not.  But I wasn’t a millionaire or billionaire, far from it.

I was in debt.  I was in a Fracture with 8, possibly 10 people –if I considered the fact that Aurora and Eltis might be a double agent– who were out to kill me.  They’d do it without blinking too.

“Wake up.  This is MSS.”  

Most people don’t die in special life or death situations.

A car accident while driving to work.  A plane crash on a routine business trip overseas.  Getting hit by a drunk driver while walking to school…

People were at their most vulnerable when they thought they were safe.

Skaris was right.  I had become soft.  I’d become weak.

…Because I had people I trusted now.

I trusted Skaris and Kyrian.  And to a certain extent, Aurora and Eltis too.  They seemed like decent people.  Also I wasn’t a Slave anymore.  Getting comrades hadn’t made me stronger, it had made me safer.  As a result, I lost my own edge in trying to survive in this world.

I started to believe in a ‘happily ever after’ ending.

By the gods… I wasn’t even thinking about getting out of this world.

What the hell was I doing here? I should be doing everything possible to take advantage of phase 2, grow stronger and win the bet against Dibo.

…If Arrosh saw me now, he’d be disgusted.  My master had been willing to shove his hand inside my fucking shoulder stab wound to wake me up.

I needed to wake up.  This wasn’t just a routine Fracture Dungeon.

This was life or death.

The first step… was admitting that I wasn’t above Aurora and Eltis.  I’d been looking at them like people to be coddled.  But the truth of the matter was, on a party level they could fulfill their roles much better than I could as a DPS.  I shouldn’t be taking care of them, it should be the other way around.

“Aurora, Eltis.”  I turned to the two.  “I have a proposition.”

Aurora noticed something was different immediately.  “What is it, Mr. Lock?”

“You both can have the Moon Steel.  Even the one in the possession in my party, one to each of you.”

“Lock?”  Kyrian sounded worried.

But Skaris’ simply narrowed his eyes.  Ever the hunter, he knew what I wanted immediately.

“I want to get stronger in this dungeon.  Not just hunt the Neung-uh.  I want to hunt stronger monsters… So in exchange for Moon Steel, help us.”

“Honey, isn’t that what we’re doing?”

Aurora shook her head.  “What he’s proposing is different all together.  So far, we’ve been working towards the goal of the Fracture Splinter, together.  However now he’s asking for our help in his party’s goals; not the same as the mission we took on behalf of the guild.”

Eltis smiled seductively.  “Ah… well, I don’t come cheap you know.  This little piece of metal is expensive but Marc Pointell paid a pretty penny to get me here.  I’m going to have to charge you as well.”  

Eltis’ ‘come hither’ look didn’t bother me anymore.  I hadn’t been in the right state of mind; but now I was calm.  Calculating and cold; enough to remember the fact that Priestesses of the Lust for the Nine took a vow of chastity.  Everything Eltis did was a front; an act that the Priestesses of the Nine Church employed to put people off of their balance.

“We can split the look three ways.  One-third for my party, and one-third for each of you.”  I offered.

“Too little.”  Eltis replied immediately.

Aurora was of the same mindset.  “Even from my view, I can tell that none of you have reached your Third Sanctification.”

“...You just reached yours not too long ago, Ms. Aurora.”  Kyrian commented dryly.

“Yes.  But there is a big difference between an adventurer who has achieved it, versus one who hasn’t.”  She lifted her chin.  “40%.”  

“I won’t be so shameless.”  Eltis put a finger to her lips, pretending to think.  Then playfully slammed her fist into her palm.  “35%.”

I agreed without hesitation.  A small price to pay for getting stronger.  Also I’d gained another useful piece of info: Eltis had also reached level 30 –her Third Sanctification.  Else she wouldn’t be asking for 35%.

“...Are we ssssso weak?”  Skaris asked himself more than me.

Sorry Skaris.  With only 2 Cores and 1 Slot open and no racial trait… you’re the weakest here.  Barring your own expertise with the spear of course.

“Hm…”  Eltis continued..  “I’m assuming the monsters we’re going to hunt are going to be different from the rest?”

I nodded.

So far we’d been avoiding the Grade 7 and above monsters.

Now we’d be actively looking for them.

“One problem honey, unless we find more of those Temporary Shelters, I doubt we’d hunt more than one or two.”

“That’s fine with me.”  It really was.  I knew the location of every single temporary shelter.

“...Then you’re fine with not hunting the Neung-uh, Mr. Lock? That seemed like a safe-way to gain the Fracture Splinter.  I’d like you to ask you to reconsider.”

“I already thought it through.  If Baran and Dibo decide to stab us in the back, you can’t protect all of us, Aurora.  We all have to get stronger.”  

“Ok then.”  Aurora agreed and traded grips with me, Skaris and Kyrian.  Eltis did the same.

The problem was this.  Now there was only one Neung-uh left.  If Dibo killed it, the bet would be a draw.  But if I killed it –or Baran happened to stumble upon it– the boss would descend upon the center of the maze and most of the monsters would clear out.  I didn’t want to take the assume that Dibo was ignorant of the hidden room containing the last Neung-uh.  So I’d have to make sure we hunted around that area.

It was only possible because of the [Neung-uh’s Ocarina].

Reorienting the party towards the last remaining secret room, I quickly led the way after leaving the secret room.

Only half an hour passed before my nose picked up the scent of monsters I’d been avoiding.

[Ice Dokkaebi], Grade 7.

Three of them too.

We saw them before they managed to see us.

“Aurora, let’s go.”

This time, I didn’t lead the way.  I let Aurora fulfill her role as the shielder; and she rushed headlong into the group of them.

These monsters weren’t as tall as the other monsters of this dungeon.  Only about 8 feet tall or so, but size wasn’t everything; a group of them could kill the Inuho-oh just by beating it to death.  Built with powerful muscular arms and a round stomach, each of them held a large weapon in one hand and a gourd of alcohol in the other.  They also sported horns around their forehead, ranging from one to five.  It was a indicator of their power levels.

Two of them only had one horn, while one held five.

“Aurora! Take care of the big one!”  I exclaimed while Skaris and I split off from either side of her, engaging the Dokkaebis.

It was time to see just how good of a tank Aurora really was.

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