RD 2 Ch 10 (Patreon)

Chapter 10

Galen’s group headed off with all eight of the SS rank bloodlines and nine of the S rank bloodlines. That put eighteen of what turned out to be thirty seven participants in Galen’s group. 

Zane was still calming his group down and patting the air trying to get a semblance of order.

Nyx slid up next to me. “You seem calm about all of this.”

“It’s just an instance.” I shrugged, my eyes naturally scanning around us for any threats.

“Just an instance.” She echoed me. “Well, at least we have weapons and I’m glad that I don’t have to be up in front.” She fingered the bow in her hands. Given her class it only made sense.

We both sat on the edge of the platform watching Zane and what could only be described as the rejects of this year’s Heros Clan. Galen had been aggressive and confident. That manner had done quite a bit to calm those who were worried and those that wanted more.

Zane on the other hand was trying to address each and every concern brought to him. Despite the charisma he showed, he was still a fledgling leader and trying a touch too hard.

“Let’s just get started. I think they’ll all follow along.” I pushed off the platform.

Nyx followed me and played with her hair. “Do you think it’s getting greener? I think it’s greener.”

“You’re going to change.” I told her under no uncertain terms. “I think it’s better to just accept it now.”

Nyx scoffed. “Men. You really don’t understand. I’m going to become a god damn ugly monster. My life outside of the Heros clan is going to be over. Those friends? They’ll never be able to see me again. Heck, they’ll probably put me in a cage here.”

“They won’t put you in a cage.” I scoffed.

“I won’t be allowed outside the island. What if no one can even look at me?”

“Wear a blindfold?” I offered, really feeling like she had chosen the wrong person for this discussion.

She punched me. Hard.

In fairness I deserved it a little.

“Anyone ever tell you that you’re an asshole? I bet you become a sparkly vampire.”

I didn’t get the reference, but I understood it was bad. “Screw you too. Take that anger out on some monsters.”

She pulled an arrow from her quiver at the mention of monsters, but she didn’t draw the bow.

“Do you know how to use that right?” I asked, hoping I didn’t end up with an arrow in my back.

“I have Bow Proficiency F. Guessing that’s going to help.” She then grumbled her next skill.

“What was that?” I held my hand to my ear, teasing her.

“Petrifying Arrow.” She told me. “Slows them down by 20%.”

“All our skills are low rank. These guys are going to be S rank. I’m not sure how well any of it is going to work.” I admitted. “But we have the stats.”

We didn’t get more than a few hundred yards from the group before a tree cracked and two big blue skinned cyclopes burst through the trees fighting over a dead boar.

Both of them had blood around their mouths and their single eye was wide as they fought for the boar. They didn’t wear more than loin cloths to cover the nasty bits and it really struggled to do that.

[Cyclops Hunter S

Level: 2

Status: Hungry

Strength: 250

Agility: 200

Vitality: 300

Intelligence: 1

Spirit: 1

Skills: 

Titan Blooded S

Crush S

Eye Beam S

Enrage S]

They weren’t actually a threat, but my brows went up at what this instance must have looked like when it wasn’t suppressed. Most S rank dungeons didn’t exist below level one hundred.

The fact that this one did and had been kept open by the clan meant that someone had tinkered with it.

Thinking about these things scaling to level one hundred or higher was quite the terrifying idea.

“You got this.” I encouraged Nyx. “Those stats aren’t bad at all.”

Nyx drew her bow and fired arrows one after the other.

Thankfully, these monsters didn’t have any defensive ability and her arrows stabbed into them as they should.

After three arrows, the big stupid cyclops found the source and rushed towards us.

Nyx let out a cry seeing the big oafs barreling towards her.

I charged, ramming into the first, and sending him careening into the second. These two weren’t that strong and I was able to knock them around.

“Finish them. You’re actually doing quite a bit of damage I think.” Getting someone over the fear was the most important part of surviving a battle. To do that, I had learned to empower new recruits.

Nyx’s face hardened as she let loose another two arrows into one of them before the cyclops faded into the dungeon and then turned her bow to the second, finishing it in short order as well. “Thanks. You aren’t half bad.”

“I’m clearly built to fight someone up close.”

“Well, I’m glad it’s not me.” Nyx looked over her shoulder as Zane and the rest of the new Heros Clan members were coming running.

“Are you two alright?” Zane asked, his greatsword held tight in his hand.

I couldn’t help but notice while he’d given out E rank weapons, but the one in his hand was S rank. Whatever, an S rank sword wasn’t enough for me to get greedy over.

“I just got a little scared when they rushed me, but Bran was able to keep them off me.” Nyx’s posh accent made it sound like I was her butler or security.

Zane looked at me and fiddled with the ring to pull out a healing potion.

I waved it away. “Save it for the others. I have a skill, Regeneration. Sounds like I’m going to get some use out of it.”

Zane’s eyes went wide. “That’s a really good skill. Part of the Vampire Lord Class?”

I chuckled, not at this joke, but all the times I distinctly told Simone that I was not a vampire. Yet, now I was pretending to be one.

“Does the class have any other particular abilities?” A timid girl asked. “Do you need to drink blood?”

I was about to say no in a hurry, before I realized that the instance would be a fantastic place to improve my bloodline collection. I found myself licking my lips without realizing what I was doing. “Yes. It does. It doesn’t seem to be much though.”

Multiple people in the group looked suddenly queasy at the prospect, while the timid girl who asked looked absolutely delighted.

Apparently she was into the idea.

“Well, we are going to continue.” I said, putting my sword on my shoulder. “It would be nice to get some help. I don’t know how many cyclops usually travel together.”

Zane nodded sharply and started organizing the weaker members into groups of two or three that might be able to fight with the same strength of the stronger members.

I glanced at Nyx. “Want to keep going?”

“Yeah, but shouldn’t we wait for them?” She asked, glancing over her shoulder.

“They’ll catch up.” I shrugged and started marching deeper into the forest.

Nyx picked up her arrows in a hurry and came running back with a large femur. “This is S rank. It might be better than your sword.”

I took it, hefting it. The thing wasn’t terribly off balance, but the grip was a little thick. My sword disappeared into a spatial ring.

Nyx glanced at the rings on my finger. “Wait, you have spatial rings? Multiple?”

I chuckled. “Yeah. My girlfriend is almost level one hundred.”

Nyx blushed. “You have a girlfriend?”

“Two of them actually. Well, one fiance and one girlfriend.” I clarified. There was no reason to hide the fact.

The archer continued to blush. “My mother said Heros men were like that.”

I shrugged. “Just kind of worked out that way. Don’t look at me like a pig.”

“No!” She waved her hands in front of her. “The idea of it being common just takes some getting used to.” She mumbled something else under her breath that I didn’t catch

“I get that. A few weeks ago I was taking my finals and wrapping up my baseball season.” I swung the bone a few times like a bat. “What about you?”

Nyx made a face. “Just got back from boarding school and my dad was all cloak and daggers telling me to hop on a jet. The jet wasn’t the weird part, just how shady he was being. Once we got on he went into this whole story and started doing magic. I got the short version of how this all works.” She grabbed her hair. “Now I’m turning into a monster.”

“Well, there’s definitely a whole group of guys out there that go for the monster vibe.” I tried to reassure her. “Also, how was the jet not the weird part?”

“Aren’t all the Heros minted?” She asked with perfect innocence. “I mean, from the ones I’ve seen so far they are all swimming in money. We have two jets ourselves.”

It felt like I’d been pierced by a dozen arrows. A little anger at my mother flared up.

“No. My mother raised me in a poor area. I think she didn’t want to spoil me.”

“Oooh.” Nyx made a noise of understanding. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s fine. I made my own way.” I grumbled and wanted to hit something. The bone felt much better in my hands right now. It had some heft and I wanted to crush something.

Activating Blood Boil made my veins crawl under my skin like earthworms and I heard something crashing through the forest.

I shot forward with a roar, winding up the bone to attack whatever it was.

The goat, if you could call it that, looked up from where it had knocked down a tree and was munching on the roots. The reason I hesitated to call it a goat was that it was the size of a tiger.

The beast’s square eyes flashed dangerously as it screamed while charging me.

I didn’t have time to inspect it, just wound up like a batter at the plate with my femur.

The ram’s horns glowed as it activated an ability and I stepped into the swing, Blunt Weapon Proficiency helped me as well.

There was a crack as bone met horn and the goat was flung back with a shrill bleat that had to be audible for miles.

“What is that thing?” Nyx had caught up and started firing arrows trying to stop it.

I wove between them lifting the bone high and slamming down hard on the goat as it cut off and melted into the dungeon floor.

“Oh. At least it drops meat.” I picked up the meat on a bone drop. “I was a little worried about food.”

“Bran.” Nyx’s voice was strained.

I glanced over my shoulder.

Cyclopses were pushing through the forest rapidly, heading this direction.

I stared down at the meat in my hands and then remembered that the prior monsters had been cyclops hunters. The scenario inside this dungeon was that they were hunting these goats? That means that bleat had drawn all of the cyclops in the area this direction.

Twirling the bone in my hand, I smirked. “If you need to hide Nyx, you can or you can go back to the others. As for me? I think this was a big time saver. Maybe we should see if someone can’t mimic that noise.”

Nyx set her jaw and marched forward to pick up the arrows that had fallen when the goat disappeared. “Don’t think I’m some flower that needs protection. I’ll have you know I’ve learned several martial arts and practiced with a dozen weapons, including the bow. Dad always said that a girl has to learn how to protect herself. I just never realized he had meant from monsters.”

“Good.” I smiled at her seeing her transform in the short time we’d been in the instance. I’d seen it all on the battlefield. She was adapting, so she might just survive.

But it made me wonder what had happened to her in my past life.

This instance shouldn’t have been enough to kill someone with her foundation.

The cyclops spotted us in the distance and started to roar as they charged us.

Zane caught up. “Guys, hurry and run! There’s too many of them for you to handle. I’ll hold them off.”

I snorted and rather than run away, charged straight into the mass of cyclops. With any luck, I’d be able to keep building my regeneration.