Chapter 18

The trip back was eventless, and before they knew it, they were back in the tavern where they started. Bruce got the note from Nathan and went into the back with Ollie. Meanwhile the rest of them found a table in the back where they unloaded all the extra baggage. Margos also ordered a round of ale and food, which they were enjoying while waiting for Bruce to return.

“What’s your story anyway?” Nathan asked Margos when they had received their drinks. “You handled yourself surprisingly well back there. Looked like you’d been in a scrap or two before.”

“Hah, that’s nice of you to say.” Margos leaned back while smiling, clearly happy with himself. He winked at Lucero when she gave him an assessing look.

“I’ve always been a history buff, and as an extension of that I’ve been doing a lot of reenactments – from a lot of different time periods. Mostly for fun, but to make it look as genuine as possible I’ve also studied quite a lot of different sword-fighting styles. My actual application hasn’t always been great as I’m a bit on the heavier side, and I’ve struggled with some of the movements. But here, with this body... Well, that’s not a problem anymore, is it. Honestly, even though it was brutal and exhilarating and terrifying all at the same time, I rather enjoyed myself. Especially as more and more movements came back to me. But even when I was playing pretend back home, I had better gear than this,” he said with a laugh, while indicating his tunic and meager weapons.

“At least you have a shield,” complained RedReaver. “It was the most expensive piece of gear I had, my shield. Just scraps left of it after the goblins.”

“Yeah, same with mine, although mine was pretty shit to begin with. Didn’t take long for the spears to go right through it,” agreed Lucero. “But with the money we are owed, I should be able to afford a new one. I could really use some armor as well.”

RedReaver grimaced. “I don’t know. Perhaps my money is better spent on something else. I thought it would be so cool to actually be this big strong brute, killing monsters left and right. But when the goblins actually charged us, all I managed to do was hide behind my shield and pray that they would go away. Despite knowing that it wasn’t real and that I would hardly feel any pain, I couldn’t make myself move. It’s humbling to learn that in a real fight, I wouldn’t have been the hero I always imagined I’d be. I'd be the moron that died before the real fight even started. I’m guess what I’m saying is that I’m reconsidering my path.”

Lucero snorted. “Ah, don’t beat yourself up about it. While I managed to move, I decided to run away when things looked bleak. We can’t all be heroes like Eclipse and Margos, but we can help carry the loot and take some of the credit for their exploits. I’m happy with that. Besides, what other path can you take with the name RedReaver?”

“Hah, that’s actually a good point. RedReaver the fisherman. Doesn’t really work, does it.”

“The first battle is always a crucible, and everyone reacts differently. Some people freeze up, some people cry, and a lot die. A few –very few– thrive. Those that do are not always people you want to look up to or emulate. Many of them are... damaged. Suicidal. Unstable and unreliable. Sadistic, even.” Nathan looked down into his drink while he talked, but he lifted his head and looked each and every one of them in the eye as they continued. “There is no shame in being unaccustomed to blood and death.”

Nathan emptied his ale with a large gulp, and signaled towards the barmaid, ordering a new round. Nobody dared fill the silence while they waited for the new round, expecting there to be more, but Nathan didn’t say anything more until it arrived.

As the barmaid walked away again, he gestured with his hand, as if to wave away the sudden somber mood around the table. “Anyhow, the worst is behind you. Next time will be easier, and the time after easier yet, and before you know it, you can’t even remember what the issue was the first time. Besides, it’s just a game, right?”

At that point Bruce returned to the table, carrying a pouch full of coins. He took double take as he read the mood of the table. “Everything all right?”

“Yeah, Eclipse was just giving us some feedback on our performance,” said Lucero with a twinkle in her eye. “It was... enlightening.”

“That’s good, I suppose?” He looked at Nathan, who just shrugged.

“Ok, then. Good.” He counted out ten silvers for each and placed it in front of them on the table. “As promised, this is the quest payment.”

He added three more silvers to each pile. "We also received a small bonus, which I have decided goes to the surviving party members, and I am awarding you a silver each for retrieving the gear for the others. Ollie has graciously agreed to store both their silver and their gear here, so that they can pick it up at their convenience whenever they respawn. As I probably have the highest charisma score—and are also well liked in the village—I’ll take all the junk we found and sell it over at Ruth’s. The profit will be shared more or less equally. I’ll have to see how much it adds up to, but since you guys actually did the carrying, you might get the lion’s share there as well. I’ll be back here after, but if you have things to do or need to log out, you can always find me later. I’ll be around. Any questions? Yes, Red? You don’t have to raise your hand.”

RedReaver sheepishly dropped his hand. “What did he say about the note? Is there a follow up quest?”

“I don’t know yet. There will be a meeting of the village elders later today. I have yet again asked them to consider me as Headman, so they’ll consider that and what do to with this potentially even larger threat. I have to say, I’m feeling confident the decision will go my way, but I’m not counting my chickens yet. Perhaps I need to earn one more boon before they trust me sufficiently. As for the goblins, I have a feeling it will be an area event or something like that. Time will tell, I suppose.”

There were no other questions. Everyone collected their coins after leaving enough to pay their tab. Lucero volunteered to help carry the loot over to the shop, since she was going to get some gear herself and wanted to take advantage of Bruce’s charisma to get a reduced price.

RedReaver logged out shortly after, leaving Nathan alone with half an ale and time to waste. He decided first to skim through his log all the way from before the battle, to see if he’d missed anything important.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

He remembered how after he’d killed the scout, the log told him the XP gain of the group as a whole. While that did have its uses in certain situations, he preferred to have it show his own XP gain. As expected, such an option existed in game option. At the same time, he filtered out non-lethal hits.

[Attack] Dom Inator hit [Feeble goblin] for 9 slashing damage (7[d10] + 2). It dies. You gain 1 XP.

[Attack] Dom Inator hit [Starving goblin] for 7 slashing damage (5[d10] + 2). It dies. You gain 2 XP.

…

[Attack] Margos critical hit [Starving goblin] for 8 slashing damage (4[d6] x 2). It dies. You gain 4 XP. [Attack] You hit [Goblin leader] for 4 piercing damage (5[d8] - 1). It dies. You gain 20 XP.

It was interesting and a bit sad to see how his XP gain increased as his party members died. At the end of the fight, he received twice as much as in the beginning, but on average it looked like he had received 30% more than if everyone had lived through the whole fight. In total, he’d received 770 XP for the fight. He’s also received XP for the quest itself.

[Quest Complete] Remove the goblin threat

Report success: 1/1

With a little help from your friends, you butchered a bunch of small monsters, and lived to tell the tale. In doing so, you saved the village of the Last Valley. Or did you?

[Quest] For completing [Remove the goblin threat] you receive 500 XP.

[System] Your reputation with the village of the Last Valley has changed from Neutral to Cordial.

[Character] You have reached level 3. Congratulations! You receive +1 hp.

[Character] You have reached level 4. Congratulations! You receive +1 hp.

[Character] You have reached level 5. Congratulations! You receive +1 hp and +1 attribute point.

[Character] You have reached level 6. Congratulations! You receive +1 hp.

[System] Please note, as a level 6 character your respawn time is 6 days.

Just like that, he’d gone up 4 levels. The level gain continued to be relatively small, but it added up. The 5 extra hp he had now compared to when he started meant that he could survive an additional hit. If he managed to get some damage resistance, the difference would be even more.

The attribute point was a pleasant surprise, and he couldn’t immediately decide what to do with it. The original plan had been to fight from a distance, and he’d placed his attributes with that in mind, but the crossbow he had now was pretty useless, and the chances of getting any sort of rifle in the near future seemed slim. The reality was that he’d done most of his fighting up close, and he feared that would also be the case going forward. Which was unfortunate, because compared to those who’d prioritized Strength and Constitution, he was at a massive disadvantage. He really wanted the damage resistance the increased constitution would give, but that was not something he could get now. What he could do now was to get rid of the damage-decrease he had due to his low strength. In hindsight he should have left it at 9, but he could remedy that now.

Happy with his choice, he allocated the attribute point and confirmed the selection. He didn’t feel any stronger or anything, but he figured he would notice the extra strength when he needed it.

When done, he pulled out his new weapon and had a look at it. It was a brutal-looking mace, made of dark steel, with bone spikes attached to the head of the mace, providing some extra damage potential. He couldn’t exactly put it through the motions here inside the tavern, but he flourished it around a bit, just to get the feel of it. The weight and balance of it was pretty good. It was light enough that he could easily direct it, but the length and mass were still enough to dish out some serious impacts. Most of the other goblin weapons had been on the small side, but that mace fit his hand just fine. No wonder, considering the size of the goblin who wielded it. All in all, it felt like a massive improvement over the axe, which analyze also confirmed.

[Goblin bone mace]

Uncommon mace – Melee

1d8 + 1 blunt dmg

18/20 durability

Bone maces are exclusively given to goblin warriors of great renown or importance. Only the greatest goblin blacksmiths learn to create such weapons. Traditionally, the receiver has to personally hunt and slay the source of the bone, be it an animal or a bipedal. Exotic bones have been known to provide unique effects. The bones used in this specific mace are unknown.

Jackpot! With this, he felt much more comfortable taking on goblins –or any other creature- up close.

In his side vision he noticed that Bruce had just returned and was making his way over. He gave his new weapon a last appreciative look before he returned it to his inventory.

“That thing really is wicked! If someone came at me with something like that, I imagine I’d run the other way. Come to think of it, I suppose I did,” Bruce said with a smile as he dropped into one of the free chairs. “I bet you know how to use it better than the goblins, too.”

Nathan appreciated the compliment, but he didn’t have any illusions. “Not yet I don’t, but I will. Getting a bit more familiar with my weapons is actually my plan for the rest of the day. Ruth mentioned a trainer somewhere around here. I was thinking I’d go pay him a visit.”

“Yeah? That’s probably a good idea. It will give you an advantage for sure, but you probably shouldn’t expect to become an expert overnight,” Bruce advised.

“If I learn enough not to hurt myself by accident, I’ll call that a win. For now.” Nathan shrugged. “This is a starter area after all, and the monsters here are probably relatively easy. If I move on to other areas... Well, I should probably schedule in some training every now and then.”

The major elect nodded in agreement, while a wrinkle appeared in his forehead as he listened. “You planning to move on anytime soon?”

“I don’t know. Depends on what there is to do, I guess. The potential goblin invasion sounds like something I don’t want to miss, but that could be weeks if not months away. Do you think there is enough to keep us busy here in the meantime?”

“For me, yes. If I get my way this village will grow along with the players, and that will take some doing. But first I need to prepare for the invasion, which will also take some elbow grease. I’m not worried I will get bored anytime soon. And if I do, I can just tag along on another goblin hunt to get a reminder that I prefer it a bit boring. For you...” Bruce adjusted his glasses -which he’d but on again before selling their surplus weapons- and gave Nathan a unreadable look. “Well, that’s a different question all together. Come and see me after the village meeting, or tomorrow if that’s better. I’ll probably have a quest for you, and possibly also a... proposition.”

That tickled Nathans curiosity. “A lucrative one?”

“Hah! Well, that’s relative, isn’t it? But if it’s riches you're after-” Bruce placed 4 silvers and a couple of bronze coins on the table and pushed them over to Nathan “-what I can tell is that you should probably do something else than looting low-level goblins. Ruth even gave me a really good deal, and this is the result. This is the carry-all-the-shit-back cut as well, by the way, so no complaining.”

“Thanks, man. I had practically nothing an hour ago, so in comparison I’m rich now. As you said, it’s relative.” He pocketed the coins, got to his feet and gave Bruce a path on the shoulder as he passed. “I’ll got to see a man about some training.”

“I’ll see you later?”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry”, he answered over his shoulder as he walked towards the exit. His thoughts went to his purse, and he mentally counted the coins he’d received. Somewhere around 20 silvers, all in all. I wasn’t even kidding. I do feel rich, he thought to himself.