The Rules: The Complete Series : A LitRPG Epic, page 25
He was right of course. Though Milly still looked amazing as ever, her eyes were bloodshot and had heavy bags beneath them. It was made all the more noticeable due to them being so large, and Sam felt very guilty for having made her worry this much.
Milly looked as though she were about to argue, so Sam placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, and lightly began pushing her toward the stairs.
“How about I help you up; you can get some rest, and I promise that I’ll be here when you get up.”
After a few seconds of resisting, Milly finally gave in, and allowed him to escort her upstairs. Before she went into her room however, she spun and kissed him. Hard. So hard in fact that he tasted blood by the time she pulled away. She then gave him a wide smile, and turned to head into her room.
Sam was a little breathless by the time she pulled away, but quickly used his Inspect skill on her before the door closed. His eyes widened when he saw that her current status was; Blissful.
Could she really have enjoyed it that much? And could she, the most beautiful woman he’d ever met, actually be interested in him?
The more cynical part of his mind, had an even harder time believing that a former prostitute would actually fall for anyone; let alone him.
You’ve got some serious self esteem issues there pal, Sam told himself as he walked back downstairs.
He reached the ground floor, and had to actually look around for Gordon, as he wasn’t where he’d left him. Finally spotting the dog sitting near the kitchen, and chewing on some kind of bone, Sam walked over. His stomach growled as he drew closer to the kitchen, and the scent of food flooded his senses. He didn’t even care if it was only stew; he was so hungry that he could eat a horse.
Okay, probably not a horse, but maybe a small pony.
A waiter approached him as he neared the kitchen to take his order - stew - and Sam took a seat near his companion.
“What do you think of Milly?” Sam asked after sitting in silence for a few minutes.
“I believe that we have already had this discussion before; but if you would like to take my advice on romance, then I would be happy to share.”
Gordon’s face took on an uncharacteristically somber look, which made Sam pay closer attention.
“Inter-race romance, especially between humans and other races, rarely ends well for either party. Elves in particular are notoriously fickle, falling in and out of love at the drop of a hat. There is also the matter of you being destined for a life of adventure, and danger, where as she, will most likely remain here.
If you still want to pursue a relationship, then I will not interfere; but I would recommend that you think it over carefully.”
Sam nodded as the dog finished what he was saying, and went back to chewing on his bone. He’d never had any luck in the romance department, and now that this unbelievably attractive woman was throwing herself at him, he might just be reciprocating those feelings as a result.
By the time his bread, stew, and beer came out, Sam had such a bad headache that he was glad for the distraction.
All of this agonizing over a decision was seriously stressing him out.
He’d believed everything Gordon had told him, it made sense after all. He was from another world, and would probably be returning there if he ever managed to defeat the Overlord. Getting involved with the people of this world, would only make it that much more difficult when he did have to leave.
Sam shoved all those thoughts aside, forcing his mind to concentrate on one thing. His food. After polishing off the admittedly delicious meal in record time, Sam rose slowly from his seat, and held his hand out to Gordon.
“Can I get my money back from you?” He asked. A moment later, the Spatial Wallet dropped into his hand, and he grinned.
Quickly using Inspect, he checked how much money he currently had.
ITEM FOUND!
Name: Spatial Wallet
Durability: 200/200
Rarity: Enchanted
Quality: Enhanced
This pouch can be used to hold all of your coins, and jewels; beware of placing anything else inside as it will not come back out.
Contents: 154 Copper, 98 Silver, 18 Gold, 33 Colored Iron Disks, 1 Uncut Jade
Sam stared, wide eyed at the description of the wallet’s contents.
No, it couldn’t be true…
He quickly stuck his hand into the wallet, and removed one of the glittering electrum coins; and used Inspect.
ITEM FOUND!
Name: Colored Iron Disk
Durability: 10/10
Rarity: Common
Quality: Basic
This is an iron disk painted to resemble an electrum coin.
“Fuck!” Sam yelled, startling a passing waiter so badly, that he almost dropped the tray he’d been carrying.
He ignored the man’s angry glare, staring at the worthless piece of iron with a dumb expression on his face.
This couldn’t be happening. Hadn’t his previous day been shitty enough!?
“What has you so wound up?” Gordon asked, giving him a questioning look.
“That merchant fleeced me!?” He said, now feeling his despair turning to red, hot anger. “Come on, were going to fuck that guy up, and get my Legendary gear back!” Sam said, already heading for the door.
He was stopped however, by Quentin, the concierge, at the door.
“I am afraid that you cannot leave, without first paying for your meal,” he said, holding up a hand.
“Yeah, yeah; how much?” Sam asked, reaching into his wallet to fetch a silver coin.
“20 silver for the stew, 5 for the beer, and 7 for the bread. Another 2 sliver for the waiter, and a 10 sliver cover charge; altogether, that will come out to 44 silver.”
“Are you fucking kidding me!?” Sam practically exploded. “44 silver for a bowl of stew!? Are you out of your mind!?”
“Sir! I must ask you to please clam down, otherwise, I will be forced to call the city guard. If you cannot pay for your meal, then I am sure we can have you work it off. Say, three moths doing dishes; that should about cover the expense of your meal.” Quentin smirked, stroking his chin and looking very pleased with himself.
Sam was so wound up over the merchant stealing from him, that he didn’t even think to question why the man was charging him so much; or think to talk to the inn’s owner. All he could think, was that Quentin was mocking him.
“Then again,” Quentin continued. “Washing dishes may be too much for such a simple minded peasant. Perhaps you could clean the chamber pots, and sweep the floors; that seems like a job you would be good at.”
Sam felt his rage growing as the man continued to speak; and finally, he just couldn’t take it anymore. He quickly dug into his purse and retrieved the coins; then proceeded to throw them in the man’s face.
“I’ll be back you piece of shit; and when I am, you’ll pay for this. Mark my words!” His voice had lowered to a near whisper by the end; then, without a backward glance, he stormed from the inn, emerging onto the crowded street.
Sam was so beside himself with anger, that it took him a few moments to remember where the Armorer’s shop had been. Once he did though, he stalked off in that direction, hands clenched into fists at his side.
“Sam, may I ask what you intend to do?” Gordon asked. He’d been silent through the entire spat with Quentin earlier, and Sam had to wonder why he hadn’t helped.
“That piece of shit cheater me out of 33 electrum. I’m going to get what’s owed to me! Come to think of it, why the hell didn’t you recognize the fakes!?” Sam exclaimed.
Gordon shrugged.
“I never got a good look at the coins, and you never asked me to identify them for you. I thought that you’d confirmed that they were indeed real, before we left.”
Sam then distinctly remembered the man asking him to count the coins to make sure that they were all there. That little bastard had played one of the oldest tricks in the book, a classic misdirect! He’d asked him to count them, thereby subconsciously making him assume that he was an honest merchant, and not even thinking to check if they were legit or not! Sam was beginning to think that his Mind Over Body skill didn’t actually do anything. So far, he’d been mind jacked by an elf, almost had a panic attack, and been robbed twice! And both robberies had occurred when he’d already been at the Intermediate level of the skill!
Gritting his teeth once more, Sam sped up his pace, only slowing once the shop came into view.
Finally.
Sam burst in through the front door; and began immediately screaming.
“You fucking bastard; think you can steal from me and get away with it!?”
He came to an abrupt halt, as he found himself on the pointy end of no less than five spears.
“Who are you, and what are you doing here!?”
It took Sam a few moments to register the group of men, all dressed in guard uniforms, crowded before the counter. The green skinned armorer stood behind his counter, not looking in the least bit concerned at Sam’s sudden intrusion.
“I’m here, because that bastard stole 33 electrum from me!” Sam yelled, gesturing wildly at the man behind the counter.
The city guard let out a snort of laughter, and the other guards soon chimed in.
“Sirus, steal!? I think you’ve got the wrong person there pal. He’s the most honest merchant in the entire city, well, he and his sister of course,” the man added.
“Who the fuck cares what you think he is! I sold that bastard a full set of Legendary gear yesterday, and he gave he a bag full of iron disks instead of the electrum he was supposed to give me!” Sam pulled a fistful of the iron disks and threw them on the ground.
“I really have no idea what he’s on about,” Sirus said with a shrug. “The man is clearly not well; perhaps you would be so kind as to escort him out for me Captain.”
Sam felt his rage grow as the man behind the counter winked at him. All the guards were facing him, so they, of course, didn’t see him do it. But it had the intended effect of making Sam even angrier.
“How about you come with us sir,” the captain said, as he saw Sam’s face growing redder.
“Just turn around and look at him! That smug bastard is mocking me!”
“Sir! Please calm down, or we will be forced to remove you from this shop by force!” The Captain said, now raising his voice as well.
Sam raised a hand then, already beginning to glow with the power of his new Mage Bolt spell.
He would reduce these people to piles of ash, then he would take what was his! He’d had enough of people walking all over him!
There was a light tinkling sound from behind him as the door opened; and the next moment, Sam felt a blinding pain crash into the back of his skull. He stumbled, already falling to the ground as his concentration slipped, and he lost control of the spell. Looking up from his position on the ground; Sam felt his eyes widen in shock as he beheld none other than Aoife, the dwarf woman who had robbed him the previous evening, clutching a thick wooden cudgel in one of her hands.
Sam shoved away the welcoming blackness of unconsciousness, and forced himself back to his feet; despite the blinding pain in his head.
“You! What the fuck are you doing here you thief!?”
Aoife’s eyes went wide, then she let out a loud shriek and ran past him, to cower behind the guards.
“I’m sorry; please don’t hurt me! I didn’t mean to hit you mister!” She blubbered, fat tears rolling down her cheeks.
One of the guards turned to console the woman, while the rest turned their hostile glares on Sam.
Sam, for his part, was staring in incomprehension as a dozen disparate pieces of information tried to fit themselves in place.
What the hell was going on!?
“It’s one thing to accuse Sirus, but quite another to accuse a sweet, innocent girl like Aoife. She’s never hurt so much as a fly!” The guard Captain yelled, face going as red as Sam’s.
“Now, you can either leave on your own, or we can beat you senseless and throw you in prison. Take your pick!”
“Never hurt so much as a fly!?” Sam returned. “You literally just saw her club me in the back of the head! Not to mention that she robbed me blind, and has my fucking pack slung over her shoulder right now! And you bastards aren’t doing a thing about it!”
Apparently, that was too much for the city guards. With a collective roar, they charged, and Sam reacted in an instant. His Mana Cloak flared around him as a group of spears connected with it, bouncing harmlessly off. Then he raised his hand, and cast his new Mage Bolt spell. A couple of seconds later, there was a bright blue flash, and a loud sizzling sound as a bolt of branching blue lighting crackled through the interior of the shop.
Damage notifications began flooding in, and Sam noted with some satisfaction that almost all the guards had gone down with a small lightning sign above their HP bars; all except for the Captain, who’d somehow managed to keep his feet.
Shit.
The Captain’s hand shot down to his belt, retrieving a slim wooden stick, and snapping it between his thumb and forefinger. An instant later, a loud, wailing siren began echoing all around the shop.
The Captain grinned, then collapsed onto one knee, coughing loudly as Aoife squatted down next to him, offering her support.
How the hell had she avoided being stunned!?
“The guards will be coming for you now you bastard! How dare you hurt these good people!” She exclaimed, glaring at him; but Sam could tell it was all an act.
Even now he could see the smug satisfaction in her eyes, and the way Sirus was grinning at him from behind the cover of his counter. Sam was tempted to continue blasting the shop apart, when the door suddenly flew open and Emma came sprinting in, followed closely by Gordon.
“Were the hell have you been!?” Sam yelled at the dog.
“As soon as I had a hunch of how this scenario would play out, I ran to fetch Emma.”
“Why!?”
“Sam, you need to come with me. Now!” Emma said, snatching his hand up in her’s; her eyes hard as steel.
“But that smug merchant cheated me out of a shit-ton of money; and his little sister over there, was the one who clubbed me in the back of my head, and stole all my stuff after I saved her life!”
Emma’s eyes flicked over the group of unconscious guards, to the two siblings who were now both standing behind the counter, ready to duck down at the first sign of an attack. Then, her striking green eyes turned back to him.
“I know that they cheated you, but I saw a group of at least thirty guards headed here on my way over; all of them level 7 to 10. We can’t take that many, so we’ll have to leave and regroup.”
Sam’s fists clenched, as he looked between Emma, and the two conspirators; both of whom winked, and twiddled their fingers at him, before he finally nodded, and allowed her to drag him to the shop’s exit.
Just before the door closed however, Sam caught sight of something that made his eyes widen. A small, red faced gnome emerging from the back room, and glaring at him with hatred.
32
HIDDEN QUEST UPDATE
Gnomes, and thugs, and corruption, oh my: You have heard some disturbing information about the guild from a merchant in town.
After some research you discovered that the guild had been taken over by an unknown entity. You have now confirmed that the crime boss, Sirus, is the one responsible. Oust Sirus, and his gang from the city, to complete the quest.
Difficulty: Extreme
Rewards: 34,000 XP, 1 Legendary Item Set, 1 Legendary Weapon, 1 Spell Scroll, 20 Electrum Coins
Time Remaining: D 4 : H 2 : M 16
So, looks like the cat’s out of the bag, Sam thought as he sprinted behind Emma on a winding path out of the city. The only real question now, was how he was going to complete the quest. They clearly had the guards either fooled, or in their pockets; maybe even both.
“Just got a quest update!” He said, as Emma dragged him into a side alley and pulled him towards the city exit.
“Tell me about it after we’re free of the death trap!” Emma replied, dashing from the alley mouth, and nearly bowling over a group of passing civilians.
Sam’s anger had mostly run itself out by now, and he did his best to keep up with Emma. The only problem with that, was his Agility was crap, and his Stamina was running out fast. He’d already gotten a notification, informing him that his Sprint skill had ranked up; not that it was doing much to mitigate his Stamina loss.
SKILL RANK UP!
Congratulations! Your Sprint skill has advanced from Novice, to Beginner!
Sprint: Run like the wind
Level: Beginner 13 (76%)
Effect: -15% to Stamina consumption while running or jogging, +5% Increased speed while running or jogging
Sam panted for breath as they rounded a corner, and the city gates came into view. His Stamina was nearly spent, and if he didn’t stop for a break within the next few seconds, he would be embracing the ground with open arms.
“Emma… Stamina almost out… Need rest,” he panted as they drew up to the gates.
Instead of stopping, Emma just reached into her pack, and shoved something into his hand. It took Sam a few moments to register the glowing yellow leaf as a Stamina Herb, but once he did, he shoved it into his mouth, chewing quickly and watching his nearly empty bar refill itself.
Immediately, his breathing eased up, and the pressure that had been building up in his chest, vanished in an instant.
“Now comes the hard part; you ready for this?” Emma asked, as the gate guards saw them coming, and moved to intercept them.
Sam wasn’t sure if the guards knew who they were of not, but he had a pretty good idea of what would happen in they attempted to fight their way out.
