Judicator Jane 3: A LitRPG Adventure, page 21
Turning to look behind her, she saw Dyle, lying face-first in the ground, her pole splayed down in front of him. The white wrappings that she had seen him wearing in Duthlein were gone. Instead, now he wore a collection of cuts and abrasions, a deep purple bruise that swelled out from his shoulder, and a right arm which was a blackish-blue.
“No, no, no…” Jane scrambled over to him, carefully rolling him onto his back. His eyes were closed, and his figure limp. Triggering Piercing Gaze, she wiped the tears that were forming out of her eyes and tried to see the System message clearly.
Dyle (Level 57)
Human
Class: Illusion Weaver (Epic)
Strength: 65
Agility: 141
Constitution: 72
Intelligence: 63
Luck: 10
Wisdom: 39
Health: 4/720
Mana: 221/390
Fun Fact:
Among us walk individuals who not only understand the essence of sacrifice but embody it in the entirety of their being. Dyle stands as a perfect example of such valor. With unwavering resolve, he navigates through challenges that seem insurmountable, always ready to offer everything he has for the sake of others.
Jane’s hands began to tremble, and she gently held his head up. He’s alive, she thought with relief. Then, as his stat sheet remained open, she saw his Health drop a point.
Health: 3/720
“No!” she called out. Blood was leaking from several wounds on his chest, draining his life force by the second. Jane looked around, trying to find anyone else from the group, but she couldn’t see anything, only the darkness of the Great Woods beyond acting as a veil. Wait, I can judge him! I can give him more Constitution! she thought frantically.
Raising her finger, she called out, “Dyle, I judge you worthy of health!” Nothing happened. “Why isn’t it working?!”
“Dyle, let the truth of your heart be weighed!” she yelled, attempting to invoke the Trials of Justice. Silence. Was it because he was unconscious? Jane had never tried to judge someone sleeping or who wasn’t awake.
Shaking him gently, she whispered, “Come on, Dyle, you have to wake up. Just for a moment, that’s all.”
Health: 2/720
“No, please…” she said, desperately searching for anything to staunch the wounds. Only dirt and grass surrounded her, so she ripped off a piece of her shirt and tried to use it, but it was as effective as covering a strainer with tissue paper.
The sound of voices caused her to raise her head, and she saw a figure emerging from the darkness of the woods. Myra burst out, running to meet them, staggering back as the bright light of the sun hit her eyes. As she saw Dyle’s head cradled in Jane’s lap, she slowed her pace. “Oh no…”
Jane shouted to her, “Hurry, get the Rejuvenators!” Myra turned and bolted back into the forest.
Health: 1/720
“Just hold on, Dyle… you can’t go yet,” Jane whispered to him. “You came so far, just come a little bit more.” Biting back the tears, she gritted her teeth and brushed the tangle of hair out of his eyes. “You can do that, can’t you? Just a bit more?”
Her eyes remained laser focused on Dyle’s health and she felt the weight of each second like a hammer blow. Her hands grew numb, and she began to hum a song to him, as she waited for the inevitable. The sky seemed to darken, and the sounds of the world around her faded to static.
Health: 2/720
Jane’s eyes widened, and she jerked her head up. There was Serous, standing above her, carrying an elven Rejuvenator who had his arm outstretched onto Dyle’s leg. Jane began to tremble as the numbers slowly ticked up.
Health: 2/720
Health: 3/720
Health: 4/720
But then, the numbers stopped at ten. Jane glanced up in confusion.
“Don’t just stop, keep going!”
The Rejuvenator’s face was contorted in effort, then he went slack, letting go of the foot.
“I… I’m sorry, that’s as high as I can heal him. The wounds, they are too grievous.”
Jane saw Dyle’s health tick down to nine. Her head snapped up at the man. “Well, keep it at ten then!”
Other figures began to take form from beyond the darkness, and both Calhane and Iridane emerged, accompanied by even more Rejuvenators. All of them flinched at the harsh sunlight, and they were briefly disoriented before they could find her.
“By the Maker, you’ve survived…” Calhane muttered. Then his eyes fell on Dyle. The Rejuvenator near him shook his head. He glanced at Iridane. “I should go to the other Skyguard to finish protecting the flank against the remaining critch. Can you handle this?”
Iridane nodded, then motioned the other Rejuvenators forward. He stepped over to where the wooden pole and frame were, and Jane saw him use one of his skills to reshape the wood into an intricately latticed stretcher.
“Move him here. Let’s get him cleaned up and out of the dirt,” Iridane ordered. The Rejuvenators got to work, and Jane watched carefully as they lifted him gently off the ground. One of them constantly had a hand on Dyle, keeping his health points at ten, but they never went higher. Myra reappeared and ran to his side.
“Oh, Dyle… What did you do?” She hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder. Then after the Rejuvenators shooed her away, she turned to Jane, and embraced her in a tight hug. “I didn’t think we were going to get out of there alive… I can’t imagine what you two went through.”
As she held Myra, Jane watched Dyle and saw Iridane nearby talking with one of the Rejuvenators. “Did the others make it?” Jane asked in a whisper.
She felt Myra nod. “Yes, almost everyone survived the journey. You did it, Jane. You both did.”
Iridane slowly walked over to them, rubbing his hands anxiously. “I’m afraid the situation is not good. Dyle’s health will not increase over ten, and it will continue to drain without the constant support of one of the Rejuvenators. We have enough to cycle for a time, but… I’m afraid it’s inevitable. I am sorry, but you may wish to say your goodbyes while you can.”
Jane whipped her finger toward Iridane. “No! He just saved everyone, so we’re going to keep him alive as long as it’s needed!” She waved her arms at the sky. “This friggin’ place is a magic world! Don’t tell me there isn’t any way to save him. What about the Doctor class? What about just plain old medicine or surgery?”
Myra joined in. “Yeah! You guys don’t have any Doctor class holders, do you? Maybe they can do something!”
Iridane gave them a weak smile. “Yes, of course. It is not a class we Menadeen possess. Of course, we should try every means possible. But, Jane, there is something we need to discuss.” His eyes flicked to the growing number of Menadeen who were exiting the Great Woods, slowly walking onto the green grass where they attempted to shield their eyes from the sun.
Jane took a breath. Right, don’t forget the reason you asked Dyle to do this. Don’t make it for nothing, she told herself. “Okay, yes.” Then she walked with Iridane, looking out at the vast open and rolling hills, with a tall range of mountains to the east.
“The Menadeen have been cursed with the Elf racial identifier. As such, we must live in the forests. If we leave them, we are afflicted with a System punishment to our stats. It is called Arboreal Erosion,” he told her.
Jane glanced at one of the Rejuvenators near Dyle and triggered Piercing Gaze.
Minre Greenbend (Level 43)
Elf
Class: Rejuvenator (Rare)
Arboreal Erosion (I)
Strength: 12 (9)
Agility: 16 (12)
Constitution: 25 (19)
Intelligence: 32 (24)
Forestwalk: 12 (9)
Wisdom: 43 (33)
Health: 188/190
Mana: 143/330
Fun Fact:
This little lady loves growing tasty Moongrass variants. Who would have thought that so much flavor could be injected into a chunk of moss? When she isn’t using her skills on plant life, she also secretly carves tiny secret messages into the treeholm walls for fun.
Processing the information, Jane then said, “A twenty-five percent reduction in stats…” Did the System punish races so harshly for going out of their prospective roles? Or was it just the elves? The demons didn’t have anything like that, nor did the humans. What about the Dragonkin or the Dirthians? she thought to herself. She hadn’t had a chance to inspect a Dwarf outside of one of their banks, which were always windowless and appeared almost like caves themselves.
“Yes… that’s right, but how did you–“ Iridane shook his head. “Nevermind, that is not the only issue. It is more deadly than just reduced stats. The longer we are out of the forest, the more severe the penalty becomes, until the reduction reaches one hundred percent.”
Jane stepped back. “You die if you’re out of the forest too long?! That would have been good to know before!”
He smiled weakly. “It does take some time to get to that point, so we should be able to travel to a nearby forest. Once there, the affliction is removed.”
“Serous, can you come over here?” she called out to him.
The demon quickly walked over. “Yes, Mistress. How may I be of service?”
“We need a forest, and I’m not too familiar with the area north of Grandia. Where is the closest one?” she asked.
Serous pulled out a small piece of paper and a pencil from his robe. Then he drew a crude map. “We are here.” He pointed to a spot near the edge of the Great Woods and the eastern mountains separating the wastelands from Arcadia.
“South of us are rolling hills and a few towns. Glavenholm is further southwest. There may be some scattered groves of trees, but nothing that could be called a forest.”
Jane studied the map, then she remembered. “Ahh, I see. Yeah, I’ve been around this area before.” She pointed to one of the villages. “Around here is where we found Gral’gor.” She tried to remember the journey more clearly, and recalled that he was right. It had mostly been rocky hills with scattered groups of trees.
“The largest forest, and the closest, is straight across from Grandia. It lies between Lord Duncan and Lord Renthin’s lands. The King’s Road cuts between it to the north. The most contiguous plot of it is in the south,” Serous continued.
“Right… I remember going through that forest with Reyla.” She turned to Iridane. “Okay, so we should move directly south. I don’t know what has happened since I’ve been gone, but if we keep to the mountain’s edge it should be the most direct path, and also help us to avoid trouble.”
It was also the quickest way to get help for Dyle. There would be a Doctor in Grandia for sure. She could also check the villages on the way.
“After we get to Grandia, we can move your people into the woods outside the front gates while we make a more permanent plan.”
The old Treeshaper nodded. “Very well, we have put our trust in you this far. But, time is of the essence, and my people are unfamiliar with these lands. We will be at our weakest, should any of the kings or nobles of the humans seek to take advantage of us.”
Jane held up a hand. “No, that’s not going to happen. I didn’t mention it before, but Grandia is under my control. We just need to get there, and then we’ll have all the support we need.”
“You… control a city? Are you a queen or ruler of some sort?” Iridane asked in confusion.
Jane let out a deep sigh. It seemed they had both held back information. “Yes, something like that. We can talk about it on the way.” She still hadn’t revealed to them the fact that she controlled all the demons on Alur.
Iridane nodded, then returned to the other Menadeen. Jane observed that most of them had now exited the forest, including the three palanquins carrying the Mothers. They were stepping outside now, stretching out after being confined for three weeks. The gathering crowd of people was both overwhelming and heart-wrenching to see. These were the last of the Menadeen. Jane had inadvertently brought them to the brink of extinction. Then she had forced them to abandon their only home. They were now her responsibility, just as much as the demons were. She had taken them this far, but they still had a long way to go. Hopefully, the worst is behind us, she thought to herself.
She started walking back to see how Dyle was doing, and saw Myra at his side. The memories of the time in the Great Woods were slowly starting to resurface into her mind, brief moments between her bouts of delirium. Her lips tightened, and she had to mentally restrain herself from forcing her way through the crowd around him. For now, he was in stable condition with the Rejuvenators. But their Wisdom will be dropping outside the forests. Will they have enough Mana to keep it up day and night? She would check later if she could judge any of them to increase their Wisdom stat.
Serous appeared alongside her. “Mistress, I am glad to see that you survived the trial of the Great Woods. The combat during the journey was relentless, but as you requested, most of the Menadeen were able to be saved. It was only a few that wandered too far and were lost. None of the Mothers perished, and all of the children survived the trip. Myra was particularly effective with her protective measures.”
Jane snapped out of her thoughts, and gave him a squeeze on the arm.
“Thank you, Serous. I know it wasn’t easy.”
“On the contrary, it is I who should thank you. The opportunity gave me a chance to gain a significant amount of experience. I admit, I was reminded of my time in the Netherrealm, and it felt oddly nostalgic at moments.”
Jane shook her head, and checked his progress.
Serous (Level 116)
“Not bad, it looks like you’ve gained a chunk of levels. Must have been pretty intense fighting back there,” she responded, forcing a smile.
He nodded. “As you say. It seems you have also acquired a substantial amount of strength.”
Jane tilted her head. “Hmm? Oh, right.” She hadn’t checked her own stats screen yet. Looking at the System logs, all she saw was line after line of damage reports. Scrolling through them was impossible. At least for now, she didn’t want to take the time. Bringing up her stat screen, her eyes widened and her heart rate began to increase.
Jane King (Level 72)
Human
Class: Judicator (Legendary)
Strength: 142
Agility: 141
Constitution: 142
Intelligence: 141
Wisdom: 332
Luck: 630
Health: 1398/1420
Mana: 3320/3320
Skills
Piercing Gaze (Rare)
Enveloping Judgment (Epic)
Language of the Law (Epic)
Lashings of Penance (Epic)
Mantle of Retribution (Epic)
The Gray Inquisition (Epic)
Tithe of Mana (Epic)
Tribunal Sentinels (Epic)
Mandate of the Celestial Court (Legendary)
“Oh dear God,” she gasped, barely recognizing half of her skills.
She had more than doubled her levels.
THIRTY
TIGHTEN THE SCREWS
Varlik crumpled up the letter from Maeve and tossed it into the fire. Everything was coming together as planned. He looked up and saw the camps of mercenary armies scattered throughout the forest. It’s finally time, he smirked, rubbing the stubble on his chin. Raker from the Ashen Teeth, along with the remaining eight company captains stood before him, waiting for instruction.
Facing them, he began, “Maeve and the Silver Army are out. Said she got her payment already, whatever that means.”
A few of the other captains traded chuckles. “Never trust a woman when there’s a coin to be had,” Craven of the Blue Bloods snorted.
Varlik raised a hand, silencing them.
“She did her part. More than that, if everything she reported is true…”
He crossed his arms, a smile creeping up on his lips.
“The demons can’t tell friend from foe. None of her women were discovered. The demons also can’t leave the city for some reason. And now that the people inside are dropping like flies from the poison, it’s time to move forward with the rest of the plan.”
He pointed over to a crude wooden pen holding men, women and children huddled in fear. “Boric has sent us some of the captives from the southern farms. I’m not sure if we even need them, but we’ll play it safe.” He faced Raker. “Take your men, and mingle with the farmers. You’re refugees coming to seek the safety of the city. Once you’re inside, make your way to the Great Barrier, and get that door closed.”
Taking out a red stained bag, he dumped the contents onto the ground. Three severed hands fell out, each with a distinctive tattoo on it.
“Ugh, please, Varlik, I’m trying to eat here!” Elios of the Storm Hounds complained, waving a half-eaten chicken leg.
Varlik shot him a warning glance, but continued,
“As for the rest of you, take a look at the tattoos on those hands. Pick one of them and put the same marking on your own. Once the Ashen Teeth are in the city, we’ll start gradually slipping the rest of you inside. Maeve says the demons seem to pay even less attention to the ones with those on their hands.” He laughed. “Who would have thought this was going to be so easy? Once the Great Barrier is closed, we’ll start cutting these demons apart from the inside out. Unless they turn on every human in the city, they won’t know who to fight.”
“What about the Melkit family and Bloodstone Castle? I’ve heard they don’t take disturbances to the status quo lightly,” Bolgrum of the Seven Snakes asked warily.
Varlik waved the question away. “Why do you think I sent in Maeve and the Silver Army first? No, if they were going to do anything, they would have done it by now. Half the city is already dying of Widow’s Kiss. Either something has changed with the coming of these demons or they’re already dead from the poison. Just worry about taking the city. The Melkit family is a problem for my father to deal with. Now get to work.”
