Azarinth Healer: Book One - A LitRPG Adventure, page 31
“I was, only my body enhancing spells though. My first fight with Gary wasn’t me playing around,” she said. “Thank you again for the advice. I’ll take it to heart. Anything else you noticed?”
“I should be asking you instead… Your technique is more refined than mine, and your speed is faster than even my best skill.” Well, second best, he thought, but using a fatal skill in a training match would be beyond unreasonable. And who says that was her full power either…
“I don’t have anything for you either. That last skill was impressive. Had you known about my abilities, it might’ve even worked,” Ilea said, likely trying to boost his spirits. But Dale knew when he’d been beaten fair and square.
Switching topics, Ilea started talking about her exploits in the past couple of weeks. It took quite some time, and even then, Dale was fairly sure she was leaving certain things out.
“A fire enhancer? Quite impressive…” She got a new class in mere weeks? I don’t want to know what she had to do for that… His mind conjured up images of the quirky healer covered in blood. She must have killed hundreds of creatures to get this strong. In his imagination, the girl was grinning, transforming into some kind of battle-crazed maniac.
The story continued.
“Stalker hounds… above level 90 you say?”
The bloodthirsty fighter was growing more dangerous in his mind by the second.
“And you were there alone? That’s quite something.”
He felt the blood drain from his face as the conversation went on. She could’ve killed me in that sparring match. Not sure how Abby would have explained that one to the kids.
“Oh, what?” he said, turning his attention back to the fearsome girl. Had she just asked a question?
“I asked how you’ve been doing. After the elven attack a month ago. I’m sure there’s been a lot going on. The city seems mostly fine now though.”
Rallying his energy, Dale focused on the question at hand.
“A lot of people have left the city. We helped rebuild and patrolled the surrounding areas. The elves haven’t shown themselves since. It’s easier for people to ignore it, you know… the constant danger of being out here on the frontier.”
He sighed. Citizens forgot things quickly, but guards like him always remembered.
“Even though their house might have been burned down a month ago, it’s rebuilt now and they’re alive. Luckily, we still have some mages to help with that. Hating and blaming the elves is easy. This attack didn’t change how anybody feels about them.
“We’ve increased our training and patrols heavily though. Next week we’ll start going into nearby dungeons and dangerous areas to make ourselves stronger. I can’t say we’ve always been as vigilant and disciplined as we should have been, but starting now is the best we can do,” he said, feeling slight guilt that he had not pushed his comrades harder, leveled faster.
“I just don’t get it, you know…” Ilea started, but then she trailed off. She looked at the wall behind him as he waited for her to continue.
She’s definitely more thoughtful than before.
“You… we… have the opportunity to strengthen ourselves. To work hard and fight back. One person’s efforts alone can save a whole city.” She paused. “Like the shields Esteban raised above the arena to protect the people inside. He might not have saved the city, but he’d certainly saved hundreds of lives.”
Dale nodded. It was something the new recruits often mentioned. ‘If everyone trained like the guards, the city wouldn’t need them’.
Ah, the optimism of the young.
“I know what you mean. Most feel content to be protected by the strong though,” Dale replied. “Growing your own power is dangerous. Few actively embrace that danger. They live their daily lives, not dreaming of improvement and adventure, instead impressed by the next arena fights or the next live show at the tavern. Not realizing that they could be that same person fighting or performing.”
He got up and came back with a bottle and two glasses. “I hope juice is fine, I’m on duty,” he said, filling the glasses at her nod.
“And you’ve been out there. I remember how you looked next to the burning caravan and the dead adventurers.” He softened his tone. “Not everyone can face that, can overcome it and become stronger through it. I’m not ashamed to say that I wouldn’t go into a dungeon by myself either, although I know it would be the fastest and best way to improve my own strength. And the ability to protect those I love.”
She drank some of the juice as he leaned back. “It’s just so much more graspable than…” She trailed off again. “Than where I’m from.”
Her eyes grew distant, and Dale decided not to press her about her origins despite his curiosity.
“To be able to stand when someone threatens you or someone you hold dear. To be able to save those injured with fatal wounds. What other choice do you have but to fight when such things are possible?”
Dale smirked a little at that. He doubted Ilea’s intentions were quite so noble. She was a good kid, but he could recognize one who was addicted to the thrill of battle. Much had changed since that day with the bandits.
Seeing his expression, her lip curled upward. “I know I’m being unfair. I love fighting. The thrill, the power. It’s just a bit confusing to me that not more people choose a similar way of going about it.”
In his youth, Dale had often wondered why more people didn’t join the guard. He no longer wondered. There was a weighty responsibility that came with power, and danger too.
“I understand. Many still do choose your way. And many of those die, leaving behind grieving parents or lovers. The others, well…” Dale trailed off and grimaced.
“What?” she asked, a smile coming to her face.
“You… well…”
“I’m quite a maniac, I’m aware of that,” she said as he mirrored her smile.
“You sure are… fucking fire enhancer in less than a month,” he answered, mumbling the latter half of the sentence.
“What level were you when you first fought the stalker hounds?” he asked, then immediately regretted it.
She was opening her mouth to answer, but he stopped her. “No, thinking about it, I don’t want to know.”
Before Ilea could say anything else, Dale lifted his glass.
“To protecting our loved ones,” he declared.
“To killing monsters,” she said as their glasses clinked.
TWENTY-SIX
Not a Title
Leaving the guard station, Ilea was in a thoughtful but content mood. The talk with Dale had given her a new perspective on things.
I’m glad I’m as free as I am. To be constantly afraid of dying and leaving behind a family or an unprotected hometown would suuuck.
As she walked aimlessly around Riverwatch, the suns slowly began to sink. She heard mothers calling for their kids to come home and eat, saw men closing down their shops with tired expressions on their faces, ready to go home. A kid was playing happily with his dog.
Ilea found a bench on a hill with a nice view of a big part of the city. Smoke curled upward from many cook fires, and the sound of gossip and laughter carried on the breeze.
I guess if I can be there to fight monsters then these people don’t have to. Kind of a win-win situation.
She sat there for nearly an hour thinking about her purpose in life. Back on Earth, her life had been a drag. Exercising, consuming entertainment, going to work, school. Eventually, that routine would have included college and then a full-time job. An endless hamster wheel. No wonder she had felt suffocated by it.
It seemed a bit pointless to her now. She had enjoyed parts of her life back on Earth, but other parts had been frustrating. There was just something she enjoyed about her current lifestyle. The simplicity of it.
Maybe I should’ve gone into pest control instead of medicine, she wondered. Or maybe farming?
What she knew for certain was that, in this world, she was free. She could forge her own path with her own strength. The strength I luckily gained from an old ruin I accidentally stumbled upon…
She chuckled at that and decided that what she knew for certain was that she knew very little. There was no definite answer but she was happy, right here and right now.
Getting up from the bench, she stretched.
“Time to lose the sentimentality and do something.”
So she did.
She ran through the city in the fading glow of the suns. Jumping up onto the roof of a small pastry shop, she continued across the rooftops, her Dexterity and speed leaving no mark of her passing behind.
Does the why of life really matter when you can run around on top of buildings, feeling the wind in your hair? Ilea didn’t care about the answer as she kept running, a smile on her face.
Some of the owners of the homes she darted over were probably wondering where the laughter came from, but it was infectious, and many a face became a bit brighter as they caught sight of her. Others shouted at her to shut the fuck up – but to her, it was all the same.
The next day soon came. Ilea stayed in bed in her expensive inn, reading the books Splicer had left in her possession after eating a rich meal and taking a long bath the evening before. Only getting up for lunch, she got dressed and walked downstairs.
Giving the room key back, she said goodbye to the innkeeper. The whole night cost her only a few silver.
So, what to do today…? she thought as she stepped out into the road. It must’ve rained later in the night as she saw a cart being pulled through what was now a muddy mess of a street. The suns were out and shining now though.
Ilea walked through the city, occasionally stopping to check out a shop or a food stand. Finally, she arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild and went inside. The occupants immediately glared at her again and started whispering. With her sphere active, she heard everything.
“A healer above level 50?” said a short, stout warrior with a great axe slung over his back standing by the administration counters. “Do you see her… no, not the red-haired one… what? Yes, I can see the redhead has a great ass but look at the healer!”
He was whispering to a companion who looked to be a mage of some sort, with heavy robes and an amused expression.
“Matt, what team is she with?” the axe-wielding man hissed at a clerk behind a nearby counter.
“Oh my God, you bunch of creepy assholes,” a female ranger huffed, sipping mead with a long-suffering expression.
“Let’s go ask her, I’m sure she won’t decline your pure heart, Legomo!”
The warrior elbowed the mage forward.
I don’t have a great ass? Ilea looked at the red-haired woman who had entered just before her and sadly had to agree that she did not compare.
Looking at the warrior, she raised her thumb. The mage next to him freaked out, but he just smiled and gave a thumbs-up back.
“She heard me? What the fuck?” the mage mumbled, much more quietly now.
“Don’t worry, she didn’t. It’s a language of the soul,” the warrior chucked.
“Your dick you mean,” the ranger said, finishing her drink and belching at the other two.
Ilea stopped listening after that and went to a notice board on the wall to check on the available assignments. A number of them were for the protection of caravans or property. Some others were for monster subjugation – many of those were posted by the city itself, it seemed.
Her browsing was interrupted by a clerk calling out to her and beckoning her over.
“Excuse me miss, what’s your name?” he asked as she approached.
“Ilea,” she replied, leaning on the counter. “Why do you ask?”
“Yeah, thought as much, not a lot of healers around. Fewer with black hair and blue eyes. There was a letter delivered for you. Please wait a moment.” He disappeared into a back room. A minute later, he came back and handed her a sealed letter.
Dear Ilea,
I have heard of the elven attack on Riverwatch and dearly hope that you are doing well. Please visit me in Dawntree as soon as you can. I have a job that you might be interested in.
Alice
Didn’t she say she wouldn’t see me for quite a while? It’s only been a month or so. Ilea shrugged. Not like I have anything better to do, and traveling seems nice.
Continuing through the list of posted assignments, Ilea found something appropriate and took it. It was about the protection of a caravan on their way westward. They would leave in two days, exactly when her armor would be done.
Seeing as she was a healer, the clerk didn’t even double-check anything when she handed him the assignment and immediately approved her.
“Your contact is Arven. He’s gonna be the captain of the caravan guard. They leave at midday from the southern gate. Take this with you to identify yourself.” She was handed back the paper she had taken from the wall, which now bore an official stamp.
Thanking the clerk, she went back outside, folding the paper and putting it in her notebook.
Ilea decided then that she’d be spending the next two days relaxing. Not in the city though… I need some time away from all this busyness.
She walked toward the southern gate and, exiting the city, she ran for around an hour, reaching an area that overlooked the city.
Normally, one would assume that a place with as wonderful a view as the one before her would be filled with people, or at least someone trying to sell something. But this one wasn’t, for the simple reason that this part of the mountain was outside the city walls.
At least something good comes from so many people choosing not to fight, she thought as she jumped up onto the bough of a comfortable-looking tree to prepare a nice place to rest and read.
“You finished all of them?” Splicer asked as Ilea put the books on the counter.
She had finished the two last books she had the day before and was now preparing to leave with the caravan.
“I did, I did. This one was really good. Got anything similar or by the same author?” She pointed to her favorite, a revenge story, at which he chuckled.
“Didn’t take you for that type. Remind me not to get on your bad side. The author has another couple books as far as I remember. I only have one of them though.”
She nodded and put her backpack on again. “Did you check the books and diaries I brought?”
Nodding, he reached for something below the counter and pushed over a coin pouch. “31 gold for the diaries and another 3 gold for the other books. Although I have to say most of their worth comes from their age and not their content.”
“Thank you. Although I have to say, this is a lot of money, considering I had some armor made for 4 gold just a couple days ago. What’s the catch?”
“There is no catch, my dear healer. Information and history is a pricey business, and although one has to look hard to sell, there are some people willing to buy. Some very wealthy people.”
Taking the money, she eyed him skeptically while jingling the pouch. “Like the Foundation of Glass, for example?”
The corner of his mouth lifted by a nearly unnoticeable amount at that.
“Yes. For example, the Foundation,” he affirmed. “Now, would you like to buy the book I mentioned?”
Ilea chose three books. Totaling one gold coin, it was one of the priciest investments she had made so far. Then she went back out onto the streets, heading to her next stop.
I kinda like Riverwatch at this point. It certainly has its charm. She smiled to herself while looking at the city’s small restaurants and cafés. Sometimes I forget that I’m in a medieval-like world. Magic really does change some things that would only have been possible via technological advancements on Earth.
She passed a tough-looking adventurer team with blood and injuries all over them.
“That girl there is a healer, come on Alex!” she overheard one of them saying. The man, apparently Alex, just grunted and continued walking.
“You’re injured! We could at least ask,” a woman said, but Alex just shook his head, not engaging with her either.
Dunno what that’s about…
Ilea kept walking as well though, thinking about the possibility of bringing some of the technology from Earth into this place.
I sadly know way too little about most things to really make a difference, and with magic already being here, a lot becomes easier or completely different as well.
Before she knew it, Ilea had arrived in front of Earl’s shop, the smith’s voice carrying through from inside.
“…it’s 50 silver, or there’s the door.”
Ilea’s timely entrance into the shop seemingly demonstrated where the exit was for the armored woman standing before the blacksmith.
“Well fuck this then,” the woman said and stormed past Ilea.
“What was that about?” Ilea asked, approaching Earl at the counter.
“Just another customer who isn’t used to paying for quality. Bunch of second-rate hawkers calling themselves smiths.” Earl stumbled upon the last words, but soon a smile formed on his face. “You’re here though, and you’re a paying customer at that!”
He gestured at her to follow him into the back room. Ilea did so.
“I finished it yesterday,” he continued, walking over to a cloth-covered armor stand. “Not my greatest work, I have to admit, but still better than most things you can buy out there. I’ll give you a discount, or you can choose any weapon out front. Nothing worth more than half a gold, mind you,” he said, removing the piece of cloth.
What greeted her was something beautiful. The feeling was akin to seeing a sleek top-of-the-line sports car for the first time in person. Not something that you could or likely even would buy, but nonetheless beautiful to look at.
A sports car’s power is rarely used in everyday life though… I feel like with this, it’s a bit different.
Approaching the armor, she saw it had a base of flexible leather, dark brownish-red in color. Drake bone lay on top of the shins, thighs, and parts of the chest. Additionally, the bone also covered parts of the upper arms. The sides of the legs, the arms, the torso, and the stomach were partly covered by red drake scales. Some scales covered the shoulders too.
