Paladin Hunter 3: A LitRPG Adventure, page 1
Paladin Hunter 3
A LitRPG Adventure
Copyright © [2024] by [Wolfe Locke]
All rights reserved.
No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.
Contents
Important Links
The LitRPG Group
1. A City Under Siege
2. In the Shadows
3. From Behind
4. Discord
5. Depths
6. Council
7. Blighted Soil
8. Horde
9. Portal
10. No Balance
11. Soon
12. Realm
13. Spire
14. Enlarge
15. Extended Duty
16. Ultimatum
17. Minister
18. Lord
19. Stand
20. Portal
21. New World
22. Jungle
23. Bait
24. Towards Self
25. Unspoken
26. Lesser
27. Lake
28. Milestone
29. Overturn
30. Appointed Time
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Chapter one
A City Under Siege
The City of Athens was a place of light and life. From the residential Holly District in the north to the sprawling fields of the Juniper District in the south, from the monuments of the Maple District to the shows and music of the Pine District to the clanging factories of the Ironbark district, it was a city that never slept, a city that was always moving, changing, adapting.
A city that stood in in constant vigil against the swirling portals and raging monsters that came tearing from the depths of hell to devour anything and everything that they could.
Deep within the Elm District, the underbelly of the city that was uncomfortably squished between Ironbark and the outer walls, E-ranked portals popped up on an almost daily basis. Wannabe hunters, desperate to prove themselves, hung out in the seedy bars and alleys waiting for the chance to pounce on them as soon as they emerged. On one particular night, a small team approached one such dungeon, armed with their low-ranked gear, ready to make their stand in the world.
“You’re sure this is a good idea?” Ralph, the tank, glanced around nervously. “I haven’t had time to do a proper buff on my gear since the last fight with the undead bear.”
“Sure I’m sure.” The team leader, a mage named Ester, pressed forward. Her feet swept across the cobbles, so fast that she seemed to fly. “My best friend, Wendy, is a bartender over at the Goblin’s Eye. She said this portal appeared in their warehouse. No one else knows it’s there. We get in, we take it all down, and we get back out, and no one else will ever know we were there. Except for the staff, of course, and they’re always letting low-rankers come through to level up.”
“Cool, cool.” Sam, the swordsman, drew his blade and gave it a sharp twirl. Suddenly, he brightened. “Hey, mana stones for sale! Come on, we need to stock up.”
“Mmm, I could use some more health potions.” Ralph agreed.
The group changed direction and hurried over to a vendor, who was selling a wide variety of wares. He was older, and smiled generously as he handed the items across. It cost them almost 100 credits, which was almost certainly more than they would pull from the dungeon, but… This wasn’t about the money. They could grind for money any day. This was about clearing a gate by themselves! This was about showing the world that they could form a team of hunters, maybe even their own guild!
Satisfied, they set out once more, slipping through the moonlight toward the Goblin’s Eye. Upon their arrival, Wendy slipped outside and pulled a key from her belt. The entrance was just down a small flight of stairs, behind which they could hear a lively band playing. Wendy, though, looked like she wasn’t in any mood to enjoy the tunes.
“This way.” She led them down the street a few doors, until they came to a metal door. “Get into the portal, and fast. I didn’t know it at the time I promised it to you, but Josh, the head singer, promised the dungeon to one of his friends, so make sure you get there first.”
“We’ll be on it.” Ester promised. “Thanks! We owe you one!”
Wendy nodded and reached for the door, then paused. “It’s… it’s open.”
She frowned and pulled the door slowly aside, and the team walked up and in. The warehouse wasn’t big, and was filled with barrels and crates full of all the things you’d need to run the bar with the largest diversity of drinks in the Elm District. The portal stood at the other end, swirling and crackling with energy. At a glance, it seemed to be D-ranked, judging from the bluish energy flaring and flashing around the edges. That said… Well…
someone had beaten them to it.
Standing in front of the portal was a tall man who looked rather like a telephone pole. He had his hands folded behind his back, and he slowly turned to face them. He was entirely covered in red, from red gloves to red boots to a red hood that obscured many of his features.
A Crimson Reaper.
“I’m sorry.” His voice was firm. “This portal has been claimed.”
“How’d you get in here?” Wendy demanded. “I have the only key, and—”
“I’m sorry.” He repeated. “This portal has been claimed. If you would like to file a complaint, you may take it to the Hunters Association.”
“What? I’m not dealing with them.” Wendy snorted and turned to leave. “I’m going straight to the police.”
Ester caught a brief flicker of something in her aura, and she spun around just as another Crimson Reaper stepped in front of the door, pulling it back shut.
“Out of my way!” Wendy snapped. “This isn’t funny, and is going to land you in a lot of trouble!”
“Trouble?” The man chuckled. “No, my dear, I don’t think it will.”
“Wendy.” Ester’s voice trembled. “These are Crimson Reapers! They’re one of the most powerful guilds in the city!”
“Well, they’re in our warehouse! This needs to stop.” Wendy drew a knife off her belt, one used for paring vegetables in the kitchen. “I don’t have time to keep up with all the—”
Snick.
A red line appeared on Wendy’s neck, and she slowly lifted her hand to her chin. It came away bloody, and she toppled forward, crashing into a barrel of ale.
“Stop.” Ester pointed her mage’s staff at the assailant. “You’ll never get away with this.”
“Indeed?” The assassin chuckled, and the razor wire uncoiled from the man’s wrist. It danced in the moonlight, drawn about by magic. “Somehow, I just don’t see that happening. Another team, lost tragically in the dungeons? No one will notice. No one will care.”
“My life is worth something!” Ester screamed.
“No.” The man chuckled darkly. “No. Your life is worth nothing, and nothing you have will save you now.”
###
“The word of the Lord endures forever.” Josiah Mather murmured softly, taking a sip from his mana-infused tea. All around him, the hustle and bustle of the City Steam, easily his favorite cafe in the city of Athens, went on without taking any notice of him. It was just the way he wanted it, really. Time to study. Time to prepare. Not necessarily time to relax, he allowed himself very little of that, but—
“Josiah.”
“And there we have it.” He sighed and folded his little leather book as a huntress dropped into the chair just across from him. She wore silver armor, and had her twin swords in a sheath that crossed them like an X upon her back. Her hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail, which in turn was set with silver pins. They could be used as weapons in a pinch, though Josiah had only seen it himself once. “I’ve been found.”
“This is serious, Josiah.” Clara crossed her arms. “Ever since that business with Howard Wilson, you haven’t wanted to do anything with the Order.”
“In fairness, I didn’t really want to do that much with the order prior to it. I came to save Elm District from a rift break. I’d do it again in a heartbeat, but at the time, I didn’t realize what was going to unfold from it.” Josiah shrugged. “It’s been a year since that time. Your powers were restored after you cut ties with the Hunters Association. Officer Mitchell—”
“Detective Mitchell. He broke ties with the police officers, if you remember.” Clara corrected.
“Right.” Josiah sh
“I’d like to take you back to headquarters and go over the details of the newest case.” Clara crossed her arms. “A lot of people are dying, and I mean a lot. We’re stumped, and we desperately need you.”
Josiah nodded thoughtfully. “You mean all the disappearances.”
“Josiah, over the last six months, there have been 12 teams, 65 total hunters, who have vanished in low-level dungeons.” Clara shrugged. “That’s almost ten times the amount that ordinarily go missing in that time frame.”
“Did something new happen just now?” Josiah asked quietly.
“If you’ll come with me, I can tell you more accurately.” Clara continued to press.
“I cannot break my appointment, but I am more than willing to come by afterward.”
Clara sighed deeply, then nodded. “Alright. I’ll come with you.”
“Good!” Josiah finished up his tea, then replaced his book in his inventory. He climbed to his feet and folded his hands behind his back, then turned and slipped toward the door. As he walked past the register, he placed a few credits on the counter, providing a nice tip, and then made his way out and onto the city streets. Clara came right along beside him, and he glanced at her.
“Has the Hunters Association been giving you any trouble?”
“Nah.” Clara shook her head. “After you restored my powers, there was a big investigation over whether not I had suppressed my abilities in order to dodge my contract, but the scans they took of me were definitive enough. I was allowed to go free, and… yeah. Haven’t heard from them since.”
“That could be good news or bad news.” Josiah angled for the gates that led from the Redwood District, where they currently stood, into the Ironbark District. “Now, tell me what happened this time.”
“Simply put, there was a survivor.”
Josiah blinked in surprise, then turned and glanced at Clara. “A survivor? What do you mean?”
“There was a squad of three people, all E-rank. They were trying to take on a D-ranked gate that had opened in the warehouse of the Goblin’s Eye.” Clara explained. “When the police arrived on scene, they found evidence that the squad had entered the portal and become lost, and had a team from the Abyss Walkers go inside to close it up.”
“Laura Mitchell’s guild is good in that respect.” Josiah nodded. “What then?” He had to raise his voice as they walked past a sawmill, where logs were split into boards by a whirring blade that, simply put, was fantastically loud.
“As the Abyss Walkers were leaving, they heard something from a crate. Upon opening it, they found a waitress. Wendy Miller. Her throat had been cut with razor wire. The official declaration of the police was that she had tried to prevent the missing trio from entering, they killed her and stuffed her in a box, and then entered and vanished.” Clara had to raise her own voice as they passed by the mill, just as a load of darkwood—boards made from black trees harvested from certain low-level forest dungeons—came rumbling out into the narrow streets. “The problem, of course, is that she wasn’t dead.”
“But the police declared her so.”
“Yes, as part of a deception to keep her survival a secret.” Clara continued. “Only a couple people in the force know she’s alive, and they’re all good people.”
“What was the need for the deception?”
“Razor wire, at least the wire used to do the job, can only be wielded by much higher-ranked magic users.” Clara explained. “If any of that squad had tried to use it, they would have just killed themselves. There’s no way she was attacked by them. Someone else was waiting for them, which is what we’ve been suspecting. The only question is who did it, and why?”
Josiah frowned and tried to think. A handful of options floated through his mind, but… well… There were a great many possibilities, and he didn’t want to make any declarations before he knew more of the facts.
“Has she been able to speak at all?”
“Not a word.” Clara shook her head. “She’s stable now, but she lost a lot of blood. No one knows if she’ll ever be able to speak again. The healers have been doing all that they can, but there’s likely brain damage. Even if they can repair the physical damage… I mean, who knows?”
“Indeed.” Josiah frowned in thought, then nodded. “We’ll go there as soon as we’re done here.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.” Clara smiled.
“You knew I would.” Josiah sighed, then bit his lip. “Somehow, this sounds like another large sort of a project.”
“Indeed.” Clara nodded, and she sighed deeply. “Yes, indeed.”
Chapter two
In the Shadows
Josiah knelt over the small seedbed. They were still in Ironbark, near the wall between the industrial district and Juniper. He was in a tiny apartment, owned by an elderly woman whose husband had once fought on the front lines of the war between Earth and the legions of monsters. The small plot of dirt on her balcony was how she grew food to support herself on her small income, which was why it was so critical that it be healed of a rather bad blight.
“Looks like it got cursed.” Clara commented as she stepped up next to him.
“Indeed.” Josiah ran his finger along the surface of the soil. It was black and cracked, with thorns sprouting here and there. “Ma’am, have you brought anything unusual into the apartment recently?”
“No, no.” The woman walked up next to him, leaning on her walker for support. “And I don’t take many visitors, either. The other day, a raven came down to peck at some of my radishes. I scared him away, and then the blight started a day or two later. Maybe it had some connection?”
“Maybe.” Josiah thought for a moment. He had been healing small, blighted areas around the city for the previous several months. Thankfully, once he healed them, very few became infected again. He raised his hands, and issued a command. “Heal.”
[Skill Used: Heal]
Light blossomed from his palms and filled the seed bed. A hiss echoed through the air, and smoke rose up from the thorns. Josiah kept up the pressure, and after a few long moments, the thorns blossomed into flower as they were transformed back into tomatoes and potatoes, while the soil itself became moist and brown once more.
“And there you have it.” Josiah rose with a smile. “You ought to be good to go again.”
“Oh, thank you! Thank you, dear boy!” The woman beamed. “How can I ever repay you?”
“Just have faith.” Josiah smiled back at her. “Someday, life will return to normal, and even if it doesn’t, a better one lies beyond our own.”
“Bless you, bless you.” She wrung his hand, and Josiah turned away. A few moments later, he and Clara walked down onto the street.
“Shall we be going?” Josiah nodded back toward Birch District. “Which hospital is this Wendy staying in?”
“We should be going, but we won’t walk.” Clara pulled a small stone from her pocket. “Grab my hand.”
Josiah nodded and took her left hand. A moment later, light washed over them, teleporting them straight across the city and into a small room. As the light faded away, he found himself standing before a hospital bed. There were no windows or doors into the room, though a large number of displays beeped and chirped around a rather dead-looking woman. Her eyes were sunken deep in her head, the line across her throat was still visible, though all the blood had been washed away. She was alive, her chest was just barely moving, but… It didn’t look good for her.
“Ahh. You’d be Josiah.” A doctor phased through one of the walls. He wore a long, white coat, not unlike the coat that Josiah himself wore, and had a handful of anti-surveillance items clipped to his shoulders. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Most of it is exaggerated, I’m sure.” Josiah held out a hand, but the doctor, who was wearing gloves, abstained. “There’s a lot of security here.”
