The problem with Jijik was that he was still in the camp and he was making himself look conspicuous. Hurried steps and furtive glances didn't make one seem sneaky but someone , terribly I might add, to be sneaky. I followed leisurely after him. He occasionally fell out of my sight but Medea’s perception was absurd, especially with my proximity bonus and it could nudge me in the right direction.
Jijik walked out of the camp and we tailed him. Now that we were out of the camp, I switched to ducking behind trees and crouching in bushes. And soon enough, maybe only a bit further than what was out of sight for anyone without dedicated skills, he stopped.
Perhaps I natively expected him to lead me to his accomplices, if any, or a hideout where he kept the proof of my involvement in the red powder seizure. What I most certainly did not expect was for him to dismiss an illusion and reveal his true form.
He… he was just a kid. I vaguely recognized him as one of the younger contractors. For the love of Medea I couldn't recall his name though. He was just stiletto kid in my head. A kid who then promptly proceeded to eject his lunch at the foot of a tree. He kept vomiting while aggressively trying to wipe his face and body clean with a piece of rough cloth. I guess someone died and the guts splattered on him. I slotted in Intimidation
He was still retching when a tail wrapped around his neck and dragged him back with the stinger inches from his face. He froze. I didn't like to scare or possibly harm someone who was at least half a decade younger than me if not much more. He was even puking from seeing someone splatter on him! But sorry, Jijik and my moral compass, my own survival comes first. And he definitely started it first. I walked out and to him as Medea further wrapped two of its legs around Jijik with the sharp edges exposed. I plopped down on the grass before, keeping a healthy distance away from his vomit.
“Let’s talk.” 5 mana to activate the skill. To further cement it all, I told Medea to click its mandibles and human teeth right besides his ear. He shivered for a second before tensing and freezing up again. “Do not try to fight or you will die. Nod if you understand.” He nodded, eyes wide, some vomit still on his chin. Actually now that I think about it, I have overdone it. Whatever he started it. I still got up and wiped his face clean with the cloth even though judging by the way his eyes screwed shut, he expected me to kill him myself.
“Let's start with our last conversation. How did you know it was me who was involved with the red powder incident?” He muttered something I couldn't make out but he seemed to be calling himself an idiot. I had Medea tighten itself a smidge.
“I ov-overheard someone in the guild.” He muttered finally.
“The correct word is eavesdropping. Anyways, does anyone else know? Anyone who was with you or you spoke to?” He opened his mouth and closed it again before talking.
“I won't say anything! You'd kill me if I am alone and if I am not then my accomplices would for blabbing.” I rolled my eyes. Just great. Now he has a spine.
“Kid, we are in the middle of the forest and ten people died to fucking exploding rats. You” I pointed a finger at him. “were puking when I caught you. You are not the type to have guaranteed survival here. I can make it look like you died in a retchroot explosion easily. So answer it or Medea gets extra lunch.” Back to the indistinct muttering. I definitely caught something like “Kitch, you fucking greedy idiot.” this time.
“I'm alone.” A pause and then “Please don't kill me!” The grovelling kid was on the verge on crying.
“Alright. That will depend on your next answer. I get that you wanted something from me. Why else would you approach me? But what?”
“Not much! A few vials of your pet's venom.”
“That’s all?”
“Yeah. I have a skill that wants venom but I can't afford to buy any of the good stuff. So I thought that if I—” I held up a hand to make shut up. I got the idea but that made me realize that I could have sold that stuff on my own already. Fucking hell! How much money did I just leave on the table because I didn't know? Something to worry about for later.
“What kind of skill?”
“Poison magic?” He sounded like he he thought I was stupid before hurriedly clamping down and apologizing.
“Fine. You can go. I'll give you a few vials if you provide me with the containers.” Kitch blinked in confusion and then in disbelief. “but if you try to blackmail me again, I'll have Medea kill you and it won't be quick. Are we clear?” He gulped and then nodded vigorously. I began to walk away as he collapsed on shaky legs when Medea let go.
Yay for bullying poor children. Way to go Anya. People were supposed to start over and be better if they were allowed to start over from scratch. And here I was, bullying kids with more guts than brains. The hero of the multiverse, ladies!
“And for what it is worth, I'm sorry for threatening to kill you.” I finally called out but Kitch had scampered off by then.
The rest of the day was spent trudging through the forest and when another wave of exploders arrived, they were not even allowed to get within range. By noon, a second group of exploders ambushed us and this time some managed to sneak past Neevom. But no one died thankfully.
And then we found what the exploders were buying time for. Footprints of what looked like retchroot but if retchroot were the size of bears. And a slew of tiny footprints around it. The rats leader was running away. We kept following. No way was anyone letting a bear sized retchroot survive to grow even stronger.
The night was uneventful but I discovered that Medea was apparently growing a second pair of wings. Good for it.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Next morning, something was definitely wrong. My knives felt heavier in my hands and even Medea was slowing down. But it was not just us, any pet who had eaten the retchroot was almost imperceptibly lagging behind now that I knew what to look for.
And then suddenly my knives felt light again, no lighter than ever before and Medea almost visibly deflated. I checked the knives and frowned, that was not correct, my knives were entirely depleted of the mana I had left in them. A thundering roar rang out further ahead in the forest.
And then my notifications went crazy.
\\WARNING: Non inert Asterite Particles detected
\\WARNING: Asterite Infection detected
\\WARNING: Knife of Quiraion overriding system
\\Activating ████████████
\\New Trait Asterite Encyclopedia granted
\\New Trait Asterite Absorber granted
\\████████████████████
\\████████████████████
\\Generating quest
\\ELIMINATE THE INFECTION. PURGE THE GODSLAYER’S ESSENCE. DESTROY THE DEFILER’S SPAWN. KILL. AVENGE YOUR WORLD. AVENGE YOUR GOD.
\\REWARDS: Skill upgrade and new skill based on the candidate’s existing skillset
\\Failure will lock experience gain for a period of time
\\Aiding or allying with the Asterite entity willingly will result in death. Knife of Quiraion will monitor your thoughts. Pretending to help it to strike a greater blow is allowed. TRUE DEFECTION WILL RESULT IN A PAINFUL TERMINATION. IT WILL SPAN TRILLIONS OF SUBJECTIVE YEARS AND IT WILL BE FAR MORE AGONIZING THAN MORTAL MINDS CAN YET IMAGINE. FURTHERMORE YOUR MIND WILL BE FORCIBLY ALTERED SO THAT YOU EXPERIENCE IT WITH GREATER INTENSITY AND WITHOUT EVER ADAPTING TO IT, DEVELOPING ANY FORM OF RESISTANCE OR COPING METHOD, GOING INSANE OR EVEN GETTING OVERWHELMED BY IT. YOUR VERY BEING WILL BE PERMANENTLY ALTERED TO BE A CREATURE DESIGNED ONLY TO SUFFER AS MUCH AS IT IS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE. IT WILL NEVER GET ANY EASIER FOR A TRAITOR. DO NOT JOIN THE ASTERITE ENTITY.
Okay. That definitely confirmed that it was my fault. Also holy crap, I'd never seen the system actually lose it like this. I had seen the trait promise death before but never never-ending torment after mind alteration to maximize the pain. It also the longest notification I had seen after the New Delport tourist trap one. It really did want to make it clear that I would suffer if I helped Aster. I mean I did not intend to betray Knife of Quiraion
I quickly checked my new traits instead of trying to imagine what the hell was considered unimaginable torment by a system that spanned across universes.
\\Asterite Encyclopedia:
You have a mental catalogue of Asterite entities, energies, forms and behaviours that fills up as you encounter them.
Current entries
- Awakened Armored Base Skeleton
- Asterite Particles
- Asterite Infection
- Consolidation of Asterite Particles
- Asterite Particles
Now I had an encyclopedia of Asterite, whatever that was. From the name it was obvious that it was something related to the Bonelord Aster.
The trait was like a videogame bestiary too. Speaking of, the very first entry sounded like what I had killed in my own world.
\\Awakened Armored Skeleton
A simple [BASE SKELETON] that has been granted sapience and a protective layer of bone. This is one of the earliest and weakest asterite skeletons known. It is not specialized for a specific task but is a starting point from which numerous forms of skeletons can arise.
Nothing special then. Also weakest? It took me an upturned trailer and a couple of other people to put the creature down. And I still died to it. I moved on.
\\Asterite Particles
The Unaugured God’s realm and His forces are all touched by particles of the Godslayer himself. This takes the form of subatomic particles known as Asterite Particles. These particles emit radiation that further strengthens the Bonelord’s forces and weakens other time in higher concentrations. In very high concentrations, it can even warp creatures and the world around it to slowly produce more of itself. This is called an Asterite Infection.
Asterite Particles are present in even the least of all the Bonelord's forces. It lets them fight even after death by acting as a parasitic entity that can control bones and take over lesser creatures as a host.
I paled. I had been carrying those knives for so long and Medea and so many others had been eating them too. It had been collecting in their bodies, slowly increasing in potency as it changed things. It didn't sound like just irradiated particles to me but more like something from a horror story. The next entry, Asterite Infection
\\Consolidation of Asterite Particles
Asterite particles tend to clump together when not directed. To converge eternally is its calling but it is usually kept from this union.
When threatened, an Asterite entity can summon all the free Asterite Particles around it to empower itself and depending on the amount of Asterite it has absorbed, it can instantly master a class, trigger a skill evolution or even a racial evolution. In extremely rare cases, even an ascension may occur if a sufficient amount of Asterite is unified in one entity.
Hopefully that meant that there were no more Asterite particles left in Medea or anyone else for me to worry about. Maybe I should still let Valdima know. I glanced back at my pet and I was not imagining it, it was definitely smaller than usual. It was weaker but weaker be a bit weaker than become compromised. What was the next trait?
\\Asterite Absorber
You can absorb the essence of Bonelord Aster to grant his minions their final rest. Asterite Essence can be used in a particular systembound shop once 300 essence is collected. Kill and shatter His forces for power.
Current Essence amount: 0
Finally something that was not terrifying in its implications. New incentives for killing them. The carrot to the earlier stick. And with that, I steeled my face and looked forward. The roar had been loud and even the Hunting Guild's Guildmistress, Ulgina popped out of the trees she usually hid in to address us with a somber face. Usually it was just Neevom who dealt with us but this was different. That roar was way louder than anything should ever be.
“I know we hired you to deal with the hordes, keep them from overwhelming us while we dealt with the actual threats. I also know that we failed horribly at that.” She stared ahead, steely eyed. “And because of our failure, some of you are now dead. I accept responsibility for that. All of you will be paid extra when we return and three times that will be given to the relatives of those dead. Even though it is not enough, I will do that even if I have to pay for that personally.” She paused and let out a deep breath before continuing.
“I have been hunting in these forests since before most of your grandparents were born and I have skill backed knowledge of almost all creatures that exist in the Great Forests. With that said, I can promise you that whatever that creature is, it is no longer a retchroot and it is not alone. Your job was to keep the vermin away from us as we fight and you will do so.” She stopped before letting out another breath. “If you engage with the beast directly, we will not be able to guarantee your safety. If you think you don't want to continue, you will still be paid the original price promised. You will also be escorted back to the city. There will be no repercussions. All that said, if you want to continue, continue we shall. If you don't, continue we shall without you. So I'll ask you, do you want to go back?” I looked around. A few hands were raised but most stayed put. Gres stayed put, his face hard and his eyes red. Even Kitch didn't falter but he did lower his face when he met my eyes. Fahria didn't either. The red dressed Choir Singer? Staying. Lilim was the only one I knew who was retreating. Others were also leaving. A man in a huge black armor. A girl with a large sword. A lanky guy with claws for hands. A few more I couldn't quite see. But at the end of the day, the conclusion was obvious.
The expedition was not over yet.