‘Was this some side effect of Jacques’ attack?’

  I didn’t know anything about vampires being unable to have dreams. Considering that some of them can sleep in their coffins for quite a while, it would be pretty boring to nor dream of anything.

  When I looked around, I saw Gcien sleeping nearby. So, it looked like she failed in her duty of keeping an eye on things. Still, she would have woken up if something or someone had approached.

  It was still dark, so there was no need to hurry to the dungeon. While my parameters would be full during the night, I didn’t need them on the first few sections of any byrinth.

  Since I didn’t have anything to do, I couldn’t help but think about the fight with Jacques. Iri didn’t have the chance to help him, but things could have become pretty nasty if we had fought seriously. The difference in parameters was hard to tell, but the light that he summoned weakened me by around forty percent.

  ‘I need to find a way not to fall for that kind of magic again…’

  In any case, it didn’t take long for the sun to rise and Gcien soon got up. She looked apologetic, so she went to hunt for our breakfast. In the meantime, I made some Great Fireball scrolls. They were essentially useless against golems, it wasn’t a good idea to use them and damage their ores either, but it would be a good idea to have them ready to be used in a confined space like a byrinth… possible enemies wouldn’t have the chance to escape the attack.

  “I guess I will test my archery skills in the beginning and then use my punching skills ter once they stop showing results.”

  My gloves could help with that as well, so it was a good chance. Unlike monsters like golems, blunt damage is always a better idea. Before long, Gcien came with some rabbits and then I cooked them. Even though I had been doing this for a while, I couldn’t help but sigh since my cooking skills didn’t improve even a bit. My build was all over the pce, so it wouldn’t be a problem if I got the chef css at some point.

  “Let’s go, girl. Time to get into that bcksmith css. Are you looking forward to making a cart or wagon for you?”

  “Awoo?”

  “I guess not… let’s hope that it won’t be that heavy since a wooden cart or wagon won’t endure the weight of a forge and boratory at the same time.”

  We got inside the byrinth and I couldn’t help but furrow my eyebrows… It looked like a mine. The walls, even in this first section, were somewhat glowing, speckled with veins of ore embedded within the rough stone. They reflected hues of red and silver, showing the valuable minerals waiting to be mined. I stepped closer, my hand reaching out to touch the cold, metallic surface.

  The moment my fingers brushed the ore, the wall trembled violently, and a thunderous crack echoed through the corridor. Pieces of the wall broke away, reforming rapidly into a hulking figure. A mineral golem emerged, towering over me. Its body was rough and jagged, resembling raw iron ore, with a reddish hue that gave it a menacing, fiery appearance. It let out a weird roar, the sound was with a metallic cng, and began to move forward, its weight causing the ground to shudder beneath its every step. The fight had begun before I could even take another breath.

  I didn’t hesitate and used Rapid Fire on the beast and my three arrows not only drained all the mana from the monster, but it also killed. Before long, the body of the monster shrunk until it became half of a fist.

  You received 10 experience points.

  “The fun starts here.”

  “Awoo!”

  “Hold your horses, I need to train my skills. You will have to wait for a bit longer.”

  “Chi, chi, chi!”

  It looked like Gcien had become a fighting junkie. Perhaps it isn’t a good idea to give the equivalent of energy drinks for animals, even in this world of magic. In any case, the ore didn’t look very different from the iron ores that I had stocked while I was secluded in that cave. Still, it should be better given that it was once the part of a monster. I could only hope that it would be a magic iron ore.

  In any case, we moved further in the byrinth wondering if the monsters would only show up if I touched the ores in the walls… but even when I didn’t do that, they emerged from behind in rge groups and tried to block our escape. They fell easily when they got hit by my ordinary arrows, so there were no worries. Before long, Gcien went to grab their mana cores and the ores that the monsters left behind.

  “I guess we should stock up the ores that we can find here. What do you think?”

  “Awoo! Awoo!”

  “On the other hand, that redhead dwarf probably told her friends that we are here, so we might find ourselves surrounded by them if we stay here for too long.”

  My guess was that only the very young dwarves, and the elderly were left behind to not join this war, and that was why that small group was guarding that byrinth that just emerged. Since they are young, they shouldn’t be that hard to deal with, but I didn’t want to have to kill them.

  That girl should know that I could have killed her, so she should have an idea of my powers, given the encounter and the rumors about me. If she was smart, she wouldn’t tell anything about me since that would keep her friends safe.

  In any case, I was pnning to use the stamina liquid to make my archery skills level up faster, but the encounters weren’t that high and, thanks to my stamina regeneration, it was enough to deal with the monsters in the first section. I probably will have to move faster if I wanted to really use that. Fortunately, I could do something about that with the extra mana that I was obtaining and use it for Shadow Step.

  You completed a trial. Please choose between the csses: Bcksmith, Warrior, and Thief.

  You obtained the Bcksmith css.

  You improved the Strength parameter.

  You unlocked the Aptitude: Master of Smithing.

  You unlocked the skill: Speed Forge.

  You unlocked the skill: Elemental Infusion.

  Master of Smithing: Gain additional bonus experience when infusing items with elements.

  Speed Forge - Accelerate the forging process to quickly craft or repair items. This skill allows you to complete crafting or repair tasks at a significantly faster rate, reducing the time required to produce high-quality weapons, armor, or other items. The accelerated process also enhances the overall quality of the finished products, ensuring they are made to your highest standards. Cost: 05 Mana per minute

  Magic Infusion - Infuse an item with elemental properties, such as fire, ice, or lightning. This infusion enhances the item's performance by adding elemental effects. The infusion sts for a limited duration or until the item is used a certain number of times based on the level of the skill, but when used with mana cores, the effect sts ten times longer. Cost: 50 Mana.

  Before long, we reached the end of the first floor and those options were presented to me. I didn’t have a hard time making my choice, but it felt a bit too easy and uneventful. Magic Infusion feels pretty simir to the other enchanting skill that I have, but this isn’t permanent.

  “I guess I am getting used to all the trouble that comes to me.”

  … …

  “Sir, we received reports that over four hundred war towers had crossed the border already.”

  “None of them had attacked yet, but the insurgents were with them.”

  Arsn was in his office, ready to depart with his forces while he was receiving those reports. Crice was nearby, ready to follow her brother as his assistant. At the same time, Jacques and Iri were in the same room waiting for him.

  Those two caused some problems when they disappeared soon after they had arrived, but one day ter, they returned like nothing had happened. Crice had heard the reports that one of the enemy’s bases had been attacked with some explosions and she could tell that Regulus was involved, so she guessed that those two went to meet him.

  ‘They probably had their futures read by the cirvoyant… while the cirvoyant can’t see the end of the events where Regulus is involved, I could imagine that they still were able to see their futures and confirm that they would survive the encounter without capturing him. Then why go in the first pce?’

  Crice tried to ask about it, but those two didn’t say anything about that. Most likely, they were preparing for the time they would have to fight Regulus for real, and they just went to see him to learn what he could do and get ready for the real battle.

  ‘I don’t think that Regulus would fight them with all his might… Even if they hated his very existence, they are still his siblings. He doesn’t want to get involved with them, he doesn’t want to risk having to kill them to protect himself.’

  At least Crice was certain that Regulus had killed the guy who worked for her brother previously… a part of the incident that happened years ago was being solved.

  “Let’s get going, shall we?”

  “Sir Arsn, I must advise you again that it would be better to fight the enemies by letting them come further into the territory. More reinforcements from the empire will come soon, and that way, we will be able to cut their escape routes.”

  “Sir Jacques, I already said that you can call me Commander Arsn. As for your advice, while I am thankful for it, we can’t allow them to invade our nds this much and spread destruction in the central area of our forests. The people won’t take that lightly if we show any signs of weakness against the insurgents.”

  “Still, I just insist, Sir Arsn… you don’t want to fight the enemies where they want to fight you.”

  “Such a defiant attitude… I guess it runs in the family. Still, if you all are to be compared, I would say that Regulus is more like Rayner Dawnshield when he was young.”

  WritingMachineGun