PaulMichaels
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IGIWS: FIRST DRAFT: Ch. 277: Bringing in the Haul.
🕑 Added 2024-09-12 15:47:40 +0000 UTCOutside the southern gates of the capital city of Tairal, a noble carriage with House Dule's coat of arms was rolling south. There destination, the town of Mangst.
Inside the carriage, two men were conversing.
"My Lord?... Is it really necessary for you to head to Mangst?... It's a place that filled with ruffians and wannabes soldiers of fortune," A young knight said.
"I understand your concerns, Sir Doyle, but I my wife is their and I want to be there for her... My father is being a stubborn fool about Princess Rya right now," Johan stated.
"But is it wise for us to go alone?... I'm a great swordsman, but if a group of bandits were to ambush us then..."
"Relax, Doyle. You know that's unlikely. The road to Mangst is heavily patrolled by the kingdom's soldiers. If a group of bandits did show up, they'd be dealt with swiftly," Johan said as he smiled at the young knight.
Doyle grimaced at his Lord's words. He like everyone else within House Dule thought that the young Lord was defenseless on his own due to his lack of or extremely weak Mana Vein. This was extremely rare for any noble to have no Mana Vein and even more rare for a commoner to have no Mana Vein. This usually leads to them being usurped by another family member who had a much stronger Mana Vein.
Johan was the only son of the main line for House Dule, and his parents were worried about him taking the reigns once his father, Johnathan, passed. The fact that his Mana Vein was not even growing no matter how many monsters his son slayed was worrying. And his father Johnathan, had hoped for a strong grandson through Lady Tayna Dule, a daughter from a Minor House who married into the Major House even if she was disfigured at a young age. Johnathan prayed to the goddess that his son would get his wife pregnant before he, the head of House Dule, and the current Lord and Baron of the Barony Eder Hills, passed away.
The Johnathan feared that his plans had failed with how Tayna kept her distance from Johan. It was only after this last week that he noticed that Tayna seemed to have warmed up to his son during breakfast and dinners.
Johnathan was also surprised to find out that Johan and Tayna had gone on a stroll with each other on a few occasions which gave him hope that his grandson will come before he passes. He also couldn't help but noticed that his son and daughter-in-law looked more striking than ever. Like his son looked like he lost some weight and his daughter-in-law scares were impossible to notice. Johnathan played it off as his old eyes were playing tricks on him. Little did the Baron know that his son and daughter-in-law were both healed by the Dark Elf that he was weary of. Johan and Tayna kept it under wraps just in case a moment arrivals where the two needed the help of the Dark Elf or themselves.
Johan was riding in his family's carriage sitting next to Doyle, a young man who had joined the Dule Family as a squire, and was quickly promoted to the rank of knight.
"Listen my Lord... You've been acting strange every since that Dark Elf has arrived in the Capital... Or you sure it's such a good idea to be letting your guard down when your Uncle thinks you aren't worthy of the title of Baron... I know the Royal Family approves of her but... I worry..." Doyle said with concern in his eyes.
Johan wanted to tell him that he was healed and had an Elite Level Mana Vein and was a mage, but he needed his and the Crown Prince's enemies to believe he was still weak and couldn't possibly be the one to inherit the Barony.
"I understand... I'll be careful... I won't be alone at all times so... Please trust me."
"Haah... Fine... But maybe Lady Tayna wanted some space from you... She wasn't the most pleased to be forced to marry... Even though the two of you seem to be hitting it off quite well lately..." Doyle replied.
"Hahaha..." Johan couldn't hold back his laughter. His relationship with his wife did a 180 ever since Rya showed up and they've kept up the act of pretending to be in a loveless marriage by sleeping in their own separate rooms. But Johan was getting better at using the spell Shadow Self to leave a illusion of himself back in his bed while he sneaks into Tayna's room were they keep themselves quiet as they fool around. Tayna had to cover her face with a pillow a few times to muffle her moans when she had an orgasm.
"What's so funny? Are you mocking your Uncle's words? I know he's a dick but he is your only blood relative." Doyle said with a scowl.
"Hahaha... No, of course not. Uncle Linus Dupree always looks at me in disgust... But he'll never do something so stupid in challenge me for the title of Baron... He knows what kind of man my Father is... So, he can't afford to have a falling out with him." Johan said with a smirk but it was a facade. He was worried that his uncle might do something to try and hurt Tayna.
"I hope you are right my Lord... Because I fear for your safety if Lord Dupree challenges you by trial by combat... He's a Maja... Rumor has it that he slayed a Fire Salamander a couple of weeks ago. That's no easy feat of it's true."
"Thanks Doyle... That's helping a lot." Johan sarcastically replied.
"You know me my Lord. Always looking out for you." Doyle said with a stoic face.
Johan wanted to roll his eyes but he stopped himself. "Haah... How much longer is it to Mangst again?" Johan asked.
"A few hours, my Lord. Then we'll have dinner and then retire for the evening. I'll make sure your room is safe before we go in."
'Great... Three hours of Doyle's sunny disposition... Can't wait.' Johan thought sarcastically.
"Thanks Doyle."
"Don't thank me my Lord. You are my job. I can't afford to disappoint." Doyle said stoically.
And just at that moment the door to Johan's carriage opened up to one of Rya's golems.
"Robber! I got this my Lord—GAH!?"
The golem pushed Doyle back into his seat and the golem, which looked like a female human stared straight at Johan who had a raised brow.
"R-Rya?"
The golem closed its eyes and looked like it was going through a REM cycle before the eyes opened back up with Rya's Azure Eyes and the golem's mouth opened up to speak.
"Johan!... Thank God I found you... Tayna needs you now," the golem spoke.
"What's wrong?" Johan asked as he stood up.
"Well?... She might have absorbed enough mana to make her... Well, you know," the golem said.
'She's experiencing Mana Rush?... Oh no.' Johan thought.
"But we are three hours away!" Johan shouted.
"Don't worry, I've come up with a plan," Rya replied with a smirk while looking out of the door of the carriage. And riding along the carriage was a odd looking steed that looked like it was made of earth.
"Is that one of your Trojan Horse, Princess Rya?" Johan asked in amazement. It did look similar to those suicide golem horses Rya created back in the Eldermyst forest but it was missing the pyramid stones lining its body that were meant for shrapnel when they exploded.
"Close. This is my Speed Steed. I design it to run at ridiculous speeds for travel. This guy should get you to Mangst in a half hour or less... But make sure you keep your mouth closed when riding it," the golem replied.
"O-okay..." Johan replied nervously.
"Well, what are you waiting for, get your cute ass moving. Your wife needs you. Don't worry, I will protect her until you reach the city gates," the golem replied with a smile.
"T-Thanks, Princess Rya," Johan said as he got off the carriage and jumped on the Speed Steed.
Doyle was struggling to break free from the golem's grip, "No! My Lord!... It could be a trap! This thing isn't the Dark Elf! This must be a witchcraft!" Doyle cried out.
"Doyle! This is Rya... Well, it's her golem, but her subconscious is going through it. Trust me," Johan said to his protector.
"You know this thing!?" Doyle exclaimed.
"Of course, he knows me," the golem said, "Johan and I are very good friends, right, Johan?" the golem replied.
Johan smiled at the golem and replied, "Right, we are. But I'm not used to you looking like a human though... It doesn't suit you at all, Milady."
"I know," the golem replied.
"Okay... Okay... Just know, I don't trust you... Especially when you are preventing me from moving!" Doyle said.
"And that's fine," the golem replied.
"Fine," Doyle huffed, "But if you even try anything, I'll cut you—"
"Sir Doyle!!!... Don't you dare belittle the future queen! That's an order from your future baron!" Johan bellowed.
"What!?" Doyle asked with wide eyes.
"I said that's an order! Don't make me repeat myself," Johan growled.
Doyle never felt such a strong aura coming from his Young Lord before. He shut up immediately and nodded his head, "Understood, my lord."
"Good... Now I'm going to jump ahead... But I still want you and Sir Keys to meet us at Mangst... Understood," Johan replied, then the young Lord rode his golem horse towards the south.
The driver of the carriage, Sir Keys, was dumbfounded as he watched his Lord speeding away. He's never seen anything like that before.
"W-Wait... My Lord!" Doyle yelled out
"Johan! Keep your mouth closed! You're going to—and he's too far away," Rya muttered as the Speed Steed shot out like a bullet
"WHOA!?! WHOA!?! WHOA—GAH!?"
Johan was holding on to the steed's reins as they flew across the field. Johan was able to hold on but a big flew into his throat and he started coughing.
"Damn, Johan," Rya sighed as she saw him coughing up a storm before he was out of sight.
"Grrr! Unhand me you—thing?" Doyle exclaimed as the golem held him tightly.
"Oh?... You held back your insults a bit... There might be some hope for you yet..." Rya said as she let go of him.
Doyle stumbled but kept himself upright as he glared at Rya. He's seen the Young Lord Johan Dule talk to the golem. But he didn't believe the thing was sentient even if it looked human. He was surprised the thing could talk.
"Are you going to attack me again?" the golem asked.
"I don't know... But I will if anything bad happens to my Lord," Doyle growled.
"You really don't trust me," the golem replied.
"How could I?! You're a dark elf controlling a doll."
"You are not that bright, are you?" the golem said.
"What did you say?!" Doyle growled as his sword glowed red.
"Well, I'll see you around," Rya said with a wink and she jumped backwards outside of the carriage.
"Hey!? Where do you think you are—going?..."
Doyle watched as the beautiful woman started to turn into a giant boulder before he could stop her.
"I have a lot of work to do. Make sure you don't waste anytime getting to Mangst," Rya's voice boomed right before her golem returned into this original form.
"Gah! I don't understand what is going on?" Doyle cried when he saw the once beautiful humanoid figure turn back to a rock.
Doyle stared at the boulder, wondering how the dark elf was able to transform herself into a rock.
'Is this truly the power of a earth mage?... She's far more frightening than I ever imagined,' Doyle thought.
The carriage driver, Sir Keys looked back a Sir Doyle.
"W-What do we do now?" Keys asked.
"We make haste for Mangst! Who knows what dangers the Young Lord might face out there," Doyle said as he closed the door to the carriage and took a seat. He wished he had another horse with them so he could ride ahead of the carriage, but he needed to be patient.
"Y-Yes sir!" Keys nodded and whipped the reins, "Ya!"
With that the carriage sped up as the horses ran faster down the path.
***
Inside the walls of Mangst the group of adventurers that challenged Rya to an arm wrestling contest came back from a long day of hunting monsters.
Gib, Dak, and Issy all half smiles on their faces as they brought back three slayed Horn Hares. They couldn't believe their luck. Normally they would one if they didn't get swarmed by Willow Wasps. But for some reason the flying bastards didn't seem to be buzzing around as much today.
Usually when a Horn Hare is in trouble it tries to run by a Willow Wasp nest and then they, like most Adventurers, would have to make a run for it due to them lacking enough Mana to strengthen their muscles enough to puncture the wasp's exoskeleton. The best they can manage is whacking them away while retreating.
These wasps wouldn't be a problem if they could recruit a mage in their group but it was rare to find a mage that enjoyed the Adventurer's life style and if there was a adventurer that had a Grand Master level Mana Vein then a noble would come in and scoop them up to become their knights or bodyguards. They were considered S-tier adventurers before they get a steadier income from a noble. It made it tough for the Adventurer's Guild to get a good Maja to handle most of the monster slaying requests. At best a given town or city would have five to twenty Maja Adventurers with a Master level Mana Vein. They were A-tier, and a small village or town would only have three or four Maja adventurers. And the rest of the Adventurers would be a mixture of warriors and thieves with a common level Mana Veins that might have gotten strong enough for them to strengthen their bodies for a few seconds.
The life of a adventurer isn't easy, but it was exciting. And they wouldn't have it any other way.
So this trio were lucky enough to stumble across a Horn Hare with no Willow Wasps and were able to slay it easily. Then they decided to push their luck and found two more Hares before finally hearing a roar of a Emberhorn in the distance and decided to call it. It would normally take about twenty B-tier adventurers to take down one Emberhorn and it was only the three of them. They knew they would've have stood a chance against the giant beast the moment the Emberhorn came into view.
So they headed back to Mangst with a spring in their steps. They could buy some food for the next few days and a pint of mead with this haul and they felt their Mana Veins grow a tiny bit.
"Can you believe it! Three Horn Hares in one day! And here I got jealous when you killed the first one, Gib," Dak said, grinning at his companion.
Gib chuckled as they headed through the outer gate of the town.
"I know... We each got a kill today, but I wish we had a Mage with us. Imagine what else we could have taken down today if we had one in our group!" Gib replied, shaking his head.
"Don't even get me started on how many monsters a Mage could take down with us. We be rich," Dak agreed.
"You mean, they be rich... And they are you morons! They get to sit and talk to Nobles and get paid for it! Not us. We get to do all the fighting and get paid nothing. While the Mage gets the gold," Issy replied, with a huff.
Dak grinned at her.
"Don't tell me your jealous that a Mage has the easier job. And here I thought you liked the excitement of the fight," he said.
Issy rolled her eyes and sighed.
"I like to retire from this crap before I am thirty. So, yeah. I'm a little jealous," she replied, as she walked into the city.
"Hehe! Then maybe you should suck up to that wimpy noblewoman and her bodyguard who doesn't belong in are line of work. All they do is get in over their heads and then it's up to us to rescue them," Gib replied, shaking his head.
"Yeah! I bet that Emberhorn we heard found them and roasted their asses. Ha!" Dak replied, laughing.
"That might be true, but that one woman probably could break it in half... That other noble broke her arm off and she didn't even flinch!" Issy replied, shivering at the memory.
"Ha! She had the best look on her face when that happened! Priceless," Dak replied.
"Are you sure that guy was a noble?... He seemed really important... Like more important than a noble," Gib asked, curious.
"I don't know... He was probably a rich ass knight that is pretending to be a noble. I mean, how many Nobles do you know at train to be that strong with mana," Dak replied.
"But he didn't act like a knight. You know?" Issy replied.
"He seemed too strong to be a noble. He's a knight... Got to be. He was wearing black armor and his weapon looked expensive. And he had a sword that was worth more than all our weapons combined," Gib replied.
"I just wish I could have fought him. I bet he could have been a SSS-tier adventurer if he wanted to. Oh, well... Maybe next time," Dak said.
"Hey look!... Jensen and his crew looked like they pulled in a good haul too? I wonder what they killed," Gib replied.
"Who cares?... I just hope that noble lady and her bodyguard need rescuing. I love getting gold from moronic Nobles. They think that they are so strong with their higher level Mana Veins and think they are so untouchable... Ha! They lack common sense when they leave the safety of their big houses and fancy towers. It's hilarious watching their faces when they see the reality of their situation. Haha!" Dak replied.
Gib smirked and nodded his head while Issy rolled her eyes again.
"Hey what's all the laughing about?" Jensen yelled over at the group.
"We just pulled in a big haul and the Noble lady and her bodyguard might need rescuing soon. Ha!" Gib yelled.
"Oh, yeah. You guys ran into the hot noblewoman and her sexy bodyguard too. I think I remember seeing them go into that area where that Emberhorn made its home... I would have told them not to go there... For a price of course," Jensen replied.
"Ha! Good one, man! Hey, do you know how much they would pay to get rescued?" Dak asked, chuckling.
"Hmmm... I'm sure it would be a pot of 50 gold pieces split up between everyone that rescues them," Jensen replied.
"Damn... That's a lot of gold... That would be enough for us to buy a decent weapon from a master smith. Maybe even a minor enchanted weapon," Dak replied.
"What?... Are you planning on rescuing then yourself so you don't have to share the pot?... You are a brave man, Dak," Jensen replied.
"Hell no!... I'm not stupid. If they get trapped in there. I'm not going to risk my life for some gold... Of course, I would want my friends to help me rescue them... What good is all that gold if I'm dead, right?... It's not like we have a way to know if they are okay or not. That place is too dangerous to try and get in there. So, the smart thing would be to wait here for the monsters to come out and kill them."
"But then the noble might be dead at that point... We wouldn't get the reward then," Gib replied.
"Semantics!..." Dak replied, rolling his eyes.
"So, did you get any information about that noble lady?..." Jensen asked.
"Pfft! None that I know of. Her annoying bodyguard wouldn't let us question her and taking up the entire floor of the Red Carpet Inn!" Gib yelled.
"Did you guys have a reservation there or something?" Jensen asked.
"Fuck no! We don't have that type of money... But it's the principle of the thing... No outsider should just stroll into town and flaunt their wealth to impress us!" Dak replied.
"Yeah! We can't even afford a night there!" Gib added.
"And they looked like stuck up bitches with their pretty armor and weapons. It gives female adventurers a bad name looking all dolled up like that. And it puts unrealistic expectations on how female adventurers should look all sexy like... It grinds my blade is all I'm saying," Issy added with a huff.
"Huh?... But aren't you quite pretty, Issy? What's the big—"
"Damnit! See!? It's starting again! Listen here, Jensen! Why do you got around wearing armor that barely covers anything so it allows a Willow Wasp to have easy access to string you with their poison or to has a slime cover your entire body with acid and melt off your skin! Or maybe a Bloodhorn Stag to skewer your head with its antlers when you don't see them coming and then trample you like a bug?!" Issy shouted.
All the men went silent as Issy gave them all death stares. This went on for a while until there was surprised murmurs coming from the city guards at the gate. Then a crowd of civilians started forming by the gate as they were trying to see what the commotion was all about.
"What the hell's going on?" Jensen asked.
"Maybe a another group pulled in a bigger haul than us?... I think Hanson and his crew were still out there..." Gib suggested.
"N-No?... I saw Hanson when we came back. They ran into a lot of Willow Wasps. But they went to the western side of the woods. They didn't get anything today," Jensen replied.
"Well, the gate's opening," Dak said.
They watched a horse pulling a cart came into view. It was a ferryman that would hang around the outskirts of the forest and would be hired if a Adventurers group killed more monsters than they could carry back home. It was uncommon for adventurers to hire them of late but this cart was packed to them brim with monster parts. It was like a mountain of corpses that the cart was barely moving forward. And the crowd gasped and some of the people in the crowd started murmuring again.
"Wow... Who the hell slayed that many monsters?... W-Was there a fifty person crew that formed of something?... That's against the unwritten rules!" Dak complained.
"You're right... The Guildmaster wouldn't like the idea of a huge team being formed without his say so. There's no way that many monsters could've been killed by a small group—"
They all when silent when they saw who was riding with the old man. It was those two women from the Red Carpet Inn. The bodyguard was smiling and waving to the crowd while the other one that they thought was a noblewoman as sitting there biting her lower lip and gripping her wooden seat so tight that her knuckles were turning white. They also noticed that her thighs were squeezing tightly together. She looked like she was lost in her own world.
"I-Isn't that the shy noble we saw earlier?" Jensen asked.
"Y-Yeah... But I don't remember her breasts being that big... I mean they were big but they seem to be bigger than normal..." Dak muttered out.
"Well... They look like they're gonna explode out of her armor. She's lucky she's wearing a corset... Or else people would see her nipples..." Jensen said with a hint of sadness.
"And her face... It's more striking... Like... Damn, she's a goddess..." Gib blurted out.
All the men were in a trance as they looked at Tayna, who was suffering from Mana Rush.
"What are you guys talking about? S-She's the same!" Issy complained as she was getting a little jealous.
"I don't think so, Issy... And—Holy crap! How many Willow Wasps did they kill! There's like a hundred stingers and venom sacks!" Dak exclaimed.
"A-And look at those Horn Hare pelts! And the Giant Bats wings!" Gib shouted.
"T-They even got the claws and teeth from the a Nightfang! How many did they fight?" Issy shouted.
The crowd was now starting to murmur in amazement at the spoils of their hunt. But the biggest spoil caught all of them off guard when Jensen spotted the glowing horns of a Emberhorn.
"Holy shit... They did it... They took it out..." Jensen whispered before glancing at Tayna again. And that when it hit hit.
"Well, ladies and gentlemen... It was a blast to chat with you but it seems that my services are needed at the Red Carpet Inn. Now if you excuse—"
Hold it, Jensen!... What did you see?
Jensen didn't say anything and he didn't need to because the others followed his gaze.
"No way... A Emberhorn!?" Gib uttered out.
"And that lady must have a higher level Mana Vein than we thought... I've seen that look on a young acquaintance I knew, back in the city of Dorn. It's to the west of here... His name is Doyle and he seemed to have a decent mana vein because he got stronger from far less kills than the rest of us... And one day he was on a roll and he lucked out when he slayed a small group of ogres... He was stricken with Mana Rush... And he went to the local brothel and didn't come out for two days... He lost all the money he earned from slaying those orges but the five women he bedded with never wanted to let another man touch them... A Major Noble House found out about his exploits and payed his debt to the brothel for the two days and payed them for losing their five best women... Last I heard from Doyle, he became there knight and has five beautiful wives... Who knows how many kids he has... Anyway, that woman... She's experiencing the same thing he was... And if she's a noble and I can than maybe I'll retire as a soldier and become a knight and marry that woman."
Jensen didn't wait for anyone's responses and he ignored his crew. He headed straight towards the Inn praying that he was right.
"Mana Rush?... What the fuck is he talking about?" Dak asked the group.
Rya heard a lot of conversations they're golem's superior hearing that wasn't quite the same level as her elven ears but this were pretty good. And she wanted to laugh at that Jensen guy.
'Pff! He has the right idea, but even if Tayna wasn't married, she would shatter his pelvis and he would never be able to have sex again... Luckily, her knight and shining armor is almost here.
Comments
Marek Gwalt
TFTC
Micheal Kennedy
Thanks for the chapter
