PvP Dungeon Hunter

On the Road

Brun felt the sun’s gaze peeping through the small cracks in his helmet. He looked at the marble roads, at the many horses and wagons that lay before him. Every road he had seen so far that was in public view was marble. Except those places where he had to sleep, out of sight, out of mind, and looked down on by the city almost like it didn’t exist. Every homeless or criminal in the city resided there, bed accommodations were sleeping in abandoned buildings if you were lucky but most were claimed otherwise like most nights. The broken, cracked, uncomfortable street was your bed, and sleeping with gold was ill advised, especially with how fast the thieves worked. Disappearing into the dark like shadows, he recalled how he witnessed an event first hand, but it wasn’t like he had anything of value to worry, they could rob him dry at that time and not get a single gold. Unlike now that made him for the first time very uneasy. He was on high alert, looking out for his own safety.

He shouldn’t have to worry for now, behind the paved road every building in sight reflected prestige; it seemed even in this life he was still down on luck.  Where were the gold and wealth he was promised?

  The sight and thought intimidated him slightly, but his face was hidden behind the visor not to show it. He watched everyone going about packing luggage and realized this was his first challenge. The others seemed quite aware of what to do but what would he do here and now? The workers that they would need to protect were packing the luggage and the groups he had created were forming up near the caravans. His own was only a short distance from him, busily in talk with each other. How should I plan this, should we defend the cavern from the outside? We don’t have horses so we will slow down the caravans as well. He looked up and down the line giving it a lot of consideration.

“And then the rations how will I--.”

“Take it easy kid,” he heard a voice beside him, shifting his head he saw it was Tiom.

He nodded his helmet.

“No one won’t expect you to be perfect on the first mission ever. There won’t be any trouble that I don’t think so many of you can’t handle. Be yourself and everything will work out,” he said, touching his back with a light pat. Where are you from?”

“I spent most of my life on the streets sir and I don’t know my real parents.” He bit his lip as the words left his mouth hoping the persuasion would work.

“Oh, I see it makes sense why your clothes are like that compared to the others glistening almost like gold probably got it from mommy or daddy. I actually thought you had seen battle first hand compared to the soft bellies, but being on the street gives you an advantage over them.”

“What do you mean?”

“Look at them, they doing this because it’s cool and will panic at the first sign of trouble but you are made a bit more of tougher stuff.”

Brun’s eyes glanced at them watching the girls duck out of the sun and the men put on a front with puffed chests as though they were far tougher than they actually are. “I see what you mean, but the test and exams that we had up to this point have been rigorous. They are probably just excited to be on their first mission.”

“First mission,” the man chuckled and then came closer until he was an inch from Brun. “It’s only here in Cenventia that adventurers don’t know hardship, but I have been to many places in my lifetime and an adventurer’s job is never fun, and if you compare how many die to how many survive and be at the pinnacle maybe it won’t even be that rewarding either.”

He smiled gave a halfhearted bow and left Brun standing there back into his thoughts.

His eyes scanned the man above his head held a single skull. Why would someone this powerful want help? He wondered. The voice had not spoken to him since that day he had leveled up and only then it seemed to be interested in speaking. He quite frankly didn’t like it but he wished it would be more helpful. It was almost like a very poorly written tutorial bot that the developers forgot to program properly.

He then scanned his eyes on everyone else, each one of them only had levels one or two respectively. He should probably use this time to learn everyone’s spells and abilities.

“Hey everyone gather around!” he shouted.

It was greeted with a mixed reception.

“Who does he think he is?”

“I am not moving into that sun.”

“Show off.”

“No one is here for you to boss us around now.”

Only about seven people had come forward and three were from his group. The rest didn’t seem to pay him any mind.

He saw Tiom giving him a smile as if this was good, to Brun this was a failure. He tried, however, to hide the emotion that he felt as he introduced himself to those before him.

Maybe I should have done this before, he thought.

“Thank you everyone for coming. My name is Brun, I wanted to get feedback on your skill sets so we can have an idea in the case of danger what everyone is comfortable with. I mostly grouped people based on class without considering actual abilities and skills if any had been learned.”

“Ok I see makes sense.”

“Agreed.”

“Yup.”

He saw the rest nodding.

The first person decided to introduce themselves to the group she wore long brown robes. “My name is Alina, I am a mage, my abilities are Fire Bolt, Detect Magic, and Magic Missile.”

Another raised their hand. My abilities are Favored Enemy and Natural Explorer. I also wield a bow that I call The Thunder. Oh, and my name is Brandon.”

Brandon wore leather. He was not as polished as everyone else’s, it may be to do with his class. He had a clean shaven look for an adventurer and his black hair was styled in a low mohawk.

“Druid, Wild Shape, I mostly fight with this stick. Salum by the way. I am from the other group, but I wanted to get the chance to know you.”

Brun could mistake him for a rogue with the way he looked. The cape, the hood, and the face cover with the exception of the staff. He couldn’t even recognize much of who he was talking to.

“Moax, Barbarian, nothing else to be said.”

Moax looked different from everyone else, his skin was not pale, but olive, he still had grey eyes. A small scar resided on his arm as he ran his hand through his shaggy blonde hair.

 What exactly did he have on for armour? Was that animal skin? Brun wondered.

“Mage, Maetino ---.”

“We are ready to go lad!” Tiom shouted.

“We will continue this later and thanks for coming,” he said, to everyone present before walking with them towards the cargo.

Standing next to Tiom now and a little away from everyone else, he asked him the question on his mind.

“How do you want us to take up positions?”

“For now, have them guard around the cargo and then you can rotate the ones that get tired walking in the caravan. We have some space for those that can’t keep up or in the event someone get’s injured.”

“Understood.”

Brun gave orders to the group’s leaders this time meeting them one by one and this time instead people seemed to listen when the orders weren’t from him directly. Perhaps he thought he should have done this from the beginning. He selected his spot with his team and they all slowly walked out with the carriage. Some of the richer ones had horses to ride on clearly demonstrating the size of their families' pockets to the others.

Walking out of the city, they were looked on by others as a spectacle. It wasn’t enough that the higher ranks had jeered their confidence and said most of them would fail before long. The citizens' looks had changed around them from the nobles and middle class looking proudly on at them to the lower class who looked towards them as though they themselves did not belong there or they had seen these many faces before heading out only to fail in the end or never achieve greatness.

 It was not too long after they left the city and were on the road that Brun noticed the difference in the behaviour of those with him. He guessed they were now coming to terms with the reality of their fairy tale adventure not being like what they read so many times in the books.

The mage Alina walked side by side next to him in the corner of his visor he noticed she wanted to say something to him, but wasn’t sure what to say as she gripped her weapon tightly in her hand.

Alina was pale and her hair was golden and short. It was a staple of people that were born from Ceventia.

“Something the matter?” Brun asked.

“I was wondering Brun, why did you choose to become an adventurer?” her grey eyes looking towards him.

“I didn’t really have much of a choice, it was either that or starve. Plus, I wanted to get stronger as well.”

“Are your parents happy with your decision?”

“Happy… my parents have already passed away so I don’t think they might mind or even know what exactly that it is. What about yours?”

“My father hates the idea that I joined the guild. I was born adept with magic and I discovered it at a young age, something which he shunned.”

“Then why and how did you get here?”

“I ran away you could say, they don’t know that I came to Ceventia. He wanted me to marry this old geezer and that was the final straw for me, my mother didn’t stand up for me either. So I took whatever money I could and came here to sign up.”

Brun regarded her clothes that he had not given thought before, the details in her thread were crafted well. He was not able to tell, however, if it had a special effect or not perhaps it was because she was wearing it. Something he might have to test later when he got the time.

“Things didn’t turn out exactly how I thought they would.”

“How so?”

“Well, I thought that it would be a lot more fun for one and that we would all get along and be friends. It’s so different, almost like everyone’s for themselves and class more than comrade works best. In a way that’s why I look up to you Brun.”

“Look up to me?”

“Yeah, you always seem to defy logic as if you’re destined for greatness like a hero.”

Brun chuckled. “Defy logic? I am no hero.”

“Then how would you explain you passing the entire preliminary test with the armour you wore? I forgot to ask you though Brun, what exactly is your class?”

She didn’t have to know that he had knowledge from outside of this world. An idea of how certain classes played. If anything he had just passed the tutorial mission, the easiest part. The words she said, Brun would not be swayed knowing what he already experienced firsthand.

“I am a Paladin.”

“Wow, a good and virtuous warrior who has to follow and adhere to a strict set of codes. Amazing you’re the first one that I met.”

Codes, Brun thought. No, he didn’t have to live up to any such thing like that. While he may be a Paladin in name, he knew after going through the system and vocations there were many different types of them, some were strict, others were not and it went that same way with good and evil.

“You want to come up here and sit next to me lad?”

“Thanks for the offer, but no, I have to stay vigilant.”

The road was well paved with what looked like street lights adorning it on every side. Brun couldn’t be impressed by it even though it was simple to some of the things he had seen. It was still remarkable, the bushes on every side of the road looked well maintained as if the hedges had been cut and measured day by day. One might think it would be impossible or a bit dangerous. Even this far from the city, was it actually people doing this or magic itself?

They were many other wagons and horses on the road that passed them going either to the city or leaving it. Moving at a far quicker pace than what they were moving at.  They all seemed to have very cheery faces, but Brun knew this was all a facade and he had seen a darker side to these people on the realizations of having no money.

He didn’t know how much he could trust her but Brun needed to know. How the money worked properly. He had been guessing before and he wasn’t fully sure if he had made a deal or was being robbed. Too much was at stake for him to take risks like that again.

He took a deep breath.

“Alina do you know the currency well?” he whispered to her.

“Pardon?” she said, as she came closer to him.

She was so close now that Brun saw over her head.

“The currency, do you know it well.”

“Oh yes, I know it but I wouldn’t say I am the best. Sometimes it changes suddenly.”

“Would you mind breaking it down for me? I just want to make sure I have everything good for the group.”

“Sure, I can give you an example now and then at camp. I would show you further if you need.”

Brun nodded.

“Okay, so first, you have the crown at the top. Five gold coins are equal to one Crown. Twelve full silver coins are equal to one gold coin. Twenty silver pennies are equal to one full silver coin. Still with me? Last we have the copper and the bronze. Thirteen copper is equal to one bronze. People hardly use bronze coins now though, you may have to give them into a trader. Thirty copper coins would give you a silver penny.”

Brun nodded, he was still a bit confused by it all but he was better off not knowing, and besides, she would go through it again with him later.

“Great.”

“Perhaps later at the camp, you can go through it in more detail.”

Alina gave him a smile. “No problem.”

He pulled out the documents outlining the direction that they would have to take. To him it all looked like Greek, he had never been outside the city. He turned first to Tiom, but didn’t think it might be right, so instead, he looked at the person he had just spoken with.

“How much do you know about the locations around here Alina?”

“Not much, I came by carriage and I barely know any of the roads to be honest even in my own hometown. I think…” She turned and looked at the next side of the carriage and then behind. “Perhaps Salum or Brandon might be better at knowing that. It should be there thing, right?”

“Yes, you’re right, I will bring it up when we get to our first stop.” He turned to Tiom, “How far is the first stop from here?”

“A day or two normally, but at this pace maybe three or four days.”

The numbers sank into his head as he looked back at the others who seemed to already be tired of walking.

Damn, he thought, I better not say anything for now.