The gate looked different from the inside, with its tall watchtower peeking over the massive walls. On the outside, the wooden gates were smooth and uninviting, but standing here stirred feelings I could barely contain. The mix of anxiety and excitement for whatever waited beyond made my chest feel tight.

  From where I stood, I could make out the same two elves from before, still keeping watch over the city in their usual lazy manner. When they saw Cashius and me approaching, they straightened up, trying to look as if they hadn’t just been at each other’s throats moments earlier.

  Both of them grabbed onto a pulley line and zipped down, landing softly between us.

  Then came the questions.

  My cloak fluttered in the early morning breeze while Cashius responded with his usual foul-mood banter.

  “Stop, why don’t you?” he said. “My friend and I are quite confident in our decision to leave the walls of your fine city. And no, we are not worried about the dangers of the outside world.”

  The two red-skinned elves exchanged glances, nodded, and offered a warning.

  “The least you can do is watch yourselves out there,” one said, his voice slurred but serious. “Our cousins roam those woods, and they have a taste for city folk. They love to string them up and play games with them.”

  I leaned back on my heels. “We ran into a few before we came here,” I said. “They talk big, but they’re not that tough.”

  The other elf grinned. “Careful with that confidence. The weak ones are bait. The real hunters don’t speak at all. And let me tell you, when they catch you, you’d be wishing you stayed in these here walls, I guarantee it.”

  His friend stepped forward and lowered his voice. “And it’s not just elves out there. Some of the creatures roaming beyond these walls don’t bleed right. Some don’t bleed at all,” he assured us.

  “Good,” I said. “Makes killing ‘em easier.” I poked Cashius in the ribs. “Right?”

  Cashius grinned but said nothing. With his back to me, he moved ahead, stirring a tight knot of worry in my gut.

  The elves exchanged glances, then hooked themselves back onto the line and sped to their posts. Moments later, I heard a heavy click, and the massive gate began to rise, the ground shaking and rumbling beneath my feet.

  Facing the town of Glasborough one last time, I let the moment settle.

  Seeing the shops and taverns, with people moving about in the morning sun, felt good. It made me forget the elf’s warning for a moment and actually smile.

  Cashius rested a hand on my shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze. “Enough with the sentimental crap. We came, we saw, and we kicked plenty of ass. Now let’s get moving and see what hell has waiting for us.”

  One last glimpse and I faced the gate again, feeling sad but triumphant.

  Glasborough had taught me a lot about this game and how to survive. Leaving it suddenly put things in perspective. More than anything, it reminded me that this was progress. One city down and plenty more to see, explore, and conquer. No matter the danger or the killing. If I paced myself, I would be fine.

  Dragging my feet, I stepped past the gates, pushing everything we had done behind us and looking toward the future.

  To the left lay the trail that had brought us here, and to the right stood tall trees and the sound of a running river. Sounds I wasn’t used to hearing coming from the burbs.

  Standing there, a feeling crept up on me, something I couldn’t quite figure out. Yet I pushed the premonition aside and carried on, expectant of the future and ready to finally begin our journey to secure the five stones of Orbralis.

  Cashius dug in his coat and brought out a cigar, flicking his lighting device, hand covering the flame from the wind that blew that afternoon.

  As soon as he took his first inhale and blew out a long curving wisp of smoke, the arrows came.

  Not one. Not two.

  But a whole volley that hissed through the air from the left, and slammed into the gate, right where I was just standing.

  [Danger: Ambush Detected]

  Masey’s Protection lit up, swatting arrows from the air as the timer ticked down. One slipped past and tore through close enough to pierce leather.

  A warning shot, loud and clear.

  Grabbing Cashius’s arm, I yanked him behind a nearby tree while the three spinning globes circled my body. I opened my inventory and equipped Slugthrower, the double-barrel shotgun I earned after killing the necromancer, along with the Cuban link chain that turned my fists into weapons.

  “What the fuck is happening, Cashius?” My voice cracked with concern.

  He shot me a glance. “I told you the difficulty is raised, and everything is going to be harder. Everything, I fear.” He ducked another arrow. “Our best bet is to take out whoever is firing those blasted things and stay out of open spaces.”

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  “Damn,” I shouted.

  Luckily for us, we had stopped at a shop before leaving town to grab supplies for our trek.

  Ducking the arrows that slipped past Masey’s Protection, I crouched behind the tree. It already felt like fate was in motion.

  Then the timer hit zero.

  No more magical protection.

  Cursing my luck, I loaded two special shells into the shotgun. One red. One blue. The shop owner had told me they would help locate enemies quickly, and right now, I really needed that.

  He explained it simply. The first shell locked onto body heat, tagging targets. The second, fired skyward, split and rained hell on anything marked. Expensive as hell, but worth it.

  With just four pairs to work with, using one this early was nowhere in the plan. But with Cashius almost getting turned into Swiss cheese, I needed space to regroup and end this fast.

  From behind the tree, a careful crawl forward brought one knee into the dirt as I aimed at the clouds.

  A reticle appeared in front of my vision, a red cross floating dead center. It was disorienting for a second, but soon it felt as natural as breathing.

  A deafening blast swallowed the world the moment I pulled the trigger. The recoil knocked me flat. Arrows hissed toward my face, but before they struck, Cashius grabbed my sleeve and yanked me back into cover.

  “Hurry up. Get the other one off,” he barked.

  After finding my balance, a lean from behind the tree set up the second shot.

  Another volley screamed our way.

  Pressed tight to the bark, I felt arrows thudding into it one after another. The vibrations crawled through my spine. But it gave me just enough time to see who was firing at us.

  Painted faces. Clothes made of leaves and animal hides. Whispered orders in a language I did not know.

  Crouched ten to fifteen yards out, hidden behind brush and low branches, were the elves the guards had warned us about. Their leader signaled with his hands, ordering another round.

  Before they could lose any more arrows, one of them dropped. Then another, as a splintered shell burst through his chest, spraying blood across the brush.

  [Precision Hit]

  The elf next to him hesitated, then collapsed too, his body jerking as a shell pierced his head like an overripe fruit. A scream followed, sharp and brief.

  [Damage: ?1445]

  The rest of the group fell soon after, including the leader. Their bodies slumped into the bushes like dominoes.

  [Massive Damage]

  No sounds came from anywhere except the animals fleeing from all the commotion.

  Now was our time to move.

  Head down low, I sprinted toward their corpses, grabbing what I could as their XP orbs and gold rushed toward me.

  [XP Gained: +320]

  [Gold Acquired: +47]

  A plan to disable the flood of notifications planted itself in my mind for later.

  Behind me, Cashius followed closely, his red trench coat dragging through the dirt with a soft, steady scrape. His face was filled with concern.

  Reaching the leader’s body, a quick search turned up a few potions, a bow, a quiver of arrows, and a necklace that would alert me when an enemy was close. It was blue, with a pendant made from feathers.

  The other bodies had nothing I could use.

  As I looked over the carnage, the necklace went cold.

  Out of the bushes, two big, slobbering Komodo dragon-like beasts burst forward, held on chains by two taller-than-usual elves.

  Razormaws, Level 22

  I lunged back, cocked my fist, and tore one reptile’s jaw clean off with a brutal punch. The other clamped down on my forearm with a wet crunch, its sharp teeth sinking deep.

  Rancid meat breath hit my face as thick, white drool flew everywhere. The lizard yanked hard, shredding my arm and dragging me down, while I watched Cashius scramble for cover.

  [?56 HP]

  The elf, now holding a limp leash, leapt on top of me and started pounding me with fierce strikes. The other one kept the creature latched onto my arm.

  [?67]

  [?68]

  [?79]

  Each hit faded from my vision like the countdown to death.

  If I didn’t think of something soon, this was it.

  I equipped the Gorton Staff. It materialized in my free hand, an icy chill racing up my arm.

  A sharp yelp escaped as the reptile bit down to the bone, but the staff stayed firmly in my grasp.

  Chalk-white smoke burst from the tip like an arctic blast, freezing the mutt mid-lunge. Its jaws locked up, the attack ending in an instant.

  The two elves froze, eyes wide.

  I didn’t hesitate.

  Scrambling back, I swung the staff between us, and the same freezing mist shot out. Ice webbed across their bodies, coating them in jagged icicles and turning their skin a bluish gray. The only thing still moving was their eyes.

  [Freeze: Successful]

  With time to waste, I unequipped the staff and drew Havoc Maker over my head.

  Blood from my arm dripped into my mouth as I brought the blade down with everything I had, shattering their frozen bodies into glittering chunks.

  [Critical Hit]

  For the lizard, I pushed him over and watched as his body shattered like glass.

  Next, I downed two potions and watched my arm knit itself back together.

  Still strange to see, no matter how many times it happened. Then I dropped onto my ass, breathing hard, and returned Havoc Maker to its place.

  Cashius sulked into view wearing his custom smirk. “Impressive. Not quite how I would have handled it, but still. Now, let’s find some real cover and figure out how we are going to keep both of us alive.”

  After the fight, we headed west along the river. I took the chance to open my stat screen. My XP bar was halfway to level twenty-one, not great, but climbing.

  When I finished checking my inventory, I glanced through the trees and saw the sun still sitting pretty in the sky.

  Then my stomach growled.

  Cashius caught the look on my face and figured it out.

  We found a quiet spot beside the river, far from enemies and small animals. I had brought something special for this part of the journey: a camping kit with separate rooms and a washing area. With the weather being so nice, Cashius suggested we eat outside by the fire.

  Collecting wood turned out simple, the Strength increase did most of the work.

  Arms full of sticks and branches, I dumped them in front of Cashius, who quickly got the fire started.

  Carefully, he tossed what looked like potatoes into the flames. With his red trench coat tied around his waist, he looked relaxed in the wild.

  “Now we can throw some meat in the fire and get something in our bellies.”

  Next, he set alarms around the perimeter.

  After thirty minutes, we finally ate.

  Cashius wiped his mouth with his sleeve. “Now that was fye.”

  Laughter erupted at his use of twenty-first-century slang. Surprised by how comforting it felt to hear something from home, I looked at him and gave his shoulder a squeeze.

  “I guess an old dog can learn new tricks. Or whatever you old folks say.”

  He belched, then smiled. “I suppose we can.”

  I moved to the river, cupping my hands to drink. The cold water brought me back to life.

  Sitting there, everything felt peaceful. Like what we had just done to those elves and those psycho dogs was already slipping into the past. As if I wasn’t a stone-cold killer anymore and could simply be Lamont again.

  And maybe, just maybe, this journey would not be so bad after all.