Chapter 56: Accepting a Quest
Life in the dwarven city was a bit dull.
You couldn't expect the dwarves to have the same kind of entertainment venues as the humans of a later era. This place was mostly just forges and pubs, with the occasional shop selling dwarven-made tools and equipment, none of which held much interest for Rhodes. Besides, he didn't much care for the dwarven wine. He had an aversion to the red wine of this era, as the brewing methods were rather unappetizing. And while the dwarves also had a distilled liquor, its alcohol content was far too high, almost on par with the spirits of his old world. Few in their party could handle more than a second cup, and one of them was allergic to alcohol.
But, fortunately, there were some scattered magical beasts in the area. When they were bored, they would go out and hunt them to improve their skills, and in the process, they earned the goodwill of the city's dwarves. A group of powerful adventurers clearing out the surrounding monsters for free was bound to make a good impression.
That morning, they made their way to a canyon outside the dwarven city.
According to the dwarves, a pack of Rock-Scale Beasts had taken up residence there. They had incredibly hard scales, and ordinary weapons could barely scratch them. And to make matters worse, they often attacked the dwarves who came to mine in the area.
Besides the magical beasts, there were many other strange creatures in this world, including the dragon they had slain. But unlike the magical beasts, which were useless, these creatures often yielded valuable materials. The scales of the Rock-Scale Beasts were the best material for making shields, and the dwarves had even offered to pay them to deal with the problem.
And so, their party had become something like a group of NPCs from an adventurer's guild, accepting quests. The feeling was not unpleasant.
Hiding behind a large rock, they observed the pack of Rock-Scale Beasts in a nearby cave. "Their only weakness is the center of their abdomen," Serie said, taking on the role of commander. As the only one in their group who had ever heard of these creatures, the task had fallen to her. "It's not covered in scales. Rhodes, you can aim your spells there."
"Do their scales have any magic resistance? Why don't I just aim for the scales directly?" Rhodes thought. Why go to all that trouble? The only magic-resistant creatures they had encountered so far had been the Scale-Fiend in the swamp and the amalgamated monster the demon had created. Most creatures couldn't withstand a single volley of his light arrows.
"Perhaps it's to keep the scales as intact as possible. After all, isn't our mission to get more scales?" Norne suggested, and Serie nodded in agreement.
"Somme, you'll be the one to draw their attention."
Somme nodded. Other than Rhodes and Serie's magic barriers, his own defense was the strongest. And now that Rhodes's improved barrier could be cast on him, he was even tougher.
"Eirik, your magic isn't strong enough, so you should aim for..." Rhodes, with his current strength, could probably just blast these beasts to bits, but Eirik was not yet at that level. He still wore a longsword at his hip, a clear sign that he hadn't given up on the path of a warrior just yet. Serie had intended to give him some specific instructions, but the impatient Eirik had cut her off.
"Don't worry, I get it! Just watch me!"
Serie huffed, annoyed at being interrupted. A small light arrow shot out from her fingertip and hit the ground in front of Eirik. "Do not interrupt me when I am speaking!"
She had never been particularly friendly to anyone other than Rhodes. The only reason she was even bothering to speak to Eirik was because he was a member of their party. And he had just cut her off. Naturally, she was a little annoyed.
Sensing his imminent doom, Eirik shot a pleading look at Rhodes.
"Alright, alright," Rhodes said, stroking Serie's head comfortingly. "It's not like you just met him today."
"Don't touch my head, you damnable human!" Serie shook her head, trying to dislodge his hand, but her brief flare of anger had already subsided.
The party began their assault. Norne drew his longsword, and Somme hefted his battle-axe. The two of them led the way, silently approaching the Rock-Scale Beasts' cave. Rhodes and Serie were in the middle, with Eirik bringing up the rear. Serie had no intention of participating this time; she was leaving it all to the others. In her opinion, these mere beasts were not worthy of her attention.
They entered the cave, and Rhodes cast a small 'Light' spell, just bright enough for them to see the path without alerting the beasts.
"Twelve ahead, and six more in the left passage," he reported, using his detection spell. "There's a big one in the depths of the cave. Its signal is much stronger. It must be the leader." His improved detection spell could now identify creatures with a particularly strong life force or mana, in effect, marking the boss on the map.
With Rhodes providing intel, the group began to systematically clear out the beasts.
CLANG!
Norne's longsword struck a beast's scales with a sound like steel striking steel. The force of the impact made his wrist ache. These scales are tough! he thought, impressed. They weren't as tough as the dragon's, of course; he hadn't even been able to scratch that one. But his full-strength blow had only managed to leave a shallow gash.
"Let me at it!" Somme took over, swinging his axe with all of his dwarven might. The axe bit deep into the beast's side, and it collapsed to the ground, dead.
"Amazing! As expected of you, Mr. Somme," Norne said with genuine admiration, which made Somme a little embarrassed.
"Just call me Somme. These things are much easier to deal with than a dragon."
"I agree."
"If you two are done patting each other on the back, could you try aiming for the abdomen next time?" Rhodes said, exasperated. A perfectly good Rock-Scale Beast, first slashed by Norne, then nearly cleaved in two by Somme. Its scales were completely ruined. If it were that simple, he would have just done it himself.
The two of them laughed sheepishly and turned their attention to the remaining beasts, this time aiming for their undersides. Rhodes remained in the center, ready to intervene if any of them ran into trouble.
~~~
Get early access to 20+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
~~~
Every 150 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter