Path of the Slayer B3 13. Progress & Plans

“So, I’ve come to a startling conclusion,” Merlin said, while welcoming everyone aboard Gunner, his Epic Dragon Gunship.

I came up last on the gangplank as the one-hundred-foot-long and fifty-foot-wide vessel floated in front of the Auction House.

The rest of the mountain and all its fancy, noble delights glimmered beneath us. The aristocracy watched, pointed, and gossiped in our direction.

Even after the killing we’d conducted in the Auction House, the Veteran guards remained a non-issue, staying out of our way. Either they were told to leave us alone or the half-devil Auctioneers kept everything in-house because of Thumper’s bribe.

I’d prefer the latter. I wasn’t yet ready to fight entire wars against the major camps.

That should be reserved for the Grand Generational Passing.

After looking over the railing to burn the site into memory, I turned and faced the dwelf wizard. He was smoking a gold pipe while sitting on a lavish sofa, his body adorned in fancy robes, much fancier than before.

He looked very new money, to a silly degree.

I chuckled. “What’s the startling conclusion you’ve come to?”

Merlin blew a long stream of colorful smoke. “Sex and money is freaking amazing.”

A small snort slipped out of me. “The Brand’s gone?”

“Hell yeah!” Merlin threw his head back and laughed. “I’m fully powered! I’m not in debt anymore! I’m your maxed genius wizard, and I can hit even harder for longer than ever before!”

Merlin launched from the sofa and wrapped me in a crushing Legendary hug. Once a few of my powers kicked in, I crushed him in return.

When we separated, I clapped the dwelf on the shoulder as he smiled the biggest smile I’d ever seen from him.

“Congrats, Merlin. I’m happy for you, man.”

He coughed into his fist. “Ahem, well, it wouldn’t have happened, at least this soon, without a certain someone making impossible moves possible.”

I nodded before taking another glance around the vessel. Over on the forecastle, the juniors gathered, and the girls gossiped while whispering and hushing at each other aggressively.

Thumper slumped in the shadows over at the quarterdeck, though he wasn’t really trying to hide much.

“What’s up with our tall, slick, and dark special guy?” Merling jerked a thumb at our Perfect Rogue.

“Unlike you, he kissed his future ex,” I said.

Merlin blinked. “I’m lost. Are you saying I’m not going to have an ex because I don’t have a girlfriend or Syleth’s going to be my woman forever? I’m not sure what the protocol is when a half-naga takes your virginity.”

Granted, I wasn’t sure either, so I changed subjects. “Just get Gunner moving to our next location.” Turning, I called out with a shout. “Veteran Zez!”

“Yessir!” The ratkin popped up almost out of nowhere.

“Help direct Merlin where we need to go. Let me know when your wife boards the ship.”

The ratkin bowed with a flourish of his arm. “Will do, sir!”

With things underway, I was about to check my System Logs for gains when someone shouted from below the vessel. I knew that voice, and he wanted my attention specifically.

“Sir Arden the Nomad!” That was the half-minotaur man from earlier.

Looking over the side, I saw him wave up at me in greeting. “Howdy! I heard how you pulled the biggest auction ever at the Final Rose. Holy System! You sure enough showed us old dogs how it’s done! I’m embarrassed I tried to give you that paltry donation!”

I shrugged. “It’s okay. Things went as well as I hoped.”

“Well, I know you have big plans! Heck, I hate to slow you down, but I’ve been awfully rude. The name’s Edwago, and I’d love to make things right and proper. In fact, if you’re heading to the tournament, I’ve got contacts there I can bridge you with, if you don’t mind me coming along!”

I shook my head. “The vessel is for those on my squad. If we meet again, then we shall meet again. I hope you understand.”

“Aw, shucks, I guess that makes sense! Well, you keep an eye and hand on you and yours now! It gets dangerous the closer you get to the Central Diamond Castle these days.”

“Understood. Thanks, Edwago.”

To me, the half-minotaur seemed like an interesting and friendly person who could probably provide a great service to my squad. I sensed nothing nefarious coming from him.

But I didn’t want to open myself up any further than I was already.

I had eleven Pathwalkers and two Veterans to look after. I needed to trust them with my back despite the little time we had together so far, if at all, in the case of Zez’s wife.

Maybe in the future, once I felt more established with my network of relationships, I could bring in more folks. Maybe I could turn a squad into a company. Then take a company into whatever was bigger in Pathwalker society.

My own guild?

My own camp?

The idea was tempting.

But I had too much on my plate already.

After one last round of pleasantries with Edwago, I signaled for Merlin to take us away.

The sails unfurled down the three masts with a loud clap. Magic levitated the vessel higher. Enchanted air circled around, blowing into the sails.

Once the vessel reached the height of the tallest wall, Gunner entered a hover, avoiding most aerial dangers as we departed from the area.

The tension inside me eased away as the Final Rose Auction House remained behind. Then we passed through a large lane enclosed by ancient giant walls and old dangling vines.

Roots snaked out between the massive blocks. The moonlight broke apart once we passed under a canopy of old trees that sprouted from the top of the walls.

The darkness thickened until Merlin lit up the entire ship with dozens of floating firelights, sparking some joy and amazement from our juniors. Syleth whistled and waved at him. She even winked and blew him a kiss.

The smile on Merlin’s face was the purest and most infatuated I’d ever seen. It was going to suck when Syleth eventually broke his heart, but that was par for the course.

Beyond that, I couldn’t believe we were getting away. I couldn’t believe I was a trillionaire with thirteen trillion credits remaining, and that was hard to spend at my Level.

Looking at the new furniture spread over the decks, I imagined Syleth had tried her hardest to spend the excess I’d given to Merlin.

I wondered if she’d gotten enough off my list. I had the urge to craft again. It had been too long.

But first, I needed to check my System Logs even though I wasn’t expecting much.

 [You’ve slain all foes in a significant encounter. Reward: 50% Path Energy!]

[Congrats! Path of the Slayer leveled up! 84 to 87!]

It was a little disappointing not to gain a new power or evolve something into a new version of itself, but gaining three Levels was worthwhile.

I was getting closer to the most dangerous ten Levels of being a Pathwalker, the Level 90s. Once I at Level 91, I would become an easier target for Veterans, especially those on Level Lock or in the low Level 100s.

Other than that, I needed to be more intentional with my growth more than ever.

I’d gotten a little too caught up in keeping track of the team action. Or I would’ve put more time into improving Mad Lad Melee at the very least. That and Undaunted Cavalry Charge were my only Uncommon Great Skills remaining.

Was there a possibility of gaining more Great Skills?

Maybe. But I was hitting a limit on how much more I could do outside of what I was already excelling at. At this point, increasing the Quality of my powers and capabilities mattered more than increasing the quantity.

That and I really, really needed to craft.

I needed to craft badly.

“Okay, for real, what’s up with Thumper?” Merlin asked, pulling me out of my brooding. “Is it because of the, y’know, revenge?”

“Let’s go see for ourselves.”

Weaving around the floating firelights, I made my way to the quarterdeck as the Dragon Gunship soared further toward the Central Diamond Castle. At our pace, it should take only about a day to get there.

The air was cool and crisp as it blew around us. The roaring battles between Pathwalkers, Rankers, and monsters blared from all directions, some nearby, some far distant.

I came to a stop next to Thumper as Gunner flew through a large gap in a massive wall, the vessel parting aside dangling roots and grasping branches that scraped at the hull.

“Yo,” murmured the Perfect Rogue, slouching against the back railing.

“You okay, buddy?” Merlin asked. “Still coming down from the high of murdering someone you hated or something? Or, uh, are you stuck on how you kissed your future ex?”

Thumper shrugged. “It felt good. All of it. The kill. Kissing crazy ass Noodles. All of it.”

“Wait, Noodles?” Merlin’s head swiveled around to look at the front of the ship where the juniors gathered. Then he looked back at Thumper.

“You’re welcome,” Thumper grunted.

“I’m debt free and psycho free. Can this night get any better?” Merlin asked.

Shaking my head, I stayed focused on the rogue. “You’re feeling empty and lost on the inside, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I am.” Thumper shrugged. “I don’t regret anything but…”

“But that hole needs filling.” I leaned on the banister next to him.

Merlin lost his humor and took the other side beside Thumper. The three of us relaxed as Gunner sailed across the air, through mountainous walls, over many blocky and weathered obstacles, and across the challenge floor of the Crossroads Citadel World.

When I looked over, I caught movement, some humanoid, some eerie and monstrous. The distractions were interesting to see until Thumper found the words he wanted to share.