Reborn as the First Boss, Chapter 81

Chapter 81 – Easy Pickings

Syllia Zylgolor

Elf Female

Level 43 Waterbender / Hunter

Titles: Silver-Tongued, Seductress, Keen-Eyed, Slave

You have defeated the Shadow Vipers!

You gain 5220 XP!

Loot:

Syllia Zylgolor

Handy Haversack x6

Ring of Greater Fire Resistance x6

Ring of Perfect Sight x6

Pendant of Greater Resilience x5

Periapt of Piercing Wisdom

Pierceproof Mithril Chain Shirt x2

Robe of the Penitent Soul

Blackguard’s Mithril Plate Armor x2

Illusionist’s Robes of Shadow Armor

Staff of Mental Magics

Wand of Magic Missiles

Bloodthirsty Elven Warblade

Dragonslaying Elven Quickblade

Stalwart Shield of Elvenkind x2

Bloodseeking Elven Warbow x2

Twin Fangs of the Assassin

Farstrider’s Cutting Blade

Silent Elven Warbow x2

Mace of Ruination

Deadsmite Crossbow

Belt of Ogre Strength x2

Belt of Quickened Hands x2

Priest’s Holy Belt

Belt of Many Pockets

Silent Traveler’s Boots x6

Bracers of Illusory Armor

Hands of the Healer

Gauntlets of Overwhelming Power x2

Gloves of Greater Dexterity x2

Mask of Clear Breath x6

Everlasting Rations x6

Replenishing Waterskin x6

Elven Arrows x160

Elven Crossbow Bolts x40

3540 pp, 2483 gp, 24530 sp, 3842 cp

I took a moment to catch my breath after the quick, but fierce, battle. The Shadow Vipers had been Level 43 across the board, which meant that they were no slouches, to be sure. They had a good party composition, as well, with the Waterbender being joined by a Priest, Rogue, Ranger, Mind Sorcerer, and two Fighters. Unfortunately for them, I managed to [Daze] the Waterbender and Mind Sorcerer before they realized anything was wrong, and the Priest was mid-cast when I hit him with it, and the rest fell to the spell easily enough after that.

Of course, that trick only worked because my attributes were incredibly overpowered compared to most people my level, which meant even the Mind Sorcerer couldn’t stand up to my mental spells, especially when they were on the way back, almost out of the dungeon, and their guard was low. Plus, I had my party with me, and they kept the remaining individuals off my case until I could hit them with the [Daze] spell. After that, it was simply a matter of slapping the [Merging Slave Collar] that had been provided with the quest on Syllia, and eliminating the dazed adventurers.

As the last adventurer’s head separated from their shoulders, we got the notification, and our XP. Interestingly enough, the Voice of the World had apparently gone along with the quest I’d gotten, and declared that Syllia was part of the loot we got from this fight. Unsurprisingly, they had a nice stash of coin between them, which doubled our available ‘war chest’, and they were all equipped with gear suitable for a party in their 40s.

We’d need to look at the gear later on, and see what would be useful for us, and what could be sold on, but this dungeon run was already quite profitable for us. Especially since we picked up the bags the party had been carrying, and all the materials that they’d gathered as drops. While none of them were terribly rare or expensive, seeing as they were from just the first couple floors, it was still free money, as far as I was concerned.

“You can’t do this!” Ah, it seemed that my new pet had finally found her voice, as she saw the rest of my group stripping her party’s bodies. As I turned to look at her, Syllia’s voice grew more confident. “You can’t get away with enslaving someone in Bikar! The guards will put a collar on you, the moment you get to town! But, if you let me go, then we can all forget about this, and pretend it never happened. House Ianmenor doesn’t need to know.”

I smiled at the Waterbender, and said, “Ah, you seem to be operating under some misconceptions. We took a quest through the Adventurers Guild to hunt you and your companions. The reward for our efforts was salvage rights from your party, and you, as a slave. House Ianmenor even included an official writ from the courts, making everything legal.”

When I pulled out the writ for her to see, all the confidence disappeared from her face, and resignation set in. “Damn it all. I had hoped that we would have more time, before they found someone willing to track us down.”

“So, what made you think stealing from a noble house was a smart play, to begin with?”

“House Ianmenor is a merchant house, not a martial or magical one. They’re farmers and crafters, for the most part. And they rarely associate with adventurers.” She sighed, and continued, “The Crown doesn’t get involved in house-on-house conflicts, so long as they don’t get out of hand. While Ianmenor may have persuaded the Court to issue the writ, there was no way for them to enforce it, since they don’t have enough household troops to do more than defend their lands. Most elven adventurers of our level wouldn’t dirty their hands with a slave-taking mission, either, and, to be frank, the majority of adventurers in human lands are far too weak to be a threat to us. It should have been easy enough to tier up, and then get to Crystalshield and take ship to the Northern Continent, and the Spirit Rift.”

So, she hadn’t just arrogantly thought she could mess with a noble house without repercussions, but instead had a plan to escape their grasp. It was only because we had been passing through Hyletalos at the time that we picked up the quest, and any adventurers from the human lands would likely have been ten to twenty levels too weak to win against the Shadow Vipers, even with an ambush. Bad luck on her part, good luck on mine, then.

Looking over my new acquisition, I said, “So, I am unfamiliar with a Waterbender. What abilities do you have? I need to know how best to use you.”

Syllia sighed again, and said, “As a Waterbender, I can create and control water. Most people think of it as water whips or water bullets, however I can also freeze the water, creating simple objects, like a bridge, or knives, which is useful if I’m someplace I cannot carry my normal blades openly. I also ‘acquired’ skills from several other classes and professions off the black market, increasing my versatility.”

“Excellent. How far into the dungeon did you go?”

“We stopped after beating the Level 4 boss. Monsters on that floor are all Level 40 in Tier 1, so they are a strong challenge, but not the worst the dungeon has to offer. The Guild considers it a good break point to determine if your party is ready for the full dungeon or not.”

“Well, I cannot stay away from my lands for too long, so we’ll go as far as we can, and see if we can’t clear the dungeon in a single trip.”

Syllia blinked, and said, slowly, “Mistress, I know you’re powerful, since you managed to take my team down so quickly, but isn’t that a bit… reckless? Even if your group has eight, including me, the boss is a Level 10 in Tier 2, and a Lesser Dragon! You can’t take something like that on before you get into Tier 2 yourself!”

I had to laugh at that. If only she knew. “Oh, my pet, there’s so much you still need to learn about your new Mistress. Don’t worry, though, we’ll have plenty of time to teach you.”

“Really,” Jewell said, managing to keep from laughing, herself. “Getting to the end of the dungeon will likely be more dangerous than taking on the final boss, unless Mistress decides to play around, or we end up finding another fragment of a god locked away underground. She killed a Tier 2 Boss when we were only level 30, and she did it in a single blow. Mistress is unstoppable, when she wants to be.”

Syllia looked to Jewell, incredulously. However, I could see the incredulity die, and be replaced by something else, halfway between fear and wonder as she turned her eyes back to me. “The Voice of the World said that two Bosses were killed, and then there were several notifications about gods from the Human Pantheon. Do you mean to say that was you?”

“Yes, and obviously you’re forbidden from spreading that information around to anyone who isn’t already under my collar. At least, not without my permission. It would cause too many unnecessary complications if it spread too far, or too quickly. And I would rather not be forced to leave the life I’ve started behind.” I chuckled, and then relaxed slightly as I shifted into my true form. “As I said, there is much you still need to learn about me.”

“Ah.” The revelation of my true form seemed to have short-circuited her brain. Not exactly something to be ashamed of, naturally. I’d yet to meet anyone who could see my new form for the first time and react with nonchalance. I had become something that was thought to be impossible, after all.

I chuckled, and said, “You’ll get used to it, pet. For now, though, we’ll wait a bit so that the dungeon has time to properly reset. We can look through the loot and see if there’s anything we can use.”

Ring of Greater Fire Resistance

Type

Ring

Rank

Rare

Price

19500 gp

Weight

0 kg

This crimson band is etched to look as though it were made from dragon’s scales, though it is actually made of silver infused with a drop of dragon’s blood. The wearer reduces all damage taken from heat and fire by 75% before other defenses are applied, and they and their gear cannot be set on fire. Damage from hellfire and other types of extraplanar flame is reduced by 25% before other defenses are applied.

Ring of Perfect Sight

Type

Ring

Rank

Rare

Price

20500 gp

Weight

0 kg

This golden band is inlaid with silver, forming they symbol of an eye. While simple in its design, its enchantment is powerful. The wearer’s powers of visual perception are greatly enhanced, allowing them to automatically spot traps, detect hidden doors, and see through visual illusions. In addition the wearer cannot be blinded or have their vision blocked by magic, including magical darkness.

The rings were instant winners, if we didn’t already have some really good items on hand already. Honestly, even with our normal gear, it might be worth keeping those rings. Well, Syllia still had hers, but maybe we could have Zazriel combine a few things when we found a good place to rest. I was always a fan of having my pets be harder to kill, after all.

The other ring was that kind of subtly powerful item most people didn’t think twice about. Being able to automatically find traps and hidden doors was huge, especially when you were heading into a dungeon with creatures that were notorious for making traps and having secret passages. On the other hand, it did have its limits. The protection wouldn’t keep someone from being blinded by having a blindfold over their eyes, and it wouldn’t allow them to see through smoke or fog, unless it was magically created, and my being shapeshifted wouldn’t register as an illusion to the ring, since it was an actual physical change, not a glamour.

Mask of Clear Breath

Type

Face

Rank

Rare

Price

7500 gp

Weight

0.5 kg

This wooden mask is secured by silk ties behind the wearer’s head. When worn over the mouth and nose, the mask protects the wearer from all inhaled or injested drugs and poisons, as well as all magical attacks or effects that rely on scent or the subject breathing in to work. The mask conjures a bubble of air under its border, allowing the wearer to breathe easily even underwater or in airless environments, and it filters out all strong scents or smells.

This was another of those items that didn’t have any overwhelming combat powers, but was insanely useful all the same. Being able to breathe easily, ignore horrible smells, and avoid even magical gas cloud attacks was a huge thing. Clearly, Syllia and her former team knew their business. Their gear wasn’t terribly flashy, but it was all well-made, and focused on increasing their effectiveness while ensuring that they were harder to kill. Their abilities hadn’t allowed them to survive the ambush, but that was only because I was overpowered, and mental attacks looked to be one of the few attack types that they hadn’t made specific preparations for, unless their Mind Sorcerer usually handled that with [Group Shields], like I did for our group. Of course, my shields were way better than theirs had been, naturally, since my attributes were higher.

Basically, everything we took from the Shadow Vipers would sell for a solid chunk of change. Some of the items were good for swapping in for certain situations, but, for the most part, they weren’t as generally useful as the items we already had. But it wasn’t like I was running out of space in my inventory anytime soon. Its capacity was determined by my unmodified (CHA+STR)x100 kg. Which meant that, at the moment, I could keep 89,200 kg in there. That was more than a modern tank in my old world! Just one more example of how crazy my abilities were.