HC: Pacifist | Ch. 196 - Forage

Roth left the tent, somewhat shaken. Drake's words had struck a chord with him. It was true; he still hadn't figured out what he would do once they reached the Hive King. What would he do once he saw the other 99 players hunting and fighting furiously against the monster? Would he jump into the fray? Would his traumas take over and make him get in everyone's way, or would he decide to help the good guys from the get-go?

Roth's grip on the flagpole tightened. Even though he wanted to make a decision now, to be honest, he didn't know what he would do once the fighting broke out. All he knew was that he had to come through in his agreement with the Ogres and transport the guilds to the lair of the Hive King. Perhaps he could just be the taxi driver, so to speak, only dropping the players off and bringing them back. But wasn’t that naive? He couldn’t just wing it, could he?

Thoughts confused, Roth entered Hilsford through the north gate and headed to Stable Street, hoping Lua was already ready to be mounted. The alternative would be to activate [Ratan Form] and run to the rendezvous point. He was sure he wouldn't lag too far behind if he used this option and would still make it in time.

As soon as he entered the City Riders establishment, Greta spotted him from behind one of the counters and was already running out the door, screaming orders to the stable boys to get Lua. Roth followed her to the patio in the back. “Hello, Greta.”

“Hello, sir. Fancy seeing you here again,” she greeted amicably.

“Is Lua ready?”

“She is. Please wait for a moment. I’ve already sent for her.”

Knowing his mount was already ready, Roth rubbed his hands in anticipation. Had this been the real world, the horse would need weeks or months to heal, but being a game, the recovery was much faster.

It didn’t take long for the stable boy to bring the mare, or better said, for the mare to bring the stable boy. The difference was important because, like before, the mare was the one obviously calling the shots, and the stable boy just tried his best to keep up with Lua’s fast canter.

As Lua appeared, he performed a curt bow, showing respect for the monarch, to which she groaned a greeting.

You start making sense of the strange sounds.

Progress in learning Horsian: 2%.

Nice! Yet another language! And the best part was that he would spend lots of time with Lua, enabling him to learn the language quickly. Roth looked at the wounds on her side, which were healing nicely. The horse, who could hardly stand a few hours ago, now moved with certainty in her step, boding well for her recovery.

"We've taken good care of her, cleaned her up, patched her wounds, and fed her some medicine," Greta explained. "She'll still need more care, though.”

“Can she be mounted?" Roth asked.

"Yes, she can, but try not to push her too hard."

Roth inspected Lua's stats.

Lua, the Moonlight Mare

Lua (Pet)

Pet rating: E+

Lvl. 15

Affection: 13/100

Endurance: 52

Strength: 35

Dexterity: 12

Restrictions: Lvl. 30.

Skills: [Ride]; [Moonlight Mount]; [Summon]

From an E minus, Lua’s grade had climbed to an E plus. Dexterity had previously been locked but now had been activated again. The good news was that both [Ride] and [Summon] had already been unlocked. Her level was still lower than it could be, and her special skill was also locked away from Roth. But for now, it would do.

Roth turned to the mare, patting her on her snout consolingly. "I'm about to mount you if you give me permission, but we won't push you too hard. Do you prefer I walk?”

The mare shook her head.

"Are you sure?" The horse kicked the ground a couple of times, affirming her readiness.

"Very well, let's go."

As he was about to ride her, Roth realized something. "Wait, where's the saddle?”

“You don't have your own?" Greta asked.

“No, I didn’t think I’d need one. Don’t you sell it together with the horse?”

Greta gave him a wolfish grin. “I’m sorry, mister. They are sold separately. I'll be happy to sell you a saddle and any riding equipment you want, though," she offered.

Roth clenched his teeth. There went the rest of his savings. "Show me what you've got for sale," he said, resigned.

The shop window appeared in front of him, featuring three saddles. One for level 10 players, another for level 20, and another for level 30 players. Surprisingly, the level 30 saddle only cost one gold, much less than Roth had expected.

Beginner’s Saddle (Common)

Description: A saddle with a simple design that isn’t too comfortable but is better than riding a horse without one.

Item effects:

+10% running speed to mounts;

-10% energy consumed when mounted.

The bonuses weren't spectacular, but they were a good boost. As he equipped the saddle in the inventory, it appeared neatly installed on Lua's back. It was a cookie-cutter design with no ornaments.

Roth activated the [Ride] skill, and the system took over his body, allowing him to neatly jump on top of the saddle as if he had done it multiple times before. It was an otherworldly feeling to experience the system pulling your strings as if you were a puppet, but it was nothing he hadn't experienced before when utilizing other skills.

Now, atop the mare, he felt her powerful lungs and great strength. How he had missed this feeling. Although he had never ridden an animal in real life, he had done so many times in online games. In New Earth, among Roth’s most prized possessions was a ride of a legendary grade, an armored dinosaur. He and Rexie had wreaked havoc in the game, braving battlefields together.

Even though he didn’t miss the thrill of battle, he had forgotten how tall one felt when atop a mount like this. There was no comparison between mounting and riding a vehicle. When riding an animal, there was a feeling of freedom and potential that no car or vehicle could offer. The sense of harmony between man and beast working in tandem was incredible.

"What do you say, Lua? Shall we go?" Roth asked as the horse breathed in and neighed in readiness. "Let's go, Lua," Roth said, directing her gently toward the North Gate. The mare took off at an easy step toward the north of the city.

Little Lin poked his head out of the folds in his robes, trying to determine why the ride was so bumpy compared to Roth’s usual, smoother steps. Lin was getting bolder by the hour and venturing farther and farther away from Roth. With incredible inherent agility, despite the bumpy ride, the kitten climbed up to Lua’s head and then looked back at Roth expectantly.

“What?” asked Roth.

The kitten just kept looking at him, waiting for something. Roth frowned but, after a while, understood what the kitten wanted.

“Well done, Lin! Way to go!” he said encouragingly.

The kitten raised his head triumphantly, vindicated by the well-deserved commendation, and judging the seat on Lua’s head a bit chillier than his usual accommodations, he retreated into the warmth of Roth’s woolen clothes.

Leaving the gate, as Lua saw the greenery, she instantly reacted, neighing happily and speeding up her canter, eager to leave the human city behind and head into the boundless wild. Roth pulled the reins on her, afraid that she would reopen her wounds and she let him bring her down to a more reasonable pace.

Roth took one last look at Hilsford. Not a week ago, he thought he wouldn’t see the city for a very long time, yet he returned after only a few days. He still wasn't sure what to do after finishing this new adventure with the guilds. Would he come back here or move toward Saphirah as he had originally planned? Whatever happened, he preferred to keep this parting memory of the city rather than the previous one, running under the darkness of night. Roth burned in his mind the image of the white city by the river under the sun and briskly shook the reins, signaling Lua to take off.

Coming back or not would be a decision for another day. He still had no idea of the repercussions of ending the event. He wasn’t even sure that he would succeed in ending it! What about Loki? If he had chased him relentlessly before, how much more so he would do it once he brought the guilds to his doorstep? Even if Roth’s real body was outside his grasp, Loki could still get to him in the game, and Roth didn’t feel like being imprisoned again.

As Roth thought about his next steps and worried about Loki, Lua rode along the river, upstream, toward his destination.

He had the coordinates that Bluefire had sent him half a day earlier, and based on his traveling speed, he estimated that it would only take him one hour to get there. The city of Hilsford quickly became a white spot in the distance, lost to a sea of waving greenery. Lua was excited to revisit the wild, conveyed through her occasional neighs and reinvigorated canter.

Besides these signs, the system also confirmed how much Lua enjoyed riding outside.

You’ve let the princess of the moonlight herd ride under the sky again.

+3 affection with Lua;

+8 reputation with the Moonlight Herd.

For once, Roth was happy not to be the one running around and to let Lua do the traveling for him. Roth went through the descriptions of the many consumables he purchased in preparation for the trip and also reviewed each of his titles and skills, ensuring he knew every tool in his arsenal for the quest ahead.

After a few minutes of riding, he also received a pleasant notification.

The first 15 nanites of your treeant colony have finished metamorphosis.

+150 xp

[Level Up!]

+3 intelligence;

+2 dexterity.

The Leafies have learned a new skill: [Forage].

Forage (Pet Skill)

By exploring the surrounding area the colony can gather the needed resources to help the colony thrive.

Skill effects:

Active. You can assign an area to your colony, and they will gather resources from the surrounding area. You will get a part of the spoils.

That was a nice surprise! The first workers had become active, and his colony had learned a new skill! It was nice that they could collect resources for him, but it was a little inconvenient that he had to plant them somewhere and pick them up later. Right now, he was on the move, but maybe he could find a safe place to leave the treeants and let them work for him and collect some goodies. He wondered what kind of resources he could get this way.

Bluefire's directions led him to a city upstream from the river that ran by Hilsford. The trip was easy; all Roth had to do was follow the river. Halfway through the trip, flashes and explosions signaling the use of skills caught his attention, and he stopped Lua in her tracks.

A group of players clad in beautiful matching armor surrounded a village. Thanks to the enhanced eyesight gained with [Farsight] and his perception stat, he could see what was happening from far away while keeping a safe distance from the conflict.

Barricaded inside the village, he saw farmers and villagers in torn clothes and a black miasma surrounding them. There was also a group of players in sleek armor standing behind them. The village had been taken by hivies.

The village was located on the shore of the river, so he asked Lua to take a long detour around the settlement to avoid the conflict. As Lua went around, a group of players on the human side stormed the village while espers provided cover fire with long-range skills. The hivies threw the infected NPCs at the invaders while retaliating with their ranged skills from the rear.

His doubts about what he would do resurfaced as he witnessed part of the battle. It wasn’t only the people fighting but the sight of peaceful villagers forced to fight that turned his stomach. Killing the alien king would put an end to all this conflict. Maybe he should really put his conscience aside for this trip. Or should he really? Wasn’t blowing that grenade up in the sewers enough violence? Roth just pressed Lua to continue and ride away. He went back and forth between what stand he would take, but no matter how far Lua rode, he couldn’t outrun his doubts and confusion.

Ch. 195 - Time Sand

INDEX

Ch. 197 - Summon