Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Random Encounters

The monster stumbled backwards, trying to rub the sting out of its eye. The System called it a ‘Troll’, but it had to be a young one, since it only stood a head taller than Regina instead of completely dwarfing her. Its size, bulky physique and oversized club were a poor match for the trees around them, as it might have discovered when it lost the club to a bush.

Max darted forward, cutting right into its knee. Its craggy-looking skin didn’t stop the thrust. The troll stumbled and fell to its other knee, which allowed Max to swing his ax at its neck. Regina watched carefully, but didn’t join the attack herself in order to conserve her mana.

Her intervention didn’t turn out to be necessary. The boys made short work of the monster, and its twitching body thudded into the ground after only a few seconds.

She glanced around, then kept going. There didn’t seem to be any other monsters around for once. She didn’t know how long they’d been fighting their way through the forest, but this had to be the most safe they’d been in that time. And just a few meters farther, there was a small clearing, caused by a toppled tree. Its trunk looked inviting.

“Alright, let’s take a five minute break,” she decided. With a sigh, she sat down.

Tim collapsed right where he’d been standing, and Max looked like it cost him serious effort to drag himself to the tree trunk and sit down. Mia and Tia were only a little better off.

They’d all gotten at lest one level, though Regina hadn’t had the time to pay much attention to their status sheets. It was a small miracle that none of them were seriously hurt. She had a nasty cut on her left arm and both Max and Tia were limping a little, but they could keep going.

And they did need to keep running. Regina could tell they were only at the outskirts of the monster horde. Whenever she caught a glimpse of the sky, she saw the dark spots gathering behind them. That would have been a clue if all the monsters moving this way weren’t.

“I wonder what the monsters are doing with our place?” Max asked.

“Probably not much,” Tim replied. “They’re just moving through, aren’t they?”

Regina grimaced. “He’s right. And we will come back one day.”

She saw their surprised expressions and shrugged. “Once we have built up our hive and gotten enough strength, we’ll come back and chase those monsters out, I promise you. If nothing else, there’s still that vault door I need to investigate.”

The others nodded. Max at least looked a little comforted. Regina sighed and turned her attention to the System.

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