Chapter 10: 10. Player Hunting!

You have accumulated 7 points of Force.

You have accumulated 9 points of Force.

You have accumulated 9 points of Force.

Looks like I need quantity over quality when it comes to the players. Rhys sighed as he reached for the robes that covered the male player’s body. However, the corpses vanished with no warning! Rhys’ eyes went wide at that sight.

This should be an effect of their resurrection! Rhys sighed, as he knew there was nothing he could do about that feature of the players. Still, it threw a wrench into his plan to disguise himself as a member of the cult. I need to target at least one of their normal members now.

Rhys raced through the tunnel that led to the waterfall and lake where he had killed the Soren. Those players will either alert the others that I’m here or come straight back hoping to kill me themselves. Rhys could not help but smile at that thought.

It would be better if I ambush them in the tunnels at the other side of the lake. They’re narrow, so they won’t be able to use their numbers to their advantage. If they bring more players with them, I can always kill a few of them and retreat to the inheritance.

Rhys knew the players would not involve the NPCs in hunting him down. After all, Tolke had said in her post on the forums that they would be rewarded if they tracked him down and dealt with him. From what he could tell about players, they were unlikely to give up on any kind of reward.

Rhys leapt over the edge of the waterfall and dived straight down into the murky waters of the underground lake. It pleased him to discover that he could swim pretty fast because of his speed stat. It only took him a few minutes to cross those frigid waters.

However, as he stepped onto the shore, he could hear footsteps running, echoing through the tunnel ahead of them. The sounds were still quite faint, which meant the players would not arrive for at least another few minutes. That gave him some time to find a suitable spot to ambush them.

He quickly found a bend in the tunnel that was still quite close to the lake area. Even if he had to retreat, the players would move slowly, afraid of another ambush at every twist and turn. Rhys stood still where the players would not be able to see him before he made his move.

He listened intently as the sounds drew closer. By now, he could hear the players arguing with each other.

“I’m telling you! It was the slave we’ve been looking for Tolke!” A man said.

“I’m not so sure, Valour. The slave isn’t an empowered. It has to be someone else.”

“I know what I saw! Even if it wasn’t him, we’d be sure to get a reward for killing a mage who managed to sneak in here!”

Rhys could hear the hesitation in their voice as he prepared his Freezing Sphere spell and drew his blade. There are too many footsteps to just be the three of them again. Rhys thought as he adjusted his plan of attack in his mind.

Once he was certain they were moving along the straight corridor just around the bend, he leapt out! Curses and screams bounced off the rocky wall as Rhys’ spell flew towards the group of players. The player in the lead was the man that Rhys had killed previously.

He hesitated at Rhys’ sudden appearance and came to a halt as the other four players crashed into his back. A savage grin swept Rhys’ face as he chased after his spell. When it struck the man at the front, it caught all five of the players in its effects!

Lightning crackled from Rhys’ left hand as he swung his blade furiously at the players. They panicked as the first and second player swiftly fell under that onslaught. Rhys quickly noticed that Tolke was at the rear of the group. She had already retreated to prepare her spells, while using the others as shields to slow him down.

As the third player fell, Rhys realised that Tolke and the other guy who had survived his initial assault were now ready for him. But he had been ready for a similar situation as soon as he had decided to ambush them again!

The lightning he emitted suddenly stopped and was replaced by a swirling oval shield of power in front of his outstretched left hand. A wave of fire and lightning struck his ward spell as he sheathed his sword. Rhys analysed the sturdiness of that defensive spell as the diameter of it shrank a little at a time.

He quickly calculated that if he were only facing a single player, he would have nothing to worry about. They would certainly run out of power without affecting that spell. However, the joint of offensive of two constant spells seemed to be the cause of its area shrinking.

I’m outnumbered and they can focus on me. Rhys cursed as noticed that Tolke’s spell was making its way through the gap between the other player and the wall before fanning out to cover a larger area. Let’s even the field!

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With his now free right hand, Rhys cast his Raise Lesser Undead spell on the man who had been in the front of the players’ charge. That player turned out to be Valour. The man that he had heard arguing with Tolke.

The players gasped as they saw they saw their friend standing up again and smiles spread across their faces. They had not yet realised it resulted from one of Rhys’ spells and thought they now had an ally who could attack him from behind!

However, the players soon grimaced as their friend rushed past Rhys and straight into their spells! They cursed as they stopped their spells so as not to hurt him, but they soon realised that was a huge mistake! Valour pounced on the player, who was partially shielding Tolke, and knocked them to the ground.

Before the players could understand what was happening, Rhys leapt over them and drew his blade again. Aiming to strike Tolke down before his undead puppet was destroyed. Tolke cursed as she attempted to backtrack, but Rhys’ blade cut into her arm and applied its enchantment. The sudden slowing effect left her helpless as he hacked into her shoulder with an overhead blow!

Rhys heard her cursing just before her body fell to the ground with a dark puddle spreading beneath it. He quickly spun to face the remaining player of that group, just in time to see Valour’s body turning to ash as he was killed again.

Unfortunately for the player, they were still on the ground! Rhys stabbed him in the shoulder, then punched him in the face with his free hand. The player’s head snapped backward and struck the ground. The sudden blow stunned him as he peered at Rhys through blurry eyes. But he never recovered in time to see Rhys quickly stab him again and put an end to his life.

Rhys took several deep breaths as he glanced at the surrounding carnage. He wasted no time in using his Drain Force spell on the corpses before they could disappear, accumulating another thirty-nine points of force. Unfortunately, he could gain nothing from Valour’s ashes.

Rhys sighed as he thought about his next move. They’ll probably come back with even more players now. He frowned as he glanced in the direction they had come from. They’ll be more careful from now on. He decided there was too much risk in continuing his hunting for now.

The only reason he had won was because he had caught them off-guard both times. But if they ever attacked him all at once, he was certain they could kill him. I’ll return to the inheritance for now and continue hunting in the forest. I should reach the next rank before coming after them again.

Rhys sighed as he turned to make the journey back to Eldre’s hidden inheritance area. I should use the forums to monitor their reactions. Rhys wondered what the players would think about his attacks. It seemed that some of them, especially Tolke, doubted that he was the same person as the slave they had been sent after.

He collapsed onto one of the comfortable couches as he reached his temporary home. Now that he was safe, he called up the forums. Rhys was astounded to see the amount of posts that had filled it up since he last checked them. But now there was a handy sidebar that allowed him to skip straight to the events concerning his realm.

They haven’t posted anything yet. Rhys nodded slightly when he saw that. They’re probably still searching the tunnels to find out where I’ve gone.

A chuckle escaped his mouth as he turned his attention to the other posts. He spent the next few hours browsing their contents, learning a lot about the realm he lived in. The players had gathered plenty of information in the short time since they had entered the game. There were five large countries who were constantly at war with each other.

Many of the players were speculating which country would be the best to join. They assumed that the dominant story had to revolve around those wars. Some players were even convinced that the next stage of the game would not unlock until one of those countries took control of the realm.

The players seemed excited by that idea. Since it would mean a major war had to be on the horizon that they could take part in. Rhys could tell they were imagining the chaos they could create if something like that happened. He shook his head as briefly glanced at another thread where a player complained he could not run through the streets naked!

His argument was for the devs to put that function into the game since it was an immersion breaking fault. However, there was a stream of reply from other players who begged to keep that feature. They claimed that the original poster had to have something wrong with him for even suggesting that possibility.

Rhys was just shocked by how carefree they were. Though he was beginning to notice a pattern emerging amongst most threads. Most players were complaining about the lack of resources to progress in the game. They were not talking about money, but about spells and skills they could use. Especially ones that allowed them to accumulate force.

Maybe I can use this to my advantage. Rhys rubbed his chin as a serious expression plastered itself on his face. I could sell them enchanted weapons and spells once I get out of here. Try to establish myself as a beneficial character to the players, so they come to rely on me.

Rhys nodded to himself when he thought about that. It would take quite a bit of work, but it would probably be the best course of action if he wanted to gain some form of control over them. I don’t want to think about what could happen if the players are left to do as they please.

Rhys sighed as he thought about the chaos that could ensue from immortal beings doing whatever they wanted. I’ll just have to become a shepherd with the players as my flock. A smile spread across his face as he thought deeper about that matter. There’s bound to be others who will soon notice the players and what they can do. They’ll definitely try to recruit them!

At that moment, a new thread was added to the forums. Rhys could not help but laugh when he read the title.

[Mage Slayer: A mysterious NPC who uses this secret class is attacking our cult! Please, send help!]

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