Eternity 37

  Eve noticed the increase in difficulty immediately. She and Ben cut a path forward until they entered a distinct district of the raid. It felt like an isolated section of the military encampment, separated from the rest.

  The architecture of the surrounding buildings changed. Structures were shaped into dome-like forms, each carved with the same symbol. Flags bearing that mark hung between them.

  Clan insignia.

  The enemies changed as well. Instead of disorganized groups wielding crude melee weapons, these orcs were primarily ranged fighters. They were leaner and more disciplined, armed with longbows, crossbows, and javelins. Some carried whips.

  Most importantly, they were higher level.

  The rest of the raid enemies had been around level 12, with level 13 elites. Here, every enemy was at least level 13, with level 14 elites mixed in.

  All of this existed inside a dungeon located in a level 10 zone.

  Even with the power of Ben’s cherubs, the battle became a slog. Enemies no longer fell in a single hit. They were noticeably more durable. With Eve’s Soul Link active, the enemies were still not truly dangerous, but fighting them felt like shoveling heavy snow instead of mowing grass.

  Eve grew tired simply following Ben from a safe distance. He led from the front with his halberd, constantly drinking stamina regeneration potions so he could keep the spiritual extension of his weapon at twice its normal length. Ben alone was worth at least three cherubs in clear speed, yet it was still a gauntlet.

  The tide of orcs felt endless. They shouted and roared in excitement. The sky filled with arrows, bolts, and thrown weapons. Eve was forced to heal several times to keep the party stable. The white mage’s mana pool struggled under the sustained pressure. Ben resummoned it repeatedly to refill its mana so it could continue healing while the rest of the cherubs focused on offense.

  Finally, after nearly an hour of grinding, Ben reached the general’s campsite.

  Eve dropped to her knees, breathing heavily. Ben looked down at her with pity. Even he felt winded. They had been pushing without pause.

  “You can wait here,” Ben said.

  Eve looked up at him with a pout and summoned another mid-grade stamina regeneration potion from her inventory. Ben shook his head.

  “You are just wasting money at this point. You can heal me from a distance even if you cannot see me. I will handle it from here,” he said.

  Eve nodded obediently as Ben walked away. Relief settled in almost immediately.

  He is a maniac, she thought.

  Eve fell backward and stared up at the sky. Even after repeatedly using stamina potions, exhaustion weighed heavily on her body. The restoring effects of the potions diminished with each use.

  By the time she recovered, a notification appeared in her system window.

  [Congratulations. Your party has defeated Thrull, Dead-Eye.]

  [Loot will be distributed based on Need Versus Greed settings.]

  So fast, Eve thought.

  She ambled to her feet and made her way deeper into the camp. The path ahead was lined with orc bodies and loot drops. Eve gathered them passively as she walked. There was so much that the ground beneath was barely visible.

  She checked her notifications and went wide-eyed.

  [You have received 1 Gold Coin]

  [You have received 1 Silver Coin]

  [You have received 10 Mid-Grade Health Potions]

  [You have received 1 Mid-Grade Mana Potion]

  The notifications kept coming. Eve quickly figured out the math. Her loot pick-ups had a chance to be multiplied by 10 once they entered her inventory. Ten silver became one gold. The ground was littered with silver coins, but occasionally a single silver upgraded into gold.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  Oh my goodness.

  Not only was the loot upgraded, there was far more of it.

  10 times more.

  There was so much that she stopped trying to collect everything and instead headed toward the center of the camp. The sight waiting for her made her pause.

  Ben stood in the center of a large, dirt-covered arena. The perimeter was formed from bone that looked as though it had once belonged to both humans and orcs. A sea of bodies and loot surrounded him. His cherubs flew about, collecting drops and laying them at Ben’s feet.

  Ben’s eyes were closed, his hands clasped in prayer. He stood before the unlooted corpse of a massive orc. The creature still gripped the handle of a large war bow, even in death.

  Eve did her best not to interrupt Ben’s prayers. He stirred as she approached.

  He turned to her to reveal a foreign black object in his hand. It was a small rock that glowed with a faint, dark red hue. It had arcane etchings along the surface.

  “Is that it?” Eve texted.

  Ben tightened his fist around it.

  “One of four,” he said.

  Eve watched Ben tentatively. He stared down at it with a far-off gaze. Eve closed the distance and placed her hand over his, which obscured his view of the stone. Ben shifted his gaze to her.

  “Ready?” she texted.

  Ben smiled warmly at her. He put the artifact into his inventory and regained his composure.

  “Ready,” he said.

  With renewed focus, Ben turned towards the boss.

  “This is one of my favorite parts. Hopefully we get something good to help speed up the rest of the quest,” Ben said.

  Eve approached the body alongside him. A flurry of notifications appeared before them. Most of the drops were consumables, along with minor gear pieces of little interest. One item, however, immediately stood out.

  [Thrull’s Prey-Killer]

  [Type: Two-Handed War Bow]

  [Rarity: Epic]

  [Quality: Common]

  [Effect 1: Thrull’s Prey-Killer deals bonus damage to enemies at full health]

  [Effect 2: You may consume stamina to toggle multi-shot mode. In multi-shot mode, each arrow splits into three upon release and strikes two additional nearby targets. Multi-shot arrows deal reduced damage.]

  Eve immediately passed on the item, allowing it to enter Ben’s inventory. Ben put his halberd away and equipped the bow. It manifested in his hands in a glimmer of light.

  Ben studied it quietly. The bow was made of bone, unmistakably orcish, with intricate tribal carvings etched along its surface. A matching quiver appeared with it, sharing the same aesthetic. The weapon was nearly as tall as Ben himself.

  “This will do,” Ben said.

  Eve tilted her head and typed a question.

  “You are going to use a bow now?”

  “Not quite.”

  Ben waved his hand, and a familiar flash of summoning light revealed a Cherub Bow Master. The cherub took the bow without hesitation. As soon as it did, the weapon resized to fit the tiny angel. The quiver followed suit.

  Ben looked on in satisfaction. His gaze swept over the remaining loot before returning to Eve.

  “Your new perk is really paying dividends already. That item is Epic rarity. Epic items shouldn’t be able to drop in a level 10 zone, so it seems that your new class perk upgraded it. On top of that, we’re getting far more loot. You’re like my lucky charm,” Ben said.

  Eve didn’t bother hiding her blush.

  “That’s my job,” she typed.

  Ben nodded and waved his hand, collecting the loot his cherubs had already gathered. There was still plenty left. He took note of that and brought up his map interface. A dot appeared.

  “The next closest boss is there,” Eve typed.

  Ben smiled. He hadn’t even needed to ask. It was as if she could read his mind.

  Is this what it feels like to have a helpmeet? Ben thought.

  Ben didn’t wait for the cherubs to finish collecting everything. He recalled them to his side and looked at Eve inquisitively.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  Eve hesitated, then nodded and took out a stamina potion. When she drank it, Ben immediately noticed the diminished effect. Her stamina bar rose only a fraction of what it had before.

  “I thought so,” Ben said.

  Eve frowned.

  “What?”

  Ben manifested a mid-grade stamina potion.

  “Now that you are level 10, the potions are suffering diminishing returns. You’ve been drinking too many. They’re barely working,” Ben said.

  Eve fidgeted.

  “Yes, I noticed that too. I just didn’t want to bring it up and be a burden,” she typed.

  Ben shook his head and stepped closer, looking down at her with a warm smile.

  “You aren’t. Stay here and finish collecting the loot. I’ll push ahead to the next boss. Catch up when you can. Remember, there are many ways to be helpful. You are irreplaceable, Eve.”

  Eve bowed her head bashfully.

  “Ok.”

  Ben gave a two-fingered salute, turned, and burst into a sprint. The wind from his speed kicked up Eve’s skirt, forcing her to grab the fabric to keep it from fluttering wildly.

  She watched him disappear into the distance, exasperation softening her expression.

  Oh Ben.