Champions of the People
After the door slammed shut behind the snake man, the bar was utterly silent for a few moments. And then, as if a dam had broken, Rel and I were swarmed by the patrons, along with a slightly dazed Derek. People clapped me on the shoulder, reached out to shake my hand, and heaped so much praise on me that I felt my face grow a little red.
“Thank you, sir!”
“I’ve never seen anything like it!”
“How can we ever repay you?”
I just nodded and smiled politely, shaking a seemingly endless number of hands. I felt so fucking awkward – how’s someone supposed to behave in that sort of situation?
Rel, on the other hand, had no such trouble, hopping onto the bar so he could face the crowd. They all stared at him, eyes sparkling with awe and admiration.
“You owe us no thanks, proud citizens of Oakreach,” he said, pausing to make eye contact with each and every one of them. “Peter and I could not just sit back and allow those villains to treat you in such a despicable way. You’re good, hardworking people who deserve to feel safe in your own town.”
The townspeople started clapping - some even cheered - and Rel paused for a moment. He raised a little paw, and they fell silent once more.
I shook my head disbelievingly. How the fuck was he so good at this stuff?
“You may have overheard the warning Peter gave to that coward before he fled,” continued Rel, his squeaky voice strong and steady. “If not, I shall repeat it once more so that you can spread the word. This town is under our protection now. Any Trialist who abuses their power will answer to us.”
Rel bowed slightly to indicate that he’d finished, and the crowd erupted into a deafening cheer. There were at least fifty townspeople in the tavern now, many having rushed in to see what all the commotion was about.
Based on the reaction Rel's little speech had elicited, the Trialists must have been behaving like collosal dickheads.
Then someone said it…
“Champion Rel! Champion Peter!”
Others quickly took up the call, and soon they were all chanting it.
I wished the floor would open up and swallow me whole.
Rel looked faintly disappointed that the crowd wasn’t larger.
Fortunately, Derek came to my rescue.
“We’re all very grateful for what Peter and Rel have done here today,” he said, moving to stand beside me. “However, they ordered some stew over half an hour ago, and I’ll be damned if I let them go hungry after this.”
He suddenly paused to look around, confused.
“Wait, where’s your other friend?”
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Rel and I looked at each other.
Shit.
Kaelis.
We dashed back to the booth, feeling rather guilty. Thankfully, Kaelis was looking much better. He had an empty healing potion in his hand, and other than the thick layer of dried blood that caked his skin, his face no longer looked like it’d been trampled by a herd of enraged elephants.
He glanced up at our approach, and then his head sagged, shame written all over his expression.
“I’m sorry, Grandmaster Rel, Master Pete,” he said, wincing slightly as he climbed to his feet. He turned sombre eyes on us and then bowed deeply. “I have failed you. I would not blame you if you no longer wished me to be your disciple.”
This fucking guy.
I laughed, stepping forward to sling an arm around his shoulder and steer him towards the booth.
“Shut up, dumbass,” I said, giving him an amused shake of my head as I shoved him onto the bench. “Derek’s bringing us our stew now, and I don’t know about you, but I’m fucking starving.”
“So…” I said, after we’d all sat down.
I paused, embarrassed, and reached up to scratch the back of my head.
“You don’t think I laid it on a bit too thick with the whole ‘I’ll rip their hearts out’ bit, do you?”
Rel laughed darkly.
“No, Pete,” he said. “I think it contained exactly the right amount of crazy.”
* * *
Derek wasn’t lying about the stew. It was the best I’d ever tasted.
Now, I said I wouldn’t kiss him, and I didn’t.
But I may have wrapped him in a massive bearhug, lifted him off the floor, and spun him in a few giddy circles.
What can I say? Compared to the green sludge bars we’d been eating, the stew tasted like a miracle.
He looked incredibly confused when I put him back down, but he smiled warmly and said he’d bring us some more drinks.
Huh, I guess being the Champion of Oakreach has its benefits.
Derek turned to leave, but hesitated mid-step.
“Pete,” he said, pausing uncertainly. It was clear that he was weighing whether he should continue. “Back at the bar… when you were angry at the Trialists…”
He trailed off, considering his next words carefully.
“It was almost as if I could feel your anger,” he continued quietly. “It seemed to fill the room, and it became difficult to breathe.”
He chuckled awkwardly. Not because anything was funny, but because the conversation had crossed into 'what the fuck do I say now' territory.
“I guess what I’m trying to get at is... I’m glad you’re on our side. Right, I’ll get those drinks I promised.”
Well, that was fucking weird.
I sat back down, feeling a little uneasy. Kaelis stared blankly into the distance, clearly lost in thoughts of his own. Rel, however, was counting something on his claws, muttering under his breath as he did so.
He tapped his first claw.
“Magus Rel.”
He tapped the second.
“Grandmaster Rel.”
He tapped the third.
“Lord Rel.”
He tapped the fourth.
“Champion Rel.”
He shook his head.
“Just one more and I’ll have five,” he muttered with a disappointed humph.
Wow.
He didn’t even consider the title ‘Squire’ worthy enough to make the list.
He must have felt my eyes on him, because he suddenly jerked upright, clearing his throat.
“Yes, as I was saying… one more and we’ll have completed the first five floors of the Tower of Potential.”
I had no words.
* * *
“So…” I asked, “what’s the plan for tomorrow?”
Kaelis perked up at this, fixing me with a slightly disturbing grin.
“Well, Master Pete,” he said. “I think it’s time I returned to Floor Two to repay the trolls for how they treated me the last time I visited.”
There was a savage intensity in his eyes that made me feel a little sorry for the trolls who would soon cross his path.
“Indeed, my disciple,” said Rel, nodding sagely. “Allow your thirst for revenge to fuel your training. A spear strikes you? That’s a chance for a durability gain. You rip off a troll’s arm and beat them to death with it? That’s a chance for a strength gain.”
Kaelis drank in every word, his expression intense. I was slightly concerned that he seemed to be taking Rel’s words very literally.
Tomorrow, some poor troll was going to end up being bludgeoned to death with its own arm…
“What shall we do?” I asked Rel.
He stared off into the distance, stroking his chin thoughtfully, as if pondering a decision of significant magnitude.
“Let’s go and fuck some shit up on Floor Five,” he said, finally, somehow making the words sound most profound.
I grinned savagely.
Now that’s what I’m talking about.
A Transmigration Progression Fantasy
LitRPG Transmigration Progression Anti-Hero Lead Grimdark High Fantasy Local Protagonist Non-Human Lead
Death is a minor setback for the Night Lich.
Quill, commander of the Rotten Scourge and the most feared necromancer of the Westlands, is cornered by the Circle mages. In a final act of defiance, he casts a soul-transfer, only to awaken in the frail body of an elf orphan with his Black magic stripped away.
Yet fate grants him an ironic gift: a rare White Core fractured by Black. Creation is stained with death and decay, but when light meets darkness, it instead births something strange. Something unique. Something unstoppable.
Quill will claw his way back to power, forging a new army with centuries of forbidden knowledge. He’ll master reanimation along with creation–and this time, revenge will be absolute.
But dancing with death always comes at a price, and the Forgotten World doesn't take kindly to a missing soul.
- Steady Progression: Studying magic is hard.
- Crunchy Magic System: Raw and intimate spell theory.
- Army Building: Necromancer-turned-Golemancer.
- Morally Gray MC: Balancing morality with convenience.
- Competent MC: Wise and avid book reader protagonist.
- Lite-LitRPG: No +9999 notifications except for stat sheets.
- No Harem: Only one character at a time.