The Mosquito danced back, undoubtedly surprised by my willingness to charge at two people alone. Did he think he could just bully me? The Yellowjacket stepped in front of him, holding a goddamn lance in both hands. It was shorter than a normal lance, but still just felt out of place. What was this, a jousting tournament?

  Testing me, he did a small jab, the sharp end aimed straight at my torso. My momentum was still carrying me forward, but my shield caught it just at the last second. My other hand, completely free, headed straight to his face.

  But a red plate appeared just where my shield was aimed. Or, was it a plate? A square of congealed blood would be a better definition. Seemingly, the Mosquito would be as annoying as the human rumors said he’d be. The Wasp, noticing my distraction, punched right at my chin. I barely reacted on time - felt the punch graze my skin as I dodged on the last second, doing insignificant damage.

  I knew for sure that he was a worse fighter than I was now. What even was that attack? But the damn Mosquito would not let me take advantage of that, and the goddamned Wasp would not let me close on that Mosquito in turn.

  Perhaps they fought as a team before? And then they were given the same choice as I and Crudia were? It was hard to say, hard to be sure about anything in this tournament, but that was my best bet.

  I made some distance between us, risking a glance at Crudia. Her own duel seemed to be occupying her just enough, though it was hard to say who had the upper hand - she dodged an attack as I watched, and then got her hand swatted away as she went to retaliate. They seemed to be an even match. I’d not used [Analyze] on Crudia for a while, but I was fairly sure she was as high of a level as the Narwhal guy was.

  I’d have to trust her to fight her own battles. She’d shown her true capabilities throughout the whole day after all. No point in me being a worry-wart.

  The Mosquito was chanting something in a tongue I couldn’t understand, his hands moving through the air slowly, as if he was lethargic, trying to grasp at something that wasn’t there. A great time to attack him, if only the Yellowjacket wasn’t attacking me.

  A guttural scream came out of the Yellowjacket’s throat, arriving before the lance attack did, completely ruining his chances of hitting me. Where the hell did this guy learn how to fight? My shield easily deflected the lance, and I reached to punch the guy again.

  Only to get stabbed into my abdomen. I didn’t even see the attack happen. It was as if the lance missed me, and then the Yellowjacket’s arm moved at several times its usual speed to stab again. A skill then. Annoying, but should have seen it coming.

  I smashed my shield onto the lance that was still stuck in my body, trying to use the situation as well as I could, but it held, tough as diamonds. “Fuck.”

  That was when the Yellowjacket retracted the spear, a blast of my blood following, few chunks of my flesh dropping to the ground. Agony. I roared, the sound primal in my own ears. He was preparing another jab just as the Mosquito finished chanting. Congealed blood circled around me in a spiral, suddenly tightening around my body like rope, pressing my limbs to my torso. Yeah, this was not looking good. Was Crudia done, by any chance?

  I tried straining against the blood rope, using every single point I’ve put into strength, yet it didn’t give. The lance swooshed in the air, aiming right at my neck.

  Panicking, I quickly used [Block]. Way too close. I ground my teeth. The lance bounced off of the thin layer around my skin, repelled. I strained against the blood once again, and it finally let go, dissipating into nothingness. It was as if it became air. It lasted what, ten seconds? I needed to keep that in mind.

  And I needed to approach this differently. Charging them head-on would not work, apparently. Not enough of a difference in levels between me and the Yellowjacket, even if he was a crap fighter. But what could I do?

  As if reading my mind, I saw a message from Mark in my Stat view

  Mark: Shrimpie, jump into the water! You can breathe in it. They can’t.

  Right! Why didn’t I think of that? God, Mark actually had a good idea for once, and it came before it was too late to use it. He was settling into his guide role, it seemed.

  Quickly, before the thin barrier started dissipating, I banked to the right, running right toward the watery sludge I had to waddle through earlier today. Without a moment’s hesitation, I jumped in, ignoring the shouts of the two insects right behind me.

  The sounds of battle got drowned out, replaced by the calmness of water. I missed it. I realized that I had gotten used to the noise outside the water fairly quickly. Too quickly. I was turning human, wasn't I? I wasn’t sure how to feel about that fact.

  I swam through the knee-deep puddles of water, trying to edge closer to where I thought the Mosquito might stand. I thought I must have had a pretty good guess as to where he was, judging on where he was chasing me from before. If they followed me like the fools they were, I’d be emerging right next to him in a second.

  Mark : Their guides are shouting, and they warned them not to distance themselves, so they’re standing really close. If you’re aiming for the Mosquito, then you have to do more than just jump at them.

  Shrimpie: Thanks.

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  Great. Just what I needed. What were my options then? I wasn’t going to test [Battering ram] in a life-or-death scenario like this one.

  Oh. Right! I’ve got an idea! I crept even closer, already seeing the legs of the Mosquito a few metres away. I began quickly messaging Crudia.

  Shrimpie: Close your eyes in 5 seconds!

  Crudia: Again? 5 se

  A pause.

  Crudia: conds from when?

  Surely she’d know when!

  Ignoring the completely baseless question, I got even closer and reached out of the water with my arm, firing up the skill the moment it left the water.

  [Bubble Flash]

  The world above the water became so bright that even I got blinded through my closed eyelids, though it was surely worse for the surprised folks above.

  I stood up, emerging from the water with my shields ready, and punched. The two really were close together, but they were completely unprepared. My first punch went straight to the temple of the Mosquito, followed by another to his chest.

  Screaming, he tried to make some distance. I didn’t let him. Grabbing his wrist, I heaved with all my strength and threw him to the water right under my legs. He tried pleading, speech breaking the gurgling of water

  “Plea…” His head came above in a spurt of strength, but I regained control as fast as I could. I didn’t want to hear any of it. I pushed him down harder

  I just wanted this to be over, or I wanted to go help Crudia if possible.

  I punched, one punch following the other, each one breaking a new bone. Red blood pooled at my legs, but I still continued. I had no idea how he was still alive, but I wasn’t getting any XP for killing him, so I kept punching.

  Mark broke me out of my concentration. “Behind you, Shrimpie!”

  Turning my head, I saw what he warned me about. The Yellowjacket, his expression dark and furious raised his ominously glowing lance.

  This was a very bad position. All my options flashed before my eyes, one less optimal than the next. I saw Mark’s horrified expression in the near distance.

  Sorry, Crudia. I fucked up.

  I closed my eyes, waiting for the killing blow.

  When suddenly, I head the Yellowjacket rasp. I opened my eyes to see his torso pierced, his lance falling uselessly to the side.

  My first thought immediately went to Crudia, but it was not a dagger that pierced him. It was a spear, with a Narwhal horn on it, the tip emerging from the chest of my enemy.

  Using the opportunity, I used every ounce of strength in an uppercut, aimed right at his chin. A wet crunch followed, that itself followed by a feel of something popping and letting go. I watched the flesh separate at his neck, the head of the Yellowjacket came flying off, arcing in the air.

  I took in a breath, and then another, trying to absorb the situation as a whole. A guide stood just behind the corpse, looking at it with a sad expression, but refraining from actually saying anything. He met my eyes. And then he started dissipating into dust. It was a man of similar age to Mark, though with some differences. Just a man, who didn’t get the right player. I was conflicted at how to feel at that. He didn’t even look angry. Just sad and scared.

  An XP notification flashed by, announcing the end.

  I stood at the ready now, watching the body of my would-be killer fall to the ground, the spear still embedded in its back. I could see Crudia and the much taller man approaching now, walking fast, but not outright running.

  Suffice to say, I was very confused. “What the fuck does this mean, Crudia?”

  She jogged the last few steps, closing the distance. Her ears showed me her mood than her smile did. “Well, I fought with him, and I talked, and…”

  I was more confused by every passing moment. I began getting out of the water, trying to get solid ground under my feet. “Fighting doesn’t include talking in my experience.” I watched the man stop a few steps away, close enough so we didn’t have to shout, but far enough to not feel threatening. He was wearing a thick jacket made of fur, not unlike the wolf-pelt that Crudia was wearing before the boss fight today. His skin was pale with notes of blue, his hair as dark as raven’s feathers.

  The most distinguishing feature, however, were his ears. Crudia’s ears were weird enough already, but this was taking it a step further. They did look somewhat human, but longer. An elf? Who the hell made these bodies? Why would a Narwhal be an elf of all things?

  “Well, I felt like he didn’t want to fight anymore, you know? So I started talking to him.”

  “And he’s not fighting you because…?” Mark asked, as suspicious as I was. I was beginning to agree with that man, and I didn’t like that fact.

  “Because I’d like to join your party instead.” The man finally stepped closer. Damn, he was even taller than I was! I actually had to look a little bit up to look into his eyes.

  "So... uh... Nice to meet you, Shrimpie. Crudia said you're nice...?" He scratched the back of his head, awkward.

  As he should be. Did he have any idea how this felt for me? It was the most awkward I’ve felt throughout this whole tournament, and I talked to Mark, for gods’ sake!

  “You guys talked for, like, two minutes. When did the recruiting happen?”

  Talisha interrupted. “You should be grateful, Shrimpie. We’ve been looking for another party member, and he seems like a coo-”

  “No, sorry. He’s right, Ms. Guide.” Said the Narwhal again. “My name’s Dusk. We haven’t had much time to talk, but truth be told, I’ve been looking for a chance to leave that party for a while now.”

  “Huh? Why? They seemed strong enough.”

  He chuckled. “Too hierarchical, and it didn’t align with my goals.”

  “And what are your goals, exactly?” I reached with out my hand, taking his into mine. The option to text to him instantly appeared in my menu.

  “To protect my guide, of course.” Dusk said with a calm smile on his face, as if that was the most normal thing to do. His whole presence was completely different from mine or Crudia’s. While I was the perfect being without faults, Crudia was a ball of energy that was as hard to predict as the weather. Meanwhile, he seemed like a huge boulder in the ocean - the things that happened around him barely moved him, if at all.

  “Protect your guide? I think you’ve got it backwards, dude.”

  “Hah. That’s what everyone says at first. Timmy, are you there somewhere?”

  TIMMY? God, that childish name that Mark wanted to use at first? Who was this poor soul, obviously despised by his parents?

  And just then, his guide appeared, emerging from under the water right in front of me. Oh, and he was trying to shake my hand as well!

  Dusk’s guide was a goddamn twelve year old kid.