Varewulf I have art now! Thanks to my love for drawing that, she really went beyond what I asked for.
Sara did as intended, and basically took the next day off. She'd had a very busy time since arriving in Ildhena, and she needed a break, or she was going to break.
How can so many things happen in one day, several days in a row?
Thankfully there was nothing pressing to do that required her immediate attention. Her wolves could handle looking after the woods for a day, while she put off everything until the next day.
First she stayed in bed until sunrise. Then she went outside, and found a sunny spot to lay down in. The area around the den was largely clear of trees, so she could get on top of the hill above the entrance, and laze about in the warm light.
Around noon she got word that the elves wanted to order ten of the best balls of silk she could deliver. She had no idea what for, and she wasn't going to ask. She didn't even have to go meet anyone in person, the ravens were clever enough to deliver the entire message. All she had to do was take root up there, and lazily start weaving together the silk. It made her wonder if Mirielle and Luneria had told the others the truth about where the silk actually came from, or whether the elves thought she had some other source.
I wonder if I photosynthesise, she thought as the sun caressed her head of leaves.
She hadn't actually been given any time limit on when she needed to deliver them, so she'd go to the Hunting Post the next morning. It would coincide with her wanting to ask them if they had anyone who was free to come on a raid that day. Though she should clear that with Gloria first.
And she had to make sure they had payment ready before she handed over the silk. Even if they were technically allies now, she was firm on the idea that she wasn't going to let them exploit her. If she was going to give them any freebies it would be on her own terms, not because they demanded it. So she would make sure to not do anything else without some sort of payment, or exchange.
The alliance might be more favourable for the elves than the wolves, but she genuinely felt it was more interesting than doing what they were 'supposed to', and thankfully the wolves were agreeing with her so far. If they ever started to feel differently, she would reconsider things. She wouldn't have thought so when she first came here, but she had started to feel like their feelings were more important than those of the Residents. It still felt nice to be nice if that was reasonable, but sometimes other things took priority.
I may be human on the inside, but my new life has had far more positive experiences with the mobs than the people of this world. If I hadn't been made a wolf, maybe I would have seen things differently. But I was, and they accepted me, even though they could tell I was weird, and different. I've even struck up a positive relationship with the ravens. I honestly think those birds are even weirder than me, but better to have them on my side, than not. Even if it might only last for as long as they're amused.
Maybe it was possible for her to negotiate friendships, or at least understandings with other mobs as well. Maybe the deer? Though their two species had had an adversarial relationship ever since they first met. And she wouldn't have anything to farm levels off of if they suddenly became friendly as well. It wasn't like she had anything to offer them anyway, and she wasn't sure if they were willing to listen to her in the first place.
The bears might be a more likely target, assuming Bear Form would be enough to at least make them hear her out. If she could get them to behave, then the safety of the road would be pretty much guaranteed. She didn't really have anything to offer them either, though. Maybe it was possible to bribe them with food, but from what she had seen they seemed to have been programmed with a bit more of a mean streak in their AI script. If she hadn't been a wolf herself, maybe she would have gotten the same impression from the wolves, but it hadn't escaped her notice how the bears quite specifically targeted the Residents above anything else during the escort quest. If that elf lieutenant hadn't been such a good tank, people definitely would have gotten hurt, and they couldn't rely on always having someone like him around. She could probably fill the role of stopping them in their tracks herself, but having to personally escort every traveller wasn't a tenable long-term solution. She was willing to step up for the time being, but eventually they would have to think of something else.
Once the silk order was complete, and she'd gotten a couple more Thread Manipulation levels, she went back to her furry self, and soaked up more sun. She'd taken it pretty easy, so it had likely taken her an hour or two to finish all ten.
She wasn't going to figure out a solution to every problem immediately. It was better to take them one at a time. And right now the only issue was how nice the sunshine felt on her belly. Strangely enough having all of this fur didn't make her feel too warm. Maybe that was again thanks to the options menu, but other things probably helped too, like the Insulation skill.
[ Insulation Skill Level Up! Level Max Reached, Bonus Unlocked! 1 skill point gained. ]
Speaking of...
[ Insulation (Passive): Makes you more resistant to the elements. Improves effectiveness of fur and hair. Cold and warm temperatures bother you less. Effect increases with skill level. (2+(0.08*skill level))% resistance to elemental attacks, and effects. (Light and Dark excluded.)
Max level bonus: Your hide, fur, and hair are stronger, and more resistant to damage. Bleed(?) status resistance: +10%. Might help shield you against certain effects. ]
A somewhat vague description, but she didn't mind the Bleed resistance. A Bleed Resistance skill would have been nice. She'd gotten Poison Resistance, so maybe there was a resistance skill for every negative status condition. There were certain things that didn't bleed by design, like those scarecrows, and presumably golems, and maybe undead... but that was probably worked into their type rather than being because of a skill. Burn Resistance would probably be on the top of her list of desired ones. Fire Resistance helped with that a bit, since it covered all fire effects as far as she knew, but she probably couldn't become immune to fire entirely. As cool as that would be. Maybe if she found a mob with fire immunity, or fire absorption, and could steal the skill from them.
She got the sudden thought that maybe she could ask the the ravens to help her level her Dark Resistance. She hadn't done anything with that yet, but those birds had non-damaging dark skills. It would be easier than Fire Resistance levelling, at least. But it was her day off, so all of that could wait.
As evening approached, a pack of wolves approached to give her a report of what they had seen of people that day.
There had been more showing up to fight them, which was fine. There had been more wearing the symbol as well, who had walked around, or hunted, or gathered plants. Which was also fine. Thankfully there hadn't been any troublemakers yet. Apparently some of them had tried getting close to the wolves, but they had decided to keep their distance, since they weren't sure what the people actually wanted. That was completely their prerogative, so Sara didn't have any comments on that. It seemed like things were going alright, and the wolves hadn't voiced any complaints. Hopefully that wasn't because they thought they shouldn't question the boss, but she didn't want to get into those weeds at the moment.
She was kinda tempted to try just walking around, and look for herself what people were doing at some point. She would definitely stand out, but maybe it would be fun to spread the word of the Guardian Beast a little more. Give people some stories to tell, at least.
Even though she had nothing but stay in one spot for most of the day, it was almost time to go to sleep for real. Something she had discovered was that she actually had no problem going to sleep whenever she wanted, even if she didn't feel particularly tired. She wasn't sure exactly why that was, but she wished she'd had that power in her old life. However before that she wanted to go have a bath. Which primarily meant floating around in the spring for a while. One of the first things she wanted to do as a Resident was take a proper bath where she could rub herself with soap. Her paws weren't very conducive to rubbing. Maybe someone else was willing to wash her... no, that might be asking too much.
The water was a little warmer during daylight hours, but still not as pleasant as the lake had been. That just meant it was more refreshing.
While lazily paddling around, she could tell someone else was approaching. She turned in that direction, and saw another wolf come out from among the trees.
"Oh, hey," she said.
"Hey, boss."
It was her bathing buddy. She wasn't sure if any of the other wolves had taken to it, but this was the only one she was aware of.
"The water's a bit warmer than during the night, so you came at a good time," Sara said.
"Yes, boss." Though instead of diving all the way in, the other wolf sat down in a shallower part, and only immersed herself to the chest.
"You off on your own again?" Sara asked.
"Sorta, boss. The others are going to sleep, but I wanted to get a bath first," the wolf replied.
Sara chuckled. "I'm actually doing the exact same thing." So they even slept at the same time. A thought popped into her head. "Hm... you don't have a name, do you?"
"No, boss."
"Would you be okay with me giving you one?" Sara asked.
The other wolf cocked her head to the side. "Why?"
"Well... it would be easier to refer to you that way. We seem to keep meeting, after all." Naming Gloria had certainly made things easier between them. So she didn't see any reason why she couldn't do it with others.
"Hm... okay, boss."
Sara smiled. "Then..." She thought about what might be a good name.
My bathing buddy... bathe... bath... math... no, isn't that pronounced differently? Math is more like Kath, I think... hey, maybe that works?
"How about Kathleen?"
"Hmmm... sure, boss."
"Well, then. Nice to meet you, Kathleen," Sara said with a giggle.
"Yes, boss?" Kathleen sounded confused.
[ Processing... entity Dire Wolf has accepted the name 'Kathleen'. Calculating. Searching... vacant slot found. Entity 'Kathleen' will be upgraded to fit vacant slot. ]
"W-what?" Sara was so startled she said out loud.
"Boss?" Kathleen was suddenly enveloped in light.
[ Processing... Process complete. ]
The light faded as suddenly as it appeared. Kathleen sat there as she had before, and if it wasn't for the fact that she looked bigger, then Sara might have almost believed that nothing had really happened.
[ Kathleen The Intrepid (Fighter Lvl 29) HP: 196/196 ]
Wasn't she just level 27 before? Mother, what did Auntie System just do?
"It upgraded Kathleen into a Named Mob. She is now the second-strongest wolf in Nyolund after you. But if you're about to ask me why, then I have to say I'm not sure. It is true that there are free slots for Named Mobs in the zone, since there is... was just one, but that doesn't mean the system should just... I'm sorry, Sara. I wish I had a better explanation, but it's like it was just waiting for an excuse to do something. Like when it made you into a boss. Maybe you should be careful about giving names to any other mobs from here on out."
You are probably right... thank you, mother.
It hadn't changed anything drastic about Gloria, but maybe that was because she was already a boss.
"Do you feel okay, Kathleen?" she asked.
"I think so, boss." Kathleen stood up, and turned around in a circle as if trying to get a look at herself. "A little weird, I guess. What happened?" She was definitely bigger. Sara was already slightly smaller than the average Dire Wolf, so volume wise Kathleen was now noticeably larger than her boss.
"Seems like the system- the world turned you into a Named Mob. Probably because I gave you a name. Sorry." Sara felt a little awkward, since she hadn't meant for any of that to happen.
"Why are you sorry?" Kathleen asked. "Being stronger means I can be more helpful, right?"
"I... guess so, yeah."
"Then it's good, boss." Kathleen seemed quite pleased.
So do I have a second in command now? Sara pondered.
"That's up to you," Aina replied. "You're free to use this however you'd like."
"Well..." Sara got out of the spring. "I guess we can talk more about this tomorrow, after we've gotten some sleep," she told Kathleen.
"Okay, boss!"
She made her way back to the den. It seemed like she needed to be more mindful of the consequences of her actions, but when she wasn't sure what Auntie System might react to, it was hard to predict what would, and wouldn't have consequences.
* * *
The next morning a limited quest was posted in the Komeron Adventurers' Guild:
12 people were sought to join a raid on the bandit camp in Wutsch alongside the City Guard, and the Guardian Beast. Further details would be given after meeting up with the Guard at the west exit. Recommended level: 25, but would accept members within the 20-30 range. Reward: 8 gold.
There were mixed reactions among those that were present. Some found it suspicious that there were so few details given up front. Some thought maybe they had miswritten, and it was going to be a raid on the Guardian Beast. Several weren't yet caught up on what the Guardian Beast was (or was supposed to be). Those that already knew questioned how a mob could be involved in something like this in the first place.
The reward was just on the border of: Yes, it was a fair bit of money, but not so much as for everyone to accept without question. Raids could be rough, and the full quest objectives weren't even clear.
Even so it didn't take very long for the slots to get filled. 10 of them were Wanderers, and the final 2 were Residents. Three were friends who had gotten up early, and figured it would probably be more fun than mob hunting. One figured something like this had to give a decent reputation reward, and prioritised that over the money. Two had never worked with Residents before, and were curious. Two had independently decided that a raid had to give some good loot. Two mainly wanted to see the Guardian Beast, which was basically the same motivation as the two Residents who were from Komeron. The mother of one of them had taken part in the survey mission, so they had heard the story directly from her.
Once all 12 had gotten their participation registered by the Guild's on-duty receptionist, they headed off to the west gate to meet with the Guard force. They found a very mixed line-up of elves, who weren't even all in Guard uniform. 24 of them were Guards, but there were also two wearing Naturalist Society outfits, and two wearing the cloth of the Temple of the Moon. And least but not least was the leader who had a different type of uniform from the other Guards, and he was much higher level than the others as well.
As they were handed white flower accessories they were told to make sure to wear at all times, the Adventurers had to wonder what exactly they were getting themselves into. Even for an event quest this seemed very strange, but none of them backed out.
And so the force of 40 members, plus their leader, set out for the bandit camp.
* * *
It had not been hard to get Gloria to agree to do another raid, even when Sara said she wanted to ask the elves to join them. Sara only intended to bring 50 of her wolves this time, plus Kathleen, since she figured the newly upgraded wolf should get some practical experience. While she had gotten a few new skills from the upgrade, the Leadership skill had not been one of them, but Sara figured it was still important to get to try leading the other wolves, so Kathleen would lead the charge into the camp after Sara opened a hole for them.
She had suggested that Gloria should bring about the same number, but that she was free to bring more if she wanted. Just maybe at least limit herself to no more than last time. It would be a shame if things got too cramped.
She had checked it out before sunrise to be sure, and found that the camp showed no signs of the damage they had caused the other day. The holes were gone as if they had never existed, and the building they had set fire to hadn't burned down. She had sort of suspected that much, considering how this world worked.
So the plan was to have Gloria, and her wolves deal with the lookouts around the camp entrance, while the elves stormed the gate. Meanwhile Sara would open a hole for her own wolves to storm through. She didn't really want to show off her Copy Cast too openly, so she'd settle for one hole, and just add some extra copies to make it a bigger one. If she did that out of sight of the Residents, it would leave them wondering exactly how she did it.
It honestly hadn't occurred to her until after she had asked them to join that maybe she shouldn't openly show off how she could do something like that, but it was also too risky to only have the one point of entry. Once inside she would take control of thirty of the wolves, and leave the other twenty to Kathleen. She didn't intend to fight the bandit boss this time unless necessary. They should let the elves have something to do as well.
When she had gone to the Hunting Post after sunrise to inform them that the silk was ready, and could be traded for payment (food) at any point, she had also asked about if they wanted to join a raid on the bandit camp. Which had led to her having to wait for Mirielle to show up, so she could give her more details. Sara had told her that it was fine if 30 or 40 of them wanted to come along, but preferably no more. There was only so much room inside the camp, after all.
This meant they couldn't start as early as possible, but she still only gave the elves three hours to prepare. It wasn't like they needed to bring anything except themselves, so she figured that should be enough time to round up a group, and reach the camp.
And indeed, about three hours after she had talked to Mirielle the elves showed up, though not with the line-up she had expected. Mirielle had come along herself, which in hindsight Sara felt like she should have seen coming. Laroni was there too, and had managed to get up to level 24. Her cane looked different as well. And in the back was a group of very mismatched characters, most of whom weren't even elves. And leading them all...
"I didn't expect to see you here, Lieutenant Davril," Sara wrote on her board after turning into Tree Form.
"Since we don't have a lot of people who have worked with the Guardian Beast yet, we figured it was prudent to have someone in charge with actual experience," he replied with a complete poker face.
She didn't bother questioning if he had any ulterior motives. Having him there would be helpful. "It's quite an eccentric group you have brought along," she wrote instead.
"You gave us rather short notice, so we were only able to round up a limited number of Guardsmen to join the raid. Both the Naturalist Society, and the Temple of the Moon volunteered two of their members as well, but we had to fill the rest by posting an emergency notice with the Adventurers' Guild."
"You brought Adventurers?" I guess I didn't say they couldn't. That was my own fault for assuming. But maybe it'll be fun. It's certainly a rare opportunity. "So long as they all wear the symbol, and behave, I suppose there's no problem. But if they cause trouble, I will be holding you responsible, Lieutenant."
"Understood, Guardian Beast." His expression gave almost nothing away, but he seemed to be quite serious.
"I will take up position with my pack to the side, and create an alternate entry point for us," Sara wrote. "Once we sound the signal, the west boss and her wolves will rush the lookouts. Any assistance you can provide would be appreciated, but I think you and your force should focus on rushing the gate. I don't know how fast they can close it, but if they do, it will make this a lot harder."
"Understood." Lieutenant Davril nodded. "We should be able to break it down even if they do. May I ask how you intend to create an alternate entry point? Can you not do that for all of us?"
"That is my secret. And even if it wasn't, it costs too many resources to do it several times," Sara wrote. "We should get started soon. I will do a quick inspection of your forces so I know what we have to work with, and then get into position. Just make sure you're ready to go."
"Yes, Guardian Beast."
Sara shifted back to normal, and had a stroll to look at the group Davril had brought along. The Guards were a bit of a mishmash themselves as they ranged from level 26, to 32. They were mainly Fighters, Clerics, and Rangers, plus classes presumably upgraded from those. They didn't seem like they were a cohesive unit, so much as whatever reserves they had been able to put together. Maybe she had given them too little time to prepare, but they were probably professional enough to manage to work together, and they had a decent mix of classes.
She didn't recognise the other Priestess who had come with Mirielle, or the other Druid who had come with Laroni. She imagined they would vouch for their colleagues, though.
The Adventurers were not in any sort of formation, but she hadn't expected them to be. There was one obvious trio, two obvious pairs, and five that seemed to be solo. It didn't look like there was any consideration of party composition, so it had probably been first come, first serve. A true Pick Up Group. Well, it was probably fine. They seemed to have an okay balance of melee and ranged attackers. Two of them looked geared for tanking, so that would help. They had a Priest, and a Cleric who could help with support. The rest were probably DPS focused. It should be fine.
They were all giving her curious looks of slightly different variations, but she had gotten somewhat used to people looking at her, so she tried to not let it bother her.
As she headed back forward to go to her starting point, someone called out to her.
"Um, Guardian Beast!" It was Mirielle. "C-can I go with you?"
Sara gave her a curious look. I can't actually answer you, you know.
"I was just thinking that someone should help keep you, and your wolves alive since you'll be storming in alone..."
Why is she sounding so awkward? Sara suppressed the urge to sigh, since it might give the wrong impression, and considered it seriously instead. It was true that they would likely be the first ones inside the camp, and aside from her, and Kathleen, each individual wolf was weaker than each individual bandit. And the bandits would probably react better this time, even if they'd given them a couple of days to cool down.
"Speaker Laroni," Sara said to Laroni. "Let Priestess Mirielle know that I will let her join us."
"T-then maybe I also should-"
"No, Speaker," Sara cut her off, knowing what she wanted to ask. "Not this time. Let us meet up inside instead." She tried to sound kinder at the end.
"Oh... alright." But the Druid was clearly still disappointed as she relayed the message.
It would have been helpful to have an interpreter along, but the thing was that Sara was not entirely comfortable with letting any of the Residents see the full extent of her power. The other mobs were a different story. She felt they wouldn't give anything away unnecessarily, but Residents talked to more people, even outside of their own group. She liked Laroni, but she didn't know her that well yet, or any of the Residents really, except Mirielle whom she trusted enough to at least show her some of it.
I should probably use another rock or two to make sure Mirielle will be able to get through the hole as well. Elves are so tall, and I wouldn't want her to bonk her head.
Varewulf I have art now! Thanks to my love for drawing that, she really went beyond what I asked for.
Sara did as intended, and basically took the next day off. She'd had a very busy time since arriving in Ildhena, and she needed a break, or she was going to break.
How can so many things happen in one day, several days in a row?
Thankfully there was nothing pressing to do that required her immediate attention. Her wolves could handle looking after the woods for a day, while she put off everything until the next day.
First she stayed in bed until sunrise. Then she went outside, and found a sunny spot to lay down in. The area around the den was largely clear of trees, so she could get on top of the hill above the entrance, and laze about in the warm light.
Around noon she got word that the elves wanted to order ten of the best balls of silk she could deliver. She had no idea what for, and she wasn't going to ask. She didn't even have to go meet anyone in person, the ravens were clever enough to deliver the entire message. All she had to do was take root up there, and lazily start weaving together the silk. It made her wonder if Mirielle and Luneria had told the others the truth about where the silk actually came from, or whether the elves thought she had some other source.
I wonder if I photosynthesise, she thought as the sun caressed her head of leaves.
She hadn't actually been given any time limit on when she needed to deliver them, so she'd go to the Hunting Post the next morning. It would coincide with her wanting to ask them if they had anyone who was free to come on a raid that day. Though she should clear that with Gloria first.
And she had to make sure they had payment ready before she handed over the silk. Even if they were technically allies now, she was firm on the idea that she wasn't going to let them exploit her. If she was going to give them any freebies it would be on her own terms, not because they demanded it. So she would make sure to not do anything else without some sort of payment, or exchange.
The alliance might be more favourable for the elves than the wolves, but she genuinely felt it was more interesting than doing what they were 'supposed to', and thankfully the wolves were agreeing with her so far. If they ever started to feel differently, she would reconsider things. She wouldn't have thought so when she first came here, but she had started to feel like their feelings were more important than those of the Residents. It still felt nice to be nice if that was reasonable, but sometimes other things took priority.
I may be human on the inside, but my new life has had far more positive experiences with the mobs than the people of this world. If I hadn't been made a wolf, maybe I would have seen things differently. But I was, and they accepted me, even though they could tell I was weird, and different. I've even struck up a positive relationship with the ravens. I honestly think those birds are even weirder than me, but better to have them on my side, than not. Even if it might only last for as long as they're amused.
Maybe it was possible for her to negotiate friendships, or at least understandings with other mobs as well. Maybe the deer? Though their two species had had an adversarial relationship ever since they first met. And she wouldn't have anything to farm levels off of if they suddenly became friendly as well. It wasn't like she had anything to offer them anyway, and she wasn't sure if they were willing to listen to her in the first place.
The bears might be a more likely target, assuming Bear Form would be enough to at least make them hear her out. If she could get them to behave, then the safety of the road would be pretty much guaranteed. She didn't really have anything to offer them either, though. Maybe it was possible to bribe them with food, but from what she had seen they seemed to have been programmed with a bit more of a mean streak in their AI script. If she hadn't been a wolf herself, maybe she would have gotten the same impression from the wolves, but it hadn't escaped her notice how the bears quite specifically targeted the Residents above anything else during the escort quest. If that elf lieutenant hadn't been such a good tank, people definitely would have gotten hurt, and they couldn't rely on always having someone like him around. She could probably fill the role of stopping them in their tracks herself, but having to personally escort every traveller wasn't a tenable long-term solution. She was willing to step up for the time being, but eventually they would have to think of something else.
Once the silk order was complete, and she'd gotten a couple more Thread Manipulation levels, she went back to her furry self, and soaked up more sun. She'd taken it pretty easy, so it had likely taken her an hour or two to finish all ten.
She wasn't going to figure out a solution to every problem immediately. It was better to take them one at a time. And right now the only issue was how nice the sunshine felt on her belly. Strangely enough having all of this fur didn't make her feel too warm. Maybe that was again thanks to the options menu, but other things probably helped too, like the Insulation skill.
[ Insulation Skill Level Up! Level Max Reached, Bonus Unlocked! 1 skill point gained. ]
Speaking of...
[ Insulation (Passive): Makes you more resistant to the elements. Improves effectiveness of fur and hair. Cold and warm temperatures bother you less. Effect increases with skill level. (2+(0.08*skill level))% resistance to elemental attacks, and effects. (Light and Dark excluded.)
Max level bonus: Your hide, fur, and hair are stronger, and more resistant to damage. Bleed(?) status resistance: +10%. Might help shield you against certain effects. ]
A somewhat vague description, but she didn't mind the Bleed resistance. A Bleed Resistance skill would have been nice. She'd gotten Poison Resistance, so maybe there was a resistance skill for every negative status condition. There were certain things that didn't bleed by design, like those scarecrows, and presumably golems, and maybe undead... but that was probably worked into their type rather than being because of a skill. Burn Resistance would probably be on the top of her list of desired ones. Fire Resistance helped with that a bit, since it covered all fire effects as far as she knew, but she probably couldn't become immune to fire entirely. As cool as that would be. Maybe if she found a mob with fire immunity, or fire absorption, and could steal the skill from them.
She got the sudden thought that maybe she could ask the the ravens to help her level her Dark Resistance. She hadn't done anything with that yet, but those birds had non-damaging dark skills. It would be easier than Fire Resistance levelling, at least. But it was her day off, so all of that could wait.
As evening approached, a pack of wolves approached to give her a report of what they had seen of people that day.
There had been more showing up to fight them, which was fine. There had been more wearing the symbol as well, who had walked around, or hunted, or gathered plants. Which was also fine. Thankfully there hadn't been any troublemakers yet. Apparently some of them had tried getting close to the wolves, but they had decided to keep their distance, since they weren't sure what the people actually wanted. That was completely their prerogative, so Sara didn't have any comments on that. It seemed like things were going alright, and the wolves hadn't voiced any complaints. Hopefully that wasn't because they thought they shouldn't question the boss, but she didn't want to get into those weeds at the moment.
She was kinda tempted to try just walking around, and look for herself what people were doing at some point. She would definitely stand out, but maybe it would be fun to spread the word of the Guardian Beast a little more. Give people some stories to tell, at least.
Even though she had nothing but stay in one spot for most of the day, it was almost time to go to sleep for real. Something she had discovered was that she actually had no problem going to sleep whenever she wanted, even if she didn't feel particularly tired. She wasn't sure exactly why that was, but she wished she'd had that power in her old life. However before that she wanted to go have a bath. Which primarily meant floating around in the spring for a while. One of the first things she wanted to do as a Resident was take a proper bath where she could rub herself with soap. Her paws weren't very conducive to rubbing. Maybe someone else was willing to wash her... no, that might be asking too much.
The water was a little warmer during daylight hours, but still not as pleasant as the lake had been. That just meant it was more refreshing.
While lazily paddling around, she could tell someone else was approaching. She turned in that direction, and saw another wolf come out from among the trees.
"Oh, hey," she said.
"Hey, boss."
It was her bathing buddy. She wasn't sure if any of the other wolves had taken to it, but this was the only one she was aware of.
"The water's a bit warmer than during the night, so you came at a good time," Sara said.
"Yes, boss." Though instead of diving all the way in, the other wolf sat down in a shallower part, and only immersed herself to the chest.
"You off on your own again?" Sara asked.
"Sorta, boss. The others are going to sleep, but I wanted to get a bath first," the wolf replied.
Sara chuckled. "I'm actually doing the exact same thing." So they even slept at the same time. A thought popped into her head. "Hm... you don't have a name, do you?"
"No, boss."
"Would you be okay with me giving you one?" Sara asked.
The other wolf cocked her head to the side. "Why?"
"Well... it would be easier to refer to you that way. We seem to keep meeting, after all." Naming Gloria had certainly made things easier between them. So she didn't see any reason why she couldn't do it with others.
"Hm... okay, boss."
Sara smiled. "Then..." She thought about what might be a good name.
My bathing buddy... bathe... bath... math... no, isn't that pronounced differently? Math is more like Kath, I think... hey, maybe that works?
"How about Kathleen?"
"Hmmm... sure, boss."
"Well, then. Nice to meet you, Kathleen," Sara said with a giggle.
"Yes, boss?" Kathleen sounded confused.
[ Processing... entity Dire Wolf has accepted the name 'Kathleen'. Calculating. Searching... vacant slot found. Entity 'Kathleen' will be upgraded to fit vacant slot. ]
"W-what?" Sara was so startled she said out loud.
"Boss?" Kathleen was suddenly enveloped in light.
[ Processing... Process complete. ]
The light faded as suddenly as it appeared. Kathleen sat there as she had before, and if it wasn't for the fact that she looked bigger, then Sara might have almost believed that nothing had really happened.
[ Kathleen The Intrepid (Fighter Lvl 29) HP: 196/196 ]
Wasn't she just level 27 before? Mother, what did Auntie System just do?
"It upgraded Kathleen into a Named Mob. She is now the second-strongest wolf in Nyolund after you. But if you're about to ask me why, then I have to say I'm not sure. It is true that there are free slots for Named Mobs in the zone, since there is... was just one, but that doesn't mean the system should just... I'm sorry, Sara. I wish I had a better explanation, but it's like it was just waiting for an excuse to do something. Like when it made you into a boss. Maybe you should be careful about giving names to any other mobs from here on out."
You are probably right... thank you, mother.
It hadn't changed anything drastic about Gloria, but maybe that was because she was already a boss.
"Do you feel okay, Kathleen?" she asked.
"I think so, boss." Kathleen stood up, and turned around in a circle as if trying to get a look at herself. "A little weird, I guess. What happened?" She was definitely bigger. Sara was already slightly smaller than the average Dire Wolf, so volume wise Kathleen was now noticeably larger than her boss.
"Seems like the system- the world turned you into a Named Mob. Probably because I gave you a name. Sorry." Sara felt a little awkward, since she hadn't meant for any of that to happen.
"Why are you sorry?" Kathleen asked. "Being stronger means I can be more helpful, right?"
"I... guess so, yeah."
"Then it's good, boss." Kathleen seemed quite pleased.
So do I have a second in command now? Sara pondered.
"That's up to you," Aina replied. "You're free to use this however you'd like."
"Well..." Sara got out of the spring. "I guess we can talk more about this tomorrow, after we've gotten some sleep," she told Kathleen.
"Okay, boss!"
She made her way back to the den. It seemed like she needed to be more mindful of the consequences of her actions, but when she wasn't sure what Auntie System might react to, it was hard to predict what would, and wouldn't have consequences.
* * *
The next morning a limited quest was posted in the Komeron Adventurers' Guild:
12 people were sought to join a raid on the bandit camp in Wutsch alongside the City Guard, and the Guardian Beast. Further details would be given after meeting up with the Guard at the west exit. Recommended level: 25, but would accept members within the 20-30 range. Reward: 8 gold.
There were mixed reactions among those that were present. Some found it suspicious that there were so few details given up front. Some thought maybe they had miswritten, and it was going to be a raid on the Guardian Beast. Several weren't yet caught up on what the Guardian Beast was (or was supposed to be). Those that already knew questioned how a mob could be involved in something like this in the first place.
The reward was just on the border of: Yes, it was a fair bit of money, but not so much as for everyone to accept without question. Raids could be rough, and the full quest objectives weren't even clear.
Even so it didn't take very long for the slots to get filled. 10 of them were Wanderers, and the final 2 were Residents. Three were friends who had gotten up early, and figured it would probably be more fun than mob hunting. One figured something like this had to give a decent reputation reward, and prioritised that over the money. Two had never worked with Residents before, and were curious. Two had independently decided that a raid had to give some good loot. Two mainly wanted to see the Guardian Beast, which was basically the same motivation as the two Residents who were from Komeron. The mother of one of them had taken part in the survey mission, so they had heard the story directly from her.
Once all 12 had gotten their participation registered by the Guild's on-duty receptionist, they headed off to the west gate to meet with the Guard force. They found a very mixed line-up of elves, who weren't even all in Guard uniform. 24 of them were Guards, but there were also two wearing Naturalist Society outfits, and two wearing the cloth of the Temple of the Moon. And least but not least was the leader who had a different type of uniform from the other Guards, and he was much higher level than the others as well.
As they were handed white flower accessories they were told to make sure to wear at all times, the Adventurers had to wonder what exactly they were getting themselves into. Even for an event quest this seemed very strange, but none of them backed out.
And so the force of 40 members, plus their leader, set out for the bandit camp.
* * *
It had not been hard to get Gloria to agree to do another raid, even when Sara said she wanted to ask the elves to join them. Sara only intended to bring 50 of her wolves this time, plus Kathleen, since she figured the newly upgraded wolf should get some practical experience. While she had gotten a few new skills from the upgrade, the Leadership skill had not been one of them, but Sara figured it was still important to get to try leading the other wolves, so Kathleen would lead the charge into the camp after Sara opened a hole for them.
She had suggested that Gloria should bring about the same number, but that she was free to bring more if she wanted. Just maybe at least limit herself to no more than last time. It would be a shame if things got too cramped.
She had checked it out before sunrise to be sure, and found that the camp showed no signs of the damage they had caused the other day. The holes were gone as if they had never existed, and the building they had set fire to hadn't burned down. She had sort of suspected that much, considering how this world worked.
So the plan was to have Gloria, and her wolves deal with the lookouts around the camp entrance, while the elves stormed the gate. Meanwhile Sara would open a hole for her own wolves to storm through. She didn't really want to show off her Copy Cast too openly, so she'd settle for one hole, and just add some extra copies to make it a bigger one. If she did that out of sight of the Residents, it would leave them wondering exactly how she did it.
It honestly hadn't occurred to her until after she had asked them to join that maybe she shouldn't openly show off how she could do something like that, but it was also too risky to only have the one point of entry. Once inside she would take control of thirty of the wolves, and leave the other twenty to Kathleen. She didn't intend to fight the bandit boss this time unless necessary. They should let the elves have something to do as well.
When she had gone to the Hunting Post after sunrise to inform them that the silk was ready, and could be traded for payment (food) at any point, she had also asked about if they wanted to join a raid on the bandit camp. Which had led to her having to wait for Mirielle to show up, so she could give her more details. Sara had told her that it was fine if 30 or 40 of them wanted to come along, but preferably no more. There was only so much room inside the camp, after all.
This meant they couldn't start as early as possible, but she still only gave the elves three hours to prepare. It wasn't like they needed to bring anything except themselves, so she figured that should be enough time to round up a group, and reach the camp.
And indeed, about three hours after she had talked to Mirielle the elves showed up, though not with the line-up she had expected. Mirielle had come along herself, which in hindsight Sara felt like she should have seen coming. Laroni was there too, and had managed to get up to level 24. Her cane looked different as well. And in the back was a group of very mismatched characters, most of whom weren't even elves. And leading them all...
"I didn't expect to see you here, Lieutenant Davril," Sara wrote on her board after turning into Tree Form.
"Since we don't have a lot of people who have worked with the Guardian Beast yet, we figured it was prudent to have someone in charge with actual experience," he replied with a complete poker face.
She didn't bother questioning if he had any ulterior motives. Having him there would be helpful. "It's quite an eccentric group you have brought along," she wrote instead.
"You gave us rather short notice, so we were only able to round up a limited number of Guardsmen to join the raid. Both the Naturalist Society, and the Temple of the Moon volunteered two of their members as well, but we had to fill the rest by posting an emergency notice with the Adventurers' Guild."
"You brought Adventurers?" I guess I didn't say they couldn't. That was my own fault for assuming. But maybe it'll be fun. It's certainly a rare opportunity. "So long as they all wear the symbol, and behave, I suppose there's no problem. But if they cause trouble, I will be holding you responsible, Lieutenant."
"Understood, Guardian Beast." His expression gave almost nothing away, but he seemed to be quite serious.
"I will take up position with my pack to the side, and create an alternate entry point for us," Sara wrote. "Once we sound the signal, the west boss and her wolves will rush the lookouts. Any assistance you can provide would be appreciated, but I think you and your force should focus on rushing the gate. I don't know how fast they can close it, but if they do, it will make this a lot harder."
"Understood." Lieutenant Davril nodded. "We should be able to break it down even if they do. May I ask how you intend to create an alternate entry point? Can you not do that for all of us?"
"That is my secret. And even if it wasn't, it costs too many resources to do it several times," Sara wrote. "We should get started soon. I will do a quick inspection of your forces so I know what we have to work with, and then get into position. Just make sure you're ready to go."
"Yes, Guardian Beast."
Sara shifted back to normal, and had a stroll to look at the group Davril had brought along. The Guards were a bit of a mishmash themselves as they ranged from level 26, to 32. They were mainly Fighters, Clerics, and Rangers, plus classes presumably upgraded from those. They didn't seem like they were a cohesive unit, so much as whatever reserves they had been able to put together. Maybe she had given them too little time to prepare, but they were probably professional enough to manage to work together, and they had a decent mix of classes.
She didn't recognise the other Priestess who had come with Mirielle, or the other Druid who had come with Laroni. She imagined they would vouch for their colleagues, though.
The Adventurers were not in any sort of formation, but she hadn't expected them to be. There was one obvious trio, two obvious pairs, and five that seemed to be solo. It didn't look like there was any consideration of party composition, so it had probably been first come, first serve. A true Pick Up Group. Well, it was probably fine. They seemed to have an okay balance of melee and ranged attackers. Two of them looked geared for tanking, so that would help. They had a Priest, and a Cleric who could help with support. The rest were probably DPS focused. It should be fine.
They were all giving her curious looks of slightly different variations, but she had gotten somewhat used to people looking at her, so she tried to not let it bother her.
As she headed back forward to go to her starting point, someone called out to her.
"Um, Guardian Beast!" It was Mirielle. "C-can I go with you?"
Sara gave her a curious look. I can't actually answer you, you know.
"I was just thinking that someone should help keep you, and your wolves alive since you'll be storming in alone..."
Why is she sounding so awkward? Sara suppressed the urge to sigh, since it might give the wrong impression, and considered it seriously instead. It was true that they would likely be the first ones inside the camp, and aside from her, and Kathleen, each individual wolf was weaker than each individual bandit. And the bandits would probably react better this time, even if they'd given them a couple of days to cool down.
"Speaker Laroni," Sara said to Laroni. "Let Priestess Mirielle know that I will let her join us."
"T-then maybe I also should-"
"No, Speaker," Sara cut her off, knowing what she wanted to ask. "Not this time. Let us meet up inside instead." She tried to sound kinder at the end.
"Oh... alright." But the Druid was clearly still disappointed as she relayed the message.
It would have been helpful to have an interpreter along, but the thing was that Sara was not entirely comfortable with letting any of the Residents see the full extent of her power. The other mobs were a different story. She felt they wouldn't give anything away unnecessarily, but Residents talked to more people, even outside of their own group. She liked Laroni, but she didn't know her that well yet, or any of the Residents really, except Mirielle whom she trusted enough to at least show her some of it.
I should probably use another rock or two to make sure Mirielle will be able to get through the hole as well. Elves are so tall, and I wouldn't want her to bonk her head.
