I’m glad that General died when he did; had I been solo, I might not have won that. I was running on fumes there at the end. This half regeneration is kicking my ass. He thought as he looted as much as he could.
I honestly can’t tell if that general was too easy or just a bad matchup. A single assassin against a full team doesn’t sound like a good fight.
He picked through a lot of the goblins and grabbed more weapons, any decent armor he could find, and any supplies they could use. He also made sure to grab the General’s body and equipment.
Exactly five minutes after the General died, they saw the announcement they had been expecting.
Event Update:
The Third General has fallen.
The Assassin General was slain by Alex Everett and others.
The other Generals have been notified of their fellow generals' death and have become more aggressive.
All goblins enter a frenzied state for the next ten minutes, and those not under the command of a general will become more aggressive permanently.
All goblins have 50% increased experience gain.
Generals slain 3/5
Berserker
Ranger
Assassin
Generals remaining 2/5
???
???
Good luck, gain power, and above all, survive.
Alex sighed after reading it, his fears confirmed. Each time we kill a General, the remaining goblins and generals get buffed. With that faster experience gain, they’ll be at an even higher level.
Everything looted and gathered, the group followed after Rykos, searching for the group. The trail was quite clear after hundreds of people walked through, so it was easy to follow.
It didn’t take them long to find the survivors. For some reason, they were standing still instead of moving forward.
Walking around to the front, where he heard the commotion, he called out, “Why are you stopped? There still might be more goblins around.”
Rykos moved over to him. “They’re arguing about stupid things that do not matter and refuse to head towards our camp.”
“What, are they stupid?” Where’s their leadership?”
“Over here,” Rykos replied, showing Alex where they were.
Alex walked up to the leadership, who were arguing, though most seemed to be directing their anger at the human leader.
“Why did you all stop? It’s not safe here.” Alex asked, interrupting them all.
“Oi, laddi. Good ta see ye survived.” Durgan said to him.
The elven leader looked at Alex and asked, “You said your name was Alex, correct? Are you Alex Everett?”
“Yes... Why?”
“SEE! I knew it. We can’t trust him! He will kill us all or enslave us with his strength!” The human representative said, speaking to the other leaders.
“What the hell are you talking about? I haven't killed anyone unless they deserved it, and I won’t tolerate slavery.” Alex said, growing angry.
Resting his hand on Alex’s shoulder, the dwarf spoke up again. "Aye, we caught the announcement, speakin' of ye fellin’ a General just minutes past. And we well recall the first one that said Alex Everett slew a General in single combat. Was that ye, then?"
“Yes, though this time, my team was with me. What does that have to do with any of this?”
"They're rattled, the lot of 'em. Ye sure ye aren't a dwarf with that thick skull o' yers, eh?" He said with a hearty grin. "They think ye'll make 'em all do yer biddin' and put a blade through any who refuse. Though it's mainly that soft-skinned human there that's kickin' up a fuss."
“Well. They’re not exactly wrong, at least partially. If you come to our camp, you’ll follow my rules and my lead. Everyone who has joined us has agreed to this. But you are not prisoners; if you want to leave because you don’t like how I do things, you can freely go whenever you want. I promise I won’t hold anyone against their will or treat anyone poorly. But the main rule is that everyone contributes and helps in their own way. No freeloaders. I’m not going to help people who won’t help themselves.” Alex said, eyeing each of them to see their reactions. No one seemed to dislike what he said, except for the human leader, again.
Next, the beastkin spoke up, who was an older cat-like beastkin. Ears, tail, claws, all the works you’d expect to find on a cat beastkin. She looked towards Korgrith, “Minotaur, do you follow this man, Alex Everett?”
“I do. When my people and I met him, he gave us the same offer he is giving you. I challenged him to make him prove his might, and when he won, we followed him. Since then, he has proven his honor to us. We consider him a friend and a good leader.” Korgrith replied to her.
She looked at Rykos next. “And you, wolfkin?”
“It is as Korgrith says. Alex has proven himself.” Rykos replied, nodding to Alex when he said that.
“Then that's enough for me. The Beastkin and those with us will come with you, Alex Everett.” She said to him.
“Aye, as shall the dwarves and that which is ours,” Durgan said with a wide grin.
All the other leaders followed and agreed to come, except the human who was still hesitating. With the pressure on him from the other leaders, he finally agreed to come, though he didn’t look too happy about it.
Alex stared at the human representative for an uncomfortably long time. He knew this man was going to be a problem in the future, but he couldn’t do anything about it right now.
“That’s good enough for now. Let's get back to camp. With these goblins becoming more aggressive, we shouldn’t be standing around in the forest with a group like this.” He motioned the group forward. Alex had Derek and Rykos take the lead, while he stayed in the back. Korgrith, Sarah, and Sam took one side, while the surviving fighters took the other.
It took them almost 3 hours to walk back to the camp. With such a large group, it was much slower than normal.
They brought back almost 300 people, over twice the camp's current population. It definitely hadn’t been built with this many in mind. But luckily, the earth mages had extended the walls after the recent goblin attack, so they did have more room outside the cave.
Alex was also confident that some of the new group would be earth mages, too, so they could assist with terraforming both inside and outside.
Once everyone was inside the walls, he wanted to make sure everyone was on the same page. They didn’t have time for drama or miscommunications. That would lead to people dying.
Raising a stone pillar under his feet, he lifted himself 10 feet in the air, high enough that everyone could see.
“This has already been laid out for the people who’ve been here, but I’m going to repeat things one more time for you newcomers. I’m going to make the rules clear for everyone here and now, and I will not repeat them again. If you're unsure of the rules, ask.”
“Rule 1: I’m in charge. No exceptions. If you have a problem with that, there's the exit.” He waited a moment, letting that sink in before he continued. “But you're free to leave anytime you want. I don’t give a shit. I promise I won’t stop you unless you hurt someone, or do something stupid.”
“Rule 2. Everyone contributes. Again, no exceptions. That includes me. You won’t see me lying around and relaxing all the time. I’ll help in any way I can, and I expect you all to do the same. Help doesn’t have to be through fighting, though. You can support the camp in other ways– cooking, repairs, building, cleaning, etc. If you need a job to do, just ask one of my team or me.”
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“Rule 3. Don’t be a dick. Don’t cause drama. Don’t hurt people unless it's self-defense. We’re all in this tutorial together, and by working together, we can hopefully all leave it.”
“And that’s it. Pretty straightforward stuff. If anyone needs anything, just ask. Whether that’s food, clothes, blankets, or even a friend. We’re all here to help.”
Glad that was over with, Alex lowered his pillar back into the ground as if it was never there.
God, that sucked. Even with this Progenitor racial urge to lead, I still hate public speeches and trying to act like a leader. It doesn’t feel like me. I’ve changed so much in the past week. Though, as always, how much of that is actually me, or the Progenitor race, changes, I’m not sure.
Back on the ground near the new residents of their little camp, Alex quickly spoke with their representatives while his team began getting the people settled. They needed places to rest, food, and shelter. Their earth mages were already getting to work.
“The camp isn’t much, but it’s all we’ve got in this damn tutorial.” He said to them all. “If you would like, I’ll show you to a room you can stay in. They won’t be fancy, but you’ll have a bed and some privacy. We won’t be able to offer that to everyone; most will have to share or stay in a communal area. There just isn’t enough space. But they’ll have food, warmth, and as much safety as we can provide in a tutorial full of monsters.”
“Aye, ye can’t be askin’ for much more than that,” Durgan said, nodding solemnly.
Alex led them towards a few of the empty rooms inside the cave. The non-combat earth mages were always expanding and trying to improve things, so they had rooms to spare. But not 300 people's worth, not even 50. So they’ll need to create some larger areas with beds, or double up some rooms. If they removed extra things from the room, most would fit a second bed on the other side.
Showing them to their small rooms, Alex thought the human representative was going to argue. He looked like he was sucking on something very sour.
Realizing he didn’t know their names, he inspected each of them.
He started with the older cat beastkin. She was average height for a human woman, around five and a half feet. Dark hair covered a humanoid catlike frame and head, though it was grayed with age.
Kren Clawstrike - Level 5
Next, he moved on to the Elf. The man was picturesque and perfect in every elven way. He had long blonde hair, a lean, muscular frame, and features chiseled from stone. The man looked twenty-five, though he acted and probably was much older.
Maradeim Virmys - Level 5
Out of curiosity, he checked Durgan’s level. Durgan was exactly how Alex imagined fantasy dwarfs. Large bushy beard, under five feet tall, fiery red hair, and thick muscles. Broken English, boisterous personality, and direct. He liked the dwarf already.
Durgan Forgehammer - Level 6
The orc. She looked stern and tough. Maybe thirty to forty years old, if he had to guess by human standards. Her head was shaved, a few pieces of jewelry adorned her face and ears, and she was quite muscular.
Bazga Lagum - Level 6
And finally, the human. Rotund, balding, and wearing a constant expression of disgust. He barely looked thirty-five. The man had a very punchable face.
Richard DeBagge - Level 4
Alex almost laughed aloud after he read the human’s name.
Is his name really Dick D-bag? It can’t be... I have to be reading that wrong. Is the System malfunctioning? But it does suit him perfectly.
Alex snickered, causing several of them to look at him. He was enjoying this far more than an adult should.
“If any of you need anything, just find one of my team or me.” Alex then turned and walked back towards the cave entrance. It was time for his friends to do their evolutions.
It took him another 20 minutes to gather them all up. “Do all of you have your class evolutions available now?”
They all nodded in agreement.
“Good. So, from what I've heard, we have three choices. You can go into your rooms and do it there, we can build a small room outside to do it, or you could all go into the dungeon together and do it there. But I heard it's messy, so you may want to get naked beforehand.”
“I’ll pass on the dungeon then,” Sarah said, looking around. “I’d prefer not to be naked in a dungeon with my entire team,” she said with a small laugh.
“If all of you agree with that, I would recommend we just build each of you a small room outside and do it there. Easier to clean up the mess that way.”
And that’s what they all did. They went outside the walls but chose a spot where the wall met the cave. This would keep them mostly safe and make it easy for Alex to watch over them.
He created 5 small stone rooms. They decided to stagger the evolutions, letting 3 go first while two stayed outside with Alex. They didn’t know how long the evolutions would take, so they wanted to be able to defend the camp if needed.
The first three went inside and handed him all their equipment, which he stored in his storage skill. He made sure to put their stuff in different spots to keep them separate from his.
Alex had spent a little time experimenting with his [Dimensional Storage]. He found he could direct where he wanted items to go and organize things. They would never move from the spot he left them, unless he wanted them to. He had already decided he wanted to get some shelves and other similar items to organize and store more efficiently, rather than just throwing it all on the floor.
Alex raised a stone wall to close off their rooms, leaving a few openings to let air flow. He was excited to see how strong they were after their class upgrade.
***
Derek stood there, watching the stone wall rise before the entrance. He was excited to see what class evolutions he had available, but standing there in the darkness naked was a little bit awkward. He sat down in the middle of the room, the stone cold against his bare skin, and then took a deep breath to calm himself.
Here we go.
After a few slow, deep breaths, Derek opened his notifications. The first thing he saw was all of the kill notifications from the Goblins they had been fighting; there were hundreds of them. In these notifications, he also saw a level-up alert telling him he had hit the level 9 cap and needed to pick a class evolution before reaching level 10.
Opening the class evolution options, Derek's eyes went wide. He had three different options to choose from. The first option he considered seemed similar to the class he already had. It was called Veteran Warrior.
Veteran Warrior (Common)
This veteran warrior class is the upgraded version of the basic Warrior. It focuses on improving what the basic Warrior brought to the table. It is a good all-around class that doesn't specialize in any one area of the warrior aspects.
+3 Strength, +3 Toughness, +2 free points
Hmm…that class sounds like the same one I already have, just slightly improved. It's really not what I was hoping for. Derek thought to himself.
He really wanted to be shield focused, to protect his friends, allies, and loved ones. It was important to him. He moved on and pulled up the next evolution on the list.
Hoplite (Uncommon)
You’ve proven your skills with a shield and one handed weapon. Vanquished enemies with your weapon, and defended against enemy attacks. While this class does use a shield, it is more focused on doing damage, than strictly defending. Though it is capable of both.
+3 Toughness, +3 Strength, +2 Endurance, +2 free points
A hoplite? I know that name from somewhere… AH! I remember now, those were heavy infantry in ancient Greece. Used a shield with a weapon and fought in groups. That isn’t bad, it's definitely a bit closer to what I was aiming for.
Stalwart Guardian (Rare)
You are a shield that protects those you care for, and even those you don’t. Protection is what you do and who you are. You are loyal, reliable, and hardworking in the defense of others. This class focuses on using a shield, defense, and taking hits so others don’t.
+4 Toughness, +4 Endurance, +2 Strength, +2 free points
That... is exactly what I wanted. The class I envisioned getting. With this I can protect everyone. Derek chose Stalwart Guardian, and after he did, his vision went black as he lost consciousness.
***
Rykos immediately sat down inside the small stone room. He did so before the door even closed. He was a hunter and a predator. He hated being so weak compared to higher ranks, they fought, so he quickly wanted to attain any power he could from his evolution.
He opened his notifications and went through them. He savored all the kill messages, especially when he saw the one about the General dying. That fight had been a close call for him. The assassins' spinning attack almost killed Rykos.
I need more power, he growled out into the stone room, causing it to echo off the walls.
Not hesitating any longer, he opened the class evolutions.
Veteran Warrior (Common)
This veteran warrior class is the upgraded version of the basic Warrior. It focuses on improving what the basic Warrior brought to the table. It is a good all-around class that doesn't specialize in any one area of the warrior aspects.
+3 Strength, +3 Toughness, +2 free points
Unarmed Fighter (Uncommon)
You have fought unarmed many times, defeating your enemies with your hands as weapons. This class focuses on unarmed combat. You will strike your opponents down with your body, forgoing weapons most people prefer.
+4 Strength, +2 Agility, +2 Toughness, +2 free points
Bestial Brawler (Rare)
Weapons mean nothing to you because you are the weapon. A Bestial Brawler fights with tooth, claw, and unarmed strikes. If you can’t rend and tear your opponents, you’ll beat them with blunt attacks, whether that is from your fist or a headbutt, it doesn’t matter.
+4 Strength, +3 Agility, +3 Toughness, +2 free points
Rykos gave the options no thought and picked the one that fit him when he saw it. His fighting style was definitely Bestial Brawler, and it helped make the choice for him that it was the highest rarity class on the list, offering the most stat points.
***
She was beyond ready to evolve. Sarah wanted nothing more than to be useful to her team and to help people. That's what she did before the integration, and that is what she has done since. It was a bit cold and strange to be standing in a small stone room, with no clothes on, but she would do what she had to.
If she were honest with herself, she didn’t want to fight. She would prefer to support her friends through heals, defensive abilities, or any support skills she could get.
I’ll do whatever I need to.
Sarah opened her class evolution choices.
Veteran Support (Common)
This Veteran Support class is the upgraded version of the basic Support. It focuses on improving what the basic Support brought to the table. It is a support class that continues with some healings and support abilities, not specializing in anything, but also limited in offensive capabilities.
+3 Wisdom, +2 Intelligence, +1 Willpower, +2 free points
This would be fine if I needed to. She thought to herself as she looked over the Veteran Support class. It is basically the same as it is now. I would like more, though, more ways to help.
Generalist Support (Common)
You’ve shown support for your comrades in all areas. If they need healing, you're there. Defensive or support skills? Yep, you got them. You even assist them with offensive spells. This class is a jack-of-all-trades upgrade to the basic Support class. It specializes in nothing, but allows you to continue supporting others in all areas, even by attacking.
+3 Wisdom, +2 Intelligence, +1 Willpower, +2 free points
This one might be worse. It feels like a step back from healing, just to do a little bit of damage. I want my main focus to be on healing or support skills, not trying to kill monsters.
Holy Priestess (Uncommon)
Healers come in all shapes and sizes. Some use nature, some use the elements, arcane, blood, and many more types. This class uses the Divine. You’ve prayed to a higher being, and this class allows you to channel those prayers into healing.
+4 Wisdom, +2 Intelligence, +2 Willpower, +2 free points
I prayed to a higher being? She thought, trying to remember if she ever did that. I’m really not religious. Maybe I accidentally prayed in a fight or for one of the people to survive. I don’t know if I would be comfortable praying to heal people.
Barrier Warden (Rare)
You’ve shown to be a skilled and quick-witted defensive healer. You have used your healing spells and defensive barriers to protect allies and prevent harm. This class focuses more on defensive bubbles and protection, but it still heals well.
+4 Wisdom, +4 Intelligence, +2 Willpower, +2 free points
More defensive barriers? I hadn’t thought of that being an option. It would let me protect people without needing to heal, even though the class says it can still heal. I think this would be a good choice for me. The priestess class has more healing, but I don’t like praying to heal. I need strength of my own, not to borrow it from a higher power.
Her mind made up, Sarah chose the Barrier Warden class.
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