No Regrets [EO]
"What are we going to do next?" Alex asked, looking at the response messages from the court. The results weren't very satisfactory.
Looking at the flow of things, it seemed they wanted the village to be oblivious. The more Alex read, the more his anger grew, but it was unfortunate he couldn't do anything about it.
"Last option: I will use my authority to post a quest in the adventurer guild. If someone accepts the quest, we call it luck." Ray stopped, thinking something.
"Otherwise?" Alex asked.
"Otherwise, we have to fight our own battle. Get all the weapons from the warehouse ready and announce the attack in the village."
"Those who want to flee have the time of three days, and those who want to stay have no other option but to fight."
Ray stood up from his chair with determination etched on his face. "Announce in the village; we are going to have a public meeting. ASAP. "
….
…
..
The sun descended below the horizon, casting the world in the gentle moonlight of a waning gibbous moon.
Ben diligently worked on extracting the rabbit's nails and storing their bodies in a small pit in the ground. The cold weather ensured the meat would likely remain fresh until the next day. As for the rabbit fangs, typically discarded by hunters, Ben had plans for them.
These fangs were infused with a natural poison, which can cause stinging pain and dizziness. Normally, this kind of poison isn't fatal, but it can be used as a distraction and debuff the enemy. In other words, these fangs will play a good role in upcoming battles.
"Three days from now..." Ben wiped the sweat from his forehead, gazing at the moon in the sky. Time was ticking away; by the end of the third day and the beginning of the fourth night, the wolf would launch its attack.
"Why is the timing so specific, though?" Freya questioned, breaking an hour-long silence between them.
Ben responded with complex expressions. Since he was born into this world, he has felt happiness, sorrow, pain, and almost every human emotion.
But with time, he evolved more and more, and his emotions were getting drastically limited. Even after a fight and witnessing a death, Ben wants to feel a tinge of regret or remorse. When standing against the wolf, he wants to feel fear.
The only joy he experienced was from drinking blood and getting stronger. Slowly, he felt himself like a game player, bound by strings, all his actions controlled by quests. An unknown darkness was slowly engulfing his heart inside of it.
'System, allot all my free stats into stamina; I guess I will have all stats maxed out now.' Ben responded in his mind; he took out two rabbits and began to roast them in flames.
Though Ben won't get any energy from eating meat, he will still be able to digest it well, unlike any plant-based food.
«STATUS»
Name: Ben Franklin
Race: Vampire
Evolution: Evo 4 Level: 6
Exp: 2/1000 HP: 98/100
MP: 12/000 B.E.: 100/100
Strength: 31
Agility: 31
Stamina: 31
Free stats: 0
Active Skills [i]
Passive Skills [i]
New Form: LOCKED (reach level 10 to unlock)
....
[A/N: Just to be clear, many factors affect HP, so despite drinking full, it's normal if he doesn't get 100/100 HP. ]
'I need much more experience to get to level 10. If I am not able to unlock my new form or magic element, then the battle is pretty much over.' Bne thought, sprinkling a little bit of salt on his meat.
Just as Ben and Freya were eating their shares, Ben noticed people gathering before the chief house. He didn't know what they were here for or what Ray was planning. But whatever it was, Ben's interest was now piqued.
The crowd of people continued to gather around; almost the whole village was gathered before the wooden structure, including elder women and children. While Ben observed everything from afar.
Soon, a red-haired boy in his late teens stepped out of the house, determination etched on his face. He looked around at the people of the village and Ben, who waved his hand while sitting afar.
"Dear villagers," Ray shouted in a booming voice that echoed through the whole plane. "I know, we haven't been together for very long, and there wasn't much I could do for the village development."
"I know some of you hate me, and I completely understand it. I completely understand everyone's reasons and perspective. But now is not the time for hate."
Ray took a moment of pause, feeling nervous before he continued, "I have come to find a very big threat that is looming over this village. I believe you have noticed it too—the abnormal amount of wolves attacking near the village."
"From how things are going, our village will be attacked by a wave of wolves on a full moon, three days from now."
A sudden, mothering sound erupted in the crowd, and Ray's speech was cut short.
"Attack by a wave of wolves?"
"We can't handle the hunger; how are we supposed to defend ourselves?"
"Shouldn't the city help us? The king needs to protect his land."
"I bet everyone is the same; let's just run away to somewhere else."
As Ray herded the whispers, his frustration grew by the second. Clenching his fists tightly, he sat down on his knees. Ben closely watched all his actions from afar.
"SHUT UP!" Ray shouted, and a sudden silence fell on the ground.
"Stop playing the blame game. Don't act like you don't know anything."
"No one is coming here to help you; don't you realize by now? You are being discriminated against by your own country. No one is coming to help you in this god-forsaken land."
"Even if you run away, what do you think will happen? Will those people ever accept you to live among them? Just answer me, How many people have returned after leaving this village?"
Anger evident Ray continued to speak, his voice slightly trembling. "All you ever did was run away like cowards. Run from the city; run from the village. But you know what?"
"I am not a coward like you. No matter what you do, whether you help me or not, I have my people to protect here, my friends, the promises I made, and the responsibilities I bear. "
Silence fell on the ground once again. Some may agree or disagree, but none of them dared to raise their voice against Ray.
"I am not the only one who has things to protect. You, too, are the same as me. Just ask yourself: for how long are you going to run away? I know they are a lot; they are strong. But together, we are even stronger."
Ray took out a knife from his back and cut his hand. "I, as the leader of this village, make a mana vow that till my last breath, I will protect the village. And today, I ask you to do the same as me."
As he made the vow, a light of black chain materialized out of thin air and surrounded his hand before it faded into the air.
"Not for me, but for the ones you love. The ones you swore to protect are those who depend on you. Please, I request that you fight alongside me." Ray stopped speaking; beads of sweat formed on his back, expecting some kind of response, but there was nothing for him other than silence.
"Even if we do agree to fight, how are we going to defeat the wolves with the weapons we have?" A familiar voice asked. Ray instantly turned to look at the source of the voice, and a slight smile appeared on his face.
"Hey, look! It's the same person from the hunting ground, and the girl who killed that bastard."
"Wait! For real? They look quite young."
"Don't let appearances fool you; I saw how crazy strong each one of them is."
"Ya, a single one of them was able to take down 10 men without dropping a sweat."
"Are these people going to fight alongside us?" Murmurs erupted in the crowd again, people whispering and talking to each other.
"Call it fortune or unfortunate, but we have more weapons available than the total manpower of this village," Ray responded. But before he completed his sentence, another voice followed from behind.
"Not just weapons; we have more than enough food supply for the whole battle. Strong people who will fight alongside you and a place to keep your family safe from the attacks." Freya said, pulling a cart full of rigid rabbits behind her.
"Now it's completely up to you. Will you run like a coward or face your enemies like a brave warrior should?" Ray asked out loud, but to his embarrassment, again there was nothing but silence in response.
…
"No one wants to live a life like a coward; I am fighting against the wolves!!" Ben's voice broke through the silence as he turned to face other people. "Comone guys, this is our only chance to come together."
"Yes, I will fight those bastards too. These people should know the price for attacking our village." An unknown man with a broken hand replied, walking forward. Ben recognized him instantly; it was the same guy Ben fought with today.
"If these are fighting, we won't hold back either!!"
"We will fight as well !"
"Stand for the village, everyone together!"
"Yeah!!" Loud cheers erupted from the crowd, igniting a warcry. Ben, from the audience, looked at Ray with a slight smile.
'Shall I call you a hero or Messiah? What you did today, Ben, is something a failure like me couldn't pull off.' Ray thought, and with a sad smile playing on his lips, he gave a small nod to Ben. 'Fighting with my life is the only way I can repay you for your trust.'
Ben smiled and gave him a small nod in return. 'When I was your age, I used to sit in my home and play video games all the time. Even if it wants the quest, the burdens you carry at such a young age are worth risking my life for.'