Chapter 22: Positive Outcome 

Snaya slid swiftly, dodging the attacks from the four men.

Her sword swung around but didn't hit anyone, as the men were cautious. She didn't use her bow—fighting four opponents with a bow would be suicide. Instead, she used the sword she had taken from the bandits. It was sharp and light, though just ordinary.

Snaya targeted one man and jumped straight at him. As he tried to dodge, her tail slapped his legs.

The man fell, but before Snaya could launch another attack, another man came at her from behind.

But a horde of icicles struck him.

[-10 HP] *10.

As all the icicles hit him, he froze and lost just a tiny bit of HP. But that was enough time for Snaya to charge straight at the man on the ground.

She wrapped her tails around his body. As her tails tightened, the man groaned. Trembling, he tried to swing his sword.

But Snaya jumped and threw him far away. As he flew, she drew her bow and aimed at him.

At once, she shot five arrows, quickly nocking another as soon as they were released.

The five arrows struck the man's head. 

[-175 HP!] *5.

With only 1200 HP, the man was already near death. But the next batch of arrows struck his neck.

All five arrows hit him perfectly in the neck.

[-155 HP!] *5.

[Your territory member: Snaya killed Levis (LV. 10) and gained 5,000 EXP!]

Since Lan Sol didn't deal any damage to the man, he didn't receive any EXP.

However, he had been dealing with the three men behind them. The Icicle Rain hit the three men, slowing them down.

As they charged at Snaya, Lan Sol used the Slippery Floor skill.

Startled, the three of them slipped, and at that moment, another batch of Icicle Rain hit them.

While the damage was very low, it slowed them down enough for Snaya to successfully kill one of the men.

At that moment, Adin was killed, and the morale of the remaining three dropped. Instead of continuing the fight, the three decided to run away.

But as soon as they tried, the Slippery Floor made them slip again.

"Damn this! I'll kill that man first!" Frustrated by the slippery floor, the man jumped straight at Lan Sol.

But that was his mistake. In midair, he didn't encounter any slippery floor, but he couldn't react and move his body in time.

"So eager to die, huh? I can understand." Lan Sol's face bloomed with a smile.

The man realized something was wrong, but before he could regret his actions, his face was hit by the Icicle Rain.

[-10] *10 

[-10] *10

A few milliseconds later, another horde of Icicles hit him.

Unable to dodge, the force pushed him back, and more Icicles continued to stab him.

Despite the low damage each Icicle dealt, their combined effect was overwhelming.

"Aaarg! Waaa…" The man collided with a tree.

The Icicle Rain stabbed him again.

[-10 HP] *10 

[-10 HP] *10 

[-10 HP] *10

In just seconds, hundreds of Icicles stabbed him. His defense was strong, so the Icicles only scratched him and fell off.

But they still did damage, and their effects piled up. With only a few hundred HP remaining, the man tried to run again.

But Lan Sol had his sights locked on him. As the man attempted to escape, more Icicles continued to strike him.

And with perfect timing, a Slippery Floor was created beneath his feet, causing him to slip again, hit by the Icicles and losing chunks of HP.

This only lasted for about 30 seconds.

[-10 HP] *10

[Successfully killed Jarv (LV. 10). Gained 5,000 EXP!]

[Combatant Snaya received 1,000 EXP.]

[You have leveled up! Current Level: 7]

[Your stats have increased! Strength +2, Agility +2, Spirit +3, Constitution +2]

Finally!

Lan Sol leveled up.

As Lan Sol rejoiced, Snaya fired another batch of her arrows one by one. Her arrows and bow weren't ordinary. Despite the arrows not piercing the enemies' defenses, their attack power was high, and they were incredibly durable. None of the arrows had broken.

The arrows, imbued with her skill 'Frostbite Arrow,' hit the target.

Since her skill treats all arrows in the bow as one, the five arrows gained the skill's effect. Of course, it might seem like a loophole to use as many arrows as possible to trigger the effect, but that would be pointless. Unless one is incredible with the bow, shooting multiple arrows at once isn't feasible.

The five arrows struck a single target. With a 20% chance of completely freezing the enemy, the man who was hit froze solid, turning into an ice sculpture.

As he froze, another five arrows hit him.

Shatter!

The ice shattered, and the man's body broke apart.

[Your territory member: Snaya killed Levis (LV. 10) and gained 5,000 EXP!]

[Combatant Lan Sol received 1,000 EXP.]

The remaining man trembled in fear and attempted to run away. Just as he thought he was escaping, a pesky little goblin jumped out from behind and stabbed the back of his head with a spear, using his 'Superior Stab' skill.

The spear, with its 100% penetration effect, easily pierced the man's defense. Since Gol was a tier 2 Elite creature, despite being a lower level, he easily matched the man's strength.

The spear protruded from his forehead, but it didn't kill him.

[-300 HP!]

It was a critical hit, but the man was still alive. Somehow, he seemed to have protected his brain.

But as he tried to run ahead, his head was pierced by another spear with 100% penetration.

[-100 HP!]

The damage was only 100, as Gam was only an Elite creature.

Stab!

The arrows hit his head.

[-55 HP] *5.

Once again, the spear pierced his head.

[-300 HP!]

With that, the man was killed.

[Your territory member: Gol killed Ranis (LV. 10) and gained 5,000 EXP!]

[Combatant Lan Sol received 1,000 EXP.]

[Combatant Snaya received 1,000 EXP.]

[Combatant Gam received 1,000 EXP.]

With that, the group of five was slain by Lan Sol's party.

"Phew!" Lan Sol let out a breath of relief. He walked toward Elyris, who was still on the ground.

Her eyes were vacant as she stared at the head she held.

"Get up," Lan Sol ordered.

"I…" Elyris raised her head, her eyes filled with tears. "I…killed so ruthlessly. It's…" She wanted to explain, but she didn't know how to express her sudden bloodthirst.

"I understand." Lan Sol sighed and knelt down, gently patting her head.

"Huh." Elyris looked at him, shocked.

"It's okay," he said with a gentle smile.

Elyris's heart shook. "Is…Is it okay?" she asked. "Me…being bloodthirsty... Is it okay?"

"Yes. It's okay."

"I…Am I not scary? Am I not a monster?" Her body trembled as she recalled her experiences in war.

Because of her ruthlessness and bloodthirst, she had killed so many that even her allies had seen her as a monster.

"Of course not. How could a beautiful girl like you be a monster? Cheer up. Look, I have a gift for you."

Lan Sol pulled out a pendant. He had gotten it from the bandits and was planning to give it to Elyris but hadn't found the right time.

He had originally intended to give it to her at the territory.

"Really…" Tears spilled from her eyes as she stared at the pendant.

It was beautiful.

Lan Sol then placed the pendant around her neck. It suited her perfectly.

Elyris absentmindedly touched the pendant. A warm, pleasant feeling soared through her heart.

It was a pleasant feeling to be accepted.

At that moment, she didn't care what others thought. As long as she had someone who accepted her, that was enough.

Ba-dump!

Her heart pounded.

Right.

From now on, she would never care about anyone's thoughts. If others feared her, let them. If they called her a monster, let them.

As long as he… her lord, accepted her... that was enough.

[Due to your acceptance, Elyris's loyalty toward you has increased! Loyalty increased by 10!]

[Max loyalty reached! Earned title, 'Eternal Slave'!]

Her heart felt full, and she smiled.

Lan Sol smiled back. Her smile was truly beautiful.

Lan Sol couldn't help but feel mesmerized by her smile.

"Yayy!"

"Woah!"

"Big sister won!"

All the children jumped and exclaimed. Since there was no more threat, they all enjoyed watching the battle.

[Due to your party's strength, Sama's loyalty toward you has increased! Loyalty increased by 5!]

[Due to your party's strength, Sana's loyalty toward you has increased! Loyalty increased by 5!]

[Due to your party's strength, Ell's loyalty toward you has increased! Loyalty increased by 5!]

…

All the villagers' loyalty increased at once. Since they had all accepted his invitation to join his territory, they were already members.

Lan Sol was satisfied with the outcome. He walked over to the boy and the girl.

Ellie, with her eyes twinkling, watched him as he sat beside her.

"Bi-Big brother! You were amazing!" she exclaimed.

"You made the ice appear and attacked those bad guys! You were so cool!"

"I am cool," Lan Sol smiled, patting her head. Feeling pleasant, Ellie laid her head on his lap.

"Now, you two. Tell me your story." Lan Sol's gaze turned serious as he looked at the girl and the boy.

The girl had also woken up not long ago. She was still in awe of the display of skills she had witnessed.

Trembling slightly, she spoke. "We… We escaped from the Vile Society's stronghold."

____

Sorry, everyone, I've been a bit busy lately. I have a part-time job, and I also had exams in the past weeks. Not to mention, I had a bit of writer's block.

I hope you're enjoying the novel. I know I'm not that talented and my skills are limited, but I'm doing my best to improve. Please let me know your thoughts.

Since I'm somewhat free now, I'll try my best to write one chapter per day from tomorrow. So, please comment and donate me powerstones.

This novel won't be dropped!